OSHKOSH, Wis. (NBC 26) — Kobe Berghammer has taken Oshkosh and the entire WIAC by storm.
Through four games, the sophomore quarterback already has 18 total touchdowns: 11 passing, six rushing and even one receiving.
"He can do it all," wide receiver Trae Tetzlaff, who has caught three of Berghammer's TD tosses, said. "He plays with swag."
A true dual threat quarterback, Berghammer is not one to shy away from contact. Even if it makes everyone else a little nervous.
"I wish he'd slide a few times, you know, because we need him," Tetzlaff laughed. "But it just shows that he's out here to win and he's a competitor."
First-year head coach Peter Jennings echoed those thoughts, saying he hasn't seen many quarterbacks play as physically as Berghammer.
"Not a lot. And every once in a while I'd like for him to just kindly step out of bounds or slide down but that's just not his personality."
Berghammer is in his third year as the Titans' starter, but he's still just a sophomore in terms of eligibility due to being granted a "COVID year" for the 2020 season, which was canceled amid the pandemic.
He was solid in his first two seasons, but this year has taken the next step under Jennings - an offensive-minded coach.
"Coach Jennings has been on me about getting my feet right," Berghammer said. "'Feet right. Feet right. Feet right.' You'll hear him say it today in practice."
Jennings coached against Berghammer when he was an assistant at UW-Whitewater. He liked him from afar, but now has a new admiration for his quarterback.
"What I was unbelievably impressed with was just Kobe's football IQ," Jennings said. "His commitment to getting better every single day. And the strides he's taken from his freshman year to now have been astronomical.
"The sky is the limit for the kid," he continued. "I said that to him on the sideline this past weekend. There is nothing he can't do if he cares about it and puts his mind to it."
UWO has a history of great quarterbacks. Nate Wara was the runner-up for the Gagliardi Trophy, Division III's version of the Heisman Trophy, in 2012. Brett Kasper won it in 2017, a year after leading Oshkosh to the DIII National Championship game.
Berghammer could be the next in line.
"Those guys are really, really good," he said. "So to be mentioned in the same sentence as those guys... that's an honor, but I've got a long ways to go to be up there with those guys."
The ultimate key to achieving that status? Winning. And Berghammer knows it.
"That's the biggest thing is you wouldn't hear those guys name if they didn't go deep in the playoffs," he said. "So that's the biggest thing is getting wins every week and that's the main goal at the end of the day.
"The stats come with it. That stuff doesn't really matter if you don't get a win," he said.
Oshkosh is off to a 3-1 start and is ranked No. 16 in the nation by D3football.com. Its lone loss was to Northern Michigan, a Division II school.
The Titans are about to enter the most challenging portion of their schedule: Four of their final six games are on the road and three of the next four are against nationally-ranked teams, including a trip to take on No. 3 UW-Whitewater next Friday, October 14.
