(S27) Ultimus Week

[Birdman]

SHL Affiliate - 2.5 TPE

16) Now that the bank will translate my ISFL dollars into real money, the first thing I’m going to do is spend all my free time writing media. I’ve been a bad, lazy member and really need to get my bank account up to pay for weekly training but now that I can also make some real cash I will be fully motivated to really earn. The first thing I would do is swap my remaining ~$1M of ISFL cash into $500k of real dolla bills. I would spend $200k of that on a down payment on a house and invest the rest in the stock market (likely ETFs) to have some income to make mortgage payments. Having a house and some security to keep paying for it would really be a wonderful thing and I’d be very grateful for the ISFL to actually make this happen. After this point and I really start pumping out media, I would keep cashing out 50-75% of my ISFL money and become a full time investor in public stocks and private companies. I would really enjoy spending my leisure time doing personal research on companies and industries and making high conviction investments in companies I think will do well.

19) LeBong Simwell made huge headlines this week for his romantic escapades. The house of cards he had built with multiple famous women finally came crashing down when a TMZ reporter exposed him going out with a different famous woman for 12 straight days. The article TMZ eventually dropped has been the most viewed article of all time and in fact 40% of earth’s population has read it, which is impressive considering language barriers and how many people are elderly or children. The first night LeBong went out with Kim Kardashian and was seen dismissing Kanye as he picked her up from their shared mansion. The second night LeBong was caught canoodling with Michelle Obama, yet the two maintain they are just friends. The next night the TMZ sleuth saw LeBong taking Justin Bieber’s mom out to a seafood dinner, but it appears he dined and dashed and left her with the bill. The fourth night LeBong somehow managed to split time with both Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen without them catching on to his shenanigans. The fifth night LeBong was seen making out Paris Hilton, hardly notable these days. The next night LeBong was spotted tap dancing with Taylor Swift – a song about the night is already in the works. LeBong was then seen out to dinner with Brittney Spears and her dad. The next 5 nights LeBong was spotted with various up and coming LA models.

20) With the recent decimation of the New Orleans Secondline backfield, LeBong Simwell has been tapped to play Running Back. It’s almost certainly a questionable choice, given the size, girth and lack of skills LeBong has shown to date. But New Orleans is desperate and LeBong has only had a mediocre season the D Line so he won’t really be missed there. Every other position is too valuable to convert, so LeBong is being employed as an absolute tank power back. His relative speed and quickness, standing at 70 and 80 respectively, will ensure he gets back to the line of scrimmage before finding any defenders. His Pass Blocking leaves a lot to be desired at 1, so don’t expect this hunk of meat to be staying home on pass plays. His Strength is surely what gets him the starting nod at RB, as at 95 he can blow up most Line Backers with his thick strong arms. He isn’t the smartest player with a 51 intelligence, so grasping the playbook is certainly going to be a challenge. He also isn’t the best pass catching back with only 50 hands, but that is ok because New Orleans is converting their entire offensive playbook to a 3.5 YPC wishbone rushing attack.

[Cody]

UW Pass (PHI GM)

[supertardis101]

PBE PT +2.5 TPE

27. I think getting a fully fledged all-star lineup of super-bowl performers could be super cool if I was doing a ISFL half-time show planning game. I know some of the people are dead now, but I really do think that many of them could put on a good show even from the grave if you know what I mean. Imagine if we could get Michael Jackson and Prince to come back and do a sort of like Zombie-show thing where they walk around for a while and sing a few songs about what the other side is like. The other side is very interesting and I would be interested to see what these two very talented performers could do with it. Additionally, it could be really cool if we could U2 up there. U2 did a really cool show and I would to see what they could do if we used from the sort of timey-wimey bendy machine to bring them into the ISFL universe. It would be a hoot I would tell you that much. If there was anything I could do with my life it would be to go this halftime show and see all the sites. It would be super super cool and maybe we could bring Daft Punk in there too. That would be pretty cool. 

28. I will say that this seaosn has been pretty shitty in terms of how things go for the San Jose Sabercats in the sim. We got absolutely fucked pretty much all season and I do not want to see that happen ever again if you know what I mean. It was just tough and brutal to watch all season and I really do not want to go through it with it again. I really do hope that next season we can hopefully get a bit more luck and really make a push towards the playoffs if possible. If I am not mistaken, at the beginning of the season we were one of the highest TPE teams in the league and we could not even make it into the playoffs. I think my player kind of royally underperformed this year and I feel a bit bad about that as I probably could have done more to help the team, but it's whatever. I can't control my performance in the sim and that is just dumb luck I suppose. Here is to hoping for next year and another Sabercats Ultimus! We already won 2 and I would sure like to win another haha. Lets go Sabercats! We are pushing there!

19. Oh man. Did we have a hell of a week. Things tend to get pretty crazy around the Sabercats Locker room if you know what I mean. One day last season we were just sitting around playing some poker and all of a sudden a raccoon came scurrying into the room. It was a shock to everyone we all starting running around all crazy and causing a ruckas till one minute when we finally regrouped and decided to go and find that squirrel and take it head-on. We got our helmets on and some hammers from the closet and ran into the locker room all crazy-like. We hit and we hit and we hit till we had dinged up every square inch of that LR. Later when the Janitorial staff came in there was nothing left but destruction. They came in and chewed us out and we call got in trouble. Evantually the press found out and they had a field day making me look like shit. It was fun, but also some things you prefer to keep in your private life. Washington Post! Its terrible. They chronicled us and got photos of everything. It was awful and we all were in danger of losing our jobs.

[thevoicelesscreator]

2) Tell us about your draft class. Is there anything that makes it special in comparison to other classes? Where did your fellow draftees land, how are they doing? Did anyone turn out to be an unexpected steal of that draft based on what you know today? Do you think anyone in your draft class will become a hall of famer? If you’re new to the league, how do you think your class will do? Where do you think people will get drafted to?

Where do I start with S22? The biggest draft class in our league’s history so far have had a monumental impact on our league in every aspect. However, while we often hear about where the players went, we hardly ever hear about the users of S22. Today, I want to look at the impact my Draft Class had on Team Management. In particular, I’ll be looking at Users that started in that legendary S22 class, and have spent time as a GM for either a DSFL or ISFL Team.
 
@Isidore94 (S22-S22): Isidore was named to the position of Co-Gm of the Arizona Outlaws during S21 Offseason, and was subsequently drafted by the Outlaws in the S22 draft. Unfortunately, Isidore’s career as a GM was short-lived, as they resigned and retired from the league before the start of S23.

iStegosauruz: (Dallas Birddogs GM: S22-S24):  iStegosauruz is perhaps the most iconic user to come from the S22 Class. Drafted 1OA in the ISFL Draft, the Birddogs GM has since moved on to Head Office.

@Matty7478 (Kansas City Coyotes GM: S23-S24): Matty is another very well known S22 User who can trace their origins back to the S22 draft class. We would have to wait until S27 to see Matty return to the GM role, moving up to the ISFL where he is the current GM of the San Jose Sabrekitties.

@qWest (Portland Pythons GM: S23-S24): Qwest is sometimes one the folks that slip under the S22 radar. But make no mistake, Nakamura’s impact on the league has been massive. Qwest has been a max earner, and currently sits in the top 10 of a draft class that produced 20+ 1000 TPE players.

@J0EB (Norfolk Seawolves GM S23-S26): J0EB, or as they are more affectionally known as, Joey, is more of a DSFL Household name. His achievements are many, but none are greater than being a part of the team that brought Norfolk their first DSFL Championship.

@Blasoon (Norfolk Seawolves GM: S23-S25): Blas is one of the more well known players to come out from the DSFL. More so due to their position than any statistical reason – Blas’ player was a QB, and the last QB from the S22 class to find a home and starting role. A heated Free Agency battle saw Blasoon sign with the Orange County Otters. He would also make his return to the GM table later on, also at the ISFL level, taking on the GM position at Orange County in S27.

@Thor (Formerly Myrtle, now Bondi Beach Buccaneers GM: S23-S27): It’s hard to tell which is more known around the league – Thor themselves, or their player: Tight End Heath Evans. Both are well known for their own reasons, but perhaps none more than bringing an Ultimini Championship to Australia.

@Highhaschdi (London Royals GM: S23-S24; Berlin Fire Salamanders GM: S25-Current): One of the more soft spoken users of the S22 Class, High’s actions have spoken much louder than his words could have. Although their accomplishments are statistically few, none can argue High’s impact on the league, as he was selected to be, and currently still is, the Original GM of the Berlin Fire Salamanders Expansion Team.

@mithrandir (Tijuana Luchadores GM: S23-S25; New Orleans Second Line GM: S26-Current): Wow, S23 was a great year for S22 GM hires, go figure. To cap off S23, we have Mith! Mith has been a massive figure in our community, from Dotts, to GMing, to Awards Committee and beyond.

@yonggarius (Dallas Birddogs GM: S24-S26): Better known by their player name, William Lim – Lim has been a massive figure in community, serving as a Rookie Mentor long before make the move up to GMing. Lim’s as a player is a Superstar for the Colorado Yeti, and looks ready to break all their team records. God, going to miss playing with you – Lim WR GOAT

@SwankyPants31 (Tijuana Luchadores GM: S24-S26): Swanky is one of the lesser known DSFL GMs, but I can assure you is not less of a talent. Having had the pleasure of working with him in Colorado for a number of season, I know for a fact that Swanky is the real deal. Truly the ultimate team player, Swanky’s running back, Richard Gilbert, is one of the most beloved figures in Colorado. As is the User

@PMoney (Yellowknife Wraiths GM: S25-Current): PMoney is maybe one of the Users from the S22 Class I know the least. However, that does not diminish the amazing things Money has done with the Yellowknife Wraiths, and is continuing to do with them.

@"Sakrosant" (Sarasota Sailfish GM: S25-Current): Much like Money, Sakro is less known around the league for their flamboyant character, and more known for their hard work and dedication. A key figure behind the success the Sailfish always seem to find, Sakrosant has cemented themselves as a GM’ing giant.

@"Momento Mori" (Philadelphia Liberty GM: S25-S25, Orange County GM S27-Current): Mori’s GMing history has been controversial as of late. Originally serving as Philadelphia’s GM for half a season, Mori and the team’s management had a falling out, resulting in their resignation and opting out of their contact. They would eventually make their way to Orange County, where they currently play, and has recently become their GM. 

@furiousPanda (Portland Pythons GM: S25-S26): Panda (one of the many in our community) has been a stellar figure amongst the standouts from the Sailfish. Their decision to GM the Pythons was a surprising one to me, but no doubt they have left their mark, with the Pythons coming being one of the strongest teams in the DSFL in S27.

@NicholasTheGreat (Bondi Beach Buccaneer GM: S25-Current): NicholasTheGreat, or NTG as they are more commonly known, has been one of the greatest stalwarts of the Wall of Pancakes that have swelled within the league as of recently. His player, Bruce Buckley, is a first-ballot Hall of Famer already. Add to the fact that NTG has already brought a championship to Australia, and we can see that although their career has not been the longest, they already have proven they have what it takes to excel.

@TheCC (Minnesota Grey Ducks GM: S26-S27; Chicago Butchers GM: S27-Current): I could write a whole Ultimus Week piece on CC and their inspirational transition from 77TPE ISFL Draftee to ISFL GM, but we’ll leave that for another day. While the words have yet to be written for their career in Chicago, I have no doubts CC will flourish at the highest levels.

@RussDrivesTheBus (Minnesota Grey Ducks GM: S27-Current): Another S22 late bloomer coming from the Grey Ducks, Russ isn’t actually a late bloomer. As it would turn out, Minnesota hit the leadership basket in the S22 draft, and Russ has been patiently bidding their time while the rest of us got our chance. Now it’s his turn, and I can’t want to see what he can do in the driver’s seat.

Honourable Mentions:

@BenDover (Minnesota Grey Ducks GM: S24-S26): A special mention to my former Co-GM, and good friend BenDover. Ben didn’t start their career in the S22 draft, have recreated into the draft after an early retirement on their former player. Better known as their player, Jamar Lackson – or simply just Jamar, their career has been the stuff of legends. He may just got down as the most mediocre running back to steal win more than one ring

[bjkman]

19) Your player or team made big headlines in the news this week. What did they do, and why did it garner so much attention?

In other news, the Ultimus was as lopsided as you might not have expected! That is unless you were on the Sarasota Sailfish! The Sailfish are in the news this week for both making their first Ultimus in team history, and even better... winning our first Ultimus in team history, all thanks to a wonderful defensive performance from arguably the best defense in the ISFL this season! Well not all thanks, the offensive was on fire as well! After starting out with a 14-0 lead thanks to a Tre'Darius J'Vathon Touchdown catch from Mike Boss Jr. and a 40 yard run by Offensive MVP Raphtalia Chan. NOLA tried to come back after a Field goal by Psuedo QB but this led to Defensive MVP and Rookie Demon Jaxson getting a scoop and score fumble recovery touchdown for the biggest defensive moment of the game. Jacob Small ran up the score as well going 2-2 on some short Field Goals, while the Second Line kicker struggled from making kicks beyond 50. Psuedo QB, don't hold your head down, no kicker should need to 50-yard field goals, and no kicker really practices for kicks that long! And having to attempt 3 long field goals shows you are a reliable kicker! The Sarasota Sailfish are the newest expansion team to win the Ultimus and hopefully, we can go back-to-back with another win next season!

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22) Your player has been paid to endorse a product/service. What is it? How do you endorse it?

What's better than selling yourself! Wait... I mean selling your autograph!



26) Your team has made it to the playoffs! Put together a pre-game playlist and explain how those songs will hype your players.

FISHING FOR THAT ULTIMUS PLAYLIST REASONING

#1: "The Time Is Now" for the Sailfish to come out on top, and there is no better way to show that than to listen to John Cena's iconic song to get us hyped up!

#2: Earlier this season we destroyed the New Orleans Second Line 38-14, so when people expected this to be a good game, we added "New Orleans is Sinking" to our playlist to show that New Orleans wasn't going to be a competition. Easy pickings, and guess what... 34-10 was pretty easy pickings!

#3: Who doesn't love The Bee Gees? No real reason here, just a great underrated Bee Gees song.

#4: While Marilyn Manson is a bit of a touchy subject, no pun intended, we added "The Nobodies" to our playlist because "They'll know just who we are" we aren't a weak expansion team... We're ready.

#5: We wanted at least one song with Sail in the name so we went with the Iconic "Come Sail Away".

#6: We were born for Greatness. That's what we say and that's what the song says.

#7: We needed another "Sail" song, and we were so confident that we kept saying that this Playoff journey will be smooth sailing! And it certainly was.

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29) Awards season is upon us. If you could create an award for anything in the league that doesn’t already exist, what would it be? Who do you think should get it?

Without a doubt the awards we need to add are "Best Name" and "Best Render", but we need to separate these as they do with the best actor and best actress in the Oscars. Since both of these awards will be given to recreates and rookies it is probably fair to separate this between those who understand how important a name and render is and those who are going into this for the first time. These are great award ideas because it is entirely up to the voting base on who they choose as the best render and name. Is the name something from someone's imagination? Or is it a reference to someone in real life? Previous winners could be people like Joseph Petrongolo, Medicinal Toblerone (who could be a double winner), Melvin Murder-Moose, NationalSimulation FootballLeague, or even Haha Mango-Panda. It really is up to the interpretation of the Awards voting base, and this upcoming Season 29 players could have a big fight on who wins these awards especially with wonderful creative names like Frostsuxlmap and Little Edd would battle for the recreate award, where new players like Josh Allen and Jack Sparrow would battle for the rookie award, and depending on their renders who knows who would come out on top there. In the end, if Render is too difficult I'm entirely ok with settling for the "Best Name" awards, and hey if you really needed you can put the recreates and rookies together. I just think it is a cool idea.

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[Booger]

1) This week will see the S26 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?

As usual, 6 teams made the playoffs this season. Seeding, specifically in the NSFC, came down to the final game of the season, with the Sarasota Sailfish ultimately taking both the top spot in the conference and the top spot in the league as a whole. Alongside them in the conference were the Chicago Butchers at 12-4 and the Colorado Yeti at 10-5. The 1 seed came down to the points for metric, which gave the Sarasota Sailfish the edge, despite their and Chicago's identical records at 12-4. 

From the ASFC, Honolulu, Sarasota's fellow S22 expansion team as well as the only other fish team in the league (fish teams best teams) led the conference with an 11-4-1 record. The second seed was earned by the Arizona Outlaws, who managed a record of 11-5 on the season. In third place, the New Orleans Secondline squeaked in with a 9-7 record. 

Now I'll give a brief summary of each team's season and outline how each one ended up in the position they did. 

Sarasota Sailfish: Sarasota absolutely earned the top spot in the league despite the race for 1st coming down to the wire with their conference rival, the Chicago Butchers. Sarasota started the season at 1-1 after a brutal loss to the Colorado Yeti before going on a six game win streak that defined the season as a whole. The team allowed fewer than 23 points in all six games while dropping 40, 38, and 48 points along the way. After a close loss to the Outlaws, the Sailfish got right back to their winning ways with 3 consecutive wins against the Hawks (doesn't really count), Salamanders, and Otters. The Sailfish then endured a tough loss in Yellowknife before winning their final game in Chicago. (OK just realized after writing this that the index has most recent games at the bottom so this is all out of order. Too lazy to change it though so if anyones reading this just take that into account).

Chicago Butchers: The Butchers have emerged as an elite team in the league in recent seasons, and put up a great fight for the ASFC this past season. The Butchers started 4-0 before losing 3 of their next 4, one of those losses being an 8-5 loss against the Salamanders (weird game). The Butchers then went on to win 7 of their next 8, the one loss being to the Sarasota Sailfish of course. Ultimately the Butchers failed to secure the top spot as a result of their inability to produce points at a rate equivalent to that of the Sailfish. 

Colorado Yeti: For me, the Yeti kind of flew under the radar this past season. I'm used to them being either a 1 or 2 seed in the conference, so even seeing them drop to number 3 is surprising. The Yeti started off slow going 1-3 in their first 4 games, before rattling off 5 straight wins. The Yeti then won 4 out of their last 7, including a monumental win against the Sailfish which helped keep them firmly in the playoff hunt alongside the Butchers. 

Honolulu Hahalua: The Hahalua put together their best season since inception, finishing with a record of 11-4-1. The Hahalua took an L week one to the Philadelphia Liberty before rebounding on a 3 game winning streak. They then lost a game to Arizona before winning another 4 in a row. They then lost a tough couple games versus the Silverbacks and Secondline before going on yet another 4 game win before ending the season with a 30-30 tie against the Colorado Yeti. 

Arizona Outlaws: The Outlaws finished just behind the Hahalua in the standings with a record of 11-5 on the year. Their season was definitely a weird one, as they started out 0-2 before going on an incredible 9 game win streak. I'd like to discredit their 51 point performance against the Hawks by saying that it should be expected, but 51 points is incredible regardless of the opponent. The Outlaws were unfortunately unable to use this streak to propel themselves to the number 1 seed in the conference though, as they dropped 3 of their last 5 games. 

New Orleans Second Line: The Second Line finished with a 9-7 record on the year, but got off to a rough 2 game skid to start the season. New Orleans got back to their winning ways soon after though with a dominant 49-17 victory over the Sabercats. The Second line then lost 4 of their next 6 before winning 6 of their next 7 to end the year. 

Playoff Game Reviews: 

Secondline 41-21 W over Arizona: Bit of a surprisingly dominant game here from Sloth as the Secondline go on to rout the Outlaws.

Colorado 24-19 W over Chicago: Major upset alert with this one. Sarasota fans worldwide must have been thrilled with the way this game turned out. Close game the whole way throughout.

Secondline 24-15 W over Honolulu: Another upset here with the Secondline just continuing to plow through strong regular season teams. Bit unfortunate that the Hahalua weren't able to make the Ultimus to play in the first ever fish bowl, but I'll give credit to the Secondline for playing a great game.

Sailfish 47-27 W over Colorado: In case the Sailfish's intentions weren't clear from the start, they most definitely were after this game. Just a dominant performance as the Sarasota D was all over Colorado to start the game out. The Sailfish never looked back and succeeded in making it to their first ever Ultimus Game. 

ULTIMUS: SARASOTA 34-10 W OVER NEW ORLEANS: Sarasota wins it! I'm so glad the fishies pulled this one out. As one of the first players to ever set foot on the field in a Sarasota uniform, its so rewarding to finally achieve the ultimate goal! Congratulations to the Secondline for a great season and to all my teammates for playing fantastically over the course of the season!

[xtitanxmvpx]

Ultimus Week - Option #1 800 words+: Tell us about your draft class.


I think this is an awesome topic for an awesome draft class. The S28 class at first glance looked like any other, but after only a couple games of the Prospect Bowl the true character of many prospects came out in full bloom. Now, this is only in association with players who made an impact on my experience throughout my first season and by no means does it encompass all the great things people have done. There are likely great people I have not been lucky enough to interact with on a regular basis and for that, I feel sorry for them. I’m f***ing awesome.

@Gragg9 : I have started to get to know this guy more and more as the season went on and his work is incredible. Getting drafted to the Minnesota Ducks he seemed to really enjoy his time there with CC and Crody. As a prospect, I also enjoyed the Minnesota locker room and the banter there. Gragg’s work, however, is what really sets him apart. The amount of effort he’s put into his informative process and the excel sheets he puts out are top notch and if there is anyone who I think might make it to the Hall of Fame or to a GM spot, I think it’s this guy. I really hope to continue to chat with this dude and bounce ideas back and forth about creative ways to do draft/free agency media.

@Vaelynn @Amulos : I came into the league with these guys and we all went from basically unknown, new creates to some of the most active people in the league. Amulos got drafted to the Luchadores while Vaelynn and another of our buds went to the Pythons. Sadly, one of our buds went a bit more inactive due to real life being a b****, but I strongly believe that these two will be staples of the league for years to come. They are both people I can see taking on a GM role or other sort of job and make an impact on the league outside of just their players. Look out for these guys going forward!

@FootballIsCool @StadiumGambler: Another duo that came after me in the draft to the Pythons, these guys absolutely killed it this year. Footballiscool is a player I can see going to the hall of fame just on player performance and his highly active presence. StadiumGambler is very much the same as his player performed incredibly well in his rookie season, but he also puts out a good deal of media and is highly active in the locker room. Again, both these guys will be staples of the league for years to come and I see all of the above going in round 1 or early round 2.

@firstfray: Dexter MF’ing Hall. FirstFray and I had been friendly rivals all year starting in the prospect bowl and then throughout the season into the post season. I get along well with Fray and I think he’ll be a damned good user going through his career with Hall. Hall will be a surefire hall of fame candidate as he is very active and has a very friendly personality that seems to mesh with all the locker rooms I have seen him in. He may very well be my career rival and I hope we duke it out for years to come.

@Duilio05: This is a dude that I got along with right away in the prospect locker room of the Chernobyl Radioactives. Sam the Onionman, a wide receiver, drafted to Norfolk, was a bit quiet during the season with me, but I can’t speak of a nicer person to have met early on when I started. Duilio05 is a recreate, vet, who took the time to help me by answering questions and just kept a positive attitude through the prospect activities. A small sample makes a big impact and he really showed me there are a lot of supportive people here willing to help a strange newb.

Xavier Walls: Myself. I have absolutely loved the start of my career here in the sim. Statistically I did not exactly kill it, but I made sure I hit on every AC and almost had the predictions title until the last weeks of the season. I can guarantee that any team that takes me will get a future hall of famer and a career long contributor to their team. The draft is right around the corner and I foresee a ton of surprises and picks that will put people in great positions to succeed.

The rest of the class: There are so many users that I’ve heard are great and put out some insanely great media or graphics. New creates who have got along well through their first season and it just proves more and more that this class is deep with people who can develop into build arounds for teams and users that will be great assets to whichever locker rooms that take them.

P.S: If Baltimore doesn’t take me 1OA they done f***ed up. Just saying….

[Seymour]

SHL PT

17) Describe the unique food items sold in your team’s home stadium. Write about the most popular items among your team’s fans and players, or create a graphic showing the menu of featured foods in the stadium.

22) Your player has been paid to endorse a product/service. What is it? How do you endorse it?


24) Create a billboard, magazine cover, unique trading card, or video game cover depicting a superstar of the league. Graphics only.

[Painted]

7) This task is exclusive to non-recreate rookies of the S28 class and later. In 400 words or more, how has your experience been in the league? Who have you met that has made your time here more fun, friendly, and exciting? Have you been satisfied with your player’s early start? What was it like being drafted for the first time? Do you have any comments or suggestions for the entire league that you think should be implemented?

It's been a full season since I have last answered this question, and my experience since then has changed a lot for the good! Before the start of season 27, I was completely new to sim sports and it was very daunting to start my career here. There were so many tasks and things I had to do and it was very difficult to navigate the forum website, mostly because I had not used a forum site in years. It was also hard for me to keep up with it all since I was in the process of moving and finishing up my Master’s thesis. If there is one thing no one wants to do after writing and editing a 25,000 word paper, it is write more for a league they were supposed to be in for fun… But needing to write 300 words is miniscule compared to that so I moved on and finished the tasks slowly, one by one.

But I am glad I kept up with the league and rode out the storm/climbed the learning curve because ever since getting drafted by Minnesota, I have really been enjoying this league. It started out really well with a great convo with ThunderTitan who then went on to help draft me. And it has continued to go great as now I am the best safety in the league in the sim that hates safeties! Staying active also really paid off since, after completing the rookie tasks, max earning has been a cake walk and a lot of the times I was just waiting for more to do! The TPE eventually turned into a great build I have for my player, who then just boomed out on the fake field. Needless to say, now looking at a round one or two pick in the upcoming ISFL draft, I have really liked the league.

My favorite part has easily been the Minn locker room. CC, may he rest in peace, and Russ have been exceptional as GMs, so much so I even teamed up with Gragg and Shrub to write an article to show our appreciation! It has been awesome to form such good relations with people I would have otherwise never met, being that we all live states away from each other, and for some even countries!

But after all this praise, I still want to reiterate on where I think the league would improve. I said this last season too, the rookie tasks are very overwhelming, especially to someone who is not familiar with forum sites before the 2010s. I highly suggest a major overhaul in the rookie guide to modernize it and centralize a lot of the posts. A website layout similar to the TPE tracker would be a great way to ease a new person into the forum settings since a lot of the places you frequent like the media posts are access through a text link which can be easily missed rather than a button or menu at the top. Just a thought for sure.

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30) Make a scouting report for any of the ISFL or DSFL draftees. Show their stats, abilities, TPE, highlights, or totally fraudulent mail-in ballots. Whatever rookies get up to these days.

Tim Soulja – Strong Safety for the Minnesota Grey Ducks

Quick notes: Soulja is a fast, smart, playmaking defensive back in a league that tends to bully safeties. His development since joining Minnesota has been nearly unprecedented making an impact almost immediately in game one and the rest of the season. While his growth in practice seemed relatively average to above average compared to the rest of this year’s ISFL draft class, his presence in the locker room and on the field cannot be understated. His GMs and coaches praise his work ethic and comradery, as do his teammates.

Key statistics: Soulja started all 14 regular season games at the Strong Safety position. He racked up a total of 68 tackles over that span, averaging 4.9 tackles a game. He notched 4 total sacks, many of which came on second and third down for major losses. He also recorded 3 total interceptions, the last of which was a pick six in his final game against Norfolk. Soulja also recorded one forced fumble and fumble recovery as well as one blocked punt.

Draft grade and takeaways: Late 1st/Early 2nd round. A high upside player who will make a great impact on the team after one or two more years of development.


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21) What team do you think has the best branding in the league? What team do you think could use a refresh? Why?

While it is kind of a toss up between my top favorites, I feel that the San Jose Sabercats have the best branding in the league. The reason why, to put it simply, is because they satisfy the design trifecta for a sports team: awesome colors, great name/mascot, excellent logo!

First the colors, hands down perfect. Teal as a primary color is very unique and honestly makes the team stand out in a lot of ways. Not only that, the gold color accents plus black for contrast really make the logo pop out to the viewer. Next, Sabercats as the name and mascot was an excellent choice just because of how cool the animal is. Once again, it is incredibly unique so they may stand out, plus who doesn’t love a big extinct kitty as their team name! Finally, the logo design is perfectly designed. The minimalistic stylization of the sabercat makes it obvious what it is supposed to represent but does not get too cluttered and noisy. It also means the logo is customizable! Meaning you could swap the gold for the teal and put it on a white background, and it would still look good! I also have always like the look of shields/seals as logos. My NFL team in the Ravens has a secondary shield logo that I adore. I really wish teams made use of that because they can go great on merch. So overall, San Jose is the best!!

As for the worst branding, I would argue it’s Baltimore only because I feel the Hawk logo could be more updated and less narrow. Still a cool team and color palette. Go Baltimore!

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PBE