William Alexander

From Sim Football Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
William Alexander
Image of William Alexander
William Alexander preparing for the draft
No. 84 – Honolulu Hahalua
Position:Wide Receiver
Personal information
Born: (2014-04-24)April 24, 2014 (aged 47)
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
College:Oregon State
ISFL Draft:S22 / Round: 5 / Pick: 49
DSFL Draft:S21 / Round: 5 / Pick: 40
Career history
Roster status:Active

William James Alexander (born April 24, 2015) is an American football wide receiver for the Honolulu Hahalua. He played college football for the Oregon State Beavers. He was drafted 40th overall in the S21 DSFL draft by the Minnesota Grey Ducks and 49th overall in the S22 NSFL draft by the Honolulu Hahalua.

Early years

William James Alexander is the older of two sons of Catherine Alexander, a pharmacist, and James Alexander, a biologist.

William soon discovered his love for all kinds of sports and spent most of his free time outside with his brother Marcus and their cousins. He played football, baseball and soccer for his local high school. Despite his undeniable athletic ability he didn't get much attention as a teenager due to his small frame. As a senior in high school Alexander went through a growth spurt and coaches took more notice of his talents. He received some scholarship offers as a baseball player but decided he wanted to play football. Although quite far from his hometown of Denver, Alexander decided to attend Oregon State.

Although he was born and raised in Colorado, Alexander grew up as a fan of the Orange County Otters, thanks to his uncle. His brother Marcus, two years younger than William, plays as an outfielder for the Colorado State University Rams.

College career

Freshman Season

Alexander didn't get much playime in his freshman year. He was mostly used as a tight end but since he hadn't gotten used to his new physical capabilities and lacked the required strength, he struggled for most of the season, only playing in four games, recording six catches for thirty yards and one touchdown.

Sophomore Season

After spending most of the off-season building up some muscle and working on his blocking, Alexander became the second string tight end. He was mostly used as a red zone target and caught two touchdowns during his limited playtime. Due to a series of injuries to the team's wide receivers, Alexander spent the latter half of the season as a wide receiver, a role in which he excelled, showcasing his good hands and agility for a player his size. He started six games, getting thirty receptions, 526 yards and scoring four touchdowns.

Junior Season

Alexander and his coaches decided to make the switch to wide receiver permanent in the off-season. With a combination of his speed and physical abilities, Alexander managed to score twelve touchdowns and put up 1,198 yards. Alexander declared for the DSFL draft after the season.

College career statistics

Receiving
Season Team GP Rec Yds Avg Long TD
2033 (S18) OS 4 6 30 5 8 1
2034 (S19) OS 12 42 590 14.0 18 6
2035 (S20) OS 12 71 1198 16.9 25 12

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables
Ht Wt 40‑yd dash 20‑ss 3‑cone Vert jump Broad BP
6 ft 4 in
(1.93 m)
240 lb
(109 kg)
4.54s s 4.11s s 6.57s s 35.5 in
(0.90 m)
124 in
(3.15 m)
18 reps

He was picked 40th overall by the Minnesota Grey Ducks, the fourth wide receiver off the board.

Season 21

Alexander spent his DSFL rookie season on a Minnesota Grey Ducks team that relied heavily on the running game, even for DSFL standards, thanks to the quality of their three running backs. After one touchdown and 133 yards in the preseason, he started the regular season as the number one receiver for the team, playing most of the team‘s offensive snaps. He had an up-and-down season with 50+ yard games often alternating with those, in which Alexander hardly received the ball and was a non-factor on the field.

Despite his struggles Alexander led the team in receptions (41) and yards (502) and recorded the 9th most yards in the DSFL. He had his statistically best game in a week 8 loss against the Tijuana Luchadores in which he recorded four receptions for 64 yards and his only touchdown of the season. The Grey Ducks went 6-8-0 and missed the playoffs this season.

While he showed promise as a receiver, Alexander had some problems with dropped balls, dropping 34 catchable balls, almost the same number as his receptions. He also had some problems drawing bad penalties that showed a lack of anticipation and football IQ.

When asked in a pre-draft interview leading up to the NSFL draft what he focused his training on the most, Alexander responded "Hands and speed. I gotta get better at getting separation and catching the balls that are thrown my way." It was rumored that Alexander changed his diet with the help of a nutritionist, cutting down his junk food and soda consumption, to become faster and more agile.

Season 22

Alexander was picked 49th overall by one of the two expansion teams, the Honolulu Hahalua, in the Season 22 NSFL draft. It was decided that he would be called up to the NSFL right away.

He recorded 14 receptions for 183 yards and three touchdowns in the pre-season, including an 80-yard and two touchdown performance against the New Orleans Second Line. Alexander secured the spot as the number three wide receiver on the Honolulu Hahalua with his performance in training camp and the pre-season, one of four rookies on the team the only rookie wide receiver on the team. Given his role, he saw limited play time and targets throughout the season and, just as the year before, found himself on a team that favored the rushing over the passing offense, with the Hahalua coming in second to last in passing attempts. Alexander finished the season with the second least yards of all eligible rookie wide receivers with 207, the lowest yards per catch for all rookie wide receivers with 7.7 and no touchdowns scored, as the Hahalua finished their inaugural season with four wins and nine losses, coming in last in the ASFC.

His statistically best game came in a week two 27 to 14 win against the Austin Copperheads, in which Alexander recorded three receptions for 39 yards, with his longest reception of the season at 21 yards. In a week nine loss against the Orange County Otters he played as a running back but with little success, finishing the game with three yards on two attempts.

When asked about his performance after the season, Alexander stated that the jump to the National Simulation Football League from the Developmental Simulation Football League was a big one and that although he expected much tougher opponents, he was surprised by the high skill level of most players. When asked if he had been called up too early and should have spent another year in the DSFL to hone his skills, he replied that you can‘t improve by competing against inferior competition and that he was confident he would come back a better player thanks to the experience, competing for the number two wide receiver spot on the Hahalua.

Season 23

Alexander was able to secure the role as the number two receiver on the Hahalua roster behind Jed Podolak, his declared goal for his sophomore season in the ISFL.

After 75 yards on eleven receptions in the pre-season with no touchdowns scored, the regular season started and with it a series of tough games for Alexander. The wide receiver failed to record a single catch in the first two games of the season, two losses against the Austin Copperheads and the Orange County Otters. In the week three win against the San Jose Sabercats Alexander recorded his first two catches of the season, stating his relief in a post-game interview that he could finally do what he was being paid for.

Over the course of the season his numbers improved compared to his rookie year, although his performances were still inconsistent. Alexander recorded his first touchdown in the International Simulation Football League in the team‘s week six loss against the Sarasota Sailfish. He set career highs for yards with 76 in week ten against the Yellowknife Wraiths and touchdowns, scoring twice in week twelve‘s 40-3 win against the Austin Copperheads.

His numbers improved considerably compared to his rookie season, which had been a "major disappointment" according to the player. When asked about his performance for the year, Alexander stated: "I was never that big numbers kind of player, not even in college. I‘m just glad to catch some touchdowns and maybe outrun a defender every couple of plays. That's what your team needs you to do. This season it worked much better than last year, so you know you can expect even bigger things for season 24." When asked about his goals for the next year, he stated that he was "looking forward" to his first playoff experience.


Professional career statistics

Receiving
Season Team GP Rec Yds Avg Long TD
2036 (S21) Grey Ducks 14 41 502 12.2 25 1
2037 (S22) Hahalua 13 27 207 7.7 21 0
2038 (S23) Hahalua 16 42 474 11.3 29 5

Achievements and records

Use this section as an example. ""