1) Playoff Predictions - Ultimus preview
In the Ultimus this year we have a kind of strange situation, as the defending champion San Jose Sabercats look like the Underdogs going up against the Baltimore Hawks and their juggernaut offense. While this could be a sore spot for the two teams who will both likely face heavy offseason losses, they will get a chance to add a second banner in their respective stadiums before they have to deal with the upcoming losses. Baltimore is the unstoppable offense here, but they have had slip ups throughout the season. San Jose is an elite defensive squad with a very good offense themselves, but have had the occasional slip up themselves this year.
This game is a bit of a toss up really, as both teams will be pulling out all of the stops and are very much in win now mode. The receiving trio of Squanch, Maddox, and Valentine go up against the equally formidable trio of Oles, Flash, and Justice in a matchup that could end up coming down to whoever moves the ball more effectively through the air. Right now it’s very hard for me to pick a winner, but I’m going to give a slight edge to the Sabercats and their formidable defense. It’s also never easy to bet against the reigning champs.
San Jose 24 – Baltimore 20
3) All about the QBs
In the SFC conference of the DSFL this year, we had a very interesting matchup in the first round. We had the Palm Beach Solar Bears take on the Tijuana Luchadores for a spot in the Ultimini. Palm Beach QB Easton Cole, rumored to be a target for the Austin Copperheads expansion team in the upcoming draft, and Baltimore’s heir to the quarterback position, Tijuana’s Corvo Havran, squared off in a matchup of young pup vs wily vet. Needless to say, Havran was expected to be the more effective of the two.
That’s not necessarily what ended up happening. Though Cole put up rather pathetic numbers, 6/15 for 60 yards, Havran one-upped him by having one of the worst playoff performances ever. Havran was 17/40 for a respectable 266 yards, however, he threw 0 TDs and 5 INTs in the game, spoiling any chance his team had in the game. Palm Beach relied on Cole to take care of the football, which he did very well, and let their running game lead them to victory. The rest of the Tijuana squad put in some superhero performances, but could not overcome Havran’s terrible day at the office. The Baltimore front office will be a little uneasy about the transition to Havran next year at quarterback, this game only served to exacerbate those concerns.
5) Spotlight on Youth
Last season, I had a chance to speak with San Antonio Marshals prospect, Walt Green, just after his team’s disappointing playoff exit. This year Walt will be in much better spirits as his team is preparing for the Ultimus against the San Jose Sabercats. While I didn’t get a chance to speak to him this season, as he’s tucked away somewhere preparing for the big game, I will review his fantastic rookie season that will likely see him as a contender for Defensive Rookie of the Year in the NSFL.
Walt was one of two safeties selected by Baltimore, the other being the talented Turkish player Fatih Terim from the Palm Beach Solar Bears. Walt filled up the stat sheet this season in Baltimore with 59 tackles, 1 for loss, both a forced fumble and a fumble recovery, 3 sacks, 2 interceptions, 4 passes defended, 1 of the 3 safeties that occurred in the league this season, and a defensive touchdown. He couldn’t have asked for a much better start to his career. Unfortunately, I only get a vote for the DSFL awards, or I would be nominating Walt Green as my Defensive Rookie of the Year this season in the NSFL.
10) Rivalries
I believe that we’ve witnessed the end of an era in Orange County. The Otters are the most successful team in NSFL history by quite some ways, but I believe we’re witnessing the end of an era. Next year they will lose star receiver Carlito Crush in a move that will weaken their pass-heavy offense substantially. While we’ve witnessed the emergence of Johnny Blaze and Apollo Reed this season, expansion is coming for us all, and Orange County is no exception. After drafting a QB in one of the early rounds of the last NSFL draft (and committing 16m of their cap space to him this season), there are now suspicions that the player lacks reliability and may not be the long term replacement for Showbiz they thought he was.
San Jose is back in their second straight championship game, Arizona took Orange County down to the wire in their first season of moderate success following a rebuild, and New Orleans continues to stock up on young talent as they look to emerge from a rebuild of their own. The walls are closing in on the Otters and we may be seeing the dynasty’s demise sooner rather than later. I guess we’ll see.
In the Ultimus this year we have a kind of strange situation, as the defending champion San Jose Sabercats look like the Underdogs going up against the Baltimore Hawks and their juggernaut offense. While this could be a sore spot for the two teams who will both likely face heavy offseason losses, they will get a chance to add a second banner in their respective stadiums before they have to deal with the upcoming losses. Baltimore is the unstoppable offense here, but they have had slip ups throughout the season. San Jose is an elite defensive squad with a very good offense themselves, but have had the occasional slip up themselves this year.
This game is a bit of a toss up really, as both teams will be pulling out all of the stops and are very much in win now mode. The receiving trio of Squanch, Maddox, and Valentine go up against the equally formidable trio of Oles, Flash, and Justice in a matchup that could end up coming down to whoever moves the ball more effectively through the air. Right now it’s very hard for me to pick a winner, but I’m going to give a slight edge to the Sabercats and their formidable defense. It’s also never easy to bet against the reigning champs.
San Jose 24 – Baltimore 20
3) All about the QBs
In the SFC conference of the DSFL this year, we had a very interesting matchup in the first round. We had the Palm Beach Solar Bears take on the Tijuana Luchadores for a spot in the Ultimini. Palm Beach QB Easton Cole, rumored to be a target for the Austin Copperheads expansion team in the upcoming draft, and Baltimore’s heir to the quarterback position, Tijuana’s Corvo Havran, squared off in a matchup of young pup vs wily vet. Needless to say, Havran was expected to be the more effective of the two.
That’s not necessarily what ended up happening. Though Cole put up rather pathetic numbers, 6/15 for 60 yards, Havran one-upped him by having one of the worst playoff performances ever. Havran was 17/40 for a respectable 266 yards, however, he threw 0 TDs and 5 INTs in the game, spoiling any chance his team had in the game. Palm Beach relied on Cole to take care of the football, which he did very well, and let their running game lead them to victory. The rest of the Tijuana squad put in some superhero performances, but could not overcome Havran’s terrible day at the office. The Baltimore front office will be a little uneasy about the transition to Havran next year at quarterback, this game only served to exacerbate those concerns.
5) Spotlight on Youth
Last season, I had a chance to speak with San Antonio Marshals prospect, Walt Green, just after his team’s disappointing playoff exit. This year Walt will be in much better spirits as his team is preparing for the Ultimus against the San Jose Sabercats. While I didn’t get a chance to speak to him this season, as he’s tucked away somewhere preparing for the big game, I will review his fantastic rookie season that will likely see him as a contender for Defensive Rookie of the Year in the NSFL.
Walt was one of two safeties selected by Baltimore, the other being the talented Turkish player Fatih Terim from the Palm Beach Solar Bears. Walt filled up the stat sheet this season in Baltimore with 59 tackles, 1 for loss, both a forced fumble and a fumble recovery, 3 sacks, 2 interceptions, 4 passes defended, 1 of the 3 safeties that occurred in the league this season, and a defensive touchdown. He couldn’t have asked for a much better start to his career. Unfortunately, I only get a vote for the DSFL awards, or I would be nominating Walt Green as my Defensive Rookie of the Year this season in the NSFL.
10) Rivalries
I believe that we’ve witnessed the end of an era in Orange County. The Otters are the most successful team in NSFL history by quite some ways, but I believe we’re witnessing the end of an era. Next year they will lose star receiver Carlito Crush in a move that will weaken their pass-heavy offense substantially. While we’ve witnessed the emergence of Johnny Blaze and Apollo Reed this season, expansion is coming for us all, and Orange County is no exception. After drafting a QB in one of the early rounds of the last NSFL draft (and committing 16m of their cap space to him this season), there are now suspicions that the player lacks reliability and may not be the long term replacement for Showbiz they thought he was.
San Jose is back in their second straight championship game, Arizona took Orange County down to the wire in their first season of moderate success following a rebuild, and New Orleans continues to stock up on young talent as they look to emerge from a rebuild of their own. The walls are closing in on the Otters and we may be seeing the dynasty’s demise sooner rather than later. I guess we’ll see.
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