What tournament would be complete without strategy, evaluating the competition, and some good old-fashioned trash talk? The answer certainly isn’t one executed by the hot new Pittsburgh Flag Football League (PFFL). All of the above were alive and well at the inaugural “DUST off the RUST” Tournament. Former University of Pittsburgh quarterback Rod Rutherford, with the rocket arm, exploded in his first game for the PFFL PANTHERS. In fact, he threw for three scores in a convincing 30-19 victory over TEAM GOT SMOKED. The PANTHERS’ leader exposed a weakness in the GOT SMOKED defense when he shredded the defense with a 60-yard TD pass to # 21. When asked how he felt tossing around the old pigskin again, Rutherford said, “It’s cool once you get back on the field, start running around and get the competitive juices flowing. “

Wide receiver D. Stubbs was on the receiving end of two TD receptions and two 2-point conversions. Not to be outdone by his signal-caller, Stubbs boasted about his success with Rutherford. “We both can see the field.” He continued, “We picked up chemistry and we made it happen.”

As if Rutherford and Stubbs hadn’t provided enough bulletin board material for their next opponents, teammate Darnell West explained why he was able to easily intercept an erratic pass from GOT SMOKED and take it all the way to the house. “He lobbed it up. I had to take it.” West intercepted another pass later in the contest.

While there were many new faces on the field today, a couple standouts from the fall season returned for the competition including Frank Swick, the league’s reining Iron Man of the Year. When asked about the rule change of cutting the play clock down to seven seconds, Swick responded, “Ten seconds is way too much.” He added, “The other league I played in, it’s five seconds, so seven is a happy medium. If we can cover for seven seconds, it shouldn’t be a big deal.”

Later, Offensive Player of the Year Eugene Smith, quarterback of the BULLDOGS weighed in on playing where the Steelers and Pitt Panthers practice. “Nice location, field’s nice.” Smith added, “Good competition, having so many teams from Ohio. You don’t know what to predict.”

Unfortunately the BULLDOGS’ performance on the field didn’t measure up to their brand-spanking new uniforms, highlighted with red trim. They lost their first game of the tourney, a loss that hurt the BULLDOGS yet Smith remained upbeat. “We feel alright. We don’t have our whole team here. We’re missing the face of our defense in defensive back Rue Hutchinson.” Smith continued, “We’re also missing our starting center.”

As reported, the BULLDOGS have rebuilt their team almost entirely, with all-stars Smith and Zack Gorny returning to their shared status as one of the league’s most dangerous QB to WR combinations. One of the newest BULLDOGS, Chris Burns gave his opinion about the PFFL. “In Pittsburgh Indoor Sports Arena (PISA)., you only have three downs to get a first down.” Furthering the comparison, Burns acknowledged that even though “they [PISA] have two refs, refs are better here.”

While there were plenty of highlights on the field, one occurred in the creativity of the team names. No kidding, today’s tournament featured teams named: BALLZ DEEP, TEAM GOT SMOKED, and SWAG BOIZ. That being said, the most compelling team name award goes to the well-named yet underwhelming team known as WE PLAYED BETTER THAN BRETT. Stefan Depofi, a freshman at the Community College of Allegheny County confirmed “that won’t be our team name anymore.” “We didn’t play up to our name.”

Yes the first “DUST off the RUST” tournament was filled with characters, catchphrases, and nicknames. Just be forewarned that if you pick a team name, make sure that your players can live up to it.