First Annual PoS Awards
Defensive Player of the Year
With a franchise record 21 sacks, just two shy of the league lead, this year's Defensive Player of the Year Award is presented to:
The Defensive Line
Starters Dwayne Missouri, Ernest Allen, and EJ Burt provided heavy pressure on opposing quarterbacks all season.
Little Big Man Award
Though comparatively small in stature, this player came up big when it mattered. This year's Little Big Man Award is presented to:
Rob Milanese
More than once Rob made the most of his opportunities. Stepping up when needed, Rob provided a legitimate threat to break one at any time. He also did a fine job holding for Todd France.
Now tell us Rob... how many times did you just wanna grab that snap and make a mad dash for the end zone?
Where's Waldo Award
Lost in the crowd for most of the season, this player was listed in the program so he had to be there somewhere. This year's Where's Waldo Award is presented to:
Reggie Doster
In all fairness to Reggie he did have a TD and a few picks. And not hearing his name may not have been a bad thing.
Offensive Player of the Year
Despite throwing the fewest touchdowns in 5 years, this player was at the helm of the team's best record and first playoff appearance. This year's Offensive Player of the Year Award is presented to:
Tony Graziani
Tony managed a 98.4 passer rating. Threw 41 touchdowns and had nearly 3000 yards passing. And he did it all with a new coach, new offensive coordinator, new offensive scheme, and a new reliance on the running game.
Not to mention doing a crash test dummy impression at times during the season.
Special Teams Player
Yeah he's a rookie in this league. Yes he did it in the NFL. But right from the start he was effective early and often. This years Special Teams Player of the Year award is presented to:
Todd France
Undaunted by the higher and more narrow uprights of the AFL goal post, and working with a couple of different holders, the rookie kicker made 14 of his 33 field goal attmepts. He also nailed 95 of his 103 point after attmepts. Both may be only middle of the pack but he also added 5 solo tackles.
American Idol Award
PoS interviews... Meant to give the fans a glimpse of something no other interview provided, the questions were often light hearted and off-beat. One question had the most common answer. As a result, the PoS American Idol Award is presented to:
Donny Klein
We aren't going to say how good or bad Donny's singing is. Suffice it to say that no one polled could recognize what it was he would sing.
Rotational Player of the Year
This player is our first multiple award winner. Once again relagated to spot duty this player doubled last years production. This year's Rotational Player of the Year Award is presented to:
Rob Milanese
Rob hauled in ten touchdowns (just 2 fewer than Mike Brown and JJ McKelvey) and was fourth on the team with 498 yards receiving. Rob has proven to be a valuable offensive weapon and his increased reps show the organization knows it.
Geriatric Sciences Player Emeritus
AKA "Old Man Award". Remaining productive at offensive skill postions after being out of football for a year (and over 35) is no small feat. This years Geriatric Sciences Player Emeritus award is presented to:
Connell Maynor
This 12 year vet may not have been signed until mid April but his impact was immediate. Maynor played WR and QB this year and nearly pulled out a win in relief of Matt Sauk in New York on week 14.
Rock Steady Award
This player had 20 plays on offense and averaged nearly 10 yards per play. That's close to a first down every time he touched the ball. On defense, he had an INT, 3.5 sacks, 23 tackles and a forced fumble. The PoS Rock Steady Award is presented to:
Raheem Orr
Orr put together a solid 16 game season despite being an AFL rookie and not being a starter. AND he was penalized just once the entire season ( a holding call in week 3 at Orlando).
Thurman Thomas Award
This award is named as such because way back in Superbowl 26 at the start of the game, Thomas was unable to find his helmet, causing him to miss Buffalo's first two offensive plays (both of which were running plays). Throughout the course of the season one player seemed to lose his helmet with alarming regularity. This years Thurman Thomas Award is presented to:
Mike Mabry
The main difference here is the scrappy rookie lost his lid during play not sitting on the sideline. If Weston Berndt is equipment manager next season he may want to help Mike out a bit.
Fan Favorite
This was a tough one. Everyone has their favorite player (mine being Dwayne Missouri) but one guy seems to go the extra mile to make contact with the common folk. This years Fan Favorite Award is presented to:
Sean Scott
One of the few players left from the first season, Sean is probably the best known and most visible thanks to his gig with the U-Crew. Sean has a great rapport with the fans and is truly a "Local Celebrity."
Most Valuable Player
Most MVP awards are given to the player that benefits most from a lot of other players doing their jobs. The same holds true for the PoS version of the award. Here though the player not only benefitted from solid play by others but demonstrates amazing heart and desire. Along with a kamikaze style of play which belies his team first mentality. Impressive stats alone don't cut it here at PoS even without the numbers this cat desrves it. The Most Valuable Player Award is presented to:
Mike Brown
Mike came to the Soul at the request of Coach Munsey. There may have been some resistance to the influx of players Bret was familiar with but Mike wasted no time winning over the fans in Philadelphia with his electric play. In his third season Mike really stepped up and several weekly awards and an All Arena team nomination prove people noticed.
Most Improved Player Award
This award goes to the player that demonstrated the most progress over the prevous year. In this particular case, the winner almost reinvented his style of play. In doing so he more than tripled his productivity. This years Most Improved Player Award is presented to:
Eddie Moten
Showing good defensive players can be found outside of Orlando, Eddie's numbers across the board are up this season. Moten had a league leading 13 interceptions (4 last year), a league leading 3 returned for TDs (0 last year), and 91 solo tackles (64 last year) good for third in the AFL.
Sportsman of the Year
This is a pretty subjective award. The recipient doesn't need to possess any stellar ability or put up gaudy numbers. What they do need to possess though is professionalism, patience, and a level head. A little self depricating humor isn't bad either. So with that in mind there's really only one way this could go. This years Sportsmanship Award is presented to our second multi-award winner:
Anthony Robert Graziani
Cool and level headed. Tony took a beating from opponents and fans through an up and down season. At no point did he point fingers or lay blame for any of the problems the team encountered. Always accessible and humble towards the fans, Tony is the epitomy of sportsmanship and a class act all the way. And quite the cheerleader as well.
Iron Man of the Year
Closing out the 2006 awards is the one presented to the player that does the most on all three sides of the ball. Another '06 multi-award winner, this player finished third in rushing, second in receiving, and first in kick returns. The IronMan of the Year award is presented to:
Mike Brown
Mike was third in tackles, and added 4 INTs and 7 missed field goal returns on his way to nearly 2000 all purpose yards (1957) and over 100 points. The guy did it all this year and gives one the impression the best is yet to come.
Congratulations to all the award winners. Though some of the awards may have seemed less serious than others they are no less of an idication of how much the fans appreciate the players. Thanks for a great 2006 and we here at Philet of Soul wish everyone associated with the team (the team we are in no way affiliated with) continued success in the future.