Post by DiamondThief on Sept 10, 2021 8:11:50 GMT -8
This is the third season we have presented these awards and we do so to honor the top players, head coach and game of the year in the Indoor Football league. Several nominees are considered and we aim to bring what we feel are the at the top of the respective categories.
This year, we have expanded the Golden Helmet Awards. For the first time, we will present an award to the Most Valuable Player which is symbolic of what a player meant to his team and its season. Our former Offensive Player of the Year Award has evolved as well. Given that indoor football is a quarterback-centered league, we have decided to split this honor into two forms; Quarterback of the Year and Offensive Specialist of the Year.
Individual performances were abound all season long and in several games in particular. As we put together our 2021 Golden Helmet Awards, five members of the Sports Coast to Coast (SCtoC) staff voted in nine categories to determine the top performers of the season. Each category consists of four finalists. In the event of a tie (we had one), the tiebreaker came down to the votes of the three lead SCtoC staff who cover the IFL to determine a single honoree. Several nominees had noteworthy seasons and moments and should be honored for those. We have attempted to encapsulate both the individual performances and how they came to be honored here on our pages.
That said, the following are the Sports Coast to Coast 2021 Golden Helmet Awards.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
Nate Davis, QB, Duke City Gladiators
Nate Davis (Photo courtesy KRQE)
This was a close vote between Davis and Drew Powell of the Arizona Rattlers. Davis got the nod by leading the IFL with 85 touchdown passes and 2,901 passes through the air during the regular season. He completed 232 of 362 passes (64 percent) and tossed just 10 interceptions. Davis also rushed for 207 yards and eight scores. The Gladiators finished 7-7 and in fifth place of the IFL standings (7-4 versus teams not named the Sugar Skulls). He also led the Gladiators to a payoff win in the first round over the Iowa Barnstormers. He won IFL Offensive Player of the Week honors for weeks 5, 11, 14 and 18.
QUARTERBACK OF THE YEAR
Drew Powell, QB, Arizona Rattlers
Drew Powell (SCtoC photo by Gary Royall)
Powell and the Gladiators' Nate Davis were up for this honor as well. In a sport where a dual-threat quarterback is nearly essential, Powell proved to be the best in the business. He led the league with a 69 percent completion percentage (178 of 256) for 1,834 yards, 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also rushed 150 times for 1,000 yards with 35 trips to the end zone. Powell led the Rattlers to a 12-2 record and first seed in the playoffs and, eventually, to their third United Bowl in four years. Powell was named IFL Offensive Player of the Week for weeks 7, 15 and in the first round of the playoffs.
OFFENSIVE SPECIALIST OF THE YEAR
Dello Davis, WR, Duke City Gladiators
Dello Davis (Photo courtesy KOB4)
Some of it comes from talent and some from being on the receiving end of passes from the IFL's top passer. Davis was outstanding for the Gladiators' offense this season, leading the league with 75 receptions for 975 yards and 31 touchdowns. Davis also saw time as a kick returner, accumulating 745 yards off 47 returns and a pair of touchdowns. You couldn't watch a Gladiators name without seeing his effort all over the field. Dello Davis led a talented group of receivers who helped the offense to score a league-high 52.6 points per game. He was the only unanimous honoree among SCtoC voters in these categories.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Charles Williams, DL, Frisco Fighters
Charles Williams (Photo courtesy Frisco Fighters)
Frisco allowed the second-fewest yards per game (180.9) and third-fewest points per game (36.7) in the league this season, and Williams was a big part of that. The former Sioux Falls Storm defensive lineman led the IFL with 12 sacks and 18 tackles for loss. He added 55 tackles to the statline, as well as three forced fumbles and three blocked kicks. Frisco as a defensive unit led the IFL with 26 sacks. Williams had signed with the Ottawa Redblacks of the Canadian Football league for the 2020 season, but that season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Sawyer Petre, K, Spokane Shock
Sawyer Petre (Photo by Dan Pelle/Spokane Spokesman/Review)
Petre was clutch on his extra point attempts and went 15 of 26 on field goals which, by indoor football standards is excellent. Throw in a few deuces and the former Arizona Rattler had himself quite a season. It was an up-and-down season for the Shock as a whole, but they did manage to end the season at 6-6 with a playoff berth. Petre was particularly strong in the Shock's 63-57 loss to the Massachusetts Pirates on July 31 (see below). He hit all six of his point after attempts, along with a successful onside kick and a deuce to tie the game up and send it to overtime. Petre was named IFL Special Teams Player of the week for weeks 10 and 15.
OFFENSIVE AND SPECIAL TEAMS ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Laquvionte Gonzalez, WR/KR, Massachusetts Pirates
Laquvionte Gonzalez (Photo by Steve Lanava/Worcester Telegram & Gazette)
Markedly, this is a dual award for both offense and special teams. Gonzalez made his original mark with Massachusetts as a kick returner, but moved into the offense a few games. He eventually became a starter and key cog for the United Bowl bound Pirates. He was a human highlight reel in both areas. He hauled in 35 passes for 364 yards and nine touchdowns, and even rushed for a pair of scores. Gonzalez returned 45 kickoffs for 957 yards (a 21.3-yard average) along with three touchdowns. His 102.9 all-purpose yards per game were the fourth in the IFL. Gonzalez earned IFL Special Teams Player of the week honors in weeks 13 and 18.
DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Zuril Hendrick, DB, Bismarck Bucks
Zuril Hendrick (Photo courtesy goifl.com)
When the Bucks defense made a big play, Hendrick was probably part of it. He spent the majority of the season chasing the ball and which ever opponent was carrying it. The Rochester, New York native who played for Edinboro University recorded 55 total tackles (4.6 per game), intercepted three passes and defended 22 passes. He also was third in the IFL with 19 pass break ups. Hendrick also returned 16 kickoffs for 313 yards (21.3 average) and a touchdown. Hendrick was a major player in a Bucks defense which finished 7-8 in the regular season and made the postseason after they finished just 2-12 in 2019.
GAME OF THE YEAR
July 31 - Massachusetts Pirates 63, Spokane Shock (H) 57 - 2OT
Shock WR Kamrin Solomon and Pirates DB Santos Ramirez
(Photo by Colin Mulvany/Spokane Spokesman-Review)
Massachusetts, looking to avenge its week 5 home loss to Spokane, jumped out to a 24-3 lead early in the second quarter and opened it up to 50-27 with 6:35 to go in the fourth. The Shock weren't done. A pair of touchdowns from Keyvan Rudd put the Shock down by just a 50-42 margin. Shock kicker Sawyer Petre executed a perfect onside kick which was recovered by Marquis Osbborne. They drove down and scored on a one-yard run from Marcus McDade, but failed to convert the two-point conversion for the tie. Enter Petre who, on the kickoff, nailed the deuce to tie the game with nine seconds left. The game went into overtime with each team adding seven points to their tally and sending it into a second overtime. After the Pirates' defense forced and recovered McDade's fumble and Pirates quarterback ran in for a 10-yard touchdown to clinch the win for Massachusetts.
HEAD COACH OF THE YEAR
Patrick Pass, Massachusetts Pirates
Patrick Pass (Photo courtesy masspiratesfootball.com)
Massachusetts began their season with a 3-3 record with two of those wins coming over the Louisville Xtreme, whose membership in the IFL was terminated by the league after five games. Pass and his staff put together the league's strongest defense and saw offensive progression with the likes of quarterback Alejandro Bennifield, and wide receivers Thomas Owens and Laquvionte Gonzalez. The Pirates reeled off eight straight victories to cap their first season in the IFL, including a signature early Sunday 24-point win over the Arizona Rattlers at home in week 13. He led them to a 11-3 regular season finish and the Pirates raced through their first two playoff opponents to earn a trip to the United Bowl. Pass, a former NFL running back, will be able to showcase the team he built and turned into a championship contender on Sunday, September 12 as the Pirates visit the Rattlers for the championship in the United Bowl.
___________________________________________________________
We at SCtoC would like to extend our congratulations to all of our 2021 Golden Helmet Award honorees, as well as all of those considered. We also would like to thank all the players, coaches, and individual team and league staffs for what turned out to be an exceptional and exciting IFL season. Our IFL Regular Season Schedule has all the scores from around the league this season, as well as links to the boxscore of each game and our original recaps of the majority of games this season.
Click for our 2019 IFL Golden Helmet Awards.
Click for our 2018 IFL Golden Helmet Awards.
- ANM
To share this post on social media, please go to the right side of the page (the top of the page on the mobile site) to the social media icons and choose which social media site(s) to share the thread. To comment on this thread and others on this forum, please login or register.
