WR/KR Jeff Hughley

With the signing of Jeff "Ridiculous" Hughley this past October, the Soul gave themselves another experienced pass catcher for Raudabaugh and instantly upgraded their special teams.

Hughley most recently suited up for the 2011 AFL champion Jacksonville Sharks where he continued to excel as a receiver and as a return man. He received All-Ironman Team WR/KR honors after ranking in the top 10 in a variety of categories. Hughley ranked 2nd in kick return avg. (21.3), 7th in kickoff return yards (1,429), and 3rd in all-purpose yards (2,680) while collecting 89 catches for 1,171 yards and 22 touchdowns. Hughley ran back 68% of the Sharks 98 returns in 2011 compared to the Soul's leading return man (Keith Stokes) from last season who returned 55% of the Soul's 120 returns. Stokes numbers were 66 returns for 1,200 yards and 2 touchdowns which doesn't compare to Hughley's 98 returns for 1,429 yards and 1 touchdown. "Ridiculous" accomplished all of this playing in just 15 of last year's 18 games.

While attending Averett University (2003-2006) Hughley set a number of the school's receiving records in catches (221), receiving yards (2,925), and receiving touchdowns (31). He returned 65 punts for 784 yards and 1 touchdown during his time there and only returned kickoffs for one season where he had 17 returns for 308 yards. Hughley was a 4 time All-Conference WR/KR along with being recognized as All-State First Team receiver in 2006.

In 2007 Hughley broke into arena football with the AF2's Tulsa Talons where he would play for the next 4 seasons. His rookie year Hughley led the team with 46 receptions for 1,069 yards and 30 receiving touchdowns along with having 1,363 return yards for 3 return touchdowns. He was an integral component to that 2007 squad as he was named ArenaCup VIII's MVP after collecting 7 catches for 143 yards and 2 touchdowns along with accumulating 203 return yards for 2 additional touchdowns. His offensive output helped propel the Talons over my Pioneers by a score of 73-66 for the franchise's second ArenaCup championship in their history. His 203 return yards and 346 total yards set ArenaCup records.

Before the 2008 season Hughley signed on with the AFL's Colorado Crush, but was released during camp. He returned to the Talons where he found similar success again after a spectacular rookie campaign. He was selected as a Second Team All-Arena wide receiver after collecting 123 receptions for 1,629 yards for 33 touchdowns and leading the Talons in every receiving category. He amassed 1,298 return yards and 1 touchdown as their return man which kept him at pace with his 2007 numbers.

Hughley exploded in 2009 with the club during the AF2's last year of existence where he went off as a receiver and a kick returner. He received his first Ironman of the Year award in 2009 after accumulating 2,069 return yards (an AF2 record) and 1,909 receiving yards (franchise record) for a total of 4,113 all-purpose yards (an AF2 record). Selected to the First Team All-Arena as a wide receiver, Hughley had 55 total touchdowns on the year (50 receiving & 5 returning). He signed on with the AFL's Grand Rapids Rampage before the league folded in 2009.

He signed on with the Tulsa Talons again in 2010 for the newly reformed AFL and again was recognized for his dual performance as a return man and a wide receiver. He received All-Ironman Team WR/KR honors after being ranked 2nd in all-purpose yards (2,808) and 4th in all-purpose yards per game (175.5).

"Ridiculous" should impact the Soul's offensive output greatly with his play-making abilities in the receiving and return game. The Soul ranked 15th out of 18th in kickoff return average and 11th in passing offense in 2011, but with Hughley now on the roster the Soul should improve drastically in both of those numbers (especially in the return game). Hughley is a player the Soul desperately needed for their run at a championship because field position and scoring points are the two most instrumental aspects of arena football. Doing well at both will ensure quite a bit of victories for the Soul. I know there's the saying "defense wins championships" but in the AFL its all about the points. Defense is important, but with the Soul's success in that department last season I'm not seeing any reasons why it should be an area of concern for 2012.