High Scoring Games Star in Week 2 of FPF Junior

After a thrilling first week of action, FPF junior’s second week of games rolled around. This was the last week of play at the Lachine dome. From now on, games will be held at the Stade de Montreal and Kirkland. I will be scorekeeping most of the Kirkland games from here on out so if you have any comments about my articles or something you think I should add, feel free to come up and see me on the sidelines.

This past week, I was stationed on field three of the Lachine dome and I saw two more Varsity games, both featuring the Spartans as well as a Freshman game between the Sooners and IB Vikings. Already in week two, we see some great storylines emerging. Simon Boudreault is the first player I can remember to simultaneously lead the league in both passing and receiving yards. Ashtin Philistin is now playing receiver and he’s proving that he is an elite player on the offensive side of the ball as well with five touchdowns. I look forward to seeing these headlines progress as the season goes on as well as which new players will grab the headlines as the playoffs approach. With that, let’s jump right into the game recaps from this second week of action.

Week Two Recaps:

Spartans (24) vs Falcons (25)

To be brutally honest, I did not expect the Spartans to compete in this game. They had a harder time in week 1 while the Falcons crushed their opposition. However, when the game started, the feisty team in green proved me wrong.

The Falcons came out flatter than I expected. Maybe they are still adjusting to the dimensions of the FPF pitch or the particularities of the rules but they were definitely not playing to their full potential. After putting up only 6 points in the opening half, they came back very strong in the 2nd and scored 19 points on their way to a narrow victory. Part of their struggles were due to the fact that the Falcons failed to spread the ball. Quarterback Issac Insaidoo only seemed to be targeting Tristan Pelletier and Paul Salangre. While both of those receivers are among the league’s best, forcing the ball is what leads to interceptions. The Spartans are a very smart team and they will clue into your favorite targets within the first few snaps of the game. While the Falcons still managed the win without using most of their receivers, they may want to reconsider things before week 3 rolls along. One of the most interesting matchups of the game was Tristan Pelletier squaring off verus the ultra talented Ryan McGrath, one of the league’s very best defenders. He was given the task of shutting down one of the top receiving threats. The result was must watch football. While Tristan Pelletier did manage 7 catches for 84 yards and two TDs, Ryan McGrath was draped all over him on most snaps. The Falcons first read was always to Tristan Pelletier and only on a few snaps did the QB see enough separation to throw the ball.

Defensively, things went very smoothly for the Falcons. They only allowed 4 completions all game and limited their opponents to 120 yards. On the down side, three of those completed passes were for 25 yard plus TDs. While they may have locked down the slots, they still have a bit of fine tuning to do when it comes to protecting themselves against the long bomb. One aspect of their defence that most definitely did not need improving was their rushing. Japhet Pidi brought his A game to the field on Sunday. On many occasions, he was in the backfield before the quarterback even had a chance to throw. That freakish speed let him accumulate an astonishing three sacks and three tackles.

The Spartans switched up quarterbacks going into their second game. This week, we saw Ben Berbier under center. While he did not complete a lot of passes, he got the job done. Despite only completing 4 passes, he managed to pass for three touchdowns. He has clearly mastered the deep ball. Now, he needs to start taking what the defence gives him and complete short passes. He has a great short receiver in Abigail Cockerton who is open on most throws. If he could combine his devasting long passes with a few short completions here and there to move the chain, he could be a devastating passer. With Ben Berbier making the start under center, last week’s QB Nicolas Di Maulo played as a receiver. Well, the argument could very well be made that he is just as good a receiver as he is a quarterback. The one pass he caught, he ran in for a 40 yard touchdown. Not to be outdone, Olivier Gauthier also caught a 40 yard touchdown pass. Their last offensive score of the night came courtesy of Ryan McGrath and his 26 yard TD grab.

Nicholas Di Maulo also made a massive difference for the Spartans on defence. He read the opposition’s pass, jumped the route and picked it off. He even ran back that interception for the score. With those two TDs, one on each side of the ball, he accounted for half of the Spartans touchdowns on the night. Ryan McGarth had his hands full covering Tristan Pelletier but he still managed to put up 4 tackles.

Sooners (0) vs IB Vikings (22)

The Sooners did not have an easy time on Sunday. They were facing off against one of the Freshman division’s very best in the IB Vikings. The Vikings led by the power duo of Kaiden Dewey-Hull and Kevyn De Serres-Payne played their way to a 22 point victory. There was no secret as to where the Vikings points were coming from. They were all produced by that all-star combination of Kaiden Dewey-Hull and Kevyn De Serres-Payne. Even more impressively, all the Vikings’ TDs came on one play drives. Talk about efficiency! One of the most impressive of those scoring plays was a 40 yard run by QB Kevyn De Serres-Payne. The young man took off from his twenty, made a first defender miss, took three more out of the equation with a Madden worthy juke and then cruised into the Sooners end zone for six. The other two scores followed just about the same script: Kaiden Dewey-Hull shrugged of any defender who attempted to cover him, caught a pass at half-field and jogged into the end zone.

While the Vikings offence may have been a two person show, it was a group effort that permitted them to keep the clean sheet. One of this team’s unsung heroes, LeThai Khieu, kept the opposing QB in check with a tackle and most importantly, a sack. Adding to that impressive defensive core were Jailen Chopra and Elliot Luft who each had respectively two tackles on the night.

The Sooners did not have an easy time on the night. Facing off versus top notch opponents, Kingston Paquet did all he could. He completed four passes to three different receivers. Two of those passes found the reliable hands of Raphael Gadbois who finished the match with 12 yards receiving. Also contributing in that receiving group were Adam Jakalian and Amaziah Simulumbu who both caught a short pass. To add to his passing numbers, Kingston Paquet did a superb job generating offence with his legs. In three rushing attempts, he tallied up a very impressive 56 yards. But more than anything else, what Kingston Paquet did very well was protect the ball. Yes, maybe he only completed four passes but all of them were to his teammates. Protecting the ball is perhaps the most important skill to have in FPF. If Kingston Paquet can continue to protect the ball like this, the passing yards and victories will soon follow.

I would also really like to call attention to the superb coaching of Nicholas Banks on the night. FPF Junior is a league that is first and foremost about development and fun. He embodies those values. While things may not have been easy for his team, he continued to stay positive and roll his bench. It’s that kind of coaching that makes FPF Junior the great league that it is.

Tar Heels (26) vs Spartans (42)

After missing many key players in week one and a heartbreaking loss just hours earlier at the hands of the Falcons, you had to be happy for the Spartans when they got their first win of the season in their third game. That win came in a very convincing 16 point victory over the Tar Heels. In this game, the Spartans went back to Nicholas Di Maulo under center. He finally clicked. The QB completed 12 of 15 attempts for an impressive total of 168 yards, 4 scores and only one pick. That productivity is in large part due to the emergence of all-star Ryan McGrath as not only a defensive back but also a wide receiver. He caught a staggering 7 balls for 87 yards and most impressively, 3 TDs. Forty more of the Spartans’ receiving yards came courtesy of Erica Dubois who hauled in a long bomb pass for a score. In two weeks of action, the former rusher has tallied two touchdown grabs and is challenging Abigail Cockerton for the title of best female receiver in the division. On the night, Abigail Cockerton did catch one more pass than her teammate, Erica Dubois, and finished the game with two catches for 21 yards.

On the defensive side, it was once again, surprise, surprise, Ryan McGrath who was the main difference maker. He racked up absolutely unreal numbers. He finished the game with 4 tackles and two massive interceptions one of which he returned for a touchdown. Jaden Dupéré is one of Varsity’s more quiet kids, however, having played on his team, I can definitely tell you that he is a dominant player in his own right. He proved that tonight by accumulating three tackles as well as a key interception. Ben Berbier also got his name on the scoreboard with two tackles and Erica Dubois’ rushing was rewarded with a PD in the 2nd half.

On the Tar Heels’ end of things, they switched between two quarterbacks in an attempt to get the job done. Samuel Crudo attempted 6 passes, 4 of which he completed for a total of 16 yards and a touchdown. The brunt of the QB work fell on the shoulders of Garner Ross who attempted 16 passes, completed 10 for a total of 153 yards and three scores. The Tar Heels favored target on the night was the sure handed Jesse Dym who caught 4 catches for a total 35 yards and a TD. However, their leading receiver on Sunday in terms of yards was Emanuel Feldman who despite only two catches tallied 51 yards. Impressively, the Tar Heels had 4 receivers with more than one catch on the night and two more players who also caught a ball. If you add that up, they had 6 players who made catches on Sunday. It was that ability to spread the ball that allowed them to tally up the offensive yards that they did. In fact, the Tar Heels put up more yards of net offence than their opponents but finished the game down by 16. What ultimately made the difference were the 4 picks they threw. If the Tar Heels can learn to protect the ball a bit better and capitalize on their drives, they have the talent to be one of the divisions best offences.

On the defensive end of the ball, the Tar Heels were not able to create the turnovers that their opponents did. Their one interception did come courtesy of Emanuel Feldman who had a very solid two-way game on the night. Other than that one pick, no Tar Heel defender was able to get a hand on the ball. While Samuel Crudo is known in FPF Junior as a receiver, on Sunday he put in a very solid defensive showing with 5 tackles. It’s that ability to make tackles and limit opponents gains that make FPF veterans and their flag experience so valuable. Right behind his teammate in terms of tackles was Charles Presser who tallied up 4. The extremely versatile Noah Smallwood also got his name on the defensive scoresheet with 2 tackles.

Week Two Team of the Week:

  Offence:

QB Nicholas Di Maulo (Spartans): 168 passing yards, 4TDs

RB Kingston Paquet (Sooners): 56 rushing yards

WR Kaiden Dewey-Hull (IB Vikings): 2 receptions, 80 receiving yards, 2TDs

WR Tristan Pelletier (Falcons): 7 receptions, 84 receiving yards, 2TDs

WR Dylan Hacker (Buckeyes): 7 receptions, 91 receiving yards, 2TDs

WR Brenden Urquhart (NS Hurricanes): 6 receptions, 77 yards, 2TDs

   Defence:

Rusher Japhet Pidi (Falcons): 3 sacks, 3 tackles

DB Ryan McGrath (Spartans): 4 tackles, 2 INTs, 1 defensive TD

DB Jaden Frenette (Thunder): 6 tackles, 2 PDs. 2 sacks

DB Nathan Cournoyer (Sun Devils): 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 1 defensive TD

DB Eden Raffoul (Dusters): 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 1 defensive TD

DB Jake Newman (Thunder): 5 tackles, 1 sack

 

And with that, this second week of FPF action comes to a close.  It’s hard to imagine that we are already a quarter of the way through the season but things come flying at you fast and furious in FPF Junior. It is key to make the necessary adjustments quickly and not to hesitate. On our side of things, we also act quickly to ensure that everyone can enjoy themselves. With that sentiment in mind, FPF has divided Sophomore into two divisions, A and B. If you are in Sophomore, please make sure to double check the schedule because a few games may have been moved around.

On that, have a good week and see you all on Sunday for the next round of FPF Junior action.