Championship Sunday!!!

Born in the 80’s, Prime Time, Les Bleue Dry, and Big Fat Bats seasons have come to an end. They all had a great run, but it was not to be. Our finals matchup in D1 will be the 1 seed X-Men against the 3 seed Les Renards Vifs. In D2 we got the 7 seed Idaho Udapimps against the 10 seed West Island Boys. Let’s see how the four teams got the championship game!

Les Renards Vifs beat Prime Time 37-28 on Sunday night. In the play-by-play it appears as though starting QB for Prime Time, Louis-David Lamarre, only arrived at half time as it was Natan Girouard-Langlois who threw in the first half. Langlois did a pretty good job too. Unfortunately, Lamarre did not. William Benoit picked him off twice and the defense held him to 7 completions on 19 attempts. Philippe St-Laurent led the way for Les Renards Vifs with 5 receptions, 85 yards, and 2 touchdowns. He continues his dominant season. The ball distribution for Jacob Salvail was solid as 4 different receivers caught at least one TD pass. What jumps out to me is the quick start from Les Renards Vifs. They put up 30 points in the first half. Games are too short for slow starts, especially come playoff time.

X-Men will be facing off against Les Renards Vifs for all the marbles. They beat Born in the 80’s 37-26 on Monday night. Five receivers for X-Men had at least 3 catches, with three of them having 5. Emerson Peterkin had 3 TDs in the game and on defense Justin Swaminadhan had 3 sacks. A big story in the game was that the 80’s Boys had 2 points off of converts while X-Men had 7! I say it often, in games with teams this evenly-matched, converts are usually the difference. Work on convert plays people! X-Men double-dipped by scoring near the end of the first half and on their first drive in the second half. Their execution was on point from start to finish. From converts, to double-dipping, getting clutch sacks, etc… When a play needed to be made the X-Men made it.

I watched Idaho Udapimps’ 52-34 victory over Les Bleue Dry from start to finish. Brady Ohanessian set the ton right away but getting a nice deflection interception on the second play of the game. He also threw for a ridiculous 330 yards and 8 touchdowns! I can honestly say every player for the boys in pink made a play in this game. All 5 receivers had a TD and at least 47 receiving yards. Alex Szalipszki had 2 timely interceptions on the day. He had himself a game. It’s hard to imagine a more perfect game for Idaho. They played great on both sides of the ball. Les Bleue Dry made plays too. Specifically Yvan Desjardins who had 4 receptions, 122 yards, and 3 tuddies. He had a beautiful over-the-shoulder seam touchdown catch in traffic. Idaho Udapimps will take on a powerhouse in West Island Boys for a chance to win it all.

A week after praising Zack Stacey he goes out and proves me exactly right! He went 23 of 26 for 278 yards and 7 TDs against Big Fat Bats. He even ran for a touchdown. Skylar Bayliff caught 3 of those TDs and added 97 yards. Mathew Zeppetelli had a good game himself but his 2 picks were costly. When you opposing QB has a perfect game even 1 pick becomes too many. Big Fat Bats were without defensive player of the year Ryan McNally which proved costly. He was a turnover machine throughout the entire season. West Island Boys were able to get a pick out of their speedy rusher Julian McLaren-Thompson. Credit them for staying composed after Big Fat Bats scored on a 40 bomb to AJ Zeppetelli on the very first play of the game. One thing about this team is that they stay locked in and focused regardless of their surroundings or the situation they’re put in.

Championship Viewing Guide!!!!!

I can’t believe it either! The Road Show is officially upon us! This is your chance to edge your name in history. On Sunday 2 teams will be crowned Division D champions.

D1

1. X-Men vs 3. Les Renards Vifs

Lemme start by saying I am not even sure as I write this I know who I am picking. The style of both teams is very similar. It’s smart play by both Devine and Salvail. They take what the defense gives them and add in their splash plays when the defense is napping. Discipline is the first thing I think of when I speak of both teams. As you may know, X-Men are coached on the sideline. All their coaches do a great job of keeping their players in check and coming up with various schemes. With Les Renards Vifs they have this way of communicating on the field that is rare to find across all divisions.

The X-Men will need to keep an eye on Philippe St-Laurent. He is their touchdown machine. He has had a touchdown in 9 consecutive games and in that span has had several games with 2+ TDs. He is leading the teams in receptions, yards, and touchdowns. It’ll be interesting to see who lines up in front of him for X-Men. I would take my chances with Emerson Peterkin. He is the best athlete on X-Men. He’s got length, speed, and is great at tracking the ball when it’s in the air. I have spoken to Devine and he has said that he is one of the guys he feels most comfortably throwing to on this offense.

The Swaminadhans are the heart and soul of this team. Their football IQ is what impresses me the most about them. Don’t get me wrong, they have a ton of athletic talent, but in watches their games it seems they always make the right play at the right time. Not just a play, but the right one. Jackson Cooper complements the two of them very well. He’s another player I can see matching up in front of Philippe St-Laurent. Cooper is a pure shut down DB. He doesn’t necessarily pick balls off but take away a whole are for QBs.

This game will come down to the wire. It’ll come down to the last few plays. I can see it being an overtime game. I can also see it very well coming down to converts. Gimme the youngsters in a tough and hard fought battle.

Prediction: X-Men win 35-33

D2

7. Idaho Udapimps VS 10. West Island Boys

Two offensive powerhouses clash at 5:40PM today. West Island Boys have been on a run these playoffs. Winning games in championship-like fashion. Idaho Udapimps have been doing much of the same. So who has the edge? Can I say both teams do? I mean that doesn’t actually make sense but both teams are playing their best football right now.

For West Island Boys it’s Skylar Bayliff and a little more Skylar Bayliff. Statistically he has been their leader. This team is more than just him though. Mike Collard is a very reliable snapper and a vocal leader. Mike Badibabungi also averaged a TD a game in the regular season for this boys. Julian McLaren-Thompson is one of the fastest rushers in the entire division.

For Idaho, Ohanessian has had himself a season on both sides of the ball. He is the one who rallies the troops. This team is also stacked. You have Hovington, Allard-Roy, and the list goes on. A big question to be answered in this game is will West Island Boys slow down this offense. Vice versa for Idaho. I am almost certain this will be an offensive shootout!

Since I am playoff eligible to play for Idaho Udapimps, I won’t predict a winner, but will predict that both teams score over 40 points!

It has been an absolute pleasure writing for the division all year! Thank you to everyone who tuned in to the articles each week! Until we meet again,

Stay Blessed