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(Top) 1 Offseason 1.1 World League draft 2 Personnel 2.1 Staff 2.2 Roster 3 Schedule 4 Standings 5 Game summaries 5.1 Week 1: vs Barcelona Dragons 5.2 Week 2: vs London Monarchs 5.3 Week 3: at Scottish Claymores 5.4 Week 4: at Amsterdam Admirals 5.5 Week 5: vs Frankfurt Galaxy 5.6 Week 6: at Frankfurt Galaxy 5.7 Week 7: vs Scottish Claymores 5.8 Week 8: at Barcelona Dragons 5.9 Week 9: vs Amsterdam Admirals 5.10 Week 10: at London Monarchs 5.11 World Bowl '97 6 Awards 7 Notes 8 References

1997 Rhein Fire season

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1997 Rhein Fire season
General manager	Alexander Leibkind
Head coach	Galen Hall
Home field	Rheinstadion
Results
Record	7–3
Division place	1st
Playoff finish	Lost World Bowl '97
← 1996 Rhein Fire 1998 →

The 1997 Rhein Fire season was the third season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Galen Hall in his third year, and played its home games at RheinstadioninDüsseldorf, Germany. They finished the regular season in first place with a record of seven wins and three losses, marking the first winning season in franchise history. In World Bowl '97, Rhein lost to the Barcelona Dragons 38–24. Quarterback T. J. Rubley earned all-World League honors and was named the league's offensive most valuable player.

Offseason[edit]

World League draft[edit]

1997 Rhein Fire World League draft selections
Draft order		Player name	Position	College
Round	Choice	Player name	Position	College
1	1	Israel Stanley	DE	Arizona State
2	7	Artis Houston	CB	California
3	18	Thomas Bailey	WR	Auburn
4	19	Scotty Lewis	DE	Baylor
5	30	David Merritt	LB	North Carolina State
6	31	John Anderson	S	Oklahoma
7	42	David Rhodes	WR	Central Florida
8	43	Pete Shufelt	LB	UTEP
9	54	Anthony Daigle	RB	Fresno State
10	55	Sean Foster	WR	Long Beach State
11	66	Chris Shelling	CB	Auburn
12	67	Ricky Powers	RB	Michigan
13	78	Kelly Wiltshire	CB	James Madison
14	79	Earl Mackey	LB	Southern
15	90	Mark Brook	LB	Wyoming
16	91	Don Robinson	CB	Kentucky
17	102	Will Brown	LB	Alabama
18	103	Kyle Richardson	P	Arkansas State
19	114	Chris Thomas	WR	Cal Poly
20	115	Jay Barry	RB	Washington

^[1]

Personnel[edit]

Staff[edit]

**1997 Rhein Fire staff**

	Front office General Manager – Alexander Leibkind Head coaches Head Coach/Running Backs – Galen Hall Offensive coaches Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks – Ken Karcher Wide Receivers – Wes Chandler Offensive Line – Bob Lord			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers – Pete Kuharchek National Coach/Defensive Line – Walter Rohlfing Defensive Backs/Special Teams – Steve Carson

Roster[edit]

**1997 Rhein Fire roster**

	Quarterbacks 13 Mike Groh 7 Josh LaRocca 12 T. J. Rubley Running backs 26 Ontiwaun Carter 43 Derrick Clark 44 Ricky Powers Wide receivers 18 Thomas Bailey 80 Michael Dritlein 5 Sean Foster 81 David Rhodes 84 Bill Schroeder Tight ends 88 A. J. Ofodile		Offensive linemen 79 Ethan BrooksT 70 Spencer FolauT 62 John Jones G 55 Bob KronenbergC 64 Leslie Ratliffe G/T 77 Mike SheldonG 68 Barry Stokes G/T Defensive linemen 98 Dunstan AndersonDE 90 Israel Stanley DE 63 Sylvester StanleyDE 99 Tyrone WilliamsDT 74 James Wilson DT		Linebackers 53 Aubrey Beavers OLB 56 Mark Brook OLB 52 Will Brown OLB 50 Anthony Fieldings MLB 51 David Merritt OLB 54 Pete Shufelt MLB Defensive backs 19 John Anderson S 22 Lee Cole CB 40 Matt Gay S 33 Artis Houston CB 30 Chris ShellingS 29 Michael SwiftCB Special teams 2 Atle LarsenK 11 Diriki Mose RS 3 Kyle RichardsonP		National players 10 Manfred BurgsmüllerK 82 Martin Driever TE 75 Peter Gross-Pass DT 71 Olaf Hampel G 94 Takahiro Ikenoue LB 78 Vladimir Ilic DE 8 Babak MovassaghiWR Rookies in italics

Schedule[edit]

Week	Date	Kickoff ^{[n 1]}	Opponent	Results		Game site	Attendance
Week	Date	Kickoff ^{[n 1]}	Opponent	Final score	Team record	Game site	Attendance
1	Saturday, April 12	7:00 p.m.	Barcelona Dragons	L 12–27	0–1	Rheinstadion	17,150
2	Sunday, April 20	3:00 p.m.	London Monarchs	W 28–6	1–1	Rheinstadion	14,876
3	Sunday, April 27	3:00 p.m.	atScottish Claymores	W 23–10	2–1	Murrayfield Stadium	11,166
4	Saturday, May 3	7:00 p.m.	atAmsterdam Admirals	L 20–23	2–2	Amsterdam ArenA	10,698
5	Saturday, May 10	7:00 p.m.	Frankfurt Galaxy	W 10–7	3–2	Rheinstadion	32,140
6	Saturday, May 17	7:00 p.m.	at Frankfurt Galaxy	W 21–20	4–2	Waldstadion	39,182
7	Sunday, May 25	3:00 p.m.	Scottish Claymores	L 20–23	4–3	Rheinstadion	20,498
8	Saturday, May 31	7:30 p.m.	at Barcelona Dragons	W 38–23	5–3	Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc	13,670
9	Saturday, June 7	7:00 p.m.	Amsterdam Admirals	W 24–0	6–3	Rheinstadion	23,697
10	Sunday, June 15	3:00 p.m.	at London Monarchs	W 10–7	7–3	Stamford Bridge	10,462
World Bowl '97
11	Sunday, June 22	7:00 p.m.	Barcelona Dragons	L 24–38	7–4	Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc	31,100

^[2] ^[3] ^[4] ^[5] ^[6] ^[7] ^[8]

Standings[edit]

World League of American Football
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	Home	Road	STK
Rhein Fire	7	3	0	.700	206	146	3–2	4–1	W3
Barcelona Dragons	5	5	0	.500	236	209	2–3	3–2	W1
Scottish Claymores	5	5	0	.500	134	154	2–3	3–2	L2
Amsterdam Admirals	5	5	0	.500	156	160	4–1	1–4	W1
Frankfurt Galaxy	4	6	0	.400	147	142	3–2	1–4	L1
London Monarchs	4	6	0	.400	116	184	2–3	2–3	L1

^[2]

Game summaries[edit]

Week 1: vs Barcelona Dragons[edit]

Week One: Barcelona Dragons at Rhein Fire – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Barcelona	7	14	6	0	27
Rhein	3	3	3	3	12

atRheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

Date: Saturday, April 12
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 17,150
^[3]

Week 2: vs London Monarchs[edit]

Week Two: London Monarchs at Rhein Fire – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
London	0	0	0	6	6
Rhein	0	0	14	14	28

at Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

Date: Sunday, April 20
Game time: 3:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 14,876
^[4]

Week 3: at Scottish Claymores[edit]

Week Three: Rhein Fire at Scottish Claymores – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	13	0	7	3	23
Scotland	0	0	3	7	10

atMurrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh, Scotland

Date: Sunday, April 27
Game time: 3:00 p.m. BST
Game attendance: 11,166

Week 4: at Amsterdam Admirals[edit]

Week Four: Rhein Fire at Amsterdam Admirals – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	0	6	7	7	20
Amsterdam	10	0	6	7	23

atAmsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Date: Saturday, May 3
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 10,698
^[5]

Week 5: vs Frankfurt Galaxy[edit]

Week Five: Frankfurt Galaxy at Rhein Fire – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Frankfurt	0	7	0	0	7
Rhein	0	0	7	3	10

at Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

Date: Saturday, May 10
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 32,140
Referee: Phil Luckett
^[6]

Week 6: at Frankfurt Galaxy[edit]

Week Six: Rhein Fire at Frankfurt Galaxy – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	0	14	0	7	21
Frankfurt	3	7	7	3	20

at Waldstadion, Frankfurt, Germany

Date: Saturday, May 17
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 39,182
^[7]

Week 7: vs Scottish Claymores[edit]

Week Seven: Scottish Claymores at Rhein Fire – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Scotland	7	0	0	16	23
Rhein	3	10	7	0	20

at Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

Date: Sunday, May 25
Game time: 3:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 20,498

Week 8: at Barcelona Dragons[edit]

Week Eight: Rhein Fire at Barcelona Dragons – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	7	14	7	10	38
Barcelona	0	9	7	7	23

atEstadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

Date: Saturday, May 31
Game time: 7:30 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 13,670

Week 9: vs Amsterdam Admirals[edit]

Week Nine: Amsterdam Admirals at Rhein Fire – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Amsterdam	0	0	0	0	0
Rhein	7	10	0	7	24

at Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

Date: Saturday, June 7
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 23,697

Week 10: at London Monarchs[edit]

Week Ten: Rhein Fire at London Monarchs – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	0	3	7	0	10
London	0	7	0	0	7

at Stamford Bridge, London, England

Date: Sunday, June 15
Game time: 3:00 p.m. BST
Game attendance: 10,462
Referee: Phil Luckett
^[8]

World Bowl '97[edit]

World Bowl '97: Rhein Fire vs Barcelona Dragons – Game summary

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Rhein	3	14	0	7	24
Barcelona	14	14	7	3	38

at Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

Date: Sunday, June 22
Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
Game attendance: 31,100
Referee: Phil Luckett
^[2]

Awards[edit]

After the completion of the regular season, the All-World League team was selected by members of the media.^[9] Overall, Rhein had six players selected.^[9] The selections were:

T. J. Rubley, quarterback
Bill Schroeder, wide receiver
Ethan Brooks, offensive tackle
Mike Sheldon, guard
Bob Kronenberg, center
Spencer Folau, offensive tackle

Additionally, Rubley was selected offensive MVP by the six World League head coaches.^[10] Galen Hall earned Coach of the Year honors.^[9]

Notes[edit]

^ All times local to where the game was played.

References[edit]

^ "1997 World League draft". WorldLeague.com. Archived from the original on July 9, 1997. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

^ ^a ^b ^c "1997 Season in Review". The Official 1998 NFL Europe League Fact Book. pp. 218–222.

^ ^a ^b "Dragons 27, Fire 12". European Stars and Stripes. Darmstadt, Germany. April 14, 1997. p. 27. Retrieved June 5, 2012.

^ ^a ^b Associated Press (April 20, 1997). "Fire 28, Monarchs 6". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

^ ^a ^b Associated Press (May 3, 1997). "Admirals 23, Fire 20". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

^ ^a ^b Associated Press (May 10, 1997). "Fire 10, Galaxy 7". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved June 30, 2013.

^ ^a ^b Associated Press (May 17, 1997). "Fire 21, Galaxy 20". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved June 30, 2013.

^ ^a ^b Associated Press (June 15, 1997). "Fire 10, Monarchs 7". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved June 30, 2013.

^ ^a ^b ^c "1997 All-World League team". WorldLeague.com. June 20, 1997. Archived from the original on July 9, 1997. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

^ "Rubley and Simmons Honored". The New York Times. Manhattan, New York. June 21, 1997. Retrieved March 9, 2013.

v t e Rhein Fire
Founded in 1995 Folded in 2007 Based in Düsseldorf, Germany
The Franchise	Franchise Coaches
Stadiums	Rheinstadion Arena AufSchalke LTU arena
Head coaches	Galen Hall Pete Kuharchek Jim Tomsula Rick Lantz
World Bowl appearances (5)	'97 '98 2000 X XI
League championships (2)	1998 2000
Seasons	1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007

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