Hot Seat interview Anwar Sadat

 The Hot Seat: Former Commissioner and Reigning MVP Anwar Sadat

 "There was no merger. We are all boys that grew up playing together. We had 9 teams last year and as commissioner I made the decision to split up our crew into two teams to get the 10th team."

Tell us a little bit about yourself:

My name is Anwar Sadat. I was born in Bangladesh and I moved to NY 17 years ago. I am currently pursuing a CPA (long road ahead) and work as a store manager for Travelex.

Age:  26

Profession: Operations Manager Travelex

Hobbies: SPORTS, Movie Junkie, Ladies.

Did you look up to any athletes when growing up?  If so, who?

Mike Piazza. Being a Mets fan he was my favorite player. Also growing up as Jets and Knicks fan along with being a Mets fan I didn't have much joy growing up. Current favorite athletes are David Wright, Lebron James, Revis.

How did the mega merger between the savages and Spartans of last year improved the current savages?

There was no merger. We are all boys that grew up playing together. We had 9 teams last year and as commissioner I made the decision to split up our crew into two teams to get the 10th team. It sucked because Savages had fun but sucked and we beasted but it wasn't as much fun with so many random heads. Then they pulled a shocker in playoffs and beat us. This year with enough teams me and Hashim left Spartans and joined Savages. Everyone else split up and joined other teams like Yamin to Bandits, Jose to Decepts etc. Savages now have two premier safeties in DPOY in Hashim and All-Pro Yash. I bring depth to the QB position as well as the emotional leader off the field.

So it's not that you dismantled the Spartans, you just went back to the original set up of all your boys playing together when the situation presented itself.

Correct.

How do you feel about the Savages chances against the SAFL competition this year?

The league has improved a lot since year 1. Teams now know the rules fully and using strategies to maximize their potential. We went into off season knowing we needed to get better personnel and have more depth. Adding myself, Hashim was a step in the right direction but adding new guys like Mike, Rich, and Deepak along with the returning guys makes us that much tougher. Now we feel like we can be an elite team with the right focus and hard work. But we understand SAFL this year is going to be a lot of competition.

You have PJ,  zulf and yourself, last years MVP as QBs on your team.  How are you not the starting QB for your team?  Was there any QB controversy?

No QB controversy. I was the starting QB for Savages when I was bought in. However, my job will require me to relocate to Charlotte most of this season and with the uncertainty of my attendance, it was a team decision to start last years starting QB PJ so we don't lose a step when I relocate. Captain Irfan and I had a short, amicable discussion and that was that. We all have faith in PJ. Zulf is the backup QB. If we have to go there we might be in trouble tho. Just kidding.

So you stepped down as commissioner for work related obligations as well?

Yea man. Sometimes life has a way of getting in the way haha.

I am relocating to Charlotte as I will be managing 3 locations in Douglas International Airport for my company Travelex. It is a very nice step up so I couldn't say no. With my impending departure, I obviously couldn't run things. However Farhan, Ammad, and Burhan along with help from all captains have been terrific in taking over the reins. Although I want my signature in the official SAFL pigskin still.

You put up monster QB #s last year.  Do you think anyone will break that record of 50+ tds?  

Like they say all records are made to be broken. It was a special year for our offense during regular season. Jose, Hashim, Sajeel, David, and Yamin could all literally be no 1 receivers for any team. They made some incredible plays. Throwing 5 tds a game isn't out of the question with longer games this season but having that much talent around one QB will be hard.

What are your thoughts from week 1? Any worthy news/surprises?  be a team or players(s), refs or anything else?

Surprised at Decepts dismantling of Empire. New team but looks to have swagger and won't back down from anyone. Chargers were offseason darlings with addition of PJ, Bobby, Sajeel and Nadeem. Well I was very disappointed with their performances as an unit. Jawid did not seen to be in top shape but he is an elite QB. Bandits are stacked both ways. Who are those Ravens?! Stop N Go sucks and will always do. Refs are better than last yr but needs to be more vocal and call games a little tighter. Yash will win DPOY over Jobin. Aasheesh Shravah, my teammate, is an elite defender with the two worst hands in league.

If u remove the "seat with" from the subject line.. U r left with hot Anwar.. Would u agree with that statement?  Would Your teammates think that's an accurate statement?

Man SAFL has to get its mind out the gutter haha. First they ask over a hundred dudes all their private info like address, email, short size and now this!!! I'm getting a little scared haha.

Out of all the SA leagues u participate in, which one do you enjoy the most?  And why?

Softball for sure. The league is extremely well organized and has great competition. We just concluded Spartans softball Season 1 and proud to say we were no 1 seed even tho we came just short of the ultimate goal. Also I grew up playing baseball and played for my high school Bayside, so that always factors in. But Football and Basketball are also a lot of fun. My team won the SABL East and now Savages looking to win SAFL.

Which sport are you the best at?

My best sport used to be Baseball. I was a starting pitcher for Bayside High. But college, partying, and love for food added 50 pounds to my frame and now I suck at every sport :(. So I put my Vince Lombardi hat on and try to do whatever is necessary for my teams.

In your opinion, who is the best SAFL QB in the league?  What attributes make this person the best QB?

Tough question. No one really stands out as the best. Best arm may be Mike, Hector, Zulfikar etc. Best athlete as QB maybe Jawid. Chris is a good QB too but not sure if he's the best. Aldo has all the tools but tends to make some bad decisions that costs his teams games like last week. Pankaj might have the best stats with the talent around him. It's tough to pick just one in this bunch.

Best WR?

Jeremy Bordeaux or Dipan Patel last yr. were ahead of everyone. This year they are not in league due to other commitments. Jose, Suleman and Marc Flynn has all the tools to be the best. Physical freaks. Atif and Hashim are sure handed possession receivers all QBs love.

Best corner (man to man) ie.. Revis of the SAFL?

The toughest overall I would say man to man is Sakib. Dude is nasty, ferocious, great motor. Never takes a play off. He can guard the fast receivers as well as the big receivers. He is physical as hell. And he is the Bandits emotional leader.

Give me one player from SAFL that is not on your roster that you would love to have on the savages?

Suleman from Stop N Go. One of the genuine nice guys of SAS. Very humble and his physical talents are off the charts. He would mesh in well and complement everything we do here. Also it would take away Stop N Go's best player.

Give me the top 3 picks in safl if it were an open draft.

Suleman, Hashim, Jawid.

What can SAFL do to improve the league?

Need to get captains committed to help the league improve. Articles, stats, pictures, videos are all on captains. If all captains chip in like SAFL asks them to the league will be more fun that it already is. The website gets a lot of traffic and there has to be fresh content up every day. More videos would be a lot of fun.

Briefly describe the players on your team:

Irfan- captain, we all consider him as our little brother, terrific all around guy. 

Zulfikar-ask Musaib from Chargers. 

Pankaj- recently engaged so expect drop off in production soon. 

Aasheesh-Vietnam war vet(dude is that old) but still keeps up with the young guns. 

Yash- ran three or four marathons around the country past two years, so obviously girls love him in the bedroom apparently. 

Hashim-getting married at Cantiague, reception at Eisenhower and honeymoon at Roosevelt North. Always playing sports. 

Rich-Mr. CEO. He speaks you listen. You speak he smacks you. 

Mike- Secret weapon. Dude is a superstar in the making. Also wears Bandana which makes his feats look cooler. 

Deepak- hustle guy. Made the team based on intangibles. 

Raheel Malick-IR- begged his way onto the team and his best friend is Farhan the commish. So couldn't say no. It's good to have the commish owe you one.

Thank you for your time and good luck with your impending move!