Bombsquad’s Breakdown (Div 1/2) – Week 1

Bombsquad’s Breakdown Div 1 & 2

Welcome back everyone for another go around the Flag Plus world in hopes of winning it all. We have a little different format this year as I will be covering both division 1 and 2, so I think I will stop rambling and get to the action.

Countdown to detonation

3. The season kicked off in fine form as the Expos defeated the Redhawks 38-31 in a very close match. Chad Byers was a little more than efficient as he went 16-25 for 222 yards and 6 TD passes. Center Geoff Beauchesne was hard to stop catching 7 for 73 yards and 2 scores. Overall the ball was spread around well. On the other side Charles St-Martin was almost as efficient but had that all important one less touchdown pass which was the difference in the game. Alexandre Branco was a scoring machine with 3 TD`s and Carl Gagnon Bisaillon was the workhorse with 6 catches for 78 yards and 2 TD`s. Redhawks look strong and determine this season.

2. Montreal`s Finest opened the season against the Rainmakers who seem to improve every year. Kevin Wyeth would defeat his opposite Ryan Kastner 41-32 as Wyeth threw for 5 touchdowns and also ran for another. That is not a typo….he ran for another. The ball was evenly spread all over the side. The was an offensive clinic on both sides as Kastner threw for 5 TD`s as well and also spread the ball although Bobby Mikelberg was once again the scoring threat racking up 3. Big story for Kastner is he was getting rid of the ball fairly quickly and was only sacked once. Let`s see if that trend can continue.

1. The Demons fell to the defending Champs, Old Skool, in a great game 38-36. Pollice used his whole offense and only turned the ball over once as he threw for the week`s highest total of 244 yards. That included 5 TD`s. On the other side Andy Peterkin threw the same 5 TD`s but ran for one as well which was the difference in the end. The Old Skool defence held strong as the Demons had a last play of the game for the win and managed to get the all important stop. Both sides had ups and downs with turnovers and miscues so I will be very curious to see the outcome of the rematch down the road once these teams have a few games under their belts.

7. The stacked Triple Sixers destroyed the Blazers 55-22 to open the D2 season. Leon Holder threw as many picks as touchdowns with 3. He did manage to spread the ball but you are not going to win with 13 completions on 28 tries. Karim Chaoual on the other hand displayed exactly how you win with 21-26 passing for 271 yards and 8 TD`s! Pat Jerome caught 3 of the 8 and J-F Marcotte caught 2 as well. The Sixers look hard to beat this season.

6. Air Squad outscored the Gladiateurs 48-35 to go 1-0. The big difference in this game was the Air Squad defence which had two picks for touchdowns. Air Squad was consistent on offense but their defence won the game for them. Francois Lebeau on the other side threw for a huge 271 yards but those two interceptions were costly. Alex Lever is still Lebeau’s favourite target as he caught 7 for 89 yards and 3 scores. The Air Squad look nothing like their former selves from last season and will be a team to watch.

5. MOMO Nation and One Night Stands both failed to get their first win of the season as they tied 20-20. This is a positive note for O.N.S. as they were without QB Craig O`Brien who was off celebrating his birthday. The Ryan Brewster and Jeff Millar tandem managed to secure the tie with only 8 completions. Vanasse was his usual evasive self as he ran for 49 yards, but we have yet to see Vanasse the throwing QB as he completed 12 passes for a minuscule 102 yards. To make it to the next level we need to see more throwing from the MOMO QB. Let`s see how this plays out.

4. The new look Trojans, with Carmine Pollice at the helm took down the Wolfpack 24-14. The Trojans defence really stepped up this game picking off Pascal Murray 3 times. Vinny Gualano still seems to be the go to receiver for the Trojans, regardless of who is throwing, as he caught 12 balls for 115 yards and 3 TD`s of the team`s 4 total. Trojans look ready to make some noise. Wolfpack are notorious slow starters so there is no need for alarm yet.

3. The Wolverines defeated the new kids on the block Top Guns 35-25. I say new kids and mean as the entire Top Guns team seems very young. Tony Tabet found his favourite target Sevag Kaloussian 8 times for 98 yards and 3 touchdowns. The rest of the squad were there in times of need. Top Guns seem littered with speed at every corner. They are led by QB Mario Porreca who seems to rely on the speed of his team with many dump-off passes but they are new and we will have to see how they develop. As for the Wolverines, same old, same old.

2. The G-Men looked unstoppable as they took down the Tomahawks 45-18. Gianni Settino led the way as he threw for a huge 7 TD’s and his receiving corps were everywhere as everyone got in on the action. Not a bad offense? Well the defence picked off Tomahawks QB Mike Grilli 5 times! They held Grilli to 11 completions on 29 attempts. I know the G-Men were considering moving to D1, they keep this up they will have no choice next year after winning it all. I will reserve judgement for the Tomahawks until seeing them more.

1. Victorious Secret took down their rival Mercenaries 27-12. The Mercenaries actually led at halftime 12-6. But Rochdi Benabdelkader made some defensive adjustments which netted the team 4 interceptions. Three of them by Jason Prince. This game was mostly defensive as V.S. scored on the last play salting away the victory. Neither QB had a great outing. But once again, this is week 1.

BOOM! Like the small time bomb in my head thanks to this cold I have.

D1 Weekly Top Performers

My SHOWSTOPPA for this week is Michael Chitayat of the Rainmakers who had 7 tackles. That is the most noteworthy defensive performance because it was all offense this past week.

My Golden Boy this week goes to Andy Peterkin of Old Skool who not only threw for 5 touchdowns, but he ran for one as well in defeating the Demons. Great job.

D2 Weekly Top Performers

My SHOWSTOPPA this week has to go to the entire G-Men defence who allowed 11 completions and made 5 interceptions. They seemed to be everywhere.

The Golden Boy this week is a tough pill to swallow as it is a former teammate of min. Vinny Gualano had 12 receptions and 115 yards with 3 TD’s even though the QB‘s is not Nincheri (but still Italian). Good job.

Since I am covering two divisions this year I thought we could change up the format a bit. So here is a new segment I would like bring in.

Weekly Notes

In D1 I think it is possible that we will finally have the season full of parity that everyone wants. All the teams seem so strong and full of talent. Everyone has seemed to catch up to the same level and we have a division on the same page. I can honestly not say who the front runner is at this point.

D2 has a lot of high calibre teams. I would have to say right now I would put the frontrunners as the Triple Sixers and the G-Men. I need to see more from Air Squad before giving them full credit but they look good. Victorious Secret is largely made up of the defending champion Ruff Ryders, so you cannot rule them out either.

D2 looks to have the same amount of parity as D1.

The league in general is hitting its stride as competition in every division is tighter.

Let’s take a peek at some weekly matchups shall we?

The Rainmakers take on the defending champs, Old Skool. This is the type of game this league lives on. The teams are so evenly matched. I think the difference in this game will be decided by the rushers. If Kastner gets the ball away quickly and is hitting his targets then it will be a long night for Old Skool. The same for the Rainmakers because if Peterkin buys time with his legs, the game is done. I think it will be close but I am going to take Old Skool.

If you follow outdoor touch football as well, then you look forward to the Hitmen- err, Demons, taking on the Maroons…I mean Expos. These teams have had epic games regardless of where they are played and this will be no different. I think the Demons made a great move by bringing in more of their outdoor teammates to shore up a defence that struggled last year. They will need all the help they can get against this Expos team who have an amazing squad. When the dust settles this week, I think the Demons take it by a narrow margin.

The Triple Sixers will play host to The Wolverines this week. Now if you just look at the rosters, you think the Wolverines have no chance. But this is why they play the games. The Wolverines have a squad who have been together for a very long time and know each other very well. Great chemistry on this team. The Sixers on the other hand just seem to get better and better every year. They also keep the same core of players. Most importantly I think this team’s defence is stronger than I have seen it in the past few years. I think that will be the difference as the Triple Sixers defeat the Wolverines.

The Blazers take on Victorious Secret. These teams know each other well. Both QB’s have actually played together. They know each other well and it is for that reason I think this will be a great game to watch. The Blazers had a rough first outing but look to rebound and I know they want this game bad. But the same could be said for Victorious Secret QB Paul Lapierre who has a bit of a rivalry with Blazers QB Leon Holder. Again a close matchup. In the end I will give the win to V.S. just based on the fact I think they have a stronger defence. But we shall see.

The Air Squad faceoff against the Mercs. If this was last season, the choice would be clear. But Air Squad looked pretty damn good in week one. They have an extremely talented roster compiled of the who’s who of CIS football. The Mercs have been around the block and have a bad taste in their mouth after the week one debacle. I honestly have no idea who pick in this game. It will definitely be a battle. So I will flip a coin. Heads, Mercs win, Tails, Air Squad. Aaaaaaaaaaaand…….Tails. Wow, I still have no clue but we will all see Sunday at 10PM at Catalogna.

MOMO Nation takes on the Trojans. I whole heartedly believe the Trojans will win but I write this piece to let Yannick Vanasse know he has to throw the ball this game. Rob Cosenza is a great rusher and Vanasse will not have all the time in the world to make reads and running will be very difficult. Challenge yourself and come up with new plays. You will need them against this veteran defence. I am very curious to see if MOMO can adapt to the D2 talent and be able to throw as well as run. That would make MOMO’s QB one of the deadliest in the league.

So there is the first instalment of the year. I look forward to watching all the action in the coming weeks as the division begin to take form. Who will be leading each conference in 3 weeks? In 6 weeks? This season is up for grabs. Take it. It can be yours.

The season has begun,

For D1 and D2,

Soon we will see,

Who’s tried, tested and true.

For the journey has begun,

Do not be overwhelmed,

Still 9 weeks left,

For you to take the helm.

Best of luck to all those involved. It is going to be another great FPF season. You can email with complaints about my hygiene and writing style at [email protected] but until then, another week has been defused.