Division C – Week 3 Recaps, Week 4 Preview, Game Picks and some Divisional Thoughts

Iggy Magnets back here for your Week 3 article for Div C. After just 3 games played in Week 2, Week 3 was full steam ahead with 7 games played. This week’s article will include the updated Division Power Rankings, Week 3 Game Recaps, Game Previews for Week 4, we will find out which players cracked the prestigious Week 3 Fantasy Roster of the Week, and of course, you can scream, punch and yell in your bathroom while reading the FPF analysts Game Picks of the week. But first, a few thoughts…

Division Headlines

lol The Infantry already have 4 out of the 5 wins I initially predicted for them. At least I abandoned that idea after just 1 week.
We’ve got 3 undefeated teams after Week 3’s conclusion: Blessed (3-0), BBALLERS (3-0) and The Infantry (4-0).
South Harmon Institute of Technology (SHIOT) come up with the shocking 32-25 upset victory over Blue Dreamers, with all 32 points coming in the 1st half and shutting down the Blue Dreamer comeback attempt.
BBALLERS put up 55 points in the torrential downpour in Laval last Thursday. It’s hard to catch that slick ball, and even harder to tackle with those slippery plastic flags.
The Infantry went 2-0 last week, winning by a combined score of 74-7. WOAH 😱!
Well, it seems like EZW and QB Jeremy White may have hit their FPF ceiling in Spring’s 2021 iteration of Div C, starting the season 0-3. This is a rare occurrence since White’s first ever snap behind centre, back in the Spring of 2018. What an evolution in 3 years!
Les Gros Coqs will look to avoid going 1-3 on the season when they face Sheeeesh in Week 4.

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Week 3 Game Recaps

Blessed 37 – 18 Ballz Deep

Has a writer even written a recap about a game they previewed? Obviously there’s only 1 team that will want to really read this, and it’s Blessed. But if you aren’t a player on Blessed, this is why you’ll want to read this: The more intel you can get on one of the powerhouse teams in your division is to your advantage, right? Obviously, I won’t be giving away any pieces of information that peel the curtain back on Blessed, but as an analyst, I will talk about what I see and analyze the game!

It’s also interesting to do a compare and contrast on what I previewed and what actually happened. I’ll be sure to note any mistakes I made and pat myself on the back for correctly predicting any outcome I may have stated.

Sacking Steve Harripersaud won’t be a factor in this game (0 sacks against), as Steve releases the ball way too fast for most rushers to be an impact against him. So for his offence, with all the talent to go around his WR core, I can see them scoring on 7/8 drives (they scored on 6 drives — and the only reason they didn’t score 7 is because they had 6 drives in total) . The only way Ballz Deep will have a chance to win this game is to score on all their drives (aka what Blessed did). When you are facing the towering defenders of Marvin Steinberg, Jonathan Svetna down the middle, and Kevin Smuda (1 INT), you better have a gunslinger QB to thread the needle through tight windows. I don’t think this is Justin Weir’s game, as he’s more the mobile, athletic QB who can make plays on the run. Unfortunately for him, he will be facing Terry Babalis, rusher extraordinaire (1 sack), who will look to keep Weir in the pocket and force Weir to beat them with his arm (allowed Weir to rush just twice for 18 yards). Ballz Deep have a really tough first 3 opponents (The Infantry, BBALLERS, and now Blessed), and were only able to put up 12 points in their first 2 games. I’ll give them an extra drive that results in a touchdown vs. Blessed (they scored 3 TDs), but I should probably go with their statistical average of 2 TDs. Either way, it won’t be enough against a powerhouse like Blessed, bringing Ballz Deep to the early 0-3 whole while Blessed, with the predicted win will be undefeated at 3-0.

Final Score prediction: Blessed 44 (actually scored 37) – Ballz Deep 18 (actually scored 18)

Where I didn’t get my prediction so right, compared to the actual game, are the mentions of Isiah Allard leading the Blessed receiving core in receptions (5) and yards (63) in this one, and the mention to the other defensive players, as everyone on the defensive squad had a PD (minus their rusher, Terry). That’s 8 big hands getting in the way of the talented Ballz Deep receivers in Jonathan Weir, Matthew Peacock, Richie Mondesir and Ryan Dobbs-Garnett. Funny enough, they went (from my previous listing of their names) from Dobbs-Garnett up to Weir, in ascending order of receiving yards (36, 37, 38, 39). If you think of it, Ballz Deep started each drive on their own 10 since Blessed scored on every drive, and each receiver had enough yards to essentially drive the ball the length of the field 4 times, yet they scored 3 TDs. The game can be said to have been lost on the first 2 offensive drives for Ballz Deep, as the first drive went down the field which resulted in a pick, and the second, Terry had a key 11-yard sack that led to a Ballz Deep punt. Meanwhile, Blessed took over both drives and punched it in for the early 12-0 lead, and as Peeze has said on multiple occasions, my god, do not give Steve H. a 2-score lead, because it will be hard to get the ball back enough times to make a comeback. While Steve’s offensive game plan has traditionally been to slowly march down the field, he has vastly improved on his deep ball, as evidenced in this game with 5 completions over 20 yards, including TDs of 20 yards (Allard) 27 yards (Hassan) and 40 yards (Steinberg).

So as well as I did predict this game, I do have to concede and say that I was completely wrong about my other game preview from last week, where I took Blue Dreamers to completely dominate the South Harmon squad and SHIOT came out victorious.

Les Centaures 20 – 28 Sheeeesh

This 1-score game was a tightly contested matchup that came down to the last play. While the game started with each team turning the ball over on downs, it was Langburt who got the score keeper working the score-board and flipping the 6 for his side on a drive where he hit each of his receivers once and also mixed in a running play. This is one of the reasons why Sheeeesh will be very hard to stop on the season. Langburt has trust in each of his receivers to catch his passes and move the chains, without the need to target only one guy. Langburt did not play his best game overall, which included a big 16-yard penalty (the first of his 2 penalties of 10+ or more) that was one-third of the plays that led to Centaures touchdown drive to tie the game at 14. Luckily for Les Centaures, just after their touchdown drive, Hugo Allamanno made a huge tackle at the 1-yard line, preventing Marco Bertoldi from scoring on the last play in the first half.

Both teams once again started lackadaisically on offence, as both their drives didn’t result in any points; a turnover-on-downs by Les Centaures, and a pick thrown by Langburt to Armand Balla. Probably the FPF turning point of the game was the following Centaures drive, as right after Ben Nolette collected a first down, Justin Frankel came up with a big 9-yard sack on 1st down, followed by 3 incompletions; a strong defensive series for Sheeeesh that allowed Langburt to get back on the field. Once again, Langburt connected with DonnDre Borden for Andrew’s second 39-yard completion. After the first pass following the big gain was incomplete, Chris Brockwell came up with, at that point in time, a big 3-yard sack. Unfortunately, the strong redzone defence for Les Centaures came undone, and Bertoldi put up the 20th points on the board for Sheeeesh, followed by a completed 2-pt conversion. Jordan Rossie did his best with the hurry-up offence for a quick score; a 4-play drive led by Brockwell munching up 70% of the yards on the drive which resulted in Balla’s 1st score of the game. With a chance to tie the game, Les Centaures 2-pt conversion was unsuccessful. Andrew Langburt made up for the penalties with 2 key plays at the end. He iced the game with a 35-yard TD connection with DonnDre, and picked off Rossie’s last heave of the game when Les Centaures still had a chance to tie the game, down 8. Not the way you want to go into your bye week if you are Les Centaures, as they are off in Week 4 and will need to have this longer linger a little longer by reading this.

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Week 4 Game Previews

South Harmon Institute of Technology vs. EZW

This is my second time previewing SHIOT’s game in the season. Last week wasn’t so pretty when I predicted they would bow out gracefully to Blue Dreamers, 45 to 13. Instead, they proved me wrong; battling ’till the very end and walking away victorious, 32-25. To be fair on myself, I didn’t know they would be adding Jordan Mcinnis to their roster, which instantly makes ANY team in ANY division better. This week they are going to be facing a hungry EZW team that is still looking for their first win of the season. The EZW boys aren’t used to losing and must be disappointed in themselves, after their worst start to a season in their FPF careers.

These 2 teams kick-off their battle on late Sunday night, 10pm at the beautiful outdoor field in Laval. While it may rain early in the morning on Sunday, later that evening should be another beautiful summer night in Montreal, 21 degrees an partially cloudy. Yes, now with outdoor games, the Moe Khan weather report may make an appearance in my articles, as it could be a factor to consider going into games.

It’s gonna be another big challenge for Noah Groper, after limiting Barazzoni last week to 0 rushing yards and sacking him 4 times, he’s got Jeremy White next. White has been struggling this season, throwing as many TDs (8) as he has sacks (8), along with 7 INTs and a 69.2 QBR. They are having some slight roster inconsistencies, as only 3 players have played their whole season, and as I’m realizing this year with one of my teams, when you can’t get a minimum of 6-7 players to consistently show, the timing is half a second off, and it leads to slightly over/under thrown balls, and the difference between a PD and a TD going the other way. It is always a slightly bigger issue in FPF’s Spring/Summer season, with weddings, vacations and summer events taking place in our vibrant city. Back to football though… and White will have to look to avoid throwing the ball to Mat Lepage‘s and Jordan Mcinnis’ side, which yeah, that’s a lot of the field that’s taken away. He will have to be patient and methodically move the ball down the field with his quick releases and rolling-out to buy an extra second against Groper.

On the other side, SHIOT will need to take advantage of the EZW defence, which has given up 110 points in 3 games (33.67 points against on average). It certainly will help if Lepage can have another 100+ yard and 3 TD performance, which he is certainly capable of. In addition, if Mcinnis is on the team for the season, that’s 2 big-time receivers that will draw the attention of EZW. It’s either those two with monster games, or the depth of Adam Rockman, Jakob Boidman and Groper come through with key contributions as the big 2 draw the top-end coverage. As I wrote Groper and even Rockman in the same sentence as “depth”, it lead me to some deep-diving of FPF season’s past, and those last 2 last caught balls from Jake Applebaum in Winter 2020’s version of Easy Jake Oven, where Rockman and Groper ended 2nd and 3rd in yards (both over 300 yards) and tied for 2nd in TDs with 9. So there is definitely familiarity between them which must be taken advantage of. The key for EZW on defence will be Oliver Suri, their INT leader, but as good as he is (and he is really good), Mat Lepage and Jordan Mcinnis are on another level.

Keys to Victory:

South Harmon Institute of Technology will win if:

Either the depth receivers or the 2-headed monster of Lepage and Mcinnis combine for 150 yards.
Noah Groper can limit the number of times Jeremy White extends plays in the back field and come away with big plays.
Applebaum get the same, or more points as last week: 32.

EZW will win if:

Jeremy White can get away from the rush and/or release the ball quickly.
Oliver Suri has a bigger impact on offense: 50 yards and a TD is needed from him.
They score first and never look back. White is better when he plays with the lead.
Bonus key: If JC Ferland can put up another 100-yard, 4 TD performance like last week, in addition to Suri’s complementary role, ummmm..yeah, give EZW the win if that happens.

This one will be a very close game, and I think SHIOT takes it due to the famous XP converts!

Final Score prediction: South Harmon Institute of Technology 32 – EZW 31

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Power Rankings – Top 8 (Note: Team records shown are from the conclusion of Week 3)

Blessed (3-0) (This week: #1, Last week: #1): Easy 37-18 stomping over Ballz Deep to stay in the #1 Power Ranking spot for a 3rd week in a row.
The Infantry (4-0): (This week: #2, Last week: #4): The Infantry move up 2 big spots to take the #2 spot in the Power Rankings after taking both their games in convincing fashion. This team looks like one of the toughest in Div C.
BBALLERS (3-0) (This week: #3, Last week: #3): BBALLERS stay in the same #3 position after pointing and laughing at the Silent Ticklers after a 55-30 thrashing over them in last Thursdays rain fest.
Blue Dreamers: (2-1) (This week: #4, Last week: #3): Sure they lost a game, but they are still a very good team and will shake it off in Week 5.
Sheeeesh (1-1) (This week: #5, Last week: #7): Sheeeesh also move up 2 spots after they beat a very good Centaures team. Langburt was over 200 passing yards in back-to-back weeks now, and dropped his INTs from two in his first game to just 1 in his second game; definitely recipes for success.
Les Centaures (1-1) (This week: #6, Last week: #5): Lose a tight game, drop 1 spot. Sounds about right.
South Harmon Institute of Technology (1-1) (This week: #7, Last week: #N/A): BIG win over Blue Dreams to propel them into the #7 position. They might be a dark horse team if they make the playoffs as a 6-7-8 seed.
Top Sauce (This week: #7, Last week: #N/A): Watch out; here comes Top Sauce! I haven’t given them much love on the articles, and I think they will let their play do the talking, and they figure the article time will come with their victories. They get a first one against EZW when 4/6 analysts picked against Top Sauce last week. Having a hybrid QB (thrower and runner) in Div C though is questionable, but they might be gelling early enough in the season to make a push for the lower playoff seeds.

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Week 3 Fantasy Roster of the Week

Without further ado, here are your stud performers in Div C’s Week 3 Fantasy Roster:

Top 2 QB’s:

William Trottier (BBALLERS): 15/19, 78.9% completion, 216 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT, 147.5 QBR, 2 rushing attempts, 25 yards, 1 Rushing TD
Stephen Harripersaud (Blessed): 17/25, 68% completion, 217 yards, 6 TDs, 0 INTs, 134.5 QBR

Top 3 receivers

Mathieu Lepage (SHIOT): 10 targets, 9 receptions, 115 yards, 3 TDs
Jean-Christophe Ferland (EZW): 10 targets, 8 receptions, 106 yards, 4 TDs
Nicholas Groppini (Blue Dreamers): 8 targets, 6 receptions, 103 yards, 3 TDs

Top 3 Defenders

Jean-Daniel Chevalier (BBALLERS): 1 INTs, 1 Def TD
Dwante Morgan (The Infantry – Game #1): 2 tackles, 2 INT, 1 Def TD
Noah Groper (SHIOT): 1 tackle, 4 sacks

Honourable mentions:

QB – Corey Walwaski (The Infantry – Game #2): 15/20, 75% completion, 187 yards. 6 TDs, 1 INT, 122.3 QBR, 2 rushing attempts, 14 rushing yards.

WR – Jean-Richard Verger (Silent Ticklers): 6 targets, 6 receptions, 99 yards, 3 TDs

Def – Eddy Lee (The Infantry – Game #1): 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 1 PD

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Week 4 Game Picks – All Analysts

Home	Away	Peeze Pick	Moe Pick	Iggy Pick	Alexi Pick	FrankPick
Mangoose	Silent Ticklers	Mangoose	Silent Ticklers	Mangoose	Mangoose	Mangoose
BBALLERS	Blessed	BBALLERS	Blessed	Blessed	Blessed	Blessed
Top Sauce	Ballz Deep	Ballz Deep	Top Sauce	Top Sauce	Top Sauce	Ballz Deep
Sheeeesh	Les Gros Coqs	Sheeeesh	Sheeeesh	Sheeeesh	Les Gros Coqs	Sheeeesh
Les Centaures	Blue Dreamers	Blue Dreamers	Blue Dreamers	Blue Dreamers	Blue Dreamers	Blue Dreamers
South Harmon Institute	EZW	South Harmon Institute	South Harmon Institute	South Harmon Institute	EZW	EZW

Season Prediction Standings

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Well that does it for the this weeks article for Div C, hope you enjoyed, and wishing all the teams and players a great Week 4. If you have anything you want to see in these articles, or think the article could use improvement on, hit me up on socials IG @iggymanz and Ignacio Valdes-Manzanedo (see why Iggy is easier?) on FB, and for those still using email: [email protected].

Remember to catch the weekly FPF Podcast, Calling The Audible. Episode 3 was released on Thursday so catch up with Moe, Peeze and Eagle as they deep dive into the week that was! And while on the sidelines, why not pull out your phone to catch a video of the stellar league play and tag @flagplus in all your on-field Instagram videos! The league is huge, and we need the help of the community more than ever to be our eyes and ears to display all the incredible talent and jaw-dropping moments.

Cheers,

Iggy