The 2-10 Stuttgart Scorpions play host to the 10-2 Frankfurt Universe at GAZi Stadion in Stuttgart Saturday, September 1 in a game which will be played for pride by both teams.
Frankfurt has sewn up second place in the GFL South for the third year in a row while Stuttgart, who are the basement dwellers in the division, could climb out by winning their final two games of the year. They face the Munich Cowboys next week.
Stuttgarts would like to avoid having to play in a relegation playoff round but need to win both games to do so.
The Scorpions offense is operating with the third quarterback of the season as Michael Eubank, has been the signal caller for the past eight games. In last week’s dramatic win over the Marburg Mercenaries, Eubank threw for 412 yards and four touchdowns. In the win against the Wildcats, Eubank threw for 191 yards and five touchdowns. He has thrown for 1,748 yards and 17 touchdowns, averaging 218.5 yards passing a game. In a close 30-27 loss to Marburg, in June, he completed 17 of 24 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns. His leading receiver is Richard Samuel while running back Giacomo De Pauli, who is also a German national team running back, has rushed for 788 yards, or 68 yards a game.
Although Stuttgart has nothing to play for other than pride and avoiding relegation, they could be dangerous for a Universe team that took them lightly.
In Frankfurt, quarterback Andrew Ellfers has been behind center now for six wins including back-to-back wins against the Wildcats and the gritty 26-19 win over the Marburg Mercenaries three weeks ago. The week before, Ellfers and the Universe suffered a tough loss to the Schwabisch Hall Unicorns. Ellfers has thrown for 1,747 yards and 17 touchdowns in seven games. He has a corps of outstanding receivers including David Giron and Tim Thomas. Giron, who has missed the last couple of games, has 749 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns while Thomas has caught 78 passes for 1,085 yards and 12 touchdowns. Running back Anreas Betza, the French national team running back, has rushed for 635 yards and 12 touchdowns so far in 2018. Justin Rodney has 81 carries for 406 yards and six touchdowns.
The last time these two teams played each other, the Universe blanked Stuttgart 42-0. The Scorpions are a vastly improved team since then. A fact that Frankfurt head coach Brian Caler is very aware of.
