German Bowl: Defensive Leaders – Schwäbisch Hall’s Cody Pastorino & New Yorker Lions Sorie Bayoh

| New Yorker Lions | 10/05/2016

German Bowl XXXVIII is this Saturday October 8th between the 3-time defending champion New Yorker Lions and the undefeated Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns and will feature two of the best defenses in Germany if not Europe.

The Braunschweig New Yorker Lions boasted the stingiest defense in the German league in 2016 giving up a mere 198 points in 16 games. That’s an average of just f12.4 points a game.

The Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns defense, while not as stingy, was still highly effective surrendering just 20 points on average per game.

Lions linebacker Sorie Bayoh, 6’2″, 225 lb, who has been with the club since 2013, was one of the keys for Braunschweig. The 28-year-old Rutgers University graduate recorded 63 total tackles on the year and had five quarterback sacks.

From his cornerback spot, Cody Pastorino at 5’9″ and 180 lbs, has been roaming in the Schwäbisch Hall secondary for three seasons. This year, the tough-nosed Pastorino managed to record 99 tackles, pick off four passes and sack opposing quarterbacks twice.

My main role as a defensive leader on this team is to help get guys lined up. We run a complicated scheme defensively with multiple checks, so making sure everyone is on the same page is very important. We are incredibly talented defensively, so if I can help get everyone going in the right direction we are going to be successful.

Pastrino on the New Yorker Lions offense;

The Lions offense is extremely talented and explosive. They are as complete as it gets. Very big and physical offensive line, great one-two punch in the running game, talented receivers not only route running but also big athletic bodies, then the guy at the helm everybody knows about, so we know we have our hands full defensively but we wouldn’t want it any other way.

A graduate of Willamette University in Oregon, Pastorino also serves as co-defensive coordinator for Schwäbisch Hall.

Be sure to tune in to watch these top European defenders in German Bowl XXXVIII – the 38th championship final of American football in Germany. It will be held on Saturday, October 8th, 2016 at 5.30p CET, 11:30a EST at Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark in Berlin.

Further information about the German Bowl XXXVIII visit www.germanbowl.de and visit the events Facebook page at German Bowl XXXVIII.

German Bowl XXXVIII – New Yorker Lions v. Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns

John McKeon is a former professional and collegiate American Football player and coach now living and working in New York. His goal is to spread news, information, and opinion on the global growth of the sport he loves.