IFL Week 18 Recap
July 17, 2024 - Indoor Football League (IFL) News Release
A loaded Saturday of action has wrapped up, closing out Week 18 and leaving just one more week in the 2024 IFL regular season. Following Week 18, Bay Area secured the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, as the Knight Hawks clinched a playoff berth with their win on Saturday. In the Eastern Conference, all four teams heading to the playoffs have their tickets punched, while Frisco and Green Bay have just one week to beat out one another for the top seed in the conference.
Kicking off Week 18, the Green Bay Blizzard (12-3) took on the Jacksonville Sharks (4-11) in an Eastern Conference battle. Following this win for Green Bay, they now share an overall record with the Fighters, holding a better conference record. Taking on the Sioux Falls Storm next week to close out their regular season, they're aiming for the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference.
This week, Max Meylor was on a mission, totaling all six touchdowns for Green Bay on the night. Through the air, Meylor was 15/18 for 138 yards and four touchdowns, adding two touchdowns on the ground. Defensively, Rafiq Abdul-Wahid led the Blizzard on Saturday, totaling three-and-a-half tackles, including a pair of sacks and a safety early in the fourth quarter. With just one game left to claim the No. 1 seed before the playoffs, Green Bay holds a slight advantage with their conference lead over Frisco, who also fights for the No. 1 seed next week.
On the other end, the Sharks fought hard against one of the top defenses in the league. In his third start of the season for Jacksonville, Kaleb Barker faced a stout Blizzard defense, completing 11/15 passes for 107 yards and three touchdowns. He also added 43 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
In a battle between teams without playoff implications, the Sioux Falls Storm (3-12) and Iowa Barnstormers (5-10) brought the intensity to the Wells Fargo Arena on Saturday. Both teams combined for nearly 120 points, coming in as the week's highest-scoring game.
Favored by just one-and-a-half points, the Iowa Barnstormers offense was able to air the ball out, relying heavily on the arm of Brandon Alt in this matchup. Alt completed 14/29 passes for 190 yards and six touchdown passes. While both Brandon Alt and Paul Garrett combined for 13 rushes, offensive lineman Joe Bastante was the team's leading scorer from the backfield, rushing once for one yard and a touchdown. On the goal line to begin the second half, Iowa brought out the heavy package, lining Bastante up for a direct snap, as he took it and powered into the endzone for the first rushing touchdown of his career. Defensively, the Barnstormers led the turnover battle following J'Von France's interception early in the second quarter. On special teams, Gabriel Rui was once again electric, converting all eight PATs and 3/5 on field goal attempts, adding three deuces to his night. With just one game left on their schedule, the Barnstormers head down to Frisco to take on the Fighters to close out the season.
Coming into this game, the Storm were on a four-game losing streak, looking to bounce back with an upset victory on the road against the Barnstormers. While their offense was on fire, they couldn't keep up with the high-flying Iowa Barnstormers on Saturday. Quarterback Jiya Wright made a strong case to remain the Storm's quarterback moving forward, completing 12/28 passes for 191 yards and five touchdown passes, showcasing his dual-threat capabilities with 80 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. However, defensively, Sioux Falls couldn't stop an Iowa offense that scored an average of 39.1 points per game. This week, the Storm allowed 10 of 12 Iowa drives to end in points. Next week, the Storm look to end on a high note, taking on the Green Bay Blizzard at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center, closing out their season at home.
Entering Week 18, the Quad City Steamwheelers (8-7) were looking to clinch the fourth playoff position in the Eastern Conference, while the Tulsa Oilers (5-10) hoped to avoid elimination with a win on Saturday. In a battle that came down to the wire, Quad City walked away with a victory, claiming their spot in the playoffs.
Needing a win to clinch a playoff berth, the Steamwheelers offense was able to stay in step with the Oilers, answering each score with a score of their own, coming down to the final five seconds, as Mike Irwin scored on a three-yard rush to give Quad City the win. The air attack was held in check for most of the game, as the Steamwheelers threw just one touchdown pass on the day, followed by four rushing touchdowns. Ka'Ron Ashley came away with the game's only turnover, forcing and recovering a fumble in the second quarter. After clinching a playoff berth this week, the Steamwheelers close their regular season at the Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena to take on the Sharks.
The Oilers were a pass-first offense this week. Quarterback Andre Sale completed 20/27 passes for 172 yards and five touchdowns, ultimately falling to Quad City in the waning seconds of this matchup. Defensively, the Oilers held Quad City for most of the first half. However, Tulsa allowed four straight touchdown drives to close the game, including a game-winning touchdown with just five seconds left.
In another game that came down to the wire, the San Antonio Gunslingers (8-7) met with the Tucson Sugar Skulls (2-13) in a Western Conference matchup. Both teams entered the week eliminated from making a playoff run, but that didn't keep these teams from battling until the final whistle. While Tucson made a valiant effort at a comeback, San Antonio held off long enough for the victory this week.
For most of this season, San Antonio has featured a pass-heavy offense led by Sam Castronova, but the rushing attack was this week's winning factor. Through the air, Castronova completed 16/27 passes for 150 yards and two touchdowns, coming in as one of his lower-output performances. However, the Gunslingers quarterback led this team's rushing attack, taking 10 carries for 66 yards and four rushing touchdowns. Defensively, Svante Davenport was crucial in the turnover department, hauling in an interception and recovering a fumble. Their defensive performance was better than most weeks, but after allowing four straight touchdown drives in the second half, they almost stood in between adding another victory to their record.
With a slow start to the game, the Sugar Skulls put up a comeback attempt that fell just short in this matchup. As the eighth quarterback for Tucson this year, Vincent Espinoza had a strong dual-threat performance after signing just 10 days before their matchup with San Antonio. Espinoza finished his Sugar Skulls debut, completing 12/24 passes for 150 yards and four touchdowns, rushing for an additional 34 yards and a score. Their offense came up with three unanswered scores at the end of the game, adding theatrics to the ending of this matchup. Before their second fourth-quarter score, the Sugar Skulls successfully recovered an onside kick. Following that successful recovery, Tucson attempted another onside recovery, this time seeing different results. For Tucson, a valiant effort followed a slow start, resulting in a second one-score loss for the Sugar Skulls.
Heading into the week, this game was one of the most contentious since both teams came into this game with the same record and just two more weeks to clinch a playoff berth. In the battle between the Vegas Knight Hawks (10-5) against the Northern Arizona Wranglers (9-6), the Knight Hawks took control in the second half and punched their ticket to the playoffs. In the Western Conference, just one spot remains between Northern Arizona and the Rattlers.
Following back-to-back losses, the Knight Hawks bounced back this week with a win. In this matchup, Ja'Rome Johnson was superb. Johnson completed 12/15 for 152 yards and two touchdowns, adding 100 yards and five rushing touchdowns in Vegas' victory over the Wranglers. Aside from catching his two touchdowns, Johnson was responsible for all seven of the Knight Hawks' offensive touchdowns. However, Jericho Flowers got in on the action, returning a field goal 30 yards for a touchdown, scoring the only non-offensive touchdown of the game. Adding to his strong performance, Flowers also hauled in an interception in the third quarter, coming away with the team's sole turnover. With this win, the Knight Hawks clinched their spot in the playoffs as the third team from the Western Conference to do so.
While winning this week wouldn't have clinched a playoff berth, it would've been more helpful to the Wranglers' playoff hopes. However, Northern Arizona's comeback effort wasn't strong enough this week. In their efforts to knock down the Knight Hawks, quarterback Joshua Jones was a dual-threat weapon. In the air, Jones went 18/32 for 219 yards and two touchdowns, adding 77 yards and two more touchdowns on the ground. Defensively, Tramond Lofton recovered a fumble, balancing out the interception thrown by Jones. Next week, the Wranglers take on Duke City, as their fate relies on a win and for different dominos to fall to ensure a playoff berth this season.
Wrapping up Week 18, the Duke City Gladiators (2-13) traveled to the SAP Center to face off against the Bay Area Panthers (12-3). Bay Area entered the week looking to secure the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, and following a dominant second half from the Panthers, they did just that on Saturday night.
After the first half, Bay Area was up by three points due to a Shane Simpson touchdown with just four seconds remaining. In the second half, Bay Area outscored the Gladiators 27-8. Quarterback Daquan Neal was almost perfect, completing 12/14 passes for 136 yards and three touchdowns, while Shane Simpson scored three touchdowns on 15 rushes for 58 yards. Along with the six touchdowns on offense, Jazeric Peterson put Bay Area on the scoreboard late into the third quarter after taking the kickoff 40 yards back for a touchdown. Defensively, the Panthers secondary hauled in two interceptions and forced a safety. After allowing three first-half touchdowns, Bay Area hunkered down on defense in the second half, allowing just one scoring drive.
Coming into the week off a loss to the Fighters, Duke City looked to ring the victory bell against Bay Area with just two games remaining on their schedule. At first, the Gladiators held their own, heading into halftime down just three points. However, Duke City didn't come out of halftime with the same energy, ultimately falling short. Hasan Rogers and Javin Kilgo were a combined 15/35 for 143 yards and two touchdowns, as Rogers led Duke City in rushing with seven carries for 62 yards and two touchdowns. Duke City heads into their last game of the season next week in the Gladiators' home finale against Northern Arizona with a chance to play spoiler for the Wranglers.
Wrapping up the regular season next week, all 16 teams hit the field, featuring an eight-game slate. Action begins on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. CT, as the Massachusetts Pirates face off against the Tulsa Oilers at the BOK Center. Be sure to catch each game streamed live on the IFL YouTube Channel.
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