2001 Berlin Thunder season
General managerMichael Lang
Head coachPeter Vaas
Home fieldJahn-Sportpark
Results
Record6–4
Division place2nd
Playoff finishWorld Bowl IX champion

The 2001 Berlin Thunder season was the third season for the franchise in the NFL Europe League (NFLEL). The team was led by head coach Peter Vaas in his second year, and played its home games at Jahn-Sportpark in Berlin, Germany. They finished the regular season in second place with a record of six wins and four losses. In World Bowl IX, Berlin defeated the Barcelona Dragons 24–17. The victory marked the franchise's first World Bowl championship.

Offseason

Free agent draft

2001 Berlin Thunder NFLEL free agent draft selections
Draft order Player name Position College
Round Choice Overall
1 1 1 Lamanzer Williams DE Minnesota
2 1 7 Scott Pospisil DL Iowa
3 6 18 Jay Hill CB Utah
4 1 19 Joe Wesley LB Louisiana State
5 6 30 Jason Mills T Tulsa
6 1 31 Allen Mogridge G North Carolina
7 6 42 Robert Barzilauskas DT Valdosta State
8 1 43 Jamie Oats CB South Carolina State
9 6 54 Corey Taylor RB Georgetown College

[1]

Personnel

Staff

2001 Berlin Thunder staff
Front office
  • General manager – Michael Lang

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive coordinator/offensive line – Bob Bicknell
  • National coach/running backs – Shuan Fatah
  • Wide receivers – Bobby Beers
 Defensive coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Strength and conditioning – Jake Marxhausen

Roster

2001 Berlin Thunder roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

  • 89 Carlos Nuno
  • 85 Scot Osborne
 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

  • 95 Lavell Ellis DE
  • 90 Jon Harris DT
  • 93 Terrell Jurineack DE
  • 75 Scott Pospisil DT
  • 94 Jesse Warren DE
  • 64 Thomas Washington DT
  • 92 Antwone Young DE
 Linebackers
  • 96 Marc Megna OLB
  • 53 Joe O'Neill MLB
  • 52 Dax Strohmeyer OLB
  • 56 Joe Wesley
  • 59 Ryland Wickman

Defensive backs

  • 23 Wade Davis CB
  • 42 Billy Gustin S
  • 46 Brock McGrew S
  • 24 Dee Moronkola CB
  • 27 Dwayne Stukes CB/S
  • 22 James Watkins S
  • 21 Payton Williams CB

Special teams

National players
  • 86 Ulf Behre WR Germany
  • 20 Lelan Brickus S Germany
  • 80 Marico Gregersen WR Germany
  • 84 Jörg Heckenbach WR Germany
  •  9 Axel Kruse K Germany
  • 36 Kim Kuci RB Germany
  • 57 Kalle Stubbe LB Germany
  • 35 Richard Yancy S Germany


Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Kickoff [n 1] Opponent Results Game site Attendance
Final score Team record
1 Saturday, April 21 6:00 p.m. Barcelona Dragons L 14–21 0–1 Jahn-Sportpark 8,213
2 Saturday, April 28 7:00 p.m. at Frankfurt Galaxy W 28–20 1–1 Waldstadion 27,928
3 Sunday, May 6 3:00 p.m. at Scottish Claymores L 21–28 1–2 Hampden Park 10,419
4 Saturday, May 12 6:00 p.m. Rhein Fire W 23–17 2–2 Jahn-Sportpark 9,148
5 Saturday, May 19 6:00 p.m. Frankfurt Galaxy W 34–25 3–2 Jahn-Sportpark 9,559
6 Saturday, May 26 5:00 p.m. at Barcelona Dragons L 35–55 3–3 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 9,661
7 Saturday, June 2 6:00 p.m. Scottish Claymores W 27–19 4–3 Jahn-Sportpark 8,917
8 Sunday, June 10 7:00 p.m. at Rhein Fire L 13–16 OT 4–4 Rheinstadion 30,701
9 Saturday, June 16 6:00 p.m. Amsterdam Admirals W 41–10 5–4 Jahn-Sportpark 10,478
10 Sunday, June 24 6:00 p.m. at Amsterdam Admirals W 34–28 6–4 Amsterdam ArenA 13,812
World Bowl IX
11 Saturday, June 30 6:00 p.m. Barcelona Dragons W 24–17 7–4 Amsterdam ArenA 32,116

Standings

NFL Europe League
Team W L T PCT PF PA Home Road STK
Barcelona Dragons 8 2 0 .800 252 191 5–0 3–2 L1
Berlin Thunder 6 4 0 .600 270 239 4–1 2–3 W2
Rhein Fire 5 5 0 .500 174 179 4–1 1–4 L1
Scottish Claymores 4 6 0 .400 168 188 4–1 0–5 W1
Amsterdam Admirals 4 6 0 .400 194 226 4–1 0–5 L3
Frankfurt Galaxy 3 7 0 .300 199 234 3–2 0–5 W1

[2]

Game summaries

Week 1: vs Barcelona Dragons

Week One: Barcelona Dragons at Berlin Thunder – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Barcelona 7 7 7021
Berlin 0 7 0714

at Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark, Berlin, Germany

  • Date: Saturday, April 21
  • Game time: 6:05 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 8,213
  • Referee: Walt Anderson

World Bowl IX

Main article: World Bowl IX
World Bowl IX: Berlin Thunder vs Barcelona Dragons – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Berlin 4 6 01424
Barcelona 3 6 8017

at Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Notes

  1. ^ All times local to where the game was played.

References

  1. ^ "Linemen dominate free agent draft". NFL Europe League. February 20, 2001. Archived from the original on June 29, 2001. Retrieved May 25, 2011.
  2. ^ "2001 NFL Europe League Standings". NFL Europe League. Archived from the original on August 18, 2002. Retrieved January 18, 2011.
  3. ^ "The Mighty Quinn". NFL.com. National Football League. June 30, 2001. Archived from the original on August 23, 2009. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
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