    Stephen Brosh drafted QB Patrick Mahomes in the 10th round and complemented him with a strong ground game, led by Adrian Peterson and Dalvin Cook, and deep WR corps. His Vultures upset the defending champions and second-seeded Cocks before defeating the now three-time runner-up Doughboys in the Thunder Bowl. In the Liberty Bowl, he faced two teams with higher OPRs, but he slayed them as well. The Vultures manager will now receive a bevy of prizes: the Killman Memorial Trophy; a custom team jersey; the Tenequer Memorial Trophy; and a custom team mini-helmet. Congratulations, Brosh.  The Vultures finished with a record of 12-4. They scored 143.28 points per game and an OPR of 1.034 (16th). Over the season, they made 19 transactions, ended the season with 10 drafted players remaining on their roster, and finished on a 10-game winning streak (including the Liberty Bowl).
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By OIL Commissioner Justin C. Cliburn    Congratulations to Christopher Trovillo, whose Dirty Hippies won the 2016 Liberty Bowl. He will hold the Tenequer Memorial Trophy in trust until a new champion is crowned. He also earned a custom mini-helmet with the win, and the Commissioner awaits his instructions regarding said helmet. As far as Lance Zerger goes, his Redlegs fell short in their quest to win their first week 17 championship. But the season was a monstrous success regardless. The Redlegs set a record for most points in single season, won 12 games, and won the AFC's Thunder Bowl. He will have his name engraved on the Killman Memorial Trophy and his custom jersey has been ordered.  Well, that's it for the 2016 OIL season. Congratulations to the three conference champions: Buehre, Trovillo, and Zerger. The 2017 draft order will be posted soon, and I'll get started on the 2016 edition of the Book of OIL. Be prepared for lots of emails soliciting your feedback on the 2016 draft party, trades, rivalry week, season, and playoffs. Zerger has plans to coordinate an OIL March Madness pool, and we'll be finding ways to raise money for the 2017 draft weekend, which will again occur at the Roberts Retreat Lodge north of Ada. Our deposit has been paid, and we need to pay $3,100 by August to keep the rental (and not lose the $780 deposit). Anyone who was at the 2016 draft can vouch for how amazing the venue is: 5,000 square-foot cabin; private lake; ATV trails; shooting range; ping pong table; big screen TVs; huge wrap-around porch; and the company of your SECFOR brothers. If you'd like to make your donation now, the link is here. You can view photos, videos, and audio clips of the 2016 draft weekend here. If you encounter a password prompt, the password is oklahoma*** with the *** being the number of our military unit. Happy New Year, brothers. Something tells me we'll keep in touch all offseason using the GroupMe chat (thanks to Zerger for suggesting that). For all of those who didn't win a championship in 2016 (including me), the new year provides new hope. In the meantime, check out the championship banners hung at the top of each champion's manager page:   The Killman Memorial Trophy and the inaugural AFC championship jersey have made their way to the Pacific Northwest. War Pony manager Jimmy Venable will keep the Killman until a new champion is crowned. The jersey is his to keep, hang, mount on the wall or wear as a pajamas top.
The OIL2's Killman Memorial Trophy is now proudly displayed in the home of OIL2 commissioner Nick Reed. He will keep the trophy in trust until a champion is crowned.
 We previously posted the arrival of the OIL2's Killman Memorial Trophy. Now, the OIL2 has a commissioner as well. Nick Reed, a veteran of the 158's 2006 SECFOR mission in Iraq, will serve as the league's commish.
OIL commissioner Justin C. Cliburn shipped Reed the Killman Friday afternoon. Reed will hold the trophy in trust until the OIL2 crowns its first champion. Then he'll ensure the champion's name is engraved on the side and deliver it to the next caretaker until another champion is crowned.  The OIL2's Killman Memorial Trophy arrived today. It was produced by Sculpture Alley and has room for 18 seasons of champions.
Like the Harrington, each season's champion will have his name engraved on the trophy and get to keep it until a new champion is crowned. The OIL2 starts in 2014 and will compete under the same rules and settings as the OIL.
 It's "48." Just use "48," NFL. Stop making me do math. This Monday each year is the most exciting and depressing Monday of the season. Today starts Super Bowl week. But we also know that it is the final Monday of the 2013-14 NFL season. My grandfather used to greet the end of summer by proclaiming that "the drought is almost over." Well, conversely, the drought is almost here. Seven months without a meaningful NFL game just seems cruel. But we persevere every other offseason and we will this year too. Of course, OIL blog updates will slow during the offseason. Expect a few scattered updates here and there but nothing major.  The OIL2 The main priority this offseason will be organizing and finalizing the OIL2. There are still a few spots open in the OIL2, so tell your old 158 or SECFOR buddies about it. We also need to order the OIL2 trophy: the Killman Memorial Trophy. And we hope to come to a consensus over the summer on a draft date and location. It would be great to see some of the guys who haven't been able to attend our draft recently. Until then, enjoy the Super Bowl and head on over to Fantasy Football Calculator to get those mock drafts started.  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].
 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.  SPC Killman served in Baghdad in 2006 with the rest of the OklahomIraqis. He was in the same squad as OIL members Bruesch and Cliburn. He was funny, tough, and reliable. He died of a gunshot wound originally suffered at his home on Dec. 23. His funeral is on Tuesday, Dec. 31 at Bible Baptist Church in Chickasha. Tragically, he was just married in November. His family is taking donations to help pay for his funeral expenses. You can donate at the funeral or by mailing a donation to the funeral home: Killman Donation c/o Seviers Funeral Home 702 W Chickasha Avenue Chickasha, OK 73018 Phone Number: (405) 224-4266 http://m.chickashanews.com/chickashanews/pm_113561/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=eW8dnQjv Joseph Carl “Jody” Killman |
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