The emergence.

Every week, certain players or certain teams step up and make plays in order to obtain the infamous W. This week was no different, but with 3 weeks now in the books, we’re finally starting to see how the divisions are shaping up and who’s our front runners.

Sports usually use metaphors such a David vs Goliath (for those of you who do not know this classic “fable” from the bible, it references how a simple farmer teen boy (David) can beat an absolute hero (Goliath) and we’re finally starting to see who our Davids are and who our Goliaths are.

Sure, there’s still plenty of football left in the tanks and we’re far from done, but I’ve always cheered on the Davids of this world and I truly hope not a single team finishes undefeated.

With that said, I’ll be cheering against Voltigeurs for the rest of the season.

Let’s get started.

 

Week 3

A few crazy scenarios this week as Musketeers managed to win both their games in Sunday’s double-header, Mustangs showed off impressive skills with only 5 starters (and 3 subs), Lions emerged as the top dog in Varsity and Hurricanes got their first W of the season in possibly this week’s best game.

 

Recaps

Varsity Division

• Mustangs vs Cougars

After suffering a terrible last minute loss (QB Kaelen Trepanier broke his tibia on Saturday and is now officially out for the remaining of the season), Cougars were forced to scramble early Sunday morning to find a replacement and Olivier Gauthier stepped in under center. Is he Kaelen Trepanier? Maybe not, but Olivier has his own style and there’s a lot of potential there. With the help of Ryan McGrath, the offense moved the chains and scored 3 times. On the flip side, everything seemed to work for Mustangs who called-in Dylan Hacker and he had an immediate impact. With 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions (1 for six), there’s very little doubt he’s the spark they were missing. Although there’s no guarantee he’ll play again this season, Mustangs got their second win of the season and their first 30+ game which should give them just enough momemtum for Sunday’s game against Longhorns.

 

• Lions vs Longhorns

With QB Alex Kahan out with an ankle injury, David Salonicinos got his second straight start, but last week’s injury resurfaced early in the game and was forced to step out after only 2 plays. Alex Kahan stepped back in, but his mobility was highly restrained and so was his mechanics; forcing deep throws without proper footwork resulted in interceptions. Lions’ defense feasted on the immobile QB as they got 4 interceptions and a team-record 9 Pds on the day. Evan White continues to be the most impressive QB of the division tossing 210 yards and 5 Tds before letting Jacob Soles give QB a shot for a few drives. We’ll see what’s in stores for Longhorns and who’ll be under center next week, but there’s no doubt Varsity is a tough division without a sure-shot QB regardless of how decked out the roster could be.

 

Sophomore Division

• Yellow Jackets vs Wildcats

In a very eventful game on Sunday, Wildcats were without many playmakers including QB William Bradford forcing Jaden Frenette to take over for most of the hour. Luckily for Wildcats, he’s not just a fantastic football player, but an all-around stud (he scored in almost every way possible by recording a pick-six, a rushing TD and 2 passing scores) and elevated his team to a win over Yellow Jackets this week. Garner Ross looked in control for most of the day distributing dimes to all of his receivers (7 receivers caught at least one pass), but Charles Presser shone brightest with 2 scores going his way. With late interceptions and scores, Wildcats’ fans didn’t know if they’d have enough hair to pull out as the game got down to the last few plays, but the Electric Blue finished on top 25-20 in this week’s craziest game.

 

• Fighting Irish vs Voltigeurs

Voltigeurs’ defense looks impenetrable, but their offense finally showed cracks in their armor as Fighting Irish kept them out of the endzone for most of the hour. In fact, the game felt much closer than the actual score indicates as Voltigeurs’ first two scores were pick-six’s before stalling for most of the first half. With Felix Joly, Simon Boudreault and Frederic Leclerc roaming the secondary, it’s really tough for any Qbs to find someone to throw to and Fighting Irish noticed that first hand. Sadly, Lady Luck was no on Fighting Irish’ side who had one ill throw from QB Jonatan Lebensztajn-Shahrabani in the redzone on their first trip there and a wonderful catch by Jacob Wilson who simply could’t get his second feet in on a 4^th down attempt. Lucas Piscopos emerged as a premier corner in his division after facing potential receiver of the year in Felix Joly and kept him in check for most of the game. Their next matchup will result in a much closer game; no doubt about it.

 

• Hurricanes vs Dusters

Dusters’ defence impressed more than one bystanders by intercepting Marco Gentile 3-times on the day (two from Lewis Epstein), but their offense continues to struggle as neither Adam Malinoff nor Matthew Leutner found the right way to pierce through Hurricanes’ gritty defence. In fact, although they traded scores for most of the hour, both defences shone bright as rusher Brenden Urquhart continues to dominate and Hurricanes’ secondary roams free. With a passing game struggling, Marco Gentile decided to turn to the ground game and scored twice with his legs to help his team push past Dusters this week in their first win of the season. Is the key to Hurricanes’ success relying on a potential ground game combined with a stud defence? If Dusters’ defence can keep the momemtum going, they’re bound to make some noise next week against Fighting Irish.

 

Freshman Division

• Musketeers vs Tigers

In their first game on Sunday morning, Musketeers wasted no time in taking a 12-0 lead against Tigers as Kaydon Shaw distributed the ball really well and scored on their first two drives. Massimo Moufrage took over after scoring a receiving TD and made some nice throws that could’ve resulted in scores. Tigers ground game continues to be a real menace as Alex Paliotti ran 5 times for 106 yards (two of his runs were for 40 yards aka the full field) and 2 scores, but the passing game is still a bit problematic. Tigers’ defense is good enough to hang with the best, but the pick-six’s from Musketeers (one from Brennen Dias-Juliao and one from Noah Soles) were the real turning point on Sunday morning; if Tigers can find a way to limit the turnovers, they’ll slowly transcend to serious contenders.

 

• Panthers vs Musketeers

In their second game of the day, many would’ve expected Musketeers to be a bit tired, but they showed no signs of slowing down as Kaydon Shaw found 6 different receivers for positive yardage (including a very nice throw to Massimo Moufrage who took it all the way for a 40 yard touchdown). Panthers attempted to use some trick plays to move the chains including quite a few runs, but neither Darius Paiement nor Massimo Longo had the secret to beat Musketeers’ secondary. Although they’ve only managed to put up 8 points, Massimo Longo played well under center distributing nice passes to 5 different receivers (including a nice touchdown pass to Caleb Perks who might just be the best player no one is talking about) and it should be enough to allow him to start next week’s game. Musketeers looked too good to lose on Sunday.

 

Players of the Week

• Dylan Hacker (Mustangs): Although it was his first, and possibly only game, he had an instant impact with 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions (one for six). If he could become a permanent addition, Mustangs would benefit from signing an absolute star.
• Ryan McGrath (Cougars): In a losing effort, he left it all on the field with 6 catches for 109 yards, 3 touchdowns and an interception on defense. Definitely the heart and soul of his team, he shone bright on Sunday.
• Jacob Soles (Lions): 2 interceptions (one for six), a PD, 2 catches for 85 yards and 2 touchdowns and a 15 yard rush. Is there anything he cannot do excessively well?
• Jaden Frenette (Wildcats): 2 passing Tds as a backup quarterback, 59 rushing yards alongside a score and 2 interceptions on defense (one for six) was his stats line on Sunday. Oh, and he also nudged a Win for his team. He had a DAY.
• Brenden Urquhart (Hurricanes): It’s only been 3 weeks, but after this week’s 3 sacks performance, he now leads the league with 6 total sacks. He is, without a doubt, the best rusher in the division.

 

Crystall Ball and Shenanigans

• Hurricanes vs Yellow Jackets

Last week, Hurricanes got their first win of the season after finding new ways to score offensively and relying on their star-studded defence. This week, facing a very different offense in Garner Ross’ high-octane offense, every single DB on the team will need to chip in if they want to prevail. Can Yellow Jackets’ rusher Evan Dias-Juliao contain Marco Gentile and prevent big gains via the ground game to keep his team in this one? Time will tell.

 

• Voltigeurs vs Wildcats

The two undefeated teams in Sophomore will face off against each other and it’s bound to be the best matchup of the week. On one side, we’ve got stars like Felix Joly and Simon Boudreault who seems unstoppable together, but the William Bradford/Jaden Frenette tandem might just be able to dethrone them. If guys like Jordy Melnik and Noah Smallwood continue to impress, they might just be able to keep their streak alive and end Voltigeurs’ unless Samuel Cahill elevates his game like he did week 1 and emerges as a premier threat in their passing game.

 

• Dusters vs Fighting Irish

Dusters are yet to win a game, but their defence has found success recently and might just be able to keep them in this one long enough for Adam Malinoff to push them over the edge. I expect big things out of Matthew Eiley and Lewis Epstein this week as they’ll try to get their first win and leave Fighting Irish behind as the only winless team in the division. With many playmakers like the Moreau brothers (Luke and Max), the up and coming Lucas Piscopos, Jacob Provost and Jacob Wilson playing for Fighting Irish, there’s no way this one will end in a blowout.

 

• Lions vs Cougars

Lions are yet to lose a game and Cougars are down on their luck; the perfect set up for a Cinderella story. We’ve talked a lot about Lions’ unstoppable offence led by QB Evan White who’s yet to throw an interception and his plethora of receivers, but with a game under his belt, Olivier Gauthier will be more comfortable in the pocket and I don’t see anyone stopping Ryan McGrath nor Jayden Hogan anytime soon.

 

• Tigers vs Panthers

Tigers took time to develop last week, but their offence found their groove late in the second half and their defence never gave up which leads me to believe they’ll start Sunday’s game on a high note. Panthers will look to contain Alex Paliotti’s running ability and with Massimo Longo starting under center, there’s a chance we might have a very high scoring affair on our hands. I expect a touchdown from Caleb Perks, Phoenix Thomas and Kevyn De Serres-Payne this week.

 

• Mustangs vs Longhorns

With the momemtum they’ve built last week, Mustangs are looking to steamroll the competition all the way to the playoffs, but they might just face a wall on Sunday against Longhorns. Although their QB situation is still up in the air, Longhorns’ defence is the real deal led by Spencer Strasser and Jonathan Atlan. Unless QB Coby White can distribute the ball carefully and feed the beast that is A.J. Titleman and Max Kadanoff, we might just have an upset on our hands.

 

 

That’s it for me this week. Hopefully I’ll still have a job by week 2. Happy, annoyed, frustrated, humbled by my comments? Take a second to send me a quick message either via twiter (@DagenaisFPF) or via email ([email protected]) and I’ll be sure to rectify or simply explain my point of view. I’m also at the fields every Sunday; don’t be shy to drop by and talk some football!