IFL Massachusetts Pirates

Pirates Face Duke City for First Time Saturday

Published on May 31, 2022 under Indoor Football League (IFL)
Massachusetts Pirates News Release


WORCESTER, MA - This weekend, the Massachusetts Pirates travel to Rio Rancho, NM where they will face the Duke City Gladiators for the first time ever. Kickoff is slated for 8:00 pm eastern time at the Rio Rancho Events Center. Massachusetts, the defending champion in the Indoor Football League, has the fourth best record in the IFL at 7-3 and has won two straight games while Duke City is 5-5 and on a three-game winning streak.

The Last Time Out:

For the second time in as many weeks, Pirates back-up quarterback Mike Glass III threw a game winning touchdown in the final seconds at Phoenix Field at the DCU Center. Last weekend he connected with Darren Carrington II with nine seconds remaining to lead the Pirates to a 28-25 victory over the Bismarck Bucks. The Bucks held a 15-13 halftime advantage in a game that had seven lead changes. Bismarck had a 22-20 lead after three quarters, but the Pirates' defense held Bismarck to just a field goal in the final quarter. With 1:09 to play, Glass III led Massachusetts on a five-play, 32-yard drive that ended with a four-yard TD pass to Carrington II. Chase Allbaugh attempted a 58-yard field goal on the final play to tie the game, but the attempt went wide left.

Glass III, making his second career start in place of injured quarterback Alejandro Bennifield, was 13 of 23 passing for 150 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, and he was also the game's leading rusher with 12 carries for 49 yards and a touchdown. The Pirates' leading receiver was Carrington II with six receptions for 70 yards and a score. Thomas Owens chipped in with four catches for 32 yards and a touchdown. Defensive back Cheatham Norrils led the home team with seven tackles and broke up one pass. Defensive back Khalid Wooten had the only Massachusetts turnover with an interception.

Duke City defeated the San Diego Strike Force 54-49 at home last weekend in a game where they led wire to wire. Up 36-29 at halftime, the Gladiators saw that lead shrink to just three points in the final quarter (45-42) before defensive end D'Darrin Primes forced San Diego quarterback Jorge Reyna to fumble out of the end zone for a safety. Gladiators QB Ramone Atkins followed that with a touchdown pass to wideout Eriq Swiftwater from five-yards to put the game out of reach.

Atkins was 24 of 31 passing for 242 yards with six touchdown passes and one interception. He also ran for a score. Wide receiver Dello Davis had 11 receptions for 128 yards and two touchdowns. He also added 54 yards on kick returns for 182 yards of total offense in the game.

Teammate Gregory Vincenrt had four kick returns for 80 yards. Running back Shamelle Dumas ran ten times for 44 yards. Defensively DB Roderic Chapman had six tackles. Defensive back Greg Dent Jr. had six stops along with one tackle for a loss and one pass broken up. Linebacker Byron Cooper had six tackles, two sacks and three tackles for a loss.

Team Stats:

The Pirates are scoring an average of 38.2 points per game while giving up 35.7. The Gladiators average 41.5 points per game while yielding 40.7. The stats show the Pirates out-rush Duke City 63.4 yards per game to 50.4, and the Gladiators out-pass Massachusetts 163.1 to 145.2. The Pirates have the edge in the kicking game, having made 14 of 26 field goals (52.8%) to the Gladiators 30.0% (6 of 20).

Players to Watch: (IFL Ranking)

Pirates quarterback Alejandro Bennifield in eight games this year has completed 122 (5th) of 168 passes (3rd) for 1,227 yards (7th) with 26 touchdowns (6th) with six interceptions (6th). His completion percentage is 66.7 (2nd) and his efficiency rating is 173.1 (2nd) as he averages 153.4 passing yards per game (2nd). Bennifield is fifth in total offense averaging 178.4 yards per game.

Duke City QB Ramone Atkins has also played in eight games. He is 122 (3rd) of 195 (3rd) for 1,312 yards (5th) with 33 touchdowns (1st) and three interceptions (7th). He is completing 62.6 percent of his passes (4th), throws for 164.0 yards per game (1st) and has a 171.9 efficiency rating (3rd). Atkins ranks third in the IFL in total offense averaging 182.4 yards per contest.

Three of the top receivers in the IFL are expected to take the field on Saturday.

Thomas Owens of the Pirates has 40 receptions (3rd) for 503 yards (2nd) and 14 touchdowns (2nd). Owens averages four receptions per game (6th), 12.6 yards per catch (9th) and 50.3 yards per game (4th). Owens also averages 9.8 points per game (7th).

Dello Davis of Duke City has 53 receptions (1st) for 611 yards (1st) with 12 touchdowns (3rd). He averages 5.9 receptions per game (1st) with 67.9 yards per game (1st). Davis is also fourth in the league in all-purpose yards averaging 111.4 per game.

Jared Elmore of the Gladiators has 44 receptions (2nd) for 494 yards (3rd) and 15 touchdowns (1st). Elmore averages 4.9 receptions per game (2nd) and 54.9 yards per contest (3rd). Elmore ranks fifth in the IFL scoring 10.0 points per game.

The Pirates have two of the top kick returns in the league in Isaac Zico and Jovon Durante. Zico

has 22 returns (7th) for 368 yards (7th), while Durante has 13 for 235 yards for a return average of 18.1 (6th). Zico ranks sixth in the IFL averaging 76.0 all-purpose yards per game.

Pirates kicker Craig Peterson is first in the IFL with a 66.6 field goal percentage having made six of nine attempts this season.

On defense, DB Aaron Maxey-Penton of the Pirates leads the IFL with 17 passes defended, 13 passes broken up and four interceptions. Teammate Lukas Denis is seventh with three interceptions this year.

Gladiators defensive back Byron Cooper has 63 tackles (8th), 11.5 tackles for a loss (3rd) and has 5.5 sacks (3rd). Linebacker Jason Serda is second in the IFL with 12.5 tackles for a loss. Duke City defensive end Jimmy Thomas is fourth in the league with five sacks and is tied for second with two forced fumbles. Defensive back Roderick Chapman of the Gladiators is tied for first in the league with three fumble recoveries.

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. During the 2021 season, Coach Kizer was the mastermind behind 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.

Sherman Carter is in his first season as head coach of the Gladiators. Last season he was a member of the Duke City Staff. As a player, Carter played on two CIF championship teams with the Gladiators and was an All-League center. Carter played at Tennessee State University and was an All America in the Ohio Valley Conference for three straight seasons. He signed as a free agent with the San Francisco 49ers in 2013 and was with the Detroit Lions the following season. He later played and won a championship in the Arena Football League with the Arizona Rattlers and also played for the LA Kiss.

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Indoor Football League Stories from May 31, 2022


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