Final Schedule posted

The final version of the final schedule for this coming season has been posted. Our teams schedule is looking to be well divided and should put the Lions at the top of our division.

As you will see from the schedule, the league will be fielding 10 teams for this season (up from 8), split into two divisions, and we will play a 10-game regular season plus preseason and playoffs (same as the past two seasons).

The divisions have been divided roughly by geographic location, consisting of a Northern Conference (Sabres, Pioneers, Hammer, Underdogs and Northern Stars) and Southern Conference (Lions, Kings, Rebels, Black Swarm, Troopers). While the location of the teams were
the primary factor is splitting the league as such, the divisions also represent as fair a split as we could hope for from a competitive balance standpoint.

With this system, every team will play their other 4 division rivals twice during the regular season (for a total of 8 games) and play their remaining 2 games against non-division opponents (for a total of 2), combining to make up the 10 regular games.

With the in-division matchups, the teams will play home-and-home series, while for the 2 non-division games, the home and away teams as well as opponents were chosen roughly according to a formula of facing the two closest finishers according to last year's standings.

Top 3 teams in each division make the playoffs (a total of 6 playoff teams out of 10 total teams).
1st-place team in each division receives a first-round bye and privilege of hosting semifinal game

Preseason
October
Thurs. 27 – vs Hammers 7 p.m.

November
Sat. 12 – @ Petah Tikva – 9 p.m.

Regular Season

November
Thurs. 17 – vs Pioneers – 9:45 p.m.

December
Thurs. 1 – @ Rebels – 8 p.m.
Thurs. 8 – vs Kings – 8 p.m.
Sat. 17 – @ Petah Tikva – 9:30 p.m.
Thurs. 29 – vs Sabres – 8 p.m.

January
Thurs. 12 – @ Kings – 8 p.m.
Sat. 21 – @ Beersheva – 9:30 p.m.

February
Thurs. 2 – vs Petah Tikva – 9:45 p.m.
Sat. 11 – @ Beersheva – 9:30 p.m.

March
Thurs. 1 – vs Rebels – 7 p.m.

Playoffs

Wildcard Crossover weekend
Thursday/Friday/Saturday, March 15/16/17, 2012
3rd place South at 2nd place North
and
3rd place North at 2nd place South

WEEK 2 - Semifinals
Thursday/Friday/Saturday, March 22/23/24, 2012

WEEK 4 – Israel Bowl Championship
Friday, March 30, 2012

Big Blue Jerusalem Lions First Practice for the 2011/2012 IFL Season

Tryouts for the Big Blue Jerusalem Lions took place on Thursday June 16th. It was a huge success with over 40 new potential players who attended. We look forward to many of them joining us this coming season.

We are now starting practices this Thursday from 7-9 p.m. at Kraft Stadium, Jerusalem.

We invite people to come this week as well and participate in our team practice to consider joining the team for this coming season.

Please come dressed in shorts and t-shirts with either Sneakers or cleats.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Please note: We are still looking for defensive coaching staff and assistants to the coaches for this coming season. If anyone is interested in a position on the staff, please be in touch with me directly.

Big Blue Jerusalem Lions Tryouts for the 2011/2012 IFL Season

The tryout date for the Big Blue Jerusalem Lions will take place on Thursday June 16th from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. (19:00-21:00) at Kraft Stadium, Jerusalem.

This day will involve some physical testing and training to get a feel for the new players compatibility to the team and to a specific position.

The returning players are expected to come out and both participate in the physical elements as well as be there to talk to the new recruits.

Please come dressed in shorts and t-shirts with either Sneakers or cleats.

Formal practices for the team will start the following week.

Please RSVP for this event so that we can prepare for the event.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Please note: We also have some openings for assistant coaching positions for this coming season. If anyone is interested in a position on the staff, please be in touch with Jonathan Hauser (jerusalem.lions.ifl@gmail.com) directly.

Playoff Schedule

Here is the 2011 playoff bracket courtesy of the Tel-Aviv Pioneers.

The Lions have a bye week in the first round and play in the Semi-Finals on March 3rd at 8pm. The Israel Bowl will be played on Friday, March 18 at 12pm.

Season Statistics

The IFL recently released the full team stats for the regular season as of week 12. The Jerusalem Lions lead the league in overall defense and points allowed.

Check out the full stats here:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0AmnOsxybUQQedFRlSDh5U2NUc3VsYm9HUTkyYU9pR2c&hl=en&output=html

Champions of the IFL South Division

Two resounding wins over the Gush Texas Judea Rebels and the rival Jerusalem Kings propelled the Jerusalem Lions to first place in the IFL South Division with a 8-1 overall record and perfect 5-0 in the conference. The Lions have clinched a first round bye in the playoffs and finish their season on February 19th at Beer Sheva.

Big Blue Gets a Big Win in Hertzlia

On Friday, Dec. 24th the Big Blue Jerusalem Lions traveled to Tel Aviv to take on the expansion Hertzlia Hammers. An opening drive TD sparked the Lions into full action, with a stout defensive performance complementing the high powered offense. The offense was led by QB Itay Ashkenazi with 6 total TDs and WR Idan Yaaron catching 4 TDs. RB Leib Bolel had a big game running and catching the ball. The defense was led by LB Kasey Stewart with 6 tackles and a pick, followed by LB's Gani Medad and Phil Harbor with 4 tackles each. CB Rafi Grabin also had a pick and DT Avigdor Moore had 2 fumble recoveries and one off a blocked kick by LB Matt Markman for a touchdown. The final score was 58-6. Next Game: Thursday Dec. 30th in the capital vs. the Jerusalem Kings, 7PM.

Media coverage of the game:

Walla in Hebrew

http://sports.walla.co.il/?w=/3750/1772628&ref=fb_item_share_btn

Jpost in English

http://www.jpost.com/Sports/Article.aspx?id=201106

IFL in English

http://ifl.co.il/5/section.aspx/119

Big Blue in the NY Times

The Jerusalem Lions were recently profiled in the New York Times. Article and interview with our own Coach Yonah Mishaan and LB Pinchas Zerbib:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/28/sports/28israelfootball.html?_r=1&ref=sports

Video:

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/12/27/sports/1248069494086/thursday-night-lights.html

IFL on CNN

In case you missed it, the IFL was featured on CNN Online. The spot was filmed at our opening game vs. the Judean Rebels and features clips and interviews from our very own Coach Yonah Mishaan and QB Itay "Etain" Ashkenazi. Enjoy!

http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/sports/2010/11/11/flower.israel.american.football.cnn.html

Opening Night Results: Lions Win in Jerusalem

The 2010-2011 Kraft Family IFL season opened last night with the injury-plagued Jerusalem Lions playing the Judean Rebels at Kraft Stadium in Jerusalem. The Lions were playing without several key players, including All IFL QB Itay Ashkenazi and C Jon Hauser. Starting QB Benyamin Shultz played a gutsy first half performance before pulling up with injury while the Rebels got off to a flying start, building a quick 12-0 lead. DT Ben Lemberg left the game midway through the 1st quarter with a calf injury.

Former Lions QB Aryeh Bauman came into the game after Shultz's injury on a kick return, and rallied the offense helping the Lions put up their first lead of the night. The defense rallied, in what would be a consummate team performance shut down the fast paced Rebel's offense. Some big hits from DE Eyal Lapidot and Mat Markmann energized the unit, while great pass coverage from Yarden Avihood helped shut down the Rebels passing game. A terrific defensive stand at the end of the game summed up what this win was all about: hard-nosed football and teamwork.