The 2014 season saw the Pigskin Hooligans claim the second championship in franchise history. While the team began the year 0-3, the worst losing streak since the 2008 season, the Hooligans bounced back and rattled off 3 straight victories to close out the year. The league was the smallest in known CUAA history with a mere 3 teams participating overall. The regular season consisted of three weeks - each week one team played a doubleheader against the other 2 squads. Every team made the playoffs with the #1 overall seed receiving a first-round bye and facing the winner of the #2/#3 matchup. Games were played on CUAA's real football field for the first half of the season and then were moved to Rummel Field, CUAA's old soccer field, for the second half. The Hooligans featured a greatly changed lineup from the previous year, losing legend Zach Johnston to retirement and returning only 4 players overall from the 2013 squad.
Let's take a game-by-game look at the Hooligans' 2014 season: Game 1 - Nov 2 vs Bottom of the Fifth - L 49-42: The Hooligans began the 2014 season playing the first double-header in team history on CUAA's real football field. A franchise-record 7 fans came out to cheer on the team as they faced off against Bottom of the Fifth in the season opener. Marshall Oetting received the first start at quarterback in the post-Zach Johnston era and performed well, passing for 6 TDs including 3 to twin brother Micah Oetting. The game would be a back-and-forth offensive shootout, but the Hooligans would drop their season opener after narrowly failing to convert a 2-pt PAT late in the game which would have given them a 43-42 lead. Game 2 - Nov 2 vs Bottom of the 5th - L 74-42: Things wouldn't get any easier for the Hooligans as they would have to turn right around and face powerhouse Bottom of the 5th in their second match of the day. The match would be close throughout the first half and into the second, with a Dana Ford touchdown in the second half tying the game up 36-36. However from that point on turnovers would plague the Hooligans as Bottom of the 5th would force 3 interceptions and a turnover on downs to run away with a 74-42 victory. The team would drop to 0-2 for the first time since the 2008 season. Game 3 - Nov 9 vs Bottom of the 5th - L 64-59: The Hooligans would face Bottom of the 5th once again in a rematch the following week. The team would put forth a much-improved effort, scoring every time they had the ball except for one critical turnover on downs. Defensively, however, the Hooligans still struggled to contain the explosive speed of Bottom of the 5th's receivers and could not come up with a single stop on the day. After a 64-59 loss the team would fall to 0-3 and would spend the next week searching for answers. Game 4 - Nov 16 vs Bottom of the Fifth - W 65-55: With the team dropping to 0-3, concern began to arise among some segments of the Pigskin Hooligan fan base that the team's glory days might be over. But the the Hooligans would begin to gel as a team at the right time, executing offensively and even making some defensive stops. Angela Martin would pace the team with 3 TDs in the match, breaking the franchise all-time touchdown record by hauling in her 22nd career TD. The Hooligans would come away with a critical confidence-building 65-55 victory entering the playoffs. Game 5 - Nov 23 vs #2 Bottom of the Fifth - W 63-47: The team would enter the playoffs as the lowest overall seed at #3, facing #2 Bottom of the Fifth in a rematch of the last game. But momentum was in the favor of the Hooligans as their increasing confidence led them to a critical upset playoff victory. The team would execute well on both sides of the football, jumping out to a 31-11 lead at halftime. Micah Oetting would make 3 interceptions in the game which tied Zach Johnston's franchise record for picks in a a single game. The Hooligans would hold off a late comeback attempt to win 63-47 and clinch a spot in the championship game for the 5th time in the last 6 years against #1 Bottom of the 5th. Game 6 - Dec 7 vs #1 Bottom of the 5th - W 57-56: And so it would all come down to this. The Hooligans looked to complete a great underdog comeback story while Bottom of the 5th looked to continue their dominance and claim the league title. The championship game certainly did not disappoint, as it was an epic match that would go right down to the wire. Captain Mike Russell gave a legendary pep talk before the game and the team responded well, playing their hearts out on the field. The Hooligans would take a 49-48 lead off a Marshall Oetting TD catch from brother Micah Oetting with about a minute to go, but it looked as though the team may have "scored too soon" as Jeremy Maas led Bottom of the 5th down the field and found Evan Novak to retake the lead with 25 seconds to go. However one of the greatest drives in Hooligan history was about to occur as Micah Oetting led the team down the field and connected with Herman Mason for a touchdown and 2-pt conversion to put the Hooligans back ahead 57-56 with 11 seconds left. Pat Brooks would seal the game with an interception in the endzone and the Hooligans would claim the second championship in the franchise's storied history. Check back soon for reviews of each individual player on the team in part 2 of the season overview! Following that, we will unveil the 2014 season award winners. ROLL HOOLIGANS!
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Written by Mike Russell
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May 2021
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