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5/19/2021 5:00 pm  #261


Re: Escalian Football League

Wait, are the Knights...good?



AHS Admin. Creator of the THLPUCHWHA: Redux and Retroliga.
 

5/23/2021 11:04 pm  #262


Re: Escalian Football League

1974 Playoffs: First Round

#5 Homestead Reapers @ #4 Tallokope City Anchors

While it was a particularly warm and sunny day in TC for early December, both teams would struggle like they were playing in the rain. The Anchors started out with the ball, though QB Errol Haberkorn’s pass was tipped on the third play of the game and intercepted by DL Ricardo Barrera. The Reapers didn’t have better success on offense, as all of their drives stalled out past midfield or they punted it away. Tallokope City found some success offensively, but only ended up inside the 30 as the seconds ticked down in the first quarter.
END OF Q1: 0-0
After Haberkorn made a couple of mistakes in the first, RB Mitchell Gallagher took control over the ball and, on the first play of the second quarter, he ran the ball 27 yards into the endzone to score the first points of the game. Homestead’s defensive unit held strong through the rest of the quarter, but their offensive woes continued. It was either QB Garret Morse struggling to find his receivers or RB Gerhardt Derby only gaining one or two yards past the Anchors’ defensive line. The Anchors got some progress going, but would unfortunately get anything to stick as they ended the half only putting up 7 against Homestead in the first half. 
END OF Q2: 7-0 TCA
The third quarter wouldn’t fair better for the Reapers, as they struggled to gain any ground on offense. Their defense still held up against the potent Tallokope City offense, but a few cracks showed for Gallagher to roll through and get past the 50 for the first time in the half. However, their success was short-lived and took 3 points stalling out on the 38 yard line. Even though Homestead had the more well-known defense, it was the Anchors that kept them scoreless so far, with LB John Hays stealing one from Morse and DL Mark Tucker picking up a fumble from Derby. The Anchors wouldn’t score off the interception, but they did start driving off the fumble at the end of the 3rd quarter.
END OF Q3: 10-0 TCA
Haberkorn made up for his early mistakes by throwing for 30 yards on 3 straight plays to put the Anchors on the 2 yard line, where Gallagher would stomp in to take a commanding 17-0 lead. The Reapers were still struggling to gain anything, a late interception by S Dennis Slater sealed the deal for the Anchors to move past the first round. 
FINAL: 17-0 TCA



#6 Orcaster Racers @ #3 Kierport Knights

While the previous game was a let-down to some, this matchup seemed to be an action-packed game featuring the league’s newest offensively-minded teams. The Knights started their playoff return with a bang, as QB Arnie Kruger threw a bomb to WR Ralph Owens for 78 yards on the first play of the game. The Racers wouldn’t be kept scoreless long after that, as young QB Fred Pond traded passes between receivers Steve Franco and rookie James Nelson to eventually find their way in the endzone, with a 5 yard pass to Nelson to tie the game at 7. Kierport didn’t want to be tied with one of their former rivals, and embarked on a drive to retake the lead. With RB Robert Underwood out for the season, backup RB Cliff Frost flexed his muscles and traded plays with Kruger on their way to the 27 yard line. This would be the end of Frost’s play for the game, as he fumbled the ball on 3rd down and was sidelined to a background role for the team. The Knights did regain control of the ball though, and scored a field goal to retake the lead.
END OF Q1: 10-7 KIE
The Knights would keep on rolling into the 2nd quarter, as Kruger took over the driver’s seat on their next long drive. He would find his #1 receiver in Owens three times on this drive for 43 yards, but hit TE Stefan Johansson for 6 yards to up their score to 17. The Racers, like they did in the past, sputtered out and failed to get into the redzone throughout the rest of the half, though Pond showed some promise with his duo of receivers. The Knights did make it into scoring range, but the 35 year old K Leonard Shearer showed his age and missed all his attempts from more than 40 yards out. Even with the misses, the Knights would enter the locker room up by 10 with a Racers team that seemingly could not do anything.
END OF Q2: 17-7 KIE
Orcaster’s start to the second half didn’t fare so well for them. On their first drive, Pond mistakenly threw up a pass for Nelson, but it went way short of him and landed right in the hands of S Gary Harmon. Instead of the Knights’ quick drives like they normally had, this one would be a bit slower. Kruger would find some receivers open, but had to create most of the opportunities to even drive down the field. His scrambling would eventually lead to a score, as he would take it in himself from 8 yards out when none of his receivers were open. That drive took most of the quarter, and the rest of the quarter didn’t consist of anything of note, as both teams took turns stalling out on their drives and punting the ball away.
END OF Q3: 24-7 KIE
With the win in their sights, Kierport took it a bit easier and took the pedal off the gas a bit. They cashed in on their first drive of the quarter, but only traded in the ball for 3 points after Kruger missed three passes in a row within the 20. The Racers still could not find their way into the endzone, or just score in general. The Knights had the ball on their own 10 with only 30 seconds left, and so coach Lyall Parsons instructed P Gordon Head to eat as much time off the clock and take a safety if needed. Head ran out the clock with what remained and headed backwards into the endzone for a meaningless 2 points added for the Racers, and the first Knights playoff win in 10 years.
FINAL: 27-9 KIE



Semi-Finals Preview

#4 Tallokope City Anchors @ #1 Ashonta Miners
Previous Matchups: 13th Escalian Cup: TCA 33-27 ASH

The first of the Escalian Cup rematches in the semi-finals, this should be an offensive battle like last year. The Anchors’ defensive unit has improved since last year, and the Miners dominated on offense like last year. This game could go either way and it will come down to who will outperform the other.
Escalian Sports Magazine Prediction: Ashonta’s riding a hot streak and will take that right to their fifth Escalian Cup appearance. 27-24 ASH

#3 Kierport Knights @ #2 Norfolk Lumberjacks
Previous Matchups: 1973 W3: KIE 20-25 NOR

The current powerhouse against an old team ready to prove that they’re ready to get back to the top. Kierport has been almost single-handedly carried by QB Arnie Kruger all season long, but he has some weapons around him to make that offense work. Norfolk, on the other hand, is a juggernaut and can dominate teams on both sides of the ball. This game will either be close or a blowout by the Lumberjacks.
Escalian Sports Magazine Prediction: Norfolk’s core has way more experience that Kierport’s, and that’s all that is needed for them to move on to their 5th Cup appearance. 24-7 NOR



C&C Appreciated! How'd your team do?



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

5/27/2021 9:25 pm  #263


Re: Escalian Football League

And 1 year later, I'm still somehow doing this project! I never thought that I would get this far with my first project, but I'd like to thank everyone for following along with this 1 year later and I hope to continue for another year or maybe even more! Anyway, with that out of the way here's the semi-finals!

1974 Playoffs: Semi-Finals:

#3 Kierport Knights @ #2 Norfolk Lumberjacks

The Lumberjacks looked to redeem themselves after the disaster that was the previous 1973 season. And they sure made their mark on the first possession of the game, with QB Nathan Slezak hitting aging WR Craig Farmer for 37 total yards on their 78 yard march to the endzone. Slezak topped off the drive to TE Duane Snyder for 8 yards to score the first touchdown of the game, by K Isaac Brandt missed the point after and the ‘Jacks only went up by 6. Kierport would begin being incredibly unlucky, as QB Arnie Kruger threw a solid pass to WR Herman Shepherd but it slipped right through Shepherd’s fingers into the hands of Norfolk DB Bradley Goodwin. The Knights would have gotten the ball back on the Lumberjacks’ punt back to them, but returner Cliff Frost muffed the punt and the ball went right back to Norfolk. Brandt would somewhat redeem himself on a 27 yard chip shot field goal to put Norfolk up by 9 at the end of the quarter.
END OF Q1: 9-0 NOR
Kierport continued to struggle on the offensive side of the ball, with Kruger not being able to get his receivers open and RB Frost not able to gain significant ground. Norfolk equally struggled on offense, as both defenses held strong to not allow the other side another point. That stalemate would break late into the second, with Slezak launching another long drive in their attempt to score. RB Bruno Fontaine would rush for 30 yards on the drive, but they were stopped before going past the 25 yard line, resulting in Brandt nailing another field goal to end the half up by 12.
END OF Q2: 12-0 NOR
While the first half was painful for the Knights, they came out of the locker room with a vengeance. Kruger made his presence known and threw three straight darts to WR Ralph Owens for 45 yards to set themselves up in scoring range for the first time in the game. While they only got three off of that drive, it changed the momentum in favor of the Knights. Getting the ball back off of a rare fumble from Fontaine, the Knights got themselves back into scoring range on a 20 yard pass from Kruger to TE Stefan Johansson. Kruger would reconnect with Johansson a few plays later for a 6 yarder to make the game closer than Norfolk would have liked it. Slezak didn’t seem to feel the pressure, as he scrambled for 29 yards to put the ‘Jacks in scoring range to end the third quarter.
END OF Q3: 12-10 NOR
Norfolk would lose some of that momentum on that drive, and would turn to Brandt to kick another easy field goal. However, Brandt missed from 31 yards out, and the ball landed back in the hands of Kruger and the Knights. Kruger would land two passes over 20 yards to reliable receivers Johansson and Owens to once again set them up to score. Kruger would force his way in from 3 yards out to take the lead for the first time in the game. The Lumberjacks would immediately retaliate, taking less than a minute to march downfield and get within scoring range. Fontaine would plunge right up the middle for 6 yards to retake the lead with only 3 minutes left in the game. The Knights would get past midfield with about a minute left, but their unluckiness from the first quarter would catch up with them. Kruger looked for Shepherd in the middle of the field, but Shepherd would fumble the ball after the catch and would be recovered by Norfolk LB Douglas Hunt to seal the game for the Lumberjacks.
FINAL: 19-17 NOR



#4 Tallokope City Anchors @ #1 Ashonta Miners

The Anchors would get off to a rocky start in the first playoff game at Ashonta’s Warrick Stadium. RB Mitchell Gallagher would start the game running up the middle three times, but fell short of the first down and punted the ball to Ashonta. On the return was WR Jordan Samson, who took the ball 66 yards to the endzone to take the first lead of the game. After another punt by the Anchors, QB Daniel Haumann and the Miners would take charge in this battle of offensive heavyweights. After nailing two long passes to Samson and WR Marty Farmer, Haumann put the ball in the arms of RB Leonard Arts who rushed 12 yards into the endzone to up their lead to 14 at the end of the first quarter.
END OF Q1: 14-0 ASH
The Miners’ offensive dominance would quickly die out in the second quarter, as their first drive of the quarter resulted in a quick three and out and a punt back to the Anchors. Tallokope City got off to an extremely slow start, but they began gaining some momentum beginning in the 2nd. Gallagher started to look like his regular season self, and rushed for 31 yards on the Anchors’ first drive of the quarter. The Anchors couldn’t make it into the endzone this time, settling for 3 as their second half prospects looked fairly bright.
END OF Q2: 14-3 ASH
Right off the bat the Anchors got down to business. QB Errol Haberkorn would find trusty WR Aaron Minnett for 27 yards to start out the half strong. 6 plays later, Haberkorn would hand the ball off to Gallagher, who would rush for 3 yards and cut the Miners’ lead down to 4. Ashonta would embark on a drive of their own, but theirs would be a lot more grueling. Over a course of 15 plays, they had to convert on 3rd down 3 times and converted on 4th down once. However, their persistence paid off, with Haumann connecting with TE Spencer Maddison for 7 yards to put themselves back up by 11. Ashonta didn’t leave much time on the clock for the rest of the third quarter, but the Anchors quickly made their way past midfield as the clock expired on the third quarter
END OF Q3: 21-10 ASH
Tallokope City would easily make their way through the Miners’ defense, with Gallagher and Haberkorn cutting up the Ashonta secondary on their way to a quick score. On the second play of the quarter, Haberkorn would hit WR Floyd Morrow for 23 yards to once again put the Anchors within a possession of the Miners with a touchdown. The Miners would try to reassert their lead, but Haumann would make a key mistake and throw the ball away into the hands of Anchors LB John Hays, who returned the ball back 51 yards before being stopped 2 yards short of the endzone. Gallagher would score on the very next play, resulting in the first lead of the game for the Anchors. With 3 minutes left, the Miners were still able to come back, and many had thought Haumann would put together a miracle, as Ashonta was notorious for scoring on quick drives. However, they would fail to convert on 4th down this drive as the Anchors ran out the clock for a trip to their second straight Escalian Cup.
FINAL: 24-21 TCA



15th Escalian Cup Preview: #4 Tallokope City Anchors @ #2 Norfolk Lumberjacks

While this wasn’t the predicted matchup that people would see in the Escalian Cup, fans certainly weren’t disappointed with the end result. Norfolk has become the definitive dynasty of the league, only missing the playoffs 3 times in the past 15 years. Tallokope City has become the emerging power in the league with a surging offense and a defensive line that is one of the strongest in the league. Like most other Cups in the past, this may be another game to remember.
Escalian Sports Magazine Prediction: While the Anchors are coming off of their first Escalian Cup, the Lumberjacks are the team with the most playoff experience and that will carry them to their 4th Escalian Cup. 28-20 NOR

Fun Fact: This is the first time since the introduction of the 6-team playoff in 1974 where both the #1 seed failed to make the Escalian Cup and the first time a team from the first round made it to the Escalian Cup.



C&C Appreciated! Which team do you think will come out on top?



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

6/02/2021 7:27 pm  #264


Re: Escalian Football League

15th Escalian Cup: Tallakope City Anchors @ Norfolk Lumberjacks



Triplet Lakes Energy finally got its well-deserved place in the spotlight as one of the best stadiums in the league got to host the 15th Escalian Cup between two powerhouses of the league. The game didn’t start as fans had wanted, as both teams failed to get past midfield on their first drives and punted the ball away. The Anchors were the first to do something with the ball, with the one-two punch of QB Errol Haberkorn and RB Mitchell Gallagher taking turns inching their way to get past midfield and into scoring range for the first time in the game. The Lumberjack D-Line held the offense to just 7 yards after TC entered scoring range, and so K Ted Monroe hit one from 33 yards out to take the early 3-0 lead. After that drive, neither team could really put a drive together in the rest of the quarter.
END OF Q1: 3-0 TCA
If the first quarter was a battle of the defenses, the second quarter would be a battle of the offenses. It would be after the Anchors started driving deep into Lumberjack territory off of a 30 yard reception by WR Aaron Minnett. However, Haberkorn threw a costly interception to DB Michael House, who returned it 81 yards back to his own endzone to take a 6-3 lead, as the kick from K Isaac Brandt hit the uprights. Haberkorn didn’t let that score get to him that much, as the very next drive he hit WR Floyd Morrow twice for 47 yards to set them up at the 10 yard line. Gallagher would finish the job and score from 7 yards out to retake the lead for the Anchors. Norfolk QB Nathan Slezak would get his turn to shine in the spotline, as he found WR Craig Farmer on the sideline and dashed his way to a 34 yard touchdown. TC would retaliate on their next drive, with Gallagher nearly taking the ball for a touchdown single-handedly, but Haberkorn sealed off that drive with a 3 yard pass to TE Jeff McKenzie. Norfolk ran out the clock to end the first half, as they would be receiving the kickoff to start the second half
END OF Q2: 17-13 TCA
The momentum that both teams had in the second quarter seemed to slow down a bit this half, as Norfolk seemed to limp along on their first drive of the quarter. RB Bruno Fontaine took most of the beating on the drive, as he carried the team past the 30 yard line and had potential to score another 6. They would only get half that, as they went three and out after that and handed the ball back to the Anchors after scoring another field goal. Gallagher and Haberkorn would make some way down the field before losing momentum of their own, and scored 3 points of their own to keep their 4 point lead. After Norfolk punted the ball away on their next drive, it looked as if TC would score, as they were shredding right through the Norfolk defense. That would not last for long, as Haberkorn threw a pass to WR Blair Reed but House would punch it loose and almost took it back for a touchdown. Fontaine would punch in for another 6 points 2 plays later, taking the lead for the first time in the game. The Anchors lost their mojo after that, slogging downfield on their next drive only to get stuck on the 40 yard line, with Monroe having to bail them out to score another 3 to both tie the game back up and keep the game close.
END OF Q3: 23-23 
After a somewhat sluggish third quarter for the Lumberjacks, they looked like they would shut down the competition after the Anchors looked to be stalling out. Slezak would take note of this, as he threw a short slant to WR Milton Stuart, who torched the TC secondary for a first down and almost waltzed right in if not for a shoelace tackle by S Dennis Slayter that downed him at the 9 yard line. Slezak would finish off the drive on a 2 yard pass to TE Duane Snyder for the touchdown, putting them back in the lead. After the Anchors stalled on their drive, Norfolk struck back quickly with a 27 yard run by Fontaine, but they decided to run out the clock as best as they could instead of going for another score. They chewed up about 4 minutes of the clock, but still left enough for the Anchors to potentially make a comeback. Haberkorn made one last attempt to hit a pass to Reed, but this time the ball slipped right through his hands and right into the hands of DB Michael House, who returned the ball back 30 yards for a touchdown, all but sealing the game for the Lumberjacks. After one last attempt by the Anchors to do anything failed, the Lumberjacks ran out the clock to score their 4th Escalian Cup victory, and their 3rd Cup in 5 years.
FINAL: 37-23 NOR



For the first time since the inaugural Cup in 1960, a defensive player took home MVP honors. Norfolk’s Michael House almost had 3 touchdowns on the day, but broke the record for most defense touchdowns with two, both interceptions with the second sealing the fate for the Lumberjacks. In what many thought to have been his last game, House, 36, made sure that his last game as a pro would be his best game yet.



And with that, I'll be taking a bit of a hiatus from this project. I have some stuff to take care of, both with how I keep track of everything and real life stuff. Don't worry, I'll bring back this project with a bang when it eventually comes back, because there will be a lot to deal with. C&C appreciated!



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

6/02/2021 7:42 pm  #265


Re: Escalian Football League

Congrats Norfolk, they're turning into a dynasty it seems.

 





 
 

6/02/2021 8:28 pm  #266


Re: Escalian Football League

Alright!  Lumberjacks winning the championship always puts a smile on my face!  Good game too!  Sounds like there's a lot going on for you right now, hope everything goes well while you get through it all!

Last edited by Stickman (6/02/2021 8:28 pm)




 

6/22/2021 10:10 pm  #267


Re: Escalian Football League

And I'm back after like 3 weeks of hiatus! And I have big news at the end of the first half of the offseason post...

1974-75 Offseason Part 1 

Owner’s Meetings

EFL-UFL Merger Finalization
As soon as the Lumberjacks captured their 4th Escalian Cup, all the owners and the commissioner came together with the 4 remaining owners of the UFL, as Great Horn Bison owner Chris Matheson refused to show up as he knew his team would not make it to the EFL. Commissioner Cullen decided that the remaining 4 teams in Arcanfall, Colnica, Decontro, and Minola would all be accepted in the league at an expansion fee of around $2.25 million per team. The owners collectively decided that a dispersal draft would take place to pick up the remaining UFL players not already on the 4 accepted teams’ rosters, which would take place in February. Soon after the agreement was reached, the owners decided that the recently-vacated market of Montagrada was too good to pass up, and they offered to pay any UFL team for a sum of $1.5 million to kickstart stadium renovations or to put towards building a new stadium. Decontro Roosters owner Isidoro Fernandes took up the offer, as he was already considering moving the Roosters out of Decontro City due to poor stadium conditions that the Roosters had to play in. 

Realignment
With all the team locations set for the 1975 season, the owners took up the tough task of realignment. Initially, the 4 divisions that the league already had were to be kept and were to be expanded up from 4 teams to 5 in each. Instead of that proposal, a simpler deal was reached. The East Division would house all the new UFL teams,  with all the teams that were in it for the 1974 season (Ashonta, Fort McLeod, Homestead, and Sarnia) would move to the newly created Central Division. The playoffs would also expand from 6 to 8 teams, with all 5 divisional winners guaranteed playoff spots, with the remaining three spots being claimed by the three next best teams. The teams would then be seeded 1 to 8, regardless if they won their division or not. With the expansion to 20 teams, the season would expand from 14 games to 16. 

Uniform Updates

Adelaide was long overdue for an update, as owner Paul Pryce was extremely reluctant to update their set, as they haven’t done anything major in around 10 years. Pryce finally decided that a rebrand was in order after a long string of losing seasons, on the condition that the team would keep the old championship patch as well as having another star in the new logo. The designers came up with something new, with a winged modern A with a single four-pointed above it. The striping on the uniforms remains the same, as the green has been lightened to more of a kelly green while the blue was darkened to add some contrast between the two colors.





Arcanfall’s only change was with their main wizard logo, as the beard was changed to be more like a beard and less like a shape that just so happened to accidentally look like a star. Their uniforms introduced in 1972 remain the same.



Augusta went under a minor uniform change, removing the alternate while altering their colors slightly. The main change was adding horns to their helmet instead of the bull head logo, which owner Victor Sharman purchased the helmet decals from the remnants of the Great Horn Bison to save a bit of money instead of creating his own horns in-house.



Colnica made a minor change to their uniforms, removing the interlocking CS from the helmet due to complaints of not being able to see what was in the star.




The newly-christened Montagrada Roosters made a minor update to their rooster, while changing their helmets to a white shell, making their pant stripes red, and changing their cleat color to white.







The last change made was by the defending champions, Norfolk, who added another star to their main patch. 



Other News
With the influx of new teams, the league decided to expand the search for the newest prospects who would come into the league. As a result, the owners have announced the creation of the EFL Independent Scouting Commission (ISC). The league will relinquish its duties of overseeing all scouting operations and turn the operations over to the new commission, headed by former scout Dale Beckham, who will also play a part in submitting prospects for the upcoming draft The league is also relaxing its policy on who can join the league, allowing for players to come from all across the globe to come play with Escalia’s best. The league would prefer a majority of its players to come from the nation where all its teams are, but will accept a few players that come from the States, Canada, parts of Europe, or anywhere else on the globe.

That's right! The big addition to this offseason will be the ability to make your own players! I'll hold off on the second part of the offseason (which will be the player movement and the draft class) until I get a decent amount of players, so send them my way! There's no limit on how many you can send, but I will try to give at least 1 player to every person that submitted a prospect.

EFL SCOUTING REPORT LINK


And that's about it for this half of the offseason! I'll get to the other half of the offseason and then get to the draft after that! C&C Appreciated!

Last edited by DireBear (6/23/2021 1:05 pm)



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

6/23/2021 8:07 am  #268


Re: Escalian Football League

DireBear, this may be my first time posting in this topic, but I have been quietly been following it from the very beginning, and I am actually quite impressed with your fictional league! My favorite team so far would have to be the Fort McLeod Generals, as just happen to really like their logo. Although I'm also really liking the Owls' updated uniforms.

Also, are basketball and hockey popular in Escalia at all? Not that I am suggesting you do basketball and hockey leagues on top of the EFL at all, but I was just wondering. Keep up the good work!

 

6/23/2021 1:05 pm  #269


Re: Escalian Football League

Slapshot Kirby wrote:

DireBear, this may be my first time posting in this topic, but I have been quietly been following it from the very beginning, and I am actually quite impressed with your fictional league! My favorite team so far would have to be the Fort McLeod Generals, as just happen to really like their logo. Although I'm also really liking the Owls' updated uniforms.

Also, are basketball and hockey popular in Escalia at all? Not that I am suggesting you do basketball and hockey leagues on top of the EFL at all, but I was just wondering. Keep up the good work!

Glad you've been enjoying the series! I've really come to like the Owls rebrand, so I'm glad that you're enjoying it as well! As for your question, basketball is decently popular while hockey isn't really that popular within Escalia. Soccer is the #1 sport in the country, while football is a very close second and baseball and auto racing are a distant third and fourth place. 



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

6/28/2021 8:43 pm  #270


Re: Escalian Football League

Last call for submitting prospects! I'll set the deadline for submitting prospects for this year's draft tomorrow at 9 P.M. EST/6 P.M. PST. We have a good list of prospects so far, so come and submit as many as you would like. Here's the link to the scouting report for those who need it.



Founder of the EFL and the AFL
     Thread Starter
 

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