After two humiliating losses on the road, the Norfolk team found themselves making their way back home. On the plane ride back to Virginia, J0EB and Seraj Comilla worked hard to keep the team’s spirits high, even going so far as to play pictionary in the aisles, much to the annoyance of the flight attendants. Even though the team had lost, they had found themselves bonding more deeply over these losses in the last two weeks, and deep friendships were forming which would never be forgotten.
With permission from the coaches to get some much needed rest and return back to an EST schedule, the team slept in the next night before returning to the grind and practices during the rest of the week. They had a massive game coming up against the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, and it was really important to make sure that they used every bit of time wisely to attempt a win. While the Seawolves knew that the Buccaneers quarterback was a beast going into this game, they couldn’t begin to expect what would happen. After a quick pep talk in the locker room, and a moment of silence for founders Doug Norfolk and Jeff Wonks, it became clear that today was the day - Norfolk would win. They would have to, for Doug.
As the first quarter began Daria Guava-Fresca made a huge kick of 63 yards to drop the ball almost in the endzone. Kick returner Jenkins was waiting for the ball, however, and he managed to punch through the Seawolves defense, much in the same way that the Royals had the week before - were the Myrtle Beach coaches looking at game tape? This would be concerning for J0EB and Seraj Comilla, for sure. After a huge 22 yard return by Jenkins, the Myrtle Beach offense took to the field and they began with a heavy rush game. After three short rushes, quarterback Joestar was able to throw a massive pass to Jenkins for 15 yards. Headed into Norfolk territory, everyone wondered where the Seawolf defense was. It turns out, they were just a few plays late as in a second and short situation, Sigismund Sternenstaub came up with a massive 6 yard sack on Joestar. Apparently he was still feeling it on the next play as he struggled to complete the pass to Mo. Myrtle Beach was forced to punt, even from the Seawolves 37 yard line (apparently faith in kickers this season was very low early one).
The Seawolves came out swinging with seven massive runs by Tequila Sunrise and Quanter Skrills to move them from their own 20 yard line all the way into Myrtle Beach territory. After reaching a 3rd down situation, Ramza pulled out all of the stops to make a massive 20 yard pass to Haugland, but the Seawolves just couldn’t convert. As they attempted to pass into the endzone, Myrtle Beach’s defensive player Zelos came out strong, intercepting the ball at the 8 yard line. As Myrtle Beach regained the ball, it was time for Joestar to show the Seawolves what he was made of, but after a 3 and out situation, Myrtle Beach was forced to punt the ball once more.
Benoit Blanco made a great return of the punt, driving it another 15 yards down the field, keeping Norfolk in Myrtle Beach territory. Skrills made tremendous gains on Norfolk’s drive as the Seawolves passing game was still struggling. With a combined total of 24 running yards, Skrills was the clear player of this drive - finally punching it in with a short 1 yard drive. Guava-Fresca was able to continue flexing her kicking skills driving the extra point cleanly through the uprights. The Seawolves were not only on the board, but they were finally leading a game for the first time this season.
As Guava-Fresca kicked off, Jenkins was once more waiting in the fray to return the ball. Waving off the other receivers in the area, the ball flew cleanly into Jenkins’ arms and he took off down the field. With a quick juke, he was able to dodge one defender to gain a few extra yards - resulting in a 13 yard return. Myrtle Beach decided to continue and focus on their passing game, handing off to Ayers on the first play of the drive. He pushed through the field and made a gain of 8 yards before being brought down by Marshall. After two more rushes, the Buccaneers attempted a pass, and while Despacito Jr. caught it he was quickly brought down by Adelie de Pengu. The Buccaneers seemed to have found a rhythm, finally, to push the ball down the field. But just as they felt good and in the groove, Sigismund Sternenstaub came up with another massive 6 yard sack - forcing the Buccs to punt the ball at 4th and 13.
The Seawolves gained the ball and started their next drive on their own 28 yard line. Ramza went out onto the field and threw a pass out to Dre Matthews, but in a fit of rookie nerves, Matthews let the pass slip through his fingers. Two short runs by Tequila Sunrise and the Seawolves found themselves punting the ball right back to the Buccaneers as the first quarter came to a close. In a game that feels like turnover after turnover, (which seems par for the course for preseason games) the Buccaneers enter the second quarter with the ball and a penalty - offensive pass interference on the quarterback of all players. This clearly put Joestar in a soured mood and it impacted his ability to make completed throws - even though he will claim that the receivers had butter fingers. One more punt by Myrtle Beach seemed like it would pin Norfolk deep in their own territory, but Blanco was able to find a pocket and he was able to carve out a few more yards of breathing space.
Skywalker took to the field as the Seawolves tried to up their run game - Hopkins and Skrills both made short gains, which prompted J0EB and Comilla to send Ramza back onto the field. The Seawolves lined up for the snap, and Ramza ducked back into the pocket, looking for the open receiver - finding Haugland a fair way down the field. Haugland made his way down the field for a few more yards, a total gain of 21 for the Seawolves, putting them just short of the red zone. The Seawolves lined up again, looking for more run plays and while Sunrise continued to have some short gains for Norfolk, Woods of the Buccaneers was consistently there to stop the run game. Another short pass, putting Norfolk at the 12 yard line, Sunrise is given the chance to show the rookies how the run game works, getting the Seawolves into a first and goal situation. Captain Rogers, who up until now had still been feeling a little frosty coming from the ice, punched the ball into the endzone to get the first touchdown of the second quarter.
Guava-Fresca kicked the ball off and down the field, and while it was a decent kick into the endzone, Despacito Jr. thought he had the right stuff to make it down the field. Finding a pocket, he cut across the field in between two Norfolk defenders. Despacito Jr. continued down the field, finally being brought down by a Norfolk player after a massive 32 yard return. On the first play of the drive Ayers took off for a decent 8 yard run, but as Joestar attempted to pass the ball on the next play, Blanco found a way to get in front of the receiver to intercept the ball and run it 20 yards back down the field. Set up in Myrtle Beach territory, the Norfolk offense took the field once more. On the first play, Ramza was forced to scramble to avoid the sack, and while he didn’t get the ball into a receivers hands, he was at least able to throw it away so that Norfolk wasn’t hit with a loss of yards. Looking for a receiver again, Ramza was able to complete a decent pass of 13 yards to Dre Matthews, before Matthews was hit hard by Dookmarriot and brought down. In the next place, as the Seawolves sat in the Red Zone, and they felt ready to score. Another short run and then a pass to Connor Hopkins leads to yet another Norfolk touchdown. A clean extra point from Guava-Fresca puts the Seawolves up 21-0 against Myrtle Beach.
Kicking off, Guava-Fresca makes a decent 61 yard kick right into the arms of Despacito Jr. Managing to break the first tackle, he gains about 15 yards before being brought down. Myrtle Beach brought out their offense to try and make something of this disastrous first half of the game. Joestar took the field, hoping to make some gains, and on the first play of the drive, Joestar handed off the ball to Ayers for a short gain; Ayers was almost instantly tackled by Sternenstaub. Recognizing the strength of the Norfolk defense against their run game, GMs Scorycory and Thor decide to swap tactics into passing attempts for the next few plays. While the ball flew through the air right to Despacito Jr., his nerves got the best of him and he was unable to keep control of the ball. Frustrated, on the next play Joestar threw to Bodenhammer but the ball went wide and the play was broken up. Once more into a three and out and Myrtle Beach was punting once more.
While Norfolk gained the ball and it seemed as though they might be able to convert a first down, after another three and out situation, it was very clear that the defense of both teams was going to control this game. Norfolk punted the ball deep to Despacito Jr. again, but Myrtle Beach wasn’t able to do much with the punt return. The Buccaneers started with their rush game, with Joestar handing the ball off to Ayers as he ran behind and made a short 3 yards gain. An unfortunate chop block penalty on Jeffrey meant that Myrtle Beach was in a second and 18 situation. As the next snap happened, Joestar was looking for a receiver deep down the field, and as he spied Bodenhammer, the ball flew through the air - and right through Bodenhammer’s hands. Yet another dropped pass by Bodenhammer this game. On the third down Myrtle Beach had no choice but to pass, especially when they still needed 18 yards to gain the first down. Even with this knowledge, it seemed as though the Norfolk coaches were entirely unaware of the situation and Joestar was able to complete a massive pass and run to Jenkins for 22 yards. J0EB’s robotic clone took him down at the Myrtle Beach 34 yard line, but Myrtle Beach was finally making ground. Another short rush by Ayers and a completed pass to Mo meant that the Buccaneers were inching toward the 50 yard mark. Unfortunately for Myrtle Beach, though, there were two dropped passes in a row to Bodenhammer. Clearly the boys over there would need to do some catching practice with Bodenhammer - three dropped passes on a single push down the field seemed too much for even a rookie. With a failed push, Kolarin punted the ball back to Norfolk. Nearing the end of the second quarter and the end of the half, the Seawolves gave the ball consistently to Skrills who had a series of decent runs, but it wasn’t enough for Norfolk, who needed to punt the ball away with only a minute left in the half. Even with two completed passes, it wasn’t enough for Myrtle Beach as Norfolk defenseman Benoit Blanco was able to bring out some big stops putting the game into halftime.
Leading the game 21 - 0, the Norfolk Seawolves felt really great running into the locker rooms at half time. Seraj Comilla and J0EB knew that they needed to keep the Seawolves hyped, they feared after the first two preseason games that Norfolk would lose steam moving into the second half. As high fives and congratulatory remarks were spread all around, especially for Skrills, Rogers, and Hopkins who scored the three touchdowns of the first half, Comilla and J0EB grew nervous that the Seawolves would lose focus. “Remember Seawolves, this first half has been incredible,” Comilla started, “but you have to keep it up. We’ve stopped them so far and have been lucky, but they have had some really big plays that could have turned this game if it wasn’t for some luck and dropped passes.”
Feeling ready and hopeful to stop the Buccaneers again in the second half, the team rushed out of the tunnel and back onto their sidelines. Set up to return the kick, Blanco sat in the backfield to catch Kolarin’s kickoff. Fielding the ball at the 4 yard line, Blanco sprinted down the side and broke a tackle in order to make a 12 yard return - getting Norfolk out of safety territory and giving them some breathing space. Ramza and the offense took to the field, and after two incomplete passes to Matthews and Krashwagen, Skywalker and the run game retook the field. While Skrills had been a big leader for the Seawolves earlier in the game, he was only able to get two yards on this run, which forced Norfolk to punt the ball once more.
Myrtle Beach gained the ball back with great field position, but after struggling with the run game, the 8 yard pass to Despacito wasn’t enough to make the Buccaneers able to convert a first down. They punted right back to the Norfolk special teams. Norfolk had multiple plays with short gains, and while they seemed as though they were going to continue this trend of short drives down the field, they were stopped after a broken up play by Mouseman. A huge punt of 58 yards by Daria Guava-Fresca ended in a touchback, giving Myrtle Beach better field position than if she had dropped it inside of the 20.
Norfolk gave Myrtle Beach another advantage as they had an immediate offsides penalty called on Scott on the first play of the Buccaneer’s drive. The Bucc’s pulled out a great run on that first play, but Despanoto immediately caused a tripping penalty, pushing the Buccs right back to where they started this drive. Stuck in a first and 20 situation wasn’t great, and while Joestar had an amazing pass on the first down for 13 yards - between Adelie de Pengu, an incomplete pass to Ne Mo, and a broken up play by Vaughne, the Buccaneers were punting once again. Woods for the Buccaneers was just instantly there in Norfolk’s face, ready to stop and force one more punt from the Seawolves. The continual shorten drives and punting back and forth between these two teams made for quite a boring game for everyone except the kickers.
Frustration and a little bit of being pissed off that they hadn’t scored yet, the Buccaneers were 100% convinced and focused on this upcoming drive. Right off of the bat, Joestar threw a massive pass to Jenkins for 29 yards, putting Myrtle Beach in Norfolk territory. Another series of short passes, and the Buccs made another first down. They were in field goal range, and it seemed like points on the board was an inevitability at this point for them. After a short rush by Jeffrey was tackled by Jim Namen Jr., Myrtle Beach focused back on their passing game. Finding Bodenhammer twice, after a few dropped or broken plays, Myrtle Beach made it another 24 yards down the field. A few penalties near the goal line kept the drives long and awkward, but on a 1st and goal situation, Joestar was able to find Bodenhammer one more time for the Buccaneers first touchdown of the game. The extra point was good by Kolarin, and the Buccs were on the board. Still down 14 points, but at least it wouldn’t be a shut out.
As the Seawolves special teams’ took the field, Blanco sat in the backfield, ready to receive the kick from Kolarin. Catching the ball at the 2 yard line, Blanco made a huge run down the middle to make it 20 yards down the field. Decent yardage to start, Ragnar Krashwagen found himself confused and he took to the field when he shouldn’t have. A “too many men on the field” penalty, put the Seawolves at a disadvantage on the very first down. When Ramza is finally able to snap the ball for a play, he passes the ball to Dre Matthews, who is able to make it 10 yards down the field before being brought down by Mouse. With another penalty on the Seawolves for a false start, they decided to give Tequila Sunrise a chance to run the ball, but after a huge tackle by Bear, he fumbled the ball and Zelos recovered it at the Norfolk 31 yard line. It seemed like it was inevitable for Myrtle Beach to score, but Adelie de Pengu was able to have a great stop on the first run by Ayers. As Joestar went to pass the ball to Despacito Jr., Quentin Button made himself known and intercepted the ball for Norfolk, stopping Myrtle Beach’s chances of bringing this game to a closer score. The Seawolves went 3 and out though, with two short rushes by Skrills, and one incomplete pass by Hex, forcing Guava-Fresca to punt to start the fourth and final quarter. With a massive 51 yard punt, it gave the Seawolves some much needed breathing space. They only needed to survive for 15 more minutes, but with how much Myrtle Beach had pushed this half, Comilla and J0EB were definitely nervous about the final quarter.
The Buccs had the ball at their own 28 yard line, and they started off with the run game, which was immediately stopped by Adelie de Pengu. Joestar then tried to pass to Jenkins, but Jenkins definitely needed more stick’em on his gloves, as the pass was dropped and slipped right between his fingers. Finding Bodenhammer, the main receiver it seemed for Myrtle Beach, Joestar was able to complete a massive pass before Bodenhammer was brought down by Blanco. A mix of rushing and short passes for the Buccs, they pushed another 16 yards down the field. The moment that they had created was wonderful, but when Joestar snapped the ball on a third down, Braxton Sinclair came up with a huge sack for 7 yards, forcing Myrtle Beach to punt. Kolarin made it a huge punt, resulting in a touchback.
Ramza came out of the gate fired up and frustrated after not being able to push the ball down the field the way that they had in the first half. On the first snap of the drive, he leads with a massive 15 yard pass to Ragnar Krashwagen. Finding Krashwagen and Matthews again on the next two drives, Norfolk made it almost to the 50 yard line. A nice run by Sunrise, leading them into Myrtle Beach territory was all she wrote, though, as Ramza wasn’t able to get any more decent passes and the Seawolves were forced to punt from the 46 yard line. With a decent punt dropping the Buccs inside of the 20, there was yet another turnover with only 9 minutes left in the game.
Jeffrey started the next drive for Myrtle Beach with two decent sized runs, leading to a 20 yard gain. Joestar passed to Ayers and Mo for another huge 23 yard gain, and with four plays, Myrtle Beach was back in Norfolk territory, looking for the elusive touchdowns. Ayers and Jeffrey ran again for shorter gains, but still, Myrtle Beach continued to push hard down the field, and the Norfolk defense seemed unable to stop them this time. With a massive pass to Bodenhammer, Myrtle Beach was clearly in field goal range, and it seemed inevitable that they would get points on the board. 3 more plays and Joestar completed a short red zone pass to Jenkins for the touchdown. A good extra point, and suddenly the 21 unanswered points from the first half were being met with 14 of their own. While there were only 4 minutes left in the half, Norfolk knew that they only needed to maintain control of the ball and this game was in the bag.
As Skrills waited down the field for the kickoff, he caught the ball around the Norfolk 5 yard line. With a 23 yard run, pushing up the left side of the field, Skrills was able to get Norfolk some breathing space and burn a little bit more time off the clock. Ramza walked onto the field, ready to throw and either take some time, or get the Seawolves another touchdown. On the first snap of the drive, Ramza looked for Matthews down the field. Finding him, he threw the ball deep, but Matthews failed to break free of his defender, and was unable to get to the ball in time. With the second down, Norfolk’s quarterback, Ramza, made a short throw to Sunrise, hoping that the pitch would let him run down the field. Zelos was instantly there, though, and he was not able to make more progress than that. With the third down, and looking desperate, there were still 3 minutes left on the clock, Ramza looked to open up another massive pass down the field. Krashwagen was able to break free of his defender, and he was able to get deep into Myrtle Beach territory. Ramza let the ball open up and it looked as though this was going to be the touchdown pass for the Seawolves. Krashwagen struggled to maintain control of the ball, however, and the pass was dropped. Norfolk was forced to punt and Guava-Fresca couldn’t give enough distance for the Seawolves with a short 36 yard punt.
Looking to finish out strong for the last 3 minutes, the Seawolves got confused. Instead of having the intended play, the Seawolves instead threw an extra man on the field, giving the Buccs even better field position than they would have wanted. Struggling with the play calling for the last few minutes, and feeling frazzled, it almost all went to hell when Joestar was able to complete a 25 yard pass to Ne Mo - thank goodness for the robotic clone of Matt Cross Jr., otherwise that play would have been disastrous for the team. Myrtle Beach spiked the ball to stop the clock and then were able to make a great run on the next play, almost completing another first down. Calling a timeout, Norfolk took the time to calm their nerves. The game was looking close, and while the Buccs were definitely in field goal range, everyone knew they needed the touchdown in order to tie the game. Knowing that there would still be big passes coming their way, the defense grew pumped up and ready for the end of the game. Joestar attempted two passes after the timeout, and while the first pass was dropped, the second one on a 4th and one situation was completed for another 8 yards. Only 18 more to go and they would tie the game up. Calling another time out to stop the clock, the Buccs came out with a short pass to Ayers who was brought down by Button. The last timeout of the game was called, with only a minute left in the game. Looking at the final few plays, Myrtle Beach tried something different initially to run the ball, but Ayers was immediately brought down by Namen Jr. With only a few seconds left, Joestar threw a pass out to Jenkins, and while he was able to gain 6 yards, it was still 10 yards short of what Myrtle Beach needed for a touchdown. Vaughne made the game winning tackle and the clock ticked down. It would be Norfolk’s first win (albeit preseason) this year.
With permission from the coaches to get some much needed rest and return back to an EST schedule, the team slept in the next night before returning to the grind and practices during the rest of the week. They had a massive game coming up against the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, and it was really important to make sure that they used every bit of time wisely to attempt a win. While the Seawolves knew that the Buccaneers quarterback was a beast going into this game, they couldn’t begin to expect what would happen. After a quick pep talk in the locker room, and a moment of silence for founders Doug Norfolk and Jeff Wonks, it became clear that today was the day - Norfolk would win. They would have to, for Doug.
As the first quarter began Daria Guava-Fresca made a huge kick of 63 yards to drop the ball almost in the endzone. Kick returner Jenkins was waiting for the ball, however, and he managed to punch through the Seawolves defense, much in the same way that the Royals had the week before - were the Myrtle Beach coaches looking at game tape? This would be concerning for J0EB and Seraj Comilla, for sure. After a huge 22 yard return by Jenkins, the Myrtle Beach offense took to the field and they began with a heavy rush game. After three short rushes, quarterback Joestar was able to throw a massive pass to Jenkins for 15 yards. Headed into Norfolk territory, everyone wondered where the Seawolf defense was. It turns out, they were just a few plays late as in a second and short situation, Sigismund Sternenstaub came up with a massive 6 yard sack on Joestar. Apparently he was still feeling it on the next play as he struggled to complete the pass to Mo. Myrtle Beach was forced to punt, even from the Seawolves 37 yard line (apparently faith in kickers this season was very low early one).
The Seawolves came out swinging with seven massive runs by Tequila Sunrise and Quanter Skrills to move them from their own 20 yard line all the way into Myrtle Beach territory. After reaching a 3rd down situation, Ramza pulled out all of the stops to make a massive 20 yard pass to Haugland, but the Seawolves just couldn’t convert. As they attempted to pass into the endzone, Myrtle Beach’s defensive player Zelos came out strong, intercepting the ball at the 8 yard line. As Myrtle Beach regained the ball, it was time for Joestar to show the Seawolves what he was made of, but after a 3 and out situation, Myrtle Beach was forced to punt the ball once more.
Benoit Blanco made a great return of the punt, driving it another 15 yards down the field, keeping Norfolk in Myrtle Beach territory. Skrills made tremendous gains on Norfolk’s drive as the Seawolves passing game was still struggling. With a combined total of 24 running yards, Skrills was the clear player of this drive - finally punching it in with a short 1 yard drive. Guava-Fresca was able to continue flexing her kicking skills driving the extra point cleanly through the uprights. The Seawolves were not only on the board, but they were finally leading a game for the first time this season.
As Guava-Fresca kicked off, Jenkins was once more waiting in the fray to return the ball. Waving off the other receivers in the area, the ball flew cleanly into Jenkins’ arms and he took off down the field. With a quick juke, he was able to dodge one defender to gain a few extra yards - resulting in a 13 yard return. Myrtle Beach decided to continue and focus on their passing game, handing off to Ayers on the first play of the drive. He pushed through the field and made a gain of 8 yards before being brought down by Marshall. After two more rushes, the Buccaneers attempted a pass, and while Despacito Jr. caught it he was quickly brought down by Adelie de Pengu. The Buccaneers seemed to have found a rhythm, finally, to push the ball down the field. But just as they felt good and in the groove, Sigismund Sternenstaub came up with another massive 6 yard sack - forcing the Buccs to punt the ball at 4th and 13.
The Seawolves gained the ball and started their next drive on their own 28 yard line. Ramza went out onto the field and threw a pass out to Dre Matthews, but in a fit of rookie nerves, Matthews let the pass slip through his fingers. Two short runs by Tequila Sunrise and the Seawolves found themselves punting the ball right back to the Buccaneers as the first quarter came to a close. In a game that feels like turnover after turnover, (which seems par for the course for preseason games) the Buccaneers enter the second quarter with the ball and a penalty - offensive pass interference on the quarterback of all players. This clearly put Joestar in a soured mood and it impacted his ability to make completed throws - even though he will claim that the receivers had butter fingers. One more punt by Myrtle Beach seemed like it would pin Norfolk deep in their own territory, but Blanco was able to find a pocket and he was able to carve out a few more yards of breathing space.
Skywalker took to the field as the Seawolves tried to up their run game - Hopkins and Skrills both made short gains, which prompted J0EB and Comilla to send Ramza back onto the field. The Seawolves lined up for the snap, and Ramza ducked back into the pocket, looking for the open receiver - finding Haugland a fair way down the field. Haugland made his way down the field for a few more yards, a total gain of 21 for the Seawolves, putting them just short of the red zone. The Seawolves lined up again, looking for more run plays and while Sunrise continued to have some short gains for Norfolk, Woods of the Buccaneers was consistently there to stop the run game. Another short pass, putting Norfolk at the 12 yard line, Sunrise is given the chance to show the rookies how the run game works, getting the Seawolves into a first and goal situation. Captain Rogers, who up until now had still been feeling a little frosty coming from the ice, punched the ball into the endzone to get the first touchdown of the second quarter.
Guava-Fresca kicked the ball off and down the field, and while it was a decent kick into the endzone, Despacito Jr. thought he had the right stuff to make it down the field. Finding a pocket, he cut across the field in between two Norfolk defenders. Despacito Jr. continued down the field, finally being brought down by a Norfolk player after a massive 32 yard return. On the first play of the drive Ayers took off for a decent 8 yard run, but as Joestar attempted to pass the ball on the next play, Blanco found a way to get in front of the receiver to intercept the ball and run it 20 yards back down the field. Set up in Myrtle Beach territory, the Norfolk offense took the field once more. On the first play, Ramza was forced to scramble to avoid the sack, and while he didn’t get the ball into a receivers hands, he was at least able to throw it away so that Norfolk wasn’t hit with a loss of yards. Looking for a receiver again, Ramza was able to complete a decent pass of 13 yards to Dre Matthews, before Matthews was hit hard by Dookmarriot and brought down. In the next place, as the Seawolves sat in the Red Zone, and they felt ready to score. Another short run and then a pass to Connor Hopkins leads to yet another Norfolk touchdown. A clean extra point from Guava-Fresca puts the Seawolves up 21-0 against Myrtle Beach.
Kicking off, Guava-Fresca makes a decent 61 yard kick right into the arms of Despacito Jr. Managing to break the first tackle, he gains about 15 yards before being brought down. Myrtle Beach brought out their offense to try and make something of this disastrous first half of the game. Joestar took the field, hoping to make some gains, and on the first play of the drive, Joestar handed off the ball to Ayers for a short gain; Ayers was almost instantly tackled by Sternenstaub. Recognizing the strength of the Norfolk defense against their run game, GMs Scorycory and Thor decide to swap tactics into passing attempts for the next few plays. While the ball flew through the air right to Despacito Jr., his nerves got the best of him and he was unable to keep control of the ball. Frustrated, on the next play Joestar threw to Bodenhammer but the ball went wide and the play was broken up. Once more into a three and out and Myrtle Beach was punting once more.
While Norfolk gained the ball and it seemed as though they might be able to convert a first down, after another three and out situation, it was very clear that the defense of both teams was going to control this game. Norfolk punted the ball deep to Despacito Jr. again, but Myrtle Beach wasn’t able to do much with the punt return. The Buccaneers started with their rush game, with Joestar handing the ball off to Ayers as he ran behind and made a short 3 yards gain. An unfortunate chop block penalty on Jeffrey meant that Myrtle Beach was in a second and 18 situation. As the next snap happened, Joestar was looking for a receiver deep down the field, and as he spied Bodenhammer, the ball flew through the air - and right through Bodenhammer’s hands. Yet another dropped pass by Bodenhammer this game. On the third down Myrtle Beach had no choice but to pass, especially when they still needed 18 yards to gain the first down. Even with this knowledge, it seemed as though the Norfolk coaches were entirely unaware of the situation and Joestar was able to complete a massive pass and run to Jenkins for 22 yards. J0EB’s robotic clone took him down at the Myrtle Beach 34 yard line, but Myrtle Beach was finally making ground. Another short rush by Ayers and a completed pass to Mo meant that the Buccaneers were inching toward the 50 yard mark. Unfortunately for Myrtle Beach, though, there were two dropped passes in a row to Bodenhammer. Clearly the boys over there would need to do some catching practice with Bodenhammer - three dropped passes on a single push down the field seemed too much for even a rookie. With a failed push, Kolarin punted the ball back to Norfolk. Nearing the end of the second quarter and the end of the half, the Seawolves gave the ball consistently to Skrills who had a series of decent runs, but it wasn’t enough for Norfolk, who needed to punt the ball away with only a minute left in the half. Even with two completed passes, it wasn’t enough for Myrtle Beach as Norfolk defenseman Benoit Blanco was able to bring out some big stops putting the game into halftime.
Leading the game 21 - 0, the Norfolk Seawolves felt really great running into the locker rooms at half time. Seraj Comilla and J0EB knew that they needed to keep the Seawolves hyped, they feared after the first two preseason games that Norfolk would lose steam moving into the second half. As high fives and congratulatory remarks were spread all around, especially for Skrills, Rogers, and Hopkins who scored the three touchdowns of the first half, Comilla and J0EB grew nervous that the Seawolves would lose focus. “Remember Seawolves, this first half has been incredible,” Comilla started, “but you have to keep it up. We’ve stopped them so far and have been lucky, but they have had some really big plays that could have turned this game if it wasn’t for some luck and dropped passes.”
Feeling ready and hopeful to stop the Buccaneers again in the second half, the team rushed out of the tunnel and back onto their sidelines. Set up to return the kick, Blanco sat in the backfield to catch Kolarin’s kickoff. Fielding the ball at the 4 yard line, Blanco sprinted down the side and broke a tackle in order to make a 12 yard return - getting Norfolk out of safety territory and giving them some breathing space. Ramza and the offense took to the field, and after two incomplete passes to Matthews and Krashwagen, Skywalker and the run game retook the field. While Skrills had been a big leader for the Seawolves earlier in the game, he was only able to get two yards on this run, which forced Norfolk to punt the ball once more.
Myrtle Beach gained the ball back with great field position, but after struggling with the run game, the 8 yard pass to Despacito wasn’t enough to make the Buccaneers able to convert a first down. They punted right back to the Norfolk special teams. Norfolk had multiple plays with short gains, and while they seemed as though they were going to continue this trend of short drives down the field, they were stopped after a broken up play by Mouseman. A huge punt of 58 yards by Daria Guava-Fresca ended in a touchback, giving Myrtle Beach better field position than if she had dropped it inside of the 20.
Norfolk gave Myrtle Beach another advantage as they had an immediate offsides penalty called on Scott on the first play of the Buccaneer’s drive. The Bucc’s pulled out a great run on that first play, but Despanoto immediately caused a tripping penalty, pushing the Buccs right back to where they started this drive. Stuck in a first and 20 situation wasn’t great, and while Joestar had an amazing pass on the first down for 13 yards - between Adelie de Pengu, an incomplete pass to Ne Mo, and a broken up play by Vaughne, the Buccaneers were punting once again. Woods for the Buccaneers was just instantly there in Norfolk’s face, ready to stop and force one more punt from the Seawolves. The continual shorten drives and punting back and forth between these two teams made for quite a boring game for everyone except the kickers.
Frustration and a little bit of being pissed off that they hadn’t scored yet, the Buccaneers were 100% convinced and focused on this upcoming drive. Right off of the bat, Joestar threw a massive pass to Jenkins for 29 yards, putting Myrtle Beach in Norfolk territory. Another series of short passes, and the Buccs made another first down. They were in field goal range, and it seemed like points on the board was an inevitability at this point for them. After a short rush by Jeffrey was tackled by Jim Namen Jr., Myrtle Beach focused back on their passing game. Finding Bodenhammer twice, after a few dropped or broken plays, Myrtle Beach made it another 24 yards down the field. A few penalties near the goal line kept the drives long and awkward, but on a 1st and goal situation, Joestar was able to find Bodenhammer one more time for the Buccaneers first touchdown of the game. The extra point was good by Kolarin, and the Buccs were on the board. Still down 14 points, but at least it wouldn’t be a shut out.
As the Seawolves special teams’ took the field, Blanco sat in the backfield, ready to receive the kick from Kolarin. Catching the ball at the 2 yard line, Blanco made a huge run down the middle to make it 20 yards down the field. Decent yardage to start, Ragnar Krashwagen found himself confused and he took to the field when he shouldn’t have. A “too many men on the field” penalty, put the Seawolves at a disadvantage on the very first down. When Ramza is finally able to snap the ball for a play, he passes the ball to Dre Matthews, who is able to make it 10 yards down the field before being brought down by Mouse. With another penalty on the Seawolves for a false start, they decided to give Tequila Sunrise a chance to run the ball, but after a huge tackle by Bear, he fumbled the ball and Zelos recovered it at the Norfolk 31 yard line. It seemed like it was inevitable for Myrtle Beach to score, but Adelie de Pengu was able to have a great stop on the first run by Ayers. As Joestar went to pass the ball to Despacito Jr., Quentin Button made himself known and intercepted the ball for Norfolk, stopping Myrtle Beach’s chances of bringing this game to a closer score. The Seawolves went 3 and out though, with two short rushes by Skrills, and one incomplete pass by Hex, forcing Guava-Fresca to punt to start the fourth and final quarter. With a massive 51 yard punt, it gave the Seawolves some much needed breathing space. They only needed to survive for 15 more minutes, but with how much Myrtle Beach had pushed this half, Comilla and J0EB were definitely nervous about the final quarter.
The Buccs had the ball at their own 28 yard line, and they started off with the run game, which was immediately stopped by Adelie de Pengu. Joestar then tried to pass to Jenkins, but Jenkins definitely needed more stick’em on his gloves, as the pass was dropped and slipped right between his fingers. Finding Bodenhammer, the main receiver it seemed for Myrtle Beach, Joestar was able to complete a massive pass before Bodenhammer was brought down by Blanco. A mix of rushing and short passes for the Buccs, they pushed another 16 yards down the field. The moment that they had created was wonderful, but when Joestar snapped the ball on a third down, Braxton Sinclair came up with a huge sack for 7 yards, forcing Myrtle Beach to punt. Kolarin made it a huge punt, resulting in a touchback.
Ramza came out of the gate fired up and frustrated after not being able to push the ball down the field the way that they had in the first half. On the first snap of the drive, he leads with a massive 15 yard pass to Ragnar Krashwagen. Finding Krashwagen and Matthews again on the next two drives, Norfolk made it almost to the 50 yard line. A nice run by Sunrise, leading them into Myrtle Beach territory was all she wrote, though, as Ramza wasn’t able to get any more decent passes and the Seawolves were forced to punt from the 46 yard line. With a decent punt dropping the Buccs inside of the 20, there was yet another turnover with only 9 minutes left in the game.
Jeffrey started the next drive for Myrtle Beach with two decent sized runs, leading to a 20 yard gain. Joestar passed to Ayers and Mo for another huge 23 yard gain, and with four plays, Myrtle Beach was back in Norfolk territory, looking for the elusive touchdowns. Ayers and Jeffrey ran again for shorter gains, but still, Myrtle Beach continued to push hard down the field, and the Norfolk defense seemed unable to stop them this time. With a massive pass to Bodenhammer, Myrtle Beach was clearly in field goal range, and it seemed inevitable that they would get points on the board. 3 more plays and Joestar completed a short red zone pass to Jenkins for the touchdown. A good extra point, and suddenly the 21 unanswered points from the first half were being met with 14 of their own. While there were only 4 minutes left in the half, Norfolk knew that they only needed to maintain control of the ball and this game was in the bag.
As Skrills waited down the field for the kickoff, he caught the ball around the Norfolk 5 yard line. With a 23 yard run, pushing up the left side of the field, Skrills was able to get Norfolk some breathing space and burn a little bit more time off the clock. Ramza walked onto the field, ready to throw and either take some time, or get the Seawolves another touchdown. On the first snap of the drive, Ramza looked for Matthews down the field. Finding him, he threw the ball deep, but Matthews failed to break free of his defender, and was unable to get to the ball in time. With the second down, Norfolk’s quarterback, Ramza, made a short throw to Sunrise, hoping that the pitch would let him run down the field. Zelos was instantly there, though, and he was not able to make more progress than that. With the third down, and looking desperate, there were still 3 minutes left on the clock, Ramza looked to open up another massive pass down the field. Krashwagen was able to break free of his defender, and he was able to get deep into Myrtle Beach territory. Ramza let the ball open up and it looked as though this was going to be the touchdown pass for the Seawolves. Krashwagen struggled to maintain control of the ball, however, and the pass was dropped. Norfolk was forced to punt and Guava-Fresca couldn’t give enough distance for the Seawolves with a short 36 yard punt.
Looking to finish out strong for the last 3 minutes, the Seawolves got confused. Instead of having the intended play, the Seawolves instead threw an extra man on the field, giving the Buccs even better field position than they would have wanted. Struggling with the play calling for the last few minutes, and feeling frazzled, it almost all went to hell when Joestar was able to complete a 25 yard pass to Ne Mo - thank goodness for the robotic clone of Matt Cross Jr., otherwise that play would have been disastrous for the team. Myrtle Beach spiked the ball to stop the clock and then were able to make a great run on the next play, almost completing another first down. Calling a timeout, Norfolk took the time to calm their nerves. The game was looking close, and while the Buccs were definitely in field goal range, everyone knew they needed the touchdown in order to tie the game. Knowing that there would still be big passes coming their way, the defense grew pumped up and ready for the end of the game. Joestar attempted two passes after the timeout, and while the first pass was dropped, the second one on a 4th and one situation was completed for another 8 yards. Only 18 more to go and they would tie the game up. Calling another time out to stop the clock, the Buccs came out with a short pass to Ayers who was brought down by Button. The last timeout of the game was called, with only a minute left in the game. Looking at the final few plays, Myrtle Beach tried something different initially to run the ball, but Ayers was immediately brought down by Namen Jr. With only a few seconds left, Joestar threw a pass out to Jenkins, and while he was able to gain 6 yards, it was still 10 yards short of what Myrtle Beach needed for a touchdown. Vaughne made the game winning tackle and the clock ticked down. It would be Norfolk’s first win (albeit preseason) this year.