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"I never let a statue tell me how nice I am..." - Phife Dawg, "Award Tour"


What - you thought it was over?

It's never over. Not 'til we say it's over. Yes, you are correct - you're seeing this. Your mind isn't playing tricks on you, it's another article when you probably thought you'd see no other articles this year from Topper Sports. WRONG. I pledged to Topper that once we got in gear for our banquet, I'd write an article breaking down (to some degree) our awards and the nominees. And people who know me well know I never like to be made into a liar. So - here we are. A fresh RANT for that a$$. 

Now. First thing's first, and this is important. 

Year in and year out, we endeavor to put the best possible product out their for our people to enjoy. We take great pride in running a fun, enjoyable league, and we love doing extra things related to the league as well as outside of it. Since we've had our league, the consistent culmination of fun and frivolity has been our awards banquet at the end of the year. It's a great time for people to reunite, to unwind, to let down your hair and really cut loose with your teammates and fellow TSL community. The night can be mild for some (show up, have a few laughs, eat, have a drink, go home) or it can be downright Las Vegas Spring Break (I don't even dare detail anything - what happens at the banquet STAYS at the banquet!). But one thing's for sure - it's all about fun. 

With that said - please keep that spirit in mind. Lenny loved our banquet, and went the extra mile each time to make sure you guys loved it too. Don't take these awards TOO seriously. Yes, we try to recognize deserving folks, but this isn't a perfect science. We're not literally doing calculations and contacting the Elias Sports Bureau to examine stats. We don't have 500K hours of footage to review to make a case for any of you. This is based on opinion. 

Ah...but WHOSE opinion? Surprise - YOURS. 

The awards and nominees have always been based on that, but in past years we leaned heavily on our Commish, who was a walking encyclopedia of info and stats when it came to every player and team in the league. His informed eye steered the ship of what were the right calls to make, as he was a bit of a Rain Man type when it came to knowing the 600+ players and 40-50+ teams each session. But Topper and I ain't Lenny, nor will we ever try to be. 

So how did we select the nominees? We didn't - YOU did. 

We sneakily had spies talking to ALL of you all season. Getting honest opinions about who was great and at the top of their division. You guys chose these nominees weekly, you just didn't know you were being surveyed. Nor did you know WHO was surveying you. Which was a team of folks who most of you wouldn't guess. Seriously - one person who filtered info to us was a new player this session! Still got your truthful opinions. And doing it this way, we got true feelings without bias, politics, drama, jealousy, etc. 

So, for example - let's say I had gone and asked who was the best D1 QB. Perhaps if I'M the one asking, and a person has a grudge against Eyes Downtown - they refuse to name Bobby. But if Jane Doe from D6 asks who are the best QBs in D1 - maybe the person asked says "I don't really like their team, but the ED QB is really good if I'm being honest." Boom! Gotcha. You just gave us what we needed. 

And we drilled you guys all season. The results were we got a fantastic idea who YOU GUYS really thought were the cream of the crop. I can assure you 100% that Topper and I did NOT get together and decide this. We did NOT have a long phone convo, we did NOT chat about it in text, email or telegram. Truth be told - a super secret committee was formed, and it sorted out what's what. Even if you go bug Topper, Joe K, Val, Billy, Bartender Nikki, that guy Goose who is always at the bar every week, etc. - they can't tell you who was on the super secret committee. 

I learned the beauty of anonymity well from our Commish. Which means on banquet night (or even before) when you complain to someone about a selection? You might be complaining to someone who was on the committee. And you won't even know it, cuz the people on it ain't no snitches (I'm very good at choosing non-snitches for specific situations). 

Inevitably, a small handful of you will still take things too seriously and probably whine/complain to Topper or myself about this thing. More me than Topper cuz I'm sure you won't believe we really had spies (the tiny percentage that don't like the fact the nominations didn't fit into their perfect idea of how they should go). I would just say if you know me, you know I exhibit a good amount of bias with people I like a lot. So the fact that you DON'T see my favorite people nominated a trillion times all over the place should tell you something. Most of my favorite folks in the league happen to be good players - but I wasn't choosing these nominees.

YOU were. 

This year and every year going forward, the awards will be called The Alba Awards, for obvious reasons. As you look at the list of awards, almost all of them will seem familiar. Some old ones may have been removed, some others may have been re-added. But the one truly new award we will present this season is The Leonard Alba Person Of The Year Award. This award is meant to recognize a person who truly "gets" what our league is about and embodies every aspect perfectly. 

They show up to play and compete hard without acting like it's an NFL tryout. They hang out at the bar, and socialize with people other than just their teammates. They argue calls without getting personal with the refs. They eat, drink and tend to be merry at the bar. They happily engage in festivities and league fun, yet never have to be carried out of the bar or ubered home due to going too far. When people see them - the sight of them alone brings a smile to people's faces. They're a perfect embodiment of the type of player Lenny wanted as a part of this league. 

No, they may not be the most popular overall, or the sweetest, or best complete athlete on their team, etc. They're just well-rounded in all facets of what makes a Topper Sports player, and this year and going forward - that person will be recognized. this of course means that yours truly can never win this award, cuz that would be a joke. My temper and grumpiness alone perpetually disqualify me. Lolz! 

Now, without further ado - if you have yet to see the nominee list, here it is in full. At the very bottom of the article is all the info you need to sign up for the banquet. DON'T WAIT! Sign yourself and your friends/lovers/teammates up today! and get everyone you know to do the same. This is going to be the biggest night of the Topper Sports calendar, and you WON'T want to miss it!

Enjoy the list, and let the debates and speculation of who will win begin! I hope to see EVERYONE January 3rd at Hotel Lafayette - of course, I'll be in the cut!!!

- Rameer AKA The Build

D1 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Bobby McConnell, Eyes Downtown
Jeff Farr, Eyes Downtown
Andy Smith, Marketing Mayors
Chris Cole, Public Enemy
Nick Wendt, Tights Ends In Motion

D1 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES
Joey Ruderman, Eyes Downtown
Jillian Battaglia, Gryffindor
Cheryl Julicher, Public Enemy
Katie Salisbury, Tight Ends In Motion
Lindsay Stoddard, Tight Ends In Motion

D2 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Matty Ice, A&A
Travis Cleavanger, DILFs
Drew Colosimo, Hofbrauhaus Buffalo
Pete Nguyen, Horfbrauhaus Buffalo
Dean Thompson, Peachy Platoon

D2 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES
Maggie LaMantia, A&A
Taylor Pagano, A&A
Brandy Clarke, Hofbrauhaus Buffalo
Joy Thompson, Peachy Platoon
Jessica Cunningham, Slytherin In That Endzone

D3 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Mike Rawdin, All We Do Is Qwinn
Brandon Farr, End Game
Garrett Beesing, Frodo Swaggins
Kyle Conniff, No Punt Intended
Dave Baker, Sticky Bandits

D3 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES
Katie Keller, 3rd & Schlong
Kat Peters, All We Do Is Qwinn
Elena Schratz, No Punt Intended
Rachel Parker, No Punt Intended
Sam Lattuca, Ultimate Warriors

D4 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Brett Cole, Buffalo Solar Solutions
Matty Ice, Matty's Angels
Cody McGregor, Mountain Dew Me
Anthony Deak, Uncle Rico's
Tim Zielinski, Uncle Rico's

D4 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES

Amy Denning, Buffalo Solar Solutions

Caitlin Mason, Buffalo Solar Solutions

Margo Jablonski, Matty's Angels

Chelsea Manikowski, Uncle Rico's

Jackee Thompson, Uncle Rico's

D5 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Blase DaLuca, En Fuego
Derek Mears, En Fuego
Ben Sears, Over Compensators
Larry Chruscial, Over Compensators
Jamie McCabe, Practice Squad

D5 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES
Jen Stachura, Come From Behind
Dorene Major, En Fuego
Kate Bagley, Hung Buffalo
Cindi Bardo, Over Compensators
Renee Lantz, Practice Squad

D6 MALE MVP NOMINEES
Gronk, Graves Bros.

Eric Pochylyski, pAssless Chaps
Ron Webber, TMA 
Ryan Henry, TMA
Zack Elphick, Zack Attack

D6 FEMALE MVP NOMINEES
Kassiani Strembenis, Graves Bros.
Katie Swanson, The Replacements
Megan "Drunk Meg" Rummings, TMA
Stephanie Czaja, TMA
Whitney Linderman, Zack Attack


BEST AT THE BAR
Hope 'N' Ruin
Practice Squad
Sticky Bandits
Tater Tots
Vaspian


BEST REFEREE
Andy Fagan
Joe "JZ" Zogoria
Justin "Martial Law" Garbacz

Mark Buscaglia
Mike W. 


MOST HATED VILLAIN
Beth Schroeder, Eyes Downtown
Scott Drosendahl, Frodo Swaggins
Jeremy Burr, Gryffindor
Joey Batts, Gryffindor
Nick Primerano, TMA


CHET CASCIO MOST BELOVED PLAYER AWARD
Molly McDermid, Come From Behind
Eric Stegmeier, DILFs
Coach Jay Jaskier, pAssless Chaps
Brent McKenzie, TMA
Brian Ferger, TMA


SHANE GRIFFIN BEST PLAYER TO BE PLAYING IN A DIVISION NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR HIM/HER AWARD
Caitlin Mason, Buffalo Solar Solutions
David "Bro" Klecker, Jabronies
Katie Swanson, The Replacements
Ron Webber, TMA
Stephanie Czaja, TMA


TSL STORYLINE OF THE YEAR
1. Scotty Drosendahl, calls his shot with Little Redheaded Girl, shrinks from the moment and never takes his shot
2. 3rd & Schlong break up
3. We Back quits on season amid roster chaos
4. DILFs win D2 as #6 seed 
5. Two different podcasts compete for TSL media supremacy all season long


DEFENDER OF THE YEAR (MALE)
Gronk, Graves Bros.
Drew Colosimo, Hofbrauhaus Buffalo
Andy Smith, Marketing Mayors
Brian Stevens, Sticky Bandits
Nick Smith, TMA


DEFENDER OF THE YEAR (FEMALE)
Maggie LaMantia, A&A
Kat Peters, All We Do Is Qwinn
Jess McAndrews, Bullet Club
Jamie Warren, End Game
Brandy Clarke, Hofbrauhaus Buffalo


MIKE FORD BEST QB OF THE YEAR AWARD
Matty Ice, A&A
Bobby McConnell, Eyes Downtown
Larry Chruscial, Over Compensators
Mark Dalfonso, Marketing Mayors
Chris Cole, Public Enemy


MOST UNDERRATED MALE AWARD
Derek Mears, En Fuego
Cody Stumpf, Eyes Downtown
Josh Schneider, Frodo Swaggins
Chris Shriver, Slytherin In That Endzone
Mike Thomas, Sticky Bandits

MOST UNDERRATED FEMALE AWARD
Nicole Keller,3rd & Schlong
Brittany Clarke, Hofbrauhaus Buffalo
Rachel Parker, No Punt Intended
Christine Robertson, Sticky Bandits
Heather Tighe, Vaspian


MOST IMPROVED TEAM AWARD
BiPolar Express
No Punt Intended
Over Compensators
pAssless Chaps
TMA


KATIE KIMMIE KERRY WEISSER HYPHEN NEFF MOST VALUABLE FEMALE PLAYER AWARD
Kat Peters, All We Do Is Qwinn
Joy Thompson, Peachy Platoon
Renee Lantz, Practice Squad

Katie Salisbury, Tight Ends In Motion
Jackee Thompson, Uncle Rico's


DARRYL CARR MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARD
Matty Ice, A&A
Bobby McConnell, Eyes Downtown
Garrett Beesing, Frodo Swaggins

Andy Smith, Marketing Mayors
Dean Thompson, Peachy Platoon

TSL TEAM OF THE YEAR AWARD
Matty's Angels
Over Compensators
Peachy Platoon

Sticky Bandits
TMA

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
Laura Streeter, Sticky Bandits

Raena Koppel, Tater Tots

Nick Smith, TMA

Lucas Kramer, Vaspian

Heather Tighe, Vaspian

THE MEDIA PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR AWARD
TSL "Official" Podcast
TSL Alternate Podcast
TSL QB Rankings

The Godfather
The Sentinel

LEONARD ALBA PERSON OF THE YEAR 
Leslie Cook, Come From Behind

"Coach" Jay Jaskier, pAssless Chaps

Paul "Paulie J"Johnson, Public Enemy
Jeff Krol, Sticky Bandits
Emily Curry, Tight Ends In Motion

- Rameer AKA The Build

A Word From Topper:

Captains,

On behalf of Rameer and Myself, we want to thank you for a great year of TSL football.  Yes, we suffered a great loss this year when Lenny passed away, and it was very hard to move on, but he loved this league, and he loved nothing more than the banquet.  Actually he loved the couple hours of quietness that he and I spent at the hotel lobby bar just thinking about the debauchery that would be forthcoming, but I digress. Needless to say, this banquet will be different in many ways, but it will be a great way to remember a great person and to celebrate our league that means so much to so many of us.

With that said, here is all of the information you need to know.  Please forward this on to your teammates.  Thank you..

Fall 2019 TSL Banquet Registration

When: The Fall 2019 Season Banquet will be on Friday January 3rd, 2020

Where: at The Hotel Lafayette (https://thehotellafayette.com/)

391 WASHINGTON STREET BUFFALO, NEW YORK 14203 phone 716-853-1505

Who’s Invited: Players, Captains, General Managers, Significant others, Friends or “Friends”, Refs, etc.

Cost: $50/person in advance

Payments can be made 2 ways:

1. Via Paypal to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

2. Via Venmo Patrick-McGovern-8

Includes: Open Bar from 7pm til 10pm, Hors d’oeuvres throughout the evening, DJ’s, and other Surprises as usual..

Evening Agenda:

• 7:00pm: Arrivals/Registration / Open Bar Begins, Appetizers Served throughout the evening

• 8:30pm: State of the League Address/Special Presentation, Team and All Star Presentations

• 10:00pm: cash bar from 10pm – 11pm

To Register: click this link Fall 2019 TSL Banquet Registration

Hotel Rooms are available using the Topper Sports group code

by phone:

• Reservations can be made directly with our Guest Services team at 716-853-1505

• Please press 3 to be connected to the front desk.

• Reference the group.

Book Online

• Here is your direct booking link:

If you have any issues with the link, follow these steps:

1. Go to www.thehotellafayette.com

2. Enter stay dates and number of guests.

3. Click the check mark button on the right-hand side.

4. Click on Special Rates and then Group Code.

5. Type in your Group Code: 010320TOP

6. Click “Done”

7. Click “Update”

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