1. The Season 39 Ultimus and Ultimini have officially come to an end. Congratulations to the the Kansas City Coyotes and Yellowknife Wraiths for each winning their respective championships. How did each of the finalists in either the Ultimus or Ultimini arrive at the playoffs? Were there any teams that surprised or disappointed during the playoffs? Did the outcome of either championship game surprise you at all?
I am actually super excited to write about this one! I had really been watching the Yellowknife Wraiths all season long specifically because of their defense. As of week 11 in the regular season, somehow YKW had only allowed 113 points all season long. That put them at 10.27 points per game or on pace to allow only 164.36 points all season long. To put into mind what an incredibly stunning number this is, the lowest points allowed I could find in the 16 game era of the ISFL was 276 before this season. YKW was on pace to beat that by over 100. To make this even more wild, only two teams since the Arizona cheat teams back in S3 had a team allowed under 200 points in a season. 196 points in the 13 game era and 197 in the 14 game era and YKW was on pace to absolutely shatter this number. Despite having two more games than the 197 point team, they were looking to annihilate the record. Unfortunately for them after week 11 their defense came back to earth and we saw them give up 108 points in the last 5 games, almost matching their total from the previous 11. This made them look very vulnerable at a bad time. Despite that YKW still managed to put together a top three defensive performance in history and the absolute best in the 16 game era on the new sim by 65 points. Their 211 points allowed this season put them at 13.19 points per game allowed which is a better average than the 14 game era champions that allowed 14 points a game. The was a RECORD SETTING pace and it was super exciting to watch happen. They ranked first in almost every defensive category. Points, total yards allowed, rushing yards allowed were all first and they came second in passing yards allowed. It was truly a dominant performance.
All this focus on their defense though wasn't the only reason YKW was set this season though. While not on the historic pace their defense put up, their offense also came to play this season. With 510 points scored this season, they fell only one point behind Arizona as the best scoring offense in the league. The did this with a pretty strong rushing attack that averaged at the third best in the league and an above average air attack that ranked 6. This allowed them to be second in total yards behind only Sarasota. All in all this brought them to an offense that was top three in the league and when you have a historic defense, top three in the league is all you need to steamroll your way through games.
For this reason I absolutely knew YKW was going to end up winning the Ultimus. The sim may have tripped them up to end the season giving them a few games where both their defense and offense looked lackluster, but I fully expected them to rebound in the playoffs and finish out strong. I'd seen the sim do this before and I doubted YKW would be unique. See the tape. Not only did I pick YKW to run the playoff table, I said in week 11 in Colorado that they had this in the bag and we should look to the upcoming season. Sure enough, they entered the playoffs with two dominant performances and a title. One by their offense in the championship game against Chicago where they put up 48 points against a playoff team, beating them by 21 total. Then by their defense as they held what was widely considered the best offense in the league of Arizona to only six points. When this team needed them the most, their defense showed back up and proved why I was so fascinated with them for so long. This was a VERY special season for YKW, one that may never be replicated, and they earned this win. I don't always enjoy my time in this league, but when watching dominance of such magnitude that it boggles historical statistics you can't help but have fun.
I am actually super excited to write about this one! I had really been watching the Yellowknife Wraiths all season long specifically because of their defense. As of week 11 in the regular season, somehow YKW had only allowed 113 points all season long. That put them at 10.27 points per game or on pace to allow only 164.36 points all season long. To put into mind what an incredibly stunning number this is, the lowest points allowed I could find in the 16 game era of the ISFL was 276 before this season. YKW was on pace to beat that by over 100. To make this even more wild, only two teams since the Arizona cheat teams back in S3 had a team allowed under 200 points in a season. 196 points in the 13 game era and 197 in the 14 game era and YKW was on pace to absolutely shatter this number. Despite having two more games than the 197 point team, they were looking to annihilate the record. Unfortunately for them after week 11 their defense came back to earth and we saw them give up 108 points in the last 5 games, almost matching their total from the previous 11. This made them look very vulnerable at a bad time. Despite that YKW still managed to put together a top three defensive performance in history and the absolute best in the 16 game era on the new sim by 65 points. Their 211 points allowed this season put them at 13.19 points per game allowed which is a better average than the 14 game era champions that allowed 14 points a game. The was a RECORD SETTING pace and it was super exciting to watch happen. They ranked first in almost every defensive category. Points, total yards allowed, rushing yards allowed were all first and they came second in passing yards allowed. It was truly a dominant performance.
All this focus on their defense though wasn't the only reason YKW was set this season though. While not on the historic pace their defense put up, their offense also came to play this season. With 510 points scored this season, they fell only one point behind Arizona as the best scoring offense in the league. The did this with a pretty strong rushing attack that averaged at the third best in the league and an above average air attack that ranked 6. This allowed them to be second in total yards behind only Sarasota. All in all this brought them to an offense that was top three in the league and when you have a historic defense, top three in the league is all you need to steamroll your way through games.
For this reason I absolutely knew YKW was going to end up winning the Ultimus. The sim may have tripped them up to end the season giving them a few games where both their defense and offense looked lackluster, but I fully expected them to rebound in the playoffs and finish out strong. I'd seen the sim do this before and I doubted YKW would be unique. See the tape. Not only did I pick YKW to run the playoff table, I said in week 11 in Colorado that they had this in the bag and we should look to the upcoming season. Sure enough, they entered the playoffs with two dominant performances and a title. One by their offense in the championship game against Chicago where they put up 48 points against a playoff team, beating them by 21 total. Then by their defense as they held what was widely considered the best offense in the league of Arizona to only six points. When this team needed them the most, their defense showed back up and proved why I was so fascinated with them for so long. This was a VERY special season for YKW, one that may never be replicated, and they earned this win. I don't always enjoy my time in this league, but when watching dominance of such magnitude that it boggles historical statistics you can't help but have fun.