Ultimus Bowl IX
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| Stadium | The Meme Coliseum, New Orleans, Louisiana | ||||||||||||||||||
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| Offensive MVP | Borkus Maximus, Quarterback (NOLA) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Defensive MVP | Fuego Wozy, Defensive End (NOLA) | ||||||||||||||||||
Ultimus Bowl IX was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Simulation Football League (NSFL) for 2024 (S9). The American Simulation Football Conference (ASFC) champion New Orleans Second Line defeated the National Simulation Football Conference (NSFC) champion Baltimore Hawks, 37-24, to win their first ever Ultimus Bowl championship. The game was played at The Meme Coliseum in New Orleans, Louisiana. This was the second straight Ultimus Bowl game featuring the New Orleans Second Line, who had lost last season's championship to the Yellowknife Wraiths in Ultimus Bowl VIII.
Contents
Background
Teams
The NSFC was represented by the Baltimore Hawks, and the ASFC was represented by the New Orleans Second Line.
Baltimore Hawks
The Baltimore Hawks went into Ultimus Bowl IX after posting a NSFC best record of 11-3.
Austin Copperheads
The Orange County Otters continued their consecutive playoff appearances streak that dated back to 2016 (S1). The Otters headed into the season as the defending champions, winners of Ultimus Bowl XVIII. The Otters started the season at 7-0 before losing to the New Orleans Second Line in week 8. The Otters then lost their last 3 games, their record falling to 9-4, and losing the right to host Ultimus Bowl XIX to the Yellowknife Wraiths. Despite this disappointment, the Otters were still the first seed in the ASFC. Franklin Armstrong had a very strong third season as he led a very potent offence and for most of the season was considered the front runner for the Most Valuable Player and Quarterback of the Year Awards. Lanzer Grievous finished second in the league in sacks, and second in forced fumbles and fumble recoveries. He led the number one defence in points, yards, and against the pass.
Playoffs
Yellowknife started off with a drubbing against the Philadelphia Liberty in the Quarterfinals. This was the second straight meeting between the teams in the wild card round. Youngster Brock Phoenix threw 3 interceptions against the Wraiths fantastic defence. Cooter Bigsby put on a clinic with a career best, 5 passing touchdowns in the playoffs. The NSFC Championship featured a matchup between the 7-6 Colorado Yeti and the confident Wraiths. Despite the Yeti’s talented defence who managed to pick off Bigsby two times, the Wraiths won rather handily with a final score of 40-24. This meant that the Wraiths would be hosting the Ultimus Bowl on their home turf for the third straight season.
The Copperheads started their playoff journey against the Arizone Outlaws. It ended up being a tightly contested battle but the Outlaws couldn’t stop Mako Mendonca as he rumbled for over 130 yards. Neither could they stop Rod Tidwell through the air as he also racked up over 130 yards. The ASFC championship game the Copperheads faced off against the dangerous New Orleans Second Line. Mako Mendonca had yet another stellar game on the ground, racking up over 100 total yards and 3 touchdown scores to carry his team all the way to the Ultimus Bowl.
Game summary
First Quarter
The Hawks started off with a rhythmic 9 play, 81 yard that took over 5 minutes off the clock. The drive ended with a 18 yard laser from Avon Blocksdale to Budda Browning to give the hawks a 7-0 lead. The Second Line didn't have as great of a start, as their stalwart running back Darren Smallwood made an uncharacteristic mistake in the redzone as he fumbled the ball at the Hawks 16 yard line. The fumble was quickly recovered by one of the best linebackers in the NSFL Austin Roenick. The Second Line answered right back with a safety as Blocksdale was sacked in the Hawks own endzone. This made the score 7-2 going for the Hawks going into the 2nd quarter.
Second Quarter
After receiving the kickoff after the safety, the Hawks wasted no time in going right back down the field to score another touchdown. This was another long, time consuming 9 play drive, that ended this time by a short scamper into the endzone by Owen Taylor. All of a sudden it was a 14-2 game. The Second Line knew they needed to make some plays or this game would soon get out of hand. The Second Line made some explosive plays that got them within the 10 yard line of the Hawks. The drive was finished off by Smallwood, who managed to make up for his untimely fumble in the first quarter. After forcing a punt, the Second Line went all the way back down the field for a touchdown to take a 14-16 lead. It was Borkus Maximus III this time who managed to connect with Jackson in the endzone. The comeback quarter by the Second Line ended in a field goal to make the game 14-19 in their favour going into halftime.
Third Quarter
It was a timid start to the third quarter as both teams exchanged punts. The Hawks managed to have a fairly lengthy FG drive to make the game 17-19. The forced Second Line to punt again, and put together another dominate touchdown drive which ended in an Owen Taylor run to make the game 24-19 for the Hawks.
Fourth Quarter
The Second Line answered right back with an 11 play, drive that started at their 1 yard line. It ended in another Smallwood touchdown run. The Second Line decided to go for two to make it a 3 point game and they successfully converted to make it 24-27 early in the fourth quarter. The Second Line wore out the Hawks as they put a dominating finish to the end of the game. They drove 80 yards for another Borkus Maximus III touchdown pass to make it a 10 point lead with 5 minutes left to go in the game. They later added a FG as a finishing touch to make the score 24-37.
The Second Line were victorious in front of their raucous fans as they were awarded their first Ultimus Bowl Championship ever. Borkus Maximus III ended his awesome season with the Offensive Ultimus Bowl Player of the Game Award for his 27/38, 372 yards and 2 TD game. Fuego Wozy was named the Defensive [[Ultimus Bowl Player of the Game Award] recipient for his 3 tackles, 2 sacks and 1 safety showing on defensive line.
Game statistics
Statistical comparison
| Statistic | Baltimore Hawks | New Orleans Second Line |
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| First downs | 20 | 19 |
| Third down efficiency | 3/11 | 4/11 |
| Fourth down efficiency | 0/1 | 0/1 |
| Net yards rushing | 95 | 115 |
| Rushing attempts | 19 | 27 |
| Yards per rush | 5.0 | 4.3 |
| Passing – Completions-attempts | 29/44 | 27/38 |
| Interceptions thrown | 0 | 0 |
| Net yards passing | 353 | 372 |
| Total net yards | 448 | 487 |
| Fumbles-lost | 1-0 | 2-1 |
| Penalties-yards | 6-55 | 1-5 |
| Time of possession | 30:45 | 29:15 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
Box score
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
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| Hawks (NSFC) | 7 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 24 |
| Second Line (ASFC) | 2 | 17 | 0 | 18 | 37 |
at The Meme Coliseum, New Orleans, Louisiana
- Date: 26 January, 2025
- Game time: 8:00 p.m. EST
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