The Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns take their juggernaut of a team on the road Saturday, June 11 to face the surprising Straubing Spiders as the German Football League rolls into the second round of action.
The Spiders, newcomers to the top league in Germany, stunned the Allgäu Comets last week, edging them 43-42 in an offensive bonanza. Meanwhile, Schwäbisch Hall have surprised no one so far this season having won both their GFL games by lopsided scores. They opened the season whipping the Saarland Hurricanes, last year’s second place team in the GFL South, 48-14. They followed that up with a 55-19 manhandling of the Ravensburg Razorbacks.
Straubing quarterback Raleigh Yeldell was an efficient 14 of 24 for 241 yards and three touchdowns last week while rushing for 79 yards and a pair of touchdowns. One of the keys to the win though was the play of running back Lamar Carswell (Trine NCAA DIII) who rushed for 214 yards and a score. These two, as special as they are, will need the help of the rest of the team to have a chance against the toughest defense in the GFL right now.
For the Unicorns, quarterback Reilly Hennessey has been superb completing 29 of 38 passes (76.3%) for 576 yards and eight touchdowns. His favorite target so far has been Tyler Rutenbeck who has 12 catches for 273 yards and five of those touchdowns. The rest of the receiving corps includes former NFL receiver Mortitz Böhringer who has six receptions for 131 yards and two scores. The Schwäbisch Hall ground game has also been impressive with Lars Kozlowski rushing for 151 yards on 23 carries (6.6 yds/carry) and Mike Alfieri with 17 carries for 106 yards and two scores.
The Unicorns defense has been the toughest against the run after just a couple of games in the GFL allowed just 68 yards total while Straubing ripped it up on the ground last week against the Comets, rushing for 309 yards. This is where the game may well be decided today.
Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns @ Straubing Spiders, June 11, 15:00 CET, (3 pm, 09:00 am ET)
