The 9-0 Braunschweig New Yorker Lions, Europe #2, will welcome the 7-2 Dresden Monarchs, Europe #5, to Eintracht Stadion in Braunschweig in the feature game of the week in the German Football League.
Braunschweig, who are first in the GFL North, won the first meeting between the two teams earlier this year, edging the Monarchs 34-31 after kicking a late field goal.
Braunschweig has won its nine opening games and last week took care of the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes 49-21 and the week before, the Berlin Rebels 34-9. They had a thrilling 35-28 win over the previously unbeaten Hildesheim Invaders just before the break. They had downed the Cologne Crocodiles in a back-to-back series, 23-6 and 45-7, and then took care of the Rebels, the only team that defeated them in the regular season last year. Early in June, the Lions won a thriller, beating the previously unbeaten Dresden Monarchs 34-31 and also walked all over the Potsdam Royals, 46-7.
The Lions offense has been effective with QB Brandon Connette throwing for just 1,338 yards in the nine games. The backfield duo of Chris McClendon (767 yds) and David McCants (307 yds) along with Connette (489 yds) give the Lions the best rushing attack in the GFL averaging 195.6 yards a game. Last week against Kiel, McClendon rushed for 175 yards and 2 TDs. Wide receivers Nicolai Schumann (309 yds), Justus Hotz (247 yds) and Christian Bollmann with 265 yards receiving lead the team.
Braunschweig has one of the top three defenses in the GFL and has only allowed opponents an average of 240.3 yards of offense a game.
Dresden had no trouble beating both the Potsdam Royals and the Dusseldorf Panther in the past two weeks by identical 38-7 scores.
Dresden had rebounded from their two losses in early June beating the Potsdam Royals 33-13 after getting a 42-7 win over the Cologne Crocodiles. They had been on a two-game losing streak. They were beaten by the Hildesheim Invaders 31-27 after leading most of the game. They lost their first game of the year six weeks ago, dropping a narrow 34-31 decision to the Braunschweig New Yorker Lions. The Monarchs had won three straight, including 49-13 over the Dusseldorf Panther, 42-14 over the Kiel Baltic Hurricanes and a 17-0 shutout of the Cologne Crocodiles.
Monarchs quarterback Zach Greenlee is the second leading passer in the GFL this season having thrown for 2,494 yards and 25 TDs. He had returned for the last two games before the break after missing the Hildesheim game the week before. He had been replaced by Glen Cuiellette in the loss to Hildesheim. Greenlee is second the GFL in yards per game, 320.7. The top receiver for the Monarchs is Kevonn Mabon who has 72 receptions for 1,178 yards and 13 touchdowns and is second in the league in receiving yards per game (130.9 yds/game). Dresden’s leading rusher, British RB Glen Toonga, did not play last week in the win over Potsdam, and it is not known if he will play this week. His backup, Nazan Yasser rushed for 55 yards and a touchdown. Linebacker AJ Wentland leads a tough Dresden defense and is again the leading tackler in the GFL with 124 tackles averaging 13.8 tackles per game.
Watch the game live here. Dresden Monarchs @Braunschweig New Yorker Lions, Sat., Aug. 10, 6p CEDT (12p EDT)
