Intense Quarter Final Games, CE1 is finally back and a Women’s Weekend will set the Finals

As we go from one week to the next, we will lose readers and interest from many players and teams. That’s just what happens when you get eliminated in the FPF playoffs. A season filled with hopes and dreams, suddenly ends, and you wait until January to come around until you hit the FPF fields once again. That said, the audience reading this isn’t feeling those emotions just yet. Rather, they are in the midst of their knockout round quest, having played at least 2 games to get here so far. Most have won, but some have lost and are thankful that the format has allotted them two lives. It’s what makes the FPF Fall Cup so fun, is that you have teams that lost but are not out. Instead, they will be looking for quick revenge against the teams that dropped them from the double-elimination side to the single elim bracket.

In the Women’s division, we had Saturday’s games see Red Nation book their ticket to yet another Finals, Co-Ed 2 had some intense Quarter Final matchups, and CE1, after a 2 week break, is back to settle who will join Kiss My End Zone in the Finals.

We’re going to begin this article with Co-Ed 1 action since we’ve had a large pause on that front, wrapping up the last Quarter Finals matchup that both teams have been prepping for, for 2 weeks now.

Co-Ed 1 Preview

It’s been several weeks these two teams have been game-planning for one another, and I can assure you that Seth Galina has come up with a million and one game plans and schemes depending on who suits up at QB for the Vultures, given that the rumor out there is that Ben McMahon, the Tier 2 QB of the Year winner will be absent. While never fun to play against, in case Ben is there, POF have less to worry about with Tier 1 All-Star Julian McLaren-Thompson rushing Ben, limiting the time and space he could have potentially had against any other rusher.

The Plenty of Fish defense has shown that they can pose problems for strong offenses, especially in the playoffs, limiting Fitsquad to just 19 points and 3 offensive TDs from both William Brouard and Iggy Valdes Manzanedo. Not only did they limit opposing offenses to 3 TDs, they intercepted the KMEZ QB twice and sacked the Fitsquad pivot 4 times. So either way, their defense as a whole as had a truly spectacular performance this knockout season so far and will look to assist and put Maude Lacasse‘s offense in prime position to score and win. While they may not who will suit up at QB for Vultures, their defense will have to, and can, adapt to the offense they see in the first 2-3 drives. Halftime adjustments will be critical and everyone will need to communicate what they are seeing out there.

If we do look at the POF offense, Maude Lacasse will have to stay patient and limit the turnovers, which allowed KMEZ to come back in their first knockout game. She will need to identify where the most dangerous Vulture defender, James Drysdale is at all times, because he can single-handedly shift momentum in favor of the Vultures and keep them in the game. If I were here, I would stick to the short game and let my receivers do the work. Sure, take my shots downfield, but make sure my receivers are WIDE open if I’m going downfield, perhaps sending 3 receivers deep and catching the Vultures in a 2-deep zone.

For Vultures, a lot will of course be riding on their backup QB if McMahon cannot be there, but as I mentioned on CTA, the QB will have a plethora of options at their disposal, with high-profile names like Manu Allard-Roy, Geraldine Cabillo-Abante, James Drysdale, and Emma Townsend-Asselin, two of which actually won individual awards, with Allard-Roy winning 2-way player of the year in Tier 3 and Receiver of the Year going to Cabillo-Abante in the Women’s division. It will have to be a collective effort to move the ball, but like Lacasse, protecting the ball will be extremely important. The Vulture culture has always known to be a swiss cheese defense. If Vultures are to pull off the upset, that narrative will have to change. They will need to play a team defense that isn’t overly aggressive, since that could lead to giving up touchdowns. If they do that too often, their offense will be forced to respond quickly and go into a hurry-up situation if they find themselves down 14-0 early. That of course, is not a game script they want to find themselves in, so a strong, communicating defense with timely turnovers will be key for them if they want to find themselves on the winning side.

Women’s Recap To-Date

Red Nation doing Red Nation things

Red Nation is once again going to the Finals, as they have put together yet another strong playoff/knockout season together. If the Vulture culture is about weak defenses, the Red Nation sensation is about their stellar defensive play, particularly come playoff time. Once again, their defense put up an absolute wall around the Wolfpack offense. Known for their 2-headed monster in Carrie-Ann Auger and in 2-way player of the year this year, Maryse Paquette, I would say Red Nation came in with a game plan for them, and while they had 9 receptions between them, they held their yards after-the-catch in check, as they accumulated only 55 yards and just 1 TD between them.

Not only did the defensive coverage do an outstanding job, the contributions extended to their rushers as well, as on the first defensive drive, Nikki Limniatis had a key sack on 4th down to set the tone for Red Nation’s strong defensive performance that day. On their 2nd defensive drive, after Wolfpack had just gained a 1st down, GG Cabillo-Abante came away with the 1st of 4 interceptions on the afternoon to keep the score at 0-0.

As 2-way player of the year, Maryse Paquette did her best to keep her team in it, as following the GG interception, Paquette was able to create a turnover as well, with Sobol driving the Red Nation offense across half the field. That Paquette interception sparked Camille Dumas and the Wolfpack offense, as Dumas completed 6 passes in a row, capping it off with a Carrie-Anne Auger touchdown and a Maryse Paquette XP1 for the 7-0 lead. Red Nation would respond on the very next drive, with superstar Cabillo-Abante scoring from 14 yards out and grabbing the 1 point convert to tie the game at 7. After that, Wolfpack had 4 plays to try and end the half with a score. Instead, Dumas was intercepted by Emma Townsend-Asselin, which was a pivotal turnover and turning point in the game. The turnover lead to an almost immediate 6 points from Marilyn Cesaire, as she had herself a day, with 7 receptions, 64 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 INTs, one of which was brought to the house for 6 points to end the game and surely fire her team up, knowing they made the finals.

The offensive contributions were a change of pace for Red Nation, as it is usually Keiya Allen-Beckles and Cabillo-Abante (who did have 2 TDs) that lead the way for RN’s offense. Instead, Lamees Aljoundi and Marilyne Cesaire were the horses carrying the team on their backs, as each of them had almost identical stat lines, as both ended the game with 7 receptions and exactly 64 yards. And then there’s Allyson Sobol. Much like her Alouette squad, and like her past seasons, she is putting on her best performances when it counts, completing close to 60% of her passes against Wolfpack, throwing for over 200 yards (her 5th time this season) and 4 TDs.

Red Nation is once again doing Red Nation things, turning up their game to another level when they are in a do-or-die playoff situation. And so here we are, Red Nation winning to go to the finals with the Mighty BRUTES waiting for them like hungry lionesses.

Co-Ed 2 Knockout Round Summary

Quarter Finals Drama

Y&Y vs. Kiss My Christmas Balls

The drama unfolded against the Top 2 seeds in the division which was caught on camera and posted as the Game of the Week. The game included timely offensive scores, critical defensive stops either in prime position to score, or with time expiring on the clock, and of course, an overtime roller-coaster that was the cherry on top of the sundae when looking for an intense, entertaining and evenly matched affair. I’ll let GOTW do the rest of the hyping up:

At Least We Tried vs. Who’s Gonna Carry the Boats?

Alex Szalipszki has the high-flying boats rolling, passing for 10 TDs and just 1 INT in his 2 playoff games under centre. Kayla Gauthier has been the key receiver for the boats, the only to have already eclipsed the 100-receiving mark, but don’t be fooled. The team is an offense-by-committee, as any of the receivers can go off on you on any given night. Every one of their receivers has been targeted at least 3 times, and 5 of the 7 receivers have caught at least 1 TD. That, combined with Szalipszki’s 100+ rushing yards, it makes the boats offense versatile and double-edged. If Szalipszki can continue playing with his confidence and trust in both himself and his receivers, as good as the At Least We Tried defense can be, his offense can move the chains and put up points. What he won’t be able to do is extend plays with his legs and go on long runs like he has in his 2 previous games. Darryl Dorcely is a beast of a rusher and will limit the time and space Szalipszki has and will attempt to make him a true pocket passer.

For At Least We Tried, they know they will need to step up offensively as they were shutout in their last knockout game against KMCB. Again, they were missing key, sure-handed offensive players in Jimmy-Lee Janvier and Carolane Larivière last time around, so look for them to be clutch contributors on offense in this game. This defense wasn’t overly exposed last game, but they were unable to come up with a stop or turnover when they needed it. This time around, they will need either the stop or INT against WGCTB or else they could slow down the game like KMCB did against them. They will look to their defensive leader, Shelder Valéry to either diagnose their offense and put his defensive players in the best position to make a play, or will look for him to step up with that key turnover.

I can see this game being a battle in the 20’s, something like a 26-20 score. I’m going to go with the hot hand in Who’s Gonna Carry the Boats, as they are learning to win at the most crucial time of the year: playoffs.

Predators vs Subzero

The Predators are coming off a tough loss to Y&Y which brough them down to the single elimination bracket, while Subzero has been in the bottom the entire time, winning both of their previous matchups against Step Bro’s and the shift and quick TIGRES.

Sara Parker has been good, but not exceptional in her 2 playoff games. We know she can be elite, which is why the expectations come a little higher with her play. She obviously does a spectacular job with ball distribution; all 6 of her receivers have had between 4 and 13 targets, ranging from 26-84 yards. Where she has seemed a bit more off is with her completion %, whether that is accuracy from her passes, or perhaps playing against good defenses. In her playoff career, she’s completed 64% of her passes and her career comp % in the regular season sits at 68%. This playoffs, she’s completing 59% of her passes, which is less characteristic of her. Those weaker stats came mostly from the game against the Step Bro’s, and was more herself against a weaker TIGRES defense, where she scored her typical 5 TDs and completed 70% of her passes with a 132.6 passer rating. I can see her picking apart the Predators defense, however, she has always struggled against tall rushers. If Predators send Anthony Gentile at her, he could deflect a ton of passes and take away the middle of the field. If Parker can hit the sidelines and simply get the ball in her playmakers hands, any of the ladies can move the chains and score touchdowns. Finally, the Subzero defense showed they can handle an unconventional offense with a running and scrambling QB. While Nestor Chavez does it to another level, where running is literally 50% of the plays, Cesar Garcia-Diaz has a similar style, but has focused more on developing the passing game. Cesar has improved, but facing tougher and tougher defenses as the knockout rounds progress, he has struggled and thrown a playoff-high 5 interceptions (and threw the most interceptions in the regular season as well). These Subzero defenders are the type to pounce on balls and you can bank they will come away with at least 1 turnover from an interception.

For the Preds, they need to simplify the playbook and Cesar will need to get the ball into his receivers hands and let them do the work. Edouard Guimas is their big play receiver and will be trouble for Subzero to defend against. They need to keep a eye out for where he is lined up on every play, as he keeps drives alive for the Preds and has scored 6 TDs for the team, the only receiver with more than one touchdown. I feel like the offense will struggle and be able to put 2-3 touchdowns on the board. That means the defense is going to have to come up with at least 2 turnovers. As I mentioned, that starts with Gentile getting his long arms in the way of Parker‘s passes. If he can force turnovers from tipped passes, the Predators defenders will need to make sure they come away with interceptions and score points off those turnovers.

Alright, that once again does it for another week in the FPF knockout rounds for the Complimentary divisions. Continue the great, intense plays and good luck to everyone in their playoff runs!!

Until next time, cheers!

Iggy Magnets