German Bowl XXXVIII is this Saturday October 8th between the 3-time defending champion New Yorker Lions and the undefeated Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns and will feature two of the best quarterbacks in Europe’s top American football league.
This is the third straight year these two teams face each other in Germany’s championship contest and the sixth consecutive year that one or the other has played in the final. The Lions have won the past three while Schwäbisch Hall captured the title in 2011 and 2012.
The Unicorns offensive juggernaut rolled up 753 points in the 2016 season in 16 games (including both playoff games) which is a stunning 47.1 points per game average. The Lions were not far behind scoring 615 points in total which works out to 38.4 points a game.
Casey Therriault in action against Dresden Monarchs Photo: Karsten Reißner
Quarterback rivalry
If ever there was a quarterbacking rivalry in Europe in recent years, this would have to be it. Casey Therriault and Marco Ehrenfried have faced each other three times in championship finals since 2014. Therriault has won all of them but the gap has been gradually shrinking.
In last year’s final, which the Lions won 41-21, Therriault threw three touchdown passes and ran another one in while Ehrenfried threw two in the loss. The rivalry had started earlier in the year as Braunschweig defeated Schwabisch Hall 24-14 in the Eurobowl final.
Marco Ehrenfried finding running room against Stuttgart Scorpions
The younger Ehrenfried has had a superb year in 2016 leading his team to an undefeated season while racking up 4,132 passing yards and 62 touchdowns.
Therriault has only played in four games this year, coming in late to replace Grant Enders who was lost for the season due to injury. Still, he has managed to throw for 1,132 yards and 12 touchdowns in those four games. But his mobility is what makes him most dangerous. He has rushed for four touchdowns in that short time span.
This matchup could well be the game deciding factor.