24 Days Until Gameday – Day #70 Pierce County, Nebraska

[HuskerInCarolina]

We have 24 days until our first game of the 2026-2027 football season against the Ohio Bobcats on 9/5/2026.
Yesterday we looked at Phelps County, Nebraska.

https://www.on3.com/boards/threads/...–-day-69-nice-phelps-county-nebraska.8926172/

Pierce County, Nebraska

• Established in 1859 and named for President Franklin Pierce.
• License plate prefix #40.
• The county seat is Pierce and the largest city in the county.
• Pierce County is part of the Norfolk Micropolitan area.
• Pierce County was settled by German Lutheran immigrants, some of which came from Norfolk.
• The north fork of the Elkhorn River flows through the county.
• The county is approximately 575 square miles.
• The population is ~7,400 (2025) and has been decreasing since 1930.
• Pierce was also named after President Pierce.
• Wee Town was a stopping point along Route 81 with a service station, a tavern, and a café as the primary sources of income for the town. In the late 70s, new interstates were built which took the traffic a different direction through the region and the community dwindled.
• Breslau was founded by German immigrants and named after Wroclaw, Poland (at the time it was Prussia).
• Hadar was founded by German immigrants.
• Hadar is derived from a German word meaning “strife” or “discord’. It got its name because the German settlers could not agree on where to settle.
• Plainview was originally named Roseville but changed to Plainview after 3 years.
• Plainview is known as the Klown Kapital of the world and is home to an annual Klown Festival every June. There is also a Klown Doll museum with over 4,500 pieces on display.
• Plainview still has 2 Sears Catalog homes being lived in.
• Willow Creek State Recreation Area is a state park popular for boating, fishing, and camping. The park has over 100 RV campsites and an equestrian campground with 10 campsites. There are also 10 miles of hiking and biking trails.
• The Gilman Park Arboretum is a 14-acre park featuring 647 woody plants, 243 different varieties of trees and shrubs, and more than 80 different varieties of grasses.
• Hadar Hay Days is an annual community celebration sponsored by the Hadar Volunteer Fire & Rescue Department that features a parade, games, cookout, and social events and activities.
• The Pierce County Fair takes place every year in July and has been a beloved tradition for numerous years, bringing together families and friends to celebrate the best of the community and agriculture with a variety of events, from livestock shows to carnival rides

Former Huskers and Spotlights (years are letterman years)
According to University of Nebraska-Lincoln records, there have been 8 letterman football players from Pierce County, NE.


Tim Demerath – S 2001, Plainview, NE.

• 6’1” 215lb rover wearing #32.
• Played at Nebraska in 2000-2001, lettering in 2001.

Bob Ligenfelter – T 1974-1976, Plainview, NE.

• 6’7” 275lb tackle wearing #70.
• All-State player out of Plainview HS for Coach Roger Stafford.
• Played at Nebraska from 1972-1976, lettering from 1974-1976.
• 2x All-Big Eight
• 1976 All-American
• Selected in the 7th round of the 1977 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns.
• Played 3 years in the NFL.
• Nebraska Football Hall of Fame member.
• Plainview High School Hall of Fame member.
• A member of Bob Devaney’s last recruiting class.
• Passed away in 2025 at 70 years old. His obituary was beautifully written.

Luke Lingenfelter – OL 2011, Plainview, NE.

• 6’4” 280lb offensive lineman wearing #75.
• All-State player and state champion out of Plainview HS.
• Nephew of Bob Lingenfelter.
• Played at Nebraska from 2007-2011, lettering in 2011.
• Played in 2 games at Nebraska on the offensive line.
• 2011 Academic All-Big Ten.

Newton Lingenfelter – OL 2005, Plainveiw, NE.

• 6’5” 280lb offensive lineman wearing #74.
• All-State player out of Plainview HS for Coach Dean Boyer and Coach Bob Green.
• Son of Bob Lingenfelter.
• Played at Nebraska from 2002-2006, lettering in 2005.
• Former walk-on player who earned a scholarship his senior year.
• Played in 4 games at Nebraska on the offensive line.

Tim McCrady – WB 1978-1980, Plainview, NE.

• 5’9” 170lb wingback wearing #24.
• All-State player out of Plainview HS.
• Plainview High School Hall of Fame member.
• Played at Nebraska from 1977-1980, lettering from 1978-1980.
• Played in 33 games at Nebraska finishing with 23 carries for 143 yards and 18 catches for 268 yards and 2 TDs. His all-purpose stats were 41 touches for 411 yards (10.0 yards per touch) and 2 TDs.
• Passed away in 2003 at 45 years old after a battle with cancer.

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

Matt Herian – TE 2002-2006, Pierce, NE.

• 6’5” 245lb tight end wearing #11.
• 3x All-State player out of Pierce HS for Coach Mark Brahmer.
• Played at Nebraska from 2002-2006, lettering from 2002-2004 and 2006.
• 3x All-Big 12
• Set Nebraska Freshman record for season receiving yards with 301.
• Set Nebraska single game tight end reception record with 8.
• Played in 47 games at Nebraska, starting 33.
• Finished his career with 65 catches for 1,243 yards and 12 TDs.

Mike Zierke – DT 1983-1984, Pierce, NE.

• 6’3” 240lb defensive tackle wearing #78.
• Walked on at Nebraska from 1980-1984, lettering in 1983 and 1984.
• Rotated on the defensive line his final 2 seasons.
• Finished his career with 12 tackles with 6 TFLs.

Brett Mortiz – OG 1977, Osmond, NE.

• 6’5” 255lb guard wearing #70.
• All-State player out of Osmond HS for Coach Jim Gray.
• Transferred to Nebraska in 1976 after playing at Army in 1974-1975.
• Lettered at Nebraska in 1977, his senior year.
• Blocked on the offensive line that led the Huskers in 302 yards rushing per game and 415 total yards per game.
• Drafted in the 2nd round of the NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Other Notable or Prominent People from/born in Pierce County:

Vern Hoscheit – Born in Brunswick, NE. Spent his retirement in Pierce County. Vern was a catcher in the Yankees farm system for 12 years. He was also a minor league manager and was a bull pen coach for the New York Mets, Oakland A’s, California Angels, and Baltimore Orioles. Hoscheit won 4 World Series as a coach. In his retirement, he lived in Pierce and coached American Legion baseball in Plainview.

Arthur Miller – Born and raised in Plainview. Arthur was a surgeon and doctor in Kimball from 1919-1942. He served in Congress from 1943-1959. While in Congress, he authored the Sexual Psychopath Law in 1948 which made sodomy punishable by 20 years in prison and those arrested had to undergo a psychiatric assessment to see if they had “control” of their “homosexual impulses”. If they were found not to, they could be held indefinitely in the criminal ward of the Washington psychiatric hospital until the patient “recovered”. At the same time as the Red Scare, there was the Lavender Scare. Led by people like Miller, there was a push to remove any homosexual from government because they were “susceptible to blackmail by the communists.”

Ben Sasse – Born in Plainview but graduated high school in Fremont. A graduate of Harvard, St. John’s, and Yale, Sasse has served as a Senator for Nebraska from 2015-2023. He was recently the President of the University of Florida.

Ellwood Blake Chappell – Born in Osmond. He would serve as a district judge and a justice on the Nebraska Supreme Court.



GO BIG RED



Resources:
https://storage.googleapis.com/husk.../ZD6pyAK8hFocPYXCFPaVccH8170tcm1uOYyc7u0R.pdf
https://piercecountyne.gov/
https://piercecountyne.gov/about-our-county/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierce_County,_Nebraska
https://nebraskacounties.org/nebraska-counties/county/pierce.html

 

[Big bo fan]

View attachment 1391645
Matt Herian – TE 2002-2006, Pierce, NE.

• 6’5” 245lb tight end wearing #11.
• 3x All-State player out of Pierce HS for Coach Mark Brahmer.
• Played at Nebraska from 2002-2006, lettering from 2002-2004 and 2006.
• 3x All-Big 12
• Set Nebraska Freshman record for season receiving yards with 301.
• Set Nebraska single game tight end reception record with 8.
• Played in 47 games at Nebraska, starting 33.
• Finished his career with 65 catches for 1,243 yards and 12 TDs.

View attachment 1391644
Mike Zierke – DT 1983-1984, Pierce, NE.

• 6’3” 240lb defensive tackle wearing #78.
• Walked on at Nebraska from 1980-1984, lettering in 1983 and 1984.
• Rotated on the defensive line his final 2 seasons.
• Finished his career with 12 tackles with 6 TFLs.

View attachment 1391643
Brett Mortiz – OG 1977, Osmond, NE.

• 6’5” 255lb guard wearing #70.
• All-State player out of Osmond HS for Coach Jim Gray.
• Transferred to Nebraska in 1976 after playing at Army in 1974-1975.
• Lettered at Nebraska in 1977, his senior year.
• Blocked on the offensive line that led the Huskers in 302 yards rushing per game and 415 total yards per game.
• Drafted in the 2nd round of the NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Other Notable or Prominent People from/born in Pierce County:

Vern Hoscheit – Born in Brunswick, NE. Spent his retirement in Pierce County. Vern was a catcher in the Yankees farm system for 12 years. He was also a minor league manager and was a bull pen coach for the New York Mets, Oakland A’s, California Angels, and Baltimore Orioles. Hoscheit won 4 World Series as a coach. In his retirement, he lived in Pierce and coached American Legion baseball in Plainview.

Arthur Miller – Born and raised in Plainview. Arthur was a surgeon and doctor in Kimball from 1919-1942. He served in Congress from 1943-1959. While in Congress, he authored the Sexual Psychopath Law in 1948 which made sodomy punishable by 20 years in prison and those arrested had to undergo a psychiatric assessment to see if they had “control” of their “homosexual impulses”. If they were found not to, they could be held indefinitely in the criminal ward of the Washington psychiatric hospital until the patient “recovered”. At the same time as the Red Scare, there was the Lavender Scare. Led by people like Miller, there was a push to remove any homosexual from government because they were “susceptible to blackmail by the communists.”

Ben Sasse – Born in Plainview but graduated high school in Fremont. A graduate of Harvard, St. John’s, and Yale, Sasse has served as a Senator for Nebraska from 2015-2023. He was recently the President of the University of Florida.

Ellwood Blake Chappell – Born in Osmond. He would serve as a district judge and a justice on the Nebraska Supreme Court.



GO BIG RED



Resources:
https://storage.googleapis.com/husk.../ZD6pyAK8hFocPYXCFPaVccH8170tcm1uOYyc7u0R.pdf
https://piercecountyne.gov/
https://piercecountyne.gov/about-our-county/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierce_County,_Nebraska
https://nebraskacounties.org/nebraska-counties/county/pierce.html

Always felt terrible for Matt Herian the leg injury cost him a solid NFL career

 

[PvilleHuskerTim]

Miscellaneous trivia regarding the 2 Husker greats from Plainview.

Bob Lingenfelter: Originally wore #73. However, he was asked by Marvin Crenshaw (All-American) to switch to #70. Marvin had more than his share of holding calls against him and he thought by changing numbers the referees wouldn't be on the lookout for him as much. Bob also could belt out The Star-Spangled Banner with the best of them, which is one of the hardest songs to sing.

Tim McCrady: Had a twin brother, named Kim. In high school they were known as "The Gold Dust Twins" as labeled by long-time Sports Editor of the Norfolk Daily News Denny Fuehrer (they both had light colored hair). Kim played on the freshman team at UNL as a punter. The McCrady brothers were instrumental in Plainview winning the HS state championships in 1973 and 1975. I believe Tim still holds most/all of the 11-man rushing records at Plainview.

 

[4.6.3]

Always felt terrible for Matt Herian the leg injury cost him a solid NFL career

Wasn’t that vs Missouri? Happened right in front of the Husker bench if I remember correctly. Figured it was bad since he was down for so long, and barely on the field. There was always talk that the Doctors butchered his surgeries… but who knows.

 

[Big bo fan]

Wasn’t that vs Missouri? Happened right in front of the Husker bench if I remember correctly. Figured it was bad since he was down for so long, and barely on the field. There was always talk that the Doctors butchered his surgeries… but who knows.

It was . It was a horrific injury. There were stories that that surgeries were botched. But as you say who knows

 

[HuskerInCarolina]

Wasn’t that vs Missouri? Happened right in front of the Husker bench if I remember correctly. Figured it was bad since he was down for so long, and barely on the field. There was always talk that the Doctors butchered his surgeries… but who knows.

Geez. Reading his bio I saw the injury happened his junior season, he missed the entire following season, and missed part of the beginning of his senior season. That would have been my sophomore year of HS he got hurt I believe, but I don't really remember much. Obviously must have been that significant of an injury and recovery that he missed almost 2 years on the playing field.

 

[dinglefritz]

It was . It was a horrific injury. There were stories that that surgeries were botched. But as you say who knows

Comminuted compound fractures are tough. You add to it that it’s immediately infected when the pieces of bone are sticking out contacting turf where people have been walking and spitting. People are quick to blame a surgeon but he’s probably lucky he did as well as he did. I was amazed he was able to come back at all.

Does anybody know where he’s at now? I’ve mentioned before that it would be interesting to have a compilation of where our former players wound up and how they’re doing. Matt seemed like a good dude.

 

[dinglefritz]

Miscellaneous trivia regarding the 2 Husker greats from Plainview.

Bob Lingenfelter: Originally wore #73. However, he was asked by Marvin Crenshaw (All-American) to switch to #70. Marvin had more than his share of holding calls against him and he thought by changing numbers the referees wouldn't be on the lookout for him as much. Bob also could belt out The Star-Spangled Banner with the best of them, which is one of the hardest songs to sing.

Tim McCrady: Had a twin brother, named Kim. In high school they were known as "The Gold Dust Twins" as labeled by long-time Sports Editor of the Norfolk Daily News Denny Fuehrer (they both had light colored hair). Kim played on the freshman team at UNL as a punter. The McCrady brothers were instrumental in Plainview winning the HS state championships in 1973 and 1975. I believe Tim still holds most/all of the 11-man rushing records at Plainview.

Ran track against Tim McCrady. He was fast but his stop, start, and change of direction were his strengths on the field.