1. This week will see the S28 Ultimus and Ultimini races begin in earnest. How did each team arrive at the playoffs? Were there any dark horse teams that went unexpectedly far, or any presumptive favorites that fell flat? Who do you think will win the final? If you’re writing this after the finals were decided, were you surprised by the outcome?
The playoff race I want to focus on is the race for the Ultimus, which to many, was one that was a complete surprise. The dark horse team specifically that caused this surprise, was none other than my Austin Copperheads, who many people assumed would falter in the standings again due to their poor performance last season. But, people definitely should have expected better of this team, as on paper, it was clear as day we'd be a contender for a playoff spot, and a contender we absolutely were. Another surprise to many, was the Honolulu Hahalua not making the playoffs, especially since they had just come off of a pretty good playoff run last season. Unfortunately for them, while being a very good team with pretty much all the pieces, they lacked a real star WR, which meant the offense faced a lot of struggles in very winnable games. While they did indeed still end up with a 9-7 record, which tied the Austin Copperheads, they had lost both meetups, which essentially eliminated them even with Austin losing five of their final six games.
As for the other conference, that being the NSFC, there really weren't any surprises there. The Berlin Salamanders, Yellowknife Wraiths, and Sarasota Sailfish were already established powerhouses that were definitely expected to continue winning like they had been. If nothing else, I'd say the biggest surprise, at least to me and a few others, was the Chicago Butchers going 6-10. They are absolutely not a 6-10 team, and they had all the qualifications to actually fight for a playoff spot. But for some reason, luck was not on their side this season, and they were put down pretty bad.
Now, we get to the playoff races. For me, I had Austin and Berlin facing off in the Ultimus, but for many others, the bet was on Arizona and Berlin. It's hard to fault people for thinking the lowest seed wouldn't beat powerhouses like the New York Silverbacks and Arizona Outlaws, but I'd say that if any team was likely to cause chaos, it would have been Austin. We had already beaten the seemingly unstoppable Outlaws in Arizona earlier in the season, and we only lost to the Silverbacks in an extremely last minute touchdown at their house last time. While this means nothing in the context of the sim, if you believe in the energy of situations like this, I feel you are often rewarded, and rewarded we were in Austin, to the dismay of many playoff predictions. Pretty much everyone, even people on Austin, had assumed that Arizona would be whooping everyone on their way to an easy Ultimus win. On paper, I'd say the team they fielded this season was comparable to that of the New England Patriots back when they had Brady. They were on a completely different level, but fate had other plans for them this season. It'll be really interesting to see if they
And as for the NSFC once more, the playoff run there was pretty predictable, other than the upset the Wraiths had over the Fire Salamanders. Now, more people actually did see the possibility of the Wraiths winning, as while Berlin may be a huge powerhouse currently, the Wraiths have proven they can work you big time while being on the road, and work the Fire Salamanders they did. Despite the possibility of a Wraith win though, Berlin was on par with Arizona for pretty much the entire season. Their only losses were complete outliers, and their wins were complete stomps most of the time. With both sides of the ball being filled to the brim with super solid players, it was a little hard to imagine them losing. But the Wraiths did only end with one less loss than the Fire Salamanders, so it was the closest possible matchup we could have had there. And to give a little attention to Sarasota, who a few people believed could pull their usual shenanigans and form a run out of nothing, they unfortunately failed to defend their title, losing in the very first game of the playoffs. I feel like despite the faith, it was pretty expected, as no matter how good they usually are, on the road against the Wraiths is probably one of the worst places to be. But, knowing Sarasota, they're going to continue making playoff runs for seasons to come, so I won't be surprised if I and many others are writing about them again next season.
So, we're left with the Copperheads and Wraiths in the big game. I figured Berlin would have been the tougher battle, but the Wraiths REALLY showed up in the Ultimus, decimating the Copperheads for almost the entirety of the game. I would have never expected the Wraiths to beat us so heavily up until the end of the game, but I suppose that's how it goes on the road. All in all though, the playoffs went about as expected for me, besides the two Wraith victories at the end. They really were an impressive team this season, so if I had to lose to anyone, I'm glad it was to them. Here's hoping for another exciting season moving forward!
872 words
The playoff race I want to focus on is the race for the Ultimus, which to many, was one that was a complete surprise. The dark horse team specifically that caused this surprise, was none other than my Austin Copperheads, who many people assumed would falter in the standings again due to their poor performance last season. But, people definitely should have expected better of this team, as on paper, it was clear as day we'd be a contender for a playoff spot, and a contender we absolutely were. Another surprise to many, was the Honolulu Hahalua not making the playoffs, especially since they had just come off of a pretty good playoff run last season. Unfortunately for them, while being a very good team with pretty much all the pieces, they lacked a real star WR, which meant the offense faced a lot of struggles in very winnable games. While they did indeed still end up with a 9-7 record, which tied the Austin Copperheads, they had lost both meetups, which essentially eliminated them even with Austin losing five of their final six games.
As for the other conference, that being the NSFC, there really weren't any surprises there. The Berlin Salamanders, Yellowknife Wraiths, and Sarasota Sailfish were already established powerhouses that were definitely expected to continue winning like they had been. If nothing else, I'd say the biggest surprise, at least to me and a few others, was the Chicago Butchers going 6-10. They are absolutely not a 6-10 team, and they had all the qualifications to actually fight for a playoff spot. But for some reason, luck was not on their side this season, and they were put down pretty bad.
Now, we get to the playoff races. For me, I had Austin and Berlin facing off in the Ultimus, but for many others, the bet was on Arizona and Berlin. It's hard to fault people for thinking the lowest seed wouldn't beat powerhouses like the New York Silverbacks and Arizona Outlaws, but I'd say that if any team was likely to cause chaos, it would have been Austin. We had already beaten the seemingly unstoppable Outlaws in Arizona earlier in the season, and we only lost to the Silverbacks in an extremely last minute touchdown at their house last time. While this means nothing in the context of the sim, if you believe in the energy of situations like this, I feel you are often rewarded, and rewarded we were in Austin, to the dismay of many playoff predictions. Pretty much everyone, even people on Austin, had assumed that Arizona would be whooping everyone on their way to an easy Ultimus win. On paper, I'd say the team they fielded this season was comparable to that of the New England Patriots back when they had Brady. They were on a completely different level, but fate had other plans for them this season. It'll be really interesting to see if they
And as for the NSFC once more, the playoff run there was pretty predictable, other than the upset the Wraiths had over the Fire Salamanders. Now, more people actually did see the possibility of the Wraiths winning, as while Berlin may be a huge powerhouse currently, the Wraiths have proven they can work you big time while being on the road, and work the Fire Salamanders they did. Despite the possibility of a Wraith win though, Berlin was on par with Arizona for pretty much the entire season. Their only losses were complete outliers, and their wins were complete stomps most of the time. With both sides of the ball being filled to the brim with super solid players, it was a little hard to imagine them losing. But the Wraiths did only end with one less loss than the Fire Salamanders, so it was the closest possible matchup we could have had there. And to give a little attention to Sarasota, who a few people believed could pull their usual shenanigans and form a run out of nothing, they unfortunately failed to defend their title, losing in the very first game of the playoffs. I feel like despite the faith, it was pretty expected, as no matter how good they usually are, on the road against the Wraiths is probably one of the worst places to be. But, knowing Sarasota, they're going to continue making playoff runs for seasons to come, so I won't be surprised if I and many others are writing about them again next season.
So, we're left with the Copperheads and Wraiths in the big game. I figured Berlin would have been the tougher battle, but the Wraiths REALLY showed up in the Ultimus, decimating the Copperheads for almost the entirety of the game. I would have never expected the Wraiths to beat us so heavily up until the end of the game, but I suppose that's how it goes on the road. All in all though, the playoffs went about as expected for me, besides the two Wraith victories at the end. They really were an impressive team this season, so if I had to lose to anyone, I'm glad it was to them. Here's hoping for another exciting season moving forward!
872 words
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