4. OL or K/P Appreciation
A player who wont get many headlines after this years playoffs is Myrtle Beach Kicker and Punter, Kal Solarin. However his contributions may have been more crucial to Myrtle Beach's title than any other player on the team.
Certainly if you look it purely in terms of the number of points his total of 21 eclipses anyone else on the team. The Playoff MVP, Ramos, threw one touchdown over the two games and ran in for another. Running backs, Frost and Apollo, both had one apiece, and receiver Sabor caught one. That shows you this victory was a team effort, complimented of course by a stout defence, which was not as flashy as others in the DSFL in terms of winning take aways but didn't give up many yards.
The only flaw in an otherwise perfect performance was a single missed extra point against Norfolk in the Conference Championship game. But in the context of a 18-0 victory it doesn't seem to have been very meaningful.
While his reputation as a kicker with pinpoint accuracy is how Solarin is known, his punting stats were also excellent. Consistently pinning teams back inside their own 20 yard line, and giving that tough defence time to slow the opposing offence down and get the ball back in the hands of the Myrtle Beach playmakers.
9. Dynasty
When thinking of the potential for a DSFL dynasty, it's easy to focus at the pieces a team will be losing; who'll be moving on up to the NSFL. Certainly in the case of The Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, there will be losses and not just from among the players. Losing their GM Frostbite would be for many teams a crippling blow, indicating a forthcoming rebuild.
What people don't talk about and often don't understand is culture. And Myrtle Beach have a winning culture. This Ultimini title didn't come this season it's the culmination of a project going back a number of years, building successes on top of one another, to reach the top of the tree after a number of years getting so close. In a single title game results can go either way, and in previous years it's gone against Myrtle Bay, but season after season they're been right up there as one of the best teams in the league. But more than that it's been one of the most happy popular locker rooms. I heard one NSFL GM suggest that a lot of Myrtle Beach players like to remain in the DSFL more than players of other teams because they like that locker room so much. While I don't know how true that is, it's an indication of just how highly the locker room is regarded and not just at the DSFL level.
Myrtle Beach are at the top and they're here to stay.
12. Pay It Forward
Before I had even entered the league, Prince Vegeta reached out to me. He was generous and selfless in his advice. Helping me craft a training plan to work on to help me be ready for life in the league, and inviting me to join him at his offseason training base to work out together. The experience was eye opening, seeing how hard a guy like that works was eye-opening in helping me to understand what it means to be a professional football player. Of course I'd watched him on the field, where he made it all look so effortless. Made it look like it was purely natural talent that made him good. Working out together showed me that was an illusion, while the natural talent is there, the work ethic is the key to his success. It's no surprise that he has progressed in the big leagues following the trend he set in the developmental football league.
As we got to know each other, we spoke about his team Myrtle Beach and his own draft prospects. He seemed certain he would go first overall to the Orange County Otters, despite mock drafts suggesting otherwise. Looking back now I suspect he was scouting me himself on behalf of the team and feeding back what he was finding. But it made Myrtle Beach as a destination all the more enticing.
20. Nostalgia
I haven't been in the league long, so my memory is not so distant but it goes back to perhaps what you could define as my very first moment in the League.
I was at home with family and friends, the TV was on in the background with pundits talking about the draft, team needs, the merits of the different prospects. The first few picks had come through: the Jack brothers to the expansion teams to the surprise of no one; Oles the top corner; Phat Boi to nobody's surprise. I wasn't listening, I was chatting to my aunt who'd travelled from overseas to be with the family for this moment.
My phone ringing caught me off-guard. Already? While a few mocks had me going in the first round, most had me in the second, a few didn't even mention me in the top 3 rounds. I had tried to tune those things out, knowing it was out of my control. But it's hard when it's everywhere. When people you've never met are making bold proclamations about you and your abilities and character.
I answered it was Myrtle Beach, their GMs asking me to be a Buccaneer. I had hoped to land there, and take on the mantle of Prince Vegeta once he'd moved on. A team with a strong culture, and a history of consistent success.
A player who wont get many headlines after this years playoffs is Myrtle Beach Kicker and Punter, Kal Solarin. However his contributions may have been more crucial to Myrtle Beach's title than any other player on the team.
Certainly if you look it purely in terms of the number of points his total of 21 eclipses anyone else on the team. The Playoff MVP, Ramos, threw one touchdown over the two games and ran in for another. Running backs, Frost and Apollo, both had one apiece, and receiver Sabor caught one. That shows you this victory was a team effort, complimented of course by a stout defence, which was not as flashy as others in the DSFL in terms of winning take aways but didn't give up many yards.
The only flaw in an otherwise perfect performance was a single missed extra point against Norfolk in the Conference Championship game. But in the context of a 18-0 victory it doesn't seem to have been very meaningful.
While his reputation as a kicker with pinpoint accuracy is how Solarin is known, his punting stats were also excellent. Consistently pinning teams back inside their own 20 yard line, and giving that tough defence time to slow the opposing offence down and get the ball back in the hands of the Myrtle Beach playmakers.
9. Dynasty
When thinking of the potential for a DSFL dynasty, it's easy to focus at the pieces a team will be losing; who'll be moving on up to the NSFL. Certainly in the case of The Myrtle Beach Buccaneers, there will be losses and not just from among the players. Losing their GM Frostbite would be for many teams a crippling blow, indicating a forthcoming rebuild.
What people don't talk about and often don't understand is culture. And Myrtle Beach have a winning culture. This Ultimini title didn't come this season it's the culmination of a project going back a number of years, building successes on top of one another, to reach the top of the tree after a number of years getting so close. In a single title game results can go either way, and in previous years it's gone against Myrtle Bay, but season after season they're been right up there as one of the best teams in the league. But more than that it's been one of the most happy popular locker rooms. I heard one NSFL GM suggest that a lot of Myrtle Beach players like to remain in the DSFL more than players of other teams because they like that locker room so much. While I don't know how true that is, it's an indication of just how highly the locker room is regarded and not just at the DSFL level.
Myrtle Beach are at the top and they're here to stay.
12. Pay It Forward
Before I had even entered the league, Prince Vegeta reached out to me. He was generous and selfless in his advice. Helping me craft a training plan to work on to help me be ready for life in the league, and inviting me to join him at his offseason training base to work out together. The experience was eye opening, seeing how hard a guy like that works was eye-opening in helping me to understand what it means to be a professional football player. Of course I'd watched him on the field, where he made it all look so effortless. Made it look like it was purely natural talent that made him good. Working out together showed me that was an illusion, while the natural talent is there, the work ethic is the key to his success. It's no surprise that he has progressed in the big leagues following the trend he set in the developmental football league.
As we got to know each other, we spoke about his team Myrtle Beach and his own draft prospects. He seemed certain he would go first overall to the Orange County Otters, despite mock drafts suggesting otherwise. Looking back now I suspect he was scouting me himself on behalf of the team and feeding back what he was finding. But it made Myrtle Beach as a destination all the more enticing.
20. Nostalgia
I haven't been in the league long, so my memory is not so distant but it goes back to perhaps what you could define as my very first moment in the League.
I was at home with family and friends, the TV was on in the background with pundits talking about the draft, team needs, the merits of the different prospects. The first few picks had come through: the Jack brothers to the expansion teams to the surprise of no one; Oles the top corner; Phat Boi to nobody's surprise. I wasn't listening, I was chatting to my aunt who'd travelled from overseas to be with the family for this moment.
My phone ringing caught me off-guard. Already? While a few mocks had me going in the first round, most had me in the second, a few didn't even mention me in the top 3 rounds. I had tried to tune those things out, knowing it was out of my control. But it's hard when it's everywhere. When people you've never met are making bold proclamations about you and your abilities and character.
I answered it was Myrtle Beach, their GMs asking me to be a Buccaneer. I had hoped to land there, and take on the mantle of Prince Vegeta once he'd moved on. A team with a strong culture, and a history of consistent success.
![[Image: TintedWaryEsok-size_restricted.gif]](https://thumbs.gfycat.com/TintedWaryEsok-size_restricted.gif)
