Sports stats



Claymores and Fire Meet for Second Time

May 14, 2003 - National Football League Europa (NFLE)
Scottish Claymores News Release


The Scottish Claymores (2-4) will face off with the Rhein Fire (4-2) in the second game of their season series with the German team at Glasgow's Hampden Park. The Claymores will be looking to get back on the winning track, coming off a 33-27 overtime loss at Frankfurt, their second consectuive defeat and avenge a loss at Rhein in week three. The Fire come to town riding a two-game winning streak and find themselves in a tie for first place in the league. The Claymores hold a 1-2 record at home this year, but hold a four-game winning streak against Rhein in Scotland. The Fire are playing the fourth of their five scheduled road games of the season, having won two of the previous three. The game will mark the 18th regular season meeting in the history of the teams, with Rhein holding an advantage of 11-6 in the series, but the Claymores are 5-3 advantage on Scottish soil. Claymores Head Coach Gene Dahlquist is 2-3 in his career against Rhein, 2-0 at home. The teams have met once in the post-season, with the Fire edging the Claymores in World Bowl '00, 13-10 at Frankfurt's Waldstadion on June 25, 2000. Sunday's game will be broadcast on a tape delay in the United States on the FOX network at 1:00 PM EDT. FOX broadcasters Ron Pitts and Brian Baldinger will be in the booth for the contest, with Pitts handling play-by-play duties and Baldinger serving as the game analyst.

CLAYMORES INJURY REPORT

The Claymores head into Sunday's game with no injuries to report.

THE HEAD COACHES

Gene Dahlquist is on the Claymores' sideline for his third season, and currently carries a record of 11-15 (.423) as an NFLE head coach. The 60-year-old head coach brings 30 years college coaching experience to the Claymores and, before moving to NFL Europe, he most recently held the position as offensive passing game coordinator at the University of Nevada at Las Vegas in 2000. Prior to joining John Robinson's staff at UNLV, Dahlquist served as offensive coordinator, quarterbacks and receivers coach at the University of Texas from 1992-1997 where he helped direct the Longhorns to three Big XII Conference titles and three bowl appearances. From 1988-91, he was again the offensive coordinator at the University of Illinois, and steered the Fighting Illini offense to one Big Ten Championship and four Bowl appearances under head coach John Mackovic, helping to develop future NFL #1 pick, quarterback Jeff George. Prior to his stint at Illinois, he worked with close friend and former Claymores head coach Jim Criner for 10 years. The two coaches worked together at Iowa State University from 1983-86 and at Boise State University from 1977-82, where Dahlquist served as the offensive coordinator. Together, Dahlquist and Criner helped drive Boise State to five Big Sky Conference titles and one NCAA Division 1-AA National Championship. Prior to coaching at Boise State, Dahlquist was the offensive coordinator at the University of Oregon from 1974-76 and quarterbacks coach at the University of Utah from 1971-73. He kicked off his coaching career as quarterbacks coach at Idaho State University from 1968-70. Dahlquist received his Master's Degree in Education from Idaho State University in 1974, graduating from the University of Arizona with his bachelor's degree in 1965, where he played college football as a quarterback and punter. Following his collegiate career, Dahlquist played professional football from 1965-66 as a quarterback and punter in the Continental Football League in the United States with the Norfolk Neptunes. Dahlquist, a native of Mount Prospect, Illinois, he and his wife Toni currently reside in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Pete Kuharchek is also in his third season as head coach of the Rhein Fire. Kuharchek led the Fire to a berth in World Bowl X last year and carries a career NFLE record of 16-10 (.615) into this week's game. He was named just the second head coach in team history before the 2001 season and has been with the club since 1996. Kuharchek made his NFLEL debut in 1992 as the defensive backs coach of the Orlando Thunder and along with former Fire head coach Galen Hall led the Thunder to a World Bowl appearance in his first season in the league. After serving as the defensive coordinator at the University of Texas at El Paso from 1993-95, he was hired to run the defense with the Rhein Fire in 1996. Kuharchek has proved to be one of the top defensive coaches in the league. In 1996, he coached the league's top rushing defense, which was also second in scoring defense and total defense. In 1997, the Fire reached the World Bowl with a defense that ranked second in scoring and rushing yards allowed. The 1998 Rhein team won the World Bowl as the defense ranked first in scoring and rushing defense. Kuharchek's defense was ranked first in scoring, rushing, passing and total defense in 1999, and the 2000 team won another World Bowl with the second-ranked scoring defense. Kuharchek stepped into the professional coaching ranks as linebackers coach with the USFL's Tampa Bay Bandits in 1983, and has also coached at the University of Memphis (formerly Memphis State) from 1986-89, the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League in 1990, and his first stint at UTEP in 1991. In autumn 2002, Kuharchek was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame at the University of Tampa, where he played as a linebacker from 1967-69.

QUOTES FROM THE COACH

Catching up with Claymores' Head Coach Gene Dahlquist for some of his latest thoughts:

(on the World Bowl): "We're definitely in the situation where we need to win against the Fire to remain part of the World Bowl picture. You can't go 2-5 and expect to be there, there are no second chances. We have to take advantage of our opportunities every week, we've run out of second chances."

(on the importance of the upcoming weeks): "We've lost three close games, and it's important that we start winning those because losing the close ones is very frustrating. Every game in this league is close for the most part. The last time we played Rhein, they jumped out on us and forced us to play catch-up. We did make a run, but it was too little, too late. We can't let that happen again. We've shown we're capable of scoring lots of points and playing good defense. We're in the position now that we need to put the pieces together and be more consistent to win these close games.

(on the fans): "The crowd support has been outstanding and they have created a good football atmosphere for us this season. It's our aim to give them something to cheer about this week against the Rhein Fire."

SCOTTISH CLAYMORES QUOTES

SCOTTISH CLAYMORES (27) AT FRANKFURT GALAXY (33)

MAY 10, 2003 – WALDSTADION, FRANKFURT, GERMANY

Head Coach Gene Dahlquist: "It was a really good football game and both teams had good chances to win it, but Frankfurt got the last play. All defeats are disappointing, but this was exceptionally frustrating as we had 500 yards of offense against them. We now have to win four games in a row before we can think about World Bowl but the only way to do that is concentrate on winning each game, one at a time."

Defensive End Radell Lockhart: "I just didn't want to leave the bench (at the end of the game), I just didn't want the game to be over. I couldn't believe we lost a game we had in the bag at the half. That's the toughest loss I've ever experienced and I have no way of explaining what happened to us. In the first half we were moving the ball easily on offense and our defense was putting huge pressure on their quarterback and making things happen. All the big plays were ours but the second half was totally different. They started making plays and we just couldn't stop them."

"We have to cut out the mistakes we're making when the pressure is on. It's time for us to be men and stand up and be counted. We can't keep making stupid mental errors high school kids would make. We have four games left and we know it's going to be tough to get to the World Bowl now but we have to go out and win those games because I still believe this is the best team in the NFL Europe League. It's time we proved it."

SCOTTISH CLAYMORES GAME NOTES: Claymores captains for game six were QB Craig Nall, RB Ken Simonton, LB Yubrenal Isabelle and S Bobby Jackson... Temperature at game time was 72° F, (22° C), with rain and a light wind... The Claymores won the coin toss and elected to receive... James Rooths returned the opening kick 15 yards and the Claymores took possession at their own 36... Simonton touched the ball on the first three plays, one reception and two rushes, and gained a first down on his second run... RB Maurice Hicks lined up in the slot and took a reverse 58 yards for a touchdown, avoiding a tackle in the backfield... K Rob Hart's PAT gave the Claymores a 7-0 lead with 12:27 left in the first quarter... Robert Baker returned the kickoff 33 yards and a personal foul penalty on the Claymores gave Frankfurt the ball at the Scotland 39... The defense held to force a fourth-and-two rushing attempt that was stuffed in the backfield by CB Bo Rogers... Nall hit Simonton on a swing pass for 10 yards on the first play of the possession... Nall completed a pass to FB Mike Malan for nine yards and then got the first down on a QB sneak... Simonton took another swing pass from Nall, and took it to the end zone from 37 yards away... The score was Simonton's league-leading eighth TD of the season, his second receiving score... The Claymores led 14-0 seven minutes into the game... Galaxy RB Jonas Lewis fumbled on their first play, but was able to recover... Isabelle sacked QB James Brown on third down to force a Frankfurt punt... Hicks ran for nine yards on the first play of the drive... Brown showed elusiveness to buy time and throw for a first down... Brown then hit WR Marc Lester for a 30 yard gain to the Claymores' 16 on the final play of the first quarter... The Claymores led after one period 14-0... DE T.J. Bingham blew through the line and forced a fumble on an attempted handoff from Brown, and LB Isaac Keys jumped on the loose ball... QB Shane Stafford came on for the Claymores' first possession of the second quarter... Stafford hit Simonton for a five-yard gain on his first pass attempt... Quinn Gray took over under center for Frankfurt... Gray led the Galaxy down the field and hit WR Robert Baker for a 44-yard touchdown pass on a crossing pattern... K Jon Hilbert missed the extra point, making the score 14-6 with 10:32 remaining in the first half... Stafford hit WR Edell Shepherd for an 11-yard gain and a first down on the drive's second play... Simonton ran for a first down with two hard runs up the middle... Stafford completed a pass to Shepherd and the receiver made some moves to roll up a 31-yard gain... Simonton picked up another six yards, and a facemask penalty on Frankfurt gave the Claymores a first down at the Galaxy eight-yard line... Stafford hit WR Scott McCready from five yards out on a well-thrown fade pattern to put the Claymores ahead 21-6... Defensive line pressure came on three straight plays, forcing three consecutive incompletions from Gray and a Frankfurt punt... Attendance for the game was 22,324... Bingham batted down a Gray pass attempt... Claymores defense forced a punt and got the ball back with 20 seconds before the half... Stafford took a knee and the Claymores took a 21-6 lead into the locker room... Jonas Lewis returned the third quarter kickoff to the Claymores' 47... Rogers broke up a third down pass from Brown to force a punt... The Claymores took their first possession of the second half at their own 12... Nall froze the defense with a pump fake, and then hit Shepherd down the left sideline for a 49-yard gain to the Galaxy 39... Nall found TE Rod Trafford for 15 yards and a first down on third-and-long... The drive was snuffed as Galaxy DE Daniel Benetka grabbed a batted pass for an interception, turning the ball over at the 35... LB Darnell Robinson read a screen pass perfectly and tackled RB Adam Tate for a five-yard loss... Brown found Lester for a 19-yard gain on third-and-15... Lewis carried three times in a row for 24 yards... Brown hit WR Marc Soumah for 18 yards to the Claymores' five-yard line... Keys trapped Lewis for a loss of three yards... Brown found TE Josh Whitman for an eight-yard TD pass, and the PAT cut the lead to 21-13 with 3:56 to go in the third... The Frankfurt defense came up with another interception, as SS Calvin Spears picked a pass off the hands of TE Rashod Kent at the 24... Bingham applied heavy pressure to Brown again, forcing him to throw the ball away... The Claymores defense held at the 16, forcing a 34-yard field goal attempt by Hilbert, which he pulled wide left... McCready got open in the Galaxy secondary and Nall found him for 44 yards and a first down at the Frankfurt 29... The third quarter ended with the Claymores on top 21-13... The drive stalled at the 21, forcing a 39-yard Rob Hart field goal try, which he also pulled wide left... Rogers spun down Tate for a two-yard loss... DL Nate Bolling flushed Brown from the pocket and forced him to throw the ball out of bounds... Brown hit Soumah for a big gain over the middle to move inside the red zone... Lester sprung open in the end zone and Brown hit him for a six-yard score... Lewis ran around the left end for a two-point conversion to tie the game at 21-21... Simonton broke around the right end for a 70-yard gain before he was dragged down from behind by CB Chris Pointer at the Frankfurt 15... The run put Simonton over 100 yards rushing for the third straight week, the first time a Claymores runner has ever accomplished that feat and just the third time in league history... Nall found WR John Minardi for a 15-yard touchdown pass on the next play... Hart missed the PAT for the first time in his career (140 made previously), and the score was 27-21 with the Claymores ahead with seven minutes to play... Bolling dropped Brown for an 11-yard sack... The defense forced a punt with two more incomplete passes... Nall hit McCready on successive plays to pick up a first down at the 38 of Frankfurt... The drive was snuffed, forcing a punt by Kevin Stemke, which just narrowly crossed into he end zone for a touchback... Gray returned to quarterback the Galaxy, and hit Lester for a 19-yard gain at the two-minute warning... Gray ran for 12 yards and then hit Whitman for another first down... Gray then hit TE Kori Dickerson for 25 yards to give them a first down at the 13... Lester broke open again in the end zone, and Lester hit him for a 13-yard score... The hold on the PAT was botched, leaving the score tied at 27-27 with 49 seconds to play in regulation... The clock ran out, bringing up the first overtime of the 2003 NFLE season... The Claymores won the toss in overtime and elected to receive... Jermaine Chatman returned the kickoff out to the 31-yard line... The drive resulted in a three-and-out, making the game a sudden-death matter... Gray hit Lester for a 14-yard gain to midfield... Gray hit Lester again and he moved through the Claymores secondary for a 45-yard game-winning touchdown, his third of the game... The Galaxy won the game 33-27, 3:32 into the overtime period.

2003 SCOTTISH CLAYMORES GAME SIX

Scottish Claymores 27 at Frankfurt Galaxy 33 (OT)

May 10, 2003

Waldstadion

Frankfurt - (Cloudy, Mild) - The Scottish Claymores traveled to Germany for the third time this season to face the always-tough Frankfurt Galaxy in a crucial game to both teams' World Bowl hopes. The Galaxy came from behind to send the Claymores home with a 33-27 loss in overtime, overcoming dual 100-yard rushing days by Claymores runners Ken Simonton and Maurice Hicks. For the fourth time in six games this season, the Claymores found the end zone on their first possession of the game. Hicks took a handoff on a reverse after lining up in the slot and scampered 58 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead just two and a half minutes into the game. The offense produced another quick score when they got the ball back with Simonton scoring his league-leading eighth touchdown of the year, this one came on a swing pass from Craig Nall, good for 37 yards, putting the Claymores ahead 14-0. Galaxy quarterback Quinn Gray started the second quarter and hit Robert Baker on a crossing route for a 44-yard score. Kicker Jon Hilbert's PAT was missed wide right, keeping the score at 14-6. Shane Stafford led the Claymores on a scoring drive of his own to answer and extend the lead. Stafford hit receiver Edell Shepherd twice for 42 yards and then hit Scott McCready on a fade pattern for a five-yard touchdown pass, pushing the lead to 21-6, which would be the score at the halftime break. The turnover bug returned to the Claymores offense in the third quarter. The Claymores were moving at the start of the period, but the drive was killed a few plays later when German national defensive end Daniel Benetka grabbed a batted ball for a Galaxy interception. James Brown returned under center and pushed the Galaxy on a touchdown drive that was topped with a pass to tight end Josh Whitman to cut the lead to 21-13. The Galaxy tied the game on their next possession as they drove down the field 71 yards in six minutes with Brown finding Lester on a six-yard touchdown pass. Jonas Lewis took the ball on a sweep around the left end and plunged in for a two-point conversion to knot the score at 21. Simonton answered back with a big gain of his own, running 70 yards before being dragged down from behind at the Galaxy 15. Simonton's long run pushed him over the 100-yard mark for the third consecutive game, the first time any Claymore had ever done that and just the third time in league history. Nall found John Minardi in the end zone on the very next play. Hart's first missed PAT in 141 career tries meant the Claymores were on top by just six, 27-21. Gray hit four different receivers on the drive and found Lester for his second TD grab of the game from 13 yards out. A botched hold by punter Tim Morgan kept the score tied at 27-27, forcing the first overtime game of the NFLE season. After the Claymores went three-and-out, The Galaxy got the ball at their own 33, and the game became a sudden death contest by NFLE rules. Gray's efficient three-play drive was capped as he completed his heroics as he hit Lester again on the winning score. Lester maneuvered through the Claymores secondary for a 45-yard game-winning touchdown, his third of the game, and the Claymores' German jinx has returned.



National Football League Europa Stories from May 14, 2003


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Scottish Claymores Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central