World Bowl XXXII - Everything thread (FINALS posted)

[Drawkland]

This is a project I worked on for a few weeks. If you have a suggestion or contradiction, feel free to let me know.

The Golden Bowl

The Golden Bowl is the progression of the gridiron champions of the World. Starting with the Gridiron Football World Championships, whenever the current champion is defeated, in any round of the most official gridiron competition at the time, the team that defeated them takes up the new mantle of the Golden Bowl holder.

If a team has the title, and then disappears (doesn't sign up for the next edition), the reserve champions (second place) gets the Golden Bowl. I don't expect this to ever happen.

If a player disappears and reappears later, they start a second progression, which is technically lesser than the main Golden Bowl. If the holder of a lesser Bowl disappears, the lesser Bowl progression ceases (unless they reappear). The Bowl would be named the Silver Bowl, but that was an actual competition around the early post-Jolt era. Bowls from reappearing nations will be dubbed after the nation (The Examplestan Bowl, for instance).

For the purposes of match counting, the team who has the Bowl at the end of a match is credited as having the Bowl for said match, even if the opposing team is the one which possessed the Bowl prior to the game.

(For IC purposes, the Golden Bowl is a literal Bowl made of Gold, atop a large black Marble Base. On the base there is an inscription plate which lists the progression of the Bowl. It looks similar to the progression listing at the bottom of this post. It fits 4 columns, and each column can hold up to 20 lines. When a plate runs out of space, it moves on to the next plate on the base. When all 4 sides are filled, I'm really not sure what we'll do.

The Golden Bowl Organization (GBO) will henceforth be located in Quinnaber, Drawkland, the home of gridiron in Drawkland. The GBO did not, I repeat, DID NOT have this idea, create the Golden Bowl, use a time machine, and retroactively apply the Golden Bowl to history. How could they do that?

Of course, that's exactly what happened.)

BEGIN

Taeshan are the initial holders, being the champions of World Bowl 0. Despite the GFWC being not technically the World Bowl, they were the first champions of an official NS Gridiron tournament, and therefore are a solid starting point for the progression.

Dancougar takes the Bowl from a 17-0 victory over Taeshan in a Pre-World Bowl I exhibition. Kura-Pelland takes the Bowl from Dancougar on Matchday 3 of World Bowl I, 17-13. Dancougar takes it back in Matchday 8 with a 20-13 win. Dancougar wins the World Bowl and keeps the Golden Bowl.
(Group C, 10 games, QF)

Rennidan defeats Dancougar 34-30 to start the group stage of World Bowl II. Not ready to lose the Bowl entirely just yet, Dancougar beats Rennidan back on Matchday 6, 23-20 in OT. Rennidan has the final laugh by beating Dancougar in the Semis, taking the Golden Bowl, and winning World Bowl II.
(Group C, 10 games, QF)

Taeshan beats Rennidan 20-7 on day 4 play in World Bowl III. Myedvedeva beats Taeshan 0-10 on Day 6. The Valerian Empire won next day 3-6, despite being a lower-ranked team. Rennidan takes back the Bowl next game by beat The Valerian Empire 25-0. Taeshan beats Rennidan again, this time in the quarterfinals, 11-6. Qazox beat Taeshan in the semis, 30-10, and goes on to win World Bowl III.
(Group C, 10 games, QF)

Rennidan once again takes the Golden Bowl with a 32-28 win on Day 2. Rennidan suffers an unexpected loss to The Candrian Empire, 17-20 in OT on Day 5. Finally, in Matchday 10, Rennidan redeems themselves and topples upstart Candrian Empire 21-17. Candrian Empire came back for a rubber match in the Round of 12 and beat Rennidan once and for all 34-28. Dancougar took it back 23-19 from Candrian Empire in the Quarterfinals, and went on to win it all for World Bowl IV.
(Group D, 10 games, R12)


Dancougar goes through the double-grouped Group Stage undefeated, then cruised through the Round of 16 … only to meet and get beat by Newmanistan 17-13 in the Quarterfinals. Newmanistan goes on to lose to Qazox in the semis, 13-27, and Arroza goes on to win World Bowl V 17-32. This is the first Bowl where the Golden Bowl was in different hands every single round of the playoffs.
(Group F+E, 6+4 games, R16)


Arroza lasted until Matchday 4 of World Bowl VI, with a loss to Cassadaigua 27-20. Things changed the next game with Vephrall taking it 23-13. Matchday 9 featured Taeshan again holding the Golden Bowl with a 10-13 win over Vephrall. Matchday 12 features Baptism of Iron I winners, Prux, defeating Taeshan by a tight 7-6 margin. Vephrall continues the back-and-forth action by beating Prux 20-10 the next game. However, in true champion's fashion, Arroza takes it the next (and last) game of the stage in a hair 24-23 win. They made it past the quarterfinals, but fell to the eventual champions Dancougar, 23-20, in Semifinal OT.
(Group A, 12 games, QF)


In the first World Bowl of the post-Jolt Era, Dancougar remained undefeated until Game 8, where Secristan beat them 14-6. But, for the first time in Golden Bowl history, the holder of the Bowl did not qualify for the playoffs. Lanceo beat Secristan on the final game of the stage, 14-13, but missed out of the playoffs by 5 points from their differential (they would've made it to the playoffs if they'd scored a single more touchdown during the group stage).
(Group B, 10 Games)


Unfortunately for Lanceo and the Golden Bowl progression, Lanceo did not participate in World Bowl VIII. Therefore, the Bowl was passed to Fujisawan Territories, who won World Bowl VII. The first Bowl in Casaran format was hallmarked here, and Fujisawan Territories only played 2 games, having secured their playoff spot early from big wins. They won all the playoff games, but fell to Cassadaigua in the final, switching hands for the Golden Bowl.
(Casaran, 2-4 Rounds, R16)


Cassadaigua started off well for World Bowl IX, but was beaten by Newmanistan in a slightly embarrassing 35-27 on Game 4. In Matchday 6, Delaclava got the best of Newmanistan, 24-20, taking the Bowl for their first time. They took the Bowl to the playoffs, but were beat in the Round of 16 by Tocrowkia, 30-27 in OT. Tocrowkia went on to win in the rest of the playoffs and take the World Bowl.
(Group D, 8 Games, R20)


To start off World Bowl X, Delaclava got immediate revenge on Tocrowkia by beating them then 16-30 on Day 1. Funnily enough, Tocrowkia won the second leg game (3 games later) against Delaclava, by a 20-37 scoreline. Tocrowkia won their last 3 games of the stage to advance. The Babbage Islands got their first taste of the Golden Bowl by beating Tocrowkia in the Round of 16, 17-20 in OT. Sarzonia got the Bowl next round with a 12-9 eek of a win over TBI. Sarzonia went on from there to lose the final, and the Golden Bowl, to Bluth Corporation, 20-10.
(Group B, 8 Games, R16)


Bluth Corporation took their opportunity with the Golden Bowl to heart, as they won all 8 Games of the World Bowl XI group stage to go undefeated and spotless. Unfortunately, as the number 2 seed, Bluth Corporation fell to Sibirksy in the Round of 16 in a 42-23 whipping. However, after making their way past the quarterfinals, Sibirksy suffered a similar fate as they lost to Delaclava 25-46. Delaclava, the hosts, played Sarzonia in the final and had to give up both the World and Golden Bowl to them in a 19-23 game.
(Group F, 8 Games, R16)


Sarzonia didn't have a good second time with the Golden Bowl, losing their second game to Boronina, 34-30. They won one game before losing to Qazox, 17-29. Qazox takes the Golden Bowl for the first time since World Bowl V. They win the last games of the group stage and go on to the playoffs. Qazox then crushes all their playoff matchups, holding the Golden Bowl with pride … until the World Bowl XII final, where F1 Insanity took it for themselves in a 24-17 game.
(Group A, 8 Games, R16)


After 6 games remaining untouched in World Bowl XIII, F1 Insanity posts their first loss, to Voltronica in a close 17-13 game. Voltronica won the rest of their group stage, as well as the “Rivalry Day” game against Krytenia, AND the “Division Championship” against F1 Insanity in overtime. But they lost when it really counted, in Round 2 of the playoffs (their first game of the round) against Qazox, 13-17. Qazox won the next round but proceeded to lose to Allamunnic States 16-10 in the Round after. This is the first of many times the Regulars would hoist the Golden Bowl, but it didn't last long, being taken next round by Delaclava with power, 32-7. Delaclava didn't play for awhile, due to the inclusion of a Loser’s bracket in the format. In the final, Bluth Corporation came and beat Delaclava 20-33, but since they were from the Loser’s bracket, a second game occurred, where Delaclava won the World Bowl for the first time and the Golden Bowl back after missing it for a game.
(Chekhov Division, 10 Games, confusing)


Delaclava started World Bowl XIV right, winning their pre-qualifying friendly against Sarzonia. They went undefeated for the first half of the group stage, but in the mid-qualifying friendly against Bluth Corporation, they lost, 23-27. This is the first and only circumstance where the Golden Bowl changed hands, and groups, amidst the group stage. Despite this cool opportunity, Bluth Corporation immediately squandered it by losing to Gregourii 10-17, giving Bluth their first loss of the tournament and Gregourii’s first win. Gregourii won yet again, but then lost to fellow group cellar-dwellars North Chicanan 29-44. North Chicanan also won another game, but luckily on the final matchday, Bluth Corporation snagged the Golden Bowl back up by beating the Chicanans 24-20. Bluth picked up wins all the way to the final, but lost to the champions Sarzonia, in the crushing 22-23 final defeat.
(Group 5/Group 2, 10 Games + some friendlies, R24)


Sarzonia had a very good group stage to World Bowl XV … unfortunately, they lost the Pre-Qualifying friendly to Delaclava before the stage even started. The 3-7 may not have been much, but it was enough to pass the Golden Bowl pack into Delaclavan hands. Delaclava went undefeated in the group stage and decided to not partake in any more officially-sanctioned friendlies … keeping the Bowl in their hands. Being the top seed, they skipped the Round of 24 straight to the Round of 16. They then kept their Bowl safe in their hands all the way to the final and won it. This made Delaclava the first team to safely possess the Golden Bowl for an entire edition of the World Bowl (since they do get credit for holding the bowl on the pre-qualifying match).
(Group F, 10 Games + some friendlies, R24)


Sibirsky strikes again! Right after achieving Golden Bowl history, Delaclava immediately fell to Sibirsky on Day 1 of World Bowl XVI.The 24-17 defeat wasn’t too much cause for celebration, as Sibirsky was immediately defeated by Cassadaigua the next game, 10-20. But then comes Western Cuba the match after that, beating Cassadaigua and taking the Golden Bowl for the first time in their history, 16-26. And, predictably, Delaclava comes the next game and takes the Bowl back for themselves, in a good old-fashioned 24-3 whooping of Western Cuba. And, surprise surprise, Cassadaigua goes and defeats Delaclava themselves to take the Bowl for the second time this group stage, a 41-37 win. Cassadaigua finally keeps the Bowl for at least one game and went on past a bye … to lose to Katy Lied, 40-34 … who lost to Western Cuba the next game, 10-29. They hold their own for one game … before falling to Delaclava, 29-39. Unsurprisingly, Cassadaigua beats Delaclava the next damn game, 23-33. The Dagans clutch tightly to the Bowl and skunk their next opponents to escape the group stage. They survive the Round of 24 with the Bowl … then lose 19-12 to Carastoga in the Round of 16. They drop the Bowl quick, losing tragically to German Zerabithea 23-24 in the Quarterfinals. At least German Zerabithea could hold it for awhile after picking it up for the first time, but then in the final against the Allamunnic States team, they couldn’t help but hand it to them for the first out of many wins by the Allamunnic States, of both the World Bowl and the Golden Bowl. World Bowl XVI was a record-setting one; no team held the Bowl for more than 3 games (except Cassadaigua), and the Bowl switched hands an incredible 12 times. 8 total teams held the Golden Bowl in one edition too. Certainly the measuring stick for any future World Bowl/Golden Bowl interactions.
(Group 6, 12 Games, R24)


Allamunnic States took their newfound (well, not really new, considering they held it once before for a single game) Golden Bowl for 7 games in World Bowl XVII, before losing in a brief slip of misfortunate to Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuk 7-21. Space got their hands on the Golden Bowl in the next game when they defeated … the alphabet people 3-21. Space held on to the Bowl as long as they could, winning in the Round of 16 and Quarterfinals before they lost it in the Semis to none other than Allamunnic States themselves, 9-7. Rightfully so, too, as the Regulars went on to win this World Bowl as well, keeping their hold on the Golden Bowl … marginally strong.
(Group 7, 10 Games, R20)


Allamunnic States started off World Bowl XVIII alright, but a Matchday 3 21-7 loss to Karditan meant they lost the Golden Bowl nearly right off the bat (wait, wrong sport). Karditan won one game with the Bowl, but lost to Cassadaigua 10-0 on Game 5 and consequently lost the Bowl. Cassadaigua, too, kept the Bowl for one game before then conceding it to another team the game after, this being 13-14 against Allamunnic States on Game 7. This time, they managed to hold on to it for the rest of the group stage. They went undefeated until the final of World Bowl XVIII … losing it to Civil Citizenry, who touched both the World and Golden Bowl for the first time.
(Group Six, 10 Games, R16)


Civil Citizenry did better with their usage of the Golden Bowl to start off World Bowl XIX, winning 6 games straight to start off. However, they lost Game 7 to Michael VII, 20-10, giving the Golden Bowl to Michael VII for the first time. However, despite their best efforts and winning the rest of their games, early group stage losses ensured that the Michael VII would not make the World Bowl XIX second group stage or playoffs, keeping the Golden Bowl out of Allamunnic States’ hands, the eventual champions.
(Group Two, 10 Games, R20)


Luckily, and unlike Lanceo 13 editions ago, Michael VII came back for World Bowl XX, and brought the Golden Bowl with them. The massive 8-team groups were predictably going to lead to lots of changing hands of the Golden Bowl, and that started on Game 2 when The Serbian Empire picked up the Bowl from Michael VII in a 10-3 win. The very next game, Catonia Majora took the Bowl from The Serbian Empire in a larger 14-6 win. Kinzar won 13-3 against Catonia Majora the game after that and took the Bowl, before losing it to Royal Kingdom of Quebec the next game, 27-3. For the first time this stage, the Bowl stayed put in its owners’ hands, winning 3 games with the Bowl before losing their first game of the edition to Cassadaigua, shockingly, 6-7. They could hold on the Bowl for multiple games, 2 to be exact, before losing it to none other than Michael VII in a 6-10 Game 12. However, after winning another game, Michael VII lost the Bowl again, and it went back into Royal Kingdom of Quebec’s hands in a meaningless 20-27 game (both teams qualified for the playoffs). However, the Quebecois couldn’t hold onto it when it mattered, and left the Bowl for Equestrian States, losing 10-20. The Ponies then went on to lose the Bowl to Thrilledge in the Quarterfinals, 20-13, and then Thrilledge lost in the next round to German Zerabithea 34-20. The last time German Zerabithea held the Golden Bowl was in World Bowl XVI, the only other Bowl to have so many changes of Bowl hands. That time they lost to Allamunnic States in the final … but this time, they won it all and took the World Bowl, and the Golden Bowl, home for the offseason.
(Group 2, 14 games, R16)


With 64 nations competing in World Bowl XXI, the hosts, Carastoga, opted for a 2-tiered qualification system, sort of like those ““football””-playing heathens do. German Zerabithea did well with this, as they went entirely undefeated and held on to the Golden Bowl for the first group stage. They did win the first game of the second group stage, but then lost to Equestrian States 10-14 on game 2. After winning the last game of the second group stage, Equestrian States went to the Round of 16 … to lose 6-10 to none other than Taeshan in the Quarterfinals. This is the first time in 15 tournaments that Taeshan managed to get ahold of the Golden Bowl. They lost it in the next round to Cassadaigua, 7-10, but still. Nice to get it back. Cassadaigua went on to lose the final and the Golden Bowl to Qazox, 6-12. This was their first Golden Bowl holding since World Bowl XIII.
(Group A, 6 Games + 3 Games, QF)


World Bowl was the second to be hosted in Casaran format. Qazox won their first 3 fixtures before falling to Karditan, 33-17, on Day 4. German Zerabithea immediately swooped in on Day 5 and beat Karditan 18-0, but then were defeated by Saintland the very next game, 30-20. This marks the first time Saintland held the Golden Bowl. They won two more games before qualifying for the next round, the group round. Then they swept all their opponents in the group stage, and won in the Round of 16. They then fell to West Guinea, 6-25, in their biggest and only defeat of the World Bowl. West Guinea did well with their Golden Bowl, taking it past the Semifinals … only to lose it to Cassadaigua in a 20-19 thriller.
(Casaran/Group A, 8 Games + 3 Games, R16)


Cassadaigua won their first 3 games of World Bowl XXIII, but as we’ve come to expect now, great starts don’t exactly stick around long for champions. The Fair Republic, a rather backwater team, managed to get their hands on the Golden Bowl by defeating Cassadaigua 27-30 on Matchday 4. They managed to win 2 games, before meeting Osarius on Matchday 7, and losing in a 32-50 game of better offense. Despite being around and decent for ages, this was the first time Osarius managed to hoist the Golden Bowl, which is always fun. Unfortunately for them, they lost it immediately the next game, 27-26 to Hutt River. And in a twist of fate, The Fair Republic won the Golden Bowl back on the final matchday, 23-20 in OT. But even with that final win, they lost on tiebreakers to Osarius and therefore didn’t qualify, meaning the Golden Bowl went out of the World Bowl in the group stage for the 3rd time in its history.
(Group A, 10 Games, R16)


The Fair Republic didn’t fail the Golden Bowl, and did return for World Bowl XXIV, despite being the last one to sign up. They did manage to win their first game before falling to German Zerabithea on Game 2, 26-7. German Zerabithea, as always, cruised through the rest of the group stage without a kink, and went on to the playoffs. But in the Round of 16, they lost to Cosumar, another team which had been around for many Bowls before but didn’t get their hands on the Golden Bowl until then, a 9-13 win. They, like Osarius the Bowl before, didn’t get to have it for very long, losing 27-20 to Saintland in the Quarterfinals. Saintland took the Bowl for good this time, going on to the final to win it all.
(Group G, 7 Games, R16)


For World Bowl XXV, Saintland started quite well. They cruised through the 6 games of the first group stage without a kink, going undefeated. They even went over the first half of the second group stage very well, posting 4 wins. But nothing lasts forever, as then Timbermunich came in with a tough 7-0 win on Game 5 of the second stage, to get ahold of the Golden Bowl. They won their last match of the group stage and managed to win the play-in match to get to the Round of 16. They lost to the hosts Equestrian States 13-6 then, who proceeded to take their newly regained Golden Bowl all the way to the home final, where they predictably lost to the Allamunnic machine 7-10.
(Group 7, 6 Games / Group M, 6 Games, R16+)


Allamunnic States had the Golden Bowl to start off World Bowl XXVI. In the 10 game group stage, they won the first 9 with flying colors, only to lose to none other than the upstart Nephara team 3-14 on the final day. This was Nephara’s third win, so of course they didn’t make it to the playoffs. But suddenly, they disappeared from international gridiron. Unsurprising, since they’re really only good at the other kind of ““football”” and were a surprise to even show up at World Bowl XXVI.
(Group F, 10 Games, R16)


With Nephara to perhaps never return to the World Bowl, the Golden Bowl was heisted from Nephara in the middle of the night by the Golden Bowl Officials, and handed into the hands of Ko-oren, who actually persevered and won World Bowl XXVI. Unlike many who held the Golden Bowl by true merit, Ko-oren did well with their tenure and went through the group stage with a spotless record. They also went entirely undefeated in the playoffs! Unless, of course, you count the actual final, where they lost 14-26 to Allamunnic States, as to be expected. The Regulars take hold of the Golden Bowl once again after winning World Bowl XXVII
(Group C, 10 Games, R16)


In the least amount of games since World Bowl VIII (which was in a short Casaran format), World Bowl XXVIII went in a single-round robin format. This was pure cake for the Allamunnic States, who slid through their group with ease to qualify for the playoffs. They made it past the Round of 16 and Quarterfinals only to be defeated by the eventual powerhouses Schottia, 17-24. Schottia went on the win the World Bowl, and keep the Golden Bowl, becoming a force to be reckoned with in Bowls to come.
(Group E, 6 Games, R16)


Schottia certainly didn’t show very much luster to start off World Bowl XXIX, though. Losing to HUElavia on Day 1 wasn’t really expected, but it happened anyway. HUElavia won another game, but then lost to none other than Rennidan on Day 3, 3-16. Rennidan hadn’t even been to a World Bowl for many years, but returned in XXVIII. They hadn’t even seen the Golden Bowl since World Bowl IV, 25 editions ago, but they took it back when the opportunity presented itself. Rennidan won two matches, getting some time with their long-gone Golden Bowl, before losing it out to Kaboomlandia in a rather brutish 7-24 blowout. Kaboomlandia also took their possession of the Golden Bowl (their first, as a relatively new team) for 2 wins, before dropping it 13-6 back into Schottia’s hands. Schottia won their last game of the Group Stage and went on to win in the Round of 16 and lose in the Quarterfinals, 23-9 to San Llera. San Llera won their way into the final, but ultimately lost to Anglatia, 10-0, and were forced to pass the Golden Bowl to them.
(Group F, 10 Games, R16)


Anglatia certainly had a great start to World Bowl XXX, winning all of their group stage matches, crushing everyone in their way. Unless they were Abaja. Because Abaja beat Anglatia, 0-6, in OT. Perhaps one of the most crushing defeats of a Golden Bowl holder ever. Abaja seemed to love overtime, because they lost the Golden Bowl to Abanhfleft in the next round, 13-16 also in OT. Abanhfleft, with their first possession of the Bowl, took it all the way to the final, like many do. But they couldn't match the might of Drawkland in the final, losing World Bowl XXX and the Golden Bowl to them, 7-37.
(Group 4, 10 Games, R16)


Drawkland certainly took up the mantle of the Golden Bowl with pride, absolutely smashing the long-winded 14-game Divisional stage (ooo, fancy) with flying colors and straight, unadulterated wins. In fact, they took it straight into the playoffs and had massive momentum, only to lose brutally to Banija in the Quarterfinals, 10-12. Banija picked up the Golden Bowl for the first time in their history, and carried it to the next round, only to lose it to Schottia 16-12. Schottia took the Golden Bowl to the final, and lost it to Abanhfleft, who got it back after an entire edition’s break, thanks to a 17-34 win of World Bowl XXXI.
(Bank of Acedonia Division/Nicholls Enterprises Conference, 14 Games, R16)


PROGRESSION LISTING


I
Taeshan (1)
Dancougar (3)
Kura-Pelland (6)
Dancougar (6)


II
Rennidan (5)
Dancougar (6)
Rennidan (2)


III
Rennidan (3)
Taeshan (2)
Myedvedeva (1)
The Valerian Empire (1)
Rennidan (3)
Taeshan (1)
Qazox (2)


IV
Qazox (1)
Rennidan (3)
The Candrian Empire (5)
Rennidan (1)
The Candrian Empire (1)
Dancougar (3)


V
Dancougar (11)
Newmanistan (1)
Qazox (1)
Arroza (1)


VI
Arroza (3)
Cassadaigua (1)
Vephrall (4)
Taeshan (3)
Prux (1)
Vephrall (1)
Arroza (2)
Dancougar (2)


VII
Dancougar (7)
Secristan (2)
Lanceo (1)


VIII
Fujisawan Territories (5)
Cassadaigua (1)


IX
Cassadaigua (3)
Newmanistan (2)
Delaclava (3)
Tocrowkia (4)


X
Delaclava (4)
Tocrowkia (4)
The Babbage Islands (1)
Sarzonia (2)
Bluth Corporation (1)


XI
Bluth Corporation (8)
Sibirsky (2)
Delaclava (1)
Sarzonia (1)


XII
Sarzonia (1)
Boronina (2)
Qazox (9)
F1 Insanity (1)


XIII
F1 Insanity (6)
Voltronica (5)
Qazox (2)
Allamunnic States (1)
Delaclava (1)
Bluth Corporation (1)
Delaclava (1)


XIV
Delaclava (6)
Bluth Corporation (1)
Gregourii (2)
North Chicanan (2)
Bluth Corporation (4)
Sarzonia (1)


XV
Delaclava (15)


XVI
Sibirksy (1)
Cassadaigua (1)
Western Cuba (1)
Delaclava (1)
Cassadaigua (2)
Katy Lied (1)
Western Cuba (2)
Delaclava (1)
Cassadaigua (3)
Carastoga (1)
German Zerabithea (2)
Allamunnic States (1)


XVII
Allamunnic States (7)
Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuk (1)
Space (4)
Allamunnic States (2)


XVIII
Allamunnic States (2)
Karditan (2)
Cassadaigua (2)
Allamunnic States (7)
Civil Citizenry (1)


XIX
Civil Citizenry (6)
Michael VII (4)


XX
Michael VII (1)
The Serbian Empire (1)
Catonia Majora (1)
Kinzar (1)
Royal Kingdom of Quebec (4)
Cassadaigua (3)
Michael VII (2)
Royal Kingdom of Quebec (1)
Equestrian States (1)
Thrilledge (1)
German Zerabithea (2)


XXI
German Zerabithea (7)
Equestrian States (2)
Taeshan (1)
Cassadaigua (1)
Qazox (1)


XXII
Qazox (3)
Karditan (1)
German Zerabithea (1)
Saintland (7)
West Guinea (2)
Cassadaigua (1)


XXIII
Cassadaigua (3)
The Fair Republic (3)
Osarius (1)
Hutt River (2)
The Fair Republic (1)


XXIV
The Fair Republic (1)
German Zerabithea (6)
Cosumar (1)
Saintland (3)


XXV
Saintland (10)
Timbermunich (3)
Equestrian States (3)
Allamunnic States (1)


XXVI
Allamunnic States (9)
Nephara (1)


XXVII
Ko-oren (13)
Allamunnic States (1)


XXVIII
Allamunnic States (8)
Schottia (2)


XXIX
HUElavia (2)
Rennidan (3)
Kaboomlandia (3)
Schottia (3)
San Llera (2)
Anglatia (1)


XXX
Anglatia (10)
Abaja (1)
Abanhfleft (2)
Drawkland (1)


XXXI
Drawkland (15)
Banija (1)
Schottia (1)
Abanhfleft (1)


BOWL RECORDS


Longest Carry in One Bowl: Drawkland (15, WB XXXI) / Delaclava (15, WB XV)
Longest Consecutive Carry: Drawkland (16, WBXXX-XXXI)
Times the Bowl didn’t reach the Playoffs: 3
Longest National Drought from Bowl: Rennidan (25, IV-XXIX)
Most Bowl Changes: 12 (WB XVI)
Least Bowl Changes: 0 (WB XV)
Nations which are <Nation> Bowl Eligible: 2


List of Nations by Games Held


Allamunnic States (39)
Dancougar (38)
Delaclava (33)
Cassadaigua (21)
Rennidan (20)
Saintland (20)
Qazox (19)
German Zerabithea (18)
Drawkland (16)
Bluth Corporation (15)
Ko-oren (13)
Anglatia (11)
Taeshan (8)
Tocrowkia (8)
F1 Insanity (7)
Civil Citizenry (7)
Michael VII (7)
Schottia (6)
Arroza (6)
Equestrian States (6)
The Candrian Empire (6)
Sarzonia (5)
Fujisawan Territories (5)
Royal Kingdom of Quebec (5)
The Fair Republic (5)
Vephrall (5)
Voltronica (5)
Space (4)
Abanhfleft (3)
Kura-Pelland (3)
Kaboomlandia (3)
Newmanistan (3)
Timbermunich (3)
Sibirsky (3)
Western Cuba (3)
Karditan (3)
Secristan (2)
West Guinea (2)
San Llera (2)
Boronina (2)
HUElavia (2)
Gregourii (2)
North Chicanan (2)
Hutt River (2)
Lanceo (1)
Nephara (1)
The Babbage Islands (1)
Prux (1)
Myedvedeva (1)
The Valerian Empire (1)
Katy Lied (1)
Carastoga (1)
Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuk (1)
The Serbian Empire (1)
Catonia Majora (1)
Kinzar (1)
Thrilledge (1)
Osarius (1)
Cosumar (1)
Abaja (1)
Banija (1)

World Bowl XXXII is significant, not only because one of the nations which left the World Bowl after gaining the progression, specifically Nephara, is returning, but because the now Nephara Bowl and the classic Golden Bowl will be contained in the same group! In this situation, which I'd previously not prepared for, the Nephara Bowl will continue until it potentially merges with the Golden Bowl - in which case the Nephara Bowl will cease to exist since any winner would get both Bowls, defeating the purpose of having 2. IC'ly, the physical Nephara Bowl trophy will remain with the nation that merged it, even when they have to give up the Golden Bowl eventually.

[West Phoencia]

Nation:
The Confederate Kingdom of West Phoenicia

Team name:
West Phoenician War Dancers

Governing Body:
Gridiron Federation of West Phoenicia

Roster:

COACHING STAFF
* Head Coach: Salvador Di Monti
* Offensive Coordinator: Adam Newport
* Defensive Coordinator: Simon Ford
* Special Teams Coordinator: Christopher Wilkins
* Head Trainer: Adam North



OFFENSE
* Quarterback: Jake Mars
* Quarterback: Marc Okinawa
* Halfback: Ryan Adopto
* Halfback: Thomas New
* Fullback: Brad Hollow
* Fullback: Chris De Greene
* Wide Receiver: Francisco Deb
* Wide Receiver: Matthew Pont
* Tight End: Stephen Sylvester
* Tight End: Adrian Brown
* Left Tackle: Skyler Falls
* Left Tackle: Alamain Truman
* Left Guard: Jesse Lansano
* Left Guard: Barry Sidney
* Center: Noah Ponds
* Center: Lester Nevero
* Right Guard: Heinrich Germania
* Right Guard: James Floral
* Right Tackle: David De Lucci
* Right Tackle/DT: Marcus Bronte

DEFENSE
* Left End: Kyle Wannamaker
* Left End: Daniel Jozefred
* Defensive Tackle: Bobby Prince
* Defensive Tackle: Kevin Sturgess
* Right End: Vic Nalpontaro
* Right End: Richard Dye
* Left Outside Linebacker: Daniel Schmidt
* Left Outside Linebacker: Mal Tutus
* Middle Linebacker: Titus le Angelo
* Middle Linebacker: Ivan Strauss
* Right Outside Linebacker: Matthias Lexington
* Right Outside Linebacker: Wyatt Storme
* First Safety: Paul Claycourt
* First Safety: Evan Diamond
* Second Safety: Custer Alamo
* Second Safety: Amos Redwing
* Cornerback: Josh Tinkler
* Cornerback: Cooper Tinkler

SPECIAL TEAMS
* Kicker: Ray Piktaro
* Kicker: Van Noc 
* Punter: Ali Mustafa
* Returner/RB: Curtis Lemon
* Gunner: Guy Guise
* Jammer: Saul Rosenberg
* Upback: Christian Davies

RESERVES
* Quarterback: Tyler Sharpe
* Center: Brady McAllister
* Wide Receiver: Santino Parvalleo
* Wide Receiver: Roberto El Doro
* Defensive Tackle: Paul Wisecox
* Defensive Tackle: Jefferson Bloomberg
* Cornerback: Mason Phillipe
* Kicker: Asam Harshem
* Punter: Marcello Love
* Returner/FB: Justin Bambino

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my Scorers: Yes
Choose Scoring Events: Yes
Godmod Scoring Events: No
RP Injuries to my Players: No
Godmod Injuries to my Players:No
Godmod Other Events:No

[Free Republics]

Free Republics National Football Team

Base Formation: I-Formation (Offense), 3-4 (Defense)
Style Modifier: -1.5
Colors: Blue and White
Head Coach - Jak Hamilton
Offensive Coordinator - Niels Juhl
Defensive Coordinator - Canine Berggren
Special Teams Coordinator - Godemir Tomic
Assistant Offensive Coordinator - Prudencio Orosco
Assistant Defensive Coordinator - Nicanor Pirogov
Assistant Special Teams Coordinator - Martin Enersen
QB Coach - Edvin Berg
RB Coach - Pall Istvan
WR Coach - Pejo Herceg
TE Coach - Conall Black
OL Coach - Casper Eriksson
DL Coach - Riccardo Li Fonti
LB Coach - Dominic Challis
DB Coach - Luka Marjanovic
Conditioning Coach - Valdemar Thygesen
Coach - Alexandre Garceau
Coach - Vasilije Grajfoner
Coach - Lucas Bumgarner
Coach - Olli Maenpaa
Coach - Bent Klausen

Roster (age in parentheses)

Starting Offense

QB - #64 Wibe Rus (23)
HB - #90 Matthijn Admiraal (23)
FB - #1 Jacob Naylor (25)
WR - #9 Anes Kokoravec (34)
WR - #79 Roman Vesely (25)
TE - #39 Bartha Myricoorish (34)
LT - #37 Alex Bech (35)
LG - #68 Leon Collins (29)
C - #23 Vlad Maslow (34)
RG - #58 Etienne Kopinya (29)
RT - #67 Joshua Howard (23)

Starting Defensive

LE - #29 Jasper Dallachy (25)
NG - #97 Big Mo Henderson (30)
RE - #75 Scott Bruce (26)
LOLB - #14 Daniel Friedman (27)
LILB - #65 Gregorio Trevisano (37)
RILB - #49 Valentin Immonen (26)
ROLB - #82 Michel Lizotte (26)
CB - #69 Simon Gregersen (31)
CB - #74 Prewitt Ayot (38)
FS - #27 Marcus Ikonen (25)
SS - #86 Ismail Holm (37)

Extra Defensive Backs

Nickel - #16 Fedro Colombo (24)
Dime - #71 Ostap Mordvinov (29)
Extra Safety - #17 Stanislav Loncar (30)

Special Teams

K - #18 Dean Kevin (34)
P - #3 Ludvig Eide (28)
KOS - #63 Ewan Wilkinson (30)
KR - #11 Pomeroy Therriault (26)
KR - #62 Casto Armijo (36)
PR - #8 Gianleone Siciliani (32)
LS - #50 Jost Majoranc (32)
COVER - #55 Branislav Obad (32)
COVER - #51 Folke Jonsson (32)
COVER - #20 Mark Ritter (32)
COVER - #43 Roman Hernandes (37)
COVER - #78 Jens Klug (26)
COVER - #25 Sander Mogensen (32)
COVER - #92 D'Arcy Tanguay (31)
COVER - #40 Saturno Velez (34)
COVER - #70 Aron Hunter (30)
COVER - #15 Ivan Cermelj (29)

Backups and Reserves

QB - #89 Rene Duerr (30)
QB - #12 Carlo Pirozzi (32)
QB - #95 Jacob Knudsen (31)
RB - #36 Jorma Isometsa (27)
RB - #85 Gabe van Veelen (32)
RB - #28 Xhafer Jericek (35)
RB - #13 Castore Schiavone (28)
FB - #77 Klonimir Milic (33)
FB - #26 Laurentius Drok (23)
WR - #44 Fran Pavlovic (33)
WR - #88 Zak Cross (23)
WR - #61 Petr Rybar (29)
WR - #5 Carst Zoutewelle (24)
WR - #72 Prvoslav Kralj (33)
WR - #6 Lazarus Zhirov (24)
TE - #60 Carl Curtis (36)
TE - #87 Anders Brandt (28)
TE - #94 Amund Haugen (31)
OT - #98 Eliot Lafond (23)
OT - #54 Daniel Dujmovic (35)
OT - #57 Oskari Ikonen (29)
OG - #19 Victor Mortensen (33)
OG - #33 Stanislav Loncar (26)
OG - #22 Montague Dostie (34)
C - #46 Cvjetko Brajkovic (38)
C - #30 Neri Arreola (23)
DE - #24 Roberto Cosic (38)
DE - #80 Tigran Tokaryev (37)
DE - #76 Fatty Clark (34)
DT - #47 Johan Aas (34)
DT - #56 Peter Sabela (36)
DT - #41 Alcide Conti (23)
DT - #52 Rashied Haverkate (29)
DT - #2 Armen Vela Alba (30)
OLB - #84 Andreas Olsen (36)
OLB - #45 Noah Theriault (27)
OLB - #4 Eligio Mazzi (27)
OLB - #10 Joaquin Ojeda (29)
OLB - #83 Vetle Tveiten (26)
ILB - #42 Marco Finkel (31)
ILB - #73 Emile Lajeunesse (35)
CB - #93 Seth Baume (32)
CB - #35 Joseph Grimes (25)
CB - #66 Tyko Nevalainen (35)
S - #91 Tim Landreth (37)
S - #96 Christopher Barker (25)
S - #59 Jakub Horak (38)
K - #7 Kevin Antonsen (35)
P - #99 Apolinario Velasco (29)

Stadiums

VS Allamunnic States

Stadium: Gem of the Oceans Stadium
Stadium Location: Republica, Republica District
Stadium Capacity: 101,208

VS The Kiaser Colonies

Stadium: Podvez Field
Stadium Location: Yellow Bay, Vorita
Stadium Capacity: 65,397

VS Torisakia

Stadium: AllMartDome
Stadium Location: Reco, Jolarus
Stadium Capacity: 88,234

VS Royal Kingdom of Quebec

Stadium: Olympic Stadium
Stadium Location: Baseton, Amolotopia
Stadium Capacity: 107,432

RP Permissions
My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my scorers: Y
Choose scoring events: Y
RP injuries to my players: Y
Godmod scoring events: Y
Godmod injuries: Y
Godmod other events: Y

[The Iron Syndicate]

Clash

Chapter One

“Let me tell you something about the city of Portus, Lucy. Something that you may not have recognized in all your years here because, while your family has been close to ours for a long time, you haven't been directly involved in any of this stuff. And maybe, that's a good thing, because once you get wrapped up in all of this, there's no way to get out,” said Damien Ossani, speaking to Lucy Silverstone as the hovercraft lifted off of the ground and began the quick flight from the central city to the northern suburban island of North Portum, the place where a large gathering of the super rich was set to take place in mere hours. “There's two sides to the city, and you may have noticed that in sport, playing for Central and all, but the clash for the city extends far beyond sports. In fact, it didn't even begin in sports, and sports is only an extension of a battle that most people are blissfully unaware of.”

“The battle between Central and Independent? Yeah, I'm aware of how it has its roots in things outside of sport,” Lucy replied, looking out the window as they began to move through the air, Damien sitting next to her and glancing around to see who else on the hovercraft was listening. “Central has been the establishment team for a long time, representing the center city and everything to the south of that. Independent has their roots in the northeast side and has been an anti establishment club, also having roots in some politics that go contrary to what the Executive Board has been preaching. Central is the pure capitalist club that symbolizes what the Syndicate is based on, with a base in middle class minarchist and right wing libertarian support, while Independent has their base in lower class labor support and left wing libertarian support. Right?”

Damien nodded, chuckling slowly as if he knew something that she didn't know, and he gave her a slight smile as she looked back at him to see if he was right. “Where did those divisions come from, however? Which family has been the most influential in the Minarchist Party, that put your father into power as the governor and dominated the most recent elections? And what are they connected to, and what have they been connected to for many years?”

“Your family… The Ossani family. They've been connected to banking and would be most well known as the owners of the Bank of Portus, but they're also known for being the founders of IronBet and for having holdings in real estate and pharmaceuticals,” Lucy said, and then she realized the point that Damien was really trying to make, her eyes lighting up in a way when she made the connection in her mind. “They also own Portus Central FC, the Portus Pirates, and the University of Portus. Oh, and the gridiron team, the Portus Comets.”

“Exactly. Now, tell me who has the most influence on the left side of politics, not just in this city and on this island, but nation wide? Specifically, which family does, and what their connections are. Not just their businesses, but all of their holdings.”

Lucy paused momentarily to think of the answer, but it didn't take long to come up with it. It wasn't exactly a hard question, after all, not for someone who had always lived in Portus and whose family had long been tied to politics. “That would be the Kemp family, and they're known for founding and owning the Portum Broadcasting Network media group and for their influence in the automotive industry and the oil industry. They own… Portus Independent, the Portus Ramblers basketball team, and… Um, let me think… Oh, they also own Seaside University, on the smaller island of East Portum. I think I know what you're playing at, now.”

“Yes. There's two sides to this city, Lucy. Two sides to this nation, really. The Ossani family and the Kemp family, Central and Independent, blue or red, right or left,” Damien said, as Lucy looked out the window again and watched them fly past some of the more well known buildings in the city skyline, on their way to the northern strait. “The truth is, this city has been divided for a long time, between the Blues and the Bloods. That's what they call us, Blues, and that's what we call them, Bloods. It's a family rivalry that was turned even more heated than it already was because of ideological disputes, and it spilled over into sport, too. Sport is part of what some of us are coming to talk about, actually, with the SGL beginning soon, and… Some other things have been happening that require attention.”

“What things are there that you say require attention?”

“The Bloods are out for retaliation, and well… It’s something that will be explained when we get there. It's about something that got ugly because of a conflict between a few of the people within the families, and things spilled out into the public, even though most people think that it just has to do with sports. It's much more than that, however, and it's going to end up with more people getting hurt before this is all done. You don't want to get into it. Really.”

Lucy shifted in her seat, pouting and looking towards Damien with a glare that could kill, folding her arms and cocking her head to the side. “You don't know that,” she remarked, even though, in all likelihood, he was the one that was in the right here. “Come on, you told me about the rest of the stuff, you can't start to tell me and then leave me hanging. I'm going to find out anyway, you may as well just tell me and get it over with. Besides, I'm a Silverstone, I can handle political intrigue and the like. I wouldn't have made it in this family if I couldn't.”

The young man next to her sighed, studying her face to try to see if she really could handle what he was going to explain. He didn't necessarily want to tell her this and then have her spread the word to someone else that couldn't be trusted, and while both of them were twenty, Damien knew that he was a more mature twenty year old that wouldn't gossip about something to his friends. That was why he was trusted with family information, but it was hard to tell if Lucy could be the same way. “Remember your ex teammate, Alexis Valente? She didn't really play last season, she only had something like four appearances, but you probably remember her being around the club and being on the bench.”

“Alexis? Yeah, of course I remember her now. Though, she's mainly infamous now for leaving Central for Independent, so we aren't friends anymore. We used to talk a bit at training sessions and off of the pitch, she'd tell me her frustration about playing time and I would tell her to hold on a little bit longer and wait for her turn. But she fought the management, Christopher Blackstar specifically, and left for a big fee to Independent to get playing time,” shrugged Lucy. “What about her?”

“If you remember her and you used to talk with her, you probably remember that she recently fought off a knife attack from a couple of guys that the media described as robbers. Well… The media didn't get the full story, because PBN made sure that they got a hold of it first and ran it with their version of events, to keep the family conflict out of public news. But those guys with knives that broke into her new place on the northeast side? Those weren't just robbers looking for a rich footballer to steal from, those were professional hard men likely hired by my cousin, Tobias. You might recognize him as the one that hangs around the sidelines at Comets games a lot, because he's always been interested in one day taking over that franchise. He's also the one that used to date Alexis, and her move to Independent was not just a betrayal of the club, but a betrayal of him and the rest of our family. Going from the black to the red side is just something that isn't done, and while some may think this sounds harsh, there was no way they could be together after she joined the Reds. I'm not sure you realize just how big of a betrayal it was, really.”

“What made it a bigger betrayal than any other transfer between Central and Independent? As far as I know, it's happened before and Alexis won't be the last one to make the switch from center city to the northeast side. There's something I'm missing, isn't there?”

“What you're missing is the fact that my family took Alexis in and made sure that she was taken care of, back before any other clubs wanted her. Red Hill rejected her, Ceres laughed in her face, Zombie never considered her request to join them, and the very club that she signed for now, Independent, told her to come back in five years after bulking up her frame and building muscle,” muttered Damien, rolling his eyes slightly as he thought back on what they had done. “But Central, the biggest club in the country, saw promise in her and was willing to take her in and give her a spot in the academy and then in the first team. We made sure that her family wasn't poor anymore, and we were willing to give her everything if she waited her turn for it. And what did she do? She couldn't wait and she ran off to the other side of town. Alexis Valente is the biggest snake in this city, and she's going to be one of the topics of discussion today.”

Lucy raised an eyebrow in curiosity, before wondering more about what Damien had mentioned earlier. “But you expect her to attempt to retaliate for what Tobias tried to do, or to get the Kemp family to do that for her, since she's with them now?”

“You learn quickly. The Bloods already stated their intent to us to retaliate, telling us in no uncertain terms to watch out backs. Well, if they're going to do this and protect that traitor, Valente, we’re going to have some plans of our own to get back at them as soon as they make their move. You don't cross the Ossani clan and get away with it without facing the consequences, nor does one retaliate against us without facing an even worse response. We haven't become the top family in the city through being pushovers. My father, Luca, would say that if you cross us once, you won't get a chance to cross us twice.”

He chuckled, looking out the window to see how fast the surroundings were moving by. “This trip isn't all about revenge, though. It's just something that's on everyone's mind. We're going to have some stuff with sports and getting ready for the SGL season, and getting ready to beat the hell out of the Bloods and the Portus Caps this season. In a way, it's a networking trip, to bring in the man that we want to quarterback the Comets this season, and a trip to bring in a few new people like you and introduce them to the family for real. It'll be your official welcome, now that you're playing for Central and now that you can be trusted to keep a few secrets. But believe me. Once you leave this island, Lucy, you really won't be the same person. Just a warning…”

~

The hovercraft landed, and while they had only gone the distance of from downtown to the smaller island to the north, it was like entering an entirely different world. Gone were the absolutely massive buildings of the main island, and gone was the heavy traffic and the crowded streets and busy harbors. No, this place was more subdued but was definitely more rich, with luxurious villas and expansive mansions that had to cost much more than the smaller apartments that a lot of people in Portus lived in. This was a neighborhood for millionaires and their friends, and Lucy Silverstone almost felt out of place despite coming from one of the most prestigious families that there was.

It wasn't that she was poor or anything, especially now that she had ditched her political studies to become a midfielder for Central Portus, but she had spent so much of her life around the middle class in the big city. And now, she was seeing how the super rich lived when they were amongst themselves, and not surrounded by the middle class people that worked their businesses and kept the whole system running smoothly. Lucy herself identified with those people in a way, because she had been faced with a choice between having possibly more fame and prestige in politics or chasing something that she loved, and she took less prestige to be a footballer, but still, she was undeniably rich. Even with that, she didn't feel like she belonged in this place, with those that ran the world.

“I don't think I even fit in here,” she remarked, as Damien stepped out of the hovercraft and she followed, as they walked through the private airstrip and towards the limousine that was waiting for their group at the edge of it. The drive would be short, because they were heading practically next door, to one of the many holdings of the Ossani clan. “I might be rich, but I didn't grow up in a place like this, where it feels like every singe person is a millionaire…”

“You have millionaires in your family, you know-”

“Yes, but that doesn't make me one. It doesn't mean that I fit in at a place like this, with the richest of the rich.”

“The point is that wealth shouldn't be a completely foreign concept to you. There's no need to feel like you don't fit in, because you have charisma, Luce. I've always lived around here and you'll probably make a better impression than me, just because you have the kind of natural charisma that other people work for years to develop,” Damien said, grabbing her by the shoulder and pulling her close in a reassuring side hug. “Now, are you ready to step into the world that I told you about, the one that you can't come back from but that will change you as a person after you spend enough time around it?”

Lucy nodded, somewhat reluctantly, and started towards the limo along with Damien and the others. “I don't have much of a choice, do I? I already made that choice when I got into the hovercraft, and I'm not turning away right now, after I'm already here. Let's go, then,” she said, and that was that.

For the first time, she would be stepping into this new world.

[-Anthor-]

Pitthorpe High School, City of Dunford, Anthor
Uriel 21, 600

The beat of the techno music emanating from the copper brown car with the peeling paint and obvious signs of wear found it's way to NIcholas's ears for but the briefest moment before he picked up the blue headphones that were wrapped around his neck and placed the muffs of them over his ears, the large, yet modern, earpieces pinning his ears back as his favorite rock bands from across the country, and world, and their biggest albums began to find their ways into his ears. After a few moments, a catchy beat with a very recognizable tune began playing and a quick smile was brought to his lips as he grinned and began humming to the familiar tune as his red and white Dynamic athletic sneakers crunched on the fallen twigs of the side walk, and then eventually the crosswalk, as the average height and built kid with the high, wavy auburn hair made his way towards the faded brown brick buildings that were designated "Pitthorpe High School", one of the high schools for the city of Dunford and the county, Catcote. It was one of the middle schools, in terms of academic and athletic performances and successes, the teachers and staff tried their best but wouldn't be setting any international standards any time soon. Dunford itself was a relatively average town, it had gone through the economic slump like the rest of the province about four decades ago when heavy industry began it's slow, yet horrible death. The city had managed to recover by recruiting a few IT firms and moderate businesses, and the revival to the economy allowed for a niche sector of family owned businesses to grow. Nicholas's parents belonged to the formerly mentioned sectors, his father being a proud unambitious software engineer at the local company Thriftwards Innovations, and his mother was a financial assistant for the city, helping a number of those small, family owned businesses with their books and advice on how to grow, invest and operate. They both had dreams for their only son, and he had some dreams of his own; meeting a famous person, dating a hot girl, the typical ambitions of a seventeen year old his age, and it was even why he had picked up gridiron football; the clubs for typical football were so crowded with star athletes, he figured he'd stand more of a shot with this one, but someone forgot to tell his coach that. He hadn't gotten a start until his junior year when the old one graduated, and even then, he knew he wasn't the center of the playbook like most offenses; it was usually his running back Oliver or the Ethan, the dude who dunked for the basketball team and was their gridion's leader in touchdown receptions.

Still, despite his apparent perceived lack of skill, or maybe he really was just not that good, he was determined to get better. Summer started in five weeks, and unlike the rest of his friends who were already preparing for the month long break of hedonistic ventures, he committed himself to ending his senior year on a high note, despite the games being over he could still access the weight room and coach was still running practices for senior's like him who were hoping to land one of the very, increasingly rare scholarships to a university.

His path along the cracked sidewalks, which was straddled by the chain link fence that enclosed the school grounds with tattered banners of local sponsors swaying in the light spring breeze, would eventually take him to the front building that held the office and administrative offices, the janitors letting him in through a side gate so he could walk across the relatively empty campus, heading for the low, long warehouse looking building that served as the school's gym, and subsequently it's locker room housing as well. It had a main door that led onto the two large fields used for both kinds of football as well as other forms of sports, as well as a smaller, standard sized brown door, with a peeling painted on sign stating "Officials Only" that led directly into a dimly lit room that served as a weight training room, and from there one reached the locker room. Nicholas knew the path well because he had been taking it for the past four years, even today, after school with the only few people left being club members, children of faculty or the odd teacher staying late, and a few seniors of the team gathering on the field for practice.

Nicholas made his way through the metal door, the door knob feeling loose and rattled as he turned it to enter into the weight room; he used his nimble feet to navigate around the clustered machines, the room wasn't overly large due to the building being forced into a multipurpose role and because of this, there was very little room in between the few stations and machines they did have. The way to the locker room was through the main door of the weight room, which fed into a standard hallway with white tiled floors that had black squares for decorative reasons, and Nicholas just had a few feets worth of length to travel before you reached the double wooden doors, heavily worn and creaking on their hinges, that guarded the entrance to the locker room.

The locker room itself was filled with deep gold lockers, square in size and no more then six inches in diameter, they would barely fit shorts and shoes. These lockers were for general purpose, anyone would used it, and they were on pillars that were in the center of the room with benches wrapping around them. However, wardrobe style lockers ringed the walls of the locker room, with benches in front of each, and it was towards one of these Nicholas made his way, specifically for the one in the northern corner of the room, next to the doorway to the showers, that bore his name on a piece of tape on the door "N.Harriot QB#8"

He unshouldered the simple canvas red backpack, it's exterior covered in black fabric marker drawings from his friends and classmates, and let it fall into the bench in front of his locker, which he swung open to reveal the set of pads that sat on the interior shelf, as well as his white and gold cleats, a gift from his head coach during his freshman year. He had been tempted to get new ones when the school rebranded itself at the end of that year, notably their colors transitioning to a deep silver and blue colorset, but he kept them instead as a momento, regardless of the fact they clashed with his current uniform. He quickly changed into his workout clothes, a simple grey shirt and average length black exercise shorts, that he had brought with him inside his backpack and then grabbed his cleats and laced them up, and then finally grabbing and lifting onto himself his entire pad set, grabbing his helmet that sat underneath them and walking out to the field. When he walked out of the locker room's main entrance, he was led into a short hallway which would led to a exit door and then the field, and he noticed his friend, Rand Stacy, getting a drink from the water fountain near the door, and Nicholas increased his walk as he got closer to his friend "What's the matter Randy, they running you poor linebackers into the ground?"

Randy ignored him for the minute as he let the ice cold water pour over his face, and then he stood up and smiled as he shook Nicholas's hand "Always, you know the Coach. I'm actually about to head home, I've been here for hours, you have fun out there. Shame I won't get to sack you today."

"Like you could ever catch me."

The two friends parted, as Rand walked laughing towards the locker room doors for a cold shower to relax his overheated body, even in the spring the rising temperatures had set in and the coaches were relentless in their practice, regardless of the weather. Nicholas didn't mind, in fact, as he stepped out of the building and onto the track that surrounded the field, his blue eyes regarding the assembly of players drilling on the field, coaches instructing them and a light, warm breeze flowing through the area, that feeling of home registered in his chest and it made Nicholas smile as he began to jog out to join his teammates. He headed for the balding man of short stature that was surrounded by a few players taking a knee, all who nodded their heads as Nicholas joined the impromptu huddle. "Alright boys, since Harriot has decided to grace us with his presence, let's do a little 5 on 5 scrimmage before the rest of you go home. Harriot, take a red shirt and let's get this thing going."

Nicholas nodded and picked up one of the red mesh practice shirts and threw it over his jersey, and then took the offered ball from his head coach's hands and brought it over to the lineup on the fifteen yard line, his mental practices for clearing his mind and focusing already beginning - despite it being a drill, he still wanted to exceed and perform well. It took him to the count of seven to snap the ball, the lineman snapping it directly to Nicholas who was under the center and Nicholas rolled back into the pocket as his two "meat shields" of lineman held off the advancing defenders as Nicholas scanned the field for an opening. It took him a moment to see Keegan Chase, a freshman receiver who was working hard to impress the coach for the next season, double step juke and throw the covering defender off and Nicholas dropped his right foot back as he cocked his arm backwards and then launched the ball forward, towards Keegan who was twenty two yards or so ahead the scrimmage line. The worn football soared threw in the air in a good spiral, flying high as a lob pass, and Keegan immediately tracked it and took up a sprinting run and lept up with both hands, securing the ball as he was tackled around his waist on his way down.

The practice scrimmage went on for forty more minutes before lineman, who had been playing both sides and doing so for hours in the heat, reached their stopping point of fatigue and called it a quits, leaving just Keegan and Nicholas on the field, Nicholas drinking some water from a sports bottle and Keegan pacing on the field next to him, his blonde hair waving in the wind. "C'mon Nick, I need to get better on slant routes, and route running in general, help meee."

"Just come to practice, the coach will help you."

"Yeah but you're a senior and I really want that starting role next year, I deserve it more then Marvolo does!"

Nicholas chuckled; Sam Marvolo was a junior who had more arrogance then football skill, but somehow had managed to combine the two to be a decent enough player. Even still, Nicholas knew that Keegan had a small point, the kid did work hard and grinded out the hard work every day with the core group of players who actually took the team seriously. Nicholas held Keegan in a blank stare for a second and then grinned and set his water bottle down, and picked up the football next to his foot on the field "Alright fine. Short quick slants, let's get started."

Nicholas walked over to center himself on the field at the forty yard line and Keegan took up a position of a slot receiver. Nicholas called out "Hike!" when he was ready, and Keegan would zip into a slant route towards center field, Nicholas counting to four or five before whipping the ball towards Keegan; Nicholas saw where work was needed, the kid was good at tracking deep passes down but the quick bullets sometimes, even here, went straight through his arms or hands. The two did the slant routes, and for every five Keegan caught consecutively, Nicholas would space it out more, to give the kid a break, but then reset it when a pass was dropped. This practice drill continued until Keegan, panting with his arms on his knees, called a timeout for a bathroom break and he jogged over to use the ones inside the building, leaving Nicholas on the field alone. As he stood around waiting for Keegan to return, he regarded the practice dummies used by linemen for pushing; it had been parked near the 10 yard line at the end of the field, and for some reason, Nicholas felt like hitting it. He dragged the tub of footballs over and just began chucking the footballs over, aiming for different dummies, sometimes hitting them, sometimes over or under shooting. The play around continued, even through the beads of sweat dripping down his face before he heard a whistle, like a coach calling him. He released a football in a throw, for it to end up in the collection on the other end of the field with about two dozen others, and noticed a tall man in a brown suit walking down the track towards him, near the bleachers. "Can I help you mister?"

"You planning on beating up on practice dummies all night?"

Nicholas looked towards west and noticed the tell tale orange rays and sky of a setting sun, and fully realized just how late it must have been; Keegan must have taken an ice bath and passed out, Nicholas had only warned him a few times to not overwork himself "Uh, no. Lost track of time, was waiting for my buddy to get back."

"Yeah I noticed that, the kid who can't catch small but it great down range."

Nicholas shrugged "He's fifteen, plenty of time to fix that and he works hard."

By this point the man was now across from Nicholas directly, standing on the track. "Just about as hard as you have. Funny for a quarterback who hasn't committed to a college to be working so hard, especially when you're not on one of the top 100 high school teams."

" I like long shots."

At this, the man chuckled. "Well, if that's true, you wanna do some extra practice on the side to your already extra practice?"

"Where at?"

"Sports complex, near the river on the south side of the city."

Nicholas looked confused "The old Barrios brother's gym?"

"That's the one. I'm holding a meetup for a team I'm trying to put together, I think you got what it takes, want you to come by and give it a shot. Or, at the very least, hear me out."

Nicholas nodded "I can't miss practice here for this side hobby."

"Of course not, I'd never dream of asking you too. Meeting is at 8 am, I'll call your principal and get you excused from your classes."

Nicholas nodded "Alright, I'll be there. Just one question; who are you?"

The man began walking away, waving his hand at Nicholas "Turnbull, Coach Joel Turnbull."

[Bongo Johnson]

Official Stadium Schedule for World Bowl XXXII

	MD1	MD2	MD3	MD4	MD5	MD6	MD7	MD8	MD9	MD10
Murbley Coliseum	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D
StrattonBank Stadium	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F
The Dannydome	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H
Brinkley Memorial Gardens	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B	C, D	E, F	G, H	A, B

[The Kiaser Colonies]

The sports fans of the Kiaser Colonies were, in many ways, experts in all things physical. And even less active 'sports' such as darts, croquette and tiddlywinks (one could even get TV coverage of this late at night on some of the more obscure channels). The whole nation was sporting mad and it was uncommon not to play at least 2 sports unless you were a professional, elderly or just too lazy. There was a huge investment in women's and Paralympic sports to encourage everyone. But not all sports were held so dear in the public eye.

Traditionally American sports just never seemed to catch on. Baseball and American football were disproportionately unpopular compared to the general level of interest they received around the world. That's not to say they were unheard of. There were college baseball teams in University College Highroyds and New Sydney University as well as a small community team in Kaiserville. American football was played almost exclusively in the northern most islands of the archipelago with a team in Kilbarrack Institute of Technology and Storm Petrel Point. UCH had also stepped up to start a college team, thanks to the initiative and persistence of some overseas students from Drawkland, Cosumar and the Royal Kingdom of Quebec. However this team was still mostly comprised of foreign students.

The problem really came down to the fact that it was just too slow. Curious Kiasers attempting to watch games for the first time were usually left tearing their hair out and shouting at the players or TV to "just get on with the game already," or drifting off into a discontented sleep. Kiasers watching second or subsequent games were often the parents or significant others of the players involved. The people liked their sports like they did their Webflix streams - uninterrupted.

Yet the nation had managed cobbled a team together and made it to World Bowl XXXII in Bongo Johnson somehow. Through the players grit, determination and sheer desire (as well as some effective under-the-table player poaching by star foreign students marrying into citizenship) they did it. A team of ambitious students, stay at home dads, the four Bourne brothers and some amateur rugby players that had nothing to do in the off season were headed to the premier international competition. This is possibly the biggest insult the competition has ever suffered and divine justice should see the Kiasers get hammered in each game.

The key players for the Kiasers included kicker James Lacey-Willard, receiver Mitchell Duke and the four Bourne brothers - Jason, Tyson, Samson and Mason. Lacey-Willard was from the Royal Kingdom of Quebec by birth but moved to the Kiaser Colonies at the age of 17 and stayed to go to UCH. Probably the most talented player in the squad but used to best effect kicking the ball so the team could actually score field goals. They had even won games on the road to the World Bowl via his boot alone. Duke was the starting fullback for Division 1 amateur rugby team the Currawong Quokkas. He was particularly adept under the high ball, always a safe pair of hands and knew how to avoid a tackler. His footwork meant he was one of the few players to be able to engineer touchdowns. And the Bourne brothers from Drawkland were a very interesting bunch. Quadruplets. All quite similar looking. All good players. So good their college team mates were desperate to make them eligible for the squad. So desperate that linebacker Dylan Aiken managed to convince his four sisters to marry them in a move that certainly had the team thanking their lucky stars they weren't getting any media publicity at the time. A hilarious and noteworthy point on this is that the marriages could lead to future children possibly being "Bourne-Aiken".

Suddenly word of their success had spread and searches for 'american football' increased and libraries across the country were seeing an increase in loans for 'American Football for Dummies.' Although, in the grander scheme of things, people were still really taking no notice of the sport. More actual success was needed for people to overlook the glacial pace of the game. People weren't just weren't going to watch for several hours as their team were slowly bludgeoned to death in each game. More dauntingly, they were in a very strong group with 3 teams in the top 20, Free Republics, Royal Kingdom of Quebec and Allamunnic State. But their opening match was against fellow unranked World Bowl new-comers Torisakia. This was the Kiasers' only realistic shot at winning a game by any stretch of the imagination. Barring any miracles, the Kiasers could only expect to finish between last and second last in the group depending on the strength of unranked Torisakia.

Group C:
Royal Kingdom of Quebec (13)
Free Republics (20)
The Kiaser Colonies (UR)
Torisakia (UR)
Allamunnic States (5)

The teams schedule is as follows:
MD1: TKC v Torisakia @ StrattonBank Stadium
MD2: Allamunnic States v TKC @ Murbley Coliseum
MD3: TKC v Royal Kingdom of Quebec @ Brinkley Memorial Gardens
MD4: Free Republics v TKC @ The Dannydome
MD5: BYE
MD6: Torisakia v TKC @ Murbley Coliseum
MD7: TKC v Allamunnic States @ Brinkley Memorial Gardens
MD8: Royal Kingdom of Quebec v TKC @The Dannydome
MD9: TKC v Free Republics @ StrattonBank Stadium
MD10: BYE

[Ranoria]

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my Scorers: Yes
Choose Scoring Events: Yes
Godmod Scoring Events: Yes
RP Injuries to my Players: To an extent. Nothing season ending or out for future games w/out my permission
Godmod Injuries to my Players: see above
Godmod Other Events: Yes

Roster, Memphis Steamers:
Genereal: The Memphis Steamers were selected as the team to compete on the international stage for Ranoria, as they dominated the RFL and won the national championship, rather than choosing the best players from around the league. One exeption was made, as star, and defending MVP, veteran QB Bo Callahan declined to participate, as all players had the option to do. As a result, Derek McNair, who, as a first year player, led a former bottom-feeder team to the second round of the playoffs, will be filling in.

Style Modifier: +3
Uniforms: Silver and Dark Green home, Dark green and silver pants w/ grey highlighted white jerseys away

Players:
-An asteric* indicates a star player. Only starters and notable backups will be listed.

Quarterbacks
QB #9 Derek McNair*
QB # 9 Andre Dawson

Running Backs
HB #26 Tommy Parker*
HB #29 Tre Parker
FB # 22 Terell Villhelm

Offensive Linemen
OT #77 Brent Trenton
OG# 72 Drake Sootster*
C # 76 Kendall Darmon
OG #75 Sly Canton
OT #78 Charles Woodman

Tight Ends
TE # 82 Eckart Lauer
TE # 88 Volker Uahlmann

Wide Receivers
WR # 87 Gabe Foster*
WR # 84 Anthony Foster
WR # 17 Barry Grendel
WR # 21 Hannes Renn

Defensive Linemen
DE # 90 Janik Herring
DE # 92 Wolfgang Erwin
DT # 93 Julius Weingaerter

Linebackers
OLB #54 Kunz Bane
OLB #58 Per Franz
ILB #99 Spencer Gyler*
ILB #52 Albert Speidel

Defensive Backs
CB #23 Billy Shaw
CB # 24 Marc Nitzsch
SS # 30 Christopher Becker
FS # 33 Albert Meyr

Home Stadium: Dreadnaught Arena, Capacity of 87,500

[Drawkland]

GRID CORPS CHANGES FOR THE FIRST TIME
Written By: Phillip Ward and Ben Lincoln

---

You read the title right, folks. For the first time since their debut in World Bowl XXVIII, the Grid Corps has changed up the roster thanks to some suggestions by the GLD and DISC. Here at DNSN, our job is to inform you who and what is up with the team, in case you're not an expert at Drawkian Gridiron.¹

QUARTERBACKS
Of course we have to start with the Quarterbacks, leading the Drawkian offense whenever they take the field. The starting quarterback, heading the team since its beginning, is of course the famous Dak Waterman.² He's the big man on the field, having been the starter for the dominating Drawk Corps for 6 years now, leading them to 4 championships. His specialty is late game or end-of-half situations, where he can utterly pick apart a defense. If you put in Dak Waterman with a minute to go, he'll promise you points before the clock hits zero. And 9 times out of 10, he'll deliver. He's also a dual threat, being known for easily scrambling. Perhaps his biggest weakness is throwing on the run, which is why a lot of the times when he starts sprinting from the pocket he'll just tuck it and keep going for big yardage.
Zac Gold is the other quarterback who will be taking a lot of snaps for the Grid Corps for World Bowl XXXII and beyond. Starting for the perennial playoff powerhouse the Metropolon Underrunners,³ Gold is new to the Corps this season due to his emergence as a great franchise quarterback, as his first few seasons were pretty mediocre. Now, he's established himself as one of the greats of the GLD. As far as playing skill goes, he's definitely a pocket quarterback. Taller than most, he's really reluctant to move out of the pocket, which is fortunate considering the inexplicable inability of professional linemen to bring him down. From the pocket he's a brutal passer, knowing exactly where and when to throw. Despite that, however, he still has a lack of the fine-tuned technical ball-throwing skills that most possess. His saving grace are all his other skills.
Finally, Trace Hayes will be bringing up the bottom of the depth chart. Despite being the secondary QB for the past 4 seasons, Hayes intentionally allowed himself to be lower in the depth chart, only being put in the game in injury situations or times where the Corps lead big after the half. Hayes thrives on having plenty of time on the clock. With time on his side, he brutally takes down opposing offenses. His biggest claim to fame is his record-low amount of interceptions - throwing 0 in 2 straight seasons. This is in part due to his domestic team, the Waxton Pilots, having 2 quarterbacks, where his fellow QB, Steven Farr, handles most of the tight-time situations, which allows Hayes to be methodical and perfect in normal time. It's also worth mentioning that Hayes also is a very speedy guy, and can roll out of the pocket with no sweat and scramble for deep yardage. He'd probably be a running back, if he wasn't so good at passing. His main reason for staying on the Corps is his special teams skill, but that's covered in another section.

RUNNING BACKS
With a slimmer and better set of Running Backs, the Corps is ready as ever to have a strong running game that'll make opposing defensive coordinators cry. The starter, who is new for this season, is #49, Jack Hoy. Jack was a rookie the season leading up to World Bowl XXXI, and caught the attention of DISC and the coaching staff of the Grid Corps. However, due to timing, and the fact that they wanted to make sure he wasn't a one-season wonder, they waited until this edition to let him onto the team. Hoy is smaller than most, but he's a shifty fellow, so elusive that he'll slip right through two linebackers and force them to ram into each other without tackling him. His juke and spin and jumping moves are unmatched, and he has the speed and agility to prove it. As his performance on the Ducentu Glassmen shows, he has fantastic breakaway speed in the secondary, but if he's caught at all, he's likely to go down immediately. Not that this is a bad thing - he's only had 1 fumble in his two seasons, and that one fumble was due to the ball being punched out by a lineman while he was diving to break the plane at the 1-yard line. In addition, Hoy is quite good at receiving as well out of the backfield, but he rarely follows routes. Instead, he decides to change up where he runs to instead go to a soft spot in the defense. While it's harder to tell where the hell he's going, experienced QBs like Waterman know exactly when's the perfect moment to hit him up.
Next is a more familiar face to Drawkian fans, Antonio Anders. Having been around since the inception of the Corps, Antonio has established himself as one of those rare halfbacks with much longevity. He's a bigger guy, much bigger than Hoy, and prefers to truck, stiffarm, and simply force tacklers off of him. He's not the fastest out there - still a good runner though, but he's pretty much impossible to bring down when he's in his zone. He's obviously a powerback, and more often than not will be put in for 3rd down and for important red zone situations (or in throwaway easy-win games, he'll play most of the game). Many of those who've watched him play at his 5 years with the Dammenport Lightning comment that he just always seems solid, like he's just so utterly confident in his abilities and plays he runs that he appears to be the only guy on the field. He can receive the ball and is a solid route runner, but prefers not to. He's very good at blocking in passing plays, however.
Finally, there's Sammy Wilkins, another new addition. He's been around for several seasons, being a sub for Raikennax Stallions for 2 years before being a starter for the last 2. Now he's a member of the Corps, but really only as a backup. Wilkins is truly the fastest running back in all of Drawkland, but his issue is his route vision. He takes the wrong pathways or simply reads the defensive gaps incorrectly, which is his downfall. In addition, his shifty moves aren't the most elusive, as they take away from his speed and allow other defenders to get to him. But when he does break through a gap, or go to the outside when the defense commits in, he's gone. He's pretty unreliable when it comes to receiving, though. He can at least pancake a defensive end ... when he can see them coming.

The Corps also has 3 fullbacks (effectively 2, but a third in case the other two are impossibly injured). Dominic Bishop, who's been the fullback for the Corps since its beginning, is the most solid choice for the position, hence why he starts most often. He has a great combination of speed and strength that most fullbacks don't - and he can actually run the ball better than most. This makes him an invaluable player in the gun or in the Pro, I, or T formations, as he himself is a good running option, making triple or quadruple option or handoff plays a realistic probability. His favorite play is one out of the T formation in which he, the quarterback, and two running backs all take off to one side, and the quarterback has the option to lateral to any one of the 3 players or keep it. He's also surprisingly reliable catching passes, making him a decent option whenever he's lined up for a pass play. He also plays well on special teams, as he's usually out for punts for his team, the Corinth City Lances.
Gunne Viggo is the other fullback you're likely to see on the field. While he can be found on plays where he's likely to be a receiver or runner, he's more of the blocking fullback. Gut running plays out of the I formation are his speciality, he reads defensive coverage well and opens lanes easily, as he can usually outpower your average linebacker. He's the favorite of running backs lining up behind him, especially his teammates with the Dalumar Thunder.
Keegan Masters is a middle linebacker, and is much more famous for doing that. He really only goes as fullback because he did it long ago in college, and thus can be used whenever both fullbacks are somehow injured. Don't expect him to be catching many passes though.

RECEIVING CORPS
Some of the greatest players Drawkland possess line up wide. The prime example of this would be Daniel Madison. Madison, wearing the famed #89 that all in his family wear,⁴ is perhaps the greatest Wide Receiver to ever play the game. Some safeties and corners have described him as an actual god of football sent to Drawkland in order to eventually snag a high-profile wife and create at least a dozen football demigods. Okay, maybe that's not true,⁵ but he's still ridiculously skilled at what he does. Some have pioneered the one-handed catch. Madison has perfected it, barehanded. Some have tossed cornerbacks aside and torched them downfield. Madison does that on a drive-by-drive basis. Tall even for a Drawkian, Madison has been the premier receiver of the premier team, the Drawk Corps, and is Dak Waterman's most reliable target. He thrives on the go route, and when a team is foolish enough to put a cornerback in press coverage across Madison in the long field, Madison will audible to the quarterback to change to a go route if he thinks the safety coverage is thin enough. His main disadvantage would be the short field, the red zone, as his breakaway speed doesn't help much when you only have 10 yards of room. With plenty of green in front of him, though, he's unstoppable. He lines up anywhere, tight, slot, wide, even in the backfield in a bone or shotgun max protect to go to the flats. He also has every move in the book down pat - his body type allows him to not only break around defenders, but through them if necessary. He's also the go-to guy for jet sweeps, as he's a solid runner.
Maybe we should've saved Daniel for last. The second main receiver of the team is Toby Miller. While he's the headline wideout for the Kayo Globes, he's fine with lining up wherever for the Corps. While he'll line up wide near the sideline, he thrives in the slot. His main claim to fame is being an extremely reliable set of hands. He's recorded 0 or 1 drops for several consecutive seasons, and is unlikely to get picked off from. Now, normally that's a trait you'd use for a quarterback, but Miller makes it easy. This was one of the reasons he was a part of the original Grid Corps. When a quarterback forces a pass or throws it into coverage where Miller is running, he fights for and snags the ball with utmost reliability. He makes being a QB easy. He can sense when a corner is coming to pick off a pass, and will adjust his route to either bat it from his hands or catch it himself (although this sometimes leads to offensive pass interference when he occasionally just rams into the defensive back). He also has some nominal skill in stripping the ball that most receivers don't have - making him invaluable when interceptions occur close to him.
Next up is a newer receiver that just barely didn't make the cut into the original World Bowl squad, Trey Council. Playing for the Ridge Falcons, Council has identified himself as "one of the tight-endiest wide receivers out there." We find this to be true. He has a larger body type, and while this leads to him being slightly slower than most receivers, he wins battles like nobody's business. Sure, Toby Miller can catch balls in coverage, but Council cannot be stopped once the ball is near his hands. Swats at his hands are ineffective, and in jumping catches (he has a decent vertical), he doesn't drop the ball even when getting rammed midair from front or behind. He also thrives at blocking - his run and WR screen blocking is an invaluable resource. He did play tight end in high school, but in college his team needed more receivers, and thus the coach changed his position, which he ended up being much more successful at.
Jerry Pathon is a fantastic receiver for both the Grid Corps and his domestic team, the Denber Raiders. He, of course, can catch many passes. He's actually the only bright spot of the Raiders, who've had a long history of absolutely sucking in the GLD. Despite his skills at receiving and especially his uncanny ability to succeed at screen passes, he doesn't get much playing time for the Corps. Despite traveling to all the matches and sitting on the sideline, the coaching staff of the Raiders demanded that his playing time be limited as much as possible. They're afraid of him getting injured and therefore eliminating the only player allowing their team to win any games.
Finally, Ross Sterling is the final substitute for the Wide Receiver position, except for tight ends of course. He's actually the starting Free Safety for the Corps, but he's incredibly proficient at catching passes. His hands are one of the best for defenders, and he'd likely start as a corner or even a receiver if he didn't start out as a safety and staunchly refuse to change position.

The Corps' Tight Ends are an abnormally solid group of guys, the most prominent of which is Rich Covington. The starter and the main star of the Hellenmack Flames, Covington is a solid TE. While his blocking leaves some to be desired (he gets the job done but he doesn't have a lot of leverage and he himself doesn't consider it his strong suit), his skill at receiving is where he gets his prominence. He's especially a monster on the corner route, or really any route that has him power forward for a few yards then break to the sideline, in addition to underneath routes crossing just above the line of scrimmage (great for key 3rd and Short situations). This said, his agility and speed is abnormally good for a tight end of his size, and yet he's still able to create mismatches and shake off defenders right off the catch. However, his moves are basically nonexistant - if and when a defender catches up to him, he's pretty much guaranteed to take the hit and go down. Luckily, he's known for never fumbling the ball.
Riley Hoyt, tight end for the Drawk City Lookouts domestically and the Grid Corps since the beginning, is used to playing in black and red. He's getting older - reaching his 7th year playing professionally, which is why he's been dropped in the chart a bit, especially with a guy like Rich Covington to fill his spot. His strong suit would be his dual threat aspect. While of course he's a great receiver and trucker (he's not O-line for a reason), his blocking is on the same level as a decent Offensive lineman. For the run, he's very smart at knowing who and when to block so the running back can get maximum yardage, whereas on the pass block, he's not as good. He's still decent, but he's been known to let a bigger D-lineman or a dead sprint blitzing linebacker to get past him, but not after at least slowing them down. Hands-wise he's quite reliable, and creates many mismatches on the outside of the field. He excels at comeback or sit-down routes, and is a decent target when everything else seems to go south.
Andre Bobo is only likely to see playing time when there's 3 tight ends out on the field, when Covington or Hoyt are injured, or in the red zone. For the Quinnaber Vultures he's their best Tight End, but when stacked up next to the best ends in the business, he doesn't compare as well. Still, he has great hands in the short field. On the goalline or near it, he's infalliable, which is why he's likely to see playing time when in the shadow of the uprights. Unfortunately, when going against the multiverse's best corners, his hands seem to start failing after 15 yards. His vertical is nonexistant but if you hit him in the numbers or anywhere his arms can horizontally stretch, he'll catch it 99.9% of the time.

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Now, no offense to any offensive linemen out there,⁶ but we're not exactly experts when it comes to offensive linemen. Like, sure, we know what they do, and their names, and that they're very important,⁷ but besides that not much. Like, they can pancake block, that's cool. They can recover fumbles, that's cool. We'll just tell you their names and a thing or two about them.
The Tackles are John Christell & Niko Boyd (Left) and Jeff Royle & Leopold Cross (Right). John Christell, of the Hessport Spiders, is best at double teams, and thwarts Ends very well. Niko Boyd, the second-stringer, plays for the Sadeg Claymores. He's pretty much impossible to get past, but unfortunately, he commits holding penalties at the worst possible times, whether by bad luck or by bad decision-making. Jeff Royle and Leo Cross "trade off", so to speak. Jeff Royle is actually fast, despite being a lineman. Akkor Beach Gulls' starting right tackle, he also can play at right end. Because of this, he understands the tactics of defensive ends, and thus he's excellent at stopping them. Leo Cross is much more notable as a right end, and he's of the same vein as Jeff Royle. However, he prefers to not be put in at Right Tackle unless there's a problem with injuries.
The Guards are Zach Barber & Timmo Folk (Left) and Tom Giles & Jimmu Koios (Right). Zach Barber plays for the North Point Oaks, and his nickname there is "The Whistleblower." He has a sixth sense for incoming blitzes and will loudly call out very soon, often before the defense is able to realize that they've been found out (therefore giving the offense enough time to counteract). Timmo Folk is also a great Guard, for the Esmereldane Pens, but he has low stamina and is prone to low-level but game-ending injuries for him. GLD defensive linemen hate playing the Endertown Obelisks because of Tom Giles. Having been part of the Grid Corps for its entire existence, Giles is known for utterly overpowering ends and tackles. He could probably shove them all the way downfield if needed, but he doesn't because that would open a huge hole in the pocket. The second-stringer from the Ducentu Glassmen, Jimmu Koios, is also a solid guard, but sometimes overthinks himself and causes flase starts.
There's 2 centers, Gordon Shiva and Eric Sanders. Shiva is a new addition to the Corps, after he was touted by the Cemmendy Hackers for not committing any fumbles or bad snaps for 5 straight seasons, which caused the Grid Corps to call their attention to him. He's the starter, and should do most of the snapping. However, Eric Sanders, the backup center and starting Long Snapper, will also get some playing time. As the 10-year Center for the Kilnelm Garrison, he's massively experienced and excels at the technical - he's a master of strange snaps. If he's on the field, it may be just to split playing time, but it might also be to pull a jet sweep, direct snap, or some other sort of strange play, so watch out! He also has only recorded one bad snap as a Long Snapper, back in his rookie season.

DEFENSIVE LINEMEN
The defensive linemen are the hot spot of the Drawkian defense. The starting Right End, Leopold (usually just Leo) Cross, of the Dalumar Thunder, is the most dominant defensive lineman in all of the GLD. He's powerful and shifty both, and when he guesses the snap count right, he's pretty much impossible to stop. He can sack on blitzes, on normal plays, or even rushing 3 and/or against double teams. He especially excels when the quarterback rolls out of the pocket - he peels off at the speed of sound, some say,⁸ and gets to the quarterback. He has forced several fumbles in his day, but he isn't notable for returning them. His job is to tackle the quarterback, he says, and that's it. Meanwhile, Jeff Royle, the other right end, is usually the right tackle, but can play End when Leo is injured or excessively tired. He's a solid choice for end, but doesn't have "star power" in the position.
The Left Ends are Phillip Tomek and David Hoffman. Hoffman was an end in the last iteration of the roster, but he wasn't super notable there. However, this last season for him was a breakaway season with the Rejaka Fillies, and he's begun to truly excel. He can put pressure on the quarterback and make them force passes or roll out of the pocket and make a bad decision, but he can't escape blocks very well and actually follow through with the pressure. He can swat at the ball though, which has been an invaluable resource at times. Phillip Tomek is a much better choice for starter, which is why he does. In his time with the Corps earlier, Tomek has shown that he's able to swat and even pick the ball in the pocket, although he's a little bit slow. He is also notable for picking up loose balls before people can blink, making him a the leading defensive scorer for the Baribone Wyrms in Drawkland.
The Defensive Tackles are Max Demetrio, Eric Rock, and Theo Killian. Max Demetrio is the starter, and as a Cove Port Galleon, he's made himself famous in Drawkland for literally knocking over centers or guards on the the way to the quarterback, in a defensive pancake, if you will. He also guesses the snap count uncannily, which also makes him an easy resource. In 3-4 fronts he plays Nose Tackle, and usually defaults to the left side in 4-3 fronts. Eric Rock defaults to the other side in 4-3 fronts and usually is on the sideline for 3-4 fronts. Eric Rock is notable for him to be nigh-impossible to put a run past. Runs coming to his side of the line find themselves quickly losing steam, and the running backs electing to not go that direction much more often. It's no surprise that many facing the Waxton Pilots decide to run outside to the right. Finally, there's Theo Killian of the Elmanden Circuits. He only plays in cases of injuries or in certain blitzes, but he's still a decent player. He's large and strong, but he isn't that savvy, meaning he commits many neutral zone infractions. When he stays clean and in the game, he is a great resource until he screws up again.

LINEBACKERS
The Linebackers for the Grid Corps are generally better at tackling or pressuring than they are at defending passes, but they can still do a lot for the team. To the Left Outside, you have two Grid Corps veterans, Edmund Snyder and Adair Van Canne. Edmund, a player for the Drawk City Lookouts, can cover almost anyone on the field, he's almost fast enough to be a safety or a corner, but due to his size and inability to reliably intercept the ball, he was placed as a linebacker when he was younger. To compliment him in linebacker-heavy formations or times where he's injured, there's Adair Van Canne. His speciality is playing against talented Tight Ends, as anyone playing the Shire-Port Corsairs would know. He is unfazed by their larger body type, matches their speed, and can read where they're likely to go route-wise, making him a great resource there.
On the other side, there's the Right Outside Linebackers. Abram Ali is the headliner here, the Lumaniton Phantom that reads plays very well. Whenever Keegan Masters isn't in the game, he's usually the one calling defensive audibles. Other than that, he's got a classic skill set for an outside linebacker, and actually is somewhat reliable at picking off the ball on the inside. Julius Wiley, while more likely to be an inside linebacker, is also able to play the right outside. He's also very quality at stopping runs in their tracks.
Speaking of Middle Linebackers, they're probably the highlight of the Corps' backs. Julius Wiley, as we just mentioned, is a fantastic player against the run, which is why he's been resigned with the Metropolon Runners year after year. He's sorta speedy but manages to swallow runners whole. Keegan Masters is the highlight of the team though. After years with the Raikennax Stallions, he consistently made the All-Pro teams, and then the Grid Corps picked him up. He's got a solid body and is a volatile Linebacker, when he blitzes it takes a talented lineman to stop him (don't even think about using your running back to block him). He's also good against runs on the inside. Play Action, when he guesses the snap count on a blitz, is basically a 5 yard loss at best. If you're particularly unlucky, he might break the line fast enough to actually swipe the ball on the fake handoff and run the other direction. Of course, draws, when he sniffs them out, are equally bad: he'll force a fumble on the handoff, guaranteed. Theo Killian (Elmanden Circuits) is also a sub linebacker. He's pretty slow though, and isn't that good against shifty runners. He can't get at plays either, he's pretty much only good for blitzes where you need a massive prescence and after establishing that, faking out an offense to think they're blitzing when he'll really just sort of wander around and hope there's a checkdown route right in front of him.

DEFENSIVE BACKS
Finally, there's the Cornerbacks and Safeties for the Corps. They usually are interchangeable, the corners working on either side of the field without prejudice. The Cornerbacks are Osman Oswald, Dan Teodor, Robert Lim, and Jordan Max. Osman Oswald, a player of the Dammenport Lightning, is a good all-around cornerback. He's good at covering in both man coverage and zone coverage, and is a decent tackler. Dan Teodor plays for the Xandek Whitecoats, and is in his element for outside runs. When a running back heads on his side of the field, they better break it fast to get an extra yard before he comes in and takes them out. Of course he can still play well on passing plays, but running is his forte. He also is highly unlikely to be juked on, when a runner comes his way they aren't likely to get much further. Robert Lim, another returning player to the Corps from the Cove Port Galleons, used to be a halfback. He's speedy, shifty, and is very very good at corner blitzes. He can penetrate quickly into the pocket and scores a lot of sacks. And, like the rest of the backs, he's pretty good at defending the pass and is highly unlikely to get torched. Then there's Jordan Max, who is a safety that we'll cover later. He's best at blitzes starting in the secondary.
The Free Safeties are Ross Sterling and Wil Comso. From the Elmanden Circuits, Ross Sterling established himself as an interceptor. Deep passes his way end up in his hands more often than not. He plays safety rather than corner due to his speed being slightly slow, but he'll still play cornerback for a play or two. He reads routes great and thus runners or receivers are unlikely to get past him. Wil Comso can lurk quite well, as fans of the Darae-Sagut Drakes find out, but he is not as good at picking off the ball. He isn't afraid to get a hand or two on it, and causes many-a-pass incompletion.
The Strong Safeties, on the other hand, are William Peers and Jordan Max. Peers plays for the Cemmendy Hackers, and he likes to call their home field "Swat City." Which makes sense, really he swats at passes easily and plays a lot on the ball. Plus, his tall size enables him to see what's happening and get to the ball-carrier faster on accidental deep runs. Jordan Max is the sub, and he's known for blitzing from back deep. He still works as a safety though, and the smaller/shiftier runners simply find it impossible to get around him.

SPECIAL TEAMS
Don't forget the Special Teams! While originally special teams were a weak spot in the Corps, they've steadily improved, and the roster changes here have made it come forward leaps and bounds. There are two kickers on the team, Raleigh Stig and Matthew Watts. Raleigh plays usually as the Kickoff Specialist, as he's better at distance than accuracy. He does do place kicking for his team, the Cavson Clowder, but kickoffs are his specialty and what he does for the Corps unless there's injury. Matthew Watts, on the other hand, is all about place kicking and field goals. He established this as the Grid Corps' sole kicker until now and as the highest scorer of the Sadeg Claymores, his home team. He doesn't have the leg power of, say, Raleigh Stig, but his accuracy is nearly unmatched and he's almost always unfazed by pressure and by icing. He's also a speedy dude, and is able to easily break the pocket and sprint in the case of a fake field goal.
The team actually has 2 punters, Vander Levy (Yokare Lake Black Shrews) and Jason McFarland (Xandek Whitecoats). Vander Levy is a new addition to the team, and boy is he a good one. Being drafted relatively recently, Levy has established himself as a highly skilled punter, having both distance and accuracy which can pin a team way deep. Jason McFarland, on the other hand, has been with the Corps for years. While he may not have the greatest accuracy (15-yard line or touchbacks rather than coffin corners), he still has plenty of leg, and is notable for being able to easily pull off fakes, as he's done several times in Corps history. He was a quarterback in high school, and he still has the ability to pass and to run, which an invaluable asset. Levy and McFarland usually alternate punts in a game, but if McFarland is on the field, it's much more likely to be a pass.
Kick and Punt returners are Jack Hoy and Daniel Madison. Both proficient and speedy runners, generally they split the duties of the position (both will be back deep on kickoffs, they'll alternate punts). We've gone over them earlier in the guide, you know how good they are. They're able to gain some significant yardage and even score a few times, making them one of the best resources on the team.
The main Long Snapper is Eric Sanders. He's the backup center, yes, but his proficiency, by far, is long snapping. He pretty much never snaps the ball too far or high, and does his job so well that nobody really thinks of him at all. Gordon Shiva, the starting center, can also long snap, but he won't be seen doing it unless Sanders is injured.
Trace Hayes mainly stayed on the Corps in order to be the Holder on kick attempts. You may think "what the hell? why would you want to stay on a team in order to be one of the more irrelevant and yet dangerously scapegoat-worthy positions on the team?" And the answer is that Trace Hayes loves it. He loves playing a few snaps per game, not having a lot of pressure, and being able to have the spotlight whenever they pull off a fake play (which he's incredibly good at, both running, passing, and tossing). Zac Gold also holds, but that'd really only be if Hayes was injured.
The upbacks on punt plays are Gunne Viggo (FB), Keegan Masters (LB), and Zac Gold (QB). Usually only 2 will be out, but sometimes it can be all 3. The main reason these players are mentioned is because they're flawless at fakes: Viggo can catch passes and get a first down, while Zac Gold can throw from just behind the line. Keegan Masters is more of a blocker, but even he can power through the line and turn a 4th and 1 into a 1st and 10.
Keegan Masters, Dominic Bishop, and Trey Council are the Gunners. They easily can escape blocks and are speedy enough to take down a runner before they can get significant yardage.
Jeff Royle, Gunne Viggo, and again, Keegan Masters, are the Jammers, and sometimes another offensive lineman will go in when they want to do a double team to especially stop the gunners. Their job is to top the gunners and they do that pretty well.

¹ Which I imagine most of the foreign coaches reading this article to strategize don't yet.
² OOC: I'd like to note that I'm not one of the people who likes naming players after RL players, I actually despise the practice. "Dak Waterman" was created around December 2015, almost a year before Dak Prescott became relevant in professional football.
³ Underrunner is Drawkian slang for a person who runs around in the underground subway system during their daily commute. Similar to the "trolley-Dodgers" of old.
⁴ Well, that they theoretically wear. Most of them don't actually wear it due to numbering restrictions. Why do you think Daniel decided to be a receiver?
⁵ Conversely, has anybody ever seen Daniel Madison and a football god in the same room?
⁶ Or any O-line Fanboys.
⁷ I mean, if sacking the quarterback were illegal, maybe not, but whatever.
⁸ We think that's just a pun on his team name.

[Frenline Delpha]

Frenline Delpha Anacondas
Colors: Green, Yellow, and Black
Manager: Silas Brownlee
Head Coach: Kendrick Dwyer
Assistant Coach: Burton Gunn
Offensive Coordinator: Alan Bryant
Defensive Coordinator: Woodrow Roberts
Athletic Trainer: Gladys Thornton

Starters
QB: Steve Moors #12
WR: Carl Smith #21
WR: Leo Fall #7
TE: Earl Marquez #31
FB: Charlie Hoehn #3
HB: Toby Sexton #24
C: Lloyd Dukes #67
RT: Bruce Cruz #55
LT: Philip Gooden #52
RG: Eugene Campbell #71
LG: Vincent Cano #64

Substitutes
QB: Robert Metcalf #4
WR: Warren Roy #10
WR: Nelson Jones #17
TE: Francis Taylor #13
FB: Raymond Jordan #19
HB: Kevin Taylor #28
C: Dale Cabrera #34
RT: John Sollars #50
LT: Sean Jones #32
RG: Berry Cox #46
LG: Neil Echols #53

Starters
RDE: Marshall Tate #58
NT: Christopher Fegan #70
LDE: Vernon Little #56
RILB: Levi Cunningham #73
LILB: Luke Wheller #47
ROLB: Gene Hubbard #44
LOLB: Clarence Gutierrez #57
CB: Oliver Lockwood #78
CB: Dallas Alvarado #42
SS: Henry MacCormick #65
FS: Stanley Vidaurri #80

Substitutes
RDE: Barry French #60
NT: Antonio Manning #77
LDE: Dexter Delgado #69
RILB: Matt Riley #48
LILB: Wilfred Rowe #75
ROLB: Abraham Palmer #61
LOLB: Milton Barnes #62
CB: Ivan Stone #54
CB: Clark Nelson #41
SS: Rolando Bell #27
FS: Shawn Johnson #36

K/P: Ron Porter #2
KR/PR: Neal Rose #18
H: Ignacio Barnes #35
LS: Dale Cabrera #34

Style Modifier: +5

The Anacondas run a 3-4 defense with emphasis on pass protection. They are very vulnerable to the short run game, however, and the goal line stand is abysmal. The bright spot on the defense is the two cornerbacks. They are excellent in man-to-man, and their impressive verticals and amazing agility allow them to excel in long passes. They suffer somewhat in the short passing game, but they are always there to stop the receiver right after the catch. The offense is the focal point of the Anacondas. The preferred form is shotgun, with the QB excelling under pressure. Against teams that blitz frequently, he completes 72% of his passes. However, he only completes 51% of his passes in zone coverage. The running back is known for his yards after contact, averaging 8.2. He is also agile in the open field, so the opposing offensive line needs to be stout to stop him. The kicker is the highlight of special teams. He has proven himself able to kick 60 yard field goals at practice. If the strong winds are to his back in this tournament, there is no telling what he can do.

Stadium: Astrological Stadium
Capacity: 29,800
City: Bloodbenderopolis, Frenline Delpha

My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my Scorers: Yes
Choose Scoring Events: Yes
Godmod Scoring Events: Never
RP Injuries to my Players: Yes but no more than three games.
Godmod Injuries to my Players: Nope
Godmod Other Events: Never

[Trans-Dniesters]

Super Gridiron, Part One

The Tiraspol Kremlin
Tiraspol, Transnistrian Socialist State, Democratic People’s Republic of Pridnestrovia

“Comrade President, it is the opinion of this commission that our beloved and glorious Pridnestrovian Republic is now finally ready to be introduced to the wonderfully decadent Western sport that is gridiron football.”

Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko, President of the Democratic People’s Republic of the United Socialist States of Pridnestrovia for almost thirty years now, nodded his head sagely as he received the Special Commission on Gridiron Football in Pridnestrovia and listened to their findings and recommendations. Gridiron football, or American football as it was more commonly known throughout the rest of the multiverse, had never been really popular with the people of Pridnestrovia. The connotations and links with Western and capitalist decadence had prevented the sport from taking full root in the nation, and this was not helped by the fact that other sports like football, aka soccer, rugby, and, a little ironically, basketball, were the most popular sports in the formerly-Communist-on-paper nation. But there was no denying that gridiron football was quickly becoming one of the most popular sports in the rest of the multiverse, and so Pridnestrovia experimented with the sport a little by assembling a team of gridiron players who were mostly based in Abanhfleft (where gridiron has quite a large following and has had success in the international game) at the organization and instigation of President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko. And while the Pridnestrovian team’s campaign in the World Bowl was one to forget, no one could deny that the people of Pridnestrovia closely followed the progress of their comrades and fellow countrymen through the biggest international stage of gridiron and watched as many of the games as possible. Money talks, even in a country like Pridnestrovia which had just very recently opened itself up to capitalism once again, and the popularity of the gridiron national team with the people of Pridnestrovia convinced President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko to establish the Special Commission on Gridiron Football in Pridnestrovia to look into the feasibility of establishing a local gridiron league into the country to foster growth and popularity of the sport at the grassroots level. There was quite a lot of money to be had in gridiron football, and Stepan Stepanenko and Pridnestrovia wanted a slice of that very large pie.

“The Comrade President has heard the verdict of the Special Commission,” Stepanenko said as he listened to the members of the commission reveal their findings. “Now the Comrade President would like to know how the comrades of the Special Commission have come upon this verdict.”

“Comrade President, the Special Commission has conducted studies into the receptiveness of the Pridnestrovian people to the sport of gridiron football,” the leader of the Special Commission replied, “and we have determined that the people are ready and willing to watch and accept into their daily lives. We have the statistics and data from the time when our national gridiron team first participated in the World Bowl, and over thirty percent of all households within the republic tuned in to the first World Bowl match in which Pridnestrovia was participating, and 41 percent watched the final game of our national team in the World Bowl. And over ninety percent of all surveyed households say that they had watched at least one other World Bowl game during that period. Just about the same percentage of respondents to our survey answered that they would like to see a local gridiron league established in our country as well.”

“Quite interesting,” Stepanenko said, nodding his head once again. “Has the Special Commission identified viable markets into which gridiron can be introduced to immediate acceptance and eventual profit?”

“There is sufficient evidence, Comrade President, which says that the whole nation is ready to accept gridiron football,” another member of the Special Commission replied. “However, with regards to the creation of a professional gridiron league in the Republic, the Special Commission believes that the cities of Tiraspol, Bender, Novorossiysk, Bratsk, Novonikolaysk, Macaresti, Rheinburg, Yeralenko, Beledor, and Sonolovich are prime locations for establishing gridiron teams for our league. These aforementioned cities host large proportions of the national population which watched the World Bowl, and there is no need to construct gridiron-specific stadia as the stadia in these cities are already capable of hosting gridiron matches with only a few minor modifications to the grounds themselves. In fact, Comrade President, some of our most popular and established football clubs have already expressed an interest in establishing their own gridiron sides. CSKA and Sheriff here in Tiraspol hope to extend their rivalry to the field of gridiron, and the Special Commission believes that fans of both clubs will very much love this new addition to their classic rivalry. Dinamo Bender and Admiral Novorossiysk have also expressed interest in establishing their own gridiron sides. And, if rumors are to be believed, Union Rheinburg and Spartak Rheinburg are willing to set aside their differences for the moment and establish a single gridiron side for the city and people of Rheinburg with their combined resources. The same is also said to be happening in Yeralenko between Torpedo and Submarin. It would seem as if the people of Pridnestrovia are actually excited at the prospect of finally seeing professional and organized gridiron football in their own country.”

“Indeed they are,” President Stepanenko said. “Well, then, now that the Special Commission has established that there is indeed a large market for gridiron football in the Pridnestrovian Republic, we now come to the matter of determining who shall play for our teams. Will we remain with our tradition and let only male players play in our new league or will we break the trend and join the rest of the multiverse in welcoming our women and the women of the multiverse to play in our league?”

“There are, as always, advantages to both systems, Comrade President,” the leader of the Special Commission replied. “Having a league with all-male players ensures that the quality of play will be similar to that of our other professional sports leagues like the football Super League and the Basketball Super League. On the other hand, our introduction to the rest of the multiverse has convinced the womenfolk of Pridnestrovia that they can play sports as well as their male counterparts can. They have certainly proven this in the field of football but we cannot really be sure if they will be able to keep up with the men when it comes to gridiron though. On the other hand, some of the multiverse’s best gridiron players are female, and some of our own womenfolk may be inspired to play the game because of them. Also, since we are but a new league, we cannot hope to immediately attract the best of the best players to our country, whether they are male or female, maybe we can entice some of the lesser-known talents to our league and prove our commitment to international integration.”

“So, then, what are the Special Commission’s recommendations with regards to the composition of our new gridiron league’s players, comrades of the Special Commission?” Stepanenko asked.

“The Special Commission believes that the time is ripe for our new gridiron league to break with the national tradition and allow both men and women to play in our new league, Comrade President,” the leader of the Special Commission replied.

“It is settled, then. Men and women shall play in Pridnestrovia’s new gridiron league. Now, how are we going to go about promoting our new league?”

“We need not concern ourselves with promoting our new league anymore, Comrade President, at least not to the Pridnestrovian people,” one of the members of the Special Commission replied. “Of course we will have to consider how to promote our new league to the rest of the multiverse but for now, we will keep that in the back burner, so to speak. “As for promoting our league to our fellow countrymen, the prospective teams are already taking care of that for us. The Tiraspol Derby between CSKA and Sheriff is already being hyped up by the ownership of both clubs. And the Derby of All Derbies between CSKA and Bender is something that is being hyped up as well as an event which no self-respecting Pridnestrovian citizen cannot miss.”

“But how about the players, comrades? How are we going to attract players to our new league?”

“We already have a few of our national gridiron team players agreeing to signed commitments with some of our new league’s prospective teams. They will sign their actual contracts as soon as our new league actually gets off the ground.”

“What about the womenfolk?” Stepanenko asked. “How do we hope to attract good female players to our new league?”

“Well, er, Comrade President,” one of the junior members of the Special Commission said haltingly, “some of our comrades in the Special Commission floated around a few ideas with regards to the recruitment of female players to our new league…”

“…and the Special Commission has already decided that those ideas are both frivolous and more trouble than they are worth,” the leader of the Special Commission interrupted. “By God, Feliks, give it a rest already! We are trying to create a globally competitive gridiron league here, by Umayev! We are not replicating a decadent and sexist organization like Abanhfleft’s Bikini League! We want to attract the womenfolk to our league, not drive them away by making them think that we only want them in our league for their looks and their bodies. We do not want to set the women apart from the men through the skimpiness of their uniforms. We want the women to set themselves apart through the good old socialist work ethic. Truth be told, we actually think that we should give our women players more protection, not less, since the female body is biologically less robust than the male body, but we have decided that we are going to treat all of our players equally meaning that we will give equal kits and uniforms to everyone.”

“Well, then, it seems as if the pressing issues of our new gridiron league has finally been ironed out,” President Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko said. “Now, what are we going to call our new league?”

“According to the people of the Pridnestrovian Republic, Comrade President, and according to the recommendations of the Special Commission, we have decided to call our new league the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League in accordance to the naming conventions of our top sports leagues.”

[Nova Anglicana]

Nova Anglicana Lions National Football Team Roster


Head Coach: Don Richards, 45, USA
Offensive Coordinator: Al Fletcher, 52, USA
Defensive Coordinator: Ken Greene, 39, Nova Anglicana

Offense: Air Raid

Defense: 3-4 personnel, but often using the "Psycho/Amoeba" defense

Style Mod: +4

DEPTH CHART

OFFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
First player or first two players, as the case may be, are the starters

QB - Tim Moody, 26
QB - Ryan Patton, 21  
QB - Adam Jennings, 20

RB - Reggie Steele, 22
RB - Freddy Dixon, 21

FB - Tom Hanson, 29
 
LT - Tony Franklin, 25
LT - Morris Copeland, 26

LG - Tim Wells, 24
LG - Greg Rose, 21

C - Boyd Bell, 25
C - Rudy Warren, 21

RG - Max Reed, 26
RG - Josh Farmer, 22

RT - Jacques Denueve, 25
RT - Mitch Leonard, 28

TE - Cam Leonard, 26

WR - Noah Cook, 24
WR - Hugh Carr, 25
WR - Shane Vaughn, 21
WR - Jean-Luc Ricard, 24
WR - Jon Greer, 25
WR - Eli Ross, 21
WR - Pierre Lachance, 22

DEFENSIVE DEPTH CHART

DE - Jake Reese, 25
DE - Ed Lawson, 26
DE - Ellis Reed, 23
DE - Melvin Howell, 27

NT - Sam Russell, 23
NT - Domenic Barton, 25

OLB - Luke O'Brien, 23
OLB - Will Shelton, 24
OLB - Austin Riley, 21

ILB - Franck Ledoux, 24
ILB - Shaun Glover, 22
ILB - Derrick Johnson, 28

FS - Matt Campbell, 25
SS - Luke Snyder, 23
S - Dave Edwards, 27


CB - Nick Garner, 23
CB - Toby Wells, 24
CB - Brandon Bowers, 23
CB - Laurence Charbonneau, 24
CB - Joey Jensen, 21
CB - Paolo Luna, 22

SPECIAL TEAMS

K - Alain Hollande, 29
P - Lucien Babin, 27

[Bongo Johnson]

***MD1 Cutoff***

Best of luck to all participants and now let World Bowl XXXII commence!

[Bongo Johnson]

Group A
BYE: Greater Vakolicci Haven

Miloscia 24–33 West Phoenicia
Barunia 23–20 The Fair Republic

Group A                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 West Phoenicia                            1    1   0   0    33   24   +9     3
2 Barunia                                   1    1   0   0    23   20   +3     3
3 The Fair Republic                         1    0   0   1    20   23   −3     0
4 Miloscia                                  1    0   0   1    24   33   −9     0

Group B
BYE: Nova Angelicana

Ethane 15–3 Parakos
Union of Socialist Alpine Republics 10–27 Frenline Delpha

Group B                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 Frenline Delpha                           1    1   0   0    27   10  +17     3
2 Ethane                                    1    1   0   0    15    3  +12     3
3 Parakos                                   1    0   0   1     3   15  −12     0
4 Union of Socialist Alpine Republics       1    0   0   1    10   27  −17     0

Group C
BYE: Royal Kingdom of Quebec

Free Republics 13–16 Allamunic States
The Kiaser Colonies 27–17 Torisakia

Group C                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 The Kiaser Colonies                       1    1   0   0    27   17  +10     3
2 Allamunic States                          1    1   0   0    16   13   +3     3
3 Free Republics                            1    0   0   1    13   16   −3     0
4 Torisakia                                 1    0   0   1    17   27  −10     0

Group D
BYE: Cosumar

Taeshan 24–14 Lisander
Desertfoxenland 10–20 New Dukaine

Group D                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 New Dukaine                               1    1   0   0    20   10  +10     3
  Taeshan                                   1    1   0   0    24   14  +10     3
3 Desertfoxenland                           1    0   0   1    10   20  −10     0
  Lisander                                  1    0   0   1    14   24  −10     0

Group E
BYE: Kaboomlandia

Ko-oren 21–3 Trans-Dniesters
Ormencia Bythoria 14–3 Krossa

Group E                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 Ko-oren                                   1    1   0   0    21    3  +18     3
2 Ormencia Bythoria                         1    1   0   0    14    3  +11     3
3 Krossa                                    1    0   0   1     3   14  −11     0
4 Trans-Dniesters                           1    0   0   1     3   21  −18     0

Group F
BYE: Abanhfleft

Nephara 0–13 United States of Devonta
Abhichandra 23–22 The Iron Syndicate

Group F                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 United States of Devonta                  1    1   0   0    13    0  +13     3
2 Abhichandra                               1    1   0   0    23   22   +1     3
3 The Iron Syndicate                        1    0   0   1    22   23   −1     0
4 Nephara                                   1    0   0   1     0   13  −13     0

Group G
BYE: Newmanistan

Gregoryisgodistan 10–7 Kebec
Firebolt 16–17 Bongo Johnson

Group G                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 Gregoryisgodistan                         1    1   0   0    10    7   +3     3
2 Bongo Johnson                             1    1   0   0    17   16   +1     3
3 Firebolt                                  1    0   0   1    16   17   −1     0
4 Kebec                                     1    0   0   1     7   10   −3     0

Group H
BYE: West Saintland

Ranoria 12–28 Anthor
Seikuea 30–64 Drawkland

Group H                                 Pld    W   D   L    PF   PA   PD   Pts 
1 Drawkland                                 1    1   0   0    64   30  +34     3
2 Anthor                                    1    1   0   0    28   12  +16     3
3 Ranoria                                   1    0   0   1    12   28  −16     0
4 Seikuea                                   1    0   0   1    30   64  −34     0

[Saintland]

West Saintland National Gridiron Team

Captain: Georgius Didius
Style: -2
Base Formation: variable (offense), 3-4 (defense)
Colors: Red and White
Demonym: Sanctii

Roster

Offensive Committee

QB: #5 Thomas Ulpius
QB: #6 Paulus Salvius
RB: #32 Petrus Maximius
RB: #38 Lucas Plinius
FB: #49 Alessandro Ancharius
WR: #82 Matthaeus Epidius
WR: #89 Thomas Lusius
WR: #83 Ioannes Oranius
WR: #84 Nicolaus Lusius
TE: #80 Paulus Favonius
TE: #88 Thomas Tuccius
LT: #74 Lucas Floridius
LG: #68 Ioannes Conconius
C: #75 Abraham Nemetorius
RG: #65 Isaac Secundius
RT: #77 Marcus Nigrius

Defensive Lineup

LE: #92 Thomas Calventius
NG: #90 David Vargunteius
RE: #99 Andreas Cammius
LOLB: #52 Georgius Didius
LILB: #55 Matthaeus Publicius
RILB: #59 Lucas Sepurcius
ROLB: #50 Silvester Didius
CB: #23 Lucius Curtius
CB: #26 Lucas Desticius
Nickel: #28 Paulus Rufrius
Dime: #22 Stephanus Praesentius
FS: #25 Matthaeus Stlaccius
SS: #20 Marcus Stlaccius

Special Teams

K: #9 Philippus Francus
P: #8 Josephus Polus
Long Snap: #69 Adam Sennius
Return: #84 Nicolaus Lusius
Kick Cover: #51 Petrus Roscius

Backups

QB: #2 Andreas Polus
RB: #31 Matthaeus Loreius
FB: #44 Lucas Matius
WR: #86 Alessandro Norbanus
OT: #72 Petrus Vassinus
OT: #79 Paulus Vassinus
OG: #73 Lucas Valgus
OG: #62 Antonius Terentia
C: #66 Ioannes Sidonius
DE: #93 Ioannes Minucius
NG: #97 Petrus Maelius
OLB: #56 Andreas Oclatinius
ILB: #58 Lucius Mucius
CB: #27 Adam Lampronius
S: #24 Paulus Placidus
S: #29 Lucas Lutatius

Notes

The defense of the Sanctii National Teams that once dominated the World Bowl remains intact, but their aging offense was decimated during their three World Bowl absence. Gone are King Petrus XX, star running back Andreas Tuccius (now a former Prime Minister) and both of their leading receivers. What remains is an aging, but still capable defense and a much more cautious offense led by two quarterbacks who alternate snaps. Salvius does not have a particularly strong arm, but he is the more accurate pocket passer of the two. Ulpius is a big quarterback with a very strong arm who can run a little, but he is known to have issues with his accuracy. The backs are also a collection of role players. Maximius is a pure speed back and is very undersized for the position. Loreius is a great pass catcher, but lacks elite power or elite speed. Plinius is probably the best pure runner on the team, but he simply isn't a very good pass catcher. Ancharius is a large fullback who moves pretty well and can make some plays. Matius is a pure blocking fullback. At receiver, this team lacks a true #1 or #2 receiver, so those roles will be filled by committee between the extremely tall Epidius, Thomas Lusius (who is very fast, but frequently drops balls and doesn't run very good routes), Oranius (a balanced receiver who is mediocre in all facets of his game) and Nicolaus Lusius (also the team's kick returner and a poor man's version of his brother Thomas). At tight end, they aren't in much better shape either as the youngest of the Favonius brothers, Paulus is their only remaining tight end from the glory days and he has always been the least talented of the three brothers. Finally, Thomas Tuccius is the younger brother of the Prime Minister and primarily a blocking specialist. All of the defensive linemen are big players that would be defensive tackles in a 4-3. Georgius Didius is an elite pass rusher. His brother Silvester is more of a coverage OLB. The Stlaccius brothers are known for their hard hits. The defense is extremely aggressive and tends to show alot of different looks. They use movement to throw the opposition off guard. Offensively, this team tends to play it safe whenever possible. Didius expects his offense to merely not lose games.

Remarkably, this aging team is still intact even though 28 years have passed in Saintland since the last World Bowl. This is because the entire West Sanctii gridiron team was in the Free Republics at that time for the Arena Bowl. While most of these players weren't on the Arena Bowl team, they were still in attendance at the Indoor Sports Palace in Baseton for all of the games on West Saintland's road to a 4th place finish. As they found their homeland unrecognizable upon their return, they have settled in the Free Republics on a permanent basis.

RP Permissions

Choose my scorers: Y
Choose scoring events: Y
RP injuries to my players: Y
Godmod scoring events: Y
Godmod injuries: Y
Godmod other events: Y

[The Kiaser Colonies]

You'd think surely after winning their opening game at THE international American football competition that Google.kc would suggest the national team of its own country. Surely. It seemed that just like in the qualifying stages an games leading to World Bowl XXII, nobody was interested in them beating other unranked opponents. There was nothing really to be proud of if a team with no real talent beat a team with equally little talent. Torisakia had been a step up from the level they were playing at but the general public really couldn't see the difference between one team with a (UR) beside their name and another team with a (UR) beside their name. That is if they even saw the two teams names. Or the game at all.

The growth of the sport could be measured at a glacial pace but at least it was doing exactly that. Each person that got wind of it, checked a result and then went on to google 'how many points for a touch down?' or 'are scrimmage and scrummage the same thing?' was another person who knew they had a team at the World Bowl and could potentially spread the word to others.

The opening game had been something. The teams were relatively even in attacking prowess, both managing to score 2 touch downs each between the first and third quarters. The Kiaser's struck first and opted to make a statement by attempting (and scoring) a two point conversion. Receiver Mitchell Duke with the honours of scoring the first points. The Kiaser's were on 2nd & 6 at the opposition 40. Quarterback Ben Christensen found Duke with the pass out on the left. His catch was clean, as were the pair of heels he showed the tackler as he goose stepped past him and won the 20 yard foot race into the end zone. The conversion saw Christensen run from his holder position out to the right flank thanks to some good blocking to score the two. Before the quarter ended, both sides added a field goal.

In the secong, Torisakia got their first touch down after a great running play and some poor defence saw them run straight through the middle form 60 yards to touch down. They opted for the single point and the game was at 11-10. A James Lacey-Willard clearing punt was fumbled by the opposition and some good chasing by Vern Victors resulted in the Kiaser Colonies second touch down. A one point conversion extended the lead to 18-10 at the end of the quarter.

The third saw Torisakia keep the game alive. James Lacey-Willard added a field goal midway through to but 11 points between the sides, then a minute from 3/4 time Torisakia crossed into the ingoal again as a pass made it directly into the receivers hands off 2nd & goal. The conversion added meant that there was a 4 point game on for the final quarter at 21-17. The final quarter turned out to be largely uneventful as Lacey-Willard added 2 more field goals to see out the contest comfortably without the opposition scoring again.

So the team got the much appreciated minor ego boost of not (yet) being the worst team at the competition. But with no fan base and only family and curious tourists coming to the matches so far, one has to question how long that will last, and if it will be any benefit in game two against the far superior Allamunnic States.

[West Phoencia]

West Phoenicia was in a state of celebration as football fans kept the beer flowing and pretzel and chip bowls filled throughout match day 1 that saw the West Phoenician War Dancers take on the nation of Miloscia, winning 33-24.

Quarterback Jake Mars was the player of the day, dazzling the crowd with a last minute touch down. Which was the second win for Jake Mars who along with his wife Ariana have signed onto a 10 part series that will explore their love life, careers and all there other trials and tribulations.


The program entitled Jake and Ariana: The First Year will include up and coming matches in the World Bowl XXXII

[Barunia]

Just hours before the opening game of the World Bowl, the Barunian team were nowhere near the stadium. Coach Ignatius Mori had instead taking the team to a secret location, which just meant a pub in Murbley, the capital of Bongo Johnson. The team crowded the back room, and Ignatius squeezed his way into the centre. He clapped his hands for attention.
"Alright lads, listen up. Now I know some of you would like a drink right now, but we play our first game tonight. Tell you what, win it, and the first round's on me."
There was a collective cheer from the team. Ignatius waved for them to settle down.
"Now, those of you who have been here before know this is where I talk about us as the underdogs. How we're the team no-one knows, the outsiders, the team that doesn't even have a league. Well, I'm not. Because we're not the underdogs, we're a second pot side. We're made a name for ourselves here and in the NSFC - we had the best defence this season. It's time to shake the rookie tag."
Ignatius paused, letting that sink in. He knew that the next thing he said would stun them. It had been a closely guarded secret, but now it was time to let the cat out of the bag. Soon the whole world would know, but it was only far that the players knew first.
"We can't be called rookies, or amateurs. We are pro-level players, who only lack a league. Well, guess what fellas? We have a league."

That got a reaction. Surprise, delight, confusion, all in a single moment. Everyone started asking questions. Ignatius raised a hand to silence. "Barunia isn't starting a league. After all, you are almost the entirety of gridiron players in the country. But the Karl Marx Reds - not a university team, so everyone can play - the Reds have a place in a foreign league. Now, I know the question you all want answered now: which country? Pridnestrovnia. The league is just starting, so we're in right at the beginning. It's a professional league guys, and all of you can be a part of it. We're still working out the legal issues, but if you want to play professional gridiron, and in front of home fans too, now you can."

To the barrage of questions and comments he faced, Ignatius once again had to silence the crowd. "Guys, take the time to think about it. But when you go out there tonight, remember that you're not rookies or amateurs, you're quality players. You're Barunian players, and we've bred in a few short years a team that can compete with countries with generations of pedigree. Don't let anyone ever tell you you're not good enough to win the World Bowl. Because you are. Now let's go and prove it!"

[Trans-Dniesters]

Super Gridiron, Part Two

Hotel Kostelnikova
Tiraspol, Transnistrian Socialist State, Pridnestrovia

“Ladies and gentlemen, comrades, citizens of the Democratic People’s Republic of Pridnestrovia, we present to you… the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League!”

Anastasiy Olegovich Kornilenko, head of the Special Commission on Gridiron Football in Pridnestrovia and soon-to-be commissioner of the new Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League, took hold of white sheet behind him and tugged it away, revealing the new and official logo of Pridnestrovia’s newest sports league. It followed the basic design of the logos of Pridnestrovia’s other top leagues like the Pridnestrovian Super League and Pridnestrovian Basketball Super League, with a gridiron helmet painted red, green, and red (the traditional colors of the Pridnestrovian Republic) and a hammer and sickle superimposed on the helmet design dominating the logo. The words Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League were written in large block Cyrillic letters beside the helmet while the English translation was written in smaller letters underneath the whole thing. Upon the unveiling of the new league’s official logo, there was mild applause from the five hundred or so guests who had gone to the Grand Admiral Suite of the Hotel Kostelnikova in Tiraspol and attended the launch of the brand-new Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League.

“And now,” Kornilenko said without a beat, “the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League presents the nine teams who will be participating in the league’s first ever season. In alphabetical order, we have PGC Admiral Novorossiysk, represented by Pridnestrovian national gridiron team quarterback Stan Serban!”

Stan Serban, second-string quarterback of the Pridnestrovian national gridiron team in their first participation in the World Bowl and formerly of the Garufaloe Sidewinders and the Albaracete Albinos of the Fleftic National League of American Football (or FNLAF for short), stepped out onto the stage wearing the full kit of the Admiral Novorossiysk gridiron team, a wholly-associated branch of the Admiral Novorossiysk sports organization, whose most popular sides were its football and basketball teams. Serban stepped into the middle of the stage and then removed his helmet to reveal his face. His uniform was based on the standard kit of the Admiral Novorossiysk organization, narrow white and navy blue hoops (a reference to the telnyashkas that the sailors of the Pridnestrovian Navy, who were the first players of the first team in Novorossiysk which eventually grew to become Admiral, wore during their first games) and black pants. The helmet itself was light blue with a white stripe down the middle and the black anchor of Novorossiysk was painted on both sides of the helmet. Serban’s appearance in the Admiral Novorossiysk uniform drew some cheers and whistles from the guests who were either from Novorossiysk or in the Navy.

“Second, comrades,” Kornilenko said, “we have the Bratsk Dolphins, represented by Pridnestrovian national gridiron team safety Pylyp Stasiuk!”

Pylyp Stasiuk, whose most memorable appearances in a gridiron shirt were for the University of Santa Magdalena Caracals of the Fleftic NCAA and the Wanda Island Wizards of the FNLAF, was next to step onto the stage. The uniform of the Bratsk Dolphins was very bright and garish compared to the simple designs of Admiral Novorossiysk, with the shirt being of a bright shade of aquamarine with neon pink and white highlights. The pants were white and the helmet was pink, and a determined-looking dolphin was printed on both sides of the helmet. This time, when Stasiuk unveiled the uniform and removed his helmet, it was those guests from the city of Bratsk who cheered.

“Thirdly,” Kornilenko continued, “we have PGC CSKA Tiraspol, represented by Pridnestrovian national gridiron team defensive end Kornel Bures!”

Kornel Bures was most well-known as having been part of the fabled defensive line of both the Orange University Ocelots and the Markovsky Lumberjacks, and although he was listed as part of the reserves of the national gridiron team, he was already making a case for his inclusion into the starting lineup. His uniform, which was based on the kit of CSKA Tiraspol’s footballing side, was mostly white with both blue and red highlights on the sides. Even his helmet was white, and the only color on the helmet came from the logo of CSKA Tiraspol, a red and blue badge with CSKA in the middle in big white Cyrillic letters surrounded by a golden wreath of wheat. When he stepped out to the stage, the applause was thunderous from most of the guests, who were either from Tiraspol or had served in the Army (which was compulsory for healthy Pridnestrovian males from the age of eighteen). One of the foreign guests who also applauded Bures was Kornel’s younger sister Marissa, a well-known model in Abanhfleft and girlfriend of young Fleftic footballing star Vitaly Zima.

“The fourth team we are about to present,” Kornilenko continued, “is GFC Dinamo Bender, represented by wide receiver Filipp Akimov, soon-to-be-formerly of the Porcusces Pistoleros!”

Filipp Akimov was a Fleftic-born Pridnestrovian whose family, like so many other families back in the early nineties, fled Pridnestrovia when Field Marshal Stepan Stepanovich Stepanenko assumed the presidency, supposedly in an interim role, after the sudden death of Galdar Rodionovich Umayev, first president of a democratic Pridnestrovia. Many people in the old Pridnestrovia knew that Stepanenko was going to return Pridnestrovia to communism as soon as he assumed power and got out of the country while they still had the chance. Slowly but steadily though, as Stepanenko allowed the people of Pridnestrovia to once again have some of the freedoms that they had experienced during the heady days under Umayev’s presidency, some of the sons and daughters of Pridnestrovia who had grown up in other countries were beginning to go back to the country of their origins. Filipp Akimov, who had already made a name for himself as a reliable wide receiver for the Porcusces Pistoleros, was one of those sons of Pridnestrovia coming back to restore the country to its former glory through sports. The creation of a new professional gridiron league in Pridnestrovia had intrigued him greatly and when Dinamo Bender (the team of his family’s old hometown of Bender) had come to him, offering him a starring role in their new team for the new league, Akimov couldn’t help but accept the offer.

Akimov’s uniform was similar in a way to the kit of FC Dinamo Bender. Both the shirt and the pants were solid blue, but the helmet itself was white with Dinamo’s logo, a blue cursive Latin letter D inside a white diamond with a blue border, printed on the sides. As Akimov took off his helmet for the cameras, he received cheers from the members of the Dinamo Bender faithful who were among the guests at the presentation ceremony. He lifted his helmet up in the air to salute the fans.

“Fifth, we bring you the Macaresti Gladiators,” Kornilenko said, “represented by the national gridiron team’s defensive tackle Agoston Jo!”

Out of all the players who had been chosen to represent the nine teams of the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League, Agoston Jo was the odd one out in the sense that before he had been approached to represent Pridnestrovia in gridiron football, his sports were actually the other kinds of football, rugby and the football also known as soccer. Before suiting up for the Pridnestrovian national gridiron team, Jo’s sporting experience was mostly with rugby teams, from Szigetszentmiklos and Kesselburger Ruckers (the rugby branch of Kesselburger Kickers) in Pridnestrovia to the Almohads of the Rugby Union of Abanhfleft. It had taken him some time to adapt to the new game and the rules about only specific players being able to handle the ball, but Jo had made a satisfactory enough transition that he was now once again in the national gridiron side in preparation for their next World Bowl campaign, and now, he was also the star player of the Macaresti Gladiators, representing the capital of his native Ixanian Socialist State to the rest of the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League. The uniform he was wearing was mostly gold with red trim, and his golden pants also had blue, yellow, and red stripes at the seams, the traditional colors of Macaresti. There were only a few guests from Macaresti but nevertheless, they made their presence known and felt as soon as Agoston Jo unveiled the new uniform of the Macaresti Gladiators.

“The sixth team participating in the Gridiron Super League,” Kornilenko said, “is the Novonikolaysk Sharks, represented by quarterback Cortez Amoroso, notably of Ceneisis Naval Academy of the NSCF!”

The one thing which separated Cortez Amoroso from the rest of the other player-representatives of the PGSL’s teams was the fact that he was a full-blooded Fleftic. Not a single drop of Pridnestrovian blood flowed in his veins. He was the first foreign player who was basically confirmed to be playing for the PGSL in its first season, and already he could feel the weight of this particular burden on his shoulders. As a graduate of Ceneisis Naval Academy, Amoroso was obliged to serve at least two years with the Fleftic Navy, which he did with quiet distinction. Amoroso was honourably discharged from the Navy after having achieved the rank of lieutenant, but that didn’t stop some people to begin to refer to him as “the Admiral” due to his naval background. Because of some obscure rules about non-interference between sports teams and military-affiliated educational institutes such as Ceneisis Naval Academy, Amoroso was unable to both join the FNLAF Draft and sign a commitment with a team promising that they would offer him a contract to join them as soon as he had finished with his military service. Two years onboard a ship had dulled some of Amoroso’s skills with the ball, but not by much, but he was honestly a little afraid that he might not last too long in the FNLAF aside from possibly some ten-day contracts, so as soon as he was contacted by representatives of the newly-formed Novonikolaysk Sharks of the newly-formed Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League, he jumped at the chance and signed on immediately. And while it was still too soon to tell whether he had made the right decision, the cheers from the Novonikolaysk fans as he unveiled their team’s uniform let Amoroso believe that he was headed in the right direction. The uniform itself was simple but attention-grabbing with blue and green halves, and the helmet was green with a shark with its mouth open wide to reveal its triple rows of teeth on its sides. Novonikolaysk was a small city in terms of size, population, and the status of its sports teams, but the city hoped that its investment into this new league and young quarterback would pay off massive dividends in the future.

“The seventh team in our new league,” Anastasiy Kornilenko continued, “is none other than Rheinburg Spartans, represented by Pridnestrovian national gridiron team defensive tackle Hieronymus Saller!”

Hieronymus Saller, an ethnic German from the Ixanian Socialist State, stepped out onto the stage next. His uniform was composed of a black shirt and red pants, and his helmet was also red with a gold-and-white stripe down the middle with the team logo, a Spartan helmet, printed on the sides. Saller had played amateur gridiron in both his hometown Rheinburg and its neighbour and rival Kesselburg before being approached by the national gridiron team recruiters, and his impressive defensive play in Pridnestrovia’s inaugural World Bowl had allowed him to net a fat contract with the Riuwiee Knights. Saller knew that moving back to Pridnestrovia to play in the new Gridiron Super League would significantly reduce his earnings compared to his current wages, but the money was only secondary to him right now. This was his chance to bring gridiron to the people of Rheinburg, and he was going to make the most of it.

“Next, we have our eighth team,” Kornilenko said, “which is none other than GFC Sheriff Tiraspol, represented by our national gridiron team tailback Nazariy Zelenko!”

Nazariy Zelenko appeared onto the stage wearing the uniform of Sheriff Tiraspol. The uniform was composed of a white shirt and black pants, similar to the current away kit design of FC Sheriff Tiraspol. The helmet was red and had the logo of Sheriff, the classic bronze sheriff’s star with the rounded points, on both sides. Nazariy was one half of Pridnestrovia’s “Bash Brothers,” the other half being middle linebacker and fellow Pridnestrovian national gridiron team regular Oleksiy Zelenko. They were brothers who had grown up in Abanhfleft, led the Riuwiee State University Blue Tribesmen to two consecutive FNCAA titles, and were also part of the Riuwiee Knights at one time. It was they who also helped bring Hieronymus Saller to Riuwiee after their inaugural World Bowl campaign as part of Pridnestrovia. Nazariy had been chosen to bear the honor of representing Sheriff Tiraspol for the unveiling of the Gridiron Super League because he had the more recognizable face and the light and slender build of a typical tailback.

“And finally, last but not the least, we present to you the Yeralenko Torpedoes, represented by Janusz Kedzierski!” Anastasiy Kornilenko joined in the applause himself as Janusz Kedzierski stepped onto the stage, Kornilenko being from Yeralenko. Yeralenko’s uniform was a combination of the two football clubs which set aside their rivalry and differences to create a single gridiron club for their city: a neon blue shirt (representing Torpedo Yeralenko) and black pants and a black helmet (representing Submarin Yeralenko). The Torpedoes’ logo, an anthropomorphic torpedo with an evil grin on its warhead face on a neon blue background, was emblazoned on both sides of the black helmet.

“And that, comrades, ladies and gentlemen, wraps up the presentation ceremony of the teams competing in the Pridnestrovian Gridiron Super League,” Anastasiy Kornilenko said, walking in front of the players representing the teams. “As you can see, right now, we have all-male players representing our teams, but as you all already know, the Gridiron Super League plans to allow women to compete in this league as well. Right now, we haven’t secured any female players to positions within our teams just yet, but we of course hope to change that in the near future. As for now, we are already acquainted with our players, teams, and new league, and I believe that that should be enough for us for now. Thank you, and we hope that you will all stick around to see the Gridiron Super League become a force to be reckoned with in modern international gridiron. Once again, comrades, thank you and goodbye!”

[Union of Socialist Alpine Republics]

The Alpine Union lost to Frenline Delpha in World Bowl opener

Murbley, Bongo Johnson - (NEIP) Last World Bowl Frenline Delpha finished the group stage with a 13-1 record and lost to Abanhfleft in quarter finals. They keep going on their pace this year and beat the Reprezentacja Alpejski 27-10 at the Murbley Coliseum in Bongo Johnson. The U.S.A.R. started with the ball in the 1st quarter but with a 4th and 3 at the 46 yard line in Frenline territory, they had to punt. Nick Larsen made a really nice punt which went out of bounds at the 8 yards line. After completing a couple of passes and carrying the ball a few times, Frenline Delpha is now at the 17 yards line in Alpine territory. On a 1st and 10, Steve Moors' pass is incomplete. On a 2nd and 10, the Alpine defense is blitzing. Steve Moors passes to Leo Fall into the endzone, it's a touchdown. 7-0 Anacondas. Frenline Delpha added 3 more points later in the 1st quarter, thanks to a 56 yards field goal by Ron Porter. In the 2nd quarter, Frenline Delpha had to punt (which doesn't happen often). Ron Porter punts the ball, it's caught by Rashad Jennings who returns it to the 42 yard line in his own territory. Coconut Riddick runs for 4 yards. Coconut Riddick runs for 3 yards. Clifford Jenkins passes to John McRae for 8 yards. Clifford Jenkins passes to Barkevious Hawkins for 2 yards. Coconut Riddick runs for 14 yards. Coconut Riddick runs for 3 yards. Barkevious Hawkins runs for 6 yards. With a 3rd and short at the 18 yards line, Garrett Van Noy runs for 1 yard. After measuring, it's a first down! Clifford Jenkins passes to John McRae for 12 yards. Coconut Riddick runs for 3 yards. Coconut Riddick runs into the endzone for a 2 yards touchdown and Frenline Delpha's lead is cut to 10-7! On their following drive, Frenline Delpha added 6 more points when Toby Sexton ran into the endzone for a touchdown. The extra point was good and the Anacondas were leading 17-7 at the halftime.

Frenline Delpha started with the ball in the 3rd quarter but they're stopped at the 28 yard line in Alpine territory. Ron Porter's 45 yard field goal attempt is good and the Anacondas are leading 20-7. On the following drive, the Alpine Union also made a field goal, it was a 38 yards field goal by Crockett Burkhead and the score is 20-10 Frenline Delpha. In the 4th quarter, Frenline Delpha had to punt again, which doesn't happen often but the Alpine defense is playing extremely well so far. The Alpine Union starts with the ball at the 36 yards line in their own territory. So far the Bisons ran with the ball or made short passes for most of the game but now the clock is running fast. Clifford Jenkins' pas intended to demarcus Woods is incomplete. Clifford Jenkins passed to Marquis Hatwood for 18 yards. The Alpine Union is now at the 46 yards line in Frenline territory. Clifford Jenkins' pass intended to Jarius Floyd is intercepted at the 23 yard line by Dallas Alvarado who returns it into the endzone for a touchdown. It's a 77 yards interception return and a touchdown for Alvarado. Frenline Delpha is now leading 27-10 and this is the final score.

The Union of Socialist Alpine Republics lost its game opener against Frenline Delpha and will now play against Parakos, the other team who lost its game opener. Let's hope for a win against this unranked team.

Frenline Delpha      10   7   3   7   -   27
Alpine Union          0   7   3   0   -   10

BOXSCORE
Ist Quarter
7:49 Touchdown by Leo Fall (17 yards pass from Steve Moors). Extra point by Ron Porter.
2:03 Field Goal by Ron Porter (56 yards)

2nd Quarter
5:33 Touchdown by Coconut Riddick (2 yards run). Extra point by Crockett Burkhead.
1:46 Touchdown by Toby Sexton (7 yards run). Extra point by Ron Porter.

3rd Quarter
11:31 Field Goal by Ron Porter (45 yards)
8:22 Field Goal by Crockett Burkhead (38 yards)

4th Quarter
3:33 Touchdown by Dallas Alvarado (77 yards interception return). Extra point by Ron Porter.

Injuries
Bruce Cruz (Frenline Delpha) is probable (luckily he has a bye week so he can rest)
Demetrius Robinson is questionnable vs Parakos

[Drawkland]

GOLDEN BOWL ALERT!!!

The Golden Bowl remained safe and sound today as Abanhfleft had a bye for Matchday 1. However, Nephara, previous owners of the Golden Bowl who left, returned, and created a new progression, the Nephara Bowl, has been defeated by the United States of Devonta! In a brutal defensive showdown, USDevonta took down Nephara's Vultures 0-13 in Group F of World Bowl XXXII in Bongo Johnson. As previously noted, as the Golden Bowl and new Nephara Bowl are both in the same group, it's entirely possible these progressions will merge and the Nephara Bowl will cease to exist. However, in its first matchup, it switched hands to Devonta, which, considering Nephara faces reigning champions, current Golden Bowl holders, and World Bowl #1 ranked team Abanhfleft next matchday, this loss to Devonta has saved the Nephara Bowl from almost certain destruction. Maybe the Nephara Bowl will survive long enough to exit the group stage without merging, or even make it to the playoffs, but if it does make the playoffs, it will inevitably merge with the Golden Bowl.

You may wonder, hey, what are you really rooting for here? Don't you want the minor bowl to continue for awhile? Yes, technically, I want it to have an interesting and storied history of its own. But inevitably, the progression must continue in its purest form. If it merges, then it's served its purpose, but it's nice to have it tool around for a stage or two.

Anyway, that's the ALERT for today! This is Golden Bowl HQ, signing off!

---

The Grid Corps were sitting on a train in Bongo Johnson. After their first victory against unranked Seikuea in Entent, Robejo, they had to travel to Stratton, Halien, for their next match. They had a bye the next day, so they were just taking an early trip so they had a day to acclimate to Stratton's atmosphere. For their second match, in Matchday 3, they'd be facing Anthor, which would be their second-hardest opponent in the group stage (which, nothing against the Celridge Voodoo, but would probably be a steamroll for the Grid Corps).

Dak Waterman sat in a window seat, as the train had 2 rows on each side of the center aisle, and each row was arranged with every other row flipped as to have a set of 4 seats facing each other. Next to Dak was Trace Hayes, across from him was Jack Hoy, and catercorner was Daniel Madison. Everyone on the train was wearing the T-shirt they'd been given, which were almost like uniforms in themselves. It said "Drawkland Grid Corps" on the front, with the player's number on one breast spot with the trendy sportswear company's logo on the other breast spot. On the back it had their name listed and their position. It was almost like combine shirts or something. Regardless, they were pretty much all draped in black or red. Draped isn't the right word. Just wearing, I guess. The shirts were almost a size too small, but that was likely a ploy by the sportwear company that made them to provide fanservice for those who saw the Corps in public.

"How about that game?" Trace asked after a few minutes of silence and blankly staring out the window at the picturesque countryside of Bongo Johnson. Jack Hoy immediately grinned. He'd had a career day, really, in his first game as a Grid Corps back. Overall, the Corps scored 64 points, which was done through 8 touchdowns with PAT, 2 field goals, and a safety. It was a classic Grid Corps game: dominant as hell.
"I'd say that was some type of a classic badass Grid Corps game," chuffed Daniel Madison.
"Yeah, definitely dominant as hell," Dak added.
"That was badass as fuck," agreed Jack, "How about that punt return Daniel took straight to the house? He knocked like 3 guys down onto their feet!"
"Can't discount your kick return TD," Daniel countered, "You bulleted up that sideline like you were getting chased by a wild Drawk! Not to mention the fact that you had to spin past two guys at once to do it."
"Couldn't have done it without that block where you totally dropped their cornerback. I mean, that was brutal. He was floored," Jack conceded.
"Now, now, you know blocking is nothing when you have that breakaway speed," Daniel joked, clearly.
"Oh shut up, not everyone can have seventy-foot legs like you do," Trace rolled his eyes.
"I mean, you got legs too. That fake field goal keeper run?" Dak interjected, "That was some real skill. You had those poor Seikueans dead in their tracks."
"3 passing touchdowns though? Not to mention that the only reason I could even pull off that run was because you'd gotten stopped from the 1 yard line. All of Matthew's 14 points came because of your passing finesse!" Trace said staunchly.
"Clearly wrong," Dak countered, "One of those field goal drives came from Zac's hands and you know that."
"I'll give you that," Daniel said, "But where's the love for Jack? 2 rushing touchdowns, one from 40 yards out! He made a huge difference."
Jack shook his head, "2 receiving touchdowns for you though, I'd say we're tied. And then with Rich having that last RAC to get the touchdown from 30 out, I'd say Dak was the best part yesterday."
Trace and Daniel nodded then, "Absolutely. MVP Dak Waterman," Daniel added.
Dak rolled his eyes and did a playful swat of the hand. The team was all about supporting each other in a playful way, because it was just so much more fun than egotistically proclaiming their own feats. It used to be like that, and it still is in many teams' locker rooms across Drawkland, but the practice of pumping up everybody else was popularized by Dak Waterman himself. Because he knew he was good, but he also knew that he'd be nothing without the rest of the team doing their jobs too.

Meanwhile, in another train car, a bit quieter than the others, the coaches and coordinators chilled. Sam Willis, the manager, and Quentin Averfel, the head coach, sat at a table across from each other, poring over the playbook.
"We need to step up our defense," Quentin said, breaking out his notebook.
Sam nodded, "No matter what our offensive output, there's no way we should've let those unranked guys run up 30 points on us. That's unacceptable."
"If we aren't careful, Anthor might get the better of us. They won against Ranoria, and after Ranoria's entry in the NSCF went deep, it's no question that their nation contains quality football players. And Anthor beat them by double their score. And look at the defense. They only allowed 12 points. If they pull that on us we're in for a rough time."
"Hmm ... I say the biggest problem we had was relying too much on the man defense. Sure, Seikuea wasn't that much of a threat, which is why we decided to go with man for most of it, but we really should've switched to zone after the half. And we blitzed on third down too often. Those medium slants are still a problem for us when we do that, I think we should get rid of it."
"You can't deny the pressure hasn't helped though. Maybe a zone blitz? Middle linebacker split, like this one," Quentin pointed at a play on one of the sheets.
Sam nodded at that, "Oh, totally. We need to use that one way more often. Oh, and I was meaning to mention this, try using more of those wide receiver screens. I know we used a few but that was more of Dak audibling them in. We need to call them more often in my opinion."
"Sure, I'll try that. I'm not a fan but you know I'm not a fan of screens in general."
"Right, but when you have a guy like Jack Hoy, you can experiment a little with it. I suggest you do more screens for offense. Not like overpowered in the playbook, but just use it in lieu of a flipped run play or something."
"Thanks for the suggestions," Quentin said, pushing the sheets aside. "The rest of this can wait for tomorrow morning. Did you hear they're sending the Ice Corps for the World Cup of Hockey?"
"Finally?" Sam chuckled, "Damn they're gonna get destroyed."

[Nova Anglicana]

Nova Anglican National American Football Team Preview

Overall

The Nova Anglican national team in American football is a completely new entity, having just been approved by the Sub-ministry of Sport six months before entering this tournament. In fact, there is no governmental or official governing body of American football in Nova Anglicana, only a loose confederation of groups that banded together to organize a semi-official national tournament three years ago. American football has no professional or official collegiate presence in the country, and is played by an estimated 0.05% of the population, or about 5,000 individuals. There are club teams at the university level and amateur adult leagues do exist, but otherwise Nova Anglicans do not participate. The USA's NFL is a niche market in Nova Anglicana, and there are even more players of Canadian football (9,000) than American football. Some of these teams and players got together about two years ago, during the last World Bowl, to discuss the possibility of entering a team in the next edition. They began holding tryouts more than a year ago, trying to find the best forty-four or so players in the country. They held tryouts, found a head coach and coordinators, and began raising money to travel to the World Bowl. They had intended to go as complete amateurs, as citizen representatives of Nova Anglicana, with or without government backing, but they finally did get official government recognition and a small amount of funding to help them on their way. They may still be complete amateurs, but they are, for better or for worse, the official American football team of Nova Anglicana.

Staff

45 year-old Don Richards is the American head coach of this motley bunch of college players and adult leaguers, and he probably hasn't coached a stranger group. Richards spent five years, right out of college, as the head coach of the football team at Concord Country Day School in Massachusetts, then moved on to be quarterbacks coach at Nashua College in New Hampshire. He later became offensive coordinator and then head coach, leading the NAIA Millers to three consecutive conference championships. He fell out of favor after two injury-marred seasons and then a messy divorce caused his next three teams to win eight games combined. He was initially surprised when he got the call, but jumped at the chance to coach again, even if it was in a strange land with players who had, at most, five years of experience with American football. He's a tough guy and a fiery competitor, but nobody cares about his players more.

Al Fletcher, the offensive coordinator, is a veteran of Texas high school football, where he's been a coordinator and a head coach for twenty-five years now. The talent he was working with then probably outshines the talent he's working with now, despite the fact that his players are older and representing a national team. His curiosity was piqued by Richards' ad on a football jobs website, which stated, "Looking for innovative offensive coordinator for interesting project." He then read the actual description and, on a whim, decided to contact Richards to see who this crazy man was. He was the only candidate to respond to the ad. However, he and Richards have taken to each other and are determined to turn this ragtag team into a success story.

Ken Greene, the defensive coordinator, is the only Nova Anglican on the official coaching staff. He's sometimes referred to as the "godfather" of Nova Anglican American football. Greene's football education began in college with the 2000 Baltimore Ravens. A little bar in Halifax (now Eboracum), owned by a Ravens fan, was showing American football on one TV, and Greene returned week after week to see the Ravens allow the fewest points in NFL history and then grind their opponents into dust in the playoffs. Ray Lewis, Sam Adams, and Charles Woodson were his heroes and he headed to the US to pester college coaches into letting him help out. He served as a manager for several teams over several years, devouring film and learning the game at an incredible pace. He returned to Eboracum ten years ago and organized an adult league, where he served as commissioner, defensive coordinator, head coach, and played free safety as well. During the year, he roamed the country, preaching the gospel of American football and helping fellow fans to make their dreams come true. He was part of the organizing committee that created the national team, and he has been named special American football envoy for the government of Nova Anglicana, and is helping to organize youth leagues across the country.

Offense

The offense is the Air Raid style popularized by Mike Leach and Hal Mumme, involving lots and lots of passing. The Nova Anglicans are not particularly large, with receivers averaging 5'11 and 170 pounds and linemen averaging 6'1 and 270 pounds. To minimize this size disadvantage, most of the passes will be short and quick. Fletcher will have QB Tim Moody operating exclusively out of the shotgun and making most reads and releasing the ball within two or three seconds. Moody is a former pitcher who fell in love with American football in college. As such, he has a good amount of experience and a good arm. He isn't particularly mobile and will struggle if he can't hit his first or second read. The running backs, Reggie Steele and Freddy Dixon, will cycle in and out. Steele is a slasher and has decent size; he'll get most of the carries for the 20-30% of running plays Fletcher will call. Dixon is a bit of a smaller back; he'll come in to block and has good hands, so he'll make a few catches a game. The line will play spaced out to avoid getting crushed by bigger defenses and give Moody a little more time in the pocket. WRs Noah Cook, Hugh Carr, and Shane Vaughn will be in on all plays, with Jean-Luc Ricard and Jon Greer getting reps in 4 and 5-wide packages. Cook is the biggest wideout at 6'3, 200 pounds, and will be a possession receiver and deep threat. Carr is small, quick, and hard for defenders to get a hold of, while Vaughn is a complete speed demon. Not tall at 5'10, but he runs a 4.49 40-yard dash and will challenge opposing defensive backs. Ricard and Greer are both 5'9, possession-type receivers; good hands and good at running in traffic, but not exceptionally fast or tall.

Defense

The Lions will play a 3-4 defense, but Greene likes the "Amoeba/Psycho" trend that has developed in the NFL over the past few years, and will try to confuse opposing offenses by not coming into a set defense until the last possible second. One player that will always be on the ground is 6'5, 305 pound nose tackle, Sam "The Behemoth" Russell. Russell is the largest player on the team and will be trying his best to clog up the opponent's running game and draw double teams to free up space for defensive ends Jake Reese and Ed Lawson. Reese and Lawson are about 260 pounds each, and while they don't quite have all the moves NFL defensive ends do, they are still formidable edge rushers. ROLB and LOLB Luke O'Brien and Will Shelton, respectively, are probably the best defenders on the team. They are excellent tacklers, good pass rushers, and capable of dropping into coverage on tight ends, backs, and the occasional wideout as well. Franck Ledoux and Shaun Glover are the run-stuffers behind Russell at inside linebacker. They are good tacklers, but that's about it. In the secondary, Nick Garner and Toby Wells will be cornerbacking for every play, but it's not uncommon for Greene to bring on Brandon Bowers and move to a kind of 3-3-5 look when he needs some extra pass defense. Of the two safeties, FS Matt Freeman is the better cover guy, and SS Luke Snyder is the harder hitter. They are both capable, but Freeman's a little smaller, and Snyder can get burned sometimes if he's forced to cover too much.

Special Teams

The special teams unit is a couple of veteran Quebecois, Alain Hollande and Lucien Babin. Hollande is a former midfielder and the kicker, and he's almost perfect when it comes to 35 yards and in. Further out is a little risky, so on 4th and medium or less from the 40 to the 20 or so, look for the Lions to go for it. Babin has a monster leg, punting the ball over 60 yards on average. That is, when he can actually manage to punt it straight. He has a tendency to punt the ball off to the left or right, ending up out of bounds and soaring into the stands before they manage to traverse much of the playing field. He's also mostly useless when it comes to tactical punts, so that's another reason for the Lions to go for it on 4th down in enemy territory.

[Ranoria]

Ranoria Loses World Bowl Opener

In what looked like a pitiful effort, Ranoria's representatives to the international competition were crushed in their opening game, with quarterback Derek McNair and his wide receivers looking very out of the loop in that no one seemed to know what the other one was doing. The defense didn't play so horribly as the scores indicated, as Derek McNair threw a whopping three interceptions on the day and three and outs were more than common.

Hopefully next week will lead to some better results. On the bright side, the quarterback, who just finished his rookie season, is playing against top-level competition, and this is good experience for him.

John Garrett, a college quarterback who had recently competed in a similar event, albeit at the college level, tossed the paper into the waste bin with a frown. "Well, looks like they certainly aren't going to have the same success that we did."

[Abhichandra]

Abhichandra World Bowl Opener

The citizens of Abhichandra were ecstatic when they found out they won by one point. The nation-wide party lasted 36 hours total, and over 7000 celebrations were held across the nation. In major city's, including Abhichandra City, Solaris and De La Porte, there were 1 hour fireworks. Local restaurants reported they had made over 500,000,000 Abhichandra Pieces from the sales in the 36 hours. Non-stop music was also played at several houses in the area of Shady Shallows. Local World Bowl merchandise sellers, including online ones, reported over 2 million sales in the last 36 hours. 1500 schools said they stopped classes to watch the World Bowl during class time. Tyron Tower (office building), with a 1500x1500 feet screen outside said they had over 10,000 Abhichandrans watching the World Bowl. In fact, almost 70,000 roads were closed to celebrate and watch the World Bowl. Lastly, all television channels in Abhichandra were cut off and tuned directly in to The World Bowl Channel.

Before The Game:
"Are y'all pumped up!?" said Dent Lombut, QB. "Are we going to win, or are we going to WIN!?" The team was ready to play. After discussing several strategies and plays, the game started.

Half Time:
At half time, the team re-grouped. It was a tough first half, but none of them showed signs of fatigue. One player, Cal V. Deerton, admitted that the strategies the other team used were pretty good.

After the game:
After the game, the team looked really tired. They still showed signs of joy, as they won the first world bowl in Abhichandra everywhere. Photographer,
Laine McPhally took a team picture to document the occasion and everyone congratulated each other.

[Krossa]

COACHING STAFF

Head coach: Tapio Jaakola
Offensive coordinator: Eemil Salmela
Defensive coordinator: Arvo Jaakola (Two time defensive coordinator of the year, son of Tapio)
Offensive Guard coach(s): Vilhelm Kauko, Aina Ketola (First female coach in KUFL)
Receiving and Guarding Staff: Jussi Turunen, Sulevi Mäkitalo, Vihtori Simola
Receiving and Guarding coach: Elmer Penttilä
Corner and safety coach: Esko Laine
Fitness coach: Jere Halonen
Injury assessment staff: Jalmar Leppälä and Dr. Iiris Kauko





ROSTER:
QB #39 Eric Komorav (Great short accuracy. 6'3, mobile/fast, 184 lbs 24 years old, right handed)
QB #27 Rauni Nurmi (Good mid/long accuracy, 36, chance of starting,6'7,220 lbs, right handed)
QB #13 Ernest Wyatts (Good all around, 30, 6'5 and 210 lbs. Backup, lefthanded)

RB #8 Lenny Fritzers (Great at trucking, not as fast as other RB's, can push through the field with success. 28, 5'11, 220 lbs. Righthanded, good hands)
RB #81 Marcus Rautio(Good speed, good hands, and good vision. Can slice through the field if he has enough blocking.24, 6'0, 215 lbs. Lefthanded)
RB #10 Ensio Aho (34,5'10, great speed but isn't normally used. Righthanded, 200 lbs)
RB #14 Luke Tykles (5'10, decent speed and decent trucking. Got invited to the team due to his blocking and catching ability. Wasn't added to fullback list)

FB #25: Alvar Nikkilä (29, great blocking and good speed. Lacks a bit on the catching side but he can still be a good receiving target. 6'2, 225 lbs)

TE #68: Ryan Vortusk, 35, great blocking, lacks speed, great receiving skills. 6'8, 248 lbs.)
TE#34 Aarne Pihlaja (30, good blocking, good speed, great receiving. 6'1, 225 lbs)

ACTIVE WR
WR#49 Reijo Huhtala (26, great speed, great receiving, and good vision. 6'1, 190 lbs)
WR#43 Usko Knuutila (24, great speed, great receiving, good vision. Known for his ability to quickly change direction. 5'11, 180 lbs)
WR#73 Anton Keskitalo (27, good, good receiving, great vision. 6'5, 225 lbs)

BACKUP WR
WR#35 Kenneth Savella (30, good speed, great receiver, good vision. 6'6 225 lbs)
WR#40 Charles Roski (26, great speed, good receiver, bad vision. 5'11, 200 lbs)

______________________

LT#6 Andrik Kallio (31, has good speed, knows how to block a wide area, best OT on the team. 330 lbs)
LT#81 Jak Tobirn (26, great strength but lacks in other categories)

LG#65 Tusko Hogieek (30, great strength and run blocking)


C#81 Ohto Tapio (25, 6'3,3 Time KUFA Elite, great strength and blocking abilitity, 310 lbs)
C#22 Lampi Brotcheur (28, good strength)

RG#28 Sampo Kangas (36, good strength and great run blocking)
RG#78 Matt Nevala (27, great strength, 6'6)

RT#94 Terho Brella (30, good strength, great pass blocking 6'5, 335 lbs)


At this point i'd given up on giving these cheekers descriptions.

LE: Inari Uoiochi
DT: Veli Hannura
DT#2:Aake Nurmi
RE: Reino Räsänen
LOLB:Arvi Suomi
MLB: Onni Kari
ROLB: Henri Penttinen
CB: Ukko Halla
CB: Jyri Salmela
FS: Miska Kemppainen
SS: Alpi Räisänen








P#12 John Brekusom (43, 220 lbs. good punt)

K#33 Alexi Vakardin
TH
The Fun Part: Well, tonight its not so fun.

"The Otters went into the game nervous but excited, and they all thought they were ready to play. But they had never seen these players before, which probably led to their unfortunate loss."The host of the talk show said. This time he didn't have to wait 3/4's of a year to resume talking about football games and blabbering on about the offseason. But he could have fun now, so it was like a vacation.

"In todays game the only points we scored was a short-shot by Alexi Vakardin, the teams kicker. Our 3 points were matched by their 14, and in this low scoring game our team failed to do much in the air. Komorav threw a pick and was tackled when attempting to scramble, creating a fumble. The best offensive player was hard to pick out but due to their disappointing activity on the field I'd say the kicker. Just kidding. Kickers are people to, but Fritzers and Rautio, two of the runningbacks, tried their best to break through the line. They failed and the only reward for their efforts were three points in the middle of the third quarter. Komorav admitted that going into the game he felt 'off', whatever that means. He insisted that he had trouble finding coverage and that running against a powerful d-line was his most used option. Well, looking at the team performance this 2 year 'star' quarterback will need to look down field more often and perhaps work on that arm. In the end of the 4th quarter Ryan Vortusk, the giant TE, managed to haul in a long one in a spectacular catch only to step into the white a second after, leading to a incomplete pass. This pass was thrown by Rauni Nurmi, a well experienced quarterback and less of a gunslinger than Komorav. Do I respect Komorav? Yes, but is he the right choice to represent the Otter's on the field? We'll find out that soon in the later games, where hopefully we can spit up more than three points."

The announcer, Dave Kouchi, sighed and sipped some warm tea, a great beverage in the cold and rocky nation of Krossa. "Komorav did hook up to Reijo Huhtala on several plays for big gains, however they weren't big enough. On to the defense, which did exceptional. The cornerbacks and safeties did a great job at locking down the downfield, however the inline collapsed and some untimely play calls allowed big rushing gains by the opposite team. The OLB's did some good jobs and reinforcing the back field. I noticed some good performance on the oppositions team, so it was a tough challenge for the DT's and Linebackers. Ukko Halla used his speed to dive at a ball and knock it into the hands of Henri Penttinen for a interception, however it wasn't very useful due to its poor field position. In the locker room during the intermission center Ohto Tappio, the Mammoth as he is called, gave a surprise speech to his team. The trophy winning snapper is still one of my favorite players, and his play during this game was good, doing his best to support Komorav as he searched for someone to pass to...Or for a gap to run through, but lets not get back into that. I know this was short but once the Otters get their wheels going I'll be a motor mouth. Trust me."


My opponent, if they RP first, may do the following:
Choose my Scorers: sure
Choose Scoring Events: sure
Godmod Scoring Events: eh
RP Injuries to my Players: surs
Godmod Injuries to my Players: Sure
Godmod Other Events: sure