by Mick Morninghoff

LOWELL – The Massachusetts Pirates will travel to Texas this Saturday as two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference of the Indoor Football League will square off at the Comerica Center. The third place Pirates with a 6-3 record face the Frisco Fighters who are currently tied with Green Bay for the top spot in the division with a 7-2 record. Kickoff is set for 8:05 pm (eastern).

The Series: The Pirates own a four games to two advantage over the Frisco Fighters including a 43-22 victory in the semifinal round of the IFL playoffs that propelled Massachusetts to the league championship in 2021.

The Last Meeting: The Pirates posted their most impressive victory of the 2023 season in a 72-58 win over the Frisco Fighters at the DCU Center. The game featured 12 lead changes with the Pirates grabbing the lead for good with 10:46 remaining when quarterback Anthony Russo connected with wide receiver Thomas Owens with a seven-yard touchdown pass. Russo finished the game 12 of 16 for 201 yards with eight passing touchdowns and one interception. His eight passing touchdowns tied a single-game franchise record that was set by Sean Brackett on July 21, 2018 against the Carolina Cobras. Owens led Massachusetts with five receptions for 66 yards and three scores. Isaac Zico had four catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns while Darren Carrington had two receptions, both for touchdowns.

Running back Jimmie Robinson totaled 192 all-purpose yards with 11 carries for 69 yards and a score, one reception for a 20-yard touchdown and five kickoff returns for 103 yards. Pirates’ kicker Josh Gable established single-game records with five “deuces” and 16 kicking points.

Defensively, linebacker Calvin Bundage starred in his return to the Pirates leading the team with ten tackles along with a tackle for a loss and an interception that gave Massachusetts its first defensive stop of the game with 5:58 remaining. Defensive lineman Ezekiel Rose added nine tackles along with a half sack and a quarterback hurry. Defensive back Chris Ingram added an interception.

Frisco quarterback TJ Edwards was nine of 23 passing for 90 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also ran 14 times for 73 yards and four scores. Former Pirates’ running back Martez Carter led the Fighters with 134 yards on 16 carries with one touchdown.

The 72 points scored by the Pirates tied a single-game record that was set on April 28, 2018 in a victory at Lehigh Valley and established a record for points in a home game, eclipsing the 68 scored in a win over the Arizona Rattlers on July 18, 2021.

The Last Time Out: The Pirates defense held Tulsa scoreless in the fourth quarter and defeated the Oilers 23-22 at the Tsongas Center. In a game where Pirates wide receiver Thomas Owens pulled in his 250th career reception and quarterback Alejandro Bennifield notched his 40th rushing touchdown, it was kicker Calum Sutherland who booted a 24-yard field goal in his first-ever IFL game to give the Pirates the victory. Bennifield, who rushed 10 times for 27 yards and a score, and Jimmie Robinson, the IFL’s leading rusher scored touchdowns in the first half. Owens caught a two-point conversion pass in the first half, but the Pirates trailed 15-14 at the half.

Tulsa Quarterback Andre Sale who was 14 of 20 passing for 108 yards and two touchdowns, connected with Jonathan Nance from 17 yards out for a 22-14 lead with 10:48 to play in the third quarter. Those would be the Oilers final points of the game. The Pirates responded with a 10-play, 45-yard drive that was capped off by backup quarterback Quincy Patterson scoring on a one-yard run. The point after was no good, leaving the Pirates down by two.

That’s when the Massachusetts defense took over, stopping the Oilers on a fourth and five at midfield. The Pirates drove 18 yards in nine plays with Sutherland making a 24-yard field goal for the lead with 7:32 remaining.

On the Oilers next possession Pirates’ linebacker Calvin Bundage sacked Sale on second and goal from the eight which led to Michael Hall missing a 24-yard field goal with 56 seconds to play. Massachusetts could not run out the clock giving the Oilers one more chance, but on second and nine at the 16, Sale was intercepted by defensive back Cyrus Fagen to preserve the win for Massachusetts.

For the Pirates, Robinson ran 14 times for 58 yards and a score, caught three passes for 21 yards and returned three kicks for another 62 for a total of 141 all-purpose yards. Bennifled was 12 of 20 passing for 92 yards and his top target was Teo Redding with five receptions for 21 yards while Owens added four catches for 50. Jaiden Woodbey led the defense with five tackles with one for a loss. For Tulsa, Tre Harvey had three carries for two yards and a touchdown while Montero Dubose ran five times for 12 yards and caught six passes for 42 yards and a score.
The Pirates 23-22 win over Tulsa was the fewest points ever scored by the Pirates in a victory. The previous lowest number of points scored in a win was this season on March 23 at the Tsongas Center when Massachusetts defeated Jacksonville 26-21.

Last Sunday, The Fighters defeated the San Diego Strike Force 44-41 on the road. Frisco scored the first 17 points of the game and led 27-13 at halftime on the strength of three rushing touchdowns by quarterback Tripp Harrington. San Diego would outscore the Fighters 28-17 in the second half and took a 41-37 lead on Rudy Johnson’s second rushing touchdown of the game from two yards out with 18 seconds to play, but Lionell McConnell returned the kickoff 56 yards for a touchdown to give Frisco the victory.
Harrington finished the game 11 of 20 passing for 110 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions. He also ran 15 times for 63 yards and three scores. Running back Martez Carter had ten carries for 43 yards. Devon McCoy was the leading receiver with five receptions for 40 yards. Kicker Bryce Crawford added 13 points for the winners including three field goals with a long of 38 yards. Defensive back Kentrell Pierce led the defense with 9.5 tackles.

Team Stats (Includes IFL Rankings): The Pirates are scoring 39.6 points per game (13th) while allowing 36.6 which is second best in the IFL. The Offense gains 216.1 yards per contest (10th) and gives up the fewest yards per game in the league with 186.4.

As in years past, on paper, the game appears to be a run vs. pass match up. The Fighters’ running attack is the best in the league averaging 117.4 yards per game. The Pirates’ defense allows 61.9, which ranks fourth. The Pirates pass for 130.3 yards each game (11th) while Frisco is last in passing at 100.3. Defensively Massachusetts allows 124.6 yards per contest passing (3rd) while the Fighters are next to last yielding 175.3.

The Frisco offense is third in the league in scoring at 50.9 points per game while giving up 43.4 (7th). The Fighters average about one more yard per game than the Pirates at 217.8.

The Pirates have ten sacks (5th) while Frisco has six (11th). Frisco has more interceptions with ten (4th) to the Pirates seven (7th). The Fighters are second in the league with five forced fumbles and first in fumble recoveries with six. The Pirates are last in both of those departments with one each.

The Pirates’ defense allows the fewest first downs per game at 14.7, hold opponents to a third down conversion rate of 38.5 (3rd) and do even better on fourth down at 33.3 (3rd). The Frisco offense converts on third down 50.8 percent of the time (3rd) and at a 60.0 percent clip on fourth down (4th).

Players to Watch (Includes IFL Rankings): Pirates running back Jimmie Robinson leads the IFL with 432 rushing yards. He is number one in attempts with 105 and third with 54.0 yards per game. He has ten rushing touchdowns and gains 4.1 yards per carry.

Frisco’s Martez Carter (formerly of the Pirates) is ninth with 316 rushing yards. Carter is fourth, gaining 52.7 yards per game and 5.6 yards per attempt. He has eight rushing touchdowns.
Massachusetts quarterback Alejandro Bennifield ranks in several categories. He is 91 (6th) of 141 (7th) passing for 1,008 yards (7th). He completes 64.5 percent of his passes (9th and has 18 touchdowns (6th). Bennifield throws for 126.0 yards per game with an efficiency rating of 161.0.

The Fighters’ Tripp Harrington is 31 of 55 passing for 395 yards with five touchdowns. Harrington is a threat to run with 63 carries for 280 yards and 13 touchdowns. Reigning league MVP quarterback TJ Edwards of Frisco has missed the last three games due to injury. His numbers through six games are impressive as he still ranks in the top ten in rushing with 306 yards (10th), 19 touchdowns (T1st), and 51.0 yards per game (5th). As a passer his completion percentage is second at 69.9 percent and his efficiency rating is fifth at 174.4. Edwards is still the leading scorer in the league netting 19.7 points per game.

The receivers to watch are Teo Redding of the Pirates who has 33 receptions for 401 yards and eight touchdowns and Devon McCoy of Frisco who has 309 yards on 20 receptions and seven scores.
Two of the top kick returners will be on display Saturday. Jimmie Robinson of the Pirates has returned 25 kickoffs (6th) for 493 yards (3rd) with an average of 19.8 yards per return. Lionell McConnell of the Fighters is tied for the league lead with three returns for touchdowns. He has 19 returns (9th) for 439 yards (7th) with an average of 23.1 yards per return (5th).

On defense, the Pirates boast two of the top tacklers in the league. Calvin Bundage is fourth with 47 tackles. He is third in sacks with 4.5 and sixth with nine tackles for a loss. His 1.13 tackles for a loss per game ranks tenth. Guy Thomas has eight tackles for a loss in six games. His average of 1.33 per game is fifth in the IFL.

Massachusetts defensive back Eugene Ford has been on the IR but still is fourth with 11 passes defended, ninth in passes broken up with seven and fourth in interceptions with four. For the Fighters, Lionell McConnell is seventh in passes defended and tied for first with six interceptions. Teammate Ethan Caselberry is eighth in passes defended and fifth with nine passes broken up.

The Coaches: This is Rod Miller’s first season as Head Coach of the Massachusetts Pirates and he is the sixth Head Coach in the history of the franchise. He is also the Defensive Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach. He is 6-3 leading the Pirates.

Miller was the Defensive Coordinator for the Vegas Knight Hawks last season. His last stint as head coach was in Bismarck from 2019 through 2022 before the Bucks suspended operations. Miller was also a head coach in the China Arena Football League with the Qingdao Clipper. Prior to that, he led the Omaha Beef, the Trenton Steel and the Laredo Rattlesnakes.

Andre Coles is in his first full season as head coach of the Fighters. He started his coaching career with the York Capitols in 2016 as the head coach midway through the season and continuing in 2017. He later joined the Jacksonville Sharks in 2018 as the Offensive Coordinator. He arrived in Frisco in 2022, initially as an Offensive Assistant and Special Teams Coordinator before ascending to the head coaching role.

Coles played quarterback collegiately at Kutztown University before transitioning to the professional arena with the Reading Express in 2009. He also played for the Harrisburg Stampede, Johnston Generals, Abilene Bombers, the Amarillo Venom, and for two years with the York Capitols, winning a title in 2015.