Championship 2011!!!

The Championship is finally here. Kicking off in Metaire, LA at St. Catherine's Recreational Gym. It has been a while since the Cat's have been at this stage, 8 seasons. Nobody on this team could know what it is like to represent their team in the Championship.

"I remember being in high school watching that game (2008 Championship). The Cat's were up 3 to nothing, it was all over. That's what everyone thought. Then the Gremlins came back hard. When I put on this red and white, I assume responsibility for times past, I feel the need to avenge that, for these great fans." - Jared #8 Cat's

That will be the storyline for the Cat's. This season, they have been expected to win all these games, now comes time for them to prove people wrong, which they haven't been able to do historically. They have always had the reputation of not being able to perform in the big games. Last season, they had a flex game against the Interceptors, their 1st flex in a while, they played flat in front of the nation. Many said that they couldn't get past the Play-In hump for 2 years because of the big game curse.

"Y'know, these Cat's ain't like the past ones. We gotta solid squad out here. Jared, Sonio, that new cat Arthur. It should be a hoot" - Jones Johnson fan

The story line that will dominate the rest of the country, will be the question of if the Interceptors can have the best season ever. by most accounts, that would call for them going 3-0 in these Championships. There hasn't been such an expectant odds for the Championship in a while.

"I'll admit it, we are expected to win. You can't argue with public opinion, just don't get caught up in it." Says Ricky #6 INT. "We have had the burden of expectation all year, so this is our comfort zone."

Expect one of the Interceptors rookies to step up big in this series, that will be the determinant. The Cat's have the front line to handle the Interceptors, but will their role players do something extra ordinary. That is their only hope.

Let's get it on!

Salem Claims 2nd MVP, Sebastian grabs Rook

The selections for this year were pretty easy. Salem led his team to a 10-0 regular season record and then went on to march toward another Championship berth with a 4-1 post-season record. He earned his 3rd straight All-Star nod. Was a 3-time game MVP and earned player of the week. This MVP title sets him apart from every other player in history, nobody has come close to winning twice.

"It has been all about team this year. I am of course extremely happy and humbled to get this honor, but I would argue you could give this to anyone on our team. One person cannot go undefeated in this tough league." - Salem #25 Interceptors

Sebastian crashed into every household in America shattering the Combine points record and coming out the hottest rookie prospect ever. Now the pressure was on to deliver. He had a quiet but consistent year making a great 87.5% of his throws, tied with Salem for 4th best in the league. Sharing impact with Sean of course, he helped the Diamonds to their 1st division title in 7 seasons. He really came out as the clear Rookie MVP with 2 commanding victories over the Dragonfish in the divisional round. He kinda took a step back against the Cat's, but still, on par with the year Semere had a few years back.

"I have felt the burden coming up all these years and entering the league. I strive to be the best, so this is a nice boost to that goal, to keep pushing." - Sebastian #3 Diamonds

Catch Salem and the Interceptors try for their first title against the Cat's in the 2011 DBL Championsihp.

Conference Round Run Down

It's down to 4. None of whom have ever won a championship. The Diamonds have never been to a championship. The Cat's have never been even this far into the playoffs since 2007 where they lost the Championship to the Gremlins. The Scarlet Ember and Interceptors on the other hand are making an unlikely era of success for the Midwest over the past few years, both having made the championship and lost to the Toros in the past 2 years. So much hype is made around the big market North, but it's one of these guys who will again represent the conference. 

 The Diamonds are coming off of a really high energy, stellar performance series against the Dragonfish. No doubt they deserve to be here. If they can keep Sebastian playing this immortal, and Sean playing his level, this could be an interesting series. The Cat's on the other hand, hand a slippery series despite the 2-0 count. Many mistakes and under-performance. They will not last doing that again. However this shakes out, good season for each of these very green teams.

Jack and the Scarlet Ember have made the least impact to the culture of this season of the teams remaining. They got hot in the middle of the season, but unfortunately (or fortunately) for them they were overshadowed by 'undefeatable Interceptors' fever. But now the lowest seed in the playoffs is in the big time. Jack has lead SE to 2 pretty convincing victories over the Dizzy Devils who just weren't on their game. The Interceptors are playing pretty strong. Not as lights out as many would have imagined, especially after losing their 1st game all season in the opening game. But now that the championship is in sight, we may finally see some fireworks. During the season, the Intercptors didn't drop a set to the rival, going 10-4, and 10-6.  Let'ssee what happens. 

All*Star 2011

The All-Star Game will take place in the hallowed grounds of Dragonfish Park in Palmetto, FL. Here are the stars and the amount of times they have been given this honor.

North-Midwest
6 - Miller Reapers - C - 2
4 - Russell - L - 3
3 - Jason - L - 1
24 - Travis - R - 3
8 - Casey Gremlins - R - 1
25 - Salem Interceptors - C - 3
11 - James Seadogs - L - 2
13 - Wayne Seadogs - R - 1

South-West 
1 - Maurice Skylarks - C - 1
11 - Desmond Gold - L - 2
7 - Sean Diamonds - L - 2
5 - Ausonio St. Cat's - R - 1
2 - Rayquan Toros - R - 2
9 - Jacoby Dragonfish - C - 4
3 - Keith Skylarks - L - 1
21 - Paolo Dragonfish  - R - 1

Salem makes his 3rd straight game, but this time as a back-up to Miller who has made his 2nd straight. Sean is surprisingly making only his 2nd appearance and the first in 3 years. Jacoby has the most experience of the bunch with 4 apps. Rayquan makes a streak of never missing an All-Star Game, lets see how long that can last.

Of interesting note is the lack of rookies in this class. No Sebastian, no Zeno, both had stellar seasons but played along other big stars and had to share time. Also of interest is the Interceptors sending only 1. Obviously because the points were spread around all season, at least they sent their cover boy. The Scarlet Ember quietly got into the conference finals and even quietly....er have no All-Stars.

Watch the 2011 DBL All-Star Game in Palmetto, FL this Sunday, December 18th on ZBS.