Defensive Coordinator for the
@NFLAcademy
. Former D1 coach (
@Bucknell_FB
). Euroball Veteran ELF/GFL/LNFA, The Spring League alumni, former CFL Global Prospect.
Thanks to the
@steelers
organization, coach Tomlin, TA, AC and the rest of the staff for having me be a part of the team for the past three weeks during team OTAs. It’s been an amazing opportunity and one to build off.
Excited to welcome our first ever Japanese player to the
@NFLAcademy
. 6’1 290lbs with a 4.1 GPA,
@RShimoseki
is about to turn many heads! Welcome to the family ❤️🔥
My first coaching season has definitely been a challenge but I have been blessed with the opportunity to work with one of the best DB rooms in the country and a great defensive staff. Congrats to our seniors graduating today and thanks to everybody that made this season possible
My advice for EU kids under 21 thinking about joining the ELF: don’t. Go play juco/college and when you come back these teams will kill for you. If the opportunity is not there yet, join any of the national leagues, keep your amateur status and try again next year. Don’t rush it.
Strong rumors that most of the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns staff (including their HC) will make the move to Stuttgart after the German Bowl. This could turn Stuttgart into a contender overnight.
Lost in the ELF hype we got 12k people in Dresden watching the Monarchs play the Berlin Rebels today. Would have been up there with Rhein Fire’s untouchable numbers. Still a lot of great football being played in other leagues!
Special congratulations to
@KikiKlepsch
, the mastermind behind Vienna’s success this year. Not many people in Europe working as hard as she is behind the scenes
Excited to announce that the
@NFLAcademy
staff will be in Nashville this weekend for the AFCA coaches convention! Looking to connect with college coaches to talk about our young prospects! Meet us at the “Fuse Sports Bar” in the
@GaylordOpryland
between 5-7 pm on January 7th/8th!
Swedish DT Aslan Zetterberg is one of the most underrated players in Europe. 2nd ELF all time leader in sacks with 20.50 and 3rd in TFLs 31.50. Insane production for an IDL.
Wrapped up our spring season putting an end to my first full season at the
@NFLAcademy
. Now we are getting ready for our College Tour and loading up for a big fall season with some surprises on the way!!!
People are shocked about Barcelona playing this well but it honestly shouldn’t shock anybody. They have the most professional practice set up and they prepare better than any other team I’ve seen in Europe.
The Vienna Vikings are undefeated in the ELF and still managed to make it all the way to the championship game in the AFL. Best club/franchise in Europe right now.
Flying back to the UK! Thank you to everybody I met at the
@WeAreAFCA
convention, specially for taking the time to learn more about our program and our young athletes. Please follow up with me and I will do the same, you can click the link on my profile to access my information.
My top five U21 players to watch for the
@ELF_Official
season:
Christopher Nitzlnader (DB, Austria) - Tirol
Alejandro Fernández (DE, Spain) - Barcelona
Ben Nauenburg (DT, Germany) - Berlin
Lars Lenard Bardenhagen (LB, Germany) - Hamburg
Celestin Ngimbi (OG, Spain) - Barcelona
Ryoma has been with us for about a week now and already started his first game! He’s a great D1 prospect at DT with a very similar frame to Colorado State’s Hidetora Hanada. I hope he helps pave the way for more Japanese players abroad!
I was just going through some stats and decided to see where I’d stand in the league rankings (for safeties): finished the ELF season
#5
in total tackles,
#3
in pass break ups,
#1
in forced fumbles and
#1
in fumble recoveries.
The Danube Dragons finish the regular season with the
#1
total defense in the AFL (201.2 ypg),
#1
against the pass (142.9 ypg),
#3
against the run (59.6 ypg) and
#1
scoring defense (11.9 ppg). More importantly,
#2
seed for the play offs!
Had a great weekend in Vienna visiting a good friend. Thanks a lot to the
@ViennaVikings
for the hospitality, what a great organization top to bottom! Excited to watch the rest of the season
Sad to hear about
@davisjosh20
passing. He kept up with me during the season and texted me after every other game, which I always appreciated. His love for the game will be missed. Thoughts and prayers for his family 🙏🏽
All Europe OL Yasir Raji has signed with the
@Rhein_Fire
The 6’2 270-lb OL has been a outstanding component to the Potsdam Royals offensive line the last two seasons
#rheinfire
#elf
My ELF championship prediction is Barcelona vs Tirol. Vienna will have a very hard time beating the same team three times and Tirol is a very complete roster that has been getting better late in the season.
Wrocław Panthers have by far the best import class of the 2022 season. I am very excited to watch them play and I believe they’ll be a top 4 team in the league.
Week One
#CFL
TV Ratings On ESPN2
The season-opener, between the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats, facing stiff competition against the NFL and Olympics, registered 61,000 viewers.
Saturday night’s Ottawa-Edmonton game fared much better, drawing 174,000 viewers.
Also big than you to
@Coach_Bowers
,
@DaveCecchini
and
@CoachMarcoB
for trusting some guy from Spain to come and help their football team. It’s been a pleasure working and learning from all of you.
The
@ELF_Official
play offs system is dumb. It makes no sense that strong teams like Tirol, Berlin and Dusseldorf are fighting for one spot over technicalities. Would have been much better to have a wildcard round with
#3
vs
#6
and
#4
vs
#5
while
#1
and
#2
get a bye week.
Out of all of the awards this season, this should be the easiest one
@CoachWeidinger
.
Took a 3-7 team to 8-4 and a division championship with pretty much the same core of players. Only team in the league to beat Hamburg and did it IN Hamburg.
Congrats tío 👏🏼
Our 2022 𝘾𝙤𝙖𝙘𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧 nominees 🏆
Make sure to be right there at the 2022 Honors on the 24th of September when the winner will be crowned. Tickets to the show and the
#ELFCG22
are available here: 🎟️
#ELFHonors
Number 1 defense in Austria through the first three weeks of the regular season.
Really appreciate the work of our guys buying into a new culture and fighting through adversity so far.
#OneSpeed
Rhein Fire and Barcelona lead the league in strength of schedule so far with their opponents having a combined record of 17-19 (.472)
Hamburg and Tirol are right behind: 16-20 (.440)
From the current top 5 teams, Vienna’s opponents had the worst combined record: 14-22 (.380)
🇩🇪🏈 The NFL today officially inaugurated its new Germany Headquarter in Düsseldorf!
According to a WDR article, 25 employees are now responsible for marketing the league in Germany.
📸 All photos by Felix Gemein
Stuttgart is doing a good effort to stay competitive, got to respect that. They have played better as the season went and they have all the tools to be a good franchise in the future
Last year, after 7 years of work, I released my first feature film. A documentary about American football in Germany called UNICORN TOWN.
It was an incredibly difficult process, with tons of ups and downs. Here are the main lessons I learned from making and releasing this:
1)
Football in Europe has come such a long way that there are LEGIT recruits even at the QB position. Troni has played two games leading his team to two big wins over American competition, outplaying their opposite QB both times.
Sandro Platzgummer hasn't signed a Future Reserve contract yet and his IG bio says "Former
@Giants
". He's done enough to pick up a future contract somewhere else plus he should have his visa situation taken care of so he would be a great target for the XFL and the USFL.
Awesome to connect with fellow Spaniard
@GBoyer_UNC
working in the personnel department at
@UNCFootball
. Thanks a lot to the whole staff for welcoming the
@NFLAcademy
for a visit today!
Matti would make an instant impact on any D1 team in America. Had 5 sacks in one half against IMG White. If you are looking for a class of '25 edge rusher, stop scrolling and watch this⬇️
Saying that Barcelona’s OL is undersized is such a tired narrative. Take a look at their starters:
LT 6’6 352lbs
LG 6’1 300lbs
Center 6’2 300lbs
RG 6’4 320lbs
RT 6’7” 325lbs
The people didn’t want another German team but the truth is that it’s a lot easier to start a franchise in Germany. I guess we will have to wait for Paris, London, Stockholm, etc
Berlin Thunder and
@d_isom12
is a match made in heaven. So excited for their season, they’ll be a very tough team to beat and should be in the play offs
Hamburg is really killing it with recruiting. Signed two of my favorite EU prospects in
@67swedishoutlaw
and
@RobertlouisL
, plus huge upside homegrown Malcolm Abimbola
Excited to welcome Johannes to the
@NFLAcademy
! One of the best European High School players that will get to compete and develop in our program and keep his IPP eligibility 💪🏼💪🏼
Excited to announce that I’ll be joining the
@nflacademy
. Ready to grind harder and chase my dream. 🏈
I am grateful for everybody that has helped me become the player I am and for every opportunity I was given.
#nflacademy
#letswork
#blessed
The fact that this man is still in Europe is beyond me. Three straight seasons leading the old continent in sacks, has the size and athleticism and plays a position that is “easier” to translate to higher competition. Should have gotten an NFL training camp invitation already
Fernandez should have been the DROY last year., glad that he’s finally getting the attention he deserves. He has also improved a lot and is finishing some of the plays he didn’t last year
"It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining very strongly. But then suddenly darkness fell. Nothing could be seen. Just this big, strong man."🤯
@ELF_Official
#praguelions
Two more
@seniorbowl
scouting assistants into NFL pipeline. Congrats to Matt McCreight, who is new BLESTO scout for
#Steelers
, and Chris Smith, who took a scouting assistant role with
#Panthers
. Big things ahead!
#CareersStartInMOBILE