SURGE LOOK TO LEAGUE-BEST DEFENSE IN WILDCARD CLASH
With the Nordic Storm and Paris Musketeers both losing high-profile Week 14 games, the European League of Football playoff picture was shaken up one final time.
The combination of results, which also included vital wins for the Stuttgart, Rhein and Madrid, saw the Surge promoted to third seed at the Storm’s expense and thrust into a matchup with the Bravos, who confirmed their postseason place with a win-and-in success against Frankfurt.
Stuttgart will have home advantage in the Wildcard round, with the game taking place at the GAZi-Stadion auf der Waldau, but have no first-hand experience of playing their opposition, as the playoff game represents the first-ever meeting between the teams since the Bravos joined the ELF in 2024.
Having made the playoffs in their debut season, the Spanish side continued to build in their second, going 8-4 to finish second in the South Division behind the Munich Ravens. The Bravos also proved to be one of the most dangerous teams in the league, particularly on offense thanks to the combination of former NFL QB Reid Sinnett, WR Aron Cruickshank and German RB Justus Seelig. With 507 points scored, the Spaniards ranked second in the league — just behind the Surge, who racked up 10 points more over their 12 games. Sinnett — who played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Miami Dolphins, Philadelphia Eagles, Cincinnati Bengals, amongt others during his NFL career — led the league with 3,594 passing yards, while Cruickshank — who has NFL experience with the Chicago Bears and Pittsburgh Steelers — led the receiving stats with 1,576 receiving yards.
Madrid also showed quality on defense, with safety Pablo Araya ranking ninth in the league with 79 total tackles, but the Surge will consider themselves the stronger option on that side of the ball, especially having conceded a miserly average of 257.5 yards per game, compared to their opponent’s 340.4. On top of that, Stuttgart also led the league with 46 sacks and 14 turnovers, suggesting that the Bravos will have to be on their mettle when the two sides meet on Saturday.
The Surge won’t be taking their rival lightly, however, noting that Madrid’s defeats this season came in close games, with only the season-opening 47-33 loss to Frankfurt appearing decisive. The games against Raiders Tirol (35-34) and Munich Ravens (43-40 and 30-27) were heartbreakers conceded by narrow margins.
Stuttgart’s final regular season opponent wasn’t quite in the same echelon as the Bravos, although the Fehérvár Enthroners again put up some stern resistance in what could be their final game in the ELF.
The game in Székesfehérvár saw Surge head coach Jordan Neuman send a clear message right from the start, going for it on fourth down to keep the opening drive alive and eventually lead to a touchdown for Louis Geyer. The Enthroners responded with a fake punt that earned them a first down, only for Mitch Fettig to make an interception that led to Kai Hunter increasing the score to 14-0.
In the second quarter, the hosts’ offense got into the game, giving quarterback Brett Pullman plenty of time to gain ground and eventually find wide receiver Jon Cole for a touchdown of their own. Again, however, the Surge responded constructively, with QB Reilly Hennessey involving Geyer in the passing game once again before Daniel Pedro finished the drive with a touchdown. Another interception, this time by Lasse Engel, provided Geyer the chance to add a second touchdown before half-time as Stuttgart went into the break leading 27-10.
Fehérvár narrowed the deficit to 27-13 immediately after the break, but the Surge did not let that throw them off their game and, although cornerback Miles Butt intercepted a tipped Hennessey pass, Ben Wenzler recovered possession the same way shortly afterwards, leading to Jan Pietsch extending the lead to 34-13. Backup Lars Heidrich briefly replaced Hennessey in the final quarter, but had to leave the game due to injury, with Leonell Fritzen taking over as quarterback, as he did last week, setting up the next touchdown by Tomiwa Oyewo before adding one of his own. The Enthroners, meanwhile, showed resilience in the final phase, with their own backup, Máté Hegedüs, finding Cole for a touchdown shortly before the end as the Surge ran out 47-20 victors.
“It’s great to finish another season with double digit wins,” head coach Jordan Neuman said. “It’s three seasons in a row now, and we’re establishing a programme here for the long-term, so that’s really good.
“The Enthroners have a pretty good offense — and Jon Cole and Brett Pullman did a good job — but, at the end of the day, I felt like our defense had it really under control and did a good job creating turnovers.
“On offense, I thought we just kind of rolled, did our thing outside of a turnover, but, looking at the stats again, I think that’s a few weeks in a row where it’s been so many people contributing. Today we saw Roberto Miranda, Daniel Pedro, Louis Geyer, Tommy Oyewa, Albert Wiesigstrauch, Kai Hunter, Reilly Hennessey, Jan Pietsch — and a rotation on the whole line. It just shows again how deep we are as a team.”
Rhein Fire will meet Nordic Storm for a third time this season in the other Wildcard game, with the game taking place in Copenhagen on Sunday.