NFFC Event Recap
Posted 9/7 by Chase Stuart, Exclusive for Footballguys.com
On Saturday, September 5th, I was lucky enough to be a part of the National Fantasy Football Championship draft. The NFFC drafted in three cities on Saturday, and I was part of the largest draft in Manhattan, NY. Seven leagues of fourteen teams drafted there over the course of four hours.
I arrived at noon at the Sheraton in Times Square. There were dozens of people already at the event, many wearing NFL jerseys. Among the most memorable ones: Brett Favre (GB), Earl Campbell, Keith Rivers, and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (clearly the men wearing those jerseys came together), and my personal favorite, a Bo Jackson Auburn jersey. After checking in, I received my ID-necklace, which bore my name and a picture of Chris Johnson. With the 10th pick in my draft, I wondered if the NFFC was subliminally sending me last minute advice.
The atmosphere at the NFFC was electric. Upon entering the main room, you could feel the anticipation and tension in the air. Everyone had spent days, weeks and months (along with a lot of $$) preparing for the draft, and in less than four hours, the results would be in. All the mock drafts, game planning, and article reading would be rendered moot, and each owner would have just sixty seconds to make each pick to determine the fate of his season. I walked over and introduced myself to Tom Kessenich and Ryan Houston, two of the men in charge of the event. Both were kind enough to wish me good luck, and I informed them that I planned on "dominating" my draft. Both chuckled, as I headed to find my seat.
There were seven main tables set up, all in "U" shapes: five owners on each side of the legs of the "U" and four in the middle, arranged in draft order. Those in the 5 and 10 holes (like yours truly) were able to talk smack on both sides with minimal head movement. Kessenich and Houston welcomed everyone to the event minutes before 1:00 PM, and then last year's winner, Tom Yates, came to the podium. He was presented with the NFFC's version of the Lombardi trophy, which he proudly took back to his station. Everyone playing in any of the other six leagues in NY was happy to see he wasn't in their league.
The moderator, seated inside of the "U", started it off with the famous works "Team 1, you are on the clock." The draft board was blank, with hundreds of players' names on stickers nearby. In a surprise move, Maurice Jones-Drew was the first pick of the draft. The first label was placed on the board, and we were under way. Over the course of the next two hours, all fourteen owners in all seven leagues faced stressful situations while on the clock; several times in my league, the timer hit triple zeroes, and the moderator informed the man on the clock that his time was up. After ten rounds, we were given a fifteen minute break.
Most left the main room during the break; some to get a snack, others visited the bathroom, and a bunch called their friends to recap their drafts. The atmosphere was much more relaxed for the second half of the draft, as the stressful parts of the draft were over and most owners were picking for depth and looking for sleepers. The final few rounds flew by, and just like that, the 19-round NFFC draft was over.
I shook hands with the two owners adjacent to me, and wished them luck on their fantasy seasons. All of the owners I met were cordial and pleasant; despite the high stakes on the table, everyone was having a good time. The draft was competitive, the environment was professional, and most importantly, it was a lot of fun.
