Categories: 35+ Division

Carmine’s Coffin Corner – 2020 Winter Season is upon us

35+ Division

Carmine’s Coffin Corner

W2020 Pre-Season intro & Week 1 predictions

Great day everyone and welcome back for another season in the “Old Man” Division!

My name is Carmine Pollice and I will be your weekly guide down “Tiger Balm Lane” as I take a look back at the week that was and try to give you an idea of the week that will be.  Please note that I am generally way off on my predictions but have 20/20 vision when it comes to my recaps!

For those of you who do not yet know me, I have been playing in the league since the beginning and have a decent idea of what I am doing/seeing on the field.  One of the great advantages to covering this Division is that all of the games are played in the same building on the same night.  With the move to the Baie d’Urfe Dome we now have 3 fields going at the same time so all 5 weekly games will be played within a 2-hour window.  This makes it really easy to catch things live!  Thursday nights @ 8:30 & 9:30 are the time slots.

The weekly articles will generally include the following:

  •  Random thoughts about the Division
  •  Random thoughts about the league
  •  Weekly recap
  •  Players of the Week (in my opinion)
  •  Preview of the week ahead

Just a quick heads up to put on your Big Boy Pants.  I am quick to give praise but if you pull a major gaffe do not be surprised if I bring it up…and no names will be changed to protect the “innocent”

DIVISION FORMAT

The 35+ Division is broken down into 3 Tiers: Tier 1, Tier 2, and the Draft Tier.  Tier 1 & 2 have 3 teams each and the Draft Tier has 4 teams.

With such a variety, coming up with a “balanced” schedule can be somewhat troublesome.  Here is the logic that went behind it:

Tier 1

4 Games against Tier 1

3 Games against Tier 2

1 Game against Draft

Tier 2

4 Games against Tier 2

3 Games against Tier 1

1 Game against Draft

Draft

6 games against Draft

1 game against Tier 1

1 game against Tier 2

This was the base formula used but there were some minor “tweaks” here and there to make things fit.

TEAM INTROS

Here’s a quick look at “Who’s Who in the Zoo?”  I will start by Tier and work alphabetically.  PS…If I do not mention you during these little blurbs you have 8 weeks to get me to do so…LOL

TIER 1 – Monster

Season #4 for the Men in Black for the 35+ Division.  They took home the inaugural championship but have not been back since.  Will things change for 2020?  They are led at the Pivot Position by Andy Peterkin.  Still one of the fastest players in FPF, regardless of Divisions, he is a true dual-threat.  Still blessed with a powerful arm he is a challenge for any Rusher to contain.  When he is on his game Monster is a very tough out.  Kevin Wilson remains the most under valued player, CAP-wise, in FPF.  Still not sure how he ranks so low.  Having said that, he is the homerun threat on BOTH sides of the ball for Monster, able to take a quick hook or INT to the House on any given play.  Of note is that Domenic Tosi seems to have abandoned the Draft Tier to make the move to Tier 1.  One of the nicer guys in FPF this will be interesting to watch as he is also an excellent two-way player.

TIER 1 – OAS

Last year’s champs returned with a slightly changed roster.  Cory Pecker remains the great unknown QB in this Division because he refuses to wear a numbered jersey and gets very few stats…LOL.  Their two-headed offensive monster from last season, Jason Prince & Kevin Wyeth, return so they should have not too many issues putting up points.  Rounding things out are Shane Williams, Kishon Thompson, Andrew Blevings and Tony Lalla from the previous squad.  New face this season will be Teddy Frenette.  When half of your roster is in the FPF HoF you are doing OK.

TIER 1 – Spitfire

The Fire are looking to bounce back from the loss in the Championship Game last season.  A slightly different roster for the 2020 season.  The defence will return mostly intact with JP Moreau, Ryan Hector, Adi Sharma, and Jeff Brown in place.  The offence has a completely new look to it as Jimmy Coupethwaite is the only holdover in the same position.  New additions in Alain Rousseau & Hugo Dupuy from the OldPack are joined by Domenic Benevento, Francois Deslauriers, and Sean Kennedy.  Sean Avraam starts the season under center as yours truly has yet another *&^$#% knee injury and I find myself on IR for the time being.

TIER 2 – Grumpy Old X-Men (GOXM for the REST of the season)

There is no way that I am typing out that team name all season…acronym it is!  Gautama Swaminadhan returns once more to lead the squad from the QB slot (heads up…he will be GS from now on).  This squad is led by the other Williams boy…Wade.  Yet another North Shore product with talent on both sides of the ball.  Their most interesting pick up during the offseason has to be Jordan Rossie.  I find this to be quite interesting as his brother plays QB for the Pacemakers (more on them momentarily)

TIER 2 – Old Age Outlaws (OAO)

Not sure what it is with some of these long names…sigh…it does add to the word count for these articles…LOL!  Stephen Harripersaud returns to drive defences batty with his dink ‘n dunk style that is so darned effective.  He is a ball control master who rarely beats himself.  Energizer Bunny Kevin Kousaie is the motor on this team and Jason Bowman will give him a BIG target in the red zone.  This should be an interesting team to watch

TIER 2 – Pacemakers

Ah yes.  The Kardiak Kids themselves.  This team drove me nuts last year with their inconsistent play, but they pulled together in the playoffs and took home the T2 championship.  They are led on both sides by Jason Rossie.  Yet another dual threat QB, Jason can definitely drive defences nuts with his ability to extend plays or move the chains with his legs.  Chris Brockwell came up big during last year’s playoff run and will need to be a productive piece for this squad.  Robert White has jumped from OAS to remain with his JYD QB so that is a plus for the group.  This squad also has one of the more unappreciated players in Scott Bins who just keeps plugging away!

As the DRAFT teams are all new this season there will be no team history provided

DRAFT – FPF

FPF are the returning champion SPONSORS!  LMAO!  The players wearing these jerseys in 2019 took home the trophy.  However, as it is a draft division, that counts for bupkis.  Robbie Robinson will be the QB for this squad with a very capable Lonnie Johnson on the roster.  It will be interesting to see how things play out as FPF had a similar issue last season and Lonnie Johnson was part of that dual QB scenario as well.  Throw in twin towers Brian Martin and Tim O’Hara and this is a big offence to throw to.  My questions for this squad revolve around the defensive side of things.

DRAFT – JMJ

The ageless wonder that is Jon Moodie leads the helm for JMJ.  Hampered last year by some minor injuries it is good to see him back.  Tom Young, Mario Choueri, Karim Yasmine, and Ron Oquet are the familiar faces for the JMJ with Brian Eudoxie providing the energy and red bull!  The man has a motor and am happy to see him not playing with Monster this season!

DRAFT – Pazazz

Pazazz will be led by 3-way threat Eugene McLaren.  Able to both run & throw with effectiveness, Eugene is also a major contributor on the defensive side of the ball.  Paired with him is Rob “I can do everything” Allen so I have a feeling we might see competition amongst teammates for the 2 Way POTY award!  Harvey Schafer, Rob Young, and Rich Lachance round out the familiar faces from this squad.

DRAFT – Polvige

When I saw some of the names on this roster, I really felt old.  Ryan Kastner now qualifies for 35+?  Really?  Same thoughts with Addley Dufour.  I still remember them as rookies making the transition from full contact to flag.  Welcome to the Old Man Club!!  Polvige are my preseason pick to win the Draft Division.  Besides the two ex-Rainmakers this squad has Vince Mancini (great two player), Chris Rosen (DPOTY), Brad Evans (super smart player and all-around nice guy), and “old” reliable, Dave Allen snapping the ball.  Should be a great squad

 

WEEK 1 PREVIEW

OAS vs. Spitfire

Let’s kick off the W2020 Season with a rematch of last year’s T1 Championship game!  OAS are not lacking any firepower as they have 2 D1 QBs on the roster.  When you have Kevin Wyeth listed as the back up you are doing OK.  Cory Pecker has a great arsenal at his disposal, it just remains to see who lines up where.  Wyeth and Jason Prince formed a deadly duo on the right side of the offence last season.  Still not sure who is rushing for this squad but that should not be the biggest issue that they have.  As for the Spitfire it will come down to how quickly the new faces gel.  While the core remains intact, there are several new faces to the offence and the biggest switch will be at the QB slot with Sean Avraam leading the way.  This should be a barn-burner.

Pacemakers vs. GOXM

The big question to be answered, when looking at this matchup, is “who is rushing Jason Rossie?”  If that is not answered properly then this will be a long game for the GOXM…which was the case in 2019.  Jason will run you ragged if you cannot contain him.  He now has a second deep threat in Robert White to compliment Chris Brockwell so Wade Williams will need to choose who he focuses on.  I will take the Pacemakers in this one.

Polvige vs. JMJ

Welcome to 35+ Mr. Ryan Kastner!  Facing off against the ageless one, Jon Moodie.  Both QBs will give us an entertaining match up I am sure!  I simply like the surrounding cast for Polvige more than I do JMJ.  Not a question of individual talent, I simply think that they will mesh better together and that is the key to Flag Football.  Polvige begins 1-0 in my mind

FPF vs. Pazazz

Welcome to 35+ Mr. Robbie Robinson.  Yet another “newcomer” to the Division that makes me check my birth certificate.  Good luck to whoever gets stuck rushing RR!  I have a feeling we might see Eugene McLaren put into this role.  RR has the advantage of having his security blanket, Dan Dick, on this roster so there will be some familiarity for him.  While Pazazz has some great individual talent, FPF has the better overall roster, in my opinion.  FPF for the season opening win.

Old Age Outlaws vs. Monster

Ah the beauty/curse of the cross over.  With the 10 team/NO BYE schedule this season, we will see a cross over every week.  Never a fun situation as you get matched against a team with a higher CAP.  Stephen Harripersaud is going to have to be at his best and REALLY slow things down if the OAO are going to keep this game interesting.  Kevin Kousaie is going to have to have the “Energizer Bunny” night of his life in order to pressure Andy Peterkin into making a mistake or two.  I am not sure that this will happen, Andy is simply too experienced to fall victim at this point.  Monster with a big win.

 

That’s all for today! Thanks for taking the time to read along.