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Fire start two-game road swing with visit to Amsterdam

May 6, 2003 - National Football League Europa (NFLE)
Rhein Fire News Release


Gelsenkirchen, Germany — With the season halfway through the Rhein Fire (3-2) enter a critical stretch in which they play three of the next four games on the road including a two-game road swing starting this Saturday night at Amsterdam (2-3). After their victory against Frankfurt last weekend the Fire are tied for second place, one game behind leader Barcelona. Amsterdam is coming off a loss to Berlin and is two games out of the lead.

"We have not had much recent success against Amsterdam especially at their place," said coach Pete Kuharchek. "This game is extremely important for our World Bowl hopes."

Both teams matched up during the opening weekend this season which saw the game go down to the final seconds, concluding with a last-second field goal by the Admirals for a 17-15 win.

Since that opening weekend battle both teams have gone separate directions with Rhein winning three of four and Amsterdam having lost three of their last four games. Saturday's game will feature two of the top defenses in the League. Rhein is second in total defense and the Admirals are third.

The Fire will be looking to snap a four-game losing streak to the Admirals and will also be seeking their second victory ever at the Amsterdam ArenA.

Rhein will travel to Scotland to face the Claymores next on Sunday, May 18.

Burton named defensive player of week

Rhein linebacker Charles Burton (Arizona Cardinals) earned an accolade from the League on Tuesday when he was named "NFL Europe Defensive Player of the Week."

Burton's efforts on Saturday against Frankfurt did not go unnoticed. With 10 tackles and three sacks (for a loss of 25 yards), Burton was a significant part of the Fire defense that held the Galaxy to seven points on the evening.

For the year Burton has 39 tackles (leading the team) according to coaches film and 33 based on gameday statistics. His 33 give him the NFL Europe League lead after five weeks.

Burton is not the first member of the Fire squad to win an award this season. After a 21-10 win at Berlin, Rhein earned three of four individual awards (offense, defense and national players of the week) as Autry Denson, Josh McKibben and Bastian Lano were recognized for their achievements at Olympic Stadium.

GAME INFORMATION

ANNOUNCERS
Ari Wolfe — play-by-play
Dana Stubblefield — color analyst

TV
USA: DirecTV (Fox Sports)
(1:00 pm Eastern)

STADIUM ADDRESS
Amsterdam ArenA
Amsterdam, Netherlands

HEAD COACHES
Rhein Fire:
Pete Kuharchek
15-10 overall, 1-4 vs. AMS

Amsterdam Admirals:
Doug Graber
10-15 overall, 4-1 vs. Rhein

Arena AufSchalke a modern marvel

The Rhein Fire will be the first American football team to play at the Arena AufSchalke, the home stadium of the FC Schalke 04. Created in August 2001 at the cost of $180 million, the Arena AufSchalke is one of the loudest and certainly most advanced stadiums in Europe. The multi-functional stadium has a capacity of 61,800 seats with views close to the action. Arena AufSchalke hosts soccer, football, opera, rock concerts and biathalons, among other events. Schalke 04 has never played for less than capacity at its new home.

Arena AufSchalke is perhaps the most state-of-the-art stadium in all of Europe and more advanced than most NFL arenas in America. The true grass playing field at AufShalke is portable, rolling in and out of the stadium to be manicured. Moving the field takes six hours and costs $15,000 a time. The Arena also has a retractable roof which takes 20 minutes to open and/or close. Other features include a chapel inside the stadium and many luxury boxes for businesses.

The arena forms the new heart of the "Schalker of field" in the north Gelsenkirchens between the quarters Erle, Buer and Schalke. The arena is located close to the metropolitan railway line 302 with connection to the Gelsenkirchener main station as well as for the motor traffic over the exits Gelsenkirchen Buer at A 2 and Gelsenkirchen Schalke at A 42.

History of the Fire

Team History:

Established in 1995, the Fire posted a disappointing 4-6 record in their inaugural season. In 1997, the Fire played in World Bowl '97, losing at the Barcelona Dragons, 24-38. The Fire have been in the World Bowl four times in their first eight years of existence, winning a title in 1998 and 2000.

Team Name:

The Rhein Fire is named for the Northrhein-Westphalia region of Germany and the mammoth 820-mile Rhein River that forms Germany's southwest boundary. The team used to play its home games in Düsseldorf, capital of Northrhein-Westphalia, and now hosts games in Gelsenkirchen, a 40-minute drive North of Düsseldorf. City/Region:

A conglomerate of 24 cities forms the Rhein-Ruhr region of Germany. Situated on the western fringe of Germany, the densely populated region covers 200 kilometers. The largest cities surrounding Düsseldorf (population 577,250, the capital of Northrhein-Westphalia since 1946), are Duisburg (537,000) and Essen (626,000) to the North, Wuppertal (384,000) to the East, Cologne (1,000,000) and Bonn (294,000) to the South. Düsseldorf's airport serves 11.5 million passengers annually and reaches 150 destinations worldwide. The World Team Tennis Cup in Düsseldorf's Rochus Club and the ice hockey games of the "Düsseldorf EG" are highlights of the city's sports scene.

Head coach Pete Kuharchek

Coach Pete Kuharchek enters his third season as head coach after leading the Fire to a 7-3 mark in 2002 and a World Bowl appearance. Coach Kuharchek was promoted to head coach in 2000 after five seasons as Fire defensive coordinator and helped Rhein to a record four straight winning seasons in that time as well as boasting one of the League's stingiest defenses.

Under Kuharchek, the Fire's defense ranked number one overall in NFL Europe in 1999. Against the run, they have been number one on three occasions (1996, 1998, 1999) and topped the ratings against the pass in 1999.

As a player, Kuharchek started at linebacker for two years at George Washington University and a further two years at the University of Tampa. He also began his coaching career at the University of Tampa, serving as linebackers coach in 1970, and was recently named to Tampa's sports Hall of Fame.

From 1972-75, Kuharchek was defensive coordinator at Tampa Catholic High School before returning to the college ranks as a defensive assistant at the University of Kentucky in 1976. He served for two years as defensive coordinator at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire before stints at Holy Cross (defensive assistant) and East Tennessee State University (defensive coordinator).

His first venture into pro football came in the USFL, where he served as linebackers coach for the Tampa Bay Bandits from 1983-85. He was defensive coordinator at Memphis State University from 1986-89 and spent a year with the Canadian Football League's British Columbia Lions and then the University of Texas-El Paso.

In 1992, his first season in the NFL Europe League, Kuharchek helped the Orlando Thunder gain a place in World Bowl, where they were beaten by the Sacramento Surge.

From 1993-95 he retuend to UTEP as defensive coordinator before teaming up with Galen Hall and the Fire in 1996. Kuharchek won World Bowl rings with the Fire in 1998 and 2000.

Depth at skill positions lead Fire offense

The Rhein Fire offense is led by a tandem of talented quarterbacks including Nick Rolovich (Denver Broncos) and Chris Greisen. Rolovich got the starting nod during the first three Fire games after a successful training camp. Greisen also will split time, playing in the second and fourth quarters. Both quarterbacks combined for 95 yards passing in Week One, 195 versus Berlin, 159 against Scotland, 140 at Barcelona and 165 against Frankfurt.

Lining up in the Fire backfield this season are four multi-faceted running backs. Starting is NFL veteran Autry Denson (Detroit Lions) who offers a scat-back mentality and sure hands. Denson is averaging almost 100 yards a game and is leading the League in rushing yardage. Louisville product Frank Moreau backs up Denson and qualifies as a power runner through the offensive line and he has proved to be a valuable contributor to Rhein's offense, rushing for 200-plus yards on the year. Matt Stanley (San Francisco 49ers) is a natural fullback but in the single-back offense of the Fire, he has multiple jobs as a running back, goal line back and occasional tight end.

With a facet of tall and quick wide receivers, this group of wideouts is Rhein's most talented corps in years. Leading the way are Emmett Johnson (Seattle Seahawks), Kendall Newson (Miami Dolphins) and Charlie Adams (Denver Broncos) for the three-wide Rhein set. Both Johnson and Newson have been battling injuries but Newson and Adams are among the League leaders in touchdowns scored and Adams has scored three touchdowns in the last three games. LaVell Boyd (Houston Texans), capable of playing multiple receiver spots, started for the first time two weeks ago and has four grabs in his last two games. German national Christopher Liess plays behind Johnson and newly signed Todd Elstrom will see time at WR. Tight end will also is a strong suit for Rhein, boasting NFL talent in Chad Mustard (Cleveland Browns), who is out for an undetermined time because of personal matters, starter Dwayne Blakley (Kansas City Chiefs) and the newest Rhein Fire member Ryan Prince (Oakland Raiders).

Rhein's offensive line is led with tackles Dwayne Ledford and German national Patrick Venzke. Guards Pat Crummey (New York Giants) and Jim Jones (Baltimore Ravens) will start against Frankfurt and the line will be centered by Dustin Keith (Dallas Cowboys) after Illinois product Luke Butkus (San Diego Chargers) was moved to injured reserve. Scot Osborne and German national Peter Heyer provide depth.

Veteran line, active linebackers highlight Rhein defense

Defensive coordinator Ed O'Neil leads the historically strong Rhein Fire defense. The defensive line has two bookends in Andre Arnold and Corey Callens, a Fire veteran. Callens and Arnold both have contributed as Callens has two sacks in 2003 and Arnold has one. The run-stopping tandem of Brad Harris (New York Giants) and Josh McKibben (Tampa Bay Bucs) will help anchor the line and McKibben starred against Berlin with three sacks and two forced fumbles. Providing depth are two former Fire members in DE Derrick Ham (three sacks on the year) and German national Bastian Lano (1.5 sacks against Berlin) along with Swedish national Dan Petersson. Defensive end Jesse Warren also has seen significant time since being signed as a free agent as has recently-activated DT David Viger.

Rhein's linebacking corps may be the strongest portion of the defense. Top NFL allocation draft pick Courtney Ledyard (New England Patriots) leads the group as the middle linebacker but will be missing in action after suffering a shoulder injury versus the Thunder and was placed on injured reserve. Charles Burton (Arizona Cardinals) and Rhein veteran Jamel Smith play outside, both leading the LB corps with 39 and 32 tackles, respectively. Burton also had three sacks against Frankfurt. Jay Johnson is starting in Ledyard's place and has responded with 31 tackles. Recent pickup Dane Krager (Seattle Seahawks) will also see significant time as well as newcomer Terrence Dukes.

The secondary is led by cornerbacks Teddy Gaines (Chicago Bears) and Tony Lukins (Oakland Raiders), who has two interceptions on the year. Safety Greg Brown, a member of the Fire in 2002, and Abdual Howard (Jacksonville Jaguars), who returned a 93-yard interception for a touchdown against the Claymores and also added one against Frankfurt, play safety and providing depth in the secondary are corners Adesola Badon (Carolina Panthers) and Tierre Sams (Cincinnati Bengals) as well as German national Richard Yancy and Lemual Ligon, who had a sack and interception versus Berlin, (San Diego Chargers) at safety.

SPECIAL TEAMS Autry Denson is the primary returner for punts and is joined by Kendall Newson for kickoffs and occasionally punts as well. Tony Lukins and Adesola Badon may also see time as returners in 2003. Punting for Rhein is Jay Taylor (Cleveland Browns) and kicks are handled by Todd France (Minnesota Vikings), 2-3 on the year in FGs, and former German soccer star Ingo Anderbrugge, 2-2 on FGs and 8-9 on PATs in 2003.

Notes on Amsterdam coach Bart Andrus... Andrus returns for his third season as head coach with the Admirals and goes into the Fire game with a 10-15 record. He spent the 2000 NFL Europe season as offensive coordinator for Rhein Fire leading an offense that ranked first in the league in total yards gained and total points scored. Andrus spent three seasons in the NFL with Tennessee Oilers-Titans as offensive assistant from 1997-98 and as the quarterbacks coach in 1999. He served as the head coach of Rocky Mountain College, receiving the 1996 NAIA Coach of the Year Award for his efforts in restructuring a struggling program that had not won a game in 4 years. Andrus ended the season 6-4 with his offense ranking first in the nation. Prior to his stint at Rocky Mountain, Andrus filled the role as the offensive coordinator at three different institutions: Southern Utah University ('93-'95), Montana State ('90-'91) and Humboldt State ('86-'89). Andrus had his head coaching debut at St. Patrick High School in Vallejo, CA.

Last time out...Rhein 14 – Frankfurt 7

Gelsenkirchen, Germany – In front of 42, 324 rabid football fans, the Rhein Fire (3-2) beat rival Frankfurt (3-2) 14-7 on Saturday night to move into a two-way tie for second place in NFL Europe.

Led by a stellar defensive day for linebacker Charles Burton and timely interceptions by defensive backs Tony Lukins and Abdual Howard, the Fire beat the Galaxy for the seventh-straight time and head coach Pete Kuharchek moved to 5-0 against Frankfurt.

"I am very pleased with the win," Kuharchek said. "It was a hard-fought game and fortunately we made plays we needed to in order to win and I am very pleased with the effort."

Key for Rhein was its special teams play. Frankfurt was 0-3 on field goal attempts including defensive end Jesse Warren's block of Ralf Kleinmann's 32-yard attempt in the fourth quarter. Fire kicker Todd France booted a 53-yarder worth four points to give the Fire the decisive 14-7 lead and German national kicker Ingo Anderbrugge, out most of the week with an illness, kicked a 27-yard field goal to finish off Rhein's opening drive.

"A big part of the game was special teams this evening," said Kuharchek. "The blocked field goal was huge as were the other two Frankfurt misses and I think Autry (Denson) set us up very well on his 39-yard kickoff return."

Denson's main contribution was the 39-yard kickoff return as Frankfurt's defense keyed on stopping the normally dominant Rhein rushing attack. The Fire managed only 44 yards rushing on the game but clutch passing by both quarterbacks, Nick Rolovich and Chris Greisen, helped lead Rhein to victory. Greisen was particularly effective, throwing 9-15 for 115 yards and one score, a 22-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Charlie Adams.

"We are glad we came back after a tough loss last weekend to beat a great team like Frankfurt," said Greisen. "The touchdown pass was a good play we have run in the past and Charlie (Adams) was the third read. It was a good feeling to have the play work and put seven points on the board."

Burton was a one-man wrecking crew on defense, tallying three quarterback sacks including a ten-yard loss on fourth down during a crucial Frankfurt fourth quarter drive. Burton had 25 yards worth of quarterback throws, falling one sack short of a team record for sacks in an individual game while also adding 10 total tackles.

Also coming up big for Rhein's defense was cornerback Tony Lukins who stifled an early Frankfurt drive by picking off a James Brown pass on the Fire four-yard line during the Galaxy's opening drive. Safety Abdual Howard finished off the game with an interception on Frankfurt's 30-yard line with a little over a minute remaining. Rhein's defense proved especially clutch inside their own 20-yard line, holding Frankfurt to 1-4 in red zone efficiency and only three points total in the four opportunities.

Next up for the Fire is a road game at Amsterdam (2-3) on Saturday, May 10.

POST-FRANKFURT NOTES

WR NOTES

Charlie Adams was the team's biggest target for the third-straight week, scoring-wise, by snagging his third touchdown grab of the year. Kendall Newson was again a deep threat as he led the team with 55 yards receiving. Emmett Johnson added three catches.

A LOOK AT THE QBs

Both Nick Rolovich and Chris Greisen combined for 165 yards passing, their second-highest output of the year. Greisen especially excelled by going 9-15 for 115 yards and one touchdown.

RB SUCCESS

Both Autry Denson and Frank Moreau were held back by a tough Frankfurt defense but Denson still finished the game in the lead in rushing with 473 yards rushing on the year.

OTHER OFFENSIVE NOTES

Rhein's two second quarter scoring drives, which proved to be demoralizing, totaled 21 plays, 111 yards and took 11:09 off the clock.

BURTON'S DAY

With three sacks and 10 tackles, LB Charles Burton continued his recent streak of stellar play. Burton's last sack stopped a drive which had leaked into Rhein's side of the field late in the fourth quarter on fourth down. With 39 tackles on the year, Burton leads the team and is among the League leaders.

D-LINE

DE Derrick Ham was a menace to Frankfurt QB James Brown, earning one sack and tallying numerous hurries. Corey Callens led the line with three tackles. David Viger, who signed with the Fire as an offensive lineman, was activated before the game as a defensive tackle and had on assist as well as multiple QB hurries.

TIMELY PICKS FOR SECONDARY

Just like their last home game against Scotland, both Tony Lukins and Abdual Howard had interceptions, both coming at critical times in the game. On Frankfurt's first drive they were within the Fire four-yard line until Lukins stepped up with an interception of a James Brown pass. On the Galaxy's last drive they were stifled due to a pick by Howard, ending Frankfurt's hopes for a comeback win.

OTHER DEFENSIVE NOTE(S)

For the fifth-straight game Rhein's defense did not allow a point in the third quarter... As they have done all year, the Fire defense stiffened inside the red zone, allowing only six points in four red zone opportunities for Frankfurt... Rhein's four sacks on defense was their second-highest output of the year and gave them 14 sacks to only one given up on offense.

PREVENTING FIELD GOALS

The Galaxy had three opportunities to put three points on the board and missed all three chances. Jon Hilbert missed a 47-yard field goal wide left and Ralf Kleinmann missed the next opportunity wide right. Rhein's special teams proved effective during Frankfurt's third chance to cut into the lead when defensive end Jesse Warren leaped and blocked Kleinmann's second FG attempt, sending the crowd into a frenzy and the momentum to the Fire's side.

FRANCE FROM DEEP

Kicker Todd France made a field goal for the second-straight game, a season-long 53-yarder to give Rhein a decisive 14-7 lead. France also had a touchdown-saving tackle on special teams. National kicker Ingo Angerbrugge made his second field goal of the year also as well as hitting his only PAT of the evening.

RETURN GAME

Although not given many opportunities, Rhein's kickoff return game was opportunistic. After Frankfurt's touchdown drive late in the first quarter, Autry Denson returned the kickoff 39 yards to put the Fire on their own 46 yard line. Denson's return set up Rhein's immediate answer to the Galaxy TD with a score of their own.

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National Football League Europa Stories from May 6, 2003


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