I’ve been here since day one. I have seen games that would take way too long to explain. The CFSL is a special kind of league. There are good teams, bad teams, and middle of the road teams. It doesn’t always play out that way when they face off. I’ve seen everything from three star cornerbacks lead the league in interceptions to five star defensive tackles chase down every screen thrown against their defense. I wanted to start writing about certain players, Players that made an impact on me, and an impact on the league as a whole. Immortal names in this young league’s history, names we’ll be comparing others to ten seasons from now. I think I’ve found a good place to start.
Ray “Voodoo” Tatum came into recruiting in season two. Season two was by far the best crop of freshman quarterbacks we’ve ever seen. DJ Moss, who signed with Ohio State, was the number one rated prospect in the league. Javon Mack, who jokingly referred to himself as a “game manager”, would go on to win player of the year that season. Doug Ohle would lead his team to a National Championship in his freshman campaign. Voodoo was signed by LSU, a team that has since folded. He was overlooked and underrated on a team that had many internal issues. They won very few games that season.
Ray Tatum is the best player I’ve ever seen.
Season Two
Ray Tatum passes for 4,920 yards. He completes 71 % of his passes, and is the spark that lit the legend of Jared Tetonis. LSU loses their AD midway through the season, and is replaced by Hornsnation, a transition that would change the course of the league and the SEC. LSU is folded at the end of this season.
Season Three
Hornsnation becomes a new AD and takes over the vacant program at Texas. Many LSU players, including Tatum, follow him there. Texas immediately becomes a force to be reckoned with, and in this particular season, Tatum is not the focal point of the offense. That spot is occupied by all world half back Geaux Bamba. Even in a run first offense, Tatum passes for 2,691 yards, completing 68%, and Texas is one win away from playing for a National Championship. Texas is officially on the map.
Season 4
With Bamba going to the NFL, Texas decides to give the reigns of the offense back to Voodoo. To say he delivered would be an understatement. With Texas remaining in contention until late in the season, Ray Tatum throws for 4655 yards and 42 touchdowns. He wins his first offensive player of the year award, and by a wide margin.
Season 5
Texas is again a preseason favorite, and Voodoo has returned for his senior year. This season, everything falls into place. After a couple of scares in the playoffs, Texas wins its first National Championship. Ray Tatum wins his second consecutive Player of the Year trophy, after passing for 3,554 yards and 38 touchdowns.
We see a lot of great players in this league. Ray Tatum was the epitome of an ideal. Work until you get it right. He holds basically every important record for quarterbacks in this league. He is very much the measuring stick for the position from now on. I said early on in his rookie season that I thought he was a special player. Turns out, that was like calling Michael Jordan “good at basketball”. The best part of this story, at least to me, is that the only person that would argue against him as the best quarterbacks of all time, would be Voodoo. It was never about him. He wanted to win, he got into a good program with an AD that knew how to utilize his talents, and he did his job. He went out on top, which is how heroes are supposed to go. To ride off into the sunset with Victory achieved. He’s the best I’ve ever seen in any sense of the word in relation to this league.
I’m glad I got the chance to watch him play, get to know him, and call his games. He won that ring against my team. I hate losing, but if a QB was gonna beat me in that spot, I’m glad it was him. I don’t know what we’ll see in future seasons, but I don’t believe we’ll ever see a story better than that of Ray Tatum. Guys like him are the reason this league is great. I’m glad I’m here to witness it.
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