In recent years, the final game of the World Bowl had mostly been a slow and plodding affair. The World Bowl XXXVII final had been slower and more plodding than any final in the history of the World Bowl with a record low 6 points being scored by Ko-oren. Indeed, the record 53-31 final between Taeshan and Yafor 2 at World Bowl 0 seemed like it would forever remain the highest scoring final in the history of the World Bowl which is especially strange given that the 'Fitin Falcons are known for their defense. If you'd polled the 101,208 fans in attendance, almost none of them would have predicted that record to fall on this day and even fewer would have predicted that the Free Republics, whose offense had been non-existent for most of the World Bowl, would light up the scoreboard against the Drawk Corps.
A significant number of fans from Drawkland managed to acquire tickets even though the World Bowl organizing committee had restricted the sale of over 90,000 of the seats in the stadium to Republican citizens. Unfortunately, when the tickets went on sale, virtually all tickets were immediately purchased by Republican citizens running scalper bots and resold to the highest bidder. This meant that fans from Drawkland were able to buy their way into this game despite all of the efforts to secure a partisan Republican crowd. In the end, the split was closer to 55-45 rather than the 90-10 that the Republican National Team organization had hoped for. Just about the only tickets that weren't sold to scalpers were the tickets reserved for dignitaries and celebrities.
The Republicans won the opening coin toss and elected to defer. Takehiko Susui's opening kickoff landed at the 1 yard line, forcing a return by Jack Hoy who promptly returned the opening kickoff to the house. The Grid Corps wasted no time in going for 2 and Alex Dale wasted no time sending Dak Waterman to the ground hard for a sack. Just seconds into this game, the 2 teams had already combined for the same number of points that both teams combined for at the World Bowl XXXVII final.
Going into the game, the Republicans had talked about "punching them in the mouth" but after Raleigh Stig's touchback, they instead went with a deep play action pass. Dania Sandberg would toss a bomb to Rita Alaja and Alaja would go all the way. In just 1 play, Sandberg had bested her passing yard total from the Cosumar game. Susui added an extra point to put the Republicans up 7 to 6. When it was time to kickoff again, Susui did not hesitate to put the ball out of the back of the end zone for a touchback. Drawkland would answer with a 7 play drive that culminated in a Waterman to Trey Council touchdown and a Antonio Anders run for the conversion. Then Marta Remer would fumble the ensuing kickoff, Waterman would quickly answer with a TD pass to Toby Miller and a conversion to Council. Drawkland now led 22 to 7.
On the Republican sideline, they did not panic. Sensing that her defense needed a rest, Katakin Maier asked her quarterback to put together a long drive to answer. What followed was an epic 14 play drive that saw Sandberg carry the ball 7 times for 32 yards and complete 2 of 3 passes for 27 yards. Yet, it would be Jonas Hetland who would score from 7 yards out on an option play. Rather than play the 2 point conversion game, Maier sent Susui out to kick an extra point and make it a 22 to 14 game.
The ensuing Drawkland drive would end in a field goal as we were now well into the second quarter. The field goal would be forced after Anders was stuffed at the goal line by Mateo Nyberg, David Kvamme and Erik Beckenbauer. The three defensive tackles had somehow\ managed to get free of their blockers and gang tackle the big man. Then a sack by Demeter Kartal brought Matthew Watts out to make it a 25 to 14 game.
The Republicans would answer right back to make it a one possession game once again. This time, Sandberg would find a running lane and break off a 45 yard run. She would follow this up by throwing a strike to Park Han for a touchdown. Susui added the extra point and it was now 25-21 Drawkland. Susui's kickoff would be short after he didn't get all of the ball. However, Hoy would bobble the kick, allowing Tara Kelly to tackle him at the 7 yard line. A Spaso Pozarnik sack later, the Republicans had themselves a safety and Drawkland's lead was now just 25-23. A long, methodical Republican drive would gobble up all but 13 seconds of clock, culminating in a Sandberg TD run from 6 yards out. The Free Republics, after trailing most of the first half, had a 30 to 25 lead going into the half. They would not trail again in this game.
Receiving the ball to start the second half, Ines Fallaci would find a hole in the Grid Corps kick coverage and end up getting tackled by Stig at Drawkland's 37 yard line. After a 12 yard Sandberg run and an incomplete pass, the Republican quarterback tossed her 3rd touchdown pass of the game, this time to Hetland. Susui's extra point made it a 37 to 25 game.
After Waterman led his team down the field once again, he would finish the drive with a screen to Jack Hoy for a touchdown and follow that up with a successful conversion pass to Daniel Madison. The score was 37 to 33.
The shootout would continue as Nedeljko Jovic capped a Republican drive by catching the 4th Sandberg touchdown pass of the day to put the home team up 44 to 33. Then Hoy would break a 74 yard run for Drawkland, setting up a 1 yard touchdown run by Anders. Waterman's conversion attempt would be batted down by Charles McAdam and the Republicans would hold onto a 44 to 39 lead.
When the Republicans finished their next drive with a 2 yard touchdown run up the middle by Makharbi Barsukov, it was already the 4th quarter and they would now lead 51 to 39. After a Susui touchback, disaster struck for the Grid Corps. Waterman was strip sacked by Dale and McAdam arrived moments later, like a vulture, to scoop up the fumble and take it to the house for a 58 to 39 lead. Sandberg would later throw a garbage time touchdown pass to Park Han for her 5th passing touchdown and 6th total touchdown of the game. The final score would be the Free Republics 65, Drawkland 39 in the highest scoring World Bowl final in history.
The celebration soon began and, in a scene eerily reminiscent of the conclusion to World Bowl XXII in the same stadium, shots were fired at the luxury box where Consul Scarlett Nicholls, Senator Emeritus Robert Nicholls and leading candidate for consul Abelino Greece were watching the game together. The shot missed Scarlett Nicholls but Greece was hit. In the commotion, the assassin, who was masked, somehow managed to get away.
On the field, the Republican National Team continued celebrating, unaware of the panic in the stands. None were happier with the result of the game than Agrican Langelier, the embattled Republican offensive coordinator. As the Republican offense struggled throughout this World Bowl, rumors were beginning to spread that he would be relieved of his duties after the tournament. That seemed unlikely after the Free Republics had just put up 65 points against Drawkland. The celebration continued for a few more minutes until World Bowl officials informed Katakin Maier that there had been a shooting in the Nicholls luxury box and that somebody had been shot. Even worse, the individual responsible had escaped and the security footage had mysteriously been disabled...
