AFL Spring Meetings 1954

The offseason meetings for the AFL take on some new scenery, joining in on the hustle and bustle of New York City. The 8 AFL owners and NEFL commissioner Robert McNamara were invited by acting NYPL president Peter Stuyvesant to the Warwick Hotel to finalize the merger between the AFL and NEFL, and potentially discuss a merger between the AFL and the NYPL. With some fanfare for introductions, the meetings quickly got underway.

THE MANHATTAN PLAN TAKES SHAPE
The AFL had been looking at potential options for expansion partners for Boston, even reaching out with prospective owners in Minneapolis, Omaha, Philadelphia, and St. Louis. But when the NYPL came knocking on the AFL’s door with the potential of a merger, Donovan Hasenkamp couldn’t say no to that opportunity. It would quickly become apparent that the New York Dutch Lions would be joining the AFL as its 10th team, and Hasenkamp made the move official on the first day of the meetings. Though the AFL wanted them to join Boston in 1956, they decided to move their joining date from the 1956 season to the 1955 season, primarily to compete with the ever-expanding PAFC. The AFL still had to deal with what to do with the rest of the NEFL, and now had the NYPL to figure out what to do with the remains as well, but decided to leave those for the second day of the meetings. What was more important now was the fact the PAFC was now attempting to compete with the AFL for national football supremacy. With the PAFC’s expansion plan now known, Hasenkamp decided that the AFL needed a plan for the future. The league decided that it would expand from 8 teams to 16 teams over the course of 5 years, beginning with Boston and New York in 1955 for the first part of a four-pronged expansion approach. The next most difficult part was finding the next 6 owners. Luckily, Hasenkamp already had a few owners already on the line already in talks to join the AFL, with two markets in particular that he wanted to scoop up immediately. Sylvester “Sy” Thompson was a member of the Philadelphia Federals owners group before the team got folded, and was looking for another way to get football back in the City of Brotherly Love. Thompson had formerly played in the American Association along with Hasenkamp,but has since become a very successful businessman. After his time in the AA, Thompson founded the one of the nation’s largest paper manufacturers and distributors, as well as having a large stake in the Philadelphia Pennies baseball team. Hasenkamp had called on Thompson as a potential expansion partner for Boston, and graciously accepted the bid to join in 1956. Joining Thompson is Arthur Dixon, a brewing magnate from St. Louis and die hard fan of the former St. Louis Arrows of the PAFC wanting to bring football back. While the Arrows lacked the capital needed to run a football team, Dixon owns a very successful brewery in St. Louis, as well as the St. Louis Brewers baseball team, having the resources to potentially run a successful football team. Like with Thompson, Dixon graciously accepted, and the AFL now had two additional prominent cities with promising backing to make it 12 teams. After spending nearly an additional week negotiating expansion fees with both prospective owners, the AFL announced that it would be officially expanding to Philadelphia and St. Louis for the 1956 season. After exhausting a lot of the league’s manpower to get two more teams in the league within another year, the league was done expanding, at least for now. Hasenkamp and the other owners almost unanimously agreed that if they wanted to completely surpass the PAFC in popularity, they would need to expand to markets that would benefit from a large media deal. While they did not say where they would be expanding to, they were open to discussions for potential markets, which were almost all out west. The league realized that the west was growing rapidly, as the National Baseball League is currently in talks to merge with the Pacific Professional League to create a massive 24 team league. The AFL wants to take a more calculated approach to expansion, which is why they are willing to wait to expand further than they are currently.

With the league meetings now going a week over schedule, the owners now had to finalize what to do with the remainder of the NEFL, which was to become the AFL’s farm league, and the NYPL. Acting NEFL president Robert McNamara had numerous locations to where the NEFL could either expand or relocate teams to, and now left it to the owners to decide what to do. With the NYPL already having limited assets, it was determined that the remainder of the league would be merged with the NEFL, and the Newark Tigers would be the sole team joining the league from the NYPL. The assets of the Brooklyn Kings and the Bronx Bulldogs would be redistributed among the other 10 teams in the league. However, parts of these assets would go to a new expansion team, as McNamara found an owner in Albany, NY to keep the league at an even 12 teams, one for each of the 12 teams in the AFL by 1956. The new team would be christened the Albany Titans, and will begin play on the campus of New York State for the 1954 season. In addition to adding one team, two existing NEFL teams would be relocated. The first, and most obvious, are the Boston Bards, who will vacate the campus of Armitage University for the grounds of Roosevelt University in Garden City, NY on Long Island. The team will begin play in 1955, named the Long Island Lancers, and will almost certainly be the affiliate of the AFL Boston team once they begin play in the same year. The other team is the reigning runners-up, the New London Captains. After not being able to pay Connecticut State to play at their stadium, the Captains owners were forced to sell the team, which was bought by investors from Rochester, NY, who would be resurrecting the Rochester Roosters for the 1954 season. With the expansion outside of the New England region and becoming a developmental league for the AFL, the NEFL was going to need a new name for itself. The newly-reorganized league, partially owned by the AFL, would be renamed to the Atlantic Semi-Professional Football League for the 1954 season. The 1954 season would be a transitional period of sorts, as the ASPFL will take its time to reshape itself from a mid-major league in the Northeast to the best developmental league in America.

The final plan, nicknamed the “Manhattan Plan” by the press, is as follows:
- The AFL will expand to 10 teams in 1955 with the addition of Boston and New York, and will expand to 12 teams in 1956 with the addition of Philadelphia and St. Louis
- The AFL will also look to expand to 16 teams by 1961, with the league beginning to look at bids from cities for future teams
- The NEFL will be reorganized into the Atlantic Semi-Professional Football League (ASPFL) for the 1954 season
- The remainder of the NYPL will be absorbed into the ASPFL, with the Newark Tigers joining the ASPFL, and the Brooklyn Kings and Bronx Bulldogs’ remaining players getting distributed among ASPFL teams.
- Two teams will relocate as part of the ASPFL reorganization: The Boston Bards will relocate onto Long Island to become the Long Island Lancers in 1955, and the New London Captains will relocate to Rochester, NY to become the second iteration of the Rochester Roosters for the 1954 season. One additional team will be created for the 1954 season, the Albany Titans, to bring the league to 12 teams

AFL TO INTRODUCE NEW UNIFORM, FACE MASKS
Most had thought that Chicago RB Brian Bruce had just broken his jaw in the week 3 matchup against the Detroit Knights, and should have been back in action for the West Play-off game. However, he was absent from the benches that day, and it was revealed that his injury was a lot worse than it appeared. His injury got severely infected, and Bruce nearly died because of it. Bruce made his first public appearance since the injury the week after the Hogs’ devastating playoff loss, and assured Chicago fans that he would be back on the field for the 1954 season.  The league will require all players to wear a facemask for the 1954, nicknamed the "Brian Bruce Rule" by the press, adding to the AFL’s innovativeness as a league. The uniforms teams wear will also be slightly different, removing the “cuffs” to make them easier to manufacture and to play in. These new uniforms will debut in the 1954 season.

NBC TO BROADCAST CHAMPIONSHIP GAME IN 1955
In order to reach as many people as possible, the AFL signed a massive $100,000 deal with NBC to broadcast the championship game in 1955, with the possibility of broadcasting future AFL championship games. NBC was attracting significantly more viewers and markets in their broadcasts of the “Big Five” of the Interprovincial Football Union, and expanding to a larger network is what the AFL is looking for after its relatively unsuccessful time with the DuMont Network. This comes as a surprise to the DuMont Network, whose broadcasting contract with the AFL ends after the 1954 season, but not as a surprise to anyone following their financials. The DuMont Network had been struggling since signing the deal in 1953, resulting in some broadcasts being shared between them and ABC. A potential merger between ABC and DuMont was in the works, with ABC giving DuMont around $5 million in cash to keep afloat for some time, allowing DuMont to purchase broadcasting rights for the AFL. DuMont’s struggles with broadcasting means that ABC will step in for several of the scheduled night games. ABC also decided to dabble further into the AFL broadcasting, signing deals with the Buffalo Hammers, Chicago Hogs, Cincinnati Rivermen, Pittsburgh Shamrocks, and Washington Federals to broadcast their games in certain regions throughout the country. The Hogs would be broadcasted in mostly Midwestern markets, the Rivermen and Federals would split the Southern markets, and the Hammers and Shamrocks would have their games broadcasted in eastern markets. The teams hoped that these games would expand the AFL’s presence throughout its current footprint to make it significantly more popular than the PAFC within the same region. ABC would rotate which of these games would instead be broadcasted nationally, which may bring the AFL even more popularity within the Midwest and Northeast, and delve into the potent Southern market.

C&C Appreciated!

Another intriguing spring meeting for the AFL! Especially with the Dutch Lions joining the league (much to the delight of this person born in New York)! I’ll also be looking forward to seeing what Philadelphia and St. Louis will be like identity wise.

On another note, does CBS televise football at all in this universe? Like, do they televise PAFC games, or does Bradshaw not believe in that sort of thing? Anyway, I can’t wait for the rest of the offseason!

1954 Design Changes
With new uniforms being supplied for teams to use, not many decided that it was time to undergo complete uniform resets. Two teams did decide to retouch their jerseys, one fairly minor and another fairly major. Cleveland aligned their sleeve stripes with their sock stripes, reducing the number of stripes down to 3 from 4 on the sleeves, while the rest of the set remained the same.

(Players shown: DB Nicholas Lamb (33) and QB Denzel Collingsworth (5))

While Cleveland barely made a change, Tri-Cities decided to go under a much more drastic change. The Hawks will now wear black pants at home and on the road instead of white at home and red on the road, as well as changing their socks color to red from black. Their uniforms also saw a decent amount of change, with drop shadow added to the numbers and the away uniform’s striping modified to be two black stripes flanking a single red stripe. The Hawks hope that the new uniforms spark a little inspiration in the floundering team, who has not had a winning season since their 1950 championship run.

(Players shown: DL Ralph Rogers (93) and WR John McLean (2))

All of the other new uniforms can be seen here on the AFL site.

C&C Appreciated!
 

1954 Draft Preview

AACA Top 20
1) Brooklyn College - 10-0
2) Los Angeles State - 10-0
3) Oklahoma - 10-0
4) Chicago Christian - 9-1
5) Navy - 8-2
6) Ohio - 9-1
7) Army - 8-2
8) Calvert - 7-2-1
9) Wisconsin State - 8-2
10) Arkansas - 8-2
11) Miami State - 8-2
12) Monongalia State- 9-1
13) Alabama A&M - 7-3
14) Buchanan - 7-2-1
15) Michigan - 7-3
16) Louisiana  - 7-2-1
17) University of Los Angeles - 7-3
18) Texas - 7-3
19) Delaware - 7-3
20) New York State- 7-3

AACA Bowls:
Tournament of Roses Bowl (Los Angeles, CA) - (1) Brooklyn College 33-13 (2) Los Angeles State
Palm Bowl (Miami, FL) - (8) Calvert 34-7 (11) Miami State
Magnolia Bowl (Houston, TX) - (3) Oklahoma 6-14 (9) Wisconsin State
Columbian Bowl (Chicago, IL) -  (4) Chicago Christian 21-0 (20) New York State
Gold Bowl (San Francisco, CA) - (6) Ohio 20-7 (17) ULA
Cigar Bowl (Tampa, FL) - (13) Alabama A&M 13-9 (18) Texas
Syrup Bowl (New Orleans, LA) - (14) Buchanan 19-21 (16) Louisiana
Sun Bowl (El Paso, TX) - (10) Arkansas 6-7 (12) Monongalia State
Orange Bowl (Orlando, FL) - (15) Michigan 7-19 (19) Delaware

AFL Top 20 Prospects:
1) QB Brendan Turnbull - Brooklyn College - Leroy Hannigan - Darknes
2) DL J.J. Worthington - Kentucky Commonwealth - Abigail Winters - Dr. Pepper
3) RB Jesse Brown - Brooklyn College - Abigail Winters - Dr. Pepper
4) WR Joey Stanikovski - Brooklyn College - Waldorf Florus - Wallflower
5) OL Andreas Van Alphen - Brooklyn College - Waldorf Florus - Wallflower
6) LB Edgar Abney - Ohio - Kellan Thomas-Pea - TheEnigmaticOne
7) OL Dave Gill - Connecticut - Sidney Boggs - DireBear
8) DL Benjamin Walkins Jr. - New York State - Johnny Armando - Stickman
9) S Aaron Enville - Calvert - Waldorf Florus - Wallflower
10) QB Mike Major - New York State - Isaac Martin - idm
11) DB Boogie Jones - Michigan - Jimmy Jones - Dan O’Mac
12) LB Russell Bauer - Cincinnati State - Sidney Boggs - DireBear
13) WR Ron Guy - Ohio - Bernard King - Kingsfan11
14) DB Bradán Clancy - Staten Island - Leroy Hannigan - Darknes
15) DB Alan Small - Delaware - Sidney Boggs - DireBear
16) WR Harvey King - Arkansas - Jimmy Jones - Dan O’Mac
17) QB Nathan Aldenberg - Wisconsin State - Waldorf Florus - Wallflower
18) DB Sean Hamby - Tennessee - Isaac Martin - idm
19) OL Marc Lyons - Connecticut - Sidney Boggs - DireBear
20) RB Greg Dixon - Fox River* - Isaac Martin - idm

The 1954 AACA college season was defined by 3 teams that took the national spotlight and claimed a piece of the national title: the Oklahoma Tornadoes, the Los Angeles State Bulldogs, and the Brooklyn College Terriers. Oklahoma had been carried by RB Lee Cannon for the third year in a row, and Cannon managed to finish third in Bernheim Trophy voting this year en route to a perfect 10-0 regular season. Cannon was supposed to join the AFL draft this year, but was lured away with a massive contract from the PAFC’s Baltimore Barons. Los Angeles State was supposed to regress after losing star QB Terry Kadlec last season, but only went further with new additions to the team that set them up to their second consecutive trip to the Roses Bowl. It would be only the third time the second team and the first team ranked in the polls would face each other, as the Bulldogs would have to play against the juggernaut that were the Brooklyn College Terriers. Led by the “Broadway Boys” on offense, the Terriers outscored their opponents by an average of 20 points. This included the Roses Bowl, where they dominated LA State 33-13 to capture the sole undefeated season, as Oklahoma was upset by 9th ranked Wisconsin State in the Magnolia Bowl 14-6. QB Nathan Aldenberg was a major reason why the Warriors triumphed over the Tornadoes, keeping a calm demeanor under pressure even with some inaccurate throws while being rushed. The Broadway Boys all managed to get top 5 in votes for the Bernheim, the first time this feat was accomplished in voting. QB Brendan Turnbull would narrowly win the vote, and there was no question as to why. Nicknamed “the Tyrant” by opposing players, he had absolute command over the offense and players around him, able to throw a precise dart or cannon shot down the sideline. His brash personality clashed with RB Jesse “Broadway” Brown, whose playstyle demanded that you keep your eyes on him, with immense raw talent and pure football skills. This bled into his personality, and he frequently butted heads with Turnbull as to how the offense should be run. However, he has gotten better at restraining his ego, as it was a lot worse when he first started on the team in his freshman year. The final member of this trio was more level-headed than the other two, but stylish playstyle nicknamed him “Styles” among teammates. WR Joey Stanikovski brought his amazing hands to the game, able to catch almost any pass thrown at him and make plays from those catches. The 8th-ranked Calvert Terriers, last year’s national champions, once again made the trip to Miami for the Palm Bowl, where they got revenge and crushed the hometown #11 Miami State Pirates 34-7 to win their first major bowl game in nearly a decade, helped by several hard-hitting stops from S Aaron Enville. After many predicted the Crusaders to not be ranked this year, Chicago Christian not only won the CAC but finished top 5 in the final poll. They didn’t have many great players this year, the only standouts being WR Harry Chilton and S Tyler Knight, but played great together as a unit to a 9-1 record. They welcomed the 20th ranked New York State Titans, who were led by gunslinging QB Mike Major and the explosive DL Benjamin Walkins, Jr. The Crusaders made a show out of the Titans, silencing them in a 21-0 shutout in the Columbian Bowl. The CAC runner-up Ohio nearly won the conference, but lost to Chicago Christian in the last week of the season on a critical mistake by QB Magomed Rasputin, who called a passing play on the three yard line and was tackled in the backfield, effectively ending the Buckeyes’ conference title hopes. Ohio took out its anger on 17th ranked ULA in the Gold Bowl, with LB Edgar Abney silencing the Aztecas for three forced fumbles and a TD in a 20-7 victory. Arkansas had finished runner-up to Oklahoma in the Red River Conference thanks to the speedy WR Harvey King, but was shut down by Monongalia State’s S Layton Crisp in the Sun Bowl, where the Vandals won their second straight bowl upset over a major team. The team they beat last year in the Syrup Bowl, Louisiana, returned to their hometown bowl game, narrowly beating Buchanan on a last-second touchdown. The real surprise this year was the Delaware University Gray Foxes, who came out of nowhere to win their first Mid-Atlantic Athletic Conference title, with DB Alan Small towering over receivers to break up passes thrown to them. They traveled to Orlando for the Orange Bowl against Michigan, now without head coach Martin Shaw. The Gray Foxes fought hard against the Beavers’ secondary, led by DB Boogie Jones, but outperformed the shutdown DB en route to a 19-7 upset. The Gold Bowl was the only other bowl that did not feature any future AFL talent, as the Alabama A&M Steelers edged out the Texas Roughrider 13-9 to secure their third straight bowl victory.

In what could be seen as an after-effect of the NYPL shutting its doors after this season, the AFL saw a numerous amount of eastern players either declaring for the draft or joining the league as free agents, with half of the top ranked prospects hailing from east of the Rust Belt. The top eastern prospects not already mentioned include Brooklyn College OL Andreas Van Alphen, who was the top defender for QB Brendan Turnbull, and Connecticut OL Dave Gill, an adaptable lineman able to play both the run and pass games well. The best player within the AFL’s “home region” of the Midwest not already mentioned is Kentucky Commonwealth DL John-James “J.J.” Worthington. Worthington was the sole reason why the Eagles’ defense was a competent one this season, with the mix of his no-nonsense leadership and his ability to overwhelm linemen with his sheer strength and tenacity. Teams will be looking between Worthington and NY State’s Benjamin Walkins for cornerstones on the defensive line. Other non-power school players within the top 20 include Cincinnati State LB Russell Bauer, a bruising linebacker known for his fiery attitude on and off the field, and Staten Island DB Bradán Clancy, a ballhawk back who gained local infamy for his exploits around New York. The only major player from the Lower Division is RB Greg Dixon from Fox River College, who broke through holes only he could see in the offensive line. He gained notoriety for another reason, his nickname of “Chicago Greg”. This was created by his teammates at Fox River, who used that to differentiate him from another Greg on the team, as Dixon had played in Chicago before transferring to Fox River after failing to make the roster at both Chicago schools (Chicago Christian and Rockefeller). He may have an interesting nickname, but he is unlikely to be a Billy Gould type and take the league by storm.

For teams looking for a QB, this draft has a few to look at. Brooklyn College’s Brendan Turnbull is seen as a potential franchise QB, where he is likely to fall no further than 5th to the first QB-needy team in the Hammers, provided no one else trades up to select him. After Turnbull, the QB position gets a little muddy. The other three options of Mike Major, Magomed Rasputin, and Nathan Aldenberg each could provide teams either solid starter or backup options. Major is the prototypical big arm type, Rasputin likes to run the ball when his options are limited, and Aldenberg prefers to stay in the pocket. After those 3, the only other option is Pittsburgh State’s Pete Mannix. The only thing Mannix has going for him is that he is a stopgap in the backup position, but will likely be a journeyman on either the practice squads or barely crack the starting roster.

Draft Picks/Needs:

1 - Detroit Knights:
Picks: 1, 9, 17, 25, 33, 38
Needs: RB WR DL LB DB

2 - Cleveland Crows:
Picks: 2, 10, 14, 16, 18, 23, 26, 34
Needs: RB WR DL LB DB

3 - Tri-Cities Hawks:
Picks: 11, 27, 35
Needs: RB OL DL LB

4 - Cincinnati Rivermen:
Picks: 3, 4, 12, 20, 28, 36
Needs: RB WR DL LB

5 - Buffalo Hammers:
Picks: 5, 13, 21, 29, 37
Needs: QB RB OL WR DL LB

6 - Chicago Hogs:
Picks: 6, 19, 22, 30
Needs: RB DL DB

7 - Pittsburgh Shamrocks
Picks: 7, 15, 31, 39
Needs: QB OL WR LB

8 - Washington Federals
Picks: 8, 24, 32, 40
Needs: QB OL WR DL LB DB

C&C Appreciated! Any draft predictions?

1954 AFL Draft

Round 1
1 - Detroit - RB Jesse Brown - Brooklyn College - Dr. Pepper
2 - Cleveland - WR Joey Stanikovski - Brooklyn College - Wallflower
3 - Cincinnati (from TRI) - DL J.J. Worthington - Kentucky Commonwealth - Dr. Pepper
4 - Cincinnati - LB Edgar Abney - Ohio - TheEnigmaticOne
5 - Buffalo - QB Brendan Turnbull - Brooklyn College - Darknes
6 - Chicago - DL Benjamin Walkins, Jr. - New York State - Stickman
7 - Pittsburgh - WR Ron Guy - Ohio - Kingsfan11
8 - Washington - LB Russel Bauer - Cincinnati State - DireBear

Before the draft, many had pegged Detroit to take either a RB or a WR with the first overall pick, and trading away RB Jeffery Spears during the offseason made their choice clear. The Knights selected RB Jesse Brown first overall, planning to pair him up with second-year QB Terry Kadlec to revitalize their offense. Brown showed off his immense raw talent while at Brooklyn College, being one of the fastest backs in recent memory and squeezing through holes made for him in the trenches. His attitude and known clashes with teammate Brendan Turnbull over how the offense should be run have come into question for most scouts, but Detroit believes they can coach his attitude down to be more manageable. Already with a quality QB and RB, Cleveland added to their young core by taking the only non-problematic member of the “Brooklyn Boys” with WR Joey Stanikovski. He made himself known in college as a player that could make almost any catch thrown at him. He’s able to make great plays if given the opportunity and slip through defenders if given space, but doesn’t have the speed or ability to shed off defenders. Regardless, he should make a great top option for the young QB Denzel Collingsworth. Cincinnati was going to trade away the #4 pick, but instead decided to take back-to-back with the 3rd and 4th selections, going with defense on both. They went with the top defensive option with DL JJ Worthington with the 3rd pick to improve their defensive line that needs significant improvement. Worthington is a great leader, making sure his entire team is working at 110%, while powering through offensive linemen with a steadfast attitude. Worthington should make a great addition on the line from day 1, as well as the Rivermen’s next pick in LB Edgar Abney. At 6’6”, Abney towers over the line to quickly read the offense and cause chaos once he gets past the line. His height does usually tip off what he is going to do on any given play, but he has pretty much every attribute of a starting linebacker and will slot in nicely as an #1 option. After Buffalo QB Don Melton retired this offseason, the Hammers needed a star QB, and Brendan Turnbull fell right into their laps. Able to throw both quick darts and massive shots down the sideline, Turnbull is the perfect pocket passer that Buffalo wants to develop into their definitive starter. He can be a bit of a nuisance with his temper, which he gained in college due to the command over the offense, but Buffalo hopes that his temper will be kept under check and his leadership skills excel to lead them to the championship. Chicago was hoping that Buffalo would pass on Turnbull for some reason, but instead went with their third option in DL Benjamin Walkins. Walkins blew linemen out of the water with his speed of the line and strength to knock them off their feet, and Chicago desperately needed depth on the line after retirements. While Walkins can come off as aggressive, the Hogs hope that he pairs well with young phenom DL Eric Forbes to form a defensive tandem that teams will fear for years. As Pittsburgh already had their QB of the future with O.J. DeMille, they bettered their receiving room by taking WR Ron Guy with the 7th pick. Originally a defensive back, Guy switched to receiver at Ohio at the behest of his coach, and excelled at that position throughout college. He didn’t play a full season until his senior year due to injuries, but he is ready to be a player in the fairly lackluster Shamrocks receiving room. With their offense already set up to win titles, the Federals went defensive for their first pick, selecting LB Russell Bauer with the 8th pick. Bauer was a fiery player in college, both in how he played and how he acted on the field. His sheer strength could put any player on their backs, and would frequently taunt players after crushing both their body and their mind. His antics did get him into trouble in games, serving a one-game suspension after taunting a player already down and instigating a brawl between Cincinnati State and the University of Cleveland. The Federals’ young winning culture should shape his antics into plays that they need to bring them more titles to the nation’s capital.


Round 2
9 - Detroit - DL Johnathan Bynum - Washington State - idm
10 - Cleveland  - OL Andreas van Alphen - Brooklyn College - Wallflower
11 - Tri-Cities - OL Dave Gill - Connecticut - DireBear
12 - Cincinnati - OL Marc Lyons - Connecticut - DireBear
13 - Buffalo - OL Jon Strickland - Lyons - DireBear
14 - Cleveland (from CHI) - LB Lloyd Motta - DireBear
15 - Pittsburgh - LB Butcher Callahan - Massachusetts State - Darknes
16 - Cleveland (from WAS) - S Aaron Enville - Calvert - Wallflower

After Detroit selected a defensive lineman with Johnathan Bynum with the 9th pick, a run on offensive linemen began, with 4 being taken in a row. Cleveland took the slipping Andreas van Alpen at 10, followed by Connecticut teammates Dave Gill and Marc Lyons to Tri-Cities and Cincinnati, respectively. Buffalo finished the run by selecting Jon Strickland from Lyons, located down the road in New Haven from Connecticut, located in Hartford. Each lineman has their own different specialties: van Alpen is more of a pass blocker, Gill is adaptable in both the running and passing game, Lyons focuses on his footwork, and Strickland has the best hands of the group. After the run, the rest of the round was all defensive, with Cleveland and Pittsburgh taking LB’s on back-to-back picks, and Cleveland made their third pick of the round by selecting S Aaron Enville for some depth behind aging backups in the secondary.

Round 3
17 - Detroit - DB Boogie Jones - Michigan - Dan O’Mac
18 - Cleveland - DL Rufus Fallon - Illinois - idm
19 - Chicago (from TRI) - QB Nathan Aldenburg - Wisconsin State - Wallflower
20 - Cincinnati - WR Harvey King - Arkansas - Dan O’Mac
21 - Buffalo - WR Harry Chilton - Chicago Christian - Wallflower
22 - Chicago - DL Ronnie Hatfield - Rockefeller - DireBear
23 - Cleveland (from PIT) - DB Bradán Clancy - Staten Island - Darknes
24 - Washington - DB Alan Small - Delaware - DireBear

After teams passed on offensive weapons in the second round in favor of other pieces, Chicago took a chance at pick 19 by selecting QB Nathan Aldenburg to potentially be the successor to Alfred Walton. Many argued that Mike Major should have been selected as the next QB, but the Hogs thought that Aldenburg’s playstyle most fitted their own offense. Aldenburg will sit his first season, but expect him in action for his second year once Walton retires next season. Buffalo and Cincinnati both selected WR’s to help with their relatively weak core for separate reasons. The Rivermen’s receiving game is still mainly focused on WR Alfred Dunn, while the Hammers needed a younger option to their aging core. Cincinnati took the speedy Harvey King to complement Dunn, and Buffalo took the reliable route runner Harry Chilton. Cleveland and Washington ended the round by strengthening their secondary, with the Crows taking the ballhawk DB Bradán Clancy and the Federals taking the towering DB Alan Small to help DB Johnthan Moon with man-to-man coverage.


Round 4
25 - Detroit - RB Troy Maxey - University of the Bronx - idm
26 - Cleveland - RB Greg Dixon - Fox River College* - idm
27 - Tri-Cities - WR John Smith - Illinois State - Dan O’Mac
28 - Cincinnati - RB Neal Earnhardt - Illinois - idm
29 - Buffalo - WR Curt Speedie - Montana Tech - DireBear
30 - Chicago - OL Orson Thurman - Miami State - Stickman
31 - Pittsburgh - OL Billy Coco - Chicago Christian - Dan O’Mac
32 - Washington - QB Magomed Rasputin - Ohio - TheEnigmaticOne

The 4th round consisted of only offensive players, the first time this has happened during the short history of the draft. Detroit, Cleveland, and Cincinnati each took running backs (Troy Maxey, Greg Dixon, and Neal Earnhardt, respectively) to improve their depth at that position. Tri-Cities and Buffalo selected wide receivers (John Smith and Curt Speedie) to potentially replace their aging receivers. Chicago and Pittsburgh strengthened their offensive lines with their selections of Orson Thurman and Billy Coco. Washington was the only team to make a unique selection at a position, taking QB Magomed Rasputin to improve their QB room behind Johnnie Sellers.

Round 5
33 - Detroit - QB Mike Major - New York State - idm
34 - Cleveland - DB Sean Hamby - Tennessee - idm
35 - Tri-Cities - OL Ronald Maroon - ULA - idm
36 - Cincinnati - DB Peter Palmieri - Manhattan State - idm
37 - Buffalo - DB Howard Hyde - New Hampshire State - DireBear
38 - Detroit (from CHI) - OL Pete McDonald - Coast Guard* - idm
39 - Pittsburgh - QB Freddie Hughes - New Jersey State - DireBear
40 - Washington - DB Kent Travis - Wyoming State - DireBear

Unlike last year, this year’s 5th round probably won’t have any starters from day 1. The only interesting option is the inclusion of New Jersey State QB Freddie Hughes at the penultimate pick, who was a late addition to the draft pool. He was going to commit to the PAFC, but realized he would be making more in the AFL and put his name in at the last possible second. He would end up getting drafted by the Shamrocks, and will be a decent addition to a QB room in flux after last year’s starter Clarence Stanley left for the PAFC. The Federals made the final selection this year, selecting DB Kent Travis from Wyoming State, the first ever player from Wyoming in the league.


Undrafted
TE Billy Phelps - Delaware - DireBear -> Chicago
DB Victor Wynn - Indianapolis State - idm -> Detroit
S Lance Sprint - Vermont - Wallflower -> Tri-Cities
S Tyler Knight - Chicago Christian - Dan O’Mac ->Buffalo
QB Pete Mannix - Pittsburgh State - idm -> Washington
P Alfred Smith - Central Michigan - idm -> Washington
K Duke Lake - Colorado State - idm -> Detroit
K Paul Chesterfield - Worcester State - idm -> Buffalo

C&C Appreciated! How did you think your team did? The season preview is up next!