07-18-2023, 05:15 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-21-2023, 04:19 PM by lemonoppy. Edited 2 times in total.)
written by AP reporter Tohnathon Thonnas.
Now that the regular season is over, that means DSFL players are closer than ever to draft night. Scouting is in full-swing as teams reach out to prospects to find out all they can about the stars of the future. One such prospect is Kansas City linebacker Gaius Gleel. This media will serve as a supplement to teams scouting profiles in order to consolidate as much information about Gleel as possible.
BACKGROUND
Let's start with his background on the gridiron. Scouts may be shocked to find that Gaius Gleel did not attend any college which runs a football program. Instead, he received a Bachelors of Arts degree from Bennington College. It was there that he discovered a love of Ultimate Frisbee. His father, Former Chicago Butcher Wasrabi Gleel, had hoped that his son would follow in his footsteps and join Dartmouth's Big Green football team, yet Gaius didn't display much enthusiasm for the sport initially.
During his time at Bennington College he broke every unofficial ultimate frisbee school record in almost every category in only one season. He put up a jaw-dropping 1600 yards on 48 receptions with an average of 33.3 yards per catch. His 28 touchdowns were far-and-away the highest in the intramural league, with the next highest total being 7. His longest play from scrimmage was a 100 yard shovel pass that the "QB" tossed to him from inside their own endzone. From there he turned on the jets and was off to the races.
On the defensive side of the ball he was just as much of an impact player, finishing with 150 "tackles", 33 TFLs, a whopping 40 "sacks", 33 PDs, 2 safeties, and a staggering 17 TDs on defense; bringing his total TDs 45 on the season.
What makes Gaius so dominant at ultimate frisbee? Some point out the level of competition. Sure, most of the opponents he faced were acne-scarred artists who chain-smoked rolled cigarettes and drank PBR when they weren't crying to midwest emo songs. Scouts know that is only part of the story. The other is his football pedigree. As aforementioned, his father had a good but not great career in the ISFL, and it seems some of that talent may have not fallen that far from the tree. Gaius stands at 6'4 and weighs in at 230lbs, which would make him fit the mold of a pass coverage LB; excelling at pass breakups using his speed and rangy frame.
ROOKIE SEASON
As a true rookie (that is to say, not created at the trade deadline), Gleel put together a respectable season. In fact, scouts are not surprised to find he put up better numbers than his father did with the Grey Ducks back in S24. Here's a look at the numbers:
Wasrabi Gleel s24 Grey Ducks:
105 tackles, 4 TFLS, 0/0 FF & FR, 5 Sacks, 1 INT, 3 PDs
Gaius Gleel s42 Kansas City:
97 Tackles, 12 TFLs, 0/0 FF & FR, 7 Sacks, 0 INT, 3 PDs
If these numbers are any indication, despite a late-coming to gridiron football, Gaius is developing into a difference maker on defense as he helped the Kansas City Coyotes boast the 2nd best run defense in the entire DSFL. Primarily showing his edge-setting abilities, scouts are curious to see when his coverage skills will begin to become more refined as he failed to log even one interception and had a paltry 3 PDs.
WHAT HE IS SAYING:
Gaius attended a mandatory pre-draft media conference where he was asked several questions about his future in the league. When asked about where he'd like to play, Gleel had this to say:
"It doesn't matter to me. I'd be happy to play for any team that takes a chance on me. I know I can be a pro-bowl level player in the DSFL and eventually the ISFL. That's what drives me. I'm not motivated solely to win, or to make as much money as possible: I really just want to feel like I belong in the locker room. That's why I've been telling scouts that if they draft me, I'm likely playing my whole career with their team. Whoever takes me is getting a dawg, for real. I'm happy to stay down in the DSFL for as long as they need, but I'm willing to step up right away if need be. I think I can compete even at the level I'm at right now."
When asked about which position he'd like to play, he had this to say:
"Well a lot of scouts see my speed and think I'd be a good RB or WR, and I just kinda brush that off. I'm a linebacker just like my dad was. I think I'm actually better than him at this stage in his career. I'm faster, more agile. I know a lot of people that play this position insist on playing ROLB because they have a better angle to chase the QB, but I'm happy anywhere in the rotation. Need a rangy MLB? I'm there. Need some speed off the edge? I'm there. Need an LB4, out of position NB? Guess what, I'm there. Anything you need me to do imma do it."
Finally, scouts asked him about longevity and how he envisions his career, and where he thinks he'll go in the draft. He had this to say:
"I think I got 10 years in me. My dad played 8 seasons, I think, and his training really fell off near the end. We could all see he was regressing quickly, but he seemed to lose the fire to train for the season as time went on. I think I can outlast his career, and continue my training up until the very end. I wouldn't be opposed to trying some other position out during the twilight of my career, but that is a long way away and would have to be a discussion between the GMs and myself. But yeah, it's safe to say I'll be around the league for a long time.
In terms of where I'll go, I'm not sure which team I'll be playing for, but I do think I am a first round prospect. Maybe even a top five prospect. I have a lot of upside, even though I'm new to the sport. For teams thinking I might be there in the second, I'm not sure that will happen, but if it does, here's an early congratulations because you just got the biggest steal in the draft."
With a little over a week to go until draft night, we'll be waiting to see where the next great ISFL players--including Gaius Gleel--end up. Until then, stay tuned as Associated Press continues their coverage of the S43 ISFL draft.
Now that the regular season is over, that means DSFL players are closer than ever to draft night. Scouting is in full-swing as teams reach out to prospects to find out all they can about the stars of the future. One such prospect is Kansas City linebacker Gaius Gleel. This media will serve as a supplement to teams scouting profiles in order to consolidate as much information about Gleel as possible.
BACKGROUND
Let's start with his background on the gridiron. Scouts may be shocked to find that Gaius Gleel did not attend any college which runs a football program. Instead, he received a Bachelors of Arts degree from Bennington College. It was there that he discovered a love of Ultimate Frisbee. His father, Former Chicago Butcher Wasrabi Gleel, had hoped that his son would follow in his footsteps and join Dartmouth's Big Green football team, yet Gaius didn't display much enthusiasm for the sport initially.
During his time at Bennington College he broke every unofficial ultimate frisbee school record in almost every category in only one season. He put up a jaw-dropping 1600 yards on 48 receptions with an average of 33.3 yards per catch. His 28 touchdowns were far-and-away the highest in the intramural league, with the next highest total being 7. His longest play from scrimmage was a 100 yard shovel pass that the "QB" tossed to him from inside their own endzone. From there he turned on the jets and was off to the races.
On the defensive side of the ball he was just as much of an impact player, finishing with 150 "tackles", 33 TFLs, a whopping 40 "sacks", 33 PDs, 2 safeties, and a staggering 17 TDs on defense; bringing his total TDs 45 on the season.
What makes Gaius so dominant at ultimate frisbee? Some point out the level of competition. Sure, most of the opponents he faced were acne-scarred artists who chain-smoked rolled cigarettes and drank PBR when they weren't crying to midwest emo songs. Scouts know that is only part of the story. The other is his football pedigree. As aforementioned, his father had a good but not great career in the ISFL, and it seems some of that talent may have not fallen that far from the tree. Gaius stands at 6'4 and weighs in at 230lbs, which would make him fit the mold of a pass coverage LB; excelling at pass breakups using his speed and rangy frame.
ROOKIE SEASON
As a true rookie (that is to say, not created at the trade deadline), Gleel put together a respectable season. In fact, scouts are not surprised to find he put up better numbers than his father did with the Grey Ducks back in S24. Here's a look at the numbers:
Wasrabi Gleel s24 Grey Ducks:
105 tackles, 4 TFLS, 0/0 FF & FR, 5 Sacks, 1 INT, 3 PDs
Gaius Gleel s42 Kansas City:
97 Tackles, 12 TFLs, 0/0 FF & FR, 7 Sacks, 0 INT, 3 PDs
If these numbers are any indication, despite a late-coming to gridiron football, Gaius is developing into a difference maker on defense as he helped the Kansas City Coyotes boast the 2nd best run defense in the entire DSFL. Primarily showing his edge-setting abilities, scouts are curious to see when his coverage skills will begin to become more refined as he failed to log even one interception and had a paltry 3 PDs.
WHAT HE IS SAYING:
Gaius attended a mandatory pre-draft media conference where he was asked several questions about his future in the league. When asked about where he'd like to play, Gleel had this to say:
"It doesn't matter to me. I'd be happy to play for any team that takes a chance on me. I know I can be a pro-bowl level player in the DSFL and eventually the ISFL. That's what drives me. I'm not motivated solely to win, or to make as much money as possible: I really just want to feel like I belong in the locker room. That's why I've been telling scouts that if they draft me, I'm likely playing my whole career with their team. Whoever takes me is getting a dawg, for real. I'm happy to stay down in the DSFL for as long as they need, but I'm willing to step up right away if need be. I think I can compete even at the level I'm at right now."
When asked about which position he'd like to play, he had this to say:
"Well a lot of scouts see my speed and think I'd be a good RB or WR, and I just kinda brush that off. I'm a linebacker just like my dad was. I think I'm actually better than him at this stage in his career. I'm faster, more agile. I know a lot of people that play this position insist on playing ROLB because they have a better angle to chase the QB, but I'm happy anywhere in the rotation. Need a rangy MLB? I'm there. Need some speed off the edge? I'm there. Need an LB4, out of position NB? Guess what, I'm there. Anything you need me to do imma do it."
Finally, scouts asked him about longevity and how he envisions his career, and where he thinks he'll go in the draft. He had this to say:
"I think I got 10 years in me. My dad played 8 seasons, I think, and his training really fell off near the end. We could all see he was regressing quickly, but he seemed to lose the fire to train for the season as time went on. I think I can outlast his career, and continue my training up until the very end. I wouldn't be opposed to trying some other position out during the twilight of my career, but that is a long way away and would have to be a discussion between the GMs and myself. But yeah, it's safe to say I'll be around the league for a long time.
In terms of where I'll go, I'm not sure which team I'll be playing for, but I do think I am a first round prospect. Maybe even a top five prospect. I have a lot of upside, even though I'm new to the sport. For teams thinking I might be there in the second, I'm not sure that will happen, but if it does, here's an early congratulations because you just got the biggest steal in the draft."
With a little over a week to go until draft night, we'll be waiting to see where the next great ISFL players--including Gaius Gleel--end up. Until then, stay tuned as Associated Press continues their coverage of the S43 ISFL draft.