I'm going to pretend that this idea is completely original despite seeing post after post of people doing the same thing as I sat on this until I finally had time to bang it out. Oh well, at the end of the day, aren't we all just enjoying the juicy 1.5x? (Should be 2.0 tbh)
EUGENE SMOOTHIE
Created April 13th
Drafted by: Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4th Rd, 32nd Overall
TPE: 218 (As of 5/23 Update)| POSITION: Safety (Converted from TE)
Preseason Expectations:
Looking at the list of things that I had hoped to achieve with Smoothie, it was fairly specific in 3 things:
- Hit 90 Speed
- Maybe get an interception?
- Win Championship with Myrtle Beach
It was an interesting thought in having a wide variety of goals set for myself, some more realistic and achievable than others. Obviously the last one isn't a unique one among all the players but joining the reigning champions inflates your sense of getting a shot at a title and upon joining the team that was very much the expectation going into the season.
Week 1
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 0-0-0
@ Portland Pythons
W 34-0
About as dominant of a performance as could be for the Buccs rolling into their first game of Season 22. There really wasn't much that Portland could do where any offensive efforts put up resulted in a relatively quick stop, giving the offense more opportunities to continue to roll over them. The running game in particular was especially dominant having gained 238 yards. As for Smoothie's performance, I'm not sure if you could ask for a better rookie debut. Being the Defensive Player of the Game, he had 5 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 PD and 1 INT already achieving one of the goals prior to the season. I hadn't expected myself to be that much of a menace in defense against the pass but it was still a great way to show the fit at safety and earn the trust of the coaches to continue rolling me there. Maybe the best part at the end of the day was a complete shutout by the entire defensive crew. It's one thing to win by 34 points. It's just a little extra special when that 0 on the board stays a 0 for the opposing offense.
Week 2
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 1-0-0
vs Dallas Birddogs
W-26-6
The final score showed that we were in control and the scoring summary also reflected that. The trends from last week continued for the most part with Dallas being able to put up a bit more of an effort offensively with multiple series of offenses getting them to 3rd and something. Thankfully we stopped a decent portion of those only leaving them to 6/17 on 3rd down conversion efficiency and 1/2 on 4th down conversions. With the running game of the Birddogs being so prominent this game, it was really up to our crew of the frontmen to make the initial plays. Smoothie was extremely quiet this game, only contributing a single tackle. In the end that was a sign of good news as the defense continued put up the wall and continued their way to another impenetrable week, still having not allowed a single touchdown yet after two games.
Week 3
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 2-0-0
@ Tijuana Luchadores
L 27-21
Probably the first time and unfortunately not the last time I got to experience the Ramos Game as part of the Buccs. It's amazing how he could be so good (2 touchdowns) and also so bad (10/25 completed/attempted, 1 Int). Seemed like our running game was about even with the Luchadores, minus the fact that they were able to convert with their running game, whereas our attempts at the pass when mixing things up had killed our seemingly guaranteed momentum at inopportune times.
Granted, the offense isn't something that Smoothie could directly influence so all he could do was to clean up his end in getting 7 tackles. Definitely some possibility of doing better when considering how there were two red zone conversions by Tijuana and as a safety with even less space to worry about, that could have been a chance to shine.
Week 4
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 2-1-0
vs Kansas Coyotes
W 29-9
A return back to the Buccaneer's dominant showing, this was largely a result of the running game of the Buccs continuing to control and dictate the game. MBB enjoyed the lions share of time of possession having 36:35 compared to the Coyotes trying to rely on their QB in the limited 23:25 when they did have the ball. I guess part of why the Coyotes had so little time is the fact that the defense didn't give them the opportunity to extend drives. Smoothie had a simple 4 tackles as the 'Yotes could only convert 4 out of 12 3rd downs, leaving Smoothie and the rest of the defense fresh and with a very light workload overall.
Week 5
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-1-0
@ London Royals
L 21-18
As much as it's easy to point towards the Ramos factor when the score was so relatively close despite the disadvantage in turnovers being 3-0 against Myrtle Beach, I think the defense of the Royals deserves a lot of credit for putting the Buccs offense in the position they did, forcing them to spend much of the latter half of the game trying to play catchup on an 11 point deficit. Smoothie had 5 tackles to show for his efforts plus his first pass deflection. I didn't even know he could do that considering that was the only time all season so far. I also vaguely remember a too-many men on the field penalty that Smoothie took. No idea how that came to be. Should've gotten off the field quicker I guess. Greedy Sly showed the difference in prospects as fellow Safeties with his performance including 10 tackles, 2 pass deflections and an interception. Wow. Lots of mocks putting him at the top if not top 2 at least in the ranking of prospects and it's hard to disagree with those when you see this kind of performance.
Week 6
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-2-0
vs Minnesota Grey Ducks
L16-10
Unfortunately for the Buccaneers this season, the downward spiral only continues and it was another tight game where the edge ultimately came down to the difference in the passing game. Every metric across the board was very similar for both teams from rushing yardage, attempts, number of sacks and time of possession. Could say that this one came down to a coin flip but on home advantage, losing that kind of chance game feels especially punishing. Smoothie found himself actively contributing with 6 tackles and 1 sack. His presence so far this season seemed to be more often being in the backline than covering down the middle.
Week 7
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-3-0
@ Norfolk Seawolves
L 9-6
Insert the GTA gif where things happen again. This was an incredibly tight game with the only edge being two main plays. One was a forced fumble late in the 4th quarter on the Buccaneer's 33 yard line. Unfortunately for the Buccs, a bot was able to recover it in time and waste the rest of the time with their last attempt at getting close enough for a field kick. The second was a long pass made in overtime that got the Seawolves a significant chunk of yard that they were right at the gates of a safe field goal attempt. Out of the 9 tackles made by Smoothie game, 6 were in the 4th quarter as he came alive being the 2nd level of protection. Nothing particularly impactful enough from his play to turn the tides for his team's favor. Hopefully next time the Buccs play the Seawolves they don't go into overtime again.
Week 8
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-4-0
vs Portland Pythons
W 16-13
Okay so things are looking bad. After a hot start to the season, the Myrtle Beach crew find themselves with a losing record for the first time. Thankfully another game against the Pythons is probably what they needed to boost the morale. The end score left some clenching to the very last minute but the rushing offense of Jeffrey and Ayers locked down possession for the Buccs, giving Pythons a meager 30 seconds to make a jump from their own 14 yard to something manageable for a field goal. It wasn't much but Smoothie made a big play in the bigger picture of things. Pythons had been bringing momentum back onto their side and needed a few yards to convert on a 2nd and 3. Instead the 2nd and last tackle of the game by Smoothie ends up being a sack that when compounded by a Portland penalty ended up being just enough to stave off a few more minutes for the Buccs. Not a lot of action for him but made it count in the end and sometimes the statline won't show that at the end of a season.
Week 9
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-4-0
@ Dallas Birddogs
L 25-20
Like how the season started, Myrtle Beach hoped for another repeat of how their first couple games had gone. Unfortunately Dallas had other thoughts about that. The game started off innocuously enough. 10 point lead going into the 2nd half, no real issues on either side of the ball. Then everything falls apart. First an interception in their own half leads to the Buccaneers on the back foot and giving up a field goal. Not great. Then a botched return leaves them stuck on their own 6 yard mark. First attempt, a pass play that results in a safety. Yikes. Allow another field goal. Suddenly that lead goes from 10 to 2. A quick 3 and out only to come back to a touchdown in merely 6 plays. Surely they'll be able to make something happen? Instead, another interception destroys all but the thinner sliver of hope. And unfortunately, where as Smoothie in all of this? The odd thing is in the first half he wasn't involved in any plays when things were going well. The only 3 tackles made by him all game were in the 2nd half when the entire Buccs team was imploding. Don't think there's necessarily any causation between the two but it still stands that as part of that defensive group, they didn't get enough done to change things positively for themselves.
Week 10
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-5-0
vs Tijuana Luchadores
L 17-14
I think typically for a week like this, the Buccaneers would have looked forward to a game where they could make a statement about the quality of their team against one of the best teams in their division this season. Yet with one win in their last five games, it might have been preferable to getting softer competition and padding the wins in order to ensure their spot in the playoffs. At this point it was quite tenuous. Still regardless of they made the playoffs or not, they'd still need to beat a team like Tijuana so at the end of the day it still mattered more than enough. The first inclination was that things were still going to fall apart when Ramos took their 3rd possession on a 3rd and long and turned it into an interception. The main thankful thing is the fact that the defense on the Buccs were able to keep it to a quick 3 and out, limiting the damage to 3 points. Smoothie was in on that, having a tackle on a running play giving up almost nothing. From there, things picked up offensively for the Buccs while the defense continued to keep the Luchadores in check. Fast forward to the 2nd half, suddenly a bad feeling is creeping up again. The only thing of note is a field goal by Tijuana bringing the score to 14-6 and a very tight margin by the end of the 3rd quarter. Not sure if Smoothie is the type to have a second wind in him but once again in the 2nd half he comes alive and much more active in his engagement on defense. On two separate occasions he ends the offensive drive himself by making tackles before the 1st down could be claimed. Still it ends up being for naught as immediately on their own drive with the ball, it's immediately picked off and turned into a pick six. That moore or less seals the deal even though the Buccs could have had a shot and a half at tying it up. Smoothie ends up with 10 tackles, 9 of which were in the 2nd half.
Week 11
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-6-0
@ Kansas City Coyotes
W 31-13
At this point, the Myrtle Beach hopes for another post season appearance is on life support. Maybe that's being too harsh at this point with 4 games left to play. But with the sub 0.500 record of 4-6 thus far, they needed to be absolutely spotless along the way and even then it wasn't a complete guarantee they would get in if the out of town scoreboards weren't in their favor. Yet with all the unlucky events and coin flips that gone against them, they were definitely due for something in their favor and for whatever reason, this was the game that had it all. At first being stuck in their own 12 yard line was a bit ugly but there was still a lot of game to play. Add a penalty for unsportsmanlike not even a minute into the game and now you're on the 8 yard line with 14 yards to go for a first? Time for a 92 yard run by your quarterback right? No. Yes. Wait what? And suddenly before anybody could comprehend what happened the Buccs went from another safety risk to being up 7-0. Coyotes weren't fazed. The marched back down the field up to the Buccaneer's goalline. The Buccs hold their ground, only allowing the field goal. It's 14-3 after the kickoff. Hold on. What just happened? Jenkins with a kick return touchdown?! Okay, Coyotes are professionals. Crazy stuff happens in games all the time. Sometimes in a single quarter. They continue their parade down the field again and take one more shot before taking another field kick. Two plays later it's 21-3 for the Buccs. The unbelievable mental fortitude of the Buccaneers to completely destroy all sense of reason and create points from every facet of the game. I'm starting to get carried away here. Maybe because in comparison to Smoothie's play of 6 tackles, it ultimately wasn't an entirely exciting game from an individual performance but despite being overmatched in most metrics by the Coyotes, the Buccaneers found a way to sneak away a W under the noses of the 'Yotes. Unbelievable. The dream lives on.
Week 12
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 5-6-0
vs London Royals
W 36 -21
Last time these two teams faced, Greedy Sly had put up a Player of the Game performance while Smoothie could only watch. While he wasn't able to quite live up to the same accolades, Smoothie responded well in kind having produced 6 tackles, one for loss and one sack. While in coverage, he deflected one pass and intercepted another. He must have been amped from the last game because this happened on the third play of the entire game, nearly netting himself a pick six in the process. Honestly, it was so close having returned it for 16 yards...just a little more speed and maybe he could have snuck it in himself. Still, setting it up for a couple of easy plays by the offense for a touchdown still counts all the same. The backline of the Royals proceeded to be terrorized from that point onwards. They start on their own 9 yard line. Sacked to their own 3rd yard line. Smoothie blows up a run for a negative 1 yard gain and then a safety resulted from a sack on the next play. Really nowhere that the Royals could go. It was an absolute sack fiesta for the Buccaneers defense as they had 7. Smoothie's would come in the 3rd quarter, being a big factor in shutting down another drive. The dream isn't a dream anymore, it's getting closer in reach.
Week 13
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 6-6-0
@ Minnesota Grey Ducks
W 17-13
The team is absolutely revving now. They came from the edge of death and are ready to take on any opponent, including the DSFL North leading Grey Ducks. Their last game was a close enough affair where the Buccs didn't believe themselves to be inferior to Minnesota in anyway. They had two major wins on their side, sails full of wind and so close to reaching the postseason dance. Smoothie didn't have too much of a hand in this one as the star was probably his safety compatriot Dookmarriot who managed to steal two passes and even the turnover ratio for his team. The Buccs had the advantage for a lot of the game but without those two big picks, it was likely another game of playing well but still losing out marginally. While it was only 3 points that resulted by the interceptions, it was the difference between the Ducks needing a fieldgoal to win by the end or making a riskier move to get another first down for a touchdown or bust. Watching the final seconds tick off as the Buccaneers held the ball for the last 3 minutes and 27 seconds was probably the most enjoyable part of the game by that point. Finally, the last rush. Game over. Myrtle Beach is at the doorsteps and they need to take one last step to make the comeback a reality! It's just one final game, just ONE MOR-
Week 14
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 7-6-0
vs Norfolk Seawolves
L 27-24
And the whistle blows signaling the end of OT. The end of the Buccaneer's season.
Smoothie's stat line: 3 tackles.
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Final Stats and Records
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 7-7-0
No Playoff Appearance
Eugene Smoothie
71 Tackles (3rd on team)
1 TFL (T4th on team)
7 Sacks (2nd on team)
2 INT (T1st on team)
3 Pass Deflections (5th on team)
Goal Review:
- Hit 90 Speed (x) At least by the end of the season I did. Though it would have been nice to do it earlier and make a bigger difference.
- Maybe get an interception? (x) 2, possibly more but no more reason to dwell on the past. Still a great stat line to have.
- Win Championship with Myrtle Beach ( ) Hardest goal to hit and the worst one to not make. Easy one to trade the former 2 for this one.
Looking back it's kind of incredible what kind of season we had. So many ups and downs and I think I took some of it for granted. I think that going into next season, regardless of whether Smoothie ends up playing in the NSFL or the DSFL, I'll be a lot more engaged and involved considering how short the season is, and how much each game matters. Even on a great team, there are no guarantees. Being a player in that organization means contributing and considering the stats I think that's a decent amount given being in the position of a rookie. Still, it's only natural to be hungry for more.
EUGENE SMOOTHIE
Created April 13th
Drafted by: Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4th Rd, 32nd Overall
TPE: 218 (As of 5/23 Update)| POSITION: Safety (Converted from TE)
Preseason Expectations:
Looking at the list of things that I had hoped to achieve with Smoothie, it was fairly specific in 3 things:
- Hit 90 Speed
- Maybe get an interception?
- Win Championship with Myrtle Beach
It was an interesting thought in having a wide variety of goals set for myself, some more realistic and achievable than others. Obviously the last one isn't a unique one among all the players but joining the reigning champions inflates your sense of getting a shot at a title and upon joining the team that was very much the expectation going into the season.
Week 1
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 0-0-0
@ Portland Pythons
W 34-0
About as dominant of a performance as could be for the Buccs rolling into their first game of Season 22. There really wasn't much that Portland could do where any offensive efforts put up resulted in a relatively quick stop, giving the offense more opportunities to continue to roll over them. The running game in particular was especially dominant having gained 238 yards. As for Smoothie's performance, I'm not sure if you could ask for a better rookie debut. Being the Defensive Player of the Game, he had 5 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 PD and 1 INT already achieving one of the goals prior to the season. I hadn't expected myself to be that much of a menace in defense against the pass but it was still a great way to show the fit at safety and earn the trust of the coaches to continue rolling me there. Maybe the best part at the end of the day was a complete shutout by the entire defensive crew. It's one thing to win by 34 points. It's just a little extra special when that 0 on the board stays a 0 for the opposing offense.
Week 2
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 1-0-0
vs Dallas Birddogs
W-26-6
The final score showed that we were in control and the scoring summary also reflected that. The trends from last week continued for the most part with Dallas being able to put up a bit more of an effort offensively with multiple series of offenses getting them to 3rd and something. Thankfully we stopped a decent portion of those only leaving them to 6/17 on 3rd down conversion efficiency and 1/2 on 4th down conversions. With the running game of the Birddogs being so prominent this game, it was really up to our crew of the frontmen to make the initial plays. Smoothie was extremely quiet this game, only contributing a single tackle. In the end that was a sign of good news as the defense continued put up the wall and continued their way to another impenetrable week, still having not allowed a single touchdown yet after two games.
Week 3
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 2-0-0
@ Tijuana Luchadores
L 27-21
Probably the first time and unfortunately not the last time I got to experience the Ramos Game as part of the Buccs. It's amazing how he could be so good (2 touchdowns) and also so bad (10/25 completed/attempted, 1 Int). Seemed like our running game was about even with the Luchadores, minus the fact that they were able to convert with their running game, whereas our attempts at the pass when mixing things up had killed our seemingly guaranteed momentum at inopportune times.
Granted, the offense isn't something that Smoothie could directly influence so all he could do was to clean up his end in getting 7 tackles. Definitely some possibility of doing better when considering how there were two red zone conversions by Tijuana and as a safety with even less space to worry about, that could have been a chance to shine.
Week 4
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 2-1-0
vs Kansas Coyotes
W 29-9
A return back to the Buccaneer's dominant showing, this was largely a result of the running game of the Buccs continuing to control and dictate the game. MBB enjoyed the lions share of time of possession having 36:35 compared to the Coyotes trying to rely on their QB in the limited 23:25 when they did have the ball. I guess part of why the Coyotes had so little time is the fact that the defense didn't give them the opportunity to extend drives. Smoothie had a simple 4 tackles as the 'Yotes could only convert 4 out of 12 3rd downs, leaving Smoothie and the rest of the defense fresh and with a very light workload overall.
Week 5
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-1-0
@ London Royals
L 21-18
As much as it's easy to point towards the Ramos factor when the score was so relatively close despite the disadvantage in turnovers being 3-0 against Myrtle Beach, I think the defense of the Royals deserves a lot of credit for putting the Buccs offense in the position they did, forcing them to spend much of the latter half of the game trying to play catchup on an 11 point deficit. Smoothie had 5 tackles to show for his efforts plus his first pass deflection. I didn't even know he could do that considering that was the only time all season so far. I also vaguely remember a too-many men on the field penalty that Smoothie took. No idea how that came to be. Should've gotten off the field quicker I guess. Greedy Sly showed the difference in prospects as fellow Safeties with his performance including 10 tackles, 2 pass deflections and an interception. Wow. Lots of mocks putting him at the top if not top 2 at least in the ranking of prospects and it's hard to disagree with those when you see this kind of performance.
Week 6
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-2-0
vs Minnesota Grey Ducks
L16-10
Unfortunately for the Buccaneers this season, the downward spiral only continues and it was another tight game where the edge ultimately came down to the difference in the passing game. Every metric across the board was very similar for both teams from rushing yardage, attempts, number of sacks and time of possession. Could say that this one came down to a coin flip but on home advantage, losing that kind of chance game feels especially punishing. Smoothie found himself actively contributing with 6 tackles and 1 sack. His presence so far this season seemed to be more often being in the backline than covering down the middle.
Week 7
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-3-0
@ Norfolk Seawolves
L 9-6
Insert the GTA gif where things happen again. This was an incredibly tight game with the only edge being two main plays. One was a forced fumble late in the 4th quarter on the Buccaneer's 33 yard line. Unfortunately for the Buccs, a bot was able to recover it in time and waste the rest of the time with their last attempt at getting close enough for a field kick. The second was a long pass made in overtime that got the Seawolves a significant chunk of yard that they were right at the gates of a safe field goal attempt. Out of the 9 tackles made by Smoothie game, 6 were in the 4th quarter as he came alive being the 2nd level of protection. Nothing particularly impactful enough from his play to turn the tides for his team's favor. Hopefully next time the Buccs play the Seawolves they don't go into overtime again.
Week 8
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 3-4-0
vs Portland Pythons
W 16-13
Okay so things are looking bad. After a hot start to the season, the Myrtle Beach crew find themselves with a losing record for the first time. Thankfully another game against the Pythons is probably what they needed to boost the morale. The end score left some clenching to the very last minute but the rushing offense of Jeffrey and Ayers locked down possession for the Buccs, giving Pythons a meager 30 seconds to make a jump from their own 14 yard to something manageable for a field goal. It wasn't much but Smoothie made a big play in the bigger picture of things. Pythons had been bringing momentum back onto their side and needed a few yards to convert on a 2nd and 3. Instead the 2nd and last tackle of the game by Smoothie ends up being a sack that when compounded by a Portland penalty ended up being just enough to stave off a few more minutes for the Buccs. Not a lot of action for him but made it count in the end and sometimes the statline won't show that at the end of a season.
Week 9
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-4-0
@ Dallas Birddogs
L 25-20
Like how the season started, Myrtle Beach hoped for another repeat of how their first couple games had gone. Unfortunately Dallas had other thoughts about that. The game started off innocuously enough. 10 point lead going into the 2nd half, no real issues on either side of the ball. Then everything falls apart. First an interception in their own half leads to the Buccaneers on the back foot and giving up a field goal. Not great. Then a botched return leaves them stuck on their own 6 yard mark. First attempt, a pass play that results in a safety. Yikes. Allow another field goal. Suddenly that lead goes from 10 to 2. A quick 3 and out only to come back to a touchdown in merely 6 plays. Surely they'll be able to make something happen? Instead, another interception destroys all but the thinner sliver of hope. And unfortunately, where as Smoothie in all of this? The odd thing is in the first half he wasn't involved in any plays when things were going well. The only 3 tackles made by him all game were in the 2nd half when the entire Buccs team was imploding. Don't think there's necessarily any causation between the two but it still stands that as part of that defensive group, they didn't get enough done to change things positively for themselves.
Week 10
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-5-0
vs Tijuana Luchadores
L 17-14
I think typically for a week like this, the Buccaneers would have looked forward to a game where they could make a statement about the quality of their team against one of the best teams in their division this season. Yet with one win in their last five games, it might have been preferable to getting softer competition and padding the wins in order to ensure their spot in the playoffs. At this point it was quite tenuous. Still regardless of they made the playoffs or not, they'd still need to beat a team like Tijuana so at the end of the day it still mattered more than enough. The first inclination was that things were still going to fall apart when Ramos took their 3rd possession on a 3rd and long and turned it into an interception. The main thankful thing is the fact that the defense on the Buccs were able to keep it to a quick 3 and out, limiting the damage to 3 points. Smoothie was in on that, having a tackle on a running play giving up almost nothing. From there, things picked up offensively for the Buccs while the defense continued to keep the Luchadores in check. Fast forward to the 2nd half, suddenly a bad feeling is creeping up again. The only thing of note is a field goal by Tijuana bringing the score to 14-6 and a very tight margin by the end of the 3rd quarter. Not sure if Smoothie is the type to have a second wind in him but once again in the 2nd half he comes alive and much more active in his engagement on defense. On two separate occasions he ends the offensive drive himself by making tackles before the 1st down could be claimed. Still it ends up being for naught as immediately on their own drive with the ball, it's immediately picked off and turned into a pick six. That moore or less seals the deal even though the Buccs could have had a shot and a half at tying it up. Smoothie ends up with 10 tackles, 9 of which were in the 2nd half.
Week 11
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 4-6-0
@ Kansas City Coyotes
W 31-13
At this point, the Myrtle Beach hopes for another post season appearance is on life support. Maybe that's being too harsh at this point with 4 games left to play. But with the sub 0.500 record of 4-6 thus far, they needed to be absolutely spotless along the way and even then it wasn't a complete guarantee they would get in if the out of town scoreboards weren't in their favor. Yet with all the unlucky events and coin flips that gone against them, they were definitely due for something in their favor and for whatever reason, this was the game that had it all. At first being stuck in their own 12 yard line was a bit ugly but there was still a lot of game to play. Add a penalty for unsportsmanlike not even a minute into the game and now you're on the 8 yard line with 14 yards to go for a first? Time for a 92 yard run by your quarterback right? No. Yes. Wait what? And suddenly before anybody could comprehend what happened the Buccs went from another safety risk to being up 7-0. Coyotes weren't fazed. The marched back down the field up to the Buccaneer's goalline. The Buccs hold their ground, only allowing the field goal. It's 14-3 after the kickoff. Hold on. What just happened? Jenkins with a kick return touchdown?! Okay, Coyotes are professionals. Crazy stuff happens in games all the time. Sometimes in a single quarter. They continue their parade down the field again and take one more shot before taking another field kick. Two plays later it's 21-3 for the Buccs. The unbelievable mental fortitude of the Buccaneers to completely destroy all sense of reason and create points from every facet of the game. I'm starting to get carried away here. Maybe because in comparison to Smoothie's play of 6 tackles, it ultimately wasn't an entirely exciting game from an individual performance but despite being overmatched in most metrics by the Coyotes, the Buccaneers found a way to sneak away a W under the noses of the 'Yotes. Unbelievable. The dream lives on.
Week 12
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 5-6-0
vs London Royals
W 36 -21
Last time these two teams faced, Greedy Sly had put up a Player of the Game performance while Smoothie could only watch. While he wasn't able to quite live up to the same accolades, Smoothie responded well in kind having produced 6 tackles, one for loss and one sack. While in coverage, he deflected one pass and intercepted another. He must have been amped from the last game because this happened on the third play of the entire game, nearly netting himself a pick six in the process. Honestly, it was so close having returned it for 16 yards...just a little more speed and maybe he could have snuck it in himself. Still, setting it up for a couple of easy plays by the offense for a touchdown still counts all the same. The backline of the Royals proceeded to be terrorized from that point onwards. They start on their own 9 yard line. Sacked to their own 3rd yard line. Smoothie blows up a run for a negative 1 yard gain and then a safety resulted from a sack on the next play. Really nowhere that the Royals could go. It was an absolute sack fiesta for the Buccaneers defense as they had 7. Smoothie's would come in the 3rd quarter, being a big factor in shutting down another drive. The dream isn't a dream anymore, it's getting closer in reach.
Week 13
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 6-6-0
@ Minnesota Grey Ducks
W 17-13
The team is absolutely revving now. They came from the edge of death and are ready to take on any opponent, including the DSFL North leading Grey Ducks. Their last game was a close enough affair where the Buccs didn't believe themselves to be inferior to Minnesota in anyway. They had two major wins on their side, sails full of wind and so close to reaching the postseason dance. Smoothie didn't have too much of a hand in this one as the star was probably his safety compatriot Dookmarriot who managed to steal two passes and even the turnover ratio for his team. The Buccs had the advantage for a lot of the game but without those two big picks, it was likely another game of playing well but still losing out marginally. While it was only 3 points that resulted by the interceptions, it was the difference between the Ducks needing a fieldgoal to win by the end or making a riskier move to get another first down for a touchdown or bust. Watching the final seconds tick off as the Buccaneers held the ball for the last 3 minutes and 27 seconds was probably the most enjoyable part of the game by that point. Finally, the last rush. Game over. Myrtle Beach is at the doorsteps and they need to take one last step to make the comeback a reality! It's just one final game, just ONE MOR-
Week 14
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 7-6-0
vs Norfolk Seawolves
L 27-24
And the whistle blows signaling the end of OT. The end of the Buccaneer's season.
Smoothie's stat line: 3 tackles.
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Final Stats and Records
Myrtle Beach Buccaneers 7-7-0
No Playoff Appearance
Eugene Smoothie
71 Tackles (3rd on team)
1 TFL (T4th on team)
7 Sacks (2nd on team)
2 INT (T1st on team)
3 Pass Deflections (5th on team)
Goal Review:
- Hit 90 Speed (x) At least by the end of the season I did. Though it would have been nice to do it earlier and make a bigger difference.
- Maybe get an interception? (x) 2, possibly more but no more reason to dwell on the past. Still a great stat line to have.
- Win Championship with Myrtle Beach ( ) Hardest goal to hit and the worst one to not make. Easy one to trade the former 2 for this one.
Looking back it's kind of incredible what kind of season we had. So many ups and downs and I think I took some of it for granted. I think that going into next season, regardless of whether Smoothie ends up playing in the NSFL or the DSFL, I'll be a lot more engaged and involved considering how short the season is, and how much each game matters. Even on a great team, there are no guarantees. Being a player in that organization means contributing and considering the stats I think that's a decent amount given being in the position of a rookie. Still, it's only natural to be hungry for more.
Quote:WC 3230, 1.5x media bonus
![[Image: esmooth.png]](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/777293671372423249/796248358322044958/esmooth.png)
