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*Tribune1898 - Baron1898 - 09-06-2020
Tribune1898
The 2500 Word Weekly
I, like many others in the league, have faced the unfortunate predicament of being hopelessly addicted to the loot boxes known as Dotts cards, which cost 500k a pack for six entirely random players. With a possible drawing pool of well over this amount, my search for desired cards will likely quickly decimate my bank account long before I am successful. Thus, it’s time once again to fire up the media machines.
Side note, if Gimmy Jarappolo doesn’t get a Dotts card soon then we riot.
How Will Expansion Scheduling Work?
With the addition of our new expansion overlords, the New York Silverbacks and the Berlin Fire Salamanders, the ISFL is expanding from twelve to fourteen teams. This presents a significant problem when considering the scheduling. Our current league schedule is a very clean sixteen game affair. Since there are twelve teams, each team gets to face each of their conference opponents twice and each of the cross-conference teams once. It’s very simple and clean math.
With fourteen teams, that kinda goes out the window. Facing each of the six other teams in the conference twice, which is pretty necessary for the purpose of playoff seeding equity, would eat up twelve of a team's sixteen allotted games. That leaves merely four games on the docket and seven teams to face; you would need a rather awkward nineteen game schedule to fit in a match with every team in the league. So what to do?
To preface this, I am not very knowledgeable on the workings of the sim, and Head Office probably has already worked out a reasonable plan, but from my point of view, the options look like this:
- Go back to a 13 game schedule, and only play one inter-conference game against the team with the same prior year standing;
- Keep the 16 game schedule, and play a set rotation of three inter-conference games with one new team swapped in every year;
- Keep the 16 game schedule, and play a set selection of three inter-conference games against the teams with the same prior year standing as well as the teams one spot worse and better;
- Keep the 16 game schedule, and play a random selection of three inter-conference games because we will have to make up a new schedule in two years for the next expansion anyways;
- Move to an 18 game schedule, and play a set selection of six inter-conference games against every team except the one with the opposite prior year standing (1st place would skip 7th, 2nd would skip 6th, 3rd would skip 5th, and 4th would skip 4th, plus vice versa)
Maybe I’m missing another option, and by maybe I mean definitely, but who is reading this anyways?
The Great American Simulation Football Conference Road Jam
It’s no great secret that the ASFC tends to dominate the NSFC pretty regularly, and by pretty regularly I’m talking a vast majority of Ultimus titles and a general regular season dominance. Take this season for example. Not a single NSFC team emerged from the bout of inter-conference games with a winning record against the ASFC. The Yellowknife Wraiths and Chicago Butchers are battling for the wild card with matching 5-8 records; the Austin Copperheads sport a much superior point differential and the same record, but are trapped at last in the conference while a traffic jam of 8-5 and 7-6 teams duke it out up top.
But who will emerge from that pile-up with a coveted playoff berth? The Orange County Otters and New Orleans are both currently kings of the hill, tied at 8-5 atop the conference. The Honolulu Hahalua, Arizona Outlaws, and San Jose Sabercats are all tied at 7-6, desperately scrapping for the one wild card slot that awaits. The remaining docket looks as follows:
Week 14: NOLA @ ARI, OCO @ AUS, SJS @ HON
Week 15: HON @ OCO, ARI @ SJS, AUS @ NOLA
Week 16: OCO @ ARI, NOLA @ SJS, HON @ AUS
The Orange County Otters Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: @ AUS, vs. HON, @ ARI
I do not know what pact the founders of this franchise made with the devil to constantly excel at a sim football league, but for the billionth year in a row the Otters have secured a non-losing record and currently sit pretty on top of the conference due to their superior points gained. It’s a tenuous grip on first with New Orleans right on their tail, so with the head-to-head series inconclusive it will come down to how both teams perform in the home stretch. OCO is one of three teams primarily on the road, along with NOLA and HON, but their performance makes every one of their matchups at worst an even match.
Path: Mostly in control of the first seed. Win three, and score at worst 24 less points than NOLA, and they are secured.
The New Orleans Second Line Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: @ ARI, vs. AUS, @ SJS
After leading the conference for much of the season, the Second Line have ceded room to the Otters at the top of the litter. Also like the Otters, the Second Line are still a rather formidable team and have a fast track to a playoff spot as long as they can avoid faltering down the stretch. This aging roster is Ultimus or bust, and home field advantage would go quite a long way towards that - but they need to rack up points fast in order to do so.
Path: Kind of in control of the first seed. Win three, and score more than 24 points more than OCO over those games, and they are secured.
The Honolulu Hahalua Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: vs. SJS, @ OCO, @ AUS
Gotta be honest, being a Hahalua fan has been stupidly fun this season. I thoroughly relish how salty people get about how lucky we are and how we are actually secretly the worst team in the world. I mean, they aren’t wrong, but we weren’t even supposed to be at the playoff contention part of our window for a good season or two, so the superior fish team is playing entirely on house money here. By virtue of their superior head to head records against the Arizona Outlaws and the San Jose Sabercats, the Hahalua currently have the inside track to the wildcard slot. All it will take is a little luck.
Path: The home game against San Jose is pretty much a must win for Honolulu. If they can snag the coin flip match, they need Arizona and San Jose to lose their games against Orange County and New Orleans and the head to head advantage will boot the Hahalua into the postseason. Since one of Arizona and San Jose has to win their matchup, Honolulu would prefer the Sabercats, but if they don’t win in Week 14 then it really doesn’t matter. Winning at Austin would be a massive, if unlikely, help.
Basically, Honolulu really shouldn’t lose the San Jose game.
The Arizona Outlaws Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: vs. NOLA, @ SJS, vs. OCO
Losing both Honolulu matchups has put the Outlaws in a tricky situation, the first team to be looking from the outside in at the playoff picture. They are currently above the Sabercats due to their Week 3 victory at home, but Arizona’s Achilles Heel is a dismal 2-5 conference record, which will kill the Outlaws if head to head outcomes become split in a series. The most critical part of this is the Week 15 rematch with San Jose.
Path: Since Honolulu owns the tiebreaker between the two teams, Arizona must win more games than them outright in order to beat them to the punch. Like the Hahalua, Arizona desperately needs to win against San Jose - if they lose, not only do they need to win both of their matches with the two best conference teams, but San Jose must lose out or else their superior conference record will knock Arizona out. San Jose losing out also necessarily gives the Hahalua one of two wins they’d need in this scenario to box out the Outlaws regardless.
Basically, Arizona really shouldn’t lose the San Jose game.
The San Jose Sabercats Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: @ HON, vs. ARI, vs. NOLA
The Sabercats may be technically fifth in the conference, but it’s still a traffic jam, and San Jose has a good shot at sneaking into the third seed. Like their fellow lower seeds, San Jose has the luxury of playing two of their final three games in the comfort of their own stadium. The primary detriment to San Jose thus far is that two of their three conference losses have been to their two primary competitors for the wild card spot, putting them out of reach for any straight head to head tiebreakers. Luckily for the Sabercats, they don’t need it.
Path: San Jose has the great fortune of playing both Honolulu and Arizona, so if they want a shot at the playoffs, beating both would be a fantastic start. But losing to either gives the opponent the series sweep and head to head tiebreaker; losing both is an instant death sentence. Similar to the Outlaws situation described above, losing one or the other would essentially put San Jose in the passenger’s seat to hope for winning out and the opponent losing out.
Basically, San Jose really shouldn’t lose the Honolulu or Arizona game.
The Austin Copperheads Path to the Playoffs Up Ahead: vs. OCO, @ NOLA, vs. HON
Realistically, the only role the Austin Copperheads will be playing this playoff run-up is as spoiler. All three of the current top seeds are scheduled to take a swing at the Copperheads, hoping to notch a win to keep their enemies at bay. Austin could decide which team gets the first seed or could simply lose all three games (please let Honolulu win Austin, it would mean a lot). But if we wanted to assume full ASFC chaos, is there a way Austin can get into the dance? Yes.
Path: Austin has to win out, first of all. Anything less and they will be boxed out by OCO/NOLA, who already have eight wins, and one of SJS/ARI, because that Week 16 matchup has to have a winner. Interestingly, Austin winning out gives them a straight up head to head advantage over both Orange County AND New Orleans, because this team is straight up whack. So let’s assume the Otters and Second Line both go on boat cruises for the rest of the season and lose all of their games in order for Austin’s newfound advantage to take effect. This automatically boosts San Jose and Honolulu up to eight wins and Arizona up to nine, so the Outlaws are in. Austin can’t beat San Jose because of the head to head series, so Honolulu must lose against San Jose and then Austin beats Honolulu on conference record. Boom, Austin in the playoffs.
My Game Predictions
NOLA @ ARI -
The Outlaws are simply more desperate at the moment than the Second Line to win a game, and although both teams are struggling to keep momentum, the Outlaws’ home field advantage gives them a slight edge.
OCO @ AUS -
Austin is a lot better than their record appears, and while I do not believe that they’ll actually make the playoffs, they will make the race for the top seed interesting by snapping the Otters’ win streak and keeping Second Line fans happy everywhere
SJS @ HON -
Three for three on the home games this week. Honolulu and San Jose both really need this win, but Honolulu is at home, and they’ll send the Sabercats packing with the power of that magic horseshoe we’ve stashed away.
HON @ OCO -
I’d honestly be surprised if it’s anything closer than a two score game here. The Otters easily recover from their loss to the Copperheads and the Hahalua become the world’s largest Sabercats fans.
ARI @ SJS -
I know, I know, I keep picking the home team here, but San Jose faces potential elimination from the picture entirely if they lose this game after being beaten by Honolulu. At home and with their backs against the wall, I think San Jose keeps Arizona from that second win they desperately need.
AUS @ NOLA -
New Orleans is better and they are at home and they really need to keep pace with Orange County. Austin is plucky, but any chance of playoff contention dies here with an official elimination.
OCO @ ARI -
Here you go, a road win! Orange County cruises through Arizona in a game that seals them as the conference’s first seed, with these last two games helping the Otters to boost their points scored and stave off New Orleans.
NOLA @ SJS -
Yes I’m biased, but I’m predicting both Arizona and San Jose to fumble away their chances at beating Honolulu because if I predict it hard enough maybe I can will it into existence. The Second Line come into town and take out their second seed rage on the Sabercats.
HON @ AUS -
I actually think this could be a surprisingly tight game - after all, the Hahalua have beaten the Copperheads before this season. But I’m not THAT much of a homer to predict that Honolulu will triumph on the road against Austin, just enough to really really really hope it happens in case Arizona or San Jose picks up an additional game.
Final Predicted Standings
Orange County Otters (10-6)
New Orleans Second Line (10-6)
Honolulu Hahalua (8-8)
Arizona Outlaws (8-8)
San Jose Sabercats (8-8)
Austin Copperheads (7-9)
Quick Personal Thoughts on Expansion
Obviously expansion protection lists have been published for a day or two, and kicker/punter extraordinaire Venus Powers was left off of the list of protections for the second time in her career. Am I angry? Not at all. I’m a kicker, and even kickers who lead their team in TPE just aren’t that important, positionally speaking.
To any expansion GMs reading this, I’ll make my position on being selected quite clear. Just like two years ago, I’m incredibly happy where I am, and I’d like to finish out my career as a Hahalua. But I also said that two seasons ago about the Liberty. I’m a team player - if an expansion team selects me, I will not look for the earliest opportunity to leave. I’ll be positive and learn to love rooting for you. It’s not exactly a super spicy opinion on expansion, but that’s what I’ve got.
One Last Note on Dotts
If you manage to pull any of the Fabulous Five or Kicker Mafia and don’t particularly want it then hit me up when trading gets implemented. I’ve got a couple of pretty good cards I’d be willing to trade.
Code:
2522 wordsRE: Tribune1898 - infinitempg - 09-06-2020
(09-06-2020, 10:55 AM)Baron1898 Wrote: How Will Expansion Scheduling Work?
Head Office probably has already worked out a reasonable plan
![[Image: dd0.jpg]](https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/facebook/000/030/710/dd0.jpg){kind=icon}
totally didn't forget to work on this nope
RE: Tribune1898 - Faded - 09-06-2020
this is the yes article
RE: Tribune1898 - Mooty99 - 09-06-2020
Great article baron. Looking forward to spoiling someone's party