A breakdown and Analysis of every major ISFL and DSFL award in league history: Who won, who should have won, and why.
A bit of a preface before I get into the article proper, but some awards I may not have the context for, given my newness to the league, so Most Dedicated user will be skipped over completely, and my General Managers of the year breakdown will be based largely on drafting, development, and improvement from the previous seasons, with bonus points if you led your team to the playoffs. or championship. It's just not something I'm qualified to speak on really, but statistics I am, and shall. By major awards I mean this article will discuss: Most Valuable Player, both the offensive and defensive players of the year, both the offensive and defensive rookies of the year, General Manager of the year, and Breakout player of the year. We'll go award by award, and then break them down for each year. We will also not be discussing the now defunct MOP award, for a bevy of reasons, key among them being that it is no longer handed out as an award to anyone, and makes it much less interesting to talk about. Now, into the awards. Also, my keyboard sucks so there's gonna be stray periods throughout this.
ISFL Awards:
ISFL MVP:
Season 1:
Who won it: Bubba Nuck, RB, Yellowknife Wraiths
Who should have won it: Josh Garden, WR, Yellowknife Wraiths
Why: While Nuck had a phenomenal season for the Wraiths, and led the league in rushing, as well as being tied for the lead in rushing touchdowns, while helping lead the Wraiths to an 8-6 record and a playoff berth and a game they ended up losing to the Colorado Yeti in the ASFC championship game, Nuck's MVP award is one seemingly more of volume than of dominance, if not for the committee of running backs in Orange County, whichever one of the Otters' backs had gotten the lions share of the carries would likely have taken home the rushing title, and even as things panned out, I believe Garden was a more deserving candidate than Nuck, as he dominated the competition, with incredible efficiency, leading the league in receiving yards, coming 1 short of the lead for the league, and his efficiency was incredible, averaging 16.8 yards per reception. This. one could go either way, but I will pick the Wraith's. wideout over their running back in this case.
Season 2:
Who Won. it: Jayce Tuck, DE, Arizona Outlaws
Who Should have Won it: Jayce Tuck, DE, Arizona Outlaws
Why: The voters got this one absolutely right. Jayce Tuck had an absolutely dominant performance as a defensive player, easily the most so far in the then young ISFL, 23 sacks, 19 more tackles for a loss, 3 fumbles forced and 2 recovered on top of it, and a phenomenal. 67 tackles, by far the most among defensive ends, with the next closest having 54 tackles on the year. Tuck just ran roughshod over the league, helping lead the Outlaws to the second half of a repeat. The main argument for another player I could make is for Robert Phelps, Wide Reciever. for the Orange County Otters, who had 1400. yards and 16.9 yards per reception, with his numbers on par with my season 1 MVP Garden's. But Tuck was otherworldly for the Outlaws, leading their dominant defense. to the world championship again. Easy choice.
Season 3:
Who Won it: Jayce Tuck (2), DE, Arizona Outlaws
Who Should have won it: Jayce Tuck (2), DE, Arizona Outlaws
Why: This is one of the greatest defensive performances in the history of the ISFL, even to this day. Tuck took his season 2 performance, and made it look like childs play. Once again leading all DE in tackles and sacks, and T-4 in tackles for a loss, he shattered the 23 sacks he had last year, mirroring it into a 32, just shattering. offenses, quarterbacks, and anyone. who stood in. his way. Tuck deserved every vote he got for this MVP and more. My honorable mention is for Mike Boss, who would go on to win MVP awards of his own, but this was his breakout season. Tuck deserved it no doubt though, and it's not close.
Season 4:
Who won it: Mike Boss, QB, Orange County Otters
Who Should have won it: Mike Boss, QB, Orange County Otters
Why: Another one the voters got right, Boss was absolutely dominant for the Otters in 2021, and he led them to their first championship, and the first championship not won by the Outlaws. With Jayce Tuck taking a massive step back for the Outlaws, Boss, who was my honorable mention for the season 3 MVP behind Tuck, finally steps into the spotlight for the Otters, and wins the first of 3 MVPs he would win, and the only players to come close to his domination this season were his own wide recievers, and you can ask whether they were truly that great or they were uplifted by the first MVP of the greatest QB to ever do the job.
Season 5:
Who won it: Mike Boss (2), QB, Orange County Otters and Eric Kennedy, WR, Yellowknife Wraiths.
Who should have. won it: Mike Boss, QB (2), Orange County Otters
Why: Holy shit, Mike Boss was good. Like *really* good. Akselsen for the Wraiths gets an honorable mention here from me, for a phenomenal season in his own right, but Mike Boss is one of the league's all-time greats, and he shows why here with his second consecutive MVP award. Giving the co-MVP to Eric Kennedy seems like a bit of a reach, and while he had a phenomenal season he wasn't even the best receiver in the league, that honor should go to Westfield, who had not only more yardage, but also did it on better efficiency. Both had phenomenal. QBs throwing them the ball, and while that may give them a slight advantage over other wide recievers in that point, but Westfield was just an all-around dominant pass-catcher. But that pales in comparison to the. dominance Boss had in season 5, so Mike Boss should have won MVP solo.
A bit of a preface before I get into the article proper, but some awards I may not have the context for, given my newness to the league, so Most Dedicated user will be skipped over completely, and my General Managers of the year breakdown will be based largely on drafting, development, and improvement from the previous seasons, with bonus points if you led your team to the playoffs. or championship. It's just not something I'm qualified to speak on really, but statistics I am, and shall. By major awards I mean this article will discuss: Most Valuable Player, both the offensive and defensive players of the year, both the offensive and defensive rookies of the year, General Manager of the year, and Breakout player of the year. We'll go award by award, and then break them down for each year. We will also not be discussing the now defunct MOP award, for a bevy of reasons, key among them being that it is no longer handed out as an award to anyone, and makes it much less interesting to talk about. Now, into the awards. Also, my keyboard sucks so there's gonna be stray periods throughout this.
ISFL Awards:
ISFL MVP:
Season 1:
Who won it: Bubba Nuck, RB, Yellowknife Wraiths
Who should have won it: Josh Garden, WR, Yellowknife Wraiths
Why: While Nuck had a phenomenal season for the Wraiths, and led the league in rushing, as well as being tied for the lead in rushing touchdowns, while helping lead the Wraiths to an 8-6 record and a playoff berth and a game they ended up losing to the Colorado Yeti in the ASFC championship game, Nuck's MVP award is one seemingly more of volume than of dominance, if not for the committee of running backs in Orange County, whichever one of the Otters' backs had gotten the lions share of the carries would likely have taken home the rushing title, and even as things panned out, I believe Garden was a more deserving candidate than Nuck, as he dominated the competition, with incredible efficiency, leading the league in receiving yards, coming 1 short of the lead for the league, and his efficiency was incredible, averaging 16.8 yards per reception. This. one could go either way, but I will pick the Wraith's. wideout over their running back in this case.
Season 2:
Who Won. it: Jayce Tuck, DE, Arizona Outlaws
Who Should have Won it: Jayce Tuck, DE, Arizona Outlaws
Why: The voters got this one absolutely right. Jayce Tuck had an absolutely dominant performance as a defensive player, easily the most so far in the then young ISFL, 23 sacks, 19 more tackles for a loss, 3 fumbles forced and 2 recovered on top of it, and a phenomenal. 67 tackles, by far the most among defensive ends, with the next closest having 54 tackles on the year. Tuck just ran roughshod over the league, helping lead the Outlaws to the second half of a repeat. The main argument for another player I could make is for Robert Phelps, Wide Reciever. for the Orange County Otters, who had 1400. yards and 16.9 yards per reception, with his numbers on par with my season 1 MVP Garden's. But Tuck was otherworldly for the Outlaws, leading their dominant defense. to the world championship again. Easy choice.
Season 3:
Who Won it: Jayce Tuck (2), DE, Arizona Outlaws
Who Should have won it: Jayce Tuck (2), DE, Arizona Outlaws
Why: This is one of the greatest defensive performances in the history of the ISFL, even to this day. Tuck took his season 2 performance, and made it look like childs play. Once again leading all DE in tackles and sacks, and T-4 in tackles for a loss, he shattered the 23 sacks he had last year, mirroring it into a 32, just shattering. offenses, quarterbacks, and anyone. who stood in. his way. Tuck deserved every vote he got for this MVP and more. My honorable mention is for Mike Boss, who would go on to win MVP awards of his own, but this was his breakout season. Tuck deserved it no doubt though, and it's not close.
Season 4:
Who won it: Mike Boss, QB, Orange County Otters
Who Should have won it: Mike Boss, QB, Orange County Otters
Why: Another one the voters got right, Boss was absolutely dominant for the Otters in 2021, and he led them to their first championship, and the first championship not won by the Outlaws. With Jayce Tuck taking a massive step back for the Outlaws, Boss, who was my honorable mention for the season 3 MVP behind Tuck, finally steps into the spotlight for the Otters, and wins the first of 3 MVPs he would win, and the only players to come close to his domination this season were his own wide recievers, and you can ask whether they were truly that great or they were uplifted by the first MVP of the greatest QB to ever do the job.
Season 5:
Who won it: Mike Boss (2), QB, Orange County Otters and Eric Kennedy, WR, Yellowknife Wraiths.
Who should have. won it: Mike Boss, QB (2), Orange County Otters
Why: Holy shit, Mike Boss was good. Like *really* good. Akselsen for the Wraiths gets an honorable mention here from me, for a phenomenal season in his own right, but Mike Boss is one of the league's all-time greats, and he shows why here with his second consecutive MVP award. Giving the co-MVP to Eric Kennedy seems like a bit of a reach, and while he had a phenomenal season he wasn't even the best receiver in the league, that honor should go to Westfield, who had not only more yardage, but also did it on better efficiency. Both had phenomenal. QBs throwing them the ball, and while that may give them a slight advantage over other wide recievers in that point, but Westfield was just an all-around dominant pass-catcher. But that pales in comparison to the. dominance Boss had in season 5, so Mike Boss should have won MVP solo.