| BREAKING NEWS |
BREAKING NEWS!!!BREAKING NEWS FROM THE IFL... According to sources, league founder and CEO Chris Chudada has announced that he will be stepping aside from the league for personal reasons. It is known that Mr. Chudada is keen on coaching and has been offered the chance to coach youth at the high school level. Furthermore, he reportedly feels that he has shepherded the league to a place where it can survive without his involvement. At this point, no official announcement has been made, but sources continue to report that Mr Chudada has decided to step away. Rumored to be in the mix to step in and assist IFL Commissioner Pete Narrai and co-owner Jordan Kopac is former IFL President of Football Ops Dan Greene. Greene is currently the coach of the West Bend Junkyard Dogs and heads up the IFL Hall-of-Fame Committee. Check back for more details or corrections as they become available... ***UPDATE*** It has been confirmed that Mr Narrai and Mr Kopac will be running the league in the interim as more help is sought... |
| IFL 2010 Season Preview |
| Thursday, 06 May 2010 20:46 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Week one - May 22 Spartans @ Mustangs. Panthers @ Venom. Blue Devils @ Monarchs. Crusaders @ Hitmen. Storm @ Gladiators. GOTW: Easy. Spartans at Madison. This rematch of last years overtime Iron Bowl Championship will be the first test for the Mustangs, and likely the best chances anyone has of stopping their 24 game winning streak before the playoffs. Mustangs prevail with sustained drives, while the Spartans offense continues to try to get on track. Week two - May 29 Blue Devils @ Mustangs. Venom @ Spartans. Panthers @ Hitmen. Monarchs @ Storm. Crusaders @ Junkyard Dogs. GOTW: Venom @ Spartans. This is the first real test for a team that is notoriously hard to gauge early in the season - the Venom. It could be a bounce back game for the Spartans, or it could dig a hole to 0-2 for them. Spartans hold on for a close win, boosting the O’s confidence. Week three - June 5 Mustangs @ Crusaders. Spartans @ Gladiators. Venom @ Junkyard Dogs. Monarchs @ Panthers. Blue Devils @ Storm. GOTW: Monarchs @ Panthers. Both teams will be looking for their first win and the shot to announce improvement over disappointing 2009 seasons. Greendale, which has made tremendous strides, will win a tough battle with late scores. Week four - June 12 Mustangs @ Gladiators. Junkyard Dogs @ Spartans. Storm @ Venom. Hitmen @ Blue Devils. Panthers @ Crusaders. GOTW: Hitmen @ Blue Devils. Hitmen have a week off leading into the match, but the Blue Devils will have tuned up with a game Milwaukee Storm team and will be clicking well. Blue Devils knock the Hitmen off their undefeated perch early in the season. Week five - June 19 Panthers @ Spartans. Venom @ Monarchs. Blue Devils @ Crusaders. Gladiators @ Hitmen. Junkyard Dogs @ Storm. GOTW: Junkyard Dogs @ Storm. The JYD’s follow up a HUGE win the week before with another big win in Milwaukee. Unfortunately for the Storm, the bye week couldn’t come soon enough. Week six - June 26 Mustangs @ Panthers. Monarchs @ Spartans. Crusaders @ Venom. Blue Devils @ Gladiators. Junkyard Dogs @ Hitmen. GOTW: Junkyard Dogs @ Hitmen. The Dogs will come in on a high horse, having knocked off four straight. But the Hitmen, always game for a battle, will find a way to stop the Hitmen attack and will exploit a smothering defense with discipline and a brutal, relentless attack. Week seven - July 10 Storm @ Mustangs. Hitmen @ Spartans. Venom @ Blue Devils. Gladiators @ Monarchs. Junkyard Dogs @ Panthers. GOTW: Gladiators @ Monarchs. Only one team can secure their first victory of the season this late in the year. With home field advantage, it will be the Monarchs. Rock County continues to struggle to get in gear. Week eight - July 17 Mustangs @ Hitmen. Spartans @ Blue Devils. Crusaders @ Gladiators. Storm @ Panthers. Monarchs @ Junkyard Dogs. GOTW: Spartans @ Blue Devils. Travelling south to take on the boys in blue, the Spartans will find a fast defense waiting in the long grass of Burlington, and riding a 5 game win streak, the Devils will hold on nicely to cement a playoff spot. Week nine - July 24 Junkyard Dogs @ Mustangs. Spartans @ Storm. Hitmen @ Venom. Gladiators @ Panthers. Crusaders @ Monarchs. GOTW: Hitmen @ Venom. This game is always a fun-fest. Milwaukee has had Muskego’s number the last few years in the regular season. This year, they get the Hitmen at home. Coming off back-to-back losses, the Hitmen will be looking for redemption. Unfortunately, with a week off to prepare, the Venom will be just too rested and too ready and will handle Muskego at home. Week ten - July 31 Mustangs @ Monarchs. Spartans @ Crusaders. Gladiators @ Venom. Junkyard Dogs @ Blue Devils. Hitmen @ Storm. GOTW: Hitmen @ Storm. In danger of finishing below .500, both teams will be clawing and scraping for every single yard. The Hitmen defense, however, will prove to be too much, holding a Storm team that is rapidly losing steam and falling apart at the seams. Week eleven - August 7 Venom @ Mustangs. Panthers @ Blue Devils. Hitmen @ Monarchs. Storm @ Crusaders. Gladiators @ Junkyard Dogs. GOTW: Venom @ Mustangs. A probable preview of the first round match-up in the playoffs, the Mustangs will wear their home jerseys (while we’re not sure whose jerseys Milwaukee will wear) and will put the finishing touches on another undefeated regular season.
Notes on individual teams: The Madison Mustangs didn’t just reload. They upped the talent quotient, adding depth at O-line, TE, DB, WR and QB to an already loaded squad. Head Coach Adam Smith touched on this recently, noting that “With some key additions, this could very well be the deepest team we’ve ever had.” Not good news for the rest of a league looking to stop a 24-game straight winning juggernaut. Also not good news for the rest of the IFL, the most powerful offense and stoutest defense have “installed some new schemes on both sides of the ball that will make [the Mustangs] more dangerous than ever.” The Junkyard Dogs brought in the freshest coaching staff, with some very high profile names, including Tom Karthausser, who coached the Franklin Outlaws to the Iron Bowl in their second season a few years back, and Dan Greene, who took the Spartans to the brink of the Championship last year. They also have a roster full of all-stars and big names in the IFL. The Blue Devils will continue to impress. Fielding one of the deepest squads in the league, Tom Hawkins has a plethora of talent at his fingertips with this squad. The Hitmen fall victim to a brutal schedule with a series of very tough opponents on the road. The Venom, likewise, are forced to play at Madison, Wauwatosa, West Bend and Burlington, and both squads will reflect that travel in their end of the year records. The Milwaukee Storm continue to be the great unknown, especially having lost quite a bit of last year’s offensive talent (from the Marauders) when Shannon King went to West Bend. Both Shorewood and Greendale will be improved this year, but not enough. Fond du Lac will continue to struggle, as other squads in the league learn to contain Fondy’s resiliency. Rock County will be the biggest disappointment unless Dan Roberts comes back under center. While Jeff Supernaw is a talented QB, it will take too long for the Gladiators offensive stylings to adapt, and by the time the Glads come around, it will be too late. |
Last week we drew significant praise, and a uber-truckload of ire, for our 2010 predictions of the NEFL’s season. (As an aside, this is a reminder to everyone who was ready with pitchforks: these are preseason predictions, and the power rankings will change weekly, so douse the torches, kennel the hounds and put the Smith & Wesson back in the case.) Besides, we’re sure you’re about to be surpassed in uproar, as we are about to set out to preview the IFL’s 2010 season, with a shocker or two along the way.
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