The spotlight series is back in action read for NCAA 12!  I decided to start this one off spotlighting the league that started it all: The Tradition and interview with commissioner Hellisan.  This Online Dynasty was the first one for Tradition Football/TSO and was headed up by site owner RynoAid. Original member Hellisan eventually took over commish duties from Ryno. I sat down with Hellisan for a brief Q&A interview session:

BIO:

name: Bryan
age: 36
profession: Real Estate Appraiser

I was born in Escondido, CA (San Diego County) and moved to Seattle Washington due to a divorce as a four year old. Raised in Seattle, I spent summers in San Diego with my dad. Then when I was 25, I moved back to San Diego because most of my family is here. It was there that I met my wife, now of 10 years. I have spent approximately equal amounts of time in each location, and yet still take crap from people occasionally for having two teams in each sport (Mariners/Padres, and Seahawks/Chargers). I first met Rynoaid, then known as “Sundevil” on the Maddenmania forums. We were planning a league around the same time that they sold their user base to Operation Sports. We foresaw the liquidation of those forums, and Ryno had the foreskin… ahem… foresight to start Tradition Football, now known as Tradition Sports Online. I was one of the first on the site, and I’m glad to still be here.

Hello Hellisan, thanks for sitting down and interviewing.

How long have you been playing NCAA and playing online?

I was a bit of a late adopter with the current gen of consoles so I didn’t play the current gen until NCAA ’09. I have been playing Madden and NCAA since the early (Bill Walsh) days, but when the NCAA game really started getting into a groove with dynasties and recruiting in the early 2000′s I dropped Madden like a bad habit.

Who is your favorite real life team/school? Do you always try to play as them in dynasty mode or try out other schools?

It’s hard to answer. I don’t have an alma mater, so usually my favorite team is the one I read (or did read) about most in the paper. I attended Washington State for two years before dropping out so I’m a fan of them. I was also a fan of the Huskies when I lived in Seattle, and I’m a fan of the Aztecs now that I live in San Diego. However, that lack of a true school has always benefited me well as I will pretty much take whatever team is available and have fun exploring their traditions, history, etc. I read about their record holders, players and coaches of the past; anything that can provide me a greater understanding of that school’s history. That is one thing I think could be done better in NCAA is do more with the history and traditions. Even if it’s just loading screen factoids about your online dynasty team, that should be implemented.

The Tradition is the original dynasty for TSO, can you give us the story behind it and how you became commissioner?

It’s difficult for people with bad memories to recount the details of things like this, but let’s just say that maybe I’m a bit opinionated and pushy. So it probably started out with my annoying the hell out of Ryno by always voicing those opinions… Eventually I became the commish only in the game because I’m up late, and we found we could advance more quickly with a late-night advance to where a couple people played their games that night. As Ryno became more busy with the site, and I kept mouthing off every time an issue came up, maybe it just happened by default? I really don’t know. All I know is it’s one of the toughest leagues on the site. It’s a lot of fun, and winning a title in T1 is something to be proud of. We have a nice mix of guys that are really good on the sticks, and guys that recruit to become good as the seasons roll forward.

What has been the toughest obstacle you have overcome as the Traditions commissioner?

Probably the glitches in online dynasty. This year we have already lost a game (gave a winner a loss) and possibly a member as a result. In the past, the file has completely crashed, resulting in a week or more of downtime as we try and figure out what to do. Sometimes it’s hard to know what to do. I’m a bit of a people pleaser, and the nature of these glitches is that you can’t compromise and make everybody happy, and sometimes they take forever to find a workaround. That kind of stuff that literally takes you away from your job in the daytime is the stuff that really bugs me, because like most people on TSO (and like Mike Gundy) I’m a man. I’m an adult. I am supposed to have priorities above and beyond a video game. I can only imagine (very vaguely imagine) the difficulties and intricacies of programming a game of this depth and with this much data to manage, however… I hope one day we get a fully finished game.

What is the setup the Tradition is using for NCAA 12?

Three conferences (Big Ten, PAC 12, SEC) with two teams in each division. We weeded out the truly dominant teams, but some people still got better teams than others. And some people with big mouths *cough*Parrothead*Cough* won’t let me forget about it. Then he goes out and beats the team he has whined about all season. The gall of this man.

What are your thoughts on NCAA 12 this year?

It’s a fun game that is very much threatened by the glitches and issues. I talk on Xbox Live to a number of guys both inside my league and out, and a lot of people are getting a lot of frozen games and various glitches that are making a good game difficult to enjoy. On the mic last night, one guy had a game freeze in the final minutes, after more than an hour of game play. But I digress. The game is fun. I like the new animations during tackles, and the lack of suction blocking is creating a more interesting game for people such as myself that like to play linebacker. The passing game is the big story as it is now extremely difficult for some guys, myself being one of those. You have to treat the rock with care, that’s for sure.

Is/are there a dominant coach or coaches? Who are the favorites to be the most successful in NCAA 12?

Historically the most successful coaches in T1 have been MoGriffJr, myself, and Bruce80 (now gone) not necessarily in that order. Just speaking on the number of total championships won. We have a lot of other very tough players. Unlike some other leagues I follow on here, there is not a single match up (any two players) that is a given. During the early going, I won’t pronounce anybody the favorite to dominate this thing. Some of the guys who are struggling with the game early are killing it at recruiting so they will have great teams in a couple years, when they start to figure out the game more in depth.

I’ll run down the various members right here, in alphabetical order.

Blaza… He might not be a member by the time you read this. One of the funniest people on the site, although his desire to “have a laugh” gets him in trouble at times. He chose South Carolina this year, and in season 1 was undefeated with all his regular season user games out of the way until a glitch turned his easy win into a loss during the advance. Not sure how it happened. He is really bummed out about it. He is considering the role NCAA plays in his life, and whether he wants to spend so much time on something that could be ruined by a glitch. I will argue for the relationships nonsense, about how long we’ve all known each other, but he’ll make the decision that suits him best. He likes to ground and pound, always has been good at running the ball but hasn’t won the big one. He got screwed late last year by going undefeated yet still finishing 3rd, a tough one.

Hellisan (Ole Miss)… I was going to have another member write this but that didn’t work out. So what would I think one of them would say? Well they always say I’m a dink and dunker… Even though in every user game I play, I typically have a difficult time getting the other team off the field, and if I don’t score in 3-5 plays, I rarely score at all. How is that a dink and dunker? But that’s what they’d say. I’m competitive enough that despite the fact I’m not that great, I usually will the game close somehow. I rarely blow anybody out but I rarely get blown out and I tend to come back on people a lot late in the game. Close games are what I enjoy, I hate blowouts. I make no bones about the fact that the members of T1 and my friends on TSO in general are important to me, I really enjoy the cameraderie.

Hotrod (Stanford)… We added him last year when he came very highly recommended to me and we were trying to continue to make the league stronger. What I want to do is add people who make it tougher to win a T1 championship, yet who people don’t hate to play. Hotrod falls into that category… I mean I hate playing the guy, but… He’s very good. Won his first T1 title in our last season of NCAA 11, until then he was looking a bit overrated. We have an inside joke that his cousin Dante plays all his tough games, and well… Good job Dante in winning that first one for Roddy.

JFosh (Arizona State)… When I think of Fosh I think recruiting. His team will usually be a 99 OVR by the time all is said and done. He is the type that could beat you by 30 or lose one due to a choke interception, he runs very hot and cold. He is one of the classiest guys on the entire site (we want more of these types… which will require me getting a lobotomy). When you think of the great sports on the site, he should be right there alongside Bondzai, and I think we’ve added to that this year with our draft selections.

jms493 (Penn State)… All business all the time, except he’s never serious. Not a lot of patience. Very successful in real life. Penn State grad who has his team for the second time in 4 years… And once again EA made them awesome… What Penn State team are they watching? I’ve known JMS for at least 6 years back from the days on MaddenMania. Good player that unfortunately is being compared to the Buffalo Bills as he gets there then loses. In fact at one point he did that four straight seasons or something.. I felt really sorry for him so I held a little vigil for him with a couple lit candles while eating an In-N-Out Burger, it was really good.

MaxATX34 (Utah)… The first pick in the inaugural TSO draft! Rogueish (or so he thinks) guy from Texas who seems to have some sick affinity with teams from or around Texas – like if he can’t be Texas, he wants to be North Texas.. or Baylor. Or a team with a coach from Texas… He’s good but loses a lot in T1. Join the club. I wanted Max in our league because all of our members really liked him, and because he’s a very solid player that people enjoy going against. I’m impressed that he chose a non-Texas squad for this dynasty, although technically I don’t think he had a choice. What I like about Max is he loves to talk about the game, and shares information on how to play it with others (if they’re willing to listen). He’s not just another info hoarder.

MogriffJr (Nebraska)… Has the most titles of anybody in T1, or maybe is tied with me… I can’t remember as I write this and can’t be bothered to research it… Was added in the first season of T1 and I’ve known him for probably 8 years back from when we were both just posting our dynasties on the boards, prior to online play. He is a guy who in the past has dominated on defense but he can also play just about any offensive style, as some of his best success in NCAA 10 was with a Georgia Tech team where he ran the option for most of it.

NYJuggalo45 (Wisconsin)… Our beloved seasonal member (most leagues have one)… As I mentioned above I’ve known him online for 13 years. If you like office pools, betting on sports, etc, this is a guy you should know. He’s also one of those guys that if you took everything he says in his game loss write-ups to heart, you’d think that the two of you were playing a different game. Like occasionally the cpu will just rape and pillage his whole town, and sometimes even the police have to get involved. For me I’m usually doing something wrong when I lose. But he never is! It’s amazing!

The Parrothead (Oregon State)… A new member in T1. When I was preparing for the draft, I looked at a lot of posts of each person in the draft and made notes, and I generally just liked his attitude about the game a lot, and when I cross-checked him with members of T1 that had played him, they said “get this guy.” So that is why he was one of the highest rated people on our board. So far I’m disappointed with the pick, frankly. HAH. He is looking very good early on, unbeaten so far. Can he win the title in his first season in T1? That would be cool.

Riptides (Georgia)… After I made the selection of The Parrothead, he asked me to pick up his buddy Riptides… So far I haven’t spoken to him much (his kids sleep in the next room, which apparently is divided from his with a paper-mâché wall….). So I don’t know what he’s about, but he’s playing his games quick. Hey that’s something. And I had him pretty highly rated on our draft board prior to Parrot saying anything… Glad to have Riptides on board.

smlVICTORIES53 (Mississippi State)… Currently ruing his decision to be Mississippi State instead of Arkansas, he has had a tough first season but I know he is a very good player who will be difficult to beat over the long haul. And we have yet to play this year. That is a game I’m looking forward to. In the draft, he was rated as highly as Max but we waited till the 2nd round to get him because he wasn’t as well known as Max and because that’s how the league voted. He is part of the T1 COD: Black Ops Brigade, which includes myself, Twister, and Max. He is also the best of our little brigade. However, you just don’t want to try to hold down a building with him, because you’ll hear him quietly drawl”I got killed” about 5 seconds after you get shot in the back.

Twister18 (Michigan)… Tony Twist fan. Recruiting genius who already is putting together an impressive class with Michigan. So far he is really struggling with the passing side of the game, he is the leader of our new “T1 passer’s support group” of which I am also a founding member. As I mentioned above, he is a member of our Black Ops T1 brigade and I’m trying to get him to turn his look sensitivity down in that game… When the powers that be granted us a Foundation Member pick, we jumped at Twist due to his reputation as a classy player. We probably have two of the classiest guys on TSO in him and JFosh. Glad to have you aboard Twister.

What makes the Tradition stand out amongst other online dynasties?

We eat our young.

No, really… I’m not sure exactly. Being the original dynasty at Tradition Sports Online I guess is one distinctive factoid. But aside from that, we aren’t a coaching carousel dynasty or a 1-star dynasty or anything real interesting. We have a lot of guys that have known each other a long time and give each other a lot of crap. For instance, I have known Mike (NYJuggalo45) since 1998 when we were both on a now defunct website known as the thinking man’s guide to madden. There are at least three guys I’ve known longer than a decade. We also have three members that broadcast user/user games on Justin.tv so there is a lot of interest in the league generated from seeing other people’s games on justin.tv.

What is your most memorable moment or game from your time in the dynasty?

I’ll go with two. The first was in NCAA ’09. I took Purdue and slowly built them into a powerful team. I got to the national championship game, and who was there waiting for me other than MoGriff. To add to the excitement of that game he was trying to broadcast it with a webcam and there was almost an hour wait for that game to start as our techies helped him set it up. Talk about nerves… First play of the game was a play action bomb for a touchdown and we managed to hold on and win it.

The other moment that stands out is watching JFosh vs. Ramirez (a former member) on justin.tv. This was also in NCAA ’09. I don’t have all the details or specifics of the score and such.. but Ramirez and Arizona State took a 1-point lead against Fosh and UCLA as the game was winding down (under 1 min. to play). Efforting to make it a 3-point lead he decided to go for two, and threw an interception which JFosh returned for a touchdown and subsequent 1-point lead of his own, to win the game. Everybody watching on justin.tv just went crazy.

Great stuff there Hellisan.  Best of luck to you and your crew in NCAA 12 and beyond!

The original post can be found here.

Here are the details:

General Notes

• The feel of the gameplay is a bit different. To me it feels a bit more like Madden 11 on the field than NCAA 11.
• The game difficulty seems a bit easier than 11, but that could also be attributed to being used to more challenging slider sets.
• Interceptions also seemed more common, as I was getting several a game on defense. Again, this is also something that I am used to being adjusted by sliders
• Several new animations, especially tackling, and all the presentation stuff as promised.
• The gameplay also seems a bit faster.  The game speed is something I may want to tweak down a little for the retail version.

Likes

• Line interaction – I am really liking how the Oline and Dline interact and battle in the trenches.  The blocking and dline moves seem more realistic and the suction blocking very reduced if not gone all together.
• Receiver and DB interaction – Psychic DBs seem toned down.  Coverage feels more natural and realistic with less evidence of warping and running the route before the receiver does.  I also love some of the new animations with the ball in the air, from the WR-DB interactions to some of the new catching animations.
• Zone coverage – It seems zone has had the improvements promised by EA.  Now zone feels on par if not better than man coverage without it feeling broken or too good.  I love how the DBs pick up incoming receivers in their zones, and should make pass plays like zone floods more realistic.  The safety zone coverage is also very noticeable improved. they will now not automatically get burned deep over the middle in 2 deep, but will step up and go after the ball.  So far so good with the zone coverage.
• Running between the tackles – I am also enjoying running up the middle and between the tackles.  It feels smoother trying to run between the linemen and hitting smaller holes.  I am enjoying not getting suck on my lineman’s foot or bouncing off he back of my full back.  This feels much more realistic and natural.
• Playaction is viable again – The playaction is back and seems to be tuned correctly.  No longer is this an almost guaranteed sack nor is it a guaranteed blown coverage big play.  So far, the playaction feels to execute like it should.
• Presentation – Some nice new touches, though I have never been one that cares much for presentation.  However, it does add to the college atmosphere nicely.
• Collision system – The new tackling and collision system is nice. No more suction tackling!  Another gameplay feature that just feels more natural and real.  Very refreshing.

Dislikes/Concerns

• Glitches – Given that the demo is a an older build, hopefully many of these wont be noticable in the retail release.  One big glitch I had was on a pitch play in Texas’ strong I playbook. The QB would miss the pitch to the HB every time resulting in a fumble.
• CPU Offensive AI – Again, the playcalling by the AI is a bit weak.  The CPU QB also holds the ball too long resulting in many coverage sacks.  When playing against Oregon, the QB made terrible scrambling decisions. At times the QB scrambled when there was no break in the pocket, only to run straight to my DE engaged with the tackle and promptly get sacked.
• User pass rush too easy – I found it at times too easy to get the DEs to beat the CPU tackles resulting in an excessive amount of sacks. This is something that can be tweaked with sliders.  By executing a swat and swim move or other such moves right when the tackle was about to engage my DE, my DE would blow past him leaving the tackle ‘rooted’ to the ground with his hands extended resulting in an easy sack.
• Tuck fumble/incompletions – Several times a game on both sides, the QB looks to get hit and fumble only it to be considered an incompletion. The QB doesn’t visibly appear to be throwing the ball at all when this occurs.
• Speed backs are king – The momentum and locomotion appear to have been tuned down a bit, and runners cut and change direction on a dime.  I also saw a lack of broken tackles and so it looks like the speedy and agile backs are going to be disproportionately better than the bigger trucking backs again.
• Cut backs are too effective – Going into a hole in the line and then reversing field and cutting back into another hole seems too effective. It was almost better to do this most of the time than to follow the actual design of the run.  Part of the issue stems from the LBs commiting to the hole and then getting lost in the line as the HB changed direction.  This might also occur do to the ease of changing direction and running with the HB.
• Spread/Shotgun running – Running out of the spread doesn’t feel as effective as it should in the college game.  Now, this may be disputed by guys who are more skilled in running in this style of offense.  I really fear that in a user game, the user controlled defender will be able to shoot the gap in the Oline and stop most of the Shotgun hand-offs in the backfield.

I am really enjoying the demo so far and am looking forward to the retail release as I am sure most of us are.  there are definitely some promising new features beyond just the new gameplay additions and tweaks that have us all excited for July 12th.  Hopefully some of my concerns and problems with the demo will be addressed in the release by updates, sliders, and unfounded fears.

Go here for the 360 Tournament sign up

Go here for the PS3 Tournament sign up

According to Pasta Padre, there will be 4 different teams that make up 2 possible matches to play as.  Playing the demo will also unlock some Pro Combat jerseys for a few schools which will be usable in the retail version of the game.

A let down for most of us die-hard NCAA football fans to be sure, but maybe this will give us a bit more polished demo and something very close to the final product.

If you are interested in gaming for the next year with a fast growing community built around “sim” style football, come see what sets the Tradition Sports Online community apart.

** Please do not re-post this information without permission from Tradition Sports Online, Inc. If you wish to link, you may use the header with a link to this page. **