authored by Nate Smithson
Tundra Bowl I kicked off on Saturday, January 25th at The Watering Hole in Howard. There were quite a few pre-registrations, so we were anticipating a solid first-event crowd. Selling our tournament wasn’t hard at all. It included cash prizes, a customized trophy for the winner, a free Tundra Bowl t-shirt for all registered participants, all at an affordable registration fee. When our tournament kicked off shortly after 10:00, there were as many in-person registrations as there were pre-registrants. Among those who pre-registered was Troy Hanson, who happened to be in my group in 2013 at Madison, and is a well-know and talented TSB player. Another gentlemen, Rico Rieck, always seems to have a deep run in live tournaments. Josh Aaronson, aka Coconuts, was also in the field for Tundra Bowl I. One other pleasant surprise was that one of the co-founders of Tecmo Madison, Josh H., made himself a tournament entry as well. Josh was, and has been an excellent resource for his knowledge and experience in running tournaments, and he was extremely helpful when it came to any suggestions or questions we had in our first tournament. We were certainly glad to have him come up to Tundra Bowl I, even if everyone knew the field would be that much tougher with him in it.
Tundra Bowl I kicked off on Saturday, January 25th at The Watering Hole in Howard. There were quite a few pre-registrations, so we were anticipating a solid first-event crowd. Selling our tournament wasn’t hard at all. It included cash prizes, a customized trophy for the winner, a free Tundra Bowl t-shirt for all registered participants, all at an affordable registration fee. When our tournament kicked off shortly after 10:00, there were as many in-person registrations as there were pre-registrants. Among those who pre-registered was Troy Hanson, who happened to be in my group in 2013 at Madison, and is a well-know and talented TSB player. Another gentlemen, Rico Rieck, always seems to have a deep run in live tournaments. Josh Aaronson, aka Coconuts, was also in the field for Tundra Bowl I. One other pleasant surprise was that one of the co-founders of Tecmo Madison, Josh H., made himself a tournament entry as well. Josh was, and has been an excellent resource for his knowledge and experience in running tournaments, and he was extremely helpful when it came to any suggestions or questions we had in our first tournament. We were certainly glad to have him come up to Tundra Bowl I, even if everyone knew the field would be that much tougher with him in it.
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The field started with 26 players, a very solid number for a first tournament. Numerous people streamed in throughout the day, pledging that they would enter the competition for Tundra Bowl II, and a number of people would follow through with that the following year. There were the four players mentioned before that were in the pool of favorites, among other surprises throughout the day. With 26 players, the numbers didn’t divide nicely into equal groups for Group Play. After talking it out, we decided on four-four person groups, and two-five person groups. The top two from groups of four would move onto the double elimination bracket, as well as the top three players from each group of five. In total, only 14 of the 26 players would move on. However, this ensured that the other twelve were guaranteed at least three tournament games.
Since there wasn’t a previous Tundra Bowl to determine career records, we had no ranking system to seed the players in Group Play. Therefore, we created a completely random set of groups. Surprisingly, there weren’t any real lopsided groups. Each one was divided fairly evenly with TSB rookies, veterans, and stars. In Group A, Troy was the headliner. There were other solid players in that group as well, including Jeff Hauschel. Jeff played Troy extremely close in the second game of that group. Troy won the toss and called the Pittsburgh-Dallas matchup, and Jeff chose Pittsburgh. When the clock showed zeros, Troy barely escaped with a two point victory. Jay Lerner scored a quick victory in his first matchup, winning 17-3 as the Vikings over the Redskins. He also played well against Jeff, but ultimately fell short, losing by two scores. Joe Abt, who reserved his spot prior to the tournament, traveled in from Wausau, WI for his first tourney. While he played two of his three games close, he was unable to secure a victory this time around, though hopefully next year will bring him a bit more luck. Out of Group A, Troy advanced with a 3-0 record and the 4th overall seed, and Jeff finished 2-1 with the 6th seed. Joe (0-2) and Jay (1-2) had their day end at this stage for Tundra Bowl I.
In Group B, we had an interesting make up of competitors. Josh Aaronson led the group regularly throughout Group Play, maxing out the point differential in all three games and finishing 3-0. Kevin Meyer, one part of our throwback Retro4Ever crew, had two solid victories, one by 26 points and one by 18 points. Corey Roth, one of Swagz’ good friends, had a rough go of it. Too much time had passed before he picked up the controller again, but knowing that he used to play a lot in college may mean a solid showing in Tundra Bowl II. He finished 0-3 on the day. The other competitor in Group B was Nathan Jardin. Nathan came in from Casco for his first entry into the Tundra Bowl. His lone victory came against Corey on the day, but he was in a tough group. Overall, he ended up 1-2. Josh closed out Group Play with the second overall seed, while Kevin managed to snag the highest seed out of the R4E crew, managing to get the 9th seed overall.
In Group B, we had an interesting make up of competitors. Josh Aaronson led the group regularly throughout Group Play, maxing out the point differential in all three games and finishing 3-0. Kevin Meyer, one part of our throwback Retro4Ever crew, had two solid victories, one by 26 points and one by 18 points. Corey Roth, one of Swagz’ good friends, had a rough go of it. Too much time had passed before he picked up the controller again, but knowing that he used to play a lot in college may mean a solid showing in Tundra Bowl II. He finished 0-3 on the day. The other competitor in Group B was Nathan Jardin. Nathan came in from Casco for his first entry into the Tundra Bowl. His lone victory came against Corey on the day, but he was in a tough group. Overall, he ended up 1-2. Josh closed out Group Play with the second overall seed, while Kevin managed to snag the highest seed out of the R4E crew, managing to get the 9th seed overall.
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When we randomized the groups, Group C had pulled both Shaun Buntjer from the R4E crew and Rico Rieck. Both are excellent players, so it was an unfortunate pull for Levi LaCrosse and Guido Noack. Both of those players are from the host city, Green Bay. Rico took control early on, calling for a Phoenix-New York Jets matchup. Players would likely take Phoenix in this scenario, and that’s exactly what Levi did. Unfortunately, he was unable to produce much offense against Rico, and lost 28-0. Shaun took on Guido, and though it was a close game most of the way, Shaun pulled away for a 27-7 victory. Levi managed to secure his lone victory against Guido in a classic Green Bay-Cleveland matchup. Levi (1-2) and Guido (0-3) were unable to make it to the next round as Rico (3-0, 3rd overall seed) and Shaun (2-1, 12th overall seed) managed to advance to Bracket Play.
Group D was the final group of four in the tournament, and only two would move onto the next phase of the tourney. Quincy Bejster, from Waukegan, IL, joined Jesse Dorner from St. Paul, MN in the group as two of the three from states other than Wisconsin (Jay being the other one). The group also included Sean Nichols and Mike Petrasek. Sean called a questionable matchup early with Green Bay and Detroit. I know that calling matchups is one of the hardest things to do in a Tecmo tourney if you are unfamiliar with the NES classic. I called Atlanta-Chicago in Madison in 2013, and you can imagine how that turned out. Sean ended up with Green Bay, and ended up losing to Jesse by 31. Sean (1-2) played Mike (0-3) in the next game, and managed to secure his lone victory, winning 14-7 in a close one. Quincy managed to get through the round unscathed, finishing 3-0, grabbing the 5th overall seed. Jesse (2-1) moved on with the 7th seed.
The first group of five, Group E, was the most evenly matched group that was drawn. Each matchup was decided by only 7.7 points on average. This group included Swagz, one half of the former Retro4Ever editorial staff. It also included Todd Bimmel and Adam Herman, both from the area. Tad Kriofske Mainella came in from Milwaukee, WI, while Chris Besson came from Sheboygan Falls. Swagz’ first game came against Todd. In true Tecmo fashion, this one came down to the wire. Swagz bombed one towards the endzone as time expired, and he caught it. Unfortunately, he was one yard from scoring, and wasn’t able to force overtime, losing 14-7. Todd went on to be undefeated in the group, securing four straight victories. Tad called a later game’s matchup as the L.A. Rams against the Cowboys, having control of Dallas. Chris hung tough throughout, but ultimately lost to Tad by the score of 21-14. Chris would lose two other games by seven points, and ended up 0-4 in the group. In an elimination game, Adam played Swagz at the end of group play, both entering 1-2. Winner moves on, loser goes home…or helps pick up after the tourney in Swagz’ case. Huge plays on both sides of the ball all game long, but Swagz ended up squeaking by with a 24-21 victory, nabbing the 13th overall seed. Both Todd (4-0) and Tad (3-1) moved on.
In my group, we ended up having Josh H. up from Madison. We also had John Sweda, Dustan Fett and Hank De Wild, all local products. Hank came prepared with a notebook of information, and it happened to help along the way as he secured the final playoff spot with the 14th seed. Josh and I battled in the first game, and he definitely has a step or two on me in terms of his Tecmo game. While I felt solid and competitive, I still have a ways to go. He beat me 28-7, scoring late in the fourth to push it to a 21-point differential. He would max out every other game in Group Play, so I guess I can take that victory away from it. John secured an early victory against Dustan in a hard fought battle, 14-10. It would be Dustan’s closest game, but he wouldn’t be able to notch a victory in this tourney. After I defeated John 17-10 in a nail biter, I secured my playoff spot with the 11th seed. That game would wrap up our first ever Group Play, and while we had to say goodbye to many on the day, nearly all of them would declare that they were returning next year for Tundra Bowl II.
Group D was the final group of four in the tournament, and only two would move onto the next phase of the tourney. Quincy Bejster, from Waukegan, IL, joined Jesse Dorner from St. Paul, MN in the group as two of the three from states other than Wisconsin (Jay being the other one). The group also included Sean Nichols and Mike Petrasek. Sean called a questionable matchup early with Green Bay and Detroit. I know that calling matchups is one of the hardest things to do in a Tecmo tourney if you are unfamiliar with the NES classic. I called Atlanta-Chicago in Madison in 2013, and you can imagine how that turned out. Sean ended up with Green Bay, and ended up losing to Jesse by 31. Sean (1-2) played Mike (0-3) in the next game, and managed to secure his lone victory, winning 14-7 in a close one. Quincy managed to get through the round unscathed, finishing 3-0, grabbing the 5th overall seed. Jesse (2-1) moved on with the 7th seed.
The first group of five, Group E, was the most evenly matched group that was drawn. Each matchup was decided by only 7.7 points on average. This group included Swagz, one half of the former Retro4Ever editorial staff. It also included Todd Bimmel and Adam Herman, both from the area. Tad Kriofske Mainella came in from Milwaukee, WI, while Chris Besson came from Sheboygan Falls. Swagz’ first game came against Todd. In true Tecmo fashion, this one came down to the wire. Swagz bombed one towards the endzone as time expired, and he caught it. Unfortunately, he was one yard from scoring, and wasn’t able to force overtime, losing 14-7. Todd went on to be undefeated in the group, securing four straight victories. Tad called a later game’s matchup as the L.A. Rams against the Cowboys, having control of Dallas. Chris hung tough throughout, but ultimately lost to Tad by the score of 21-14. Chris would lose two other games by seven points, and ended up 0-4 in the group. In an elimination game, Adam played Swagz at the end of group play, both entering 1-2. Winner moves on, loser goes home…or helps pick up after the tourney in Swagz’ case. Huge plays on both sides of the ball all game long, but Swagz ended up squeaking by with a 24-21 victory, nabbing the 13th overall seed. Both Todd (4-0) and Tad (3-1) moved on.
In my group, we ended up having Josh H. up from Madison. We also had John Sweda, Dustan Fett and Hank De Wild, all local products. Hank came prepared with a notebook of information, and it happened to help along the way as he secured the final playoff spot with the 14th seed. Josh and I battled in the first game, and he definitely has a step or two on me in terms of his Tecmo game. While I felt solid and competitive, I still have a ways to go. He beat me 28-7, scoring late in the fourth to push it to a 21-point differential. He would max out every other game in Group Play, so I guess I can take that victory away from it. John secured an early victory against Dustan in a hard fought battle, 14-10. It would be Dustan’s closest game, but he wouldn’t be able to notch a victory in this tourney. After I defeated John 17-10 in a nail biter, I secured my playoff spot with the 11th seed. That game would wrap up our first ever Group Play, and while we had to say goodbye to many on the day, nearly all of them would declare that they were returning next year for Tundra Bowl II.
Tournament Play opened up, and a double elimination format would decided our fate. Nearly all of the six opening round games would be decided by multiple scores, only one would be close enough to gain attention. Jesse took on Todd after Todd called a Denver-Cincinnati matchup. Close throughout, Jesse managed to hold off Todd for a three point victory. Other notables included me getting beat after gambling twice in the maroon zone for points, and Shaun upsetting Quincy as the twelve seed. Kevin would move on after a victory over Tad, and Swagz got blown out by Troy, losing by 39. That would be a familiar outcome for Troy as when he won, most of his games were by multiple scores.
Round 2 of the Tournament Bracket matched up Shaun against Troy, and again, Troy dominated winning 35-0. Josh H. took on Kevin, and won by the exact score after he chose Miami over the Rams. The other two games (Rico over Jeff and Coconuts over Jesse) were by multiple scores. Those on the losing side got sent to the Loser’s Bracket. In the first round of that bracket I took on Hank, and won by seven with the 49ers. I figured if I was going to get eliminated, it would be with my own team after I was given a Houston-San Francisco. Swagz unfortunately got eliminated in a close game with Quincy, losing only by four.
In the second round of the loser’s bracket is where Shaun would exact his revenge for all of the times we've played. By the end of Tundra Bowl, Shaun would have the most upsets according to the seeding out of any of the other competitors. Since we know each other’s tendencies, it made for an interesting game. Ultimately, he got the better of me and won 14-6, and knocked me out of the tournament. Todd, Jesse, and Jeff all saw their tournament runs end in this round as well, while Kevin moved on with Tad and Quincy.
Rounds 3 and 4 of both brackets is where things started to get really interesting. In the Loser’s Bracket, things started dwindling down when Shaun eliminated his brother-in-law Kevin, and Quincy shutout Tad. Those two would await some fierce competition in the next round. The winner’s bracket saw two games separated by a combined 15 points. You know when Josh H., Coconuts, Rico and Troy are involved, there's bound to be a slugfest. Josh H. took the Lions over Troy’s Rams, and Rico sent Coconuts to his first loss as Dallas beating Phoenix. Both Troy and Coconuts were on the verge of elimination, while the winner of Rico and Josh H. would move onto the Championship.
Shaun, Troy, Coconuts and Quincy would have to win the next two games to have even a shot at the Championship. Coconuts took on the last remaining R4E crew member, and while Shaun was up for most of the game, catching many breaks, he was unable to put it away late as Josh A. took the Chiefs to a 21-14 victory over the Bengals. Troy took on the last remaining out-of-state competitor, and while the score wouldn’t suggest a close game (35-14), Quincy did put up quite a battle to start the game. This lined up Coconuts and Troy in the Loser’s bracket, and Rico and Josh H. in the winner’s bracket. The final four shaped up as predicted in this tournament, and while this normally doesn’t happen, you can't deny the skills these players have.
For Rico and Josh’s matchup, Rico called Cincinnati and the Rams, and Josh took the Bengals. The Rams are completely hit-or-miss in most games, but when they run on all cylinders, they’re hard to stop. Troy called the Dolphins and Rams in the Loser’s Bracket, so we were about to see the heart of L.A. come alive. Unfortunately for both Rico and Troy, the Rams couldn’t get hot, and both ended up losing their games. That spelled the end of Troy’s day, his first fourth-place finish, and matched up Coconuts and Rico for the shot at the title against Josh.
A San Diego-Denver matchup was called by Coconuts in the Loser’s Bracket final, and Rico called the Chargers. Both players are fast tappers, so they matched up quite well with one another. The Chargers gained some breaks, including the dreaded Tecmo Fumble, and were able to capitalize on the turnovers. Josh A. was sent packing with the third place prize money, but without a title. This matched up Rico once again with Josh H. In order to win the title, he would have to win two straight against a guy who hadn’t lost yet.
Round 2 of the Tournament Bracket matched up Shaun against Troy, and again, Troy dominated winning 35-0. Josh H. took on Kevin, and won by the exact score after he chose Miami over the Rams. The other two games (Rico over Jeff and Coconuts over Jesse) were by multiple scores. Those on the losing side got sent to the Loser’s Bracket. In the first round of that bracket I took on Hank, and won by seven with the 49ers. I figured if I was going to get eliminated, it would be with my own team after I was given a Houston-San Francisco. Swagz unfortunately got eliminated in a close game with Quincy, losing only by four.
In the second round of the loser’s bracket is where Shaun would exact his revenge for all of the times we've played. By the end of Tundra Bowl, Shaun would have the most upsets according to the seeding out of any of the other competitors. Since we know each other’s tendencies, it made for an interesting game. Ultimately, he got the better of me and won 14-6, and knocked me out of the tournament. Todd, Jesse, and Jeff all saw their tournament runs end in this round as well, while Kevin moved on with Tad and Quincy.
Rounds 3 and 4 of both brackets is where things started to get really interesting. In the Loser’s Bracket, things started dwindling down when Shaun eliminated his brother-in-law Kevin, and Quincy shutout Tad. Those two would await some fierce competition in the next round. The winner’s bracket saw two games separated by a combined 15 points. You know when Josh H., Coconuts, Rico and Troy are involved, there's bound to be a slugfest. Josh H. took the Lions over Troy’s Rams, and Rico sent Coconuts to his first loss as Dallas beating Phoenix. Both Troy and Coconuts were on the verge of elimination, while the winner of Rico and Josh H. would move onto the Championship.
Shaun, Troy, Coconuts and Quincy would have to win the next two games to have even a shot at the Championship. Coconuts took on the last remaining R4E crew member, and while Shaun was up for most of the game, catching many breaks, he was unable to put it away late as Josh A. took the Chiefs to a 21-14 victory over the Bengals. Troy took on the last remaining out-of-state competitor, and while the score wouldn’t suggest a close game (35-14), Quincy did put up quite a battle to start the game. This lined up Coconuts and Troy in the Loser’s bracket, and Rico and Josh H. in the winner’s bracket. The final four shaped up as predicted in this tournament, and while this normally doesn’t happen, you can't deny the skills these players have.
For Rico and Josh’s matchup, Rico called Cincinnati and the Rams, and Josh took the Bengals. The Rams are completely hit-or-miss in most games, but when they run on all cylinders, they’re hard to stop. Troy called the Dolphins and Rams in the Loser’s Bracket, so we were about to see the heart of L.A. come alive. Unfortunately for both Rico and Troy, the Rams couldn’t get hot, and both ended up losing their games. That spelled the end of Troy’s day, his first fourth-place finish, and matched up Coconuts and Rico for the shot at the title against Josh.
A San Diego-Denver matchup was called by Coconuts in the Loser’s Bracket final, and Rico called the Chargers. Both players are fast tappers, so they matched up quite well with one another. The Chargers gained some breaks, including the dreaded Tecmo Fumble, and were able to capitalize on the turnovers. Josh A. was sent packing with the third place prize money, but without a title. This matched up Rico once again with Josh H. In order to win the title, he would have to win two straight against a guy who hadn’t lost yet.
In the Championship, it was the battle of Southern Wisconsin as Madison took on the Milwaukee area. Josh won the toss and called Cincinnati and Miami. Rico took the Bengals, as we all know he’s a big David Fulcher fan, and the kickoff was just shortly thereafter. This was a spectacle that many people missed out on, but for those lucky enough to see these two competitors go at it, it was certainly history in the making. Neither team rushed a ton, and as evidence of that, Dan Marino was the leading rusher for the Dolphins with under 20 yards. It’s was a passing game through and through, and it would come down to timing, precision, and a little bit of luck to take the Championship home. Josh jumped out to a 21-7 lead, but Rico came firing back. He struck gold in the second half with a bomb to a double-covered wide receiver to pull him within 7. Time was not on his side as the game wound down, and he was unable to score another time to pull it even. Josh won the Championship without a blemish on his record, and took home the first prize money and trophy for Tundra Bowl I.
The tournament was a huge success by our expectations for a first tourney, and many people expressed their happiness with the venue, how the tournament was run, and the outstanding t-shirts we gave away. Honestly, I don’t think there was a negative comment said about the whole deal, which made us incredibly proud and humbled knowing that people appreciated the time and effort we put into it. Most importantly though was that everyone enjoyed the first ever Tundra Bowl.
The tournament was a huge success by our expectations for a first tourney, and many people expressed their happiness with the venue, how the tournament was run, and the outstanding t-shirts we gave away. Honestly, I don’t think there was a negative comment said about the whole deal, which made us incredibly proud and humbled knowing that people appreciated the time and effort we put into it. Most importantly though was that everyone enjoyed the first ever Tundra Bowl.
