1955 AFL Draft

 

Round 1
1 - New York - LB Duane Ackerman - Oklahoma - Wallflower
2 - Boston - LB Bob Jessup - St. Joseph’s - DireBear
3 - Tri Cities (from CHI via TRI) - QB Richard “Rocco” Vanthourenhout - U. Kansas City - DireBear
4 - Detroit - OL Chris Cutchen - Iowa A&M - Wallflower
5 - Pittsburgh - OL Stevie Cockburn - Ohio - Dan O’Mac
6 - Cincinnati - LB Cade Masters - Chicago Christian - Stickman
7 - Buffalo - WR Justin Harris - Minnesota A&M - Kingsfan11
8 - Washington - OL Toby Killigan - Michigan A&M - Stickman
9 - Chicago (from CLE) - RB Arthur Busch - UCleveland - DireBear
10 - Chicago - DB Jason Brother - Wisconsin State - idm

The AFL draft welcomed two new franchises into their league by holding the 1955 draft in the Warwick Hotel in New York City. With New York and Boston not interested in taking a QB, the discussion then shifted to which linebacker would the Lions take. They wanted someone to build their defense around, and Oklahoma’s Duane Ackerman became the first defensive player to be drafted first overall. Ackerman led the Tornadoes to an undefeated season with a never-say-die attitude fighting for every tackle he made. He should make a key focal point to a defense ready to build for the future. Boston had their decision made for them, taking the second-best LB with Bob Jessup from St. Joseph’s. Jessup was the more physical of the two, with a punishing blow that could stun ball carriers or whoever happened to be in his way. Both Ackerman and Jessup should become immediate and potentially long-term starters for these two teams without a clear-cut top man in the middle. With the expansion teams out of the way, the Tri-Cities Hawks used their pick (which they got back from Chicago) to take their QB of the future in Rocco Vanthourenhout. Vanthourenhout is a QB that should fit right into the Hawks’ system; a big, strong passer who can sling it anywhere on the field while being tough to take down. He should be the piece to kickstart their offense back to what it once was, but he may take a year or two to develop behind current starter Gilbert Clay. Detroit and Pittsburgh spent the next two picks not on playmakers but instead improving their offensive line so those playmakers could actually make plays. Both teams took physical linemen to bully defensive players from getting to the ball: the Knights selected the sneakily strong Chris Cutchen out of Iowa A&M while the Shamrocks followed up by selecting the hulking Stevie Cockburn out of Ohio. Cincinnati followed Boston and New York by taking a linebacker of their own in Cade Masters from Chicago Christian. Masters was an incredibly athletic player and fiery leader for the Crusaders, though his personality and injury history caused him to slip a little in the pre-draft rankings. He should suit up nicely with a young Rivermen linebacking   core consisting of Jeff Blankenship and Edgar Abney. With their receiving core beginning to show its age and needing a weapon for ROTY Brendan Turnbull, the Buffalo Hammers were happy when Minnesota State WR Justin Harris fell into their hands. Harris combined being an excellent route runner with exceptional hand-eye coordination and strong hands to make contested catches to lead the nation in receiving yards amongst college players and was easily the top wideout in the draft class. Now two years removed from a title, Washington went the way of Detroit and Pittsburgh and shored up their offensive line after losing longtime starter Mitchell Beck by selecting Michigan A&M’s Toby Killigan. Killigan is a fairly typical lineman, being fairly strong and very quick with his hands and feet, though his size brought some doubt to his longevity in the league. Nonetheless, he’ll be competing for a starting spot on the Federals’ o-line now that a massive hole opened up for a new starter. The Hogs lucked out to end the round with back-to-back picks, and were very happy when RB Arthur Busch fell through the cracks to them at 9. He’ll make the perfect replacement for the recently departed Jeffery Spears, a bruising power back that can plow through anyone in short-yardage situations. He might not have the stamina to get multiple rushes in a row, but reigning MVP RB Billy Gould is glad he’ll have someone to take the pressure off of him for a play or two. With the final pick of the round, the Hogs reached to take DB Jason Brother from Wisconsin State. The Hogs pretty much only had 1 good member of their secondary left going into the draft, and preferred Brother’s skillset of a lockdown back compared to the other secondary players available.

Round 2
11 - New York - DL Leroy Brockhaus - Chicago Christian - Wallflower
12 - Detroit (from BOS) - DB Sammy Weems - Ohio - Wallflower
13 - Tri-Cities - TE William Hunter - University of the Tri-Cities - Dan O’Mac
14 - Detroit - LB Jacob Garfield - Wisconsin State - idm
15 - Cleveland (from PIT) - OL Steve Bochinski - St. Joseph’s - Wallflower
16 - Cincinnati - S Jackson Jones - University of Buffalo - Wallflower
17 - Buffalo - DL Martin Stark - Idaho - DireBear
18 - Washington - DL Kermit Johnston - Massachusetts State - Wallflower
19 - Cleveland - S Quinn Keeley - Alabama A&M - idm
20 - Detroit (from CHI) - WR Al Cannon - Calvert -  idm

Due to acquisitions from other teams, Cleveland and Detroit combined for half of the picks in the second round. The Knights fixed their gaping hole in the linebacking core by selecting Jacob Garfield from Wisconsin State, made their secondary a bit more competitive with DB Sammy Weems from UOhio, and attempted to move on from the drama that was WR Lloyd Lawson by drafting his replacement in Calvert WR Al Cannon. Cleveland selected OL Steve Bochinski from St. Joseph’s after losing two offensive linemen in the expansion draft and added some much-needed secondary depth with S Quinn Keeley from Alabama A&M. The second round was a fairly defensively-focused round, with all but 3 picks taking defensive pieces. The only other offensive pick was used by Tri-Cities to select hometown TE William Hunter, who will help in the running game and to give another option for their new QB.

Round 3
21 - New York - DB Jeff Brother - Wisconsin State - Dan O’Mac
22 - Boston - WR Isaiah Morris - Chicago Christian - Kingsfan11
23 - Chicago (from TRI)  - DB Ray Furness - University of Cleveland - DireBear
24 - Detroit - QB Mick Casey - University of Cleveland - Wallflower
25 - Pittsburgh - DB J.T. Marteau - Chicago Christian - Darknes
26 - Cincinnati - WR Deon Marquise - Lehigh Valley - Stickman
27 - Buffalo - LB Jackie Cross - Ohio - Jayhawk
28 - Washington - DB Benjamin Glass - Cincinnati State - DireBear
29 - Cleveland - WR James Redd - Palmer* - Dan O’Mac
30 - Chicago - DL David Thomas - Central Michigan - DireBear

The third round continued the trend set by the second, with a majority of teams passing on offensive talent to take more pressing matters on defense, with a particular trend in improving secondaries. New York started by taking the other Brother sibling to give their secondary competition for the starting job, Chicago used their pick from Tri-Cities to select DB Ray Furness to round out their improved defensive back room, while Pittsburgh’s J.T. Marteau and Washington’s Benjamin Glass will provide decent backup options when their secondaries get injured throughout the year. Detroit made a semi-controversial pick when they took UCleveland QB Mick Casey 24th overall instead of the top QB on the board. The Knights brass reassured that they were merely drafting a backup for starting QB Terry Kadlec, but many were wondering if they were possibly drafting a potential replacement, with many vocal of Kadlec’s poor performance in the past few years and wanting to start fresh. The Knights might be giving their QB’s a short leash this season in an attempt to turn their fortunes around, or it’s all smoke and mirrors and they just needed a backup. The first player from a Lower Division school was also taken this round, as Cleveland selected the shifty WR James Redd from Palmer (IN) to bolster their receiving depth.

Round 4
31 - New York - RB Eddison Caan - New York State - TheEnigmaticOne
32 - Boston - S Joachim Pitre - Audubon - DireBear
33 - Tri-Cities - DL Albert Young - Maine State - DireBear
34 - Detroit - WR Johnathan Kindrachuk - University of the Iron Range* - Wallflower
35 - Pittsburgh - TE Steven Pearson - Monongalia State - DireBear
36 - Cincinnati - OL Jack Ferguson - Eastern Ohio - Jayhawk
37 - Buffalo - LB Kingsley Quinn - Northern Illinois State* - idm
38 - Washington - RB Rodney Taylor - Northern New York - idm
39 - Cleveland - TE Bill Mollineaux - Akron State - Jayhawk
40 - Chicago - S Charlie Pope - University of Montgomery - DireBear

After Detroit took a quarterback in the previous round, many anticipated a run on the position at some point in this round. However, no such run occurred, and teams focused more on recovering from the expansion draft. New York and Washington both selected running backs. The Lions chose the elusive Edison Caan from New York State to develop behind the newly acquired Jeffery Spears. The Federals selected the lightning-quick Rodney "Galaxy" Taylor from Northern New York to be a potential complementary option to Rip Rooney. Taylor received his unique nickname from his coach during his freshman year, who said that he must have been the "fastest man in the galaxy." He should be a good asset for Washington if he can work his way through the depth chart. Two southern players were also selected in the draft. Boston selected ballhawk safety Joachim Pitre from Audubon (LA), and Chicago selected hard-hitting safety Charlie Pope from the University of Montgomery. The Lower Division also received some representation in the fourth round. Detroit selected technical wide receiver Johnathan Kindrachuk from the University of the Iron Range (MN), and Buffalo selected quick-thinking linebacker Kingsley Quinn from Northern Illinois State.

Round 5
41 - Chicago (from NY) - WR Xander LeFleur - Southeastern* - Kingsfan11
42 - Detroit (from BOS) - WR Dakota Cochrane - Wilford Woodruff - DireBear
43 - Tri-Cities - QB Sam Eagleburger - Chicago Christian - idm
44 - Boston (from DET) - QB Salvatore Saab - Massachusetts State - TheEnigmaticOne
45 - Pittsburgh - WR Dante Weatherspoon - Douglass* - Kingsfan11
46 - Cincinnati - DB Benoit Dupois - Central Iowa - Stickman
47 - Buffalo - QB Gil Stacy - Ohio - idm
48 - Washington - K Lawrence Singer - Michigan - Jayhawk
49 - Tri-Cities (from CLE) - OL Luther King - Alabama A&M - idm
50 - Chicago - RB Warren Igl - Ohio - Dan O’Mac

QB Sam Eagleburger, who was ranked in the top 20 prospects to begin the draft, kept falling and falling when teams didn’t immediately need a starting-caliber QB. After two wide receivers to begin the final round of the draft, he would finally get selected by Tri-Cities 43rd overall after being ranked as the 18th best prospect in this year’s class. The Hawks seem to believe that 1st round selection Rocco Vanthourenhout is their quarterback for the foreseeable future, so Eagleburger might carve out a job in the ASPFL for the time being until a roster spot opens up for him. Eagleburger’s selection caused two other teams to look for a QB in the final round, as Boston took the mobile Salvatore Saab from Massachusetts State 1 pick after the Hawks, where he might bounce around from backup to ASPFL starter. Buffalo took the man with a cannon for an arm known as Gil Stacy from Ohio, who will serve as the third string for the time being. Washington selected the first special teams player in the history of the draft, taking K Lawrence Singer from Michigan with the 48th overall pick. The Federals were not pleased with current starter Eugene Hickman’s development as a starter, and Singer’s drafting will cause some competition between the two to increase their abilities. The Hogs finished out the draft by selecting RB Warren Igl, a shifty back from Ohio.

Undrafted
QB Dwayne Dessena - Wyoming State - idm -> Cincinnati
RB Jack Cottons - Brooklyn College - Stickman -> New York
RB Christopher Flynn - Lehigh Valley - Direbear -> Buffalo
RB Malik Jackson - Huntsville State - Kingsfan11 -> Boston
RB Jon Taggart - Mississippi State - DireBear -> New York
OL Cleo Murray - University of Omaha - DireBear -> Cleveland
DL Horatio Duckett - N/A - idm -> Boston
K Harry Booty - Platte State - Dan O’Mac -> Tri-Cities
K Russell O’Neill - Pennsylvania - idm -> Pittsburgh
P Ozzie Rhule - Maine State - idm  -> Cleveland