10. Write a short biography or story about your player. This could include background about how they came to the ISFL and how they’ve done so far, a story about their role in an exciting game, or anything else related to their experience in the league.
Schell had an interesting season in Berlin. He went into the season hoping to crack the 500 tackle mark on his career and ended up coming just a handful of tackles short. While physically feeling the best he ever has, it felt like the opportunities to shine were just not there for Schell this season. He tried to remind himself that this was not a bad thing, as it was coming as a result of an influx of talent on the team defensively with the addition of Derred de Ville this offseason to be his right hand man and the progression of Bam Bam McMullet in his journey to superstardom. The fact is that holding down the middle of the defense did not always mean having ample opportunities to rack up the stats that Schell anticipated having at this point in his career. Certainly there are still things that he can do personally to increase his production, but the team’s usage of him has also played into the narrative of this portion of Schell’s career. With this in mind, Schell approached the Berlin GMs with one goal in mind as they worked together to form a new contract: maximize playmaking opportunity. Having conversations around the league, Schell gathered that playing middle linebacker, while extremely fulfilling mentally, would never offer the same opportunities to physically impact the game that is available to those playing on the outside. Therefore, Schell worked together with the GMs of Berlin and formulated a contract that, over the next three seasons, maximizes Schell’s desire to increase his playmaking opportunities and the impact he can offer Berlin from the outside. It took quite a bit of time and effort – huge shout out to the incredible GMs of Berlin – but the deal was made and everyone walked away feeling satisfied. Just after this was signed, Schell took the field in the Conference Finals and made a game changing play, getting a pick 6 with the team down 7 in the fourth quarter. The first pick 6 of Schell’s career, it was clear that he was absolutely elated as he celebrated in the end zone with his teammates, making sure to hang on to that ball as he made his way back to the sidelines to hugs and back pats from teammates and coaches all around. This turned out to be the play of the game, changing the tide as Berlin went on to win and appear in its first Ultimus game – an unfortunate loss to the New Yard Silverbacks. When asked about the play after the game, Schell responded, “There’s a lot more where that came from. Just you wait.” It will certainly be interesting to see if more time on the outside is what it takes to unlock this defensive quarterback’s full potential.
11. Write about your team’s biggest rivalry and what makes it so fierce. Is the competition founded in statistics and the team’s recent performance, or is it a rivalry that developed over time during the team’s history that would exist regardless of statistics?
The biggest rivalry for the Berlin Fire Salamanders has to be their inter conference rivalry with the New York Silverbacks. The Silverbacks and the Salamanders were the two teams formed in the S25 expansion, and have both managed to quickly turn themselves into contenders in the ISFL. In their inaugural season, both teams were at the bottom of their respective conferences, with Berlin at 3-13 and New York at 4-12, although Berlin took their inaugural matchup in week one of that season 30-27. The next year Berlin improved to 7-9, though still missed the playoffs. New York, in a remarkably even ASFC finished in a 5 way tie for 1st at 9-7, getting the 1 seed through tie breakers, but falling to the Second Line in their first playoff game as a team. This season also featured a week one meeting of the two teams, with the Silverbacks taking the win, 38-20. In season 27, Berlin had plenty of setbacks as their offense could not sustain winning drives despite a great defensive season. New York, having similar troubles, faltered to a 7-9 record, also missing the playoffs. This season New York took a 2-1 lead in the all time series with a 30-26 win in week 11. In season 28, Berlin finally got things rolling, going to their first playoffs as the number 1 seed in the NSFC after compiling a 12-4 record. Their early exit was disappointing as they could not win their first playoff game, similar to New York. Speaking of New York, they went 10-6, good for the second seed in the ASFC, but still could not get the playoff monkey off their back with a first round loss to the Copperheads. Head to head, Berlin evened the series at 2-2 with a nail biter 20-19 win in week 3. Finally, in season 29, Berlin topped its previous record going 13-3 and winning the NSFC 1 seed and conference title in the playoffs, setting up a trip to the Ultimus. New York had another 10-6 season, good for another 2 seed, but this time they were able to get the elusive playoff win number one and two, setting up the “expansion bowl” as the two teams met in the Ultimus. The two teams did not play in the regular season, but the Silverbacks came to play in the Ultimus, taking advantage of a rough night all around by the Fire Salamanders en route to a 40-20 victory and the first Ultimus championship among the S25 expansion teams. The current head to head series stands at 3-2 in favor of New York, but Berlin is itching to get back on the field and avenge their latest loss. This looks to be an ongoing rivalry for many years to come as each young team seeks to build the biggest and baddest dynasty around. We’ll see what happens in S30!
Schell had an interesting season in Berlin. He went into the season hoping to crack the 500 tackle mark on his career and ended up coming just a handful of tackles short. While physically feeling the best he ever has, it felt like the opportunities to shine were just not there for Schell this season. He tried to remind himself that this was not a bad thing, as it was coming as a result of an influx of talent on the team defensively with the addition of Derred de Ville this offseason to be his right hand man and the progression of Bam Bam McMullet in his journey to superstardom. The fact is that holding down the middle of the defense did not always mean having ample opportunities to rack up the stats that Schell anticipated having at this point in his career. Certainly there are still things that he can do personally to increase his production, but the team’s usage of him has also played into the narrative of this portion of Schell’s career. With this in mind, Schell approached the Berlin GMs with one goal in mind as they worked together to form a new contract: maximize playmaking opportunity. Having conversations around the league, Schell gathered that playing middle linebacker, while extremely fulfilling mentally, would never offer the same opportunities to physically impact the game that is available to those playing on the outside. Therefore, Schell worked together with the GMs of Berlin and formulated a contract that, over the next three seasons, maximizes Schell’s desire to increase his playmaking opportunities and the impact he can offer Berlin from the outside. It took quite a bit of time and effort – huge shout out to the incredible GMs of Berlin – but the deal was made and everyone walked away feeling satisfied. Just after this was signed, Schell took the field in the Conference Finals and made a game changing play, getting a pick 6 with the team down 7 in the fourth quarter. The first pick 6 of Schell’s career, it was clear that he was absolutely elated as he celebrated in the end zone with his teammates, making sure to hang on to that ball as he made his way back to the sidelines to hugs and back pats from teammates and coaches all around. This turned out to be the play of the game, changing the tide as Berlin went on to win and appear in its first Ultimus game – an unfortunate loss to the New Yard Silverbacks. When asked about the play after the game, Schell responded, “There’s a lot more where that came from. Just you wait.” It will certainly be interesting to see if more time on the outside is what it takes to unlock this defensive quarterback’s full potential.
11. Write about your team’s biggest rivalry and what makes it so fierce. Is the competition founded in statistics and the team’s recent performance, or is it a rivalry that developed over time during the team’s history that would exist regardless of statistics?
The biggest rivalry for the Berlin Fire Salamanders has to be their inter conference rivalry with the New York Silverbacks. The Silverbacks and the Salamanders were the two teams formed in the S25 expansion, and have both managed to quickly turn themselves into contenders in the ISFL. In their inaugural season, both teams were at the bottom of their respective conferences, with Berlin at 3-13 and New York at 4-12, although Berlin took their inaugural matchup in week one of that season 30-27. The next year Berlin improved to 7-9, though still missed the playoffs. New York, in a remarkably even ASFC finished in a 5 way tie for 1st at 9-7, getting the 1 seed through tie breakers, but falling to the Second Line in their first playoff game as a team. This season also featured a week one meeting of the two teams, with the Silverbacks taking the win, 38-20. In season 27, Berlin had plenty of setbacks as their offense could not sustain winning drives despite a great defensive season. New York, having similar troubles, faltered to a 7-9 record, also missing the playoffs. This season New York took a 2-1 lead in the all time series with a 30-26 win in week 11. In season 28, Berlin finally got things rolling, going to their first playoffs as the number 1 seed in the NSFC after compiling a 12-4 record. Their early exit was disappointing as they could not win their first playoff game, similar to New York. Speaking of New York, they went 10-6, good for the second seed in the ASFC, but still could not get the playoff monkey off their back with a first round loss to the Copperheads. Head to head, Berlin evened the series at 2-2 with a nail biter 20-19 win in week 3. Finally, in season 29, Berlin topped its previous record going 13-3 and winning the NSFC 1 seed and conference title in the playoffs, setting up a trip to the Ultimus. New York had another 10-6 season, good for another 2 seed, but this time they were able to get the elusive playoff win number one and two, setting up the “expansion bowl” as the two teams met in the Ultimus. The two teams did not play in the regular season, but the Silverbacks came to play in the Ultimus, taking advantage of a rough night all around by the Fire Salamanders en route to a 40-20 victory and the first Ultimus championship among the S25 expansion teams. The current head to head series stands at 3-2 in favor of New York, but Berlin is itching to get back on the field and avenge their latest loss. This looks to be an ongoing rivalry for many years to come as each young team seeks to build the biggest and baddest dynasty around. We’ll see what happens in S30!
![[Image: Fq9564iX0AAzNOH?format=png&name=small]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Fq9564iX0AAzNOH?format=png&name=small)
![[Image: IgoYKoh.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/IgoYKoh.gif)
