Peeze’s Playbook (Div E) – Week 1 – FlagPlus Football League

For those who listened to this week’s Flag Plus Bromance you will have noticed that during the break a country song graced your ears which varied from our typically very hip-hop driven theme. While it is true that I’m definitely a rap and hip-hop fan I grew up listening to country music. What can I say? I’m a very Southern Quebecois.

Upon a road trip this past weekend the subtleties of Country songs were explained to me using a series of very colorful flash cards. Country songs can be about Love. More specifically the them is then subdivided into the following categories: love/loved her, almost had her, lost her or miss her. Songs can also be about the better things in life: food, drinking, alcohol and partying. Another theme is things that one cannot live without: Jesus, guns, your country or driving. Finally, no country album would be complete without songs about trucks. They can be the songwriter’s truck, a friend’s truck or an attractive woman in cowboy boats and Daisy Dukes riding in a beat-up Chevy. Also, it’s important to note that a great country song must have at least two of these sub-categories as themes.

The point is, no matter what you think about country music, it is indisputable that it knows what it’s strengths and weaknesses are. This is the time of the season that your teams need to figure out what kind of team you’ll put on the field each week. The best teams know their identity. If you aren’t sure what your identity is, your season may fizzle out before it ever had a chance.

Orange Draught

Losing their opener to DG Goons means that Orange Crush now see their losing streak extended to 6 games (gong back to this winter past winter). Orange Crush did unveil their new free agent acquisition Yannick Doston but he was fairly ineffective. He threw only one touchdown as compared to 2 interceptions and he is hoping that he’ll be able to rally the troops for next week. Another new addition also contributed with an interception for a touchdown as Andrew Denis Lynch seems to have bolstered the defense somewhat. With all these changes we hope to see Orange Crush’s fortune change or a flavor change may be in order (perhaps grape, or cream soda).

The DG Goons are in fact named for their geographical location (NDG) and they’re Goonish type demeanor. The Deegers look like bad, bad men as they beat up on Orange Crush in the second half. It took a little while for Christopher Pendenza to get his team clicking but when he did they looked to be on top of their game. In his first FPF game he threw 5 touchdown passes and connected with 4 different receivers to do so (Derrick Fontana caught 2, Franck Ngandui, Dave Martini, and Phil Bazin all caught 1). Week 2 is on the horizon so the Goons need to be ready to get their second win while Orange Crush are hoping sour soda pop causes amnesia. It’s a stretch, but I liked Crush as a kid so I’m going to work it in as often as I can.

Hanging a 50 Burger

With the sun’s rays finally reaching the distant northern climate that we all inhabit it is safe to say, it is BBQ season. One further declaration: Burgers are Awesome! Just imagine how great a 50 burger tastes to a team who only scored 18.1 points per game in division 6 last season. I probably wrote in my preseason article that Jean Guy would go as far as Cristophe Chartrand’s arm would take them. If I didn’t write it, know that I thought it. Well if week one was any indicator Chartrand looks as awesome as a Burger. He threw 6 touchdowns and ran another in and posted his career high QB Rating (141.9). Defensively, Jean Guy got a contribution from their quarterback as well as he had an interception to compete with Kien Pieton and Pascal Savaria who also intercepted passes in this game.

For Hanger Crossfit, this was a learning experience. It has been said that the level of play in FPF right down to the introductory divisions is impressive. It is difficult to put together a group of friends and try to compete. That being said, teams learn by leaps and bounds every week. Hangar Crossfit needs to look at this as a loss and try to forget about the score. Jean-Philippe Guitard had a rough night completing only 4 passes. Amazingly only Fred St-Amand and Nathan Demers caught passes in this game. If Guitard wants to be successful he’ll need to spread the ball and have the defense worry about all five receivers. They face Alcohol of Fame next week but for week 1, Hangar Crossfit loses to Jean guy by a score of 51-0.

New World Order Established

The Gingers are a new team in FPF and they went up against a team in NOW that has been developing for the past few seasons. Steven McFee solid start; he threw 2 touchdowns and ran for 41 yards. He seemed to have some chemistry developed with Peter Panagopoulos (clearly named for the fictional character Peter Pan). In an attempt to keep his team in the game Magar Orer intercepted Mark Sanchez twice but it would not be enough as N.W.O. beat the Gingers 34-13.

Michael “The Dirty” Sanchez had a great first game and now has started to shake the comparisons to Mark Sanchez. The team has played together for a few seasons now and the level of comfort is obvious. Anthony Di Staulo caught a touchdown and Steven Terelli scored another 2 touchdowns. Erminio Iadeluca may be the off season acquisition of the year for NOW and he made his presence felt as he caught 2 passes and scored a touchdown as well. Sanchez also seems to be starting a campaign for two way player of the year as he took an interception back for 6.

5 plays Till Half Time-. Each week The Eagle at Master Control will send me five quick fire questions and I will do my best to answer them with the least amount of forethought possible. I like annoying him so many f these may be insults.

Eagle: Do the week one results surprise you? Is there a team you expected to perform better? Was anyone worse than you expected?

Peeze- As my picks were 4-4, I evidently expected some different outcomes. Jean Guy impressed me with their display off offensive dominance. I know they played against a brand new team. That being said, I didn’t expect a team that struggled to score as much as Jean Guy did last season to put up 51 points. I was somewhat disappointed to find out that the Minge did not field a team of 6 players for an entire half. This is a team that went to the championships last winter; they should be more prepared.

Eagle- How has the QB cap rule affected the way Div E teams are formed.

Peeze- What we are seeing is some FPF veterans getting there first crack at playing quarterback (like yours truly). I don’t know that I would have felt comfortable doing so had I known that experienced qbs might be playing in the division. In this way it get players to take a chance and try something new.

Eagle- Should we expect a more competitive Div E than in it’s inaugural season last spring?

Peeze- More teams means more competition. That being said I don’t know that last spring’s div.E wasn’t competitive in it’s first season. The key difference is that there aren’t any big name quarterbacks in the division this time around. However, this doesn’t mean that one can’t emerge to take the division by storm this season.

Eagle- Are brand new teams at a disadvantage considering other teams have veteran players who know the game?

Peeze- There is a definite disadvantage to new teams. I have said for a while that the spring season sees the return of all the true flag teams and players. As a player who started in a spring season I can vouch for how tough it is in your first season. I do suggest that new teams talk to me or to other members of our staff or even other to get some help and guidance. It’s the only way to improve in a hurry.

Eagle- After throwing 5 interceptions in your first official start as qb is defense as stupid as you thought it was.

Peeze- Firstly, Eagle; this is why you’re single. Secondly, defense is that thing that wastes time while I’m not on the field, so yes, stupid. Thirdly, are we still talking about week 1?

Reflections, Rants and Ravings:

I can’t be the only one who needs to stop at all small town with an ongoing Cinnamon Festival, or World’s Largest Ball of Yarn. It’s the best part of the road trip in my opinion.
Congrats to n.W.o who have gone 1-0 for the first time in their franchise’s history.
The Minge played with only 5 players in the second half this week; that’s a rough way to start the season.
It appears the Canadiens demise this season will be Price-less. Too soon? Hey, don’t judge how I greave!
DX’s defense looked solid in week 1 despite the loss, how will they look against Jean Guy who scored 51 points in week 1.
The Minge went with Jeff Rosenblatt as quarterback but Matt young wasn’t there. This gives us no information whatsoever.
Did you know that some medication can cause compulsive gambling? Now I just need a diagnosis that will support my habit.

Power Rankings

The Pack (1-0)- They beat Cream Team whom I had previously ranked at 1. I do think that Krebs needs to find that killer instinct however as he let Cream Team back into the game.
Junkyard Dogs (1-0)- Another team that won a close one in week 1. I think this type of win builds character in the same way that Legos build multi-colored walls.
Alcohol of Fame (1-0)- They made a huge jump in the power rankings this week. There defense is quite good and it will help them win games until their offense truly starts to click.
Cream Team (0-1) I don’t wan to overreact to one loss, however, Cream Team did lose to another team that I consider to be a top contender. They keep a high seeding despite the loss.
Old Guns (1-0)- I have to give it to Ron Star Wars (pet name for FPF’s own Rehan Sarwar), the old guns looked great. You can’t blame them for the other team not showing up so they bounce a little further up the ladder. Watch out for the snakes however, they’ll get ya!
Jean Guy (1-0)- Scoring that many points will get you mentioned. So will getting a shut out. I guess I had to mention them.
The Minge (0-1)-We have no information on this team as a lot of their finest Kevin Bacon impersonators never made it out to the dancefloor. Week 2 will be a telling tale for the Minge. Here’s hoping it doesn’t get hairy.
Beer and TDs- They brough in Ofir Levy to QB in week 1. He had the best game of his career and then he informed me that he was only filling in for one week. I was sad for a moment, then I remembered the ending of The Never Ending Story III and I suddenly felt happy again.

Other Teams Receiving Votes:

I asked the Eagle at Master Control but all he did was keep talking about himself vis-a-vis his importance to circuitry. I hung up but I am certain he kept talking about himself anyway. So, alas, here are my other votes for teams that could have just have easily been in my top 8

– n.W.o (1-0)- The n.W.o boys have made a lot of progress over the past two seasons. However I’ve been burned by love before and I’m quite cautious to fall in love with a team unless I’m sure. Buy me some flowers, take me out, make a writer feel special. Then we’ll see where I rank you.

– DG Goons (1-0)- GD Goons beat up on a team that is still trying to find themselves. They should use this as a confidence booster as they head into a much tougher matchup against Junkyard Dogs this week.

– Fresh MTL (1-0)- I don’t like Terry Tam. I guess a more valuable reason would be that they barely got by in a game that could have gone either way. If they had lost, it would have been all Terry’s fault.

Hung-over Visions of the World of Tomorrow

I was so generous this week that not only did I play such a terrible game against GM and Eagle in week one but I also allowed them to take the lead in the predictions section. I’m not worried though as I’m sure this flash in the pan will not last. I will be back to take the lead in no time.

GAME	PEEZE	TERRY	GM	EAGLE

Gingers vs. Orange Crush	Gingers	Orange Crush	Gingers	Orange Crush
Jean Guy vs. DX	Jean Guy	Jean Guy	DX	Jean Guy
Killuminati vs. the Minge	N/A	The Minge	Killuminati	The Minge
Wax on, Wax Off vs. NWO	NWO	NWO	Wax On, Wax Off	Wax On, Wax Off
Hangar Crossfit vs. Alcohol of Fame	Alcohol of Fame	Hangar Crossfit	N/A	n/a
DG Goons vs. Junkyard Dogs	DG Goons	Junkyard Dogs	DG Goons	Junkyard Dogs
Fresh MTL vs. The Pack	The Pack	N/A	The Pack	The Pack
TDs and Beer vs. Cream Team	TDs and Beer	Cream Team	Cream Team	TDs and Beer
Los Pollos Hermanos vs. Old Guns	Old Guns	Old Guns	Old Guns	Old Guns
Record	4-4	5-3	6-2	6-2
Winning pct.	.500	.625	.750	.750

Wednesday Wrap-Around

Week 1 is in the books and we are now set to kick off another exciting week of Division E Flag Football. Half of the teams in this division are looking to increase their lead while others are hoping at a shot at redemption. As one of those looking for redemption you know I’ll be cheering for the underdogs.

For those who hate reading, prefer more aural and visual stimulus tune into Flag Plus Bromance where Terry Tam and I will give you all an inside look at the mind of an angry octopus. Flag Plus Bromance is available at http://fpf.podomatic.com/. You can watch it live at www.theunclehood.com Monday nights from 8:30-9:00pm. You can tweet the show live @EagleFPF. Until then if you have any questions, comments or demands for my resignation please feel free to email me at [email protected] or by tweeting me @PeezeFPF.

Have a great and safe week of action. See you at the fields!