1966 Week 10

Halifax Mariners - 17, Ottawa Royals - 20 - Atlantic Stadium - August 25, 1966 - 7 PM ET - TNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
2nd Q
3-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
10-3 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
3rd Q
10-10 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
10-17 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> WR Colby Bancana
17-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Sam Nash
17-20 OTT - FG K Ira Foster

The final Thursday Night game started slow in the first half, but by the 4th quarter, the game came to an electrifying conclusion. 
QB Michael Benedict made his first start for the Royals in a game against his former team just a couple of weeks after being traded.
He had a great game with a touchdown and game-winning drive to give the Royals the shocking upset win.
The Mariners looked a little shaky in this one with QB Lyle Painter having to shake off the injury he suffered last weekend which allowed the Royals to stay in the fight.
WR Sam Nash did find the endzone for the first time this season to help the Mariners tie up the game late.

Louisville Thunder - 22, Buffalo Blue Wings - 27 - Thunder Stadium - August 26, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
7-3 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
7-10 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
14-10 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
3rd Q
14-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
20-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
22-13 LOU - 2PT QB Leonidas Dumont -> TE Christopher Gist
4th Q
22-20 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
22-27 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake

The Thunder gave the Blue Wings a run for their money taking a shocking 22-13 lead heading into the final quarter, however, QB Charles Lemieux picked apart the defence to get into the endzone twice to steal the game.
The win for the Blue Wings gave them the West Division, which was decided before the final week of the season for the first time since 1958. 
QB Leonidas Dumont had his best game in a while with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions on the day, but it was just not enough and Louisville fell to a stunning 0-10.
LB Le’Darius Wynn had his first career forced fumble in the game for the Thunder
*BUF clinches West Division

Montreal Rouge - 9, Indiana Victors - 28 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 27, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3-7 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
3-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3rd Q
6-14 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
6-21 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
9-21 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
9-28 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green

The Victors came through with an important win over the Montreal Rouge.
Their defence rallied for a stellar performance keeping the Rouge down to just 9 points; they were helped with the fact that QB Gene Bishop left the game early with an injury.
QB Mike Key replaced him and just could not get the ball going, throwing a pair of interceptions.
DB David Jones and DB Kelly Kirkland had each of the picks for the Victors.
RB Raymond Green had a great day for Indiana with 3 touchdowns on the ground, running all over the Rouge defence.
It is a tough loss to swallow for the Rouge who now could be without their starting QB for the rest of the season and Providence, Pittsburgh, and London breathing down their neck.

Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 14, Long Island Raiders - 24 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - August 27, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
2nd Q
7-0 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murry-Lawrence
7-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
7-10 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
7-17 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> TE Micheal Bowman III
4th Q
14-17 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
14-24 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan

The Raiders were able to end the Blacksmiths 3-game win streak and retake the top spot in the East Division.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to play well for the Raiders, scoring a pair of touchdowns.
Pittsburgh did not look too bad, but they just were not good enough to get past the very good Raider defence.

Boston Independents - 27, London Tigers - 30 - Richardson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-3 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
2nd Q
7-10 LDN - RTD RB Cody Barnes
7-13 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-20 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> TE Tranquille Rousseau
3rd Q
7-23 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
14-23 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
14-30 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
27-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois

Despite Nathaniel Braddock’s best effort to come back in the 4th quarter (and 4 touchdown performance), it was not enough to top the Tigers leaving the team at 2-8 heading into the final few games of the season.
The defence could not stop the Tigers throughout the game which left them in the 16-point hole in the 4th, which leaves a lot of fans heavily questioning HC Johnathan Fox, who is supposed to be a defence-centred coach.
London kept themselves in the fight with this win; RB Cody Barnes was also a little more comfortable in his second game with the Tigers.

Toronto Steelheads - 21, Providence Gold Stars - 31 - Anderson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
10-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
2nd Q
10-3 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
10-10 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
13-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3rd Q
13-17 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
13-24 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
4th Q
19-24 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
21-24 TOR - 2PT QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
21-31 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley

A 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke gives the Gold Stars a huge win to pull them within striking distance of the final playoff spot in the East Division.
The Steelheads did a good job of breaking through the Gold Stars defence with RB Max Tracy, but by the end of the game Providence locked it down to hold on for the win.
It does become a tough loss for the Steelheads who are now sliding into a vulnerable spot in 2nd in the division after starting 6-2.

Injury Report
DB Adam Levesque IND - Day-to-Day
LB Pepper Burress HFX - 1 Week
QB Gene Bishop MTL - 3 Weeks
TE Hunter Ziegelbauer MTL - Day-to-Day
DL Bartolo Cruz PRO - 4 Weeks

Players of the Week

OFF: QB Nathaniel Braddock BOS - 4 Passing Touchdowns, 371 Passing Yards

DEF: DB Kelly Kirkland IND - 1 Interception, 7 Tackles

Standings
WEST
Buffalo 9-1 -y
Toronto 6-4
Indiana 6-4
London 5-5
Pittsburgh 4-6
Louisville 0-10

EAST 
Long Island 8-2 -x
Halifax 7-3 -x
Montreal 5-5
Providence 5-5
Ottawa 3-7
Boston 2-8

Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana +2
4 - Halifax -1
5 - Toronto -1
6 - Providence +3
7 - Montreal -1
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh -2
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Boston -
12 - Louisville -

Week 11 Games
MTL (5-5) @ OTT (3-7) - SEP 2 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win + PRO Loss + LDN Loss
PIT (4-6) @ BUF (9-1) - SEP 3 - 3 PM ET
PRO (5-5) @ BOS (2-8) - SEP 3 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (7-3) @ LI (8-2) - SEP 4 - 2 PM ET
*LI clinches East Division with Win
TOR (6-4) @ LDN (5-5) - SEP 5 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win
LOU (0-10) @ IND (6-4) - SEP 5 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day
*IND clinches playoff spot with Win + LDN Loss

*Also surprisingly Ottawa is still alive, but it’s very slim chances
1 - Ottawa must win both of their final games (VS. MTL, @ BOS)
2 - Ottawa must beat Montreal by more than 3 points.
3 - Providence must lose both of their games (@ BOS, VS LI)
4 - Montreal must also lose in Week 12 (VS. HFX)
5 - Pittsburgh must lose to Buffalo this week
6 - London must lose to Toronto this week
7 - Pittsburgh must beat London in week 12.
8 - In the end, Ottawa would have to finish with a better point differential than both Providence and Montreal….not very possible (MTL +4, PRO -9, OTT -44)
This scenario would give Ottawa the final spot in the East Division playoffs

Last edited by Wallflower (12/29/2021 1:12 am)

Happy Le'Darius had a good game, and that the Tigers won.

 Also I was wondering, given this is in the past, when was football desegreated?

Last edited by Enigmajones (12/29/2021 6:09 pm)

1966 Week 11

Ottawa Royals - 17, Montreal Rouge - 26 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - September 2, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
0-10 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
2nd Q
0-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3-13 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
10-13 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> TE Ryan Hatcher
10-16 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
10-23 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
4th Q
17-23 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
17-26 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger

The Rouge came away with an important win over the Royals behind a great performance from RBs Scott Mallard-White and RB Hugo Hughes. 
The two backs were used for 70% of Montreal’s offence in this game as they took advantage of the weaker Royals' D-line.
QB Mike Key had the start for Montreal but only threw for 76 passing yards on the day with the run-game being so successful.
QB Michael Benedict looked solid for the Royals again, though he needed to get to the second half to find a bit of a rhythm against the Rouge defence that stepped up.

Buffalo Blue Wings - 34, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 19 - Milton Charles Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
10-3 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
2nd Q
10-6 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-6 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
17-13 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> TE Tanner Tint
3rd Q
24-13 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
24-16 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
4th Q
27-16 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-19 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
34-19 BUF - DTD INT DB Ezra Power

Buffalo decided to rest a few starters in the second last game of the season, namely RB Jimmy Golden and DL Lonnie Vincent. 
It did not slow them down as they cruised to a solid win over the Blacksmiths to be the first team to top 10 wins since 1962.
Pittsburgh still put up a fight and made it a one-score game heading into the final quarter, but the Blue Wings pulled away with a huge Ezra Power pick-6.

Boston Independents - 6, Providence Gold Stars - 23 - Richardson Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
0-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
3-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-13 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3rd Q
3-20 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
4th Q
6-20 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
6-23 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin

The Gold Stars’ defence had a brilliant game against Nathaniel Braddock and the Independents' defence.
They only allowed 6 points and forced 4 turnovers; DB Neville Falkner had one pick and S Paul Christopher, DL Craig White, and LB Viktor Falkensteig each had a forced fumble. 
QB Connor O’Rourke didn’t need to do a lot, but he still threw 2 touchdowns and 205 yards in the win, which is Providence’s 3rd straight (and 5th in their last 6) which keeps them right in the battle for the playoffs heading into the final week.
Boston looked bad throughout the game, Braddock had his worst game in a long while just one week after a stellar performance in the loss to London.

Long Island Raiders - 27, Halifax Mariners - 17 - Long Island Stadium - September 4, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
7-3 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
14-3 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
14-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
17-10 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3rd Q
17-17 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
4th Q
24-17 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
27-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher

A late forced fumble from LB Deon Wiggins ended up being the deciding play in a battle for the East Division crown.
The turnover allowed the Raiders to extend their lead to 10 and pretty much end the game.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to put up scores with his new team with another 2 touchdowns in this game.
The Mariners are in a tough spot after losing 4 of their last 5 games putting them in a position to potentially lose 2nd place in the division.
QB Lyle Painter has cooled off since the start of the season and will need to step up big time if the team wants to be fighting for a title.
*LI clinches East Division
*FUN FACT: this is the first time the East Division has had a back-to-back winner since 1958-1959 (Ottawa)

London Tigers - 15, Toronto Steelheads - 28 - Western Fair Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-7 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
2nd Q
3-14 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
3rd Q
3-21 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
9-21 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Fredrick St.Pierre
4th Q
9-28 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
15-28 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox

The Tigers had to face several blows to their roster during a vital game against the Steelheads.
K Nimrod Handsworth left the game after taking a hit on a punt in the 1st quarter, leaving the Tigers without a kicker, S Niel Graham also left with a brutal season-ending injury, and WR Max Sutton was also taken out by a big hit from S Charles Clerk.
Toronto took advantage of the battered Tigers and put up 28 to end their 2-game slide and finally book their ticket into the playoffs.
RB Max Tracy had a big day with 3 touchdowns and 129 rushing yards.
The loss for the Tigers is costly as an Indiana win could end their season.
*TOR clinches playoff spot

Indiana Victors - 35, Louisville Thunder - 28 - Victory Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
7-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
14-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
14-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
3rd Q
21-14 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
28-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
28-21 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
4th Q
28-28 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
35-28 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> TE Emmanual Hines

A touchdown duel in Indiana came down to the wire after Louisville came back from a 14-point deficit, but the Victors ended up getting the last laugh with TE Emmanuel Hines heroically breaking into the endzone for the game-winning score.
WR Ed Edwards had a big day with a pair of touchdowns and 93 yards, despite facing a very strong Louisville secondary.
Louisville’s secondary did get the best of QB Tom Applewhite a couple of times with a pair of picks.
RB Rodney Clark was a star for the Thunder who unfortunately now fall to 0-11 with a risk of being the 4th team to go winless in NAAF history.
*IND clinches playoff spot
*LDN is officially out of the playoffs

Injury Report
WR German Maksimov BOS - Day-to-Day
DL Timmy Kerr BOS - Day-to-Day
OL Johannes König BUF - Season
WR Jav Kerrigan HFX - Day-to-Day
WR Max Sutton LDN - Day-to-Day
K Nimrod Handsworth LDN - Day-to-Day
S Niel Graham LDN - 6 Weeks
DB Jayden Mills LOU - 1 Week
DL Khalid Al-Amin PIT - 7 Weeks

Players of the Week

OFF: RB Max Tracy TOR - 3 Rushing Touchdowns, 129 Rushing Yards

DEF: LB Deon Wiggins LI - 1 Forced Fumble, 8 Tackles, 1 Sack

Standings
WEST
Buffalo 10-1 -y
Toronto 7-4 -x
Indiana 7-4 -x
London 5-6
Pittsburgh 4-7
Louisville 0-11

EAST
Long Island 9-2 -y
Halifax 7-4 -x
Montreal 6-5
Providence 6-5
Ottawa 3-8
Boston 2-9

Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana -
4 - Toronto +1
5 - Halifax -1
6 - Providence -
7 - Montreal -
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh - 
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Louisville +1
12 - Boston -1

Week 12 Games
OTT (3-8) @ BOS (2-9) - SEP 10 - 12 PM ET
*Losing team gets the 2nd overall pick
HFX (7-4) @ MTL (6-5) - SEP 10 - 3:30 PM ET
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win or PRO Loss
*Winner will host the East Division Semi-Final
LI (9-2) @ PRO (6-5) - SEP 10 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
*PRO clinches playoff spot with Win + MTL Loss
LDN (5-6) @ PIT (4-7) - SEP 11 - 12 PM ET
TOR (7-4) @ LOU (0-11) - SEP 11 - 3:30 PM ET
*TOR clinches 2nd in the West with Win or IND Loss
IND (7-4) @ BUF (10-1) - SEP 11 - 7 PM ET - Season Finale
*IND clinches 2nd in the West with Win + TOR Loss

JamHeronArk wrote:

Man, Halifax is sliding. Not even Wickerweaver is enough.

Halifax may be sliding, but Boston is faltering.

1966 NAAF Award Nominations

MVP

QB Charles Lemieux BUF
Lemieux has often been overlooked in the Buffalo offence due to the electrifying play of RB Jimmy Golden, however, this season Lemieux truly showed why the Blue Wings’ offence is as good as it is. This season, Lemieux led the Blue Wings to a 10-2 record even with having several games without Golden in the backfield. While he was second in the league in both passing yards and passing touchdowns, a more important stat was that he only threw 4 interceptions which was the league leader for QBs that started a majority of the games this season. The lack of turnovers and overall ability to just control a game made him a vital piece in the success of the Blue Wings this season.

QB Lyle Painter HFX
Last year’s MVP winner backed up the excellent season with another strong season with a completely different team. The Mariners will enter the playoffs for the first time since 1956, and a lot of it is thanks to Painter’s strong leadership and play this season. Painter led the league with 22 passing touchdowns and had the most passing yards overall. It was a great performance to truly back up the miraculous season he had in 1965. 

S Garet deVale MTL
deVale has been often just under the surface of the best defensive players in the league. Often being the 4th or 5th guy when looking for the defensive player of the year. However, this season with the coaching change in Montreal, deVale became the crown jewel of the Rouge defence and made play after play. He had a career-high 7 interceptions and had the most tackles by a secondary player this season. Most importantly he came up in clutch moments, having a stellar game in the final week of the season to help the team finish 2nd in the East.

Offensive Player of the Year
QB Charles Lemieux BUF - 19 Passing Touchdowns (T-2nd), 2nd in Passing Yards, 4 Interceptions
Lemieux had a great season through the air as mentioned before. He had his best performance in terms of passing yards this season and was just consistent in keeping the ball in Buffalo’s hands with only 4 interceptions. 

QB Lyle Painter HFX - 22 Passing Touchdowns (1st), 1st in Passing Yards, 10 Interceptions
Painter led the league in passing touchdowns and passing yards for the first time in his career and was consistently moving the ball through the air this season. He might be held back by his 10 interceptions this season, but overall he gave the Mariners’ offence life for the first time in a while.

WR Taylor Karis MTL - 11 Receiving Touchdowns, 2nd in Receiving Yards
Karis was the most electrifying player in the first half of the season, where he had almost doubled the total touchdowns of the second-most. He cooled off in the second half, but still kept ahead of the pace all season en route to a career year.

RB Max Tracy TOR - 14 Rushing Touchdowns, 2 Receiving Touchdowns, 2nd in Rushing Yards, led RBs in Receiving Yards
Max Tracy was an electrifying offensive weapon all season. Despite missing 2 weeks this season, Tracy still has as many total touchdowns as the leader in rushing touchdowns (RB Raymond Green). He was a threat both on the ground and through the air which made him the most vital part of the Steelheads’ offence this season.

Defensive Player of the Year
DB Alexander Bradley LB - 7 Interceptions (T-2nd), 1 Defensive Touchdown, 4th in Passes Defended
At 34-years-old, Bradley being in the DPOY is certainly an accomplishment. However, when DB Rutherford Winters was out for several games this season, Bradley stepped up and put on a stellar season to be the Raiders’ top DB.

LB William Washington II LB - 1st in Tackles, 6 Forced Fumbles (1st)
Last years’ DPOY winner had another stellar season for the Raiders, completely controlling the centre of the field all season. He had the league lead in tackles and forced fumbles once again proving that he should be in the conversation year-in-year-out.

S Garet deVale MTL - 7 Interceptions, 1 Forced Fumble, 1st in tackles (Ss and DBs), 2nd in Passes Defended
deVale had an excellent season as previously mentioned. He became a true leader on the back end for the Rouge, being the last guy back to stop the bomb, but also stepping up to stop RBs in their tracks. 

DB Neville Falkner PRO - 9 Interceptions, 1st in Passes Defended
Falkner is another staple in the DPOY conversations. He continued to lead the league with another 9 interceptions this season. He also had the most success in turning away passes this season leading in that category as well.

Special Teams Player of the Year
K Ryan Perch BUF - 22 Field Goals (T-5th), 38 Extra Points (1st), 104 Total Points (2nd)
Perch is back in contention for the STPOY with a great season for the Blue Wings. He was consistent when it came to extra points and when the team needed him for those field goals.

K Ross Poindexter IND - 25 Field Goals (2nd), 34 Extra Points (2nd), 109 Total Points (1st)
Poindexter had a breakout season this year, finishing in 1st for total points and second in both other categories becoming an important part of the Victors’ success this season. 

K Henderson Schumacher LI - 24 Field Goals (T-3rd), 29 Extra Points (4th), 101 Total Points (3rd)
It has been a while since Schumacher has won the special teams award, but he had a great season for the Raiders and certainly deserves to be back in contention.

Rookie of the Year
WR Felix Fontaine BOS - 3 Receiving Touchdowns (T-22nd), 1st in Rookie Receiving Yards
Fontaine had a strong season as a starting WR for the Independents, he quickly became a favourite target for Nathaniel Braddock when he was under pressure, because of his ability to make something out of nothing.

DB Sergio Alvarez OTT - 3 Interceptions (T-15th)
Alvarez quickly found his footing in the Royals secondary this season grabbing 3 interceptions and giving a lot of hope to the Royals’ future on the back end.

LB Kurt Warlock PRO - 2 Forced Fumbles, 1st in Rookie Tackles
Warlock got a lot of help from having his college coach jump up to the pro-level along with him. He was put in the best place to succeed in the Gold Stars defence which had a really strong season. Warlock didn’t make a lot of eye-catching plays, but he was a consistent tackler all year long.

Coach of the Year
HC Maurice Evanson - BUF - Record: 10-2
Evanson and the Blue Wings took their playoff snub from last season personally and tore up the league this season. Evanson got his team to rebound with the first 10 win season in the league since 1962.

HC Dannell Willis - IND - Record: 8-4
Willis had a tall task with losing his MVP-winning QB Lyle Painter in the offseason. The expectation would be a step back this season, however, the Victors took a step forward and had a better season than last year. 

HC Garrett Boone - PRO - Record: 7-5
Boone’s first season of professional football got off to a rocky 1-4 start, but he turned things around, leading the Gold Stars to a 6-1 record over the last 7 games. He rejuvenated the defence for the Gold Stars which allows the second least amount of points this season.

Breakout Player of the Year
WR Shane Steadman HFX - 10 Receiving Touchdowns (2nd), 3rd in Receiving Yards
Finally having a strong QB allowed for Steadman to step up and become a #1 WR. He scored a career-high 10 touchdowns and was the league’s 3rd best when it came to receiving yards.

RB Raymond Green IND - 16 Rushing Touchdowns (1st), 1st in Rushing Yards
There were shoes to be filled in the Victors’ backfield. It seemed that Indiana had gotten their replacement in the draft, however, 4th-year RB Raymond Green stepped up in a major way leading the league in both rushing touchdowns and yards. His fantastic season made QB Tom Applewhite’s job a whole lot easier.

QB Tom Applewhite IND - 18 Passing Touchdowns (4th), 5th in Passing Yards, 11 Interceptions
Applewhite finally got his first full season to start and he did a pretty darn good job leading the Victors to an 8-4 record. He wasn’t the best when it came to the passing yards, but he found the endzone plenty of times this season. He did make a lot of mistakes with 11 interceptions, but the 18 touchdowns certainly put him on the map.

49th McCallister Cup Host
*I have already decided on the host*

***VOTE HERE***

Last edited by Wallflower (1/02/2022 3:43 pm)