Disclaimer: As the GM of the Norfolk Seawolves, I wanted to write about them since we have a lot of stand out guys who could be up for awards that I want to give recognition to here.
The Norfolk Seawolves have a lot of incredible performers on the offense, defense and special teams, but one player really stands out above the rest as a playmaker and gamechanger. It's not one of our studs on the offense, QB Suleiman Ramza who leads the league in passer rating, Rogers who has the 3rd highest YPC of all running backs with 100+ carries, nor is it even last years WRoTY winner Dre Matthews, who has the 3rd highest YPR and is tied for first for touchdown catches. Instead, we'll be looking at a player who spends most of his time on the defense playing CB, but the award he's really gunning for is Returner of the Year. This player is Rickie Vaughne. Vaughne has been a miracle worker for this team. With a 23.1 yard average on kick returns, and a league leading 16.5 yard return average on punt returns, Vaughne consistently gets the Seawolf offense in good position to start their drives. Without his consist and strong returns, the offense would likely be put in more difficult positions, and it's possible that they wouldn't have seen the great success they've had this first half of the season without his efforts. On top of all this, Vaugne has 2 punt return touchdowns this season. Yep, you heard that right, only 2 other returners have a punt return TD, and this beautiful man has 2 on his own. His first was a 69 yard return (nice) against Minnesota in week 2 to help his team dominate, and his second was week 5 against Kansas City. This is the one I want to highlight. In a grueling Ultimini rematch, the fight was even throughout the entire game between the offenses and defenses of both teams. It was tied 3-3 in the 4th quarter, and after a good stop by the defense, KCC was forced to punt. The Norfolk offense had been rough this entire game, so a 2 minute drive to hopefully win the game would have been asking quite a lot. Instead, Vaughne decided he'd wrap things up himself, taking the punt return 71 yards to the house! Game winner right there. If that doesn't sound like the top candidate for RETotY, then idk what would.
The Norfolk Seawolves have a lot of incredible performers on the offense, defense and special teams, but one player really stands out above the rest as a playmaker and gamechanger. It's not one of our studs on the offense, QB Suleiman Ramza who leads the league in passer rating, Rogers who has the 3rd highest YPC of all running backs with 100+ carries, nor is it even last years WRoTY winner Dre Matthews, who has the 3rd highest YPR and is tied for first for touchdown catches. Instead, we'll be looking at a player who spends most of his time on the defense playing CB, but the award he's really gunning for is Returner of the Year. This player is Rickie Vaughne. Vaughne has been a miracle worker for this team. With a 23.1 yard average on kick returns, and a league leading 16.5 yard return average on punt returns, Vaughne consistently gets the Seawolf offense in good position to start their drives. Without his consist and strong returns, the offense would likely be put in more difficult positions, and it's possible that they wouldn't have seen the great success they've had this first half of the season without his efforts. On top of all this, Vaugne has 2 punt return touchdowns this season. Yep, you heard that right, only 2 other returners have a punt return TD, and this beautiful man has 2 on his own. His first was a 69 yard return (nice) against Minnesota in week 2 to help his team dominate, and his second was week 5 against Kansas City. This is the one I want to highlight. In a grueling Ultimini rematch, the fight was even throughout the entire game between the offenses and defenses of both teams. It was tied 3-3 in the 4th quarter, and after a good stop by the defense, KCC was forced to punt. The Norfolk offense had been rough this entire game, so a 2 minute drive to hopefully win the game would have been asking quite a lot. Instead, Vaughne decided he'd wrap things up himself, taking the punt return 71 yards to the house! Game winner right there. If that doesn't sound like the top candidate for RETotY, then idk what would.
