The Wrath of Khan (DA) – Finals Recap

 

The FPF finals weekend came and went. For all the hoopla that the DA finals received, it certainly did not live up to expectations as the Shockers easily trounced the Happiness 33-12.

 

Yes, the halftime score was an eight-point lead for the Shockers. But they were clearly the superior team from the start as they controlled the tempo, manhandled their “shocked” opponents, and had the decided psychological edge over the Happiness.

 

Heading into the pivotal matchup, the Shockers knew very well this could be their best chance in franchise history to win a FPF title. As a result, the Shockers were flying around the ball, throwing their body without any second thoughts.

 

Once again, playoff MVP, Kevin Wyeth proved why he is one the best quarterbacks in FPF, as he guided a well-balanced attack, as five players had at least two or more catches. Wyeth completed 17 passes for five touchdowns.

 

Meanwhile, Benny Goodfriend underperformed as he was picked off twice and was 53-percent in passing completions. It was an ineffective game by Goodfriend, who is known to throw a high passing completion.

 

What made this victory even sweeter was how the depth players of the Shockers outplayed the Happiness supporting cast. For the amount of criticism that Shockers received on whether or not the original cast would have say in the game, the timely catches by Ross Castleton (one touchdown catch) and Shawn Haney (three touchdown catches) provided the support for the victory.

 

Moreover, does the Haney performance remind anyone of what Randy Moss did against the Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day in ’98 with three touchdowns on three catches?

 

The defense came up with huge plays, as Jason Prince proved his worth by holding serve against Goodfriend. Furthermore, he kept Marc Champagne in check with a timely tackle for loss, and had consistent backfield pressure throughout the game. His play eliminated any extra time Goodfriend could have had and removed running lanes from Champagne’s vision.

 

Furthermore, the flexibility of the defense played a huge role as they shutout the Happiness offense in the second half. They stone walled Ricky Martin, Paul Lapierre, and Champagne. It seemed the Happiness never got their offense in sync.

 

This was the best performance by a Shockers team in their franchise history. However, it was bittersweet, as two original members of the squad, Stephen Primeau, and Mike Godyn were both away in Mexico for a friend’s wedding. I could see it in the eyes of the friends of these two, especially in Godyn’s case, as his FPF career has come to an end with him pursuing a new endeavor in his life. It seemed like their mission was accomplished as they won this for their departing member.

 

 

 

 

Future Considerations

 

As for the Happiness, what happens to their potential future? It is obvious they have D1 talent on their roster. Goodfriend, Lapierre, Martin, Champagne, Adi Sharma, Stephane Cole, Rochdi Benabdelkaeder, and Jamal Pierre are players who would excel in D1.

 

But the question that remains, will they go in as the Demons or Happiness? Repeatedly, we have heard directly from the camel’s mouth that Demons quarterback, Carmine Pollice will not partake in the 2010 season.

 

However, there is four months before the start of the winter season. Time can change a person’s thought process. Maybe with some convincing Pollice does come back. Maybe he doesn’t.

 

No one from the Happiness camp is tipping their cap to any direction on what will happen with this team and what direction they will pursue. Even earlier in the season, when I asked one of the Happiness members what will happen, all he did was smile at me. It will be an intriguing offseason for a team that is talented.

 

As for the Shockers, no one knows what direction they will take. Clearly, they will need to reload with the loss of Godyn. There won’t be a huge drop-off at the quarterback position, as Mike McNair will assume the controls from Wyeth.

 

However, the talk of the Shockers moving up to D1 comes into question. There are some who strongly believe they are better suited for another year in D2. It will enable them to allow the likes of Jon Young get use to playing in a higher caliber of play. If Phil Cutler joins the team on a healthy knee, it will give him another year of seasoning to strengthen his knee to withstand the rigours of a D2 season. Finally, will the biggest Shockers cheerleader, Rick Cummins, finally get a chance to permanently don the green and black colours of the franchise?

 

These questions will be answered by the Shockers brass in the upcoming weeks, but if they want to really prove their worth and show up their critics, maybe winning the D2 title before they enter the D1 foray will be the path they should follow. But then again, they will do what is best for the franchise’s future.

 

D1 Future

 

But one has to wonder will the FPF open the flood gates and allow a plethora of teams to test their skills in D1? Clearly, the league had the best D1 winter season, as parity existed from top to bottom.

 

However, do they really want to revert back to past seasons and make the league bigger in the number of teams? Do they want another Huskies (winter ’06), or Machine (winter’08)? Then again, there are success stories such as the Notre Dame (winter ’08), however, would they have been successful if they did not have Carmine Pollice?

 

This is a delicate situation, comparable to college football, with the Notre Dame situation on whether or not they should join conference rather than being an independent, even though the Irish have a huge television contract with NBC. Some pundits think it will make competition better, but others strongly believe that the golden domers do not want to face better conference competition.

 

Does the FPF want better D1 competition, without a doubt they do. But do they want risk the strong parity they have created for disparity if they allow teams to move up without proving anything significantly in the lower division? Are the Wolverines and Express, the two teams that finished in the D1 cellar, much better than Click Clack, the Shockers, the Waterbuffaloes, or the Wolfpack?

 

Devil’s Advocate

 

Would the FPF consider allowing a promotion/relegation scenario where we have the six aforementioned teams duel in a playoff format to see who can survive and be promoted in D1? This idea may seem far-fetched, but if this can be done, then why not! But of course, teams pay to play, therefore they have every right to decide on what division they are apart of.

 

Final Analysis

 

With four months until the new winter season, there will be plenty of turnover with players moving up, or defecting to rival teams. But will there ever be a solution on which team(s) is (are) allowed to move up in the FPF divisions? Time will tell!

 

Percentages%

 

5%, I am disappointed that the Happiness did not put up a better fight

 

10%, that is how exciting the DA finals were.

 

85%, I am proud of my WEPL brothers Rey Starwar, and Ros Castleton for winning their respective divisions. That 10% I predicted last week that they would win all three titles almost became reality.