In-State Tour: Pierce

2022 is the 19th year of the HuskerOnline In-State Tour. Every February since 2004, HuskerOnline profiles the top up-and-coming prospects in the state of Nebraska.

This year our In-State Tour was broken up into two events in Omaha and Lincoln as we profiled all the top prospects in the state.

Our next stop of the 2022 In-State Tour takes us to Pierce, where the Bluejays are led by 2023 Nebraska TE recruit Ben Brahmer.

2022 In-State Tour: Gretna | Elkhorn South | Omaha North | Elkhorn | Omaha Burke | Scottsbluff | Omaha Westside | Bellevue West | Omaha Central | Creighton Prep

Head coach: Mark Brahmer

2021 record: 10-3 (Class C-1 runner-ups)

Season rewind: "Well, all in all, looking at, it was a great year. We had to fight through some adversity, some injuries, which is not uncommon. Between our senior class and our junior class, and we had some sophomores contribute, we ended up putting together a pretty good team that made a run at the end. We got healthy at the right time, we were beaten up about midway through the season for about three or four games stretch, we were missing some key guys. That really actually was to our advantage, because then we had other guys that had to step up and gain some valuable experience in some really tough games, and learned a lot of valuable lessons. Then when we got guys back from injury, we were deeper, we had created more depth.

"Unfortunately, we didn't finish it the way we wanted to against Columbus Lakeview. A team that we had beaten earlier in the season, but they were a very well-coached team, senior-laden, a lot of experience, kids who had been playing for a lot of years. The ball didn't bounce our way that much that day. Sometimes that happens and we weren't able to get over the hump. Their kids played really well."

Mark Brahmer's take on TE Benjamin Brahmer: "It's a great experience being able to coach him. Hopefully, he feels the same way. I'm pretty hard on him, I've got to be, but we're very thankful for the opportunity that he's got coming up. We always talked about just taking care of what you can control. Right now he's got to control the track season this spring for himself, and then next year as a football, basketball, and track star again in his senior year. We look forward to that experience, we were hopeful he would get some opportunities. I'll be honest with you, Scott Frost has been very important for the recruitment of kids in the state of Nebraska. 10 years ago, we didn't see that.

"Steve Warren at the Warren Academy in Omaha where Ben has spent some time working on his individual football skills has been very integral in the advancement of and the promotion of high school football in the State of Nebraska and high school football players. Prior to that, we had good coaches at Nebraska. Before Scott (Frost), I don't know if they really thought that Nebraska kids could play at a level that they need to. That was proven a lot of years ago under Tom Osborne, before that Bob Devaney.

"We're thankful that everything has fallen in a place like it has. Ben's job is to get himself better and better so that he can have a good spring track season and a good senior season.

"He's got a big body. One thing you really don't notice about him, he's a lot longer than I was at his age. The width of his hips are a lot wider than what a lot of tall kids have. I think he's easily going to be able to carry 250 to 255 pounds and still be able to run fluently like he does as well as jump as well as he does too."

Benjamin Brahmer's take: "It's been pretty simple just getting to work and getting better, making myself better. There's been quite a few new commits in my class. I've been talking to them. Gunnar (Gottula), Sam Sledge and then there's two other ones that we chat, we talk to each other, keep in touch.

"Moving forward, I want to work on my speed. I want to get faster and quicker. Put a little bit more weight on. I would like to be at 225-230 when I get there."

Recruiting: Brahmer has been committed to Nebraska since Apr. 2 of 2021. He plans to attend NU's Friday Night Lights Camp again this summer still.

By the numbers: Brahmer was a first-team All-Nebraska selection as a junior, hauling in 63 catches for 1,114 yards and 13 touchdowns. In track as a sophomore, he ran 15.7 in the 110-meter high hurdles, 41.64 in the 300-meter hurdles and 51.8 in the 400 meters.

Brahmer runs 4.8 seconds in the 40-yard dash and jumps a 32-inch vertical. Over the last year, he's added 15 pounds to his frame. In the classroom, he's a 3.64 student.

Mark Brahmer's take on QB Abram Scholting: "I think he's one of the top three or four quarterbacks in the state of Nebraska, any class. People don't realize that, but he's thrown for 55 touchdowns or 56 touchdowns in the last two seasons combined. Last year, he threw for just under 2,300 yards and for over 1,700 as a sophomore.

"His completion percentage is in the mid-sixties with very few interceptions. He athletically and intellectually is the best quarterback I've seen at the high school level. Plus he's a good leader too. He has an uncanny ability to be able to-- Most high school kids, if you give them a read progression, that can go from one to two maybe, he can go from one to two to three. There's times where he's finding the fourth guy in the progression because he can remember where everybody's supposed to be.

"He does a great job of reading defenses. He's been trained as a quarterback with some high-level quarterback gurus since he's been in third and fourth grade. I'll be honest with you, I think he's a Division I or FCS level quarterback. He's a great player. People think maybe he's just a quarterback. Well, he's a very good defensive back for us. Then on our basketball team, he's our point guard.

"He averaged about 15 or 16 points this year. He's a tremendous golfer on our golf team. Just a good athlete, and a great kid, good student, just under a 3.8 GPA type guy. He's the best-kept secret state of Nebraska. I think whoever takes him, whoever gets him, I should say is going to be pleasantly surprised that he could be a guy who could be a multi-year starter at the collegiate level as well."

Scholting's take: "It was a great year. We had to step up. We had one of our best guys go down with a torn ACL, so we all had to come together as a team and just work hard to push each other every day. We were really green. I think all of our linemen were juniors. We just had to push each other and we all just had to learn together and grow together."

Recruiting: Scholting is being recruited by North Dakota State, South Dakota State, St. Thomas and Augustana.

By the numbers: As a junior, Scholting was a first-team All-State selection by three different publications. He completed 117-of-181 passes for 2,265 yards, 30 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. On the ground, he rushed for 500 yards and four touchdowns.

As a sophomore, he completed 87-of-150 passes for 1,721 yards, 25 touchdowns and seven interceptions.

Scholting also is a standout basketball player and golfer for the Bluejays. He carries a 3.79 GPA in the classroom.

Mark Brahmer's take on OL Dawson Raabe: "Dawson is a really good athlete. People don't realize this, but when he was playing our youth flag football league, which we've had for about the last 10 or 11 years, he was a quarterback. Great hands, really smart, really instinctive, great feet. Most big guys like him who are really strong and really big can't move the way he does. He actually had been a basketball guy up until this year and our wrestling coaches talked him into going out for wrestling.

"He had never wrestled before in his life. He ended up being a state qualifier this year and doing a lot of great things there. He dropped about 30 pounds of weight. He's a lot more mobile and agile right now. I see him having a great year. He aspires to play at the next level too. I think he's at least a Division II guy, if not an FCS guy."

Recruiting: Raabe is being recruited by both South Dakota State and Augustana.

By the numbers: As a junior, Raabe was a first-team All-State selection. He finished the year with 61 total tackles, four sacks and three tackles for loss. In the weight room, he benches 315 pounds and squats 450.

He carries a 3.8 GPA in the classroom.

Mark Brahmer's take on RB Keenan Valverde: "He's a really quick talented athlete for a Sophomore. He's benched close to 250. Squats a full squat over 400. He'll probably run in the low 11s this year and the 100. You put him in a phone booth with you and I, and we're not catching him because he's that quick. He played this past year in the backfield behind two really good solid seniors who are bigger, stronger guys. He's going to be our secret weapon coming out out of the gates here this next year."

By the numbers: Look for Valverde to be a break-out back in Class C-1 this season. He ran 11.2 seconds in the 100-meter dash as a freshman and has been clocked at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He's a 3.63 student in the classroom.