One of the brightest stars on the Frankfurt Galaxy defense during training camp in Tampa, Florida, was Jacksonville Jaguars-allocated defensive end Paul Spicer.
The 269-pound pass-rusher was a constant threat to opposing quarterbacks during scrimmages and will be keen to wreak havoc on offenses throughout the 2001 NFL Europe campaign.
Spicer is excited about the upcoming season, which kicks off on Saturday April 21 as the Frankfurt Galaxy travel to Scotland to face the Scottish Claymores.
"It feels great to be in NFL Europe," Spicer said. "Any time you get the chance to play football that feels good, especially when it's in a new country where you've never been before."
And Spicer is especially pleased to have been allocated to the Frankfurt Galaxy, as he explained: "I've never been to Germany but I had family who lived over there in the 1950s and 1960s.
"My mother went to high school in Germany so this is just a blessing to be able to play there."
Spicer began his NFL career as an undrafted rookie free agent with Seattle in 1998. After spending part of the 1999 season with Detroit, Spicer hooked up with the Jaguars and recorded 4 tackles, 1 sack and a forced fumble in the latter half of the 2000 season.
"This is a chance for me to make it to the next level," Spicer admitted. "It's an opportunity for me to showcase my talent, not only to my NFL team, but to the whole world. "That's something a lot of players don't get the chance to do."
Despite his NFL ambitions, Spicer is concentrating solely on the 2001 NFLEL season and has just one goal in mind. He explained: "I want to bring the World Bowl back to Frankfurt where it belongs."
If Spicer can help the Galaxy to World Bowl glory he will become a favourite of the enthusiastic Frankfurt fans. The defensive end has already fallen in love with the Galaxy fans after more than 100 of them travelled to Florida for training camp.
Spicer said: "These Frankfurt fans are better than any in the NFL. They came all the way from Germany for training camp and I don't think you would get that many NFL fans travelling that far.
"Those fans are going to be a major plus when we have our home games in Frankfurt. They are going to cause major problems for opposing offenses and that can only help our defense.
"Teams are going to struggle with our fans making so much noise. That helps us a whole lot and we already have a defense that can make plays.
"We have to make some big plays this season so we can be in that World Bowl at the end of the year. We want to put the Galaxy back where they belong."
Only time will tell whether or not Spicer's brave words are well founded, but you won't find many willing to argue with the dominant defensive lineman, who is sure to be one of the Galaxy's key players in 2001.
