Raphael D'Alcott

Raphael D'Alcott

No. 97 – Dallas Birddogs
Position:	Safety
Personal information
Born:	(2016-05-31)May 31, 2016 (aged 44) Corpus Christi , Texas, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	215 lb (98 kg)
Career information
High school:	Calallen High School
College:	Ohio State
ISFL Draft:	2037 / Round:
DSFL Draft:	2036 / Round: 4 / Pick: 26
Career history
Roster status:	Active

Raphael Angel d'Alcott (born May 31, 2016) is an American football Safety for the Dallas Birddogs of the Developmental Simulation Football League (DSFL).

Early years

A native of Corpus Christi, d'Alcott attended Calallen High School, where his natural speed and soft hands had his coach, Richard Montez put him at Wide Receiver.d'Alcott would go on to set school records for receptions and receiving yards. In all but his sophomore year, Calallen High School would win state championships with d'Alcott lead the charge on offense; his best season was his senior season where Raphael would claim 72 receiving touchdowns. Rivals.com listed d'Alcott as a four-star football recruit in 2034, questioning whether or not d'Alcott's numbers were inflated somewhat due to lack of competition and also having questions about his size.

While living in Corpus Christi, d'Alcott was raised by his mother and father as the youngest of 7 siblings, 5 boys and 2 girls. It was playing sports with his older siblings that encouraged Raphael to pursue football as a goal. The d'Alcott's were a tight nit family that were devout Christians. Their influence could be seen in Raphael's avoidance of alcohol and diligent study habits throughout his college career.

College career

d'Alcott wanted to attend the University of Texas because of his strong connections with the Longhorns. He wanted to play in Texas memorial stadium where he had first watched a football game. However, when the scholarship offer didn't arrive, he accepted an athletic scholarship to attend Ohio State University, where he played for coach Ryan Day's Ohio State Buckeyes football team from 2034 to 2037.

As a true freshman in 2034, d'Alcott beat out 3 senior wide receivers to get the starting role in Ryan Day's offense. He would make an immediate impact for the Buckeyes, becoming the favourite target of Sophomore QB Chris Lawson. Raphael would start all 13 games, leading Ohio State to an 11-1 and record and winning the Peach Bowl vs Auburn. During this year, Raphael would become only the 6th Buckeye Wide Receiver to eclipse 1000 receiving yards in a season. From these performances, he quickly earned the nickname ""Angel"", not only from his name but his ability to produce miraculous catches when the team need touchdowns.

His Sophomore season was once again strong but Lawson suffered an injury part way through and the Buckeyes would finish a disappointing 7-5 on the season, winning the Hawaii Bowl against Hawaii in convincing fashion. Raphael maintained strong performances throughout the year but didn't not reach 1000 receiving yards again, finishing strong with 21 touchdowns on the year.

In his junior year of college, d'Alcott maintained the same level of performance, picking up another 21 touchdowns and a third 900 yard campaign. This junior season, however, featured the most important game of d'Alcott's life. The Buckeyes were in the National title game (The Rose Bowl) against the University of Texas Longhorns, the team that had snubbed Raphael as he graduated high school. It was a game that Raphael was determined to win so he put on what many believed was his best performance as a Buckeye. A four touchdown game including an incredible 90 yard Touchdown run to win the game with twelve seconds left on the clock. After this game, Raphael declared that he would be forgoing his final year of college to participate in the 2037 draft

College career statistics

Career statistics			Receiving			Special Teams
Team	GP	Rec	Yards	TD	KR Yds	PR Yds
OSU	13	83	1075	20	100	135
OSU	13	85	902	17	125	87
OSU	13	81	957	21	127	100
Total	39	249	2934	58	352	322

Professional career

DSFL Career

Raphael was selected 26th Overall by the Dallas Birddogs, where the coaches and managers convinced him to move from Wide Receiver to Safety. Their justification, according to d'Alcott, was that his skillset would translate better as a defensive player. Dallas' defense needed new players after losing a lot of their starting line up due to NSFL call ups. There were a lot of questions regarding whether or not Raphael could make the transition from offense to defense, especially considering he had never played defensive football any time in his life. d’Alcott recalled:

“I actually reached out to my college roommate, Greedy Sly, for help. During training camp I was asking him for notes on how to be a safety and how to drop back into coverage. The Dallas coaches are great but considering I had a number 1 overall pick as a good friend and safety just there, it felt stupid not to ask.”

During his season at Safety, d’Alcott would silence any doubts about his ability to change positions. He would finish the year leading all DSFL Free Safeties in Pass Deflections along with 3 interceptions, one of which d’Alcott would return for a defensive touchdown. Dallas would use d’Alcott in a variety of situations, often switching him to Cornerback for certain games. Dallas would finish the season 7-7 and fail to make the playoffs in their second year. His season gained a lot of attention from NSFL scouts. He was nominated for Defensive Rookie of the Year and would finish second in voting behind Mike Karpassi of the Norfolk Seawolves.

DSFL career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles			Sacks	Interceptions		Other
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Total	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Safety
2037 (S22)	Birddogs	14	48	1	49	0	3	1	1	0	1	10	0

NSFL Career

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	40‑yd dash	20‑ss	3‑cone	Vert jump	Broad	BP	Wonderlic
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	4.32 s	4.10 s	7.07 s	34.7 in (0.88 m)	11.2 ft 134.8 in (6.84 m)	32 reps	22

Achievements and records

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