EFLI Weekly 5/25/2014

Play of the Week: How Rugby can change the Game

A large majority of EFLI players are rugby players, or have some experience with rugby.

Why not use that to your advantage?

American football is a strategic game, and is at a slower pace than rugby. Having any type of pitch play is dangerous, but if executed correctly, can help move your team down the field. This is a useful play since many teams struggled passing the ball in season one.

The triple option is ran in the I-Formation, and the coach can run many different options during this play.

The triple option primarily includes the quarterback (QB), fullback (FB), and running back (TB).

Option 1: Hike the ball and hand the ball off to the full back. The fullback powers it up the middle of the line. Simple but effective, especially when the triple option is used more than once and keeps defenses guessing.

Option 2: Hike the ball and pretend to hand it off to the fullback. The quarterback then runs with the ball horizontally across the field with the running back behind him (just like a rugby pitch). The quarterback can then fake pitch the ball and run as far as he can forward on the field.

Important to note, once the two players are past the linemen, that they should start proceeding forward on the field, but with the running back still behind. Otherwise it is an illegal forward pass.

Option 3: Hike the ball and pretend to hand it off to the fullback. The quarterback then runs with the ball horizontally across the field with the running back behind him (just like a rugby pitch). The quarterback can then pitch the ball to the running back as a player is about to tackle him (thus taking a player out of play) allowing the running back more running room.

Here is the college team that perfected the option, check it out:

Hyderbad Skykings:

With the offseason games out of the way, it leaves EFLI fans wondering. 

Are the Hyderbad Skykings really that good?

They played like kings, but the regular season will be a whole different animal once it comes around at the end of 2014.

They have won four games, the last one in front of the biggest crowd in the EFLI's short history. They can handle the spotlight, but there are too many unknown factors that will go into the regular season when you have opponents going 100% as compared to a scrimmage type of game.

Expect more news in weeks to come on the team, player interviews, potential coach interviews...

Bangalore Warhawks:

BREAKING: Mario Williams Buys EFLI’s Bangalore Warhawks

Be sure to to check out other pieces written by Rohit Gosh on Rantsports

In other Warhawk news, MVP Roshan Lobo's shoulder surgery recovery is under way, as players and fans hope one of the faces of the league continues to get healthy.

Lobo has the skill set to only improve on the field as well as his football IQ. The more he plays the smarter and more dangerous he'll become finding holes in the defense.

According to team sources, the entire Season 1 squad is returning including Coach Thimmaih Madanda.

Lobo on Madanda:

"Wouldn't want any other coach."

Expect more news in weeks to come on the team, player interviews, potential coach interviews, and updates on Lobo's recovery.

Expect more news from all the other teams in the EFLI, hope to make each weekly issue longer and filled with news and information...

EFLI family loses Lalit Saini #RIPBeast

The greatest fear with tragedy is never knowing when it will strike.

Sadly, it has struck the heart of India.

Delhi Defender linebacker and running back Lalit Saini passed away earlier this week. He was 26.

The Elite Football League of India has lost a huge star and respected athlete.

Hopefully the EFLI will honor the memory of Saini, and remember #20 covering the field faster than any defensive player in the league.

The Defenders should all carry #20 in their hearts and retire his number in honor of his memory and incredible first season of American football in India.

Every EFLI player can honor him by playing as hard as they can in season two, because you could expect nothing less than that from the late Beast.

#RIPBeast

Hyderbad Skykings Roster for Gridiron Challenge

Here is the Skykings roster for the Gridiron Challenge against the Bangalore Warhawks:

PRAVEEN REDDY	QUARTER BACK	7	95	6'1	29
G SHIVA	LINEMEN	55	92	5'10	25
SRIKAR REDDY	LINEMEN	64	96	6'2	21
RAMA KRISHNA	LINEMEN	72	85	6	24
MANOJ DARSHAN	LINEMEN	62	93	6	23
RAVI KIRAN	LINEMEN	69	102	6'3	24
ABHINAY SUNNY	LINEMEN	53	90	6	23
RAKESH (CHOTTU)	LINEMEN	63	86	6	24
MOHAMMAD	LINEMEN	67	105	6'1	24
ABHINAV REDDY	LINEMEN	79	103	5'11	25
PRASHANTH REDDY	LINEMEN	66	88	5'8	24
SAI GANESH	LINEMEN	56	94	5'10	19
SANTHOSH SARANG	LINEMEN	50	95	6	21
ROSHAN NAIDU	RECEIVER	10	88	6'2	25
AVANEESH	RECEIVER /KICKER	84	86	6'2	21
MANIKANTA	RECEIVER	18	73	5'11	24
RAHUL DEV	RECEIVER	11	87	6'2	21
SUDHEER YADAV	RECEIVER	81	82	6'2	23
R P RAJA	RECEIVER / CORNER BACK	22	63	6	23
SANDEEP REDDY	RUNNING BACK /KICKER	44	85	5'8	25
SHARATH	RUNNING BACK / SAFETY	77	62	5'5	20
SANTHOSH SANDRI	RUNNING BACK	27	60	5'7	21
SANTHOSH YERRABOLU	LINE BACKER	54	94	6	25
NAVEEN KUNKU	LINE BACKER	99	92	6	25
PARTHIV	LINE BACKER /RECEIVER	59	77	6	22
PARAMESH	LINE BACKER	58	78	5'11	23
RAVI KANTH	LINE BACKER	90	85	5'11	23
SHASHANK	LINE BACKER	52	75	5'10	24
VINAY PREETHAM	SAFETY	83	70	5'8	27
MANOHAR	CORNER BACK	36	82	6'1	23
MAHENDER	CORNER BACK	75	67	6'1	22
KEETHAN	CORNER BACK	19	55	5'8	20
NARENDER	CORNER BACK	33	73	5'10	20
WASIM AKRAM	CORNER BACK	51	62	5'7	20
VIJAY	CORNER BACK /KICKER	28	63	5'8	20

EFLI Weekly: The Calm before the Storm

Football is coming back to India, but for the athletes of the EFLI, it has never left.

EFLI Weekly will be a weekly post talking about a subject for each team in the league. With the first exhibition games on the horizon, it is time to buckle your chin straps and get ready for some football.

The "EFLI Weekly" will be separated by the East-West divisions. Here is the East:

Colombo Lions: A quiet approach

The Colombo Lions have not made any kind of splash in social media, but they are still going to be top contenders this season. The Lions had one of the best defense last season in not allowing scoring from the opposing team, so it will be interesting to see if they are as successful this season.

They fell short to the champion Pune Marathas in the semi-finals, but their running game was top notch and could be one of the best in the league. The bad news is that they had the worst passing attack, so there is no word out yet who the quarterback will be if Zulker Hamid does not return, but they will not be able to win without a solid and balanced offense.

Hyderbad Skykings: Banda has style...but skill as well?

The Skykings are pumped up and confident this year, with an owner and identity to the team in quarterback Ron Banda. Here is a glimpse of possibly their new uniforms, picture courtesy of Sai Ganesh via Facebook:



The Skykings are looking set and ready in style, but it is going to take more than cool uniforms to win games. Banda is the hope for the Skykings, but we can't forget that he also has yet to win a game. He will have plenty to prove early on in the season, because if he does not close out games and score enough, it could affect his confidence down the stretch. He was on a poor team, the 0-6 2012 Kolkata Vipers, but the thing that is scary is his 2-6 touchdown-interception count. All the mystery behind this new offense will be exciting to watch.

Dehli Defenders: Man's Fear in Helmets; 2013 MVP

The Dehli Defenders are a scary team to test. They are a team that can beat you passing, running, defensively torture you, and just hit hard. As great as Mayank "Brady" Sharma is...and Anant Verma...and Happy Lochab.

Lalit Saini IS "The Beast."

Saini can easily be the MVP next year. If he can dominate on defense, offense, and on special teams, he'll deserve the MVP over anyone else. How many NFL players play both sides of the ball and dominate? None.

If Saini works hard, and does even a little better than last year, he can be the 2013 MVP.

Kolkata Vipers: A New QB in town

Banda out. Akash Manna in. Let the rivalry begin!

The Skykings took the one ray of hope that is Banda from the Vipers. How do they respond? By announcing that their team offensive captain is now assumed to be quarterback Akash Manna. Manna had limited passes last year as the back-up and only other competition was punter Rajib Mondal who is now expected to be the back-up of Manna.

Manna has a shot to do something Banda never did for the Vipers. Win. The Vipers need to hope this roster can compete with the rest of the league:

***All players without a position is due to them being new or transfers***

1. Jaydip Mallick, OL, Captain
2. Arijit Sarkar, DL, Vice Captain
3. Akash Manna, QB/DB, Offense Captain
4. Md Farid Defense Captain
5. Raju Singh
6. Ambuj Roy
7. Minhaz
8. Pappu Kr. Shaw
9. BabuKarapati
10. Aniruddha Dan
11. Suraj Sonar
12. Love Prit
13. Anjum Elahi
14. Sajiv Mallick, RB
15. Sanjay Shaw, RB
16. Subarna Dey, WR
17. Saroj Patra, WR
18. Rajiv Mondal, QB/K
19. Raju Gupta, DB
20. Santu Sardar, DB
21. Jasbir Singh
22. Dipendu Das
23. Abhijit Sarkar, LB
24. Subhajit Sinha Roy
25. Pritam Singh

Reserve If any Injury : --

26. Sunny Singh, K/LB
27. Rajiv Gupta
28. Asheet Singh
29. Love Prit

3rd of August: Delhi Defenders vs. Kolkata Vipers

Football is edging closer to it's return in India. On August 3rd, it returns to Delhi.

The East Division Champion Delhi Defenders will host the Kolkata Vipers for some exhibition football action.

The Defenders are the favorites to repeat in Season 2 for the East Division, whereas the Vipers enter this game still looking for their first franchise win. As said before, this is preseason, so no team should be treating this like a dire game that needs to be one. This is simply a practice match to test the skills of your veteran and rookie players.

The Defenders had the best scoring offense last season, whereas the Vipers gave up the most points and scored the fewest.

The Vipers mindset needs to be just treating this as a scrimmage (practice) and just get a feel of the speed of the Defenders. Same goes for the Defenders, the last thing they want is for one of their top offensive players getting injured because they played too rough in an exhibition.

Keys to this game:

• VIPER TRICK PLAYS. The Vipers should spend the next few weeks trying to innovate an option style offense to test in the exhibition.
• WEST COAST OFFENSE DEFENDERS. The West Coast offense is a "pass to open up the run" style of offense. The Defenders need to let Mayank "Brady" Sharma loose this season with smart, short slant patterns.
• TEAMWORK. Just have fun, get closer as a team. It is a long run to December, get to know your team, and make your on-field chemistry and communication flawless. 

Help prepare for the Gridiron Challenge

Please go to the left of the blog and submit current roster information of both the Bangalore Warhawks and the Hyderbad Skykings. It is much appreciated so we can set unofficial rosters for the fans to see and prepare for the Gridiron Challenge. Try to get all roster information submitted in the next two weeks, we want to get names out there to learn who will be the future stars of the Elite Football League of India!!!

Simply add your: name, email, then list the player(s) and positions for whatever team you can.

Example: Joe Smith, Offensive Lineman, Falcons

I'm sure the fans would appreciate the current information of their favorite teams...

Exhibition Game: Hyderbad Skykings vs. Bangalore Warhawks

It is almost time. About a month from now the EFLI shall hold the first known and announced exhibition game to prepare for Season 2.

The Hyderbad Skykings vs. the Bangalore Warhawks. Two teams who have the potential to be the most improved for Season 2.

This game, which should be a tradition every year, was the first flood light game ever played in India, so hopefully it will have a huge turnout for fans.

Things to hope for in a month:

• THE RULES OF FOOTBALL. Hopefully new fans can watch this game, and use it to learn the rules of American football to prepare them for the upcoming season.
• BENCH PLAYERS. Let's be honest, you can't risk playing stars like Roshon Lobo and Ron Banda for the whole game with the chance of injury. Let some of the bench player play most of the game to gain experience.
• CAN THE SKYKINGS HANDLE THE SPOTLIGHT? Now the only owned team in the EFLI, can they handle the pressure of having high expectations? #TwirlUp
• WILL LOBO HAVE A SLUMP? Lobo won the MVP last season, but like all players, could he possibly be surpassed by a rookie or maybe other great backs like Lalit Saini or Ram Rahul?
• INNOVATIONS? Time to test out some new plays and innovative formations that teams should test now before the season starts.

The countdown has begun. Football is coming back, India.