(S5) - Ultimus Week

[Kendrick]

Robbed: Let's be honest, the San Jose Sabercats should've made the playoffs because they are ballers. The bad part is that they aren't winners and didn't win enough games to get the chance to fight for the big dance. Maybe next year if they shore up their defense they can make it. Mayran Jackson hopes to get another shot at a title since he won two straight in his first two seasons in the league. This time he hopes he can lead the Sabercats to that title and do it without steroid users like the Outlaws had. Sabercats need some offensive line help to ensure their quarterback can stay on his feet. If their passing game is clearly what they think will guide them into the playoffs, you want to create an atmosphere that is healthy for quarterbacks to work their magic; not just if Orosz is under center. Time to nut up or shutup as they say in the sports world or else this team will always be a contender but thought of as a pretender. They should've made the postseason this year but the hype clearly got to their heads and the struggled down the stretch against non-playoff teams.

Playoff Series MVP: Bradley Westfield won the Ultimus single handily with his excellent play for the Otters. It's hard to stand out as a receiver in the big game because often times when the team wins, the media gives the trophy to the quarterback or the middle linebacker who out performed all other defensive players. Luckily for Westfield, he made it really easy for the media to select an MVP this year. A 141 yard outing to go with a 23.5 yard average on his catches made him standout even more. He wasn't even the busiest receiver on his Otter team, but he outshined everyone else and grabs the trophy in my mind. Mike boss had a rough game statistically but even than Bradley Westfield was able to put up some great numbers. This is the type of performance that people speak of in years to come as they look at the bar that has been set. As a receiver I am somewhat jealous of the performance (and that he got to play in the playoffs) but more so the performance he put on in the Ultimus bowl. Maybe next year his performance can be bested by a Mayran Jackson sighting in the Ultimus.

Hate the player or the game: The San Jose Sabercats didn't make the postseason but probably should've. A team with a lot of hope going into the season but couldn't end up making the playoffs and it is a tad disappointing. Blessed with one of the best passing games on paper, you'd have expected that in itself to be enough. Their quarterback had some struggles and it came back to bite them. With a gifted defense and an all-star receiving unit, the Sabercats not making the postseason is a bit of a surprise. If they want to compete moving forward they will need to have a better all-round game and shore up some holes in their offensive line. Chris Orosz was highly touted when he came to San Jose but in his own words, he hasn't really live dup to the hype. San Jose has pretty much so far always not lived up to the hype that they have had going into seasons but they still manage to somehow be fighting for a playoff spot every year. Whether they just crumble under pressure or they simply do not have enough star power to grab themselves a playoff spot. A more balanced attack and maybe a bit of pall calling is the issue with the Sabercats.

Going to Disneyland!: Bradley Westfield wins the Ultimus MVP honours and gets to travel over to Disneyland for the week. What a glorious trip that took place when he arrived. Westfield was picked up at LAX with a nice Lincoln limo driven by Matthew McConahaugh. First stop was the liquor store where he finally got all that liquor that he can't afford. Next stop was the hotel where the league had him set up in and then a quick pitstop for some more fuel and Westfield and his family were off to Disneyland. He is afraid of rollercoasters so they stuck with the teacups this time until he warmed up and was ready for a real treat. next up was Space Mountain where it is believed that Westfield closed his eyes the entire ride...eventhough the ride is in the dark. Then he went off to visit some of the Disney princesses and kiss a toad or two. Then off to Tom Sawyer's great adventure and some Water mountain surprise. The best ride that Bradley said he went on was the "It's A Small World" ride because he says the song is his go-to warmup song. Hey, whatever gets you pumped man just don't let it rub off on your teammates.

[CDub2]

Robbed: Write about why a team that failed to make the playoffs should have over somebody else. Can be completed at any point

Let's get real here. The playoff format is kind of bad. Every year, you have the SaberCats and the Liberty miss the playoffs, usually by a point differential. So last year, I wrote that the SaberCats have the worst break here. ARI and OCO are the only team to have won the Ultimus in league history. But this year, I'll give the Liberty some love. They missed the playoffs by 1 point. Not a tie, not a loss, 1 point. The point differential was the only reason they have a long summer. Had they scored 1 extra point, or allowed 1 fewer, they would have been playing the Wraiths inn the conference championship. As well as BAL played down the stretch, I think the Liberty showed more consistency during the season. So they deserved to be in the playoffs this year. This isn't necessarily a knock against either BAL or PHI, but more of a knock against the league. I know that the sim engine has some limitations, but to only allow 4 teams in the playoffs is pretty rough. Two very good teams missed the playoffs year based off of point differential only. There should be some way we can incorporate a wild card round.

206 Words

New Talent: Write about which S5 trade will or did have the biggest impact in the playoffs. Can be written at any time depending on if you choose to write about who already has or who will do good

There weren't many big trades this year. One that probably goes under the radar is the Yellowknife - Arizona trade. After drafting Cameron Taylor 4th overall in the S5 draft, Yellowknife suddenly had a glut of safety talent. After some weeks, it was clear Taylor was ready, just needed a little bit of speed. In a vote of confidence, management decided to trade away the OG Wraith Jon Floggity in exchange for DE Fuego Wozy. This didn't shake the world, but it was more of a win-win trade. YKW freed up a spot for up and comer Taylor and improved their D Line depth. YK pash rush is already pretty wild, but more talent is never a bad thing. Arizona get a talented safety as they were loading up their secondary for a playoff push. And well, the biggest impact on the playoffs came as both team actually ended up making the playoffs. Again, win-win trade. That being said, freeing up that spot for Taylor allowed him to have a game-clinching fumble recovery in the playoff game against Baltimore. That is a pretty big impact if I do say so myself, not to mention Taylor averaged 5 tackles per game during the playoffs.

203 Words

Playoff Series MVP: Choose an MVP for one of the playoff series and write about why you chose them. Must be completed after the playoff series you write about

This is a pretty easy one. Anyone who's looked at the stats or watched the YKW-BAL playoff match up knows exactly who the series MVP is. Matt Akselsen went off for Yellowknife in this game. It's easy to pick the QB as the MVP, but Akselsen really deserved this one. 62% completion percentage, 486 yards, 3 touchdowns, 0 picks, and a passer rating of 121.2. That is next level. That's probably one of the best stat lines in the entire season by any QB. To make it better, Akselsen did it in the conference championship game. Would have been great if he did it during the Ultimus finals, but oh well. The Conference Finals was something special to watch. Every time Akselsen dropped back to pass, you knew it was going to be a first down, at least. And the stats reflect that. His completed passes averaged for 17.4 yards. That is wild. I don't think I've ever seen a dominant performance like that. I don't think I've ever seen a passer rating that high either. 121.2 is crazy high. Now, the rest of the team played well as well, but Akselsen straight up won the game for the Wraiths.

200 Words

That Magic Moment: Pick one moment from a playoff game and describe what made it so amazing to watch. (Must be completed after the game you write about)

This one hurts me a bit, but I'll be writing about the Ultimus finals first half. It was supposed to be the best two teams in the league going head to head in the most exciting game of the year. Sadly, OCO won it pretty handily. It was amazing to watch, but probably for all the wrong reasons. This was not a good game. The YK Wraiths offense was one of the best in the league all season. So to watch them have 4 first half turnovers was just silly. Akselsen is the highest TPE QB in the league, so to watch him continually turn the ball over was stupid. If OCO had stopped the receivers, the run game, tore up the YK defence, it would have been okay. At least interesting. Instead the sim decided to make our best player look like Pierno. It just wasn't fun to watch. The game was over by half time. Not to mention, YK couldn't stop taking penalties. All of that came together to form the most amazing first half of simulation football I've ever seen. I just sat there with my mouth wide open. It was a continuous and long lasting dumping on the 10-4 Wraiths team. But I guess there's always next year.

212 Words

[Vikain]

Robbed) Tough season for Philadelphia as they came all so close to getting back into the playoffs. Unfortunately for them they had tough year against their division and in the end it bit them in the butt. Though many fans are upset how this season ended they know they shouldn't have been in the playoffs last season. “I think this is payback to what we did to the Hawks last year” says Michael Thomas a Philadelphia fan. “It's definitely tough...we were one win away from getting into the playoffs and if we even had one more win in our division we would have went in. But if we did squeeze in again I sorta feel bad for the Hawks if again they were kicked out because of the same thing” Marmeladov says with a bit of coy smile. When asked about his intentions for next year, Marmeladov carefully phrased his answer “Im under contract for the next few years. I’m going to stay in Philadelphia until the contract is up. At that point I will see my options, I will gauge where this team is heading, if this team needs me, and if I feel comfortable with the management at that point in time. I'm not extremely upset that we missed the playoffs. We were very close to getting in. I am a little disappointed and thought for sure our team would be one of the best as that's how it looked on paper.”

Unsung Hero) In my opinion there's only one guy that I think has flown under the radar in the playoffs and deserves the recognition as the most underrated player in the playoffs. I think that it's I. Bravitz. In the ASFC championship game Bravitz would only record 3 tackles but he also would put up one sack. He was dominant from the start of the game. Outlaws tried to game plan against the A. Winchester but did not look at Bravitz. He was also able to force and recover a fumble that really broke the camel's back. In the Ultimus game Bravitz he really exploded by putting up 9 tackles which included one tackle for loss and a sack. He also helped seal the game with an interception. “He has worked hard and it really showed in the playoffs. We are really glad how his development has gone and we are excited to what he can bring to the table next season.” says the Otters GM. The Otters have now won the Ultimus two years in a row. They will look to win three in a row and match the Outlaws. Unfortunately for the rest of the NSFC in its first six years of its existence there have been only two teams that have won the Ultimus.

Playoff Matchups)

Playoff Recap)

[automatic]

Robbed:
One team which was definitely robbed going in to the ASFC championship would be the Arizona Asterisks. While the Asterisks and the Orange County Otters have played in the ASFC championship a record five times, this was the first year where the Otters were actually favored to win the Cup in the finals. Surprising everyone, in the sim of that game, the Asterisks actually blew out the Otters - doubled their trademark passing game, doubling their total offensive yardage, and shutting down their long passing game for the first time in three season. After the game was finished, however, it was discovered how the Asterisks accomplished this, in true Asterisks extra legal fashion. The Asterisks had used over eighty different formations, overwhelming the typically stout, but in no ones eyes intellectual Otters defense as a whole and their individual defenders - especially their league leading front seven defensive linemen and linebackers. While the game was resimulated after this Asterisks cheating was found by proper National Simulation Football League referees, no penalty was applied, and the Otters against Asterisks game had to be replayed for the third straight year. Truly, this is a record which the league is not proud to be continuing, however the strong rivalry between the Asterisks and the Otters continue to this day and beyond, guaranteeing extra legal action.
words:220

New Talent: Write about which S5 trade had the biggest impact in the playoffs.

The new talent this year which flooded the league will have a huge effect on the league in the years to come. During the Season four draft, the Otters traded their whole upcoming draft picks, including an envious slot at number five, for two first round picks at the end in number seven and eight overall picks. While this precluded the Otters getting their usual their range of players to enter the league, it also gave the Otters the chance to accept two highly sought out players for their team: an offensive linemen named Ryan Sierra, and the defensive back name Tegan Atwell. The first pick Ryan Sierra soon announced his upcoming change to defensive linemen, and the Otters gain two starting defensive players for their playoff run. While the season four Otters team defense was good but not exceptional, with the addition of two defensive starters to fuel the fire the defense really grew wings, as both units on each side of the ball lead the league in their own respective categories, and the Otters team as a whole earned the best record in the League, for the first year ever. The Otters would of course go on the win the Ultimus trophy, and it needed to get their the contributions of both first round picks, including the Otters exceptional front 7 players, which Sierra served to bookend as a defensive tackle.
words: 233

Playoff Review: Write a short review of the playoffs and each of the matchups. Must be completed after the Championship Game

Hawks at Wraiths
This game has occurred in the last few NSFC championship games, and it is typically known to be a well balanced game where the home team typically wins in a close fight. In this years iteration, the Wraiths took the game over in the second half, piling on points which the Hawks and their start qb Blocksdale just could not recover from. Eric Kennedy, the Wraiths receiving back, torched the Hawks defense with more yards than they could handle out of the backfield, getting several big tackles broken and a few big games.
Asterisks at Otters
Covered in another topic.
Wraiths at Otters
While this game should have been nominally close, as it was the meeting of two of the consensus best teams in the National Simulation Football league, the Otters and their talent across the depth chart just took this game over from start to finish. Eric Kennedy finally had a rival in TJ Yates, who set the single season touchdown record of twenty one this season, over a certain ex commissioner Josh Garden as the previous record holder at eighteen. The Otters led big in this game, as Akselsen did not have a good game and the Otters defense and Offense were firing on all cylinders across the field, leading to a twenty point decific across much of the game. The Wraiths lost hope early and the Otters cruised to another Ultimus Victory, bringing their total to two in two different season.
words: 236

Going to Disneyland!:Who was the Ultimus MVP? Give us a rundown of their celebratory trip to Disneyland. (Can be completed after the Ultimus game)

The Ultimus MVP who absolutely deserved to gain the honors could only be Orange County Otters Ian Bavitz. Ian was drafted by the Otters in the first annual draft of the National Simulation Football League, and he has become one of the highest achieving and working players in the league in his time. In the Ultimus game, Bavitz logged a sack, interception, and nine separate tackles, becoming the defensive player of the game.
Of Course, Bavitz chose to attend Disney World, instead of Disney Land, because of the proximity to Orange County, and therefore the higher density of Otters fans who regularly come to Disney World, and indeed, he did sign a total of three Bavitz Jerseys, two Sierra rookie specials, and approximately twelve different Mike Boss jerseys, tee shirts, sweatshirts, and strangely, silk lounge jackets. Local legend say that the Harry Potter ride broke down, Bavitz went backstage and had it up and running in under an hour, however five different children were born to female Disney World employees who were not expecting such fruits out of their own relationships, in approximately nine months bearing a strong resemblance to Ian Bavitz. He looks foward to forming his own offensive juggernaut one day, made of his own children.
words:208

[jparks98]

Playoff Recap Infographic:

Conference Final MVP Sig:

Unsung Heros:

Championship Banner:

[Roly]

Playoff Series MVP: Choose an MVP for one of the playoff series and write about why you chose them. Must be completed after the playoff series you write about

Let's give some love to the DSFL. Although my Marshals weren't in the playoffs and the bots from Palm Beach eventually won the cup, I'm going to backup and look at the playoff series between the Norfolk Seawolves and the Portland Pythons. Although the Pythons had a number of players who are worthy of Series MVP consideration, I'm specifically looking at Norman Bagwell on the Pythons Defence and Glenn McPoyal on the Pythons Offence. Bagwell dominated on the defensive line, making 2 sacks and 4 tackles to lead the game in QB crushing sacks. On the other side of the ball, McPoyal dominated on receptions. He averaged 13.2 yards per reception over 4 receptions for 53 yards and the only receiving touchdown. Bagwell’s two sacks occurred in the first and third quarter respectively, the latter of which was the first in a series of play stopping pressure plays by the Pythons Defence. McPoyal touchdown was only in the first quarter, the only quarter in which Portland put up points, but was the touchdown that ended up being the game winning score. Therefore, I’m going to give the Eastern Conference Finals Championship (DSFL) Playoffs Series Most Valuable Player to Glenn McPoyal for his consistent, incredible receiving skills and huge receiving touchdown.

Playoff Review: Write a short review of the playoffs and each of the matchups. Must be completed after the Championship Game

Keeping with the DSFL theme, lets talk DSFL playoff action. There was three DSFL playoff games all to be recapped here. The first two games were the Western and Eastern Conference Championships (although it should be noted that both conference names don’t really reflect where the teams are located). The Western Conference Championship featured the Tijuana Luchadores playing against the Palm Beach Solar Bears. In what turned out to not be a very close playoff game, the Palm Beach Solar Bears destroyed the Tijuana Luchadores 27 to 3. The bots steamrolled the human player Luchadores, with Asipi Jr. managing to throw 0 touchdowns and 1 interception and feature back Spinelli getting only 3.3 yards a play. It was only Forfeit managing a 40-49 yard field goal. The Eastern Conference Championship featured the Portland Pythons taking on the Norfolk Seawolves; another bot v human grudge match. In this case, however, the human Pythons came out ontop. Keeping the robot QB Washington to 0 impactful players, Norman Bagwell dominating on the Pythons defensive line and Roenick connecting with McPoyal for a big TD, the Pythons edged out 14 to 10. In the DSFL Ultimini Championship, the Pythons human players attempted to rise up against the domination of the Palm Beach bots. In the end, however, it ended with robot domination and Palm Beach winning 17 to 13.

Championship Game Recap: Do a recap of the best play from the championship game. Must be completed after the Championship Game

The biggest play in the DSFL Ultimini Championship between the Portland Pythons and the Palm Beach Solar Bears came in the 4th quarter. With a score of 14 to 10 for the Solar Bears, the Portland Pythons gained possession 38 seconds into the final section of the championship game. It was now or never – time to earn that Ultimini with a drive to win the game and the championship. And it was a spectacular drive. Starting on their own 39 yard line, the Pythons managed to bring the ball all the way back to Palm Beach 26 yard line. McPoyal started off with a 9 yard drive, shortly followed by a 6 yard drive, was followed by 11 yard rushes by Borro Gore in 3 separate plays, and finally Blessed Storm putting up 9 yards in one play. That said, the drive also contained 2 penalties for the Pythons and 1 penalty for Palm Beach. In the end, the Portland Pythons’s Austin Roenick couldn’t connect to Goose and Blessed Storm in two back to back long yardage situations and end up costing the Portland Pythons the opportunity for a touchdown and forcing them to settle for a fieldgoal. The 14-13 score would last one more drive before the Solar Bears sunk some insurance and won their first ever Ultimini.

Unsung Hero:Who was the unsung hero of the playoffs, convince us. (Can be completed after the Ultimus game)

The unsung hero of the DSFL playoffs belongs, surprise surprise to the Portland Pythons. Although the Pythons have a number of superstars, including quarterback Roenick, wide receiver Aaron, tight end McPoyal, running back Gore, who all deserve praise for their hefty play in the DSFL playoffs. However, none can be considered “unsung heroes” insofar as they aren’t exactly unknown. That said, there is a Python who is relatively unknown and can be praised for their hard playoff play. That’s Thomas Kane III – a new waiver claim to the Portland Pythons who plays LB. In his two playoff games, Kane put up 9 tackles, 1 sack and 1 fumble recovery in the East Conference Championship and 7 tackles and 1 pass deflection in the DSFL Ultimini Championship. Over the course of the playoffs, Kane managed 16 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery and 1 pass deflection: that’s some praise worthy play that befits another linebacker prospect, albeit one season removed from the likes of Enchant and Mills. He was able to put both pressure on the opponent’s offensive line and drop back into coverage when needed. He showed solid hands, a knack to make big plays, and brought it when it counts: the DSFL playoffs.

[sapp2013]

Future Talent: Make a sig for a S5 player who you feel will or did make a large impact for their team in the playoffs.


Going to Disneyland!ick an MVP of the Ultimus game and create a billboard showing their trip to Disneyland.


Unsung Hero:Create a billboard for the unsung hero of the playoffs


Playoff Recap Infographic: Make a graphic displaying the results of the playoffs.

[Bayley]

Robbed: Write about why a team that failed to make the playoffs should have over somebody else. Can be completed at any point
The San Jose Sabercats should have been a team to make the playoffs over the Arizona Outlaws. I mean, look at the Outlaws defense, they gave up 431 points, that defense should never be part of a playoff. They did not deserve to be there especially a team that lost the last two games getting into the playoffs. They should have been left out as I believe that San Jose could have been a better match to take on the Otters. With that said, I think the Outlaws offense was definitely one of the better ones in the league, but I think that defense should be the one that won Championships. Plus, is anyone else sick of seeing the Outlaws and Otters in the big game? How about another team? The Sabercats should be that exact team to get in and be able to put up a fight against other teams. We saw that the Outlaws could not come near the Otters as they lost every single game that they played against them during the year. They lost 45-7 in preseason, 31-24 in Week 6, and then 44-14 in Week 13. Did anyone think this would change? I mean, did anyone think the Outlaws would have a shot? I seriously hope not, we saw it. Sabercats should have been in playoffs.

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Playoff Series MVP: Choose an MVP for one of the playoff series and write about why you chose them. Must be completed after the playoff series you write about
In the Ultimus Game, the series MVP was none other than Bradley Westfield of the Orange County Otters. Westfield had 6 catches for 141 yards with the long catch being a 48 yard reception that was huge. The Orange County Otters are a team that like to spread the ball around and stretch the defense out, something they were looking to do to Dermot Lavelle and Phillippe Carter. And that is exactly what they did, however, Mike Boss was actually limited. If you look at his numbers, 27/45 for 302 yards with only 1 Touchdown and 2 Interceptions. For a Wraiths team, you have to be pretty happy with that display. The Orange County Otters were definitely the most explosive offense, so to limit them to that had to be exciting. I mean, you definitely gave yourself a chance to win, but your offense just did not do it. I definitely think that Westfield's impact on the game was one in which caused him to be the MVP. Not only his stats, but his opening up of the field for people like Phelps, O'Sullivan and Yates was the reason that this guy will get the MVP. Congrats Orange County Otters.

Words: 201

Going to Disneyland!:Who was the Ultimus MVP? Give us a rundown of their celebratory trip to Disneyland. (Can be completed after the Ultimus game)
Above, I explained who was going to be the Ultimus Game MVP as Bradley Westfield should have took home the honors, but let's look at other options for that honor. Angus Winchester is one player in which could definitely be an option for the MVP. If you look at his game, he was a force with 10 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery. That is a huge game for a team that likes to run with Bubba Nuck. Ian Bavitz is another option with 9 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 sack, 1 pass deflection, 1 Interception. I mean, this guy did it all. You look at the impact that the defense had on the game, it was very clear. The Wraiths are a team that liked to run with Nuck and throw to Kennedy. Overall, Kennedy was restricted to only 8 catches for 85 yards for a guy that was looking to be the MVP of the season. Now, these guys all went to Disney World and absolutely visited the princesses. They are a huge fan of the Princesses, only one can hope that they have enough room on the rides to fit the big boys of this team. Back to back Championships for the Otters, they have to know where to go and where not to go. The big boys will handle where to eat, but everyone else will just be enjoying the time.

Words: 236

Unsung Hero:Who was the unsung hero of the playoffs, convince us. (Can be completed after the Ultimus game)
I am going to say that the hero of the playoffs was B. Cook for the Yellowknife Wraiths. I am sick of talking about the Otters, so it is time to talk about the Yellowknife Wraiths. Cook had a huge game to get to the Ultimas game as he had 6 catches for 124 yards and 1 touchdown. He also averaged 20.7 yards per catch. I mean, that had to be a huge game for a team that was looking to take it to the Hawks. Kennedy was pretty well covered in both games which is why Cook had the opportunity and he took it. Akelsen was able to find him and get him the ball as he threw for 486 yards and 3 TD against the Baltimore Hawks. Against the otters, Cook had 6 catches for 94 yards including a 40 yard play that was huge in stretching the defense. It is tough to say that another guy had a bigger impact in both of the games than Cook. I think that he gets the MVP for his team in trying to get the Wraiths to the promised land. Obviously, it did not work, but it was not for him not trying.

Words: 203

[JKortesi81]

Playoff Series MVP: In the playoff battle between the Yellowknife Wraiths and Baltimore Hawks, it was pretty clear who was the MVP of this game. Wraiths’ QB Mat Akselsen was lights out in this game. His stats were tremendous as he carved up the Hawks defense: 486 yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs. He played a nearly perfect game, with a disgusting 121.2 QB Rating in this game. The Wraiths were looking to get back to the Ultimus for the second straight season, this time hopefully winning the whole shebang. The Wraiths did NOT make the mistake many teams in this scenario make and overlook the Hawks. Akselsen made sure of that as he went 28 for 45 and helped Yellowknife cruise to a 37-21 victory here. The Yellowknife QB lead a TD drive on the opening drive of the game. Every time the Hawks pulled close, Akselsen threw a touchdown. When it was 10-9, he found Bubba Nuck on an 8 yard TD pass. When it became 17-15, he lead the team to a Field Goal, got the ball back, and found Bailey Cook for a TD to go up 27-15. After a boring third quarter that saw Baltimore pull within 27-21, Akselsen hit DJ Law for a 47 yard TD that put the game away. He didn’t make any mistakes, and carried the Wraiths to the Ultimus once again. (231)

Playoff Review: First off we had the battle mentioned above between the Yellowknife Wraiths and Baltimore Hawks. While the Hawks put up a decent fight, Yellowknife played very well and took home a 37-21 victory over the Hawks on the back of Mat Akselsen’s 486 yard, 3 touchdown performance. The Wraiths took an early 7-0 lead and never looked back, allowing the Hawks to never take the lead in the game and putting Yellowknife back in the Ultimus. In the other conference final matchup, we had the defending champions, the Orange County Otters taking on the Arizona Outlaws. This was, simply, a bloodbath of epic proportions. Arizona struck first, taking the opening kickoff for a TD. All that did was anger the champs. Mike Boss would lead the Otters to three straight touchdown drives, and 20-7 lead halfway through the second quarter. Bradly Westfield returned a punt 72 yards for a score and the teams traded field goals for a 30-10 Otters lead. The second half wasn’t as exciting as OCO just took over and walked to a 43-19 lead, setting up the Yellowknife-Orange County rematch from last year’s Ultimus. What the Ultimus gave us was a defensive battle. Yellowknife had 4 turnovers in the game, and that was their undoing. The game was a bit of a kicker battle, as Madlad and Lombardi accounted for 6 of the 10 scores in the game. In the end, OCO walked away with a 26-15 Ultimus win that will leave Yellowknife wondering what could have been for an entire offseason. (258)

Going to Disneyland: Choosing the Ultimus MVP can sometimes be a pretty easy thing to do. This game, however, was not one of those times. In a game that featured Mat Akselsen vs Mike Boss, you’d assume that the winner of this matchup would be the MVP. Not when the two combined for 5 interceptions. The running games didn’t do much either. Bradly Westfield would be the only receiver with “big” numbers, 6 catches for 141 yards. He didn’t score however. Eric Kennedy went 8 for 85 and a touchdown, but I don’t like giving the MVP to the team that didn’t win. As a result, that brings me to the defensive players. This game was a defensive battle, so its only fair to give the MVP to a defensive player. While the Wraiths’ Carter had a great Ultimus with 6 tackles, two pass deflections, and two interceptions, the Ultimus MVP is going to Angus Winchester of Orange County. The big man had an impressive 10 tackles, 1 sack, and 1 fumble recovery in this game. He was all over the field and he was a big reason the Yellowknife offense never truly got going. They never had an answer for him, and as a result, the Otters are the world champions once again! (214)

Unsung Hero: On the path to a second consecutive Ultimus championship, the Orange County Otters have had no shortage of unsung players stepping up for them to make a big play or two along the way to the title. My vote for the Unsung Hero of the this year’s playoffs plays a position that constantly gets overlooked. Bradley Madlad, the kicker AND punter of the Otters is my unsung hero this year. In the first game of the playoffs against the Outlaws, Madlad was 3 for 4 on field goals, and 4 for 5 on extra points in the Arizona beatdown. That’s 13 of the 43 points just from him. But, he also had 5 punts for 229 yards in the game as well. In the Ultimus against Yellowknife, he was even more important. With the Otters’ offense continually getting stalled in the first half, Madlad kicked 4 field goals, including 2 in the final minute of the half, to keep the Otters on the board, slowly pulling away from the Wraiths. Madlad would account for 14 of the Otters’ 26 points in the game. Also, he was a huge reason the Outlaws couldn’t get anything going, as he had 9 punts for 415 yards, a 46 yard average, that had Arizona starting in their territory all game. (218)

[Saliva^]

Robbed:

Once again, the robbed team comes from the NSFL conference. Last time it was the Baltimore Hawks team who didn't make the playoffs despite of having a much better PF/PA difference than Philly. It's ironic that the tables were turned this season when the Liberty team had a better PF/PA difference than Baltimore, but you know what? They missed the playoffs. Why? Because their conference record was worse than Baltimore: 3-3 vs 4-2 made the big difference. I see a major reason behind it - they lost both games to Yellowknife. Yes, both games were close and Philly lost both only by 3 points, but it was enough to lose their whole season. In my opinion, their first meeting was the killer: Philly was up 24-13 before the fourth quarter, but they blew it. 2 clutch touchdowns = 27-24 and this is pretty much a reason why the Liberty were kicked out. So these both team are now even on being robbed of the playoff appearance. I think this team will need to learn how to win close games and not to blow the lead like they did in Yellowknife to have a chance on making the playoffs. But you know what? Someone from Baltimore/Philly will miss the playoffs again, because the NSFC has Yellowknife haha.


Playoff Review:

The first game was the NSFC finals between Yellowknife and Baltimore. It was obvious that Baltimore was an underdog, but they gave the home team a fight. The Wraith were always ahead of their opponents, but the Hawks still were managing to not let them too far. First quarter: only 10-9. Second quarter: 27-18. Thirs quarter: 27-21. I think Turkelton was doing a good job on giving a boost to his team. However, the fourth quarter sealed the deal: DJ Law's touchdown made this a 13-point game and Lombardi's dagger turned this game away from Baltimore. 37-21 and Yellowknife are going to finals for the second season in a row.

Then we witnessed a weird game between Arizona and OCO. In the first game, Zona managed to destroy their opponents, but they were caught cheating once again. The second (and legal one) game showed us that the Otters are too good when the opponent plays clean. The Outlaws drew the first blood, but after that it was only Orange County - they scored 30 unanswered points before Zona managed to make this game more close. But it was too late. The finals score 43-19 and OCO is playing Yellowknife once again.

As about the finals. I didn't like that one. This game was pretty close before Madlad scored three field goals in a row. The Wraiths offence wasn't that good against their ASFC opponents and 9 last points didn't do anything to this match. 26-15 and OCO became a two-time champion. Fuck them.


Playoff Series MVP:

I assume a lot of users wrote a 200 word piece about either Boss or Westfield, but you know what? I'm not going to do that. Instead, I'm going to praise another player who perhaps went too underrate to be mentioned because he's just a kicker. That's right, my playoff MVP will be Bradley Madlad from the Orange County Otters team. And it's definitely not the most obvious choice as his effort wasn't crucial against Arizona although 3 FG's isn't the stat we should ignore), but what about the finals? Second quarter, 14:35 until the end of the first half. Lombardi managed to make it 10-6 and the lead was too small to hold it. And here comes Bradley Madlad. One field goal, second field goal, third field goal and suddenly this game became a comfortable one for his team: 19-6. Also, he scored both extra points. With his first field goal of the game, he scored 14 points which is more than half of his team total points. Yellowknife scored 15 points in that match. Imagine what would've happened if Bradley had a bad day? 12-15 and the loss. I mean, OCO's defence was on point as well, but Madlad's precise play was very important to his team. After all, kickers are still humans too.


Championship Game Recap:

Let's take a closer look at this game that I actually hate and I hate OCO as well. Well what happened during that match? Yellowknife's offence started to strugle right of the bat, but it still was relatively close. Madlad drew the first blood, but Lomardi asnwered with the same. Jordan Yates managed to regain the lead for his team and final score of the first quarter was 10-3. The 7-point lead didn't last long as Lombardi added another 3 points to his team. However, here comes Bradley Madlad. OCO's offense wasn't something brilliant, but it was enough to bring it to a field goal three times in a row. Madlad didn't make a mistake on all three occasions. 19-6 after the first half. It all became even worse for the away team as Burnsman's easy rush added another 7 points to his team. 26-6 and it was pretty much over. Lombardi and Kennedy managed to cut the lead to 11, but it wasn't enough to make a damage. 26-15 and OCO becomes the two-time champs. And I hate that game as I wanted to finally become a champion, but once again it didn't happen. Fuck the sim and fuck OCO too.