Food for Thought (D4) – Week 1

There will be 2 brand new finalists this year in Division 4 and, obviously, a new champion. There. I’m done. See you next year…

What? You think it would be worth it to elaborate on the different teams that comprise this bigger than ever Division 4? Maybe you’re right… I guess I could try and make this interesting.

Let’s see… For the first time ever we have teams who moved up into our Division. These are the 2 most potent:

Patriotes: The reigning Division D champions flooded last spring’s All-Star squad with the talent present on their roster. Arguably the best QB in Div. 4 this winter, Étienne Chauvin has the vision, the foot speed and the arm to decimate any defense thrown his way. Boasting the polyvalent Pereda brothers, the rest of the Patriotes are as rotten with talent as ever.

The Family: The most dominant team in Division 5 last winter, they should still be considered contenders after their recent promotion. In my mind, their QB, Maxime Forget, who was absent in week 1, is as good as Étienne Chauvin of the Pats, but their receiving core has to be the best in the Division. Inexperience might be a factor down the road against older franchises, but if they show last winter’s poise and focus, they should be a shoe-in for the finals.

As good as these graduates may be, four other teams will try and wrestle away that elusive, top spot  from them:

Sphinx: Also a Div. 5 alumnus, they lack the defensive ability of the afore-mentioned teams. Étienne Cloutier’s offense will dominate against two-thirds of the Division, but against the best teams, they will fall just short, as they did in week 1.

Eagles: One of the most experienced teams in the Division; they rely on their solid defense to win games. Jonathan Goyette is their key player on offense. He takes direct snaps, runs, and dominates as a receiver. The fact that their main QB, Danny Bellemare, lacks the athleticism to scramble will considerably affect their team against a sturdy defense. However, no team uses the play action pass more often/effectively than the Eagles.

Gorilla Juiceheads: Arguably the hottest subject of the pre-season, due to the presence of Concordia Stingers Terrance Morsink (QB) and Scott Mironowicz (WR), the Juiceheads will surely wreak some havoc along the season despite the fact that they are the only two players on the roster to have played a single game in FPF. The last time Mironowicz played in Division 4, he single-handedly led his team, Hype, to the championship. While this combination will be lethal all year long, the calibre of Division 4 has grown enough in the last 3 years to ensure they won’t have it so easy…

Gators: Same old song and dance for Kevin Marlowe, Jeff Chabot and friends. They have the youth, the experience and the talent but can’t make it further than the semi-finals. With the Warriors (Div. 3) and the Triple Sixers (Div. 2) gone, this might be the year for the Gators. But my little finger tells me they won’t fare too well against the up and coming powerhouses from Div. 5…

The 2 finalists will most likely come from these 6 teams. This doesn’t mean that the other 26 formations will simply wilt and fade away, but it would be somewhat of a surprise if they managed to out-seed the top dogs.

If you really can’t stand the favourites and want to follow one of the underdogs, I suggest one of the following:

Maximum Carnage: With new WEPL member Bryan Mongeau-Estmond as their X-Factor on both sides of the ball and veteran QB Mike Mendell behind center, they are balanced on both sides of the ball. Aymen Saidi remains a tremendously underrated defender who can turn a play around with an important deflection or a timely interception. Also, don’t sleep on the addition of Jeff Moscato, who played with the Ballhawks in D3 last winter.

X-Men: This eclectic squad went from a ragtag collection of unknowns to giant-killers in winter 2010 when they dismissed the favourite Boom! Goes the dynamite in round 1 of playoffs and put up a valiant effort against the heavily-favored Triple Sixers. After that surprise run, they took i one step further, by reaching the semi-finals in division D this past spring, throw in the acquisition of longtime D1 Hurricane Wade Williams and now, they are respected by their opponents and on the verge of a very promising season.

Mongoose: The spring D finalists will try to turn around their winter record with the help of their MVP Jason Lachapelle. His offensive ability as a game-breaking receiver serves as a perfect complement to QB Alex Gaudet’s fast paced offense.  If the whole team can pull it together on defense, they might come out of nowhere and shock many unprepared teams.

Barbarianz Squad: The past two winter seasons, a team called the Byrdgang dwelled in the basement of the D2 standings. Having lost the majority of the roster and looking to start over in D4, brothers Maïko and Hermes Zepeda will lead the way to what could be a darkhorse all the way through the D4 season.

Top Guns: After a solid campaign in Winter 2010 under the name ‘Outlaws’, the team chose to take a step backward and test their luck in D4 this Winter. With former D1 QB (Wolverines) Jerry Charles still on board and last season’s top receiver, Karl Lanteigne back as well, they might turn last season’s .500 season into an eight or nine win season.

Chaos: Despite being blown out in week 1, don’t forget about Chaos. Eugene McLaren has handed over the QB reigns to Jean-Francois Trudeau, but if the ship starts to sink after a few weeks, there’s always a chance McLaren takes over, and if he does, look out!

All in all, talent is abundant throughout Division 4 and most teams should continue improving as winter rolls on. The trend seems to be favouring younger teams recently throughout FPF and this year should bring a fair share of new talent to the forefront.

I wish an excellent winter 2011 season to all and many touchdown celebrations along the way!

If you have any suggestions, comments or wish to make a more direct contribution to this article, please contact me at [email protected]