The Saarland Hurricanes (7-3) will travel to face the Straubing Spiders (3-7) Saturday, September 2, in week 16 of the German Football League.
Although the Spiders’ record is not the prettiest thing to look at, they are playing on the back of possibly the biggest upset of the year, handing the Allgäu Comets their second loss of the year in a dramatic fourth quarter comeback win.
Germany: Straubing Spiders upset Allgäu Comets with fourth quarter comeback at home
The game saw an incredible performance from RB Kamal Cass who racked up 178 yards and two scores on the ground, as well as catching four passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, QB Cole Cantwell played in his first game of the season, going for an impressive 214 yards and three touchdowns through the air.
Watch live PPV. Saarland Hurricanes @ Straubing Spiders, Sept. 2, 18:00 CET (6 pm, 9 am EDT)
Prior to the unexpected win over the Comets, the Spiders had seen no such success, with their only other wins coming over the Ravensburg Razorbacks and Munich Cowboys, both of whom sit at 2-9. Straubing’s defense has been one of their biggest downfalls, ranking bottom five in points allowed along with almost every other defensive stat.
Similarly, the Saarland Hurricanes have one of the worst defenses in the league, conceding an average of 32.2 points per game (11th in GFL). Where they redeem themselves, however, is on offense.
The Hurricanes have possibly the best dual-threat QB in the league in Robby Rowell, as he sits top three in rushing yards, first in rushing touchdowns, and top five in passing. Saarland’s last outing saw a 44-28 win over the Berlin Rebels in which Rowell went for a career-high six passing touchdowns with almost 400 yards of total offense. WR James Brania recorded his third 100-yard game of the season, catching nine balls for 120 yards and a season-best three touchdowns, while the remaining three scores came from Marian Menden (1) and Jan Pietsch (2).
The two teams faced off early on in the season and it was a thriller; after a relatively quiet three quarters, both teams went back and forth in the final period as the Hurricanes came out on top with a 35-34 win. The Hurricanes will look to take their second win against the Spiders in order to clinch the third seed, while Straubing will look for another upset.