Coach. Gary DeBoer coached winners on and off the football field. In a coaching career that included one year at Maywood and 42 years at Nelson and Lawrence-Nelson, DeBoer’s teams qualified for the playoffs 21 times, winning state championships 1975, 2001 and 2002 and acquiring three runner-up trophies. Starting in 1999, his teams made four consecutive state championship game appearances. Equally successful in 8-man and 11-man, he retired with 319 victories, which ranked second in Nebraska history. A winner of several coach of the year awards and named to several all-star coaching staffs, DeBoer was known for instilling in his players a work ethic, personal responsibility and the knowledge of how to deal with adversity.
