American Football Today – With a “quartet” to victory

With a “quartet” to victory

Four individual players from Rhein Fire were able to contribute to a turning point in the “overtime” victory of 29:23 in the ELF semifinals through their individual performance.

“It was a damn good game,” said Rhein Fire head coach Jim Tomsula of the game in the packed Gazi Stadium in Stuttgart. His team struggled to prevail against the winners of the Central Conference in the first half. Stuttgart Surge had a good recipe for keeping their playmaker Glen Toonga from Rhein Fire in check and controlling him. Not only that, they were in the lead with a score of 23:13 until the last quarter of the game and showed their dominant side.

“That was first-class football,” Jim Tomsula had to admit, paying a lot of respect to Surge head coach Jordan Neuman. “We saw that they came out very quickly, they ran their offense well and it was well set up. That’s not easy to teach, but the way the players execute it shows that they are simply well coached.”

By the last quarter, the Swabians had set a standard that they were unable to maintain. Jordan Neuman saw it as a huge disappointment for all the players involved and the entire coaching staff, who naturally went into the game with a confident mindset.

Towards the end, however, a quartet of Rhein Fire players showed that it was worth staying calm and focused. First and foremost, tight end Tim Sauerland, who scored his third touchdown of the season and ensured that Rhein Fire did not lose the lead with a 23:20 win.

“We were still behind, but the feeling was still incredible. The energy came back onto the field and back into the team. Everyone trusted and believed in themselves again.” The young player invests a lot of time and effort in his player development and wants to become even better as a tight end. He is succeeding and this touchdown will certainly show him the way. He had no doubts about the course of the game and explained: “We are generally a second half team. We believed until the last second that we would win this, or we even knew that we could. There was no doubt that we would lose the game.

Defense teammate and US safety Omari Williams can underline this statement, he was the second player in the group to put Rhein Fire in a good position. He managed an interception a few minutes before the game. They regained possession of the ball with two minutes left in the game. He emphasizes: “No, I had the feeling from the beginning that we would win the game, even when they took the lead. I still had the feeling shortly before the end that we had a chance. It was a very intense game, a really good opponent. The fans enjoyed the game, I think.

However, many fans cheered loudly and often couldn’t believe what was being offered to them. A touchdown caught by Rhein Fire tight end Florian Eichhorn was not counted. He had to wait a little longer for his highlight and repeat it.

In the meantime, kicker Sebastian von Santen came onto the field. He had already negotiated 8/10 kicks during the season and decided two years ago to devote himself fully to American football.

As a kicker, he invested just as much time in training as his teammates and has his own recipe for dealing with pressure. Because in the last minute, all eyes were on him. In that moment, luck and bad luck are very close together: “I try not to think about it. I always have the same routine, the same kick, the better you get, the better you can block out the shouting and the result, the better you can do the kick.” It’s always the same perfect reproduction.

Thank God he managed to get the kick and he said to himself: “It couldn’t have been more exciting. The team really threw everything into it. For me, I’ve only been playing football for two years, it was really the hardest game I’ve ever played. The guys did a great job and put me in a position to tie the game better when we couldn’t finish the game.

Finally, the fourth tight end in the quartet, Florian Eichhorn, was able to score this last touchdown in overtime and bring home the win. A great performance from the player who has been playing American football for many years. He didn’t let himself get upset after his touchdown, which was not scored:

“Our coaches do a very good job and prepare us well so that we don’t have to think too much about what’s going to happen. There’s not so much talking at halftime, you just calm yourself down a bit. You try to get involved in the offensive.” Staying connected and thinking about the games and what’s happening on the field. I think that’s a matter of experience, but also practice.

“Someone has to lose,” emphasised Jim Tomsula, but Florian Eichhorn also explained: “We were playing well together and Stuttgart were probably better prepared in the first half. They made life difficult for us and stopped our run. With the rain at the end, it was of course different again. I think it was just determination and we wanted it more.”

Two of the four players, Sauerland and Eichhorn, are coached by tight end position coach Timur Beckmann. Both players praise him and Florian Eichhorn emphasized: “Timur is a very technical coach and that is very beneficial to me, as I also like to work technically. We worked on the fundamentals with the whole group at the beginning of the season. I think we have found a good solution.”

Absolutely, because Tim Sauerland also sees another piece of the puzzle in success and adds with a wink: “Andrew Weidinger is a super offensive coordinator. He always knows everything, he has a precise plan of when and where he wants to use which player. Suddenly the tight ends are catching touchdowns and not just the wide receiver.

Success and defeat are very close together and Surge head coach Jordan Neuman had only one sentence ready: “We were very close.” They were, and over the course of the season they exceeded their own expectations in many areas.

“The game set a standard in Europe. There were great aspects to it. There were two great teams and two great coaches,” explained the US coach, who has already won several championships in his career.

Giving up is not an option, quite the opposite. For Stuttgart Surge, “very close” means giving everything during the offseason and going even further next year.

Nadia Quast – 10.09.2024

Tim Sauerland and Florian Eichhorn, both tight ends, show good performances in the semifinals (© Nadia Quast)