After winning the Exhibition Bowl over the Portland Porcupines, the San Antonio Snow Monkeys appeared to be a favorite as well. The Snow Monkeys featured Terrell Davis, Vinny Testaverde, the Broncos defense and an eternally flamboyant yet scandal-rich management style. But after losing to the Sitka Spitfires and the Ontonagon Bouldersnatchers in the first two weeks of the season, the Snow Monkeys spent the remainder of the year merely trying to stay afloat and/or sober.

The Spitfires and the Virginia Velociraptors began the year atop their respective divisions. The Velociraptors were expected to be hopeless losers, given their unusual preference for players with Nittany Lion pedigree. However, with help from the schedule, the Velociraptors launched to a 3-0 start. Eventually though, the Velociraptors were eclipsed by the Hell's Angels. The Angels relied on lower draft picks, such as Brad Johnson and Curtis Martin, as well as early-season pick-ups, such as Robert Smith, to make up for early-round draft picks wasted on Jim Harbaugh and Karim Abdul-Jabbar. The Angels also benefitted from superb performances by the Chiefs defense, Antonio Freeman and Jake Reed. By Week 5, the Angels grabbed the Napoleon Division lead from Virginia and never looked back.

Over in the Bismarck Division, the Sitka Spitfires dove out to an 8-1 lead, slipping out of first place only for one week (after losing to Hell in Week 3). The Spitfires, led by Jeff George and Eddie George, were second in total scoring only to the Snow Monkeys, who had managed to recover to a 5-4 record, good enough for second place at the time. In Week 10, the Snow Monkeys scored less than 100 points for the first time all season in their loss in Sitka. The Spitfires celebrated their division crown and then proceeded to drop their last three regular season games to finish 9-4. The Snow Monkeys, thanks to lackluster performances by Vinny Testaverde, free-falled to 5-8 and did not qualify for the playoffs. The Great Falls Gummi Bears took a similar nosedive, careening from 4-3 to 4-9, good enough to meet San Antonio in the "MSU Bowl" at the end of the year.

In the first week of the playoffs, upsets occurred in the Napoleon bracket while the Bismarck bracket remained predictable. Portland upset Hell, who had become plagued by late-season injuries to Johnson and Martin. Meanwhile, the Velociraptors exploited a dropped pass by Rod Smith to upset the Berkeley Beatniks. The Beatniks had taken quite a journey to even become a playoff upset victim - they had begun the year 1-6, with injuries affecting every starter, but managed to finish 7-6 with the assistance of good health and the 49ers defense, acquired from the Victoria Pride. The Sitka Spitfires blew past the rival Bouldersnatchers, while the Sirius Stars, who finished the season on a tear thanks to Barry Sanders, rode Sanders to victory over the Pride.

The anemic Velociraptors showed they still had one surprise left in them by defeating the Porcupines in the Napoleon Division final. Steve Young was in late-season form, while Drew Bledsoe, Rickey Watters and the rest of the Porcupines fell back into more familiar ways. The Sirius Stars rode Barry Sanders once again, running through the Sitka Spitfires, whose magic had long since slipped away, thus setting up an unlikely Sirius - Virginia matchup for Super Bowl I.

Despite the return of Young-to-Rice for Virginia, Barry Sanders was just too much. The game featured a classic quarterback matchup (Young vs. Aikman), a rookie runningback (Antowain Smith), and many fine receivers (Rice and Yancy Thigpen for Virginia, Michael Irvin and Jimmy Smith for Sirius). The Stars never allowed Virginia much hope, as Sanders trampled his way through the Portland night towards a championship ring and the inaugural league MYP award.

Hell's Angels
9-4, Rusty Fork
Notable Players: Brad Johnson, Steve McNair, Curtis Martin, Robert Smith, Chiefs D, Antonio Freeman, Jake Reed

Berkeley Beatniks
7-6, Mildew Mug
Notable Players: Kordell Stewart, Mark Brunell, Terry Allen, Karim Abdul-Jabbar, Herman Moore, Rod Smith, Tony Martin, 49ers D

Virginia Velociraptors
7-6, Golden Goblet
Notable Players: Steve Young, Jerry Rice, Antowain Smith, Raymont Harris, Yancy Thigpen, Jets D

Portland Porcupines
4-9, Brown Bowl
Notable Players: Drew Bledsoe, Rickey Watters, Scott Mitchell, Robert Brooks, Cris Carter, Cowboys D

Great Falls Gummi Bears
4-9, 4-year MSU Scholarship
Notable Players: Dan Marino, Jerome Bettis, Adrian Murrell, Tim Brown, Packers D.

BISMARCK DIVISION

Sitka Spitfires
9-4, Grey Cup
Notable Players: Jeff George, Eddie George, Napoleon Kaufman, Rob Moore, Joey Galloway, Carl Pickens, Patriots D, Buccaneers D

Sirius Stars
8-5, Super Bowl I Champions
Notable Players: Troy Aikman, Barry Sanders, Dorsey Levens, Michael Irvin, Jimmy Smith, Redskins D

Victoria Pride
6-7, Case of Mello Yello
Notable Players: Brett Favre, Warrick Dunn, Ed McCaffrey, Andre Rison, Eagles D

Ontonagon Bouldersnatchers
6-7, Lead Plate
Notable Players: John Elway, Garrison Hearst, Shannon Sharpe, Steelers D

San Antonio Snow Monkeys
5-8, Imelda Marcos Shoe
Notable Players: Vinny Testaverde, Terrell Davis, Emmitt Smith, Irving Fryar, Broncos D, Cowboys ST

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