Digging the new writeup! It's really fun to see what some of these guys are doing in college, and it really gives a lot of depth to the league. Excited to see what the draft brings!

I really like the addition of the college world. I don't think it needs anything more than you have now, and it fleshes out the world more, showing the spread/influence of the Hybrid Rules game. 

Thanks for the comments on the addition of the colleges, I have had a lot of fun with them so far and am excited to keep expanding the world.

1966 NAAF Draft

Round 1

1 - Pittsburgh Blacksmiths | QB Louis Vaughn | New England - Brooklyn, NY - DireBear
The Blacksmiths opened up the draft by taking who they hope will be their franchise QB, Louis Vaughn. Now, that statement has been said many times about a Pittsburgh-based team taking a QB early in a draft, and it did not work out the last few times for the Hammers of the ACFL. The fans will certainly be cautious to start believing that Vaughn will reach his potential. However, Vaughn has all the tools to find success at the next level, drawing a lot of comparisons to fellow #1 overall pick, Lyle Painter. He is smart, accurate, calm under pressure, and seems to be an overall great leader, which is a great foundation for a franchise gunslinger.

2 - Providence Gold Stars | LB Kurt Warlock | Rhode Island State - New London, CT - DireBear
It was one of the worse kept secrets that the Gold Stars were going to take Warlock with the second overall pick. Ever since the team hired Garrett Boone (the coach at Rhode Island State) as the new head coach, it became obvious that the coach wanted his defensive centrepiece. The good news is the LB looks like an absolute tank down the middle that could give the Gold Star defence a massive overhaul centred around him. He draws a lot of comparisons to LB Konrad Aust of the Independents as being a guy who loves to hit but can fly across the field and make plays in coverage. 

3 - Halifax Mariners | DL Bernard King | St-Laurent - Caribou, ME - Kingsfan11
The Mariners were the first team that no one knew what they were going to do. In the end, they surprised many by taking 8th ranked prospect, Bernard King. King is certainly not a bad pick. The quiet laid-back persona of King leaves him a little hidden, but once he gets on the field he will roll right through O-line’s like a bulldozer. The addition of King to an already strong D-line with Wayne Baxton and Pat Butler could be very dangerous.

4 - Ottawa Royals | DB Sergio Alvarez | Haynes - Hartford, CT - Dan O’Mac
The Royals were hoping to be able to get DL Bernard King since they lost DL Olaf Viktorsson to retirement but were surprised to see him go to Halifax before them. However, the consolation was getting the top DB in Sergio Alvarez which should create a strong secondary for the Royals for years to come. Alvarez was one of the best coverage DBs in college last season. His ability to stick to WRs in man coverage is at an elite level, and his speed and catching ability are strong enough to create even more problems for QBs in zone coverage. Alvarez joins fellow 4th overall pick, DB Jerome Caldwell, in the Royals' secondary that could be the foundation from something great in Ottawa. 

5 - Montreal Rouge | OL Elliot Barrett | New England - Albany, NY - ZO82
With the injury to QB Gene Bishop, the Rouge knew it would be important to bring on more protection for their QB. Barrett was hands down the best prospect on the line who made life really easy for QB Louis Vaughn at New England. He is one of the most athletic OL the league has seen in a while with speed and strength that makes him dynamic and adaptable on both run and pass blocking. Barrett still needs to clean up on some of the technical aspects, but good coaching should set him up for a long career.

6 - Indiana Victors (from Buffalo) | RB Reggie Whitehead | New England - Portland, ME - Stickman
The Victors have not had the most stable run-game since RB Rodney Clark left for Louisville in 1961. They hope to finally fix that by taking a big RB from New England. Whitehead is a big power-back that specializes in going through defenders instead of around them, much like more old-school backs like Joel Bonner and Laurent Brazeau. Whitehead should be a great partner to young QB Tom Applewhite as the face of the franchise for Indy.

7 - London Tigers | DB Bernard Wilkins | Western New York - Buffalo, NY - Wallflower
London did take a DB in Rob Risker last season, they still were desperate to bring some youth to the secondary. Wilkins’ strength is in man coverage and being able to stick to WRs. However, he is quite conservative as a defender. He looks to make the tackle or knock the ball away over jumping for an interception. Overall, he should be a solid player, but won’t necessarily be a game-changer.

TRADE ALERT
The first trade of the 1966 draft saw the Pittsburgh Blacksmiths make a jump back into the first round. They would send the 13th overall pick, DL Theo Conte, and a 3rd rounder from next year’s draft in exchange for the 8th pick, RB Cody Barnes, and DL Khalid Al-Amin. 

The Victors were looking for some more veteran help on the D-line and would grab Conte for that role, and then they would send RB Cody Barnes to the Blacksmiths to make room for RB Reggie Whitehead. 

The Blacksmiths were excited to get another veteran in the backfield to add some more help for RB Stavros Black. They also add the former 3rd round pick in Al-Amin to help add more youth. 

8 - Pittsburgh Blacksmiths (from Indiana) | WR Taylor Austin | Louisville State* - Louisville, KY - ZO82
With the pick they got in the trade, the Blacksmiths would look to give their new QB a star WR. They would take the first non-hybrid conference player in WR Taylor Austin. Austin is a speedy WR who will certainly become a deep threat. His speed is electric and compares to other WRs like Samuel Floyd and Derek Cross. Austin could be an amazing weapon for the team with his speed that can be turned up with the ability for a running start at the line. 

9 - Boston Independents | WR Felix Fontaine | St-Laurent - Quebec City, QC - Darknes
The Independents have consistently been looking for a new weapon for QB Nathaniel Braddock. Last season, WR Evan Clanton had a solid season, but Fontaine could likely be a step up. There were concerns about the WR after fellow St.Laurent alum WR Alexei Dubois ended up being not quite what people expected. However, Fontaine looks to have a much different skill set. The WR has shown an immaculate ability to make something out of nothing. He led all of college in YAC yards and showed why on a 74-yard touchdown in the CEHC Championship that saw him break 3 separate tackles. Boston may finally have a game-changing weapon.

10 - Providence Gold Stars (from Toronto) | DB Perry Ferris | Rhode Island State - Provincetown, MA - ItDoesntMatter
Many thought the Gold Stars would grab QB Ivan Sanchez to be their future, but they decided to continue to pick out of Rhode Island State. HC Garrett Boone likes his boys and he added DB Perry Ferris to his new home in Providence. Ferris is usually the guy seeking the ball. He likes going for interceptions and finding ways to punch the ball out on players while trying to tackle them. His style does lend him to struggle in tackling and leave WRs open in attempting to go for interceptions. It’s a risky pick for the Stars, but it could work in the end.

11 - Louisville Thunder | LB Le'Darius Wynn | Western New York - Cheektowaga, NY - Enigmajones
With the retirement of LB Scotty Williams, the Thunder were desperate to fill the giant hole in the LB core so they would reach a little to take Wynn with their pick. Wynn is a strong tackler up the middle and should be able to be a sturdy starter for the long run. He does lack some of the pure skill that the top LBs will have, but he’s got a lot of room to grow.

12 - Long Island Raiders | OL Mason Fitzpatrick | New England - Boston, MA - ZO82
With the final pick of the first round, the Raiders decided to take a bit of a reach with OL Mason Fitzpatrick. They decided to pass over the two Toronto University OL’s to go for the New England product. Fitzpatrick has a few more risks, but they are hoping that UNE’s coaching staff can continue to bring forward great OL.

* = American Football School

Last edited by Wallflower (11/24/2021 12:48 am)

Enigmajones wrote:

Aye! First round pick can't be happier with that. Hopefully his bro Xerxes can make appearance late in the draft

Congrats! tho I will let you know that Xerxes is not in this year's class.

Enigmajones wrote:

Wallflower wrote:

Enigmajones wrote:

Aye! First round pick can't be happier with that. Hopefully his bro Xerxes can make appearance late in the draft

Congrats! tho I will let you know that Xerxes is not in this year's class.

 Got ya. Hopefully he can be a part of next season.Or maybe even another league? Not trying to overstep my bounds here.

All good, it's mainly that I have so many players I am trying to get through. I had used 64 out of 123 prospects I had waiting for this year's class. I was using several that were submitted back in May-June even (and I wanted to push those through more) so sometimes It's going to get backed up but eventually, they should get through unless I just decide to change or not use players. 

Last edited by Wallflower (11/22/2021 11:40 am)