As SELAF fans haven’t had the opportunity to see the Wolves in action so far but are probably eager to find out what their teams chances are against the Hungarians we have put together a thorough analysis of the Wolves staff and players.
The Budapest Wolves take on a though schedule this year competing in the SELAF, the Austrian Division I and the Hungarian League. Expect to see the Wolves best lineup against SELAF and Austrian teems and the replacements and reserves taking on the Hungarian opponents.
The coaching staff
The Wolves work under the instructions of head coach Lee Hlavka. Mr. Hlavka has been coaching football (and baseball in the US) for over thirty years at both high school and college level. He has three assistant coaches working with the team; William Goldenberg (offense), Tamás Imrei (secondary and WR’s) and Kevin Jackson (line) who has only joined the staff recently after serving as head coach of the Budapest Black Knights for a season.
“My expectations are the same as every other year I’ve ever coached; that’s to win if not all of our games then the majority of them, and that we’ll be more than competitive with any team that we are going to play.” – said coach Hlavka upon asking him what his expectations were for this season.
He also thinks highly of SELAF as he said “in the future SELAF will probably be the elite League in Central Europe”. He is well aware of the fact that SELAF is trying to attract teams from all the countries in the area and that it might become a kind of a super league around here.
“I’m happy to be in this league, I think it is going to be strong competition and a lot of fun” – he added.
Kevin Jackson the new line coach for the Wolves played football at Ambers College where he was a three year starter. Upon asking him what his impressions were after working with the team for about two months he said – “The team has got a long way to go if we want to win the league. A lot of improvements already made but a lot still ahead of us, you know a lot of people expect the championship from us.”
He also added that he played organized football for 14 years so he knows line positions are not easy to learn, especially in one or two years but considers this busy spring a great opportunity for players to learn fast.
Offense
The Budapest Wolves used to be considered more of a runner team before but have a more balanced offense nowadays. The team is big and physical; last year the 50 man roster for the Austrian Div I averaged 100+ kg and 184+ cm. In 13 outings in 2006 the Wolves scored a whopping 504 points, averaging 38.8 per game.
Ball carriers
Péter Cseperkáló (#49) is a mean ol’ truck; if he gets going he’s damn hard to stop. The 105 kg FB had burst of 50 yards or more 5 times last season. If you need 4 yards and hand him the ball he gives you 6, or 60. Péter is definitely one of the better fullbacks at this level. In 2006 Cseperkáló ran for 8 TD’s in 8 outings in the Austrian Div I and the Hungarian Blue Bowl while torching SELAF team ASVÖ Gladiators for three more scores in a friendly.
Lining up behind the truck at TB is Viktor Kiss (#22, 4 TD’s in 2006). The young back shows good speed, footwork and toughness. Other honorable mentions: Norbert Erdélyi (#45, 3 TD’s) a real bruiser of a tail back, currently inactive Krisztián Rittinger (#20, 4 TD’s), and the 19-year-old László Csizmazia (#25) who lit up the Budapest Cowboys for three touchdowns in one quarter in 2006. Newcomer: István Demeter (#32) who can line up at both back positions, former player of the Budapest Black Knights.
On the line
Ferenc Pethő (#69) and Gábor Szabó (#70) at guard are two of the stronger folks in Budapest. Not only they are strong they also know what they are doing out there on the field whether it’s opening up inside running lanes or punishing defenders on pulls to the outside. Responsible for the perfect snap, lining up at center is the player with the most life experience on the team László Terdik (#77). Other honorable mentions: Tamás Tóth (#73) at tackle (inactive) and Gergely Szepesvári (#63) at center/guard. A mammoth sized (210 cm 135 kg) junior player Tamás Ábrahám might see considerable playing time at tackle this year.
Signal calling
In most games in 2007 lining up under center will probably be Yordan Vasyl (#14) the Ukrainian QB. Yordan has played 6 years with the Uzgorod Warriors on both offense and defense. This hard nosed Ukrainian is one though player despite his small frame. His first official games with the Wolves were in the Blue Bowl in the fall of 2006 where he put points on the board with both his arm and his feet.
Other signal callers who could see action due to the though schedule of the team are Sándor Madarász (#5) who has been playing the Wolves offense since the beginnings and Attila Lendvai (#4) whose right arm could also keep secondaries on their toes this spring.
Receiving
At the receiving end the former NCAA basketball player Krisztián Piros (#82) combines great speed, good hands and an explosive 194cm, 95kg frame to frustrate opposing teams and draw double coverage. Piros converted passes to scores 12 times in 2006. Csanád Király (#84) is a smart receiver showing good hands and delivering nasty hits sometimes. He had a breakout game in the Blue Bowl final where he caught 2 passes for touchdowns, returned kickoffs and also played defense at free safety.
At tight end there is competition with two big fellows with hands; Csaba Majoros (#88) and Gábor Miakich (#83). You can expect both big guys to see action this season, sometimes even at the same time. Also note Bálint Michaletzky (#15) who joined the Wolves after playing QB, WR and free safety for the Budapest Black Kinghts for a season, Tamás Gál (#87) who is the hardest hitter under 80 kg and Márton Iványi (#6) who is the SELAF.com Hungarian editor.
Defense
Although the Wolves offense can put numbers on the scoreboard the team’s success relies on hard nosed, all-out defense. Coach Hlavka is a true defensive mind who put a very physical and well trained defensive unit together. The defense allowed an average of only 13 points in the Austrian Division I, 12.5 in the Blue Bowl and 12.3 in out of league competition in 2006.
Monster Line
Defensive end Tamás Mihálovits (#93) standing at 205 cm and 135 kg is a monster of a player. Well that’s exactly what he is called around the team. On the opposite end off the line Gyula Bíró (#97) shows great technique and effort to make up for his lack of bulk (196 cm, 100 kg). The two defensive ends make up for one though pass rush. Nose tackle Sándor Kovács (#54) is currently inactive and serves as vice-president and team manager. Competing for shots at tackle and end are Gábor Boda (#72), Norbert Czikó (#90), András Farkas (#94), Gyula Bódis (#96) and Mihály Merza (#99).
Mean machines
At linebacker Coach Hlavka has a good combination of experience, technique and meanness. MLB Csaba Péter (#52) is a silencer whom weaker backs definitely don’t want to meet. MLB Noure Khoury (#44) is crazy enough to hit the hell out of a granny if she happened to carry the pigskin. Géza Farkas (#50) as well as Csaba Péter are original members from the Budapest Cowboys. OLB ex-QB Dávid Récsey (#9) and Balázs Ágota (#47) have both seen increased playing time lately due to off-field duties for team president Attila Árpa (#30). Strong safety Ferenc Bencze (#28) is currently inactive but Miklós Stumpf (#3) – who also does duties as backup kicker and punter – does a good job replacing him. Also note: Bence Németh (#47), Gábor Horváth (#48) and ex-WR Tamás Prikkel (#85) at the position.
Fast guys
The Wolves seems to look forward to a better season as far as the secondary goes. There is healthy competition between a number of players for the spots available. Mátyás Hubay (#26) and András Végvári (#17) started most of last season at CB but with the arrival of Mat Slewicky and the switch from offense to defense of Krisztián Papp (#80) there will be well enough man to handle the job. The return of free safeties (and also official Hungarian referee) Béla Krausz (#36) and John Trikas (#37) with last years starter Tamás Migály (#42) and some fresh talent added gives options for Coach Hlavka at the position.
Special teams
The fellow you either see spiting sunflower seed at the sideline or nailing field goals from distances opponents wouldn’t even dare to try is Gábor Sviatkó (#1). Sviatkó got invited to the 2006 NFL Europe Training Camp. He does punts and placed kicks as well, has incredibly strong legs making him dangerous from as far as 60 yards out.
The Wolves returned two kickoffs and a punt for touchdowns last season although special teams were considered one of the weaker points of the team. Expect that to change as coach Hlavka puts a great emphasis on performing well on special teams this season.