And then there were two: Division A and Division B Finals Preview

The dust has settled, and the smoke has cleared, the last two teams left standing for the right to fight for the Division A championship are The Jamesons and Allstars.

(1) Allstars versus (2) The Jamesoons

Two veteran teams, experienced Quarterbacks, difference-makers at every level, and a few current as well as future FPF Hall-of-Fame players, this matchup has it all.

To arrive at tonight’s game, The Jamesons got past the Braves (38-34) in an exciting comeback victory that saw them seal the win with a touchdown catch by Quaid Johnson with four plays remaining in the contest.

This was an amazingly tight back and forth battle that saw both teams exchange multiple leads and players who stepped up and delivered for their respective teams.

The story of the game was the two Quarterbacks, as Jeff Rosenblatt was squaring off against Jonathan Maheu. As expected, both passers were spectacular on the evening. The Braves passer finished the game with 196 yards passing and five touchdowns, but Rosenblatt was even deadlier from the pocket, as he threw for 242 yards with six touchdowns.

The Braves got a solid outing from Guillaume Beland who led his team with five catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns. He was joined in the endzone by teammates Phil Pharand, Sébastien Crisi-Lauzon, and Jean-Daniel Chevalier. For as good as those numbers were, they couldn’t match the performance of The Jamesons’ Marty Freedman who led all players with 11 receptions for 111 yards to go along with two TDs.

In addition to the play of their QB, another reason for the win by The Jamesons, was their defense. While they didn’t force an interception, they still generated turnovers, as the unit held the Braves to a 50% completion percentage (1 for 2) on fourth down attempts and stopped them on their onside pass attempt late in the second half.

The Jameson’s quickly turned the gifts from their defense into offense, as they would score two touchdowns on the ensuing drives, the final one resulting in the team’s game-winning touchdown to seal the win.

The Allstars arrive to tonight’s game with (38-23) Semi-Final victory over KGP, that saw the favourites trailing at halftime by three points, only to experience a second half surge that saw them outscore their opponents (26-8).

The key to the explosive in the second stanza, was the ability of the Allstars to put their foot on the gas offensively, and not let up the entire time. It started with a 33-yard touchdown from Wyeth to Nic Groppini on the second play of the half. After the team’s defense forced a turnover on downs from the KGP offense, the Allstars would extend their lead on a TD reception by Snapper Matt Kirouac. From that point on the ball was rolling and KGP couldn’t get out of the way.

Standout performances from the contest include Groppini who has cemented himself as one of the top Receivers in Div. A, with four grabs for 108 yards and a game-high three touchdowns. He was joined by Rory Semerjian, who caught two TD passes of his own. Their QB Kevin Wyeth, who ignited the comeback, threw only two incompletions on 12 second half passes, and finished the game going 21 of 26 for 289 yards with six TDs and one interception overall.

Interceptions played a key role in the outcome as well. Semerjian, added an INT to his totals for the Allstars, but it was his teammate Matt Bond who in my opinion was the game’s MVP, as he led the way with three picks off KGP QB Phil Cutler. Turnovers will kill you in the post-season, and Bond was judge, jury, and executioner.

For both teams, while some of names have changed, this still resembles the last playoff meeting between both squads that took place last spring in the Semi-Finals, that saw the Allstars escape with a (39-36) victory. The only real difference is that this time around, Quaid Johnson who had a touchdown for the Allstars in the contest, will be suiting up for The Jamesons, who during that season were known as The Apocalypse.

To get the win, and claim the championship, The Jamesons will have to take a page out of the formula that worked so well last time. That is, they will need to use suffocating defense and force Wyeth into throwing interceptions. In Week 2, they picked off the HOF QB three times (the most of any team this year) and James Tyrell ran his INT back to the house to go along with a touchdown he had a Receiver. Anthony Brisebois, who was the best player on the field had the team’s other two interceptions and added a pair of TDs on offense as well.

For the Allstars to get the win, they will first and foremost have to score more than the season-low 24 points they did in the previous meeting. The presence of HOF Receiver Pat Jérome for the offense will all but ensure that happens. But just to make sure, they will also need Chris Milard, Kirouac, Bond, Groppini, and the underrated Vincent Malo to carry their share of the load as well.

Defensively, the Allstars are a talented unit with versatile and interchangeable parts. They will need to take away the short and intermediate passes that Rosenblatt likes to use to get in rhythm, before worrying about taking away the deep ball.

They are without the underdogs, but you can’t help but cheer for someone like Jeff Rosenblatt and his team. Many people thought we would get the Braves versus the Allstars for what feels like the millionth time for the championship, but The Jamesons but an end to that idea. In doing so, they along with their QB erased countless meltdowns and blown opportunities to advance to the Finals. Could this be the year they finally win it all?

I think this will be a good game that has a very good chance to go down to the write. The presence of Jérome in the lineup makes the Allstars nearly impossible to beat, but if you look closely, you will realize that Kevin Wyeth is currently on a 3-game losing streak in the Finals going bac to last summer.

The Allstars have more championships and FPF Hall-of-Famers. They also have the reigning Quarterback and Defensive Player of the Year in Wyeth and Fritzgerald Cenatus. Despite that, I still think that The Jamesons have the better team from top to bottom. They can match their opponents in big-game Receivers and Defensive Backs. While the Allstars have the edge in Rusher with the GOAT in Matt Kirouac, The Jamesons have the speed edge on the perimeter.

When you look at total championships, the comparison is staggering, as the Allstars have combined total of 39 compared to only six for The Jamesons. The number of HOF is a landslide as well, with four for the former and zero for the latter. I’ve been burned before, but upsets are fun, and in my conversation with Jeff Rosenblatt this past weekend, he told me that if there was ever a year where his team needed to get over the hump and win it all, it would be this year. I fully agree.

Prediction: The Jamesons (35-32) Upset Special  

(2) Poseiden’s Kiss versus (3) Blessed

In the battle for the Division B title, we have Poseidon’s Kiss taking on Blessed. In FPF we often have the privilege of watching lower division Quarterbacks struggle a little, then after some time, they are able to find their game and some confidence. They start to slowly move up the rankings and divisions while getting better in the process, to the point that they become some of the best in the entire league. That is the case here with Stephen Harripersaud and Rocco Chirstiano. Both have come a long way from playing for Prime Time and Norfolk In Chance respectively.

Each passer has grown into a leader and plays a style that emphasizes their strengths. For Harripersaud, that is reading the defense, finding holes inside of it and picking them apart. Christiano, who is always a threat to tuck and ball and run for a 40-yard touchdown, is at his best when he is buying time for his receivers to get open and lofting passes downfield for his targets to run under.

The Receivers in this matchup are outstanding as well. For Poseidon’s Kiss, it does not get any better than Corey Williams, Jarryd Taylor, Juwan Edghill, and Nic Groppini. All four have the perfect combination of size and speed to attack opposing defenses at any level on the field.

In the middle they have the self-proclaimed “World Greatest Snapper” in Dom Benevento. What he lacks for in size, he makes up for it in agility, short-area quickness, good hands, and is an absolute threat in the redzone.     

Most of the pass-catchers for Blessed bring the very same attributes to the table, as Phil Pharand, Will Power, Alexis Ferrand, Hinsley Adams, and Ariel Librati can go toe-to-toe with Defensive Backs in all of those areas.

Blessed doesn’t have a redzone threat with the speed of Benevento, but what they do have in Kevin Smuda is a Receiver who has the ultimate trust of his QB, and a player who can body and out jump almost everyone for the ball in the endzone.

Defensively, both teams have playmakers who can intercept the ball and run it back to the house, as Power, Taylor, Williams, Pharand, Ferrand, and James Langshaw, have proven themselves to all be top level defenders throughout their respective FPF careers.

The Rusher battle in this contest is intriguing. Raffaele Morelli, who is another player that has made the climb from lower division player to the top ranks of FPF, has proven that speed kills, as his ability to get to opposing Quarterbacks and cause them to get rid of the ball before they want to, adds a key element this strong defense. He only has one post-season sack, but he has gotten close on numerous occasions. That will be key, as taking on Harripersaud means he is facing a QB that is elusive in the pocket and will burn defenses when he is able to evade the rush.

On the other side we have Adams, who comes into tonight with over 200 career sacks, although his numbers are way off this year, as he has only registered one this year as he shares the position with Julien Proulx. The spot has been his this post-season, and while he has yet to post a QB takedown, he still has the speed and closing ability to be disruptive. It will be important for Adams to showcase both, as he will be chasing down Christiano who has proved to be just as lethal with his legs as he is with his arm.

Both teams squared off back in early July. Poseidon’s Kiss won that game (34-21), on the shoulders of their defense that absolutely smothered their opponents in the second half by holding them to a season-low seven points.

The Quarterbacks were far from spectacular, as they each threw three interceptions. The only difference was Christiano tossed four touchdowns to Harripersaud’s three, and he also ran for a 14-yard TD, which was the final marker in the game.  

One key takeaway from that game was the absence of playmakers, as Poseidon’s Kiss was without Juwan Edghill, while Blessed didn’t have the services of Phil Pharand. Those two will be in the lineup tonight.

For Blessed to make sure they don’t get swept, they will need to attack the weaknesses of the Poseidon’s Kiss defense. That unit has ballhawks, and are great at eliminating the deep ball, but in watching their win versus Mangoose last week in the Semi-Finals, I felt that Mangoose did a poor job attacking the underneath and intermediate routes that were open, and instead fell in love with the deep ball. When that was left open however, Nicolas Schafer had a few deep shots that I am sure he wishes he had back, as he failed to connect on them despite his receivers breaking free. Harripersaud will need to avoid those same mistakes.

On defense, the team will need to be disciplined in their coverage. They cannot fall for misdirection, and the double QB option throws that Poseidon’s Kiss loves to run. While getting a sack on Christiano is a bonus, they will need Adams to use his speed to cause the QB to throw the ball earlier than he wants.

For Poseidon’s Kiss to emerge victorious, they will need to attack all levels of the Blessed defense. So far, in the playoffs, Christiano has done a masterful job distributing the ball to different areas of the field, and forcing defenses to have to adjust to him, while also mixing in the run game, as both he and Taylor are a threat to take it to the house on any play.  

On the other side of the ball, the defense must confuse and show different looks pre and post snap to Harripersaud. They must also take away the middle of the field which is where the QB operates best.

Two top teams who provide excitement on both sides of the ball with a plethora of athletes. Unfortunately, one will have to lose. I think that will Blessed.

Prediction: (32-30) Poseidon’s Kiss

I will be doing play-by-play for Division A and Division B tonight. I expect two great games that should be full of highlights and amazing plays. Good luck to all four teams tonight.

Well, that is it for the 2023 Spring Season. I had a great time writing for you guys as always. Thank-you for the kind words all year. I really hope you liked the interview series. Since last night, I have released two more, part 2 of my interview with Tara Mrakic (I’ll post Part 1 here as well) and a one-on-one with Jeff Rosenblatt of The Jamesons. Please check them out when you have a chance.

https://www.flagplusfootball.com/en/article/flagplus-football-interview-series-part-7-jef-rosenblatt

https://www.flagplusfootball.com/en/article/flagplus-football-interview-series-tara-mrakic-part-1/

https://www.flagplusfootball.com/en/article/flagplus-football-interview-series-tara-mrakic-part-2

Take care and enjoy the rest of the summer if you can call it that with this mid September weather we have been experiencing. I am going to Cali in two weeks to watch my Niners versus Chargers for their pre-season finale, and then to LA to watch the Dodgers and Diamondbacks, while trying to get some beach time and wine tasting in too. I hope the temperatures are a little bit warmer there, because wearing pants and/or a jacket in August is ridiculous.

Brent