Season 2 Wrap-up for USA #7 (Western Conference)
Disclaimer: I am the owner of the New Brunswick n00bs and this is only my opinion based upon how the teams looked when I saw them
Final Rankings (pre-season rankings in parentheses):
1. Bel Air Beardogs (2)
2. Waco Davidians (1)
3. Great Plains Reapers (3)
4. Las Vegas Stunners (8)
5. Oakland Wizards (4)
6. Dallas Red Raiders (10)
7. Spicewood Longhorns (7)
8. New Brunswick n00bs (6)
9. Scottsdale Sun Demons (9)
10. Hartford Hellhounds (5)
11. Portland Hitmen (11)
12. Grand Haven Mist (12)
13. Miami Cyclones (13)
14. RGB Berzerk (15)
15. Ambridge Brigade (16)
16. Chicago Clams (14)
1. Bel Air Beardogs - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1224
- The champions of the USA A7 Western Conference, the Beardogs came on strong at the end of the season and were able to shut down teams with their defense and developed a balanced offense that teams had trouble containing.
Best win of the season: Win against Waco in the conference championship - Bel Air proved to be the only team to be able to take down the Davidians and they did so twice. But in the conference championship, where it mattered the most, Bel Air made a statement with an emphatic 25-0 win.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to the Fins in the league championship - Fresh off beating Waco, the Beardogs were handed their worst loss of the season when all the bounces seemed to go the Fins’ way in the championship game.
Offensive MVP: HB Beard OG – While his production dropped off a little as the season progressed due to the balancing of the Beardogs’ offense, Beard was really the guy that Bel Air relied on through the bulk of the season.
Defensive MVP: CB Cordell Walker – Walker consistently made big plays throughout the regular season. He had an INT in half of the games he played and even returned one for a TD. He was a standout in a team whose defense was one of the best in the conference.
Special Teams MVP: K Mikey Black – When they needed him to perform in the latter part of the season he came through. While not perfect (no kicker ever is…), Black never let the team down.
Record: 17-3
Pre-season Ranking: 2
2. Waco Davidians - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1220
- With their 65-0 demolition of Grand Haven to start the season, the Davidians were quickly pegged the Goliaths of the conference. Even though they had a few close calls against Great Plains and New Brunswick, their only loss of the regular season came against Bel Air in a fiercely competitive match. With one of the best run defenses in the conference, teams had a tough time scoring on them and with their balanced offense it was hard to plan against.
Best win of the season: Win against the North Side Dreamkillers in the last game of the regular season - In one of the few matchups that actually showcased some of the strongest team in both conferences, Waco was able to put the Dreamkillers away with an opportunistic defense and offense, handing bragging rights to the West.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air in the conference championship -That was a bitter loss considering what was on the line and how close the previous game was. The Waco offense was just unable to solve the Bel Air defense.
Offensive MVP: QB Hugh Laurie – While Bel Air gave him fits, he was still one of the most consistent QBs in the conference. During the regular season, he was the conference leader in passing yards (3413) and passing TDs (26) while keeping his INTs down to a manageable 11 during the season (3 were from the game against Bel Air).
Defensive MVP: DE Wallace Stone – He led the conference in regular season sacks as well as having a whopping 28 hurries (2nd to his teammate Gotch Yarbrough). Add onto that the fact that he never missed a tackle out of 64 tackles (12 of which were TFLs), had a safety, and returned and INT for a TD and you could pretty much say that he did everything that you could possibly expect out of a DE.
Special Teams MVP: CB Marty Metallico – He had solid kick and punt returning numbers, but the most impressive stat was the fact that he had 2 PRs for a TD. While they came in blow-out games, those highlights are no less impressive.
Record: 17-2
Pre-season Ranking: 1
3. Great Plains Reapers - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1212
- The Reaper had a bit of a tumultuous season. They came close to knocking off the top two teams in the Davidians and the Beardogs (both losses were only by a difference of 1 possession). However, they had shocking losses to the Red Raiders and Wizards and more than enough close games. Always beleaguered by the Scarlet curse, they seemed to be taken out of their game whenever they were picked as participants in the games of the week. Their well-balanced team was able to help them make it to the second round of the playoffs where they fell to Bel Air.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland in the 1st round of the playoffs – Free from the Scarlet curse, they were able to beat an opponent that had beaten them during the regular season. They did so in pretty convincing fashion too.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Dallas during the regular season – In this game the Reapers’ starting QB, Hayden Fry, laid an absolute egg only completing just over 50% and throwing 3 INTs for a disappointing QB rating of 48.4. While the defense was able to keep the Dallas running game at bay, they were unable to deal with their new and improved run and gun offense.
Offensive MVP: WR Henriques the Englishman – Leading the conference in TDs, being top 3 in total receiving yards and breaking 1000 yds receiving, the Englishman was one of the toughest WRs to defend in the league. Not only that, but he was one of the hardest ones to tackle breaking a whopping 42 tackles.
Defensive MVP: FS Nic Wirrz – Usually FS don’t get that much credit because it is hard for them to wrap up the stats. Amazingly enough, Wirrz was able to still rack up 7 INTs and 11 PDs even though he stayed back in coverage.
Special Teams MVP:CB Omar Ruckus – As the Reapers’ main return guy, he did a great job returning the ball with solid kick and punt return averages. And he held onto the ball for the most part, only losing it once in 80 touches.
Record: 13-5
Pre-season Ranking: 3
4. Las Vegas Stunners - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1219
- Las Vegas was a team that always tried to crack the top 4, but it seemed that whenever they got close to that spot, they lost. And just when you thought they were flagging a little, they pulled out a win. Out of all the playoff teams, these guys probably overachieved and did a great job with the personnel that they had.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland during the regular season – After falling to the Reapers and a solid, but unconvincing win against Hartford, the 7-3 Stunners faced the then 9-1 Wizards. By pulling off the win, the Stunners proved to everybody that they belonged near the top of the conference. The game also demonstrated the importance of getting the ball into the endzone because they edged out Oakland 14-13 even though they had less scoring opportunities.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air during the regular season – After a thorough shellacking of Ambridge in which the Stunners won 93-0, they turned around and got absolutely whooped by Bel Air. They were shut out for the only time of the season and held to under 100 yards of offense, while giving up a season-high 6 TDs.
Offensive MVP: G Ogie Ogletorpe – with 84 pancakes, Ogie helped to open up holes for the running backs as well as protect the QB. Without guys like Ogie, the Stunners’ offense would have had more trouble scoring.
Defensive MVP: CB Star Jones – In their big play-off win against the Red Raiders, Jones accounted for both of the INTs that helped seal the win. Add to that fact that she had 3 other INTs during the season, 21 PDs and a hurry and Jones had a pretty impressive season.
Special Teams MVP: FS Speedy Returns – Like his name states, Returns was a pretty speedy good who had solid returning averages and tacked on 2 punt returns for a TD.
Record: 12-6
Pre-season Ranking: 8
5. Oakland Wizards - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1215
- Oakland started the season off great and seemed to be one of the top teams in the conference, but once the latter part of the season came, they started struggling. By the time the regular season was over, the Wizards were limping into the playoffs where they ran into the Reapers and subsequently lost.
Best win of the season: Win against the Reapers during the regular season – At the time, this game was a clash to determine the “best of the rest” after the Davidians. Oakland was able to hand the Reapers their biggest loss of the season even with 2 turnovers in that game. It was this game that had a lot of people expecting great things from this team.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Scottsdale during the regular season – Already wounded by losses to the Stunners and Beardogs in the previous 2 of 3 games, the Wizards needed a win to right the ship. If they had won this game, it could have helped them secure a home playoff game. Instead, they ended up losing to a team that missed the playoffs. While the Wizards were statistically better, it was a kick return for a TD by the Scottsdale returner that killed them and helped to perpetuate the late season spiral that the Wizards were caught in.
Offensive MVP: WR Wes Lyons – Lyons did a great job with the balls that were thrown his way. With only 4 drops to 59 receptions and 5 TDs on the season, Lyons was a great weapon for the QB to utilize.
Defensive MVP: DE Sid "the Terror" Li – With 72 tackles (21 TFLs) and no missed tackles as well as 2 sacks, 6 hurries, 2 forced fumbles and 4 PDs, Li played up to his nickname and terrorized opponents’ offense.
Special Teams MVP: K Seth Logan – The Wizards relied on him to kick many field goals and he obliged by knocking in 37 FGs (tied for most in the conference).
Hellen Keller Watch: Feeling scorned after getting beaten by the Reapers, she put a curse on their starting QB Hayden Fry, prompting him to have his worst passing rating in that game. It should be lesson to everybody…never piss off the deaf-blind women or else she will hurt you in ways impossible to imagine. Sadly, this closes the book on the chronicles of Hellen Keller’s achievements in the USA A7 West conference.
Record: 11-6
Pre-season Ranking: 4
6. Dallas Red Raiders - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1217
Contributor: Modok
- This team was a bit inconsistent throughout the season. They had a disappointing start dropping their first two games, but rallied back and were able to hand Bel Air one of its two losses. They were also able to tag the Reapers with one of their rare losses. Unfortunately the Raiders also had tough games against Scottsdale and Spicewood near the end of the season.
Best win of the season: Win against Bel Air during the regular season – This game was the Raiders big coming out party where they proved to the conference that they were for real. Even though the score was 19-17, it was a bit deceptive because the Raiders’ kicker missed a PAT and 2 FGs.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Stunners in the 1st round of the play-offs – Going into the play-offs riding a 4 game winning streak, including a win over Great Plains, the Raiders were poised to beat the Stunners (a team that they had already beaten). Instead, they just happened to face the Stunners when their QB played out of his mind throwing 4 TDs on only 24 pass attempts for a whopping 154.9 QB rating. The 31-17 loss was a bitter way to get eliminated from the play-offs after a very successful regular season.
Offensive MVP: WR Wes Crabtree – Like his namesake, Crabtree was a solid receiver threat who latched onto balls thrown in his direction (only 3 drops to 75 catches) and was the team’s leader in receiving TDs with 5.
Defensive MVP: DE Mckinner Sesay – When a D-lineman leads your team in tackling, it’s a good sign. On top of his 78 tackles (24 TFLs), Sesay put an immense amount of pressure on opposing QBs with 14 hurries and 2 sacks. If he continues his performance next season, he’ll be one of the more feared pass-rushers in the conference.
Special Teams MVP: FS Ric ‘O Shea – He was the Raiders most consistent cover guys, making clutch tackles and fighting off blocks. While he doesn’t have the stats to necessarily back it up, his team values him immensely.
Record: 11-5-1
Pre-season Ranking: 10
7. Spicewood Longhorns - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1214
- After an inconsistent first half of the season with some pretty bad losses, the Longhorns used the game against the n00bs as a coming out party. However, they were never able to gain enough momentum to recreate their upset against Bel Air (during the funky game) and fizzled out in the playoffs.
Best win of the season: Win against New Brunswick during the regular season – While the Bel Air win was probably bigger, I don’t really count it because of the bizarre circumstances. The game against the n00bs was a real eye opener for the league. The Longhorns showcased their new and improved passing offense and absolutely shredded the n00bs’ defensive secondary.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air in the 1st round of the playoffs – The Longhorns got beat pretty badly in this game and were pretty much overpowered. In a conference that had its share of close and competitive games, this 1st round matchup did not fit the bill and the Longhorns were sent packing.
Offensive MVP: WR Karl Roberts – Roberts was one of the key ingredients for the Spicewood offense. He only dropped 5 passes while catching 82 balls (6 for TDs) and had a solid 2.7 YAC
Defensive MVP: CB Mike Huff – Not a great sign that your CB has 98 tackles, but he more than made up for being thrown at by registering 22 PDs, 2 Forced Fumbles and an impressive 8 INTs.
Special Teams MVP: HB Rod HeHateGrammar – As the PR/KR, Rod did a solid job
getting the Longhorn better field position with good numbers.
Record: 11-6
Pre-season Ranking: 7
8. New Brunswick n00bs - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1210
- The n00bs were a team that beat the teams that they needed to beat and losing to the teams that they were supposed to lose against. They pulled off one upset and were so close to many other upsets. Defined by a stout defense and an offense that could shorten the game significantly, the n00bs tried to slow down the game so that they wouldn’t be hurt by more potent offenses.
Best win of the season: Win against the Stunners during the regular season – In a game that was a virtual toss-up, the n00bs won by relying on their kicker and running backs, a formula that was used all season. In this game, everything finally went their way and they were able to steal a game from the Stunners for their only upset of the season.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Spicewood during the regular season – The n00bs actually expected to win this game based upon Spicewood’s past performances. Unbeknownst to them, the Longhorns had something up their sleeves and chose to unleash their potent passing offense against the n00bs unsuspecting secondary. This game led to the n00bs biggest beating of the season.
Offensive MVP: HB Greg Martin – Who else did you expect? He led the league in rushing yards and led the conference in TDs. The n00bs rode him all the way to a near upset of the Davidians in the first round of the play-offs.
Defensive MVP: LB Colt Brooks – The leader of the LB corp that was the base for the n00bs’ offense, Brooks did a tremendous amount of damage to opposing offenses. He only missed 1 tackle while making 63, had 13 hurries, 3 sacks and a safety.
Special Teams MVP: K David Allison – With all the close games the n00bs were getting into due to their style of play, it was important for them to have a consistent kicker. Allison was one of the n00bs’ biggest offensive weapon because he could hit any FG from less than 40 yds away with 100% accuracy. He also hit his share of booming FGs.
Record: 10-7
Pre-season Ranking: 6
9. Scottsdale Sun Demons - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1225
- This season could be labeled as a disappointment because the Sun Demons didn’t make the playoffs. They had some great opportunities to get in, but they just couldn’t rise to the occasion and lost too many must-win games to stay in the play-off race.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland – In a case of too little, too late, the Sun Demons showed sparks of life in their win over Oakland. This win, fueled by a KR for a TD, proved that the Sun Demons deserved a place in the play-offs, but too many bad losses had already extinguished that hope.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Grand Haven – This game was probably the biggest upset of the entire conference season. The Sun Demons kept letting the Mists hang around until the 4th quarter when the Mists exploded for 17 points. The inability of the offense to get into the endzone as well as some missed field goals doomed the Sun Demons in a game that they should have won.
Offensive MVP: QB Jack Howitzer – Considering that the Sun Demons had issues with drops, their QB did a great job distributing the ball with consistency. His completion percentage is very admirable and would have increased by more than 10% if the dropped passes were caught.
Defensive MVP: CB Dexter Matsukado – The key stat is with so many tackles (58), he didn’t miss any tackles. Add to that 30 PDs, 5 INTs and a Forced fumble and you have a pretty solid cover guy.
Special Teams MVP: WR Denis Trokhin – One of the very few people in the entire league to have a KR for a TD. That one TD helped the Sun Demons pull off the biggest upset in the conference over the Wizards.
Record: 7-8-1
Pre-season Ranking: 9
10. Hartford Hellhounds - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1216
- I personally think that Hartford was the most disappointing team in the conference. A lot of it had to do with never getting enough human depth. That’s why as the season progressed they started dropping games to teams that they had no business dropping games to. Hopefully they’ve sorted all that out and are ready to challenge for a play-off spot again next season.
Best win of the season: Win against the Sun Demons – In what amounted to an elimination game at the time, the Hellhounds showed that they had more fight left in them. While the game was practically a statistical dead-heat, the Hellhounds were able to get more out of their yards than the Sun Demons were able to.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Miami – This game was a complete shocker. Miami pretty much came out of nowhere and pierced a hole in the Hellhounds play-off hopes. In the game it was like Hartford was allergic to the goal line and just couldn’t get near it. Hopefully the Hellhounds don’t suffer another letdown like this next season.
Offensive MVP: QB Johnnie "Blue Label" Walker – Walker was the Hellhounds’ biggest offensive weapon and he had an extremely successful season considering how much pressure he was under due to an overmatched O-line. He consistently threw with a higher than 60% passer rating and had more TDs than INTs. With a better supporting cast, he could be one of the more dangerous QBs in the conference.
Defensive MVP: LB Kim Mitchell – Mitchell was a solid all-around LB with 72 tackles (9 TFLs), 2 hurries, 2 sacks, 3 PDs, 1 INT and 1 Forced fumble.
Special Teams MVP: CB Jimmy McNulty II – McNulty has the rare distinction of being the only guy in the conference to have both a KR and PR TD (as can be seen by his trophy case). If Walker was the biggest offensive weapon for the Hellhounds, McNulty was a close second.
Record: 8-8
Pre-season Ranking: 5
11. Portland Hitmen - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1211
- This team was virtually stuck in this spot for the whole season. At the end of the day they were very much like the n00bs, beating all the teams that they were supposed to beat, but losing to the teams that they were supposed to lose to. They came close to upsetting the Hellhounds early in the season and the Red Raiders late in the season, but they could never get that extra offensive juice to push them over the edge.
Best win of the season: Win against Grand Haven – After getting “disrespected” and knocked off their perch as the 11th ranked team by Grand Haven, they turned around and beat Grand Haven to retain the title of the best non-contender. The game itself was closely fought, but Portland’s early points helped them hold onto the win.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Dallas – This game was excruciating because of how Portland lost the game. They had a chance to tie it, but the kicker missed a 20.5 yd chip shot. This game proved that they could hang with the best, but in its best opportunity to knock off one of the big boys, Portland came up just short.
Offensive MVP: QB Johnny Danger – Like the Hartford QB, Danger would have likely been one of the best QBs statistically if he was surrounded by better talent. Considering he was sacked 11 times and hurried 42 times, it’s amazing that he was still able to complete over 55% of his passes. As the team around him improves next season, he’ll be a guy to watch out for.
Defensive MVP: LB Lion Heart – While Portland’s defense had a tough time all season, Heart had a solid season with 9 hurries and 2 sacks. While he missed 3 tackles he still had 52 tackles with 7 of them for a loss.
Special Teams MVP:K Sucksat Soccer – Even though he missed some key field goals, he was one of the few kickers that hit all of his PATs. His FG percentage was also very respectable.
Record: 5-11
Pre-season Ranking: 11
12. Grand Haven Mist - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1222
- Grand Haven was largely a victim of the ridiculously competitive free agent market. By the time they had gotten to team filled with human players, they were already behind the 8 ball. They showed tremendous fight and resolve in the 2nd half of the season and pulled off a stunner against the Sun Demons which started them on a 2 game winning streak.
Best win of the season: Win against the Sun Demons – In reality they had no right to win this game. The Sun Demons had been dominating the game, but the Mists came back in one of the more miraculous 4th quarter comebacks and stunned the Sun Demons, effectively putting a nail in the coffin of Scottsdale’s playoff aspirations. The Mists showed in this game their ability to score the ball quickly with a long passing TD thrown to the aptly named receiver LIGHTNING BOLT.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Chicago Clams – In the Clams only win of the season, the Mists got thoroughly outplayed. To be honest, this game was a complete crapshoot because practically half the players were CPUs. The AI Gods did not look to kindly upon Grand Haven and handed the Clams the win.
Offensive MVP: QB Lex Johnson – All things considered, Johnson did a great job this season. As the guys around him level up and he had more time to throw the ball and better targets to throw to that don’t drop the ball, his stats will rise.
Defensive MVP: CB Terrell Thomas – Thomas did a great job this season with 69 tackles (1 missed), 25 passes deflected, 2 INTs and a forced fumble. On a team that had trouble stopping people, Thomas did his part in trying to contain the WR that he faced.
Special Teams MVP: K Alex Korol – He didn’t really have a chance to come out much because of the team he was on, but when he did come out to kick he did a great job and he also hit all of his PATs. Hopefully he’ll have more opportunities next season
Record: 4-12
Pre-season Ranking: 12
The rest of the teams will come later….
Disclaimer: I am the owner of the New Brunswick n00bs and this is only my opinion based upon how the teams looked when I saw them
Final Rankings (pre-season rankings in parentheses):
1. Bel Air Beardogs (2)
2. Waco Davidians (1)
3. Great Plains Reapers (3)
4. Las Vegas Stunners (8)
5. Oakland Wizards (4)
6. Dallas Red Raiders (10)
7. Spicewood Longhorns (7)
8. New Brunswick n00bs (6)
9. Scottsdale Sun Demons (9)
10. Hartford Hellhounds (5)
11. Portland Hitmen (11)
12. Grand Haven Mist (12)
13. Miami Cyclones (13)
14. RGB Berzerk (15)
15. Ambridge Brigade (16)
16. Chicago Clams (14)
1. Bel Air Beardogs - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1224
- The champions of the USA A7 Western Conference, the Beardogs came on strong at the end of the season and were able to shut down teams with their defense and developed a balanced offense that teams had trouble containing.
Best win of the season: Win against Waco in the conference championship - Bel Air proved to be the only team to be able to take down the Davidians and they did so twice. But in the conference championship, where it mattered the most, Bel Air made a statement with an emphatic 25-0 win.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to the Fins in the league championship - Fresh off beating Waco, the Beardogs were handed their worst loss of the season when all the bounces seemed to go the Fins’ way in the championship game.
Offensive MVP: HB Beard OG – While his production dropped off a little as the season progressed due to the balancing of the Beardogs’ offense, Beard was really the guy that Bel Air relied on through the bulk of the season.
Defensive MVP: CB Cordell Walker – Walker consistently made big plays throughout the regular season. He had an INT in half of the games he played and even returned one for a TD. He was a standout in a team whose defense was one of the best in the conference.
Special Teams MVP: K Mikey Black – When they needed him to perform in the latter part of the season he came through. While not perfect (no kicker ever is…), Black never let the team down.
Record: 17-3
Pre-season Ranking: 2
2. Waco Davidians - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1220
- With their 65-0 demolition of Grand Haven to start the season, the Davidians were quickly pegged the Goliaths of the conference. Even though they had a few close calls against Great Plains and New Brunswick, their only loss of the regular season came against Bel Air in a fiercely competitive match. With one of the best run defenses in the conference, teams had a tough time scoring on them and with their balanced offense it was hard to plan against.
Best win of the season: Win against the North Side Dreamkillers in the last game of the regular season - In one of the few matchups that actually showcased some of the strongest team in both conferences, Waco was able to put the Dreamkillers away with an opportunistic defense and offense, handing bragging rights to the West.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air in the conference championship -That was a bitter loss considering what was on the line and how close the previous game was. The Waco offense was just unable to solve the Bel Air defense.
Offensive MVP: QB Hugh Laurie – While Bel Air gave him fits, he was still one of the most consistent QBs in the conference. During the regular season, he was the conference leader in passing yards (3413) and passing TDs (26) while keeping his INTs down to a manageable 11 during the season (3 were from the game against Bel Air).
Defensive MVP: DE Wallace Stone – He led the conference in regular season sacks as well as having a whopping 28 hurries (2nd to his teammate Gotch Yarbrough). Add onto that the fact that he never missed a tackle out of 64 tackles (12 of which were TFLs), had a safety, and returned and INT for a TD and you could pretty much say that he did everything that you could possibly expect out of a DE.
Special Teams MVP: CB Marty Metallico – He had solid kick and punt returning numbers, but the most impressive stat was the fact that he had 2 PRs for a TD. While they came in blow-out games, those highlights are no less impressive.
Record: 17-2
Pre-season Ranking: 1
3. Great Plains Reapers - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1212
- The Reaper had a bit of a tumultuous season. They came close to knocking off the top two teams in the Davidians and the Beardogs (both losses were only by a difference of 1 possession). However, they had shocking losses to the Red Raiders and Wizards and more than enough close games. Always beleaguered by the Scarlet curse, they seemed to be taken out of their game whenever they were picked as participants in the games of the week. Their well-balanced team was able to help them make it to the second round of the playoffs where they fell to Bel Air.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland in the 1st round of the playoffs – Free from the Scarlet curse, they were able to beat an opponent that had beaten them during the regular season. They did so in pretty convincing fashion too.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Dallas during the regular season – In this game the Reapers’ starting QB, Hayden Fry, laid an absolute egg only completing just over 50% and throwing 3 INTs for a disappointing QB rating of 48.4. While the defense was able to keep the Dallas running game at bay, they were unable to deal with their new and improved run and gun offense.
Offensive MVP: WR Henriques the Englishman – Leading the conference in TDs, being top 3 in total receiving yards and breaking 1000 yds receiving, the Englishman was one of the toughest WRs to defend in the league. Not only that, but he was one of the hardest ones to tackle breaking a whopping 42 tackles.
Defensive MVP: FS Nic Wirrz – Usually FS don’t get that much credit because it is hard for them to wrap up the stats. Amazingly enough, Wirrz was able to still rack up 7 INTs and 11 PDs even though he stayed back in coverage.
Special Teams MVP:CB Omar Ruckus – As the Reapers’ main return guy, he did a great job returning the ball with solid kick and punt return averages. And he held onto the ball for the most part, only losing it once in 80 touches.
Record: 13-5
Pre-season Ranking: 3
4. Las Vegas Stunners - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1219
- Las Vegas was a team that always tried to crack the top 4, but it seemed that whenever they got close to that spot, they lost. And just when you thought they were flagging a little, they pulled out a win. Out of all the playoff teams, these guys probably overachieved and did a great job with the personnel that they had.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland during the regular season – After falling to the Reapers and a solid, but unconvincing win against Hartford, the 7-3 Stunners faced the then 9-1 Wizards. By pulling off the win, the Stunners proved to everybody that they belonged near the top of the conference. The game also demonstrated the importance of getting the ball into the endzone because they edged out Oakland 14-13 even though they had less scoring opportunities.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air during the regular season – After a thorough shellacking of Ambridge in which the Stunners won 93-0, they turned around and got absolutely whooped by Bel Air. They were shut out for the only time of the season and held to under 100 yards of offense, while giving up a season-high 6 TDs.
Offensive MVP: G Ogie Ogletorpe – with 84 pancakes, Ogie helped to open up holes for the running backs as well as protect the QB. Without guys like Ogie, the Stunners’ offense would have had more trouble scoring.
Defensive MVP: CB Star Jones – In their big play-off win against the Red Raiders, Jones accounted for both of the INTs that helped seal the win. Add to that fact that she had 3 other INTs during the season, 21 PDs and a hurry and Jones had a pretty impressive season.
Special Teams MVP: FS Speedy Returns – Like his name states, Returns was a pretty speedy good who had solid returning averages and tacked on 2 punt returns for a TD.
Record: 12-6
Pre-season Ranking: 8
5. Oakland Wizards - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1215
- Oakland started the season off great and seemed to be one of the top teams in the conference, but once the latter part of the season came, they started struggling. By the time the regular season was over, the Wizards were limping into the playoffs where they ran into the Reapers and subsequently lost.
Best win of the season: Win against the Reapers during the regular season – At the time, this game was a clash to determine the “best of the rest” after the Davidians. Oakland was able to hand the Reapers their biggest loss of the season even with 2 turnovers in that game. It was this game that had a lot of people expecting great things from this team.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Scottsdale during the regular season – Already wounded by losses to the Stunners and Beardogs in the previous 2 of 3 games, the Wizards needed a win to right the ship. If they had won this game, it could have helped them secure a home playoff game. Instead, they ended up losing to a team that missed the playoffs. While the Wizards were statistically better, it was a kick return for a TD by the Scottsdale returner that killed them and helped to perpetuate the late season spiral that the Wizards were caught in.
Offensive MVP: WR Wes Lyons – Lyons did a great job with the balls that were thrown his way. With only 4 drops to 59 receptions and 5 TDs on the season, Lyons was a great weapon for the QB to utilize.
Defensive MVP: DE Sid "the Terror" Li – With 72 tackles (21 TFLs) and no missed tackles as well as 2 sacks, 6 hurries, 2 forced fumbles and 4 PDs, Li played up to his nickname and terrorized opponents’ offense.
Special Teams MVP: K Seth Logan – The Wizards relied on him to kick many field goals and he obliged by knocking in 37 FGs (tied for most in the conference).
Hellen Keller Watch: Feeling scorned after getting beaten by the Reapers, she put a curse on their starting QB Hayden Fry, prompting him to have his worst passing rating in that game. It should be lesson to everybody…never piss off the deaf-blind women or else she will hurt you in ways impossible to imagine. Sadly, this closes the book on the chronicles of Hellen Keller’s achievements in the USA A7 West conference.
Record: 11-6
Pre-season Ranking: 4
6. Dallas Red Raiders - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1217
Contributor: Modok
- This team was a bit inconsistent throughout the season. They had a disappointing start dropping their first two games, but rallied back and were able to hand Bel Air one of its two losses. They were also able to tag the Reapers with one of their rare losses. Unfortunately the Raiders also had tough games against Scottsdale and Spicewood near the end of the season.
Best win of the season: Win against Bel Air during the regular season – This game was the Raiders big coming out party where they proved to the conference that they were for real. Even though the score was 19-17, it was a bit deceptive because the Raiders’ kicker missed a PAT and 2 FGs.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Stunners in the 1st round of the play-offs – Going into the play-offs riding a 4 game winning streak, including a win over Great Plains, the Raiders were poised to beat the Stunners (a team that they had already beaten). Instead, they just happened to face the Stunners when their QB played out of his mind throwing 4 TDs on only 24 pass attempts for a whopping 154.9 QB rating. The 31-17 loss was a bitter way to get eliminated from the play-offs after a very successful regular season.
Offensive MVP: WR Wes Crabtree – Like his namesake, Crabtree was a solid receiver threat who latched onto balls thrown in his direction (only 3 drops to 75 catches) and was the team’s leader in receiving TDs with 5.
Defensive MVP: DE Mckinner Sesay – When a D-lineman leads your team in tackling, it’s a good sign. On top of his 78 tackles (24 TFLs), Sesay put an immense amount of pressure on opposing QBs with 14 hurries and 2 sacks. If he continues his performance next season, he’ll be one of the more feared pass-rushers in the conference.
Special Teams MVP: FS Ric ‘O Shea – He was the Raiders most consistent cover guys, making clutch tackles and fighting off blocks. While he doesn’t have the stats to necessarily back it up, his team values him immensely.
Record: 11-5-1
Pre-season Ranking: 10
7. Spicewood Longhorns - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1214
- After an inconsistent first half of the season with some pretty bad losses, the Longhorns used the game against the n00bs as a coming out party. However, they were never able to gain enough momentum to recreate their upset against Bel Air (during the funky game) and fizzled out in the playoffs.
Best win of the season: Win against New Brunswick during the regular season – While the Bel Air win was probably bigger, I don’t really count it because of the bizarre circumstances. The game against the n00bs was a real eye opener for the league. The Longhorns showcased their new and improved passing offense and absolutely shredded the n00bs’ defensive secondary.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Bel Air in the 1st round of the playoffs – The Longhorns got beat pretty badly in this game and were pretty much overpowered. In a conference that had its share of close and competitive games, this 1st round matchup did not fit the bill and the Longhorns were sent packing.
Offensive MVP: WR Karl Roberts – Roberts was one of the key ingredients for the Spicewood offense. He only dropped 5 passes while catching 82 balls (6 for TDs) and had a solid 2.7 YAC
Defensive MVP: CB Mike Huff – Not a great sign that your CB has 98 tackles, but he more than made up for being thrown at by registering 22 PDs, 2 Forced Fumbles and an impressive 8 INTs.
Special Teams MVP: HB Rod HeHateGrammar – As the PR/KR, Rod did a solid job
getting the Longhorn better field position with good numbers.
Record: 11-6
Pre-season Ranking: 7
8. New Brunswick n00bs - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1210
- The n00bs were a team that beat the teams that they needed to beat and losing to the teams that they were supposed to lose against. They pulled off one upset and were so close to many other upsets. Defined by a stout defense and an offense that could shorten the game significantly, the n00bs tried to slow down the game so that they wouldn’t be hurt by more potent offenses.
Best win of the season: Win against the Stunners during the regular season – In a game that was a virtual toss-up, the n00bs won by relying on their kicker and running backs, a formula that was used all season. In this game, everything finally went their way and they were able to steal a game from the Stunners for their only upset of the season.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Spicewood during the regular season – The n00bs actually expected to win this game based upon Spicewood’s past performances. Unbeknownst to them, the Longhorns had something up their sleeves and chose to unleash their potent passing offense against the n00bs unsuspecting secondary. This game led to the n00bs biggest beating of the season.
Offensive MVP: HB Greg Martin – Who else did you expect? He led the league in rushing yards and led the conference in TDs. The n00bs rode him all the way to a near upset of the Davidians in the first round of the play-offs.
Defensive MVP: LB Colt Brooks – The leader of the LB corp that was the base for the n00bs’ offense, Brooks did a tremendous amount of damage to opposing offenses. He only missed 1 tackle while making 63, had 13 hurries, 3 sacks and a safety.
Special Teams MVP: K David Allison – With all the close games the n00bs were getting into due to their style of play, it was important for them to have a consistent kicker. Allison was one of the n00bs’ biggest offensive weapon because he could hit any FG from less than 40 yds away with 100% accuracy. He also hit his share of booming FGs.
Record: 10-7
Pre-season Ranking: 6
9. Scottsdale Sun Demons - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1225
- This season could be labeled as a disappointment because the Sun Demons didn’t make the playoffs. They had some great opportunities to get in, but they just couldn’t rise to the occasion and lost too many must-win games to stay in the play-off race.
Best win of the season: Win against Oakland – In a case of too little, too late, the Sun Demons showed sparks of life in their win over Oakland. This win, fueled by a KR for a TD, proved that the Sun Demons deserved a place in the play-offs, but too many bad losses had already extinguished that hope.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Grand Haven – This game was probably the biggest upset of the entire conference season. The Sun Demons kept letting the Mists hang around until the 4th quarter when the Mists exploded for 17 points. The inability of the offense to get into the endzone as well as some missed field goals doomed the Sun Demons in a game that they should have won.
Offensive MVP: QB Jack Howitzer – Considering that the Sun Demons had issues with drops, their QB did a great job distributing the ball with consistency. His completion percentage is very admirable and would have increased by more than 10% if the dropped passes were caught.
Defensive MVP: CB Dexter Matsukado – The key stat is with so many tackles (58), he didn’t miss any tackles. Add to that 30 PDs, 5 INTs and a Forced fumble and you have a pretty solid cover guy.
Special Teams MVP: WR Denis Trokhin – One of the very few people in the entire league to have a KR for a TD. That one TD helped the Sun Demons pull off the biggest upset in the conference over the Wizards.
Record: 7-8-1
Pre-season Ranking: 9
10. Hartford Hellhounds - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1216
- I personally think that Hartford was the most disappointing team in the conference. A lot of it had to do with never getting enough human depth. That’s why as the season progressed they started dropping games to teams that they had no business dropping games to. Hopefully they’ve sorted all that out and are ready to challenge for a play-off spot again next season.
Best win of the season: Win against the Sun Demons – In what amounted to an elimination game at the time, the Hellhounds showed that they had more fight left in them. While the game was practically a statistical dead-heat, the Hellhounds were able to get more out of their yards than the Sun Demons were able to.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Miami – This game was a complete shocker. Miami pretty much came out of nowhere and pierced a hole in the Hellhounds play-off hopes. In the game it was like Hartford was allergic to the goal line and just couldn’t get near it. Hopefully the Hellhounds don’t suffer another letdown like this next season.
Offensive MVP: QB Johnnie "Blue Label" Walker – Walker was the Hellhounds’ biggest offensive weapon and he had an extremely successful season considering how much pressure he was under due to an overmatched O-line. He consistently threw with a higher than 60% passer rating and had more TDs than INTs. With a better supporting cast, he could be one of the more dangerous QBs in the conference.
Defensive MVP: LB Kim Mitchell – Mitchell was a solid all-around LB with 72 tackles (9 TFLs), 2 hurries, 2 sacks, 3 PDs, 1 INT and 1 Forced fumble.
Special Teams MVP: CB Jimmy McNulty II – McNulty has the rare distinction of being the only guy in the conference to have both a KR and PR TD (as can be seen by his trophy case). If Walker was the biggest offensive weapon for the Hellhounds, McNulty was a close second.
Record: 8-8
Pre-season Ranking: 5
11. Portland Hitmen - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1211
- This team was virtually stuck in this spot for the whole season. At the end of the day they were very much like the n00bs, beating all the teams that they were supposed to beat, but losing to the teams that they were supposed to lose to. They came close to upsetting the Hellhounds early in the season and the Red Raiders late in the season, but they could never get that extra offensive juice to push them over the edge.
Best win of the season: Win against Grand Haven – After getting “disrespected” and knocked off their perch as the 11th ranked team by Grand Haven, they turned around and beat Grand Haven to retain the title of the best non-contender. The game itself was closely fought, but Portland’s early points helped them hold onto the win.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Dallas – This game was excruciating because of how Portland lost the game. They had a chance to tie it, but the kicker missed a 20.5 yd chip shot. This game proved that they could hang with the best, but in its best opportunity to knock off one of the big boys, Portland came up just short.
Offensive MVP: QB Johnny Danger – Like the Hartford QB, Danger would have likely been one of the best QBs statistically if he was surrounded by better talent. Considering he was sacked 11 times and hurried 42 times, it’s amazing that he was still able to complete over 55% of his passes. As the team around him improves next season, he’ll be a guy to watch out for.
Defensive MVP: LB Lion Heart – While Portland’s defense had a tough time all season, Heart had a solid season with 9 hurries and 2 sacks. While he missed 3 tackles he still had 52 tackles with 7 of them for a loss.
Special Teams MVP:K Sucksat Soccer – Even though he missed some key field goals, he was one of the few kickers that hit all of his PATs. His FG percentage was also very respectable.
Record: 5-11
Pre-season Ranking: 11
12. Grand Haven Mist - http://goallineblitz.com/game/team.pl?team_id=1222
- Grand Haven was largely a victim of the ridiculously competitive free agent market. By the time they had gotten to team filled with human players, they were already behind the 8 ball. They showed tremendous fight and resolve in the 2nd half of the season and pulled off a stunner against the Sun Demons which started them on a 2 game winning streak.
Best win of the season: Win against the Sun Demons – In reality they had no right to win this game. The Sun Demons had been dominating the game, but the Mists came back in one of the more miraculous 4th quarter comebacks and stunned the Sun Demons, effectively putting a nail in the coffin of Scottsdale’s playoff aspirations. The Mists showed in this game their ability to score the ball quickly with a long passing TD thrown to the aptly named receiver LIGHTNING BOLT.
Worst loss of the season: Loss to Chicago Clams – In the Clams only win of the season, the Mists got thoroughly outplayed. To be honest, this game was a complete crapshoot because practically half the players were CPUs. The AI Gods did not look to kindly upon Grand Haven and handed the Clams the win.
Offensive MVP: QB Lex Johnson – All things considered, Johnson did a great job this season. As the guys around him level up and he had more time to throw the ball and better targets to throw to that don’t drop the ball, his stats will rise.
Defensive MVP: CB Terrell Thomas – Thomas did a great job this season with 69 tackles (1 missed), 25 passes deflected, 2 INTs and a forced fumble. On a team that had trouble stopping people, Thomas did his part in trying to contain the WR that he faced.
Special Teams MVP: K Alex Korol – He didn’t really have a chance to come out much because of the team he was on, but when he did come out to kick he did a great job and he also hit all of his PATs. Hopefully he’ll have more opportunities next season
Record: 4-12
Pre-season Ranking: 12
The rest of the teams will come later….
Last edited Jun 4, 2008 20:11:05
