Reviews and Previews from Week 3 of Coed Action

Week three of the Coed season is in the books and week 4 is in the books. Thankfully, there are no Sunday morning games this week because finishing the articles by those early kickoffs has not been easy. Before games kickoff tonight, let’s take a look at the teams that have surprised me so far this season in each of the Coed divisions.

Coed 1 Surprise of the Season

Les Porcinets (1-3)

While the idea of this “surprises” section was to highlight teams that were doing better than expected, it is rather the opposite scenario for this Porcinets team. They were one of the best teams in the regular season last year in Coed 1 and I very much expected them to excel this spring. However, they have gotten off to a shaky start to the season and that is in large part due to roster inconsistencies. They have had a rotating cast of players at the quarterback position but it appears like the starter is going to be Tam Vilaydeth and he has played well when he was there. Kristopher Verreault and Emmanuelle Bronsard have also taken reps under center for this team. In all honesty, all three players are fantastic but what this team needs is consistency. If Vilaydeth is going to be the starter going forwards he needs to get as many reps in as possible with these receivers. At receiver, this team has already had 11 different players touch the ball. All in all, there is absolutely nothing wrong with this team. They have three good options at quarterback and clearly an abundance of depth at the receiver position. The only thing they are missing is consistency. The other silver lining for this team is that they have not been blown out in any games. Their largest margin of defeat came in week 1 when they lost by 9 to a very good Plenty of Fish team. All in all,  this is a very good team that just needs more experience together. The wins will come, it will just take time and a consistent roster.

Coed 2 Surprise of the Season

LDN (2-1)

LDN are definitely the most athletic team in this division, and they might very well have the best female player as well in Stella Jean Georges. She is already leading this team in receptions, yards and scores. Simply put, she is a mismatch on just about any female in this division and LDN have been using that matchup to their full advantage. Outside of Jean Georges, LDN have been getting significant production out of Ishak Ait Kaci Azzou and Sam Siffrard. While this team might be firing on all cylinders offensively, what really impresses me is their defence. Samuel Omombo’s four interceptions in just three games is beyond impressive. In total, this team has 8 interceptions in just three games, which is over two picks a game. If this team can guarantee two turnovers a game, they will be favorites to win just about every single game they play. What really should have other teams worried is that this LDN team is only going to get better. At this stage of their FPF career they are relying on their vastly superior athleticism to win games. As the seasons progresses and they become more and more familiar with the game in Coed they will be able to outsmart teams as well. This team will be improving exponentially as the season progresses and I would not be surprised to see them end up as the Coed 2 champions when all is said and done.

Coed 3 Surprise of the Season

Michael Scott’s Tots (2-0)

Michael Scott’s Tots have been in Coed for longer than I can remember. However, this team has not always had the most success. While they are known as a fun loving and outgoing group who everyone loves, they have not always been able to string together the most wins. Well, it looks like this teams fate is finally starting to change. They have started the season 2-0 and, scoring 40+ points in both of their games and are yet to concede a single score. A large part of the success of this team can be attributed to improved play of quarterback Kenny Boutilier. He has already thrown for 10 touchdowns and has rushed for two more. While kenny was always able to score touchdowns, his biggest issue in the past was turning over the ball. This season he has not thrown a single pick. While it is great to see this team’s offence clicking, the most impressive aspect of their season so far has been their defence performances, and that all starts with the play of Zackary Alberts-Gill. He is one of the very best rushers in FPF and i have the privilege of playing with him in division B. As expected, he has been tearing it up in Coed 3 and has already recorded five sacks in just two games. In a division with so many mobile quarterbacks, having a dominant rusher is extremely important. Not only does it limit the time and space a quarterback has in the pocket, it also forces them into throws they would rather not make, and this MST defence has definitely been taking advantage of those ill advised throws that Alberts-Gill has been forcing. Jonothan Joseph has been the biggest ball hawk in this backfield. He has somehow managed to accumulate five picks in just two games and  has even returned one of those interceptions for a score. If Joseph can continue picking off opposing QBs at this rate, he is a lock to win defensive player of the year and MST would be in a very good position to win it all. However, if I did have one critique to level at this team it would be that they have not yet faced the toughest competition in the division. Before heralding this team as the frontrunners to win it all, I want to see how the likes of Boutilier perform against some of the tougher defences in the division.

Week 3 Game of the Week

Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats (33) vs The Rookies (34) – Coed 2

This game required overtime to find a winner. For those of you who do not know, FPF introduced overtime into regular season games during this past winter season. The Rookies won this one by scoring a two point convert to win the overtime tiebreaker. 

While The Rookies were able to escape with the win in this one, it was definitely not the most comfortable game for them. For starters, Cedric Maurice, threw his first two real interceptions of the season in this one and only managed to total 136 yards in the air. He made up for that with his five rush attempts for 56 yards and a score. Another promising sign from this Rookies is that that they are consistently getting multiple receivers involved in the passing game. While Mazen Ouali might have been the top target, catching six passes for 32 yards and a score, six other Rookies receivers were able to get onto the scorecard. Half of the targets were also thrown the way of female receivers. All in all, this team is well balanced and is able to get consistent production out of every single one of their players, male and female alike and that is what makes them so dangerous. There is no one player who can cover and take out of the game that will stall this offence. While there offence might have done a good enough job to get them over the hump in this one, it was their defence that did a majority of the heavy lifting. They managed and herculean four interceptions and were able to consistently put the ball back in their quarterback’s hands. Gabriel Bélanger led the charge with two interceptions and Cedric Maurice and Elodie Simoneau rounded out the effort with a pick a piece. Mazen Ouali also did his part registering two sacks. All in all, this team was able to make up for one of their poorer offensive showing of the season with their best defensive performance and still escaped with the win.

While Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats might have lost this one, they had a very impressive performance. Kayla Gauthier and Roxanne Roy were the team’s two leading receivers and accounted for nearly 60% of the teams catches. They also caught three of the four scores and combined for 114 of the teams 153 receiving yards. Simply put, the Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats offence ran through those two players. In Coed, when your most productive receivers are your female receivers it definitely means that you are doing something right. It is impossible to win in Coed without strong production from your female receivers, so seeing these two have such a strong showing for Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats is extremely impressive and bodes very well for the future of this team. Unfortunately, the issue for this offence was turnovers. While Alexandre Szalipszki did throw for over 150 yards and four scores, he also turned the ball over four times. In FPF, it is very difficult to win a game when you turn the ball over twice. To win when you turn thee ball over four times is practically impossible. It is a testament to the quality of this team’s defence and their resilience that they were able to hang into this one and force overtime, but four turnovers remains four too many. While this Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats has lots of potential, the first step they will need to take is limiting their turnovers.

Week 3 Team of the Week

Every week, I will name 12 players to the team of the week. If you make the offensive team of the week, you cannot be on the defensive one and vice versa. In the spirit of the Coed division, every team of the week will have a minimum of three female players on the offensive and defensive team. This week I will only be creating one team of the week with players from across all three divisions.

Offence

Quarterback: Nicolas Katerelos (La Secte) 12 completions, 222 passing yards, 7 TDs, 0 INTs

Receiver: Justin Leblanc-Guindon (La Secte) 6 receptions, 144 yards, 4 TDs

Receiver: Kayla Gauthier (Who’s Gonna Carry The Boats) 5 receptions, 85 yards, 2 TDs

Receiver: Liliane Valiquette (Free Agent Squad) 5 receptions, 52 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Frédérique Daoust (EZFun) 4 receptions, 46, 2 TDs 

Receiver: Jean-Christophe Ferland (EZFun) 9 receptions, 129 yards, 3 TDs

Defence

Rusher: Zackary Alberts-Gill (Michael Scott’s Tots) 3 sacks

Defensive Back: Jonothan Joseph (Michael Scott’s Tots) 4 tackles, 3 INTs, 1 PD

Defensive Back: Marika Bouchard (LDN) 1 INT, 2 PDs

Defensive Back: Dounya Sheik (Panini Pressers) 1 tackle, 2 INTs, 1 PD   

Defensive Back: Geraldine Cabillo-Abante (Vultures) 5 tackles, 1 INT

Defensive Back: Samuel Omombo (LDN) 2 tackles, 2 INTs, 2 TDs

Week 4 Predictions:

Plenty of Fish (2-0) vs The IG Team (3-0) – Coed 1

This is a rematch of last season’s finals and one of the most anticipated games of the season so far in Coed 1. Both of these teams are off to dominant starts to the season and the winner of this game might will be in the driver seat to secure the top seed heading into the playoffs. I think that The IG Team have the advantage in this one in terms of the quarterback matchup. While Dylan Taylor is an FPF veteran with loads of FPF experience at the highest levels, he is off to a good but not  great start to the season. He has throw three picks in his first two games and has a QB rating of only 108.1 On the other hand, Jeanslee Alexis has thrown two picks in three games and has a QB rating of 119. However, one factor that might even out the playing field is the rushing of Julian McLaren-Thompson. The shifty rusher was able to lockup the elusive Alexis in the finals last year and if he is able to once again limit his scrambling abilities in this one, it will be a huge win for Plenty of Fish. Another category in which Plenty of Fish have the advantage is female talent. While The IG Team might have the electric Stella Jean George, they do not have as well rounded a cast of female athletes as Plenty of Fish do. Maryse Paquette, Rebecca Décary-Corbeil, Annabelle Chevrier and of course Laurence Pontbriand are one of, if not the best, group of female players in Coed 1. All in all, the rushing of McLaren-Thompson and the female talent of Plenty of Fish lead me to believe that they will prevail in this one. 

Prediction: Plenty of Fish

Pig 6 (1-2) vs Nighthawks Mix (0-3) – Coed 2

While Nighthawks Mix might be yet to get a win this season, they have faced three tough opponents and have been competitive in two of those three matches. They have also only conceded 88 points, which is a testament to the quality of their defence. What is interesting about this Nighthawks defence is that they have managed decent defensive performances all while only recording one interception, which came courtesy of Marc Antoine Martin. What that means is this is able to force a significant number of turnovers on downs. However, I am worried about their ability to  force Pig 6 to turn the ball over on downs. Seth Galina might not have the biggest arm or the most accurate passes but he is able to dissect a defence with his play calling and knowledge of the game. He rarely turns the ball over on downs and way to stop him is with interceptions. All in all, I think the Nighthawks defence will struggle against Galina 

And Pig 6 will come out victorious.

Prediction: Nighthawks Mix

Chefs Bandits (2-1) vs Block Party (3-0) – Coed 3

Block Party are back in FPF for yet another season and have gotten of to a flying start, posting a 3-0 record and scoring 85 more points than they have conceded. This success is largely due to the improved quarterback play of Yvan Salomon. Block Party have consistently struggled to find quality play under center, so to see Salomon excel is a fantastic sign for this team. He has been nearly perfect through his first three games, throwing for 12 scores, rushing for two more and totaling nearly 500 yards of offensive production. This team has also been able to get production from a variety of receivers, but Marc Antoine Martin, Samora Fanta Sacko and Max-Edouard Dadaille have been leading the charge. On the other hand, Chefs Bandits are a team of largely new players to FPF but have already found success. They are 2-1 after three games, but their only loss was a forfeit loss in week 1 due to a violation of the QB cap. Alexandre Aristyl is playing quarterback for the first and is adapting well to the position. However, the strength of this team is definitely their defence. They have already picked off opposing QBs eight times in just three games. All in all, I think this Chefs Bandits team are underrated and will be able to pull off the upset against the more experienced Block Party team.

Prediction: Chefs Bandits