Football is one of the most popular sports in the United States, and fans have always wanted to make it more entertaining and interactive. Fantasy football allows fans to do just that. The fantasy football season is filled with triumphant highs and heart-wrenching lows. However, for amateurs in fantasy football, it can be a struggle to be successful when in a league surrounded by pros.
Sophomore Daniel Barber was talked into playing his first year of fantasy football by his friends. He said he wanted to play for a long time and finally decided to give it a try. However, his lack of experience is already making him doubtful for how his season will go, Barber said.
“I don’t know what I am doing. Everybody sends me trades, and my team sucks,” he said. “All of my friends told me I am going to lose.”
Barber feels lost and is worried that his inexperience will result in the downfall of his team. He is also worried about being exploited by the fantasy experts in his league, Barber explained.
Freshman Jackson Frey was in a similar situation last year when he lost his league. Frey explained he had wanted to join his friends’ league for a long time, and when he finally got a phone, he was able to join the league. He is also a huge football fan, and because of fantasy football, he became even more invested in the NFL, he added. Frey said his amatuer decision- making is what led to his downfall last year.
“Last year, I traded my best players because they had a bad week, and it screwed me over for the rest of the year,” Frey said.
Frey explained that his bad trades made him lose the league, which led to a humiliating punishment that is motivating him to not lose this year too.
“Last year, I lost and had to go into a dog cage as a punishment,” Frey said, “All of my friends poured things on me while I was in the cage. They poured sardines, milk and a lot of other stuff on me.”
Frey is looking to turn things around this year and win his league.
“It’s go big or go home this year,” Frey explained. “I am going to make some big trades to win my league.”
Frey said he is an expert at fantasy basketball, and is hopeful that his success there will translate to fantasy football this year. With his disappointing season last year in fantasy football, Frey said he is looking forward to this year and is confident in his team.
“I think it will be a battle, and I’ll magically end up winning,” he said.
The desire to play fantasy football can come from playing other fantasy sports, such as fantasy soccer. Junior Augie Reber had played fantasy soccer for a long time and decided to play fantasy football this year, he said.
“Some friends talked me into it,” Reber said. “I am known for my fantasy soccer, so why not try football?”
Reber added that he had little football knowledge, but with fantasy football’s feature of auto-draft, he was able to draft a good team. Since auto-draft allows the user to automatically draft a team by getting the best available players, it is a great strategy for beginners, Reber said.
“I have talked to a couple of friends, and they have said that my team is pretty good,” Reber said. “I am pretty confident in not finishing last.”
For amatuer players who haven’t watched much football, fantasy football will result in more games being watched and more attention being paid to the NFL, Reber explained. He plans on keeping most of his players for the whole fantasy season, he said.
“I think I have a good team and a good chance to win it all,” Reber said. “I’m looking forward to the season with all of my friends.”
