XFAlpha Podcast Notes - Episode 2

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On episode 2, Jonah and I discuss the pay structure of the XFL, followed by running our mouths about running backs. Since there's former Iowa great, Akrum Wadley, involved, I wax poetically about him while reminiscing of the days when he made fools of defensive players. Let's enjoy some gifs, shall we?

via Gfycat

via Gfycat

via Gfycat

Los Angeles Wildcats - Defensive End Corey Vereen quitting because he didn’t want to make $50,000 for 10 weeks of work. 27000 pay with 1700 for every game, so there’s another 17,000, and they get 2200 for every win. If they win three games, he’s at 50K. 

1. Houston Roughnecks
1. Kyle Hicks was an okay back for TCU.
2. Andre Williams was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy at Boston College after rushing for 2000 yards before getting drafted in the fourth round by the New York Giants and then ran for 700 yards and 7 touchdowns his rookie year, but it seemed to go downhill from there, and now he’s looking for a second chance. He’s also been writing a philosophical memoir according to Wikipedia.
3. Nick Holley played running back, wide receiver, and quarterback for Kent State, none of them particularly well. 
4. AKRUM WADLEY HELL YEAH - Back-to-back 1000 yard years for Iowa. This guy has the moves. He’s not big but packs a good amount of power in a smaller frame. He makes fools look silly, and he immediately makes the Houston Rougnecks must-see TV.
5. Marquez Williams was a fullback at Miami who had a grand total of one yard in college.
2. Dallas Renegades
1. Cameron Artis-Payne - Fifth round pick by the Panthers after a great senior year at Auburn. He did once score two touchdowns in a game against the Buccaneers, which means there are a lot of people who stupidly decided to add him to their fantasy teams and never got any payoff for it.
2. Lance Dunbar is basically the best player in North Texas history and actually did a nice job as a receiving back for the Cowboys from 2014-2016. I think he can carve out a nice role in this league.
3. Dimitri Flowers - Oklahoma fullback who was a bit of a threat catching balls out of the backfield.
4. Darnell Holland was a Kennesaw State running back.
5. Marquis Young is a sleeper for this league as he generated a bit of buzz leading up to the NFL Draft, because the guy just found a way to get yardage and looked good during the East-West Shrine Game week. I think he was underrated since he played for UMass, but he does everything well, and I think he could take over from some of the more high profile names in Dallas. 
3. DC Defenders
1. Jhurell Pressley is a guy who was on the fringes of the NFL after a career in New Mexico He led the AAF in rushing, but then started pissing hot and is facing a two-game suspension if he ever makes an NFL roster. I do not think the drug testing will be too stringent in this league. I think he’s got the juice to be an impact player.
2. Donnell Pumphrey - Ran for over 2000 yards during his senior year at San Diego State and had over 6,000 yards in his college career. Ran a decent 40 at the combine, but didn’t show off any other great feats of athleticism, especially for an undersized back. He was selected in the fourth round but that lack of athleticism caught up with him as he just never showed anything for the Eagles. With his size and athleticism, he needs to do everything well in order to make an impact.
3. Khalid Abdullah - Productive at James Madison
4. John Thomas - Penn State backup
5. Ryan Yurachek - Marshall Tight End trying to be a fullback.
4. Los Angeles Wildcats
1. Elijah Hood got cut after three hours on the Panthers. Big bruiser out of North Carolina. He put together a strong college career but fell off a bit from his sophomore to his junior year before going out for the draft and being a seventh round pick by the Raiders. I could actually see him put something together.
2. Larry Rose tore it up for New Mexico State.
3. Martez Carter is known as Mr. Excitement for his time at Grambling State. 
4. Winston Dimel - Kansas State fullback. His Sophomore year he had 92 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns. He transferred to UTEP his Senior year and had negative 3 yards. 
5. Nico Evans - Good back for Wyoming last year, so at least he’s fresh to playing competitive football.
5. St. Louis Battlehawks 
1. Christine Michael - 2nd round pick by the Seahawks in 2013 out of Texas A&M. He was never really that productive in college as he never had a thousand yard season, but outside of the 40, he lit the combine in fire as he was basically amazing in every other event. Apparently, it takes more to be a great back than just athleticism, and although he couldn’t find the hole in the NFL, I think he can find a role in the XFL. 
2. Matt Jones was a third rounder in the 2015 draft for the Washington Redskins. He got some opportunity his rookie year, wasn’t good with it as he only averaged 3.4 yards per carry, and then wasn’t good enough to beat out Robert Kelley for the Redskins. He’s similar to Michael in that he never produced a thousand yard season in college, but the opposite of Michael as he did not test out well at all at the combine. Why did the Redskins select him that high? Because they are the Redskins.
3. Sherman Badie - Tulane RB
4. Ray Lawry - Tore it up for Old Dominion
5. Lenard Tillery - Southern University, tore it up.
6. Tampa Vipers 
1. De’Veon Smith wasn’t very good at Michigan, and then put up one of the worst combine performances in history. It’s tough for me to get excited here.
2. Quinton Flowers is the greatest offensive player in South Florida history. He was a stud at quarterback and ran for 3600 yards over his final three seasons. Can he play running back? No idea, but he’s a hometown hero, so might as well give it a shot.
3. DJ May was more of a linebacker than running back at Wyoming.
4. Jacques Patrick played behind Dalvin Cook, then it was Cam Akers, not the best luck for him.
5. Ralph Webb is the pride of Vanderbilt and ran for two touchdowns and two 2-point conversions in a single preseason game.
7. Seattle Dragons
1. Trey Williams averaged six yards per carry with the Colts in his one shot in the NFL. Now, that was on two carries, so you could say that it was a small sample size, but I could also say that his numbers might improve off of that small sample size as well. He showed some decent athletic traits at the combine in 2015, so he might be a guy to keep an eye on.
2. Kenneth Farrow - Solid back out of Houston. Finished with six more yards than Trent Richardson in the Alliance. Was the lead back over Trey Williams for San Antonio.
3. Lavon Coleman - Backup running back for Washington. 
4. Ja’Quan Gardner - Humboldt State product that finished eighth in rushing in the Alliance.
8. New York Guardians
1. With New York Real Estate being so expensive, it’s a no-brainer pick to get Tim Cook on the Guardians. I don’t think Cook will be all that valuable on the field, but if all he requires is a few snaps a game to pump that Apple money into this team, then I think it’s worth it. 30 carries for Oregon State.
2. Justin Stockton - Texas Tech running back.
3. Darius Victor - From Ivory Coast and had a couple nice years for Towson.
4. Tommy Bohanon - Fullback out of Wake Forest. Played in the NFL for a few years for the Jets and Jaguars. Not sure if I trust a fullback from Cape Coral, that city lacks grit.
5. Matthew Colburn - Another Wake Forest running back.
6. Lawrence Pittman ran for 75 yards in the CFL, got to 82 in the Alliance.

Are The Iowa Hawkeyes Any Good At Football In 2017?

The Iowa Hawkeye football team sits at 4-3. That is not good. It's not terrible, but it's not wowing anybody. Sometimes they look pretty good, yet other times they look pretty bad. So it's time to dig in and figure out if this team is any good.

Offense
Quarterback
Overall, I would say the quarterback position has been a pleasant surprise. Is Nate Stanley good? Eh, I wouldn't go that far, but he is competent, and considering that this is his first real experience, that's a pretty good start. His biggest issue is the deep ball, which has caused my dog much grief as she gets scared when I scream profanities at my television, but even those are getting better. He's not a world beater, but I don't think much more can really be expected from the guy.

Running Back
Akrum Wadley is a super good running back who is badly misused as a bellcow back that is trying to run between the tackles. The outside zone is where he makes his money, as he can stretch a play out, make a hard cut and get up field. Grinding between the tackles, especially with nine guys charging through the line is not a recipe for success. The backup running backs have all looked good as well. It's one of those situations where the guys have played well, but they haven't always been put in a  position to succeed.

Receivers
I'm going to group the wide receivers and tight ends together here. The tight ends have been the stars of the show as both Noah Fant and TJ Hockenson have played very well this year. Yes, there have been some drops, but these are the guys who are finding ways to get open consistently, and I'd like to see more designed plays for both of them.

As for the actual Wide Receivers, I don't think anyone can be anything but ecstatic over the performance of Nick Easley. There were rumors that he looked good in practice, but the fact that he has risen to be Stanley's go-to receiver is pretty incredible. He hasn't been perfect, but let's not get nitpicky. Matt VandeBerg has been fine. I feel like he's still ramping up, and the chemistry that he had with Beathard has not been repeated with Stanley. He's still shown flashes, and I do expect him to play a larger role during the final handful of games. Outside of that, nobody has really stepped up. ISM had his moments, but Brandon Smith has not. Is there anyone else really worth mentioning? These guys are performing well, but Iowa flat out doesn't have a talented enough receiving corps for them to have a big time pass game. That is why teams can continue to stack the box to stop the run, as none of these receivers, nor the quarterback throwing to them are really terrifying.

Offensive Line
Since expectations were fairly low for every position but running back, the offensive line is probably the most disappointing unit from the first half. A major factor in that is injuries. Losing Cole Croston for the year really put a wrench in Iowa's plans, and I'm not sure if Boone Myers has been completely healthy all year long. I think they have done a good job in pass protection as Nate Stanley has had a decent pocket most of the time. The big issue has been the running game where Iowa has not found any way to create consistent holes.

Defense
Defensive Line
The best of Iowa's three defensive units. This is the one area where Iowa has almost too much depth as I constantly want more AJ Epensesa, but like, Parker Hesse is pretty good too. Nelson & Nelson have both been solid on the line, and Bazata continues to be very important without having many flash plays. I was expecting a little more impact from Cedric Lattimore, but this is where we get nitpicky. Iowa has so many guys who flash special traits, but we still see everybody stuffed at the lines. I thought they would have more of an impact in the pass game, but Iowa style dictates that they stay their lane as opposed to always trying to make impact plays.

Linebackers
The linebackers are exactly who we thought they were. Josey Jewell is Iowa's best defender, and my only complaint with him is that he got injured and had to miss a game. Ben Niemann and Bo Bower have both been good, although I am going to be slightly terrified when Ohio State spreads out the field and makes them play in space. Iowa fans had high hopes going into the season, and I think the linebackers have lived up to those expectations.

Secondary
Josh Jackson is probably the most pleasant surprise of any Hawkeye this season, even more than Nick Easley. He has been running amok in the secondary, and he is close to getting crunk ON the field, something only Jovon Johnson and Desmond King have officially done as Iowa players. I think hopes were a little too high for Manny Rugamba, since it was almost entirely based on the single play of him yanking a ball away from a Michigan receiver for an interception. Ojemudia has been solid, but he was more thought of as a third cornerback going into the year, who got bumped up to number two due to Rugamba being hurt.

As for the safeties. Holy shit, Brandon Snyder. I know he is already hurt again, which, uh, yeah, he did just tear his ACL six months ago, but man, when he was in, I felt so much better about the Iowa secondary. Also, Amani Hooker is learning on the fly, but you can already see the improvement. Poor Miles Taylor and Jake Gervase. Together they could make a good safety, but Taylor's instincts just aren't there, and Gervase's athleticism just isn't there. But when Iowa's safeties are healthy, there isn't a huge weakness in this defense.

Coaching Staff
Soooooooooooooooooooooo the coaching staff. Let's start out by saying that Phil Parker has put his defense in a position to succeed, so he's fairly clean on all of this. My only issue is that Iowa has A TON of defensive line talent, but too often on pass plays, we just see four  or more guys charging into offensive linemen without a real plan to get to the quarterback. That really bothers me, but again, it's really tough to give any fault to the defense.

Which brings us to the offense. The good news is that it is better to watch this year than last year. They throw the ball in the middle of the field which is the most hallelujah thing I can imagine after the Greg Davis era. Unfortunately, although the receivers are doing their best, their just isn't enough talent to really depend on them to get open for big plays. This is causing an issue as teams are definitely keying in on the run and blowing up Akrum Wadley before he has a chance to make anything happen. I'd like to see Iowa send some non-wide receivers deep. Get Fant going deep, or put Wadley in the slot and send him deep. Worst case scenario is they protect against Wadley and that opens up a little space for Toren Young. But nobody's going to stop stacking the box until Iowa makes them pay for it.

Before last week's game, Iowa has consistently struggled in the first half, and then put things together in the second half. The good news is that Iowa has been good at halftime adjustments. The bad news is the game planning during the week has not been getting the job done. Iowa moved the ball well to start off last week's game, so hopefully that continues against Minnesota, and I don't know, maybe Iowa will play two good halves of football on offense. It could happen, right?

Luck
You will notice that I didn't bring up Kirk Ferentz in the section above. That's because he more belongs in this section. Because, really, what this Iowa season has come down to so far is just luck. Despite all of the issues they have had, it's not like Iowa is that far off from being 7-0. If Amani Hooker tips the ball against Penn State, if Iowa flips the turnover situation against Michigan State, if Iowa scores early on drives where they dominated to start the game, Iowa is 7-0, and they look just as good as the team that went to the Rose Bowl.

But although they got a bit of luck in the Iowa State game, the ball has not been bouncing their way this season, and that is one of the biggest factors in this season seeming more disappointing than it really is. Overall, the team is playing well, but it's Iowa; they're never going to blow the roof off the place. They're going to fight; they're going to grind. Sometimes they'll have amazing wins, but they are also going to have maddening losses.

So is Iowa any good this year? Yes, they are somewhere between "not very" and "quite" good this year. If their luck continues, it'll be closer to the former, but if it reverses, it might end up closer to the latter. Either way: In Kirk We Trust