Week 9’s recap and Week 10’s preview including a playoff breakdown

La Finale.

Yes, it’s only the end of the regular season, no, it is not the end of the actual Spring Season, so my title is misleading, but you get the point.

This is, actually, the very last week for 10 of the 26 teams in Division C this Spring. Some of you will play their last hour of FPF until 2016, some of you will need to claw your way to a victory to stay relevant, others will be fighting for seedings, but there’s something for everyone, even the eliminated ones. Don’t give up just yet; this is the final day of “practice” after all!

I’ll breakdown every single playoff scenario possible below, pay attention; this could help in some people’s decision making!

I would also like to take a moment and congratulate Two and a half Dans and Grip n Rip on being the first two teams to clinch Conference #1 seed AND remain undefeated. There’s still one game left on the schedule, don’t blow it just yet, undefeated has a nice ring to it.

Week 10

What have I learn this week?

Regardless of what Moe Khan says, “IT” looked pretty good offensively last week. He might actually be IT, but let’s not get over ourselves here.
Week 10 is VERY, VERY exciting. What a finish. Thank you.
Bird is the word.
Top Sauce are finally starting to look like a Division C team.
Forfeits are lame, but at least it’s not as bad when you know ahead of time, so props for that.
Some people say Vinny Gualano and Joey Taylor look alike. I don’t see it. Like, at all.
The most disturbing part of the last sentence is that it came from Vinny himself.
The Brotherhood needs to learn to show up on time for their games; it might work now, but playoffs is another ball-game
Don’t blame the refs for losing, ever. If the game came down to them, that’s your own fault, not the referees. There’s some comments that simply shouldn’t be said out loud.
I’m not sure if being recognized on the field is a good or bad thing yet.
God Conference A’s playoff scenario is messy.
So many defensive awards this week; INTs were raining down in Division C
Sundays’ games are all in Brossard and the results of almost every game will have repercussions; it’s bound to be a GREAT night.
I should apologize if I repeated myself a few times, I do not re-read what I write, but I won’t apologize, because, hey, who cares.

Recaps

A Longhorns without Jon Moodie showed up against Westpark Boys and got manhandled. I’ll be blunt, Longhorns aren’t the same without Moodie and it really showed this week. It wasn’t necessarily because Westpark Boys have THE BEST offense, but Tonye took what Longhorns’ defense gave him, which was a lot, and scored with ease on most drives. He finished his night with a 151.7 QB Rating against Kalaidopoulos’ weak 31.6. The story tells itself; Longhorns didn’t have their QB and the backup simply wasn’t up to par. Longhorns are now in a tough spot to make the playoffs and Westpark Boys’ chances simply went up big time. With the standings being what they are right now, Longhorns’ season pretty much ended with this loss.
TOPSZN showed up with Gianfranco Ranaudo, the only QB that could make the playoffs for them if they sneaked in and, well, simply couldn’t fuel the offense to get past No Fly Zone’s defense. I hate to see teams argue with themselves and see tempers flare because of how one guy did or said something. It’s tough enough to get chemistry in 10 weeks; it’s horrific to watch it all go to waste so fast. The problem remains, TOPSZN’ defense isn’t top notch and their QB doesn’t have the chemistry not the ability to play up to the competition at the current state of Division C. Maybe if he started off the season with TOPSZN things would be different, but he didn’t and there’s no need to play “What if’s”. NFZ were without Bishara and Wawalski and started what could be their 3rd string QB in Rich Humes who played pretty well. He moved the chains, kept his defense off the field and scored 32 pts. That sounds a lot pretty awesome for a 3rd string if you ask me. Heck, Humes did better than Bishara in the last few weeks!
Two and a half Dans played a game that I considered a serious trap game for them and what could’ve been GOTW, but really took my words for gold and showed up battle-ready when they faced Damps 25/8. I said the Dans would win because Damps can’t keep their tempers in-check and I was totally right. Damps took bad penalties and even got their QB kicked out before the end of the game due to things they said. Although the game was already over when Justin Julien Jr. was kicked out, he wasn’t anywhere near what he was at QB last week and Damps looked flat-out bad offensively. Their defense was great, Quintyn Rice is a total freak and they have the athletes to be a matchup nightmare for any given teams, but their offense is struggling and they won’t win games if they can’t score points. With Jaylan Grandison out and Treffeisen MIA, I still love this team, but they are slowly falling off my Contenders’ list.
The Game of the Week featured STL taking on the undefeated Grip n Rip and we, finally, had a chance to see what STL can do against the Top Dogs. The film shows it all, to be honest. GnR took this game seriously and pulled away nicely in the 2nd half with Vinny Gualano earning praises for his performance on both sides of the ball. It wasn’t the prettiest of games, but GnR showed they are simply a better football team than STL are. It sucks to say, but a rematch would probably end up with similar results; it was never close.
The best game of the week happened Tuesday night in Brossard as PRIMETIME took on ZOO in a very ugly, defensive showing that ended in a serious nail-bitter. This game was great from start to finish. Turnovers were omnipresent and it made the game fun to watch. In fact, both QBs struggled all-game and it came down to who can punch it in when their team needed it the most. PRIMETIME got a clutch 2-pts convert in the first half to take the lead 20-15 at the half, but ZOO answered 21-20 and the score remained that way for most of the game until the final minutes. Within the last 5 minutes, Francois Raymond picked off David Daoust for his 2nd INT of the night and gave his QB, Frank Kaye, a final shot at this. Kaye took to heart and found ways to score (it even got to the point where 4th downs were involved) and got the lead 27-26 with 6 plays left. 6 plays sounds like enough for David Daoust to score with such a clutch receiving corps, but the story didn’t end that way. In fact, Daoust forced throws, took bad decisions in the pocket and threw the game away on a back-foot floater to Francois Raymond who nudged his 3rd INT of the night, The Hat Trick. Both teams played well defensively getting 3 INTs / side, but ZOO played slightly better in the 2nd half and walked away victorious clinching a playoff spot at the same time.

Players of the Week

Raymond Tonye (Westpark Boys): Nudging a 151.7 QB Rating is always worth a mention. Well played, sire!

Rod Mashtoub (Laval’s Finest): OH God he played with a vengeance. Finished the night with a 7:0 ratio and 2 INTS on defense including a pick-six. Not sure what else you’d want from your MVP.

Quintyn Rice (Damps 25/8): FPF rarely sees a guy get 7 sacks in a single game. Hell of a performance. This guy’s a serious beast.

Vinny Gualano (Grip n Rip): On film, he threw for a 5:0 ratio, ran a touchdown and got the only 2 INTS on defense of the night. Movie star much?

Omar Jackson (The Brotherhood): Omar Jackson redefines the famous Hat-Trick by pulling a double in the same night? 3 TDs and 3 interceptions, in the same night and he wasn’t a QB! Seriously, hell of a night for him.

Francois Raymond (ZOO): The heart of the ZOO’s defense, even if he only played 4 games, showed up big for his team as he finished the night with the hat-trick (3 interceptions) and some clutch 1st downs when his team needed him the most.

Power Rankings

Grip n Rip (9-0-0): They showed FPF Nation, on film, why they were the best.
Two and a half Dans (9-0-0): They made a top contender look weak, that’s worth something.
The Punisher (8-1-0): When their offense fails, their defense doesn’t. That’s how great teams play.
The Brotherhood (5-4-0): The team no one wants to face right now just locked a 4th spot in my Power Rankings. Keep it up.
STL (7-2-0): That beatdown from Grip n Rip is worrisome.
Killer Instinct (6-2-1): A much-needed win to maintain momemtum. Killer Instinct is the real deal, Ladies and Gents.
Damps 25/8 (5-4-0): Their offense worries me at the moment, but that defense is top notch. They’ll figure it out.
ZOO (6-3-0): With Francois Raymond, this team has its’ missing component and they look good.
Laval’s Finest (4-5-0): When Mashtoub is on, this team can make wonderful things go their way. Like, really great things.
Predators Lite (4-5-0): Winning 3 of their last 4 shows what they are made of. Predators Lite are catching fire at the right moment; can they keep this up for 5 more weeks?

Playoff Standings

**Stars next to team’s name: Clinched playoff berth

**Ruled-out : Mathematically ruled-out of the playoffs.

**Name in bold : Clinched division.

Conf A	Team	GP	PTS	W(P-F)	DIV	PA	Conf B	Team	GP	PTS	W(P-F)	DIV	PA
1	Two and a Half Dans*	9	18	9	[4-0-0]	172	1	Grip n Rip*	9	18	9	[5-0-0]	161
2	Killer Instinct*	9	13	6	[4-1-0]	166	2	PRIMETIME*	9	10	5	[4-0-0]	233
3	The Punisher*	9	16	8	[3-1-0]	223	3	STL*	9	14	7	[3-2-0]	212
4	No Fly Zone*	9	13	6	[3-1-0]	195	4	The Brotherhood	9	10	5	[2-2-0]	200
5	ZOO*	9	12	6	[3-1-0]	240	5	Damps 25/8	9	10	5	[2-2-0]	206
6	Laval’s Finest	9	9	4	[1-3-0]	239	6	Team Ethnik	9	10	5	[1-3-0]	213
7	Served With Heat	9	8	4	[3-1-0]	245	7	Snatchers	9	9	4	[3-1-0]	196
8	Hitmen Retro	9	8	4	[2-3-0]	305	8	Game Changers	9	8	4	[3-1-0]	247
9	Westpark Boys	9	8	4	[1-3-0]	244	9	Top Sauce	9	8	4	[1-3-0]	250
10	Longhorns	9	6	3	[2-2-0]	309	10	Predators Lite	9	8	4	[1-3-0]	286
11	CREAM Team	9	6	3	[1-3-0]	250	11	Les Blues Branleurs	9	4	2	[1-3-0]	285
12	TOPSZN	9	4	2	[0-4-0]	275	12	Keyport Lock	9	4	2	[1-3-0]	361
13	Patriotes	9	0	0	[0-4-0]	328	13	KGP Champs	9	0	0	[0-4-0]	315

Playoff Breakdown

This week, we have a very special edition segment in which I shall breakdown the multiple playoff scenarios that Division C has to offer and how every remaining team can slide in or out of the playoffs!

Conference A

With Two and a half Dans having clinched first seed, the only remaining top seed left is #2 who’ll be decided between Killer Instinct and No Fly Zone on Sunday. If Killer Instinct wins, the seed is theirs. If they lose, NFZ could clinch with a win. With similar points, Killer Instinct takes division over NFZ.
The Punisher are a lock at 3rd
ZOO could reach up to 4th seed if NFZ loses and ZOO wins, but the matchup remains the same, 4 faces 5. They are locked in.
This is where the fun begins; Seeding 6 to 8. Currently, Laval’s Finest, Served With Heat and Hitmen Retro holds the three spots with Westpark Boys, Longhorns and CREAM Team on the outside looking in.

Possible scenarios for the 6th to 8th seed:

Laval’s Finest could lock 6th seed with a win over Two and a half Dans. In a case of a loss, they are still fairly comfortable at 9 points, but could fall out if Served With Heat, Hitmen Retro AND Westpark Boys wins. Any of the three loses and Laval’s Finest clinches regardless of their game.
Served With Heat could go all the way up to 6th seed if Laval’s Finest loses, but could also easily fall out if Westpark Boys and Hitmen Retro wins. Considering Longhorns has the tiebreaker in H2H, a loss from Served With Heat, a loss from CREAM Team and a win from Longhorns would expel SWH out of the playoffs. Basically, SWH needs to win or hope for Longhorns to lose or create a three-way tie with Longhorns and another team at 8 points where their 3-1 divisional record will pull through for them.
Hitmen Retro needs a loss from Westpark Boys and Longhorns to remain in if they can’t win. They’ll clinch with a win, but a loss could be dramatic. They do not have the tiebreaker on Served With Heat, but do have over Longhorns and CREAM Team. In this scenario, Hitmen Retro could take SWH’s spot in a two-way tie at 8th with 8 points, but their divisional record is weaker in case of a 3-way tie. Basically, with a win and a loss from either SWH or Westpark Boys they clinch. In a three-way tie, Hitmen Retro isn’t looking so good.
Westpark Boys are on the outside looking in and really needs this win to push them upwards. They will remain out if they lose. With a win, they’ll need either Laval’s Finest, Served With Heat or Hitmen Retro to lose and they’ll grab a spot.
Longhorns needs a lot of help and a win. If they lose, their season is over. With a win, they’ll also need to create a 3-way tie at 8 points with Hitmen Retro and Westpark Boys to sneak in. Basically, Longhorns needs to win their game, have Hitmen Retro AND Westpark Boys lose to take 8th If one of those two win, they are out.
CREAM Team has the toughest scenario considering they are 11th and have a poor divisional record. They are out with a loss. The only scenario where they could sneak in is if they win, Westpark Boys loses, Hitmen Retro loses and their Point Against is better than the above mentioned teams. Longhorns could sneak away with the spot if this scenario occurs and Longhorns wins.

Very messy, I know.

My prediction for Conference A:

Two and a half Dans
Killer Instinct
The Punisher
No Fly Zone
ZOO
Served With Heat
Westpark Boys
Laval’s Finest

Laval’s Finest will lose, but Served With Heat and Westpark Boys will win and clinch. SWH has the tiebreak H2H on Westpark Boys so they’ll gain the higher seed. Hitmen Retro will lose and fall out, the rest is irrelevant.

Conference B

With Grip n Rip having clinched the first seed, the only top seed left is the second seed that’ll be battled out in the following days.
PRIMETIME’s amazing divisional record has them leading the way, but they only have the H2H over Damps, not Brotherhood. A win from PRIMETIME, a win from Brotherhood and a loss from Damps would see Brotherhood clinch 2nd seed and PRIMETIME fall to 4th. A loss from PRIMETIME would seed them low, but still in the playoffs.
STL are locked at the 3rd

Possible scenarios for the 4 to 8th seed:

The Brotherhood could clinch 2nd with a win, a loss from Damps and Team Ethnik. In a two-way tie, Brotherhood takes over PRIMETIME and Damps, but not Team Ethnik.
Damps 25/8 could clinch 2nd seed if Brotherhood loses and PRIMETIME loses. They have H2H over Team Ethnik, so that’s irrelevant. They could fall out of the playoffs if comes down to a three-way tie and their Point Against is weaker; that’s almost impossible.
Team Ethnik clinch with a win. Could fall out if they lose and Top Sauce / Predators Lite / Game Changers force a tie at 10 points. In a two-way tie, Game Changers, Damps 25/8 and the H2H and Predators Lite also would. They’d need a three-way tie to use their Point Against in their favor, which is likely.
Snatchers will clinch with a win. They could also fall out if they lose and Game Changers, Top Sauce and/or Predators Lite win.
Game Changers would clinch with a win regardless of Top Sauce and Predators Lite’s games. They could fall out if they lose and either Top Sauce or Predators Lite wins.
Top Sauce needs to win to stay relevant; lose and they are out. Even if they win, they’ll need two of the following to lose; Game Changers, Snatchers, Team Ethnik. Their weak Point Against will haunt them if we have a three-way tie at 10 points with Brotherhood and Damps involved.
Predators Lite are in a tough spot; lose and they are out. With a win, they’ll need a loss from two of the following: Game Changers, Snatchers and Top Sauce to sneak in. Their weak Point Against will be troublesome in a three-way tie.

My prediction for Conference B:

Grip n Rip
PRIMETIME
STL
Damps 25/8
The Brotherhood
Predators Lite
Team Ethnik
Snatchers

PRIMETIME, Damps 25/8 and The Brotherhood will win, so PRIMETIME remains the second seed going into the playoffs. STL are locked at 3rd. Predators Lite will beat Team Ethnik and go above due to H2H. Top Sauce will lose to Brotherhood and Game Changers will lose to PRIMETIME so Snatchers will take the last spot with 9 points regardless of their game to STL; as mentioned, since it’s irrelevant, STL will cruise to an easy win.

Previews

In a game that will decide the #2 seed in Conference A, Killer Instinct take on a struggling Longhorns and need the win to remain 2nd seed or they could drop all the way to 5th if things don’t go their way. Mathematically, Longhorns are still contenders, but I simply don’t see it happening for them, sorry. Killer Instinct has been playing good football as of late and Spano has been clutch when his team needed him to be. Instinct’s defense may end up being too much to handle for Longhorns’ offense, even with Martin and Allen leading the receiving corps and I don’t see an upset happening this week. It will be a closer game than most would anticipate as Instinct usually keeps it close for no reason, but Longhorns won’t be able to finish it in the 2nd half and they’ll walk home defeated for the last time this season.
In one of the most important games of the week, Team Ethnik will take on Predators Lite in a battle that could determine EVERYTHING in conference B. In fact, with Team Ethnik at 10 pts and Predators Lite on the outside looking in at 8 points, they could trade spots and we could see Team Ethnik fall off the playoff race with a loss (improbable, but still possible). Simon Bosquet-Beaudoin has been playing better than ever as of late and it’s helping his team strive. The real problem was never the scoring part, but stopping their opponents and the arrival of Simon Lahaie kinda took care of that. Adding the extra playmaker on defense allowed Preds Lite to look the other way and focus on better coverage rather than fixing leaks and they’ve been winning games ever since. This might just be the most important game of the season for both these teams and it’ll come down to who is more productive; James Floreani or Justin Blanchard when the game is on the line.
Another important game in Conference B features The Brotherhood facing off against Top Sauce. In fact, this game could dictate how the division plays out when it’s all said and done. With Brotherhood in West, they can’t nudge a top seed, but could move up to 4th seed and have better matchups than falling all the way to 8th or even 9th. Top Sauce has been on their game recently (as predicted, may I say), but this is a serious game for them. Vince Nardone has come leaps and bounds since Week 1, but will it be enough to take on The Brotherhood who has been the hottest team in the final stretch? It’s simple, really; on one side, we have Jamie Harry who isn’t perfect but has amazing athletes to feed the ball to and wins games. On the other, we have Vince Nardone who’s a nightmare on defense, but lacks the killer instinct he is known to have as a receiver when he’s playing under center. If Top Sauce can ride a lead most of the night, their defense will come through for them; they have too much experience and skilled players to lose with this much on the line, but if it comes down to scoring on the final plays, I trust Brotherhood’s defense over Nardone’s ability and Top Sauce might see their playoff hopes vanish if they can’t keep a lead.
A game that could, either dictate everything or nothing at all, sees Snatchers take on STL on Monday night. If certain scenarios occur, this game could mean a playoff berth for Snatchers whereas they could clinch before even fielding; time will tell. STL just took a bad loss to GnR and will refuse to walk into the playoff backwards, so they’ll be playing hungry, but Snatchers are better than their record and, with everything on the line, they might just be that hungrier and cause an upset. After all, when one team is playing for their lives and the other isn’t, we often see upsets. On the other hand, if both teams clinch prior to this game, I don’t think it’ll be a hard fought battle and STL could walk off with a win with a 2 score lead; many things to take into consideration. Nonetheless, the rosters face off well; it’ll be a pleasure to see Alex Lewis catch footballs over George Elie, Dutrisac fight Barreau Jr for balls and how Jamie Ojeaha matchs up against the underrated Gabriel Wiseman. This is bound to be a better football game than most anticipate if things fall the right way before game time.
The up and down No Fly Zone are facing off against another enigmatic squad in Served With Heat and I’m uncertain how this will pan out. Actually, this was my toughest prediction of the week as I have no clue who will be there for either teams and, more importantly, who’ll be ready to ball or not. NFZ are fighting for seeding and momemtum as they already clinched a playoff berth, but Served With Heat’s isn’t so certain. With 8 points and a loss this week, they could very well never sport their uniform again in 2015, but a win will guarantee an entry to the dance. With so much riding for them, I can’t see SWH losing this one, even if Lavallée has a poor game, mostly considering how inconsistent NFZ’s roster has been and who’ll be under center when the whistle is blown. I love the athletic matchups we’ll be seeing all night and I do believe it’ll be a great game regardless of the final score.
The reason this week is so exciting is that the final game of the season could determine playoff berth for more teams than just the one involved. In fact, a win from Game Changers could shake the entire playoff picture whereas PRIMETIME getting a win would mean #2 seed for them and allowing others to fall in line (and possibly who will face them the following week). With Terrence Dobson out, Sakiz doesn’t look like his usual self under center and feels uncomfortable even if his weapons are still pretty awesome. As if we took the security blanket off and he has to make plays that he usually doesn’t have to. Regardless, PRIMETIME has been struggling since midseason and Game Changers will need this win to clinch. With the way both teams play, I’m inclined to give the edge to Game Changers who are less one-dimensional than PRIMETIME, but it’ll really come down to who wants this more and who will come down with the ball when it matters the most. In that scenario, I’d favor PRIMETIME over Game Changers, but I foresee Sakiz having his way with his opponent and performing his best game of the night when it matters the most to clinch playoff berth. Stay tuned, it’s bound to be a hell of a finish.

Predictions

Another week at 8/12 isn’t satisfying, BUT beating GM Kolethras at these REALLY is. He went 7/12 and we are now TIED. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I pulled an incredible comeback and there’s now ONE FINAL WEEK LEFT. I shall be crowned Champion, once again. Can’t let GM win. C’mon now.

Here’s a reminder of our totals:

Simon : 68 / 108

GM : 68 / 108

Longhorns vs Killer Instinct : Killer Instinct

CREAM Team vs Patriotes : CREAM Team

Keyport Lock vs Damps 25/8 : Damps 25/8

Westpark Boys vs TOPSZN : Westpark Boys

Grip n Rip vs Hitmen Retro : Grip n Rip

Team Ethnik vs Predators Lite : Predators Lite

The Brotherhood vs Top Sauce : The Brotherhood

Snatchers vs STL : —-

No Fly Zone vs Served With Heat : Served With Heat

Laval’s Finest vs Two and a half Dans : Two and a half Dans

The Punisher vs ZOO : The Punisher

Les Blues Branleurs vs KGP Champs : Les Blues Branleurs

Game Changers vs PRIMETIME : Game Changers

That is it for me for this week. If you have any comments regarding the article, don’t hesitate to hit me up on twitter @DagenaisFPF or at the fields. I’ll be scorekeeping games on Sunday and Tuesday nights, so I’ll get to see most of you guys. My official FPF email [email protected] also works, but get with the times, Twitter is where it’s at. Feel free to yell at me if you see me walking around, always glad to talk some football.