Blowouts, Close Calls, Standout Performances, and the Super Bowl

I am not sure what it was about this past Sunday in Division 1, but there were several blowouts that took place. Out of the four games that were played, three of them were lopsided.

The only competitive game last Sunday was between the Party Crashers and Kangaroos. This game was a barnburner, as it featured back and forth action, and a ton of matchups featuring some of the best players in the league.

Two of those players are Anthony Brisebois and AJ Gomes, each regarded as elite players on both sides of the ball. As expected, the showdown between the duo produced several highlight plays, as they would both catch three touchdown passes in the contest.

Brisebois would get the edge in this matchup, as after his team broke a (34-34) tie with a TD by Emile Taillefer (his second of the contest) Brisebois, would also record an interception off Quarterback Daniel Lazzara to seal the win for his team on the final play of the game.

A second half objectionable conduct penalty by Gomes, would come hurt his squad, as not only did it occur after a turnover on downs by the Kangaroos offense resulting in a gift of 10 yards to the Party Crashers, but Gomes was forced to sit out 10 plays.

The Party Crashers took advantage of the short field and the absence of the All-Star Safety, as they took only three plays to travel nine yards before Quarterback Fred Dupuis would connect with Brsiebois for his second TD of the game.

The lack of discipline was not the reason why the Kangaroos lost the game. The biggest reason for the loss was their inability to score on every possession. After starting off the game by going four and out offensively, the team was also unable to put the ball in the endzone prior to halftime despite possessing the ball for six plays before the break, and their failure to do so at the end of the game. Three possessions and coming away with zero points is not a recipe for success.

Even though the other games ended in blowouts, there were no shortage of standout performances.

The Allstars defense shined Sunday night, as they intercepted Bulldogz’s Quarterback Myles Gibbon four times on the way to a (49-7) victory. Theo Ojeaha, the FPF Hall-of-Famer, and a player who many think might be the best player in the history of the league, hauled in two of those interceptions, and ran one of them back to the endzone for a TD. Ojeaha, was joined in the INT fest by teammates Patrick Jérome and Chris Milard.

Kevin Wyeth, who is also in the argument for the greatest of all time, was near perfect in the win, as he completed 18 of 21 passes for 174 yards and six touchdowns. The undisputed best QB in FPF history, delivered in pairs on the evening, as he threw two TD passes to Matt Kirouac, Quaid Johnson, and Jérome. Not bad at all.

Speaking of great Quarterback play, the Braves blew out a starting QB-less KGP+ squad (55-20) at Loyola. The Braves had their regular gunslinger at the game’s most important position in Jonathan Maheu, and he carved up his opponents to the tune of five touchdowns and 156 yards on 12 of 16 passing. Part-time Braves QB William Trottier even got in on the action by going 2 of 2 for 50 yards and a pair of TD passes of his own.

Those two players weren’t the only ones making an impact for the Braves, as the Pilon bothers both Alex and Serge, each had a pair of touchdown receptions. The team would also get a TD from the trio of Phil Pharand, Georges Gariépy, and Guillaume Beland. The former McGill Redbird Defensive Back in Beland, would also add a pick-six on defense.

Forced to go with four different Quarterbacks in the game due to the absence of both regular QBs in Phil Cutler and Joey Taylor, was too much to handle for KGP+.

I saved the best Quarterback performance for last, as Alex Nadeau-Piuze of Flag Moi L’Sac put on a clinic Sunday night at Stade Hebert, as he threw for a Week 5 high seven touchdown passes in his team’s (57-26) victory over Double Straddle. The QB threw out a pair of TD passes to a trio of Receivers in Francois Rocheleau, Nicolas Arsenault-Hum, and Guillaume Paquet.  

The duo of Paquet and Robert who also have an impact on the other side of the ball, as the duo would come up with two interceptions, while the latter would generate a TD off an INT.

Super Bowl

The big game is tonight. I don’t really have a dog in the fight, but I am going to roll with the Philadelphia Eagles. They beat my Niners, so if we lose to the Super Bowl champs, it will at least let me lie to myself by saying we lost to the champs, so it’s ok. Plus, I think Philly has the better and deeper team.

Truth be told, I can’t stand Patrick Mahomes. Is he the best Quarterback in the game, and deserved of his recent NFL MVP Award? Without a doubt. Is he self-absorbed and now slightly overrated like Aaron Rodgers? Absolutely not. But, in my opinion, Mahomes is kind of annoying, and I can’t stand his voice. Am I still mad that we blew a fourth-quarter lead in the Super Bol to him and the Chiefs? Possibly.

Looking at this game I believe it will be won in the trenches. For as great as Chiefs Defensive Tackle Chris Jones is, the Eagles Offensive Line led by Jason Kelce, is just as good, and should be up to the task of not allowing Jones and teammate Frank Clark to do too much damage. By doing that, it will allow both A.J Brown and Devonta Smith time to get open.

Logically, it is never smart to bet against Mahomes. He is like a magician especially in crunch time. I want to take him, because even on a bad ankle he will still pull off some magical moments.

For as annoying as it will be to hear Eagles fans all summer and season long next year (they are similar to Cowboy fans but they actually have legit bragging rights), and even though I still feel that if Brock Purdy doesn’t get hurt we beat the Eagles, and why didn’t Philly look so great in the second half even though everyone and their dog knew we couldn’t throw the ball, I still think the birds will win (27-24). I’ve been wrong all post-season, especially when I talk myself out of going one way, so what do I know?

In Division 2, we saw an even split down the middle, with three blowouts, and a trio of games that were decided by a touchdown or less, although one of them is deceiving.

One of those lopsided games saw Quarterback Stephen Harripersaud flirt with perfection as he fell three passes short of a perfect game on 24 of 27 passing for 230 yards passing and a Division 2 high seven touchdown passes in his team’s (50-27) beatdown of the Moretti Crime Family.

The Blessed receiving duo of Will Power and Phil Pharand were lethal, as they torched the MCF defense for a combined 15 catches and four touchdowns.

Playing a key part in the victory was the Blessed defense, as they produced two interceptions off QB Joey Taylor, and held the MCF offense to a season-low eight first half points.

Vengeance Quarterback Kevin Wyeth nearly flirted with perfection as well as just like Harripersaud, Wyeth went 24 of 27, but the GOAT was intercepted once, by the Killa Bees Samuel Bibeault. That would be the QB’s only mistake as he threw seven touchdown passes in his team’s (47-25) win.

Our very own James Drysdale caught three of Wyeth’s touchdown passes, as the Killa Bees simply had no answer for the five-time All-Star. Drysdale wasn’t alone as the only Receiver to catch multiple TDs, as partners in crime he was joined by Matt Kirouac and Rory Semerjian who caught a pair as well.

The Killa Bees offense, which was led by Hall-of-Famer Patrick Chénard, struggled mightily in the contest, as he managed only one touchdown in the first half. One of the main reasons for their lack of success, was interceptions, as the Chénard and Alexandre Masseau who attempted one pass in the game were both intercepted by DB Michael Khazaka.

Speaking of interceptions, the Braves 2.0 defense were able to force four of them from QB Alexandre Jovin, in their (48-23) win over Touch Foot 450. One of those INTs was run back for a score by Guillaume Beland, who has an impactful outing on both sides of the ball, as he scored two TDs as a Receiver. He was joined by HOF’er Mike Pierrecin, who registered two picks of his own and a trip to the endzone as a Snapper.

On offense, the Braves 2.0 took advantage of their opponent’s mistakes, as they would score on three of the five turnovers that they produced.

I know I mentioned him earlier in my Div. 2 wrap-up, but after the game he put together in Div. 1 for Run It Once in their (46-41) win over Party Crashers Blue, Anthony Brisebois deserves another mention. Last Sunday in Lachine, Brisebois threw a 40-yard touchdown on his only pass of the game. He caught a game-high four TDs, and if that wasn’t enough, the three-time All-Star intercepted PCB Quarterback Frédéric Dupuis with three plays left in the game to secure the win for his team. Simply phenomenal.

Not lost in all that greatness, was the performance of Receiver Louis-Philip Thibodeau, who despite coming out on the losing end, can take solace in the fact that it had nothing to do with him as he did all he could to lead his team to victory, as he recorded six grabs for an impressive 117 yards and two touchdowns.

After struggling out the gate and sitting at (1-3) Terror Squad turned back the clock and delivered a second half that was nothing short of dominant, as they smothered the Urgence Medic offense and held them to a season-low six points. Leading the way defensively for TS, were Marc-Phillippe Roy and Alexandre Poulin-Rioux, as both players were able to come up with second half interceptions off Quarterback Jesse Dupuis.

On offense, Poulin-Rioux would stand out as well, with two receiving touchdowns. He would be joined by teammates Vincent Malo who also visited the endzone twice, and Axel Evengué who did so once.

Terror Squad Quarterback Tam Vilaydeth, had a strong game, as not only did the throw for five TDs, but he kept plays alive, with his legs as always, and put his receivers in position to make plays with accurate and timely passes.

Immediately after beating the Killa Bees, Vengeance, was back at it minutes later as they took on Got Skills. This game was a lot closer than the previous contest, but mainly because Got Skills woke up a little bit in the second half.

The scoring started early, as Wyeth got his team on the board two plays into the game with a 39-yard TD pass to James Drysdale.

Got Skills didn’t wait long to respond, as they would strike for their first score of the game just three plays later as QB Nicola Centomo would connect with Gabriel Lemonde for a 10-yard score. Both teams would miss their 2-point attempts, so we were tied up at (6-6).

After a touchdown by Michael Khazaka, and a fourth down INT by Drysdale would result in a TD by Matt Kirouac two plays later, Vengeance, led (22-0), and it looked like this game was going to be a laugher.

After leading at the half (28-14), the Got Skills offense seemed to find some rhythm as they would get touchdowns from Emmanuel Kerfella, Laurent Foucault, David Centomo, and another from Lemonde. Unfortunately, their defense couldn’t keep up their end of the bargain as they gave up three more touchdowns to Vengeance.

The final score says that the victory was by eight if you look a little loser, you will see that Vengeance was in control the entire time.

Picks

Touch Foot 450 vs Urgence Medic – Urgence Medic (My Pick for Game of the Week, because…)

Last Week: (7-3)

Season: (12-8)

I know that this week, some writers did a mid-season report card. I honestly haven’t had the chance to see every team in both divisions play yet, so I wanted to give it one more week to try and see some more games. 

That’s it for this week. Enjoy the night off and more importantly the big game. I think it will be a good one. Even if it isn’t Rihanna is doing the halftime show, so at least we will all have that.

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