FWL Bowl XV Preview (Part 1)

The first in a series of articles looks at the two teams who have made FWL Bowl XV....

AUSTRIA DARKKNIGHTS

GM

Mario Kreiner totally changed Austria when he arrived back on the scene, he inherited a very poor squad which was made even worse by the deal which gave Ohio several starters from Austria in return for Kreiner to come back. He has his enemies in the FWL, he is cocky, loud and outspoken and seems to badger some GM's to death about a deal. He is very active, he has a great rich roster so he can give several players to other teams for one great superstar he wants badly. He however is a great GM, rebuilding a team from the ashes of a terrible team is amazing and in the short time he has done that even more impressive, a heartbreaking loss last year to Frankfurt in the EFC Game hurt but this year Austria were the #2 team for most of the year and eventually came good in an epic against Amsterdam. Perhaps having the focus off the DarkKnights and not being the favoured team hurt. His subsitutions at the end of seasons have been controversial, last year starting Alli Abrew a day after picking him off the street shocked many. However this year the break for several players seems to have worked, the secondary is playing brilliantly as are many other players. Just a few days after putting a ton of pressure on QB Curt Anes to come good next year and win an FWL Bowl, Anes had his best game ever and one of the best all time and is now one win away from being a champion.

QB's

The pressure was put on Curt Anes last week by GM Kreiner who said an FWL Bowl appearance next year would have to happen, instead Anes took the pressure well, had the game of his life in the EFC Game and now the DarkKnights are in the final a year early. Anes had a nightmare first year in Austria but since then has posted 3 straight 100+ rating years in Austria including one incredible 17 td 0 int season. This year Anes threw a high amount of interceptions with 8 but threw a career high 22 touchdown passes and was named All-FWL. That surprised his GM but Anes was on fire the second half of the season when the DarkKnights switched to a more attacking gameplan rather than a conservative no big plays one. His backup is former Monarch Shedrick Bonner who is a capable backup and knows his job well. Bonner started the Week 14 loss to Scotland but played well. Kreiner had a big name QB in Dave Barr many years ago and surprised many people by trading him and going with young Josh LaRocca. In the end that worked out well, LaRocca led Austria to two FWL Bowl championships. Kreiner does make many big moves and it would be no surprise if in a year or two Anes is replaced by a young QB as young backup Matt Mauck has a lot of potential. Anes who came over from Mexico for a ton of draft picks has really made himself into one of the top QB's in the league, he links up with his WR's very well and against Amsterdam the gameplan to throw short against the great Admirals DB's worked very well.

HB's

When Mike Green was the HB to open the season it surprised many, they didnt think it would last and it didnt. Kreiner brought in a huge name in Ken Simonton, regarded as one of the top HB's in the league over the last few years. Simonton didnt instantly find life easy in Austria, he had some rocky performances but Simonton the last few weeks has carried the load well. He ran for nearly 1000 yards despite sitting out Week 14 and scored 5 touchdowns on the ground. He also scored 5 in the air thanks to 63 receptions at a healthy 10.5 average. He should score more touchdowns on the ground but instead QB Curt Anes threw more short yardarge touchdowns that before. Simonton has blazing speed and should put up even bigger numbers behind the great Austria offensive line but after suddenly coming over in a trade and starting instantly Simonton isnt used to the way his OL plays yet. After training camp Simonton could have a huge year for Austria. He is their ideal back and one who could be their leading rusher for many seasons. Backups include David Allen who has great speed but is too small for an everydown back. FB Terry Witherspoon had some big runs in overtime against the Admirals and played very well at FB. The surprise is former Galaxy FB Marvin Powell who was signed two weeks ago, Kreiner normally doesnt like veterans but Powell was signed and makes his third straight trip to the FWL Bowl. With 2 previous victories Powell could be Kreiners lucky charm.

WR's

The DarkKnights have a great set of WR's, after their play in the EFC Game the DarkKnights might have the best quartet in the league. Matthew Hatchette is the big name WR and has 4 straight 1000 yard seasons. He caught 5 touchdown passes this year and 81 catches. His partner speedster Cecil Moore improved greatly this season with over 700 yards on 54 catches and 4 touchdowns. Moore has blazing speed and can make some big grabs, other times however he can go quiet. The backups are interesting, KeyKowo Bell had 31 catches and scored two touchdowns but in the EFC Game it was the play of 5th WR Efrem Hill which got all the headlines. Hill caught 8 passes for 66 yards and a touchdown in mostly the 4Q and overtime in a brilliant performance after catching 0 passes all year ! Antonio Brown is another speedster but he caught just 10 passes for 94 yards in the season and despite having tons of potential never seems to play up to it. Extra cautious Kreiner might change his WR's due to small injuries so dont be surprised if Hill gets a start at WR2 or 3.

TE's

Ben Watson is an excellent TE for Austria and was named All-FWL TE at the backup position. Watson caught 33 passes for over 450 yards and 3 touchdowns and is a favourite target of Anes. His backup and former FA Yoan Schnee had 2 catches compared to Watsons 1 late in the EFC Game and can make plays. 2 of his 4 catches in the regular season were for touchdowns.

Offensive Line

On paper the DarkKnights have one of the best OL's in football, they have big names everywhere but the problem is there have been so many new players in trades etc they havent gelled fully. Next season they could be lethal but for now they still seem to be trying to remember each others names ! C Richard Mercier is a huge slow centre but he is huge and has amazing strength, the guards are very good, Jon Doronbos who came over from Raleigh could be dominating next year, he is probably suited much more to playing tackle due to his speed as he has struggled at times at guard. The other guard will probably be veteran Stephen Neal who has a slight injury but is better than backup Zach Wilson. The tackles are Lucas Brigman and Chris Ziemann , Barry Byrd is a great backup but isnt ready yet to start. The line should open up better holes for the rushing attack but they can protect the QB well. A year playing together next seaon will make this unit very very good.

Defensive Line

One of the best moves Kreiner made was trading for DE Buck Rasmussan. Rasmussan was tried at DT a few times earlier in his DarkKnight career but was rightly moved back to DE. Rasmussan had a great year with 13 sacks to jointly lead the team. He is an excellent speed rusher and helps create holes for other players. His partner was Jermaine Brookes who had 9 sacks and had a great year but did pick up an injury giving backup David Nugent a chance but he had just 11 tackles and 3 sacks. The defensive tackles are very good, Lauvale Sape has come from nowhere to be one of the best in the league. Sape had a chance to start after the trade of Matt Sweeney and Sape had a huge year with 31 tackles and 13 sacks. His 31 tackles led the d-line. His partner is Thomas Pittman who had only 13 tackles and 4 sacks but he is more of a huge blocker in the middle to stop the rushing attack.

Linebackers

The DarkKnights have a set of fine young LB's, the starting quartet are all in their 4th season or younger and are probably the best set in the league. Rikiya Ishida moved to LB1 at the start of the season and had an amazing year with 85 tackles, 10 sacks and an interception. Ishida has great speed and seems to be involved in nearly every play. On any other team Fred Barr would be the LB1, he had a quiet year with 60 tackles and a sack as an inside LB but is solid. Young Nick McNeil had a better season playing OLB and made 60 tackles and 5 sacks and should improve even more. Ray Wells had 30 tackles and a sack and is a decent LB4.

Secondary

The decision to rest two starters in Week 14 in the end proved to be a great move. The secondary is the best in football and featured 3 All-FWL players. S Shawn Mayer was unlucky not to be voted Defensive Player of the Year, he had 4 ints and 99 tackles as Austria had the 2nd best defense in the league. His partner Lamont Brightful came over from Paris and played very well and should improve after a training camp with Austria next season. The two young CB's are a great mix, Ernest Shazor is the big play rookie and Earthwind Moreland is the solid CB2. Both are as good as each other but both have different styles. They can take WR's out of a game like they did against Scotland and Amsterdam in the playoffs. They have depth as well with former starter S Todd Howard playing at nickle back now.

Special Teams

John Anderson has been one of the best kickers the last two years, it wasnt his fault his XP was blocked in the EFC Game as the line gave way. Anderson hit 21 of 29 FG's and P Steve Cheek continued the great tradition of Austrian punters by finishing 3rd in the league. Kickoff returns arent anything amazing but at PR Cecil Moore had a terrible year being one of the worst in the league. Moore has blazing speed so perhaps its his blockers around him who arent helping.

Overall

Austria have an awesome defense, they potentially have a great offense but this year its spluttered. They have played very well the last two games however and if the offense continues to improve and play well with injured starters at WR then the team have a great chance to be champs. Curt Anes had his greatest game last week and has to have one more. Kreiner has done a great job with the team and to be honest he didnt expect to be in the final this year, the way they've beaten two great teams in the playoffs have people thinking they could go all the way specially being the homefield team. But they shouldnt take the Riders for granted.

SAN ANTONIO RIDERS

GM

Jason Hink is one of the brightest GM's in the league, he has a great knowledge of how the league works and has built up many great teams over the last few years. He is very loyal and has started QB Michael Bishop week in week out despite some bad games in the past. His confidence in Bishop has helped turn Bishop from a former FA QB to one of the best in the league, 4 straight All-FWL games and 5 straight playoff years for the Riders. Hink surprisingly traded Curtis Alexander earlier in the season but look whos laughing now, with Alexander the Riders had a potent offense but they never made a final, now here they are in the FWL Bowl thanks to that great decision. Hink was previously just 1-4 in the playoffs losing several hearbreakers to NY and his great friend in Montreal, David Harwood. However with the pressure off San Antonio, to be honest no one expected them to be in FWL Bowl XV after a 4 game losing streak earlier in the season, the Riders seem to play brilliantly not in the spotlight. The offense had a brilliant game against NY to win and last week played the opposite and controlled the clock with short plays to win. What will happen in FWL Bowl XV ? Will Michael Bishop get back to his 350 yards passing a game ? Will the Riders control the clock ? As NY and Birmingham have learnt, whatever you do dont take San Antonio for granted.

QB's

The knock on Michael Bishop was that he was a brilliant regular season QB (4 times All-FWL) but couldnt perform in the playoffs. This year Bishop has been great, he had a huge game against NY and then this week had a great game against Birmingham moving the chains with short passes and a high completion rate. GM Jason Hink is very loyal to Bishop and Bishop has rewarded that loyalty with some fine seasons. This year Bishop threw for nearly 4,000 yards, 16 td's and just 4 ints, the 4 ints his lowest in a season when starting. Bishop is the clear starter in San Antonio and now is the chance to take that monkey off his back if he wins the FWL Bowl. The Riders seem to like the underdog status as when they are the big name team in the AFC they seem to crumble under the pressure, Austria are fancied as favourites in the final but thats how the Riders like it.

HB's

When fan favourite Curtis Alexander who nearly became the first person to have 1000 yards rushing and receiving last year was traded to Raleigh eyebrows were raised. Many criticised Hink for trading the best HB in the league at the time, Alexander had an injury prone year but was still regarded as one of the best. Former FB Thunder Collins now switched to HB didnt set the world alight with his performances when Alexander was out injured and seemed to play even worse when the pressure was on and Alexander was gone. Being the #1 man didnt help Collins but in the playoffs he seemed to play better and shouldered the load well. Collins had a poor year with under 600 yards and just a 3.3 average but scored 7 touchdowns on the ground and another 3 in the air. He is their best HB by far as backups Chris Downs and veteran Pace Burpee arent 20+ carries a game players. FB is Dameon Hunter who is excellent and has great strength.

WR's

Stepfret Williams was a second year player when he played in FWL Bowl VI against Austria. Williams is the teams all time leading receiver but now takes a backup role on the team. He is still a great WR and as a third option caught 30 passes for over 400 yards. The main targets for Bishops bombs away style passing are Dane Looker who had his best season ever with 102 catches for 1,342 yards and 4 touchdowns. His partner Kendall Newsom has great skills but is overlooked in the passing game and has to play better, he had just 41 catches for over 500 yards and 4 touchdowns. An injury picked up in the AFC Game 'might' give veteran Williams his chance at WR2. Young Cedric Bonner has great skills, he caught just 2 passes in the season but is a very good player who could surprise people if he starts.

TE's

Tony Slatter was the best TE In the AFC this year, he caught 5 passes in the AFC Game and in the regular season caught 56 passes (2nd best on the team) for 775 yards and 4 touchdowns as a great big play TE. The Riders love to throw deep to their TE's specially in their dual TE formation and Slatter is one of the best receiving TE's in football. Backup is former starter Pete Muther, Muther was named All-FWL the previous 3 seasons and it was a surprise he was benched this year but Slatters great play showed the decision was right. Muther would love to start next year for another FWL team and wants to put on a good show, as a backup Muther was lethal. He had 11 catches for 257 yards (23.4 average) and 3 touchdowns. His speed may have dropped but you wouldnt think that looking at the season he had as a backup.

Offensive Line

C John Merandi was a former All-FWL G for the Riders but has switched to C where he has played well. The two guards are very strong, Brian Waters and Anthony Byrd. At tackle Dave Yovanovich is the strongest player in the league, he has amazing strength and huge Justin Sands his partner is practically just as strong. Two untested rookies back them up so the Riders hope they wont have any injuries but the two tackles are huge and very good. The line should play better opening up holes for the rushing attack, they need to improve but they can stop sacks as the whole line are huge hogs.

Defensive Line

The Riders had an off year sacking the QB with just 45 sacks, 3rd worst in the league despite some great players on the d-line. No player had double digit sacks, probably a first for the Riders but they did make a lot of tackles. DE1 Jonathan Browning had 33 tackles and 6 sacks in the regular season but was one of the main differences in the AFC Game as he picked up a career high 5 against Birmingham ! DE2 Matt Walters had an amazing year for a DE2, he made a huge 45 tackles and also had 9 sacks. Young DT Dan Klecko is improving but had just 15 tackles and 4 sacks but young rookie Arion Dixon was one of the finds for the Riders as he had 20 tackles and 8 sacks. Many people think veteran Christian Ward should start instead of Klecko, Ward had many great years starting for the Riders but was benched this year but still had 6 tackles and 2 sacks to show he can still play. The weak link is Klecko who needs to have a big game and to prove the trust in him by GM Jason Hink is worth it.

LB's

The Riders have transformed many of their starters on defense the last few years, the results have been mixed, they had a low number of sacks this year and for a playoff team their 10th ranked defense is quite low. The LB's are a good no-name quarter, Yubrenel Isabelle and Jonathan Jackson are two good solid LB's , Jackson had 86 tackles and 5 sacks and is the best on the team but he has a slight P-1 injury but hopes to be back to full fitness. The other two starters are Steve Jasue and Bobby Brooks, Brooks doesnt have great speed and is the slowest by far of the 4 players but he is very young and had a great year as a LB4 with 24 tackles and 3 sacks, he should have a great Riders career ahead of him.

Secondary

S Brian Mance is only in his 3rd year but he had a brilliant All-FWL season with 2 interceptions and 104 tackles plus a sack to become one of the defensive leaders on the team. The Riders blitz often, FS Glenn Sumter had 2 sacks and the Riders defense can attack from all angles. The Riders feature two speedy CB's in Ade Jimoh (2 interceptions) and Nick Ferguson who is a quality veteran. Zack Norton is another one to watch for the future, for a 1st year player he already has great skills and is already a CB3.

Special Teams

Jim Tarle had a poor season by his standards but has hit many big FG's in the playoffs and has come through well. P Mike Barr didnt have a great regular season performance finishing 14th overall but is young and should improve. Kickoff returns are non existant with veteran Stepfret Williams but Kendall Newsom can add a big return at times returning punts.

Overall

GM Jason Hink must be happy as anything to be in the final after being so close previously, he has made a few strange decisions, HB Thunder Collins started for several weeks with a severe injury, lucky that it didnt get any worse and the team have had a spare roster spot for quite a while now on its team. Perhaps a lucky FA could be a member of this FWL Bowl winning squad. Hink has been very patient, hasnt grumbled with tough playoff losses lately and now is one step away from being champions. Not being in the spotlight has helped, the team relies on its great offense , mainly Michael Bishop. Bishop needs to have a great game against the tough DarkKnights secondary if they stand a chance of winning.