From the beginning of the league, there have always been a have been a select group of teams that have evolved and changed over the course of the NSFL's history. As new people join the league, they may not always be aware of what teams have been around, what changes teams have made, and what brand new teams the league has added along the way. We're going to explore each team in order of creation and their long line of history in the past 23 seasons.
Fair warning: there might be a few dates or stories that are missing since I have only been around since S16 but as a fan of history, I would like to guide the journey into the past with what we can find.
ALSO, I RECOGNIZE THAT THE LEAGUE HAS MADE THE DECISION TO NOT COUNT THE FOURTH PLACE POSITION IN THE PLAYOFFS. HOWEVER, GIVEN THAT IT'S A STUPID ASS DECISION, I HAVE ELECTED TO IGNORE IT. THE FOURTH PLACE POSITIONS STAY REGARDLESS IF IT MAKES THE ARTICLE LOOK STUPID
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THE BEGINNING [/div]
In the beginning of the league, most of the major teams had already been made but had vastly different looks to them. We also face our first team that was erased from the history books and is only remembered by the original members of the league or those that go digging far enough. Here are our first teams and how they have done in the league:
Arizona Outlaws
S1 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 149-151-1
Ultimus Wins: 4 (S1*, S2*, S3*, S16)
MVP Awards: 2
Last Ultimus Appearance: S16
Last Playoff Appearance: S20
Players in the Hall of Fame: 5
The first team up is the Arizona Outlaws who were early powerhouses in the league thanks to a little help from multis and a lot of inside work. The investigation is a wild story and worth digging into if you're ever looking for juicy early league drama that you can check out here. With that in mind, I give an asterisk on their first three Ultimus wins and might rustle a few jimmies. They have since moved away from that ugly side of their history and won an uncontested Ultimus in S16 when I joined the league with hopes to go again under hotshot QB, Jay Cue.
Baltimore Hawks
S1 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 172-129
Ultimus Wins: 2 (S10, S15)
MVP Awards: 3
Last Ultimus Appearance: S17
Last Playoff Apperance: S21
Players in the Hall of Fame: 8
Our second team from the original crop of teams, the Baltimore Hawks have been around forever with this air of success. Baltimore's level of play is hardly rivaled with some of its individual player performances and boasting the highest amount of players inducted in to the Hall of Fame. The original logo for the team was more similar to an angry pigeon if anything and has since been changed to the wonderful Banana Bird back in S10 that we have now.
Colorado Yeti
S1 - (ongoing)
Denver Grizzlies Pre-S1 - S1
Regular Season Overall: 115-186
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S22)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S22
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 4
This is where we get our first dead team that actually never played a snap of football. The original team in the state of Colorado for S1 was going to be the Denver Grizzlies and they even had their own forum logo when the first set of games were being scheduled from what I can tell. However, before everyone got to carried away, the Denver Grizzlies were killed off by the former GM due to the name being supposedly unoriginal. The name that would replace the Grizzlies would be the Colorado Yeti which was deemed more original despite the bland, boring red and black color scheme of the team when they first debuted. After all those seasons, the Yeti made history by winning their first Ultimus in S22 with a comeback of the ages over the Orange County Otters.
Orange County Otters
S1 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 206-95
Ultimus Wins: 8 (S4, S5, S6, S12, S13, S17, S18, S19)
MVP Awards: 8
Last Ultimus Appearance: S22
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 7
Truly the most dominant franchise in the entire league. There is so much success at Orange County and they are the only original team that never changed their logo. I guess once you have things right, you should never change it. The Otters not only have seen the most success in the league, they also have two of the best quarterbacks to ever be in the league in Mike Boss and Franklin Armstrong who are the only players to win the MVP award three times in a row.
San Jose SaberCats
S1 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 134-166
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S14)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S15
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 3
Sort of on the opposite end of the spectrum from the Otters lies the other California team in the San Jose SaberCats. With a wonderful color combination and a logo that echoes the team's Arena Football resemblance, the SaberCats are an interesting breed of team. There was a short period where they truly were on a hot streak before that flame was snuffed out in S15 with a 49-0 Ultimus game that resembled more like a Saw film than a football game. However, with a steady head of leaders pushing the team forward, it wouldn't be impossible to see these sharp tooth kittens go on another run.
Yellowknife Wraiths
S1 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 176-124-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S8)
MVP Awards: 6
Last Ultimus Appearance: S21
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 3
The phrase "always a bridesmaid and never the bride" has never fit a team more than the Wraiths in current seasons. However, they had a few bits of early success that have made the Wraiths the dominating force in the North division along with the Baltimore Hawks. The two teams have always been trading places back and forth through the history of the league and the Wraiths recently have held their own spot on top to become the punching bag to the ASFC team going on to win the Ultimus.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"] Expansion 1: The League Rings Some Bells and Sharpens Some Swords [/div]
Las Vegas Legion
S2 - S5
Regular Season Overall: 9-47
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: Never
Players in the Hall of Fame: 1
Another team that no longer exists, and one that had some issues, the Legion also had a very respectable branding. However, unlike the Grizzilies the Legion were able to at least participate in playing a few games. I say participate because the Legion's best season was with a grand total of 3 wins and they never scored more than 296 points in a season. There was plenty of retirement issues with the team and ultimately the team was disbanded when new management stepped up. The Legion were dropped in favor of the next era of 'expansion'.
New Orleans Second Line
S5 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 112-118
Ultimus Wins: 3 (S9, S11, S21)
MVP Awards: 3
Last Ultimus Appearance:
Last Playoff Appearance:
Players in the Hall of Fame: 5
The Second Line were the team that took the spot of the Legion in S5 and have still been around. The branding kept being very exciting and fit well for the New Orleans area. There are a few 'issues' that have come with the Second Line and there are some controversy from some users in the league surrounding how many big users play for the Second Line. Outside of a tampering scandal, not much has really come around the Second Line outside some respectable seasons and players.
Philadelphia Liberty
S2 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 133-153-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S7)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S16
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 2
Probably the best logo and branding in the entire league, the Liberty joined the league as one of the first group of expansion teams when more people began to join in the NSFL. They are also the first expansion team to still be around in this first pair of teams that were created for the large draft class of 104 players. Fun fact about the Liberty is that they were the also the first expansion team to make a draft pick ever with wide receiver Fox North, a wide receiver out of Penn State.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"] Expansion 2: Choppers and Snakes [/div]
Austin Copperheads
S16 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 39-51-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S20)
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: S20
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
From humble beginnings, to winning an Ultimus, the Copperheads were probably the team I felt had an originally great brand before seeing the logo and color scheme. It is not the worst thing in the world but the branding works about as well as their first season. Despite that, the Copperheads managed to turn things around pretty quickly and be the best of the S16 expansion teams in the short run with plenty of upside along the way. Hopefully they could also work on making a slightly better logo or color scheme as well in that time?
Chicago Butchers
S16 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 36-55
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: S21
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
Oh how quickly the Butchers have fallen. Things started off extremely well for the brand new Chicago team that was a big dream city for a few members in the league. The first season the Butchers had was an odd one where they were an unstoppable force with 10 wins and then their 3 losses were somehow blowouts to teams that were 7-6 and 6-7. Then the trading began and the Butchers became a fast shell of that first season and sunk like a rock before everyone started to have their final bit of Chicago. Now there is a bright side on the Butchers as they build for the long run and work on getting back to their former selves.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"] Expansion 3: Let's Go Fishing [/div]
Honolulu Hahalua
S22 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 4-9
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: Never
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
And now we come to the most recent expansion teams and those with the least amount of history. That also means less to write about outside of just discussing the branding for the team. The Hahalua fit perfectly with the Honolulu team and the entire brand is spectacular. It fits perfect for the area that was picked for the expansion team. The only knock against the Hahalua logo is that it does not fit a very football aesthetic.
Sarasota Sailfish
S22 - (ongoing)
Regular Season Overall: 6-7
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
The next of the fish teams is the only other team in the Southeastern United States shockingly. The odd does not end there though with these confused fish boys and there have been some interesting stories coming out in only a couple of seasons. To begin, the logo of the Sailfish brought controversy as being the only logo that says it is one thing but in reality is another. The next came from a player early retiring with some crazy back and forth but the Sailfish kept away from most of it, quickly shining with their football talent despite not having an official 'quarterback' in their existence yet. Will they use a QB in the future? Find out next season!
With that, we have all of the team history in the NSFL so far. There are plenty of seasons left for more drama, more teams, and plenty of history to be made. Can't wait for the next set of expansion teams or the next juicy story to experience. Thank you for joining the short journey and reading through.
Fair warning: there might be a few dates or stories that are missing since I have only been around since S16 but as a fan of history, I would like to guide the journey into the past with what we can find.
ALSO, I RECOGNIZE THAT THE LEAGUE HAS MADE THE DECISION TO NOT COUNT THE FOURTH PLACE POSITION IN THE PLAYOFFS. HOWEVER, GIVEN THAT IT'S A STUPID ASS DECISION, I HAVE ELECTED TO IGNORE IT. THE FOURTH PLACE POSITIONS STAY REGARDLESS IF IT MAKES THE ARTICLE LOOK STUPID
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
THE BEGINNING [/div]In the beginning of the league, most of the major teams had already been made but had vastly different looks to them. We also face our first team that was erased from the history books and is only remembered by the original members of the league or those that go digging far enough. Here are our first teams and how they have done in the league:
Arizona Outlaws
S1 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 149-151-1
Ultimus Wins: 4 (S1*, S2*, S3*, S16)
MVP Awards: 2
Last Ultimus Appearance: S16
Last Playoff Appearance: S20
Players in the Hall of Fame: 5
The first team up is the Arizona Outlaws who were early powerhouses in the league thanks to a little help from multis and a lot of inside work. The investigation is a wild story and worth digging into if you're ever looking for juicy early league drama that you can check out here. With that in mind, I give an asterisk on their first three Ultimus wins and might rustle a few jimmies. They have since moved away from that ugly side of their history and won an uncontested Ultimus in S16 when I joined the league with hopes to go again under hotshot QB, Jay Cue.
Baltimore Hawks
S1 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 172-129
Ultimus Wins: 2 (S10, S15)
MVP Awards: 3
Last Ultimus Appearance: S17
Last Playoff Apperance: S21
Players in the Hall of Fame: 8
Our second team from the original crop of teams, the Baltimore Hawks have been around forever with this air of success. Baltimore's level of play is hardly rivaled with some of its individual player performances and boasting the highest amount of players inducted in to the Hall of Fame. The original logo for the team was more similar to an angry pigeon if anything and has since been changed to the wonderful Banana Bird back in S10 that we have now.
Colorado Yeti
S1 - (ongoing)Denver Grizzlies Pre-S1 - S1
Regular Season Overall: 115-186
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S22)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S22
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 4
This is where we get our first dead team that actually never played a snap of football. The original team in the state of Colorado for S1 was going to be the Denver Grizzlies and they even had their own forum logo when the first set of games were being scheduled from what I can tell. However, before everyone got to carried away, the Denver Grizzlies were killed off by the former GM due to the name being supposedly unoriginal. The name that would replace the Grizzlies would be the Colorado Yeti which was deemed more original despite the bland, boring red and black color scheme of the team when they first debuted. After all those seasons, the Yeti made history by winning their first Ultimus in S22 with a comeback of the ages over the Orange County Otters.
Orange County Otters
S1 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 206-95
Ultimus Wins: 8 (S4, S5, S6, S12, S13, S17, S18, S19)
MVP Awards: 8
Last Ultimus Appearance: S22
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 7
Truly the most dominant franchise in the entire league. There is so much success at Orange County and they are the only original team that never changed their logo. I guess once you have things right, you should never change it. The Otters not only have seen the most success in the league, they also have two of the best quarterbacks to ever be in the league in Mike Boss and Franklin Armstrong who are the only players to win the MVP award three times in a row.
San Jose SaberCats
S1 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 134-166
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S14)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S15
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 3
Sort of on the opposite end of the spectrum from the Otters lies the other California team in the San Jose SaberCats. With a wonderful color combination and a logo that echoes the team's Arena Football resemblance, the SaberCats are an interesting breed of team. There was a short period where they truly were on a hot streak before that flame was snuffed out in S15 with a 49-0 Ultimus game that resembled more like a Saw film than a football game. However, with a steady head of leaders pushing the team forward, it wouldn't be impossible to see these sharp tooth kittens go on another run.
Yellowknife Wraiths
S1 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 176-124-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S8)
MVP Awards: 6
Last Ultimus Appearance: S21
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 3
The phrase "always a bridesmaid and never the bride" has never fit a team more than the Wraiths in current seasons. However, they had a few bits of early success that have made the Wraiths the dominating force in the North division along with the Baltimore Hawks. The two teams have always been trading places back and forth through the history of the league and the Wraiths recently have held their own spot on top to become the punching bag to the ASFC team going on to win the Ultimus.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
Expansion 1: The League Rings Some Bells and Sharpens Some Swords [/div]Las Vegas Legion
S2 - S5Regular Season Overall: 9-47
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: Never
Players in the Hall of Fame: 1
Another team that no longer exists, and one that had some issues, the Legion also had a very respectable branding. However, unlike the Grizzilies the Legion were able to at least participate in playing a few games. I say participate because the Legion's best season was with a grand total of 3 wins and they never scored more than 296 points in a season. There was plenty of retirement issues with the team and ultimately the team was disbanded when new management stepped up. The Legion were dropped in favor of the next era of 'expansion'.
New Orleans Second Line
S5 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 112-118
Ultimus Wins: 3 (S9, S11, S21)
MVP Awards: 3
Last Ultimus Appearance:
Last Playoff Appearance:
Players in the Hall of Fame: 5
The Second Line were the team that took the spot of the Legion in S5 and have still been around. The branding kept being very exciting and fit well for the New Orleans area. There are a few 'issues' that have come with the Second Line and there are some controversy from some users in the league surrounding how many big users play for the Second Line. Outside of a tampering scandal, not much has really come around the Second Line outside some respectable seasons and players.
Philadelphia Liberty
S2 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 133-153-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S7)
MVP Awards: 1
Last Ultimus Appearance: S16
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 2
Probably the best logo and branding in the entire league, the Liberty joined the league as one of the first group of expansion teams when more people began to join in the NSFL. They are also the first expansion team to still be around in this first pair of teams that were created for the large draft class of 104 players. Fun fact about the Liberty is that they were the also the first expansion team to make a draft pick ever with wide receiver Fox North, a wide receiver out of Penn State.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
Expansion 2: Choppers and Snakes [/div]Austin Copperheads
S16 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 39-51-1
Ultimus Wins: 1 (S20)
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: S20
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
From humble beginnings, to winning an Ultimus, the Copperheads were probably the team I felt had an originally great brand before seeing the logo and color scheme. It is not the worst thing in the world but the branding works about as well as their first season. Despite that, the Copperheads managed to turn things around pretty quickly and be the best of the S16 expansion teams in the short run with plenty of upside along the way. Hopefully they could also work on making a slightly better logo or color scheme as well in that time?
Chicago Butchers
S16 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 36-55
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: S21
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
Oh how quickly the Butchers have fallen. Things started off extremely well for the brand new Chicago team that was a big dream city for a few members in the league. The first season the Butchers had was an odd one where they were an unstoppable force with 10 wins and then their 3 losses were somehow blowouts to teams that were 7-6 and 6-7. Then the trading began and the Butchers became a fast shell of that first season and sunk like a rock before everyone started to have their final bit of Chicago. Now there is a bright side on the Butchers as they build for the long run and work on getting back to their former selves.
[div align=\\\"center\\\"]
Expansion 3: Let's Go Fishing [/div]Honolulu Hahalua
S22 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 4-9
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: Never
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
And now we come to the most recent expansion teams and those with the least amount of history. That also means less to write about outside of just discussing the branding for the team. The Hahalua fit perfectly with the Honolulu team and the entire brand is spectacular. It fits perfect for the area that was picked for the expansion team. The only knock against the Hahalua logo is that it does not fit a very football aesthetic.
Sarasota Sailfish
S22 - (ongoing)Regular Season Overall: 6-7
Ultimus Wins: 0
MVP Awards: 0
Last Ultimus Appearance: Never
Last Playoff Appearance: S22
Players in the Hall of Fame: 0
The next of the fish teams is the only other team in the Southeastern United States shockingly. The odd does not end there though with these confused fish boys and there have been some interesting stories coming out in only a couple of seasons. To begin, the logo of the Sailfish brought controversy as being the only logo that says it is one thing but in reality is another. The next came from a player early retiring with some crazy back and forth but the Sailfish kept away from most of it, quickly shining with their football talent despite not having an official 'quarterback' in their existence yet. Will they use a QB in the future? Find out next season!
With that, we have all of the team history in the NSFL so far. There are plenty of seasons left for more drama, more teams, and plenty of history to be made. Can't wait for the next set of expansion teams or the next juicy story to experience. Thank you for joining the short journey and reading through.
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