XFALpha Podcast Notes - Episode 5

This is part two of Jonah's special interview with former Vikings Punter, Chris Kluwe where there is more of a focus on Kluwe's post-football life. I'm not on this episode at all, but I definitely told Jonah to ask him if a punter's flexibility helps him with the ladies. Just hearing the nervousness of Jonah as he really didn't want to offend Kluwe makes this one worth a listen. Below are the links:

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iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/xfalpha/id1488879567

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KqGIlGiXh68RpL0uEHTBu

Reach out to us at the following places:

Email: xfalphapod@gmail.com 

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XFAlpha Podcast Notes - Episode 4

This week was by far the biggest episode in our short history, and we likely won't top it anytime soon. Jonah spent nearly an hour and a half with Chris Kluwe, former Minnesota Vikings Punter, and current renaissance man. This week we have the nuts and bolts of football life, and next week we talk more about his interesting personal life. Since we were talking with Kluwe, it seemed a good time to break down special teams players, and my notes on all of those guys are below. 

DOWNLOAD HERE:

iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/xfalpha/id1488879567

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6KqGIlGiXh68RpL0uEHTBu

Reach out to us at the following places:

Email: xfalphapod@gmail.com 

Twitter:  @XFAlphaPod

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/XFAlphapod/?ref=py_c

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/xfalpha/

1. Los Angeles Wildcats
1. Long Snapper Ryan Navarro - Oregon State long snapper.
2. Kicker Nick Novak - Maryland kicker who hit less than 75% of his attempts in college. He’s bounced around the NFL, but is now 38 years old, including three stints with the Chargers, but that just means that the Nate Kaeding Curse is triple on him. He’s an avid backgammon player. 
3. Punter Colton Schmidt - UC Davis Punter and played five years for the Bills where he averaged over 44 yards per punt and was in the NFL last year. I think he may be the best special teamer out there. 
2. St. Louis Battlehawks
1. Punter Jack Fox - A punter out of Rice that was unable to make the Chiefs roster this year. Averaged over 43 yards per punt in college and a very impressive 45.4 his senior year. He also ran for five yards and threw a 17-yard completion. His name means Sly Masturbator.
2. Kicker Elliott Fry - Only 75% accurate at South Carolina but hit all but one extra point attempt. He was the final cut in the Bears kicker job, not sure if that’s impressive or an indictment on his abilities. 1 solo tackle his senior year, and he is the most accurate kicker in AAF history, going 14-14 on his attempts. 
3. Long Snapper John Wirtel - Once recovered a fumble while at Kansas. 
3. Houston Roughnecks
1. Punter Austin Rehkow - I know Jonah’s going to wax poetically about Rehkow, so my big question is how does a man miss so many extra points? He missed five of those college chip shots in his career. And how did he hold onto his job after failing to make 60% of his field goals in his first two years? He did hit over 85% his last two years. Good punting average. 
2. Long Snapper Colton Taylor - Has some trick shot snaps. 
4. Tampa Vipers
1. Kicker Matthew Wright - Hit 85% of his field goal attempts his senior year, but only 77% accurate through his career at UCF. Had two tackles, one of which was a solo tackle.
2. Long Snapper Nick Moore - Former minor league baseball player who was good enough to be one of the long snappers selected to the Senior Bowl last year. Already 27 years old. 
3. Kicker Andrew Franks - He’s a Biomedical Engineer that attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Hit nearly 80% of his field goal attempts over two years with the Dolphins but has been out of the league for three years now. 
4. Punter Jake Schum - Started his career at Buffalo State, tried to join the nWo, aka Buffalo, but was denied by the Buffalo Bulls. Then, he walked on, and they wouldn’t let him punt and made him a wide receiver. After a year of that, he had finally gone through his hazing and became the punter. Somehow, he took his college average of 38 yards per punt, which is pretty bad and became the Buccaneers punter where he averaged nearly 42 yards per punt, and then got over 43 yards in 2016 with the Packers. STEROIDS??????
5. Dallas Renegades
1. Punter Drew Galitz - Averaged 42 yards per punt during his career at Baylor. 
2. Long Snapper Colin Holba - Sixth round pick by the Steelers after a snappy career at Louisville. Also of note, he was his high school’s valedictorian. He didn’t make the Steelers but was picked up by the Jaguars when their snapper got injured, and the same thing happened with the 49ers so he actually played two games during the 2019 season, which likely makes him the only player in the XFL that played in the current NFL season.
3. Kicker Austin MacGinnis - Kentucky Kicker who hit just under 80% of his field goal attempts in college. He did make 3 solo tackles his senior year and in his junior year, he even had a reception. It was for negative ten yards, so I’m guessing that isn’t how that play was drawn up. 
6. Seattle Dragons
1. Long Snapper Noah Borden - After failing as a linebacker, he became a linebacker for Hawaii. 
2. Kicker Greg Joseph - FAU Kicker who is part of Jonah’s chosen people. Of course, those people killed my lord, so I believe his success will determine what is the one true religion. He didn’t even hit 70% of his kicks in college so not a great sign for his future success. 
3. Punter Brock Miller - Southern Utah Punter who is only 5’11” which seems fairly short for a punter. That is why I’ll be rooting for him.
7. DC Defenders
1. Punter Hunter Niswander - Three-year starter at Northwestern where only made one tackle but finally made it up to 43 yards per punt in his senior year. Fun fact, his first name rhymes with Punter. 
8. New York Guardians
1. Long Snapper Scott Daly - He almost made the Cowboys after a career at Notre Dame. 

2017 NFL Draft Breakdown: Idaho Vandals Punter AND Kicker Austin Rehkow

(A post from Lukewarm Jonah)

I’ve been waiting to write this article for over a year.  There is a college player entering this year’s draft who can change the NFL forever.  There is a player who should be drafted and if not will definitely be signed as a free agent who can play two positions in the NFL, therefore saving a roster spot.  That player is Austin Rehkow, Idaho Vandals punter and kicker.  

Rehkow is the best punter in this years draft, but he’s also been the Vandals kicker for four years and kicked a 67 yarder in high school.  The value of having an extra roster spot truly is incredibly valuable, and Rehkow could be the first player in the modern era to play two positions in the NFL.  More than likely, Rehkow will simply be one of the best punters in the NFL, booming 60 yard punts with hangtime, but what if?  

What if a team takes a chance and lets him be their kicker as well?  They can keep an extra offensive lineman, an extra wide receiver or running back.  Some player they don’t want to try and sneak through to the practice squad can stay on the active roster.  Anyways, I guess I should just talk about how great Rehkow has been.  

Over four years of punting he has a 45.9 yard average, he’s been great at pinning the opposing team deep in their territory and out of bounds with no chance for a return.  I’ve also seen him punt over 60 yards with 6 seconds of hangtime more times than I can count.  He’s a special punter, but he’s also a very good kicker as well.  He went 26 for 29 with a long of 50 yards this past year.  As I stated, in high school he kicked a 67 yard field goal so he’s got plenty of leg strength.  He needs to go to the Minnesota Vikings and take over double duty so that they can have another offensive lineman on the roster for when the first 20 get hurt again.
Draft Austin Rehkow or have him haunt you for the next 15 years.

Scouting The 2014 NFL Draft: Chicago Bears Selection Pat O'Donnell

Now is the time for the most exciting of all the Bears draft picks, sixth rounder Pat O'Donnell. The man who is a game changer anytime he gets on the field. Before we get into him, here is a list of the guys I have already looked at from the Bears draft.

Round One - Kyle Fuller - CB - Virginia Tech
Round Two - Ego Ferguson - DT - LSU
Round Three - Will Sutton - DT - Arizona State
Round Four - Ka'Deem Carey - Arizona
Round Four - Brock Vereen - Minnesota
Round Six - David Fales - San Jose State

As I said, Pat O'Donnell is a game changer. There is nobody who makes big plays as consistently as this guy does. If he's only getting a 40 yard play, you can bet that he's going into the red zone with it. Also, he's not some glory boy who is all about touchdowns. In fact, he actively avoids the end zone, as it "isn't his thing." A lot of prospects in the draft are seen as boom-or-bust guys. Well, this guy is definitely a boom, as every time he touches the ball, that is what shortly follows.

Obviously, you want to see the highlights. Well, that's kind of an issue. Since he is not a glory boy, nobody cared to make highlights of all of his greatest moments. Still, this minute long tribute video does a nice job of showing the highest of his highlights. It will definitely leave you wanting more.

When you watch video of this guy, you won't be surprised that he was asked to star in the remake of NBC's hit show, "Hang Time." I was unable to confirm whether they were going to make a parody cop comedy starring him and former Bears offensive coordinator, Ron Turner entitled, "Turner and Pooch."

What the Bears acquired here is the Tom Brady of this draft, except he isn't going to wait to take the starting gig.
Teams cursing themselves for not taking him? Check.
Pro Bowls every year? For sure.
Super Bowl Championships? Definitely.
Coitus with Super Models? Oh, yeah.

So, yeah, I definitely approve of this pick. Great job, Bears. And Pat, we're happy to have you on our side.