Ryker Delmont is a rookie strong safety for the Downriver Waves.
Biography[]
Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, you could say Ryker Delmont has faced competition since birth. Being the second born, by a significant margin of six years, meant just about every milestone Ryker reached would be overshadowed by a grander accomplishment from his brother, Andre. This even carried over to his extended family. With Andre being the oldest of the ‘next generation’ of the Delmont family, it often made him the center of attention during family gatherings. For a short while the cub tried to outdo his brother wherever he could, though often it was quickly met with failure as there was little he could do to compete with someone so much older. This did little to help the relationship between the two, with Andre lapping up the attention and disregarding Ryker as too young to play with.
When Ryker couldn’t impress the adults, he turned his attention to his cousins. Whatever it took, he would try and elevate himself to seem superior to them. From who could run the fastest to who was brave enough to walk the deepest into the forest behind the backyard, Ryker refused to back down and admit defeat. Of course Ryker pushed it too far one time, landing in the hospital when he was eight due to falling into a creek bed. This earned him multiple scars, including one on his brow, right arm, and chest, adorning him thanks to that day. It would earn him was a scolding from his parents, chastising him for not being more like his brother. Of course that didn’t stop him, only encouraging him to act out more in order to garner any sort of attention, desperate to have the eyes of his parents and family on him.
Eventually the disruptive behavior slowly bled into school, where unlike his brother Ryker was only average, and resulted in numerous trips to the principal's office. One such trip when he was ten set Ryker on the road he finds himself today. After another school yard scuffle his fifth grade teacher suggested that Ryker take up a sport. The warbler expressed hope that it would both give him an outlet for his energy and also help keep him out of trouble in school. In fact she recommended the pee-wee football team her own son was on. His parents were lukewarm to the suggestion due to their busy schedules, but his teacher probably saw the spark of excitement in his eye. Only once she offered to transport Ryker to practice and games his parents relented.
Football became his haven, a place he could finally stand apart from his brother’s shadow; who thankfully viewed sports as beneath him as he was already talking preparing college and medical school. Finally Ryker to make his own mark and he submerged himself completely in the sport. He no longer got into fights at school, only occasionally getting in trouble for mouthing off to his teachers, and his performance helped build up his confidence. But his time on the field also lead to him developing an ego.
By high school he had grown into a terror, making the varsity team as a freshman playing Strong Safety, and the next year pulled double duty as a Wide Receiver. He was a natural athlete, doing his species proud in terms of speed and agility, and he cultivated great paws playing Wide Receiver. But it was clear the defensive side of the ball was where he was best, developing into their star defender by his Junior year. His ability to read the offense pre-snap and make instinctual calls based on those reads kept him close to the action on most plays. His teammates liked to joke he was like a black hole, gravitating the play towards him and swallowing it up. Though football wasn’t the only sport he excelled at. To stay busy and in shape during the off-season he joined the Track and Field team where he specialized in the sprints thanks his speed.
Going into his senior year he was labelled a five star athlete recruit though made his position clear he was interested in playing safety and not wide receiver in college. When asked why his answer was simple, “On defense I can make the most impact, cause the most trouble, be that nagging concern in each players mind on the field. ‘Do I need to cover him if he blitz? Is he going to jump the drag route? Will he not bite on the play-action?’ When I’m on the defensive side, I’m able to make sure everyone on offense has to keep an eye on me.”
By the end of his Senior year in high-school he would earn All-State honors in both sports, despite both teams falling short of state championships. Nonetheless his talent caused big programs out of state to pursue him, but in the end the cougar chose to remain instate by accepting the scholarship offer to attend Michigan Mustilid University. While known more for it’s basketball products, it’s football program was no slouch and was headed by a creative, defensive minded coach.
That defensive specialization was a key factor in Ryker’s decision, along with the near guarantee of starting as a Freshman due to graduating Seniors on the roster. Under the guiding paw of the MMU Staff, Ryker was molded into a hybrid threat, able to pull duty as both a free safety and strong safety. They refined his tackling technique and carefully helped him add muscle while minimizing lose of speed, maintaining his average 4.36 second 40 time. By the end of his Junior he really was a monster on defense. Racking up 11 interceptions, 97 total tackles, and 2 forced fumbles in his best collegiate season. That earned all conference honors and he was named a unanimous All-American, but once again Ryker fell short in the postseason with MMU losing their bowl appearance.
Following that loss, Ryker announced he would forgo his final season and declare for the draft. He leaves MMU as the record holder for Interception in a career, 22 total, and myriad of other honors. But with his talent comes his faults. His ego has gotten him in trouble on the field by taunting after big plays, leading to unsportsmanlike penalties at bad times. Then there was the article that claimed to have quotes from teammates saying that he is quick to blame others and not much of a leader.
Still, he is young and has time to mature so those issues could be remedied given the right mentor and guiding hand.
Rookie Scouting Reports[]
-Charles Bergeron: Quite possibly the best Strong Safety coming in this draft since quite some time. Finally someone to make tough competition to the Defensive talents such as Kemper, Hopper and Carson who has been ruling the tertiary at the Cornerback position. Fast,agile and most of all his technical prowess proves he ready for the UFFL Level. But unfortunately, seems that his attitude problem might bring yet another set of ego into the already very competitive field of defensive stars, it will be up to the team picking him to make sure he show him the right way.
- Brock Brezniski: Ryker has the potential to be a superstar in this league. His understanding of the game and how to play it from the back end will make him a threat in any team’s secondary, whether it is deep over the middle or right up on the line of scrimmage. His athletic abilities are befitting of any feline, but he has to control his emotions on the field. Given time, I know he will get that under control, which will make him even more valuable. He’s the first defensive player gone in my books.
Contract Info[]
| Player Manager | FadedForest |
|---|---|
| Salary (per year) | TBD |
| Exp. Date | 3/1/2021 |
Statistics[]
Individual[]
| Year | Team | G | GS | Tackles | Tackles for Loss | Pass Def | Sacks | INTs | FF | FR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | DWN | 14 | 14 | 71 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Win-Loss Record[]
| Year | Team | Overall Record | Playoff Record | Regular Season Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Downriver | 4-12 | 0-0 | 4-12 |