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by Robert Baldwin
contributing writer
Kaiserslautern improved its football record to 3-1 overall and made it known that it is back after a couple of down seasons, dumping host Wiesbaden 21-7, Sept. 27. The Raiders are tied with Ramstein for second place behind undefeated Stuttgart, setting the stage for a meaningful matchup with the rival Royals next Friday at home.
Superior athleticism was once again the determining factor. Tre Dotson and Nick Henry snagged touchdown passes from Nelson Rivas. Kevin Hunter picked up over 200 yards on the ground running through holes created by the stout offensive line of freshman Chris Monroe, junior Omar Shafik, senior Ryan Haddock, junior Marcel Quevedo Lewis and senior Zeke Aruwah.
At Ramstein, Royals’ senior Jason Jones Jr. is making a habit of returning kickoffs for touchdowns. He took one back for the second straight week, but this time it was not enough as the Royals fell to Stuttgart 37-17 on the damp, chilly Royals home field on Senior Night. The other Ramstein scores were a short touchdown blast and a field goal by Matthew Reismann.
Stuttgart used a punishing running game and mixed in clutch passes to keep the Royals on their heels. Defensively, the pass rush gave Ramstein quarterback Carl Norman little time to set up and often flushed him from the pocket.
The Pirates speed and athleticism also stretched out and stuffed anything the Royals tried to run to the outside. A long Pirate touchdown run on the first possession of the second half put the brakes on any Royals comeback plans.
Stuttgart is 4-0 and the Royals are 2-2, both setbacks at the hands of the Pirates.
Baumholder had a week off. All teams have a bye this week, giving them a chance to heal their dings, bumps and bruises.
