Top Prospects In S9 Draft

With the S9 Entry draft coming up in just a few short weeks, we decided to ask the ECFL coaches who they thought the best of the best prospects coming into the draft were. We were able to get 12 coaches thoughts and opinions on who they thought were the top draftees this season. There is no shortage of talent coming into the draft this year, but when we combined all the lists together, these were the results.

10.  HB Rashaud Watson - TCU


Watson finished in voting with a total of 25 points across 6 total votes. His 16 touchdowns were good enough for 5th in the league and his 1480 rushing yards were put him in a solid 6th on the season. Unfortunately TCU rebranded this offseason and we were unable to reach their coach for a comment about what Watson meant to their team.


T8. QB Aaron Ike - Central Florida

Aaron Ike has been quite the spectacle to watch if you ever got the chance. Across his last two seasons he's thrown for over 7000 yards and rushed for over another 1000. A complete package that could burn you with either his feet or his arm. He finished with a total of 28 points in voting including one first place vote. Out of our 12 voters, only 4 had him on their ballots however.


T8. WR Ben Blazin - Tulane

Blazin finished 3rd this last season in receiving yards and 5th in receiving TD's. He was a huge part of the Tulane offense that won the National Championship game just a few short weeks ago. Averaging roughly 1000 yards a season for the last two seasons, he would likely be an immediate boost to any offense. Ben finished with a total of 28 points and was featured on 7 of the 12 ballots.


7. CB Adam Leach - Central Florida

With UCF and Virginia Tech, Leach amassed a total of 128 tackles in 2 seasons. He was also able to tack on 8 interceptions for 27 yards and 20 pass deflections. He finished in voting with a total of 33 points and had 2 first place votes. The two coaches who picked Leach as their top player coming into the draft were asked about their decision and had this to say.

"Leach is my top all around player in the draft. Though his stats don't jump out, that's what shows how good of a CB he is. Teams don't throw his way and when they do, they aren't completed at a high rate. He had 53 tackles and 11 were for loss. You don't get tackles if they don't catch the ball. His 5 INTs and 12 PDs are a testament to how little success teams had throwing his way. In my opinion he's a day 1 starter and will make any team in the USFA better."
- NDSU

"Career wise he was the most consistent player on the list. Two different schools same results. A lockdown corner who made you pay for throwing it his direction."
- Army


6. QB Zaire Augustus - Arkansas

In his first, and perhaps only, season playing without his star WR Anthony Stank who was selected 1st overall in last seasons draft. Zaire accumulated 4815 passing yards, which was good for 4th best in the league. Over the course of his 3 years as a QB for Cascade St and Arkansas he totaled almost 13,000 passing yards and 90 TD's. One thing that also stands out however are the 50 career interceptions he's thrown. Zaire Augustus finished with a total of 34 points, earning 2 first place votes and appearing on 5 different ballots. Coaches who voted him 1st had this to say.

"In a season where QBs were thought to have a down season, Augustus shined above the rest in dominant fashion. Back to back 1st team All Elite, offensive PotY in his senior season, conference champ on the #2 seed to finish the season. He's earned it, and I'd be hard pressed to understand someone taking that away from him."

- Wake Forest

"Just think he’s an all around player, and a great leader as a QB."

- ULL


5. DE Slug Stern - Fresno St

You have to wonder what happened to Slug Stern this season, who fell way short of the marks he had made in his junior year. Despite this however, he still managed to put up some respectable numbers with 10 total sacks on the year. A far cry from the 31 sacks he posted a year prior but that level of greatness is hard to maintain and it left an impression on coaches across the league. Stern finished with a total of 37 total points despite not earning a single first place vote



4. ILB Yogi Barr - Arizona St

With an astounding 136 tackles this last season it's not hard to see why coaches would vote him so highly. What's possibly even more impressive is that that was only the 3rd highest tackle total in the league. Nor is it his highest single season tackle total, his junior year he had 164 total tackles. Tack on 50 TFL's and 9 sacks and you've got a dominant linebacker akin to the likes of Arne Jakobsson or Dexter Jackson. Barr finished with a total of 50 points and 1 first place vote. That voter had this to say about Barr.

"He is a do it all player on the defensive side of the ball. Sideline to sideline tackler. Can rush the QB or defend the pass. Gives 110% and is usually the best player and hardest worker on the field every game."
- ASU


3. DE King Maximus - Appalachian St

Finishing 3rd in sacks this season, King Maximus has become somewhat of a specialist at getting to the QB. Already drawing comparisons to Andre Krimm or Shane Nox within the USFA. On top of his 39 career sacks, he's amassed 50 TFL's and 124 tackles. Maximus was able to garner a whopping 64 points, appeared on 7 total ballots and earned 2 first place votes. His top voters had this to say about him.

"Defense wins championships"
- UTSA

"It was a toss up between him and Barr both are dominant at their positions."
- App St


2. QB Tyler Detherage - Appalachian St

If Detherage wasn't on your radar before hand, he should be now. Last season he was 3rd in total yards with 5329. But that's not even his highest total which came in his junior year where he put up 5994 yards. Detherage can be a bit of a lose cannon though going almost 1 for 1 on the TD to INT ratio. While Detherage definitely has a ton of raw talent and skill, he'll need to hone that in to be a great QB in the USFA. Tyler finished just a hair above his teammate King Maximus with 65 total points. Appearing on a total of 9 of the 12 ballots he managed to gain 2 first place votes. We were regrettably not able to collect any comments from our two voters who placed Detherage first on their ballots.


Honorable Mentions

We had two players who finished with a first place vote but ultimately didn't make the top 10. It only seems fitting to give them a short shoutout here.


HB Daven Brewer - Appalachian St

"I feel he is deserving of the top spot because of the gameplay I saw the past 2 seasons from him as been dominant from a player of his position. One of the most dominant RBs I have saw in the ECFL."

- Northwestern

WR Jon Aldrezzy - Arizona St


"He's been a beast for Arizona State ever since I've been a part of the league never saw a day where he wasn't posting good numbers definitely a top prospect I see many teams in the USFA fighting for in the draft"

- TTU


Now for number 1

1. OLB Tank Falco Jr. - Tulane

Some of you may be wondering why there's a Jr. on his name now but it's because Tank Falco is currently playing for the Charlotte Royals and will be retiring at the end of the year so Jr. can come into the league. If he's anything like Tank Falco Sr. he'll be one heck of a player. With 220 tackles in the last 2 seasons as well as 64 TFL's and 19 sacks, Falco Jr. has already left a massive impression on the voters. He showed up in 11 of the 12 ballots for a total of 69 points, yet never once was a top pick on anyone's ballot.



It will now be up to the GM's of the USFA to look at these players and determine their value for themselves. They've all impressed at the college level but can that be translated to a pro career?