The REAL season begins: Division A/B Quarter-Finals Playoff Preview:

Welcome to the Quarter-Finals edition of the FlagPlus Football Division A/B article.

With the regular season now officially in the books, the real season is set begin. This is what we all pay FPF for. To make the playoffs and win championships. Everything else is fun, but it doesn’t really matter.

First up in Division B is a do-or-die winner advances loser goes home game as Here For The Beers takes on the Junkyard Dogs.

(4) Junkyard Dogs versus (5) Here For The Beers Friday 9PM @ Laval

*Winner advances to play (1) Urgence Médic in the Semi-Final

* Loser is eliminated.

Previous Meeting: Here For The Beers (30-19) Week 6.

In the regular season matchup, the Here For The Beers defense was able to intercept Junkyard Dogs Quarterback Jason Rossie a season-high four times, including twice in the second half, one of which was returned for a touchdown by Defensive Back Chris Milard.

Another key to victory on that side of the ball, was Here For The Beers shutting out the JYD offense on two of their five trips to the redzone.

While the Here For The Beers offense wasn’t as dominate, and QB Sean Avraam only completed half of his passes (18 for 36), they did a good job of winning the time of possession battle, as they had three drives of at least eight plays, and all but one that was longer than six.

That matchup was all the way back on August 1^st. Fast forward nearly six weeks later, and both teams seem remarkedly different since then. With the exception of a (35-32) win over a non-playoff team in BYOB, which ironically clinched them a spot in the post-season, Here For The Beers, have backed their way into the dance by losing four out of their last five games. Talk about a lack of momentum.

The Junkyard Dogs, have seemingly gone in the opposite direction over the last month, as they have gone (2-2), with two blowout wins over a Get Off Our D team that just beat Here For The Beers by two touchdowns last Thursday night in Laval.

On paper, Here For The Beers has the slight talent advantage. The team also has the edge in championships with 24 compared to 8, and Hall-of Famers, with 2 to 1. Fortunately for JYD, the game is played on the field.

For the Junk Yard Dogs to emerge victorious, they will need to continue lighting up the scoreboard in the 2nd half. Since their Week 6 loss to Here For The Beers, JYD, has scored 104 points in the second stanza which is good for an average of 26 points. Accomplishing that again might be easier said than done however, as during that same four-week span, the HFTB defense has given up 61 points, good for an average of just over two touchdowns (15.25).  

To keep the good times rolling, JYD, will need to continue feeding the ball to their big play threats in Sean Semerjian, Charles-Olivier Lavigne, Rory Semerjian, and Paul Lapierre, while mixing in calculated plays for Demario Coper and Hinsley Adams.

In order Here For The Beers to win, they will need to rediscover an offense that has nearly gone dry in the second half, as they have scored a grand total of 49 points since their win over JYD. The key to that will be getting the ball in the hands of Dom Benevento, Vinny Gualano, and Corey Walwaski more often in the short passing game, especially with Jordan Allard, Chris Milard, and Marco Bertoldi occupying the intermediate and deep areas of the field.

Ultimately, this contest will come down to the Quarterbacks. Both players are championship tested, but also have short tempers, especially in crunch time.

In head-to-head matchups, Avraam is undefeated against Rossie going (3-0) with a post-season win back in the 2017 Spring Season, while he was a member of The Commission. Will he be able to keep the steak going or will Rossie finally be able to break through and not only beat his HOF counterpart, but also lead a team out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2017.

I think the reigning QB of the Year will find a way to guide his team to a tight victory.

In Division A we have two matchups this weekend. Up first is the All-Stars versus Chernobyl – 21, then the Braves take on Khantraband.

(3) All-Stars versus (4) Chernobyl – 21 Sunday 9PM @ Lachine

* The winner faces the loser of the (1) Braves versus (2) Khantraband game.

* The loser is eliminated.

Previous Meetings: All-Stars (32-31) Week 3 AND (33-33) tie Week 10.

Talk about close contests, as both games were decided by three points. It is only fitting that we get a third and final showdown between these two squads.

The first meeting came down to a defensive stand by the All-Stars after a late INT by Kevin Wyeth, and the conversion battle which was won by them, as Chernobyl – 21 was successful on only one of their five attempts, compared to their opponents who found success twice on the same number tries.

In the most recent game it was a tale of two halves, as the All-Stars scored 20 and 13 points in first and second half respectively, while Chernobyl – 21 did the exact opposite in the opening and closing stanza.

Chernobyl – 21 comes into the game winless in their last four contests. The team’s last victory came all the way back in Week 6 (45-39) against Khantraband.

One reason for their struggle to get into the win column, is the lack of a consistent roster. During the regular season, Chernobyl – 21 led all teams with 19 different players suiting up at various points for them this year. That is great when it comes to paying the team fee, but not so much as it relates to chemistry and timing.

Out of all those players who have taken the field for Chernobyl – 21, eight are eligible to play Friday night.

The other problem facing this team is their defense. With 10 interceptions this year, they are second to last in takeaways. While that number is still respectable, if you look beneath the surface, you will notice that four of those INTs as well as one of their three defensive touchdowns were recorded by Concordia Stingers Wide Receiver Jeremy Murphy, who is not eligible for the playoffs after playing in only two games for Chernobyl – 21.

Looking at the glass half full, the team did get two interceptions in their tie last week against the All-Stars, from Jean-François Marquis and Matt Bond, with the latter running it back to the house, so the team can draw on that recent success.

Similarly, the All-Stars come into the matchup not playing anywhere near their best football, as they have gone three straight games without a win. The biggest culprit during that stretch has been their defense. While they put up a respectable performance in the tie versus Chernobyl – 21, in the team’s other two contests, they have given up a combined 94 points.  

For Chernobyl – 21 to get the win, they will have to rely on their speed as Patrick Chénard, Mathieu Thuot, Ryan Aridi, Matt Bond, and Jean-François Marquis give them the advantage in that department.

Another positive that Chernobyl – 21 will need to rely on is their defense. In both games against the All-Stars, they have held them below their scoring average of 38 points (37.5) per game. To do that once again, the team will need a big performance from FPF Hall of Famer Nicolas Arsenault-Hum, who missed both meetings.

For the All-Stars to emerge victorious, they will need to control the deep ball on both sides of the ball. Despite their recent slide, they have scored ten touchdowns of 20 or more yards which is tops for all Division A teams. On defense, they have given up seven scores of the same distance. To keep up the same success one way while plugging up the holes on the other, the team will need Kishon Thompson, Patrick Jérome, Matt Kirouac, and Quaid Johnson to make an impact at various points throughout the game both offensively and defenesively.

Despite their non-impressive record and end to the regular season, no team has as many championship victories as the All-Stars, I think that experience helps them get the victory.

(1) Braves versus (2) Khantraband Sunday 10PM @ Lachine

*The winner of this game goes to the Finals.

*The loser of this game faces the winner of the (3) All-Stars versus (4) Chernobyl – 21.

Previous Meeting: Braves (38-33) Week 4 and Braves (42-40) Week 9

Another matchup where the regular meetings were decided by a touchdown or less.

In the first meeting between both teams, the Khantraband offense had more yards. All five of their Receivers caught touchdowns, and they scored more points than the Braves in the second half (20-14).

The only difference between the two teams in the entertaining matchup was turnovers, as Khantraband QB Dan Lazzara was intercepted by Georges Gariépy and Guillaume Beland. Those were points left on the field. I have said it a few times in the articles this year, and in conversations with other media members, the key to the Braves’ success is that they very rarely make mistakes, and they are all but guaranteed to capitalize on yours.

In the second meeting, a turnover played a key role in the Khantraband loss, as Lazzara was picked off by J.D Chevalier, one play after Braves’ Alex Pilon scored a touchdown to give his team a (20-18) with four plays before halftime. The Braves didn’t score on the drive, but they stopped their opponents from getting points as well.   

I was in Lachine for that game, and it looked at times like it was going to be a blowout. Credit goes to Khantraband for fighting back and making it a much closer game when other teams might have just folded and shut it down with the playoffs not far off.

For Khantraband to get the win, they will need to first and foremost protect the ball. As they proved in both meetings, the Braves can create turnovers. Secondly, Lazarra will need to feed the ball to his secondary options like David Centomo, Domenico Manno, Tyris Lebeau, and Isiah Allard. Serge Pilon Jr., AJ Gomes, and Tam Vilaydeth justifiably get a lot of the attention, but the first four players are all playmakers too.

On defense, Khantraband will have to rely on Two-Way Plater of the Year Pilon Jr., to try and slow down hsi brother Alex Pilon. The latter missed the last meting between both teams, but he did play in the Week 4 showdown, and he put on a performance to the tune of 10 catches for 79 yards and three touchdowns.

For the Braves the key to winning is simple. Try to bait the Khantraband offense into a mistake, capitalize on it, and don’t make any big mistakes of your own.

With only one loss on their record, and fresh off a regular season sweep of Khantraband, the Braves come into the matchups as the favorites. As I mentioned above, they were victorious in one of the matchups without the services of their best player in Alex Pilon.

The Braves are the defending Division A/B champions, and they are the better team in this matchup. Their Quarterback Jonathan Maheu also has a little extra motivation, after losing the QB of the Year Award to his counterpart.

I think these two teams have a good shot at meeting again in the Finals Whether they do or not remains to be seen. I do believe however that the Braves will take Sunday’s meeting.

I would like to give a quick welcome to the NFL. Sundays have meaning again (yeah, I said it) Tonight’s game between the Bucs and the Cowboys was a lot closer than most people expected. Overall, there were some mistakes as expected, but it was still a decent game. I can not wait for this Sunday!

I also would like to say congrats to all the award winners in both Division A and Division B. In case you missed it:

Division A

QB of the Year – Dan Lazzara (Khantraband)

Receiver of the Year – AJ Gomes (Khantraband)

Defensive Player of the Year – Jean-Daniel Chevalier (Braves)

Two-Way Player of the Year – Serge Pilon Jr. (Khantraband)

Division B

QB of the Year – Sean Avraam (Here For The Beers)

Receiver of the Year – Sean Semerjian (Junkyard Dogs)

Defensive Player of the Year – Jonathan Grizley (BYOB)

Two-Way Player of the Year – Mathieu Lepage (BYOB)

Picks

Here For The Beers vs Junkyard Dogs – (Here For The Beers – 28-26)

Chernobyl – 21 vs All-Stars – (All-Stars – 40-28)

Khantraband vs Braves – (Braves – 38-35)

Regular Season: (26-15-1)

Playoffs: (TBA)

That is it for this week. Good luck to everybody in their playoff games Friday and Sunday night.

If you loved the article, hated it, or simply felt like there is something I left out, please feel free to contact me at [email protected]