By Dylan Lightfoot
Attention fantasy sports fanatics, wannabe general managers and those who frequently say to themselves, “I could coach, draft or recruit better than my favorite team’s head honcho”: you’ve finally got your chance with WhatIFSports.com: THE Sports Simulation Site (http://www.whatifsports.com)!
No, this is not some contest to win a G.M. or coaching position –– it’s pure fantasy. It’s for those who live for Franchise Mode in Madden and those individuals who spend countless hours building their own team in NCAA 2004 College Basketball for PlayStation 2 instead of studying.
The always-popular and funny ESPN sports guy Bill Simmons loves the site; “The world needs to know about www.whatifsports.com,” he says. And so it should.
The site, in its sixth year of existence, offers three modes of play: SimMatchup, SimLeagues and Dynasty. The Dynasty mode is the only one that charges a fee ($8 a season). The site started out by compiling years of statistics ranging from the NHL to College Hoops and now offers the ability to match up some of your favorite teams (no matter what the time period) and simulate the outcome (SimMatchup). I have always been a fan of matching some of my favorite Xavier University teams of the late 1990s through the present with some of the greatest teams in college basketball history. I pitted my 2003-04 Muskies against the untouchable 1975-76 Indiana Hoosier team on a neutral floor. It’s no big surprise that my Musketeers lost 90-72. Romain Sato had 16 points and 10 boards but was no match for the likes of Scott May and Quinn Buckner.
Over the years, the site has evolved so you can build your own teams with baseball players from the mid-1800s to the present and match them up against other user-created teams, or real ones like the 1997 World Series Champions the Florida Marlins. You can even enter simulation leagues, but don’t splurge on the 2001 Barry Bonds and his 73-homer season or Cy Young’s 1965 season when he went 26-8 with an ERA under two and almost 400 strikeouts –– you have a salary cap to stay under.
When I first found out about the site it seemed like a sports fanatic’s dream come true. But I could only stay entertained by the simulation leagues and match-ups for so long. However, just a few months ago, I discovered that the geniuses at WhatIFSports.com came up with something incredible –– the entirely fictitious Dynasty mode. This feature is available for both college football and basketball, and I was lucky to get a spot in their recent openings in World 7 (named the “Crum World”) as the coach of a college basketball team.
Like everyone else doing this for the first time, I had to start at a Division III school with the hopes of eventually working my way up through the college ranks. I chose to take over as coach at Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., because of its location and access to great basketball talent.
My first order of business as coach was recruiting for the upcoming basketball season. I began the recruitment period intending to focus on guys with great speed so I could build a team that pressed and ran an up-tempo style of ball. Each recruited player is ranked in several categories ranging from athleticism, speed, and footwork to work ethic and stamina. Players even have a grade on free throw shooting and GPA.
After initiating contact with dozens of recruits and spending my budget on phone calls and promotional materials for the school, I narrowed my roster to fill my two scholarship openings. I then turned it up a notch by draining my recruiting budget for some home visits and invitations for campus visits.
I ended up signing just one player and missing out on my prize recruit, the fictitious Kris Mendoza, a 6-foot-6 guard from Minneapolis who snubbed me despite the fact that I spent a bulk of my budget on him. I even illegally sent him some booster gifts ($100 cash, a throwback jersey and a stereo system). With my one new recruit and 10 returning players, I was set.
While recruiting is just one aspect of the Dynasty games, you can also set your team’s offensive and defensive styles. You have the ability to allot how many minutes each player plays and designate specific aspects of the game you want them to work on throughout the season. You even have to set a certain amount of time they spend in study hall.
After taking care of all my preseason duties, I started the season and let my decisions play out through the simulation. So far, I am six games in and am struggling with a 1-5 record. I am also hampered by several injuries.
I’m not worried, though. I figure it will take me at least three years to get the players I need to run my style of ball successfully. Hopefully, the administration at Hamilton will let me stay that long.
Andrew Krumme is a sophomore pursuing a Finance major, and is Assistant Sports Editor for The Louisville Cardinal. E-mail him at: akrumme@louisvillecardinal.com.
