Rookies have made more of an impact at the beginning of this season than in the last few season. Baltimore for example has two rookies wide receivers (Doug Howlett and Joshua Campbell) how are both in the top 10 of their position in yards. No other team has two wide receivers in the top 10, let alone rookie wide receivers.
This is an offense rookie and defensive rookie recap mainly focusing on weeks 3, 4 and 5, but I'll summarize anyone I missed in my previous article about the ISFL rookies. The following aaare the rookies who had stood out or caught my eye. I'll start with the offensive rookies as they have been more impressive thus far this season. Two of the offensive rookies are at the top of their positions in the ISFL.
Doug Howlett - Baltimore Hawks
In week 3 against Honolulu Howlett was held to only had 4 catches. With those 4 catches he managed to get 119 yards for an average of over 29 yards per a catch.
His first catch of the game was only for 7 yards. Then he managed catches of 23, 66, 23 yards.
Howlett presence on the field opened the game up for his teammates. Fujiwara was able to throw for 3 tds and each Td went to a different receiver.
Baltimore won the game in overtime in an upset at Honolulu. Howlett has dominated his opponents so much that he draws so much attention from the opposing defenses.
In week 4 against Colorado Howlett had 6 catches for 106 yards and a touchdown. Baltimore came very close to taking down Colorado losing by 1 point. Another big game for Howlett who shows no sign of slowing down this season.
Week 5 was an average game for Howlett, he had 6 catches for 70 yards. 4 wide receivers for Baltimore had over 70 yards receiving. Howlett is consistently opening up the field for his team mates and Fujiwara is taking advantage of it. He is forcing some throws to Howlett but it hasn't hurt him yet doing so.
Howlett leads the ISFL in yards with 539 and the closest receiver has over 100 less yards. He is tied for second in receptions with 30. He is currently on pace for over 1500 yards receiving. A couple of big games he could start sniffing the league record of 1860 receiving yards in a season.
While he has only found the endzone once this season he has opened up the field for his teammates. Fujiwara leads the ISFL in passing yards with 1520 because of Howlett's presence on the field.
Baltimore is 3 - 2 on the year and they are only one game back of conference leading Chicago and having the top wide receiver in the ISFL is going to help them get over the hump. Not only does he show no sign of slowing down, defenses will be force to leave him one on one or double team him which opens up his teammates.
Joshua Campbell- Baltimore Hawks
Speaking of Doug Howlett's teammates, Campbell is having a very nice season of his own. 25 catches for 365 yards with an average of 14.5 yards per a catch and he he found he endzone twice this season.
The first four games of the season he was second in receiving in each game. Week 5 against Berlin he finally got his first 100 yard recieving performance with 4 catches for 101 yards. Campbell is the second best rookie wide receiver this year. Howletts dominating performances have overshadowed Campbell but they have also benefited him as well.
Baltimore has a very good set of wide receivers that will will only get better and better. These two combined have the most receiving yards out of any receiving duo in the ISFL. Baltimore also leads the league is total passing yards with over 1500.
Baltimore has already matched their entire win total from last season in week 5. These two rookies wide recovers will dominate for years to come.
Suleiman Ramza - Orange County Otters
His first game in the ISFL was one to forget . In week 3 Ramza dominated Austin in a 35 - 3 annihilation. Ramza was 27 for 38 with 350 yards and 4 touchdowns for his best game ever in his young career. 6 receivers caught passes and 3 of them had over 90 yards receiving. He is spreading the ball all over which is making it hard for defenses to figure out where he wants to go with the ball. After Orange County's first drive Ramza threw 3 straight Touchdown passes on their next 3 drives.
Week 4 was much like week 1. Ramza went 12 for 28, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Another poor showing on Ramza's part but again he lead the game Orange County down the field down by one late in the 4th quarter to take the lead. He hit Phillips for a 13 yard Touchdown with less than 2:30 with a 36 - 30 lead. Orange county was able to hold off Arizona to notch their 4th win in as many games. On a side note, Prince Vegeta had a monster game for Orange County with 8 tackles, 3 pass deflections, 3 interceptions and two returned for Touchdowns. He also set an ISFL record for interception return yards in a game with 169. This article is about rookies, but performances like this don't happen very often and he deserves recognition for his amazing performance.
Week 5 was another game to forget one Ramza. 17 of 33 for 278 yards. Two touchdowns and four, yes four interceptions. With a terrible game like this you would have expected a blow out. You would be correct in assuming a blow out occurred. Orange county blew out New Orleans 31-10. Orange County is playing outstanding as a team which is the perfect environment for a young rookie Quarterback.
Despite having three games sub sub 70 passer rating Ramza is third ISFL in passer rating with a 82.6. He lead the league in passer rating after week 4 but another bad game dropped him. He leads the ISFL in passing touchdowns with 10 and tied for second in interceptions with 7.
In super early voting Ramza is still in contention in MVP voting and Offensive player of the year. He either has very good games or very bad games. He still hasn't found the middle ground yet. Consistency is his biggest issue right now. He has the luxury of being able to figure it out on the field with the way Orange County's defense and special teams are playing. They can easily withstand bad games from Ramza will all the play makers they have on both sides of the ball. He has potential to light up the lead and has shown he can. As soon as he figures it out and minimizes the bad games or his bad games get better, Orange County will be incredibly tough to beat.
They already hold a 2 game lead in the ASFC only 5 games into the year. Orange County is the early favorite to win the Championship this year with a rookie QB
Zoe Watts - Austin Copperheads
Looking at his production you would think he isn't very productive for Auston. He is second in the league in rushing attempts with 103. His yards per carry is only 3.7 yard which is the lowest for any running back over 300 yards this season. He is in third place for rushing yards with 382. He is tied for the league lead in rushing touchdowns with 5.
In his first game in the ISLF against Honolulu he had 16 carries for 56 yards which equates to 3.51 yards per a carry but he scored 3 times. He had one carry for 11 yards. If you take that carry out he averaged 3 yards per a carry. Which ball all standards is very low but he fought for the tough yards.
In week 2 he had probably his best overall game with 22 carries for 97. 4.4 average which was more like they expected. An 18 run was his longest and one touchdown.
Week 4 was probably his most impressive game so far, not because he scored a lot of touch downs, not because he had a ton of yards or catches, but because of the amount of carries he had.
He had 31 carries for only 108 yards. Take out his 18 yard rush he had 30 carries for 90 yards. 3 yards per a carry.
He has so much potential if he can build up his speed and strength. He has proven to be durable and dependable but he needs to be able to get his yards per carry over 4.0 otherwise Austin might go in a different detection.
Hank Winchester - New York Silverbacks
While New York has started their first 4 games as an ISFL team with 4 losses, Winchester has been a bright spot. Amassing 9 tackles in week 3 against Arizona in a 25 - 20 loss. In week 4 Winchester had 13 tackles and a pass deflection in a 27 - 13 loss. The expectations for New York were not very high being an expansion team. Hitting their first ever draft pick will help them for years to come and Winchester will be a building block of this defense.
In week 5 Winchester had another 9 tackle game, but New York is struggling on both sides of the ball and the fell to 0 - 5. Tough year so far for the rookie and the team as a whole. No one expected a lot out of New York and although they are surely disappointed so far, these games will be the foundation of this defense for years to come.
Tayshawn Crunk - Arizona Outlaws
While a relatively quiet game in week 3 ( 2 tackles, no pass deflections or interceptions) week 4 Crunk managed to have a pass deflection and another interception. That interception gives him 3 on the year which is second best in the ISFL after week 4.
Week 5 Crunk only had one tackle, but he got his first pick six of his young career and with that interception he kept up with Prince Vegeta who also had another pick giving him 5 on the year. Crunk is one pick behind Vegeta on the year. Arizona got a win they need and certainly built some confidence moving forward with there 34 - 7 dismantling of Chicago who at the time was leading the NSFL conference.
He keeps building is resume for defensive rookie of the year.
Arizona is 2 - 3 on the year. They have a lot of great players but they just can't seem to put it all together consistently, but this last game might be the motivation they need to turn the season around.
Brach Thomaslacher - Yellowknife Wraiths
Thomaslacher has started to make his presence felt on the field for Yellowknife. 39 tackles on the year, averaging about 10 per a game, an interception, a sack and two pass deflection on the season so far.
His first two games he had 9 tackles in each one. His last two games he has double digit tackles.
Week 5 was a down week for him. While only have 5 tackles Yellowknife managed to earn their second win of the season.
Yellowknife is 2- 3 on the season and much like Arizona, they can't seem to put anything together.
Busch Light - New Orleans Second Line
Is having an under the radar year but is very consistent.
In his second game which was a blowout loss to Honolulu he recorded 9 tackles 1 sack, 1 pass deflection and an interception returned for a touchdown. Every other game he has averaged about 5 tackles per game. He isn't super flashy, but being a consistent rookie will earn you more playing time. The more playing time you get the better you will be.
Juan Domine - Chicago Butchers
He leads all rookies with with 4 sacks on the year. He also has 5 pass deflections and an interception returned for a touchdown. Add on his 33 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss. He is having a very solid year for Chicago and he is making an impact all over the field.
He has had one sack in each of his last four games.
His breakout game came in Chicago's 27 - 17 defeat of Berlin. He recorded 8 tackles, one sack, 2 pass deflections and his interception returned for a touchdown which was Chicago's first touchdown of the game.
It seems the teams with the standout rookie defensive players are the ones struggling the most overall.
The teams with the best offensive rookies have benefited more than there defensive counterparts. Ramza and Howlett are definitely the best of the class on offense and at this point it isn't even close. Unfortunately for Howlett, Ramza being the quarterback of the best team which is an undefeated team gives him a leg up in the offensive rookie of the year voting. If Howlett ends the year as the ISFL leading receiver it's going to make it very hard for the voters, which at this point it seems very likely the Howlett will not slow down.
Defense it still a toss up but Crunk and Winchester are having very productive years. If Crunk keeps getting interceptions he is going to take the Defensive rookie of the year. Keep an eye on Juan Domine though. He has been very consistent his last four games and seems to be getting better and better. If he puts up over 10 sacks and keeps playing well in coverage for Chicago he is going to be right there with Crunk and Winchester.
Offensive rookie of the year rankings so far I'd vote Doug Howlett as rookie of the year simply because he hasn't had a bad game and doesn't have the strong supporting cast as Ramza does. If Ramza can string together a few strong performances without a dud then that would change my mind. I don't feel Ramza would be as good right now without Orange Countys amazing defense which as allowed a league low 87 points and scored a league high 4 touchdowns.
Defensive rookie of the year I would vote Tayshawn Crunk. His first game was an amazing game and I stated in my previous article that I would be shocked if anyone had a better game (Prince Vegeta did and I was shocked).
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This is an offense rookie and defensive rookie recap mainly focusing on weeks 3, 4 and 5, but I'll summarize anyone I missed in my previous article about the ISFL rookies. The following aaare the rookies who had stood out or caught my eye. I'll start with the offensive rookies as they have been more impressive thus far this season. Two of the offensive rookies are at the top of their positions in the ISFL.
Doug Howlett - Baltimore Hawks
In week 3 against Honolulu Howlett was held to only had 4 catches. With those 4 catches he managed to get 119 yards for an average of over 29 yards per a catch.
His first catch of the game was only for 7 yards. Then he managed catches of 23, 66, 23 yards.
Howlett presence on the field opened the game up for his teammates. Fujiwara was able to throw for 3 tds and each Td went to a different receiver.
Baltimore won the game in overtime in an upset at Honolulu. Howlett has dominated his opponents so much that he draws so much attention from the opposing defenses.
In week 4 against Colorado Howlett had 6 catches for 106 yards and a touchdown. Baltimore came very close to taking down Colorado losing by 1 point. Another big game for Howlett who shows no sign of slowing down this season.
Week 5 was an average game for Howlett, he had 6 catches for 70 yards. 4 wide receivers for Baltimore had over 70 yards receiving. Howlett is consistently opening up the field for his team mates and Fujiwara is taking advantage of it. He is forcing some throws to Howlett but it hasn't hurt him yet doing so.
Howlett leads the ISFL in yards with 539 and the closest receiver has over 100 less yards. He is tied for second in receptions with 30. He is currently on pace for over 1500 yards receiving. A couple of big games he could start sniffing the league record of 1860 receiving yards in a season.
While he has only found the endzone once this season he has opened up the field for his teammates. Fujiwara leads the ISFL in passing yards with 1520 because of Howlett's presence on the field.
Baltimore is 3 - 2 on the year and they are only one game back of conference leading Chicago and having the top wide receiver in the ISFL is going to help them get over the hump. Not only does he show no sign of slowing down, defenses will be force to leave him one on one or double team him which opens up his teammates.
Joshua Campbell- Baltimore Hawks
Speaking of Doug Howlett's teammates, Campbell is having a very nice season of his own. 25 catches for 365 yards with an average of 14.5 yards per a catch and he he found he endzone twice this season.
The first four games of the season he was second in receiving in each game. Week 5 against Berlin he finally got his first 100 yard recieving performance with 4 catches for 101 yards. Campbell is the second best rookie wide receiver this year. Howletts dominating performances have overshadowed Campbell but they have also benefited him as well.
Baltimore has a very good set of wide receivers that will will only get better and better. These two combined have the most receiving yards out of any receiving duo in the ISFL. Baltimore also leads the league is total passing yards with over 1500.
Baltimore has already matched their entire win total from last season in week 5. These two rookies wide recovers will dominate for years to come.
Suleiman Ramza - Orange County Otters
His first game in the ISFL was one to forget . In week 3 Ramza dominated Austin in a 35 - 3 annihilation. Ramza was 27 for 38 with 350 yards and 4 touchdowns for his best game ever in his young career. 6 receivers caught passes and 3 of them had over 90 yards receiving. He is spreading the ball all over which is making it hard for defenses to figure out where he wants to go with the ball. After Orange County's first drive Ramza threw 3 straight Touchdown passes on their next 3 drives.
Week 4 was much like week 1. Ramza went 12 for 28, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Another poor showing on Ramza's part but again he lead the game Orange County down the field down by one late in the 4th quarter to take the lead. He hit Phillips for a 13 yard Touchdown with less than 2:30 with a 36 - 30 lead. Orange county was able to hold off Arizona to notch their 4th win in as many games. On a side note, Prince Vegeta had a monster game for Orange County with 8 tackles, 3 pass deflections, 3 interceptions and two returned for Touchdowns. He also set an ISFL record for interception return yards in a game with 169. This article is about rookies, but performances like this don't happen very often and he deserves recognition for his amazing performance.
Week 5 was another game to forget one Ramza. 17 of 33 for 278 yards. Two touchdowns and four, yes four interceptions. With a terrible game like this you would have expected a blow out. You would be correct in assuming a blow out occurred. Orange county blew out New Orleans 31-10. Orange County is playing outstanding as a team which is the perfect environment for a young rookie Quarterback.
Despite having three games sub sub 70 passer rating Ramza is third ISFL in passer rating with a 82.6. He lead the league in passer rating after week 4 but another bad game dropped him. He leads the ISFL in passing touchdowns with 10 and tied for second in interceptions with 7.
In super early voting Ramza is still in contention in MVP voting and Offensive player of the year. He either has very good games or very bad games. He still hasn't found the middle ground yet. Consistency is his biggest issue right now. He has the luxury of being able to figure it out on the field with the way Orange County's defense and special teams are playing. They can easily withstand bad games from Ramza will all the play makers they have on both sides of the ball. He has potential to light up the lead and has shown he can. As soon as he figures it out and minimizes the bad games or his bad games get better, Orange County will be incredibly tough to beat.
They already hold a 2 game lead in the ASFC only 5 games into the year. Orange County is the early favorite to win the Championship this year with a rookie QB
Zoe Watts - Austin Copperheads
Looking at his production you would think he isn't very productive for Auston. He is second in the league in rushing attempts with 103. His yards per carry is only 3.7 yard which is the lowest for any running back over 300 yards this season. He is in third place for rushing yards with 382. He is tied for the league lead in rushing touchdowns with 5.
In his first game in the ISLF against Honolulu he had 16 carries for 56 yards which equates to 3.51 yards per a carry but he scored 3 times. He had one carry for 11 yards. If you take that carry out he averaged 3 yards per a carry. Which ball all standards is very low but he fought for the tough yards.
In week 2 he had probably his best overall game with 22 carries for 97. 4.4 average which was more like they expected. An 18 run was his longest and one touchdown.
Week 4 was probably his most impressive game so far, not because he scored a lot of touch downs, not because he had a ton of yards or catches, but because of the amount of carries he had.
He had 31 carries for only 108 yards. Take out his 18 yard rush he had 30 carries for 90 yards. 3 yards per a carry.
He has so much potential if he can build up his speed and strength. He has proven to be durable and dependable but he needs to be able to get his yards per carry over 4.0 otherwise Austin might go in a different detection.
Hank Winchester - New York Silverbacks
While New York has started their first 4 games as an ISFL team with 4 losses, Winchester has been a bright spot. Amassing 9 tackles in week 3 against Arizona in a 25 - 20 loss. In week 4 Winchester had 13 tackles and a pass deflection in a 27 - 13 loss. The expectations for New York were not very high being an expansion team. Hitting their first ever draft pick will help them for years to come and Winchester will be a building block of this defense.
In week 5 Winchester had another 9 tackle game, but New York is struggling on both sides of the ball and the fell to 0 - 5. Tough year so far for the rookie and the team as a whole. No one expected a lot out of New York and although they are surely disappointed so far, these games will be the foundation of this defense for years to come.
Tayshawn Crunk - Arizona Outlaws
While a relatively quiet game in week 3 ( 2 tackles, no pass deflections or interceptions) week 4 Crunk managed to have a pass deflection and another interception. That interception gives him 3 on the year which is second best in the ISFL after week 4.
Week 5 Crunk only had one tackle, but he got his first pick six of his young career and with that interception he kept up with Prince Vegeta who also had another pick giving him 5 on the year. Crunk is one pick behind Vegeta on the year. Arizona got a win they need and certainly built some confidence moving forward with there 34 - 7 dismantling of Chicago who at the time was leading the NSFL conference.
He keeps building is resume for defensive rookie of the year.
Arizona is 2 - 3 on the year. They have a lot of great players but they just can't seem to put it all together consistently, but this last game might be the motivation they need to turn the season around.
Brach Thomaslacher - Yellowknife Wraiths
Thomaslacher has started to make his presence felt on the field for Yellowknife. 39 tackles on the year, averaging about 10 per a game, an interception, a sack and two pass deflection on the season so far.
His first two games he had 9 tackles in each one. His last two games he has double digit tackles.
Week 5 was a down week for him. While only have 5 tackles Yellowknife managed to earn their second win of the season.
Yellowknife is 2- 3 on the season and much like Arizona, they can't seem to put anything together.
Busch Light - New Orleans Second Line
Is having an under the radar year but is very consistent.
In his second game which was a blowout loss to Honolulu he recorded 9 tackles 1 sack, 1 pass deflection and an interception returned for a touchdown. Every other game he has averaged about 5 tackles per game. He isn't super flashy, but being a consistent rookie will earn you more playing time. The more playing time you get the better you will be.
Juan Domine - Chicago Butchers
He leads all rookies with with 4 sacks on the year. He also has 5 pass deflections and an interception returned for a touchdown. Add on his 33 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss. He is having a very solid year for Chicago and he is making an impact all over the field.
He has had one sack in each of his last four games.
His breakout game came in Chicago's 27 - 17 defeat of Berlin. He recorded 8 tackles, one sack, 2 pass deflections and his interception returned for a touchdown which was Chicago's first touchdown of the game.
It seems the teams with the standout rookie defensive players are the ones struggling the most overall.
The teams with the best offensive rookies have benefited more than there defensive counterparts. Ramza and Howlett are definitely the best of the class on offense and at this point it isn't even close. Unfortunately for Howlett, Ramza being the quarterback of the best team which is an undefeated team gives him a leg up in the offensive rookie of the year voting. If Howlett ends the year as the ISFL leading receiver it's going to make it very hard for the voters, which at this point it seems very likely the Howlett will not slow down.
Defense it still a toss up but Crunk and Winchester are having very productive years. If Crunk keeps getting interceptions he is going to take the Defensive rookie of the year. Keep an eye on Juan Domine though. He has been very consistent his last four games and seems to be getting better and better. If he puts up over 10 sacks and keeps playing well in coverage for Chicago he is going to be right there with Crunk and Winchester.
Offensive rookie of the year rankings so far I'd vote Doug Howlett as rookie of the year simply because he hasn't had a bad game and doesn't have the strong supporting cast as Ramza does. If Ramza can string together a few strong performances without a dud then that would change my mind. I don't feel Ramza would be as good right now without Orange Countys amazing defense which as allowed a league low 87 points and scored a league high 4 touchdowns.
Defensive rookie of the year I would vote Tayshawn Crunk. His first game was an amazing game and I stated in my previous article that I would be shocked if anyone had a better game (Prince Vegeta did and I was shocked).
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