1954 Playoffs

West Division Play-Off: Washington Federals @ Chicago Hogs

It was a mild Thanksgiving Day at Union Stadium, with light showers sprinkling the field before the game and fog lingering from the earlier storms. The weather didn’t seem to bring the two best offenses in the league to believe they would not perform well, as brown and blue fans alike packed Union Stadium for one of the league’s budding rivalries. It’s a rematch of last year’s West play-off, and Chicago is more than eager to get revenge on the Federals.

Q1
The Federals won the coin toss and elected to receive the ball, hoping to get ahead of the Hogs early. Washington HC Irving Barry wanted to control the clock and wear down the Hogs' defense, and he began executing his plan on the first drive. RB Rip Rooney began to power his way through the mighty Chicago defensive line, gaining ground little by little to wear down them early. After taking a few minutes off the clock, QB Johnnie Sellers caught the defense off guard by WR Darius Sanderson in a one-on-one matchup against DB Douglas Cross. Sellers threw the ball where only the tall Sanderson could reach it, and Sanderson streaked down the sideline, nearly going in untouched before S Jeffery Irwin tackled him out of bounds at the two yard line. Rooney would plunge into the endzone two plays later, taking a pivotal 7-0 lead to begin the game. Chicago tried to use the elusive MVP RB Billy Gould, but they only managed to gain a single first down before being stopped and forced to punt. Washington would get right back into their groove that they began with, slowly carving their way through the Chicago defense to make small gains before catching the defense sleeping on a deep pass attempt once in a while. On 3rd down on the opposing 30 yard line, Sellers attempted to pounce on a sleeping Hogs defense by throwing a dart in the endzone to WR Joseph Atkins, but DB Clarence Newman was there to break up the pass. K Eugene Hickman then came in to attempt a simple field goal, but the ball hit the upright and luckily went in for 3. The Hogs went back to running the ball with Gould, allowing him to flourish and gained a pair of first downs before the quarter ended.
WAS 10, CHI 0

Q2
Gould would finally dazzle the Chicago fans after a couple of plays of 3 yards and a pile of dust. QB Alfred Walton handed the ball off to Gould, and Gould found a hole and began to dart to the endzone. He would evade the remaining defenders in his way, easily getting into the endzone for a 42 yard score. The Hogs had closed the gap to a single score and had the momentum, and now the Federals had to worry about the potential juggernaut that Chicago could become. That fear would seep into the offense, as Washington would go 3 and out and give the ball right back to the Hogs. Luckily for the Federals, their defense would stuff Gould after driving a bit down the field, forcing Walton to pass to get a first down. Walton would throw to WR Ciarán Murphy over the middle, but the ball was tipped by LB Christopher Carney before it ever got to Murphy. Fellow LB Russell Bauer would fall under the ball for an interception, giving the Federals the chance to score before the Hogs would get the ball back after halftime. Washington moved into scoring range on passes from Sellers to WR’s Joseph Atkins and Darius Sanderson. However, their drive came to a halt when RB Rip Rooney attempted to run up the middle on a short 2nd and 1. Rookie DL Benjamin Walkins, Jr. knocked the ball loose at the line of scrimmage, and a scrum ensued as players from both teams scrambled for the ball. Chicago DL Eric Forbes emerged from the pile with the ball, and the crowd erupted in cheers as the Hogs ran out the remaining clock to end the first half.
WAS 10, CHI 7

Q3
The momentum that Chicago gained entering the half remained with them entering the 3rd quarter. Billy Gould continued to run all over the Federals defense, darting and weaving his way through defenders for significant gains on the first drive. Gould would break out for a 33 yard rush to cap off the drive, taking the handoff up the middle and outran every defender on his way to the endzone, taking the lead for the Hogs. Washington would struggle moving the ball to start their second half, going three and out and handing the ball back to the red-hot Hogs. Learning from their mistakes in last year’s play-off game, Gould would get some rest after carrying the Hogs offense for an entire half, splitting carries with RB Jeffery Spears. As a result, Chicago switched to a more balanced playstyle, with QB Alfred Walton throwing more than a single pass on a drive. It was a jarring difference between the offense with Gould and without him, but the Hogs still drove their way down the field into scoring range. Spears would get his moment back in the spotlight, finding his way up the middle while carrying LB Russell Bauer for another 5 yards after Bauer tried to take him down. Walton would look to the corner of the endzone to find TE Glenn Chambers for a 5 yard TD the play after to take a commanding 11 point lead. Washington would fail to retaliate on their next drive, as QB Johnnie Sellers made a bad read and threw it directly to DB Douglas Cross for an interception. The two teams traded punts back and forth, and the ball ended up back in Chicago’s hands with Billy Gould ready to strike once again.
WAS 10, CHI 21

Q4
Chicago would mix in passing plays to prevent Gould from getting too tired, and this kept the Federals off balance, as they were expecting the Hogs to run the ball. QB Alfred Walton would fake the handoff and roll to his right, hitting WR Ciarán Murphy on the sideline for 31 yards before getting knocked out of bounds. Gould seized the shortened field position, running the remaining 17 yards untouched to create a near-insurmountable lead of 15 points. The Federals would make another turnover to ruin any chances of a comeback, as QB Johnnie Sellers threw his second interception of the game to DB Clarence Newman on a tipped ball. Chicago would only take a couple minutes off the clock, leaving Washington with little time to score. Chicago’s defense let up for a moment with victory in their sights, allowing Sellers to find WR Darius Sanderson on the sideline for a 40 yard gain late in the game. The Federals tried to act on that splash of momentum, but Chicago clamped down and quickly forced a 4th down, allowing K Eugene Hickman to score a pity field goal with under a minute left to play. After a failed recovery attempt by the Federals, the Hogs ran out the remaining clock to make their 4th championship appearance in the last 5 years, and have the chance for Walton to win one last title before retiring.
WAS 13, CHI 28



East Division Play-Off: Buffalo Hammers @ Cleveland Crows

The mild Thanksgiving air transferred through the Great Lakes over to Cleveland, which was hosting its first AFL playoff game, and the fans showed up for what could be a new era for the Crows. There was some fog coming from Lake Erie and into Municipal Stadium obscuring the stadium view, but Crows and Hammers fans managed to bring the 43,000 seat stadium over capacity for a game that could change either team’s futures. Both of the team’s starting QB’s (Buffalo’s Brendan Turnbull and Cleveland’s Denzel Collingsworth) are making their playoff debuts, and will be getting their first taste of playing under pressure.

Q1
Cleveland would win the coin toss, but deferred possession to the second half. Buffalo QB Brendan Turnbull would get off to a rocky start, misreading WR Bernard Clarke’s route and threw it directly into the arms of Cleveland DB Barry Roach for an interception. The Crows offense was efficient on their first drive, gaining first down after first down. QB Denzel Collingsworth completed several passes to WR’s Jerry O'Keefe and Joey Stanikovski, and RB Max Panders rushed for several yards. Collingsworth completed a pass to O’Keefe that nearly went into the endzone, but DB Joe Merritt made a shoe-string tackle at the 1 yard line to keep the ball from going in. Panders would punch it in 2 plays later, giving the Crows the early lead. The Hammers would get back on their next drive, making their way past midfield on a 20 yard rush by RB Calvin Townsend. Buffalo’s momentum would keep rolling, as QB Brendan Turnbull would throw a dart to WR Ben Farrell in a one-on-one a couple plays later, beating DB Nicholas Lamb to the ball for the 16 yard score. They would not tie the game however, as K Guy Moran’s kick would get blocked at the line of scrimmage. After back-to-back scores, the teams would trade punts back and forth before getting back into the hands of the Hammers. Their drive would get off to a hot start on a 26 yard run by RB Calvin Townsend to get them across midfield. Their momentum would die down after that play, with the drive sputtering out and K Guy Moran coming on to kick a 24 yard field goal to take the lead.
BUF 9, CLE 7

Q2
The defenses would begin to settle in once the second quarter began, and forced mistakes and punts out of both offenses. Cleveland’s QB Denzel Collingsworth would throw a bad pass as he escaped from the pocket, falling into the arms of DB Rogelio Amos for an interception. Buffalo would begin the punt back-and-forth game between the two teams after nearly fumbling the ball away on two consecutive plays. The Crows regained possession of the ball and advanced across midfield, with RB Max Panders gaining most of the yards on the drive to that point. Things changed on a 2nd down on the 40 yard line, as QB Denzel Collingsworth hit an innocent slant to WR Joey Staniskovski over the middle. Staniskovski got enough space to make a run for the endzone as he turned to the sideline. He eluded DB Barry Roach's tackle and sprinted past S Steven Norris to score a 40-yard touchdown, giving Cleveland the lead back. With little time left in the half, Buffalo only managed to get to midfield before attempting a field goal. However, K Guy Moran's kick sailed far to the right and was unsuccessful, meaning that Buffalo would have to wait until the second half to get the lead back.
BUF 9, CLE 14

Q3
Cleveland would limp out of the gate to start the second half, as QB Denzel Collingsworth nearly threw an interception on 1st down and the Crows punted the ball away three plays later. Buffalo’s offense would face the same woes as the Crows, getting only a single first down before being stopped and forced to punt. This punt would change things, as Cleveland return man Greg Dixon would receive the ball at their own 22, and got a head full of steam and he dashed through the openings for a 78-yard return TD. Buffalo would have to retaliate, and QB Brendan Turnbull would manage a drive that would quickly get them back in the game. Turnbull would throw a laser down the sideline to the wide-open WR Bernard Clarke, who caught it in stride and turned upfield for a big gain of 37 yards. RB Calvin Townsend would get stuffed trying to gain a first down, and the field goal unit came onto the field to kick a 35 yarder to keep the game within 2 possessions. Cleveland RB Max Panders would break off for a 19 yard rush to begin the next drive for the Crows, giving them enough steam to make it past midfield a couple of plays later on short passes to WR’s Jerry O’Keefe and Joey Staniskovksi. Cleveland would advance deep into Hammers territory, but the Buffalo defense locked up on three straight incompletions towards the endzone. Cleveland would go up by 12 with a successful 12 yard field goal by K Daniel Simon. The Hammers struck back almost immediately. Buffalo return man Tyler Dye sprinted through defenders and looked like he would return it for a touchdown. Cleveland defender Sean Hamby made a diving tackle at Dye's legs, barely touching his shoes as Dye went down at the 36 yard line. Two plays later, QB Brendan Turnbull would throw up the ball to WR Bernard Clarke for the contested catch, jumping over DB Tom Wolf to put the game back within a possession with 1 quarter remaining.
BUF 19, CLE 24

Q4
The fourth quarter would be slower than the third, as the two teams would trade punts to each other before any real action happened in the final minutes. Buffalo QB Brendan Turnbull would be the player to break the stalemate, though not in the way he would have wanted. The Hammers were already on a decent drive, and were ready to strike within Crows territory. Turnbull looked to his right to attempt a throw to WR Ben Farrell, but got clobbered by Cleveland DL Fergus Prenderghast, knocking the ball high enough in the air for LB Lloyd Motta to fall underneath the ball for an interception. It was now time for QB Denzel Collingsworth and the Crows to put the game away, embarking on one final drive to score. RB Max Panders got the team out of their own territory with crucial rushes, eventually getting past midfield on a 11 yard sprint up the middle. Two plays later, Collingsworth would find WR Jerry O’Keefe ready to split the middle of the field, getting just enough distance from Hammers defenders to nearly get into the endzone untouched for a 45 yard score. Buffalo would struggle to gain any offensive ground, sputtering out and failing to convert on their final drive to get back into the game. Cleveland would run out the remaining clock and would play the underdog to the juggernaut Chicago Hogs for the championship.
BUF 19, CLE 31



Fifth American Football Championship
1954 H2H: W3 - CHI 17-16 CLE
Historic H2H: 6-0 CHI
Playoff H2H: 0-0

While last year featured two underdogs, this year features the perennial favorites to win against the scrappy newcomer. Chicago was widely expected to fall off after QB Alfred Walton began to decline in play, but the signing of undrafted rookie RB Billy Gould last year changed the Hogs’ trajectory for their future. Already pivoting towards a more run-focused approach, their offense has taken the league by storm, breaking the 1950 Tri-Cities Hawks’ record for most points scored in a single season. Their elite offense is paired equally well with their elite defense with rookie DL Benjamin Walkins, Jr. pairing incredibly well with established star DL Eric Forbes, and have terrorized offensive lines since their pairing. The other challenger, the Cleveland Crows, are quite similar to last year’s winner Washington Federals. The team was widely expected to do alright with a team full of young talent, but not outright contend for titles. Players such as QB Denzel Collingsworth, RB Max Panders, WR’s Jerry O’Keefe and Joey Staniskovski have been doing the heavy lifting on offense. On the defensive side of the ball, players like DL Fergus Prenderghast, DB’s Nicholas Lamb and Barry Roach, and S Steven Norris are prime players to build around. However, instead of this game being between two unproven teams ready to show their worthiness, this year is an unstoppable force against a very movable object. Chicago’s experience with the playoffs will ultimately prevail and the Hogs will win one last game for Alfred Walton.
My Pick: Chicago

C&C Appreciated! Who do you think will take home the title?

Disappointed to see the Federals drop, here's hoping for a Crows upset. 

1954 AFL Championship

A mild winter evening in Chicago brought out both the best and the worst of Hogs fans, who were as rabid as ever to reach their 4th championship game in 5 years. With one of the most entertaining teams in recent years, Hogs fans have great hope for the future to potentially win even more. Standing in their way are the upstart Cleveland Crows, whose rise mirrored that of the Washington Federals last year. While the team is more offensive focused, their defense will have to step up if the Crows want to match the Hogs blow for blow in what could be an offensive shootout.

Q1
The Hogs would defer possession to the second half, and the Crows would have a chance to start their offensive machine. Cleveland returner Greg Dixon would stun the home crowd, weaving his way through the oncoming Hogs on his way to a 92-yard kick return touchdown, getting his second return touchdown in two weeks. After silencing Union Stadium, Hogs fans got right back to making noise when golden boy Billy Gould started to carve his way through the Cleveland defense. He would get some meager gains on a couple of plays, but on 2nd down and 7, Gould would sprint up the middle and past all Cleveland defenders on his way to a 47 yard touchdown to get the Chicago faithful rowdy once again. The Crows offense would finally come onto the field with the potential to take back the lead, but after two first downs they were forced to punt the ball back to the Hogs. Chicago would slowly gain yardage, with the Crows front 7 finding ways to shut down the young Gould from breaking out once again. Switching to the passing game, QB Alfred Walton traded passes between WR Ciarán Murphy and TE Glenn Chambers to continue their drive. That plan didn’t last for long, as the Hogs offense could not get past the Crows’ 31 yard line and K Freddie Donnelly came out to put the Hogs ahead by 3 on the successful attempt. The Crows had the ball back with a few minutes remaining in the quarter, and QB Denzel Collingsworth was beginning to make connections with his back to make progress down field as the quarter ended.
CLE 7, CHI 10

Q2
The Crows entered a stalemate after gaining some progress, as RB Max Panders nearly gave the ball away on a botched snap that resulted in a crucial third down to get into scoring range. Collingsworth stepped up on this 3rd and 13, finding WR Joey Staniskovksi open on the sideline, who would get pushed out of bounds right near the 23 yard line. They could have made it further, but the Hogs front stuffed Panders on two straight plays and forced an incompletion out of Collingsworth. Cleveland would tie the game on a kick by K Daniel Simon. Chicago got off on the wrong foot on their ensuing drive, as QB Alfred Walton missed a pass over the middle to RB Billy Gould on first down and then his offensive line allowed DL Fergus Prendergast to steamroll his way to Walton for a 6 yard loss. The Hogs recovered from a 3rd and 16, as Walton would hit WR Donnie Stout over the middle for a 20 yard gain to keep them moving. Gould would then bully the Crows’ defense for the rest of the drive, gaining 42 total yards to put the Hogs right on the 1 yard line. Gould would then take the handoff to the outside one play later to score to retake the lead for the Hogs. CLE QB Denzel Collingsworth would work his magic, getting downfield a 20 yard and a 23 yard pass to WR’s Joseph Atkins and Joey Staniskovski, respectively. The Hogs secondary clamped down after those gains, forcing 3 straight incompletions outside the 20 yard line. Cleveland made another field goal, still down by at least a touchdown. After two quick possessions by both Chicago and Cleveland, the Hogs had the ball back in good position partially because of a good punt return by Billy Gould putting them on the Crows’ 42 yard line. After WR Donnie Stout went 14 yards for a first down, QB Alfred Walton would get himself on the board, finding WR Ciarán Murphy in single coverage in the middle of the field. Murphy would break off of DB Nicholas Lamb by tripping him up on a fake route, and would strut 28 yards untouched to extend the Hogs’ lead to 11. The Crows attempted to get into field goal range with what little time they had left in the half, but QB Denzel Collingsworth threw an interception to S Jeffery Irwin to end an eventful first half.
CLE 13, CHI 24

Q3
After scoring off of an interception at the end of the first half, Chicago kept rolling on offense. Billy Gould continued to tear up the Crows' defense, but Cleveland started to put up a better fight. QB Alfred Walton had to pass more, and RB Jeffery Spears came in to relieve Gould for a change of pace. On a third and 8 on their own 37, Gould broke through the front line, skirted around the linebackers, and almost got into the end zone before being pushed out by S Steven Norris. The winded Gould sat out for a play after his 60 yard rush, but came back in after an incomplete pass by Walton and plunged his way up the middle for his third score of the day, which would surely be the dagger for Chicago. Cleveland QB Denzel Collingsworth took his time passing to his receivers to try to get a drive going. A 20-yard pass from Collingsworth to WR Joseph Atkins set the Crows up with a chance to score and get back in the game. After a 7-yard run by RB Max Panders, Collingsworth found Atkins in the middle of the end zone for a touchdown to keep the game close. The offensive shootout that defined the first half and most of the third quarter came to a screeching halt after Cleveland's drive, as both defenses locked down and forced punts on successive possessions to end the third quarter with a dud.
CLE 20, CHI 31

Q4
After a back-and-forth series of punts that took up a third of the quarter, Chicago wound up punting the ball back to Cleveland. The Hogs defense locked them up again, and QB Denzel Collingsworth would have to make a crucial 3rd down conversion to even keep their championship hopes alive. Collingsworth threw a ball up the middle intended for RB Max Panders, but LB Jerry Flowers came from behind and intercepted the ball away, weaving his way through the Cleveland offense on his way to a 42 yard return for a touchdown. Chicago would only go up by 17 though, as the snap for K Freddie Donnelly was botched and holder Marion Rosen was tackled before he could do anything with the ball. Cleveland would have one last real chance to make up for their three possession deficit, and Collingsworth proved he was capable of moving the ball downfield even when the outcome of the game was effectively decided. Collingsworth was able to quickly move downfield with quick passes to his pair of receivers, and made it within scoring range on a 20 yard pass to TE Gerald MacDonald to put them on the 15 yard line. The Crows would attempt to use RB Max Panders to get within striking distance on the ground, but could only manage half that distance on his own on two plays. Collingsworth one play later would dump it off to Panders to get into the endzone to only be down by 10 with just under 3 minutes left to play. The onside kick attempt would fail, and the Chicago Hogs would run out just enough clock to end any chance of Cleveland coming back. Punting with just seconds left, the Hogs kicked a ball deep within the Crows’ own territory. Collingsworth and the Crows made just one play before the time ran out and the Chicago Hogs were champions once again.
CLE 27, CHI 37


In the post-game ceremonies, the game’s MVP would unsurprisingly go to second-year RB Billy Gould, who ran for 188 yards and rushed for 3 TD’s, while also receiving for an additional 22 yards. Gould, who received the championship trophy first, immediately handed the trophy to QB Alfred Walton, as he would win his final championship in the final game of his career. “I’ve only known [Walton] for two years.” Gould said in an interview for the Chicago Sun-Times “But I do know that he has been instrumental to how this team has been. It’s a shame he won’t be back for next year to do this whole thing all over again.”

C&C Appreciated! This might be a longer offseason with the amount of things I have to do behind the scenes, so stay tuned in the future. In the meantime, don't forget to submit some prospects if you're following along!

billHE gould

The Wide World of American Football: 1954-55 Edition

RICHMOND STUNS PAFC, OWNERS BEGINNING TO RIFT
It was expected to be another wash season for the PAFC, which has become a three-headed race between the Chicago Stars, Fort Wayne Generals, and Indianapolis Flames for the title of “World Champion of Football”. However, former Cincinnati Rivermen and Pittsburgh Shamrock QB Clarence Stanley was lured away from the AFL to join the Richmond Patriots, adding the first bit of major AFL talent to leave for the PAFC. Stanley helped the Patriots in their first season to a second-place regular season finish, ready to face the undefeated Chicago Stars in the title game. As for the two other new teams, the Baltimore Barons managed a third place finish with the talent from the 1952 Calvert team, and the Boston Rebels finished dead last, only winning a single game. Boston Rebels owner Frank Goldstein stated that he was not pleased that two teams from “lesser leagues” managed to place better than his supposedly elite Northeastern team. Goldstein received almost immediate pushback for those comments, as the Rebels rarely even finished above .500 in the 9 years they were in the league post-WWII. In the World Championship, Chicago was widely expected to dominate, but Stanley finally came in the clutch and gave the Patriots an upset win. While most owners were congratulating Richmond for managing to win a top-heavy league, Chicago Stars owner Virgil Bradshaw was furious. “This was the best-looking and hardest working group of men in Chicago, maybe even the world,” he said in an interview for the Chicago Sun-Times. “It’s outrageous that this team didn’t win a title.” In a profanity-laced tirade, he would end up calling the Chicago Hogs “a filthy bunch of boys” after learning of their title victory from the week prior. Bradshaw has come under fire for how he is not treating the AFL as a serious threat to the PAFC, still treating it as a league that is lesser to what he sees as a breakaway league that will eventually submit back to his league in due time. He has become increasingly more disliked among the other PAFC owners, with almost all of them (besides Indianapolis owner Gideon Bachman and Fort Wayne owner W. Lloyd Scott) turning against him in one way or another, including his son Julian. The real dividing point was when the PAFC began to discuss potential television and radio deals to keep pace with the AFL’s popularity in their meetings in February. Minneapolis minority owner Reuben Braun had proposed that the PAFC develop a similar plan to the AFL and have either ABC or CBS broadcast the championship game and select regular season games spread out amongst the teams. Bradshaw argued for he thought was a slightly more reasonable agreement, wanting the Chicago Stars to always have a game broadcasted every week while rotating the other televised slot among the other teams. Boston owner Frank Goldstein then argued that Boston should get an equal amount of broadcasted game as Chicago since they are more of a “premier” team compared to the others, which drew ire from pretty much every owner, including Bradshaw. Goldstein was once again dragged out of another owners meeting after nearly scuffling with Bradshaw, but the younger Julian Bradshaw kept Goldstein in line and forced him out before a punch was thrown. After that mess,Bradshaw re-proposed his idea, and nearly every other owner walked out on the deal, including Julian. In what many thought would be a step forward for the floundering league was just another step back in challenging the AFL. For now, the supposedly premier football league in the U.S. will have to wonder if it will meet the same fate as the other regional leagues to the constant amount of in-fighting and Bradshaw lessening the league’s public image with his comments.

DUTCH LIONS, TIGERS DOMINATE FINAL NYPL SEASON
The final season of the New York Professional League was widely predicted to be a two-horse race between the Newark Tigers and New York Dutch Lions. The Bronx Bulldogs were effectively a skeleton team, while Brooklynites were mourning the last season of the once-dominant Kings. As a result, New York and Newark ran the table, splitting their series against each other while each sweeping the Bulldogs and Kings. After a relatively uneventful regular season, the final game of the NYPL would be the championship between the Dutch Lions and the Tigers. It was a back and forth game for the first half, but the Dutch Lions literally ran away with the game, as the Tigers could not stop their rushing attack. New York would run up the score and win their 7th championship, as well as putting an end to the rapid decline of the NYPL. It’s now a question of whether the Dutch Lions can adapt to a higher level of play, as Midwestern football has always been seen as a higher quality version of football compared to the Eastern leagues. With the NYPL officially defunct, players from the Bronx and Brooklyn teams will be distributed among the new ASPFL, with New York getting the first picks if they wish to select any players. As for how the remaining NYPL teams will do in the future, Newark is expected to fit right in with the ASPFL next year, but New York is expected to struggle if they keep the exact same team right now. They will have to make some moves to remain competitive in the AFL, whether it being the AFL giving them players or the Dutch Lions having to trade for assets. They’ll become an official member of the AFL once the spring meetings commence, so they will have to wait until then to do anything.

BOSTON FINALLY WINS NEFL TITLE
In the last year before the NEFL would get reorganized, the Boston Bards were determined to finally win their first title before leaving to make way for a true professional team.  Unlike the lopsided NYPL, the NEFL once again featured a tough title race between perennial contenders Boston, Hartford, Portland, and Providence. Each of the 4 teams fought hard through the first 6 weeks of the season, with no clear favorite entering the last half of the season. Hartford would fall apart first, with injuries to their starting RB causing them to fall out of title contention. Two-time defending champions Portland would snatch up the regular season championship, leaving Boston and Providence to fight for the final spot in the championship game in the final regular season game between the two. The de facto tiebreaker game was a defensive battle, as neither team could break through the other and forced turnovers in what seemed like every other drive. Boston’s defense would bring back two turnovers for touchdowns and would topple the Bears 14-0 to appear in their 9th championship game against the Lumberjacks. Boston’s defense kept on rolling, forcing 3 turnovers and returning 1 for a score to finally secure their first title 17-7. The Bards winning their first marks the end of an era for the NEFL, as it will transition to become the ASPFL for the 1955 season. A major reorganization of players and teams is to be expected, including some of the best being chosen to become part of the new Boston AFL team. Whether all the players will be placed onto new teams is to be determined, as a resolution about the reorganization of the NEFL will take place during the spring meetings.

C&C Appreciated!

Last edited by DireBear (9/06/2023 7:04 pm)