Maurice Virtanen

Maurice Virtanen

Virtanen destroying Wisconsin
No. 23
Position:	Linebacker
Personal information
Born:	(2008-02-22)February 22, 2008 (aged 54) Helsinki, Finland
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
High school:	Mäkelänrinteen High School
College:	Michigan State
Career history
Roster status:	Active

Maurice Geronimo Virtanen (born January 22, 2008) is an American football linebacker playing for the Yellowknife Wraiths of the NSFL and is about to enter his 4th season

Early years

Maurice Virtanen was born in Helsinki, Finland to Darnell and Maija Virtanen. His father Darnell had originally moved to Finland after an unsuccessful stint in the NBA where he only played one game for the Detroit Pistons, scoring 4 points and met his future wife at an end of season party for his team, Torpan Pojat.

Maurice was never too interested in school, just as his two half brothers (Axel and Teemu) from his mother's previous marriage, but was keen on trying his hand on different sports. Initially interested in basketball due to his dad’s history he had his head turned in his last year of middle school by school mates who were raving about new NFL star Baker Mayfield.

Maurice decided to go to a sports focused high-school where he joined the school’s American Football team and initially played wide receiver. Noticing his talent and athleticism, his coach suggested he try out for the local professional football league and after his second tryouts started playing for the Helsinki Roosters where he converted to playing Linebacker and won a national championship. Upon graduating high school, Virtanen took a full scholarship offer from Michigan State University.

College career

Playing for the Spartans from 2027 to 2030, Virtanen started 34 of 42 games at linebacker, including two Redbox Bowl starts. As a true freshman he started 5 games after impressing as a backup in the first half of the season and ended up with 51 tackles and 1 sack. He took big steps in his sophomore year totaling 114 tackles (7 for loss) and 3 sacks while starting in the Spartans Redbox Bowl loss to rivals Wolverines.

Junior year, Virtanen started all games and was the standout player in the Spartan defense that emphatically won the Redbox Bowl and avenging their loss the previous year to the Michigan Wolverines and was named Redbox Bowl Defensive MVP. The other highlight of the season was against Wisconsin where Virtanen was able to tally 13 tackles, 2 sacks and return an interception for a touchdown while allowing Wisconsin to only score 6 points.

College career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles			Sacks	Interceptions		Other
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Total	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Safety
2027	MSU	5	51	2	53	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	0
2028	MSU	13	114	7	121	3	2	1	1	3	0	18	0
2029	MSU	13	133	6	139	5	4	1	1	3	0	20	1

DSFL

Virtanen was drafted 4th overall in the S17 DSFL draft by the Kansas City Coyotes. He was brought in alongside a slew of additional defensive players in the draft, as the Coyotes felt like their offense was in good shape. The defense was definitely a strong point for the Kansas City Coyotes as their offense had clear struggles at quarterback, with Jay Longshaw not being able to play up to his standards even with star wide receivers Dexter Banks II and running back Micheal Vincent. After an 0-3 start to the season, the Kansas City Coyotes would end up going 6-8 and losing to the Portland Pythons in the playoffs. Virtanen made his presence known and ended up second in tackles with 157 and adding 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks and a bloked punt to really get his name on everyones lips.

DSFL Career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles			Sacks	Interceptions		Other
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Total	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Safety
2032	KCC	14	157	3	160	2	0	0	0	2	1	0	0

NSFL career

Maurice Virtanen declared for the NSFL draft straight after their bitter playoff defeat to the Portland Pythons. He was seen as one of the best prospects in the large draft class and was expected to go in the top three. In the end and to the surprise of many he dropped all the way down to pick number 7 and was picked by the Yellowknife Wraiths who were delighted to be able to get one of the best prospects near the end of the first round.

2033 NSFL Season (S18)

Maurice Virtanen was called up right away as the Yellowknife Wraiths had clear needs on defense. After discussions with his coaches and management, Virtanen opened up his NSFL career by playing at Defensive End with the team already having established starters at Linebacker. He slotted in nicely on the defensive line and helped the Yellowknife Wraiths to one of the best defensive seasons and a 11-2 record. With home field advantage throughout the playoffs, the Yellowknife Wraiths looked to be the early favorite for the Ultimus. After a tough win over the Baltimore Hawks in the conference championship, the Yellowknife Wraiths ultimately lost to the Orange County Otters in the Ultimus and Virtanen had to endure a bitter taste of defeat

2034 NSFL Season (S19)

Virtanen continued his play during Season 19 on the defensive line as a defensive end. With only Ryan Leaf Jr. leaving the Yellowknife Wraiths on the defensive side of the ball and the addition of Sunnycursed along with calling up Mathias Hanyadi and Orien Drake to complement the backfield (as Jerrod Canton and Morgan Marshall said goodbye to their careers), the Yellowknife Wraiths looked poised to make another run for the Ultimus. After a tough opening day defeat to the Philadelphia Liberty, the Yellowknife Wraiths learned from that and ended up with a 9-4 record and again secured home field advantage throughout the playoffs. This season played out similar to the previous one with a tough win against Baltimore Hawks in the conference championship and another loss to Orange County Otters in the Ultimus where it seemed Franklin Armstrong could not be tackled on the last drive of the game. To soothe the wounds, Virtanen enjoyed a much better statistical campaign, finishing second in Tackles for Loss.

NSFL Career statistics

Career statistics			Tackles			Sacks	Interceptions		Other
Season	Team	Games	Reg	TFL	Total	Sack	Int	IntTD	DefTD	FFum	FRec	PD	Safety
2033	YKW	13	20	3	23	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2034	YKW	13	32	16	48	2	2	1	0	0	1	0	0

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Ht	Wt	40‑yd dash	20‑ss	3‑cone	Vert jump	Broad	BP	Wonderlic
6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	4.34 s	4.21 s	7.23 s	34.2 in (0.87 m)		38 reps	20

Professional career statistics

Come back to this later

Achievements and records

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