The inaugural 35+ playoffs are set to begin

After a week off, tons of snow and some well needed rest for the old timers, Division 35+ returns tonight to action for the playoffs. After eight hard fought weeks, it comes down to this and the stakes are at their highest. Dagwoods and Monster Football have clinched a bye so Hitmen Retro will face off against Venom and Relics will battle Polvige Tech.

REMINDER: Next week I will be unveiling the winners for STARAWARDS so make sure to come back next to find out the winners. You won’t be disappointed!

Before I examine tonight’s playoff games, I would like to quickly take a look at week eight action and also our award winners. I will start with the latter and after careful consideration, congratulations to the following award winners:

Quarterback of the Year

#22 Chris Moufrage – Hitmen Retro

1844 yds  44 TD  11 INT  114.2 QBR

Chris Moufrage started the season a little shaky but then came on strong. He stuck with it and gained momentum and confidence as each week passed. A well-deserved award to a player who hadn’t played this position in some time and still went toe-to-toe against the best players in the division.

Receiver of the Year

#25 Carmine Pollice – Hitmen Retro

50 rec  688 yds  17 TD

 This was a no brainer. Carmine Pollice dominated opponents all season long especially in key moments.

Defensive Player of the Year

#19 Jeff Brown – Hitmen Retro

26 tkl  4 INT  5 PD

 I had mentioned in my article a few weeks ago that Jeff Brown does his job so well week in and week out and this award recognizes that. He is an indispensable member of that defense.

Two-Way Player of the Year

#7 Rob Allen – Dagwoods

41 rec  480 yds  14 TD / 29 tkl  10 INT  5 PD

This was another no brainer. Anyone who has seen Rob Allen play can tell you that every week he makes a play that changes the game. He is averaging more than 1 INT per game which backs up my first statement. He was definitely the most dominant player on both sides all season .

Week 8 recap

Polvige Tech 35 – Venom 26

Venom had a good start to the game when Kevin Kousaie had a 40 yard TD in which he made Chris Rosen miss the tackle. In fact Venoms first two scores were 40 yard TDs. However there wasn’t much more going in their favor. Nik Hatziiliou wasn’t getting a lot of help from receivers in terms of separation despite having enough time due to an ineffective rush by Chris Ackard.

For Polvige Tech, Brian Martin and Chris Rosen brought their A game on offense. They were giving great support to Jon Moodie for looks and options. Throw in Vince Mancini who is as consistent as anyone and Polvige Tech has an offense that was rolling. This is what we expect for especially as the playoffs are around the corner.

Besides creating separation on offense, defensively they were keep up in the first half but in the second they weren’t able to contain the big THREE of Polvige Tech. As a result of this loss, they now have to face Hitmen Retro.

Hitmen Retro 46 – Relics 46

Relics had a good start when they stopped Hitmen on a 3 and out however Cory Pecker’s first pass was an INT for 6 points going to Dave Mallais. However Cory rebounded back with a 40 yard TD to Ryan Tereskewitz who had a career night (215 yards and 5 TDs). In the first half, there was a minor injury (hit to the family jewels) to Tony Lalla which limited Relics and it felt like the same thing that happened a few weeks back all over again. However Relics stayed composed and made their plays. This game went back and forth for the most part. In the last two minutes they each exchanged a score to make it 46-46. Then with 2 plays left, Chris Moufrage was looking for Carmen in the back corner of the endzone however Ryan Grad read it perfect and stepped in front for the INT. The game ended in a tie.

Relics were without a couple of players including Darnell Lovelace so with their full roster, they can definitely play with the best in the 35+ division. It looks as though Relics are peaking at the right time going into the post-season.

Monster football 44  – Dagwoods 39

I am not going to break this game down because it was filmed by our Lance Daniel. He did a great job on one of the best games of the season that came down to the last play.

 

Here is the link: https://vimeo.com/206701893

So I hope you all enjoy it!

 

Division 35+ Quarterfinals

 

Hitmen Retro (5-2-1) vs. Venom (1-7)

Season series:  Hitmen Retro won in week 3 by a score of 55-18

This is a tough match up for Venom because they are outmatched in almost every category especially with Hitmen Retro winning 3 out of 4 award categories.

Nik Hatziiliou will face a good rush from Dan Hilton however the only thing that favors Venom is that Hitmen Retro has given up a lot of points.

On defense, Venom has to deal with Carmine Pollice, Dave Mallais, Andrew Carruthers, Jimmy Coupethwaite and even John Basciano (makes the catches when called upon).

Therefore even with a  perfect game plan, Venom are going to find it hard to keep up with number one offense (avg 40.5 points for per game).

 

Prediction: Hitmen Retro

 

Relics (3-3-2) vs Polvige Tech (2-6)

Season series: Relics won 35-27 in week 1

Since their first meeting, Relics have much pretty much stayed consistent while Polvige Tech have struggled. However playoffs are another animal so anything is possible. Let’s compare the following categories:

QB: Advantage Relics – Cory Pecker is a Division 2 quaterback so that’s an advantage for sure although Jon Moodie has a lot of experience in this league and shouldn’t be counted out.

Receivers: Tie – Polvige Tech has Brian Martin, Chris Rosen, Vince Mancini and David Weiss and Relics has Darnell Lovelace, Tony Lalla, Ryan Tereskewitz and Ryan Grad. Both receiving corps can make plays.

Defense:  Advantage Relics – Right off the bat, the pass rush is better for Relics even though they rotate rushers, the efficiency is there. Also players like Ryan Grad, Tony Lalla and Darnell Lovelace make big plays when needed.

 

Therefore Relics has an advantage over Polvige Tech. On paper, Polvige Tech has a roster than can win this game however they will need to execute perfectly by mixing up defensive looks to try to throw Cory Pecker off his game. Most likely it won’t be enough though and Relics should be moving on.

Prediction: Relics

Thanks again for reading, good luck to those who are playing in the playoffs today!