1999-2000 RFL Year in Review |
Steamroller Trophy: Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits, GM David Brodkin
Aglione Bowl X Champion: Ferocious Underwear, GM David Wang
...comprehensive list of Steamroller and Aglione Bowl winners below.
PLUS... the FIVE GREATEST RFL TEAMS OF THE DECADE!!!!!
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Final 99-00 Standings
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| Team | W | L | GB | PF | PA | STK | Pre. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rumbling Romanians | 13 | 4 | - | 571 | 420 | W2 | 11 |
| Ferocious Underwear | 12 | 5 | 1 | 586 | 452 | W7 | T-3 |
| Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits | 12 | 5 | 1 | 573 | 477 | L1 | 8 |
| The South Side Black Sox | 11 | 6 | 2 | 500 | 422 | L1 | 14 |
| Crazed Beagles on the Run | 10 | 7 | 3 | 509 | 455 | W3 | 9 |
| Upper West Side Stomp Mongers | 9 | 8 | 4 | 552 | 491 | W1 | T-12 |
| Men in Brown | 9 | 8 | 4 | 489 | 464 | W2 | T-1 |
| Y2K Bugs | 9 | 8 | 4 | 470 | 484 | W1 | T-3 |
| Wide Open Beavers | 9 | 8 | 4 | 464 | 430 | W1 | 6 |
| Don't Call It a Comeback | 8 | 9 | 5 | 443 | 460 | L2 | 10 |
| Enid Furth Harmony | 8 | 9 | 5 | 416 | 445 | L1 | T-12 |
| Bladerunners | 8 | 9 | 5 | 390 | 414 | L3 | 7 |
| Jock Itch United | 7 | 10 | 6 | 392 | 459 | L1 | 5 |
| Team Desai | 5 | 12 | 8 | 407 | 506 | L2 | 15 |
| Brian's Bums | 3 | 14 | 10 | 314 | 518 | L6 | 16 |
| 12 Angry Men | 3 | 14 | 10 | 288 | 467 | W1 | T-1 |
Joebob's team was picked tied for FIRST by the Combined Poll (but #8 by FF). MiB had a 4-game winning streak (after starting the season 2-4), but then went 1-3 down the stretch to fall out of a spot in the playoffs. MiB was not able to overcome the Week 4 season-ending injury to Terrell Davis, but did well in drafting TAllen (5), BJohnson (7), MWestbrook (8), and TPeterson (9) late. Joebob failed to nurture the nubile talents of CCollins, HMoore, TMathis, and EGreen.
Tim's Bugs were picked tied for 3rd in the Combined Poll (and #2 by FF). The WR duo of MHarrison and EMcCaffrey did not disappoint - as Y2K Bugs led RFL in WR scoring. However... the gimpiness of FTaylor, the unspectacularness of Flutie, and the flameout of LPhillips defused Y2K Bugs after a 5-1 start. Just as JLinton stepped things up for Tim, Harrison and McCaffrey fell entirely off their pace. The Bugs were unable to score more than 28 points in any game in the last 7 weeks.
Cals' Beavers were 6th in the Combined and FF polls, but 2nd in Cals' poll. 1st round pick (#3 overall) RMoss did well (12 TDs), but certainly did not get the numbers people might have projected for him. SChristie (7) kicked well for the Beavers, but precious few other draft picks contributed - most notable underachievers were CChandler (2), NKaufman (4), and CCalloway (6). After starting the season with 2 losses, Cals went on a 6-1 tear. However... going 1-4 during the stretch run left Cals 13 points scored behind DCIAC for the final playoff spot.
DCIAC was ranked 11th (FF), 3rd (Tim), and LAST (Cals) in the 3 polls - leading to 10th in the Combined. PManning was a very nice find in the 2nd round (29th overall). But the loss of JAnderson in Week 2, persistent injuries to Natrone, and a season-ending injury to Gary Brown led to the destruction of what looked to be a solid RB rotation. Drafting TGonzalez in the 9th round was a nice pick. DCIAC closed the regular season with 3 consecutive W's to snatch a playoff spot away from Cals/Wally/Joebob - and Kevin upset Steamroller winner SLAB in the quarterfinals.
Clark's Bladerunners were slotted at #7 in the Combined Preseason Poll. The 'runners were able to get solid numbers from Favre, Dillon, pEnis, and Vinatieri... but RodSmith, Chrebet, and KBrady held this team back. Clark finished the regular season as the #6 seed (despite being the 11th-highest scoring team), but were unable to inflict any damage in the postseason - losing thrice.
Vesh's Romanians finished the 99-00 season with the best W-L record - including 2 wins over Brodz' Steamroller winners and a win over Wang's Ags Bowl champions. The Romanians accomplished all of this despite being ranked 11th in the Combined Preseason Poll. WWalls (#1 in TE scoring) and MVanderjagt (#1 in PK scoring) were the leaders on this team - with IBruce and RGannon also contributing nicely. Coming off a 98-99 campaign led by Broncos Elway/TDavis/Sharpe, Vesh's 99-00 strategy was to go with the Jets (vINTy and CMartin), but Testaverde went down in Week 1 - and Curtis was a mere #12 among RB's. Finishing 13-4 was a testament to Vesh's adaptability as a GM. After starting the season 0-2, Vesh had a strong 11-1 stretch to finish the regular season tied with Brodz at 11-3. The problem for Vesh has been taking heavily-favored teams into the Playoffs and losing in the first round (98 and 99 seasons).
Wally's team was picked #9 in the Combined Poll, and finished the regular season at #10. However... a 1-3 scrub record indicates that the Beagles *should* have made the Playoffs as the #5 seed! DLevens, JSmith, and JWilkins were the scoring leaders on this team - as LHoard and EMoulds also did well. The Crazed Beagles were hurt most by the inability to find consistent scoring at the QB spot. Wally did not pick a QB until rounds 7 (CMcNown) and 9 (TCouch). Shane Matthews was forced to take the snaps for Wally in the beginning. Then came the mercurial Jim Miller (33 pts in 3 weeks) - before Miller succumbed to 'roids. McNown was more miss than hit after taking over for Miller. After finishing the regular season 0-3 (to fall out of playoff contention), Wally's Beagles claimed the Scrub Bowl by going 3-0 in the UN-playoffs.
Somehow this team was picked #13 in Cals' Poll - to avoid being the unanimous last place Preseason team. To Brian's credit, this team did manage to win 3 times (including a crushing blow to MiB's playoff hopes) - but also lost to Gary's 12 Angry Men twice. Picking SYoung in Round 1 (season-ending injury in Week 3) was tough. JGalloway (2) was voted 3rd biggest Bust of the Draft. The balance of the Draft (JJStokes, Bam, Chmura, McCardell, Glover, Dilfer, Way, Carney, Rison, Boniol) didn't turn out much better. Pickups TCouch, TKirby, MRobinson, SDawkins, and WRichey were the scoring leaders.
Allegations of friction between GM Shivan and Owner Snehal seem to bear merit as Team Desai garnered little respect for their Draft - ranked #15 in the Preseason Combined Poll. Having a bad draft is one thing... but making only 1 transaction (to replace the backup PK when he broke his leg) is something entirely mystifying. FF was correct in foreseeing that Kordell would be the key to Desais' team. Kordell flopped - and so did Team Desai (last in QB scoring). CPickens (4) never showed up (12 pts), and OJ Santiago (7) was also 0 for 14 (Desais got shutout at the TE spot for the entire season). CGarner and Keyshawn came the closest for Team Desai to All-RFL glory.
12 Angry Men were ranked 3rd (FF), 1st (Cals), and 9th (Tim) in the Preseason polls (tied for 1st in the Combined). The only thing that went right for Gary? Rickey Dudley (6th round). The things that went wrong? #2 and #4 Busts of the Year - Randall Cunningham (1) and AMurrell (2). 3rd round pick JRice didn't resurrect his career. Skip Hicks (4) got buried by Stephen Davis in DC. OJ McDuffie (5) was hurt a lot and played 3rd fiddle to TMartin and OGadsden. Mort Andersen (7) didn't get many scoring chances as the Falcons stank to the high heavens this year. 12 Angry Men scored 18 pts ALL YEAR at the RB slots (equal to one Ken Oxendine)!!! It was a rough initiation to RFL for Gary, but this "Quick Picker" (in the Draft) should be out to redeem himself in 00-01.
Stan was tied for 12th in the Preseason Poll, and EFH's 0-5 start had them joined at the hip with 12 Angry Men after 5 weeks. But Stan kept making transactions like a GM possessed and actually had a shot at making the Playoffs heading into the final week of the regular season! Bust of the Year MBrunell didn't come close to matching his preseason hype. #2 and #5 Pickups of the Year (SBeuerlein and OGary) led the charge to carry EFH to the brink of the Playoffs. TBrown and DMayes formed EFH's slow-but-steady WR pair. JHanson finished 2 pts short of All-RFL Honorable Mention status.
Wang's draft placed FU in a tie for 3rd in the Preseason Poll (and FU did indeed finish the regular season in 3rd), but the dismantling of the drafted squad began shortly thereafter. WMoon (11) was replaced by Arena League no-name KWarner the week after the Draft. BEmanuel (9) was dumped in Week 2. RobMoore (4) was dropped in Weeks 3, 6, 11, and 16. KA-Jabbar (7) was cut in Week 4. SSharpe (3) and MIrvin (6) went down in Week 5. JPlummer (2) was released in Week 6. BSanders (12) was let go in Week 7. WRichey (8) was given the boot in Week 9. TBiakabutuka (5) was shown the door in Week 15. And MFaulk (1) was waived for violating unspecified team rules the day before Aglione Bowl X. 10th round pick OMare was the only player to last the full season on Aglione Bowl X Champion FU! Warner and Faulk carried the team through the regular season, and PJeffers was the man in the Playoffs.
Few so-called gurus respected this team before the season began. JoePa's Sox were ranked 14th in the Preseason Poll! But after starting the season 3-0, the Black Sox essentially alternated W's and L's for 11 weeks - finishing the regular season at 9-5 and with the 4th seed. The South Side Black Sox routed Y2K Bugs and DCIAC in the quarters and semis - before running out of steam in Aglione Bowl X. JoePa had to overcome major injury problems with RWilliams (2) and SMcNair (3) - and major underperformance issues with DAlexander (4), FSanders (5), and Opie Cunningham (6). But Edgerrin (1st round, #13 overall) led RFL in scoring this year, McNair was strong after in-season surgery (JoePa was #1 in RFL QB scoring), Riemersma was the #4 TE in RFL, and Kasay/Carney enabled Black Sox fans everywhere to forget about Opie's collapse. The weakness on this team was WR (last place in RFL scoring).
Dylan's team was ranked tied for 12th in the Preseason Poll, but this was before Steal of the Draft Stephen Davis won the DC TD-scoring job away from SHicks. Hicks out-TD'ed Davis 8-0 in 1998 - in 2 fewer games! UWSSM finished the regular season at 7-7 (and with the 7th seed for the Playoffs), but an unprecedented 0-5 scrub record meant that Dylan *could* have been a contender for the Steamroller - if not for all the bad luck. Does anyone know stories about Dylan's lack of good, clean living?!? SDavis and Emmitt led UWSSM to the #1 spot in RFL in RB scoring. DBledsoe and SAlexander (Dylan never got a TE pt all year long) were over-hyped disappointments. Muuse Muhammad had a breakout year. UWSSM defeated DCIAC for 3rd place in the Playoffs.
FF had Brodz ranked 14th in the Preseason Poll (1st in Tim's, 8th in Cals', 8th in the Combined), but FF knew Brodz had the GM skills to overcome what was improperly perceived as a below-average draft. EGeorge (1) and CCarter (2) had superb seasons. MAlstott (3) and TGlenn (4) were solid - until TGlenn decided to sit a few games out. MHollis (7) and Freddie Jones (10) were also valued contributors. The stroke of genius for Brodz this year... scooping up JGeorge all the way back in Week 1 - microseconds after Cals dumped the Viking signal caller-to-be. Jeff led SLAB to the 1999 Steamroller Trophy, but DCIAC knocked Brodz off the Aglione Bowl trail in the quarterfinals.
Ali was ranked 1st in the preseason by Foge Fazio (and 5th in the Combined Poll). After picking AFreeman, TOwens, and BCoates in the 1st 3 rounds, JIU was expected to dominate the pass catching pt totals. However... JIU came in 12th in WR pts (outpointed 170-81 by Tim), and tied for 5th at TE (LaFleur scored all 18 JIU TE pts vs 72 for Vesh). Ben Coates fell off the edge of the world this year. Marino got hurt - and never really put up consistent performances while he was healthy. JIU never really found a steady pair of RB's (despite the numbers of #2 Steal of the Draft JStewart), so Ali traded AFreeman for ERhett. TOwens never clicked with JGarcia. JIU was looking ok at 4-3, but then lost 7 of 10 to close out the year.
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Who Scored What?
Below is one numerical representation of the scoring in the
99-00 RFL season - broken down by position.
QBs: 40 guys, 1402 pts /16 /17 = 5.15 ppg per QB
RBs: 50 guys, 2088 pts /32 /17 = 3.84 ppg per RB slot
WRs: 50 guys, 1614 pts /32 /17 = 2.97 ppg per WR slot
TEs: 17 guys, 350 pts /16 /17 = 1.29 ppg per TE
PKs: 29 guys, 1910 pts /16 /17 = 7.02 ppg per PK
QB1 = 121 pts kwarner
QB16 = 33 pts taikman
..........88 pt diff
RB1 = 153 pts ejames
RB16 = 54 pts jbettis
..........99 pt diff
RB17 = 51 pts tkirby
RB32 = 18 pts bmorris
..........33 pt diff
WR1 = 110 pts mharrison
WR16 = 36 pts aconnell
..........74 pt diff
WR17 = 33 pts jmorton
WR32 = 18 pts atoomer
..........15 pt diff
TE1 = 72 pts wwalls
TE16 = 6 pts tdrayton
.........66 pt diff
PK1 = 145 pts mvanderjagt
PK16 = 73 pts ganderson
..........72 pt diff
Below is the ranking of each franchise in terms of overall scoring by
position.
| QB | RB | WR | TE | PK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| joepa 130 | dylan 231 | tim 170 | vesh 72 | vesh 153 |
| wang 127 | wang 224 | cals 162 | kevin 69 | brodz 140 |
| kevin 115 | brodz 189 | vesh 141 | gary 54 | wally 135 |
| joebob 109 | joepa 183 | brodz 135 | joepa 24 | wang 133 |
| stan 107 | wally 165 | wally 125 | ali 18 | joebob 132 |
| brodz 97 | desais 147 | dylan 120 | wang 18 | ali 131 |
| dylan 95 | clark 126 | joebob 119 | wally 15 | joepa 124 |
| clark 91 | vesh 120 | brian 102 | clark 14 | tim 120 |
| vesh 85 | joebob 117 | desais 102 | joebob 12 | cals 120 |
| gary 75 | stan 104 | stan 87 | tim 12 | kevin 112 |
| wally 69 | cals 104 | wang 84 | cals 12 | desais 110 |
| tim 69 | ali 102 | ali 81 | stan 12 | clark 108 |
| cals 66 | tim 99 | kevin 54 | brodz 12 | stan 106 |
| ali 60 | kevin 93 | clark 51 | brian 6 | dylan 106 |
| brian 59 | brian 66 | gary 42 | desais 0 | gary 99 |
| desais 48 | gary 18 | joepa 39 | dylan 0 | brian 81 |
| QB | Kurt Warner | Ferocious Underwear | David Wang | 121 |
| RB | Edgerrin James | The South Side Black Sox | Joe Parker | 153 |
| RB | Marshall Faulk | Ferocious Underwear | David Wang | 140 |
| WR | Marvin Harrison | Y2K Bugs | Tim Purwin | 110 |
| WR | Randy Moss | Wide Open Beavers | Pat Callery | 105 |
| TE | Wesley Walls | Romanians | Josh Veshia | 72 |
| PK | Mike Vanderjagt | Romanians | Josh Veshia | 145 |
| QB | Peyton Manning* | Don't Call It a Comeback | Kevin Archibald | 109 |
| RB | Stephen Davis | Upper West Side Stomp Mongers | Dylan Steeg | 117 |
| RB | Eddie George | Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits | David Brodkin | 111 |
| WR | Cris Carter | Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits | David Brodkin | 93 |
| WR | Isaac Bruce | Romanians | Josh Veshia | 87 |
| TE | Tony Gonzalez | Don't Call It a Comeback | Kevin Archibald | 66 |
| PK | Mike Hollis | Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits | David Brodkin | 130 |
| QB | Brad Johnson | Men in Brown | Joe Pynadath | 109 |
| RB | Dorsey Levens | Crazed Beagles on the Run | Wally Grayeski | 102 |
| RB | Emmitt Smith | Upper West Side Stomp Mongers | Dylan Steeg | 81 |
| WR | Jimmy Smith | Crazed Beagles on the Run | Wally Grayeski | 74 |
| WR | Michael Westbrook | Men in Brown | Joe Pynadath | 68 |
| TE | Rickey Dudley | 12 Angry Men | Gary Eigen | 54 |
| PK | Steve Christie | Wide Open Beavers | Pat Callery | 108 |
| Quarters | Semis | Aglione Bowl X |
|---|---|---|
| SLAB 12 | ||
| DCIAC 18 | ||
| DCIAC 23 | ||
| SSBS 45 | SSBS 50 | |
| Bugs 26 | SSBS 9 | |
| FU 43 | ||
| Romanians 12 | ||
| UWSSM 36 | UWSSM 28 | |
| FU 58 | 3rd Place | |
| FU 36 | ********* | |
| 'runners 12 | Consolation | DCIAC 17 |
| *********** | UWSSM 30 | |
| SLAB 26 | ||
| Bugs 19 | 5th Place | |
| ********* | ||
| Romanians 44 | SLAB 15 | |
| 'runners 13 | Romanians 51 | |
| 7th Place | ||
| ********* | ||
| Bugs 28 | ||
| 'runners 17 |
UN-playoffs Bracket
| Quarters | Semis | Scrub Bowl |
|---|---|---|
| Beavers 22 | ||
| 12Angry 14 | ||
| Beavers 28 | ||
| JIU 25 | EFH 34 | |
| EFH 34 | EFH 32 | |
| Beagles 64 | ||
| Beagles 49 | ||
| Brian 42 | Beagles 31 | |
| Desais 26 | 11th Place | |
| MiB 33 | ********* | |
| Desais 37 | Consolation | Beavers 42 |
| *********** | Desais 28 | |
| 12Angry 20 | ||
| JIU 34 | 13th Place | |
| ********* | ||
| Brian 26 | JIU 12 | |
| MiB 59 | MiB 39 | |
| Last Place | ||
| ********* | ||
| 12Angry 20 | ||
| Brian 3 |
************************************************************
Steamroller Winners:
90 Steamrollers (Albert Aglione & Snehal Desai)
91 Dancing Clowns (Drew Wagner)
92 Z-Bomb (Pat Callery)
93 End Zone Bones (Pat Callery)
94 Meat Beaters (Drew Wagner)
95 Dirty Digs (Tim Purwin)
96 Rampaging Gibbons of the Apocalypse (Pat Callery)
97 Red Rover (Ed Seto)
98 Romanians (Josh Veshia)
99 Skintight Leather Assless Bodysuits (Dave Brodkin)
Aglione Bowl Champions:
I Steamrollers (Albert Aglione & Snehal Desai)
II Cals Killer Cows (Pat Callery)
III Brodkin Citgo Machine (Dave Brodkin)
IV End Zone Bones (Pat Callery)
V Head Hunters (Pat Callery)
VI Immigrant Farmworkers (Gabe Negron)
VII HAWAAW (Joe Pynadath)
VIII Landlord Luggage (John Wilson)
IX Foxy Brown (Stan Wilson)
X Ferocious Underwear (David Wang)
The Top 5 RFL Teams of All Time (compiled with input from The Gurus -
Cals, Brodz, Joebob, and Stan):
1) Luscious Brodkin (Dave Brodkin) 1996
Cals - When it comes to pure firepower, nobody can compete with Luscious B. They are indeed the all time high scoring franchise, and had a simply
amazing arsenal. The roster was acquired throughout the year, a monument
to top-notch GMmanship. This may be a controversial choice as #1,
because in spite of all their horrific offensive numbers, this team
failed to win either the Steamroller or the Aglione Bowl.
Stan - Luscious Brodkin was another team typical of Dave's perennial GM Expertise. But the marketability of the team cannot be underestimated. The name "Luscious Brodkin"...pure genius (as is the band).
Brodz - My case for Luscious is that it is the all-time scoringest (40+ ppg), and I doubt anyone else is within 3 points. It had all-stars at every position besides 2nd RB.
2) Dancing Clowns (Drew Wagner) 1991
Cals - The Clowns dominated the 1991 regular season much like the Gibbons in 96, suffering only a regular season loss to the Barracudas and a major upset loss to Dule Baters in the semifinals. I don't have their scoring numbers handy. Where are the archives?!
Brodz - I will stand by Dancing Clowns and Luscious Brodkin as the two greatest.
3) Rampaging Gibbons (Pat Callery) 1996
Cals - The Gibbons had it all, and rolled through the regular season with prowess matched in history only by the Dancing Clowns. They boasted a lineup to reckon with Luscious B, but unfortunately they suffered a
collapse in the semifinals. Definitely the best regular season team
ever. 1996 was perhaps RFL's most glorious season, and HAWAAW should be
given their due credit for beating both these teams in the playoffs and
winning the Ags Bowl in the greatest RFL game ever played.
Brodz - My only modification would be to switch Rampaging Gibbons (to Honorable Mention) and Steamrollers (to Top 5). The Gibbons put up small numbers, but had some scrub luck and managed to squeak out a Steamroller. The Steamrollers pulled off the double trophy season which has eluded all but 2 teams in RFL history.
Stan - If there was ever a team that put genuine fear in me, week in and week out, it was the Rampaging Gibbons. Sure, some may argue that it may have been my childhood fear on the flying monkey scene in the Wizard of Oz, but regardless...for some reason I felt that season was a foregone conclusion after week 5 or so. They were a force.
4) Foxy Brown (Stan Wilson) 1998
Cals - I've noticed our elite staff of gurus has failed to recognize any of the new crowd. Foxy Brown quietly put up one of the best seasons on record last year. The second highest point total ever (38.1 ppg), a 2nd place regular season finish behind the impressive Romanians, and a remarkable run thru the playoffs (42+ points in all 3 games) should put this team up there with the best all time. They sported names such as JBettis, FTaylor, JRice, and RMoss at the key positions, all of them drafted. Taylor and Moss, late round picks?! Genius.
5) End Zone Bones (Pat Callery) 1993
Cals - This team was not as star-studded or as dominant as those mentioned above, but did something special that nobody has done since - win the Steamroller and the Aglione Bowl. Of course the Steamrollers did it originally in 1990, but nominating them would be like nominating the
1929 Bears or something.
Teams Worthy of Mentioning Honorably:
1) Steamrollers (Albert Aglione & Snehal Desai) 1990
2) Z-Bomb (Pat Callery) 1992
3) Hooligans a Whompin' and a Whoopin' (Joe Pynadath) 1996
4) Brodkin Citgo Machine (Dave Brodkin) 1992
I hope everyone enjoyed the 99-00 season, and I hope all of you are
looking forward to the 00-01 season.
-Commish Dave
©1999-2000 RFL Inc.
All rights reserved.
Revised: August 30, 2000