And then there were two; Division 1 and Division 2 Championship Preview

After four months and 113 games, we are finally here, the Division 1 and Division 2 Finals. Four teams remain, and they are the Braves, Allstars, Vengeance, and Urgence Medic. Tonight, in Brossard, two will go home as champions, and the losers will be left heart-broken and empty-handed. Who will win it all? Let’s find out…

Division 2

Urgence Medic versus Vengeance

Previous Meeting: Vengeance (66-35) Week 12

When you drop 35 points on a team, you know that your offense is sizzling. When your opponent nearly doubles that output, not only are they cooking, but they are taking a match to a gas stove and watching the place explode.

That is what happened in the first meeting, as Vengeance Quarterback Kevin Wyeth threw a season-high nine touchdown passes on 21 or 28 passing for 288 yards. More TD passes than incompletions is always an amazing accomplishment.

The Hall-of-Fame passer got all his Receivers involved in the game, as not only did all four catch a pass, but they all scored at least one touchdown. The biggest beneficiary of his quarterback’s play was Receiver James Drysdale, who caught four of those TD passes, to go along with eight catches for 113 yards.

The Vengeance defense also came to play, as both Antonio Lanni and Rusher Matt Kirouac, intercepted Urgence Medic QB Jesse Dupuis. The team would turn those turnovers into touchdowns.

Tonight’s rematch should be a closer matchup, as Urgence Medic, has turned around that embarrassing defeat to close the regular season, and have looked like a team on a mission defensively in both their Quarter-Final and Semi-final games, as they have recorded two interceptions in both contests, and forced three turnovers on downs combined.

One reason for their success on that side of the ball, is AJ Gomes. The newly inducted FPF Hall-of-Famer, who missed the regular season finale against Vengeance, returned with a vengeance in the post-season, as he has an interception in each game. While he hasn’t had the production you would expect on the offensive end with only one touchdown and 40 yards receiving, his presence on the field opens things up for his fellow Receivers in Alexis Gaumont, Emile Beaudoin, and Anthony Lapointe.

Two members of the team have also stepped their game by playing crucial roles in the team’s success, in Marc-Antoine Vallée and Nicholas Groppini. The former is a core member of the team that has been around since their run of dominance when they were known as the Alpha T’s, normally just plays Rusher and rarely ever sees reps on the other side of the ball. That has not been the case recently, as the veteran had five catches for 49 yards and two touchdowns in their Quarter-Final win over Blessed.

The former in Groppini, who is in his first year with Urgence Medic, has gone from a little-used piece on offense the first half of the regular season, to a key part of it down the stretch. The seventh-year player has four touchdowns in his last five games and provides his QB with a vertical threat who has the leaping ability to come down with jump balls all over the field.

What is there left to say about Vengeance? They had six players, and still handled their business against the Braves 2.0. If it wasn’t for a little bit of sloppiness down the stretch, the two-point win would have been bigger.

Their next man up mentality has served them well. In the win over the Braves 2.0, Kevin Wyeth who is an underrated defender but usually doesn’t play on that side of the ball, picked off Jonathan Maheu, and almost ran the INT back for a touchdown. The absence of both Rory and Sean Semerjian would have crippled most teams (look at The Infantry in Div. 3) Vengeance, has seemingly got better in their absence. We all know James Drysdale is a superstar, as he used this season as his breakout party, and Matt Kirouac is as clutch as ever, and is the best Snapper in the league (Sorry Dom, but it’s true), but three players who are thought of as defensive specialist in this division in Michael Khaaka and both Antonio and Leonardo Lanni, have been making huge play after huge play for their team.

Both teams have tons of championship experience at various levels of FPF. They also have Quarterbacks who can make big throws and put their teams on their shoulders when they need it. Each defense has ballhawks and have flexed their muscle throughout the playoffs. Having AJ Gomes will make a difference for Urgence Medic this time around, but as we saw with his Division 1 team the Kangaroos, it will take more than that to beat Kevin Wyeth and Matt Kirouac.

Prediction: Vengeance (40-28)

Division 1

Braves versus Allstars

Previous Meeting: Allstars (34-32) Week 3 and Allstars (34-20) Week 7

Is it me, or does it feel like these two teams have played each other at least five times for a championship? According to FPF Founder Rob Campagna, this is only the second time it has happened. The Allstars won that meeting (49-48) last winter.

In the first regular meeting, the Allstars got the win on the last play of the game, as Quarterback Kevin Wyeth found Receiver and fellow FPF Hall-of-Famer Theo Ojeaha for the game-winning touchdown on the last play of the game. It was a comeback win for the team, as they trailed by four points at halftime, and by the same margin before they started their final drive.

In the second meeting, the Allstars led (20-14) at the break, and then held their opponents to a season-low six points in the second half. One possible reason for the offensive drought for the Braves, may have been the absence of Snapper and FPF Hall-of-Famer Mike Pierrecin.

The Braves got to this point by blowing out KGP+ (46-24) in the Quarter-Finals, and then squeaking by the Kangaroos (45-44) in an OT thriller last week, in what can best be described as a classic, and a great way to end our final night in Lachine.

After earning the first-round bye, the Allstars got to championship Sunday by beating Flag Moi L’Sac (47-46) in another great game, that was unfortunately marred by officiating on the final drive of the game.

When they lock horns tonight, the Braves will be short-handed, as they will be missing both Serge Pilon Jr., and Georges Gariépy, who will both miss the game due to long-term injuries. Both players were in the lineup during the first two meetings. The absence of the duo changes things on both sides of the ball, and especially in the redzone, where there is no one better in the league than Gariépy, at using their height and speed to create separation and haul in passes.

In that aforementioned win over the Kangaroos, the Braves, let their opponents hang around in the game for too long, and they almost gave it away with two costly redzone interceptions. Making those types of mistakes against the Allstars would be lethal.

The two best teams in FPF, going head-to-head for the league’s most important trophy. What more could you ask for?

The Braves couldn’t beat the Allstars when they had two of their top players in the lineup. I don’t see how they get it done tonight without them.

Prediction: Allstars (44-30)

Picks

Braves vs Allstars – Allstars

Urgence Medic vs Vengeance – Vengeance

Regular Season (39-29)

Last Week (2-2)

Playoffs: (9-4)

That is it for this week, and for the 2023 Winter Season. I would like to thank everyone who took the time to read my articles, and comment in the Facebook group. I appreciate it!

Good luck to all four teams tonight, and I will see you in a few weeks to kick off the 2023 Spring Season.

Cheers

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