Division A/B Article: Defense, The Battle of Allard, Matchups, Picks, and the Habs

Last week we talked about how several offenses lit up the scoreboard, as we saw four teams score more than 40 points, and all but two squads record at least 30 on the board to kick off the season.

This past week, it looks like more than a few defenses took notice, as scoring was significantly down, with only one team topping 40 (Braves), two other teams scoring more than thirty (All-Stars and KGP both scored 32 points), and one squad (Junkyard Dogs) being held to one touchdown.

All in all, both divisions combined to score 210 points, which averages out to 53 points a game. That is down from the 278 points for an average of 70 from the week before. Is this simply a case of defenses finding their rhythm, or did some teams just have a bad game offensively? The answer could lie somewhere in the middle.

Speaking of defenses stepping it up, after getting beaten (41-26) to kick off their season last week, Get Off Our D, responded in a big way with a (25-12) win over KGP Thursday night in Laval.

 The trio of Jonathan Lyristis, Raoul Baroudi, and Erik Brousseau played a huge role in their team’s win. Lyristis, recorded two sacks and harassed KGP Quarterback Phil Cutler all night. When he could not get there in time to take his flag, the All-Star Rusher forced the mobile QB to get rid of the ball early and often, which disrupted the passer’s timing with his receivers.

Whether you play tackle football or flag, one thing is for certain, and that is that a good pass rush always helps coverage and vice versa. Thursday night was no different, as defenders Baroudi and Brosseau both intercepted Cutler, with the former doing it twice, and the latter did it once.

All three players contributed on the other side of the ball too, as they each caught a pass. Lyristis, recorded a touchdown, while Baroudi led all players with two trips to the endzone.  

The win was a big one for Get Off Our D, as it saw them jump from last all the way into a three-way tie for second with BYOB and the KGP, who they now hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over. Their final regular season meeting in Week 6 holds a lot of importance.

Matchups

Jesse Dupuis (Urgence Médic) versus Jonathan Maheu (Braves)

This is a game between the top team in Division A versus the top team in Division B. There are a lot of potential matchups worth talking about in this contest. Julien Paiement vs Marc-Antoine Vallée, Mathieu Houle vs Jean-Daniel Chevalier, Emile Beaudoin vs Georges Gariépy, Jason Courchesne vs Julien Bellavance, Mike Pierrecin vs Alexis Gaumont, Anthony Lapointe vs Guillaume Beland, Nicolas Gendron-Vallée vs Alex Pilon, the list can go on and on.

The biggest matchup in this contest will feature two players who will go head-to-head, as both Quarterbacks also play defense for their respective teams.

The Braves Jonathan Maheu, leads all Div. A Quarterbacks in QB Rating (135.1), completion percentage (70.0%), yards per pass (15.6), and is tied for first in touchdowns with the All-Stars Kevin Wyeth with (11).

Urgence Médic’s Jesse Dupuis leads all Division B Quarterbacks in touchdowns (8), yards per pass (10.5), and QB Rating (99.3) for QBs that have played in two games.   

Throw out all the numbers and get down to offense versus defense. Both players like to air it out, but when they play the opposite side of the ball, Dupuis and Maheu are ballhawks who can change the momentum of a game in one play.

If you have played against Dupuis, you know that he is not afraid to throw the ball on the run from different angles and release points, including across his body and off his back foot, while relying on the chemistry he has with his Receivers and their athleticism to make big plays. In other divisions he was able to get away with it. Facing a championship Div. A defense like the Braves, the Urgence Médic Quarterback might not be so lucky.

Kishon Thompson (All-Stars) versus Alexandre Poulin-Rioux (Chernobyl – 21)

We talked earlier about defense, and these two players have been all about it as they are lead their teams in tackles and pass deflections. Thompson in particular made his presence felt on that side of the ball in his team’s (32-20) win over Here For The Beers, as he led all players with two PDs and a team-high seven tackles.  

Both teams have big play Receivers, in Patrick Jérome, Matt Bond, Paul Lapierre, Nicolas Arsenault-Hum, and Matt Kirouac just to name a few. Poulin-Rioux also leads his team in catches and yards with 11 and 119 respectively, so chances are, both he and Thompson will be lined up across from each at least a few times Sunday night.

Although it is still early in the year, (0-2) Chernobyl – 21 must be hungry for a win. Getting a victory would not only give them some confidence after losing to two Div. B teams in KGP and BYOB, but it would also give them the head-to-head tiebreaker over All-Stars, and potentially even see Chernobyl-21 jump all the way to second depending on that happens to Khantraband in their game against Here For The Beers Sunday night in Lachine.

A win for All-Stars, would be their second in a row after losing their season opener versus Khantraband, and it could see them jump into a potential tie for fist place in Div. A, if the Braves lose to Urgence Médic, and Khantraband falls to Here For The Beers.

Jordan Allard (Here For The Beers) versus Isiah Allard (Khantraband)

It’s the battle of Allard!!!!!! Ok, maybe not so much. I won’t lie, it did sound a little funny in my head, and as long as I made you laugh at my stupidity, then my job is done. Moving on…

After dominating the lower and middle divisions, and only subbing for Division 1/A teams like Purple Reign in the past, Jordan Allard’s first game as a regular in Division A/B player, was a good building block for the big-play Receiver, as he recorded two catches for 40 yards and a TD.

Having played with and against Allard before, I can say with all certainty that he has height, reach, solid route running, and a great set of hands. He is also a lot faster than he looks for someone his size. He also has more than enough swag and confidence, which is something you need playing against Division A and B opponents.

All of Allard’s attributes will need to be on display, as he and his team take on dangerous Khantraband team (see what I did there?) that is coming off a (46-40) upset win over the All-Stars in Week 1.

One of the players who will be key to stopping Jordan Allard, as well as the Here For The Beers offense, will be Isiah Allard. Although he plays Rusher and not Defensive Back, this Allard, makes plenty of plays from that position too, as he is a combination of length, speed, reach, and agility. He is exactly like Jordan, but even longer, faster, and more athletic.

Having covered him in lower divisions, and playing against him a few times, I think it is fair to say that he is a threat to score from anywhere on the field on both sides of the ball. As a Rusher, he has shown repeatedly shown the ability to either bat the ball to himself, or time the pass so well that he picks it off and runs it back for a TD.

On offense, his uses his speed to create separation, and length to catch balls over defenders. In the words of his teammate A.J Gomes, Allard, is simply a game changer.

Whichever Allard delivers a bigger game tomorrow, has a good chance of leading their team to victory.

 Mathieu Lepage (BYOB) versus Paul Lapierre (Junkyard Dogs)

In one game played so far, BYOB Receiver Mathieu Lepage (vs Chernobyl – 21) has three touchdowns. As I mentioned earlier, in their last contest, the Junkyard Dogs, scored one TD. Clearly, if JYD wants to have any chance of winning not just versus BYOB, but against anybody for that matter, that will need to change that quickly.

To turn things around, they will need the help of Paul Lapierre. A redzone threat on both sides of the ball, the five-time champ and 2012 FPF Hall of famer, will have to use his knowledge, skill, and penchant for always being around the ball, to help guide a defense that essentially shut down Urgence Médic in the second half of their (27-6) loss, as they held them to one touchdown. Hopefully, the defense can build off of that showing. They will be able to do that if they can somehow find a way to slow down the dynamic Mathieu Lepage, who appears to be somewhat of a touchdown machine no matter who he plays for. Having Lapierre get physical with him and try to re-route him especially in the endzone could be an option.  

On the other side of the ball JYD, will need to mix things up. Instead of relying predominantly on short and intermediate routes, Quarterback Jason Rossie, will need to use the size advantage his receivers have on the BYOB defenders. No one on the team has more size and length than Lapierre. Can Rossie use him to ignite the offense?  

Picks (Favorites in bold)

*Get Off Our D beat KGP (25-12) on Thursday night.  

BYOB vs Junkyard Dogs – BYOB

All-Stars vs Chernobyl – 21 – Chernobyl – 21 (Upset Special)

Khantraband vs Here For The Beers – Khantraband

Urgence Méedic vs Braves – Braves

Last Week: (3-1)

Regular Season: (3-1)

To all the Habs fans out there it was a good run. I am not a Canadiens at all, (Bruins all day), but even I can admit I was impressed. For a team that many including myself thought were going nowhere this year, to make it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, is really impressive. The big question of course, is whether they were a fluke one-hit wonder or is this the start of something special. Only time will tell.

I could not help but think of the parallels between the Habs’ playoff ride, and FPF. Maybe someone in either division makes the same type of run when the playoffs roll around.

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