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Player of the year: 2011 League MVP

Kendall Lindeman

Countdown to XFL 2012 DRAFT (Jan 29/12)

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 **LEAGUE NEWS**

 

11/26/12 2013 XFL Mock Draft V 2.0 It has been decided that Sam Kiger will only count as a second round draft pick for Seth. Seth will be keeping Kiger, and Steve Whistler who was a 4th round pick. As was already announced, Wolf Pack GM Andy Erickson is claiming Kendall Lindeman and will not have a first round pick. Currently we have 45 players including captains. This means right now 3 teams would have 6 players, and 3 would have 7. We are going to play 6-man this year again. If one team only has 5 players, then that game can be played 5-on-5. I do not want to have any players subbing on another team this year. The first games of the year will be played on Friday, March 29 2013. This is Good Friday, so noone has school. Games will be played starting early afternoon that day. So keep that day clear, there are no excuses knowing 4 months ahead of time. ALL TEAMS will be playing that day. The rest of the schedule will be posted sometime this week. The schedule will be revised after the draft to fit into college player's schedules. With the opening game being played a couple weeks earlier than usual, we will also be holding the draft earlier. Possibly sometime over Christmas break. Stay tuned for details. Without further ado, here is the updated mock draft. 2013 XFL Mock Draft Version 2 ROUND 1 Franky- Tyson Kayser Ben(In trade with Jacob)- Darin Bartscher Ryan- Jace Connor Jacob(In trade with Ben)- Kyelle Herrick Seth- Clayton Dye ROUND 2 Franky- Austin Bunger Andy- Blake Bartscher Jacob- Sean Luke Ryan-Kyle Pollreisz Jacob(In trade with Ben)-Terry Weber ROUND 3 Franky- Justin Grosdidier Andy- Jordan Grosdidier Ben(In trade with Jacob)- Adrien Heiter Ryan- Derrick Miller Ben- Jordan Hanssen Seth-JD Shape ROUND 4 Franky- Izak Weber Andy- Jonah Bailey Jacob- Jaden Weber Ryan- Reed McBrayer Ben- Austin Eich ROUND 5 Franky- Tyler Myers Andy- Jacob Eddy Jacob- Lucas Miller Ryan- Ben Whistler Ben- Wade Weber Seth-Colton Herrick ROUND 6 Franky- Ethan Riggs Andy- Jesse Grosdidier Jacob- Sam Tusha Ryan- Camden Myers Ben- Rylee Riggs Seth- Sam Arend ROUND 7 Franky- Jerret Weber Andy- Colton Plagmann Jacob-Cade Schmidt

 

 

11/20/12 2013 XFL Mock Draft V 1.0:     2013 XFL Mock Draft: Version 1 Captains- Franky Tusha (Bandits) Andy Erickson (Wolf Pack) Jacob Schweitzer (Won & Done) Ryan Hanks (Leave No Doubt) Ben Erickson (Highlight Reel) Seth Wethor (Balls Deep) Wolf Pack keeps Kendall Lindeman for finishing 2ndlast season, won’t have a first round pick. Balls Deep claims Sam Kiger for winning the championship last season, won’t have a first round pick. ROUND 1 Bandits- Tyson Kayser Wolf Pack- NO PICK Highlight Reel- Darin Bartscher Leave No Doubt- Jace Connor Won & Done- Clayton Dye Balls Deep- NO PICK ROUND 2 Bandits- Kyelle Herrick Wolf Pack- Blake Bartscher Won & Done- Austin Bunger Leave No Doubt- Kyle Pollreisz Won & Done- Terry Weber Balls Deep- Steven Whistler ROUND 3 Bandits- Sean Luke Wolf Pack- Jordan Grosdidier Highlight Reel- Sean Luke Leave No Doubt- Adrien Heiter Highlight Reel- Jordan Hanssen Balls Deep- Izak Weber ROUND 4 Bandits- JD Shape Wolf Pack- Jonah Bailey Won & Done- Jaden Weber Leave No Doubt- Reed McBrayer Highlight Reel- Jacob Eddy Balls Deep- Derrick Miller ROUND 5 Bandits- Tyler Meyers Wolf Pack- Jesse Grosdidier Won & Done- Lucas Miller Leave No Doubt- Ben Whistler Highlight Reel- Colton Herrick Balls Deep- Wade Weber Â

 

 

7/16/2012: Season Awards and Year In Review  The XFL Championship game is nearly upon us and its time to look at the season past and hand out some hardware. Lets look at my predictions for teams this year compared to how they actually did. -Team Won & Done- Captain: Jacob Schweitzer Team Members: Ben Erickson, Jamon Harberts, Josh Terveen, Adrien Heiter, Jonah Bailey, JD Shape Prediction: 5-3, actual record 2-6 This team was the biggest dissapointment of the year by far. So much talent but they either got off to rough starts in games, or gave up late leads. They were in many games until the last minute but they lacked that clutch gene throughout the whole season. -Team Balls Deep- Captain: Seth Wethor Team Members: Clayton Dye, Wade Miller, Austin Bunger, Steven Whistler, Sam Tusha, Brandon Schwans Prediction:3-5, actual record 4-4 I actually wasn't too far off on my prediction for these guys. They went 1-1 without captain Seth Wethor to start the year, then 3-3 with him. He had a tendancy to turn the ball over quite a bit which cost his team those 3 losses. -Team Wolf Pack- Captain: Andy Erickson Team Members: Kendall Lindeman, Ryan Hanks, Kyle Pollreisz, Justin Grosdidier, Camron Herrick, Colton Herrick Prediction:5-3, actual record 6-2 Honestly, I really wanted to give my team a better record but I figured it would just look like I was biased. I knew we would score alot, but the surprise has been out defensive play, allowing the least points per game in the regular season. -Team Bandits- Captain: Franky Tusha Team Members: Tyson Kayser, Jace Connor, Sean Luke, Izak Weber, Jordan Hanssen, Derrick Miller Prediction: 2-6, actual record 4-4 I was way off on these guys. The main reason I picked them to finish towards the bottom was because I doubted the reliabilty of Jace Connor after his numerous no-shows to games last year. He proved to be one of the best QBs in the league and Tyson became a candidate for MVP. -Team Razorbacks- Captain: Darin Bartscher Team Members: Tanner Duba, Kyelle Herrick, Blake Bartscher, Jordan Grosdidier, Wade Weber, Ben Whistler Prediction: 5-3, actual record 4-4 Although my prediction was only one game off, I think I gave this team just a little bit too much credit going into the season. Bartscher wasn't near as good on offense as I had thought he would be. Don't get me wrong, he was a playmaker, but he threw a lot of bad passes. It took first round pick Tanner Duba a couple games to live up to the expectations and he was finally in full gear once the playoffs started. Had Blake and Jordan been there for all the games, I think they would have lived up to the preseason hype.   Now here is where we get to the awards part: League Awards MVP Prediction: Kendall Lindeman Actual MVP: Kendall Lindeman Kendall ended up with 59 catches for 1,405 yards and 25 touchdowns with 14 two-point conversions. He was also a big threat on defense, with a league-high 7 interceptions and 4 defensive touchdowns. Best QB Prediction: Seth Wethor Actual Best QB: Jacob Schweitzer Had Seth played all 8 regular season games I think he might have been in contention for this award, but Jacob Schweitzer definitely deserves this award for his play in the regular season. Jacob had a 68.5 completion percentage on the year. He amassed 4,655 passing yards, nearly 1,000 yards more than the next qb. He also threw for a league high 64 touchdowns, 13 more than the next qb. He had a season qb rating of 129.7. Best WR Prediction: Tanner Duba Actual Best WR: Ben Erickson This was a close call between Kendall, Tyson, and Ben. But Ben had 30 more catches than any other receiver in the league. He caught 96 balls for 1,675 yards and 30 touchdowns, all of which led the league in each category. He also had 10 2-point conversions and 1 4-point conversion Best Defender Prediction: Ben Erickson Actual Best Defender: Kendall Lindeman & Wade Miller I can't give this to just one guy. Kendall and Wade both had phenomenal seasons defensively. Each had 7 interceptions, with 4 defensive touchdowns. Best 2nd round pick Prediction: Kyelle Herrick Actual best 2nd round pick: Kyelle Herrick This was a close call between Kyelle, Wade, Ryan Hanks, and Jace Connor. Kyelle had a great season offensively. Catching 62 balls for 1,310 yards with 17 touchdowns. He also had 6 2-point conversions and 3 4-point conversions. Kyelle also caught 4 interceptions and had 1 defensive touchdown. Best 3rd round pick Prediction: Kyle Pollreisz Actual Best 3rd round pick: Sean Luke This was another close one between Sean and Austin Bunger. Sean had 52 catches for 955 yards and 10 touchdowns. He caught 5 2-point conversions and 1 4-point conversion. Best 4th round pick Prediction: Jordan Grosdidier Actual Best 4th round pick: Steven Whistler Jordan might have won this had he been there for all the games. Steven had a great season offensively and came from behind to catch Adrien Heiter in this category. Steven finished the year with 43 catches for 845 yards with 13 touchdowns and 9 2-point conversions. Best 5th round pick prediction: Jordan Hanssen Actual Best 5th round pick: Jordan Hanssen This wasn't really close at all, Jordan put up stats that were better than some 2nd round selections. Jordan caught 40 balls for 680 yards with 10 touchdowns and 6 2-point conversions. Best 6th round pick prediction: Derrick Miller Actual best 6th round pick: Derrick Miller Although his competition wasn't much, Miller gets an award. He had a pretty decent season, catching 35 balls for 530 yards and 11 touchdowns with 3 2-point conversions.   Best Team Captain Prediction: Darin Bartscher Actual Best Team Captain: Andy Erickson I don't mean to brag myself up, but having a 6-2 record, 2 games better than any other team is a reason I deserve this award. I put together a talented team and rarely had to find other players to fill in on my team. By the way, I've won this award 2 years in a row now (last years was voted on by players). Award Count Predictions: Razorbacks: 4 Wolf Pack: 2 Bandits: 2 Won & Done: 1 Balls Deep: 1 Actual Award Count: Wolf Pack: 3 Bandits: 3 Won & Done: 2 Balls Deep: 2 Razorbacks: 1Â

 

7/10/12 Playoffs Review: And then there were 2. The playoff games last year were all great games and every team should be commended for their performances. Lets wrap up the action. Play-in Game: Razorbacks-92 vs Won & Done-60 Won & Done got off to a great start behind superb play from QB Jacob Schweitzer and took a commanding 42-26 lead into the half. Things turned for the worse from that point on for Jacob's squad. The Razorbacks defense suffocated Schweitzer into throwing 6 interceptions and held W&D to only 18 points in the second half. Meanwhile the Razorbacks offense lit it up, after scoring only 26 in the first, they erupted for 56 second half points and ended up putting the mercy rule to play, beating W&D by 32. For W&D, Schweitzer went 27 of 48 for 475 yards. He threw 7 touchdowns to a career high 6 interceptions. He also had 1 rushing touchdown. He had a career low in QB rating at 90.2 and completion percentage with 56.3. Josh Terveen was the leading receiver for his team for the first time this year. Terveen caught 7 balls for 140 yards and a td. Adrien Heiter was next, catching 7 balls for 105 yards and a td. Jonah Bailey had his biggest game of the year, catching two balls for 95 yards, both going for touchdows. Jonah also returned an interception for a touchdown. Ben Erickson caught 8 balls for 80 yards and 2 touchdowns. Ben was limited due to injury much of the second half. And Jamon Harberts brought in 3 balls for 55 yards and a td. For the Razorbacks, Darin Bartscher was 45 of 58 for 620 yards. He threw 9 touchdowns to only one interception. He also had 3 rushing tds. He had a career high qb rating of 143.6. The leading receiver was Tanner Duba, who caught 10 balls for 165 yards and a td. Tanner also had 3 interceptions, including one defensive touchdown. Wade Weber caught 12 balls for 110 yards and a td. Jordan Grosdidier had 8 catches for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns. Kyelle Herrick caught 6 for 110 yards and 3 touchdowns. And Ben Whistler had his best performance of the season, catching 9 balls for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns. Darin also had three interceptions and a defensive touchdown. Semi-Final Playoffs: #2 Balls Deep-106 vs #3 Bandits-100 The offensive fire power in this game was amazing, while the defenses were not. Both teams took advantage of poor defensive play. Of the 13 players involved in the game only one person didn't score a single point. Balls Deep held and maintained a 6-12 point lead throughout the entire first half and that lead held to the final whistle. Balls Deep led by 12, 62-50 at halftime. And thought it got a little interesting towards the end, the Bandits couldn't come up with a defensive stop to give their offense a chance to take the lead late in the game. For the Bandits, Jace Connor was 41 of 59 for 820 yards. He threw 11 touchdowns and 1 interception. He also rushed for 3 tds. Qb rating was 149.8. Tyson Kayser was the leading receiver, catching 14 balls for 230 yards and 4 touchdowns. Jordan Hanssen caught 10 for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns. Derrick Miller had 7 catches for 145 yards and 3 touchdowns. Franky Tusha had 5 catches for 145 yards and 1 td. Izak Weber had 3 for 30 and a td, as well as one interception. Sean Luke caught 2 balls for 20 yards and was the only player to not score a point in the game. For Balls Deep, Seth Wethor went 31 of 42 for 740 yards with 12 touchdowns and 1 interception. He had 2 tushing tds. QB rating was 144.1 Wade Miller was the leading receiver with 10 catches for 345 yards and 4 touchdowns. Clayton Dye had 10 receptions for 205 yards and 5 tds. Steven Whistler had 6 catches for 80 yards. Brandon Schwans had 3 for 55 with 1 touchdown and an interception. And Austin Bunger had 2 catches for 55 yards and 2 touchdowns. #1 Wolf Pack-88 vs #4 Razorbacks-60 The Razorbacks offense put up some nice stats, but they had multiple drives stall in the redzone and it cost them the game. Their defense didn't come up with a single stop all game and the Wolf Pack offensive attack just seemed to be overwhelming at times. The Wolf Pack needed to play a near perfect game. Many of the members of last years Prime Time team were in the same position last year, #1 seed, playing a team that had already played a game earlier that evening. They were not going to get upset again. Ryan Hanks threw a near perfect game and his favorite target Kendall Lindeman was nearly unstoppable. WP took a 10 point lead into the half and doubled it after the second half, winning by a margin of 20 points. For the Razorbacks, Darin Bartscher was 34 of 48 for 695 yards and 9 touchdowns with 2 interceptions. He also rushing for 1 td. His QB rating was 135.4. Tanner Duba had another huge game receiving, catching 11 balls for 260 ayrds and 3 touchdowns. Kyelle Herrick also made some huge plays, catching 9 for 230 yards and 4 touchdowns. Ben Whistler caught 6 for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns. Jordan Grosdidier had a dissapointing game, catching 4 for 45 yards. And Wade Weber had 4 catches for 75 yards. For the Wolf Pack, Hanks went 39 of 49, throwing for 700 yards with 9 touchdowns and no interceptions. He also had 2 rushing touchdowns. QB rating was 158.3. Kendall Lindeman had 14 catches for 285 yards and 6 touchdowns. Kyle Pollreisz had 9 catches for 170 yards and 2 touchdowns. Andy Erickson caught 8 balls for 135 yards and a touchdown. Justin Grosdidier caught 6 for 95 and Camron Herrick caught 2 for 15 yards. Kendall also had two interceptions, one of which was returned for a touchdown. Â

 

6/19/12 Week 8 Review: Razorbacks-66 vs Bandits-36 This looked like it may be a good game from the start with both teams trading touchdowns and then forcing turnovers in the first couple drives. But once Razorbacks captain Darin Bartscher decided to move Tanner Duba to QB that all entirely changed. Duba looked elite as he torched the Connor-less and Kayser-less Bandits. It wasn't too much of a game from this point on as the Razorbacks maintained around a 20 point lead the remainder of the game up until they reached the 30 point mercy rule at 2 minutes left in the game. While the Razorbacks seemed to have things figured out, it was the complete opposite for the Bandits. Without Connor and Kayser they struggled much of the game to get into a rhythm offensively and went through 4 different quarterbacks. Jordan Hanssen and Derrick Miller seemed to have the best luck. Hanssen went 10-of-15 for 150 yards and two touchdowns with one interception. Miller went 9-of-16 for 170 yards with 2 passing and 1 rushing touchdown. Miller's downfall was throwing 3 interceptions in just the first half. Franky Tusha started the game at QB and had a dismal performance, going 2-of-8 for 20 yards. Sean Luke also threw 2 passes, completed 1 for 30 yards. Ben Erickson was a fill in player for the Bandits and their leading receiver. Erickson caught 9 balls for 160 yards and 1 touchdown. Sean Luke caught 6 balls for 95 yards and a score. Miller had 40 yards on 4 receptions. Jordan Hanssen had 60 yards on three receptions with one touchdown. Tusha also had one touchdown, catching 2 balls for 45 yards. Darin Bartscher started the game at QB for the Razorbacks. He went 6-0f-13 for 125 yards, 3 touchdowns, 1 rushing td, but the two interceptions helped him decide to hand the reigns over to Duba who showed his best stuff. Duba went 16 of 24 for 330 yards with 6 touchdowns and not a single interception. His 149.3 QB rating is good enough for 3rd all time in the XFL. Darin Bartscher led his team in receiving with 7 catches for 145 yards and 3 touchdowns. Steven Whistler was filling in for Jordan Grosdidier and caught 7 balls for 100 yards and 2 touchdowns. Tanner Duba caught 4 balls for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns. Blake Bartscher caught 3 for 85 and a score, and Kyelle Herrick had 45 yards on 3 grabs and a score. With the win, the Razorbacks improve to 3-2 and are second in the standings. The Bandits fall to 4-3 and are third in the standings. Wolf Pack-68 vs Balls Deep-56 This was a battle between two of the league's hottest teams. Since Ryan Hanks has taken over at QB for the Wolf Pack they have been on a hot streak and the same with Seth Wethor for Balls Deep. The game started off with both teams taking and delivering blows. The key of the game came in the first half when Wolf Pack Ryan Hanks returned an interception for a touchdown. That would give his team an edge they would hold throughout the rest of the game. Both teams played very well, but the key of the game was turnovers, and Balls Deep had one more than Wolf Pack did. Ryan Hanks had another near perfect outing for WP, completing 30 of 42 passes for 485 yards with 8 touchdowns and one interception. His leading receiver was Kendall Lindeman who had 6 catches for 180 yards and 4 touchdowns. Andy Erickson had 9 receptions for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns. Justin Grosdidier caught 7 balls for 80 yards and 3 touchdowns. Blake Bartscher, filling in for Kyle Pollreisz, caught 8 balls for 70 yards. And Camron Herrick caught one ball for 10 yards, a two point conversion. Seth Wethor had a nice day too, completing 28 of 46 passes for 460 yards with 6 touchdowns and 2 rushing tds and 2 interceptions. His favorite target was once again Wade Miller who caught 13 balls for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns. Steven Whistler had 7 grabs for 155 yards and 2 scores. Clayton Dye caught 4 balls for 95 yards and 2 touchdowns. Sam Tusha caught 4 balls for 55 yards and Sean Luke caught 2 for 25 yards. With the win Wolf Pack is atop the standings at 4-2. Balls Deep drops to 4th place at 3-3.   POWER RANKINGS: 1. Wolf Pack +1 2. Razorbacks +2 3. Bandits -2 4. Balls Deep -1 5. Won & Done

 

 

6/15/12 Seth Wethor Announces Sponsorship With Amish: Yes, thats right, you read that headline right. Balls Deep captain Seth Wethor has announced that he will be the spokesman with an Amish Farm that includes a restaurant, Inn & Suites and other tourist attractions such as a theater, tours and shops. "John Jacob Schmidt came to me after one of my games and said he liked my amish beard," Wethor said in an interview with XFL Insider Dick Trickle. "He said he thought I would be the perfect spokesman for their Amish farm and I gladly accepted the role." When asked what his compensation was Wethor said "Well, John said I will get a turkey for every touchdown I score and a goat for every game my team wins, as long as I do an amish dance every time I score." This could get a bit scary, of course we all remember the last time we seen Wethor dance. Below is a clip from his Dancing With The Stars audition tape: Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!   Yeah, quite scary I would say. Below is the billboard Wethor's face will be on. They will be running a Wethor Special next weekend, which includes a free meal, a 2 night stay and a $30 gift card at the gift store for a low price of only $934. Â

 

6/13/12 All-Star Point Review With the 2012 XFL season already half way complete, we are getting down to the nitty gritty as players try to capture a slot on one of the all-star rosters. Each player who makes the roster will get his $2 he put in for dues at the beginning of the season back. Without further ado, lets get to it. Quarterbacks- 2 make the roster The Locks: 1. Jacob Schweitzer (played 6 games)- 607 points 2. Jace Connor (played 5 games)- 513 points Good Chance: 3. Seth Wethor (played 3 games)- 302 points 4. Ryan Hanks (played 2 games)- 233 Since Jace is currently second as a defensive selection, that means the next quarterback down will also make the All-Star roster. I have to give the slight edge to Hanks to get that second spot at this point. Hanks is averaging 117 All-Star points per game as a QB since he took over. Wethor is averaging just over 100. Wide Receivers- 6 make the roster The Locks: 1. Ben Erickson (played 6 games)- 224 points 2. Kendall Lindeman (played 5 games)- 206 points 3. Tyson Kayser (played in 6 games)- 180 points 4. Kyelle Herrick (played in 4 games)- 141 points 5. Sean Luke (played in 5 games)- 136 points 6. Austin Bunger (played in 4 games)- 118 points Good Chance: 7. Wade Miller (played in 4 games)- 111 points 8. Jordan Hanssen (played in 6 games)- 102 points 9. JD Shape (played in 4 games)- 95 points Outside Looking In: 10. Ryan Hanks (played in 3 games)- 89 points 11. Jamon Harberts (played in 5 games)- 86 points 12. Clayton Dye (played in 3 games) - 82 points 13. Joshua Terveen (played in 4 games)- 72 points Since Kendall and Tyson are currently the top two All-Around selections, that means two more wide-receivers will be taken. This gives Wade Miller, Jordan Hanssen and the rest of the guys posted above a chance to make the team. If I had to make a guess I think Miller and Clayton Dye will get in as the last two selections. If Dye doesn't play then I look for Josh Terveen who has been coming up big for his team to make the roster. Tight Ends- 2 make the roster The Lock: 1. Andy Erickson (played in 5 games)- 135 points Good Chance: 2. Adrien Heiter (played in 6 games)- 106 points 3. Derrick Miller (played in 5 games)- 101 points Outside Looking In: 4. Steven Whistler (played in 4 games)- 62 points 5. Franky Tusha (played in 5 games)- 48 points Heiter will need some good games to stay ahead of Miller, each of their teams have only 2 games left. Defensive- 2 make the roster The Locks: 1. Kendall Lindeman (played in 5 games)- 48 points 2. Jace Connor (played in 5 games)- 30 points Good Chance 3. Tyson Kayser (played in 6 games)- 22 points 4. Wade Miller (played in 4 games)- 22 points 5. Ben Erickson (played in 6 games)- 18 points 6. Ryan Hanks (played in 5 games)- 14 points 7. Tanner Duba (played in 3 games)- 14 points The reason there are so many people with a good chance is because Kendall is already leading in the All-Around spot. Jace would grab the top defensive spot. Tyson has the other all-around spot currently. Wade Miller had a good chance to make it at WR, and Ben Erickson will make it at WR. So we drop down to Ryan Hanks who has a shot at making it as QB, which would give the 2nd spot to Tanner Duba as a defensive player. All Around- Two Best overall Players 1. Kendall Lindeman- 206 points as WR & 48 points defense 2. Tyson Kayser- 180 points as WR & 22 points as defense Player Vote- All the remaining players not on the All-Star Roster will vote for two players to be added to the team My Top Guesses: 1. Darin Bartscher 2. Seth Wethor 3. Jamon Harberts 4. Jordan Grosdidier My Prediction for the All-Star Teams: All-Around: 1. Kendall Lindeman 2. Tyson Kayser QB: 1. Jacob Schweitzer 2. Ryan Hanks WR: 1. Ben Erickson 2. Kyelle Herrick 3. Sean Luke 4. Austin Bunger 5. Wade Miller 6. Clayton Dye TE: 1. Andy Erickson 2. Adrien Heiter Defense: 1. Jace Connor 2. Tanner Duba Player Vote: 1. Darin Bartscher 2. Seth Wethor The teams would then be like this: Team 1: All Around- Kendall Lindeman QB- Ryan Hanks WRS- Ben Erickson, Sean Luke, Wade Miller TE- Adrien Heiter Defense-Jace Connor Player Vote- Seth Wethor Team 2: All-Around- Tyson Kayser QB- Jacob Schweitzer WRS- Kyelle Herrick, Austin Bunger, Clayton Dye TE- Andy Erickson Defense- Tanner Duba Player Vote- Darin Bartscher

 

6/12/12 Mid-Season Review: Every team has played at least four games and some have played up to 6 at this point. Its time to take a look at the best and worst of the season so far. Biggest Dissapointment- Won & Done's 1-5 record. This team came into the season with 3 members from last years championship team. Their quarterback holds nearly every passing record in the league. Yet they continue to choke late in games. If they continue to come up short late in games I would be in favor of renaming them to the "LeBrondos". Biggest Surprise- Jacob Schweitzer. He has thrown 6 more tds than any other quarterback in the league. Many thought qb may be their weak spot going into the season, but Jacob most definitely proved everyone wrong. He may have the most interceptions (14) in the league, but he has also thrown and completed more than 50 balls each than any other qb in the league. Most Underrated- Sean Luke. Honestly, noone predicted him to be as good as he has been thus far. 44 catches for 890 yards and 9 touchdowns is good enough for 5th in the all-star point totals. Every time he gets the ball he just somehow finds away to stretch out those extra yards. Most Overrated- Tanner Duba. He has the talent yes, but his output so far has to be very disappointing for Razorbacks captain Darin Bartscher who drafted him 4th overall. In two games Tanner has only caught 6 balls for 80 yards and 1 touchdown. Luckily Tanner still has 4 games to redeem himself. Most Left to Prove- Balls Deep. This team got off to a rough start without team leader Seth Wethor at the helm. Since he has taken over his team is 2-1 and avenged that only loss against Won & Done by beating them a couple weeks later. MVP- Kendall Lindeman. Ben Erickson may have way more catches, but he also has played one more game to this point. Kendall has been much more effective on defense than Erickson with 6 interceptions, 4 of them going back for a defensive touchdown. Even after playing one more game than Lindeman to this point, Erickson only has 45 more yards and 1 touchdown. The MVP is there for Lindeman to grab or lose. Best QB- Jace Connor. Jace has 38 TDs to only 8 interceptions. That means he throws only 1 interception to nearly every 5 touchdowns. Add in his league leading 10 rushing touchdowns and 134.9 QB rating and not only is he the best QB, but also a top 5 candidate for MVP. Best WR- Tyson Kayser. You can double any other WR in the league and you will slow down their game. You can double Tyson Kayser and it won't make much difference, he is still going to torch you. Best TE- Andy Erickson. Through 5 games he has caught 39 balls for 565 yards and is one of only 7 WRs to have double digit touchdowns. He is also tied for the 3rd most 2-point conversions so far this season. Â

 

 

6/12/12 Tanner Duba Announces Sponsorship With Trojan: Razorbacks Captain Darin Bartscher recently announced that Tanner Duba would become the teams starting quarterback for the remainder of the season. After news broke it immediately made Duba one of the super stars of the league and it didn't take long for someone to snag him up for a sponsorship role. "The people over at trojan condoms came to me and said they wanted my face on their box", Duba said. "Who wouldn't be excited about that?! All these other superstars such as Jace Connor and Tyson Kayser are always talking about getting laid. None of them ever mention anything about practicing safe sex, something that is important for our young fan base to practice. I decided to take it upon myself to get that message across. The XFL needs a real hero, not some energy drinking puke, or some funyun eating idiot. I am Tanner Duba, and I am the next super star of the XFL and I will lead this league the right way." Luckily our XFL Insider Dick Trickle recorded Duba's message because he fell asleep half way through the interview. Connor and Kayser refused to comment on Duba's accusations. However Trickle did report that when he called Connor he heard a lot of screaming in the background which leads many to believe he continues to live his rock star lifestyle. The new limited-time trojan boxes are set to be released this Thursday, just in time for any of you who decide to celebrate Flag Day by getting a little down and dirty. The new box with Duba's face and some mysterious woman are below. XFL Insider Dick Trickle reported that he thought the woman on the box with Duba may be the first lady, Michelle Obama.   Â

 

 

6/11/12 Week 7 Recap: We had a game played a little over a week ago on June 3rd, here's the recap. Balls Deep-88 vs Won & Done-70 Won & Done has been troubled by giving opposing teams a big head start early in the game, and then having a comeback attempt come up just short late in games. That wasn't going to happen in this one. W&D jumped out to a quick 22-6 lead and it looked like they had finally found that groove they have been searching for all season long. In steps Seth Wethor, Balls Deep QB and Captain. Wethor has heard all the talk about how his team is a ticking time-bomb with too many egos and not enough play-makers. After trailing early, the last thing Wethor wanted was a repeat of the 80-48 loss his team suffered a couple weeks ago to this same team.  Wethor took over the game from this point on, tying the league record for touchdown passes in a game with 11. He finished 35 of 53 for 670 yards, those 11 passing tds, plus 1 rushing, and only 1 interception. Wethor also is #3 in the record books with his QB rating of 140.92. Wade Miller had a huge game, catching 14 balls for 300 yards and 6 touchdowns. Wade's 6 touchdowns ties the league record for most receiving tds in a game also held by Tyson Kayser and Ben Erickson. Wade also had a big impact on defense with 2 interceptions. Kyelle Herrick, filling in for Clayton Dye due to injury, caught 7 balls for 165 yards and a touchdown. Austin Bunger caught 6 for 95 yards and 2 touchdowns. Steven Whistler had 6 catches for 60 yards and a td. For Won & Done, Jacob Schweitzer had a big day statistically. Completing 34 of 46 passes for 650 yards and 9 passing touchdowns along with a rushing TD.  It was his 3 interceptions that ultimately cost his team the game. Ben Erickson was the leading receiver for W&D. Catching 12 balls for 310 yards and 6 touchdowns, which tied the league record. Josh Terveen caught 9 balls for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns, Terveen also tallied his 3rd sack of the season. Adrien Heiter caught 6 balls for 125 yards. Franky Tusha, a replacement player, caught 1 ball for 60 yards and a TD, and Ben Whistler caught 1 ball for 5 yards. With the win Balls Deep improves to 3-2 on the year. W&D falls to 1-5. Power Rankings: 1. Bandits 2. Wolf Pack 3. Balls Deep +1 4. Razorbacks +1 5. Won & Done -2 Â

 

 

5/23/12 Tyson Kayser announces deal with Funyuns: Tyson Kayser has announced he has reached an endorsement deal with the junk food Funyuns. "I am very excited to be making some extra money so I can use it on stuff to enhance my game and make me the best on the field", Kayser said. "I love eating funyuns at all times of the day and night. It's like they are onion rings, but you don't have to take the time to cook them. It's convenience in a bag." Kayser is a member of the Bandits whose QB Jace Connor also has an endorsement deal with energy drink maker Monster. One has to wonder if Bandits Captain Franky Tusha is ok with his top two playmakers spending time in the season marketing themselves for endorsements. "I don't care what they do and when they do it", Tusha said. "As long as they keep winning me games I could care less what goes on in their personal lives. Heck if they want to beat up some kid for calling them a homo I'm fine with that." When asked if he thought the concept of marketing junk food to young XFL viewers was wrong Kayser said "Heck I've been eating junk food all my life and look at me. I used to eat a tube of cookie dough every day after school and I've never skipped a beat." The brand new Funyuns bags are due in store this Friday, just in time for the Memorial Day Weekend.

 

 

5/21/12 Week 4 Recap: One game was played this last weekend and that was between the Wolf Pack and Won & Done. The game between the Bandits and Balls Deep will be rescheduled. Wolf Pack-72 vs Won & Done-66 in 2 OT The Wolf Pack started this game with a whole new look and attitude as team captain Andy Erickson made Ryan Hanks the starting QB after a late game collapse by Grosdidier the week prior that handed WP their first loss of the season. Hanks and the Wolf Pack got off to a hot start and a 20-0 lead less than 3 minutes in the game. W&D came up with a couple stops on defense and by the time the half rolled around they were down just 6 points and got the ball to start the second half. This is where Kendall Lindeman took over on defense. Intercepting and returning two Jacob Schweitzer passes on back to back drives to give his team a cushion on the scoreboard once again. It lasted, until late in the game where it looked like WP might have yet another late game collapse. Wolf Pack led by 20 points with 3 minutes left. After a couple key defensive stands and quick scoring on offense, W&D tied up the game with just 9 seconds left in regulation and we were going into the first overtime of the XFL season. Wolf Pack started with possession and scored and got the 2 point conversion. W&D came back and did the same to tie the game at 66 and send us into the second overtime. W&D started with the ball and drove down inside the 7 yard line. On a third down play Schweitzer rolled to his right and threw back to his left and the pass was tipped in the air and intercepted by Andy Erickson which gave Wolf Pack a chance to end the game on the ensuing drive. Wolf Pack drove down to the 1 yard line which set up a 4th down and goal play. Hanks lined up at qb behind Erickson and after a fake pass attempt lunged the ball across the goal line to win the game 72-66. In Hanks' first game at QB he etched himself into the record book twice. His 139.8 passer rating is third all time and his 605 passing yards was also good enough for 3rd in the record books. Hanks had a completion percentage of 59.6, throwing the ball 52 times and completing 31. He threw 7 touchdowns and ran for 2 without any interceptions. Kendall Lindeman was the leading receiver, catching 10 balls for a new league record 370 yards. He also caught 3 touchdowns and two 2-point conversions. Kendall also returned two interceptions for a touchdown. Kyle Pollreisz had his biggest game of the year with 8 catches for 85 yards and a touchdown as well as an interception. Andy Erickson was next with 7 catches for 85 yards and 2 touchdown and one 2-point conversion. Erickson also had one interception. Justin Grosdidier had 5 catches for 60 yards and two 2-point conversions. And Colton Herrick had one grab for 5 yards and a touchdown. Jacob Schweitzer threw for a league record 660 yards and completed 46 of his 70 passes for a 65.7 completion percentage. His passer rating was 105.7. Jacob threw 7 touchdowns and ran for 2. He also threw 4 interceptions which ties the league record with himself in a previous game and Justin Grosdidier. Ben Erickson broke the league record for receptions in one game with 16. He had 175 yards with two touchdowns and 3 2-point conversions. JD Shape was next with 9 catches for 130 yards and 3 touchdowns with one 2-point conversion. Jamon Harberts had 8 catches for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 2-point conversion. Adrien Heiter had 6 grabs for 115 yards and one 4-point conversion. Josh Terveen has 6 catches for 95 yards and Jonah Bailey had 1 catch for 15 yards. With the win Wolf Pack improves to 3-1 while Won & Done falls to 1-3. Power Rankings 1. Bandits +- 2. Wolf Pack +- 3. Won & Done +- 4. Balls Deep +- 5. Razorbacks +-

 

5/16/12 Week 3 1/2 Recap and NEWS: After last weeks game between the Bandits and Razorbacks there will be a change as far as replacement players go. There were more than 7 people total missing from both teams. This can't be accepted. So from this game on, any player that fills in on another team will get half credit for their stats towards all-star points. For example. Andy Erickson filled in on the Razorbacks and had 8 catches for 180 yards. He will get All-Star point credits for 4 catches and 90 yards. The stats the replacement players aquire will not go towards the season stat totals though. Now lets look at last weekends game.   Bandits-64 vs Razorbacks-56 I wouldn't exactly call it week four yet, so we will stick with a half. It was the Razorbacks vs the Bandits in a match-up on a beautiful Sunday afternoon on the gridiron in Emery, South Dakota. It marked the first game that Razorbacks first round pick Tanner Duba would play in. Without further ado, lets get to the game. It was a back and forth battle all day as both teams continued to answer touchdown with touchdown. It had been said early in the second half that this game was going to come down to a turnover. And indeed it did. Down 8 with under two minutes remaining at midfield, Andy Erickson took the snap instead of Darin Bartscher for the Razorbacks in an attempt to catch the Bandits defense off guard and make Franky Tusha guard Bartscher. This would have worked, had Iowa Hawkeye prospect Tyson Kayser not been lurking in the defensive backfield waiting to change the game. Erickson dropped back and tossed one to the right corner of the field to Bartscher who for a split second was open, until Kayser jumped in and intercepted the pass. The Bandits ran out the clock and improved to 3-1 on the year, while the Razorbacks dropped to 1-2. Jacob Schweitzer continued his MVP like season with a phenominal performance filling in on the Bandits for Jace Connor. Jacob threw for 590 yards and 8 touchdowns, also running for 1 td. Jacob completed 75 percent of his passes and had a QB rating of 143.79 Sean Luke was the leading receiver with 12 catches for 215 yards and 3 tds. Tyson Kayser grabbed his first 2 touchdowns of the year along with 190 yards on ten cates. Franky Tusha had a breakout game, eclipsing the 100 yard mark for the first time this year. Tusha finished with 145 yards on 5 catches and a touchdown. Jordan Hansen brought down 6 balls for 105 yards and a td. And Sam Tusha who filled in on the Bandits caught 5 balls for 60 yards and a touchdown. Defensively Kayser had a interception and a fumble recovery. For the Razorbacks, Darin Bartscher took most of the snaps at QB. Finishing with 420 yards on 27 completions with 6 touchdowns. Darin completed 55 percent of his passes with a 124 passer rating. The elading receiver for the Razorbacks was a fill in player. Andy Erickson had 8 catches for 180 yards. Kyelle Herrick also had 8 catches for 165 yards and 2 TDs. Camron Herrick who also filled in caught 6 passes for 125 yards and 4 touchdowns. Tanner Duba caught 4 passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. And Colton Herrick caught 2 balls for 20 yards and a touchdown. Game MVP: Sean Luke Week 3 1/2 Power Rankings: 1. Bandits +- 2. Wolf Pack +- 3. Won & Done +- 4. Balls Deep +- 5. Razorbacks -1 Upcoming games this week: Bandits vs Balls Deep Balls Deep captain Seth Wethor is surely going to be looking to gain some respect back from the league after his teams last outing in which they were absolutely plastered by Won & Done. They called it luck, but throwing for 600 yards is not luck. Its an absolutely horrible defense that needs to be changed. This team struggled mightily offensively, partly because Wethor only completed more than 3 passes to one player on his team, Clayton Dye. Wethor needs to do a better job of getting the rest of his team involved in the offense. It has been proven that if everyone on your team has 5+ catches, chances are you are going to win, Won & Done has proved that. Now, giving Balls Deep a little leeway, it was Wethor's first game of the year with his team and they may need some time to jell. And it surely doesn't help that they play the best team in the league this weekend. The Bandits are the surprise of the year. QB Jace Connor has been an animal and with the presence of Tyson Kayser on the field this team immediately becomes a nightmare for defenders. I am having a hard time finding anyone on Balls Deep team that is going to be able to effectively cover Kayser. Sure they can do a high low zone, but Connor has torn teams apart that attempt zone coverage. Connor does an outstanding job of spreading the ball around to his receivers. Three players on the Bandits have 7 touchdowns or more. I look for this game to get ugly quick, with the Bandits jumping out to an early lead. Wethor will continue to make his team work though and at least get within striking distance before the Bandits put the nail in the coffin. Prediction: Bandits-72 Balls Deep-50 Wolf Pack vs Won & Done What a game this one has the potential of being. Two of the top three leaders in All-Star points at the WR position will do battle in this one. Won & Done captain and QB Jacob Schweitzer holds over 2/3 of the records in the passing category in the XFL and has been the breakout player of the year so far. His completion percentage is at 72 percent, which is 7 points higher than the next closest. His 1,495 yards, 23 touchdowns and 104 completions are all league-highs so far this season. Won & Done had their entire team in action last week for the first time all year and they quickly looked like they may be one of the best teams in the league. Ben Erickson is their leading receiver with 33 catches (T-1st) for 475 yards (3rd) and 9 touchdowns (2nd). If Jacob is on a roll, this team is extremely hard to beat. Wolf Pack suffered their first loss of the year in a game that very easily could have been won. Justin Grosdidier committed 5 turnovers, 3 of which came in the last 4 minutes of the game in which his team started with a 20 point lead. That seems to be the stickler for this team. Grosdidier has thrown 10 interceptions so far this season, two times more than any other qb. He has thrown for a league high 23 touchdowns, but factoring in his interceptions and incompletions, he has the worst qb rating in the league. He tends to get off to hot starts in games, and then makes more and more mistakes as the game drags on. With the amount of weapons he has, he needs to scan the field more and utilize the Herrick twins. Camron had a huge game filling in on the Razorbacks and proved that he can be a play maker when given the chance, Grosdidier hasn't given him that chance yet. Prediction: Wolf Pack-74 Won & Done-68

 

 

5/9/12 Week 3 Recap: Week three is in the books, so lets hand out some hardware and recap the action... Best QB Performance: Jacob Schweitzer set three XFL records in his teams game vs Balls Deep. Jacob set a record for most completions at 43 (previous record was 35 also held by Jacob) and passing yards in a game with 645 (previous record was 500 held by Jace Connor) and passer rating with 151.68 (previous record was 145 also held by Jacob. Jacob ended the day completing 43 of his 57 pass attempts, throwing 10 touchdowns, rushing for 1 touchdown, no interceptions, and 7 two-point conversions. Best WR Performance: Ben Erickson brought down catches for 160 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also hauled in two 2-point conversions. Best Defensive Performance: Jace Connor had three interceptions in his teams win over previously unbeaten Wolf Pack. Bandits-72 Wolf Pack-60 Wolf Pack jumped out to an early lead and led the entire game until late in the 4th. WP lead by 12 points with under 4 minutes remaining when the Bandits intercepted back-to-back passes, one of which was returned for a touchdown, and scored on another offensive possession to go on a 18-0 run. Down 6 with under 2 minutes left, Wolf Pack drove down the field to the Bandits 23 yard line. On 4th and three WP quarterback Justin Grosdidier attempted an automatic rush and got the first down and more, but shortly after Tyson Kayser of the Bandits knocked the ball loose and his team recovered to put the Wolf Pack away for good. Bandits QB Jace Connor finished the day 33 of 58 passing for 500 yards with 10 total touchdowns. Seven passing and 3 rushing. Kayser was the leading receiving with 8 catches for 145 yards and 3 two-point conversions. Sean Luke had 8 grabs for 100 yards and a touchdown, Jordan Hanssen had 7 catches for 90 yards and a score and Derrick Miller had 5 catches for 45 yards and 2 touchdowns. Connor also had 3 interceptions on defense. Wolf Pack QB Grosdidier was 38 of 22 passing for 405 yards and 8 total touchdowns. 7 passing and 1 rushing. He also turned the ball over 5 times, with 4 interceptions and 1 fumble. Ryan Hanks was the leading receiver with 9 catches for 165 yards and 1 touchdown. Andy Erickson has 7 catches for 120 yards and 3 touchdowns. Kendall Lindeman had 5 grabs for 60 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Bandits improve to 2-1 while the Wolf Pack fall to 2-1. Game MVP: Jace Connor. Won & Done-80 vs Balls Deep-48 This game got ugly fast and W&D was clicking on all cylinders after having all members of their team in attendance for this game. QB Jacob Schweitzer had a record breaking day for W&D, completing 43 of 57 passes for 645 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also ran for one touchdown and had an interception on defense. Balls Deep just seemed to be out of sync all game long and tried to go deep way too many times and found themselves in long yardage situations. The game was ended with the mercy rule with 2 minutes left. For W&D, Ben Erickson had 11 catches for 160 yards and 3 touchdowns, including two 2-point conversions. He also had an interception on defense. Josh Terveen also had 11 catches in his season debut for 100 yards, two touchdowns, and 3 2-point conversions. Jamon Harberts had 8 catches for 145 yards and 3 touchdowns. Adrien Heiter has 8 catches for 130 yards and a touchdown. JD Shape had 7 catches for 110 yards and a touchdown. Thats right, you read that right. Five players from W&D had at least 7 catches and over 100 yards receiving. Schweitzer is quickly becoming the best QB in the XFL. For Balls Deep, QB Seth Wethor had a pretty decent day. Completing 23 of 36 passes for 370 yards and 6 touchdowns, 1 rushing td as well. Clayton Dye was the only receiver with over 100 yards receiving. Dye had 175 yards on 11 receptions with 3 touchdowns. Won & Done improves to 1-2, while Balls Deep drops to 1-2. Game MVP: Jacob Schweitzer. Week 3 Power Rankings: 1. Bandits +1 2. Wolf Pack -1 3. Won & Done +2 4. Razorbacks - 5. Balls Deep -2

 

4/19/12 Two XFL Players Announce Sponsorship With Beverage Makers:  With the popularity of the XFL busting at the seems, it was inevitable for some of the stars to get an advertising deal sooner or later. We have been notified by XFL Insider Dick Trickle that Bandits member Jace Connor has announced a partnership with RockStar energy drink and Balls Deep member Brandon Schwans has reached an agreement with the alcohol distributor Keystone.  Connor's deal with RockStar comes as no surprise reports Dick Trickle. "I knew it was only a matter of time before the advertisers would come screaming my name. I mean look at me, what about me isn't marketable?" Connor said. When asked if he was promoting drinking the sugary drinks to his young fans Connor went on to say "Look, I ain't promoting nothing to noone. I'm slim, fit, sexy and the ladies love me. If there is some chubby 8 year old who gets diabetes from drinking RockStar then so be. Not my problem. I just throw touchdowns, drink Rock Star, and get the ladies." Rockstar has released the new limited edition Jace Connor cans that are set to hit stores next week. Here is what the cans will look like: Balls Deep member Brandon Schwans said he is very excited about his relationship with Keystone going forward. "It wasn't my favorite beer before, but now that they give me a case of stones for every TD I catch, of course they are my favorite. I needed the extra cash flow and I got it at the expense of Keith Stone. Who I am much better looking and talented than." When asked if this will distract him or his team-mates from the games ahead Schwans said this "Distract? Clayton Dye walked off the field last week, thats a distraction. I'm just cashin checks, drinkin stones, and catchin TDs baby." Below is what the new Keystone boxes will look like with Schwans the new poster boy: Â

 

 

4/18/12 Week 3 Preview, Predictions & Power Rankings:   Week 1 and 2 are in the books folks. Lets go over some things from the action that took place two weeks ago: More surprising: Won & Done starting off 0-2 or Balls Deep going 1-1 without Seth Wethor? Won & Done was #1 in power rankings going into the season and considered a favorite to be in the XFL title game. Balls deep was a team with plenty of question marks already, then take the best player off their team and it should have been disastrous. Instead Balls Deep scratched out a win against the Bandits and Jace Connor who leads the XFL in passer rating and 2nd in touchdowns thrown and passing yards. Balls Deep came back late and gave the Wolf Pack, the only undefeated team remaining, a scare but still fell by 8. Wade Miller did a superb job at quarterback tallying 16 total touchdowns, 13 passing and 3 rushing. Now back to Won & Done, they had a horrible outing in their first game against the Bandits. Jace Connor made their defense look like the finely shredded cheese you can buy at the store enroute to a 30 point loss to the Franky Tusha coached team. W&D played much better in their second game against the Razorbacks and appeared to have the game won. But after a penalty as time expired, the Razorbacks got another chance to score from inside the five and Darin Bartscher pulled out a miracle win for his team and left Won & Done stunned. Remember this though, Won & Done was without 2nd round pick Jamon Harberts for all but the second half of their last game, and without 3rd round pick Josh Terveen for both games. Once a full team I don't think we will see horrible play like this again. But one has to wonder if this team was as over-rated going into the season as the Dallas Cowboys usually are. Only time will tell. Answer: Balls Deep going 1-1 in Wethor's absence was more surprising just because Won & Done was without two of their top players. Better QB performance: Jace Connor or Wade Miller? Jace was pretty much impossible to stop, throwing for 835 yards, 15 tds with only 3 interceptions, and a rushing td. Mind you he did all that without first round pick Tyson Kayser. Pretty damn impressive I'd say. Jace found two favorite targets in Sean Luke and Jordan Hanssen who accounted for 530 of his 835 yards on the day. Wade Miller didn't exactly go into the season figuring to play QB. Team captain Seth Wethor took most of the snaps for his team last year and many figured that would be the plan this season. But with Wethor out on personal leave, Miller stepped up for his team, tossing 11 TDs to only 3 interceptions for 735 yards. Miller was also a threat on the ground, rushing for 3 TDs. One begins to wonder what he could do with Wethor out wide as a receiver on one side and Clayton Dye on the other. Answer: Wade Miller. Only because we expect that kind of performance from Jace. Not many expected Wade to play as well as he did. Now lets look ahead to this weekends games which will be played April 29th: Bandits (1-1) vs Wolf Pack (2-0) This match-up pits the two top rated power ranked teams in the XFL. XFL Insider Dick Trickle has reported that Wolf Pack quarterback Justin Grosdidier will not be available this weekend. Trickle said that reports have surfaced that Captain Andy Erickson attempted to sign Colton Bierle to a one-weekend deal but he had to turn down the offer due to other obligations. This means that Erickson will either be on the search for another quarterback, or another player to fill in on his team. Losing Grosdidier could be seen as both a good and bad thing. Grosdidier leads the league in TD passes (16) and is third in yards (805), but also leads the league in interceptions (6) which is two times more any other quarterback in the league. The Bandits will be without 1st round pick Tyson Kayser one last time for the season, that doesn't seem to bother quarterback Jace Connor though. In an interview with XFL Insider Dick Trickle to be aired after Desperate Housewives on ABC Sunday night, Connor has been quoted as saying "I don't care who my receivers are, they can be crippled or one day away from a coffin and I can make them look like Jerry Rice or Michael Irvin. Once we get Tyson back I will make him look like a combination of Rice, Irvin, Cris Carter, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss and the list goes on. My arm is definitely the front-runner for league MVP." Some very strong words from Connor. Determining Factor: The play of whoever plays QB for Wolf Pack Prediction: Connor lit up the stat lines last week and had people saying Peyton who? If he can duplicate those results against the Wolf Pack this game will go down to the wire. Jace backs up his trash talk and takes down the last remaining undefeated team 70-66. Razorbacks (1-1) vs Balls Deep (1-1) This game will definitely tell alot about both teams. XFL Insider Dick Trickle has reported that Razorbacks first round pick Tanner Duba will be missing one more game. Also, Balls Deep first round pick Clayton Dye has been suspended for the weekends contest against the Razorbacks. XFL Commisioner Andy Erickson has stated the following "Dye walked off the field during half-time of a game and was told he would be punished if he continued to walk away. Following his actions he has shown no remorse and due to the circumstance I had no other choice but to suspend him for his actions." Erickson also said that also there will be some sort of suspension no matter what, he would listen to Dye and may reduce the suspension to a half of a game. With or without Dye, the Razorbacks will have their hands full with Seth Wethor and Wade Miller. And you better not forget Austin Bunger, who leads the league in receiving yards with 340 through two weeks. Darin Bartscher played like a man on a mission last week in both games and showed he will do what it takes to win. Bartscher became the first player in XFL history to throw for, rush for, and receive a TD in one game last week. It might take that same kind of effort to take down this high-power Balls Deep team. Determining Factor: Bartscher's effectiveness on offense. Prediction: With Wethor back, this is bound to be a good game pitting him up against Bartscher. The Razorbacks trail most of the game and finally pull ahead late to win 64-56.   Week 3 Power Rankings: 1. Wolf Pack (+1) 2. Bandits (+2) 3. Balls Deep (+2) 4. Razorbacks (-1) 5. Won & Done (-4) Â

 

 

4/5/12 Week 1 Preview, Predictions & Power Rankings:   Well ladies and gentleman, the time has come. We officially kick off the 2012 XFL season in about 24 hours. Without further ado, lets take a look at the match-ups this week. Balls Deep vs Bandits @ 12:30 News came across the wire yesterday that Balls Deep team captain Seth Wethor will not be available for either of his team's games tomorrow. This could spell disaster for a team that already had many questions going into the season. Second round pick Wade Miller will be acting as captain tomorrow in place of Wethor which leads many to believe he will also be taking snaps at QB. Miller showed some promise last season for team Rampage at the QB position and did everything he could to put his team in position to win games. On the other side of the ball I expect the Bandits to put up a ton of points. I don't see anyone on Balls Deep that is going to be able to slow down the Connor to Kayser connection that Bandits captain Franky Tusha put together. Outside of Connor and Kayser, it will be interesting to see who steps up on this team. Sean Luke and Izak Weber are both in their rookie seasons. Jordan Hanssen, Derrick Miller and Franky Tusha have proved they can make plays, but they will need to be relied upon heavily as teams will be double teaming Kayser most of the time. Determining Factor: The QB play of Wade Miller Prediction: In the absence of Wethor, Balls Deep shocks the Bandits 64-58 Wolf Pack vs Razorbacks @ 1:30 Wolf Pack will be fully intact tomorrow as all members will be ready to take on a highly touted Razorbacks team that will be without first round pick Tanner Duba. It has been reported that Terry Weber will be filling in for Duba throughout the day tomorrow. The question many have, is who will be playing quarterback for Wolf Pack. Captain Andy Erickson has stated that their will be a competition at the QB position and there may be multiple people playing the position. You have to wonder if not having a quarterback not being able to get in a rhythm by moving players in and out might hurt this team. With what may be the leagues best wide-receiving core in last years MVP Kendall Lindeman, Ryan Hanks and Kyle Pollreisz, theres no doubt that whoever the QB is will have plenty of weapons to use. On the other side of the ball is newcomer and team captain Darin Bartscher who will be taking snaps at QB for his team. Or will he? Bartscher has been very secretive about his game plan. One wonders if he may not out-think himself. The absence of Duba may hurt this team tremendously as Bartscher, or whoever plays QB wont have that go-to-guy. Kyelle Herrick will need to step up big and make some plays to give room for Blake Bartscher, Jordan Grosdidier and others to get open underneath to make plays for Bartscher's team. Determining Factor: Defensive play of Razorbacks Prediction: Bartscher has been quoted as saying he is 'the best quarterback in the league'. That will be put to the test as he goes up against 4 out of the 5 members of last years Prime Time team who allowed the least points of all teams throughout the season. Wolf Pack attacks the youth of the Razorbacks and pulls away in the second half for a 70-52 win. Bandits vs Won & Done @ 2:30 The Bandits have a tough task in hand as they take on 3 out of 5 members of last years championship team in Ben Erickson, Jamon Harberts and Adrien Heiter of Won & Done. Word on the streets is that Heiter will be out of this game due to an injury sustained earlier this week. He could be a game time decision but has been listed as doubtful on the injury report. Oddly enough, those three guys were part of the team that beat their now captain Jacob Schweitzer last season. Obviously he saw their chemistry and decided he wanted to be the one to lead them to another title this season. One of the keys to this game is going to be Won and Done's defense against Bandits Tyson Kayser. Erickson will most likely be asked to defend Kayser but will definitely need help. Josh Terveen could be the dark horse of Won & Done and has the potential of making some huge plays for his team. Determining Factor: QB play of Jacob Schweitzer Prediction: With Erickson, Harberts, Terveen & company there are just too many weapons for the Bandits to stop. Won & Done pull one off in a classic game, 62-60. Balls Deep vs Wolf Pack @ 3:30 With captain Seth Wethor, Balls Deep would be able to keep this game close. Without him, I just can't see how they are going to stop the Pack. Wethor is a defensive animal and normally sits in the middle of the field and gives opposing QBs fits. Unless Wade Miller has a plan to slow down Lindeman, Hanks, Pollreisz & company this will get ugly fast. Balls Deep has the offensive fire-power to put up some points, but probably not near enough to stay with the Wolf Pack. If Balls Deep can force some turnovers they can keep it close down to the end and maybe give themselves a chance to pull off the upset. But the odds are just stacked against them too much going into this one. Determining Factor: Balls Deep needs to force turnovers and capitalize with points Prediction: Stays close early, Wolf Pack pulls away in the 2nd for a 82-56 victory. Won & Done vs Razorbacks @ 4:30 The Razorbacks really drew a tough card having to play what has been touted as the two best teams in the league in the Wolf Pack and Won & Done. Nonetheless having to do it without first round pick Tanner Duba. I'm really interested in seeing Bartscher at quarterback trying to pick apart this defense led by Ben Erickson. Bartscher hasn't seen alot of snaps at quarterback but he is pretty confident he can get the job done and savors on being labeled an under-dog. Bartscher has put together a very intriguing team that could be a power house by the end of the season. But without Duba, and with such a young team it is going to take his team awhile to jell and find their indentity. Determining factor: Bartscher's QB play, if he is on fire, this game will go down to the wire. Prediction: The Razorbacks need a couple weeks to jell and fall to 0-2, while Won & Done win 72-56 and move on to 2-0. Power Rankings Prior to Week One: 1. Won & Done 2. Wolf Pack 3. Razorbacks 4. Bandits 5. Balls Deep ***DON'T FORGET TO BRING YOUR $2 ENTRY FEE OR ELSE YOU CANNOT PLAY***

 

 

3/28/12 2012 XFL Newsletter-A Deeper Look at the New Rules:   The time has almost come. As I write this article, there are 9 days and 3 hours until we kick-off the 2012 XFL Season. Though there probably hasn't been quite as much trash talking and hype as there was going into last season, there have been opinions formed on who the stud teams will be, and who the dud teams will be. After listening to people around the league, it is a consensus that the top three teams will be the Razorbacks, Won & Done and Wolf Pack. The Bandits could very well be one of the top teams, but with many questions surrounding their top players noone is really taking them seriously. Balls Deep kind of looks like a train wreck waiting to happen. There are a lot of strong personalities on this team and if things don't go well they will be the first to point fingers. We will take a more in depth look at the upcoming season in next weeks article. This week, its time to make you aware of the many rule changes that have come into effect. Last year we went with the 'Democracy' way and let captains voice their opinions. That didn't work out to well due to multiple reasons and captains who don't do their job, shouldn't get a say. This year, its a Dictatorship. I make the rules and if you don't like it, tough. I will take input from captains who make an effort to help make the league better. With that out of the way, lets get started. - There is a $2 entry fee into the league. It isn't much, but all the money will go towards the Championship team. Each player has to have his $2 due in before they play in their first game. Without the money, you can't play. We had multiple people who didn't pay last year, I blame part of that on the captains for not taking charge. That won't be tolerated this year. - We will be playing 6-on-6 this year. If one team only has 5 guys who can make it, upon the other teams captain permission, you can either ask Terry Weber to fill in, or play 5-on-5. - We will play two 20 minute halves with the clock stopping under 2 minutes for all dead balls in both halves. We played two 25 minute halves last year. - Laterals are allowed this year, you can do as many as you want during any play. - Whether the defense uses their one automatic per drive (rushes at the snap) or not, the quarterback can only run the ball one time per drive. - All fumbled balls are live. HOWEVER, after you make an initial attempt to strip the ball and if you don't get it, you need to go for the flag. I want to stress that unless the player holds the ball out in his hand, we NEED to be going for the flags. Thats why it is called 'flag' football. If the runner is held up and his forward progress stops for even a second while the defender wrestles for the ball, the play is blown dead. Defensive players can advance a fumble, offensive players can only only advance a fumble if a defensive player touched the ball while it was loose. - Stiff arms are now legal. HOWEVER, you still cannot shield your flag by blocking the defense from trying to grab it whether it is on purpose or accidental (The Adrien Rule) - On all 4th downs, the referee will ask the offensive team if they plan to go for it, or punt the ball. No fakes are allowed. If the team decides to punt the ball, they get a free kick and wherever the ball stops is where the opposing team will get possession. You cannot return a punt. If the punt goes into the endzone, it will be a touch back and the opposing team will get the ball on the 1 yard line. If the offensive team decides to go for it on fourth down and fails, the defensive team will get the ball at the previous spot. - You can block now!! HOWEVER, any blind side hits, or forceful blocks that knock someone to the ground will be flagged for a personal foul and a 15 yard penalty from the spot of the foul. - If a player receives two personal foul penalties in one game, he is ejected. Personal fouls include arguing with a referee's decision, clipping, tripping and any unnecessary roughness penalty. - PAT Points have been modified. After scoring a touchdown, the offensive team will now have the option of going for 1 point from the 5 yard line, 2 points from the 10 yard line, or 4 points from the 20 yard line. That is all what I have right now but there are a couple more things that I want to pass along. Team Captains, you WILL ref other teams games. You will NOT be at a game and not be reffing unless they already have two refs. If you cannot ref, you need to find a responsible person who knows the rules that will ref for you. I will be making out a ref schedule soon. Instances from last year that happened with someone with the initials SW who was screwing around while other teams were playing and not reffing will not be tolerated. If you do not ref 3/4 of the games you are scheduled to, you cannot be a captain next season and your team may receive punishment this season. If there are players who know the rule book well enough, they will be allowed to ref in place of their team captain. Thats all for now. So read up on the rules, because a week from Friday, shits about to get real. Â

 

 

3/5/12 2012 XFL Season Preview and Predictions:   2012 XFL Pre-season Predictions 32 days, or 768 hours, or 46,080 minutes. Whichever you prefer as a countdown, that’s how long we have until we kick-off the 2012 XFL season. With basketball now deeply stuffed into the back of our minds, it’s time to prepare and focus on what the season ahead will hold. We have a deeper talent pool than ever before seen that puts any other flag football league across the nation to shame. Among the top additions are Darin Bartscher, Tyson Kayser, Tanner Duba and Ryan Hanks. There are many new rules in place for the upcoming season so I strongly suggest you know that rule book like you do the controls for your favorite Xbox game. Without further ado, lets predict the upcoming season. -Team Won & Done- Captain: Jacob Schweitzer Team Members: Ben Erickson, Jamon Harberts, Josh Terveen, Adrien Heiter, Jonah Bailey, JD Shape Strength: Experience and chemistry Weakness: QB play What a roster Jacob put together, bringing back three members of last year’s championship team in Erickson, Harberts and Heiter. Chemistry should be no problem for this team. They have the deep threat in Erickson, possession receivers in Terveen and Harberts, and the always sneaky Heiter. Bailey could be an unsung hero on this team by the time the season comes to an end. He could be underestimated and end up making some big plays on either side of the ball. JD was obviously disappointed he fell to the last round in the draft and will be out to prove the naysayers wrong. I am guessing that Schweitzer will take the reigns over at quarterback, but if he is unable to make it to games like last year, who on this team can be an effective quarterback? That is the only thing about this team that worries me. Prediction: 5-3 -Team Balls Deep- Captain: Seth Wethor Team Members: Clayton Dye, Wade Miller, Austin Bunger, Steven Whistler, Sam Tusha, Robbie Miller, Brandon Schwans Strength: Numbers & athletic ability Weakness: Pass defense & chemistry Originally Miller and Schwans were not on rosters, but to the luck of the draw they both landed on Wethor’s team. Wethor is obviously the best player on his team and will take most of the snaps at QB. Wade Miller and his Tebow-like passing attack could take some snaps here and there however. Wade can also be a good option at receiver, he has the quickness to beat the defense and is starting to mature into a smarter football player. Dye will be a great go-to receiver for whoever is playing QB and has the ability to go up and get the ball. Bunger proved many wrong last year with his excellent performance and developed into a threat on offense. Whistler is another good possession receiver, but don’t count out his athletic ability and speed. Many people forget that he caught a pass within 5 yards of the line of scrimmage last year and stumbled and bumbled 70 yards for a touchdown. Tusha and Miller will be to Wethor as what Heiter was last year, good underneath options. Schwans has great athletic ability and he is going to need it. He doesn’t quite have what many would call ‘football-smarts’ so he is going to need to rely on that ability to become a play-maker in this league. When you look at this roster, outside of Wethor, I am concerned about their ability to make stops defensively. Dye tends to get lazy when he doesn’t have the ball, Wade is a decent defender but won’t stop any jump balls unless it’s to Adrien. Bunger and Steven shouldn’t have too much of a problem matching up. It’s how Dye and Wade will match up against opposing teams best receivers that will decide how good this team will be. Prediction: 3-5 -Team Wolf Pack- Captain: Andy Erickson Team Members: Kendall Lindeman, Ryan Hanks, Kyle Pollreisz, Justin Grosdidier, Camron Herrick, Colton Herrick Strength: Experience & chemistry Weakness: Speed Four of five players from last year’s Prime Time have reunited for another run at the title. Erickson brought back EEFL League MVP Lindeman, as well as Pollreisz and Grosdidier. Lindeman is going to be tough for any team to defend. Whether it’s the deep ball or the jump ball, if he can get to it he is going to bring it down ¾ of the time. Lindeman is probably one of very few defenders who will be able to cover Tyson Kayser effectively. Hanks sat out last season with an injury while being an honorary member of Prime Time. Where Hanks lacks in speed, he makes up for in athletic ability and will-power. Pollreisz was a very reliable option on both sides of the ball last year and will look to continue doing the same. He matches up well with some #1 and most any #2 receivers in the league. Grosdidier looks to be the front-runner for QB after being voted the best QB in the league last season. He threw some crucial interceptions in a playoff game that ultimately cost his team the game. Hanks and Erickson are some other options at quarterback, but right now it is Grosdidier’s to either keep or lose. The Herrick twins round off the Wolf Pack roster. Both should match up well against other teams receiving options drafted in the late rounds. In the end, like last season, this team will only go as far as their quarterback, whomever it may be, will take them. Prediction: 5-3 -Team Bandits- Captain: Franky Tusha Team Members: Tyson Kayser, Jace Connor, Sean Luke, Izak Weber, Jordan Hanssen, Derrick Miller Strength: Speed & height Weakness: Reliability & lack of leadership This team is one that is hard to judge. I would be surprised if they ended up being the best in the league. But I can see them being anything from 1-7 to 6-2. They have one of the best QB-WR combos with Connor and Kayser. The question is, how reliable will these two be? Connor got in some off the field troubles last season that caused him to miss all but one game. With either one of these two guys missing, this team could face some huge trouble. Kayser is going to give opposing teams nightmares trying to defend him if Jace is throwing the ball. Jace is the front runner for QB of the year and could contend for MVP as well. Outside of their one-two punch, the Bandits have some young but yet possibly explosive talent. Sean Luke and Izak Weber have both been trained by the great Adrien Heiter and if he has instilled his great work ethic into them, you know they will work their tails off trying to get open. Both are lengthy and could become reliable options for Connor. Veterans Hanssen and Miller round off the roster. Hanssen made some huge plays last year as a member of Prime Time and will be looking to make a name for himself on a new team this time around. Miller possibly has the most to prove out of any one player. Miller initially signed up to be a captain, but due to complaints from league players, he was forced to step down and subsequently fell to the last round off the draft. Prediction: 2-6 -Team Razorbacks- Captain: Darin Bartscher Team Members: Tanner Duba, Kyelle Herrick, Blake Bartscher, Jordan Grosdidier, Wade Weber, Ben Whistler Strength: Quickness & defensive playmakers Weakness: Experience & QB Looking at the roster of this team, I admit, it’s pretty scary the amount of talent on this team. The Razorbacks have possibly the best receiving core in the league. The only problem I see is who is going to take snaps at QB. If you take either Bartscher or Duba to play QB, you are losing your #1 or #2 WR. Unless Bartscher can groom Blake or Weber into an effective QB, one of Darin or Duba will have to. Tanner will be a contender for league MVP. Great receiver and defender. Herrick is a threat to go deep almost every play, he just needs to come down with the ball when its thrown to him. Blake, Jordan and Wade are rookies in the XFL this year who possess many of the same attributes. All have good hands and will be key components to the success of this team. Those three may be the greatest asset on the defensive side of the ball. All three will be able to keep up with any other teams 3-5thround draft picks. Ben Whistler, like Heiter was last year, will be a great underneath and short option. This team has the potential to be the most explosive in the league. With their youth it may take a couple games to jell and get used to the rules. Prediction 5-3   PLAYOFFS: Play-in Game Bandits @ Balls Deep Semi-Finals Balls Deep @ Razorbacks Won & Done @ Wolf Pack Championship Wolf Pack @ Razorbacks League Awards MVP: Kendall Lindeman Best QB: Seth Wethor Best WR: Tanner Duba Best Defender: Ben Erickson Best 2nd round pick: Kyelle Herrick Best 3rd round pick: Kyle Pollreisz Best 4th round pick: Jordan Grosdidier Best 5th round pick: Jordan Hanssen Best 6th round pick: Derrick Miller Best Team Captain: Darin Bartscher Award Count: Razorbacks: 4 Wolf Pack: 2 Bandits: 2 Won & Done: 1 Balls Deep: 1 All Star Game Players All-Around (TOP TWO): Kendall Lindeman Tyson Kayser QBs: Jace Connor Seth Wethor WRs: Tanner Duba Clayton Dye Kyelle Herrick Darin Bartscher Jamon Harberts Ryan Hanks TEs: Steven Whistler Andy Erickson DBs: Ben Erickson Kyle Pollreisz League Vote: Wade Miller Jordon Grosdidier With that being said I strongly urge you to head to the league forum and start commenting on some of the topics already up here http://eesportsworld.createaforum.com/index.php. DO NOT FORGET to look at the rules!!! They have changed!! Â

 

1/31/12 XFL Draft Grades:   Bandits- Owner Franky Tusha: B Tusha started off the draft by selecting what could possibly be the best QB-WR combo in the XFL this season with Tyson Kayser and Jace Connor as his first two picks. The only question is how dedicated both of these players will be to their teams. Kayser was not in the league last year but has been generally a very reliable guy. On the other hand, Connor was a first round pick last year and managed to show for one of his team's games, which is much of the reason Jace, who has first round talent, fell to the second round. His 3rd round pick Sean Luke could be a sleeper pick this year. In off-season games he managed to make first round pick Ben Erickson and second round pick Ryan Hanks look like fools as they tried to grab his flag. Lets see how consistent he can be first though. Tusha rounded off his team with Izak Weber, Jordan Hanssen and Derrick Miller. Izak is another in-experienced player in his rookie season in the XFL. Jordan became an established receiver last season and made some big plays. Miller's hands can be his best friend at times, and his worst enemy. Wolf Pack- Owner Andy Erickson: A- Erickson started off by selecting League MVP Kendall Lindeman who also played for Erickson's team last season. There's no way of going wrong with that pick. In the second round, despite the fact that he didn't show up for any games last year while being an honorary member, Erickson took Ryan Hanks. Hanks has great hands, although his speed has been questioned. In the third and fourth rounds Erickson brought back Kyle Pollreisz and Justin Grosdidier from last years team which posted a league best 6-2 record. The final two rounds had Erickson taking the Herrick twins in Colton and Camron. Two rookies this season, but they have plenty of experience on this team to look up to. Won & Done- Owner Jacob Schweitzer: A One thing this team will have without a doubt is chemistry. Ben Erickson, Jamon Harberts and Adrien Heiter are re-united from last years championship team. There's no doubt these three play great together and each one compliments the others attributes. Erickson has the speed to go deep, Harberts has the quickness to get open on the intermediate routes, and Heiter is a great check-down option. Another very interesting pick is Josh Terveen who has stated that he will miss some time this season due to other obligations. However, if Terveen plays, this team could run away with the title. Jonah Bailey and JD Shape rounded off Schweitzer's picks. Bailey is a rookie this year but has plenty of potential to do what Austin Bunger did in the league last year. Shape had a quiet but fairly decent year last season and is looking to earn respect among league members. Razorbacks- Owner Darin Bartscher: A- Bartscher drafted rookie Tanner Duba with his first pick in the draft. Duba is a great play-maker and will make sure everyone knows he is on the field. His next pick was Kyelle Herrick who can be a great deep threat if he can work on catching the ball and maintaining focus. He had great games last year, and some pretty bad games where he dropped balls and also quit on his team in the playoffs last season because he wasn't getting enough targets from QB Jacob Schweitzer. If Bartscher can keep Herrick happy, he will be a top threat this season. Four rookies rounded off the Razorback's draft with Blake Bartscher, Jordan Grosdidier, Wade Weber and Ben Whistler. Blake and Bartscher have many of the same attributes and should be some pretty reliable options in the passing game. Wade could end up playing a little QB if Bartscher decides he is ready. Ben will be another check-down option, whether or not he can be as effective as Heiter was last year is up for debate. Balls Deep- Owner Seth Wethor: C+ Wethor selected Clayton Dye with his first pick. Dye can make some great plays and can go up for jump balls. However his toughness has been questioned and he seems to disappear when things get down to the wire. Wethor will have to work to get Dye up to the level of the other first round picks. Wade Miller was his next pick in the 2nd round. This could be a great pick, but Miller had some issues last year with his captain and not getting the ball enough. Two divas on one team could spell problems for Wethor. But we will have to see how he manages their targets throughout the season. Austin Bunger in the 3rd round is probably Seth's best pick of the draft. Bunger was the sleeper pick last year and made many teams regret counting him out. He has pretty decent hands and the ability to make plays once he has the ball. Wethor rounded off his draft with Steven Whistler and Sam Tusha. Whistler ended up being a pretty decent option for Schweitzer's team last year and I think with the other players on this team he can do the same. Tusha is a rookie and will be counted on to make some plays on both the offensive and defensive end. He won't attract much attention from opposing defenses early on so if Wethor get's him the ball he could make them regret it. Â

 

 

1/24/12 If ' ' Were An NFL Player:   Time for a little fun before this league gets serious coming up this weekend. Before we get to the fun, remember that the draft is this Sunday at 3pm. You will be able to watch the draft live with streaming video and chat on the top of this page. Now for the fun part.... While in all reality, Adrien Heiter isn't Tom Brady, Ben Whistler isn't Victor Cruz and Derrick Miller isn't JaMarcus Russell....wait, that last one might be kinda close. Anyway Let's just forget about reality for a second and concentrate on the 'what-ifs'. What NFL player to each of our XFL players most closely represent? Lets think about it. (Mind you this article is meant to be fun, do not take offense to anything said about you) Elite Talent: Seth Wethor- Greg Jennings with T.O.'s ego. Huge play-making ability, and a huge mouth when things get heated. Still love ya Seth! Tyson Kayser- Calvin Johnson Jr. aka Megatron. Good luck stopping the jump ball to this guy. Kendall Lindeman- Andre Johnson. Another tough guy to defend. Works his ass off and doesn't run his mouth. Ryan Hanks- I've already dubbed hanks as Dez Bryant. But realistically he is more of a Miles Austin. Tough SOB who will do anything to get the W. Ben Erickson- Wes Welker. Ben is definitely a white WR, but gets open and always finds a way to be effective. Darin Bartscher- Jimmy Graham. More of a TE than a WR, but that doesn't mean he won't be just as, if not more effective. Jace Connor- Eli Manning. When he is hot, he is as hot as anyone. He will make mistakes, but has the ability to lead his team to the win. Clayton Dye- Victor Cruz. He can be the X-factor if he gets the ball. Seems to have matured since last season so could be a real threat. ** Tanner Duba** (new addition)- Micheal Irvin. Tanner left college early to become eligible for the 2012 XFL draft and has high expectations on the horizon. Looking to get the job done with a combination of his play and smack-talk. Good luck stopping him in one-on-one coverage. The Rest: Kyelle Herrick: Brandon Marshall. Has speed, but his hands are sketchy at times and his mental toughness has been questioned after quitting on his team during the playoffs last season. Jamon Harberts: Jordy Nelson. I've called him Wes Welker before, but Jamon isn't really that go-to-guy. He is a great compliment to whomever the #1 receiver is. Jacob Schweitzer: Tony Romo. He proved last year he can play the QB position. Got his team an early lead against eventual champs last year but couldn't hold the lead down the stretch. Kyle Pollreisz: Torrey Smith. Another great complimentary WR. Good hands and excellent quickness. Wade Miller: Eric Decker. Most of the time is a pretty reliable option. Will drop a ball from time to time but still a very good option. Justin Grosdidier: Jay Cutler. He can be very effective at times, and make some mistakes. Not afraid to take chances down field which could be a good or bad thing. Josh Terveen: Hakeem Nicks. Can be a stud out on the field when he gives it his all. Andy Erickson: Jason Witten. Catches most anything directed his way but don't expect to get much after the catch. Austin Bunger: Rob Gronkowski. More like a tight-end as he won't beat you deep much, but he still has excellent quickness and a knack for getting open. Franky Tusha: Rex Ryan. Loud mouth, lets see you back it up with your play huh Franky? Adrien Heiter: John Kuhn. He probably loves this. Not a down the field threat. A great underneath option though and has the moves to break free. Steven Whistler: Owen Daniels. Another player who plays more like a tight-end. Good hands and has some height over other players in the league. Jordan Hanssen: Nate Burleson. Not a go-to kind of guy. But still makes some good plays on both sides of the ball. Derrick Miller: If he plays QB- Curtis Painter. If he plays WR-Kevin Boss. Probably not going to make a huge play. But still has pretty decent hands to snag down passes. Sean Luke: Antonio Brown. Has pretty good speed and the moves to juke defenders out of their shoes (see Ryan Hanks and Ben Erickson in January off-season game) Jordan Grosdidier: Demaryius Thomas. Intriguing player with speed, agility and good hands. Lets see what he can do before we give him a higher grade. Izak Weber: Julio Jones. Another young pup who could be a great asset to a team. Only time will tell how valuable he truly can be. Wade Weber: Alex Smith...for now. I need to see more from him to be fully convinced. Initial thought is that he can be a qb who will help manage a game but probably not the entire reason you win. Ben Whistler: BJ Raji. Why? Because I can. We all know Raji has hands, and can perform a mean touchdown dance. JD Shape: Greg Camarillo. Not quite convinced he can be a go-to guy. Made some good plays last year but doesnt seem to be as consistent as one would like. Blake Bartscher: Danny Woodhead. Blake just can't be a black guy, and all the other decent white wrs have been named. So this only makes sense. Jonah Bailey: Teddy Bruschi- Why? Because he looks like he could be his son. And I have a feeling he will be a pretty decent defender. Cameron and Colton Herrick: Honestly, I had a tough time thinking of players for these guys. Not quite sure what kind of players they will be. Both are pretty quick but not sure of their hands or defensive ability. I'm going to let the season play out for a bit before I give these guys a NFL name. Â

 

1/19/12 XFL 2012 Mock Draft:   With the draft just a little over a week away, its time for the team captains to pull out the clipboards, warm up the popcorn and sit down for grueling process of deciding what the best draft strategy is. I won't lay out a strategy for you, but from anonymous sources throughout the league, I think I have pulled together some information that can give other owners and the players a chance to see just which team they will be layout it all out on the line for this season. So without further ado, its time for the mock draft. ROUND 1: Franky: Tyson Kayser- fairly obvious pick. Tyson will be a headache for any team to defend and with that wingspan he will make it extremely tough for an opposing offense to throw the ball in his vicinity. Andy: Kendall Lindeman- Erickson and Lindeman are reunited once again. After a superb regular season they fell short in the playoffs and have unfinished business. Lindeman and Kayser will compete for MVP Jacob: Ben Erickson- proved last year he can be a big down field threat and a lockdown defender. Not real flashy, but he gets the job done and then some. Darin: Ryan Hanks-  Ryan has been compared to the likes of NFL WR Dez Bryant, but without the baggage. He can also be a pretty reliable QB when not lined up out wide. Seth: Jace Connor- Previous reports had Seth taking Clayton Dye here, but with the addition of Connor, I think that will change. Connor was a no-show for much of last year so this could be a risky pick. ROUND 2: Franky: Jamon Harberts- The Rex Ryan wannabe coach hinted that if the first round were to go like that, he would most likely take Jamon Harberts who many have dubbed as the 'Wes Welker' of the XFL Andy: Clayton Dye- A tall-length receiver down-field with great hands. Besides Kendall, might be the only one that could legitimately defend the jump-ball to Kayser. Jacob: Kyelle Herrick- Makes a return trip to Jacob's team. Great down-field speed. That same speed will match him up against some of the fasted WRs in the league. Darin: Kyle Pollreisz- Made some great plays last season as a member of Prime Time. With Darin, Ryan, and Kyle they will have a very athletic team after 2 rounds. Seth: Wade Miller- Seth could very possibly go in a different direction here, but taking Wade would be a safe pick. Wade is quick and has a knack for getting the ball in his hands. He has also proven he can throw the ball as well. ROUND 3: Franky: Justin Grosdidier- With Tyson and Jamon, Franky is going to need a QB to get them the ball. Justin is his guy. Andy: Sean Luke- Has impressed many with his skills in recent pick-up games. Could be a sleeper pick. Jacob: Austin Bunger- Proved last year he has the talent to be a great option as a WR. Defense isn't his strong suit but he is no slouch either. Darin: Adrien Heiter- Wasn't quite the X-factor he deemed himself to be last season, but still was a great under-neath option and safety valve for any QB. Seth: Steven Whistler- Big target with good hands. Definitely an asset for any team on both sides of the ball. ROUND 4: (I'm getting tired of thinking of things to say, so here's the rest) Franky: JD Shape Andy: Blake Bartscher Jacob: Izak Weber Darin: Wade Weber Seth: Jordan Hanssen ROUND 5: Franky: Jordan Grosdidier Andy: Josh Terveen Jacob: Jonah Bailey Darin: Ben Whistler Seth: Derrick Miller (Sorry buddy, I did this on purpose! hahahaha) There is a lot that could change of course. Josh Terveen isn't a for sure to be in the league. But if he is a for-sure, I feel he will drop some due to his commitment to his team last season. Saying he will drop to the 5th round might be a bit of an exageration. But I have a feeling most captains are going to want someone they can count on. Feel free to comment on my mock draft in the league forum.

 

 

 

 

1/17/12 Breaking News:   League Commissioner Andy Erickson is proud to bring you the ‘Xtreme Football League’. After what many deemed a successful inaugural season for the EEFL last summer, there was much speculation that the league would fold after one season. Scheduling conflicts, lack of interests at times and all the weight being put on commissioner Erickson had him doubting whether or not he would go ahead with a second season. However, after some pick-up flag football games over the holiday break, it became obvious to Erickson that athletes needed something more to compete for and the games lacked intensity and desire without a drive to win. Due to that, Erickson has decided to go ahead with a second season with many changes on the horizon. “We are going to the extreme with changes, which is why I felt the name change was necessary and just felt right”, said Erickson during a press-conference this morning. “I want to shake up everything from the number of teams and players, rules, and how the playoff formatting will work.” How will this all fit into the new league? Only time will tell. But Erickson is convinced he has designed a format that will reward the most devoted teams. Erickson went on to say “We had some teams last year that didn’t play half the amount of games as some did. My team, Prime Time, and The Highlight Reel should be commended for their effort in scheduling and getting games in on a timely basis. However other teams constantly had to have players fill in and didn’t get near as many games played as they should. I think I am designing a system where even if you aren’t better than a team, if you have played more games than a team, you will get a reward once the playoffs start.”   When asked about teams and rosters from last season and how they will make a transition to this year Erickson had this to say, “Team captains and team names can stay the same if that captain chooses to do so, but rosters will be re-drafted once again. With a new league and moving towards a brand new, fresh start, I am encouraging captains to choose a new team name. Think of this as not just a new league, but a new attitude. I am unsure of a draft time at this point. That will be looked at once we get a better feel of the number of players and decide whether we will have 4 or 5 teams. I have decided that in the case we drop down to 4 teams that the team captain whose team had the worst record last season will no longer be a captain. So that would be Rampage owner Derrick Miller. He has been notified of this choice. If you were a captain last season, you do not by any means need to be one this season. Please notify me and I will find a replacement.”   Erickson also talked about a couple of rule changes, “Yes, there will be multiple rule changes. One will be illegal blocks, you no longer have to set basketball picks. You can extend your arms to block someone. However, any extra shoving will be flagged as a roughness penalty and grabbing a shirt will be a holding penalty. Another will be turning the ball over on 4th down, wherever you are on the field is where the opposing team will get the ball if you fail to convert on fourth down. If you are on your goal-line, it will be deemed a safety. Teams will have to notify the referee on 4th down whether they are punting or going for it. If they punt the ball, it is not returnable and will be downed where the ball lays or goes out of bounds. In the case of a touch-back the ball will go out to the 5-yard line. Lastly will be unsportsmanlike conduct penalties as far as heckling the ref. Any comments towards another player or the ref himself that the official deems unneccesary will be penalized 15 yards without question. If a player makes another comment, he is kicked out of the game. If he refuses to leave the game, his team will forfeit and the game will be over. We had many situations last year where tensions got hot and that will not be allowed. This league is supposed to be competitive of course, but any action that won’t be tolerated on a high school football field, won’t be here.”   That was all the Commish had to say in his press conference this morning. A finalized rule book seems to be available coming up later this week. Â