The War Room (DB) – Week 10

Playoff Preview and Spring Awards:

After ten weeks, 80 games and countless plays, the FPF postseason is upon us. For those teams that have qualified for the playoffs, let me be the first to congratulate you on your regular season and wish you the best of luck in the weeks to come. For those who fell short of fulfilling their FPF aspirations, I hope you can look back on the season and try to reflect upon the learning experiences you have encountered. It has been a pleasure to cover each and every team during the regular season, and it is with great enthusiasm that I look forward to seeing you register in division 3 for winter 2010.

Now onto the playoff picture! The seeding is now set and a big shout out to the G-Men, Mercenaries, Alkoholics and Kings are in order. They managed to bypass the tricky opening round in the playoff and secured a spot in the elite 8. I will discuss in detail their match ups in next weeks article, as soon we know who they will be playing. This week we will concentrate on our opening round and the various storylines involved.

D3 Awards of the Year:

Welcome to Castleton’s second D3/DB awards of the year which will be rewarding players from across the vast world of D3/DB with awards they deserve whether for good reasons or for bad.

Best Offensive player you never heard of before this season: Alex  Therrien, Falcons, big physical specimen, great at jump balls and good soft hands.

Best Defensive player you never heard of before this season: Desmond Dorsnie. North Shore, a ballhawk with a knack for identifying routes and jumping passes.

Least Humble team of year:  RHC (for claiming with a 3 – 7 record they could beat anyone)

Best Sportsman’s of the year:  CCI Eagles, really good group of young players

Most Overhyped team of the year: Motley Crew, for slumping after an impressive start

Most promising New Team that isn’t in the playoffs: RHC 

Most Physical team of the year: North Shore

Best Division of the season: Conference B, West 

Biggest Upset of the Season: RHC beating Choppers

Biggest Letdown team of the season: The pathetic Thundering Herd going 0 – 10 after a breakout Winter 2009 season in D2.

Biggest Surprise of the year:  Thundering Herd not winning a game

Most Improved Squad of the year: Dirty Birds, going 4 -1 down the stretch

Most Impressive QB of the year: Mathieu Rene, Motley Crew

Most Impressive WR of the year:  Andrew McDonald, Choppers

Most Impressive Def player of the year:  Desmond Dorsnie, North Shore

Most Valuable Player of the Year:  Nareg Yessayan, G-Men

PLAYOFF PREVIEW::

Atlanta Bowl:
Falcons vs. Dirty Birds
Last Matchup: 44- 14 Falcons (Week 5)
Analysis: Well judging from the initial matchup, it looks like the Falcons will be highly confident coming into this game. However, for those who paid attention to the first meeting, the Dirty Birds did keep the second half close at 12 – 6. This was a defining moment for their program as they went 4 – 1 in the second half of the season. The Falcons on the other hand, fell apart in the mid to late season finishing up with a second half record of 2 – 3. Both teams will be fired up for this meeting, as they hope of establishing themselves as legit contenders.

What the Falcons need to do to win: Their offense seems to be quite redundant of late, with big play threat Alex Therrien carrying the load. Simon Richard will need to use all of his receivers and spread the ball around the field in order to maximize his offense. The Dirty Birds defense has been generating turnovers as of late, and Simon Richard can ill afford to turn the ball over. Thus Simon cannot key in on one player all game. This is gut check time for receivers like Vincent Roy, Sebastien Ravary and Marc – Olivier Ouimet, who will need to step up in order to contribute to their team’s success in this one.

What the Dirty Birds need to do to win: The defense has been the main factor for the resurgence of the Birds. With Gordon Hogan and Eric Bishara contributing to the interception totals, it is hard for opposing offenses to matriculate the ball downfield. However if the Dirty Birds want to slay the dragon, Jon Young will need to play a near flawless game at QB. He has excelled as of late, connecting with Eddy Martinez and Eric Bishara for many big plays, but he needs to use his full spectrum of athletic ability to take advantage of any defensive shortcomings the falcons may have (albeit few).  

Prediction: N/A (C’mon, I play for the Dirty Birds)
“Tale of Two Roster” Bowl:
Choppers vs. Motley Crew:
Last Matchup: 28  – 18 Choppers (Week 8)
Analysis: The first matchup was a very interesting one. The Choppers were losing at half time 18 – 14. However, they managed to shut out the Crew in the second half and score 14 unanswered points. Anson Dudek had a huge game with three TD’s and it will be interesting to see what adjustments the Motley Crew will need to make on defense to ensure that Mr. Dudek doesn’t run wild again. Renee has struggled of late and his early season magic seems to have worn off. Perhaps the inexperience of the Motley Crew has demonstrated complacency in the second half of the season, as they have lost 4 in a row. The Choppers have managed to stay competitive whatever powerhouse they play, which is promising considering they will need to hang tough in the next few weeks. Sean Avraam is playing with a chip on his shoulders and rightly so. The FPF press has given very little coverage to his accomplishments due to the roster quality and the presence of All World QB Chad Byers (who plays WR) on their roster. Well Sean, all eyes will be on your play at QB this weekend, and you have all the talent required to terminate the Crew’s inaugural season. Let this be your challenge…

What the Choppers need to do to win:  The Defense of the Choppers need to play better. I have faith in the offensive unit of Avraam, McDonald and Dudek. Scoring points hasn’t been their Achilles heel this season. Stopping the opponent has been a much more difficult task, as the Choppers tend to rely on their experience and athletic prowess to shut down their opponent. However, they are not the athletes they used to be and they will need to play a solid game using their Football IQ to ensure that the once proud Motley passing attack gets shut down for good.

What the Motley Crew need to do to win: The Crew’s slump will go down in history as a major mystery of FPF. No serious roster changes were made and yet they have lost 4 games in a row after a perfect 6 – 0 start. A leader needs to emerge on the team and rally the troops. Renee, who often seems quiet on the field, will need to show some fire and motivate his fantastic receiving corps to play up to their potential. Stop pump faking on every play, Mr Renee! It gets old and the rushers hardly bite anymore. It also allows the coverage a sneak peak on where you intend on throwing (as you pump fake to the same side in which you plan on throwing most of the time).

Prediction: Choppers 32 – Motley Crew 19

The Siesta Bowl:
North Shore vs. Predators:
Last Matchup: 19 – 12 Predators  (Week 9)
Analysis: Wow, this game lacks any sort of luster. This game elicits the same excitement as a Detroit Lions vs Kansas City Chiefs game in late December (which is to say none). While I can say that out of most team I’ve had the privilege of playing/watching, the North Shore seem like the biggest frauds is the a huge understatement. With the experience of QB Corey Johnson and the explosive talent of Desmond Dorsnie, this team SHOULD be a darkhorse for the conference. However, due to a disastrous offensive system and a defense which often gambles and breaks coverage, they have yet to strike fear into any impending opponent. The first meeting was a snoozer, with Corey throwing only 1 Td.  The Predators have had an up and down season. They have shown glimpses of stardom with Derrick Majeur and Stephen Chartrand playing well, while other more established players have suffered a spring slump. I expect them to pull together in hopes of winning this one, although I firmly believe that whichever team demonstrated the most heart will win on that alone.

What the North Shore need to do to win:  Mr. Johnson, you have two great players in Hershel Andoh and Desmond Dorsnie, USE THEM. Spread the field out, use intermediate passing routes and trick plays to liven up a dismal one sided passing attack. On defense gentleman, get fired up. Play with emotion, play discipline and seriously COMMUNICATE. The fact that you might all have been great tackle football players means little to nothing in this league. You earn a reputation in this league, it isn’t just handed to you based on where you “used” to play ball. 

What the Predators need to do to win: This is a trickier question, because the answer lies beneath the surface. Although I can point out some obvious needs or improvements, I think that the Predators have been searching for their own temp and identity all season long. With players like Renaldo Jordan, Stephen Fre and Jason Prince, you should have a rock solid base to build on. However, you look shaky at times and I question your heart in key situations. I do like the switch to Chartrand at Qb, as I think he adds a little more in terms of mobility to the offense. I think you need to concentrate on team unity and get back to basics in the passing attack.

Predictions: Closer than I anticipated in the WEPL, Predators 24 – North Shore 19.

The Banter Bowl:
Dip vs. Redemption:
Last Matchup: 32 – 21 DIP (Week 1)
Analysis:  The initial game is probably useless in analyzing due to the fact it was played in week 1 with both teams rusty. It was the redemptions first game as a team which explains their defensive mediocrity and lack of chemistry. As for DIP, they already had experience from multiple dysfunctional seasons. That being said, I think this game would have been a dandy, if it weren’t for the amount of DIP players who might be missing due to “other commitments” (Harry Potter convention?).  The DIP have faultered all season long and yet have not ceased from spewing their usual drivel on the facebook walls. The Redemption have emerged as a legit contender for the Conference B reigns by slaying the Kings and keeping it very tight with the Alkoholics. I foresee this game as being over by halftime.

What DIP needs to do to win:  Use their emotions and team chemisty to their advantage. They need to use their dink and dunk offense to take small chunks of yards and keep the ball away from the Redemption offense. If they slow the pace of the game down, and not give up any dumb penalties due to “emotional” outbursts, they have a chance at repeating their earlier victory.

What the Redemption needs to do to win: QB Mike Godyn is looking for his first playoff win as a QB in FPF. He will need to do this by ensuring he maintains a steady completion percentage and not try to hit Mike Oliver/ Andre Knights down the field too much. If he can spread the ball around to Andrew Batemen and Jordan Ishak underneath the coverage, then it will open up the vertical passing attack that he so thoroughly enjoyed in the Shocker Empire. On defense, Vadim Chernyak and Andre Knights will need to play up to their reputations, to ensure no big plays are awarded.

Prediction:  Redemption 25 – DIP 12

Castleton’s Random Thoughts of the Week:

1.    Division A: It is sad to think that only 6 teams entered the upper division when any of the 4 bye teams in Division B could have been competitive in Div A. My main focuses would be the Mercenaries, who lead by Gino Difazio, is a team filled with Div A talent, that his bamboozles into playing in lower divisions for success.
2.    Choppers: This is probably the most interesting matchup of the week in Div B and I think its time for the Choppers to send a warning sign to the rest of the league. Whether or not Chad Byers becomes a controversial piece to their success, only Sean Avraam will decide.
3.    Titans: I would be quite disheartened if I were the Titans this week, just missing the playoffs on a technicality. I think Mike Godyn suggestion of a baseball type tie break for a playoff spot would have increased the excitement of a division A which lacked any first round seeding excitement.
4.    Winter 2010: The offseason has begun for a few of the teams which were not worthy of playoff spots. I expect you will be fine tuning your skills and making modifications to your roster so that you are no in this same position next year.
5.    RHC: What a bitter way to end the season! I really expected you guys to sneak into the playoffs and do some damage. But I guess it wasn’t too be, now Tony and Ara, can you sign Nareg to the winter season (Maybe trade Vartan to the G-Men straight up)?
6.    Division C: With a Division A bye week and very few interesting games in Div B, I expect Division C to be the wild opening weekend we would all love to see. I’m sure quite a few teams might get upset and I suggest stopping by the field to catch some of the action.
7.    Rule Changes or Other Improvements: For all of you who complain about the rules and would like to see some fundamental changes (i.e spot of the foul or ten yard penalties etc), please feel free to suggest them to us via our website [email protected], we are always looking at ways to improve the on field product and experience (and firing Rehan from the WEPL is not an option).

Quote of the Week:

“I hope they schedule our team against DIP during winter season.
Hopefully it ends up being a nice one-sided rivalry 😛
If you we’re able to beat Alkaholiks, you should be able to beat Predators.
Unless #7 goes QB though, you will not win any champioonship, cuz that QB you guys put against us was NOT good. he’s probably bad at Madden rookie mode.”

– Tony Tabet, QB of RHC, addressing the n