Cordoba revisited, 30 years later?

Big game for the Austrians today.

I werd NARRISCH!!!

Austria, with their 1-1 tie with Poland yesterday, has a huge game on Monday against Germany, a team they haven't beaten since 1978 in Cordoba (See video above). The whole country is going bezerk for this matchup; if Austria wins, they move on to the quarterfinal and knock Germany out of the EM. If Germany wins, they do the same to Austria. Will be a crazy night in Austria Monday if the miracle at Cordoba repeats itself.

:)

Right now I'm headed to Innsbruck for the weekend. France plays Holland tonight, and I'll be with about 40,000 fans in the fanzone in Innsbruck watching that game on the big screen. I'll be pulling for France, who must win or at least tie this game to have a shot at moving on to the quarterfinals. Holland had an impressive 3-0 win over World Champion Italy on Monday while France was frustrated to a tie with overachieving Romania. Big game for the French.

Tomorrow, Sweden plays Spain in Innsbruck and I will try for tickets but will likely watch the game outside in the Fanzone. Should be a lively atmosphere as there are thousands of Spanish fans migrating through Vorarlberg to Innsbruck for this huge matchup. Winner secures a spot in the Quarterfinal while the loser will likely have to battle it out with Greece for the second quarterfinal spot from Group D on Wednesday.

On Sunday, I'll be in attendance as the Swarco Raiders Tirol & the Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna battle it out in the Eurobowl (similar to soccer's Champions League Final).

Needless to say, a long but exciting weekend is about to commence.

2-0 & Austria Salzburg

We beat the Carinthian Black Lions Saturday 35:12 to keep our playoff hopes alive. After the game I went with our team manager, Stefan Schubert, to Salzburg to watch his favorite soccer club, SV Austria Salzburg, compete for their league title. I'm going to go cook dinner & give more details (with fotos) after dinner. Stay tuned!

Meanwhile, check out some video footage of the fanclub I joined up with on Sunday as they won their league title!

SV Austria Salzburg - Champions 2007/08 from Andreas Lindinger on Vimeo.

If you need more, here's footage of the fanclub last Wednesday:
SV Austria Salzburg v FC Hallein

"Wir wollen nur Siegen sehen!"

Bodensee

Today, Christoph took a few of us out onto the Bodensee (Lake Constance). The Bodensee is a very large lake that forms part of the border between Austria, Germany, & Switzerland.

We got a late start, but it was a very nice and relaxing day as a tourist. We jumped on the passenger ferry that took us from Bregenz along the northern edge and German border to the towns of Lindau & eventually to our destination of Friedrichshafen. The boat ride was relaxing and seeing all of the sailboats in Lake Constance made me a bit homesick, and reminded me that the Duck Dodge on Lake Union begins tomorrow. I really miss my boat, the waters around Lk. Washington & the beauty of Puget Sound.

In Friedrichshafen we kicked back, bought some lunch and relaxed, people watched & chatted in the sun. I finally bought some sunglasses, a cheap pair from a tourist shop & we raced some ominous looking clouds back to Bregenz. Just missing the rain storm, we grabbed some Gelato on the beach and eventually walked back through the Bregenzer Altstadt to our cars.

From there, Christoph led us up into the mountains to the Bregenz Castle and oldest sections of the city. From there was a stunning view of Bodensee and the forthcoming sunset. There's a place I'll definitely have to return to when Niki & Keegan get to town at the end of June.

After that, Christoph led us through a beautiful drive through Bregenzerwald, the alpine portion of Vorarlberg. It was beautiful and I think Niki, Keegan, & I may have to check out a bed & breakfast up there when they're here. Maybe make a weekend out of it.

All in all, a good day, with good company, and beautiful weather.

Undefeated as a Head Coach!

We won 28:0 today at Bern in the EFAF Cup Quarterfinals, more on that after I get back from scouting the Group B matchup between Carinthian v. Parma in Parma, Italy. (We play the winner in 3 weeks for the EFAF Cup Semifinal).

Ciao ciao!

New Beginning

The other reason it has been so long since I've posted, is because a lot of changes are happening with our organization. Head Coach Michael Kegel resigned yesterday to take on a different role within the organization. Both he and management feel that he could better serve the team while working as a recruiter and manager for Vorarlberg's newly forming Sport Leistungs Zentrum (basically, a sport school). I admire him for his role in bringing guys to the team and getting them out to practice, but there is a definite need for change within the Hauptmannschaft (AFL Team).

I have been named the new Head Coach and am proud to take on that role and the many challenges that need to be faced in developing this team into what it can be. Our first practice last night went well, though we were low on numbers due to injury, work, and school obligations, the upped tempo and higher expectations will benefit us greatly in our very much alive goal of a championship.

I will keep this blog up and running and you will be able to track the season from my new perspective. This is my first experience as a Head Coach, and to do so on a team of this calibre at such a young age is very much an honor to me and my family.

Well, I've got to get to back to work scheduling out the rest of the year.

Worn down again

Well, sorry that I have not written in a few days. It has been very hectic since Sunday's loss to Vienna. More on that later.

The game started out very well, after a long kickoff return our defense held them to a dominant 3 & out. Our offense took over and marched down the field with some big throws and eventually we forced our way into the endzone to go up 6-0. The extra point was blocked, but Frantzy Dorlean (DE/TE - Tennessee State) scooped it up and scored for the two point conversion. Just like that we were up 8-0.

The Vikings made some adjustments, upped the tempo, and tested our edge, they found it a few times and RB Clinton Graham scampered for a few first downs. Finally, a PI call moved them into the Red Zone and after a long scramble QB Steve Levy (Cal) found pay dirt. They "waggled" on the PAT and it was tied up 8-8.

We still felt pretty confident, however, as they had to work hard for their yards and nothing was coming easy.

On our next offensive series, an errant pass found the hands of a DB who scooted in for the pick6. Down 8-14, momentum started to swing in favor of the Vikings. Our offense moved the ball on the next series, but could not finish the task and we punted away. Midway through the second quarter they began using two tight ends, we adjusted quickly and caused them to call a timeout, but a few plays later they took advantage of some of our very tired two-way players, sealed the edge and were off to the races. The pace was too much and eventually they ran an old student body right play and our guys were caught out of position. Down 8-21, our team started to lose confidence. It didn't help that after a 3 & out and a long punt return, the Vikings were again in scoring position. We made them work for it but before long we were down 8-28 and some bickering began on the sideline.

As the offense took the field I pulled the team together (very cordially, as you can imagine ;) ) and told them that if they didn't believe we could still win this thing, to get off the bus. The game was still very much in reach, end of the half, our ball, if we score we're down 14 and we get the ball to start the second half. The guys bought in, we drove the field and QB Paul Troth (East Carolina) found WR Benni Fussenegger (Austria) just before the half and at 14:28 we were back in the ballgame.

The second half opened up, however, and we could not move the ball. A quick 3 & out and a long punt return saw the Vikings looking for blood. Our defense came out fast & hard, but a Barry Sanders-esque run by Graham, another 3 & out, and a Jason Gesser style scramble and throw by Levy found 14-43.

From there on it was just damage control, our worn out players fought with everything they had, stuffed the Vikings twice in the redzone but gave up one more touchdown late in the third quarter. The only solace available for the second half came early in the fourth quarter, QB Paul Troth (who was under considerable pressure both acting as offensive coordinator and playing quarterback) hit franchise WR/DB Christian Steffani (Austria) for a long strike. We made the PAT field goal (not at all automatic this year) and that was our final score: 21-50.

I was proud about how our boys fought back after being rallied together in the 2nd quarter, but again, numbers and conditioning were a huge problem for us as we simply wore down.

Crazy news, however, the Danube beat Graz, and if we win out, we can still make the playoffs! This truly has been a wild season in the AFL.

German Version

Due to popular demand, I'm going to translate the blog and have a German version posted on the site. You'll find the link above the picture slideshows to your right: "Deutsche Version: Spielen für Schnitzel"

Enjoy!

Ich habe bonnelladventures.com fuer meine Deutsche/Oesterreiche/Schweize freunden auf Deutsch geübersetztet. Du wirdst ein Link an der rechten seit über die foto-slideshows finden: "Deutsche Version: Spielen für Schnitzel"

Viel Spass dazu!

Game of the Week in Hohenems

---below is a translation of my interview with Thomas Muck of www.die-namenlosen.at---
Exclusive
Blue Devils-Coach Bonnell in Interview
AFL Preview: A Decision in Hohenems

As the AFL begins to wrap up one of the most intriguing and exciting regular season's that have been seen in many years, every game has a taken a playoff character.

The game of the week sees the Raiffeisen Vikings of Vienna travelling across the country to the Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems, in Vorarlberg. The importance of this game is very clear: the winner is in the playoffs and the loser is not.

In the buildup to the game, we spoke with the Defensive Coordinator of the Vorarlbergers, Raymond Bonnell, about his opponent, his own team, an
Im Vorfeld des Spiels befragen wir den Defensive Coordinator der Vorarlberger Raymond Bonnell, über den Gegner, sein eigenes Team, his personal future and the upcoming European soccer tournament.

The Namenlosen: On Saturday you watched the Vikings vs Black Lions Game in Vienna. What are your impressions of this game?

Saturday was my first time in Hohe Warte, I was very impressed with the home crowd and their knowledge of the game. It was a great crowd; very noisy, and very involved. Footballwise, I was impressed with the improvement of the Lions. They've come together since we played them in week 1 and they have a much more organized approach to the game. I think in the first half they moved the ball well with some good play calling and execution, but things slipped in the redzone a few times and cost them because you have to play mistake-free football against the Vikings. As for Vienna, I was very interested in the play of new QB Steve Levy, he is clearly a top level QB with a strong arm who will give us problems on Sunday, but I was most impressed with his running. He is a Pac10 calibre running back and really packs a punch when he lowers his shoulder. That combination with Graham's speed & elusiveness makes a nasty combination for us Defensive Coordinators to defend.


The Namenlosen: Was it a big surprise to you that the Vikings risk RB Clinton Graham for the Black Lions Game?

I wasn't too surpised to see him out on the field; he is a very tough guy who will do anything to help the Vikings get into the playoffs. What surpised me most was the effectiveness with which he ran. You could see the pain in his eyes and body composure between plays, but once the ball was snapped he played with the great quickness and explosiveness that he is known for. Hopefully someone can convince him to take the day off on Sunday. :)


The Namenlosen: Do you expect him or other injured players back for Sunday's Game?

This is a must-win game for both of our teams, I expect Graham to be back and play as strong as ever, the other player I really expect to come back is Floredo, he's got to coach on Saturday, but I wouldn't be suprised to see him back in the mix. I'm not sure about Robinson & Wimmer, but if there is any possibility, I know Calaycay will pull all the stops this weekend in attempt to secure a win and get into the playoffs.


The Namenlosen: Let's talk about Sunday's Game against the Vikings. What are you're expectations for the game?

We've got a very good defense, but knowing Calacay's play calling abilities, great players, and even better adjustments, it will be a very strategic game of cat & mouse that has me very excited to test my skills as a Defensive Coordinator. Offensively, I think we have a solid system and can be as explosive as anyone in Austria. We should be able to put some points on the board, but Vienna has a strong defense as well. This is going to be a very intriguing game, I wish we could play it right now (would save me a lot of sleep this week).


The Namenlosen: Did you find any weakness in the Vikings Offense?

I wish. The Vikings have a very strong running attack which is only improved with QB Steve Levy. I'd expect to see more option with the two and a more balanced running attack this week. The passing game is not as innovative as it was with Atwood, but with another week of preparation, alot of things will open up for Levy and his comfort with the system and WRs. Calaycay knows his stuff and will put his boys in a position to succeed, I just hope to put my boys in their way. :)


The Namenlosen: What can the fans expect from the Game?

This game will be playoff style football: fast, hard-nosed, emotional, and violent. The Raiders, Giants, and Dragons have all secured playoff spots, so this game is for the 4th and final post-season slot. The stakes are very simple and very high, we have a very long June and are eliminated from the AFL playoffs if we lose. The Vikings are in if they win. I expect both teams to pull out all the stops and do everything they can to win. Fans should expect a high level of effort from the players on the field, creative playcalling, and big-time players making big time plays. If I were not coaching, this is the game I would be at this weekend.


The Namenlosen: Let's talk about the rest of the season: What do you think is possible for your team?

Well, we still have everything in our own control. In the AFL, if we win this weekend, we'll have to beat Carinthia or Graz to get to the playoffs, I think we have the talent to compete with the best in Austria, and barring an injury-fest like we had versus Tirol, we can still acheive our team goal of making it to the Austrian Bowl, but we must win Sunday. In the EFAF Cup, I feel very confident that we can move ahead. We need to take care of business next week and move on to the Semifinal. From there, who knows? We have a very serious goal of winning the EFAF Cup, and feel we have a team that can do so, but that bridge is far down the road and I have a very large bridge looming ahead of me Sunday.


The Namenlosen: Is it harder to be successful in Europe than in Austria?

I think both present unique challenges. In Austria, we know eachother's strengths and weaknesses very intimately. In Europe, you have about two games of film to learn the other team and it is difficult to get out and scout future opponents, there is often little known of the national players and what they see week-in, week-out in their own countries. So, each presents unique challenges that are difficult, but all part of the beauty of the game. The talent level is clearly very high in this country and the import rules make the league very competitive. This is why I came back to Austria to coach. We'll see, Austria is fielding a strong set teams in international play, with all 3 teams in the Quarterfinals of the EFL, and all 3 teams in the EFAF Cup are still very much alive and are making moves toward the Semifinals. Needless to say, it is a very good time to be a part of the AFL.


The Namenlosen: Do you have a contract with the Blue Devils for the 2009 season?

I do not yet have a contract with the Blue Devils for the 2009 season, there has been an expressed interest in my return but we've put those negotiations on the sideburner until June. Right now, I've got enough on my plate just trying to defend the high-powered offenses of the AFL.


The Namenlosen: Finally, a question about the European Soccer Tournament. Is it true that you are a big soccer fan?

It is true that I am a very large soccer fan. I haev already purchased an Austrian National team soccer jersey and hope that they can pull off some surpises in June. It would be awesome for the country, and the tournament for the Austrians to win a few games. I hope to see at least two games live and would love to be in attendance for the crazy atmosphere that will be the Austria-Germany group matchup in Vienna.


The Namenlosen: Are you also a fan of Austria, the country?

I have a very large place in my heart for this country. I married my beautiful wife here, discovered that I would be a father here, the people are very open and friendly. The vistas are absolutely stunning with a very diverse topography. Austria has a very unique culture and for myself and my family, Austria really is a second home to us.

Thank you for the interview!

Graz, AT

Graz, the biggest city in Styria, a region of southern Austria near the border with Slovenia, is located in the valley of the Mur River, in the beautiful foothills of the Alps. It is most known for its title as birthplace of the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger. The climate is similar to that of northern California and the scenery is nearly as stunning. Though not as large a tourist draw as neighboring Vienna (2 hrs NE) and Klagenfurt (1.5 hrs W), the very bicycle friendly Graz has much to offer. Schlossberg (Mountain Palace?) is a stunning hill-top fortress directly in the middle of the city center. In 2003, Graz was named the cultural capital of Europe and many monuments were built in celebration of this new title. One classy and very modern example of this is the Mur Insel (Mur Island) which is a café/auditorium built in the middle of the Mur. During the summer, many concerts are held at this open air auditorium and daily you can enjoy some of Graz’s best coffee either within the structure or in the stadium seats. There is also a slide for those young at heart. At night, the Mur Insel is wonderfully lit up and not a few hundred yards away stands the eye popping Museum of Modern Art. Much like the EMP in Seattle, the museum has an aesthetically intriguing style. After 3 days in the city, I have grown to appreciate its uniqueness and mark on the city’s skyline.

This weekend has been really awesome, Graz is a city I could see myself raising young Keegan in. It is a vibrant community that has a strong foundation in multiculturalism and multilingualism. It has the convenience of a large city without the hurried pace. There are many parks along the Mur which runs directly through the city. My favorite is the Augarten, a family park that has attractions for all ages. It is a great place to bring children or simply enjoy a book in the Styrian sun.

Kathi Pregartbauer, a good friend of mine who was a teammate of Niki’s in Innsbruck, lives in an apartment that overlooks the Augarten and there is where I made home there for the last few days. Upon my arrival in Graz, I hopped on a streetcar to the city center (Hauptplatz) to meet up with Kathi and her girlfriend Steffi. We had some coffee and caught up at the very geműtlich (comfortable/hospitable) Café Schwalbenest near the Mur Insel. After coffee and a brief stop by the flat to drop off my things, we met up with Kathi’s twin brother, Gogo (Gottfried) for some Pizza at the new, and very modern Paradiso Italian Restaurant. Then we made our way up the many steps of Schloßberg to have a few beers and take in the beauty of the city.
That night we tried our hands at some “high stakes” poker (€2.50 all in, or about $4). As usual with me and poker, my money disappeared in the first hour but the company was good and it was intriguing to watch the unexpected (& often very cunning) personalities of everyone playing.

Saturday I made my way to Vienna to do some “work” scouting our next opponent and their new QB Steve Levy from Cal-Berkeley. He has a strong arm, but is a natural fullback and loves contact, maybe too much. The most notable surprise of the game was the performance of Clinton Graham, the Vikings star running back who is supposed to be resting a severely injured thigh. He probably should have sit out the game, but instead ran the ball 13 times for 145 yards. I was pretty impressed as they had to help him get up after most of the runs.

Hohe Warte, the Vikings football exclusive stadium was very impressive. The atmosphere was electric and the fans were well educated in the game. I was very impressed by the organization and set up, but when you win Europe and Austria year-in & year-out, that kind of support and sponsorship follows. The final score was a lopsided 34-3, but at the half it was anybody’s game and only 14-3. Carinthian shot themselves in the foot several times after long drives that found themselves deep in Viking territory, but nothing gained for it.

We certainly have our work cut out for us this week, but Vienna is very beatable this year and I think our offense can put up some points. If we can contain an injured Graham & force Levy into throwing situations, I think we can hold their scoring to a minimum. I’m confident that our offense can score points this week, so it’s up to me & the defense to secure the win. We need the win to remain eligible for the playoffs, so this will be a very important and busy week on my end.

Saturday night I returned to Graz around 11pm and joined the girls at the Office Pub to celebrate another friend another friend’s birthday. The live band was a bit loud but very talented and only disappointed when the drunken English Rugby Players in attendance requested Sweet Home Alabama & their repeated demands were not met. However, they were quieted by the very impressive talent of the Russian fiddler who wowed them with performance after performance. He truly was impressive.
Sunday I got some work done and broke down the game film of Vienna. We then had lunch at Schillerhof Pizza, a very nice outdoor beer garden style restaurant/bar. The best part of Sunday, however, was meeting up with Kathi’s family for dinner. Both of her brothers Flo (Florien) & Gogo were there & it didn’t take long to figure out where their athletic prowess came from; their mother, Ute, very quickly handled me at both Ping Pong and Darts.

Well, I missed my train Sunday, and can’t say that I am sorry that I did; another beautiful day in Graz was ahead. Maybe it was the weather, perhaps the great company, but I must say that I am “volle begeistert” (totally enthralled) with this locale.

Now I find myself back on the train with another 8 hours until I am back in Vorarlberg, already planning another visit to a place that felt as close to “home” as I’ve been in Europe.

Graz, AT

After practice tonight I'm going to have to hurry to shower and make it to the train station to catch the 10:41pm overnight to Graz. I'll be spending Friday & Saturday night there before I head back to Hohenems on Sunday. On Friday & Sunday I'll be spending the day with a good friend, Kathi Pregarthbauer (one of the most athletic and talented people I've ever met in my life) who was a former teammate of Niki's in Innsbruck, and also a former Women's National soccer player here in Austria. I look forward to spending time with her, though she focused her studies on Italian and not English in school, so this will be some more great practice for my German. We always have a great time so, I have no doubt this weekend will be the same.

On Saturday, I'm going to make a trip to Vienna to watch the Vikings play against Carinthian. Normally, this would be a blowout not-worth-scouting type of a game, but Vienna lost their Quarterback two weeks back and have a new import from Cal-Berkeley that I'd like to get a feel for. He was recruited as a fullback but was switched to QB & eventually started two games in '07 (Wins over Stanford & BYU) but got arrested the next summer during a bar-fight incident where he had "meant to simply throw water on the guys head, but the glass slipped and broke over his head." Should be interesting to say the least.

Anyway, I've got a practice to plan and lunch to prepare. I'll write again on Monday (with pictures).

Bis dann!

BYE WEEK

Today I went to Chur, Switzerland with teammates/players Matt Walters (Michigan State) and Nic Haritonenko (Dresden, Germany). Chur is directly south of us in Hohenems, below the tiny country of Leichtenstein. We visited Robin Haas & Toni Muggwyler, two of our Swiss import players. Robin took us on a tour of his town, showing off many of the fantastic sites. It was a rainy miserable day, but getting out of Vorarlberg was nice and the beauty of the Swiss Alps and Chur cannot be overstated. This is a city steeped in tradition, is the oldest town in Switzerland having been settled for well over 5000 years.

I will get some pictures from Matt tomorrow(?), but for now the one above will have to do. From www.schweizbilder.ch.

Tomorrow I'm also taking the overnight train to Graz (birthplace of Arnold Schwarzenegger) to visit some friends and scout Vienna on Saturday. Stay tuned for more pics!

More on Chur:
----from www.myswitzerland.com---
Chur looks back on 5000 years of settlement history, which also makes it Switzerland’s oldest town. This lively small bishop’s town has developed to become the cultural and economic centre of the Grisons, thanks to its excellent location on key transport routes through the Alps.

To help find the most important witnesses to the town’s history, two discovery trails marked by red and green footprints lead through the town. Examples include the Gothic old town dating from the 15th and 16th century, where the influences of the neighbouring countries remain visible today and attest to the skills of the Italian master builders, and the 800-year-old cathedral with its wonderful, three-sided carved altar dating from the 15th century. Visits to the Rhaetian Museum with its cultural-historical and folk art collection, as well as the Art Museum with its Grisons’ paintings and sculptures from the 18th – 20th century, are particularly rewarding.

500 shops and over 100 restaurants and hostelries offer visitors a wealth of possible purchases. The town’s many annual events as well as concerts, theatres and cinemas make the southern ambience of Chur noticeable. What’s more, Chur also has a zoo and leisure park.

A regional mountain – the ‘Brambrüesch’ – means that Chur also has its own winter and summer sports region. In summer, Chur is the ideal spot from which to set off on walks and visits to vineyards in the ‘Bündner Herrschaft’ winemaking region. Chur is the gateway to the Grisons mountains: 26 holiday and spa resorts can be reached in less than an hour from Chur.

Panorama trains travel from Chur into the Grisons Alps, e.g. the Bernina Express to St. Moritz and Tirano along the Albula route which has been much praised as a masterpiece of railway construction, the Glacier Express to the Matterhorn, the Arosa Express to the renowned climatic spa resort, and the Heidi Express to Davos.

Chur is the centre of the Chur Rhine valley, which reaches from the “Bündner Herrschaft” wine-growing region to the spectacular gorge of the Viamala. Whilst the “Bündner Herrschaft” with its centre of Maienfeld once inspired Johanna Spyri to pen her Heidi book and today produces outstanding Pinot Noir wines, Grüsch-Danusa, best known as a winter sports region, lies at the valley entrance to the Prättigau. To the west of Chur lies the Domleschg, the most castle-populated region of Switzerland and directly to the south of this Thusis, at the entrance to the steep Viamala gorge.

EFAF Cup: Europe Loses in the Quarters 161:20

---translated from www.aflcrush.com---
While many feel that the rest of Europe may be catching up to the traditional quality of play in Austria, this weekend's results show that Austria may again be a few steps ahead of the rest of the continent. The Austrians won all their games this weekend by a considerable margin, however one must not jump too quickly to this conclusion as several games have yet to be played. However, if the EFAF Cup plays out as shown, 3 of the 4 semifinalists will come from the Alpine Republic.

Danube Dragons 84:00 Wroclaw The Crew (Poland)
A practice session. It does not do the game justice any further to write more. The Dragons fulfilled their role and won their prelude play without any problems. They used exclusively reserve players in the second half and got much needed experience to Thomas Haider at QB and Herbie Klackl at RB (with 1 TD!). Finally the question arises, did Poland enter the EFAF Cup a bit too prematurely? On one hand it is pleasing that the tournament is attractive to Poland and that they want to participate, on the other hand it may not necessarily help Polish football grow.

Next step for the Dragons is a trip to Prague to take on the Panthers, who also shutout the Crew with a score of 53:00.

Carinthian Black Lions 39:20 Badalona Dracs (Spain)
The Lions are happy to be outside of the AFL and into international play. Though they have been humiliated in league play, in competition with other nations their outlook is completely opposite. The Badalona Dracs is a team with much international experience on the European level, but it was not enough for them this year. The Lions focused on mistake-free football and won the game very handily.

The next step for the Lions is a trip to Parma, Italy where they will take John Grisham's Playing for Pizza squad, the Parma Panthers. Parma is currently 1-1 in Italy and should be a considerable opponent for the Carinthian.

Cineplexx Blue Devils 38:00 Bern Grizzlies (Switzerland)
The Devils struck their Swiss opponent 38:0, against whom they must replay on May 10th. Though the offense saw some struggles under interim QB Paul Troth, the defense made a very strong impression, holding the Griz to less than 30yards in the first half, and stifling each drive clearly and quickly throughout the game. Unless something dramatic happens, the Devils should easily move on to the semifinals to play the winner of the Carinthian/Parma matchup in May.

Shutout!

Finally, a shutout. We beat the Swiss Champion Bern Grizzlies 38:0. More on that tomorrow; I need some sleep.

:)

EFAF Cup Results

GROUP A
@ Hohenems Blue Devils (Austria) 38:0 Bern Grizzlies (Switzerland)
5/10 - Hohenems Blue Devils (Austria) @ Bern Grizzlies (Switzerland)

GROUP B
@ Carinthian Black Lions (Austria) 39:20 Badalona Dracs (Spain)
4/26 - Parma Panthers (Italy) @ Badalona Dracs (Spain)
5/11 - Carinthian Black Lions (Austria) @ Parma Panthers (Italy)

GROUP C
@ Berlin Adler (Germany) 26:12 Amsterdam Crusaders (Netherland)
@ Triangle Razorbacks (Denmark) 3:0 Amsterdam Crusaders (Netherlands)
5/10 - Triangle Razorbacks (Denmark) @ Berlin Adler (Germany)
++Amsterdam Crusaders (Netherlands) eliminated

GROUP D
@ Wroclaw The Crew (Poland) 0:53 Prague Panthers (Czech)
@ Danube Dragons (Austria) 84:0 Wroclaw The Crew (Poland)
5/11 - Danube Dragons (Austria) @ Prague Panthers (Czech)
++Wroclaw The Crew (Poland) eliminated

EFAF Cup

This week we find ourselves in the EFAF Cup Group Stage against the Bern Grizzlies(Switzerland) with a good chance to reestablish ourselves as a European power. I will write more about Bern tomorrow, but will inform you now on the EFAF Cup and its history:

--from Eurobowl.com--
The EFAF-Cup is an annual invitational competiton played since 2002, following EURO-Cup and Federation-Cup, both european tournaments played in the '90s. EFAF-Cup is a competition - comparable to soccer´s UEFA Cup - for european top teams of their highest national league. The EFAF-Cup Tournament is played in regional groups. The group winner meet in the EFAF-Cup Final to play out the overall winner, the EFAF-Cup Champion.

First Championship was won by Graz Giants. The austrian team did show a great game in Graz in front of more than 1.200 spectators against the long years spanish top team Badalona Drags, covered by Austrian TV.

A new visitor record in 2003: 4000 people followed the EFAF-Cup Final 2003 between Papa Joe`s Tyrolean Raiders (Austria) und Carlstad Crusaders (Sweden). The Scandinaviens did win the thunderstorm game and became EFAF-Cup Champion 2003. In 2004 Raiders team from Innsbruck could win the trophy in front of 4.500 visitors - again a new record attendance - against the British Champion PA Knights, coming from London area.

2005 two new clubs showed up in the EFAF-Cup final. Elancourt Templiers, French Semi-Finalist of the previous year, lost the final against Marburg Mercenaries, the Semi-Finalist 2005 of the German League GFL. 2500 visitors, a club record, watched the game played in the city of Elancourt, close to Paris.

After 11 clubs in 2005 competition the 2006 tournament showed 15 participating teams. TUREK Graz Giants could win their second EFAF-Cup title in 2006. In the final Graz would beat the Norwegian champion Eidsvoll 1814 by 37:20 in ASKÖ-stadium Eggenberg in front of 2.600 visitors.

2007 again was the year for the TUREK Graz Giants with their third EFAF-Cup victory. The european champion did win the final against the austriaan club Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems from Vorarlberg, Austria by 28 : 26 after a halftime score of 0 : 20.

----
After blowing a 20 point lead in the championship game last year, you can imagine how important this tournament is to our organization this year. It will be important that, though injuries abound, we come out and make a statement to the rest of the tournament. Sadly, this tournament lends itself toward running up the score as the group bracket for us only includes two teams, and will be a home & away 8 quarter game. Hopefully, the score will get ugly this week and we'll be able to play our youngsters during the next meeting. That being said, the Swiss teams always bring their best against the Blue Devils because we lie on their eastern boarder and many of the top Swiss players play for our team to test their skills in the top league in Europe, Austria. Should be a fun one & great atmosphere.

Numbers Game

That's me, #48. I suited up this week because a player had to sit due to his ejection last week, opening up a spot for another American player.

For my first game back in over 4 years, I feel like my fits & reads were pretty good, I missed a few open field tackles, but Florian Grein will make a guy do that (he was only a knee injury away from making an NFL roster in '05).

The game started off well, we dominated their offense the first series, but we knew it'd be a battle because they came off the ball hard and the play calling was crisp and fast. You could tell from the get-go that Raiders HC Geoff Buffum was going to make this one a numbers game.

I tell you what, figuring out what offensive personnel grouping they've got, making a call, and lining up and playing is exhausting. There's no time to get off the ground slow; as the tackle is being made I had to be thinking of situation, down & distance, their tendancies, and pick a fitting play/coverage and line up & do it again. I was very happy with how the play calling went, it took a few series to catch up with their pace (and huddle our guys, etc), but as far as the effectiveness and getting guys in the right spots, I was pretty happy with.

The game, however, took a dramatic change as both of our Cornerbacks started coming up lame, one with a sublocating shoulder and the other a stinger. Then our import Defensive End tore a tendon in his calf. With three of my starters out and an increased number of players going both ways, their offensive pace became overwhelming. They started grinding down the field on us and we simply wore down. The offense also struggled to score points and after they finally were able to drive the field and put one in. We were still in the game only down 16-6 just before the half, but a long kickoff return seconds later put them up 23-6 at the break. Our mood in the locker room was focused, but you could sense the concern.

Offensively we came out well in the second half, but the drive stalled and we were forced to punt. They continued their grind game, forcing us to go to the bench for guys and suddenly our players started dropping like flies. WR Robin Haas strained his knee (so badly that we thought he broke his leg for sure), WR/DB Christian Steffani took hit after hit and had to sit some on D after a bell ringer (now down to 1 starting and healthy DB remaining), so they ran a bit of play action and their fresh starters wore down our injured and now two-way reserve players. Combine that with some unfortunate turnovers and the second half got ugly, 50-14.

It was a bad result against a good team, I think if we can get healthy somewhat this week, take care of business against Bern for our EFAF Cup Quarterfinal game, we'll have a bye week to get healthy and prepare for the Vikings of Vienna, who are struggling this year. We'll likely have to win out in order to make the playoffs.

On the other side of things, it was fun to play against the guys I used to coach, and knock heads with some of the old juniors players in the program. I am definitely getting older and today I'm feeling each and every hit from the game.

After the game I went to Harley's to meet up with some of the OLinemen (they were sponsored by Harley's - a Harley Davidson shop/bar), then went over to Baggersee, the official after-party for the Raiders to see a bunch of good friends from my time in Innsbruck.

So, outside of the schlacking we took on the field, it was a very good trip & I was able to meet up with some people who mean a lot to me.

----------------
AUSTRIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE
@ Swarco Raiders Tirol 50:14 Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems
@ Danube Dragons 35:28 Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna
Turek Graz Giants & Carinthian Black Lions BYE

EUROBOWL QUARTERFINAL
@ Turek Graz Giants 49:27 Flash de la Courneuve (Paris, FR)
**Giants advance to Semifinal**
---------------
AFL STANDINGS
1. Turek Graz Giants (2:0)
2. Swarco Raiders Tirol (2:1)
3. Danube Dragons (2:1)
4. Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna (1:2)
5. Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems (1:2)
6. Carinthian Black Lions (0:2)

Big Game in West-Derby

--As reported by the www.raiders.at website--

This Saturday, April 12th at 3pm the Swarco Raiders Tirol (1-1) host the Cineplexx Blue Devils (1-1) from Hohenems at Tivoli Stadium. Both team have to recover from a bitter loss last week and want to get back on the road to victory. The winner of this very important game is still in the race for the playoffs, the loser will have very small chances.

Swarco Raiders Headcoach before the game: "After a disappointing loss last week we are looking forward to getting back on the field again to play a very improved Blue Devils team. On offense and defense they outplayed the Dragons last week, they lost the game with their special teams. We also had some difficulties with our special teams last week. The team that wins the battle of the special teams will win the game."

Very strong imports in Hohenems
The Blue Devils have a totally new team, improved with high-class import players, all with either Div I experience or even NFL experience. Running Back Matthew Walters played at Michigan State, allrounder Charles Drake (DB, RB, Returner) played already in the NFL with the Detroit Lions and NFL Europe with Rhein Fire. Their Quarterback Carl Bonnell played at the University of Washington and is the key to a strong passing attack.

Reunion with Coach Bonnell
Carl Bonnell is the younger brother of Raymond Bonnell, who is the Defense Coordinator for the Devils, and he knows the Swarco Raiders very well. Raymond Bonnell, alias "Romo", was a defensive assistant coach for the Swarco Raiders in 2005.

Presentation of new mascot "Birdie"
The new Swarco Raiders mascot "Birdie", a pirate-parrot, will from now on assist our pirate mascot Black-Beard and will be presented to the fans for the first time. In addition we will offer a great show program for all fans, the company "Zimt & Zucker" gives away for free cotton candy at the entrance and eventsponsor Christophorus will raffle an airplane ticket from Austrian Airlines for a free flight within Europe.

Show program:
+ Cotton Candy at "Zimt & Zucker" stand
+ Christophorus raffles a flight with Austrian Airlines within Europe
+ First presentation of new mascot "Birdie"
+ Big pyroshow
+ Cheerleader show
+ American food and drinks
+ DJ Horst & announce Christian Brugger

Live-broadcast on www.live.raiders.at
Together with the help of our partners from the Connexion team we will have a live-stream of the game on our webpage.

Post-Game Party at Baggersee
The post-game parties at Baggersee in Innsbruck already have a legendary status. If you want to meet the Swarco Raiders players and cheerleaders chilling out after a big game, just meet them at the party.


Swarco Raiders Tirol vs. Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems
Sa. 12.04.2008, Tivoli Stadion
Begin: 15:00 Uhr
Open gates: 14:00 Uhr

Foto: Fotoworxx

Familiar Faces

This week we've got the formidable task of taking on a traditional power in the Swarco Raiders Tirol. I coached with the Raiders (Innsbruck) back in '05 and the organization really has a grasp on how to win in Europe. They've developed a strong youth program, advertise and promote themselves well with the local community, have secured a year-round coaching staff with imports who stay multiple years. On top of that, the coaching staff that they have is a very good one. Geoff Buffum, the HeadCoach & offensive coordinator, knows the game as well as anyone I've ever coached with.

It should be an emotional game all around, for me at least; I developed a strong connection with their players while coaching the DLine in '05. Many of those guys have retired, but some, like #8 Viktor Skradski, #50 Mario Rinner, and many others, it will be truly a pleasure to coach against them.

As far as X's & O's, they are a very strong team all-around on offense. #13 QB Marko Glavic isn't as good as he's hyped up to be, but he's a very solid quarterback with a strong arm, decent feet, and a good head on his shoulders. The players I'll need to contain include Innsbruck native running back #4 Florian Grein, Flo is a solid running back who, once in the second level, can slice and dice a defense to open space. The others who concern me are #1 Jakob Dieplinger, who is their equivalent to our Christian Steffani, an explosive WR who can stretch defenses. They've got a good set of imports, #34 James Ellingston plays some fullback and is a handful, along with #9 Ryan Voss who is a tall, but not very physical, receiver.

I am concerned most about the effectiveness of their playcalling, Coach Buffum is very good at luring a backside cover guy to sleep or enticing an end to pinch down then jumping all over it the next play.

Should be a fun experience, to play in front of a few thousand people, in Football's best European stadium (Tivoli Neu) against good friends.

--The picture above is from our game in Barcelona in '05 when I was coaching DL for the Raiders (from left to right, top to bottom): *Jakob Dieplinger, Chris Rosier, Daniel Dieplinger, Manuel Urban, **Mark Falger, *Viktor Skradski (on ground), Me, Luke Ware.
*Will play against us on Saturday
**My Current DL Coach in Hohenems

Penalties did us in.

Today, against the Danube Dragons we blew a 13 point lead and lost by 2 in the closing minutes.

We jumped out to a 13-0 start on the first two drives of the game, we knew it'd be a battle this week; the Dragons are traditionally a very strong running team. They fought hard for yards and we did our best to shut them down.

Then they completed two long pass plays, the only two real positive plays of the first half for the Dragons and we found ourselves down 13-15 at the half.

The second half started off well for both our offense and defense but a blocked punt for a touchdown changed the game outright and we had to play catchup for the rest of the night.

During the final two quarters the White hat lost control over the game. He made some bad calls mixed with some of our own stupid mistakes that really did us in. 3 & 16 and we get a sack, but a 15 yard unsportsmanlike keeps them alive and brings them close enough to kick a field goal after we stop them and again we fell behind.

The offense drove the field to retake the lead again with about 4 minutes to go, we just missed the two point conversion as Christian Steffani could not get his toes down in bounds with control of the ball.

...Then all hell broke loose (fitting; considering we are the Blue Devils), there was a backward pass that we recovered (I call it backward because BOTH line judges called it so, but the Whitehat overruled them and gave the Dragons a third down), then on the next play they tried another swing pass that was incomplete and we were called for a late hit 15 yard penalty (funny, being that the hit was before any whistle was blown). Charles Drake, our former NFL Corner, lost his cool because this was the second untimely and questionable 15 yard penalty and was ejected from the game for swearing. That put them close enough to try a long field goal that literally hit the post on its way in.

With two minutes remaining the Offense was not able to get the ball down the field to win it (we had lost two recievers and an offensive lineman due to ejection during the chaos of the fourth quarter). End result, we lose by two.

Sad way to end a game. More on the game later.

Cook Off!!!

Today, a few of us took part in a cook off at the Fruehlings Messe (Spring trade show). In front of the Newspaper crew and a crowd of a few dozen we were challenged in a cook off against the three-time European Champion on the Grill. Matt Walters (Michigan State), Sikoti Uipi (San Diego State), Alex Haritonenko (Germany), and I went head to head with him and a suprise bag of ingredients.

I have to say, we really suprised ourselves. We put together a nice steak, pepper, & onion shishkabob deally. The steak was marinated in a glaze we put together real quick (lots of garlic and orange), and a second glaze was put on to keep the meat moist while the judges waited. That was really good, but the kicker was our beilage (side dish) a tomato, cut open (nice design from Hari), stuffed with an onion, garlic, kreuterbutter (I'm not sure how to translate that, butter with spices?), and some more tomato, topped with a slice of mozzarella & finished off with a mint sprig & some balsamic vinegar. That was amazing, I don't know how we came up with it, Matt initiated the idea, I found the garlic, and cooked the stuffing before we grilled it all on foil.

When push came to shove, however, the judges were torn a bit. That's the best we could hope for, the grill master popped out an amazing dish with thinly sliced and perfectly grilled steak with an orange marinade. Of the three judges, one was all for the professional, one was blown away by the tomato & the strong flavoring of the shishkabob, the third was torn, said our flavoring was a bit more enticing, while the pro was too conservative (I agree), but the presentation of the pro's meal was much more enticing than ours and gave a slight edge to the pro.

I'd have to agree, but we put on a very good showing for American Football and the grill. Awesome day so far.

After the competition, Matt and Hari signed up to compete in the beer holding contest. The winner of the whole Messe wins a free grill (which would be very handy at the house). Alex went first and easily took the lead with a strong showing of 2:39. Matt wowed the crowd by holding up the beer (straight armed) for over 4 minutes. We think that mark will last until Monday, but who knows. The previous record was 2:06.

Well, I've got to get ready for practice. Bis bald! (Photos of the cook off & beer hold to come!)

Dragon Slayers???

This week we've got a tough test against the Danube Dragons, a team who put up a decent fight with the Raiders (who are predicted to win it all) last week. They run a Navy style offense that utilizes misdirection, option, & some Wing-T "orbit" action. They've got a nasty Counter and Naked Boot that concern me a bit, but all in all I think we'll be okay. Because they are a 70% run team, our team speed we should contain them on defense as long as we are assignment correct and don't overpursue.

It is a very hyped up game. We shocked Austria with our dominance against the Black Lions and a lot of eyes are on us as a dark horse contender for the league championship. If we win this week, we'll have almost totally shored up a playoff spot (top 4 of the 6 teams go to the playoffs) and our ownership group will be very excited about that. We've moved up in the Power Rankings from 5th to 3rd in Austria, ahead of the Dragons. This game will show us if we are legit or not, I don't have any doubts that we are, with our explosive offense (who utilized ball control last week, rather than airing it out) and a very fast and sound defense, we should be very tough to beat this year. But, that's why they play the game, I just hope to put on a good show (not give up too many points) for the home opener and our ownership group. The players and coaches alike are excited for our potential this year.

The picture above is an article in today's Wann & Wo talking about our former NFL player Charles Drake (Detriot Lions) and Saturday's game.

SportNet.at Power Rankings (wk2)

1. Turek Graz Giants (last week 3rd)
The Giants successfully found revenge for the 2007 Austrian Bowl with their first win over the Vikings since 2002. The season could not have begun better for the Giants. The DLine played a huge game and this week's duel against the Black Lions should be an automatic victory.

2. Swarco Raiders Tirol (last week 1st)
The Raiders soundly defeated the Danube Dragons on Live TV, nevertheless the enormous nature of the Giants win moves the Raiders down in the Power Rankings. QB Glavic could convince the rest of the league, only conditionally, that the Raiders are back for a Title Win.

3. CINEPLEXX BLUE DEVILS HOHENEMS (last week 5th)
The bulk purchasing of imports in Hohenems was a worthwhile investment: New QB Carl Bonnell hit remarkable strikes against Carinthian, like a bomb. Also, the Austrians played strongly themselves; Christian Steffani caught four TD passes. The game against the Dragons on Saturday should prove an excellent and exciting match.

4. Danube Dragons (last week 4th)
For a quarter the Dragons would match their achievements of the previous year, but then it went steeply downhill. Many were injured against Tirol, including QB Tom Marsan. The run to the playoffs must go through a very strong Blue Devils team. A fifth place ranking threatens.

5. Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna (last week 1st)
The end of the Viennese era? As in the previous year, a loss in the opener, but this time with an injury to Defender Roman Floredo, it looks much worse. Now the Vikings and coach Calaycay are put to the test against a strong Raiders team. The OLine must improve; QB Atwood needs more time to deliver the ball and RB Graham bigger holes for big plays.

6. Carinthian Black Lions (last week 6th)
The Lions were served by the Blue Devils. Key player Lamire was hurt after a few minutes. Coach Bill Hurley, after week 1, is on the hot seat already. The previous year's sensation against Graz cannot be repeated. The Black Lions, outside of a complete disaster for the Giants, are in for a long day & season to follow.

Top of the League

Well, after a 6 hour drive through Bavaria and across Austria to the Slovenian Border, we made it safely to Klagenfurt for our season opener.

The game started out sound, the first play I took a chance thinking they may run play action to start the season. They didn't, but the stunt shutdown the off-tackle power play that they had run. Apparently they were going to try and out tough our 3/4 American Import DLine. Our team speed and size on the DL makes us pretty formidable against the run. The first series was a three & out & just about the exact way I'd like to start the season. Carl & the offense took over and marched down the field with little resistance and we were up 7-0.

The rest of the game (outside of two defensive plays) went according to plan. Carl went on to throw for FIVE touchdowns, a career high.

Here's what our website reported of the game:
-----
HOHENEMS ATOP THE STANDINGS AFTER OPENING WIN!

A successful AFL prelude for Hohenems. The Cineplexx Blue Devils made their case to become generally accepted as a contender on Saturday against the Carinthian Black Lions. This statement was made clearly with 40-7 final score. The Cineplexx Blue Devils step into week 2 (at least until next Saturday) in the unusual position of the front runner.

Play began as planned. The first attack of the Carinthians was immediately stopped, no individual chance to ford a first down was allowed. The Defense showed a very good start, Charles Drake continued the effort on Special Teams with several excellent returns.

The attack formation of the Blue Devils, led by QB Carl Bonnell, could not be threatened by the Black Lions defense. Early in the First Quarter Fullback of Oliver Froehlich scored from short distance to begin the onslaught of scoring. In this manner it continued, the Black Lions could do simply very little against the Devils set. Most successful participant on sides of the Blue Devils was Christian Steffani who has already harmonized well with new QB Bonnell; they combined for four touchdowns.

The troop of Head Coach Mike Kegel began the season with a solid win with many positive beginnings to show. The Blue Devils will have to, however, prove their stance atop the league next saturday with a tough matchup with the Danube Dragons. "Physically, the Dragons bring a tough test and higher calibre of play."
-www.blue-devils.at

SCHWEINSTEIGER
As we made our way back to Hohenems in the wee hours of the morning, just outside of Memmingen, there were four wild boars crossing the Autobahn. The van driven by Stefan Schubert (we were two vans behind) did not have time to react and at about 140km/h (almost 90mph) he slammed into two of the wild boars. They were huge! One put a dent, about a foot deep, in the solid metal frame of the van. Everyone is okay (outside of the boars), but the van has seen better days. That made for a very exciting final hour of the day. As we arrived back in Hohenems, it was 6am and the sun was rising.

Another long, but very productive, day in the books.

& one guarantee for the year, we will not finish any worse than 1-7! :)

---------------------------------------------------
AROUND THE AFL
Cineplexx Blue Devils Hohenems 40:7 @ Carinthian Black Lions
@ Swarco Raiders Tirol 34:12 Danube Dragons
Turek Graz Giants 33:20 @ Raiffeisen Vikings Vienna

AFL STANDINGS
Team GP W L PF PA PCT
1 Cineplexx Blue Devils 1 1 0 40 07 1.000
2 Swarco Raiders Tirol 1 1 0 34 12 1.000
3 Turek Graz Giants 1 1 0 33 20 1.000
4 Raiffeisen Vikings 1 0 1 20 33 0.000
5 Danube Dragons 1 0 1 12 34 0.000
6 Carinthian Black Lions 1 0 1 07 40 0.000

---------------------------------------------------

SCORING SUMMARY

FIRST QUARTER (7:0)
DEVILS TD 2yd run Oliver Froehlich (PAT Michael Kellenberger)

SECOND QUARTER (21:7)
DEVILS TD Pass Carl Bonnell to Christian Steffani (PAT Kellenberger)
DEVILS TD 62yd pass Bonnell to Steffani (PAT Kellenberger)
LIONS TD 3yd run Gregory Jones (PAT good)

THIRD QUARTER (34:7)
DEVILS TD 17yd pass Bonnell to Robin Haas (PAT blocked)
DEVILS TD 60yd pass Bonnell to Steffani (PAT Kellenberger)

FOURTH QUARTER (40:7)
DEVILS TD 17yd pass Bonnell to Steffani (PAT blocked)

EM Buildup

Last night, after practice I swung up to Hatlerdorf to meet up with Niki's friend, Nina, who she met while playing soccer in Imst. Nina is working in Dornbirn as a Sports Marketing trainee and was excited that someone she knew was coming to VorArlberg (for Tirolers like Nina, VorArlberg can be a very remote and lonely place).

We watched the second half of the Austria vs. Netherlands (Holland) soccer match. Typically, Austria should be blown out in the game but when I got to Nina's they were already up 3-1 (The Dutch had just scored to bring them within 2). All of Austria was getting pretty excited, I could hear people on the bus riding up on the phones talking about it. However, as the night went on, the Dutch proved to be simply too much and tied the game up in the 83rd minute, and then took the lead only three minutes later. It was heartbreaking to see an underdog on the verge of a historic win, watch it slip slowly away.

Either way, meeting up with Nina was a great thing; I've got a local that I know & trust living only 15 minutes away (by bus) which is always a Godsend when you are living half a world away from home.

Tonight is our final practice before our season opener in Carinthian. We had a page spread in the local paper yesterday, I'll try & attach it above.

Oh yeah, GO COUGS!!!!

Elementary

Today I was able to help teach some football at a local elementary school. It was really fun to get into the gym and pass on our passion for the game. I think quite a few kids caught the gridiron bug, we even signed some autographs afterwards.

The main reason for the PE experience is to advertise our minis tryouts (junior football/elementary aged kids) that are on Friday and gain some exposure going into the season.

I think it really went over well and that the girls almost got more hooked than the fellas. We'll see, either way we put a good foot forward to the community.

Another few inches of snow this morning. I videotaped some of our drive to the school and will try and get that online tonight.

Snowbowl

Well, it has snowed for the last 6 days in Hohenems. None moreso than today; I awoke to an inch & a half of white stuff on the ground, went into Dornbirn but got lost on the way to the trainstation. Along the way I said good morning to a young preschooler who was shocked and scoldingly told me "gar nix Morgen! Sch'mittags DU! (It ain't morning; it's already midday, you!). There's something wonderful about the upfront nature of the VorArlbergers, much like going to NYC or something.

I finally got to Dornbirn just in time for the noon lunch hour (in Austria/Germany shops close down so that their workers can go home or to a restaurant for lunch, many for two hours). So I window shopped for an hour (in blizzard conditions) before finally getting back to the cell phone store to purchase a pre-pay phone. Great deal, got it for 45euro (something like $70US - could be more with how the dollar is falling in value). Either way, it was great to get that settled and the freedom of having a phone opens me up to getting away from the house more often (living with two married couples can be draining to a guy who dearly misses his wife & child).

But the big news of the day, really, is that I finally was able to coordinate our defense. Luis did a lovely job installing the defense, and I think we've got an able body of players to compete for a league title. On top of that we practiced in the snow. First I worked with the Junior team (high school aged kids), not many showed up due to the weather, but we got a good workout in. After that the AFL1 team worked through a crisp 2 hour workout with little complaining of the freezing weather. I was really excited that Mark Falger, a former Austrian player of mine, has taken on the role of Defensive Line Coach. I think it presents a new era Austrian football: experienced, highly qualified & gifted Austrian coaches teaching the game to Austrians. I must say that I am very proud to have offered him his first coaching position. He brings the same enthusiasm & spirit of the game to the kids while improving their technique and overall game. Eventually more experienced Austrians will be confident enough to take on the role and the game will take on a more distinct Austrian flavor.

On top of that, a player for Carinthian just publically guaranteed a victory over us on Saturday. Our guys are responding appropriately: a more focused and crisp practice followed that comment.

The rest of Austria calls us the International Team because we have a crazy combination of Swiss, German, US, and Austrians on the team. We are predicted to be the dark horse of the league, many are afraid to put us near the top with Tirol & Vienna, but are hesitant to put us in the bottom with Danube & Carinthian. I think with the systems we have in place, and the solid group of imports who are gelling with the Nationals well, we'll be a very tough team to deal with.

Who knows though, I can't wait to have our first test Saturday. Well...yes I can; I've got a few things to clean up before then.

Either way, great day all around.

Arrivee

After watching the sunrise at Seatac Airport in Seattle, the sunset in Philadelphia, and the sunrise again somewhere over France, I finally have arrived in Europe. The flights were long, but I had good company. A nice couple on the Philadelphia flight who were headed to Paris for the first time (Surprise 10th Anniversary gift for his wife), and a Swiss man heading home to St. Gallen, a town near Hohenems on the Swiss side of the Rhein. The fly into Zurich was beautiful and I wish I had my camera out to take pictures of all the Euro 2008 stuff in the airport. Italy plays France (repeat of the '06 World Cup finals) in Zurich for a first round matchup. I can't wait.

Markus Falger (Fak), a former player of mine in Innsbruck, picked me up at the airport and drove me home to Hohenems. I met several of the imports and team owner Christoph when I arrived. Christoph has two kids who are pretty neat, but very aggressive. I think Keegan may get along with Kevin who is almost 3. We'll see though, they have very different personalities the two of them.

Since arriving I have had a chance to get acquainted with the town, grab some groceries (everything will be closed until Tuesday to observe Easter) and some essentials for my room. I will buy a cellphone on Tuesday; the store closed just before we got there.

After getting slightly situated, Carl & I hit the gym for a workout. Carl focused on his bench while I got in some light bench, heavy triceps & a bit of core. Not bad for a quick 35 minute workout. I plan on doing some legs and bicept tomorrow along with some cardio. It was snowing on our way back to the trainstation in Dornbirn (we workout at EasySport in Dornbirn, the town just north of Hohenems).

Stayed up until 2am tonight, to chat with Keegan via Skype and watch the Cougs put it on Notre Dame.

From what I hear, our team should fare pretty well. The offense, coordinated by flatmate and OC/QB Paul Troth (former QB & Graduate Assistant at Eastern Carolina) looks to be refining things for our upcoming games. The defense, which I will be heading, seems to have most of my base package installed, but for a few refinements. On Tuesday I'll have a pretty good idea of how we'll fare defensively during the game this Saturday versus the Carinthian Black Lions (who have GUARANTEED victory, bleh).

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter & hugs from afar!

www.bonnelladventures.com

I officially have my own domain name! I will be making some updates and have bonnelladventures.com up and running here in about two weeks. In the meantime it will simply forward here to www.bonnelladventures.blogspot.com.

I will add more to the blog: field trip, finishing up my Master in Teaching degree, the countdown to Friday's departure, etc in the coming days.

8 Days to go!

It has been a very hectic week; getting everything ready for the move abroad. The biggest project is preparing a highlight video for Carl to give to the scouts at Friday's Pro Day at UW. Carl is already in Austria, training away at the Olympic facility and practicing with the boys. He's getting some experience looking at things from a coach's perspective and I think learning alot more about the game.

Tell me what you think about the DVD cover (above I credit a lot of the ideas to a VW Rabbit DVD that we got while deciding between the new Rabbit and the '06 Golf).

This weekend I went to Portland for the Nike Football Coach of the Year Clinic. I connected up with a lot of good friends and former coaches (Oregon's Robin Pflugrad, new Enumclaw HC Don Bartell, Kentwood HC Rex Norris & clan, as well as several others). But the highlight of the weekend was Pete Carroll of USC. I've studied some great coaches in my day, but I think Carroll's style hits the modern game right on the button. Some of the things he said really struck a chord with me, one in particular: "If your reciever goes out there and runs the wrong route or break or something, don't ever say 'I never taught him that!' Bull****! I don't ever want to hear that; you [darned] well taught him that, because you sure as [heck] didn't coach him not too!"

I am a proponent of accountability in my players and he lives it through taking the worry off of the players and placing the blame directly on himself and his staff. I adore this in him and will take it with me this summer and wherever I end up in the fall.

Other than that, I've only got a few days of Student Teaching left, which is exciting. I'll be on a field trip to the Museum of Flight with 170 seventh graders tomorrow...pray for me! eek! ;)

My new blog

please update your links/favorites to:

http://www.bonnelladventures.com

Welcome friends and family. Add this website into your favorites; from here I will be updating home with the season, our experiences, travels and other exciting news.

Check out the slideshow on your right for a taste of things to come (pictures provided by Carl & Katie).

:)

-Raymond