FPF Junior Gearing up for the Playoffs

I know it feels like the season just kicked off a few weeks ago, but the winter 2020 FPF Junior regular season is already drawing to an end. Week 7 is in the books and week 8, the last week before the playoffs, is only hours away from kicking off. Before jumping into my usual game recaps, I will take a quick look at the playoff picture in each division.

 

Division by Division Review:

Sophomore: With their win last week, the Bulls reclaimed the top seed in the sophomore division. With a win against the Colts this week, they can secure that position. If they lose and the Panthers beat the Wolves, the Panthers would reclaim the top spot. In this division, only first place is on the line. The Wolves are only one back of the Panthers. If the Wolves beat the Panthers this week, they would be equal on points. In FPF Junior, the first tiebreaker is the head to head record. The Panthers won the first two matches between these teams. Even if the Wolves win, they will have a 2-1 record versus the Panthers. The Panthers would finish in 2nd even if they lose.

Atom: Things are relatively straightforward in the Atom division. Flight School are 7-0 and they have locked up first place. The Lakeshore Cougars Atom will enter the playoffs as the fourth seed. The Jaguars have also locked up 2nd place. If they lose to the 49ers this week, the two teams would be equal on points. However, the Jaguars beat the 49ers in their first two matches. So, even if the 49ers win, the Jaguars will finish ahead of them because of their head to head record.

Mosquito: While things are straightforward in Sophomore and Atom, there is still a lot up for grabs in Mosquito. Flight School 1 and Flight School 2 will play for top spot in this final week of the season. FS2 are currently in top spot with a perfect 7-0 record. FS1 are in second place. Their only loss of the season came at the hands of FS2 back in week 2. To claim top spot, FS1 would need to win this one by 17 points or more. Things are extremely close in this division. Third and 6th place are only separated by 3 points. Most teams have 2 games left to play so we could see the standing change considerably in this final week.

Pee-Wee: This division has been unpredictable all season. Just when I thought I had figured out who the frontrunners were in this division, they would lose to a bottom of the table team. Even now, I would not dare to venture a guess as to what the final seeding in this division will be. In the first game of week 8, the Lakeshore Cougars will take on the AP Hurricanes. If the Hurricanes win this one, they will move into third spot. However, if the Cougars win this one, they have a chance of moving into second. In fact, if the Gladiators lose to Flight School and the Cougars win, the Cougars will jump into third place. In the final game of the Pee-Wee regular season, Flight School and the Gladiators will face off. If the Gladiators win, they will reclaim first place. However, if they lose they could slip all the way down to third.

Bantam: Bantam is another one of those divisions where the playoff picture is anything but clear. First place is up for grabs and Flight School and LCC Lions are both in contention. If the Lions win their final two matches, they will claim the top spot. However, one of those two matches is against FS. If FS win against the Lions, they are assured the top seed. If things go wrong for the Lions and they lose both their games and North Shore wins their game, North Shore could leapfrog the Lions to move into third. The Bulldogs and Islanders are set to face off in week 8 with direct playoff ramifications. The winner of this game will claim the fifth seed.

Midget: Midget is an interesting situation. The Midget schedule is slightly confusing, but if I understand correctly there is only one game left to be played. I don’t think there can be any changes to the current standings.

 

Week 7 Review:

Atom

49ers (19) vs Lakeshore Cougars (12): The Cougars came very close to winning this one. It would have been their first win of the season. Despite the Cougars valiant efforts, the 49ers came out on top.

49ers quarterback Rayan Stanfl did just enough to lead his team to victory. He passed for 75 yards despite only completing three passes. Yes, that is 25 yards per completion. The 49ers’ leading receiver was Noah Di Stefano. He caught two of the 49ers three completed passes and he accounted for 50 receiving yards. It was Simon Paquette who managed his teams only receiving touchdown. On their first drive, the 49ers were struggling to move the ball until Stanfl connected with Paquette for a 24 yard touchdown pass. While Stanfl might have only passed for one touchdown, he compensated with his legs. The speedy and agile quarterback ran four times for 55 yards and two scores. Half the time he decided to tuck the ball and run; he found his way into the endzone. It was those two rushing touchdowns which ultimately led his 49ers to victory. Defensively, the 49ers were fearsome. The leader of that defence was Dario Di Perna. He managed his team’s only sacks and led all players with three defended passes. What a game! Noah Di Stefano also came up big for his team, he managed to intercept the Cougars early in the game. That interception shifted the momentum in his team’s favor.

On the Cougars’ side of things, this was definitely their best performance of the season. They passed for more yards than their opponents and turned the ball over less. Really, they did everything in this game except win. Quarterback Dylan Roberts completed 7 passes and tallied nearly 100 yards. He only turned the ball over once. If Roberts can keep up this level of play in week 8 and the playoffs, the Cougars might surprise people. Nothing helps a quarterback like having two dominant receivers. That is exactly what Roberts has in Malcolm McLaren and Jeremiah Andre. McLaren led his team with three receptions for 45 yards while Andre was hot on his heels with three catches for 43 yards. The Cougars’ offence managed to move the ball with ease. However, they were not able to score. If they would have been a bit more efficient in the red zone, they would have won this one.

While the Cougars’ offence did not score, their defence did. Their defence only allowed one passing touchdown and returned two interceptions for touchdowns. If you ask me, that’s quite the performance! Just when the 49ers were driving and about to add to their lead, Dylan Roberts picked them off and returned it to the house. Late in the game, Jeremiah Andre picked the Cougars off and returned it for a score. That pick kept his Cougars in the game.

 

Week 8 Previews:

Sophomore

Panthers (5-2) vs Wolves (4-3): As I already discussed, the Panthers have nothing to lose and everything to gain in this game. Their only chance of moving into first is with a win. I think the Panthers will thrive in this low-risk high rewards match. The key to this game will be containing Adam Bateman. The Wolves’ quarterback can dissect a defence with his arm and extend the play with his legs. However, with a phenomenal rusher like Jeremy Racicot I think the Panthers will be able to contain Bateman and win this one.

Prediction: Panthers

Mosquito

Flight School 1 (5-1) vs Flight School 2 (7-0): I cannot wait to see these two teams play in Lachine. Both Flight School teams have been dominant this season. In fact, FS1’s only loss is to FS2. While these two teams are very evenly matched, I have to give the edge to FS2. If FS1 are to have any chance of claiming the top seed, they need to win big. I think they will come out and take a few too many risks. If you try airing out the ball versus FS2, they will pick you off time and time again. 

Prediction: Flight School 2

Pee-Wee

Gladiators (4-3) vs Flight School (5-2): I have struggled to predict games all season in this division. But, after seeing the Gladiators play last week, I think I have figured it out. The Gladiators are perfectly designed to beat a team like Flight School. They have the athletes to beat FS’s man to man defence. They are also an experienced team so even with just a foot of separation, the Gladiators will be able to connect. Defensively, Gladiators play a very efficient zone defence. Flight School has not figured out how to pick it apart yet and I do not think they will figure it out this week.

Prediction: Gladiators

Flight School (6-1) vs LCC Lions (5-1): These are the two best teams in the division going head to head and if the Lions want to claim the top seed they need to win this. The Lions have a fantastic offence. They have scored 240 points in just six games. On the other hand, Flight School boasts the best defence in the division. They have conceded just 79 points. That is about 11 points against per game. Clearly, something is going to have to give in this game. When push comes to shove, I think FS’s defence will win out over the Lions’ fearsome offence. FS are eager to prove that they are still the top dogs in this division after losing to North Shore. This is the perfect game to prove that.

Prediction: Flight School

 

Even though the season is drawing to an end, it is never too late for a team to make a late push. If you think your team has no chances of winning it all, think again. FPF Junior has seen 0-8 teams win the championship. This final game of the regular season can set the tone for a deep playoff push. For all the top ranked teams, remember you have not won nothing yet. There is no trophy for an 8-0 record. The real season is about to start!

I hope you all enjoyed the article. As always, feel free to reach out to me at [email protected] if you have any feedback.

Good luck to everyone in week 8!