If you think me writing a small piece in last week’s Power Rankings article was all I meant by return, you were mistaken! I guess I’m back for at least one more real article, huh!

It’s always a pleasure to talk and write FPF and with the playoffs right around the corner, it’s as good as it gets.

Let’s get started!

Week 10

With Week 9 now officially behind us, some of you will play their final games this upcoming week (maybe even tonight!) and push for that last playoff seed. With many of you already clinched, we’ll turn our attention more towards the do-or-die teams/games this week. But we see you, Glogang, at the top!

Thoughts of the Week

Aah, my favorite segment is back. Get ready for some random ramblings
With 2 games left, the 9^th seed can finish first? What? 5A-Conference A is as crazy as it gets.
Longhorns, SCLSU Mud Dogs and Oldschool may be out, but they can still play spoilers to all y’all!
I wouldn’t be so comfortable in that 8^th seed if I’m Ice Up.
That one tie from Tip Top Shape may very well be the tiebreaker to earn them a playoff spot in a week and a half time.
Corona-calm-down
How can a team get 3 ties in a single season? I don’t think I’ve tied 3 games in FPF ever.
K-Squad is the only team in 5A-Conference B currently out of the race.
Is Alexandre St-Arnaud’s the Bruins next big time player or was it all luck? The next 2 weeks should tell
I didn’t divide this article into D5A, D5B, but you guys can tell, right? Right!
Expect additional Division 5 content over the next few days to compensate for the lack in the last couple of weeks. We do apologize for that.
5 Pds in a single game is impressed. I see you George Mallouh
I must admit, it’s kinda nice to see my segments / format picked up by other writers. Is this what being a teacher and seeing your student succeed feel like? Or parent?
A-Town vs Lockdown ended up being a much better game than anticipated. Crazy game actually!
Aside from Goats, Brewers and Mean Girls, everyone else is alive in the 5B-Conference A playoff picture
Mathematically, no one is out yet in 5B-Conference B. It should make for a VERY interesting last 2 weeks
Some of these games were rough to pick; geez.
With so many games happening during the week now, is the “official FPF day” slowly moving to Wednesday rather than Sunday?

Recaps

Arouch (3-6-0) vs Tough Lungs (3-5-1): Both teams needed this win. Arguably, Arouch needed it more as they need to keep their season afloat and win the next 2 also, but Tough Lungs’ hot-and-cold streak continues to haunt them. Matthew Lerner might have found his brother for 4 scores, but he continues to struggle to find help elsewhere when it matters most and Arouch capitalized on the mistakes to create 3 turnovers and establish themselves late in the game to win this one by 6. Dimitri Morand continues to improve and, with his arm talent, it’s only a matter of time before his playbook becomes unstoppable. Many hope this happens AFTER April, but Arouch may need him to get settled in and play lights out football if they wish to play mid-March onwards.
Bruins (6-3-0) vs Ducks and Cover (2-4-3): In a game that should’ve mattered more for Ducks and Cover than Bruins, it played out very differently. Gab Wiseman took to heart what we said on the podcast and SHOWED UP in this one. After being criticized for not being a true pocket passer and not “being there yet”, he delivered a hell of a game. Bruins’ defence still haunts Mathieu Domon to this day with 5 interceptions. Ducks and Cover, for now, out of the playoff race and Bruins locked themselves in and can watch the rest unfold before them.

Warriors (6-2-0) vs Hot Sauce Sports (2-5-1): Coming into this game, few would’ve given HSH a fighting chance. Warrior’s high octane offence is hard to stop and Hot Sauce Sports’ struggle this season kind of made this an easy-to-pick game. With star receiver William Power flipping over to QB (replacing fellow media member Peeze Della Reeze), their ability to keep up was blemished, but we saw sparks from HSH all through the game. Down two scores early in the 2^nd half, maybe Hot Sauce Sports might have been able to get something going, but the sense of urgency came a little too late in the game; maybe doubting themselves for a second. William Power made some mistakes, but he allowed his receivers to ball (James Langshaw and JS Roussy had great games, Kevin Donnet made some sick catches and HSH put up the most points they have all season) and almost broke the 300 combined yards with 40 points! Warriors never lost direction and Michael Solimene found his brother late in the game on a 4^th down to seal the deal. What was a 1^st down throw turned into 6 as Stefano just blazed right past HSH defenders leaving them with nothing but false hope, but HSH should rejoice in the fight they put up against Warriors amist the scramble for backups.
Wack Attack (4-5-0) vs New Wave (6-2-0): This did not look like a 4-4 vs 5-2 team matchup. New Wave started slow and had to adjust to Wack Attack’s defensive style, but the half-time adjustment from New Wave really opened up the flood gates. Jared Gallant could NOT be stopped once he decided to run (3 rushes, 84 yards, 1 TD) and his passing attack really opened up in the 2^nd half as they outscored their opponents 25-7 in the 2^nd half to win this one 31-13. Wack Attack made some nice plays and had a good defence early, but a few plays didn’t go their way (many offensive drops, poor tackling and unlucky tipped catches) and it was too little too late to mount a comeback as New Wave had all the momemtum to themselves to seal the deal.

Players of the Week

Benjamin McMahon (Big Baller Brand): 240 combined yards, 6 TD, no turnovers combined with a 80.95% completion ratio is quite the night. Well done, Benjamin!
Guillaume Fontaine (Buffalo Wild Wings): Maybe he wasn’t in the conversation for Receiver of the Year, but after an 8 catches, 135 yards and 5 Tds performance, he sure reminded us he’s in there!
Justin Lerner (Tough Lungs): 6 catches, 69 yards and 4 TD. Sure, the 69 yards isn’t all that crazy, but catching all 4 of your team’s TD is quite the feat.
Raffi Morelli (Unknown Talent): With 1 tackle, 4 sacks and 1 INT in the same game, I’m confused and impressed all at the same time.

Jordan Tchin (Holy Trollers): 7 catches, 147 yards, 4 TD and pick-six on defence. Another crazy outing to add to his highlight reel!
Lusson Pierre (Chocolate Barracudas): 4 catches, 64 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT and 1 PD. Quite the night for the two-way stud!
Colin Sequiera (Gryphons): 281 combined yards and 7 Tds doesn’t go unnoticed! After a slow start, Colin is padding his resume and making a late push for QBOTY
Noah Groper (Y$L): 5 catches, 115 yards, 3 TD 1 INT and 3 PD. It doesn’t get much better than this, even for Noah Groper!

Power Rankings

Division 5A

Glogang (6-2-1): Sitting at the top of my Power Rankings this week, Glogang is the best team in D5A right now
Unknown Talent (6-2-0): The name hardly fits anymore; we know how talented these guys are. Improving every week, they’ll be a force in the playoffs. Opponents beware
Ballz Deep (6-2-0): Ballz Deep is flying high behind the stellar season from Justin Weir. With 2 games left to play, they’ve got their sights set on that #1 spot!
MTLoud (6-2-0): They may not be the most known FPF faces in the division, but don’t let that fool you, MTLoud is a true contender and is loaded with talent on both sides of the ball
The U (6-2-0): Another stellar season by QB Evan Frank propels The U to the top of the division once again. Even at 6-2, I still feel like we haven’t seen the best of these guys yet. Scary, right?
Bruins (6-3-0): At 6-3, Bruins got nothing left to prove. They’ve moved up and kept their dominant profile. With one more practice run before the real season begins, Bruins is poised for a good W20 playoff season.
Pardon My Swag (6-2-0): I like Pardon My Swag, I really do. They’ve got that clutch-gene that can bring them far, but I felt like I needed to explain their ranking for some reason
GLC (5-2-1): After a hell of a start (4-0-1), GLC entered a rough 2^nd half of season and is coming out better than before. Their Week 12 opponents may regret seeing them on their schedule.
Buffalo Wild Wings (5-3-0): With the best +/- in the division, 9^th feels a bit low for Buffalo Wild Wings. With true ball-hawks on defence and a high-octane offence, it’ll be tough to find a team willing to play BWW in the playoffs this season
Brotherhood Lite (5-3-1): It may not always look “FPFey”, but Brotherhood Lite gets it done no matter what. Unless someone can keep up with them, it’ll be very hard to stop these guys once they give you all they’ve got.

Division 5B

Holy Trollers (7-1-1): When it comes to an efficient system and spreading the ball, no one does it better than Holy Trollers. Even defensively, all 6 Dbs get their fair share!
Leftovers (7-1-0): The Cecere brothers have been a force in FPF for a while now and this season is no different. Probably one of the hardest duos to stop, the addition of key players really elevated this team to new heights.
Y$L (7-2-0): This is a very strong core who knows what it takes to win. I’d be surprised if they don’t make the final 4 this year.
Warriors (6-2-0): Most points scored AND best +/- this season speaks for itself; Warriors will not be denied this season!
Tuts and Parlays (7-2-0): Very impressive win this week, but the loss of Anthony Lazzara will be felt over the next few weeks. I’m curious to see who they bring in / how they adjust because this team is LOADED.
Gryphons (5-3-0): Over the last few weeks, Gryphons have been the hottest team in 5B. After a slow start (0-3), they’re riding a 5-win streak (and potentially 7) heading into the playoffs!
Los Banditos (6-2-0): They’ve always had a stellar defence and their offence improves every season. There’s no denying their contender status this season.
Honey Martin (6-1-1): I don’t care what Peeze says, I’ve always liked Honey Martin. They might not be the flashiest crew, but they get the job done efficiently and win games. Which is all that truly matters.
Blackouts (6-2-0): The definition of defence wins championships. If their offence can reduce the turnovers slightly, Blackouts will be even more dangerous than they currently are!
New Wave (6-2-0): I really liked what I saw from New Wave last Wednesday; speed, height and effective adjustments. And they’re only getting better as the season goes along!

Picks of the Week

With another article focusing more on the playoff picture coming up in a few days, I’ll stick to picking games for now

Division 5A

Buffalo Wild Wings vs The U: The U

Ballz Deep vs Longhorns: Ballz Deep

SCLSU Mud Dogs vs Big Baller Brand: Big Baller Brand

Voodoo vs Pardon My Swag: Pardon My Swag

Ice Up vs Old School: Ice Up

Les Voyous vs Rancerz: Rancerz

Bud Knights vs Tip Top Shape: Bud Knights

GLC vs Unknown Talent: Unknown Talent

Glogang vs K-Squad: Glogang

Fightin’ Tigers vs Tough Lungs: Tough Lungs

MTLoud vs Spartans: MTLoud

Ducks and Cover vs Arouch: Arouch

Bruins vs Brotherhood Lite: Brotherhood Lite

Thundercats vs Broke Boys: Broke Boys

Honey Martin vs Air Force 1: Honey Martin

Blackouts vs Johnny Football: Blackouts

Team Y.S. vs Les Hommes de l’Ouest: Team Y.S.

Chocolate Barracudas vs Green Monster 2.0: Chocolate Barracudas

Gryphons vs Clinkers: Gryphons

Brewers vs Lockdown: Lockdown

Hot Sauce Sports vs New Wave: New Wave

Holy Trollers vs South Side Speedsters: Holy Trollers

Los Banditos vs Leftovers: Leftovers

Goats vs Warriors: Warriors

Wack Attack vs A-TOWN: A-TOWN

Tuts and Parlays vs Threat Level Midnight: Tuts and Parlays

Y$L vs Mean Girls: Y$L

That’s it for me this week! I hope you enjoyed the different pace of the article. Expect additional coverage (Playoff picture) in the upcoming days from different writers and voices around FPF. If you feel the need to compliment or complaint, feel free to reach out to me directly either via email at [email protected] or directly on FB / Messenger. Remember, I didn’t do this to you, YOU did this to you! It appears we cannot run a podcast without Eagle. That speaks more about your teachings than your actual talent Eags. SHAME!

Week 10: Late playoff push

Picks of the Week