SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — Jakes Good Time Place in Pierre got a few phone calls asking if the sports bar and grill would have the FBS National Championship Game on Monday night, said Kelsey Gunderson.
“If it was playing on TV, they’d be stopping by,” Gunderson said.
Although he’s not a starter and his playing time has been limited, T.F. Riggs High School graduate Lincoln Kienholz is a member of the national championship Ohio State Buckeyes football team.
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“The whole town of Pierre and even surrounding communities have been very supportive,” said Kienholz’s dad Pete Kienholz. Kienholz said he’s met lots of people as they will often ask if he’s related to Lincoln.
“They want to meet me because I’m Lincoln’s dad,” Kienholz said with a laugh.
Lincoln Kienholz already had local name recognition as a multiple sport athlete with tons of success in high school. Now, he’s joined an even more elite group as one of two players in recent FBS history as a national champion. Josh Heupel was the starting quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners when the team won a national championship in 2001. Heupel, who graduated from Aberdeen Central, is the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteer football team.
“I’m sure he’s feeling very proud of that,” Kienholz said of his son. “It’s a privilege to be in that category. It’s awesome to be in the select group.”
The dad watched the national championship from home. “It was really exciting,” Kienholz said.
Lincoln Kienholz joined the Buckeyes in 2023. This was his second season on the team. His dad has noticed how his son has developed.
“What he’s been able to pick up and learn in these last two years,” Kienholz said. “Physically, he’s gotten a lot bigger and stronger.”
He is progressing but “He still has a lot to learn,” Kienholz said. But, “what a great opportunity for a kid from South Dakota.”
His son is “learning from the best,” Kienholz said.
Lincoln Kienholz is running the offense against the defense during practice, his dad said. “He does a lot with the first-team defense,” Kienholz said. “They like having him…he gives them a lot of good work.”
And for the second-year quarterback, “It’s an opportunity to play quarterback against the best defense in the country,” Kienholz said.
The environment, the coaches and the players have impressed Kienholz and his son. “He’ll be there for spring ball. There’s a job to compete for,” Kienholz said of the quarterback position.
Kienholz said he’s not surprised his son has embraced Ohio State. “I knew when he decided to go to Ohio State, I knew that they would take care of him,” Kienholz said.
In addition to being supported by the community and the Ohio State program, Kienholz stressed that Lincoln’s high school coach Steve Steele continues to support his son. The two communicate regularly, Kienholz said.
It’s not just Lincoln getting the support from Steele, the high school coach supports all the players who are in college football programs, Kienholz said.
To Kienholz, it’s an honor that the former coach and the community have supported his son. “We just have a great community here in Pierre,” Kienholz said. But it stretches beyond Pierre, he said.
There are also those around the state who have shared support, he said.
