FOREST CITY, Iowa – Two streaks continued on Saturday (Sept. 27) as Concordia University, Nebraska Football kept up its winning ways and the skid for Waldorf was extended with another blowout decision. While making their first ever appearance in Forest City, Iowa, the 21st-ranked Bulldogs accumulated 31 second-quarter points in rolling the Warriors by a 54-0 final score. In the process of pitching a shutout, the defense forced three turnovers. In addition, Gideon Stark threw three touchdown passes and four Concordia players found the end zone.
Off a bye, Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad improved to 3-0 on the season, pushing the NAIA’s second longest active win streak to eight. The margin of victory was the largest for the program in a shutout win since defeating Briar Cliff 56-0 in 2016.
“It was really good to see some of the guys we hadn’t seen play in games yet have opportunities today,” Daberkow said. “I’m glad we had the opportunities we did. It took us longer than we wanted to get going, but once we got going, we didn’t punt for a while. Our defense really stifled the run, which eliminated a lot for them. I’m just really proud of the effort.”
To top off the rout, kicker Peyton Atwood even broke a school record by drilling a 50-yard field goal in the third quarter (previous standard was 47 yards by Kenny Zoeller in 2011). Atwood was one of three Bulldogs to connect on a field goal as the lead ballooned beyond 50 late in the third quarter. The onslaught came after a slow start that saw Concordia punt on its first two possessions. The seal broke when Stark found Adam Van Cleave for a 14-yard scoring strike at the 1:52 mark of the opening quarter.
The Bulldogs piled on as Stark also delivered first-half touchdown tosses of 16 yards to Van Cleave and 26 yards to Max Bartels. A 64-yard hookup from Stark to Van Cleave set up the game’s first touchdown. Stark wound up 11-of-19 for 223 yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers or sacks. After missing the win over Dakota Wesleyan, Van Cleave returned to snag six receptions for 121 yards and two scores. On the ground, it was a career day for Sassaman, who grinded out 125 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries.
On the other side of the ball, Waldorf (0-5, 0-5 GPAC) found no traction as it averaged 1.9 yards per play (104 total yards) and managed just six first downs on the afternoon. Furthermore, the Warriors punted nine times and turned it over three times. On one attempted punt, a bad snap resulted in a touchdown for All-American safety Daylon Henson, who jumped on the ball in the end zone. After the contest, Daberkow shouted out Tanner Frahm for coming through with an interception and Kaden Thompson for forcing and recovering a fumble. Grant Huss led the team with eight tackles while Henson was credited with three stops for loss.
The lopsided nature of the contest allowed the Bulldogs to showcase the entire varsity roster. Camden Jensen relieved Stark and threw 15 times and recorded 38 passing yards. Eight different Concordia receivers caught a pass. In teaming up with Van Cleave, Bartels hauled in five passes for 73 yards. A native of Wahoo, Neb., Sassaman scored on runs of two and 35 yards. He is the Bulldogs’ first back this season to eclipse 100 yards in a game.
Said Daberkow, “You saw what happens when we have more of our arsenal at our disposal. Having Van Cleave back gave us some juice for sure. Seeing the progress that Gideon Stark has made and our offensive line protecting has been incredibly encouraging. It gives me a lot of confidence moving into the next stretch of our season. I’m excited to see guys execute.”
In addition to the 50-yard field goal, Atwood also converted from 26 yards out. Meanwhile, John Fehlhafer booted a 25-yarder and Ashton Gazga put through a 36-yarder. At punter, Braxtyn Koch pinned the Warriors inside the 20 on two of his three attempts.
The Warriors continue to seek their first win since becoming a member of the GPAC. One of the few bright spots on Saturday for Waldorf was that it hung within seven points through the first quarter before the wheels came off. Concordia has defeated the Warriors by a combined 99-7 over the past two years.
The Bulldogs will be back on the road next Saturday when they head to Yankton, S.D. Concordia and Mount Marty (3-1, 2-1 GPAC) are slated to kick off at 1 p.m. CT from Crane-Youngworth Field. The Bulldogs have won each of the four meetings with the Lancers since Mount Marty’s first season of football in 2021.