ELF: Vienna Vikings stay hot against a spiraling Frankfurt Galaxy

| American Football | 06/14/2022

The Vienna Vikings came into week two with confidence coming off of a crucial road victory against their arch-rival the Raiders Tirol. Sunday, head coach Chris Calaycay and the Vikings kept things rolling, defeating the defending ELF champion Frankfurt Galaxy 30-10 in Vienna.

The game opened up when Vikings’ new addition Dominic Siegel scooped up a partially blocked punt and rumbled to the endzone for a 28-yard touchdown for the 260-pound defensive lineman.

Frankfurt’s offense however responded with poise as newly signed quarterback Moritz Johannknecht connected with veteran tight end Kevin Mwamba for a 53-yard gain. The fill-in for injured American passer Jakeb Sullivan showed flashes in the first half but was hindered by special teams as two missed field goals and a blocked punt would cause problems for any quarterback looking to gain a rhythm.

The Vikings added a field goal and a touchdown before the half, as quarterback Jackson Erdmann connected with former CFL global player Kimi Linnainmaa for a ten-yard scoring play. The score gave them a 16-3 lead at the halfway point.

Johannknecht showed off his accuracy in the third quarter stepping up and finding fellow German Marvin Rutsch for a 16-yard touchdown, breathing life back into the Galaxy squad.

Yet, in the second half the Vikings offense heated up as Erdmann found his groove. Erdmann spread the ball to Florian Bierbaumer, Jordan Bouah, and others in a drive finished off by a nice touchdown run from Anton Wegen.

Johannknecht who had played put up a valiant effort to this point,  was picked off by Benjamin Straight. The Vikings defensive back took the ball back for a 19-yard touchdown, scoring on a pick six for the second week in a row. The defensive points were the final of the game as Vienna cruised to a 30-10 win.

Some standouts of the game for Vikings  were quarterback Jackson Erdmann who finished the game 24-30 for 285 yards and one touchdown. 6’6 receiver Florian Bierbaumer and the entire Vikings offense looked in rhythm against what is still a very good Galaxy defense.

That being said Benjamin Straight made a strong case for being named player of the game. The versatile young defensive back not only scored on a pick six, but also had four punts for 143 yards, along with 4.5 tackles.

The for the Galaxy, injuries will continue to hold them back as starting running back Gennediy Adams and offensive lineman Lars Hampel are not expected back this season after going down on Sunday. In addition, starting quarterback Jakeb Sullivan remains questionable. Expect Frankfurt to make some personnel moves this week as they hope get back to championship form as soon as possible.

On the other side, the undefeated Vikings will host a up and down 0-2 Surge in Stuttgart next week as they look to go 3-0.

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Alex is a former NCAA and semi-pro American football player who is now located in London, where he works in digital marketing. His goal in writing for AFI is to stay involved with the game that has given him so much. Alex enjoys covering leagues and