Stickman wrote:

Houston Stars: Simple and to the point, I like this one a lot!  The orange will help them immediately stand out in a league with a ton of blue teams, (not to mention a Stars vs. any blue team should make for a nice looking matchup).  Very nice!

San Francisco Condors: On of the one hand, this is basically a blue Philadelphia Eagles team.  On the other hand, that's pretty much all it usually takes for me to root for them, lol!  For the most part though, this team looks very classy that home uniform is excellent.  I do have to take points off the away jersey for the random gray pants that they wear, seeing as they don't wear gray literally anywhere else on either the jersey, not is it on the logo, (which btw, is an instant classic for me).   Other than the away jerseys, this is another fine jersey.

Well, after having to think for a few minutes, (a rarity as I usually have one team that immediately becomes my favorite), I think I will be rooting for the San Francisco Condors, but there really are a bunch of nice looking teams here!   Really nice work Docta C!

Question though, related to the league's structure.  The National Division has a bunch of east coast teams, while the American Division has teams all over.   Now I know it's because of the merger between 2 rival leagues, but when it comes to the league's layout as time goes on, are we going to see these divisions as a NFC/AFC type situation or are we looking more at a East/West breakdown, where the West division just happens to have a few teams that really belong more in the East?

Sorry Stick, I've had this written up for a while and when I saw you chose to root for San Francisco... I'm just sorry. They are one of the younger teams in the league, so hopefully they can rebuild quickly.

Rugrat wrote:

Should be a good first year for this league! Also, why are the Stars called the Barons now?

They're not! I was originally going to call them the Barons, and wrote this preview before I changed their name to the Stars.

Nice writeup and presentation. I dig all the graphics.

That American conference travel schedule must be brutal. Looks like an average year for the Miners. Glad the Oaks are doing well.

Very nice presentation!  Really detailed and thorough!  Since you warned me about the Condors, I didn't expect too much, so going 5-9 and finishing 6th out of 7 actually was a nice surprise, lol.  

Yeah, definitely feels like the Americans and Oaks are the strongest teams in the league this year.  It feels like the Oaks are the more balanced team, so I'd predict that they'll win the championship this season.

Great work Docta C!

Thanks for the compliments on the presentation.

1957 PFA PLAYOFFS


American Division Championship: The first playoff game in PFA history kicked off at 5:00pm in the nation’s capital, Washington, D.C, on December 22, 1957. The game was broadcast by CBS (who signed a lucrative deal with the PFA to broadcast all 3 playoff games) and was viewed by fans nationwide. The 2nd place Chicago Cougars brought to town one of the best defenses in the league to face the Washington Americans, who possessed one of the best offenses. The Americans won the coin toss and elected to receive the opening kickoff, seemingly to show Chicago that their defense wouldn’t be able to slow them down. Quarterback Drew Cain led the Americans straight down the field, connecting with receiver Lee Edwards on a 7 yard out route to take a 7-0 lead. Chicago’s first drive seemed promising with two first downs in the first three plays, but it stalled and they were forced to punt. There would be no more scoring for the rest of the quarter - the Americans would fumble on their next drive, the Cougars would punt, and then the Americans would punt. The next score would come 7 minutes into the second quarter when Cougars quarterback Donnie Hanson ran in from 17 yards to tie the game at 7. Chicago was able to get the ball back with just 58 seconds remaining and quickly drove within Washington’s 30, but missed a field goal as the half ended. Things looked good for Chicago at the half as they had been able to limit Cain and the prolific Americans offense. They looked even better just a minute into the second half when the Cougars already sat at the Americans 15 after two big plays. Washington would hold, though, and Chicago had to settle for a field goal, making the score 10-7. Next, Washington would put together a great drive, reaching the Chicago 24 before Drew Cain was picked off by Ralph Turner. Unable to capitalize, Chicago would quickly go three and out, with the punt setting up Washington at their own 30. Cain would work his magic on the ensuing Americans drive. He completed 9 straight passes for 70 yards, easily picking apart the Cougars defense and giving Washington the lead as the 3rd quarter expired, 14-10. Even though the lead only sat at 4, it felt much larger - Cain was heating up and the Cougars were struggling to score touchdowns. To open up the fourth, Chicago got a quick first down but then went three and out after a sack, an incompletion, and another sack. Washington got the ball back, and Cain took them right back down the field and threw another touchdown to Lee Edwards, giving them a 21-10 lead with 5:47 remaining. The Cougars would put together their first scoring drive in over 25 minutes of game time after they hit a 38-yard field goal with 1:31 to go. They would go for the onside kick, but were unsuccessful, and Washington kneeled twice to end the game, giving them a berth in the first ever Gridiron Bowl.

Player of the Game: WAS QB Drew Cain (24-29, 247 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT)

​------------------------------


National Division Championship: The second playoff game of the night began its broadcast at 7:00pm, immediately following the American Division Championship. The Hartford Oaks were expected to win easily, but it wound up being a very close game. Fort Wayne came out of the gates fast, driving down the field and reaching the Oaks’ 12-yard line in just 1:41. Hartford would hold, however, and the Chiefs kicked a short field goal to go up 3-0. On the following possession the Oaks would turn the ball over on a Marshall Jackson interception that set up the Chiefs inside their own 40. They were able to move into the red zone, but were once again unable to get in the end zone, kicking a field goal to make the score 6-0. The quarter came to an end during the next Hartford possession, which ended in a punt two plays into the second quarter. Just three plays after getting the ball back, the Chiefs fumbled the ball back to the Oaks, who then turned the ball back over to the Chiefs with another interception around 4 minutes later. At this point, Hartford had 2 turnovers, both being Jackson INTs, and Fort Wayne had 1. Fans began booing the ugly play on the field. On their next drive, the Chiefs hopped on the shoulders of star running back Nathan Sanders and rode him to the endzone, taking off 7 minutes of game time leaving the Oaks just 16 seconds left in the half. They kneeled, entering the locker room down 13-0, their first time trailing at halftime since their Week 3 loss to this same Chiefs team. Roy Lindsey was being completely shut down with just 28 yards on 11 carries. Oaks coach Jack Tate is known for his halftime adjustments, and they worked on Hartford’s first drive of the second half as they drove down the field in 8 plays to score their first points on a 7-yard Roy Lindsey inside run. Fort Wayne would follow with another impressive drive, taking off 6 minutes of clock before kicking through a 28-yard field goal, making the score 16-7. Hartford seemed to have completely figured out the Chiefs defense as they once again drove right down the field, but a questionable spot on a 4th-down run by Lindsey ended their drive. The Chiefs got the ball back and ran off the final 2 minutes of the quarter, sitting at their own 45 yard line. They quickly punted to open up the 4th, pinning Hartford deep in their own territory at the 3 yard line. On the biggest drive of the game for the Oaks, Tate made some excellent playcalling, Lindsey had some spectacular runs and Jackson made a few really nice passes en route to a touchdown with 5:59 remaining in the game. With his team trailing 16-14, Tate decided to trust his defense and kick the ball off to the Chiefs, who returned it to the 19. They were able to run off over 4 minutes of game before punting the ball back to the Oaks, who would have to engineer a game-winning drive from their own 12 with just 1:32 remaining on the clock. They were able to get to the Chiefs’ 32 yard line after a 52 yard bomb from Marshall Jackson to receiver Gary Murray. With just 4 second left of the clock, Tate sent out his field goal unit to attempt a 49-yard game-winner. It had the distance, but just barely missed to the right, sending the Fort Wayne Chiefs to play the Washington Americans in Gridiron Bowl I.

Player of the Game: FW RB Nathan Sanders (21 rushes, 134 yards, 1 TD)

​------------------------------


​------------------------------

GRIDIRON BOWL I PREDICTION

Fort Wayne Chiefs vs. Washington Americans: Fort Wayne wasn't expected to be here. Most aren't giving them a chance. Cain is expected to dot up the Chiefs' defense en route to an easy championship win.

Americans win convincingly, 28-13.

​------------------------------

Here is the trophy that Washington and Fort Wayne will be playing for; the Boone-Warren Trophy, named after the founders of the NFA (Gerald Boone) and FLA (Sheldon Warren).


------------------------------

Thanks for Reading. C+C is encouraged and appreciated.

Last edited by DoctaC (12/31/2020 9:07 pm)