URK 2011: End of the Year Awards!

Hey, remember back when we were all still playing Fantasy Football? And how I never got around to an end of the season wrap-up? No? Well, now that the Super Bowl draws nigh, I’ve finally consolidated the results from the awards voting. There were 10 total votes, with 3 points for 1st place, 2 for 2nd, and 1 for 3rd, so the best possible score in a category is 30. Congrats to all you winners and runners-up!

League Champion: Rostrum Records (1st in regular season, 1st in playoffs)

Runners-Up: Bacon Cheeseburgers (3rd in regular season, 2nd in playoffs), Stars (7th in regular season, 3rd in playoffs)

Best General Manager: Rostrum Records (27)
Runners-Up: The Dyin’ SharkLions (8), Stars (8)

Best Coach: Stars (15)
Runners-Up: Rostrum Records (10), The Dyin’ SharkLions (9)

Best Avatar: Obese Geese (14)
Runners-Up: Jehovah’s Jockstrap (9), Stars (9)

Best Team Name: Jehovah’s Jockstrap (15)
Runners-Up: Obese Geese (12), The Dyin’ SharkLions (8)

Best Trash Talk: Obese Geese (10)
Runners-Up: Jehovah’s Jockstrap (9), A Sheep at the Wheel (9)

Best Team Motto(s): Jehovah’s Jockstrap and Obese Geese (tie, 12)
Runner-Up: SayHi2YourMother4Me (8)

Comeback Team of the Year: Stars (17)
Runners-Up: The Schmuckernators (9), A Sheep at the Wheel (9)

Most Surprisingly Good Team: Stars (21)
Runners-Up: Rostrum Records (10), Bacon Cheeseburgers (7), The Schmuckernators (7)

Most Courageous Team: Minions (24)
Runners-Up: Stars (8), SayHi2YourMother4Me (6)

Best Sportsmanship: Stars (11)
Runners-Up: Minions (9), The Schmuckernators (9)









*****
There are always many great stories to emerge from each year of the URK, and this past year was no exception. First and foremost: the remarkable season for Rostrum Records as they finally won the coveted championship after coming up just short last year. Not only did they win, but handily! Indeed, they completed the first-ever trifecta: 1st in the regular season standings, 1st in total points scored, and 1st in the playoffs! And, really, what else needs to be said? The Records were heads and shoulders above everyone else by the end of the year, identifying key breakout performers in the draft (hello, Gronkowski and Rodgers) and with mid-season pickups (hello, Colston and Cruz). Then it all culminated in an incredible 10-game win streak to end the year. Tremendous!

But the fantasy football experience in the URK need not just be about winning championships. It’s also about celebrating those who put forth a bit of effort to brighten the season with humor and creativity. So this year we salute two others for their contributions. While they didn’t exactly tear it up on the numerical gridiron, the Obese Geese and Jehovah’s Jockstrap dominated the avatar/name/commentary categories and for that we say, bravo! Pursuit of excellence in these fields adds value to the league in ways that can’t be measured with statistics. Thanks for all the smiles generated!

I’d be remiss if I didn’t also make special mention of the Stars’ outstanding season, as they managed to wholly exceed expectations, have a very successful year, and remain well-liked throughout it all as evidenced by their collection of 4 of these EOTY awards. How about that? Everyone likes a feel-good-overcoming-obstacles-underdog story! Who’s got the movie rights?

Everyone else had moments of glory as well. The Bacon Cheeseburgers put together a solid team that hung at the top of the league all year and only fell one game short of a championship. The Schmuckernators took advantage of a great schedule and rode it to a strong year. The Cupcakes of DOOM! had an explosive team and an exciting year. Z Power dominated the conversation at the beginning of the season before an unfortunate tailing off at the end. A Sheep at the Wheel persevered through the league’s toughest schedule to a playoff berth. The Dyin’ SharkLions will go down as one of the best teams to miss the playoffs as they simply peaked too late. SayHi2YourMother4Me had a largely forgettable year, but they also managed to absolutely crush teams several times, recording biggest blowouts than anyone. And last but never least, the Minions demonstrated absolutely unwavering courage.

The competitiveness of the league has never been higher than this past year either, as nearly every team still had a shot at playoffs at the end of the season and many teams toward the bottom of the standings were every bit as good as those at the top. Now that expansion is a few years old, I think it’s safe to say that the infusion of talented managers has really increased the depth of the league. Since the growth of the league in 2008 from 8 to 12 teams, 3 of the past 4 championships have been won by the new guys. Original league members – better step up your game!

Finally, thanks to all of you who voted on the ballots throughout the year and generally stayed engaged. I think the polling experiment worked out pretty well (at least half the league voted in every week except for two), and I had too much fun playing around with the spreadsheets filled with numbers and statistics. So, on that note, let’s wrap this fantasy football season up…can’t wait for next year!