We had a blast!
Helmet Bowl II moved quicker and demanded victory every single week! The single-elimination Conference contests lead immediately into the single-elimination National Championship bracket.
Lose just once and go home.
Execute or be executed.
While half the teams ended each round in defeat and elimination, voting for Helmet Bowl II grew throughout the contest and far exceeded the hundreds of thousands of votes cast in Helmet Bowl I. Thank you voters!
We are already working on making Helmet Bowl III the Greatest College Football Helmet Contest Ever. (You can help – here's the link to our survey [open until Jan. 30, 2019]: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/V2J5F6K)
Thank You Equipment Managers
Thank you to the Equipment Managers for making Helmet Bowl known and drumming up support and votes. Without you there’d be no Helmet Bowl. Without you there’d be no helmets to enter our contest. Can you imagine simply taking a white or black helmet out of the box, fitting it, and sending it out onto the field? Ugh. We know the players gotta play, but nothing says they can’t look good doing it!
Conference Play
We changed up the conference play for Helmet Bowl II. In the inaugural Helmet Bowl, we pit every helmet in each conference against each other in a conference free-for-all that awarded points to winners of each of the 10-week contests. The team with the most points after the grueling 2 ½ month contest won the Conference.
When we surveyed voters about Helmet Bowl I, they told us the Conference play should be shorter. We found a way to speed things up – jump in right away with head-to-head single-elimination contests. Win three or four weeks in a row, and win the Conference Championship.
Now we ask again. How can we improve for Helmet Bowl III? Click here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/V2J5F6K
Surprises
We’ve said it before, but yes, we were surprised that the Maryland Terrapins did not do better in the Big 10. They fell in the second round to the Iowa Hawkeyes.
We expected Southern Miss to do better, but the Florida International Golden Panthers played switcheroo until they landed on a winning helmet to eliminate the Golden Eagles in the second round of the Conference USA contest.
Defending Helmet Bowl I National Runner-up San Diego State Aztecs dropped out in the second round of the Mountain West at the hands of the Boise State Broncos.
We were surprised to see the Malone Pioneers drop to the Lake Erie Storm – the eventual winner of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. Then again, we are unbalanced in our affection for diagonal design on helmets.
We expected the Saint Anselm Hawks to beat LIU Post – Long Island Pioneers in the Northeast 10, then go on to win the Conference. Yet they lost in the second round. The Stonehill Skyhawks won the Conference.
How did the Shippensburg Raiders beat the California U of PA Vulcans in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference? We don’t know, but they did and did big – 76% to 24%.
The Kenyon Lords defeated the Allegheny Gators with a large purple K on a black shell. The Gators had a bright yellow, maybe chrome yellow, A on a white lid and we were surprised by this North Coast Athletic Conference outcome. The Wooster Fighting Scots ended up winning the Conference.
If the Wilmington Fightin’ Quakers could have got out of the first round of the Ohio Athletic Conference, they may have made some noise in this contest due to shear uniqueness. Muskingum Fighting Muskies took care of that.
The Claremont-Mudd-Scripts Stags won the Southern California Intercollegiate in Helmet Bowl I, but couldn’t overcome the Redlands Bulldogs in Helmet Bowl II.
Norte Dame once again fails to show up in the Independent contest, this time falling to the Thomas More Saints. With such an iconic helmet, the Fighting Irish should make a better showing in Helmet Bowl III.
We identified the Eastern Michigan Eagles green helmet with the diamond plated E as a sleeper contender for a deep run in the National Championship, yet they fell in the third round of the Mid-American Conference to the Buffalo Bulls. The Western Michigan Broncos ended up defeating the Bulls for the Conference Championship.
Each week brought great match-ups and some surprises. Who did you think had a lock on a Conference Championship but failed to equal expectations?
Thank You Sports Information Directors
We’ve added to your already full plate during the busy football season. Thank you Sports Information Directors and Communications staff! Getting the word out about your helmet and its place in Helmet Bowl is vital to your success in Helmet Bowl – or not!
When Gallaudet won Helmet Bowl I, all eyes turned to Sam Atkinson, Associate Athletic Director for Communications. When the Dickinson Red Devils started making a play to win Helmet Bowl II, we were immediately directed to Christian Payne, Assistant Athletic Director, Media & Administration.
We know much more happens in the SID and Communications offices than we will ever know. Thank you for including Helmet Bowl in your efforts! We appreciate you.
Conference Championships
The Pitt Panthers won the Atlantic Coast Conference by defeating the North Carolina State Wolfpack by just TWO VOTES.
But that wasn’t the closest Conference Championship. In the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, the Upper Iowa Peacocks and the Minnesota State Moorhead Dragons both road terrific helmets to a TIE. The Dragons won the tiebreaker.
Just a dozen teams repeated as Conference Championships. Well done!
New Jersey Lions – New Jersey Athletic Conference
Gallaudet Bison (DC) – Eastern Collegiate Football Conference
Ottawa Braves (KS) – Kansas Collegiate Athletic
Oregon Ducks (OR) – Pac 12
Idaho State Bengals (OR) – Big Sky
Northwest Missouri Bearcats (MO) – Mid-America Intercollegiate
College of Idaho Coyotes (ID) – Frontier
Finlandia Lions (MI) – Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association
Misericordia Cougars (PA) – Middle Atlantic Conference
Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils (MS) –Southwestern Athletic Conference
Kennesaw State Owls (GA) – Big South
Valdosta State Blazers (GA) – Gulf South
Which of you will triple-peat?
Surprises
The Maine Black Bears won the Colonial Athletic Association and tallied WAY more votes than any other Conference Champion. Their great helmet – black shell with white and light blue stripes down the middle and a roaring bear head on the side – would do well in the National Championship – making it to the semi-finals before falling to the eventual champion Dickinson Red Devils.
We also were mildly surprised to see the Kansas State Wildcats fall. Period. No judgement here on the Iowa State Cyclones.
Thank You Coaches and Staff
Xs and Os, field prep, communications gear, staff relations, player care, football strategy, media contact, travel, referees, fans, alumni, administration—the list goes on and on. We know football coaches have to have their hands into everything that matters to them and lots that they are told matter to them! Thank you for including Helmet Bowl in what impacts your locker room.
You have staffs and personal and players and so much more to keep track of and whether you simply said, “Yes” to someone there who wanted to pursue Helmet Bowl success, or took it and ran with it yourself, we thank you!
We know that the development of your players and the score on the scoreboards matter most, so thank you for adding Helmet Bowl to that list of “other stuff.”
