Hey gang! It's been a minute since I posted here, and it's been another since I axly had any new content for y'all. A lot has happened over the last few weeks, and it's led to me not having the time and/or energy to work on this much for a while. Thanks for your patience in that regard. Without further ado, though, here's the 2027-28 offseason:

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August 2, 2027
Well, we’ve learned what Commissioner Ross has in store for expansion. Some of it isn’t new information; the new division plan for the next two years was leaked a few weeks ago and was confirmed today. Some of it is, though, and if you haven’t heard it yet, you might be surprised to find out that the 2028 season will be 64 games long. Said Ross, “We’ll be trying out a 64-game schedule next year, and we’re optimistic about it, but we’ll see how it works. We’ve got a couple options in terms of schedule matrices starting in 2029 as we reach 16 teams, and we’ll be talking to players, coaches, and staff to see if they prefer continuing with a longer schedule or reverting to one more comparable to this year’s length.” Looks like we’ve got a lot more dashball to watch for at least the next season.

August 16, 2027
It’s official: the Los Angeles Sabertooths are under new ownership. Randall Ramsey has sold the team to a group led by Zackary Alaniz for an as-yet undisclosed sum. Ramsey’s daughter and team GM Bridget Jenkins will not be returning to the team, and it’s likely that Alaniz will also be moving on from head coach Travis Britt. The Sabertooths are the third team to replace their GM this year, as their divisional rival California Sea Lions fired James Canfield and new Toronto Hogs owner Ryan Inman has let go of Billie Arsenault, who was also the team’s head coach. Alaniz has also hinted towards giving the Tooths a new look, potentially as early as next year.

October 6, 2027
The NDL’s fourth expansion draft took place tonight, as the new Boston and Montréal franchises selected their first players in franchise history. The Québécois had the first pick, and unsurprisingly, took a Redback, B/K Jamie Stearns II. They also locked up a pair of players from Philly, B/ZB Charley Parker and B/K Robby Baker, locking down the keeper position. The American side took B/ZB William Overton with their first pick, and were also able to snag his Chicago teammate, F/C Ben Bowman, in the third round, with Palms W/ZB Rodrigo Estes in between. Ultimately, Montréal looks like a better team at the moment, but the consensus is that Boston is built a bit better for the future.

October 7, 2027
A record-setting first round of the 2027 NDL Entry Draft has just finished up, and as always, we’ve got the highlights for you. Boston wasted no time in taking NCAA Championship MVP Eric Green off the board with the first pick, while Montréal’s first rookie will be Georgia Bulldog Jhaton Williams. Notably, Green’s teammate, Ryan Sher, was taken fourth by California, making them the highest pair of teammates ever drafted. Second highest? Jackson State Tigers Anthony Thom and Jaden Johnson, who were taken back to back at 6 and 7, becoming just the third pair of teammates taken consecutively at any point in the draft. Overall, though, this round went more or less chalk, as you can see by the full list below:

1. BOS - B/ZB Eric Green (Ohio)
2. MTL - W/ZB Jhaton Williams (Georgia)
3. LA - W/ZB Bradley Clarkson (West Virginia)
4. CAL - B/C Ryan Sher (Ohio)
5. ATL (from TOR) - Trenton Agee (Oklahoma)
6. ORL - W/ZB Anthony Thom (Jackson State)
7. NY - B/C Jaden Johnson (Jackson State)
8. SEA - F/ZB Michael Basch (Cincinnati)
9. ATL - F/ZB James Pearson (DePaul)
10. MIA - W/ZB Ali Davis (Arizona State)
11. NSH - B/ZB Erick Christian (Clemson)
12. ORL (from PHI via TOR) - B/C Joe Brown (Temple)
13. CHI - W/K Ernie Mendiola (FGCU)
14. TEX - F/ZB Wyatt Saperstein (Memphis)

November 21, 2027
Let’s talk about this Philly-Atlanta trade. For those of you who haven’t heard, the Row sent B/K LaVarius McCargo, B/K Salviano Aleman, and F/ZB Colby Peters to the Records, who will be returning a pair of F/Ks, Chris Gray and Wayne Carey, as well as a pair of picks. I didn’t think Philly would trade away one of the Four Oarsmen of the Apocalypse so soon after putting them together, but with McCargo being 36 and heading into the final year of his contract, it’s probably for the best, though it’ll be weird not seeing him in the blue and brick. Shoring up the F/K position makes a lot of sense as well. This move seems a little weird for Atlanta though, as L-Mac joins fellow 36-year-old W/ZB Dwight McCann and the ageless wonder B/C Thomas Notz, who’s still hanging around at 44. I guess I should stop thinking of Atlanta as an expansion team, but it feels like they could be building around some younger pieces than they are.

December 4, 2027
In a rather unexpected turn of events, W/ZB Ray Ludlow has decided to ink a deal with Boston, signing on for 10 years and $100 million with a team that has yet to play a single game. Boston should have the cap space to afford such a lucrative contract for the foreseeable future, and Ludlow seemed excited to play in Boston, despite the whole expansion team thing. Hopefully things will work out for both parties, but I have a feeling that ten grand a year will be a lot less appealing when you’ve lost 50+ games.

December 24, 2027
Christmas is tomorrow and Hanukkah starts tonight, but if you’re a Redbacks fan, you just got an early present. W/C Elide Amigazzi is staying in Texas, signing a 10-year deal worth $102.5 million. With W/ZB Larry Whitt already back and the Backs reportedly closing in on an agreement with B/ZB Thomas Ridley, it looks like the vast majority of last year’s team will be back. Can anyone say “five-peat”? No, really, it sounds weird.

January 20, 2028
After a long, arduous negotiation period, W/ZB Williams Denson has finally agreed to a deal with Seattle, which will see him paid $123 million over 13 years. Denson’s contract is the largest of this free agent cycle, though he’s not even the most expensive player on his own team, as B/ZB Clyde Kamai still has him beat in that regard. Even with two mammoth contracts on the books, the Sawyers are still in a surprisingly cap-friendly situation, but with the clock ticking toward opening day, they may not have a chance to capitalize immediately. Still, look for the Sawyers to try to build around this core while they have a chance.

February 20, 2028
Another trade with big names hit the news today, as former Finals foes Toronto and Texas have agreed to a deal that will send B/C Tiziano Torres north of the border in return for B/ZB Dan Kirkpatrick and W/C Ernie Starling. Some are questioning the Redbacks’ decision to trade away one of their youngest key players, especially in exchange for a 31-year-old Kirkpatrick, but it should help them firm up their shot at a fifth straight title in the short term. The Hogs, meanwhile, are hoping Torres can help get them headed back in the right direction after a pair of disappointing 11-win seasons.

Oh Jesus not the Redbacks please don’t win 5 in a row even if you have to rig it IDM

First up is Boston. As a native Bostonian, I wanted to make sure the name related to Boston's history, but I wanted to stray away from Revolutionary War imagery since that’s been rather overdone in my opinion (I did consider something like Lanterns as an ode to Paul Revere and the Midnight Ride, but with Boston’s AltFL team and Major League Quidditch team [reigning Benepe Cup champions!] being the Nightriders and Night Riders respectively, that already felt overdone). I liked Darknes’ suggestion of focusing on the USS Constitution, but I didn’t like the name Frigates as much as you all seemed to. I looked for a different name, and eventually landed on Commodores. Being a historical rank which is no longer used, it shouts out Boston’s naval history without directly associating with the current military, although that’s probably more nuanced than most fans will care about. Anyway, here are the Boston Commodores:


Commodores is an unusual nickname, but not a unique one, and as such, I wanted to make absolutely sure I wouldn’t intrude on Vanderbilt, so no anchors, no chains, and very limited use of stars. Instead, I used rope and a ship’s wheel, as well as a depiction of the Constitution, based on this painting. The ship on its own is an alternate logo, while it also features as a main element of the primary, which is based on the Constitution’s logo. The ship’s wheel is also based on the one aboard Old Ironsides, and if you’ve noticed that it looks incomplete, you haven’t noticed that it’s shaped like a C. The wordmark is rather basic, but that felt right for this team.



The main thing that’s up with the uniforms are the four stripes on each sleeve to represent the commodore rank. The number font (which is also used for the wordmark) is a shoutout to the Red Sox’ distinctive McAuliffe number font, while also being a bit blockier to be closer to Navy hull numbering. The secondary uniforms are dress whites, while the navy and yellow uniforms are worn with navy shorts and yellow socks. The gray uniform is an homage to the lesser-known occupant of Boston Navy Yard, the USS Cassin Young.



The Commodores will use mostly the same court as the Celtics, complete with Red Auerbach’s signature (I figure that would be a requisite for the C’s to allow the use of their parquet). That also means the TD Garden logo is in the goals, paralleling the unusual placement the Celtics have. It’s a bit boring otherwise, but it feels right.

I know some of you are gonna want a sig for these guys, so here it is:



I dunno about y’all, but I’d root for this team. C&C appreciated!

Last edited by ItDoesntMatter (8/03/2020 7:36 pm)

Boston looks fantastic, I'd wear one of those Dress Whites even though I'm in an Army family xD

The Commodores look very good, my only minor complaint is the ship feels a bit static in the primary. Not sure how to fix that though, everything else looks great. I really like the nod to the Red Sox number font while still having a classic block feeling. Can't wait to see Montreal, this expansion class is off to a great start!

Last edited by QCS (8/03/2020 2:59 pm)