The Central European Football League quarterfinals continue Saturday, May 14 as Italy’s defending 2021 champions, the Parma Panthers will play host to the current Austrian Football League leaders, the Danube Dragons.
These two teams have never faced each other in international play.
The Parma Panthers have moved up to third place in the Italian Football League standings after struggling early on. Winners of the 2021 IFL title following an undefeated season, Parma was expected to challenge for the championship again this season but after the sluggish start, those aspirations dimmed. It seems now though that they may be on their way back to their 2021 form.
Panthers head coach Marc Mattioli relies on new quarterback Brook Bolles who has improved to third in passing yardage with 1,213 yards. His favorite receiver is Nick Diaco who has hauled in 286 yards (4th in the league) while running back Modesta Pooda leads the team in rushing with 206 yards.
Parma is the third highest scoring team in Italy averaging 28.7 points a game and sports the second-best defense surrendering 18 points a contest.
The Danube Dragons have impressed observers and sit first in the Austrian Football League after winning their first five games of the season. Veteran Chad Jeffries is the second leading passer after throwing for 1,234 yards and 15 touchdowns with his key target, Camron Lewis, as the top receiver in Austria with 31 receptions for 612 yards and eight touchdowns.
Danube is the third highest scoring team in the AFL averaging 33.2 points a game and has the second-best defense giving up an average of only 14.6 points with a league-leading 206.2 yards.
The Parma secondary will be put to the test as the savvy veteran Jeffries knows how to buy time for his receivers.
The winner of this game is anyone’s guess. Parma is playing at home, which could be an advantage as Danube is making its longest road trip of the season so far.
Danube Dragons @ Parma Panthers, May 14, 15:00 CET (3 pm, 09:00 am ET)
