Like it or Not (Div 3)

If last week you were thinking of quitting for a soccer league, this week I guarantee some of you are looking for a good enough excuse to not pay your remaining fees. Another week in the books and we begin to clearly see who the true contenders may be. My favorite part of every season is right now. This is when every team knows a little something about everyone. Every game becomes a chess match between captains. Who will do enough homework to dig up dirt, turn over enough rocks to find a weakness, bribe the right person to get what you need to win. Which team will be deceived; who will rise to the challenge? We are about to find out which teams are for real, and which teams will need a serious intervention. I don’t know about all of you, but I don’t sleep very well after a loss, and my sleep is something I cherish.  

 

Headlines:

•  The showdown between KGP Champs and Clockwork was as exciting as I anticipated it to be. Huge first win for the Westmount boys. A very difficult schedule coming up. An 0-3 start would have been the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest with me on your back! Unfortunately for Marco Masciotra and co., the one turnover in the game proved to be the spine breaker. The QB comparisons are almost identical. The only difference was Cutler’s ability to continuously break the pocket and keep drives alive. Mazel Tov on the first win!

 

• Have you ever had your heart pulled out of your chest? If you’re wondering what it feels like just ask any player on Big TD’s. Big daddy FPF gave them a time out, “go to your room!” he shouted. Unfortunate miscount put them over the cap for week one and two. The result: a trade, your two wins for two losses and a -60 point deifferential. An honest mistake in my mind, but nonetheless very costly. Let this be an example for everyone else in the league. If you were wondering what would happen if you didn’t follow the new rules, now you know.

 

• Full House came out of these three first weeks with a couple bumps and bruises. Filled with talent, this is a perfect example of what happens when you make a new team. I’m not worried about this team’s future, but I am questioning this season’s outlook. So far winless on the season, will Justin Smolar, Dave Chitayat and company be able to get over the hump? I look at their schedule and I do not see where they will get their first win. Although they are way too talented to end up 0-10, this team needs to find their MOJO very soon! I truly hope they do so before it’s too late.

 

• Every season we see original uniforms. Some should go back to the drawing board, others I’m glad were shared with the community. Swag is most often times translated into success on the field. Unfortunately this isn’t the case for Arkham. 1-2 on the season, but their win was by default against Big TD’s. They look amazing but haven’t yet found a way to make the scoreboard look the same. Classic Gino Di Fazio team is built for big plays, but Gino is off to his worst season. Will we see a change in momentum for the men in yellow? They have what it takes. Time will tell…

 

• Les Buddays are real high-quality friends again. I’m guessing they went for dinner to talk about how their group of friends was growing apart after losing to VPC. Whatever they came up with worked wonders. Putting up 55 points is quite an offensive outing. Leandre Ethier had five different receivers with at least two grabs. In the process of throwing 7TDs, Leandre brought the boys back together. A team I have great respect for, they play with speed and deadly accuracy. I told you guys before the season started, don’t sleep on my Buddays. They came up to ball hard!

 

• Crushing first loss for Moose versus B.D. Bandits. Quarterback Frederic Morrisette threw five interceptions, matching last seasons’ total. Half as many interceptions as completion doesn’t give your defense a chance to catch their breath, nor the will to continue fighting. Unfortunately for Fred, he’s going to have to wait a while for his redemption. The Cook brothers led the way for the Bandits; defensively Evan Cook had three tackles and two interceptions, one of which he brought back to the house. On the other side of the ball, Casey Cook had 78 yards through the air on three receptions, all for touchdowns. What looked to be a great match-up, turned out to be an eye opener for Moose. Nothing worse then having your perfect season put to an end, especially with a bye week coming up. No doubt in my mind Paolo Della Rocca will not yet sound off the alarms, but potentially sharpen the antlers for next game.

 

The Undefeated

After three weeks of play, we have a handful of teams that sit on top of the world.  Undefeated, confidence in full fledge with no reason to doubt their ability to crush whomever steps onto the field with them. Here is my personal opinion on each one of these teams:

•  Les Monsieurs Chats The majority of this team has experience at the CIS level. Now how they are individually ranked to be able to fall under a Div3 cap boggles my mind. Now, lets not pretend we can do anything about it at this point, so lets all deal with it. Like I previously noted, this team has University experience, but they were all defensive players. Do they have the offensive power to continue this season unscaved? They are currently averaging more than 38 point per game. Quarterback David Centomo has yet to turn the ball over. After a quick glance at the stats it looks to me like Simon Provencher wants to end up on my BEAST list! We shall check back in after week 7, for they will not be challenged until week 5, 6 and 7. The rest of the season should be smooth sailing.  After ten weeks, I believe they will be 10-0! Bold, but my opinion. Serious blend of athletic studs and football IQ.

 

•  Hoof Hearted I think it was G.M. Kolethras who farted, and out came this group of athletes. Quietly making their way to the top of the rankings, these men play with class. A group of solid, knowledgeable, gifted athletes who play to win. These guys won’t say a word on the field but will hurt you on the scoreboard. Edward Shoshan has already thrown 15 touchdowns, he’s on pace for 50. On the receiving end of those throws, more often than not is one of my favorite players Timothy Godber. I don’t know him personally but he’s a class act on the field: 15 receptions and 6 touchdowns already. One of the top two-way players in Div 3, Chris Niphakis is on pace for 10 Int’s and 20 receiving Td’s. Quite a remarkable supporting cast; I wouldn’t mind being in Ed’s cleats on any given Sunday. All looks good but they’ll need to tighten up the defense since they’ve given up a lot of points to what looks like average teams. After ten weeks I believe they will be 8-2.

 

• VPC We may be in a flag league but when you play against any team built by Robby Robinson they come to scrap. I don’t mean that in a bad way either. This team is not trying to knock you out with a haymaker. They will punch you in the liver until you fall to your knees, at which point they will continue to punch you in your liver! A stable solid group of guys, with a HOF player in Robinson. Louis Richard is deceiving; don’t take his non-chalant swag serious, he’s coming for your liver. VPC has one of the toughest schedules in this division. I know Robbie is not too worried, and I wouldn’t be either. They are as physical as the rules will allow them to be, which makes most teams shy away. Another very important aspect of this team is their longevity as a team. There isn’t much they haven’t seen as a team! After ten weeks, I believe they will be 9-1.

 

• B.D Bandits A team in their second year in division 3. Their first season was fruitful, ending the season at 9-1. They went on to lose in the semi finals to Served With Ice. Previously led by the unorthodox quarterback Scott Kelly. This year they decided they wanted structure in the huddle and picked up Mark Belvedere. B.D Bandits, like every other team, have been tweaking their roster to perfection. It has taken very little time to find a recipe that works, however I can say that they’re strong group of guys. If you see a little guy with a hat, avoid throwing that way; Steve Sanner is a nightmare to play against. I’m on the fence on this one since they technically lost against Big TDs. After ten weeks, I believe they will be 7-3.

 

• NoRegard- I’ve already said a lot about these boys in my previous articles. They also do a decent job marketing themselves without the help of the FPF writers. Nonetheless, they sit up top at 3-0. If you take a look at their schedule, you’ll notice they are about to dive in some dangerously deep water.  A true test is on the horizon. Whether they can stand and dance with the big boys, or drown and be forgotten will soon be determined. I can’t knock them for their early success. They’ve done a lot of excellent things in a respectable fashion. After ten weeks, I believe they will be 8-2.

 

• Prestige World Wide: Another classy bunch of athletically gifted studs. In their 6^th season together they haven’t shown the ability to close the season with a win. They’ve been to the playoffs in every season as a team, but only once passed first round. Have they made the right additions to finally win a championship? One thing I can tell you, Alex Lever is a HOF quarterback. He will always come out to compete. Last years’ addition of snapper Anthony Comeau will create a lot of space for the outside receivers and make it hard to match up. Another big addition is J-S Gradowski, a huge defensive bonus with immense football I.Q. After ten weeks, I believe they will be 9-1.

 

Top 3 Freaks of Week 3:

QB-Nicola Centomo (LMC): 14/20 for 206 yards and 6Tds. Also added 13 yards on the ground. Welcome to my team of FREAKS! Phil Cutler and Leandre Ethier can co-own the mini freak award.

WR- Jean Christophe Mercille (LMC): 8 Rec for 99 yards and 3 TDs. FREAK mode on.

DB-Robbie Robinson (VPC): 2 Tkls, 2 Ints, Pd and a TD.  Already a FREAK, Robby maintains his status.

 R-Julien Paiement (BUD): 4 Sacks! Julien already has 12 sacks on the season, foundation for defensive success. Welcome Julien, you are a FREAKKKK.

 

 My picks for week 4:

MONGOOSE VS LES EUDISTES

KGP CHAMPS VS F.T.W

THE COMMISSION VS HOOF HEARTED

GOLDEN EAGLES VS BIG TDS

LES BUDDAYS VS OCEAN’S SEVEN

BRUIZERS VS AJ’S FIGHT CLUB

SANDLOT SAINTS VS ARKHAM

VPC VS LAZY BUT TALENTED

FULL HOUSE VS LES MONSIEUR CHATS

USUAL SUSPECTS VS RUDEBWOYS

PRESTIGE WORLD WIDE VS B.D. BANDITS

N/A THE INCREDIBLES VS LEGENDS

MOOSE VS CERTIFIED FLYGUYS

CLOCKWORK VS #NOREGARD

15 and 13 SO FAR ON THE SEASON, WHICH PUTS ME AT 57%… I PROMISE TO IMPROVE.

 

POWER RANKINGS:

Conference A

RANK	W/L	POINTS	+/-	DIV RECORD
1-#NoRegard	3-0	6	+64	3-0
2-Les monsieur Chats	3-0	6	+41	3-0
3-B.D. Bandits	3-0	6	+73	2-0
4-A.J’s Fight Club	2-1	4	+2	2-1
5-Moose	2-1	4	-21	2-0
6-The Incredible	2-1	4	-11	2-1
7-Lazy But Talented	1-2	2	+3	1-1
8-Ocean’s Seven	1-2	2	+7	1-2

Conference B

RANK	W/L	POINTS	DIV RECOD	+/-
1.Prestige World Wide	3-0	6	3-0	+46
2.VPC	3-0	6	2-0	+35
3.HOOF HEARTED	3-0	6	2-0	+22
4.BRUIZERS	2-1	4	2-1	-7
5.LES BUDDAYS	2-1	4	1-1	+62
6.RUDEBOYS	1-1-1	3	1-1-1	+9
7.SANDLOT SAINTS	1-1-1	3	1-1-1	+6
8.KGP CHAMPS	1-2	2	1-1	-2

 

 

Game of the week:

Big TDs vs Golden Eagles- We all know by now why Big TDs sits at the bottom of standings, if you don’t then read the top of the article. These are two extremely gifted and skillful rosters, just quietly sitting in the darkest dungeons of their divisions. Neither one of these rosters belong where they are but its time to kick it into overdrive. The simple fact that neither one of these teams can afford to lose another game makes this match up a very heated one, with potential for sparks. Kevin Lubin clearly has a favorite target in Alex David. An above average target, Alex has shown the ability to fight for balls, but not unstoppable. I’m sure Jamil Springer can put together a plan to stop the bleeding. It’s also time for the Golden Eagles to get greedy on defense. Enough with the pass deflections (15), if the ball is in the air go get it. Turnovers will hopefully put you guys back on track. My prediction: Big TDs takes this one 32-26.

Unfortunately the Super Bowl will now wreck some of our momentum. But since we’re missing Flag for the Super Bowl… It’s not that dreadful. Good luck to everyone! Don’t forget to check out the podcast, hosted by G.M Kolethras and Daniele’ Scoop’ Gentile! You can stream it live as well, if you want to see their pretty faces! Follow me @VinceNardone for very little action on twitter or stop me at the field to chat. Till next time… Get in the gym.