1997 Barcelona Dragons season

1997 Barcelona Dragons (NFL Europe) season
General managerJordi Vila-Puig
Head coachJack Bicknell
Home fieldEstadi Olímpic de Montjuïc
Results
Record5–5
Division place2nd
Playoff finishWorld Bowl '97 champions

The 1997 Barcelona Dragons season was the fifth season for the franchise in the World League of American Football (WLAF). The team was led by head coach Jack Bicknell in his fifth year, and played its home games at Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. They finished the regular season in second place with a record of five wins and five losses. In World Bowl '97, Barcelona defeated the Rhein Fire 38–24. The victory marked the franchise's first World Bowl championship.

Offseason

World League draft

1997 Barcelona Dragons World League draft selections
Draft order Player name Position College
Round Choice
1 3 Oliver Barnett DE Kentucky
2 9 Corey Mayfield DL Oklahoma
3 16 P. J. Killian LB Virginia
4 21 Butler By'not'e CB Ohio State
5 28 Hugh Hunter DE Hampton
6 33 Carlos Yancy CB Georgia
7 40 Tristan Moss CB Western Michigan
8 45 Santo Stephens LB Temple
9 52 Tony Covington CB Virginia
10 57 Keith Conlin OT Penn State
11 64 Dante DePaola CB California
12 69 Henry Fields RB McNeese State
13 76 Jeff Wilner TE Wesleyan
14 81 Tyrone Rush RB North Alabama
15 88 Cornell Thomas DE West Georgia
16 93 Eric Carter CB Knoxville College
17 100 Vincent Landrum LB McNeese State
18 105 Ricky Blake RB Alabama A&M
19 112 Jason Pohopek LB Boston College
20 117 Vince Stewart DT Penn State
21 123 Robert Dougherty QB Boston University

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1997 Barcelona Dragons staff
Front office
  • General manager – Jordi Vila-Puig
  • Deputy General Manager/Operations – Marco Fusté

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks/Wide Receivers – Dick Curl
  • National coach/running backs – Juan Jiménez
  • Offensive line – Vince Martino
 Defensive coaches
  • Defensive coordinator/linebackers – Red Kelin
  • Defensive line – Sam Clancy
  • Defensive backs – Chip Beake


[2]

Roster

1997 Barcelona Dragons roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

  • 28 Terry Wilburn

Wide receivers

  • 80 Alfonzo Browning

Tight ends

  • 89 Bryce Burnett
 Offensive linemen
  • 72 Robert Couch T
  • 68 Chris Dausin C
  • 62 Tom Robsock G
  • 77 Deron Thorp T

Defensive linemen

  • 93 Steve Brannon DE
  • 97 Mike Foley DT
  • 92 Hugh Hunter DE
  • 55 Ronnie Woolfork DE
 Linebackers
  • 56 Vincent Landrum ILB
  • 59 Juan Long ILB
  • 52 Willie Smith OLB
  • 33 Marlon Perez Cicchelli OLB

Defensive backs

  • 30 Carlos Brooks S
  • 29 Thomas McGaughey S
  • 23 Don Robinson S
  • 20 Michael Wright CB

Special teams

  • 10 Jeff Beckley P
 National players
  • 86 Finland Sami Alalampi WR
  •  5 Italy Maurizio Barbotti WR
  • 75 Italy Luca Bellora DT
  • 66 Spain Ivan Imbernon DE
  • 36 France Gregoire Malo S


Rookies in italics

Schedule

Week Date Kickoff [n 1] Opponent Results Game site Attendance
Final score Team record
1 Saturday, April 12 7:00 p.m. at Rhein Fire W 27–12 1–0 Rheinstadion 17,150
2 Sunday, April 20 3:00 p.m. at Scottish Claymores W 20–7 2–0 Murrayfield Stadium 14,877
3 Saturday, April 26 7:30 p.m. Frankfurt Galaxy L 10–17 2–1 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 13,102
4 Sunday, May 4 3:00 p.m. at London Monarchs W 37–32 3–1 Stamford Bridge 10,110
5 Sunday, May 11 7:30 p.m. Amsterdam Admirals W 28–21 4–1 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 14,152
6 Saturday, May 17 7:30 p.m. London Monarchs L 7–9 4–2 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 13,514
7 Saturday, May 24 7:00 p.m. at Amsterdam Admirals L 21–26 4–3 Amsterdam ArenA 13,289
8 Saturday, May 31 7:30 p.m. Rhein Fire L 23–38 4–4 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 13,670
9 Saturday, June 7 7:00 p.m. at Frankfurt Galaxy L 17–29 4–5 Waldstadion 40,743
10 Saturday, June 14 7:30 p.m. Scottish Claymores W 46–18 5–5 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 10,523
World Bowl '97
11 Sunday, June 22 7:00 p.m. Rhein Fire W 38–24 6–5 Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc 31,100

[3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

Standings

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

[4]

Game summaries

Week 1: at Rhein Fire

Week One: Barcelona Dragons at Rhein Fire – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Barcelona 7 14 6027
Rhein 3 3 3312

at Rheinstadion, Düsseldorf, Germany

  • Date: Saturday, April 12
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 17,150
  • [5] [6] [7]

Week 3: vs Frankfurt Galaxy

Week Three: Frankfurt Galaxy at Barcelona Dragons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Frankfurt 0 3 31117
Barcelona 7 0 0310

at Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

  • Date: Saturday, April 26
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 13,102
  • Referee: Ron Winter
  • [8]

Week 5: vs Amsterdam Admirals

Week Five: Amsterdam Admirals at Barcelona Dragons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Amsterdam 0 0 14721
Barcelona 14 7 0728

at Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

  • Date: Sunday, May 11
  • Game time: 7:30 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 14,152

Week 7: at Amsterdam Admirals

Week Seven: Barcelona Dragons at Amsterdam Admirals – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Barcelona 7 0 14021
Amsterdam 0 17 0926

at Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam, Netherlands

  • Date: Saturday, May 24
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 13,289

Week 8: vs Rhein Fire

Week Eight: Rhein Fire at Barcelona Dragons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Rhein 7 14 71038
Barcelona 0 9 7723

at Estadi Olímpic de Montjuïc, Barcelona, Spain

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

Week 9: at Frankfurt Galaxy

Week Nine: Barcelona Dragons at Frankfurt Galaxy – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Barcelona 10 0 0717
Frankfurt 0 21 2629

at Waldstadion, Frankfurt, Germany

  • Date: Saturday, June 7
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. CEST
  • Game attendance: 40,743
  • [9]

World Bowl '97

World Bowl '97: Rhein Fire vs Barcelona Dragons – Game summary
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Rhein 3 14 0724
Barcelona 14 14 7338

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
  • [4]

Notes

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

References

  1. ^ "1997 World League draft". WorldLeague.com. Archived from the original on July 9, 1997. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
  2. ^ 1997 Barcelona Dragons Media Guide. pp. 18–37.
  3. ^ The Official 1997 World League of American Football Fact Book. pp. 20–29.
  4. ^ a b c "1997 Season in Review". The Official 1998 NFL Europe League Fact Book. pp. 218–222.
  5. ^ a b Cubero, Cristina (April 12, 1997). "Los Dragons alzan el telón". El Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Barcelona, Spain. p. 43. Retrieved April 12, 2013.
  6. ^ a b Servicio Especial (April 13, 1997). "Contundente victoria de los Dragons". El Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Barcelona, Spain. p. 51. Retrieved April 13, 2013.
  7. ^ a b "Dragons 27, Fire 12". European Stars and Stripes. Darmstadt, Germany. April 14, 1997. p. 27. Retrieved June 5, 2012.
  8. ^ a b Associated Press (April 26, 1997). "Last minute touchdown gives Galaxy 10–17 victory over Dragons". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
  9. ^ a b Associated Press (June 7, 1997). "Galaxy 29, Dragons 17". APNewsArchive.com. Associated Press. Retrieved June 30, 2013.