(S21) - Ultimus Week

[Memento Mori]

The first two tasks were completed prior to Monday's SFC Championship game between Myrtle Beach and Norfolk.

1) Playoff Predictions, Reviews:
Written: Give a short write up of one or multiple playoff matches. If completed before the airing of the sims, give your predictions; if it is afterwards, give a review of the game.

Tonight, the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers take on the Norfolk SeaWolves in the SFC Championship Game. The Bucs are the home team, with their 9-5 record giving them the number one overall seed in the DSFL. The teams split their two regular season meetings, with Myrtle Beach prevailing 27-17 in South Carolina and Norfolk stunning the Bucs 37-10 at home in Week 13. The matchup sees two distinct offensive philosophies, as the Buccaneers rank 1st in the DSFL for rushing attempts while the SeaWolves rank 2nd in the DSFL for passing attempts.

The Buccaneers roster is deeper, and has more overall talent - with Myrtle Beach's roster boasting thirteen players above 200 TPE to Norfolk's eight. So why was their previous meeting so one-sided? Norfolk scored four touchdowns, but only two were scored by the offense. Chris Ramos threw a pick six on the opening drive, and cornerback Thubba Bumper returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown as time expired in Q1. Chris Ramos has struggled at times this season, with his 48.9% completion percentage among the worst in the league. His twelve touchdown passes are tied for 1st in the DSFL, but he's thrown ten interceptions, three of which were returned for touchdowns. If Ramos plays a stable, mistake-free game then the Bucs' superior roster and home-field advantage should be enough to carry them to victory - but forcing Ramos to make mistakes and taking advantage of them is how Norfolk can cause an upset. (244 words)

4) OL or K/P Appreciation
Written: Write about an active human offensive lineman or special teamer that is in the playoffs, and how they will or did affect the outcome.
Graphic: Create a graphic about said OL or K/P and give stats of their season or playoff performances.

Offensive linemen are horribly underappreciated in our community. When you create your player, people will tell you not to make an offensive lineman. If you are able to block out the noise and create one, then Dermot will message you on discord relentlessly encouraging you to position switch. But there is a safe space for offensive linemen. A place called Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach has five human offensive line starters, and the standout is center Simon Tremblay. It's said that the quarterback is the most important position in football, because they touch the ball on every play. Oft-forgotten is that there is another player on the field who touches the ball every play. The center. Simon Tremblay is the only capped OL in the DSFL and has been a revelation this season, with him commanding the line that has produced the DSFL's most potent rushing attack and the number one seeded team in the DSFL. With quarterback Chris Ramos demonstrating a worrying habit of throwing the ball to the other team and running back Dax Frost averaging a fumble every six carries, the offensive line play of Myrtle Beach will be key if they are to progress to the Ultimini. As the man who commands that unit, it will be up to Simon Tremblay to ensure the Buccaneers' offensive success. (220 words)

11) Rivalry
Written: Which team or player would you consider to be your greatest rival? Write 200 words on why you are rivals with them and why you want them to lose (don’t harass other users please).

As a Myrtle Beach Buccaneers player, I consider the Tijuana Luchadores to be our greatest rival - not that they've been anything close to "great" in either of the last two DSFL seasons when they went 5-9 and then 6-8. The Luchadores are, historically, the SFC's most successful franchise. They've won the Ultimini six times, and with conference realignment they're the only team that has been in Myrtle Beach's division since the relocation and rebranding of the Palm Beach Solar Bears as the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers prior to Season 18.

With Tijuana the most successful SFC team, for the Buccaneers to truly make their mark on the SFC and etch their names into DSFL history then beating Tijuana is the first step. A dynasty must be built, and with GMs like Frost and Cory this is an achievable goal. Myrtle Beach has built a fantastic locker room that makes it an appealing landing spot for rookies, sparking envy from other DSFL players and GMs - some who've gone as far as to publicly accuse the Buccaneers as cheating by having a locker room people want to be a part of.

As a franchise with six Ultimini victories, eclipsing Tijuana is our goal. Every step we take towards an Ultimini is an opportunity to close the gap, and every step they take towards one extends this gap. In Season 21, we were the DSFL's number one overall seed and made it to the Ultimini where we'll face Kansas City. They missed the playoffs. In Season 22 and every season after, let's do it again. (262 words)

20) Nostalgia
Written: What is your happiest memory in this league?

My happiest memory in this league is being drafted by the Myrtle Beach Buccaneers. As someone who joined just prior to the S20 offseason, the first game I watched was the Ultimini between Myrtle Beach and Minnesota (the Ultimus between Yellowknife and Austin was the second game on the stream). Sadly though, Myrtle Beach lost that game.

The NSFL draft occurred a few days before the DSFL draft, and so I witnessed several Myrtle Beach players - Prince Vegeta, HeHateMe PickSix, Leon McDavid, Rapid Eagle, Trevor Mouseman and Rotticus Scott - be drafted in the first two rounds. It was clear that Myrtle Beach produced great prospects who were valued highly at the next level.

The DSFL draft came around and with the third pick of the fifth round, I see that Myrtle Beach has decided to select me. I play defensive back, and saw Buccaneers defensive backs Vegeta, PickSix and Scott be taken high in the draft. Dax Frost also existed. The fact that a team who was clearly excellent at producing great defensive backs chose me instead of the other corners on the board was a great feeling. I was welcomed into the locker room with open arms, the atmosphere was unbelievably positive, we all strove to improve as much as possible, and now a bunch of us will be taken in the first two rounds again. (227 words)