Who's Coming To The 2012 NFBC And Where?

[Greg Ambrosius]

Scott Vetter of Washington, Illinois becomes our 66th owner to take entries in both Main Events as he joins our live events for the first time. Scott competed in a couple of NFBC Online Championship leagues last year with his Team Death finishing second in the March 30th 1 pm League 2 with 83 points. He's now ready to step up to the live events and will be drafting at the Bellagio Las Vegas on Saturday, March 24th for the Main Event and on Sunday, March 25th for the debut NFBC XII. LOVE IT!! Welcome aboard Scott and best of luck in the hunt for the league prizes and the $150,000 in grand prizes.

[Greg Ambrosius]

It's good to welcome another fellow Packers die-hard to the 2012 NFBC as Richard Kulaski of Nashville, Tennessee will be back with us for the big dance. Richard is a loyal, loyal Packers' fan who also happens to be a veteran NFBC and NFFC owner. He's returning this year for the Main Event in Chicago as we now have one full league at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare. Time to get that second league started. Last year, his Rockwell's Command finished 10th in Chicago League 1 with 75 points, while placing 209th overall. Richard not only expects a title this year, but he's thinking about joining a few other NFBC events to win the $75,000 cash bonuses!! I like the confidence Rich. Welcome back Richard and best of luck in the hunt for the $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

It's great to welcome back another former $100,000 champion to the 2012 event as Bobby Jurney of Dunkirk, Maryland will be back in Las Vegas with his co-manager Joe Rawlings. Bobby and Joe won the NFBC title in 2008 and they join fellow overall champs Artie Rastelli, David DiDonato, Stephen Jupinka and Lindy Hinkelman who are back to try for another overall title. Bobby and Joe almost won a second overall title last year as they led Team Jurney to the Las Vegas March 27th Auction League title with 125.5 points last year, while finishing 5th overall with 1,047.0 points. In the Main Event last year, Team Jurney finished 4th in Las Vegas 5 with 102.5 points, while placing 87th overall with 2,506.5 points. Team Jurney is back for the Main Event and the Auction Championship March 31-April 1 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas and we wish them best of luck in the hunt for both league titles and the $115,000 in grand prizes.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have over 215 signups for the NFBC Main Event as we welcome back another NFBC Charter Member to the 2012 big dance. Rick Thomas of Lewes, Delaware has grabbed a spot in both Main Events in Las Vegas at the Bellagio and will be shooting once again for that $100,000 grand prize. RT finished 2nd overall in 2006 and he was one of nine owners considered for the inaugural NFBC Hall of Fame last year. He's won his share of Main Event, Super, Slow Draft and other league titles, but it's the $100K and the title that goes with it that RT is after. Last year, Roundtrippers! finished 6th in the First Weekend Online League 2 with 94 points (125th overall) and 8th in Las Vegas 4 with 74 points. Las Vegas 4 was a loaded league last year and it produced our $100,000 champion, Lindy Hinkelman. Maybe it will be you this year, RT!! Welcome back my friend and best of luck in the hunt for the league prizes and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're glad to welcome another new member to the growing NFBC family as Tim Porcasi of Ferndale, Michigan will be drafting in the Main Event Online on Saturday, March 31st for the first time. Tim has followed the NFBC for years, but never could quite find the time to jump in. Now things are looking up his new business and he's ready to jump into the Main Event with us. He's excited about the competition and about the upcoming baseball season. Welcome aboard Tim and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Signups for the Main Event continue to come in as we'll top 220 before the end of January, the most we've ever had at this point. Our latest signup includes an NFBC veteran who is already signed up for two New York Auction Leagues and now is adding the Main Event to his weekend of fun. Ante Meich of Bayside, New York won an Auction League title last year and now he wants a Main Event league title too. His Round 2 Main Event team finished 12th in New York 1 last year with 65 points, but he's expecting a better finish in that event this year. Welcome back Ante and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Last year for the First Weekend, we finished with 8 full leagues and 120 total teams for the Main Event. We're already closing in on 90 teams and 6 full leagues with several weeks of signups to go. I like the trend. We now have almost two full leagues in Las Vegas and should get to 3 at the Bellagio on Saturday, March 24th. Our latest recruit to Sin City is Chris Beeler of Winchester Canal, Ohio as he's making his first trek to Las Vegas. Chris is a veteran NFBC owner who has always drafted in Chicago, but this year he's going for the fun and sun of Las Vegas on the First Weekend. Chris led his slopshot to a 4th place finish in Chicago League 1 last year with 94.5 points, just missing a money finish and placing 130th overall with 2,223.0 points. Welcome back Chris and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have more than 220 teams registered for the Main Event, leaving us fewer than 170 guaranteed spots left in the big dance. I like those numbers heading into February. Our latest arrival is the person who has supplied us with the big draft boards every year since 2004. Jeff Peters of Erie, Pennsylvania runs FJ Fantasy Sports, which makes our big draft boards and he not only provides the stickers and boards for us but he also has played in our Main Event every year since 2005. Jeff and his son won a Main Event league title the first year and it's been all downhill since then!! Sorry Jeff. He's been searching for that second league title and last year FJ Fantasy Sports couldn't get it as it finished 8th in Online League 1 of the First Weekend with 87 points, placing 152nd overall with 2,130.5 points. Jeff is going to try to make it back to the live event this year in New York City on Saturday, March 31st. Welcome back Jeff and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're glad to welcome back one of our NFBC Charter Members to the 2012 event and we're glad to have him back. Charlie Gillespie of Prospect, Kentucky joined the NFBC in 2004, drafted in Chicago and even competed in our debut NFFC in Las Vegas and won a title his first year. He didn't compete with us last year as he found another love, one that unfortunately still owes him more than $10,000 in winnings from last season. Sorry to hear that Charlie, but stick with us and I promise you'll get paid each year!! Charlie will be drafting in the Main Event again Online on Saturday, March 31st and he is the 5th team in our NFBC Super League on Sunday, March 25th at 1 p.m. EST. Glad to have you back in two signature events Charlie. Welcome aboard and best of luck in the hunt for the $20,000 Super League prize, the $5,600 Main Event league prize and the $100,000 grand prize. And again, I PROMISE you'll get paid by us if you win.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're having a nice run on Super League signups today as we welcome another one. George Kleemann of Palatine, Illinois becomes our 6th owner in the Tuesday, April 3rd 7 pm ET Super League and he also grabbed an NFBC XII on Sunday, April 1st. George is going after that $75,000 cash bonus between the two Main Events and he's going for the $20,000 Super League title after having a solid NFFC season with us. Welcome aboard George and best of luck in the hunt for the $20,000 Super League prize, the Main Event league prizes and the $150,000 in grand prizes.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 9 owners signed up for the Sunday, April 1st Super League, 8 of them live with us in Las Vegas. Our latest signup is Shawn Johnson of Macedon, New York. Shawn was our 16th signup for the Diamond League and if he can't slip into that one he will do the next best thing and take a Super League team. We'll see what we can do there Shawn, but for now enjoy the Super and best of luck in the hunt for this $20,000 league prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

It was a very busy night of signups last night, so I'll do my best to get to all of them today. I'm especially excited to welcome our newest members to the NFBC Main Event as we now have more than 225 teams in that contest, leaving us with less than 165 guaranteed spots left. The tag team of Nate Ravitz of Bristol, Connecticut and Glenn Colton will once again be competing in the Main Event and this year they will be drafting at the New York Hilton on Saturday, March 31st. Nate is the editorial director of fantasy sports at ESPN.com and Glenn Colton is the legal mind who speaks at each FSTA Conference. Both are also LABR League veterans, with Glenn having won 3 LABR League titles and Nate with at least that many runnerup finishes. They compete there and then put their minds together in the NFBC, a nice complement indeed. Last year, Ravitz/Colton finished 3rd in Online League 1 of the First Weekend with 109.5 points and placed 55th overall with 2,686.0 points. Nice battle guys and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Laurence Edelman becomes our 69th owner to have teams in both Main Events as we are offering $150,000 in grand prizes and a $75,000 cash bonus to anyone who can win the overall titles in the Main Event and the NFBC XII. Laurence is returning to the NFBC after a year off and will be drafting the NFBC XII on Friday night at 5:00 at the New York Hilton and the Main Event on Saturday in New York City. Best of luck Larry in the hunt for this potential $225,000 prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

It's great to welcome another veteran NFBC team back to the 2012 Main Event as Andy Eldridge of Fort Worth, Texas and John Meyer will be returning to the Bellagio Las Vegas on the First Weekend. Andy and John competed in Las Vegas 5 of the Second Weekend last year and finished in the lower half of the standings, so maybe a shakeup with a spot in the First Weekend will result in a money finish this year. We're glad to have you guys back for this one and we wish you the best of luck in the hunt for the $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 7 owners signed up for the Mahwah Auction League on Friday, March 23rd at 5 pm EST. We are going to fill this one up and have at least two leagues going on at once in New Jersey on Friday night, the other being the Super League that Mike Massotto is close to filling. But we also plan on having an East Coast Auction Championship that weekend, so plan accordingly. We have ONLY 8 SPOTS LEFT now and we WILL fill this league. Our latest signup for the Mahwah Auction is Brian and Erika McLaughlin of Toms River, New Jersey. Brian competed in the NFBC Online Championship last year and is already signed up for one Online Championship, but it's great to see him step into the live auction as well. Welcome aboard Brian and Erika and best of luck in the hunt for the league prize and the $15,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're a bit behind in our signups for the Windy City, but I trust that our Midwestern drafters will come on strong very soon. We moved a step closer to filling two more leagues last night when Christopher Cosley of Rolling Meadows, Illinois signed up for the 3-pack: The Main Event at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare on Saturday, March 31st, the Auction Championship on Friday, March 30th and the Super League on Tuesday, April 3rd. Chris is a veteran NFBC and NFFC owner who competed in Chicago last year, leading Coz's Club to a 6th place finish in the Chicago Auction Championship with 89 points. Coz's Club also finished 6th in Chicago 2 of the Main Event with 88 points, while placing 168th overall with 2,048.0 points. He is our 7th signup for the April 3rd Super League, a league I know we're going to fill. Welcome back Chris and best of luck in the hunt for the league prizes, the $20,000 Super prize and the $115,000 in grand prizes.

[Greg Ambrosius]

The Main Event signups keep rolling in today as we welcome another NFBC veteran back to the 2012 live event. Nicholas Cole
of Lascassas, Tennessee finished in the money last year and is returning this year to the Main Event at the Bellagio Las Vegas on Saturday, March 31st. Nick led his Prestige Worldwide to a 3rd place finish in Online 2 of the Second Weekend last year with 107.5 points, while placing 46th overall with 2,721.0 points. Great job Nicholas and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 8 teams signed up for the Mahwah Auction Championship on Friday, March 30th at 5 p.m. EST. We're not going to let that Super League steal all the thunder in Mahwah that weekend!! Anson Chan of Ft. Lee, New Jersey has committed to this league, leaving us with ONLY 7 SPOTS LEFT!! Come on you guys from the Atlantic City Auction, let's fill this one up!! I know we can do it in Mahwah. It should be fun. Thanks Anson and best of luck in the hunt for the league prize and the $15,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 89 owners for the Main Event that First Weekend, which means we will soon have a 6th full league among the four venues. We have plenty of time to add a 7th Main Event league, but if you're thinking about doing that Main Event don't delay too long in making your plans. We need to fill these with a perfect 15 owners and I'd hate to see anyone left behind. Our latest entry comes from Glenn Lowy of Farmingville, New York. Glenn is already signed up for the Las Vegas Main Event on the Second Weekend and now he's adding the Online Main Event on the First Weekend. He took 2 Mains last year and his best finish came in Atlantic City 1 as Glenneration X finished 3rd with 103 points and placed 71st overall with 2,589.0 points. Welcome back Glenn and best of luck in the hunt for both league prizes and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're glad to welcome another new member to the growing NFBC family as Doug Wallis Jr. of Bloomfield, New Jersey has signed up for the debut NFBC XII Online on Sunday, March 25th at 1 p.m. EST. Doug is new to the NFBC and excited to be competing for the $50,000 grand prize in our new 12-Team Main Event. Welcome aboard Doug and best of luck in the NFBC XII.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're glad to welcome back an old face to the NFBC as Alan Salem of Oceanside, New York is back with the NFBC after a one-year hiatus. Alan and his co-manager Mark Bloom have signed up for the Friday, March 30th 10 a.m. Auction League in New York City. We already have one full league at that time, but it looks like there might be enough demand for a second league. We'll keep pushing there and also will keep pushing to fill up the Sunday, April 1st 1 p.m. EST New York Auction Championship. It would be great to fill up 4 Auction leagues in New York City!! Welcome back guys and best of luck in the hunt for this year's league prize and the $15,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 90 teams and 6 full leagues in the Main Event for that First Weekend and will keep taking signups for a 7th league. Great job everyone. Patrick Raney of Cullman, Alabama doubled up today by taking Main Events Online on Saturday, March 24th and Saturday, March 31st. He competed in the First Weekend Online last year, but The People's Choice struggled to a 10th place finish in Online League 3 with 68 points. That won't stop Patrick from returning twice in 2012 and trying to win it all again. Welcome back Patrick and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prizes and the $100,000 grand prize.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Demand is through the roof for the Auction Championship in New York this year and we are going to have to find a way to do two auctions on Friday at some point. William Burak of Potomac, Maryland always joins me in Las Vegas, but this year his local league is drafting in New York City on the Second Weekend and he can't make it to Las Vegas the First Weekend. So he's opting for the Main Event in New York City on March 31st and trying to land a spot in the Auction Championship on Friday morning or afternoon. William actually won a national contest back in 2004, but last year Team Burak finished 12th in Las Vegas 2 of the Main Event and in the March 18th Las Vegas Auction League. He's hoping for better results this year from the Big Apple. Welcome back Billy and best of luck in the hunt for this year's league prizes and the $115,000 in grand prizes.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We now have 72 owners doing both Main Events in 2012 and I really think we're going to establish a tradition in Las Vegas of having the NFBC XII on Friday night and the NFBC Main Event on Saturday night. I'd love to have many leagues for those two nights going forward. Grabbing spots in both drafts at the Bellagio Las Vegas on March 30-31 is Duke Viveros of Highland, California, an NFBC veteran who is back for his 8th straight season with us. Duke competes in the NFBC and NFFC each year and this year he's again competing in both the 15-team and 12-team formats. Last year, his Riverside Sheriff So Cal SMAC finished 5th in Las Vegas 2 of the Second Weekend with 92 points, placing 99th overall with 2,423.5 points. Riverside Sheriff So Cal SMAC also competed in the Live Double Play last year, placing 6th in the Las Vegas March 25th League with 66.5 points. Welcome back for the doubleheader Duke and best of luck in the hunt for this year's league prizes, the $150,000 in grand prizes and the $75,000 cash bonus.

[Greg Ambrosius]

We're glad to welcome back another defending Main Event league champion to the 2012 event as Billy Wu of Flushing, New York will be returning to the New York Hilton Saturday, March 31st. Billy finished in a first place tie for the New York League 3 title last year with 104 points -- we actually had a few ties for 1st last year-- and he led his keyser soze team to a 66th overall finish with 2,605.0 points. Billy will be back for the Main Event and possibly a few more live drafts. CONGRATS on the league title Billy and best of luck in the hunt for this year's $5,600 league prize and the $100,000 grand prize.