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IFL Indoor Football League

2024 IFL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP Preview

August 16, 2024 - Indoor Football League (IFL) News Release


It's finally here. After months of hard work to get to this point, just two teams remain in the quest for the 2024 IFL National Championship title. The Eastern Conference Champion Massachusetts Pirates face off against the Western Conference Champion Arizona Rattlers in a rematch of the 2021 IFL National Championship. The last time these teams faced off in the final game of the season, Massachusetts won in overtime on a field goal from Garrett Hartley. Will the Pirates remain undefeated against Arizona in championship games, or can Arizona even the series at one win apiece?

Kicking off at 3:05 p.m. CT at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, NV, the No. 3 seed Massachusetts Pirates (10-8) take on the No. 3 seed Arizona Rattlers (13-5), as both teams hope they're the ones celebrating after the final buzzer sounds. These teams haven't faced off once this whole season until this week, making both teams less familiar with how their opponent plays.

Coming into this week, the Arizona Rattlers have been a tough team to stop. In their last 10 games, the Rattlers are 9-1 with a point differential of +105 points. Combining high-powered offense with stifling defense, Arizona enters the week hot. Offensively, through the regular season and their two playoff matchups, the Rattlers average 48.6 points per game. Against a strong Massachusetts defensive unit, Arizona's offense hopes to perform like they did last week, scoring 58 points on one of the top defenses in the league. Facing another defense that comes in as one of the top units in the league, the Rattlers will have their hands full on offense. After losing the championship game against the Pirates in 2021, Arizona looks to be the one hoisting the trophy this time around.

As the away team in this neutral-site matchup, the Massachusetts Pirates have had an incredibly strong playoff run, scoring over 50 points in back-to-back matchups. In their rematch of the championship game three years ago, the Pirates come into this game firing on all cylinders offensively. After a close battle with the Fighters to advance to the Eastern Conference Championship, the Pirates had one of their best games of the season, defeating Green Bay 51-28 to punch their ticket to the 2024 IFL National Championship. Throughout the entire season until now, Massachusetts' defense has allowed just 38.8 points per game, coming in as one of the top defenses this season. The Pirates ended the season allowing the fewest yards across the league, letting opponents average 189.9 yards per game. As they face a Rattlers offense that's coming alive late in the season, Massachusetts' defense could be the difference in this matchup.

One final game for all the marbles. Everything will be left on the field as both teams look to end their season by completing the goal they set months ago. Now, each team gets four quarters to determine this year's champion. Streaming for the 2024 IFL National Championship game will be available on CBS Sports Network, DirecTV (CH. 221), Dish (CH. 221), Hulu, Youtube TV, Fubo, and more.

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Indoor Football League Stories from August 16, 2024


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