Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic Records
(many thanks to Greg Warneke, our official statistician)
Team Records
Series Record – Red 4 wins – White 6 wins
Most Yards Rushing – Red – 260 – 2014
Most Yards Passing – Red – 423 – 2018
Most Total Yards – Red – 513 – 2018
Most First Downs – White – 23 – 2016
Most Points – White – 49 – 2016
Most Total Points Combined – 75 – 2018
Most Passes Attempted – White – 43 – 2014
Most Passes Completed – White – 23 – 2018
Most Pass Interceptions – White – 3 – 2019, 2021
Most Fumbles Recovered – White – 2 – 2017
Red – 2 – 2019
Individual Records
Longest Rushing TD – Taggart Bailey – Pierce – Red – 31 – 2016
Longest Passing TD – Bryce Kerkman – West Holt – Red – 81 – 2018
Longest TD Reception – Mason Lee – Wayne – Red – 81 – 2018
Most Yards Rushing – Noah Scott – Randoph – Red – 154 – 2019
Most Yards Passing – Alex Thramer – O’Neill – White – 348 – 2018
Most Carries – Noah Scott – Randolph – Red – 34 – 2019
Most Passes Completed – Alex Thramer – O’Neill – White – 23 – 2018
Most Pass Receptions – Mason Lee – Wayne – Red – 10 – 2018
Most Yards Receiving – Mason Lee – Wayne – Red – 275 – 2018
Most Receiving Touchdowns – Mason Lee – Wayne – Red – 3 – 2018
Most Rushing Touchdowns – Karter Kerkman – Norfolk Catholic – Red – 3 – 2023
Most Passing Touchdowns – Gunner Fuelberth – Norfolk – White – 5 – 2016
Longest Kickoff Return – Grant Meyer – Logan View – White – 45 yds – 2017
Longest Punt Return – Sutton Pohlman – Stanton – White – 42 yds – 2021
Most Interceptions – Sutton Pohlman – Stanton – White -2 – 2021
Longest Interception Return – Ty Martinsen – Riverside – 51 yds – 2019
Most PAT’s –Quinton Heineman – Pender – Red – 6 – 2023
Most FG’s – Devan Roth – Pierce – Red – 2 – 2019
Connor Clayton – Norfolk – White – 2 – 2019
Longest FG – Devan Roth – Pierce – Red – 46 yds – 2019
Longest Punt – Peyton Mathews – O’Neill – White – 58 yds – 2021
Most Tackles – Jared Janssen – Crofton – Red – 13 – 2018
Awards
2013
Honorary Coin Toss – Glen Blakeman
Red Team Best Teammate: Nate Meier
White Team Best Teammate: Jake Werner
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game: Nate Rogers
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game: Riley Knake
White Team Offensive Player of the Game: Travis Wright
White Team Defensive Player of the Game: Cody Merchant
2014
Lifetime Achievement Award – Bob Schnitzler
Lifetime Contributor Award – Denny Fuehrer
Honorary Coin Toss – Clete Blakeman
Red Team Best Teammate: Caleb Lienemann
White Team Best Teammate: Cody Carlson
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game: Jackson Love
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game: Taylor Kathol
White Team Offensive Player of the Game: Tyler Hedlund
White Team Defensive Player of the Game: Landen Thieman
2015
Lifetime Achievement Award – LaMarr Gibson
Lifetime Contributor Award – Don Kraemer
Honorary Coin Toss – Jack Guggenmos
Red Team Best Teammate: Dylan Loberg
White Team Best Teammate: Louis de Jager
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game: Tayib Toussaint
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game: Wyatt Tremayne
White Team Offensive Player of the Game: Zach Bellar
White Team Defensive Player of the Game: Zac Glidden
2016
Lifetime Achievement Award – Arnie Johnson
Lifetime Contributor Award – Mark Ahmann
Honorary Coin Toss – Russ Hochstein
Red Team Best Teammate – Cade Kalkowski
White Team Best Teammate – Drew Lanman
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Taggart Bailey
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Gunnar Fuelberth
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Lane Walton
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Andy Kerkman
2017
Lifetime Achievement Award – Jeff Bellar
Lifetime Contributor Awards – Ray Doerr and Jim Paige
Honorary Coin Toss – Dr. Jim Tenopir
Red Team Best Teammate – Caleb Sullivan
White Team Best Teammate – Cooper Von Seggern
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Jason Wieseler
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Devin Denker
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Sam Morrill
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Jason Hahlbeck
2018
Lifetime Achievement Award – Chuck Ross
Lifetime Contributor Award – Mike Fuehrer
Honorary Coin Toss – Jeff Bellar
Red Team Best Teammate – Dalton Tremayne
White Team Best Teammate – Stone Craft
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Mason Lee
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Alex Thramer
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Kelby Schaefer
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – MJ Montgomery
2019
Lifetime Achievement Award – Bill Mimick
Lifetime Contributor Award – Tim Brogan
Honorary Coin Toss – Joe Glenn
Red Team Best Teammate – Brad Tomasek
White Team Best Teammate – Connor Clayton
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Noah Scott
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – BenVander Griend
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Kyle Smith
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Ty Martinsen
2021
Lifetime Achievement Award – Rod Brummels
Lifetime Contributor Award – Randy Hagedorn and Joe Tjaden
Honorary Coin Toss – Tom Olson
Red Team Best Teammate – Reid Korth
White Team Best Teammate – Mason Walsh
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Nick Arenas
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Sutton Pohlman
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Garrett Boelter
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Caden Nelson
2022
Lifetime Achievement Award – Dr. Jon Cerny
Lifetime Contributor Award – Phyllis and Don Wood
Honorary Coin Toss – Jay Bellar
Red Team Best Teammate – Jon Munoz
White Team Best Teammate – Kamden Dusatko
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Tanner Walling
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Parker Krusemark
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Charlie Schroeder
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Agustus Gomez
2023
Lifetime Achievement Award – Tom Olson
Lifetime Contributor Award – Jay Bellar
Honorary Coin Toss – Bill Busch
Red Team Best Teammate – Abram Scholting
White Team Best Teammate – Drew Beeson
Red Team Offensive Player of the Game – Karter Kerkman
White Team Offensive Player of the Game – Aiden Kuester
Red Team Defensive Player of the Game – Jay Steffen
White Team Defensive Player of the Game – Carson Bloom
OFFENSIVE STATS
WHITE TEAM
White Rushing Carries Yards TD
Aiden Kuester 14 78 1 18 yards
Trevor Thompson 6 28
Jackson Wemhoff 7 24
Cale Kinney 3 16
Carson Bloom 1 13
LJ McNeill 3 10
Drew Beeson 1 1
White Receiving Receptions Yards TD
Will Hamer 5 51 1 5 yards
Elliot Nottlemann 6 50
Cale Kinney 2 20
Carter Werner 1 11
Jackson Wemhoff 1 7
Jaden Kosch 1 7
White Passing Completions Attempts Yards TD INT
Aiden Kuester 16 29 146 1 1
Extra Points Attempts Made
Jake Licking 2 2
Field Goals Attempts Made
Jake Licking 1 0
Punting Punts Yards
Will Hamer 1 57
Kickoffs Kicks Yards
Jake Licking 1 60
Punt Returns Returns Yards
Kick Returns Yards
Trevor Thompson 3 73
Carson Bloom 5 67
Kendrick Schroeder 1 1
Interceptions 0
Fumble Recoveries Number Return Yards
Drew Beeson 1 0
Penalties 0 -0 yards
First Downs 17
Rushing Yards 170
Passing Yards 146
Total Yards 316
Fumbles 0
RED TEAM
Red Rushing Carries Yards TD
Karater Kerkman 12 109 3 2-29-5 yards
Kanyon Talton 9 44
Avery Overfelt 4 33 1 5 yards
Lane Heimes 4 18
Alex Phelps 2 15
Quinton Heineman 1 8
Abram Scholting 1 6
Sedjro Agoumba 1 2
Asher McCart 1 2
Red Receiving Receptions Yards TD
Sedjro Agoumba 3 99 1 46 yards
Grant Arens 2 39
Mason Timmerman 1 29
Jaxson Bernecker 1 21 1 21 yards
Carson Arens 1 11
Alex Phelps 1 9
Daniel Judd 1 8
Red Passing Completions Attempts Yards TD INT
Abram Scholting 10 12 216 2 0
Extra Points Attempts Made
Quinton Heineman 6 6
Field Goals Attempts Made
Punting Punts Yards
Jaxson Bernecker 1 20
Kickoffs Kicks Yards
Quinton Heineman 5 235
Karter Kerkman 4 197
Punt Returns Returns Yards
Kick Returns Returns Yards
Interceptions Number Return Yards
Brandon Bartos 1 0
Fumble Recoveries Number Return Yards
Penalties 2-10 yards
First Downs 20
Rushing Yards 237
Passing Yards 216
Total Yards 453
Fumbles 0
DEFENSIVE STATS
White | Tackles | Interceptions | |
Drew Beeson | 8 | ||
Jestin Bayer | 7 | ||
Carson Bloom | 7 | ||
Jackson Bos | 5 | ||
Jason Claussen | 5 | ||
Alex Vinson | 5 | ||
Kamren Lingenfelter | 4 | ||
August Scholting | 4 | ||
Tanner Frahm | 3 | ||
Eli Hintz | 3 | ||
Jacob Ottis | 3 | ||
Kayden Kettler | 3 | ||
Aandy Dominguez | 3 | ||
Diego Gastelum | 3 | ||
Payton Novak | 2 | ||
Trevor Weitzenkamp | 2 | ||
Klayton Kleffner | 2 | ||
Kendrick Schroeder | 1 | ||
Andrew Kotik | 1 | ||
Jaden Kosch | 1 | ||
Red | Tackles | Interceptions | |
Carson Arens | 8 | ||
Jaxson Claussen | 7 | ||
Jay Steffen | 6 | ||
Daniel Judd | 6 | ||
Sutton Ehlers | 6 | ||
Alex Phelps | 5 | 1 | 0 yards |
Josh Wattier | 5 | ||
Jaxson Bernecker | 4 | ||
Evan Keller | 4 | ||
Avery Overfelt | 4 | ||
Michael Hamilton | 4 | ||
Lane Heimes | 3 | ||
Asher McCart | 3 | ||
Cameron Borgmann | 3 | ||
Ty Tramp | 3 | ||
Mason Timmerman | 3 | ||
Jake Rath | 3 | ||
Mason Topp | 3 | ||
Dawson Raabe | 2 | ||
Braxton Volk | 2 | ||
Evan Glaser | 2 | ||
Grant Arens | 2 | ||
Carter Meier | 1 | ||
Sedjro Agoumba | 1 | ||
Colton Sanderson | 1 | ||
Brody Koopman | 1 | ||
Paxton Bartles | 1 |
Kerkman breaks scoring record as Red rushes past White
By Nick Benes
Norfolk Daily News
In the 10-year history of the Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic, 24 players had rushed for one touchdown. None had rushed for two or more.
Norfolk Catholic graduate Karter Kerkman and the Red team needed less than a half to take care of that anomaly.
Kerkman ran for three first-half touchdowns to set a new Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic record, and the Red team rolled past the White squad 42-14 in the 10th annual exhibition played Saturday at Memorial Field in Norfolk.
“It feels pretty good,” Kerkman said of breaking the record. “But I can’t take all the credit there, because we had a great offensive line that was working hard all week to learn a new scheme, and they blocked it really well today, and we had other guys on the team who were making plays to get us close to the end zone. I was the one who got to get in.”
Kerkman was right. Nine different players on his team had at least one rushing attempt, and seven caught at least one pass. It added up to the Red team rolling up 447 yards of total offense — 227 rushing and 220 passing.
Pierce’s Abram Scholting completed 10 of 13 passes, with three of those going to Wayne’s Sedjro Agoumba for 98 yards.
“We really tried to shove about a month of football in the five days, and that’s not easy to do. … Our guys worked hard, they were attentive all week, and I’m really proud of their effort,” said Mark Brahmer of Pierce, the Red team head coach. “They’re a group that I’d love to keep for about two to three months. I think they could really become a good team. So, in five days, they did a tremendous job.”
One advantage for Brahmer and his team was that he got to coach four of his players — Scholting, along with linemen Schuyler Simpson, Carter Meier and Dawson Raabe. Those four played a big role in helping the team learn the offensive and defensive schemes.
“Those guys were really able to help teach through the week the other offensive linemen, and they were the example that I used when we were doing defensive drills, and the other guys caught on and really did a great job,” Brahmer said.
The White team still averaged almost 5 yards a carry with 184 rushing yards on 37 carries, and Aiden Kuester of Neligh-Oakdale went 16 of 29 passing for 147 yards and a score.
“We had a great week of practice, and it would have been nice to win, but the thing that makes you feel good is that the kids enjoyed the week,” said Greg Wemhoff of Elgin Public/Pope John, the White team head coach. “We would have liked to win the football game, but that team we’re playing, they had some kids who were great football players, and obviously coach Brahmer and his staff had them well-prepared.”
The dagger came with 20 seconds left in the first half, when Scholting hit Agoumba for a 46-yard strike and a 28-7 lead that it took into halftime.
It appeared that there might not have much of a chance to score one final time in the first half after a 57-yard punt by Will Hamer of Battle Creek pinned the Red team at its own 18 with 1:09 left and no timeouts. That punt was 1 yard away from the record 58-yard boot by Peyton Mathews of O’Neill just two years ago.
But Scholting and company went right to work. After two Kerkman runs netted 15 yards, Scholting heaved it up to Grant Arens of Hartington Cedar Catholic, who came back to the ball for an 11-yard catch. Scholting spiked it with 34 seconds left, found Carson Arens of Hartington Cedar Catholic for a 10-yard gain, and then hit the scoring play.
Scholting stepped back and waited for Agoumba, who made a leaping catch in front of a defender and scampered in for a touchdown to polish off the textbook two-minute drill.
“I told some of the guys on the sidelines that, if we got the ball back, we’re going to go score because we’ve got a lot of weapons,” Scholting said. “I live for those moments. I was pretty excited. I just enjoy being in those situations and make the best of it.”
Avery Overfelt of Homer added a touchdown run in the third quarter for a 35-7 lead, and Jaxson Bernecker of Hartington Cedar Catholic caught a 21-yard scoring pass from Scholting with 4:39 left to cap the game’s scoring. In between, Hamer caught a short touchdown pass from Kuester.
Kerkman appeared on pace to break the game’s rushing yardage record, too. He had 110 in the first half, but suffered a knee injury on his first carry of the second half and did not return. Kerkman was still selected as the Red team’s offensive MVP with 112 yards and three touchdowns on 12 carries.
The Red team’s defensive MVP was Jay Steffen of Hartington Cedar Catholic, who sacked Kuester late in the first quarter to help force a turnover on downs.
“It was great,” Steffen said. “The experience was fun, being able to control and contain that great group of offensive players. That’s really special.”
THE GAME appeared on pace for a shootout for both teams early on.
The White team received, and Kuester connected on four-straight passes, including a 22-yard strike to Cale Kinney of Elgin Public/Pope John, and then Kuester took a quarterback draw 18 yards for a touchdown on third-and-8.
“I think that everyone was just pretty fired up,” Kuester said. “We all knew the other team had some studs on their team, so we were just having fun and letting it fly.”
The Red team roared back with a 10-play, 80-yard drive that included a 34-yard pass from Scholting to Grant Arens that put the Red team at the 19. Five plays later, Kerkman plunged in from the 2.
The White team came up empty the rest of the first half. It was held to just 38 yards in the entire second quarter, while the Red team scored three touchdowns.
The first turning point in favor of the Red team was an interception by Alex Phelps of Wayne. The Red team converted a third-and-inches, and on the next play, Scholting rolled right and threw left to Agoumba for a 29-yard play. Kerkman then took off down his own sideline on the next play for a 29-yard touchdown run.
A failed fourth down stopped the White team on its next possession again, and the Red team again took advantage with an 11-play drive that featured 10 rushes, capped by Kerkman’s 5-yarder up the middle for a 21-7 lead with 2:30 left in the first half, and the defense’s three-and-out led to the Red’s final first-half possession.
“It was just an honor to coach guys like these,” Wemhoff said. “They’re kids who are leaders in their school … they want to come here and they want to do football. It’s just fun. I mean, it was a joyful week. I enjoyed every moment of coaching them.”
Game notes:
* Kerkman wasn’t the only individual to set a game record. Quinton Heineman of Pender successfully made all six of his extra-point kicks, breaking the previous record of five set in 2016 by Aaron Wilken of Norfolk High.
* It was the first win for the Red team since a 14-7 triumph in 2017, and the highest-scoring contest since the White’s 40-35 victory in 2018. Until Saturday, the 2018 game was the most points the Red team had scored in an all-star game.
* The White team had won the previous four, and six out of the last seven since the Red team won each of the first two contests.
Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic
Red 7 21 7 7 — 42
White 7 0 0 7 — 14
Scoring summary
FIRST QUARTER
W: Aiden Kuester (N-O) 18 run, Jake Licking (NOR) kick, 9:02.
R: Karter Kerkman (NC) 2 run, Quinton Heineman (PEN) kick, 5:05.
SECOND QUARTER
R: Kerkman 29 run, Heineman kick, 10:26.
R: Kerkman 5 run, Heineman kick, 2:30.
R: Sedjro Agoumba (WAY) 46 pass from Abram Scholting (PIE), Heineman kick, 0:20.
THIRD QUARTER
R: Avery Overfelt (HOM) 5 run, Heineman kick, 2:28.
FOURTH QUARTER
W: Will Hamer (BC) 5 pass from Kuester, Licking kick, 9:02.
R: Jaxson Bernecker (HCC) 21 pass from Scholting, Heineman kick, 4:39.