Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves football

Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves football
First season	1891;135 years ago (1891)
Athletic director	Dwight Merilatt
Head coach	Jacob Donohoe 1st season, 0–0 (–)
Stadium	Abel Stadium (capacity: 2,500)
Location	Lincoln, Nebraska
NCAA division	Division III
Conference	ARC
All-time record	515–478–42 (.518)
Conference championships
22
Rivalries	Doane [1]
Colors	Gold and black [2]
Mascot	Prairie Wolves
Website	nwusports.com/football

The Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves football team represents Nebraska Wesleyan University in college football at the NCAA Division III level. The Prairie Wolves are members of the American Rivers Conference (ARC), fielding its team in the ARC since 2016 when it was named the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC). Nebraska Wesleyan plays home games at Abel Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska. ^[3] The team's head coach is Brian Keller, who took over the position for the 1996 season.

Nebraska Wesleyan's athletic teams were known as the Coyotes in the early 1900s. The nickname was changed to the Plainsmen in 1933 and then to the Prairie Wolves in 2000. ^{[4] [5]}

Conference affiliations

NAIA / pre-NCAA

• Nebraska Conference (1911–1915; rebranded, 1926–1927; rebranded)
• Nebraska Intercollegiate Conference (1916–1923)
• North Central Conference (1924–1925)
• Nebraska College Athletic Conference (1928–1942)
• Nebraska College Conference (1946–1961)
• Great Plains College Association (1963–1964)
• Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1970–1991; rebranded)
• Nebraska–Iowa Athletic Conference (1992–1999; rebranded)
• Great Plains Athletic Conference (2000–2015)

NCAA

• Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (2016–2017; rebranded)
• American Rivers Conference (2018–present)

Championships

Conference championships

Nebraska Wesleyan claims 22 conference titles, the most recent of which came in 2000.

Year	Conference	Overall record	Conference record	Coach
1911	Nebraska Conference	7–0	N/A	William G. Kline
1912		5–2–1	N/A
1913†		4–3–1	N/A
1914		7–1	N/A
1915		6–3	N/A
1918	Nebraska Intercollegiate Conference	2–3	N/A	William A. Norris
1920		6–2–2	4–0–1	Ray B. McCandless
1921		8–3	5–0
1925†	North Central Conference	6–0–2	3–0–1	Clarence L. Dow
1931	Nebraska College Athletic Conference	4–3–1	4–0–1	John D. Waldorf
1932†		4–3–1	4–0–1
1934		6–2–1	4–0	John E. Roberts
1947†	Nebraska College Conference	7–1–1	5–1–1	George "Bus" Knight
1963	Great Plains College Association	7–2	3–0	Raymond Westover
1964		7–1	3–0
1976†	Nebraska Intercollegiate Athletic Conference	6–3	4–1	Harold G. Chaffee
1983†		7–3	4–1	Orson Christensen
1986		7–3	5–0
1988		8–2	5–0	Jim Svoboda
1989		10–2	5–0
1990†		7–2	4–1
2000†	Great Plains Athletic Conference	8–3	6–2	Brian Keller

† Co-champions

Postseason games

NAIA playoff games

The Prairie Wolves have appeared in the NAIA playoffs four times with an overall record of 1–4.

Season	Coach	Playoff	Opponent	Result
1988	Jim Svoboda	First round	Evangel	L 14–45
1989		First round Quarterfinals	Chadron State Wisconsin–La Crosse	W 46–43 L 0–29
1991		First round	Peru State	L 20–41
2000	Brian Keller	First round	Northwestern Oklahoma State	L 13–40

Bowl games

Nebraska Wesleyan has participated in one bowl game, and has a record of 0–1.

Season	Coach	Bowl	Opponent	Result
1946	George Knight	Will Rogers Bowl	Pepperdine	L 13–38

List of head coaches

Key

Key to symbols in coaches list

General		Overall		Conference		Postseason [A 1]
No.	Order of coaches [A 2]	GC	Games coached	CW	Conference wins	PW	Postseason wins
DC	Division championships	OW	Overall wins	CL	Conference losses	PL	Postseason losses
CC	Conference championships	OL	Overall losses	CT	Conference ties	PT	Postseason ties
NC	National championships	OT	Overall ties [A 3]	C%	Conference winning percentage
†	Elected to the College Football Hall of Fame	O%	Overall winning percentage [A 4]

Coaches

List of head football coaches showing season(s) coached, overall records, conference records, postseason records, championships and selected awards

No.	Name	Season(s)	GC	OW	OL	OT	O%	CW	CL	CT	C%	PW	PL	PT	DC	CC	NC	Awards
1	Frank Crawford	1896	5	3	2	0	0.600	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
2	Charley Thomas [9]	1897	7	5	2	0	0.714	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
3	Zora Clevenger [10]	1908; 1910	9	2	7	0	0.222	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
4	William G. Kline [11]	1909; 1911–1917	62	37	19	6	0.645	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
5	William A. Norris	1918	5	2	3	0	0.400	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
6	Benjamin Beck [12]	1919	9	7	2	0	0.778	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
7	Ray McCandless [13]	1920–1922	29	17	9	3	0.638	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
8	Glenn Preston	1923–1924	17	8	5	4	0.588	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
9	Clarence Dow [14]	1925–1926	18	12	4	2	0.722	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
10	Howard Durham [15]	1927	9	0	8	1	0.056	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
11	Francis Alabaster [16]	1928–1929	18	5	10	3	0.361	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
12	John Waldorf [17]	1930–1932	25	14	9	2	0.600	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
13	John E. Roberts	1933–1934	18	9	7	2	0.556	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
14	George Farley [18]	1935; 1941–1942	27	13	11	3	0.537	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
15	Dwight Thomas	1936–1940	42	14	26	2	0.357	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
16	Allen Stroh	1945	5	3	2	0	0.600	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
17	George Knight [19]	1946–1949	37	24	9	4	0.703	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
18	Roy Roberston [20]	1950–1953	39	14	22	3	0.397	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
19	Keith Skogman [21]	1954–1959	56	21	32	3	0.402	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
20	Raymond Westover [22]	1960–1968	78	36	40	2	0.474	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
21	Harold Chaffee [23]	1969–1981	118	55	61	2	0.475	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
22	Orson Christensen [24]	1982–1986	49	29	20	0	0.592	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
23	Jim Svoboda [25]	1987–1993	71	51	20	0	0.718	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
24	Steve Stanard [26]	1994–1995	20	6	14	0	0.300	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
25	Brian Keller [27]	1996–2025	292	133	159	0	0.455	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–
26	Jacob Donohoe	2026–present	0	0	0	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–

Year-by-year results

National champions

Conference champions

Bowl game berth

Playoff berth

^[28]

Season	Year	Head coach	Association	Division	Conference	Record							Postseason	Final ranking
						Overall			Conference
						Win	Loss	Tie	Finish	Win	Loss	Tie
Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolves
1896	1896	Frank Crawford	–	–	–	3	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1897	1897	Charley Thomas				5	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
No team from 1888 to 1907
1908	1908	Zora Cleavenger	–	–	–	1	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1909	1909	William G. Kline				0	1	3	–	–	–	–	—	—
1910	1910	Zora Cleavenger				1	5	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1911	1911	William G. Kline			Nebraska	7	0	0	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1912	1912					5	2	1	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1913	1913					4	3	1	T-1st	–	–	–	Conference co-champions	—
1914	1914					7	1	0	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1915	1915					6	3	0	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1916	1916				NIC	5	4	1	2nd	–	–	–	—	—
1917	1917					3	5	0	3rd	–	–	–	—	—
1918	1918	William A. Norris				2	3	0	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1919	1919	Benjamin Beck				7	2	0	2nd	–	–	–	—	—
1920	1920	Ray B. McCandless				6	2	2	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1921	1921					7	3	0	1st	–	–	–	Conference champions	—
1922	1922					4	4	1	3rd	–	–	–	—	—
1923	1923	Glenn A. Preston				6	1	2	2nd	–	–	–	—	—
1924	1924				NCC	2	4	2	T-5th	1	2	0	—	—
1925	1925	Clarence L. Dow				6	0	2	1st	3	0	1	Conference champions	—
1926	1926				Nebraska	6	4	0	2nd	–	–	–	—	—
1927	1927	Howard Durham				0	8	1	13th	–	–	–	—	—
1928	1928	Francis Alabaster			NCAC	5	2	2	3rd	2	1	2	—	—
1929	1929					3	5	1	5th	2	3	0	—	—
1930	1930	John D. Waldorf				6	3		2nd	4	1	0	—	—
1931	1931					4	3	1	1st	4	0	1	Conference champions	—
1932	1932					4	3	1	T-1st	4	0	1	Conference co-champions	—
1933	1933	John E. Roberts				3	5	1	2nd	3	1	0	—	—
1934	1934					6	2	1	1st	4	0	0	Conference champions	—
1935	1935	George M. Farley				5	3	1	2nd	2	1	1	—	—
1936	1936	Dwight P. Thomas				5	3		2nd	3	1	0	—	—
1937	1937					2	5	1	4th	0	3	0	—	—
1938	1938					4	4	1	4th	1	2	1	—	—
1939	1939					2	7	0	4th	1	3	0	—	—
1940	1940		NAIA			1	7	0	4th	1	3	0	—	—
1941	1941	George M. Farley				2	6	1	3rd	2	2	0	—	—
1942	1942					6	2	1	2nd	3	1	0	—	—
No team from 1943 to 1944
1945	1945	Allen Stroh	NAIA	–	–	3	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1946	1946	George "Bus" Knight			NCC	7	0	3	2nd	4	0	2	Playoff berth	—
1947	1947					7	1	1	T-1st	5	1	1	Conference co-champions	—
1948	1948					6	3	0	2nd	5	2	0	—	—
1949	1949					4	5	0	T-4th	4	4	0	—	—
1950	1950	Roy B. Robertson				5	5	0	6th	4	3	0	—	—
1951	1951					2	8	0	6th	2	5	0	—	—
1952	1952					5	5	0	T-3rd	4	3	0	—	—
1953	1953					2	4	3	7th	1	4	2	—	—
1954	1954	Keith Skogman				3	6	1	6th	2	4	1	—	—
1955	1955					2	7	1	6th	2	4	1	—	—
1956	1956					3	7	0	5th	3	4	0	—	—
1957	1957					3	5	0	T-4th	3	4	0	—	—
1958	1958					5	4	0	4th	5	3	0	—	—
1959	1959					5	3	1	5th	4	3	1	—	—
1960	1960	Raymond Westover				0	8	0	7th	0	6	0	—	—
1961	1961					0	9	0	7th	0	6	0	—	—
1962	1962				–	2	4	2	–	–	–	–	—	—
1963	1963				GPCA	7	2	0	1st	3	0	0	Conference champions	—
1964	1964					7	1	0	1st	3	0	0	Conference champions	—
1965	1965				–	7	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1966	1966					7	2	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1967	1967					5	4	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1968	1968					1	8	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1969	1969	Harold G. Chaffee				5	4	0	–	–	–	–	—	—
1970	1970			Division II	NIAC	6	4	0	4th	2	3	0	—	—
1971	1971					7	2	0	T-2nd	3	2	0	—	—
1972	1972					4	5	0	4th	2	3	0	—	—
1973	1973					4	3	1	2nd	3	1	1	—	—
1974	1974					3	6	0	5th	1	4	0	—	—
1975	1975					5	5	0	4th	2	3	0	—	—
1976	1976					6	3	0	T-1st	4	1	0	Conference co-champions	—
1977	1977					2	7	0	T-4th	2	3	0	—	—
1978	1978					5	4	0	T-3rd	3	2	0	—	—
1979	1979					3	5	1	5th	1	3	1	—	—
1980	1980					3	6	0	T-3rd	2	3	0	—	—
1981	1981					2	7	0	5th	1	4	0	—	—
1982	1982	Orson Christensen				4	5	0	5th	2	3	0	—	—
1983	1983					7	3	0	T-1st	4	1	0	Conference co-champions	—
1984	1984					6	4	0	3rd	3	2	0	—	—
1985	1985					6	5	0	T-3rd	2	3	0	—	—
1986	1986					6	3	0	1st	5	0	0	Conference champions	—
1987	1987	James Svoboda				6	4	0	T-2nd	3	2	0	—	—
1988	1988					7	3	0	1st	5	0	0	Playoff berth	—
1989	1989					10	2	0	1st	5	0	0	Playoff berth	—
1990	1990					7	2	0	T-1st	4	1	0	Conference co-champions	—
1991	1991					8	3	0	2nd	4	1	0	Playoff berth	—
1992	1992					6	3	0	3rd	4	2	0	—	—
1993	1993					7	3	0	3rd	4	2	0	—	—
1994	1994	Steve Standard				3	7	0	5th	2	4	0	—	—
1995	1995					3	7	0	6th	2	4	0	—	—
1996	1996	Brian Keller				2	8	0	6th	1	5	0	—	—
1997	1997			–		5	5	0	T-3rd	4	4	0	—	—
1998	1998					6	4	0	4th	4	4	0	—	—
1999	1999					4	6	0	7th	1	5	0	—	—
2000	2000				GPAC	8	3	0	1st	6	2	0	Playoff berth	—
2001	2001					5	5	0	T-5th	3	5	0	—	—
2002	2002					6	4	0	T-5th	4	4	0	—	—
2003	2003					6	4	0	T-3rd	6	4	0	—	—
2004	2004					6	4	0	T-5th	6	4	0	—	—
2005	2005					5	5	0	5th	5	5	0	—	—
2006	2006					7	3	0	4th	7	3	0	—	—
2007	2007					7	3	0	4th	7	3	0	—	—
2008	2008					7	3	0	T-3rd	7	3	0	—	—
2009	2009		5			5	0	6th	5	5	0	—	—
2010	2010		4			6	0	7th	4	6	0	—	—
2011	2011		5			5	0	7th	4	5	0	—	—
2012	2012		6			4	0	T-4th	5	4	0	—	—
2013	2013		6			4	0	4th	6	3	0	—	—
2014	2014		4			6	0	T-6th	4	5	0	—	—
2015	2015		4			6	0	7th	3	6	0	—	—
2016	2016		NCAA	Division III	IIAC	4	6	0	T-5th	3	5	0	—	—
2017	2017					2	8	0	T-7th	2	6	0	—	—
2018	2018				A-R-C	3	7	0	7th	2	6	0	—	—
2019	2019					3	7	0	T-7th	1	7	0	—	—
2020–21	2020–21					0	1	0	T-6th	0	1	0	—	—
2021	2021					4	6	0	7th	2	6	0	—	—
2022	2022					1	9	0	9th	0	8	0	—	—
2023	2023					4	6	0	T–6th	2	6	0	—	—
2024	2024					3	7	0	T–6th	2	6	0	—	—
2024	2024					1	9	0	8th	1	7	0	—	—

Notes

1. Although the first Rose Bowl Game was played in 1902, it has been continuously played since the 1916 game, and is recognized as the oldest bowl game by the NCAA. "—" indicates any season prior to 1916 when postseason games were not played. ^[6]
2. A running total of the number of head coaches, with coaches who served separate tenures being counted only once. Interim head coaches are represented with "Int" and are not counted in the running total. "—" indicates the team played but either without a coach or no coach is on record. "X" indicates an interim year without play.
3. Overtime rules in college football were introduced in 1996, making ties impossible in the period since. ^[7]
4. When computing the win–loss percentage, a tie counts as half a win and half a loss. ^[8]

References

1. "Rivals NWU & Doane To Clash on Saturday". nwusports.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
2. "NWU trademarked logos and brand standards" . Retrieved March 27, 2023.
3. "Athletic Facilities | Nebraska Wesleyan University". www.nebrwesleyan.edu. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
4. "Nebraska Wesleyan Now "Plainsmen"". Decatur Herald . Decatur, Illinois. Associated Press. October 31, 1933. p. 4. Retrieved January 17, 2024– via Newspapers.com .
5. "Nebraska college changes mascot to Prairie Wolves". St. Joseph News-Press . St. Joseph, Missouri. Associated Press. October 9, 2000. p. 10. Retrieved December 15, 2019– via Newspapers.com .
6. National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) (2011). Bowl/All-Star Game Records (PDF). Indianapolis, Indiana: NCAA. pp. 5–10. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 5, 2011. Retrieved August 21, 2011.
7. Whiteside, Kelly (August 25, 2006). "Overtime system still excites coaches". USA Today. McLean, Virginia. Archived from the original on September 6, 2010. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
8. Finder, Chuck (September 6, 1987). "Big plays help Paterno to 200th". The New York Times. New York City. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved October 22, 2009.
9. "Clipped From Lincoln Journal Star". Lincoln Journal Star. November 2, 1897. p. 1. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
10. Huddle, Hoosier. "Hoosier Legacy Player: Halfback Zora Clevenger (1900-03)". Hoosier Huddle. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
11. Scott, Frank William (1918). The Semi-centennial Alumni Record of the University of Illinois. University of Illinois.
12. "Clipped From The Burlington Free Press". The Burlington Free Press. January 27, 1968. p. 8. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
13. Bethany College (1925). Bethanian, 1925. T. W. Phillips Memorial Library Bethany College. Bethany College.
14. "Clipped From Lincoln Journal Star". Lincoln Journal Star. August 20, 1955. p. 2. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
15. "Howard Adam Durham (1971) - Hall of Fame". Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
16. "Francis Alabaster (1972) - Hall of Fame". Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
17. "John Waldorf (1991) - Hall of Fame". University of Missouri Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
18. "George Farley instructor for aviation cadets Now stationed at Georgia U". Lincoln State Journal. June 20, 1943. Retrieved October 8, 2019– via NewspaperArchive.
19. "George Knight Obituary (2009) - Lincoln, NE - Lincoln Journal Star". Legacy.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
20. "Clipped From Lincoln Journal Star". Lincoln Journal Star. May 22, 1950. p. 9. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
21. jasondannelly (January 1, 2017). "Former Dana College Football Coach Kieth Skogman". Dana Football. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
22. "Raymond Westover (1971) - Hall of Fame". Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
23. "Harold Chaffee (1990) - Hall of Fame". Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
24. "50 years of coaching: Christensen joins Coupeville football staff". Whidbey News-Times. August 2, 2013. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
25. "Jim Svoboda (2013) - Hall of Fame". Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
26. Lyell, Kelly. "Former Colorado State defensive coordinator Steve Stanard takes same job at Wyoming". Fort Collins Coloradoan. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
27. Sjuts, Kevin. "Keller, Prairiewolves begin preseason practice". www.1011now.com. Retrieved March 25, 2023.
28. "Football Year by year (PDF)" (PDF). Nebraska Wesleyan University Athletics. Retrieved March 25, 2023.

External links

• Official website