Covid Changes, Statement Games This Week, and Thank-You Coach K

Welcome to Week 8 of the FlagPlus Football Winter Season. The Covid pandemic resulted in some games being rescheduled and contests in other divisions being forfeited. The result of the movement and changes in the schedule resulted in only four games being played across Division 1 and 2. Unfortunately, three of those contests ended in a blowout.

The Apocalypse beat Incredibles (39-15)

Veteran Quarterback Jeff Rosenblatt had his best game of the year, as he went 9 of 12 for 125 yards and five touchdowns. Just as important, was the fact that he avoided throwing an interception for the first time this season, and he also didn’t take a sack.

Rosenblatt had the offense humming on their first possession, as he hit Receiver Anthony Brisebois for a 20-yard touchdown on their second play of the drive.

After a touchdown from Greg Stern to Vince Nardone, gave the Incredibles a (7-6) lead, Rosenblatt re-established his team’s lead with a 23-yard TD pass to Matt Bond.

The duo would connect for another trip to the endzone on an 8-yard score that gave The Apocalypse an (18-7) lead going into halftime.

The team’s offense picked up where it left off in the second stanza, as they got a 7-yard TD by Dawson Pierre, extending their lead to (25-7). After a successful 1-point conversion, they were able to add two more points to their lead as Patrick Jauzon, recorded a safety on a sack of Greg Stern.

The bleeding for the Incredibles continued, as they were called for a 28-yard pass interference penalty. One play later, they gave up a 12-yard TD to Adam Rockman.

Vince Nardone scored his second TD of the game for the Incredibles, but The Apocalypse, would answer right back with Matt Bond’s second trip to the endzone of the game.

The game would end on an interception by The Apocalypse’s Darnell Kevis Riley.

This was the best played game of the year by The Apocalypse. The victory over the Incredibles makes it two wins in a row for the team. More importantly, it places them in the eighth and final playoff spot in Division B. With an upcoming game Team Swoosh, they have a very good chance at running their win streak to three in a row.

Team Swoosh losses back-to-back games.

The tough times continued for Team Swoosh, as they lost both of their games Sunday night. First up was a (41-0) loss to the BBallers.

The Team Swoosh defense had no answers for BBallers Quarterback William Trottier, as the QB threw four touchdown passes, two to Concordia Stingers Wide Receiver Jeremey Murphy, and one each to Frederic Senay-Lussier and Charles Verreault. The only surprise in this game was that Murphy didn’t do more damage, as he finished with only three grabs for and 38 yards.

Verreault, did some damage with his legs too, as he added a 9-yard touchdown near the end of the first half, and an 18-yard TD to end the game.

As evidence by their failure to get on the scoreboard, Team Swoosh struggled to move the ball all evening, as they were without starting Quarterback Anthony Muntu.

Filling in was the combination of Jules Fortin and Jean Gardy. The duo combined to go 7 of 21 for 62 yards and two interceptions. The team would finish 0 for 3 on 4^th down, average less than three yards a play (2.6), and only managed one trip to the red zone.

The second defeat for Team Swoosh was a (52-6) loss to the Outlaws.

This time Team Swoosh had Anthony Muntu, but he didn’t line up Quarterback. Filling in at that spot was Darren Wiltshire. The move was a bit of a surprise, as Wiltshire is by far the team’s best Receiver.

The team was able to get on the board, as Wiltshire hit Fabrice Robillard, for a 7-yard score. The momentum was cut short right away, as one play later, James Langshaw would score on a 40-yard TD.

The Team Swoosh offense would throw two more touchdowns, but unfortunately, they went to the other team, as Langshaw and Jafar Hassan, would get their third and first interception of the season respectively.

The Outlaws were able to add two more touchdowns in the second half on offense, as QB Stephen Harripersaud found Will power and Myles Keiller for TDs.

It was an ugly set of losses for Team Swoosh. Scoring only one touchdown in two games is never a recipe for success.

For the Outlaws, it was their first win of the season. They have a must-win game this Monday night at Loyola against the Incredibles. A win for the Outlaws would not only help them leapfrog their opponents for ninth place in Div. 2, but it would also leave them tied for points with The Apocalypse for the last playoff spot in Div 2. The latter holds the head-to-head tie breaker curtesy of their (55-32) win over the former just two weeks ago, but a win for the Outlaws would keep their playoff hopes alive and well.

Braves and Flag Moi L’Sac face off in another classic

For the third time in two weeks, the Braves and Flag Moi L’Sac went head-to-head in another masterpiece, and for the second straight time, FMLS, came away with a 1-point victory.

The scoring started almost right after the kickoff, as Flag Moi L’Sac, scored three plays into the game on a 30-yard touchdown from Alex Nadeau-Piuze to Guillaume Robert.

The Braves wasted little time answering back, as one play after a successful 1-point convo by FMLS, the Braves would get their first score of the game, as QB Jonathan Maheu, would connect with Serge Pilon Jr, on a 30-yard TD. The Braves would also take the lead, as they would record the 2-point convo as well.

Surprisingly the game went 13 plays without a score. We did see an interception though, as Maheu picked off Nadeau-Piuze. That INT would set up Pilon’s second TD of the game on a two-yard TD pass.   

Flag Moi L’Sac, would respond nine plays later, as three-time All-Star Mikhaïl Davidson would find his way to the endzone on a one-yard TD. The momentum would be short-lived, as Alex Pilon Jr, would record his first score of the night, on a 40-yard catch. The Braves would also be successful going for the 2-point convo.

After a turnover on downs by Flag Moi L’Sac, the Braves looked to add to their lead, but they had a turnover of their own, as Mikhaïl Davidson, would score a pick-six off Maheu on the first play of the second half. They would also add a successful 2-point conversion of their own.

Both teams would trade touchdowns as both Alex Pilon and Samuel Nadeau-Piuze would score back-to-back-to-back-to-back touchdowns. Yes, four TDs.

Samuel Nadeau-Piuze, would add his third touchdown of the evening on a 1-yard TD reception. Flag Moi L’Sac would once again score the 2-point conversion. That was key, as they now held a nine-point lead.

Now down by nine points with seven plays left, the Braves needed to score quick, force a turnover, and then score again.

After an incomplete pass on first down, Maheu found Jean-Daniel Chevalier for a gain of 10 yards and a first down. A three-yard pass to Serge Pilon, followed by a sack of Maheu curtesy of Samuel Nadeau-Puize, sealed the deal for Braves. They were able to score on a five-yard TD pass from Maheu to Mike Pierrecin, and add another two-point convo, but it was too little too late.

Final score, Flag Moi L’Sac (43-42).

Another tough pill to swallow for the Braves. They have a tough matchup tomorrow against Gryffindor, followed by games against Urgence Médic and Got-Skills. They currently sit tied for second with the Allstars, as both teams have eight points, but despite the fact that both teams split their previous two meetings, the Allstars hold the advantage because they have a better divisional record (4-1) to (4-3) and have allowed less points (148) to (208).

The win for Flag Moi L’Sac for all intents and purposes wraps up the division for them. Mathematically they can still be caught by the Allstars, who sit four points back but have two games in hand. The teams do meet in their respective regular season finales, but looking at the big picture, FMLS’s two other remaining contests are against Gryffindor and Got-Skills. Do you really see them losing two out three games to close the out the regular season?

I am a Duke fan. I have been since the days of Grant Hill Christian Laettner, and Booby Hurley. Truth be told, I started liking them in the mid 90’s when I was watching them play in March Madness, and pwople were hating on them. I didn’t really know anything about them, but it seemed like the more people booed them, the better they played. I have always cheered for the villain.

It broke my heart last Saturday to see them lose to that other team from the Carolina not named N.C State. Out of all the teams to lose to, we picked the worse possible team to lose to. After our wins in the Sweet 16 and Elite 8, I really thought we were going to win it all. The lack of toughness, and inability to close out games late that killed us this year and in the ACC Tournament seem to vanish the further we went in March Madness. I would have rather lost to Texas Tech or Arkansas, than have lost to that other team.

That foul call on Jeremy Roach was one of the weakest no- fouls you will ever see, but it isn’t the reason we lost. We simply choked at the charity stripe late in the game. It was a heartbreaking end of the road in Coach K’s final game. Despite all of that. He has solidified himself as the GOAT of college basketball. And a staple of the greatest playoff in sport period.

I am excited for Jon Scheyer and Duke next year, as we have a strong recruiting class. We’ll see what happens. Watching Duke won’t ever be the same.

Yes, I took a lot of joy in watching that other team choke their brains Monday night and losing the National title. We got to see some history, and those baby blue chumps lose. I have no complaints.

More importantly, thank-you Coach K!!!!

Power Rankings

Division 1

1. Flag Moi L’Sac (6-1) – Different week, same result.

2. Braves (4-3) – Another 1-point loss to the top team in FPF. They are literally two plays away from being (6-1).

3. Allstars (4-1) – They laid a beat down on Got-Skills two weeks ago, by a score of (47-25), on the shoulders on a seven TD performance by the GOAT Kevin Wyeth. They get them again tomorrow night.

4. Gryffindor (2-3) – They are riding a two-game winning streak, but both of those wins came against the next team on the list. Tomorrow their newly designed squad takes on the Braves. Can Gryffindor,pull off the upset and make it three wins in a row?

5. Got-Skills (1-5) – They haven’t won a game since Week 2, and they take on the Allstars tomorrow night, the same team that beat them by three touchdowns two weeks ago. The odds aren’t in their favour.

Division 2

1. Terror Squad (5-1) – They have a big matchup tonight against All Hooks in Brossard. Can they hang on to the top spot?

2. KGP (4-0-1) – After having their game against the Terror Squad rescheduled due Covid, they have a big game against The BBallers tomorrow night in Lachine.

3. All Hooks (4-0-1) – They have a brutal 4-game schedule to close out the regular season. Up first is a game against Terror Squad. Can All Hooks jump up to a share of the top spot in the division?  

4. Urgence Médic (4-2) – They take on the Party Crashers in what could be a shoot-out tomorrow night in Lachine.

5. Party Crashers (4-2) – If they can knock off Urgence Médic, the Party Crashers will prove they are among the elite in the division. They also have a game against #NR later in the evening.

6. BBallers (4-3) – They have back-to-back wins over struggling teams. The BBallers have a chance to show what they are made of when they take on KGP tomorrow night. A win would be huge.

7. #NR (3-4) – They can climb the standings with a win over the Party Crashers. Can they do it?

8. The Apocalypse (2-5) – They are handling business against the worst teams in the division. Tomorrow’s night game will be no different as they take on Team Swoosh.

9. Incredibles (1-6) – This is arguably their biggest left this season. If the Incredibles want to have any chance of making the playoffs, they must beat the Outlaws.

10. Outlaws (1-5) – They finally got their first win. The post-season seems like a pipedream, but if they want to have any chance of making it a reality, they need to beat the Incredibles Monday night.

11. Team Swoosh (0-7) – The tough times continue. Their best and most likely last chance to get their first win of the season comes tomorrow night in Lachine as they take on The Apocalypse. Good luck guys.

Picks (favorites in bold)

Terror Squad vs All Hooks – Terror Squad

The Apocalypse vs Team Swoosh – The Apocalypse

Urgence Médic vs Party Crashers – Party Crashers (Upset Special #1)

Braves vs Gryffindor – Gryffindor (Upset Special #2)

Flag Moi L’Sac vs Gryffindor – Flag Moi L’Sac

Got-Skills vs Allstars – Allstars

BBallers vs KGP – KGP

Party Crashers vs #NR – Party Crashers (My Pick for Game of the Week Div. 2)

Gryffindor vs Allstars – Allstars (My Pick for Game of the Week Div. 1)

Last Week: (4-0)

Season: (31-11-1)

Upset Special: (2-5)

That’s it for this week. Good luck to everybody in their games this weekend and this week. If you liked, loved, or hated the article, or simply feel that I left something out, do not hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected], or reach me on Instagram @brent_b51