Thunder Set to Grind it out with the Fire
May 21, 2003 - National Football League Europa (NFLE)
Berlin Thunder News Release
The two-time defending World Bowl champion Berlin Thunder (2-5) get their first look at Arena AufSchalke, the new home of the Rhein Fire (4-3) this Sunday, May 25th in a nationally televised game on Fox. The Thunder are attempting to make it a repeat of last year's World Bowl, a 26-20 triumph against the rival Fire, and their first regular season win against Rhein since May 12, 2001. Last week, the Thunder suffered a heartbreaking 23-20 home defeat to first-place Barcelona, while the Fire were shut out for the first time in team history, 33-0 in Scotland.
TV:
Sunday's contest will be broadcast in the United States on Fox at 2:00pm EST and on tape delay on TV Premiere in Berlin at 7:00pm on Sunday evening. The U.S. play-by-play will be handled by veteran New York-area announcer Curt Menefee, with color commentary coming from seven-year NFL Europe Fox broadcaster and former Dallas Cowboys, Indianapolis Colts and Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman Brian Baldinger. Kick-off at Arena AufSchalke is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. local Dusseldorf time.
THIS WEEK'S FOX TEAM
CURT MENEFEE- "MSG Sports Desk" co-host and play-by-play announcer Curt Menefee has been reeling in highlights for New York-area sports fans for the past nine years. Before his move to the MSG Sports Desk a year ago, Menefee served as the main sports news anchor for WNYW-TV (FOX 5) from 1995-2002. Tri-state-area sports fans are familiar with his critical eye on the sports world and his "Hey, it's only a game, let's have fun" attitude.
When he's not sitting behind the desk or culling through miles of tape searching for the best plays and camera angles for his sports reports, Curt voices National Football League games for the FOX television network and also serves as a sideline reporter and occasional studio host for their Major League Baseball telecasts. He will also serve as play-by-play announcer for MSG's New York Liberty and New York Cyclones coverage.
Upon graduating from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA, the Atlanta, GA, native started cutting his broadcasting teeth in 1984 as a sports reporter and anchor for KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids before moving in 1987 to Des Moines, IA's WOI-TV, where he served in the same capacity for one year (1987-88). A two-year stint in Madison, WI, soon followed, where he logged time as the weekend sports anchor and reporter for WISC-TV. Curt got his first taste of an all-sports network when he joined the fledgling Mizlou Sports News Network (SNN) as an anchor from 1990-91. The SNN gig marked a return to his Washington, D.C., birthplace. He then headed south to the Florida panhandle, where he spent a year (1991-92) as the weekend sports anchor and reporter with WTLV-TV in Jacksonville, FL. Menefee's 1992 arrival in the Lone Star State marked the beginning of his first full-time sports anchor slot when he was brought in by KTVT-TV of Dallas, TX to become their main sports anchor. Three years later he came to the Big Apple, and he's been here ever since.
BRIAN BALDINGER- A former offensive lineman with the Dallas Cowboys, the Indianapolis Colts and the Philadelphia Eagles, Baldinger is an NFL on FOX game analyst. For the last four years, he has also served as a game analyst for NFL Europe League coverage on FOX Sports and FOX Sports Net. In the past, Baldinger hosted Sports Talk on CN8 in New Jersey. This year he will co-host a national radio show for One-on-One Sports. He also teaches communications seminars for Nadia Communications.
Undrafted coming out of college, Baldinger was offered a free-agent contract by one of the Dallas Cowboys equipment managers. In 1982, Baldinger was the only free agent from among 107 rookies who earned a roster spot with the Cowboys. He remained a mainstay on the Dallas offensive line before continuing on to Indianapolis, where he was named the Colts Most Valuable Lineman in 1991.
After leaving the Colts, Baldinger finished his 13-year NFL career with the Philadelphia Eagles. A 1982 graduate of Duke University with a degree in psychology, Baldinger transferred to the Durham campus in the fall of 1978 as a tight-end-turned-offensive-lineman from Nassau (NY) Community College. During his time at Nassau Community College, Baldinger earned an Associate's degree, all-league football honors, the basketball team's MVP award and the school's Student Athlete of the Year Award.
THE SERIES
With Berlin winning the 2002 World Bowl championship 26-20, they broke a three-game slide against the Fire. Rhein, however, leads the all-time series 7-3 with victories of 20-16 and 24-14 against the Thunder in the 2002 regular season and 21-10 earlier this year in Berlin.
Berlin's Largest Margin of Victory: 6; 26-20 (June 22, 2002) in World Bowl X and 23-17 (May 12, 2001) in Berlin
Rhein's Largest Margin of Victory: 29; 29-0 (June 5, 1999) in Berlin
Most Recent Tie: There has never been a tie
Current Winning Streak: Fire 1, (April 13, 2003 - Present)
LAST TIME VS. RHEIN
Behind the steady legs of running back Autry Denson, who rushed for 114 yards on 18 carries including a 15-yard touchdown run to open the scoring, the Fire seized the momentum of the afternoon and never let up.
The quarterback tandem of Nick Rolovich (Denver) and Chris Greisen combined for 195 yards passing while completing 15 of their 23 pass attempts. Each quarterback threw a touchdown pass, Greisen found Denson in the second quarter to extend the Rhein lead to 14-3. Rolovich connected with Kendall Newsom on a 36-yard touchdown pass extending the Fire lead to 21-3 midway through the third quarter, not only did the pass finish the scoring it also seemed to finish the Thunder, dropping Berlin to their second straight 0-2 start.
The Berlin offense struggled all afternoon as the stingy Rhein defense had an answer for everything that the Thunder tried.
Led by defensive tackle Josh McKibben whose monstrous 10-tackle afternoon included 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and a fumble recovery, the Fire held the Thunder offense to just 10 points, while converting on just 1 of their 4 red zone opportunities. Berlin's only touchdown of the game came late in the fourth quarter as Phil Stambaugh found German national Jörg Heckenbach with less than six minutes remaining in the game. The victory improved the Fire to 1-1, while the Thunder slipped to 0-2. Source: Fitz Ollison
A THUNDER VICTORY WOULD...
- Improve Peter Vaas's career coaching record to 21-19 overall and to 4-5 against the Fire.
- Improve the franchise overall record to 24-26.
- Give the Thunder their first regular season win against the Fire since May 12, 2001.
HEAD COACHES
PETER VAAS completed his third season as head coach of the Berlin Thunder by leading his squad to the team's season best-tying record at 6-4 and their second consecutive World Bowl title in 2002. Vaas finished his fifth year of coaching in NFL Europe, having joined the league in 1998 as quarterbacks and wide receivers coach for the Barcelona Dragons. In 1999 as offensive assistant he helped the Dragons to a league best 7-3 record and a World Bowl berth. Under his guidance running back Lawrence Phillips rushed for 1,021 yards and 14 touchdowns and was named the league's Offensive MVP. Vaas began his coaching career in 1974 as an assistant at Allegheny College and from 1979-85 worked as offensive coordinator at the University of New Hampshire. In 1986, Vaas returned to Allegheny as their head coach, guiding a team that had not posted a winning record in seven years to two North Coast Athletic Conference championships. In his second season he led the Gators to an undefeated 9-0-1 regular season record. Vaas went on to become running backs and then quarterbacks coach at Notre Dame. There he coached players such as Rick Mirer, Jerome Bettis, and Ricky Watters, all of who became top-flight NFL players. He was head coach at Holy Cross from 1992 to 1995 before becoming the offensive coordinator for the Montreal Allouettes of the Canadian Football League. Peter Vaas is married to Rosann and they have two daughters, Katelyn and Kelly and reside in Hampton, New Hampshire.
PETE KUHARCHEK enters his second season as head coach after leading the Fire to a 5-5 mark in 2001. Promoted to head coach in 2000 after five seasons as Fire defensive coordinator. Helped Rhein record four straight winning seasons in that time. 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. 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. Kuharchek won World Bowl rings with the Fire in 1998 and 2000.
FROM COACH VAAS
(on what he is looking for this week)
"This weekend's match-up with the Fire will be a hard-fought contest. We are coming off a tough loss, but hopefully we have that bounce back ability that every coach looks for in a team. It is never easy taking on Rhein, especially in front of their home crowd. It's going to be a challenge for us."
(on the keys to the game)
"The big keys for us are sticking with the game plan, taking care of the ball on offense, and forcing turnovers on defense. We also need to produce in the red zone and finish off our drives with touchdowns instead of field goals. We struggled on special teams last week as well, so we really need to make sure that we take care of things in that area."
NO MORE TWO-HEADED MONSTER AT QB
The one-two punch of Stambaugh and Burris has come to an end. Quarterback Henry Burris (Chicago Bears) was put on IR and sent to Birmingham after injuring his left knee in the 3rd quarter of the Week 6 game in Barcelona. Stambaugh, the league's second-rated passer, is now the full-time starter. Free agent Mike Watkins of the Rhein Fire joined the Thunder last week and will back up Stambaugh again on Sunday.
D.A. KEEPS ON TRUCKING THROUGH THE RECORD BOOKS
All-purpose back David Allen (Jacksonville Jaguars) is the runaway league leader in combined net yards gained with a total of 1,416 yards and smashed one of the oldest records in the book, last week, formerly held by Tony Baker of Frankfurt, who gained 1,367 yards in 1991. The speedster garnered NFL Europe Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his performance against Scotland in week 4. He totaled 129 yards on four returns, including a 74-yard scamper down the sideline for a touchdown. The back from Kansas State is fourth in rushing with 452 yards on 70 carries after his top performance in Week 6 in Spain when he rushed 16 times for 125 yards and a touchdown and his second consecutive 100-yard day last week when he totaled 105 yards on 17 carries. Allen has scored four touchdowns and is the only player in the league to do so three different ways (two rushing, one receiving, and one on a kickoff return).
QUICK STATS
Offensive Game Averages: 22.4 pts, 340.4 total yds, 118.1 rushing yds, 222.3 passing yds.
Passing Leader: Stambaugh (1092 yards)
Rushing Leader: Allen (452 yards)
Receiving Leader(s): Thurmon, Irvin (24 rec), Thurmon (241 yards)
Defensive Game Averages: 32.1 pts, 374.1 yds, 169.8 rushing yds, 204.3 passing yds.
Sack Leader: Williams (7)
Interception Leader: T.Coleman (2)
THUNDER OFFENSIVE NOTES
-Wide receiver Elijah Thurmon (Chicago Bears) scored the longest touchdown of the Thunder season when he made an over-the-shoulder grab from Stambaugh and outran the entire Dragon defense on his way to an 80-yard score. Thurmon is now tied for eighth in league receptions with fellow teammate Sedrick Irvin, with 24 catches for 241 yards and 4 touchdowns.
-Wide receiver Sean Scott (Philadelphia Eagles), one of Stambaugh's go-to guys with 21 catches for 177 yards and a touchdown, will miss his second consecutive game while on Injured Reserve due to a knee injury.
-German national wide receiver Joerg Heckenbach is in his sixth year in the league, fourth with the Thunder. He was named NFL Europe National Player of the Week for his performance against Amsterdam in Week 5 in which he finished with 3 receptions for 57 yards and one tackle on special teams. Heck had 12 catches for 205 yards in 2002, including a 66-yard reception and started off the 2003 campaign with two touchdowns in the first two games. -Quarterback Phil Stambaugh is the league's second-rated passer with a rating of 89.8. The journeyman from Lehigh is with his seventh team in three years and will now have full reigns of the Thunder offense for the second straight week, since the injured Burris departed.
-Running backs Sedrick Irvin (Miami Dolphins) and David Allen (Jacksonville Jaguars) provide the ground game with an effective variety of styles. Irvin is a power runner that can get the team those much-needed extra yards and is elusive in the open field. Allen uses his quickness to make opposing defenders miss and has great breakaway speed. -Center Josh Warner (Chicago Bears) and tackle Freddie Moore return for their second seasons with the Thunder and help anchor the biggest offensive line that the organization has had in its five years of existence.
-Offensive tackle Chris Smith (New York Jets), a converted collegiate tight end at California-Davis, has been a steady blocker for Bob Bicknell's O-line. Smith has put on 50 pounds in just two years in the professional ranks and is one of the keys in both the rushing game and in pass protection for the upstart Berlin offense.
BIG "L" STAMPEDING HIS WAY THROUGH OPPOSING LINEMEN
Defensive end Lamanzer Williams (Miami Dolphins) has been on a mission since returning from Birmingham. The 27-year old from the University of Minnesota has racked up six sacks in the past two games and seven overall in just four games of action and is now the league-leader in that category. Williams earned NFL Europe Defensive Player of the Week honors for two consecutive weeks after his dominating performances against the Dragons. "L" is fast approaching the Thunder team record for sacks in a season of 10, held by Jonathon Brown in 2000.
THUNDER DEFENSIVE NOTES
-Cornerback Travis Coleman was moved to free safety during Week 6 to take the place of the injured Tim Carter in the secondary. Cornerback Daryon Brutley was moved from right to left corner and now starts in the vacant spot left by T.Coleman. Both played well at their new positions against Barcelona the past two weeks. Brutley picked off a pass thrown by Barcelona's Finlen and also chipped in with six tackles while T.Coleman has covered well and totaled five tackles since the changes were made.
-Defensive tackle Reggie Grimes is tied for tenth in the league in sacks with 3.0. -Defensive end Ryan Wingrove has been a human wrecking ball for the D-line. The spitfire from Bowling Green has a non-stop motor and is tied for fifth on the team with 27 tackles. He also has totaled two sacks this season and had a solid performance last week with four tackles, a 13-yard sack, and a pass deflection. - Four-year NFL Europe veteran Lelan Brickus returns to the Thunder defense for the 2003 season. Brickus, a German national safety in his fourth season with Berlin, was named NFL Europe National Player of the Week in week 8 for his performance against Scotland last season and will most likely see even more playing time in the secondary now that Carter is gone. He had a career-high 7 tackles in the win over Amsterdam in Week 5.
-Defensive back Travis Coleman (Chicago Bears) has been one of the bright spots for Berlin. He picked off a pass thrown by Claymore quarterback Shane Stafford and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown in Week 1 and is fourth on the team with 29 tackles.
-Clint Finley (36), Jamal White (34), Byron Thweatt (30), and Travis Coleman (29) lead the team in tackles through seven games.
THUNDER SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
-Kicker Axel Kruse's streak of 84 straight PATs was broken in Week 5 when his first attempt hit the right upright and fell short. The former German soccer star has connected on six of seven field goal attempts this season. He is in his fifth season and is the Thunder's all-time leading scorer with 159 points, after adding 1 PAT and three field goals of 31, 30, and 19 yards last week.
-Kicker J.R. Jenkins (Baltimore Ravens) has been used sparingly all season as far as field goals are concerned, but he did give Berlin a boost with his 4-point, 50-yard boot last week. He also missed another 50-yard attempt later on in the game. His duties include kickoffs and field goals beyond 30 yards. Jenkins' kickoffs have been impressive as he oftentimes lands them inside the 10-yard line.
-Steve Cheek (New York Giants) is third in the league in punting. He has done a solid job throughout the first seven games of the season. He's punted 28 times, totaling 1,115 yards with an average of 39.8 yards per boot.
ADDITIONAL THUNDER STRIKES
-Running back Sedrick Irvin (Miami Dolphins) rushed for 48 yards last week and has gained 504 total yards this season (281 rushing, 223 receiving).
-Wide receiver Pierre Brown (Detroit Lions) caught 2 passes for 12 yards last week.
-Wide receiver Elijah Thurmon (Chicago Bears), the team's leading receiver, was born in Heidelberg, Germany.
-National wide receiver Joerg Heckenbach has 10 catches for 133 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season. One of those scores came in Week 2 vs. the Fire.
-Receiver Kirk Rogers (Kansas City Chiefs) caught 3 passes for 51 yards last week and has 18 receptions for 200 yards on the season.
-Tight end Bryan Fletcher (Chicago Bears) has 8 catches for 51 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season, but has not caught a pass in the last two weeks.
-Tight end Chad Hayes had a 4-yard reception last week.
-Defensive end Reggie Grimes recorded 6 tackles against the Dragons last week.
-Defensive end Ryan Wingrove recorded 4 tackles and a sack last week.
-Defensive end Teto Simpson recorded 3 tackles and a sack against his old team last week. He played for the Dragons in 2001 and ended that season with 7 tackles.
-Linebacker Jamal White (Oakland Raiders) recorded 2 tackles last week and ranks second on the team with 34 stops this season.
-Linebacker Chris Ball made 4 tackles last week.
-Linebacker Josh Symonette (Miami Dolphins) returned to the starting lineup after returning from injury to record 7 tackles.
-Cornerback Travis Coleman (Chicago Bears) recorded 3 tackles and an interception last week while continuing to start at safety due to Tim Carter's absence through injury.
-Cornerback Calvin Coleman recorded 4 tackles and forced a fumble last week.
-Safety Clint Finley recorded 4 tackles last weekend and leads team with 36 tackles this season.
-German safety Lelan Brickus recorded 3 tackles and 1 pass defense last week and has 18 tackles on the season.
NEXT WEEK
The Thunder will travel to Amsterdam to take on the Admirals on Saturday May 31th. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. (EST), 7:00 Local Amsterdam Time.
• Discuss this story on the National Football League Europa message board...
National Football League Europa Stories from May 21, 2003
- F.C. Barcelona Dragons Game Notes - F.C. Barcelona Dragons
- Thunder Set to Grind it out with the Fire - Berlin Thunder
- Claymores Begin Two-Game Road Swing - Scottish Claymores
- Admirals Look to Keep Hopes Alive Versus Claymores - Amsterdam Admirals
- Dragons aim to maintain Bowl course - NFLE
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.
