Tier 1
5. The league has a rich and fascinating history, and our perspectives on it differ from person to person. In 600 words or more, describe any significant moment in ISFL or DSFL history, whether you were around for it or not. Describe the context, the significant members, and the events. What exactly made this event so famous (or infamous) and why does it deserve to be remembered? Events might include championship wins, the inducting of players to the hall of fame, or even a league scandal.
For a significant historical moment, I will talk about the first Ultimus that I won, which was also the first Ultimus that the Yellowknife Wraiths won. My portion of the story begins in Season 7 when my first player, Boss Tweed, was traded to the Yellowknife Wraiths. Up to this point, the Wraiths had been one of the most consistently successful teams in the league. In the first 6 seasons, the Wraiths never finished a season below .500. They made the playoffs 5 of the first 6 seasons and had made it to the Ultimus game twice, but had not yet been able to get over the hump and actually win a championship.
After a 7-6-1 finish and a first round playoff loss in Season 6, they decided to shake the team up with some changes that they hoped would be able to push them over the edge. They shifted some of their offensive talent to the passing game by converting RB Eric Kennedy to WR and bringing in a young RB Robby Rainey to replace him. They also traded for RB Boss Tweed and converted him to LB to bolster the defense. It quickly became apparent that the Wraiths' offseason improvements had worked as they would get off to a 9-0 start in Season 7 before suffering their first loss. They would finish the regular season with a 13-1 record and as the #1 overall seed in the league. And they would open up the playoffs with a home matchup against the Philadelphia Liberty, who they had just beaten by 20 on the road in the final regular season game. Everything was on track for the Wraiths to complete their storybook season by winning their first Ultimus. However, Season 7 was not the season that the Wraiths would win their first Ultimus. Their first round playoff game got off to a disastrous start as the Liberty would rush out to a 17-0 lead and the Wraiths would never recover. They cut the lead down within 3 points a couple of times in the second half, but the Liberty continued to answer back with more points of their own and the Wraiths would never take a lead at any point in that game, with the Liberty taking a 40-31 victory. After a dominant 13-1 regular season, the Wraiths wouldn't even get a single playoff win as they would fall short in the opening round at home against a division rival who they had just blown out on the road a week earlier. The Liberty would go on to win the championship that season and the Wraiths were left reeling after a devastating playoff loss.
Coming in to Season 8, the Wraiths had one goal: redemption. They had blown what seemed like a golden opportunity by not winning a championship after a 13-1 season, but they still had a chance to make things right if they could rebound from their playoff disappointment and make up for it with an Ultimus run in Season 8. The Wraiths kept their core roster intact, though it was weakened by regression as Season 8 saw the league's first wave of regression with Season 1 players facing regression. They would also bolster their roster midseason by acquiring star linebacker Micah Hendrix in a trade with the Phildelphia Liberty, who were deciding to trade pieces away and enter a rebuild as they had already won the championship the previous season and had an aging roster. The Wraiths weren't quite as successful as they were in the previous season, but they still finished with a league best 11-3 record to give them the #1 overall seed in the playoffs again. However the real test was whether they would be able to deliver in the playoffs this time. They opened up with a first round matchup against the Baltimore Hawks. The game began and it looked like history was repeating itself from the previous year as the Hawks took an early 21-0 lead and it looked like the Wraiths were going to get blown out in the playoffs after another successful regular season. However, this time the Wraiths were ready to fight back. They would cut the Hawks' lead down to 3 before the end of the 3rd quarter and would tie the game up early in the 4th quarter. The Wraiths never gave up the momentum as they scored 2 more touchdowns in the 4th quarter and would walk away with a double digit victory. In total, the Wraiths would end the game on a 38-3 run after facing a 21-0 deficit midway through the 2nd quarter. They exorcised the demons of the previous season by avoiding another early playoff exit and making a big comeback after facing an early deficit. The Wraiths were advancing to the Ultimus game and would have home field advantage in the championship for the first time in franchise history. They found themselves matched against a red hot New Orleans Second Line team that had won 7 of its last 8 regular season games and had upset the Orange County Otters on a last second field goal in the opening round of the playoffs. The Second Line took an early 3-0 lead, but the Wraiths would take the lead on a touchdown in the final moments of the 1st quarter. The Wraiths never looked back after this as the Second Line never retook the lead and the Wraiths led by double digits for most of the second half, ultimately coming away with a 24-13 win to clinch their first Ultimus in franchise history.
This is probably one of my favorite storylines during my time in the league. It was fun to see the Wraiths finally getting over the top after sustained success in the league's early seasons that was never quite enough for a championship until Season 8. And it was especially fun from a personal perspective since my own player was a part of it. The Season 7 playoff loss felt brutal when it happened, but now it becomes a fun part of the story after knowing the Wraiths would come back strong and make up for it in the following season. The 21-0 deficit in the Season 8 playoffs was also a moment of despair when it happened, but it made it all the more exciting when the Wraiths rallied and came back, especially with the previous season's playoff results weighing heavily on the minds of Wraiths players during that game. It was a fun couple seasons to experience and it was a fun walk down memory lane to recap it here.
(Word Count: 1101)
5. The league has a rich and fascinating history, and our perspectives on it differ from person to person. In 600 words or more, describe any significant moment in ISFL or DSFL history, whether you were around for it or not. Describe the context, the significant members, and the events. What exactly made this event so famous (or infamous) and why does it deserve to be remembered? Events might include championship wins, the inducting of players to the hall of fame, or even a league scandal.
For a significant historical moment, I will talk about the first Ultimus that I won, which was also the first Ultimus that the Yellowknife Wraiths won. My portion of the story begins in Season 7 when my first player, Boss Tweed, was traded to the Yellowknife Wraiths. Up to this point, the Wraiths had been one of the most consistently successful teams in the league. In the first 6 seasons, the Wraiths never finished a season below .500. They made the playoffs 5 of the first 6 seasons and had made it to the Ultimus game twice, but had not yet been able to get over the hump and actually win a championship.
After a 7-6-1 finish and a first round playoff loss in Season 6, they decided to shake the team up with some changes that they hoped would be able to push them over the edge. They shifted some of their offensive talent to the passing game by converting RB Eric Kennedy to WR and bringing in a young RB Robby Rainey to replace him. They also traded for RB Boss Tweed and converted him to LB to bolster the defense. It quickly became apparent that the Wraiths' offseason improvements had worked as they would get off to a 9-0 start in Season 7 before suffering their first loss. They would finish the regular season with a 13-1 record and as the #1 overall seed in the league. And they would open up the playoffs with a home matchup against the Philadelphia Liberty, who they had just beaten by 20 on the road in the final regular season game. Everything was on track for the Wraiths to complete their storybook season by winning their first Ultimus. However, Season 7 was not the season that the Wraiths would win their first Ultimus. Their first round playoff game got off to a disastrous start as the Liberty would rush out to a 17-0 lead and the Wraiths would never recover. They cut the lead down within 3 points a couple of times in the second half, but the Liberty continued to answer back with more points of their own and the Wraiths would never take a lead at any point in that game, with the Liberty taking a 40-31 victory. After a dominant 13-1 regular season, the Wraiths wouldn't even get a single playoff win as they would fall short in the opening round at home against a division rival who they had just blown out on the road a week earlier. The Liberty would go on to win the championship that season and the Wraiths were left reeling after a devastating playoff loss.
Coming in to Season 8, the Wraiths had one goal: redemption. They had blown what seemed like a golden opportunity by not winning a championship after a 13-1 season, but they still had a chance to make things right if they could rebound from their playoff disappointment and make up for it with an Ultimus run in Season 8. The Wraiths kept their core roster intact, though it was weakened by regression as Season 8 saw the league's first wave of regression with Season 1 players facing regression. They would also bolster their roster midseason by acquiring star linebacker Micah Hendrix in a trade with the Phildelphia Liberty, who were deciding to trade pieces away and enter a rebuild as they had already won the championship the previous season and had an aging roster. The Wraiths weren't quite as successful as they were in the previous season, but they still finished with a league best 11-3 record to give them the #1 overall seed in the playoffs again. However the real test was whether they would be able to deliver in the playoffs this time. They opened up with a first round matchup against the Baltimore Hawks. The game began and it looked like history was repeating itself from the previous year as the Hawks took an early 21-0 lead and it looked like the Wraiths were going to get blown out in the playoffs after another successful regular season. However, this time the Wraiths were ready to fight back. They would cut the Hawks' lead down to 3 before the end of the 3rd quarter and would tie the game up early in the 4th quarter. The Wraiths never gave up the momentum as they scored 2 more touchdowns in the 4th quarter and would walk away with a double digit victory. In total, the Wraiths would end the game on a 38-3 run after facing a 21-0 deficit midway through the 2nd quarter. They exorcised the demons of the previous season by avoiding another early playoff exit and making a big comeback after facing an early deficit. The Wraiths were advancing to the Ultimus game and would have home field advantage in the championship for the first time in franchise history. They found themselves matched against a red hot New Orleans Second Line team that had won 7 of its last 8 regular season games and had upset the Orange County Otters on a last second field goal in the opening round of the playoffs. The Second Line took an early 3-0 lead, but the Wraiths would take the lead on a touchdown in the final moments of the 1st quarter. The Wraiths never looked back after this as the Second Line never retook the lead and the Wraiths led by double digits for most of the second half, ultimately coming away with a 24-13 win to clinch their first Ultimus in franchise history.
This is probably one of my favorite storylines during my time in the league. It was fun to see the Wraiths finally getting over the top after sustained success in the league's early seasons that was never quite enough for a championship until Season 8. And it was especially fun from a personal perspective since my own player was a part of it. The Season 7 playoff loss felt brutal when it happened, but now it becomes a fun part of the story after knowing the Wraiths would come back strong and make up for it in the following season. The 21-0 deficit in the Season 8 playoffs was also a moment of despair when it happened, but it made it all the more exciting when the Wraiths rallied and came back, especially with the previous season's playoff results weighing heavily on the minds of Wraiths players during that game. It was a fun couple seasons to experience and it was a fun walk down memory lane to recap it here.
(Word Count: 1101)