Congratulations GLADIATORS for the Championship Win! It was a hard fought battle between two teams that were willing to risk it all in order to come out on top and be crowned League Champions. 

The opposing team Moco Souljahs struggled greatly to advance the ball down the field as QB Amilcar Gaitan couldn’t connect with any of his receivers, going 5-22 in the first half before leaving the game due to a lower leg injury. With Gaitan’s absence, backup QB Chris Foreman (2017’s Defensive player of the year winner) stepped up to the plate and took on the role as starting QB. 

Titans QB Jonah Osband (2018’s Goat QB winner) transferred over to the Gladiators late in the season becoming their starting QB in one of the biggest games of his 15-year-old life. Osband started off the game hot going 12-19 and 2 touchdowns. “What an amazing performance by such a young kid.” spectator Jose Alfaro stated. 

Being down 0-14 heading into the second half, QB Chris Foreman had enough. He was determined to change the momentum of the game. And he and his team did just that. Foreman connected with his star receiver Kamel Kouyate (2018’s Offensive Player of Year Finalist) 2 times in the end zone giving them the lead making the score 14-18 after Moco Souljahs youngest player (10) Mason Mizzer (2018’s Young Buck, and Defensive Player of Year winner) picked off Osband’s pass and returned it for a pick 6. Mizzer and Chris Foreman had a combined 3 interceptions within 4 minutes of the second half, which resulted in former QB of the Gladiators Richard Foreman (2X League MVP & 2017’s Offensive Player of Year winner) resuming his role as Starting QB. 

This turned into the flag football version of the Manning’s “Battle of the QB Brothers”. These two put on a show for the people of Germantown scoring one after another, lead change after lead change. They could not be stopped. “This is one of the greatest games I have ever seen, I’m so proud of how both of my brothers are playing. All I know is someone is going to be mad after the game is over.” Inactive player of the Gladiators Alex Rewa stated.

With 2 minutes left in the game, both teams could smell the championship right around the corner. The Moco Souljahs managed to control the lead after an amazing clutch interception from defender Abner Alfaro (scored the team’s previous touchdown) which set up a beautiful pass from Chris Foreman to Kamel Kouyate for a 20-yard touchdown. Failing to convert the extra point, the score stood at 43-39. 

The pressure was now on for QB Richard Foreman who threw an interception to set up a Moco Souljahs touchdown. Richard loss last season’s championship game to his younger brother Chris, so winning this game was a must for him. Before the game we asked Richard what was his main goal in this game besides winning, he responded “Beating my little brother, I know that sounds terrible, but I’m not letting that kid come back in the house with 2 championship wins. And I’m definitely not leaving 2-0 in championship losses. I’m getting this win even if it kills me.” 

It was now time for the Gladiators to take the field for the most important offensive drive of the season. With 1:19 left on the clock, QB Richard Foreman kicked it into high gear. He connected twice with Andre Lewis (2x Clutch Player of Year winner) for a total of 22 yards after tucking the ball and running for a gain of 12. With the end zone near, Foreman connected to WR Joel Cruz for a gain of 16 yards. With 32 seconds left to go in the contest, Foreman connected to the clutch player of the year himself Andre Lewis in the end zone. They converted the 1 point conversion making the score 43-46.

With 26 seconds left to go in the championship game, it was imperative that QB Chris Foreman needed to pull out all the stops to march his team down the field, score the winning touchdown, snag his 2nd championship win, and crush his big brother's dream of winning his first ever championship. Bragging rights as some might say.

 

The Moco Souljahs took the field on offense and destroyed the Gladiator defense with authority. Chris Foreman connected with his favorite WR Kamel Kayuate 3 times in a row for a total gain of 39 yards, putting them into the redzone. These two were putting on one heck of a show! “I feel like I'm watching a Superbowl game right now. These boys really want to win.” Spectator and team mom Dominique Lewis stated.

With the clock winding down, the Moco Souljahs elected to use their final time out of the game, leaving them with just 3 seconds left to seal their fate and make the greatest comeback the league had ever seen. After the time out to strategize, Moco Souljahs took to the field for the last time of the season. Spectators were on the edge of their seats at this point. With determination in his eyes, QB Chris Foreman hiked the ball dropping back as he analyzed the field. He looked to his star WR Kamel Kayuate, but he was covered up by Mike Osband. So he looked to his left where an open Abner Alfaro was standing with his hands in the air. QB Chris Foreman pulled back and released the ball, throwing it in his direction. 

At this point, the whole world was going in slow-mo. Eyes were wide, and hearts were racing. The ball traveled closer and closer to Abner Alfaro with perfect accuracy. The Moco Souljahs could see the Championship rings in their sights. But Gladiators Richard Foreman had other agendas. With his outstanding speed, he raced towards the ball as if he were running to get on the line for a Black Friday sale. Out of desperation, he leaped toward the ball stretching out with everything he had, just barely tipping the ongoing pass with his hand, changing the direction of the ball to go over the head of Abner Alfaro, hitting the ground in the endzone. 

With a great roar, the Gladiators players cheered and hugged each other with joy for they had won the biggest game of their lives. Moco Souljahs players couldn’t believe what just happened for shock filled their faces. After their quick celebration, Gladiators players embraced their opponents congratulating them on an amazing fight. The love between both teams was amazing to witness. The true definition of Sportsmanship and Brotherhood.

We caught up with QB’s Chris and Richard Foreman as they embraced each other with laughs and smiles. We asked Chris how does feel to lose to his older brother in the biggest game of the season, “I can’t even be mad, this dude is a sick player. I wouldn’t want to lose to anyone but him. Now we both have rings, but I’ll be back next year with the dub. Y'all watch me now, this ain't over.” 

We then asked Richard how did he feel getting his first ever championship win, “Man this just feels unreal. That was such a close one, man why did I ever practice throwing the ball with this kid when we were younger. Sike nah in all seriousness I’m proud of how he and his team played against us, yo, by the way, shout out to Abner for his first ever pick 6!. But yeah we both deserved to be here. They battled through adversity just like we did, but we preached a championship mentality from day one. We played every game as if we were playing in the championship. So to us this is just another game. But man does it feel good to get the win, We were faced with challenges again today, but we've been here before, we know how to bounce back as a team. I’m proud of the way my guys performed out there. They fought this entire season just as hard if not harder than I did. These guys are the reason we won, couldn’t have done it without them. So shout outs to Joel, Andre, my baby brother Alex who's hurt, Juju who's also hurt, Mike, Jonah, and Kyle, We did it, our hard work paid off man. Be proud of yourselves, we earned it!”

What an amazing way to end an amazing season for such a dynamic league. It ended with breathtaking excitement, class and sportsmanship, and so much love. They're doing great things in this league, and I can’t wait to cover another championship game. Richard Foreman, keep up the good work you’re doing in this organization, and in this community. Congratulations to you and your team on such a stellar performance. – Championship Reporter