It was sometime in late August 1997, a Monday or a Tuesday.  A beautiful day in Bozeman Montana.  (OK, I don't remember what kind of day it was, but it was late August in Bozeman, so there's a pretty good chance it was a nice day).  Two guys, Ronnie Yates and Brian Beaudrie, were discussing football.  After all, what else do guys talk about in late August?  Yates, who at that time had just become an instructor at Montana State University, was discussing how much fun he had in his fantasy football league when he was in Bakersfield, California.  Beaudrie, a third year graduate student in Mathematics Education at the same university, agreed that it sounded like a heck of a lot of fun.  Now what happened next is a little unclear even to this day.  But, I believe philosophers and lay people alike both would describe it as an epiphany.  They decided to form a fantasy football league in Bozeman, Montana. Now great ideas are one thing.  Finding ten other owners before Sunday's kickoffs was another matter all together.  But fate was on the side of the righteous.  After putting together a list of about 15 possible owners, they set out to find converts to the cause.  Two of the first on board were Robert Fixen, Jr., and Brian Martensen, both of whom were also graduate students in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at Montana State University.  Others quickly followed their lead.  Within two days, 12 owners had been found.  Ten of the owners were at that time residents of Bozeman.  The other two, Mike Beaudrie and Daryl Jahn, lived in Des Moines, Iowa, and Gretna, Nebraska, respectively.  The league had been formed.

First Draft:
The first draft of the then unnamed league was held that Thursday.  It was held in the third floor meeting room of Culbertson Hall in Bozeman, Montana (for which those in charge of said meeting room still don't know what it was used for...unless they read this, of course).  Eight of the twelve owners were in attendance.  Tensions filled the room, as well as a heck of a lot of questions.  Most (well, all except one) in attendance had never belonged to a fantasy football league before.  A couple may have not even known what a football was.  As new commissioner Yates explained the rules regarding the league and the draft, questions were answered and doubts were put to rest.  Then cards were drawn, and the draft began.  Lori Pritchett had the honor of choosing the first player ever in the league.  That player was Brett Farve, quarterback of the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers.  Running back Terrell Davis went selected next, followed by quarterback John Elway, running back Emmitt Smith, running back Barry Sanders, and wide receiver Jerry Rice.  Drew Blesoe, the quarterback of the Super Bowl losing New England Patriots (what incredible irony), finished the choices in the first round.  The draft was under way.  The teams began to form.
First Year (1997):
The original owners are listed as follows:

Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team	Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team
Ronnie Yates	Warrior Vagabonds	Bozeman, MT	Todd Moeller	Uber Mannschafts	Bozeman, MT
Phil Turk	Phil's Nonames	Bozeman, MT	Brian Martensen	Beelzebub Boars	Bozeman, MT
Wendy Sonnenberg	YAGs	Bozeman, MT	Daryl Jahn	DJ's Vikes	Gretna (Omaha) NE
Tim Slater	Toilet Plungers	Bozeman, MT	Robert Fixen	Vinland Norsemen	Bozeman, MT
Lori Pritchett	Tigger's Team	Bozeman, MT	Michael Beaudrie	Des Moines Doctors	Des Moines, IA
Mark Plante	Mad Cows	Bozeman, MT	Brian Beaudrie	Fried Egg Sandwiches	Bozeman, MT

With 10 of the 12 owners living in Bozeman, weekly meetings were relatively easy.  Most were held at one of Bozeman's premier think tanks of sports, Spectators.  There the owners got together to gripe about their losses, gloat about their winnings, and consume adult beverages, not necessarily in that order.  Owners worked hard on making their drop adds count for the betterment of their franchise.  Owners also discussed ways of improving their league and making it more exciting.  But mostly they discussed ways to bedevil the owner of the Mad Cows. The first year proved to be a highly successful beginning.  The final few weeks' games were pitched battles as the teams struggled to get into the playoffs.  The final playoff spot ended in a tie, record wise, so head to head competition was the next criteria.  The game ended up in a tie, with the tie-breaker of that game going to the Mad Cows, at the expense of the Warrior Vagabonds.  Owners now realized the importance of every single contest, of every single point, completion, and defensive stop.  Well not really, but just say that in a John Facenda-like voice and it sounds pretty impressive. The other teams in the playoffs that year were the Vinland Norsemen (champs of Buffy), Phil's Nonames (champs of Willow), the Fried Egg Sandwiches, (champs of Cordelia), Tigger's Team, and the YAGs.  The Fried Egg Sandwiches ended up capturing the initial championship over Tigger's Team to put an capper on a very successful inaugural season.

Second Year (1998):
The owners of the second year are as follows:

Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team	Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team
Randy Anderson	Mad Cows (1/2 season)	Las Vegas, NV	Mark Plante	Mad Cows (1/2 season)	Bozeman, MT
Brian Beaudrie	Fried Egg Sandwiches	Bozeman, MT	Lori Pritchett	Tigger's Team	Bozeman, MT
Michael Beaudrie	Rochester Doctors	Rochester, MN	Linda Simonsen	Sugar and Spice	Bozeman, MT
Robert Fixen	Vinland Norsemen	Bettendorf, IA	Wendy Sonnenberg	Hospital Ward (YAGs)	Bozeman, MT
Daryl Jahn	DJ's Vikes	Gretna, NE	Phil Turk	Methane Explosion	Bozeman, MT
Brian Martensen	Snake-Like Continua	Bozeman, MT	Ronnie Yates	Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas	Las Vegas, NV
Todd Moeller	Deliverance	Atlanta, GA

While the league started the season with only one new owner, by season's end only 6 of the 12 owners were living in Bozeman.  League meetings were now held in two places; the Bozeman site was 1719 West Kagy, arguably the coolest place in Bozeman.  The other "site" was a virtual site: over the Internet, using a bulletin board and chat room to conduct the meetings.  While this could have turned into a negative, the spirits of the league were always high (as were several of the owners), and meetings turned out to be almost as fun as the meetings at Spectators.  Well, almost.  It also should be noted that this was the first year that the league's name, The Higher Education League (HEL) of Fantasy Football, became official after other names (including the Internet Fantasy Football League, the On-Line Fantasy Football League, and the League of Women Voters) were turned down. The six teams in the playoffs that year were eerily similar to the first season, as four were the same.  The Fried Egg Sandwiches once again captured the Cordelia Division, while the Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas broke through to capture the Buffy Division, and the lone new entry, Sugar and Spice (which took over for the expunged Toilet Plungers), won the Willow Division.  The wild card teams were Tigger's Team, the Methane Explosion (formerly Phil's Nonames, who exploded for a then record 1279 points), and the Mad Cows, under new ownership from Las Vegas.  While some playoff games were very close, the Methane Explosion ended up triumphing in the second championship game, dethroning the previous year's champ, the Fried Egg Sandwiches.

Third Year (1999):
The owners of the third year are as follows:

Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team	Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team
Todd Moeller	Full Contact Topologists	Atlanta, GA	Brian Beaudrie	Fried Egg Sandwiches	Flagstaff, AZ
Robert Fixen	Vinland Norsemen	Bettendorf, IA	Daryl Jahn	DJ's Vikes	Gretna, NE
Brian Martensen	Snake-Like Continua	Bozeman, MT	Randy Anderson	Alien Anal Probes	Las Vegas, NV
Lori Pritchett	Tigger's Team	Bozeman, MT	Jim Matovina	Vicious Wieners	Las Vegas, NV
Linda Simonsen	Sugar and Spice	Bozeman, MT	Ronnie Yates	Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas	Las Vegas, NV
Wendy Sonnenberg	YAGS	Bozeman, MT	Michael Beaudrie	Rochester Doctors	Rochester, MN

For the first time, the city of Bozeman was in the minority, although it still held more owners than any other location.  This was also the first year that the draft was held in Las Vegas instead of Bozeman.  Yet the more things change, the more they remain the same.  The season, like its two predecessors, was exciting.  Well, it was exciting if you weren't losing all of your friggin' games! (Sorry, the historian is still a bit upset about that season).  For example, new records for most points and least points in a game were set in the first two weeks of the season.  League veterans DJ's Vikes (champs of the Sheol Division) and the Rochester Doctors (champions of the Niflheim Division) cracked the playoffs for the first time in their history, as well as the first year team the Vicious Wieners (taking over for the Methane Explosion), who were champs of the Hades Division.  The other teams in the playoffs were some old stalwarts: Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas, YAGs and the Alien Anal Probes (formerly the Mad Cows).  In the championship game, the Rochester Doctors prevailed over the Vicious Wieners, proving that you can go from worst to first in just two years.  As a somewhat interesting sidebar, the Fried Egg Sandwiches proved that you can go from first to worst in two years too...

Fourth Year (2000):
The owners of the fourth year are as follows:

Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team	Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team
Eric Etzel	Big Richards	Rochester, MN	Randy Anderson	Alien Anal Probes	Las Vegas, NV
Michael Beaudrie	Rochester Doctors	Rochester, MN	Cecil Yates	Two Stooges	Manassas, VA
Lori Pritchett	Tigger's Team	Richardson, TX	Daryl Jahn	DJ's Vikes	Gretna, NE
Luis Fernandez	Snapping Crabs	Reno, NV	Brian Beaudrie	Fried Egg Sandwiches	Flagstaff, AZ
Ronnie Yates	Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas	Las Vegas, NV	Brian Martensen	Snake-Like Continua	Bozeman, MT
Jim Matovina	Vicious Wieners	Las Vegas, NV	Todd Moeller	Full Contact Topologists	Atlanta, GA

The fourth year saw only one team still located in the birthplace of the HEL, Bozeman, Montana.  Hmmm...Bozeman Montana...the birthplace of ...?  Kind of fits in a way, if you've ever been there for the 9 month winter.  Anyway, the Snake-Like Continua continued to battle on in the frozen mountains of Montana, while most other owners had relocated to other, more temperate climes.  The league expanded to a record high 9 different cities, encompassing all four times zones in the United States.  Some day, we'll get to Newfoundland time... For the first time in the league's history, a trophy has been created for the league champion.  This trophy (obviously at left, dummy) encompasses what the league is all about...pewter on a piece of wood.  No, that's not it.  Anyway, the design will allow for 12 champions to be placed on the top ring...and the design allows for later rings (well, actually they are rectangular prisms) to be added as the years, and championships, continue.  Sort of like the Stanley Cup.  No doubt this trophy will be as famous someday too. Anyway, the year was exciting (yada, yada).  No, really this year it was.  Going into the last two weeks of the season, only one team had been eliminated from the playoffs, and only one had clinched a division title...that being the runaway '72 Dolphins, errr...the Rochester Doctors.

The playoff teams were the Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas (winning Buffy once again after a two year absence), the Vicious Wieners (Champs of Hades for the second consecutive year), and the aforementioned Rochester Doctors, who won the Niflheim Division (again) despite that 13-1 record.  The other playoff teams were the Alien Anal Probes, the franchise's fourth consecutive playoff appearance; the rebounding Fried Egg Sandwiches, and Tigger's Team.  Well, then Marshall Faulk decided to score 11 touchdowns and the rest is history.  The Vicious Wieners became the first team to claim the trophy for their very own, beating the Rochester Doctors in a rematch of last year's game, albeit with a slightly different outcome.

Fifth Year (2001):
The owners of the fifth year are as follows:

Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team	Owner Name	Team Name	Location of Team
Brian Beaudrie	Fried Egg Sandwiches	Flagstaff, AZ	Dave Matovina	Rocky Mountain Thunder	Silverthorne, CO
Michael Beaudrie	Eau Claire Doctors	Eau Claire, WI	Jim Matovina	Vicious Wieners	Las Vegas, NV
Barbara Boschmans	Dancing Bears	Flagstaff, AZ	Alex Olgivie	Scrotes	Flagstaff, AZ
Eric Etzel	Big Richards	Rochester, MN	Lori Pritchett	Tigger's Team	Richardson, TX
Daryl Jahn	DJ's Vikes	Gretna, NE	Cecil Yates	Old Stooges	Manassas, VA
Brian Martensen	Snake-Like Continua	Austin, TX	Ronnie Yates	Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas	Las Vegas, NV

Five years of Fantasy Football.  Who woulda thunk it?  In those 5 years, a total of 21 owners have owned 30 different teams located in 14 different cities in eleven different states (sorry, Canada).  No teams are left in Bozeman, Montana.  I guess we all had to graduate and get real jobs eventually.  Despite this year to year turnaround and turmoil the league has survived, and really has thrived.  New rules designed to make the game more enjoyable have been implemented.  New owners have brought new ideas to the fore.  The future looks good for the league...here's to at least another 5 years.  Or until I win the damn trophy.

This was also the year when the Snake-Like Continua (relocating from frozen Bozeman to temperate Austin, TX) broke through and captured their first division crown, that of the Buffy Division.  The Hades Division was also won by a first-time division champion, Tigger's Team.  The Eau Claire Doctors (moving from Rochester) finished with (once again) a season-best record of 11-3 and (once again) won a division title, the Children of the Corn Division.  Other teams qualifying for the playoffs were the Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas, the Fried Egg Sandwiches, and one of the new teams on the block, the Dancing Bears.  The championship game pitted the Doctors against the Dancing Bears, with the Docs becoming the league's first two-time champion.

More rule changes implemented this year.  The Tight End was brought back, ending that one-year experiment.  Offense was the rule this year, and not just because of the TE (although that helped).  Six of the sixteen highest scoring seasons ever were recorded this year.  Three of the top four high scoring games were also set this year.  One team, the Alien Anal Probes, had the 8th best scoring season of all time...and didn't make the playoffs.  The Ragin' Roids scored an incredible 1419 points (averaging 101.36 points per game) to become the most prolific scoring team of all time...and in the process setting a record that might never be broken.

Once again, with one exception (these new Ragin' Roids) parity was the rule rather than the exception..all of the other 11 teams finished with records between 8-6 and 5-9.  The division winners included the Buffy Division's Ragin' Roids at 12-2 (sounds like drug testing needs to be implemented), the Dancing Bears of the Hades Division, and the Old Stooges of the Children of the Corn Division...all first time division winners.  Other playoff teams included the Vicions Wieners, the Snake-Like Continua, and the Fried Egg Sandwiches.  The playoffs, in contrast to the regular season, were fairly low scoring affairs...With the Ragin' Roids winning the championship in a tie-breaker (over the Old Stooges), and the semi-final game by one point.

Seventh Year (2003):
The owners of the seventh year are as follows:

For the first time in league history, all twelve owners returned from the previous season...the only changes occurring in two of the team's locations.  All told, nine cities from nine different states are represented.  Duplicate city/states are Las Vegas, Nevada, Plymouth, New Hampshire, and Eau Claire, Wisconsin, each with two owners.   The draft was held in Las Vegas, Nevada once again and for the fifth year in a row.  Getting loaded and gambl...er, drafting players in Las Vegas seems to be a positive tradition in the minds of the owners and the methods of this league.  Hopefully, it will continue.

This season featured another high-scoring, high win team, as the Alien Anal Probes finished the season 13-1 overall with 12 consecutive victories, in the process setting the second highest scoring season of all time.  They also won the Children of the Corn division; the other division winners were the Dancing Bears (Hades, again) and the Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas (Buffy).  The other three playoff teams were the Vicious Wieners, the Fried Egg Sandwiches, and the Big Richards, making the playoffs for the first time in their history.  For the first time in the league's history, a female owner was crowned champion of the league, as the Dancing Bears upset the Alien Anal Probes in the championship game.

This also was the first year that consolation playoffs were added to the league, for those unfortunate teams that don't make the regular championship tournament.  The cash for these games isn't great, but hey; a win is a win; plus it allows a little bragging rights. The Old Stooges earned this right by taking the consolation bracket championship.

Eighth Year (2004):
The owners of the eighth year are as follows:

What can be said about the eighth year that hasn't already been said.  Well, plenty.  For one, this was the first year that we used an on-line site to keep track of scoring, records, etc.  While it cost a little cash, it was money well spent.  Well, at least the commissioner thinks so.  This was also the year we introduced penalizing fumbling players (the same way interceptions were penalized).  This rule led to at least one game being decided differenty right at week one.  Also, all 12 owners returned for the 3rd year in a row.  Can you say STABILITY!?!?  I guess we're getting to enjoy each other, even though lots of us have never even met...

The season featured five of the 21 highest scoring teams of all time, which after eight years is bordering on impressive.  One team, the Fried Egg Sandwiches, finished with the 8th best scoring team of all time, averaging 90 points per game...and didn't make the playoffs.  That ought to indicate how balanced the league was this year.  Only two teams weren't between 9-5 and 5-9, yet no team finished 7-7, (for the second year in a row) which is fairly odd...but I digress.

The playoff teams were Buffy Division winner Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas (2 years in a row), Children of the Corn Division winner Eau Claire Doctors, back in the playoffs after a two year absence, and the Big Richards, captuing Hades Division for their first ever division crown.  The other playoff teams were the Old Stooges, the Dancing Bears, and the Rocky Mountain Thunder, who were making their initial appearance in the playoffs.  After some excellent playoff games, the Eau Claire Doctors became the league's first Three Time Champion, beating the Rikka Racka Fiyacrakas in the title game. 

The league has seen quite a bit of change from its meager, humble beginnings way back in 1997.  Only one team, DJ's Vikes, is run by an original owner whose team remains in the same location.  That should automatically qualify for some type of award.  Four other owners have been in the league the entire time, although each has changed home city at least once.  A few owners (three) survived the rigors of fantasy football only 1 year, but the vast majority stuck it out for much more than that.  But whether a person has been in the league since its inception, joined somewhere along the way, or has yet to participate in a single game, we are all drawn here by one thing: the love of football.  Well, that is what I like to believe anyway.
 

Final Season Standings: Current Owners Page: Former Owners Page: HEL Main Page: