Pirates Face Bay Area Panthers Saturday
July 6, 2022 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Massachusetts Pirates News Release
WORCESTER, MA - This Saturday night the Massachusetts Pirates will take the field in the SAP Center at San Jose for the first time when they kickoff vs. the Bay Area Panthers in California at 9:05 eastern time.
The Pirates enter the contest in second place in the Eastern Conference with a 9-5 record which is the fourth best in the Indoor Football League. The Panthers are last in the Western Division with a mark of 1-13. This will be the first meeting between the two clubs.
The Last Time Out:
The Pirates held a 26-15 fourth quarter lead at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, but the Iowa Barnstormers scored 20 unanswered points to defeat Massachusetts 35 to 26. Iowa caused four Pirates turnovers on the night including two in the final quarter that they converted into points.
Pirates QB Taz Wilson was 10 of 23 passing for 124 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. Thomas Owens had four receptions for 41 yards and a score. Defensive backs Chucky Williams and Aarion Maxey-Penton each had seven tackles. Williams had two interceptions and Maxey-Penton broke up one pass.
The Panthers trailed the Vegas Knight Hawks by ten points in the third quarter but could get no closer as Vegas won the contest 65-33. Duane Gary had three touchdowns for Bay Area including a 49-yard kickoff return for a touchdown. Gary rushed eight times for 21 yards and had two scores. He also returned three kicks for 77 yards giving him 98 all-purpose yards on the night. Quarterback Vincent Espinoza was three of six for 65 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Backup Isaac Hurd was three of four for 20 yards with a TD. Receiver Isaiah Thomas had four receptions for 70 yards and two scores. Defensive back Fredrick Gaines recorded seven tackles.
Team Stats:
The Pirates are averaging 40.6 points per game while giving up 37.6. Bay Area is scoring 28.8 per contest and yielding 55.7. Massachusetts is third in the IFL passing for 154.4 yards per game and their offense ranks third in the league converting chances on third down at a rate of 50.6 percent.
The Pirates defense is tied for second with 22 sacks and is fourth in the IFL with 16 interceptions. The Massachusetts kicking game is number one in field goal percentage, making 56.3 percent of its kicks.
Players to Watch: (League Ranking Included)
Pirates running back Deddrick Thomas has carried 55 times for 276 yards and five touchdowns. His 5.0 yards per carry is seventh best in the IFL. Thomas averages 25.1 yards per game. As a kickoff returner Thomas is third in the league with an 18.6 average. He has returned nine kicks for 167 yards.
Duane Gary of the Panthers has carried 119 times (6th) for 402 yards (9th) with 15 touchdowns (7th) and averages 30.9 yards rushing per game (9th). He also averages 3.4 yards per carry.
In four games, Massachusetts quarterback Taz Wilson is 112 of 168 passing (.67%) for 1,227 yards with 26 touchdowns and five interceptions.
Bay Area QB Vincent Espinoza has played in five games and is 43 of 84 (.51%) for 446 yards with five touchdowns and six interceptions.
Wide receiver Thomas Owens of the Pirates ranks as one of the top receivers in the IFL. Owens has 61 receptions (2nd) for 842 yards (1st) with 20 touchdowns (1st) on the season. He averages 13.8 yards per catch (5th), averages 4.4 receptions per game (3rd) and 60.1 yards per game (2nd). Owens is also fifth in the league in scoring averaging 9.6 points per game and his 22 total touchdowns has him tied for fourth in the league.
Pirates kicker Josh Gable is eight in the league with seven made field goals as he is seven of 21 on the season. Panthers kicker Stevie Artigue ranks ninth as he is seven of 24 this season.
Massachusetts defensive back Aarion Maxey-Penton is third in passes defended with 19, has five interceptions (tied for 3rd) and has broken up 14 passes (tied for 3rd). Defensive lineman Da'Sean Downey ranks seventh with five sacks.
Panthers linebacker DJ Calhoun is sixth in the IFL with 73 tackles and fourth averaging 5.6 tackles per game.
The Coaches:
Rayshaun Kizer is in his first season as Head Coach of the Pirates. He is also the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach. Last season, Kizer was the defensive coordinator of the IFL's best defense and developed a unit that had five players listed on the All-IFL team. In 17 games, Kizer's defense held opponents to a league-best 31.6 points per game and led the league in eight other defensive categories.
A native of Euclid, Ohio, Kizer played his college ball at Walsh University in North Canton, Ohio. In 2007 he was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New York Jets. He went on to have two stints in the Canadian Football League and a stellar career in arena ball in the AF2 and AFL. Playing for Orlando in 2011, Kizer set an Arena Football League single-season record with 16 interceptions.
Kurt Bryan was named the Head Coach of the Panthers in 2020. This is his first year of leading a professional team on the field. Bryan is a 1988 graduate of the California State University at Chico with a degree in Communications. Bryan's NCAA coaching experience began as an offensive assistant at Chico State University in 1984-85. He worked as the TE/WR/DB coach at Menlo College, Atherton, CA from 1997-99, and in 2000-02, as the WR Coach at St. Mary's College in Moraga, CA. He has also been a decorated coach at the high school level in the state of California.
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