Div E: Done with the play-in and on to the wildcard

Bend Don’t Break take care of business against Texas Whales, as expected

Final score: 34-18

Notable performances:

Luke Moreau throws 0 interceptions and 5TDs, only needing 135 yards passing to do so. A nice 36 yards rushing added to that total. He also racked up 3PDs on defense. My player of the game. 

Dominic Weidner catches all 7 balls thrown to him for a total of 43 yards and 3TDs.

Josh Notte gets a whopping 11 targets, only reels in 5, but picks up 42 yards. He also adds 2 sacks on defense.

Vaughn Vanslet was pretty good in the loss, only throwing 1 interception, and getting 124 yards passing on only 11 completions. 

Chazz Pisanelli did well with 54 yards, but failed to find the endzone.

Without Benoit Robidoux, Michael Binette McDougall is forced to play quarterback, and Bloodline pounce on the occasion for the first upset of the postseason. 

Notable performances: 

Justin Fraser only completes 7 passes, but 4 of those go for TDs. His 62 yards rushing caused some real problems for Les Habitations BR’s defense. 

Nathan Duguay only catches 3 of the 6 targets towards him, but he takes all of them to the house with a crazy 86 yards receiving. He also added a pick on D. My player of the game. 

Sebastien Demers causes nightmares for Binette McDougall, picking him off twice and defending 2 other passes. 

Miguel Adams throws a 25 yard TD to Duguay, and adds two 1-pt converts.

Joey Monette comes out of nowhere for Les Habitations BR and catches 3 passes for 81 yards and 2TDs.

Simon Viens is a huge dud with 1 catch out of 5 targets and 2 total yards. 

Satriales come out on top in overtime and end Area 69’s season. 

Michael de Seta threw a 40-yard bomb to Stefano de Seta to tie the game late in the 2nd half. Going for 1 and to win the game, the convert is unsuccessful.

In OT, there were 8 unsuccessful 1 point attempt until Satriales finally got one on their 5th try. Area 69 were unable to convert their 5th and Satriales pull away with the win.

Notable performances:

George Kalavritinos was solid, throwing 3TDs and only 1 interception.

Satriales’ whole receiver core, with 4 different players with at least 30 receiving yards. 

Satriales’ 4PDs as a team were also very solid.

No one particularly stood out for Satriales, but the whole squad showed up.

For Area 69, Michael de Seta had one of his best games all season, with 4TDs and 0 interceptions.

Stefano de Seta had 3 catches for 71 yards and 2TDs and 1 PD on defense.

James Vogas had 54 yards, 1TD and 1 interception.

Area 69 fought well and had one of their best games of the season, but simply weren’t able to stop Satriales when they needed at the end of the game, and their converting game in overtime was awful, and ultimately ended their season.

Trailer Park Boys win by forfeit over Tex4s Chooches

Perhaps Chooches thought they didn’t stand a chance and didn’t bother to even show up, but should have made it known to the league they weren’t going to show up so Timberwolves could have gotten blown out by Trailer Park Boys instead. 

Tonight, the wild card round starts. Teams seeded 1-15 all made it through, with Bloodline being the only team out of the top 16 to qualify for the wild card. They’ll have the chance to go up against the best team in the division, Hail Marty’s.

Hail Marty’s (1) vs. Bloodline (17)

I originally thought that Hail Marty’s would be facing Les Habitations BR in this wild card game, but instead Bloodline came out and destroyed BR in the play-in. The last time Hail Marty’s and Bloodline faced off against each other, Marty’s put up 40 and only allowed 18. Bloodline didn’t do too bad in that game, moving the ball a lot, but Justin Fraser threw 4 costly picks. Nathan Duguay was a beast against BR, but he should have some struggles against the very athletic Hail Marty’s who will do everything to slow him down. Hopefully Eric Boisvert is back for this game to alleviate the pressure on Duguay, and spread Marty’s defense for Justin Fraser. Fraser will definitely have to be very cautious with his throws and limit the turnovers if he wants his team to have a chance. Duguay should line up in front of Brandon Vickers and shadow him as much as possible. Bloodline have to know that Vickers will be the main target for Freedman, and adjust their defensive scheme accordingly. Unfortunately for Bloodline, their defensive depth doesn’t match Marty’s offensive depth. I really don’t know how Bloodline cover all of Vickers, Perez and Noel. Bloodline don’t have the quality at rusher needed to really pressure Marty Freedman into making mistakes. Marty’s should win in similar fashion to the first time these teams met.

Score prediction: 38-19 Hail Marty’s

Minchia FT (2) vs. Satriales (15)

We get a nice Italian battle in round 2, with Minchia FT coming in as heavy favorites. Satriales are coming off an overtime win against Area 69, while Minchia FT ended the regular season with 3 straight wins. This is the first matchup between the two teams, and there’s chance it’ll be close. Minchia FT haven’t been that dominant since week 5, and Adam Antel has regressed a little since his fiery start to the season. The team mainly wins due to its superior defense, with 22 interceptions on the season. George Kalavritinos isn’t the best at protecting the ball, and he could really struggle moving the chains in this game. Justin Neemeh and Matthew Janiszewski are both going to make it tough for Satriales’ receivers, and Kalavritinos cannot baby any passes, under any circumstances, or he’ll get picked off. Neemeh and Matthew Neiss are both going to be hard to cover and I doubt Satriales’ DBs are going to have an easy time with either of them. Raff Morelli is going to have to pressure Adam Antel a lot and make him force bad decisions. If he’s able to do so, Satriales’ DBs will have to be very aggressive on the ball and take some risks, or else Antel will just pick them apart. 

Score prediction: 27-19 Minchia FT

Meat Lovers (3) vs. Bend Don’t Break (14)

This is a rematch of week 4, in which Meat Lovers almost shut down Bend Don’t Break, winning 19-6. Both QBs struggled in that game throwing only 79 yards (Bizogias) and 64 yards (Moreau). Moreau has stepped up since, throwing for at least 100 yards and 2TDs in his past 6 games. Obviously, those aren’t particularly good stats, but he’s had some good games against weak competition. He has struggled a lot anytime he’s faced quality defenses, and Meat Lovers’ is one of the best. I truly don’t know how he escapes this game without at least 2 picks, with Kevin Scalia, Dante Gonsalves and Manny Bizogias patrolling. Dominic Weidner needs to have a huge game both offensively and defensively, and Luke Moreau has to match Meat Lovers’ offense. The only chance Bend Don’t Break have is if Bizogias is too aggressive and inaccurate, as he can be sometimes. Bend Don’t Break need at least 2-3 picks to win this game, and even that might not be enough. 

Score prediction: 31-24 Meat Lovers

Show Me Dem TDies (4) vs. Trailer Park Boys (13)

This matchup is pretty even in my eyes. On one hand, Show Me Dem TDies have been dominant defensively, racking up a bunch of interceptions in the regular season, but haven’t had the best performances offensively from their QB, Daniel Caruana, who has thrown 16 picks in only 9 games. The 3 main receivers for Show Me Dem TDies are all solid, but do different things. Louis Gaitanis is a deep threat who averages almost 17 yards per catch, but catches below half of the balls thrown his way. Denis Koutavas also doesn’t have the best efficiency, but has 13TDs on only 26 receptions. Meanwhile, Matthew Yanakoulias helps moving the chains, and is the most secure target for Caruana. As for Trailer Park Boys, their offense has been driving them. Antoine Meunier has been so good he won QB of the year with only 8 games played. He’s been clinical, throwing less than 1 pick per game. Alexandre Meunier, Frederic Meunier and Mathieu Gascon have been the main offensive threats for the team. Their defense has unfortunately been incredibly mid. Low interception and PD numbers have kind of been saved by Will Richard’s dominance at rusher. He is going to be very annoying to deal with for Caruana. Usually, the teams with the better QB tends to win, but Antoine Meunier hasn’t faced a defense as good as Show Me Dem TDies’. I wouldn’t be that surprised if he has a terrible game tonight. I also wouldn’t be surprised if he goes off as well. I think this game will depend heavily on how much Meunier is able to protect the ball and score. If he throws more than 1 pick, Show Me Dem TDies should take the game, if not, TPB will be moving on.

Score prediction: 25-24 Trailer Park Boys

FSU (5) vs. Cover 3 Inches Long (12)

Someone said FSU were clearly overrated at the beginning of the season, and while I agree, they’ve beaten all the best teams. Hail Marty’s, Meat Lovers, Ramphins, Trailer Park Boys, Show Me Dem TDies. That is amazing competition to beat, but they got taken down by Pasta Arrabiat, Bloodline (?!) and Not You Too? Their highs are really high, and their lows are low as hell. Bloodline? Seriously? Justin Schwartz is weird to evaluate. On one hand, he doesn’t throw many picks, he’s great at running with the ball, but his TD and yard numbers are very low. Only 1 player with more than 200 yards, but 4 between 130 and 200. Defensively, they’re very good, but not top tier in the division. It’s just a really good team that can beat anyone when things are rolling, or they can spiral to a very low level. I’m not too worried about them versus Cover 3 Inches Long, who have now lost 3 in a row and look unrecognizable from the beginning of the season. Fabrice Tremblay is also inconsistent with a lot of highs and lows. William Seguin and Vincent Demers are the receivers to watch, but Felix Galiepeault and  Nathan Lequin could also do some damage. Similar defenses, but with Lequin rushing, Schwartz could have some issues running. Honestly, this game depends a lot on what version of each quarterback shows up. If both are on their game, this will be a high scoring affair, but if both struggle, this game could get really ugly. I think FSU are the better all around squad, and their depth is going to be too much for C3IL. If Lequin can’t slow down Schwartz on the feet, C3IL’s defense could crumble. If Tremblay gets in his head too much, FSU will win easily.

Score prediction: 33-31 FSU

Not You Too? (6) vs. Pasta Arrabiat (11)

Iggy said on the podcast that Kaiden Dewey-Hull won’t be there, which means Not You Too? will only be 5 players available, and without their best quarterback and defender. What are they gonna do? Probably lose, and badly. When KDH isn’t playing, the team is extremely average. Pasta Arrabiat are way too solid to even struggle against a team who’s only 5 players, and Joe Morgese will absolutely feast. I don’t even know who will be throwing for Not You Too, but it won’t be someone better than Nic Delisi. If KDH was playing, I would have taken Not You Too by a pretty big score, just to show how good the kid is. Shame he won’t be there, and that’ll be the end of the season for Not You Too.

Score prediction: 37-20 Pasta Arrabiat

WHO D’EH (7) vs. Ramphins (10)

This might be the only game where the lower seed is a clear favorite, with Ramphins   being the hottest team in the division right now. The 3 Dumeignils have been awesome recently, and I can’t see them slowing down. This is definitely a team with enough star power to go deep into the playoffs, with questionable secondary pieces and depth though, I have some doubts about their next games. Tonight’s game shouldn’t be that much of a challenge. I don’t really see anyone on WHO D’EH able to contain Jesse and Chad Dumeignil. Tom Gatehouse will also struggle against such an athletic team. Gatehouse’s performances against athletic defenses have been subpar, and I don’t see that changing tonight. 

Score prediction: 37-18 Ramphins

OnlyFlags (8) vs. Primetime (9)

OnlyFlags beat Primetime 27-18 in the final week of the season, and made me realize I underrated OnlyFlags a lot. I’m a huge believer in Primetime and especially Matthew Cadogan but he’s been pretty average recently. OnlyFlags also had Joey Notaro subbing (who should not be playing in Div E). This game will be very different, and I think Cadogan will have a bounce back game. He’ll have to throw away from Zachary Mastromonaco, who picked him off twice. George Spano has had some good and bad games, and I’m skeptical about his ability to protect the ball. He does spread the ball well, and Mastromonaco is a great weapon to have. Both of them have been fantastic defensively as well, and will be looking to make it hard for Cadogan. Brandon Rowen is a good rusher as well. For Primetime, Alessio Muro and Massimo Rosati will be the players to watch. 
Score prediction: 31-26 Primetime

Good luck to all of you tonight!