1968 Draft Preview

1967 College Hybrid Football Results

Ahead of the 1967 College season, there was a change in the America East Hybrid Conference. After back-to-back seasons of being unable to field a team, Hempstead University dropped out of the conference. To take their place, Upstate University, based out of Albany, would move from the Atlantic Coast Athletic Conference to the AEHC. Upstate has stronger relationships with Haynes, Western New York, and Vermont Republic in comparison to the ACAC schools, so it made sense for them to make the shift over. 

Canada East Hybrid Conference
WEST
(1) Hamilton Howlers
(5) Toronto Dukes
Rideau Rams
St. George Maples
London Foresters
Kitchener-Waterloo Provincial Beavers

EAST
(6) Majeure Montreal Insulaires
(9) St-Laurent Cavaliers de Riviere
(10) Montreal Provincial Panthers
Nova Scotia Armada
New Brunswick Pirates
Mont-Bellevue Geais Bleus

CEHC Playoffs
WF (1) UHAM 34-21 (5) TORU
EF (6) MMTL 14-17 (9) ST-L

CEHC Championship
(1) UHAM 40-10 (9) ST-L

America East Hybrid Conference
(2) Western New York Whitetails
(3) New England Cardinals
(4) Rhode Island State Bulldogs
(7) Haynes Colonials
(8) Maine State Acadians
Cambridge of Boston Cubs
Upstate Bluebirds
West Mass State Rangers
Concord-Manchester Fighting Pike
Vermont Republic Mountaineers
Erie Sailors
WNY-Rochester Eagles

AEHC Playoffs
(2) WNY 24-13 (7) HAY
(3) UNE 20-17 (4) RISU

AEHC Championship
(2) WNY 24-21 (3) UNE

Hybrid Football Championship
(1) UHAM 30-20 (2) WNY

1968 Draft Preview
The University of Hamilton Howlers dominated this College Hybrid Football season. They claimed their second straight Hybrid championship in a more dominating fashion than last season. They were led by 2 bright stars in LB Judge Barrett and QB Drake Young. Barrett is the perfect leader for the defence. He is extremely intelligent, knowing all the rules and plays by heart. That knowledge he uses to gain any advantage he can, even some that are a little on the edge of the rules. Regardless, he has immense talent and will make for an important piece to any defence. As for Drake Young, some are saying this is the next big QB coming into the NAAF. Young has played extremely well over the past two seasons, leading UHamilton to the back-to-back titles. He’s got all the things you want skill-wise, but there appears to be that extra edge to his game, especially in crucial moments where he can make something out of nothing. Young also appears to be as humble as they come, often giving his teammates credit before himself. Young will certainly be a tempting player for a few teams this draft. Hamilton also has some other talents in Judge Barrett’s cousin OL Ty Barrett, and one of Young’s favourite targets in WR Jake Aberdezzi.

While Judge Barrett looks to be a great defensive acquisition, it was DL Arthur Bradshaw, who had a standout season with Western New York, that topped the Gains Report. He set a new school record for sacks in a season, en route to the team’s first Hybrid Football Championship appearance. Bradshaw is a threat on the line and should not be on the board for long, especially with the demand at the position. Western New York’s season was also helped by good play from S Jarrett Sutherland, whose loud style of play often set the tone for many games this season. Offensively the school also had a great season from WR Jessie Lambert, the younger brother of Blue Wings LB Randall Lambert, and a breakout year from RB Shannon West. West is a grinding back that can just pound the rock down the field. There are some concerns about his health due to his style of play. However, West isn’t worried, “I’m the best there is, nothing stops Shannon West,” he says.

New England had a down season this year, but the school still has a couple of solid prospects in OL Kane Warwick and DB Lamar Brown. Warwick is easily the best OL prospect in the draft. While he isn't the biggest OL, he keeps fighting and improving with every snap and it's clear he's got a high ceiling. They did have a strong season out of RB Neil Bradley who could make an impact at the next level. Unlike Shannon West, he isn’t able to pound the rock, having a lot of runs be stopped at the line, but if he gets out of the backfield he can create problems for teams with his agility. He also never fumbled the ball at all during his senior year, earning him the nickname “Lobster” for his claw-like grip. There was one other RB in Jasper Dickerson who led the Dukes to a solid season, being the main focus on offence throughout the year. He’s got explosiveness and a bit more strength than Bradley has which makes him a more complete back compared to the others. 

Rhode Island State has some interesting prospects in OL Alan Farquharson and LB Daniel Timothy. Former RISU, and current Providence Head Coach, Garrett Boone, raved about Timothy, from recruiting him to the school in one of his last seasons. Timothy played well for both the school's football team and baseball team, his batting ability had led him to get drafted into baseball out of high school, but decided to continue with college. He was quiet on the football field at first, but he put more time into football in his last couple of seasons which showed on the field boosting the 2-sport athlete to the top of the Gains Report. There is some concern with Timothy potentially jumping to baseball instead of the NAAF, however, due to focusing on football, his baseball abilities have dwindled pretty much shutting the door on a long-term professional baseball career.

The last player to mention out of the top 10 is WR Sterling Underhill, who had a very strong season for the Haynes Colonials despite having an inexperienced QB this season. He often made catches that were not accurate at all and used his smarts to make things easier on his QB. It is those small things that make Underhill stand out player. 

Now outside of the potential franchise-changing QB of Drake Young, there really isn’t anything to look for in this season’s draft at the position. The next best-ranked QB is Mac Ennis. Ennis took over for last year’s 1st round QB David Simmons at Cambridge of Boston. Ennis jumped up the rankings late after a strong 3-touchdown performance against 3rd ranked New England, however, most of his other games were forgettable.

Some may put QB Daryl Plum above Ennis, as he is much more consistent, leading the Upstate Bluebirds to a respectable season while adjusting to the new rule set. The main reason Ennis is put ahead of Plum is that he showed an ability to improvise, a few times this season. Either way, Ennis seems to have some unlocked talent.

The lowest-ranked is a Division 2 QB in Emmitt Jackson. There’s not much on him, but he’s coming all the way from Virginia and set several school records including the most rushing yards in a game for the school as a QB. However, many take that with a grain of salt being from a Division 2 school.

Overall a lot of talented defenders early on with some nice offensive pieces that could make a difference for several teams. 

The Gains Report’s Top 25
1 - DL Arthur Bradshaw - Western New York - Brad Cumberland - DireBear
2 - LB Judge Barrett - UHamilton - Sterling Brantley - Darknes
3 - LB Daniel Timothy - Rhode Island State - George Stefanakis - Dan O’Mac
4 - QB Drake Young - UHamilton - Barry Williams - ZO82
5 - OL Kane Warwick - New England - Sterling Brantley - Darknes
6 - WR Jake Aberdezzi - UHamilton - Timmy Bjarnathan - NoE38
7 - WR Sterling Underhill - Haynes - Kenneth Jones - Enigmajones
8 - S Jarrett Sutherland - Western New York - Vincent Desjardins - Kingsfan11
9 - OL Alan Farquharson - Rhode Island State - George Stefanakis - Dan O’Mac
10 - RB Shannon West - Western New York - George Stefanakis - Dan O’Mac
11 - OL Doyle MacInnis - Haynes - George Stefanakis - Dan O’Mac
12 - DB Lamar Brown - New England - Vincent Desjardins - Kingsfan11
13 - RB Jasper Dickerson - Toronto - Vincent Desjardins - Kingsfan11
14 - DL Mo Kahn - Maine State - Johnny Armando - Stickman
15 - DB Zed McLaughlin - Nova Scotia - Ivan di Marco - idm
16 - OL Ty Barrett - UHamilton - Sterling Brantley - Darknes
17 - DB Oswald Murray - Louisville State* - Jayson Hawkins - Jayhawk
18 - OL Shane Willis - Toronto - Travis Ronnigen - Edgeworth
19 - WR Jessie Lambert - Western New York - Brad Cumberland - DireBear
20 - OL Kash Wilder - Louisville State* - Barry Williams - ZO82
21 - RB Neil Bradley - New England - Timmy Bjarnathan - NoE38
22 - TE Luiss de Brands - Rideau - Timmy Bjarnathan - NoE38
23 - OL Bobby Shields - West Mass State - Brad Cumberland - DireBear
24 - DL Alan Frankjovic - Toronto - Barry Williams - ZO82
25 - DB Carl Odebell - Indiana Tech* - James Herr-O'Nark - JamHeronArk
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27 - TE Sid Sydney - UHamilton - Wally Flowers - Wallflower
34 - OL Geno Aranda - King’s* - Vlad Valasiuk - vladee
44 - QB Mac Ennis - Cambridge of Boston - George Stefanakis - Dan O’Mac
47 - QB Daryl Plum - Upstate* - Brad Cumberland - DireBear
50 - LB Donte Chino - St.Paul* - Roger Roy - Scratch
56 - S Bennett Drill - Concord-Manchester - Jimmy Yamamoto - QCS
67 - QB Emmitt Jackson - Petersburg College (DIVII) - Wally Flowers - Wallflower

Draft Order
1 - Toronto Steelheads - OL, LB, DL
2 - Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - DL, WR, OL, TE
3 - Ottawa Royals - QB, LB, DL
4 - Louisville Thunder (from Boston) - LB, DB, OL
5 - Halifax Mariners - OL, RB, LB
6 - Indiana Victors - WR, OL
7 - Montreal Rouge - DB, DL, LB
8 - London Tigers - DL, LB, WR, QB
9 - Louisville Thunder - LB, DB, OL
10 - Toronto Steelheads (from Providence) - OL, LB, DL
11 - Long Island Raiders - OL, DL, LB
12 - Buffalo Blue Wings - OL, RB, DB

Boston Independents - 1st Pick: 16th - RB, DL, OL
Providence Gold Stars - 1st Pick: 22nd - OL, WR, QB