WFL: TOURNAMENT HISTORY
With the conclusion of the 2016 regular season, everyone’s attention turns to the WFL Tournament. The WFL Tournament has been played every year since the league started back in 2006. It has become the goal of every team in the league to take home that final trophy.
Our league now has a rich history that is recorded and passed down through its website, but the tournament history has never been fully documented…until now.
Taking a look back, the tournament has certainly been dominated by one team that has taken home 8 of the 10 tournaments held. Of course, Gold Ru$h is that team, but the history of the tournament goes deeper than just one team. Winning the first seven tournaments will give you that historical reference point as the dominant team. The past few years have certainly not been dominated by one team as Young Guns and Play2Reign have been crowned tournament champions over the past three seasons.
While it is difficult to ignore the hand Gold Ru$h has played in the tournament’s history over the years, there are several other teams that have as much historical significance in the WFL Tournament that is equally compelling.
Wells Express can arguably be considered one of the best teams in WFL history, yet their tournament struggles show them to be the closest thing to the Chicago Cubs in our league’s history. Their mantra became, “This is our year!” only to come tantalizingly close, but ultimately falling short.
The Young Guns are a great study in perseverance. Like Wells Express, Young Guns were wildly successful, but seemed to fall short in the tournament year-in and year-out. But unlike Express, Young Guns were the first team not named Gold Ru$h or Bail Out$ to win the tournament in 2013.
Play2Reign followed up the Young Guns tournament championship with one of the most improbably tournament runs ever in 2014. All of this will be covered in this comprehensive history of the WFL Tournament.
2006
As always, any historical reference must begin with the beginning. That is the year of 2006. An upstart league of banking professionals (loosely applied, of course) played its first ever tournament. The Gold Ru$h dynasty was in its infancy as they entered the tournament with a 7-1 record and the #1 seed. In that first tournament, the earliest incarnation of the Blue Heat (then called the Bandits) entered as the #2 seed.
The final four teams were #4 Here for Beer, #3 Wranglers, #2 Bandits and #1 Gold Ru$h. Bandits were upset by Wranglers and Gold Ru$h extracted revenge for their lone regular season loss by dispatching Here for Beer.
Gold Ru$h would take a dramatic bottom 7th win over Wranglers for the first of their 8 tournament championships.
2007
In 2007, the WFL added a few non-WF teams to round out an 8-team league. The outside teams didn’t really play a big part in the tournament as both lost in the 1st round. Entering the tournament, Gold Ru$h was the #1 seed with a 9-0 regular season record. The Reversibles were the #2 seed at 7-2.
Once again, form held true as the #1-4 seeds advanced to the semi-finals. In the tournament final, #1 vs #2 met as Gold Ru$h looked to defend its tournament title against the Reversibles. Gold Ru$h would win its 2nd title in a hard fought game that was decided in extra innings. For the Gold Ru$h, the win raised their tournament record to 5-0.
The Reversibles would not make it back to the tournament finals ever again. They dissolved after the 2011 season. They would finish their tournament career with a 7-6 record and are one of only 6 teams with an above 0.500 win percentage in the tournament. Unfortunately, they also have met the #1 seed the most times in tournament history with an 0-4 record.
2008
2008 represented more of the same as Gold Ru$h entered the tournament riding a 27-game win streak dating back to the 2006 season. They were the #1 seed and the team to beat heading into the tournament. A trio of teams were tied for 2nd place with 5-3 records, but based on run differential, the #2 seed was awarded to the Loan Rangers – the earliest incarnation of the Wells Express teams of the future. For the first time a team seeded outside the top 4 cracked the semi-finals as the Reversibles upset the Stallions to advance to the SF round as the #5 seed.
The Semi-finals were dominated by the Gold Ru$h team that many consider one of the best ever. This time the final game was not a nail-biter as the Gold Ru$h defeated the Loan Rangers going away.
Interestingly, two teams would be formed out of the ashes of a couple of teams from the 2008 season. Loan Rangers would become Wells Express and Stallions would become Young Guns. Both Wells Express and Young Guns would figure prominently in the tournament for years to come.
2009
Many people point to the 2009 as the season the WFL became more stable and competitively balanced. Despite the fact that Gold Ru$h (now known as the Bail Out$) would win the tournament again…they did not go through the regular season unscathed. Newcomers Wells Express and Young Guns made their first appearance and would be two of the most successful teams in the tournament up until they both dissolved following the 2014 season.
With only 7 teams, the WFL each team was solely comprised of WF teams for the first time ever. Despite the lowest number of teams since the 2006 season, the WFL would be to grow steadily over the next few seasons as more and more teams would stay together and compete over multiple seasons.
The recap of the season has to begin with the surprise of the Young Guns and their upset win over the Bail Out$ during the regular season. The Young Guns snapped a 32-game win streak for the Bail Out$ dating back to the 2006 season. This signaled a beginning trend of teams working hard to challenge the Gold Ru$h/Bail Out$ dynasty. Wells Express and Young Guns would show everyone that Gold Ru$h/Bail Out$ were not the only competitive teams in the league. This gave way to more and more teams interested in joining and competing in the WFL.
So…2009 was quite a big year for the league. The tournament was another good one as well. Despite their regular season loss, the Bail Out$ were still the #1 seed with an 8-1 record. Wells Express was the #2 seed and was forming one of the great league rivalries with Young Guns. As good as the Young Guns vs Gold Ru$h rivalry would become, the Express vs YG rivalry was just as heated and competitive.
The semi-finals saw the #1-4 seeded teams advance with Bail Out$ and Express being joined by Young Guns and Reversibles. For the Reversibles, it was their 4th appearance in the WFL semi-finals. Bail Out$ would oust them in the semi-final round. Express would take out Young Guns to advance to the finals against Bail Out$.
The final game was more competitive than the 2008 final, but the result was the same as Bail Out$ won their 9th tournament game in-a-row and a 4-0 record in tournament finals. For the Express, it was a successful launch to their new brand and would battle both the Bail Out$ and Young Guns for league supremacy over the next five years. The league was growing and with it came new talent that seemed to be spread over many more teams. Gone were the days of domination of one team…or so it seemed.
2010
2010…the year of THE GAME. The 2010 regular season saw a one of the best seasons ever put together by opposing teams. 2010 also saw a new team enter that would debut and is still going strong. Mortgage Mayhem made their debut in 2010. Also appearing – or re-appearing – was the Bandits, who would eventually morph into the Blue Heat that is still competing in the league.
2010 was a breakout year for the league. A record 6 teams returned from the 2009 season. Add in the Bandits and Mortgage Mayhem and you have a core of 5 teams that would be the core of the league up to today.
But before the tournament…there was the biggest regular season game ever played in WFL history. The Young Guns and Bail Out$ were initially scheduled to meet early in the season. Both teams were loaded with talent as the Young Guns looked to build on their successful 2009 campaign. Thanks to a rainout, the make-up date would be the last week of the regular season.
The Bail Out$ entered the game with a 9-0 record and 16-game win streak. Young Guns entered with an 8-1 record. At stake was the #1 tournament seed and bragging rights. THE GAME lived up to the billing as the Young Guns made it two-in-a-row against the Bail Out$ with a thrilling 7-innings victory. The run difference was a mere run. Many saw a changing of the guard happening and envisioned a tournament with a different outcome than the previous four. A new champion was fixing to be crowned.
The tournament lived up to the billing, except no new champion was crowned. The Bail Out$ overcame the Young Guns and won the tournament once again. The Young Guns became the first #1 seed to lose in the tournament. The Bail Out$ ran their tournament win streak to 12 games.
Wells Express and Mortgage Mayhem rounded out the top 4 seeds, but both were upset in the 1st round as Reversibles would advance to their 5th semi-final round and the Bandits would make it to their 2nd overall.
The final was a rematch of THE GAME, but the Bail Out$ took command early and held off the Young Guns to extract a little revenge and take home the bigger trophy. But the Young Guns signaled to everyone that the Gold Ru$h/Bail Out$ dynasty could be challenged…and that certainly would happen in the very near future.
2011
The WFL continued its strong growth trend with 6 teams returning intact from 2010. 2011 was the first year of divisional play and the year of the first ever All-Star Game that would become a league tradition.
Young Guns and Wells Express were grouped in the RED Division. Mortgage Mayhem and Bail Out$ would be grouped in the GOLD Division.
Along with the divisional play which saw divisional teams face each other twice, while facing the opposing divisional teams once, the WFL play a 10 game regular season.
It provided for some good softball, but the Bail Out$ were head and shoulders above the rest. They would roll through the regular season with a perfect 10-0 record. The Young Guns and Wells Express rivalry thrived as they split their two regular season games. The Bail Out$ would also secure their first ever regular season win over Young Guns on their way to the #1 seed. Young Guns (#2), Wells Express (#3) and Mortgage Mayhem (#4) would round out the top 4 in seeding. All would advance to the semi-finals. Bail Out$ would dispatch Mortgage Mayhem and Young Guns would take out Wells Express in the semi’s to set up a rematch in the tournament finals.
The tournament final rematch of Young Guns vs Bail Out$ was the first time a rematch in successive years for the tournament finals. Add that it involved two of the most talented teams in the league in the tournament finals and you have the makings of a classic. Bail Out$ would win once again raising their tournament finals record to 6-0. With the win, Bail Out$ extended their tournament win streak to 15 games dating all the way back to 2006.
2012
If there was ever a dose of the changing of the guard being delivered, it was the 2012 season. For the first time ever, a team not named Gold Ru$h/Bail Out$ recorded an undefeated regular season. Play2Reign (formerly Mortgage Mayhem) broke through with a historic season and grabbed the #1 seed based on their regular season win over Gold Ru$h. Play2Reign grabbed the RED Division and Gold Ru$h was the GOLD Division champs.
Wells Express and Young Guns struggled to 5-5 records. 2012 also marked the debut of the Uptown Ballers who would make a splash in their debut season. The tournament seeding went as follows: #1 – Play2Reign, #2 – Gold Ru$h, #3 – Uptown Ballers and #4 – Wells Express.
Despite their 5-5 record, Young Guns upset Play2Reign on their way to the tournament finals for the third time. There they would meet…you guessed it…Gold Ru$h. Gold Ru$h would make it 18 tournament wins in a row and 7 tournament titles in succession. But…the winds of change were about to hit the Gold Ru$h dynasty beginning 2013.
2013
2013…this is the breakthrough year for the Young Guns. The GOLD Division was a veritable SEC West stacked division with Gold Ru$h, Young Guns and Wells Express all situated in the division. All three teams would finish the regular season with 7-1 (Gold Ru$h and Young Guns) and 6-2 (Wells Express). They would comprise 3 of the top 4 seeds along with Play2Reign who won another RED Divisional championship. By virtue of their regular season win over Young Guns, Gold Ru$h was the #1 seed for the sixth time – but the first time since 2010.
Teams making their debut were the Stampede…which would become the core of the Sidewinders (more on them later).
The tournament provided plenty of drama with the big 3 all facing each other in the post-season. Play2Reign joined the big 3 in the semi-finals, but really played a bit part to the drama that would unfold. Young Guns dispatched Play2Reign rather handily to advance to their fourth straight tournament finals and awaited the winner of Gold Ru$h and Wells Express semi-final matchup.
In a back and forth affair, Wells Express did what no other team in WFL history had been able to do…it defeated Gold Ru$h in the tournament ending a 19-game tournament win streak and 7 title streak. The dramatic win showed the league was getting more talented and no longer would one team come to dominate. It was a defining moment for the tournament and Wells Express.
In the finals, Young Guns were all business and their tournament frustration out on Wells Express to win their first and only tournament championship. Wells Express lost for the third time in the tournament finals…becoming the bridesmaid once again.
2014
2014 was a year of incredible growth for the league as 9 teams would compete for the tournament crown. Of those 9 teams, 7 are still in the league for an unprecedented retention rate amongst competing teams. New teams making their debut in 2014: Big Red and Wells Sox.
If there was ever a tournament that was full of upsets…this would be the one. Gold Ru$h was at its customary spot as the #1 seed with a 7-1 record. Their only regular season blemish was a surprise loss to Sidewinders, which transformed from the Stampede of 2013 into a competitive team. Wells Express was the #2 seed as the RED Division champs. Sidewinders and Young Guns rounded out the top 4 seeds.
Upsets…the 2014 tournament had plenty of bracket busters. In probably the biggest upset in WFL Tournament history, upstart Big Red (#8 seed) defeated Gold Ru$h in a 21-15 win that wasn’t that close. Gone were the days where Gold Ru$h could just show up and make its way into the finals. Instead of a lengthy tournament win streak, the Gold Ru$h now owned a 2-game LOSING streak in the tournament…times had changed.
The other upset that broke up the bracket was #5 seed, Play2Reign, taking down #4 Young Guns in the QF round. This stopped the longest active streak in the tournament final appearances with Young Guns failing to make it to a fifth tournament final in 2014. The Play2Reign’s 10-8 win was just the beginning of one of the most improbably tournament runs in history.
Play2Reign would end the Cinderella run of Big Red in the semi-finals with an easy 13-2 win. On the other side of the bracket, Sidewinders and Wells Express would square off in the semi-finals with Express taking a tight 12-10 win to advance to their fourth tournament title game.
In the title game, Play2Reign capped off their incredible run with a 14-9 win to take home the tournament championship. It marked the fourth finals loss for Wells Express. Sadly, it would be their last as they dissolved after the season.
Wells Express were one of the most consistent teams in WFL history, but they always seemed to fall just shy of becoming a tournament champion. It has been said that they are the WFL’s version of the Chicago Cubs. Their tournament record indicates that they were in plenty of battles with a 9-7 record.
They are one of 6 teams with a winning tournament record. They made four title game appearances, losing all four. Their tournament win percentage is #4 amongst teams with more than 3 tournament appearances. Against the #1 seed, Wells Express was 0-2. They are tied at #2 for most tournament title game appearances in WFL history.
They will always be remembered for their historic win over Gold Ru$h that ended their tournament win streak at 19-games. Their long history may be mostly born of frustration, but they were always competitive and spirited in their games and proved to be a tough out.
Young Guns broke the stranglehold of Gold Ru$h on the tournament title. They were the first non-Gold Ru$h/Bail Out$ team to win the tournament and paved the way for the likes of Play2Reign to confidently stroll into the tournament with a realistic chance to win. They may not have directly slayed the dragon, but they proved that you don’t have to wear the Gold Ru$h jersey to win a title.
Their history is long and successful in the tournament. #2 in win percentage, #2 in tournament final appearances (along with Wells Express) and a respectable 1-1 record against the #1 seed in the tournament are just some of the major achievements for the Young Guns.
They secured one #1 seed (2010) and were the first team seeded lower than #2 to ever win the tournament as the #3 seed in 2013.
2015
11 teams competed for top honors in 2015. Returning were 7 teams from 2014. Joining those returning teams were 4 new ones: Airport Flyers, Wells Royals, Wells Angels and One-Hit Wonders. All of these teams would return for the 2016, so the league is definitely on stable ground and growing.
The past two tournaments saw plenty upsets and new teams rising to the top. The 2015 season would continue that trend, but one team would be returning to prominence in the process. Though they were not the dominant team they were between 2006 and 2012, Gold Ru$h came back to capture their 8th tournament title. It was easy, but Ontrell McCray returned the proud franchise to its former glory.
The Sidewinders ran roughshod over the league in the regular season on its way to a 10-0 record. Play2Reign was close behind at 8-2 to take the #2 seed. Gold Ru$h struggled to a 7-3 and were seeded #3. Uptown Ballers rounded out the top 4 with the #4 seed and 6-4 record. Then the tournament began and held true to form into the semi-final round. Sidewinders vs Uptown Ballers and Play2Reign vs Gold Ru$h, on paper the four best teams of 2015 squaring off.
Sidewinders were a clear favorite and Play2Reign were the defending champs. Gold Ru$h upset Play2Reign with a dominating 14-3 win to advance to their 8th tournament final. In the opposite semi-final, Uptown Ballers scored a big upset with a taught 4-2 win over Sidewinders thus ending the Sidewinders undefeated season at 11 games.
Uptown Ballers were making their first ever tournament final appearance. Gold Ru$h had not been in the tournament final in three years with their last appearance being 2012. Gold Ru$h got out to a small lead early and was able to maintain that lead throughout with some great defense in an 8-4 win. The win completed the turn-around for Gold Ru$h back to their glory days. They were able to add an 8th tournament trophy to their trophy case, but the days of dominating the league appear to be over.
The Commissioner's Award was given to two individuals that have been incredible resources in promoting the league throughout the years of their participation. Jeff Brown (Uptown Ballers) and Justin Porterfield (Sidewinders) both received the Commissioner's Award for 2015. Their efforts are usually not appreciated as they have worked with the commissioner behind the scenes in helping get the league organized and running smoothly throughout the season.
A return to prominence by Gold Ru$h, stunning losses to the defending champion Play2Reign and undefeated Sidewinders. A team taking the next step towards a championship in Uptown Ballers reaching their first tournament title game. 6 of 11 teams finished with better than 0.500 records. New blood being infused in the league with the creation of teams out of the CIC site. 2015 represented a lot of growth in dhe decade of the WFL. From humble beginnings in 2006 with 7 teams (only 1 team remains from that inagaural season - Gold Ru$h) to 11 teams battling it out for the coveted WF Cup.
A decade of growth will continue in 2016 with 12 teams slated to battle for the tournament title.
