The Action is back in Coed!

Welcome back to the Coed season! We already have a week of games played so it is definitely time for your first article. After taking a break during the fall and winter to focus on school, I am back and I will be covering all three Coed divisions this season.

For those of you who do not know me, I am Alexi Dubois and I have been writing articles for the Coed divisions for years. I have also been playing in Coed since the 2019 winter season. This year, I am playing with Kiss My End Zone in Coed 1, Kiss My Christmas Balls in Coed 2 and Kiss My Inlaws in division B. The most difficult aspect of writing about Coed is writing about my own teams. Bringing unbiased commentary to teams I play on is obviously impossible. So if anyone ever has anything to say about either of the two teams I play on, feel free to message me on Facebook or contact me via email at [email protected] I am extremely open to incorporating your feedback! Feel free to reach out to me anytime or simply talk to me at the field before one of my games.

In terms of the articles, I will try and keep a consistent format across the weeks. I will review a few games from the previous week, make predictions on some of the upcoming games and name 12 players to my team of the week. In addition to these weekly staples, I will also include some divisional breakdowns, playoff predictions and power rankings. If there is something else you would like to see in the articles, please let me know. With that being said, let’s get into your week 1 article!

Here is a quick look at the teams to watch this season across the Coed divisions.

Coed 1 Teams to Watch

Plenty of Fish 

There is plenty to like about this Plenty of Fish (PofF) roster. Ever since Coed has gone to a 3 guys / 3 girls split, female talent has become even more important and this team is loaded with extremely talented female players. PofF  has the most impressive group of female athletes in the division. While Maude Lacasse is injured at the moment, she is one of the very best female quarterbacks in Canada and is the highest rated female passer in FPF. In addition to Lacasse,  PofF have Maryse Paquette who is a two way star and Annabelle Chevrier who brings a fantastic physical presence to the team. In addition to their star studded cast of female players, they appear to have added Theo Ojeaha who is simply one of the best two-way players in FPF history. While waiting for Lacasse to return from injury, this team has Dylan Taylor filling in at quarterback. Talyor is a five time all-star and has had success at the highest levels of FPF. All in all, PofF are loaded with talent at every single position. They have somehow managed to upgrade their roster after claiming the winter 2024 championship and are looking like the early favorites to win it all again this year. 

The IG Team

Any team with Jeanslee Alexis under center is immediately a threat. There are very few rushers in FPF, let alone Coed, who can contain Alexis. He is the most explosive player in the division and is bound to cause nightmares to every defence he faces. The only thing missing from his arsenal is the ability to throw with anticipation. If Alexis could first look to hit the open receiver and then use his elite scrambling ability as a last resort to extend plays, this offence would truly be unstoppable. Outside of the Alexis brothers, Jordanson and Jeanslee, Stella Jean Georges will be the biggest difference maker for this team. She is one of the best female receivers in Coed 1 and has a unique ability to stretch the field with her speed. She is a mismatch against just about every female player in Coed 1 and will give the IG Team a great weapon to beat man coverage. Despite all of the hype surrounding this team, I am curious who is going to emerge as this team’s second male receiver behind Jordanson Alexis. This team will be looking for either Jeff Carpentier or Ryth-Jean Giraud to step up in a big way.

Coed 2 Teams to Watch

Kiss My Christmas Balls

Kiss My Christmas Balls’ run for the Coed 2 championship title was stopped by the IG Team 2 last season in the quarterfinals. Despite going 10-0 in the regular season, KMCB was unable to progress past the second round of the  playoffs so they will definitely be looking to avenge their winter season. That being said, this Kiss My Christmas Balls (KMCB) has undergone a major overhaul to their roster. Paolo Della Rocca, who is said to be aging like a fine Italian red wine, is back under center after taking a year hiatus from FPF. William Power has also rejoined the Kiss My Franchise for the first time in over a year. In terms of female players, KMCB only has two returning players and they are Erica Dubois and Galvia Prato. This team has added Mariève Girard, Lamees Aljoundi and Raphaëlle Côté to their roster. After just one game played, it is looking like the female players on this team will be their strength. Erica is a proven FPF veteran but the rest of the female players on this roster are worth mentioning. Galvia Prato should be one of the best female defenders in Coed 2 this season. Raphaëlle Côté is new to FPF but already made a mark in her first game. She brings some much needed size to this offence and with her reliable hands she is bound to be a major contributor to this offence. The question that remains about this team is how Paolo Della Rocca will gel with the offence and adapt to Coed. Last time he played in Coed 2, in Spring 2023 he threw 26 interceptions and posted a disappointing 71.9 QBr. While he already showed signs of improving in his first game, throwing just one interception, Della Rocca will need to protect the ball if this team hopes to avenge their disappointing winter 2024 campaign.

Fitsquad

After making a splash in their first few seasons in FPF, it feels like Fitsquad have fallen off slightly, but I think that this is the season where everything will turn around for this team. They have a fantastic mix of talented female players, FPF veterans and athletes to contend for a title in this Coed 2 division. This team has always had an elite cast of female players, but the addition of Tamara Boulanger might just push this team over the top. Boulanger has the ability to win in man coverage against just about any female defender in the division. On defence, she can play both the shorts and deep with ease. She rounds out an already strong cast of female players, with the likes of Frédéric Chevarie and Célestine Chartier already on this team. Under center, William Brouard will bring a calm and veteran presence to this team. After multiple seasons with this team, Brouard has developed chemistry with his receivers and a feel for the game in FPF. He has the mobility to beat you with his legs, the arm talent to fit in a tight pass and the FPF IQ to dissect an opposing defence. Look for Brouard to finish the season as one of the top, if not the top passer in the division. Rounding out the Fitsquad offence is Jarod Pita who brings a dangerous element of physicality to this team. With his imposing frame and contested catch ability Pita is not the kind of receiver you want to be facing off against on fourth down. Finally, the unsung hero of this Fitsquad defence is Salim Tayae. While he might not finish the season with the most interceptions, Tayae is the one calling the defence for this team and he does a great job of putting his teammates in a position to succeed all while making life difficult for opposing QB. All in all, this Fitsquad team is well built and has talent at every position. If I had to level one critique at this team it would be their lack of star power. While other teams might have one elite receiver to turn to when things get rough, Fitsquad do not have that one superstar who can consistently beat man coverage and make big plays with the game on the line.

Coed 3 Teams to Watch

Ghosted

This all female team is going to cause some serious problems in Coed 3 this season. While many Coed 3 teams have QBs that are either trying out the position, or new to FPF, Ghosted have an FPF veteran behind center in Carol-Ann Ménard. She showed exactly what experience can do in her first game of the season when she threw for nearly 200 yards and five scores. In past seasons Ménard has struggled with turning the ball over. If she minimizes the turnovers she could easily finish the season as the best quarterback of the division. I can confidently state that this Ghosted team has the best female talent in Coed 3. Jasmine Farmer is a Coed 1 level player and could very well be the best female player in this division. I also have a feeling that Laury-Ann Potvin is primed for a breakout season. Despite having played a few seasons in FPF, Potvin has never truly emerged as an elite receiver but she has all of the tools to do so. She has the height to win contested passes and the speed to leave defenders in her dust. Having played with her I can confidently say that she runs one of the cleanest corner routes I have ever seen and has the athleticism to finish that route with a clean toe tap on the sidelines. Potvin finished week 1 with over 50 receiving yards and two scores, and could easilyl put up similar scorelines in weeks to come. What worries me about this team is their defence and specifically their ability to keep up with some of the quicker male receivers in this division. While this team might be loaded with talent and experience, they are not an exceptionally fast team. I am worried that a speedy receiver might be able to take the top off of this Ghosted defence. 

1-9ers

This team is back in Coed 3 after a successful campaign during the Spring 2023 season. This team is loaded with top end talent, and that is exactly what we saw in their first game of the season. Lucas Quenneville and Alexandre Blais are the best receiving duo in this division. I highly doubt that any opposing defences will have the ability to cover both of them in man-to-man coverage which means their opponents will be forced to play mostly zone defence against them. In terms of female talent, Ophélie Richard is the complete package. She is a trusty receiver but really excels on defence. The last time she played a full season she recorded seven interceptions in seven games. Richard is definitely going to be a difference maker for this 1-9ers team. However, once you get outside of this team’s big three of Quenneville, Blais and Richard, things start to get a little dicier. For starters, Charles Presser still has a lot to prove as a quarterback. While there are no doubts that he has a big arm and can sling the ball around the field he still struggles to read opposing defences. In the past, he has excelled against the weaker teams in the division but has struggled to perform against the tougher defences. If this team truly wants to contend for a title Presser will need to find a way to step up when the going gets tough. I am also concerned about this team’s depth at the receiver position. Last time this team played in coed their greatest strength, Blais and Quenneville, ultimately became their greatest weakness. Their offence became over reliant on those players and failed to involve anyone else. I am worried that this season might be headed in the same direction. This team needs to develop a solid third receiving option. After the first game it is looking like Richard is going to be that third receiver, but ultimately it is only time that will tell if this team has learnt from their past mistakes.

Week 1 Games of the Week

The Rookies (32) vs Kamikaze (30) – Coed 2

The Rookies are off to a blistering start to their season and that is in large part due to the lights out play of their QB Cedric Maurice. He was just about perfect in this one, passing for 175 yards and five scores. Not only did he not throw a single interception, he only failed to complete six passes all game. Essentially, he had a near perfect performance. As long as Maurice keeps on performing at this level this Rookies team is going to be very hard to beat. The go to target on the night for The Rookies was Mazen Ouali. He was targeted ten times and hauled in nine of those targets for a total of 71 yards and a score. The only advice I would have to give this Rookies team is that overreliance on a single receiver is rarely a good thing. With the abundance of talent in Coed 2, most of the top teams will be able to shut down your top receiver. At that point, what differentiates the good teams from the great teams is the ability to generate production from the rest of your receiving corps. The good news for The Rookies is that they appear to have some very talented depth receivers. Having played with Meagan Trudel, I know that she  is a fantastically talented receiver and could definitely pick up the slack if Ouali is covered. Defensively, this team did just well enough to get the job done. Gabriel Poulin came up with a clutch interception in the second half that changed the tide and placed momentum squarely on the side of the Rookies. Simon Larue did a good job of applying pressure to the opposing quarterback and was rewarded for his efforts with a sack. 

Despite coming away with the loss in this one, it was not all bad news for Kamikaze. They were just a two point convert away from tying this game up and did a good job of taking the game to a very talented Rookies team. Gabriel Lemonde was under center Kamikaze and might have only passed for one score but made up for it by running for two more touchdowns. While I am not exactly sure what the strategy was, Alexis Ferrand also took a few snaps under center for this team. While he might only have thrown three passes for 7 yards, two of those passes were for touchdowns. Apart from throwing touchdown passes, Ferrand was also busy getting on the receiving end of this fair share of passes. He closed out this game as the top receiver, with 83 yards and a score over four catches. Ferrand is an uber talented receiver and has experience playing in the highest levels of FPF. While this team did a good job of moving the ball on offence where they struggled was on defense. While they did manage to force The Rookies to turn the ball over on downs twice, they were not able to come up with an interception or even a defended pass. Their only noteworthy defensive stat was a sack which came courtesy of Annabella Carbonneau. Ultimately this game comes down to forcing defensive stops and the best way to do that is by picking off the ball. If Kamikaze want to compete with the heavyweights of this, they will need to find a way to create an interception or two a game.

Kiss My End Zone (21) vs EZFun (25)

This was not a dream start to the season for either of these two teams, but ultimately EZFun were able to escape with the victory. EZFun do a great job of slowing down the game and forcing their opponents to make a mistake and then capitalizing on it and that is exactly what they did in this one. They came up with two interceptions very late in the game and that ultimately was enough to lead them to victory. What impressed me the most from this EZFun side was the play of quarterback Nicolas Blais. While Blais has played quarterback before, he was best known as a pocket passer who would dink and dunk his way down the field. In this game he showed off another side to his game. He was able to scramble in the pocket and extend plays. His nicest throw of the night was a 35 yard touchdown toss to his favorite target, Jean-Christophe Ferland. While scrambling to his right, Blais saw Ferland pop open between two Kiss My End Zone (KMEZ) defenders. He threaded an inch perfect pass over the outstretched hands of the first defender and right in front of the second defender. It was a thing of beauty. Outside of the  play of Blais and Ferland, Frédérique Daoust came up huge for EZFun. She caught the opening touchdown for EZFun on a perfect over the shoulder pass. However, her biggest impact came later in the game when she picked off KMEZ in her own end zone to hand the ball back to her team. EZFun would go one to take the lead on the next drive and never looked back. 

For KMEZ, there were a few positives to take away from this game, notably their defence getting two stops against a talented EZFun offence but that was unfortunately overshadowed by a lackluster offensive showing. KMEZ is a team that is used to scoring at will and to only score three touchdowns and 21 points is disappointing. What makes this loss sting even worse is that they had a chance to win it at the death. With three plays remaining they stopped EZFun and forced them to turn the ball over on downs. That left Ignacio Valdes Manzanedo and the KMEZ offence with three plays to score and win. After a huge 28 yard gain on second down by Isiah Allard this game came down to a final play from four yards out. While Allard did create separation on his corner route to the back of the end zone, Iggy’s pass sailed harmlessly over his head and EZFun were able to hang on and win this one 25-21. While an opening week loss against a strong opponent is not the end of the world for KMEZ, what does worry is their inability to put away the game. They were leading for just about the whole game before throwing interceptions on their second and third to last drives of the game. On the last play of the game they once again failed to connect. KMEZ is a team that prides themselves on winning the close games, so if they cannot close out these one score games and score on their final possession, they could be in for a rocky season.

Week 1 Team of the Week

Every week, I will name 12 players to the team of the week for each Coed division. 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.

Coed 1 Team of the Week

Offence

Quarterback: Chris Rivest (Pass Whoopin’) 26 completions, 217 passing yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs

Receiver: Mathilde Sybille (Les Porcinets) 5 receptions, 94 yards, 2 TDs

Receiver: Stella Jean Georges (The IG Team) 3 receptions, 62 yards, 1 TDs

Receiver: Julian McLaren-Thompson (Plenty of Fish) 4 receptions, 107 yards, 2 TDs

Receiver: Noah Swaminadhan (Pass Whoopin’) 7 receptions, 58 yards, 3 TDs

Receiver: Valerie Phromrasmy (Pass Whoopin’) 5 receptions, 51 yards, 2 TDs

Defence

Rusher: Sarah-Maude Mathieu (Pass Whoopin’) 3 sacks

Defensive Back: Frédérique Daoust (EZFun) 3 tackles, 1 INT

Defensive Back: Maryse Paquette (Plenty of Fish) 2 tackles, 1 PD

Defensive Back: Jeremy White (EZFun) 5 tackles, 1 INT   

Defensive Back: Theo Ojeaha (Plenty of Fish) 3 tackles, 1 INT

Defensive Back: Gabriel Harvey (Les Porcinets) 3 tackle, 1 INT, 1 TD

Coed 2 Team of the Week

Offence

Quarterback: Seth Galina (Pig 6) 26 completions, 217 passing yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs

Receiver: Alexis Ferrand (Kamikaze) 4 receptions, 83 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Stella Jean Georges (LGN) 6 receptions, 60 yards, 2 TDs

Receiver: Frédéric Chevarie (Fitsquad) 4 receptions, 70 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Sam Siffrard (LGN) 5 receptions, 89 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Elodie Simoneau (The Rookies) 6 receptions, 61 yards, 1 TD

Defence

Rusher: Alexie Galarneau (Fitsquad) 1 tackle, 4 sacks

Defensive Back: Marie Stanescu (Cavaliers) 2 tackles, 1 INT, 1 PD, 1 TD

Defensive Back: Emerson Peterkin (Cavaliers) 1 tackle, 4 INTs, 1 PD, 3 TDs

Defensive Back: Marika Bouchard (LDN) 3 tackles, 1 INT   

Defensive Back: Mariève Girard (Kiss My Christmas Balls) 2 tackles, 1 INT

Defensive Back: Gabriel Harvey (Les Porcinets) 3 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD

Coed 3 Team of the Week

Offence

Quarterback: Carol-Ann Ménard (Ghosted) 23 completions, 187 passing yards, 5 TDs, 1 INTs

Receiver: Lory Ouellette (Chefs Bandits) 5 receptions, 71 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Samuel Omombo (Bandite) 2 receptions, 80 yards, 2 TDs

Receiver: Marc Antoine Martin (Block Party) 4 receptions, 78 yards, 4 TDs

Receiver: Jules A Cardinal (Les Pookies) 3 receptions, 82 yards, 1 TD

Receiver: Laury-Ann Potvin (Ghosted) 5 receptions, 51 yards, 2 TDs

Defence

Rusher: Xavier Parent (Bandite) 2 sacks, 1 INT, 1 PD, 1 TD

Defensive Back: Alexandre Aristyl (Chefs Bandits) 3 INTs, 1 PD

Defensive Back: Jessica Daoust (Ghosted) 2 tackles, 1 INT

Defensive Back: Jessica Gosselin (Ghosted) 3 tackles, 1 INT   

Defensive Back: Jasmine Farmer (Ghosted) 4 tackles, 1 INT, 1 PD

Defensive Back: Jules Fortin (Bandite) 2 INTs

Week 2 Predictions:

The IG Team (1-0) vs Vultures (0-0) – Coed 1

The two most elusive quarterbacks are going head to head. While you might expect this to be a duel of who is the better scrambler, The IG Team’s Jeanslee Alexis or Vultures’ Benjamin McMahon,  instead I think this will be a battle of rushers. The best rusher to faceoff against Alexis is definitely James Drysdale. Drysdale is an insanely athletic player and while he rarely plays rusher I think this situation leaves no other options. While it is impossible to entirely shut Alexis down, I think Drysdale has a good chance of at least limiting the amount of dancing Alexis can do in the pocket. On the other hand I do not see a rusher on this IG Team roster who could adequately contain the elusive Benjamin McMahon. While Vultures win the rusher battle, I think they also have better female talent. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante is a star and might just be the best female player in Coed 1. They have also added Chippy Brown who is a great receiver and can win with both speed and size against her opponents. While this would definitely be an upset, I think Vultures will escape with a narrow win.

Prediction: Vultures

LDN (1-0) vs Fitsquad (1-0) – Coed 2

I do not know very much about this LDN team but I am definitely intrigued. For starters, they have the uber talented Stella Jean Georges on the roster so that is a good start. Outside of Jean Georges, Samuel Omombo impressed in week 1 with two interceptions. This team totaled four picks in week 1 versus a very good Pig 6 team with Seth Galina under center. Having played versus Galina, I know that picking him off once is not easy, so picking him off four times speaks volumes to the talent on this LDN defence. That being said, I am not sure how much FPF experience this LDN team has and I am worried that an extremely experienced team like Fitsquad might be their kryptonite. Fitsquad QB William Brouard has averaged less than one interception per game over his past three seasons in Coed, all while throwing for over a hundred scores. While I doubt LDN will be able to manage four interceptions in this game, I do think they will be able to slow down this Fitsquad offence. I have a feeling that they play a lot of man coverage and that is an efficient way of stopping Fitsquad. Ultimately if LDN have a rusher to contain Brouard, a speedy DB to cover Boudjema Saada and a physical defender to match up against Jarod Pita I think they will be able to win this one. 

Kiss My Christmas Balls (1-0) vs The Rookies (2-0) – Coed 2

Kiss My Christmas Balls totaled an impressive five interceptions in week 1 versus the Cavaliers, but they are going up against much tougher opposition in week 2. Cedric Maurice of The Rookies has totalled eight scores in his first two games and is yet to turn the ball over. This game will be a test for both the KMCB defence and The Rookies offence.  A key matchup to keep an eye on in this game will be Mazen Ouali facing off against KMCB’s William Power. The Rookies tend to play a lot of man coverage so it will likely be Ouali’s job to shadow Power, who is KMCB’s top receiver. Ultimately I think Power will have the edge in this matchup. Simply put, Power has been able to consistently perform against man and zone defences at every level of FPF so I have confidence he  will be able to excel in this one. This Rookies defence will also be looking to give Paolo Della Rocca a rude welcome back from his paternity leave. Della Rocca did not face much of a challenge in week 1, but was able to get the job done.  Despite scoring 34 points, he did miss a few throws and even threw an interception. Della Rocca will be looking to get back on track this week and that means moving through his reads quicker and improving his ball placement. While this Rookies secondary does have some impressive athletes, like Édouard Leroux, who will make life difficult for Della Rocca and this KMCB offence, I think they will be able to do enough to prevail in this one.

Prediction: Kiss My Christmas Balls

Prediction: LDN

Block Party (1-0) vs Ghosted (1-0) – Coed 3

Block Party have been around the Coed divisions for a few seasons now and are starting to find success. For the longest time this team has been searching for a quarterback and it looks like they have finally found one in Yvan Salomon. He threw for five scores and no picks in week 1 and is looking like an early favorite to win the QB of the year award in Coed 3. Block Party are known to excel defensively and that is exactly what they did in week 6. Not only did they just concede six but they also recorded two interceptions and three sacks. As for Ghosted, you might remember that earlier in this article I was singing their praise and heralding them as one of the top teams in Coed 3. However, I also mentioned they have an achilles heel: speedy receivers and that is exactly what this Block Party team has. Marc Antoine Martin had an elite performance in week 4, catching seven passes for four scores and nearly 80 yards. Expect him to have another big game against this Ghosted defence. While this Block Party offence might be slightly over-dependent on Martin since he caught nearly half of their passes in week 1, I have a hard time seeing Ghosted being able to slow him down. Ultimately I think this will be a high scoring affair but I see Block Party coming out on top. 

Prediction: Block Party

There you have your week 1 article! Stay tuned to the site and Facebook page for more articles from Coed and the rest of the league.