2026 NEMFCA 8-Man Hall of Fame Inductee Salutes - Kole Ficken, Bruning-Davenport High School

Posted Friday, June 12, 2026, at 4:01 PM

This is our sixth of fifteen 2026 Nebraska Eight Man Football Coaches Association Hall of Fame inductees. We proudly salute one of 8-Man football;s finest Field Generals ever, Kole Ficken of Bruning-Davenport.

KOLE FICKEN – BRUNING-DAVENPORT H.S.

From 2002 to 2005, Kole played for legendary Coaches Chris Ardissono and Mark Rotter at Bruning-Davenport. In his prep career, his 4,500 career yards of total offense would lead the Storm to a 42-4 record, 4 consecutive playoff appearances, and the historic 2005 Class D-2 State Championship. Kole carried on a proud family football tradition started by his father Kelly (an All-State RB for Davenport in the mid-1970’s), while also serving as a foundational building-block for a program that would achieve state-wide 8-Man acclaim in the decades that followed.

From the very beginning of his high school career, Kole was one of the premier players in the state as a play-making Quarterback and Safety. Along the way he was named 1st Team All-Area, 1st Team All-Conference, 1st Team All-District, and 1st Team All-State on multiple occasions. Then in the Summer of 2006, he was selected to play in the 8-Man All-Star Game, the Nebraska vs. Oklahoma All-Star Game, and the Nebraska Shrine Bowl as well.

He went on to play Safety for four years at Concordia University and later returned home to his alma mater, where he won 2 additional State Titles as an assistant coach (2015 and 2017). The NEMFCA is honored to now welcome him into the Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

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*1000 Yard Guy sez…..Kole Ficken one of the smartest players on an 8-Man football field I can remember.and as stated above, he set the blueprint for so many All-Everything quarterbacks to follow him at Bruning-Davenport and BDS. The genius football minds of Mark Rotter and Chris Ardissono created a true coach on the field in the great Kole Ficken, whose Dad Kelly, was one of my favorite hoops and football talents ever.