The first stop of our HuskerOnline In-State Tour takes us to 2021 Class A Nebraska state champion Gretna.

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.

The first stop of our In-State Tour took us to Gretna, as the Class A state champion Dragons are led by one of the top quarterbacks to come out of the Omaha area in a long time.

Head coach: Mike Kayl

2021 record: 12-1 (Class A state champions)

Season rewind: “Moving into Class A, we had to make some adjustments, coaching and what we do in the off-season. The kids saw that the first few years. This group of seniors was the first group that was a part of that transition. They just knew they had to work, and so they’ve built through the years. In 2020, we went 6-2 and got beat in the first round of the playoffs, but Kearney went on the semifinals and we just saw how they made a run at it.

“We weren’t too far off, so we went back to work that off-season and knew we had a good group of kids coming back. As we got into the season, we had some tough games at the beginning of the year. As with any program, you’re just trying to develop and see what adjustments you need to make and win some close games there. Then the kids just started to get more confident in what we were doing and then confident in each other. That contributed to us making a run into the playoffs.

“Then we got into the playoffs and we had a tough game there against Lincoln East right away, but we showed a lot of our character in that game to battle and won a high-scoring game. We, week-in and week-out, just got more and more confident to the success that we had. As far as the program, it’s huge for us. Kids get that taste and it just motivates them even more moving forward. We have had huge support with our community and it’s great for the town of Gretna.”

Kayl on QB Zane Flores: “The best thing about Zane is no matter what happens, whether it’s something good or something bad, he knows he’s constantly improving his craft. From the time he was a freshman, that first year was just a learning experience for him and then the rest of the team, but he rallied the kids around him. They knew in the offseason next year, they were going to go to work and do the extra things and running routes, and he was going to get stronger. Everybody was going to get stronger.

“He’s grown physically and he got taller. He’s gotten bigger. He’s grown also in just his ability to make all the throws. He’s a kid that just even though he’s gotten to the success he’s had now, he’s still working just as hard as he did before.”

Flores’s take: “It’s been pretty awesome. Obviously, I had a great season this past year. It is great to see our whole team, all of our work in the off-season pay off. These past couple of weeks, getting a few offers, that was obviously really cool.

“I would say my accuracy improved a lot and then my confidence. Just having confidence in myself really allowed me to bump my game up a little bit. Just going into every game confident with the game plan. I’m confident in my teammates.”

Recruiting: Flores has offers from Oklahoma State, Kansas, Kansas State, Memphis and Bowling Green. He has also heard from Missouri, Wyoming, Iowa State and Northwestern. He’s visited Nebraska a couple of times over the last year but has not connected with Scott Frost’s new offensive staff.

“It was pretty exciting getting my first big offer,” Flores said. “I’ve been talking to Kansas State for a while, I went down there, I’ve been down there like three times. I loved it there every time and when they offered me, that was super cool.

“Oklahoma State has been in contact with our coaches a little bit throughout the season and this off-season, but that program, they always got good quarterbacks running through their program, so that’s obviously super cool (to get that offer too).

“I’m probably going to have to make a decision before the start of my senior year. I’m just going to go through the Spring, try to get down to all these places. Then after the Spring, we’ll kind of see how it goes from there.”

(Note: Kansas offered Flores after this interview took place.)

By the numbers: Flores completed 232-of-331 yards (70.1 percent) for 2,885 yards, 26 touchdowns and seven interceptions. On the ground, Flores rushed 76 times for 216 yards and 10 touchdowns. His long run on the season was 19 yards. He was a first-team All-Nebraska selection as a junior.

In 2020, Flores completed 145-of-209 passes (69.4 percent) for 1,926 yards. He threw 18 touchdowns compared to just three interceptions over eight games.

Kayl on QB Mason Goldman: “He’s a competitor. Mason fits the mold for all these schools because they look at him. He’s 6-6, getting close to 6-7 now. He’s got the wingspan. He’s around 240. He’s probably going to put on some weight pretty easily and be able to carry it well.

“He works as hard as anybody. He hates to lose. I think when you watch Mason on film, he’s got a little bit of an edge to him, which is good. He plays mostly on the offensive side of the ball, which is probably what he’s projecting to play at the next level.

“We played him a decent amount on defense in certain situations just because he’s such a competitor. Offensively, he’s got great feet. Once he starts to get a little bigger and add the size to him, he’s going to have, I’m sure, some- quite a few more offers.”

Goldman’s take: “I feel like I have the right size. I actually got to put on weight, obviously.

“I have really good quickness. For screen passes, which is one of the main parts of our offense, I can get out wide faster than most offensive linemen.

Recruiting: Goldman currently has offers from Eastern Michigan, South Dakota State and Idaho. He has also heard from North Dakota State, Wyoming, Nebraska and Kansas State.

“Nebraska, I’m going there March 5, and then Kansas State, probably March 26,” Goldman said. “Then I’m trying to figure out dates for Wyoming and North Dakota State too.”

By the numbers: Goldman was a first-team All-Nebraska selection as a junior. On his stat sheet, Goldman simply wrote he had “lots of pancakes” in 2021.

Kayl on WR Joe Roll: “Joe Roll is our leading receiver, over 800 yards receiving for us this year, and I would probably say the most competitive kid on our team. He is about as detailed as you get when it comes to running routes. He’s getting some interest from some colleges. To look at him, some people would say maybe he’s not big enough to play at some of the bigger schools, but they understand when they watch him on film that he plays about as hard and as technically sound as anybody.

“When we’re in situations where we need a big play, you can always count on Joe Roll. Him and Zane, they’ve grown up together. They know the ins and outs of each other, but it doesn’t take anything away from how detailed he is and how good he is at running routes, catching balls. We even played him a little bit on defense just because he’s that good on both sides of the ball.”

Recruiting: Roll has heard from North Dakota State, Kansas State, South Dakota State and South Dakota. He attended games or has received junior day invites from all three Dakota schools.

By the numbers: Roll led the Dragons 52 catches for 877 yards and eight touchdowns. He was an All-Metro second-team selection in 2021, as well as being named academic All-Metro with a 4.0 GPA in the classroom.

Kayl on DB Blayke Moore: “He’s played strong safety for us for two years. Just a great athlete all the way around. This year, he had five picks, which I think led Class A for most picks this year. He’s got a great knack for the ball and is very fast, and really loves to hit. I think he’s got potential because he’s got good size and good speed to play at the next level.”

Recruiting: Moore has heard from South Dakota State, South Dakota, Wayne State, Augustana, St. Thomas, Minnesota State, Dartmouth, Columbia and Yale among others. He attended USD’s Junior Day and will take part in the Lindenwood Mega Camp this summer.

Stats: Moore had 74 tackles, five interceptions and two defensive touchdowns as a junior in 2021. He was a second-team All-Metro selection and honorable mention all-state.

Kayl on OLB Korver Demma: “Korver Demma got injured. He was projected to play as a sophomore and got hurt in our pre-season scrimmage and didn’t play that whole year. This year, we were excited to have him. We switched defenses, which the year before, he played more of a defensive end. This year, we went to more of a three-man front, which we put his hand down more on the inside. As the season went on, he just really, really grasped that role. He ended up with seven sacks for the year and became a big reason our defense played as well as it did down the stretch.

“Our defensive front played extremely well. Korver was a big part of that because he was able to put pressure, get penetration in the backfield and really scramble things up. He’s 6-2 right now. I think he’s going to grow a little bigger. Schools are starting to show more interest in him. He’s got a big upside as well. I think we’ll see some more things from him down the road too.”

Recruiting: Demma has heard from South Dakota, South Dakota State and Augustana at this point. He plans to camp at all three.

Stats: Demma had 54 total tackles and 8.5 quarterback sacks in 2021. He was an honorable mention all-state selection this past season. Demma’s grandfather played for the Oakland Raiders in the 1970s and won a Super Bowl under the late John Madden.