(S31) Ultimus Week

[Starboy]

Task 17

The Butchers have recently announced that they will be going to build a new stadium in order to accommodate the growing population and fanbase in the area. Many in the media were worried that there were worried that their favorite parts of the stadium would be removed, but the front office sent out a survey for what to keep while also keeping a mind on the future. Plenty of people voted to keep the multiple beer stands as well as the quick deep dish pizza places, but a few former additions were officially off of the charts.

The main reason that the new stadium was being built was to incorporate a housing area and a hangout spot outside of the stadium for the growing homeless people that constantly bothered plenty of visitors for money. Among the crowds there were defensive end, Jason Garciaparra, who advocated for the housing area the most but promised that he was not the one that needed the major project with the stadium since he definitely had a home and would not be visiting the new apartment complexes. Regardless, the Butchers agreed to aid the homeless around the stadium to build the “Chop Apartments” and “Meat Market” with their new stadium.

Task 19



Task 20



Task 22

Let’s face it, the half-time show is at least eighty percent of the reason that people show up to the Ultimus anymore. Outside of the amazing run the Hahalua just had, there is not much reason for fans to get excited to see the same teams battling it out for multiple season stretches and providing no fun for the fans. However, I have the perfect show that can make everyone excited to come to the Ultimus or tune in on the game to make sure they will not miss the greatest event the sim world has ever seen!

There is always a big cast of artists to pick from that start with amazingly talented singers or performers, but plenty of those provide the same level of entertainment in a 1080p YouTube video. Instead there should be a musical fighting tournament starring none other than the strong Armor King that tells the story of a young fighter trying to bring redemption for his father and the show would end with the final match with the hero fighting the man that killed his father, Armor King. The show would be unlike anything other sim leagues have or any other sport due to its uniqueness. The storyline involved would keep fans guessing, interested in the event up until the very end.

[huck24]

Tier 2: Short Form Tasks (Each must be 400+ words)
Choose up to TWO for 5 TPE each.

14. Describe your player and/or team’s journey through this latest season. What were the highlights? What were the lower points? What might you have done differently? What are your expectations for next season?

Another season is in the books, the fifth for New Orleans linebacker Vincent Jones Jr. In many eyes l, Vincent did not live up to expectations. After breaking into the league in S27, Vincent impressed just about everyone in the ISFL, racking up 87 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles and 1 fumble recovery, 7 sacks, 1 interception and 11 passes deflected. These numbers were good enough to get Jones nominated for Defensive Rookie of the Year and actually take the award home. This past season at the height of Vincent’s playing career, he posted 96 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 1 forced and one recovered fumble, 7 sacks and 8 passes deflected.
These latest number don’t seem to be too far off from his rookie season. Most would argue that a fifth year player, who is at the top of their game, should have improved quite a bit in all of the major stats. Making 9 more tackles isn’t necessarily a game changer and he was just about the same in each of the other recorded stats. When Vincent should be putting up some major numbers he has been pretty plain. While 96 is the most tackles he has made in a season, his 5 tackles for a loss matches his personal best, he fell quite a bit from his record number of forced fumbles, which he has done twice, with 4. Fumbles recovered has been a constant for Vincent, recovering one fumble each season he has played. 11 sacks is Jones Jr’s most sacks in a season to date, 4 more than his past season totals. This isn’t the first time Vincent hasn’t picked off an opposing quarterback in a season, but hopefully the last. His 8 passes deflected are three less than his personal best of 11, which he has done twice now.
Vincent is going to be the best player allowable the coming season. He wants to show that on the field and help steer his Second Line teammates back to the playoffs and back to the Ultimus game, like he did in his rookie season. He knows that he needs to be better. Better than he was last season and better than each season he has played in yet. He is looking for a big season, because after this season, which will be his 6th, it will be downhill from there. So, keep your eyes out for Vincent next season, he is looking the step up his game quite a bit!

Tier 3: Written/Graphics Tasks (Each must be either 200+ words or a graphic)
Choose up to FOUR for 2.5 TPE each.


22. You’re in charge of entertainment for the Ultimus or Ultimini half-time show. What would you do? 

Vincent Jones Jr. was contacted by the ISFL head office a few weeks prior to the Ultimus game. They explained to Vincent that they wanted to make sure that this seasons halftime entertainment should really reflect what an ISFL player wants to see in a halftime show. They picked a player at random, and guess who was selected, that's right, Vincent Jones Jr. Vincent is a huge fan of karioke and that was the first thing that came to his head and he went with it. Each fan in attendance got the opportunity to sign up for the chance to be part of the half time show. 5 lucky ISFL fans were selected to perform their favorite songs. We had a good mix of song selection and talent level. It seemed like everyone really enjoyed the show and the entertainment provided by the karioking fans. Vincent enjoyed every moment of it. He said after the show, that was the best time he has had at an Ultimus game, which isn't too much of a surprise considering he's only other appearance at the big game was on the losing side of a lopsided game. We will see if the karioke theme will be a mainstay at the Ultimus now, I highly doubt that but I guess anything is possible...

31. Affliate PT from either SHL/PBE/WSBL. The Weeks must match with the timeframe of this UW. And you may only use a max of 1.

SHL affiliate

[hexify]

15. Ultimus MVP? Davriel Lavinge. Now, there were a ton of other playmakers in this game. You can argue all you want, but he simply saved the game. On the long pass, which would have cost us the game, Lavinge made the game-saving tackle. This also ran the clock fully out, giving the Honolulu a glorious win. When we headed to Disneyland, in our luxurious private jet. We get a jet because we are the coolest team out there, all the other lame teams dont get shit. Anyways, when we arrived, we only had only one ride in mind. Space. Mountain. Space mountain was the ambition ever since we won the first playoff game. I had barely rode any other rides besides space mountain. In fact, I rode it about 247 times, if my calculations are correct.  While the food at Disneyland was horribly overpriced, we couldn't complain since we wasn't paying. What was amazing to me is when EKW somehow ate 13 whole pizzas in one setting. In an even more incredible feat, he only took 10 minutes on the toilet when it hit him. However, I cannot say if the toilet survived. When we had to leave, it was a bit of a sad sight, especially since we forgot Ray-Ray on the first time around. Wasn't my fault.

17. First off for a new stadium, I'd like to see the concession stand improved. I've had their food a few times out of pure hunger, and it wasn't the greatest. Like, it's really hard to mess up nachos, and they were still MID. I suggest we incorporate new ingredients, and a whole new menu. Of course we should keep the classics like Popcorn, hotdogs, nachos, and other things. I honestly recommend that we incorporate some Hawaiian cuisine into the menu. We should honestly even send out a survey to find out what the fans would like to see at the stadium. Maybe add the top 3 choices, or even more.  I also think we should re-do the seating. Some of the seats have horrible angles, but they are cheap. However, I believe every Honolulu fan should have good seats if they spend good money to see their Ultimus winning team play. We should add in sideline seating. Sideline seating would be a super luxury, with liabilities included of course.  This would provide an in-depth experience for some of our best and most loyal fans.  For my final tweak, PLEASE MAKE MORE PARKING. I see so many people having to bus/train to the games. There simply ain't enough for how many die hard fans we have.

22. This will be an extremely long half-time show. First off, we getting an exclusive drop of the Deluxe version of DONDA. Kanye gon be there for the entire thing too. He will preform the entire thing. This would already make it the GOAT of half-time performances. However, we gonna make it better. After Kanye delivers the best performance of his life and ultimately wins a grammy for Album of the year, we will move on to our second performance. None other than Ski Mask just doing whatever he wants. He could literally beat up people as performance and we gonna allow it. If you get beat it, its simply cause you deserve it. Anyway, after that, we getting Gordon Ramsey to personally make everyone in the stadium to make everyone a personal burger. This would probably take forever, but who cares. After that, we gonna ask for volunteers to create a Honolulu fight club. If you end up as the ultimate winner, you win season tickets for 5 years. For th final event, we reveal everything was simulation and that you experiences all of that in 15 minutes. This is to promote to the new VR technology that was provided to us by our new sponsors.

20. Scouting Report - WR: Escanor Sama, Dallas Birddogs
Player Archetype: Possession Receiver
Player Height: 6'5
Player Weight: 230
College: LSU
Player Statistics: 88 REC, 1420 YDS, 11 TD, 14 PAN, 8 DRP, 6.3 CTCH/G, 101.4 YDS/G, 16.1 AVG
Player Upsides: 
Hands: Sama has shown elite catching and hands for being a rookie, he only had 8 drops across the season while being targeted at least 80+ times. This has shown he is a strong rookie receiver, and I would grade his hands to be in the 75-80 area.
Strength: Strength may not be what you look for as a top trait in a receiver, but this one has plenty. The strength is pretty average when you compare to other positions, but as a rookie Wideout, the strength he has could be considered elite by some. I estimate it is rated around the 65-70 area.
Player Averages:
Speed: While Sama has great hands, he only has average speed for a rookie wideout. This is simply because of his build, and I think he will develop it to being great for his size eventually. Estimate is around 75-83.
Player Downsides: 
Agility: Agility is easily Samas worst trait, and it shows when you see him run routes. He still creates seperation through his size and strength, which is great, but with more agility he could even be routing up the physical corners. I estimate this to be around 67-73. 
Endurance: Sama has weak endurance, but that is because of his huge physical type play style. While it may only be around 45-50, I have yet to see this impact his greatness on the field, and this shouldn't be a big concern if you look to draft him.
Talent Analysis: Top 5 Talent, 1st round.
Conclusion: Even though Sama may not be taken in top 5 the first round, make no mistake, he easily has the talent to do so. He will blossom into an excellent physical reciever in the big league, and we can expect great things from him.

[SwankyPants31]

11. I’m going to take a small liberty with this task and rather than just look at the biggest rivalry, look at all rivalries for my team and explain why the biggest is the biggest compared to the other two. You could ask just about anybody on the Tijuana Luchadores who our biggest rival is and I’m confident that you would get the same answer from everybody without even needing to give them time to think. That rival would be the Bondi Beach Buccaneers, or Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, or Palm Beach Solar Bears depending on when in the league’s history you’re from since this team seems to also have a rivalry with whichever city it happens to be in at the time and never stays in any one place for too long. Seriously though, I’m not going to name any names here because this rivalry can get seriously contentious, sometimes even transcending the game itself. As I understand it, the Buccaneers were a bot team for a long time that was revived shortly before I arrived in the league in season 22. Since then, it’s felt like the Tijuana Luchadores and Buccaneers have been battling for a playoff spot almost every season since. There have been some seriously close seasons where one of the teams make it over the others, but the most exciting is always when both teams make it in and we get that sweet playoff game against our biggest rivals. For me personally the playoff game that most comes to mind was when I was general manager of the Tijuana Luchadores in season 25. The Buccaneers (who were still in Myrtle Beach at the time) had managed to put together what, if I have to be honest, was a very impressive season looking dominant at 11-3, giving them the top seed in the whole league. Those 11 wins also included beating Tijuana both at home and away. Tijuana meanwhile, had barely limped into the playoffs at 6-8, and were very clear underdogs. Not only did they end up beating the Buccaneers in the playoffs, but they also went on to win the Ultimini by beating the London Royals who had also swept them during the regular season. When you look at Tijuana’s other division rivals, it becomes plain why the Buccaneers rivalry is the most contentious. Similar to them, Norfolk had been resurrected from being a bot team by a former Ultimini winning Tijuana GM, and even modeled the “new” team after his old one. Meanwhile Dallas was founded as an expansion team by two former Tijuana players, and at least to me it always felt like there was a tight bond there.

14. Live Laughlove’s rookie season in the DSFL was rocky, to say the least. Obviously any time you have an uncapped rookie quarterback in the DSFL you’ll likely lean a little heavier on the running game than you might prefer, but I have to say I had fun watching him perform over the course of the season. I came in knowing that with 2 send downs running backs on the roster we were almost certainly going to be a run-run-pass team, if not even a run-run-run team. As a result, I was not at all surprised or disappointed to see that Tijuana was at the bottom of the team stats in all of completions, attempts, and passing yards. Frankly it wasn’t even close, with a whopping 68 less attempts than the 7th rank Minnesota Grey Ducks. For some more context on how few attempts this is, there was only a 41 attempt difference between the previously mentioned 7th rank Minnesota Grey Ducks (473) and 1st ranked Kansas City Coyotes (514). All that said, none of this should be taken as a complaint. Going even back to my previous player, I’ve always been straightforward that personal stats and accolades are meaningless to me, and I’d rather we do whatever gives us the best chance to win even if it means I don’t throw at all (which was basically what happened this season). It’s hard for me to really come up with a highlight for this season, as we just barely missed out on a playoff spot due to the sim doing sim stuff, and due to the previously mentioned low attempts there weren’t really any super memorable games other than those where I didn’t completely botch the game with an interception. On the lowlight end though, there’s a very specific example that comes to mind. Week 5, where we traveled to face the defending champion Minnesota Grey Ducks. Live Laughlove put up an absolutely legendary statline of 24/39 for 244 yards (which sounds pretty good to this point) with no touchdowns and FIVE interceptions (there it is). To add insult to injury, the final play of the game was a 43 yard pass from Live Laughlove to wide receiver Troy Barnes that was stopped at the 1 yard line, preventing me from even coming away with a pity garbage time touchdown. Since joining the league back in S21, I don’t think I have ever seen such a legendarily poor performance for a quarterback. In spite of Live Laughlove’s best efforts to literally throw the game away, it still only ended as a two score loss, speaking to the strength of the Luchador running game and defense.

[FireKing10789]

7. As a new player in the International Simulation Football League my experience has been overall incredibly positive and supportive. At first, I was overwhelmed by the complicated at first look forums and the formats that were not obvious with TPE claims and updates. As my first sim league the rookie mentors were incredibly helpful and completely supplemented my experience by helping with detailed messages that let me ease into the format allowing me to quickly complete TPE claims and tasks without constantly asking for help. Some people who have made my experience in the league and locker room include Negs and TheCC. Negs is the General Manager of the Norfolk Seawolves and has been incredibly helpful by continually helping me with update pages and reminding me of TPE tasks when I forget them. Even with his busy General Manager duties, he still manages to be available to help people who are newer to the league and more inexperienced. TheCC is the person who recruited me through a reddit post on r/NFL and if it were not for his post, I would not have ever joined the International Simulation Football League and been able to experience all the joy and meet the people that have made my experience in the International Simulation Football League something to remember and continue in the next seasons to come. So far, my player’s start has been enjoyable and agreeable. My Developmental Simulation Football League the Norfolk Seawolves has truly been and ideal experience and completely helped me want to continue the league and develop my player and further my career. On the field my play has been good and I have been an important part to the team even as a rookie thanks to my secondary position opposite Kyouma. Even though my experience has been overall positive I agree that there are some changes that could be made that would improve the new player experience. One change I would make is cleaning up the forums and making all the overt information and direction up to date and easy to follow. For example, the weekly training is not noticeably clear and hard to follow without having to ask for help from a rookie mentor in my experience. In my opinion, another thing that should change would be an added up to date template for inexperienced players in update pages. Personally, I had to copy of someone else’s update page because I could not figure out how to format it and did not want to constantly bother rookie mentors for help. Consequently, my time in the International Simulation Football League has been enjoyable so far.

16. With the end of my first DSFL season, I am up for my first draft possibility in the ISFL. As a player, I Dragazor Blaze brings a lot of versatility and other crucial factors to the lucky team that drafts me. The intangibles like a demanding work ethic, a natural feel for the game, and a studied intelligence. My player went to Harvard where they do not give out athletic scholarships meaning I got there on my own volition. They should take a gamble and roll the dice because of many valuable options I bring. Cornerback is one of the few positions where you can never have enough players at the position. Even an average cornerback is a huge boon to a weak secondary. Adding an excellent cornerback in the ISFL Draft from Norfolk is something that could theoretically be ideal for whoever decides to draft me. Another one of my assets is the slightly more under looked locker room aspect of my game. My supportive locker room talk helps people stay interested in the International Simulation Football League and continue gaining more TPE and improving their player and the team that drafts me overall. In conclusion, drafting Dragazor Blaze is one of the best decisions you can make as a team this ISFL draft and will help your team both on the field and off it.

17. If the Norfolk Seawolves decided to break ground on a new stadium there are many additions, I would consider vital to the fan and player experience. One thing that is important is necessary and up to date medical professionals and technology for players to play their best and continue giving it all on the field where it matters. Having players feel good and important affects how much they care about the team and how much they are willing to give to the team mentally, emotionally, and physically. This small investment will go a long way monetarily and playing wise. For the fans a submarine in the stadium would be really cool and immerse the fans and increase their willingness to support the team through rough times and how many tickets and merchandise they would be willing to buy. I took inspiration from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' stadium design and their pirate ship. As a kid who was easily influenced the Buccaneers ship made me want to support that team regardless of other factors. I think a submarine would have similar effects for the Norfolk Seawolves and improve their fan experience. Overall, the two things I would put in a new stadium for the Norfolk Seawolves would be up to date facilities and medical professionals and technology and a submarine for the fans based off the logo.

10/10

[moonlight]

1. Well Season 31 is over and another offseason is upon us. It was a fantastic ISFL season that ended in one of the most magical playoff runs in ISFL history. In the ASFC the Austin Copperheads, the Honolulu Hahalua, and the Arizona Outlaws made the ISFL playoffs.

The first matchup in the ASFC wildcard was the Hahalua and the Outlaws facing off in the Wildcard round. Both teams had identical 9-7 records but both teams had difference strengths. The Outlaws scored 443 points compared to the Hahalua's mark of 340. It was clear from these numbers that the Hahalua were not in the same offensive category as the Outlaws were who had the 2nd highest points per game in the ASFC and 6th in the league as a whole. The Hahalua were 3rd in the conference in points scored but 10th in the league. When it came to defence, Hahalua were up there with the best of them. They sported the best defence by points scored in the conference and second best across the league. The old adage that defence wins championships were at the forefront of this team's mind going into the playoffs. They were led by new trade acquisition Big Slammu who went on a tear down the stretch to get the Hahalua into the playoffs, winning three straight defensive player of the week awards as he helped the Hahalua secure a playoff spot.

When it came to the wild card game, Hahalua had a very well rounded performance all around, winning the game handily 33-20 on the round. They held the outlaws to 60 rushing yards and Cortez to a 78 passer rating, the reigning MVP. The aforementioned Big Slammu had another 2 sack game, while Asher Mountain record a 12 tackle, 1 sack performance in the Hahalua's first ever playoff win. Christ Jr. had a standout game in his playoff debut throwing a very efficient game.

Now it came to the ASFC championship where the upstart Hahalua went up against the Austin Copperheads, the number one team in the nation. The Copperheads boasted the number one record in the league at 12-4. They had one of the best offences in the league paired with one of the best defences in the league. This was a truly complete team in all phases of the game and they had a chance to get back to the Ultimus game with just one more home win against the Hahalua. They had bullied the Hahalua in two of their previous matchups earlier in the season, winning both games.

The ASFC conference championship started off strong with an Eleven Kendrick-Watts touchdown and ended strong with an Eleven Kendrick-Watts touchdown as the Hahalua won a tightly contested 30-27 game on the road to go to their first Ultimus Bowl.  Eleven Kendrick-Watts was named the games MVP with his 8 Rec, 123 yard, 2 TD performance. Cobra Kai had a great performance on the ground with 93 yards and a touchdown. Lavigne had a standout performance at the safety positon with a 8 tackles, a pass defended and an interception.

In the NSFC you had a tightly contested race to first seed that the Colorado Yeti ended up winning. Considered by many to be the 2nd best team this year next to the fantastic Copperheads team, the Yeti were once again one of the premier offences in the NFL. They were led by the presumptive MVP Mathias Caliban who threw for once again a ridiculous 5000 yard passing season to go along with 48 TD passes.

The NSFC wilcard featured the 10-6 teams the Chicago Butchers and the Sarasota Sailfish. The Sailfish had one the tiebreaker and were thus the home team. The Sailfish had the number one offence in the league and were the defending champions. The Chicago Butchers were the number one defence in the league and trying to put the old saying defences win championships to the test. Well the Butchers did just that and ended up winning the game 23-13. The Butchers defence made Mike Boss Jr. look barely competent as he threw 2 picks and a passer rating of 77.9.

The conference championship in the NSFC was once again another enormous challenge for the Butchers as they walked into Colorado. Caliban had an efficient game as he led the Yeti back to the Ultimus. The Butchers offence just couldn't produce enough points in the 23-10 loss.

The Ultimus Bowl was thus the Hahalua facing off against the Yeti. For the Yeti it was been there done that but for the Hahalua, this was a coming of age story that they did not want to squander. Well the game ended up being a back and forth game. The game was 23-27 in the final 5 minutes after a devastating pick six by the Yeti but Christ Jr. showed a lot of heart and got the Hahalua back into scoring range before hitting the games offensive MVP Salamanca with the game winning touchdown. The Hahalua had done the impossible, winning three straight road games as the third seed to win their very first Ultimus Championship. What a way to end the S31 season!

Code:

879 words

[Net]

Task One:

We shall take a look at each teams season journey, let's start with Honolulu. Honolulu started off the season with two wins, against New Orleans and then Orange County. This however was followed by a stretch of 4 losses where they put up an average of 15 points a game and allowed 30. After that, Honolulu looked not so good, only 2-4 heading into a game against New York. A win, followed by a loss to Philly, but then a huge win over Baltimore (45-0) which really helped them out. 4-6 heading into the final stretch of the season, and they needed a streak of games to get on top...and they did exactly that. 4 straight games with an explosive offense led to 4 straight wins and just like that, Honolulu was 8-6. One loss to Arizona late in the season hurt but they still got into the playoffs with a 9-7 record after a win versus New York. Led by one of if not the best receiver in the league Eleven Kendrick-Watts, Honolulu looked like a team that could get a win or two maybe. But then, something amazing happened. After a win versus Arizona, they would win against Austin and just like that, the Hahalua were in the Ultimus, but it wasn't an easy team they were playing, none other than the Colorado Yeti! Colorado started out pretty decent, with a close win week one versus Berlin but then a blowout loss to Chicago to Week 2. However that led to a 6 game win streak...followed by a 3 game losing streak. In 2 of those three loses they allowed 40 and 55 (24 in the other respectfully). Colorado would then win 3 more averaging more than 28 per game and drop one more before ending the season on a very very very nice 69-13 win versus San Jose...why...oh well guess all losses can't be respectful but I guess I won't take it personally yet (looking at you Sconnie). Then, Colorado had to remind Berlin why they started the season with a loss and beat the crap out of them 49-17, then won against Colorado getting some sweet sweet revenge with a 23-10 win, which now leads to where we are. Mattathias Caliban led the Yeti to 48 touchdowns passing, but had some struggles with 17 picks which was only 4th actually in the league. Let's dive into the game. Oh wow! Caliban helped contribute to the first points of the Ultimus...in the wrong way though. Safety for Honolulu! I can't make too much about this game, I'll cut to the chase, Honolulu won the game in great fashion 30-27 and it was glory for the Hawaiian squad, a lot of happiness all around for them as they were underdogs who came out strong in the end! Congrats to them! Now I wanna split away from the top teams and look at the runner ups that weren't in the Ultimus, Austin and Chicago. Austin was the best team in the league, at a powerful 12-4 record. 6-2 at home and road. This team wasn't exactly carried by offense, only scoring above 35 3 times, but their defense wasn't exactly top tier either, just a well rounded team that you would be happy to get weekly. Jackie Daytona was solid at the quarterback position, getting a career high in touchdown passes with 32 while throwing just 10 interceptions! Zoe Watts was able to get a solid 1110 yards on 8 touchdowns as well. Similar to Honolulu's Eleven Kendrick-Watts, Austin had their own weapon deadly receiver with Videl-San. Now over to Chicago. Chicago was coming off a season where they were selling hard and making moves in the draft, and somehow they ended up here at a 10-6 record! They had the top defense in the league, and hey, defense does win games! Hamish McAndrew, Juan Domine, Wasabi Gleel, and others were the leaders of these offense gob stopping jaw breakers. Domine especially, with 20 sacks on 111 tackles, a true FORCE on the field if you ask me. Rookie Quarterback Kazimir Oles Jr helped the team with a very impressive 30 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions, with his top target being Duke product Mike Hunt! While Chicago had a nice 23-13 win over Sarasota in the first round, the defense gave in against the Yeti, ultimately ending their amazing season, on the amazing squad over. Overall, playoff teams have a lot on their mind and have a lot of work before. Each team has a journey to their success, and no difference here. Honolulu and Colorado were amazing teams no matter the outcome, and the same is to be said about Austin and Chicago, and not to forget the Silverbacks, Outlaws, Fire Salamanders and the Sailfish too. Each team balled out, and hey, they helped me complete this Ultimus Week task. Thank you!

813 words

[legion of slugs]

31. PBE PT

26. Football is a game that has been going on for a while, loved by fans all over. But what if you were able to make some rule changes? Talk us through your new version of football, and what would be different and why?

If I could make some rule changes, there'd be quite a few I would end up making to really clean up the game. The first rule change would be to make the kickoff be a punt instead of a kick. Kickers are already used in kicking field goals and extra points all the time, they have way too much pressure on themselves. The kickoff should be a punt anyways since you're trying to help your field position which is the point of a punt. This would give punters a bigger role also, which I'd love to see more of since punting can be exciting, like coffin corners for instance. The value of punters would go way up. This would make the game more comparable to it's name of "football" since another aspect of the kicking game is added. Another thing I'd add is increase the amount of points you get for 60-70+ yarder field goals. This would really make kickers more important. I would say, for every 2 yards beyond the 60 yard line that you kick a field goal, the value of a field goal goes up one. For example, the value of a 62 yard field goal would be 4 points. The value of a 64 yard field would be 5 points and so on. Both of these changes would make the game of football more agreeable with it's name.

232 Words

25. Imagine your current position was not available to be picked when you created your player. What other position would you have picked, and why?

If defensive end was not available, I would have picked cornerback probably. The reason for this is I wanted my first player to be on defense since I feel like the best way to contribute is by helping your team keep the opponents score as low as possible. For instance, you're basically a safety net for your team. The cornerback spot accomplishes that by being the most critical line of defense in the pass game, they are relied on heavily. Cornerbacks also have the opportunity to take back points the other way if they are exceptional, which is another reason to pick that spot. The best feeling would be shutting down widely renown wide receivers who expect to go off each game. If I did pick the cornerback spot, I would want to have been a physical corner. Helping in the run game as a defensive back is always very exciting to watch, and even blitzing for sacks could be a part of that game as well. Being a physical corner is also important for pressing receivers at the line and lot letting them get space on you. Being a cornerback would be the best way to help make sure your team doesn't get up a large amount of points since it's one of the last line of defenses on the team.

222 Words

[124715]

Long Form Task 1. This week will see the S31 Ultimus and Ultimini races begin in earnest. How did each team arrive at the playoffs? Were there any dark horse teams that went unexpectedly far, or any presumptive favorites that fell flat? Who do you think will win the final? If you’re writing this after the finals were decided, were you surprised by the outcome?


How bout them rays, huh? The S31 playoffs, featuring Austin, Arizona, Honolulu, Colorado, Sarasota, and Chicago, were perceived to have four contenders and two “pretenders” - Honolulu and Chicago. We all know how that turned out, but there’s more to the story than just the TPE totals.

Let’s paint the picture by introducing two of the teams that didn’t make it - S29 Ultimus champion New York Silverbacks and playoff mainstay Berlin Fire Salamanders. Both of these S25 expansion franchises have proven their worth among the ISFL’s top teams, and S31 wasn’t expected to be any different. For New York, there was no sign of trouble until around the midway point of the season. Sure, there was an embarrassing season opening blowout at home to the Outlaws, but Arizona was seen as prohibitive championship favorites at that point. After that, the Silverbacks rattled off 4 wins in a row, sitting pretty with the best record in the conference. It goes downhill fast from here, as the Silverbacks can only muster two more wins in 11 games to close the season out. A huge loss to the explosive Wraiths was one thing, but a last-second defeat as heavy favorites to the visiting Honolulu Hahalua left a sour taste in fans’ mouths. New York finished the season 6-10 after a 2-9 skid to close the year, and a career year from Sam Howitzer wasn’t enough to make the offense remotely watchable for a fanbase with high standards.

Standards were lower somewhat for the Berlin Fire Salamanders, as they were starting wild card rookie QB Dexter Zaylren who had seemingly loitered in the d-league for an eternity. The inverse of the Silverbacks, Berlin started the season at an unimpressive 2-5, sitting at last place in their conference. After that, Zaylren turned his play to another level, storming into the MVP conversation buoyed by the elite WR trio of Hood, Skiuuup, and Abed. The Fire Salamanders won 7 of their next 8. Unfortunately for them, a season-ending loss to Chicago in which Berlin had almost as many turnovers as points left Zaylren and co. sitting on the couch for the playoffs. While the team was expected to join the postseason, fans were happy with the season and Berlin retains one of the deepest DSFL stashes in the entire league.

So, if New York and Berlin were the teams that were “supposed” to make the playoffs but didn’t, let’s talk about the teams that weren’t expected to make it out of the regular season but did - Chicago and Honolulu. Fans were ecstatic with the Butchers’ performance all season long, especially that of rookie quarterback Kazimir Oles Jr., who played at a very high level with weapons that paled in comparison to Zaylren - the inconsistent Mike Hunt and aging Luca Scabbia. The real story was the defense, though. All-pro linebackers Juan Domine and Wasrabi Gleel had tackles up all night every single week, as the duo combined for an unfathomable 38 sacks between the two. The unstoppable pass rush was more than enough to cover for a young secondary featuring young, high-potential players such as Tim Soulja and Dee Walt. The end result was the league’s best scoring defense and a fearsome unit against the run.

Scarcely a point per game behind Chicago in the defense rankings was Honolulu. Likewise to Chicago, season 31 constituted a stunning turnaround for the Hahalua that not even the most biased fans could have predicted. In season 30, the outmatched Honolulu unit allowed almost 30 points per game, ranking 12th. In season 31, following a blockbuster trade for Wraiths linebacker Big Slammu, those figures improved to 21 points per game and 2nd in that department - plus first in yards and passing defense. Slammu was huge in his first season, approaching 20 sacks and freeing up Guy Fields to roam the interior of the field. Additionally, another season of development for crucial young starters like David Frank, Raeni Clarke, and Miles Weperom proved crucial to the unit. The stunning improvement of the defense evoked memories of season 27-28’s vaunted reef defense, which ranked in the top 3 for points allowed both seasons, but also created a somewhat unfortunate connection to the team’s offenses from that era. Fans slammed the offensive depth talent, which included names such as Lalo Salamanca and Ace Savage, and indeed the team finished just 10th in the league for points per game.

The playoff run itself was a classic Cinderella story for the ages. First, Honolulu waltzed into the stadium of the Arizona Outlaws as two-score underdogs, having not beat the Outlaws since season 28, expected to be little more than a cool little out-of-nowhere story. That game got out of hand really fast, and soon Austin’s careful gameplanning for the Outlaws went out the window. The last two games of Honolulu’s season ended in 30-27 wins for the rays, with each game as action-packed and chaotic as the entire season. The playoff run was completely unforgettable, and I’ll always cherish the ‘ship we were able to win!

[The_Kidd]

Tier 2 Option 14
Season 31 for the Silverbacks was a rough one to be honest. After falling flat in the conference championship game the season prior, the Silverbacks were hoping to get back to the Ultimus. The outlook on the season was fairly optimistic as the team returned most of the roster, but their were major reasons for concern. The Silverbacks lost a safety and o-lineman to retirement. In addition to those major blows, there was regression spread across the board for the team. Captain Rogers, Mendoza, Keoki’ai, Banks, and Crooks all suffered major regression hits. With New York trading away so may draft picks, they did not acquire enough young talent to fill in some of these gaps. The Silverbacks came into the season very thin at running back, defensive line, and linebacker and those weaknesses were exposed all season. However, I believe the biggest detriment to the Silverbacks was letting Jackson Kingston walk 2 seasons ago.
Even though Tugg Speedman has blossomed into a solid, dependable receiver, the depth behind him has not kept up with the needed production for the offense to flourish. In the seasons since Kingston has left, New York has had some bottom rank offensive numbers. The offense has been neutered with a lot of checkdowns and tight end throws and the explosive plays were few and far between. New York ranked bottom five in rush yards and total yards. Teams were not scared to attack our weakened offensive line and wanted to stop our running game.
Meanwhile, the defense had a rollercoaster season. Some games they brought the wood, other games they got taken to the shed out back. Regression hit the defense hard. The front seven was decimated by regression and sudden inactives. The defensive line were far removed from the Sack Exchange days and they could not stop a runny nose. Every week, the Silverbacks struggled to get off the field before yielding a score. A big part of that problem was our linebackers getting older and being unable to make plays when needed, especially guarding tight ends and backs on pass routes.
Even the secondary looked shaky, as they had to trade for Chunt to fill the gap at safety and Crooks started to finally show his age. All these factors really do not explain how the Silverbacks lost SEVEN home games during the season. They have to make some major changes if they want to ride out Howitzer’s peak on a high note.

Tier 3 Option 25
Well thankfully in the old sim, cornerbacks were a position avoided but a position needed, but in the new sim, they have become more valuable but also scarcer in opportunity. I am fortunate that I got to play extensively pretty much every season. But as my career winds down, I wondered more and more if I could not be a cornerback, then what would I be? For one, I despise pretty much all offensive positions so I would definitely stick to defense. But the dealbreaker for me is that defensive identities have shifted from being Nickel-heavy to 43-heavy. Too many players have jumped on the cornerback hypebeast bandwagon and I’m hopping off for my next rotation. Since 43 schemes have become wildly popular, I will definitely shift towards being a linebacker. My goal is not to be a stat-hoarding SAM or a one-man band. My ultimate goal in becoming a linebacker is to form a lethal trio or quartet of linebackers that can terrorize any defense. I want to replicate the late 2000’s Steelers and Ravens, the early 90’s Saints and Chiefs, the legion of boom Seahawks ---- I want a group of LB’s that carry the defense and has each other’s backs.

Tier 3 Option 26
I would not say I am a football purist, but I appreciate the intricacies of the sport. Football has a lot, A LOT of issues that need to be addressed and corrected, but there are a few that I want to have the opportunity to change myself. For one, I would reduce how many penalties are called, mainly on passing plays. I would throw most of the current penalties out. Illegal contact would be dropped because receivers are allowed to bump and tie up the defender without any consequence. We might as well let the best combination of speed, brawn, and smarts. Intentional grounding would count even if the quarterback throws the ball past the line of scrimmage. Unnecessary roughness would not count for hits that are not helmet to helmet. As you can see, I am a pro defense guy. I like to see the defense get more breaks from the refs. Right now the rules are geared too much to score points and gain yards ---- that’s grade A pansy football. Defensive struggles and defensive chess matches can be equally entertaining if defenses were not hamstrung by so many rules. Offenses get too may breaks these days.