1965 NAAF Season Preview

1965 NAAF Season Preview

1965 Schedule
The 1965 season will have quite an interesting schedule. It will mark the first time every team will play every other team since 1956. That does mean that teams will only see one other team once and makes every game that much more valuable for tie-breakers come the end of the season. With an already competitive field, especially in the East, it is going to make for a fun season.

Pre-Season Power Rankings

1 - Buffalo Blue Wings
1964 Record: 8-4 (1st West)
1964 Result: Won McCallister Cup
After taking home the championship last season, Buffalo was fairly quiet during the offseason up until they made a blockbuster trade to acquire DL William Sanderson. Adding such a prolific piece to the team shows that Buffalo is not aiming to waste their championship window that is currently wide open. Buffalo has a strong roster throughout, however, their weaknesses could come in a lack of depth at some positions. The biggest concern may be the offensive line, as only 3 of the 7 guys on the roster have seen the field in the NAAF. It is going to be a big ask for the 4 rookies to step up and keep Buffalo in the hunt.

Captains
C - QB Charles Lemieux
A - DL Lonnie Vincent
A - DL Georgio Stephan

2 - Long Island Raiders
1964 Record: 7-5 (3rd East)
1964 Result: Lost McCallister Cup
The Raiders may have shocked a few people with their quick return to a championship contender last season. They return this year with what is still one of the best defences in the league, which helped lift the team a lot last season. They also have many weapons and an upgraded O-line that should keep the offence trucking behind RB Dareion Fields. The main question for the Raiders will be if QB Stanley Troyer can maintain his strong play from last season and keep the Raiders in the hunt for the cup.

Captains
C - DL Vernon Spears
A - RB Dareion Fields
A - OL Elliot Winterbottom

3 - Montreal Rouge
1964 Record: 8-3-1 (1st East)
1964 Result: Lost East Division Final
The high-flying Rouge offence will be at the centre of the team’s success this season. QB Gene Bishop will still have all his weapons with WR Derek Cross, WR Taylor Karis, and TE Eli Grant, while adding on a 2nd year WR Yahui Sun to take on a bigger role this season. RB Scott Mallard-White will also be front and centre in the offence to keep the ball moving on the ground. Defensively, Montreal is not a team to sleep on with S Garet deVale leading the way, but they did lose key pieces on the D-line which may make things a little tougher for the squad. 

Captains
C - DB Quentin Xavier
A - LB Sam Fitzroy
A - RB Scott Mallard-White

4 - Boston Independents
1964 Record: 7-4-1 (2nd East)
1964 Result: Lost East Division Semi-Final
Boston continues to find themselves in the conversation for a title, but they never seem to be the front runners. A lot of that has to do with the question marks in the WR core. WR Evan Clanton is listed as the team's new #1 WR heading into the season with WR Alexei Dubois sliding in beside him. The two youngsters certainly have experience, but they will have to face the pressure of being able to replace WR Ellis Lindholm. Boston should still be in it to win every single week, especially if their defence continues to make improvements and create some problems for their opponents. 

Captains
C - LB Brent Harper
A - QB Nathaniel Braddock
A - OL Graham Chambers*

5 - London Tigers
1964 Record: 6-6 (4th West)
1964 Result: Missed Playoffs
London was unfortunately just short of making the playoffs last season, which was certainly frustrating for the defending champs at the time. Going into this season, they are looking to jump right back into the top of the league. They do get a boost on the defence with LB George Yokoi coming over from Louisville. The big question could be with the run game for the Tigers as the younger RB Austin Andrews might be taking over the starting spot over veteran and alternate captain RB Clifford Russell. 

Captains
C - QB Riley Kiernan
A - DB Jackson Miles
A - RB Clifford Russell

6 - Providence Gold Stars
1964 Record: 5-7 (4th East)
1964 Result: Missed Playoffs
The Gold Stars may have quietly found themselves back in a fairly competitive spot. The addition of OL Joseph Samberg through the draft might be the best move the team made all offseason. Having a more stable O-line should be able to open up the offence for QB Connor O’Rourke to make things happen. Not to mention the defence lead by DB Neville Falkner could easily create plenty of havoc throughout the season. They still have minor concerns, but the Gold Stars may be a lot more stable than many thought. 

Captains
C - QB Connor O’Rourke
A - DL Calias McDonough
A - DB Neville Falkner

7 - Louisville Thunder
1964 Record: 7-5 (3rd West)
1964 Result: Lost West Division Final
Louisville, on the other hand, took a step in the wrong direction this offseason. The large amounts spent on veteran WRs did not pan out last season, and the trade to grab a younger WR Lloyd Lane in the draft may leave their defence being a lot weaker than they hoped. The questions for Louisville start with that very WR core that has not been able to truly create consistent offence and end with their front 7 that certainly will be hoping the secondary can pick up the slack. Louisville still has a lot of skill, but they are going to likely have an uphill battle to deal with this season. 

Captains
C - QB Leonidas Dumont
A - LB Scotty Williams
A - S Johnny Berger

8 - Toronto Steelheads
1964 Record: 7-5 (2nd West)
1964 Result: Lost West Division Semi-Final
Toronto made a strong push for the playoffs last season, but they certainly are going to start to feel some of the age that the team has this season, especially in the defence. Their top two LBs are 33 (Daniel Carpenter) and 34 (Rusty McVee), their top DL are also both 34 (Chester Avery) and 31 (Lawrence Armstrong), and their S Daniel Perry is 33. Their offence is a little younger so they may be able to pick up the slack, but the aging defence may be what holds them back this season. 

Captains
C - QB Todd Baker
A - LB Daniel Carpenter
A - S Daniel Perry

9 - Halifax Mariners
1964 Record: 3-9 (5th East)
1964 Result: Missed Playoffs
The Mariners are looking like they could be primed to finally make a jump from rebuilding to playoff contender. The youth behind DL Wayne Baxton, S Jay Shepard, and RB Ronald O’Sullivan all look to be ready to take the next step this season. The main concern coming from the team as a whole will likely be at the QB position. QB Michael Benedict will be the starter out of the gate and there is hope that he will finally settle in without the pressure of competing with QB Buck Murphy for the starting job. However, he has still been unable to prove that he can be the true consistent starter, which may be the one thing holding the Mariners back if he doesn’t get his footing.

Captains
C - OL Ward Briscoe
A - DB Joe Robinson
A - QB Michael Benedict*

10 - Ottawa Royals
1964 Record: 5-7 (4th East)
1964 Result: Missed Playoffs
The Royals are a rebuilding team, however, they certainly aren’t a team worth completely counting out. Strong coaching and good leadership may be able to help the team keep rolling. The big questions will be in the backfield both at QB and RB. QB Landon Ross is expected to be getting an opportunity this season, especially sharing a similar play style to QB Jean Matieau, who is taking over as offensive coordinator, however, QB Lee Rogers has also shown a lot of skill in training camp that may lead him to start week 1. As for the RB position, it will likely be a split carries situation with RB Corbyn Knight and RB Wally Morton, who have both shown promise throughout the game.  

Captains
C - DL Olaf Viktorsson*
A - S Randall Green*
A - WR Marshall Leonard*

11 - Pittsburgh Blacksmiths
1964 Record: -
1964 Result: -
Pittsburgh will certainly be a huge question rolling into the season since they are a completely new team. RB Stavros Black will be rolling in as the team’s leader and will likely be the main weapon on offence. However, the centre of attention during the team’s camp is their QB battle. QB Buck Murphy and QB Mike Key were the main two QBs duelling for the starting job. QB Magnus Torrensen also made a statement and some were wondering if he may sneak into the battle. In the end, the team has decided to roll with QB Buck Murphy as the QB showed the most talent out of the gate. 

Captains
C - RB Starvos Black*
A - DL Sammy Pickett*
A - OL Wally McRose*

12 - Indiana Victors
1964 Record: 2-10 (5th West)
1964 Result: Missed Playoffs
While Indiana likely is not the worst team as a whole, however, trading your franchise player isn’t going give you a lot of confidence going into the season. Indiana will be hoping that the other pieces can make up for the move on defence. Once again, there is a QB battle to see in Indiana. The team’s future lies in QB Tom Applewhite, and they are expected to give him the reins to start the season. QB Lyle Painter is not exactly happy about the decision seeing as he had signed his 2-year deal to be the starter, but it looks like the Victors’ plans have changed.

Captains
C - DB Kelly Kirkland*
A - TE Emmanuel Hines
A - LB Terrence Patton*

Wallflowers’ Predictions

WEST
BUF 9-3 -y
LDN 7-5 -x
LOU 5-7
IND 4-8
TOR 4-8
PIT 2-10

EAST
MTL 9-3 -y
BOS 9-3 -x
LI 8-4 -x
HFX 7-5 -xc
PRO 6-6
OTT 2-10

DSF
LDN over HFX
BOS over LI

DF
BUF over LDN
MTL over BOS

47TH MCC
BUF over MTL

I think Buffalo dominates the weaker West Division, while Montreal and Boston have the division be decided on their week 1 match which I have Montreal winning, which becomes the tiebreaker. The Mariners also come through and end up sneaking in with a crossover spot. 

The Tigers get hot late and get back to the WDF, while Boston ends the Raiders’ season early. Then both Buffalo and Montreal take wins at home to send themselves back to the McCallister Cup. Finally, I gotta take the Blue Wings in a repeat on home field for the cup.