Week 11 Previews
Published on July 2, 2021 under Indoor Football League (IFL) News Release
With the Independence Day holiday weekend upon us, the Indoor Football League will have a light schedule of just three games. But those three games feature some intriguing matchups, including the IFL Game of the Week on Stadium which will showcase the Frisco Fighters (5-0) hosting the Massachusetts Pirates (4-3) on Saturday, July 3, at 7 p.m. CT. You can watch the rest of the games on the IFL's YouTube page.
NORTHERN ARIZONA WRANGLERS AT DUKE CITY GLADIATORS - SATURDAY, JULY 3, 7:05 P.M. CT
The Duke City Gladiators are looking to bounce back this weekend when they host the Northern Arizona Wranglers. The Wranglers are coming off their first win of the season, while Duke City comes into the contest with a 2-4 record, having suffered back-to-back losses to the top two teams in the IFL, Frisco and Arizona.
The Wranglers in their last matchup took down the Tucson Sugar Skulls, 48-44, in Week 10 to claim their first victory of the season and as a franchise. Northern Arizona displayed a balanced offense putting up 106 yards rushing on 16 attempts and 125 yards passing on 17 attempts.
Quarterback Verlon Reed Jr. led the way for the Wranglers and earned his first IFL Offensive Player of the Week nod for his performance. Reed Jr. completed 8-of-17 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. Reed Jr. also contributed to the run game with seven rushes for 90 yards and three touchdowns.
Duke City fell to the Frisco Fighters, 53-48, in their Week 10 matchup. After the game, the Gladiators replaced their head coach, hiring former Gladiators QB Robert Kent to fill the role for the remainder of the season. Despite the loss, the Gladiators put up 200 yards of total offense and averaged 5.0 yards per play.
Gladiators quarterback Nate Davis has led the charge all season for the offense. Davis leads the league in completions (103), attempts (171), touchdowns (33), average yards per game (188.0) and efficiency (172.3). In his last outing, Davis threw 17-of-27 for 160 yards and seven passing touchdowns.
Duke City defeated the Northern Arizona Wranglers earlier in the season 34-17 in Prescott Valley.
MASSACHUSETTS PIRATES AT FRISCO FIGHTERS - SATURDAY, JULY 3, 7:05 P.M. CT
This week the Massachusetts Pirates take to the road as they begin the second half of their season against the Frisco Fighters at Comerica Center in Frisco, TX in the Indoor Football League's Game of the Week.
The Pirates are currently 4-3 and coming off a bye week. The rest gave the team time to collect itself following a heart-stopping 37-34 win over the Tucson Sugar Skulls. Pirates' kicker Josh Gable nailed a 46-yard field goal as time expired to give Massachusetts its third road win of the season. Gable was named the IFL Special Teams Player of the Week as he accounted for 13 points in the victory, going four-for-four on extra points and making field goals of 50, 26, and 46 yards. His 50-yarder equaled his season best, which is also the longest made field goal in the IFL this season.
The Fighters remain the only undefeated team in the league with a record of 5-0. This past week they defeated the Duke City Gladiators, 53-48. Duke City held a 22-21 second quarter lead, but Frisco scored twice before halftime with quarterback Jonathan Bane finding wide receiver Lance Evans on a nine-yard scoring play and kicker Kristov Martinez added a 28-yard field goal to build a 31-22 lead that Frisco would never relinquish.
Fighters quarterback Jonathan Bane finished the game 13-of-19 passing for 158 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions. He was also the leading rusher with 18 yards on six carries and a score. Fighters receiver Manny Arceneaux ran the ball twice for four yards and two touchdowns while fellow wideout Marques Rodgers had four receptions for 66 yards and two scores.
This will be the second meeting between the two teams. The Fighters defeated the Pirates at Phoenix Field at the DCU Center in Worcester on June 12 by a score of 40-33.
ARIZONA RATTLERS AT TUCSON SUGAR SKULLS - SATURDAY, JULY 3, 8:05 P.M. CT
The Arizona Rattlers look to keep their four-game win streak alive as they face the Tucson Sugar Skulls in what will be their second meeting of the season. The Rattlers enter the week with the second-best record in the IFL at 5-1, while the Sugar Skulls come in at 1-5.
In their last game, Arizona defeated the Spokane Shock, 56-35. Quarterback Drew Powell put on a spectacular offensive performance against the top-ranked Spokane Shock defense. Powell threw for two touchdowns and punched in three more on the ground to add to his IFL-leading total (15). Powell rushed for 103 yards, including a 36-yard touchdown run.
The Rattlers amassed a team total of 188 rushing yards, and four separate Rattlers punched in TDs on the ground (Powell, Monroe, Miles and Pelletier). When the dust settled, the Rattlers ripped off six total rushing TDs.
The Rattlers defense was tenacious against the two-time IFL Offensive Player of the Week in Spokane QB Charles McCullum. The Shock's QB1 left the game near the end of the first half with a lower body injury and did not return. Defensive back Dillon Winfrey shut down the passing game all night and finished with four pass breakups and four total tackles.
The Sugar Skulls enter the game after falling in a heartbreaker against the Northern Arizona Wranglers, 48-44. Quarterback Demry Croft put up his first 200 yard plus passing game (211 yds) of the season and threw for five touchdowns through the air against the Wranglers defense. Croft led the team in both passing and rushing yards (48 yds) again, helping the Sugar Skulls amass their second-highest scoring game of the season.
Just one week after wide receiver Ryan Balentine broke the all-time IFL receiving yard record, Balentine added another dazzling performance to his resume. Balentine caught six passes for 116 yards and two touchdowns against the Wranglers. Malik Stanley also added two receiving touchdowns to round out his best performance of the season
Indoor Football League Stories from July 2, 2021
- Week 11 Previews - IFL
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