The OIL Blog - THE OIL FANTASY FOOTBALL AND VETERAN COMMUNITY

No Luck Necessary: Pyle, 'Lucky Enuf' win OIL Bowl for first time since 2008

12/23/2018

SHAWNEE — What a way to finish off a championship season. After a star-studded season that included a 10-3 record, Kevin Pyle and Lucky Enuf rode rookie QB Sam Darnold and free-agent signing C.J. Anderson to a championship Sunday, beating the Whackers 163.95-154.30 for their third championship in 13 seasons. The matchup was a re-match of the very first OIL Bowl in 2006.

After winning the inaugural OIL Bowl in 2006, Pyle had to wait until 2012 before learning he'd been recognized as a co-champion for 2008. Lucky Enuf and SoonerJack famously tied in the 2008 OIL Bowl, but the passing yards tiebreaker gave the title to Bruesch. Four years later, a re-count using fractional scoring showed Pyle would have won. In the years since, Pyle has been cursed by that asterisk: ridiculed by fellow managers and snakebitten in the playoffs. But, as he put it on Twitter, he finally has that monkey off his back.

Lucky Enuf had seemed a cruel moniker in recent seasons, as this season marked the fourth in a row that he lost players to season-ending injuries during the playoffs. This year, Pyle lost QB Carson Wentz and RB Todd Gurley to injury and WR Josh Gordon to imminent suspension. But Pyle shrewdly started rookie QB Sam Darnold in relief of Wentz and off-the-street free-agent RB C.J. Anderson in place of Gurley. Lucky Enuf was rewarded with 35.45 points from Darnold and 23.30 points from Anderson. Rookie WR Robert Foster started in place of Gordon and posted a respectable 9.20 points.

The win brings Pyle's career record against Morgan to 9-5. He ends 2018 at 12-3, lifting his 13-year OIL record to 107-76, with three championships. But Pyle isn't forgetting the heartbreak of the past. "I'm genuinely about to jump out of my skin with excitement, but the previous three or four seasons are keeping me humble," he said.

We'll see how humble he feels when he sees his name engraved on the Lawson Memorial Trophy again.

Morgan, the 2007 champion, was in the title game for the third time. He has now lost the OIL Bowl to Pyle twice. The Whackers were led by 27.60 points from fill-in RB Jamaal Williams and 26.50 points from first-round RB Alvin Kamara.

When reached for comment, Morgan was not bitter. "I thought I had it, but that's why they play the games," he said. The Whackers end the season at 10-5, dropping their 13-year OIL record to 85-96-1 with one championship and two runner-up finishes.

OIL Championship Week Preview

12/22/2016

We're finally here. 42 teams have been whittled down to six. Those six are: Zerger; Green; Cobb; Trovillo; Buehre; and Brake. Game-by-game analysis after the jump.

'SoonerJack' Wins Record Third OIL Bowl

12/29/2015

2015 OIL Bowl winner Eli Manning (Credit: /u/spuddy0108).

NORMAN — Third-seeded SoonerJack defeated the DARC NARCS Monday night to snag their third OIL Bowl championship. The third entry on the Harrington Trophy is an OIL record (Lucky Enuf, Arrogant Americans, and War Pony are tied for second with two championships each).

OIL Bowl X Preview

12/22/2015

The 10th OIL Bowl features the DARC NARCS pitted against two-time champion SoonerJack. The paths these two took to get here couldn't be more different. Henderson and the NARCS blew out the Hard Targets by over 80 points while Bruesch beat the Norman Nobodies by 1.45 points.

Last season's OIL Bowl was between the top two seeds, but both of this season's top seeds were upset in the semifinals

Semifinal Analysis

This was a rematch of the 2014 semifinals, when Finch beat Henderson by nearly 70 points. That had to make the victory that much sweeter for Henderson. If you'll recall, Henderson rode into the semifinals fresh off a huge game from Cam Newton last season. But, between the week 14 and 15 game, Newton was in a car accident and missed the semifinals. This year, he stayed out of the hospital and in Henderson's lineup to the tune of 55 points. Poor Finch never had a chance and lost by over 80.

Oh, man. I feel bad for Leal. It looked like he would receive a miraculous Monday Night Miracle, but his Nobodies fell just short. A late-game fumble by Ameer Abdullah proved to the difference as Bruesch held on for the victory and a third trip to the OIL Bowl.

OIL Bowl Preview:
**#4 DARC NARCS (11-4) vs. #3 SoonerJack (11-4)**

DARC NARCS QB Cam Newton (Credit: Hunter Quinn).

SoonerJack RB Latavius Murray (Credit: /u/spuddy0108).

SoonerJack is the higher-seed here, but the DARC NARCS are fresh off a thumping of the number-one seed. If Bruesch wins, he'll have a record third championship. If Henderson wins, he'll finally etch his name in OIL history.

**First Meeting: DARC NARCS (Week One)**

It's fitting that these two end the season against each other, as they began the season against each other as well. Since the first meeting, SoonerJack traded away Calvin Johnson and lost Andre Ellington to injury. Henderson lost Jamaal Charles and Mark Ingram to IR and replaced them with Devonta Freeman and Tim Hightower. Although he still has Isaiah Crowell on the team, Henderson is now starting Cardinals RB David Johnson. Other than those changes, the teams are largely unchanged.

NFC Semifinals Preview

12/15/2015

Click on team logo to view its roster at Yahoo!

And then there were four. The semifinals pit the top four seeds against each other in a battle that will send the winners to the OIL Bowl. Three of the four have been to an OIL Bowl before, but only Bruesch has brought home the coveted Harrington Trophy (twice). And it was Bruesch who punched his ticket to the semifinals first, blowing out Pyle by roughly 40 points. Things were a bit more suspenseful for Henderson, as he beat Rogers by less than a point. But, unlike in most things, in fantasy football, it's not the journey; it's the destination.

First-round analysis and semifinal previews after the jump.

2007 Champion Awarded Custom Mini-Helmet

1/23/2015

2007 champion Lyndal Morgan received a custom mini-helmet to commemorate his 2007 OIL Bowl championship. His Whackers beat his arch-rival (Leal's Norman Nobodies) to conclude the second season of the OIL.

The 2014 champion Dirty Hippies helmet is still a work-in-progress because it is more complicated. We're starting with the 2014 champion and then going back to the beginning of the OIL to work our way back to 2013.

Announcing the 2014 OIL Bowl

12/14/2014

All season, two teams stood head and shoulders above the rest of the NFC: the Dirty Hippies and Hard Targets. They were rewarded with the top two seeds and a first-round bye in the playoffs. After beating the AMMODOGS and Arrogant Americans, respectively, the Hangovers and DARC NARCS took a swing at the Hippies and Targets . . . and missed.

#2 Dirty Hippies vs.
#1 Hard Targets

Regular Season Result: Week Four

Because the OIL plays a balanced schedule, these teams played each other in the regular season. Finch won that matchup by 14.

The teams are largely unchanged since that week four matchup. Since then, Finch lost Stevan Ridley to IR and added Josh Gordon via trade with Duffy. Meanwhile, Trovillo traded away T.Y. Hilton and Devin Hester, promoted Jarvis Landry to WR2, and added Giovani Bernard and Odell Beckham, Jr. Here's how the current Dirty Hippies lineup fared in its week 15 semifinal matchup.

Dirty Hippies Semifinal Result

In one semifinal, the Hangovers' Cinderella season ended when they ran into a buzzsaw otherwise known as the Dirty Hippies. After falling to 2-5, Duffy pulled off some risky trades to shake things up (including trading for Packers QB Aaron Rodgers), and it worked. They won five of their last six regular season games (including a Rivalry Week rout of the Arrogant Americans) and then knocked out the AMMODOGS in the first round of the playoffs.

In the week 15 semifinal, Duffy got 24 points from Demariyus Thomas, 18 points from Eddie Lacy, 28 points from late-season pick-up Jeremy Hill, and 23 points from Devin Hester. It should have been enough to seriously challenge the Hippies. But Aaron Rodgers let Duffy down for the first time this season in a shocking loss to the Buffalo Bills (scoring 7.95 points). And Rodgers's and Davante Adams's (1.6 points) disappointing performances doomed the Hangovers in spite of the great outputs by the remainder of the roster.

The Hippies, for their part, overcame a disappointing TNF performance from Tre Mason (1.3 points). They got 43 points from Odell Beckham, 20 points from fellow LSU rookie WR Jarvis Landry, 18 points from Roddy White, 28 points from Le'Veon Bell, and 18 points from Rob Gronkowski. The Hippies QB points are not included in their 164-point total, as Jay Cutler plays Monday night. But the Hangovers players are all done. In turn, although they put up a very respectable 147 points, the Hangovers were sent home by a dominant Dirty Hippies team heading to its first OIL Bowl.

Hard Targets Semifinal Result

In the other semifinal, Henderson's even more improbable run ended as his DARC NARCS lost to the number one seed one week after posting his highest score of the season. In the first round of the playoffs, the NARCS upset the Arrogant Americans behind 43 points from Cam Newton, 42 points from Julio Jones, and 30 points from Joique Bell.

But that kind of luck is hard to keep going. Two days after leading the NARCS to victory, Cam Newton got into a car accident and was ruled out for the semifinals. Then Julio Jones was ruled out for week 15 after suffering an injury late in the fourth quarter of his game in week 14. And Joique Bell put up a pedestrian 10 points. It wasn't enough.

Henderson also turned to Kendall Wright to pick up the slack for Julio Jones. But Wright, who missed week 14, was again ruled out and Henderson got zero points from a pivotal position. The zero from Wright was matched by Jermaine Gresham, who was an unexpected inactive himself. It wouldn't have mattered though. Not even Henderson's optimal lineup would have won this matchup as Jordan Matthews (who had been hot as of late) scored zero points himself on Sunday Night Football.

On top of all that, Henderson replaced Cam Newton with Ryan Fitzpatrick . . . who broke his leg in the first half of Sunday's game. So, all in all, this week was a cavalcade of horrors for the NARCS. With all of their players done with for week 15, they trail the Targets by 40 points with Mark Ingram and Alshon Jeffery yet to play for Finch. A team like Finch's Hard Targets doesn't need any help to beat a team like Henderson's . . . but it got it anyway en route to an easy victory and their first OIL Bowl berth.

So, it wasn't how we expected to come to it, but we now have the OIL Bowl we've expected all season. Enjoy.

End of Season Wrap-up and Membership Update

1/5/2014

The Harrington Trophy

It is hard to believe that we just finished the eighth season of OklahomIraqis football, but it's true. 2013 was a big year for the OIL in both positive and negative ways. Here is a sampling of the 2013 OIL year in review:

In 2013, we updated our web site, road-tripped to an NFL game together, crowned a new champion, helped a league member regroup after losing his house to a tornado, gave up the DBFA trophy earned in 2012, had children, moved out-of-state, toured Lambeau Field, got a new license plate, established our 2014 draft order, saw one of our own get promoted to First Sergeant, and lost two friends and brothers-in-arms: Brandon Landrum and Joseph Killman.

Your 2013 Champions

Congratulations to Aaron Cobb, whose "Dogs of War" won their first OIL championship. The Harrington Trophy now resides in Fort Smith with Cobb, who was in Baghdad with the original OIL members in 2006 and joined the league in 2007. He defeated Cliburn, who tried and failed to be the first back-to-back champion in the OIL.

Unfortunately, Cobb could not win the World War, so the OIL lost the DBFA's Trophy of Versailles. But the team Cobb had in week 17 wasn't the same one that dominated much of the season, though. By that time, Cobb was without Arian Foster, Wes Welker, Jermichael Finley, and Steve Smith. Still, he is happy just winning the OIL.

Co-commissioner Adam Duffy claimed the number one seed but fell flat in the semifinals. And then Justin Finch beat him in the third-place game. Tough break.

Bruesch's house after the May 20, 2013 tornado in Moore.

In May, two-time OIL champion Jack Bruesch lost his house in the Moore tornado that gained worldwide attention. Fortunately, he and his family were uninjured. OIL members and more came together to help in any way we could. He now lives in Norman and is grateful that his family is okay.

On a lighter note, it is a good thing that Cliburn won the OIL and DBFA trophies back from Bruesch in 2012. Otherwise, those trophies would have been lost in the tornado rubble.

Hat modeled after original Oklahoma state flag.

The OIL site sold "Oklahoma Original" hats for tornado relief after the storms and raised money for the American Red Cross. The hats were modeled after the original Oklahoma state flag. Some hats are still available for purchase.

In November, Yancy Baldwin, Justin Finch, Aaron Cobb, and Justin Cliburn went to the Cowboys-Vikings game together. It was the second straight year for an NFL trip among the guys, and they had a great time. Even sitting in the "nosebleed" section, the experience was fantastic. There really are no bad seats at "JerryWorld."

Start thinking now about which game we should attend for our next NFL excursion. The Cowboys play the usual NFC East opponents at home next season, plus Arizona, San Francisco, Houston, Indianapolis, and New Orleans. Perhaps in future seasons we can expand our footprint and go to a different stadium, but Dallas is closest to most of the league.

Cali Rose Jessen

And the OIL family grew when 28.5% of the league had a baby in the last 53 weeks. Three league members' new babies were born in 2013 and one member had a son born just before 2013 began. Colt James Baldwin was born on Dec. 22, 2012. While his birth did not technically happen in 2013, it did occur between the 2012 and 2013 seasons. Colt just turned one and lives in Stratford with Yancy and his family.

Jessen's daughter (left) was born in Duncan and has been sporting her favorite outfit since day one: her DominationStation onesie (it's unclear if Mrs. Jessen shares the love for fantasy football-themed infant clothing). Cali's quickly becoming Jessen's biggest fan.

The other new additions to the OIL family were born far away from Oklahoma [insert your own opinion as to whether that is a good thing or a bad thing here].

Olive Quin Duffy

Adam Duffy's daughter, Olive (left), was born in Packer Country, but her favorite team is the Hangovers.

And Christopher Trovillo had his first child in 2013, a son. Robert Trovillo (right) was born in Volunteer territory, but he's a born Dirty Hippie.

Congratulations are in order for all four fathers.

Robert Neal Trovillo

Mrs. Commish chose not to visit Lambeau Field. Weirdo.

2013 was the first season Duffy spent in his new home. After living in Lawton-Fort Sill for 20+ years, Duff moved to his family's hometown in Wisconsin. The Commish and Mrs. Commish visited the Duffies' new home in July.

The Commish, Duffy, and Duffy's father and brothers toured Lambeau Field and watched the Packers practice. It was the first time the Commish went to an NFL training camp. It also marked the first time that he had to wear a hoodie in July. Not cool, Wisconsin.

Landrum deployed in 2008 with the 1-158.

On a more somber note, 2013 was also the year that we buried friends and brothers-in-arms. 1LT Brandon Landrum died in May from an IED explosion in Afghanistan. Members of the OIL knew him as SPC Landrum.

He was a medic and spent 2008 in Iraq with the 158. He went to the same high school and college as the commissioner and was active duty when he died. He trained with co-commissioner Adam Duffy at a "war fighter" exercise. He made us laugh at Camp Gruber. He'll be missed.

Joseph "Jody" Killman, Baghdad, 2006.

Joseph Killman died in December. He was in the 158 with all of us. He was in Jack Bruesch's and Cliburn's squad during the tour that gave birth to the OIL. He was funny, tough, and reliable. His death reminded us all how much we care about and miss each other.

Even in death, Killman brought us together. At least 50 members of the 158, both past and present, attended his funeral. It was great seeing everyone that day, but the circumstances were awful. We shared stories about him and laughed and smiled. LT (now CPT) Ponder created a Facebook group for guys on that 1-158 SECFOR mission. Hopefully, we keep that group going and see each other again without someone dying.

It's a shame we don't see each other more often. This league is how most of us keep in touch with each other. I hope that going forward we can organize more NFL game trips together and get more managers at our draft parties. We owe it to ourselves and to each other to stay in touch. Let's do that.

Bruesch was a squad leader during the 2006 mission.

Just before the new year, OklahomIraqi Jack Bruesch was promoted to First Sergeant. He was Cliburn's squad leader in Iraq in 2006.
Congratulations to the two-time OIL champion, good guy, and great NCO. We're proud of him.

In the last year, we also added names to our membership's waiting list. Adam Schuster remains at the top of that list. If someone should leave the league, he is next in line for OIL membership. He was in Iraq with the 158 during the 2006 season, and he spent 2008 in Iraq with the 158 as well.

Check out our league store.

Next in line is Stephen Brosh, who was Cliburn's roommate in Baghdad and who was also in Bruesch's squad that year. Nick Reed has thrown his hat in the ring as well. He was also on the 2006 mission with the original 10. They are all deserving candidates, but they'll have to wait their turn. As of right now, they're "on deck."

After eight seasons, our league settings are pretty well-settled. But there is always room for improvement. Beginning in 2014, the OIL will re-seed its playoff teams after the first round. Our league has always said that we reward success. In that vein, the number one seed should play the lowest-seeded team in the semifinals no matter what. The number one seed in our league receives a first-round bye and now will also be guaranteed a matchup with the lowest-seeded team in the semifinals, giving that team the easiest road to the championship.

Fellow OklahomIraqis, Camp Victory, Iraq, 2006

Our league is special. I know that every fantasy football player thinks his or her league is the best, but ours really is different. You know why.

Our league was born in Baghdad. It represents more than fake football. All 14 members of our league were in the Army. All but one served in the 1st Bn. 158 FA. Twelve of us were in Iraq together in 2006.

1st Bn 158 FA

The two that were not on that mission with us have been valuable members of the OIL. Few realize that Trovillo was responsible for creating the first OIL web site via the Weebly platform. That platform is still in use and has evolved to the site you see today. He was instrumental behind the scenes turning the OIL into a true community, and he has a great team name and logo too. Rogers is always involved, has one of the best team names and logos in the league, and maintains a fierce rivalry with Jessen. We have a website, a Twitter (@okiraqi), a Facebook group, a traveling trophy, a rivalry week, a league store, and a bond bigger than football.

I enjoy serving as your commissioner, and I look forward to 2014. Happy new year, guys. Hopefully this year won't be nearly as eventful.

Cliburn.

Yahoo's OIL Bowl Recap

12/26/2013

Championship: The Dogs of War Win Stunner over Defending Champion Arrogant Americans

Arrogant Americans: 139.00

Arrogant Americans
vs.
The Dogs of War

Dogs of War: 151.45

Arrogant Americans
(9-7)
139.00

The Dogs of War
(10-6)
151.45

Top Players

A.J. Green: WR - 28.70 PTS
Demaryius Thomas: WR - 26.30 PTS

Peyton Manning: QB - 44.00
Buffalo Bills: 21.00 PTS

Box Score

Smooth Moves by Dogs of War

Peyton Manning had the 20th-most points in the league this season with 44.00, leading the league in points for the week.
The 13.50 points scored by Martellus Bennett was the fourth-highest point total among TEs in the league this week.
The Buffalo Bills Defense overachieved by 91.6%, scoring 21.00 points against a projected 10.96.
The Dogs of War won despite having only 4 of their 11 starters exceed their scoring projection.
The Dogs of War won even though all four of their WRs scored below their projected points.

Toyota Missed Opportunities by Arrogant Americans

Picked up Dennis Johnson, who scored 6.10 points against his projected 15.25.
It was a beating at QB for Arrogant Americans, as they were outscored 44.00 - 14.60 by The Dogs of War.
8 of the starters on Arrogant Americans scored less than their projected points.
Adrian Peterson could not reach his projected point total, scoring only 28.7% of his 19.85-point projection with 5.70 points.
All three of the starting RBs scored below their projected points.

What If?

If The Dogs of War played Arrogant Americans every week, they would be 9-7 this season.
Besides Arrogant Americans, The Dogs of War would have defeated five other teams this week.
If they played the same schedule as Arrogant Americans, The Dogs of War would be 10-4.
If The Dogs of War had played every team in the league each week, they would be 124-69-1.
In addition to The Dogs of War, Arrogant Americans would have lost to just one other team this week.
Had they played each other last week, The Dogs of War would have lost to Arrogant Americans 196.75 - 153.65.
Arrogant Americans would be 8-6 if they played the same schedule as The Dogs of War.
If they played every team every week, Arrogant Americans would be 127-67.

Game Notes

The Dogs of War beat their scoring projection for the ninth time this season by scoring 151.45 points against a projected 149.36. They have now overachieved four weeks in a row.
The Dogs of War won again and is on a four-game winning streak, currently the longest in the league.
In the loss, A.J. Green ranked fifth in the league in scoring with 28.70 points against a projected 21.00 and has now overachieved in four straight games.
The WRs on The Dogs of War collectively had their worst week of the season with only 41.05 points.
The Dogs of War improves to 1-2 in upset games this season.
The highest-scoring group of WRs in the league this week was on Arrogant Americans, which got 81.50 points from the position.
The drafted players on The Dogs of War put up 78.5% of the team's points this week.
With a margin of victory of 12.45 points, The Dogs of War had the third-highest margin in the league this week.

It's Officially Official: The Dogs of War are the 2013 Champions.

12/24/2013

Aaron Cobb is officially an OklahomIraqis champion, joining Kevin Pyle, Lyndal Morgan, Jack Bruesch, Josh Hastings, and Justin Cliburn in the elite club. It took him seven years to do it, but he succeeded in his first OIL Bowl appearance. Here is the final tally:

The Arrogant Americans have no excuses. No one on the bench would have made a difference. No waiver wire QB would have done better than Brady. Kudos to Cobb for winning the championship while starting Mendenhall, Reece, and Powell.

And here is where Cobb places among the rest of the OIL champions: