11) History is not always kind to the losers. Tell the story of a team who you view as an all-time great but who did not win the title game. Why was that team so dominant? What were the major focal points of their offense and defense, and who were the star players? What makes them so special? What was the reason that they ultimately fell short of immortal greatness?
The S24 Colorado Yeti ended the regular season a league-high 14-2, one of the greatest records in league history. They scored a league-high 455 points, blowing any other total out of the water and allowing the second lowest points allowed at 290, behind only the Orange County Otters total of 278. They went 7-1 at home, a very strong record, and a mind-boggling 7-1 on the road, a feat not seen before or since. They went 9-1 in their inter-conference games and ended the regular season riding a 9-game winning streak. So what made this team so dominant? Their rushing attack and dominant defense. They led the league in points per game as well as rushing yards per game, and were second in total yards per game despite ending 5th in passing yards per game. On defense they finished second-best in the league in points allowed per game, yards allowed per game, and rushing yards allowed per game. This is again despite only finishing 4th in passing yards allowed per game. Who were their focal points as a team? Almost too many to name, but I’ll give it a shot. Starting with the most important position on the field, Wolfie McDummy was just at the end of his prime, and only 2 seasons out from retirement. Rated as a perfect 100 overall he contributed equal parts in both the teams passing and rushing games. At running back the backfield was shared by both Ashley Owens and Richard Gilbert, a kind of thunder and lightning duo, Owens brought the speed and Gilbert brought the power. Earl Sauce,a talented-yet-underachieving TE managed to wrangle over 400 yards and 3 TD’s in the season. Their receiving core was led by long time Yeti William Lim, with WR2 duties going to Jackson Kingston in what turned out to be his final year with the Yeti before he was taken in the following expansion draft by the newly-formed New York Silverbacks. The defense literally had at least 2 stars at every level, so I’ll just say that they possessed the best secondary in the league and their D-line was a nightmare for any opposing offensive line. They ultimately fell short in one of the greatest upsets in ISFL history, losing 17-12 to the 9-7 San Jose Sabercats. The team that meme’d their way into the big game somehow came out on top due to the sudden death of every starting Yeti offensive player. That’s not actually what happened but it sure felt like it.
14) Greatness emerges through trial by fire. Recount the story of a team who came back from adversity, whether it’s a single miracle game or an entire season or multi-season comeback. How was this team‘s challenge significant, and how did they engineer a recovery? What key moves or plays were the lynchpin to victory?
The S22 Colorado Yeti finished their regular season 8-5, and not many people expected them to go too far in the playoffs. They blew out the 6-7 Sarasota Sailfish 36-14 in the wildcard round and advanced to face the league's best squad the Yellowknife Wraiths. The Wraiths had home field advantage, and the best squad in their history. The Wraiths opened up as massive 17-point favorites against the Colorado Yeti and there was not one person across the league who picked them to advance to the championship game. The Yeti for the first time (but not the last) shocked the world, juuuuuuuust topping the Yellowknife Wraiths 17-16 in an instant classic playoff matchup with a game-winning field goal from Yeti legend Silver Banana. The Yeti advanced to the ultimus and the Wraiths still have not recovered from this defeat. This was it, the championship game. The 8-5 Colorado Yeti vs the 10-3 Orange County Otters. This wasn’t the first ultimus Colorado had been to, not by a long shot, but it was the first they had been to in a while. Once again the Yeti found themselves talked about as a national afterthought, a sure-fire loser to the great and unstoppable Orange County Otters, a team that has never missed the playoffs in all their history. With home field advantage and a team just as good if not better than Yellowknife nobody expected anything more than an Otter blowout and yet another trophy added to their ever-expanding hall of Ultimus trophies. The game started just as everyone expected. At halftime the score was a measly 14-3 Otter lead, and was expanded to 21-3 on the opening drive of the second half. Then, suddenly, something changed. Suddenly the Yeti defense stepped up and only allowed one more field goal for the rest of the game, and the Yeti offense came alive. They scored their first touchdown of the day on a Wolfie McDummy 3 yard run on their second possession of the second half. They then got the ball back after an Otter 3-and-out and scored another TD off of a Michael Vincent 4 yard run and a subsequent successful 2 point conversion. Down 18-21 both offenses traded empty drives followed by an Otter field goal. THen, with only one drive left, Wolfie McDummy led his squad down the field and scored the game-winning TD with only 38 seconds left off of a 10 yard strike to WR James Bishop. THe 8 play, 4:10 drive gave the Yeti a 1 point lead which they would just hold on to, and win perhaps the greatest ultimus in league history.
The S24 Colorado Yeti ended the regular season a league-high 14-2, one of the greatest records in league history. They scored a league-high 455 points, blowing any other total out of the water and allowing the second lowest points allowed at 290, behind only the Orange County Otters total of 278. They went 7-1 at home, a very strong record, and a mind-boggling 7-1 on the road, a feat not seen before or since. They went 9-1 in their inter-conference games and ended the regular season riding a 9-game winning streak. So what made this team so dominant? Their rushing attack and dominant defense. They led the league in points per game as well as rushing yards per game, and were second in total yards per game despite ending 5th in passing yards per game. On defense they finished second-best in the league in points allowed per game, yards allowed per game, and rushing yards allowed per game. This is again despite only finishing 4th in passing yards allowed per game. Who were their focal points as a team? Almost too many to name, but I’ll give it a shot. Starting with the most important position on the field, Wolfie McDummy was just at the end of his prime, and only 2 seasons out from retirement. Rated as a perfect 100 overall he contributed equal parts in both the teams passing and rushing games. At running back the backfield was shared by both Ashley Owens and Richard Gilbert, a kind of thunder and lightning duo, Owens brought the speed and Gilbert brought the power. Earl Sauce,a talented-yet-underachieving TE managed to wrangle over 400 yards and 3 TD’s in the season. Their receiving core was led by long time Yeti William Lim, with WR2 duties going to Jackson Kingston in what turned out to be his final year with the Yeti before he was taken in the following expansion draft by the newly-formed New York Silverbacks. The defense literally had at least 2 stars at every level, so I’ll just say that they possessed the best secondary in the league and their D-line was a nightmare for any opposing offensive line. They ultimately fell short in one of the greatest upsets in ISFL history, losing 17-12 to the 9-7 San Jose Sabercats. The team that meme’d their way into the big game somehow came out on top due to the sudden death of every starting Yeti offensive player. That’s not actually what happened but it sure felt like it.
14) Greatness emerges through trial by fire. Recount the story of a team who came back from adversity, whether it’s a single miracle game or an entire season or multi-season comeback. How was this team‘s challenge significant, and how did they engineer a recovery? What key moves or plays were the lynchpin to victory?
The S22 Colorado Yeti finished their regular season 8-5, and not many people expected them to go too far in the playoffs. They blew out the 6-7 Sarasota Sailfish 36-14 in the wildcard round and advanced to face the league's best squad the Yellowknife Wraiths. The Wraiths had home field advantage, and the best squad in their history. The Wraiths opened up as massive 17-point favorites against the Colorado Yeti and there was not one person across the league who picked them to advance to the championship game. The Yeti for the first time (but not the last) shocked the world, juuuuuuuust topping the Yellowknife Wraiths 17-16 in an instant classic playoff matchup with a game-winning field goal from Yeti legend Silver Banana. The Yeti advanced to the ultimus and the Wraiths still have not recovered from this defeat. This was it, the championship game. The 8-5 Colorado Yeti vs the 10-3 Orange County Otters. This wasn’t the first ultimus Colorado had been to, not by a long shot, but it was the first they had been to in a while. Once again the Yeti found themselves talked about as a national afterthought, a sure-fire loser to the great and unstoppable Orange County Otters, a team that has never missed the playoffs in all their history. With home field advantage and a team just as good if not better than Yellowknife nobody expected anything more than an Otter blowout and yet another trophy added to their ever-expanding hall of Ultimus trophies. The game started just as everyone expected. At halftime the score was a measly 14-3 Otter lead, and was expanded to 21-3 on the opening drive of the second half. Then, suddenly, something changed. Suddenly the Yeti defense stepped up and only allowed one more field goal for the rest of the game, and the Yeti offense came alive. They scored their first touchdown of the day on a Wolfie McDummy 3 yard run on their second possession of the second half. They then got the ball back after an Otter 3-and-out and scored another TD off of a Michael Vincent 4 yard run and a subsequent successful 2 point conversion. Down 18-21 both offenses traded empty drives followed by an Otter field goal. THen, with only one drive left, Wolfie McDummy led his squad down the field and scored the game-winning TD with only 38 seconds left off of a 10 yard strike to WR James Bishop. THe 8 play, 4:10 drive gave the Yeti a 1 point lead which they would just hold on to, and win perhaps the greatest ultimus in league history.
![[Image: YD3sPEE.jpeg]](https://i.imgur.com/YD3sPEE.jpeg)
![[Image: 012p.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/3J542q1C/012p.png)
