Season 5 Preview - This is Home Now

“THIS IS HOME NOW”
Written by Joe Pancake

For 5 former Mt. Oread Hawk Stars, from the middle of a dark cloud came a ray of light from a most unexpected source…

In the Beginning

“There we were, just a bunch of (guys) on the same squad competing to become the best in Canada AAA,” Ballers DT McClinton James remembered of his former team. The Mt. Oread Hawk Stars were an upstart team full of Jayhawks just trying to make a name in the Canadian AAA League. “It was great to play with that group…I felt connected to the fans and city. I even had a 75 foot stretch of freeway named after me,” explained Ballers LB Baron Von Gomez.

The team started to take shape towards the middle of Season 1, a year in which they just missed out on the playoffs. However, the team showed progress as time went on, as Ballers DT Big Gravy recalled. “We had a decent team, one that got even better in seasons two and three.” They would go on to make the playoffs the next two seasons, going 24-8 in the regular season (including one win over Blacksburg), and they were also able to win a playoff game in that time.

From the outside looking in, the Hawk Stars looked like a possible contender for a Canadian AAA Conference Championship, but on the inside, the players knew different. “There were some issues with communication…and we soon had problems with the owner going AWOL,” claimed Gravy. “Our original GM improved things…but he too was absent far too often.” After a couple of devastating playoff losses, the Hawk Stars started to fall apart, despite numerous efforts by players to keep the team together. “The guys that wanted to succeed were great…but there were just too many guys that didn’t want to put in the time,” said Ballers RG Joe Pancake.

With the start of Season 4 Gravy (and others) felt that “things were looking up,” as the Hawk Stars entered their first full season with new Offensive Coordinator/GM flaredog and new Defensive Coordinator beef76863. Despite the renewed excitement, as Gravy best put it, “the bottom was about to fall out.”

----------------------------------------------------

That Fateful Day

On August 17th, midway through the 4th Season following a loss to long-time conference foe Thunder Bay, the Hawk Stars were sold to a new owner. “It seemed like a mistake or a misunderstanding at first, especially since it happened with no warning at all,” recalled Von Gomez when referring to the teams change in ownership. While the Hawk Stars hadn’t started the season off as they had hoped, the plans were in place to turn things around, but just as some of the team was rededicating themselves, the proverbial rug was pulled out from under them. “I felt like we…were finally starting to hit our stride in mid year when the sale hit,” said James. “It was very easily a Championship that could’ve been ours for the taking.”

“We were fighting some frustration with the rule changes, but no one was expecting the team to be sold,” said Gravy. Joe Pancake shared in his disappointment. “It was a bummer. We tried to keep the core team intact, but to have it all dissipate like that, it hurt.”

----------------------------------------------------

Now What?

It didn’t take long for the Hawk Stars to realize they were in trouble once they had been sold. “I expected the new owner to come in and blow everyone out or make an impassioned plea for everyone to stay. I never thought (he) would buy the team and ignore it completely,” Gravy said of the experience. Their new owner could not be contacted and having recently been re-signed to new contracts, the future did not look too bright. “It was pretty clear the team would fall apart…(it) was actually worse and faster than I imagined though,” Von Gomez recalled.

For some players, the future was uncertain, as Joe Pancake related, “I thought my career might be over. I just wasn’t sure…it would be better elsewhere. I didn’t want to go through the same routine.” Ballers DE Phuck Mizzou felt much the same way. “At that point I figured ol’ Phuck Mizzou would hang up the cleats,” he explained. For others though, it simply meant cutting back on things while waiting to see what was in store for them. “It did lead to my having to…auction off my Caddy and my Rolls,” joked James, “but I was able to keep my Porsche.”

Their only hope was in the hands of their most active GM, flaredog (who has, for now, resigned all GM duties to focus on his duties as an agent to a growing clientele, which includes James). “At that point, it became about…trying to make deals to get guys off the team. I liked (them) all, and so I wanted to find ways to get them where they needed to go.”

----------------------------------------------------

If You Can’t Beat Them…

Little did Gravy, James, Pancake, Von Gomez, and Mizzou know who would come calling. Well, James jokingly expected it. “I would have been surprised if there was no interest – I mean, I practically lived in their backfield for (those) 3 seasons.” The others, though, were quick to admit they were caught off guard when they realized that the Ballers, their former rivals, were interested in their services.

The next step was deciding whether they could put past differences behind to play for their former rivals. Over their three seasons in the same league, the Ballers and Hawk Stars squared off three times, with the Ballers winning two of the three (while maintaining a 38-35 scoring advantage). However, while the rivalry brewed, another thing was building behind the scenes…respect.

“When you see a team run through your Conference 16-0, it tells you that they’re a well prepared bunch,” claimed Pancake. He wasn’t the only one with glowing reviews of what had been going on in Blacksburg. “I like how Blacksburg improved every year,” Von Gomez explained. Gravy also chimed in, “Although we fought hard against each other, there was obviously respect for each other.” As for James perspective, who chuckles as he remembers his thoughts on his new owner and coaches, “KB is cool, and Redskins is a nice dude, but I’m not sure about Betesta. In all seriousness though, there was no hesitation… Blacksburg has been and will always be a class organization.”

Of course, Blacksburg’s other draw was the opportunity to play in Canada Pro. While all 5 former Hawk Stars had other offers, the prospect of playing with the elite teams of Canada became a big draw. According to Gravy, he “had another offer…where his experience would have put (him) at a definite advantage, but the chance to play in the CPL (for Blacksburg)…was too good to pass up.”

Another reason for choosing Blacksburg came from the players’ desire to keep some familiar faces around. “It’s good to have some of the old guys around,” said Mizzou. “Makes me feel more at home.” Especially for the interior duo of James and Gravy, who built quite the chemistry while playing together at Mt. Oread. According to James, “It came down to Blacksburg and Khodumodumo’s Revenge (where two of flaredog’s clients already play)…I presented both options to Gravy, and he said he’d like to stick with the Mt. Oread guys.”

After being starved for cash at Mt. Oread, the amount of money the Ballers were willing to offer was a final attraction. “The reached out and threw a mountain of cash at me,” claimed Von Gomez, who was “soaking his toe in Cristal” as we spoke. “It was definitely nice to not have to worry about how I was going to feed my kids,” said Pancake, tongue-in-cheek.

----------------------------------------------------

Fitting In

As rivalries go, there are always two sides, and such was the case with Blacksburg and Mt. Oread. Not only did the Hawk Stars have to make the decision to play for Blacksburg, they also wondered how they would be accepted by the Ballers players and fans. However, they soon found out that there would be no resentment from their new teammates, as everyone had the same goal in mind…a CPL Championship. “I feel like they welcomed me with open arms,” Pancake recalls of his first practice with his new teammates. He wasn’t the only one overwhelmed upon attending a Ballers practice. “It was quite obvious why guys like Khari, Jess, Bricky, Speed and the Micheals (Beasley and Silver) have been so successful,” claims James.

Similarly, the Hawk Stars have found the management and coaches to be exceptional. “It’s great how active the team is…(Everyone) is serious about winning at a high level,” said Von Gomez. “Management makes moves to improve the team.” Gravy has also been impressed. “The GM’s are excellent, with solid game plans and strong communication with the players.”

Once the new Ballers got settled in, they were bound and determined to make an impact. James, always the jokester had this to say about the impact the Hawk Stars had for Blacksburg: “Without us, there’s no telling how bad this team would be. Just kidding,” he added, claiming that he “really thinks that Blacksburg was an excellent team before (they) got here.” He does think the addition of the Hawk Stars “might have helped push Blacksburg into that home playoff game.” Von Gomez shared similar sentiments. “Mt. Oread’s strength was always defense, and the guys who came over have been instant impact types who have made a really good Blacksburg defense even better.”

----------------------------------------------------

What the Future Holds

As the Ballers head into Season 5, the former Hawk Stars don’t hold back on what they feel can be accomplished in their first full season and beyond with Blacksburg. “I think the future for Blacksburg is very bright,” claimed Pancake. “”I really think there’s a lot of championship potential with this team,” exuded James, and Gravy was quick to add, “I see Blacksburg as a top-tier team in the CPL Western Conference.” “I see a CPL Championship and Phuck Mizzou chilling in a hot tub filled with Cristal and Dom Perignon while several women of questionable integrity perform acts on him that would get them stoned in the mid-east,” claimed Mizzou. Gravy, never one to avoid controversy, made no qualms as to how he would like to see it shape out either. “I’d like to see us in the Mountie Bowl soon, knocking off the Yetis and giving all the Eastern Conference haters a big middle finger.”

“We’ll always have Hawk Stars in us,” claims Pancake, “but what we do from here on out will be for the benefit of the Ballers. This is home now.”