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Football
Coaching Staff
Mel Tjeerdsma
Head Coach
Office: (660) 562-1311
E-mail: coacht@nwmissouri.edu
Mel Tjeerdsma, the 2007 FieldTurf and Howie Long Division II Coach of the Year, enters his 15th season at Northwest Missouri State and his 25th as a collegiate head coach. The winningest coach in program history, Tjeerdsma has guided the Bearcats to nine MIAA championships overall, two NCAA national championships and five title game appearances in the last 10 seasons.
Northwest was 0-11 in Tjeerdsma’s first season in 1994. The team has lost 27 games since.
Four years after his inaugural season with the team, the Bearcats became the first NCAA Division II squad to finish a season 15-0. Northwest won back-to-back national championships in 1998 and 1999. It was the University’s first national titles in any sport. Tjeerdsma was named AFCA National Coach of the Year following both of his championship seasons.
Among his peers in Division II, Tjeerdsma heads into the 2008 season fourth on the active wins list (203) and with the 10th-best win percentage (.724). His first win of the upcoming season will make him one of the top 10 winningest Division II coaches of all-time. He needs 16 wins to enter the top five. In his 24-year career, which includes 10 seasons at Austin College (Texas), Tjeerdsma is 203-76-4.
Tjeerdsma has more postseason victories than any other coach in Division II history. He’s led Northwest to the playoffs 10 times in the last 12 seasons and sports a 22-8 postseason record. He’s undefeated (5-0) in the semifinal round of the playoffs, 9-1 in opening games and 13-3 at home. Northwest made two first-round exits in its only appearances prior to Tjeerdsma’s arrival.
The Bearcats have won 10 playoff games in their three championship runs spanning the last three seasons. Northwest earned the moniker “Road Dogs” after becoming the first program to win four road games to get to the title game of 2005. The team won three home games to reach the 2006 final. Tjeerdsma beat the No. 4, No. 2 and No. 1 ranked teams to advance to Florence in 2007.
The 2007 Bearcats became the 12th team in program history to go unbeaten in MIAA play. Seven teams under Tjeerdsma have finished 9-0 in league play since 1997. Northwest enters 2008 with a 21-game winning streak against conference opponents. The team’s 17-game home win streak is the second-longest in Division II.
Following the 2007 season, running back Xavier Omon became the fourth player under Tjeerdsma to be drafted into the NFL. Omon was a sixth-round selection by the Buffalo Bills. Omon joins Chris Greisen (1999), Seth Wand (2003) and Dave Tollefson (2006) as Northwest players drafted after playing for Tjeerdsma. Fifteen Bearcats have either been drafted or have signed NFL contracts during Tjeerdsma’s tenure.
In addition to Omon, tight end Mike Peterson ‘07 signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers. Wand (Oakland Raiders), Tollefson (New York Giants) and Jamaica Rector ‘04 (Arizona Cardinals) make it five former Bearcats currently found on NFL rosters. Tollefson became the first Northwest graduate to earn a Super Bowl ring after helping the Giants defeat the New England Patriots in last February’s Super Bowl.
Tjeerdsma has been named MIAA Coach of the Year nine times (1995-2000, 2002, 2006-07). He’s been named AFCA Regional Coach of the Year six times (1996-2000, 2006).
In addition to his coaching duties, Tjeerdsma served as president of the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) in 2006. It was the first time a Northwest coach has led the AFCA and the first time a Division II general has presided since 1999.
While Tjeerdsma has enjoyed tremendous success on the field, he has continued to surround himself with a group of young people who are assets to the University and the entire northwest Missouri community.
Every spring for the past 13 years, Tjeerdsma, his coaches and players take part in the team’s annual spring cleanup day. The service project and team fundraiser includes picking up trash, raking leaves, mowing lawns and cleaning up yards and streets throughout the community.
In his 14 years at Northwest, Tjeerdsma’s squads have produced 36 All-Americans. Included in the tally are 24 first-team All-Americans and 10 players who earned All-America honors in two or more seasons.
Under Tjeerdsma, Northwest has produced 93 All-MIAA student-athletes, including 59 players who earned first-team honors. Fifty-four players have earned all-region honors with 37 being listed on the first team.
Prior to coaching at Northwest, Tjeerdsma guided Austin College to three Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championships (TIAA) and became the program’s all-time winningest coach. The Kangaroos were 59-38-4 in 10 seasons under Tjeerdsma and made two trips to the NAIA Division II playoffs. Tjeerdsma earned three TIAA Coach of the Year awards.
Before his time at Austin, Tjeerdsma was the offensive coordinator at Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, for eight years. He also served as the head track and field coach at Northwestern. The Red Raiders earned four trips to the NAIA Division II playoffs and won a national championship in 1983 with Tjeerdsma on staff. His offense twice led the nation in total offense and scoring. His track and field teams won three Tri-State Conference titles and five consecutive NAIA District 15 Indoor Championships.
Prior to his collegiate coaching career, Tjeerdsma served as head football coach at Denison (Iowa) High School, where he guided his team to a 9-0 record and a 1975 state playoff berth.
He earned Northwest Iowa Coach of the Year honors in 1972 after winning a state championship at Sioux Center High School. He was the Northwest Iowa Track and Field Coach of the Year in 1973, 1974 and 1975.
Tjeerdsma also served as president of the NAIA Football Coaches Association in 1990. He is currently in his 10th year as a member of the AFCA Board of Trustees. He now serves as chairman of the AFCA Division II All-America Committee.
Tjeerdsma earned his bachelor’s degree in physical education from Southern (S.D.) State in 1967. He earned his master’s degree from Northwest in 1977.
Tjeerdsma and his wife, Carol, reside just outside of Maryville. Carol is a member of the Northwest faculty in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and is a real estate agent for United Country Twaddle Realty. She also served as President of the American Football Coaches Wives Association in 2005.
Mel and Carol have three married daughters and seven grandchildren.
Adam Dorrel
Offensive Coordinator/Offensive Line
Office: (660) 562-1310
E-mail: dorrela@nwmissouri.edu
Northwest Missouri State offensive coordinator Adam Dorrel has helped lead the Bearcats to three straight NCAA Division II championship appearances. In his four seasons as a full-time coach at his alma mater, Northwest is 48-9 (.842).
Running the ball and protecting the quarterback have been staples of the Bearcats’ offense under Dorrel. Northwest has run for more than 10,000 yards in his four seasons and averaged 177 yards on the ground per game. His offensive line has allowed 31 sacks in 29 games the last two seasons, and in 2007 ranked sixth nationally in protecting the quarterback.
Dorrel started the same offensive line in all 14 games in 2007. That unit paved the way for the nation’s leading rusher, Xavier Omon, who became the first player in NCAA history to rush for 1,500 yards in all four seasons of his collegiate career.
Omon totaled 2,337 yards and scored 38 touchdowns during his senior campaign. He was rewarded at the NFL Draft where the Buffalo Bills made him a sixth-round draft pick.
Four All-American linemen and eight All-MIAA performers are the product of Dorrel’s leadership. He himself is a former All-America Northwest lineman. Dorrel was a three-year captain for the Bearcats during his collegiate career in Maryville spanning 1994-97.
After earning his degree from Northwest, Dorrel spent a year as a graduate assistant at Northeastern State in Oklahoma. He became a graduate assistant the following season back at Northwest in 1999 when the team won the second of back-to-back national titles.
Dorrel served coaching stints at Dakota State University in South Dakota and William Jewell College in Missouri before being appointed offensive line coach at Northwest in 2004. He was promoted to offensive coordinator prior to the 2007 season.
This past summer, Dorrel was one of six American football coaches to lead clinics overseas to further strengthen the sport beyond the United States. Two summers ago, he served as offensive line coach for Team USA as it competed and won the IFAF World Championships in Japan. Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach Defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Scott Bostwick, the 2007 AFCA Assistant Coach of the Year, is entering his 15th season at Northwest Missouri State University. Since his arrival in 1994, the Bearcats have won two national titles, appeared in three consecutive championship games and featured 14 All-Americans on the defensive side of the ball. Northwest had three defensive All-Americans in 2007, including MIAA Defensive Player of the Year Jared Erspamer, the fourth Bearcat to earn the honor under Bostwick. Year-in and year-out, Bostwick continuously produces one of the top defenses in the nation and 2007 was no exception. Northwest ranked ninth nationally against the run and finished 20th in scoring defense. The Bearcats led the MIAA with 39 sacks and against Southwest Baptist, set a conference record by holding SBU to minus-74 yards rushing. In 2005, Dave Tollefson became the first defensive player under Bostwick to be drafted into the NFL when the Packers made him a seventh-round draft pick (253rd overall). Tollefson set a Northwest record by registering 12.5 sacks that year. He earned a championship ring as a member of the New York Giants this past season. In 2004, Tollefson and the Bearcats set a program record for fewest rushing yards allowed (94.0 per game) and ranked 10th in the country in rushing defense. Bostwick mentored four first-team All-MIAA selections in 2005, the highest number in one season under his regime. He matched that total in 2007. Bostwick’s defenses dominated during the Bearcats’ championship seasons of 1998 and 1999 - the momentum gained in 1997, when Northwest led virtually every conference defensive category. Prior to joining the staff at Northwest, Bostwick spent four years at Western Washington University in Mt. Vernon, Wash. He served as defensive coordinator at Nebraska Wesleyan, his alma mater, from 1986-1990. Bostwick holds a bachelor’s degree from Nebraska Wesleyan, where he was a four-year letterwinner and was named all-conference and all-district on the gridiron. He was inducted into the University’s Athletic Hall of Fame in October of 2006 and is the program’s third-leading tackler. Bostwick and his wife, Sue, reside in Maryville with their two children, Leah (16) and Eric (14). Quarterbacks/Recruiting/Passing Game Coordinator Northwest Missouri State quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator Charlie Flohr begins his third year with the team. Flohr also serves as the recruiting coordinator for the Bearcats. With much of the praise placed on the ground game in recent years, Flohr’s air assault has effectively gotten the job done. Northwest has averaged better than 230 passing yards a game in two seasons under Flohr. The Bearcats’ pass efficiency rating in that span has ranked 10th and 32nd nationally. The 2007 Bearcats featured the top two tight ends in the MIAA in Mike Peterson and Josh Gannan. Peterson signed a free agent contract with the Green Bay Packers. Gannan returns for his senior season. In addition, Flohr continues to develop All-America wide receiver Kendall Wright, who enters his senior campaign high on several Northwest career charts. Quarterback Joel Osborn turned in the highest completion percentage in program history under Flohr’s guidance in 2007. Osborn passed for more than 200 yards in five of his seven starts in his junior year. Flohr served as a graduate assistant with the Bearcats in 2002 and 2003 and was placed in charge of tight ends. After obtaining his master’s degree in health and physical education at Northwest, Flohr was hired at conference-rival Truman, where he served as the Bulldogs’ wide receivers and recruiting coach. Under the tutelage of Flohr, Truman receiver Jeff Amundson caught 76 passes in 2004, the fourth-highest single-season total in program history. Flohr is a 2002 graduate of Dakota State University in Madison, S.D., where he earned a degree in health and physical education. Flohr was a four-year letterwinner in football at his alma mater and was a two-time honorable mention all-conference selection at wide receiver. He graduated as the program’s all-time leader in punt returns. Flohr and his wife, Amy, reside in Maryville and have a son, Adam, who will turn 3 in October. Amy is a 2004 Northwest graduate.
Scott Bostwick
Office: (660) 562-1784
E-mail: sbostwick@nwmissouri.edu
Charlie Flohr
Office: (660) 562-1705
E-mail: cflohr@nwmissouri.edu
Will Wagner
Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs
Office: (660) 562-1627
E-mail: wwagner@nwmissouri.edu
Will Wagner is beginning his ninth year as a full-time member of the Bearcat coaching staff and his second as Northwest’s assistant head coach. Wagner was appointed the title in addition to his duties as defensive backs coach prior to the 2007 season.
Northwest has seen four first team All-MIAA defensive backs during Wagner’s tenure including Myles Burnsides, who earned the honor as a sophomore a year ago. Burnsides was one of 12 players to record an interception in Wagner’s scheme in 2007.
Wagner served as a Northwest graduate assistant coach for two years prior to going full-time in 2000.
Wagner earned All-America honors as a defensive back at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas. He was a four-year starter at Hardin-Simmons from 1992-95.
During Wagner’s career at Hardin-Simmons, he set school records for interceptions in a season with eight and for consecutive games started in a career with 47. He also set a school and American Southwest Conference record for career interceptions with 23.
Following his playing career, Wagner served as a graduate assistant in the Cowboy program in 1996 and 1997.
During his prep career, Wagner helped lead Permian High School to a Texas State Championship during his senior season of 1991. Permian High is the program featured in the blockbuster film “Friday Night Lights” which also was the subject of a novel.
The Odessa, Texas, native resides in Maryville with his wife, Andrea, and their sons, Brooks (4) and Brayden (1). Andrea is a 2000 Northwest graduate and is employed on campus in the office of University advancement.
Rich Wright
Special Teams/Defensive Line
Office: (660) 562-1696
E-mail: rwright@nwmissouri.edu
Richard Wright is entering his fifth season as a full-time member of the Northwest staff. He serves as defensive line coach and coordinator of special teams.
The Bearcats have finished in the top 10 nationally in pass sacks the past two seasons and coach Wright is a major reason why. Wright added two All-America defensive linemen in 2007 to up his total to six in four seasons. Two former players, Dave Tollefson ’05 and Steve Williams ’04 are currently listed on NFL rosters.
Northwest continues its dominance on special teams. In 2007, the Bearcats ranked third in the nation in net punting (37.0 ypp) and the unit’s allowance of 5.2 yards per punt return ranked 11th. Northwest has blocked 16 kicks in the past two seasons and 30 in Wright’s four seasons.
Wright was a graduate assistant at Northwest in 1995 and 1996 when he was tight ends coach. Before coming back to Northwest in 2004, Wright was the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at St. Ambrose (Iowa) University from 2000-04. During that time, the Fighting Bees won four straight conference titles and set the league record for consecutive wins. In his first season, Wright’s defense led the country with 32 interceptions.
Wright also made stops at William Penn (Iowa) College and Central Methodist College (now University) in 1999, Dakota State University in 1998, Dana College from 1993-94 and Cortland State in 1991.
Covering several facets of coaching, Wright has been an offensive coordinator, linebackers coach, wide receivers coach and special teams coordinator.
Wright is a 1995 graduate of Dana (Neb.) College with a degree in physical education. Wright earned his master’s degree in physical education from Northwest in 1996.
Wright and his wife, Sarah, reside in Maryville with their daughters Grace (4) and Kate (1). Sarah is a 1998 Northwest graduate.
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