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IFL Sioux Falls Storm

Storm Travel to Take on Barnstormers

July 8, 2023 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Sioux Falls Storm News Release


The Sioux Falls Storm Indoor Football Team hits the road this weekend for their final regular season road game of the 2023 Indoor Football League campaign.

The Storm currently leads the Green Bay Blizzard by a half game and hold the final playoff spot in the IFL's Eastern Conference standings. The Storm can clinch a playoff birth this weekend with a road win over the Iowa Barnstormers and a Green Bay road loss at Quad City.

Saturday night's game will be the third and final meeting of the season between the Storm and Barnstormers. Sioux Falls won each of the first two matchups, including a 77-26 win in Des Moines on Friday, May 26.

SERIES HISTORY

Saturday night's game will be the 24th meeting all-time between the Iowa Barnstormers and Sioux Falls Storm.

The Barnstormers lead the series 11-12, but the Storm have won four straight games, dating back to April 29th, 2022. The Storm lost five straight games against the Iowa Barnstormers May 5, 2021 - April 16, 2022.

All Time Series History: The Iowa Barnstormers lead the all-time series 12-11.

Series History in Sioux Falls: Barnstormers lead the series in Sioux Falls 7-4

Series History in Des Moines: Storm lead the series in Des Moines 7-5

LAST TIME OUT

The Sioux Falls Storm Indoor Football team struggled to find their offensive rhythm on Saturday night, suffering a 56-15 loss against the first place Frisco Fighters.

The Storm's 15 points were the lowest of the season for a Storm team who had won three of their last four games prior to Saturday night's setback.

QB Lorenzo Brown Jr. scored a rushing touchdown but was replaced by backup Seth Collins late in the third quarter after going 2-of-11 for just 16 yards through the air.

The former Texas Tech standout also struggled against the Frisco defense, going 3-for-13 for 54 yards and threw three interceptions. The Storm's lone passing touchdown of the night came late in the fourth quarter when Collins connected with wide receiver Draysean Hudson on a 42-yard strike.

Wide receiver Brandon Sheperd pulled in a team high two catches for 17 yards in his first game back in a Storm uniform.

Frisco quarterback TJ Edwards finished the night going 10-for-14 for 157 yards and four touchdowns.

Edwards only blemish on the night came in the fourth quarter when Storm defensive back Clifton Duck came away with an interception.

It was the third interception of the season for Duck and the 17th interception of the season for the Storm defense who ranks second in the IFL overall.

Defensive back Laronji Vason-McCoy led the Storm in tackles, finishing the night with six total tackles (four solo).

Storm defensive lineman Daryle Banfield recorded his third sack of the season in the loss.

SCOUTING THE IOWA BARNSTORMERS

The Iowa Barnstormers enter the weekend with a 3-10 record and have been eliminated from playoff contention this season. The Barnstormers are twelfth in the IFL in offense this season, averaging 40.2 points per game and are fourteenth in the league in defense, allowing opponents to score an average of 52.8 points per game.

The Storm have been plagued by injuries and inconsistencies this season. Former Storm QB Daniel Smith is the third different quarterback the Barnstormers have put under center this season.

Smith has completed 65% of his passes this season and has thrown for 643 yards and 13 touchdowns.

The Barnstormers top offensive weapon has been wide receiver Caleb Smith, who has 463 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns.

Tyrell Pearson is the top defensive threat for Iowa, racking up 45 tackles (41 solo). Pearson's two interceptions are second most on the team this season.

SCOUTING THE SIOUX FALLS STORM

The Sioux Falls Storm enter the weekend with a 7-6 record and sit in fourth place in the IFL's eastern conference standings. The Storm hold a half game lead over the Green Bay Blizzard for the final spot in playoff hunt. The Storm offense ranks seventh in the IFL this season averaging 45.5 points per game. The Storm defense ranks fourth in the IFL, holding opponents to 42.5 points per game.

Storm quarterback Lorenzo Brown Jr. is the top offensive threat, ranking eighth in the IFL in rushing yards (471) and six in the IFL in rushing touchdowns (23). Brown Jr. also ranks tenth in the IFL in passing yards (1,588) and is tied for ninth in the IFL in passing touchdowns (29).

The Storm defense currently has three players ranking in the top 10 of the league's top defenders. Defensive back Laronji Vason-McCoy is second in the IFL with 71.5 total tackles (62 solo), linebacker James Brown is fourth in the league with 66.5 total tackles (50 solo) and defensive back Clifton Duck enters the weekend ranking ninth in the league with 60.5 total tackles (50 solo).

Defensive back Eugene Ford enters the weekend tied for fourth in the IFL in interceptions with 6 on the season, including two against the Iowa Barnstormers.

ONE LAST THING

The 77 points scored by the Sioux Falls Storm against the Iowa Barnstormers on May 26 are the most by a Storm offense since May 31, 2015, when Sioux Falls posted a 90-20 final score against the Bemidji Axemen.

Surprisingly, the Storm's 77 points aren't the most points scored in a game in the series history. On April 25, 2015, the Barnstormers put together an 87-11 win in Sioux Falls.



Indoor Football League Stories from July 8, 2023


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