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July 6th, 2008
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On the prowl

Panthers blow out Austrian powerhouse, advance in EFAF Cup

By Dave Faries
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
May 14th, 2008 issue

COURTESY PHOTO
Jake Shrum celebrates the first of eight Panthers' touchdowns in their May 11 win over Danube. Brother Josh Shrum runs alongside.
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Boxscore


By quarter
Danube 7 0 6 6 19
Panthers 13 8 14 20 55
Scoring
1st qtr: Panthers - Ja. Shrum 17-yd run (Srp kick)
Dragons - McDowell 2-yd pass from Marsan (Sviatko kick)
Panthers - Jo. Shrum 48-yd pass from Ja. Shrum (kick failed)
2nd qtr: Panthers - Jo. Shrum 54-yd run (Shrum pass)
3rd qtr: Panthers - Jo. Shrum 14-yd run (kick failed)
Dragons ? Janik 41-yd pass from Marsan (conv. failed)
Panthers - Ja. Shrum 48-yd run (Shrum pass)
4th qtr: Panthers - Jo. Shrum 38-yd run (Srp kick)
Panthers - Jo. Shrum 65-yd interception return (Srp kick)
Panthers - Lancaster 56-yd pass from Ja. Shrum (kick failed)
Dragons - Hörhan 13-yd run (conv. failed)
Rushing
Dragons Scharinger 10-62; Hörhan 4-16; Haider 1-12; Lojka 3-8; Janik 1-6; Marsan 5-4
Panthers Jo. Shrum 16-244; Ja. Shrum 7-73; Dopita 5-37; Lancaster 2-28; Jantoš 5-24; Dlouhý 3-23
Passing
Dragons Marsan 14-29 169 yds, 2 TD, 1 Int; Haider 2-6 31 yds, 0 TD, 0 Int; McDowell 1-1 21 yds, 0 TD ,0 Int
Panthers Ja. Shrum 3-4 106 yds, 2 TD, 0 Int; Jo. Shrum 0-1 0 yds, 0 TD, 1 Int
Receiving
Dragons Janik 3-92; McDowell 8-58; Haider 2-36; Köller 1-23; Salamon 1-8; Scharinger 1-6; Wagner 1-2
Panthers Jo. Shrum 2-50; Lancaster 1-56

Two thoughts occurred to just about everyone on the field as time ran down and fans waited to celebrate the Prague Panthers 55-19 shellacking of Danube in EFAF Cup play.
First, the visiting Austrians — a top-ranked squad from Europe’s best American football league — weren’t prepared for a fight. Coming off convincing wins over the Vienna Vikings, considered the continent’s showcase team, and Graz in league play, they conceded only that Prague might put a few points on the board before bowing to the inevitable.
“We weren’t focused,” admitted Dragons wideout Michael Janik. “We didn’t show what we can do.”
Second, the Panthers’ Shrum brothers, Jake and Josh, simply don’t believe the Austrian hype.
The pair shredded Danube’s defense, accounting for five touchdowns, racking up 319 combined rushing yards and generally making life miserable for anyone in a white uniform, leading their team to the European cup semi-finals — the first Czech team to advance to the EFAF elimination rounds.
“We opened up our offense,” said Panthers coach John Srholec. “They’re a good team, but I think they took us lightly.”
Jake Shrum, the Panthers, second-year quarterback, opened the scoring by sweeping around the right side untouched from the Danube 17-yard line early in the first quarter. The Dragons answered with a grinding, 14-play sequence capped by a two-yard touchdown lob from Tom Marsan to wideout Brandon McDowell.
The unrelenting drive seemed to confirm Danube’s powerful reputation. Their next series sputtered, however. Marred by three penalties, it covered only 19 yards in 10 plays. And it was sandwiched by two quick strikes by the home squad: A touchdown pass from Jake to his brother from midfield and Josh’s 54-yard romp in the wake of Jan Wajtr’s tenacious downfield blocking.
Suddenly, the floodgates opened.
Josh Shrum opened the second half by scampering 14 yards for a score. The following series, fullback Miroslav Dopita drew everyone’s attention for a dive on third down with two yards to go — but it was a decoy. Jake Shrum held on to the ball and raced 48 yards for another TD. His brother added six more points on the next possession, breaking a couple of tackles along the way.
“How they looked on tape, I thought it would be closer,” Josh Shrum said. “Anytime you put up 55 points, the offensive line is playing a great game,”
Indeed, Josef Houška, Jakub Králík, Tomáš Béda and the other “big uglies” dominated the line of scrimmage, allowing only one sack and no negative gains — until the game’s waning moments when quarterback Jake Shrum downed the final two snaps.
“Our coach did a good job scouting them,” Dopita noted after the game. “We knew their plays — everything.”
A week after rushing from the birth of his first child to suit up for a ČLAF contest against the Prague Lions, Dopita celebrated another win, this time with his wife and infant son. “It was easy,” he said of the previous Sunday’s activities — although she might disagree with his assessment.
His antics were, at least, good for a chuckle. After slashing through the Dragons defense for 22 yards, the last five dragging linebacker Andreas Duringer, toward the end of the first half, Dopita smacked into the line again. But this time he lost control of the football, prompting the public address announcer to announce the cause: slippery hands from changing diapers.
The Panthers return to ČLAF play May 17, hosting Brno at the Slavia Rugby Grounds — one of the team’s temporary homes.
It has been an interesting year so far for the Czech champions. Their new road jerseys burned in a warehouse fire. A planned reseeding of their field went awry. And they notched their first major international win since quarterfinal victories in the old Euro Cup.
The playing surface remains their biggest problem going into EFAF semifinal action. They play Berlin Adler May 31 but may be forced to give up home field advantage and travel to Germany. Both teams are currently in the process of negotiating game details.
But, as Jake Shrum stated before the season began, “if we play Berlin, they will not win.”

Dave Faries can be reached at dfaries@praguepost.com


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