Division C: 13 First-Half Questions

Welcome to Week 5 of the FlagPlus Football Spring Season. This is usually the time of year when we write mid-season reviews. Looking at the schedule, with only five teams having played half their games so far, I felt it didn’t make sense to report card. Instead, I will look at the 13 biggest questions that have popped up over the first half of the season.

Will Idaho Udapimps, Win Diesel, Jagerbomb, Les Petites Carottes, or the Big Fat Bats finish undefeated?

Every year there are always a few teams who look unbeatable. Some end up completing their path to perfection, but often, most fall short of reaching their ultimate goal. Win Diesel, just suffered that fate this past season in Division 5B, as they lost to the Parlay Tilters in the championship game.

All five teams have gotten the job done through the first half of the season. When looking at the strength of schedule, Idaho Udapimps doesn’t exactly have a cake walk to the playoffs, as they have tough matchups against Fins Up, Big Fat Bats, West Island Boys, and next Tuesday versus Les Renards Vifs.

Finishing undefeated is an impressive feat, but doing so under the bright lights of the playoffs is a totally different animal. Let’s see which of these teams can pull off both.  

Who is the best team after Idaho Udapimps?

The team listed above is the class of the division, but they aren’t alone as true championship contenders. Despite that, each team has questions they must answer before we hit the stretch drive of the regular season.

Win Diesel had a touchdown awarded to them due to late arrivals, struggled to score 6 on 5, and then still needed an absolute collapse with five plays remaining by their opponents to beat The Commission (33-32) two weeks ago. Can we really take this team seriously after that?

They will have a chance to prove that we should as they have upcoming games against the Rico Ryders, Trapstars, Fins Up, and the Big Fat Bats. Let’s see what happens.

Les Petites Carottes have shown the ability to win close games which is an important trait. What’s concerning however, is except for their win last Sunday versus the West Island Boys, and their blowout win over the Pacemakers, all their other wins have come against Team Ethnik, Killer Rays, and the Nighthawks, who have combined for one victory. Not exactly a murderer’s row.

Jagerbomb has looked like a true contender as they have three blowout wins, and a (42-37) statement victory over a surging Backfield Penetration squad. That contending status will be tested however, as after a matchup with the Killer Rays tomorrow, they face the toughest remaining schedule out of all undefeated teams as they take on the Pacemakers, Bleue Dry, Les Petites Carottes, Trapstars, and Rico Ryders. Let’s see how they fare.

The Big Fat Bats have a signature win over Fins Up, and two blowout wins over WAREHOUSE and Mengoose. The only misstep they have is a (26-26) tie versus The Commission in Week 2.

After a big game next week versus Bleue Dry, the second half of the season sees Big Fats Bats with some big games on their docket with matchups against Win Diesel and Idaho Udapimps. Perhaps the BFB will force me to include them in the question.

I am picking Jagerbomb, but not in a landslide.

Will we see a team go winless?

There are only three teams without a victory – Team Ruthless, Killer Rays, and Nighthawks.

Team Ruthless has six games left to turn things around. Out of those contests, they have two winnable ones, as they take on the Nighthawks in Week 7 and Mengoose in Week 9. This team is starting to slowly show signs of improvement. I think they win at least one of those games.

The Nighthawks stole defeat away from the jaws of victory in their Week 3 loss to Les Petites Carottes, as bobbled snaps, dropped balls, ill-advised passes, and blown coverages on defense lost them the game more than their opponent beating them.

Looking at their remaining schedule the team will have a chance to atone for their mistake, as they have winnable games against the other two winless teams, and 1-win Mengoose.

The Killer Rays are the most surprising team on this list. They have talent, experience, and a solid Quarterback in Tylar Bianchi. The team also has some close losses to Les Petites Carottes and Never Overtime, as well as a (32-32) tie versus The Penetrators.

All that leads me to believe that they are closer than any other team on this list to tasting their first win of the year. They close out the regular season against Team Ethnik and the Nighthawks. Those are winnable games.

I am more interested however in seeing how they fare in a trio of games before then as they take on Friends with Danny, Backfield Penetration, and the Pacemakers. We could be looking at a playoff push for the Killer Rays, if they play as their talent suggests.

Which team has disappointed most the first half of the season?

For as good as Jagerbomb has been the first half of the year, veteran teams with championship experience like Trinity and The Commission, have been equally disappointing.

Trinity gave Idaho Udapimps their toughest test of the season this past Monday in a (43-31) defeat. This is a team with championship experience, and a plethora of playmakers.

Sitting at (1-4) part of their struggles has been due to the fact that their Quarterback Jean-Félix Marquis, has returned after having not played since the 2022 Winter Season. Rust is clearly a factor, but as the season goes on, he should look more like the former 4-time All-Star QB that he is.

The Commission aren’t dealing with QB rust, but they are breaking in a new passer, as they have turned to Stephen Casey, after being led by FPF Hall-of-Famer Gino Di Fazio the last few seasons. The problem for TC, has been availability, as Casey has missed several games, as has their best player in Corey Williams, as well the team’s second-best Receiver in Shanton “Ty” Smith, who is out due to injury. The absences have caused the team to have to turn to replacements in every game this year.

This team has talent, but chemistry and timing are lacking on both sides of the ball, as evident by their (1-3-1) start.

Who will win the Quarterback of the Year award?

The top three picks right now are Brady Ohanessian (Idaho Udapimps), Simon Duchesne (Jagerbomb) and Will Power (Fins Up), along with both Michael Caparelli (Big Fat Bats) and Jacob Salvail (Les Renards Vifs) right behind them.

Except for Ohanessian who already has five games played, all the other passer on this list have only had four contests, so Ohanessian must ensure that he finishes with more touchdown passes than his competition.

I think Duchesne wins it, as although he has four less TD passes than Ohanessian (28-24), he has taken eight less sacks (9 to 1) and has a higher completion percentage (69.1% to 73.5%).

Who is the team most likely to fall off in the second half of the season?

I am going with Les Petites Carottes. All credit to them for their comeback win over the West Island Boys with three plays left in the contest, as well as their blowout victory over the Peacemakers in Week 2.

Other than those two games, they barely got by a winless Killer Rays team (27-24) in Week 1, looked even less impressive in a 1-point (34-33) win over a one-win Team Ethnik squad, and needed another team searching for their first victory of the year in the Nighthawks, to shoot themselves in the foot multiple times just to beat them (25-24) in Week 3.

None of those games except for the win over the West Island Boys suggests that Les Petites Carottes can keep up their winning ways, let alone be considered a true threat in the second half of the season. Maybe I am wrong, but I doubt it.  

Who is the biggest dark horse to win the Division C title?

I am going the West Island Boys. They have an electric Quarterback in Zack Stacey, playmakers galore in Julian McLaren-Thompson, Skylar Bayliff, Nicholas Di Maulo, and Mike Badibabungi. The team also has championship experience and chemistry.

After starting off the season (2-0), they suffered their first setback with a (28-24) loss to Les Petites Carottes last Sunday at Loyola. They have a chance to rebound in a big way with an easy slate of games as the next three weeks sees them take on Team Ruthless, Mengoose, and the Nighthawks, before their schedule ramps up in a big way with showdowns with Idaho Udapimps, Win Diesel, Les Renards Vifs, and Bleue Dry to close out the regular season.

Who is the front-runner to win the Defensive Player of the Year award?

Right now, it would have to be Marvin Steinberg, as the 8-time Al-Star and future FPF Hall-of-Famer has six interceptions including a pick-six in just three games played.

Before the voting is all said and done, James Langshaw, Xavier Brault, Jean-Felix Daloze, Zachary Cloutier, and Richie Mondesir might have a thing or two to say about it, as each player has at least three interceptions each, and both Brault and Daloze have two defensive touchdowns. This will be an exciting race. I am going with the leader right now, but this is extremely fluid.

Will we continue to see so much offense in the second half of the season?

As In said earlier, the majority of teams have only played either three or four games. Even with that short amount of time on the field, the thing that is most noticeable is the number of points against, as all but five teams have given up more than 100 points, and two of them (Rico Ryders and Trapstars) have only played three games. This speaks to the talent we have at both Quarterback and Receiver in Division C this season.

Looking at the big picture, defense wins championships. Idaho Udapimps who sit at (5-0), lead the entire division in points allowed with 82. Will someone else join them in keeping defense alive? More importantly, can IU keep this up?

Who will win the Two-Way Player of the Year award?

As of right now, the race comes down to James Langshaw (10 offensive TDs, five INTs, three PDs), Jean-Felix Daloze (11 total TDs, two INTs, three PDs), Gabriel-Charles Dabe Champagne (eight TDs, two INTs, 3PDs), and Danick Coulombe (eight total TDs, three INTs, two PDs).

I am picking Langshaw because of the INTs, but that could easily change in short notice.

Which is the strongest Group in Division C?

Before the start of the season, I picked Group A, because it was full of championship winning teams with a solid mix of veteran experience, youth, and speed. Through five weeks, I have to go with Group E. Not only do they have the top team in Div. C in Idaho Udapimps, but they also have Fins Up, a Backfield Penetration squad that has two of their last three games, the young, fast, and dangerous Les Renards Vifs, and Air Laval who are looking to build some momentum after getting their first win of the year with a blowout win over the Peacemakers.

Which team has been the biggest surprise so far?

I have to pick the Big Fat Bats. They are starting a Quarterback in who hasn’t thrown fulltime since the 2023 Winter Season in Michael Caparelli. Despite that, they are beating teams with an explosive offense that has averaged nearly 38 points a game (37.5) and has surpassed that total in all but one game this year.

The team’s best player in Manu Allard-Roy, has delivered a calming effect to a team that has known to get hot under the collar throughout their time in FPF. Just as important, the 4-time All-Star has brought production with him, as he leads the team in targets, receptions, yards, and touchdowns.

On defense, this team has only allowed one opponent to crack the 30-point plateau against them, which is an impressive accomplishment.

One can argue that they have played a relatively soft schedule so far, but a win is a win. This team will be tested in the second half of the year with games against Idaho Udapimps and Win Diesel. Could we see a few more surprises out of the Big Fat Bats?

Who will make the championship game?

Idaho Udapimps are clearly the favorites, but that doesn’t they are guaranteed a spot in the Finals. They must earn it like everybody else.  Their play however has been nearly flawless, and you can’t discount that, especially given that they won two games without their best player in Marvin Steinberg. That fact along with their next man up mentality when it comes to making big plays, has me picking them.

I went back and forth with a few teams, but I am picking Jagerbomb. The offense is legit, their defense looks near impenetrable, and they have big game experience. They are far from perfect, but teams must play nearly flawless ball to beat them.  

Picks

X I picked Trinity over Idaho Udapimps (I wasn’t that far off Jerome lol) last week but forgot to put it as an Upset Special. It is fixed on the official record.

Bleue Dry vs Les Petites Carottes – Bleue Dry (Upset Special #1)

Team Ethnik vs The Penetrators – The Penetrators

Jagerbomb vs Killer Rays – Jagerbomb

Les Renards Vifs vs Mengoose – Les Renards Vifs

Never Overtime vs Rico Ryders – Rico Ryders

The Commission vs Friends with Danny – N/A

Backfield Penetration vs Fins Up – Fins Up (My pick for Game of the Week)

Pacemakers vs Jagerbomob – Jagerbomb

Trinity vs Rico Ryders – Trinity (Upset Special #2)

WAREHOUSE vs Win Diesel – Win Diesel

Trapstars vs Friends with Danny – Friends with Danny

West Island Boys vs Team Ruthless – West Island Boys

Air Laval vs Trapstars – Trapstars

Last Week: (6-5)

Regular Season: (26-10-1)

Upset Special: (3-3)

That is it for this week. Good luck to everyone in their games tomorrow and this week!

Enjoy the great weather as well as Grand Prix, and congrats to our very own Eagle on tying the knot!

If you liked the article, hated it, or simply felt like I left something out, please feel free to contact me at [email protected], or on the FPF Facebook page.