Adam Schell

Adam Schell

Schell celebrates a big hit - one that typified his senior season at UK.
No. 55 – Berlin Fire Salamanders
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	(2014-21-08)September 8, 2014 (aged 48) Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight:	240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High school:	Tates Creek High School
College:	University of Kentucky
ISFL Draft:	S24 / Round: 2 / Pick: 6
DSFL Draft:	S23 / Round: 2 / Pick: 8
Career history
Roster status:	Active

Adam Schell (born September 8, 2014) is an American football linebacker who is currently preparing to enter the professional ranks.He played college football for University of Kentucky (UK) and has declared his intent to enter the professional ranks next season.

Early years

In Kentucky, Schell was surrounded by talk of basketball and "cutting down the nets." While he enjoyed the competition in any sport and was a gifted natural athlete, Schell always felt that basketball was a bit soft for his liking. But in late middle school, he found his niche in the much less popular game of football. A high school Quarterback for Tates Creek High School, Schell's intense competitive drive always had him working harder than anybody. He held film studies with his dad in his garage each week as he prepared for the next defense he would face, and grew to love the stratgeic aspect of football, reveling in the chance to use his knowledge of player tendencies and "tells" to his advantage at the next Friday night game. His senior year, he led his team to a runner up at the state championship, missing out on the title after being hit from behind on the game's final drive and fumbling the ball. An all time great at Tates Creek, Schell's arm strength was a huge concern of the college scouts who visited. What he had been able to get away with in high school ball simply would not work at the next levels. Eventually, Schell was sold on the position of linebacker, described as the "defensive quarterback" and shifted his energies to mastering the position.

College career

As a true freshman in 2016, Schell spent most of the season learning the linebacker position and completing his transition from high school quarterback to playing defense. By the end of the year, he was pushing for snaps on defense and completed the year with 14 tackles and 2 passes defended. However, what Schell lacked in snaps he made up for in locker room presence, becoming the primary player to talk up his teammates and rally the troops in the harder moments. It was this trait, that gained his coaches' praise and earned him the role of defensive captain his sophomore through senior years. From there, his play began to meet his attitude. His sophomore season, Schell had 75 tackles, including 6 TFLs, 9 passes defended and 2 interceptions as he began to learn to read the quarterback from the opposing end of the field. His junior seasoan Schell had 113 tackles, 10 TFLs, 3 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles as his hitting became harder and more jarring. He also improved on his pass defending skills with 15 passes defended and 4 interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown. Schell's senior year was truly terriffic as everything came together for him with 168 tackles, 12TFLs, 3 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumbles recovered, 28 passes defended and 7 interceptions, leading him to be nominated for the defensive player of the year award. While Kentucky never really had national attention while Schell was there as a football school, his impact was nonetheless felt across the country as he left a legacy that will be difficult for future Wildcats to duplicate at the linebacker position.

College career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles		Sacks	Interceptions		Other					Punt returns
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Sfty	Ret	Yds	Avg	TD
2033	UK	3	14	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2034	UK	12	75	6	2	2	0	0	0	0	9	0	0	0	0	0
2035	UK	12	113	10	3	4	0	0	2	0	15	0	0	0	0	0
2036	UK	13	168	12	3	7	0	0	4	2	28	0	0	0	0	0
Total		40	370	30	8	13	0	0	6	2	52	0	0	0	0	0

Professional career

DSFL Draft

Schell was drafted 16th overall to the Tijuana Luchadores with the last pick of the second round. He was the 5th Linebacker to be drafted in the DSFL Class of S23.

Season 23

Schell's first season was marked by unfortunately "boring" stats. While he became increasingly involved in the defense as a run stopper and chased down big plays as a part of a defense that limited big plays allowed, he did not make the level of impact in coverage that many expected from the prospect whose play-making in college launched him up many draft boards. He became increasingly involved in the pass rush as the season came to a close and his increased strength was on display the last two weeks of the season as he racked up 16 tackles and 2 sacks in those final two games. He closed the season with 89 tackles, good for 18th overall in the DSFL, along with a forced fumble and a recovered fumble and 4 sacks. However, over the last 5 games Schell averaged 7.2 tackles per game. If he shows this same level of production in S24, Schell figures to be in the conversation to top 100 tackles. In addition, with 3 of his 4 sacks coming in these last 5 games, one can figure he will see his impact on the quarterback increase as well in coming seasons. The Luchadores were unable to defend their Ultimini title in S23, missing the playoffs with a final record of 6-8, but a strong defensive core began to emerge late in the season as both first round pick Maverick Bowie and second round pick Adam Schell made huge progress and became dependable focal points for the defense moving forward. If they are not called up to play for their ISFL clubs, they could anchor a solid Tijuana defense in S24.

ISFL Draft

Schell was drafted to the Arizona Outlaws in the second round of the ISFL draft with pick #6, 18th overall. He was the fourth Linebacker taken in this draft class.

Season 24

In season number 2, it was clear that Schell had a chip on his shoulder and was ready to prove that the game was not to big for him. Right out of the gate, Schell had a 6 tackle, 2 sack performance in week one that announced to the league that he intended to leave his mark this season. Week two he recorded 12 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and forced a fumble and he was off to the races from there. Week in and week out, Schell put up huge numbers, ending the year at or near the top of many defensive statistical categories. He led the league in tackles with 123, had 5 tackles for loss, second most among non defensive linemen, forced 3 fumbles (second most in the league) and recovered 2 of them. He also had 9 sacks, third most in the league, and showed huge growth in coverage with 8 passes defended, third most among non defensive backs. It was this all around activity that set Schell apart from the league in this season, earning himself the awards of Linebacker of the year and Defensive player of the year, as well as the honor of being runner up in the MVP race, topped only by a tremendous season by quarterback Sam Howitzer. This season also resulted in Schell’s first playoff game, and although they were not victorious, the defensive effort to hold Norfolk to 13 points for nearly 5 full quarters was notably impressive. In the end, Schell was not able to win an Ultimini as he had hoped to do, but was traded at the end of this season from the Arizona Outlaws, for whom he never played a snap, to the new expansion team, the Berlin Fire Salamanders. Excited to make a difference in the ISFL and to be a part of the inaugural season for the Fire Salamanders, Schell spent the offseason training tirelessly to come out stronger, faster, and smarter than ever before.

Season 25

In Schell's debut season in the ISFL, he discovered that the big boys are fast, too! It took a while for Schell to get his feet under himself, particularly as a part of a team making its first starts in the league as the new expansion team Berlin went 3-13 on the year. There were, however, many high points to take away from this season. First, although he started slow, Schell ended the year with 100 tackles, a feat accomplished by only the top 10 defensive rookies in his class. He also forced 2 fumbles, tied for 7th most in the league, and had a career high 13 passes defended as Berlin chose to use him often in coverage in his rookie campaign. While Schell was no rookie of the year, he did serve as a respected part of his defense, pairing with Swanty Jones and Hingle McCringleberry to form a trio that was all over the field defensively, racking up tackles in game after game, particularly later in the season. Schell was not thrilled with his showing, but knew the ISFL is no gimme league. Success must be earned, and he spent the offseason training harder than ever.

Season 26

Season 26 was a big season of growth for Schell. The league started to slow down for him and it showed. He was 11th in the league with 125 tackles, adding to that a couple of forced fumbles, 3 sacks, 8 passes defended, and an interception. It was the timing of his stats that made the difference, though. Schell became a third down machine, shutting down backs in short yardage situations and batting passes at just the right time. His interception served as a turning point in the game as Schell became a real leader in Berlin's defense. However, this still was not enough to translate to a lot of wins. Berlin improved to 7-9, but an 0-5 start to the season proved insurmountable. Schell ended this season more determined than ever to be the spark that led his team to success in the season to come. He trained with specialists on instinctive coverage, tenacious ball skills, and hard hitting that would hopefully translate into big impact in his third season in Berlin. He ended the year by signing a three year extension with his team, as he sought to write the record books in Berlin as an inaugural member of the organization.

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	40‑yd dash	20‑ss	3‑cone	Vert jump	Broad	BP	Wonderlic
6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	4.34 s	4.19 s	7.21 s	33.7 in (0.86 m)	10.82 ft 129.8 in (6.59 m)	38 reps	39

DSFL Career Statistics (Regular Season)

Career statistics			Defense
Season	Team	Games	Tck	TFL	FF/FR	Sck	Int	PD	Sfty	TD	Blk P/XP/FG
2038 (S23)	Luchadores	14	89	2	1/1	4	0	0	0	0	0/0/0
2039 (S24)	Luchadores	14	123	5	3/2	9	0	8	0	0	0/0/0

DSFL Career Statistics (Post Season)

Career statistics			Defense
Season	Team	Games	Tck	TFL	FF/FR	Sck	Int	PD	Sfty	TD	Blk P/XP/FG
2039 (S24)	Luchadores	1	5	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0/0

Achievements and records

Awards

Individual

• DSFL Defensive Player of the Year: 2039
• DSFL Linebacker of the Year: 2039

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Career statistics			Defense
Season	Team	Games	Tck	TFL	FF/FR	Sck	Int	PD	Sfty	TD	Blk P/XP/FG
2040 (S25)	Fire Salamanders	16	100	4	2/1	0	1	13	0	0	0/0/0
2041 (S26)	Fire Salamanders	16	125	1	2/0	3	1	8	0	0	0/0/0