Finally!

Team B Scores First Win of the Season, Has Big Group Hug

Matt Albert
TFL Illustrated

CHAMPAIGN--In a weekend full of upsets on the UIUC campus, Team B added to the feel good stories with a 21-14 victory over Team A. Team B managed the win despite the sudden retirement of leading scorer Jon Huffman last week. For Team B quarterback Ben Randecker, it was a sweet, sweet feeling.

"It's great. The team worked as a team and we got good plays from everyone. They all gave 110% on both sides of the ball."

When asked if the euphoria compared to the birth of his child, Randecker showed he was a man of priorities. "It does not compare. This is just some stupid football game that we won today."

Team B (1-3) kept their slim hopes alive for a slot in TFL Bowl II. If they are to play for the title, then they must win out and finish at 3-3. After that, they may need other teams to lose and end up winning the point differential tiebreaker. But Team B wasn't thinking about that at the end of the game. They were too busy celebrating the simian extraction from their rear.

Tim Schwaegler had a coming out party with his first two touchdowns of the season. He also came up with a huge deflection on the final play of the game to seal the win. "I saw Chris Paolinetti coming out of the backfield all day. He had this huge leg brace on which made it easy for me to burn him. I would let him get open a little bit to bait Forry into throwing the ball that way. Then, I just zeroed in on him and got my hands on the ball. If it wasn't the last play of the game, I definitely would've picked that ball off and tried to run it back. But you don't do that when you're ahead and just have to knock it down."

After a first half of the season filled with frustration, Team B was finally able to put it together on both sides of the ball. They allowed just one touchdown in each half.

The loss was crucial for Team A (1-3) because they too are in the same boat as Team B now and must win their final 2 games for a shot at TFL Bowl II. Eric Forry had a better game than last week's with 120 yards on 16/30 passing. However, he threw 3 interceptions--all to Randecker. Scott Wujek was wide open throughout the course of the game, but Forry unfortunately could not deliver the ball to him more often.

Next week is a huge week for both teams because they will be facing the two teams currently in first and second place. If either hopes to crack the top two, the journey must begin next week.

Quick Hits

Randecker's son Josiah became the first ever infant to attend a TFL game. It is assumed that the father is indeed very proud... The Randecker family also brought rabid fans with them as they made shirts showing support for their quarterback...Shortly after the game concluded, the commissioner was able to strike the first television deal for the league. The games will be covered by TTV and their paltry staff...As the playoffs get closer, we'll be giving you your chance to sound off about who's going to win. Look for the comments article one week before TFL Bowl II.

Scoring Summary
1st Half
07:33--Team A--Eric Forry 13 yard pass to Scott Wujek. A leads 7-0.
00:00--Team B--Ben Randecker 6 yard pass to Anil Kulkarni. Tied 7-7.
2nd Half
15:12--Team A--Forry 3 yard pass to Wujek. A leads 14-7.
08:13--Team B--Randecker 26 yard pass to Tim Schwaegler. Tied 14-14.
01:00--Team B--Randecker 21 yard pass to Schwaegler. B leads 21-14.