Narum Ready For Breakout Season In Pass Happy Offense

Article reprinted courtesy of the Forum and reporter Eric Peterson

MOORHEAD — Concordia receiver Peter Narum has a pair of socks, cleats and gloves that he only wears for Cobbers football games. It's part of the routine that gets the senior in the right mindset.

Narum assures his game-day socks are fresh.

"I do wash them," Narum said with a laugh, adding he's been using the same model gloves since his senior year of high school.

The Moorhead High School graduate is expected to play an expanded role this fall, starting at one of the outside receiver spots for the Cobbers. Concordia starts its regular season at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 1, at Valley City State (0-1) in nonconference play.

"We're all ready to go," Narum said. "We've got a lot of special players and a lot of special guys who are stepping up into big roles and they're ready to take over."

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound Narum had 20 catches for 158 yards and two touchdowns last season, playing in all 10 games.

"I think he's going to be an important piece for us," said Cobbers senior quarterback Tanner DuBois, who started all 10 games for Concordia last season. "I love (Narum), he's a good guy to be around. He's got a big frame, good hands, he puts in a lot of work."

The Cobbers are coming off a 4-6 season in which they lost three games by five points or less. Concordia also shifted to a pass-heavy, spread offense last fall, moving away from the program's traditional, run-heavy triple option offense.

"It's been really good. It's been a bit of a learning experience, but I think everybody has adjusted perfectly," Narum said. "We're really excited to see where we're at this season and can't wait to hit the ground running. The best part of the new offense is the fluidity to it. When we first started, there were some growing pains."

There is likely to be added opportunities for Narum with the Cobbers losing their top two receiving targets from last season in Andy Gravdahl and Zach Wolf. Gravdahl had 34 catches for 380 yards and three touchdowns and Wolf had 31 receptions for 406 yards and four TDs.

"He's a big, physical presence out there," Cobbers head coach Terry Horan said. "He's a great perimeter blocker. He runs very good routes. He can get over the top with his routes, as well, but he's a solid possession-type receiver."

Narum was a three-sport athletes in high school, also playing basketball and baseball for the Spuds, but football has always been his favorite sport. He started two seasons at wide receiver for the Spuds before his college career with the Cobbers.

Narum said he started playing football in grade school.

"I fell in love with it," Narum said. "I can't see myself playing anything except for football. I love Concordia and I love the program."

Narum said the physicality in football is what appealed to him from when he first started playing and that still translates to his game at receiver, whether its blocking or trying to separate from a defender playing tight coverage at the line of scrimmage.

"I try to use my size and physicality to my advantage," Narum said.

Narum also has intangibles that Horan appreciates

"He's just a steady-Eddie guy," Horan said. "You never see this kid down emotionally or upset, he's always upbeat and positive. He's a really good teammate. … He's a great guy to have in our program."

VCSU, which lost its season-opening game against the University of Jamestown last week, kicked a last-season field goal in a 35-32 victory against the Cobbers last season in Moorhead. The Cobbers scored 32 second-half points in that game, but it wasn't enough to overcome a slow start.

The Cobbers are hoping a second year in the pass-heavy offensive system will help in getting off to a faster start this season.

"We're all a lot more comfortable now," DuBois said. "We're in a better spot than we were at this time last year. No one was satisfied with the season results from last season."