Categories: Division EMen'sSpring

FPF’s 5v5 Tournament and the Race to the Playoffs

Alright, we are back after a one-week absence. It is tournament season in the flag world, so there’s a ton of movement in and around the city. Speaking of tournaments… if you didn’t hear, FPF will be hosting a 5v5 tournament the weekend of August 17th/18th, so now is your chance to sign up a team and give the 5v5 format a chance! There will be a cash prize for the winner, food on site, and just a great day of outdoor football.

While there was no article last week, you can always lean on the podcast team to get your Division E fix. That said, I’m sure there is some excitement and anticipation to see what’s being written in this week’s edition, since there’s only 1 week left in the regular season and teams are gearing up for the playoffs, so let’s get to it!

Race to the Playoffs

IPL 2023 | Who'll Win the Race to the Playoffs?

Eliminated Teams:

  • Flag Dealers
  • Bum City
  • OPN

In Contention/Not Yet Safe:

  • Longhorns
  • TYP SHI
  • James’ Backyard
  • The Diddlers
  • CTE Goons
  • Head Tops Only
  • Sweet Bonanza
  • Bloodline
  • The Creamsicles

The Breakdown:

Ok, so teams currently in red that could squeeze in are: James’ Backyard, TYP SHI and Longhorns.

Longhorns have their playoff fates in their own hands. If they win out by beating Bloodline and The Diddlers, they are in.

James’ Backyard and TYP SHI need some help along the way. TYP SHI needs to beat the undefeated Freshmen XL, and then both James’ and TYP need The Diddlers, CTE Goons, Head Tops Only to lose out AND need The Diddlers to give up 27 points against in 2 games, CTE Goons to give up 107 points in their 2 losses, and for HTO to give up 83 points against. Before you think it’s impossible, HTO and CTE Goons are playing some high-powered offenses that can put up 50+ points.

For the teams already in the green side of the standings, the teams with 3 wins (The Creamsicles, Bloodline and Sweet Bonanza, they need to win or tie their last game to clinch a playoff spot.

For HTO, CTE Goons and The Diddlers to make it, they all need Diddlers to beat Longhorns, and then win 1 of their next 2 games. If that happens, they are all in. There’s another way to make it in without winning a game, but it does require the Diddlers to beat Longhorns. Again, if that happens, they would need to make sure they do not allow more than the points I mentioned above.

It’s gonna be a hell of a race in the final week to see how it all unfolds. I love chaos, so give me wins, losses and a hell of a lot of points!

Week 8 and 9 Headlines and Storylines

  • We are down to 3 undefeated teams as Mamma Mia took a surprising defeat to Practice Squad in Week 8, as covered on Calling The Audible by Manu Allard Roy and Jerome Hovington. LPC finished their season with a perfect 10-0 record, Western will look to do the same on Sunday July 14th at 10am vs. QUEENS, and Freshmen XL would need to win their last 2 games in Week 10.
  • For OPN, Bum City, Flag Dealers, thanks for playing this season, but your playoff hopes have come to end. Enjoy the last game of the season and come back stronger in the Fall!
  • The Diddlers suffered a crushing 1-point defeat to Trailer Park Boys in Week 8 and took another blow to TuneSquad and now sit in the 32nd and final playoff spot. Will they hold on to it?
  • Head Tops Only, now sitting tied with The Diddlers and CTE GOONS at 2-6 for the final playoff spot after their 19-12 victory over Best Worst Zgust who themselves are starting to slide as they are on a 2-game losing streak. Not the way you wanna be going into the playoffs. A match against Bullshigh to cap off the BWZ season may not come with a victory either.
  • Western took care of Bloodline quite decisively 39-18. Joshua Besner had a big game with 2 sacks and 3 PDs while offensively, Mackenzie Wilson had 5 receptions for 77 yards and 2 TDs. This past week it was Airs that fell mercy to them, with Matt Campbell‘s 3 TD, 4-INT performance, including one that stunned those in Laval watching and got his teammates hyped up. An OBJ-like one-handed, toe-drag-swag sideline catch. Damn.
  • The race for ROY is getting very heated. If the season ended today, it would go to Natan Nettel, but alas, the final week of the regular season and player performances in their last games will determine who wins the individual awards.
  • The Swiffer WetJets went 1-1 in Week 8 and in fact played their 10am Week 9 am game, beating TYP SHI 18-0 to finish their first season in FPF with an impressive 8-2 record. They will enter the playoffs with a 2-week break. Will they be fresh or rusty?
  • Freshmen XL 2 more victories since the last article. First, a 33-27 dub over QUEENS. While I mentioned Félix Déry-Bernard is my prediction for DPOY (where he got another INT) he didn’t have a great game at QB with just 1 passing TD and threw 4 INTs. On the other end, Mr. TSN 690 Peter Vryonis threw 5 TDS in his first ever FPF game (but also threw 3 INTs to his name). In Week 9, they got a win with Kyle Folkerson at the helm, beating a depleted Texas Whales squad, 44-12.
  • After losers of 4 of their last 5 games, Cavaliers du Rohan finally got back in the win column with a 27-12 win over Bum City back on June 30th. It’s now back-to-back games for them to wrap up their season, with a 10am game on Sunday against the Whales and a 9pm game on Monday vs. the undefeated Freshmen XL. Should be some good tune-up games before they go into playoff mode.
  • Chomedy Chodes, with the Bottazzi connection, got the better of BackYardigans with the offense rolling, 38 points on that D. With a perfect 10 for 10 receptions to target ratio, Jonathan Bottazzi and his 84 yards and 4 TDs were enough to choke out the BackYardigans defense. They then went on to keep Flag Dealers winless on the season with a 26-19 win. Not a convincing win against a non-playoff team. I’m not sure where I stand with CC. They can score points, they are 7-2 which is a very good record, yet, I’m still left wanting a bit more.. Can’t quite put my finger on it.
  • Even at 10pm on the Eve of Canada Day, Airs were airing it out against Longhorns, as Duncan Cook hung 6 TDs on the Longhorns defense. While Jon Moodie threw some nice balls, it wasn’t enough against the younger and more athletic Airs squad. While I mentioned Airs a bit above, losing big to Western, I actually really liked what I saw from them. Duncan Cook can make all the passes necessary: Short, Intermediate and Deep, Brendan Meisner is hella fast with the ball in his hands and the defense can create turnovers. 18 picks in 8 games is great and it comes through their athleticism and good anticipation.
  • Tim Horner tried his best to lead his Team Timbo squad to victory with 3 TDs on 3 receptions for 105 yards, but No Brain No Gain had other plans. Raphaël Caron and his 5 TDs were enough to overcome the Horner TD hattrick. Unlike that game, Viren Patel completed 3x as many passes when he faced Trailer Park Boys and came away with 2 interceptions on defense in a 32-20 victory to clinch their spot in the playoffs.
  • The Stables narrowly squeaked by with a 1-point victory, largely thanks to Ethan Kreuzer and Sean Costello, as they accounted for 132 yards and 3 TDs as well as 2 extra points that was the difference in the game vs. The Creamsicles. While Devin Kreuzer threw an interception to Alex Cattapan, he recuperated the pick-6 somewhat with a pick of his own on defense. This past week though, they were bested by Locked & Loaded and weren’t too happy about it. I see though, Locked & Loaded respecting the cap, and if you go back a few weeks, I didn’t hear any complaints from OPN when The Stables hung 63 on them. Stats-wise, they got 3 interceptions off of Serge Hayek, including a Pick 6, and will need to learn how to limit their own turnovers to win games. It’s a game that may have felt out of reach on the field, but the stats and score suggest otherwise. Stay focused, play your game, and The Stables could beat Locked & Loaded if they rematch in the playoffs.
  • TuneSquad hung a likely record number of points on OPN… 86 may be a record.
  • No Brain No Gain got 2 BIG wins in Week 9, as they ended their season with a 9-1 record and a 4-game win streak as they go into the playoffs HOT🔥🔥

Week 9 Fantasy Team of the Week

In my Fantasy Team of the Week, I go with the 2 Best QBs, the 5 best starting WRs, the 5 best DBs and the best rusher and make the best team that could have suited up that week.

Enjoy!

QB1: Charles Presser (TuneSquad – Game 1) – 14/16, /13 (87.5%), 225 Passing Yards, 10 TDs, 0 INTs, 158.3 QBR, 2 Rushing Attempts, 15 Rushing Yards

QB2: Cameron Wilson (Western – Game 2) – 16/19 (84.2%), 211 Passing Yards, 7 TDs, 0 INTs, 152.5 QBR, 2 Rushing Attempts, 24 Rushing Yards

WR1: Sam Anastasopoulos (Freshmen XL): 8 receptions, 9 targets, 119 yards, 4 TDs

WR2: Arnis Mehmetaj (Locked & Loaded): 7 receptions, 7 targets, 117 yards, 4 TDs, 1x XP1

WR3: Maxime Sharkawi (Baby Sharks): 3 receptions, 3 targets, 120 yards, 3 TDs, 1x XP1, 1x XP2

WR4: Laurent Beauchamp (LPC JR – Game 1): 8 receptions, 8 targets, 107 yards, 3 TDs

WR5: Elio Cariglia (Texas Whales): 8 receptions, 10 targets, 111 yards, 1 TD

DB1: Jeremy Laplante (Baby Sharks): 4 tackles, 4 INTs, 3 Def TD

DB2: Avi Korman (TuneSquad – Game 1): 5 tackles, 4 INTs, 2 Def TDs, 3 PDs

DB3: Matthew Campbell (Western – Game 2): 4 INTs, 1 PD

DB4: Devin Kreuzer (The Stables): 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 1 Def TD

DB5: Bailey Finkelberg (Locked & Loaded): 3 INTs, 1 PD

Rusher: Ian Plourde (No Brain No Gain – Game 2): 7 sacks



Iggy Magnet’s Week 10 Game Picks

Mamma Mia vs. Team Timbo – Iggy’s Pick: Mamma Mia

CTE Goons vs. Baby Sharks – Iggy’s Pick: Baby Sharks

Western vs. QUEENS – Iggy’s Pick: Western

CTE Goons vs. Mamma Mia – Iggy’s Pick: Mamma Mia

Texas Whales vs. Cavaliers du Rohan – Iggy’s Pick: N/A

Longhorns vs. Bloodline – Iggy’s Pick: Longhorns

Chomedey Chodes vs. Head Tops Only – Iggy’s Pick: Chomedey Chodes

TYP SHI vs. Freshmen XL – Iggy’s Pick: Freshmen XL

La Mennaise vs. Les Vidanges FC – Iggy’s Pick: La Mennaise

Team Timbo vs. The Stables – Iggy’s Pick: The Stables

Locked & Loaded vs. Head Tops Only – Iggy’s Pick: Locked & Loaded

STEPBROTHERS vs. Trailer Park Boys – Iggy’s Pick: STEPBROTHERS

Cavaliers du Rohan vs. Freshmen XL – Iggy’s Pick: Freshmen XL

STEPBROTHERS vs. Warriors – Iggy’s Pick: Warriors

The Diddlers vs. Longhorns – Iggy’s Pick: Longhorns

La Mennaise vs. Sweet Bonanza – Iggy’s Pick: La Mennaise

Bullshigh vs. Best Worst Zgust – Iggy’s Pick: Bullshigh

Vice City vs. Airs – Iggy’s Pick: Airs

Locked & Loaded vs. OPN – Iggy’s Pick: Locked & Loaded

Practice Squad vs. The Creamsicles – Iggy’s Pick: Practice Squad

Bum City vs. Flag Dealers – Iggy’s Pick: Flag Dealers

BackYardigans vs. The Diddlers – Iggy’s Pick: BackYardigans

  • Week 8 Game Pick Record: 11-7
  • Overall Prediction Record: 70-31 (69.3% prediction rate)

Epilogue

Alright Div E, that does it for this week! Enjoy the final week of the regular season as its your last chance to make a final push for the playoffs or your final tune up games before the real deal! If you liked the article, have any comments or suggestions for what to talk about, I’m all ears, so feel free to reach out. @IggyManz on IG or find me on Facebook too.

Remember to catch Div E talk on CTA, and if you are starting to become a flag junkie, start listening to other divisions too!