Weekly Extra Point (Div A & B) – Week 12

Okay, let’s get the obvious stuff out of the way first. I went 3-2 in my predictions. The 2 games I missed were the 2 that I thought were harder to predict. Also, of the 3 games I got right, the 2 that I thought would be blowouts ended up being quite close. The lesson here: I suck at predicting games. As a result, take my prognostications with a giant grain of salt. Moving on…

Before we get into previews, let’s take a look at the 5 intense, well-played and exciting games we witnessed on Sunday night. Along with a brief recap, I’ll give you a brief excerpt from last week’s preview, identifying one part that ended up being correct (the prophecy) and one part that ended up being wrong (the lie). Enjoy.

DA Quarter-Final Recap: DA Finest 46, Rainmakers 30

The Prophecy: ”They (DA Finest) are playing so well that the Rainmakers need to play perfect football on Sunday night to have a chance.”

The Lie: ” But if they do manage to keep it close, avoid mistakes and perhaps even force a turnover or two, doubt might begin to creep in the heads of DA Finest. ”

In a game that had both everything (winner goes straight to the Finals) and nothing (loser is still alive) on the line, the Finest were simply the better team. They were flawless. When you’re facing an offence that is firing on all cylinders, you have to be just as good (if not better). The Rainmakers were good, but not nearly good enough. There really isn’t much to break down or analyze here. The Finest were missing HOFer Rochdi Benabdelkader (out with a broken hand) and it didn’t faze them one bit. And why should it? Kevin Wyeth is good enough to turn a team full of average players into an offensive juggernaut (he did it with the Pacmen in W09), and his receivers on Sunday night (Pat Jerome, Andre Knights, Kishon Thompson, Akked Moore and Donald Shepherd) were decidedly above-average. That, my friends, is a HOF starting line-up. How the hell do you stop that? It’s the question either the Rainmakers or the Mercenaries will be asking themselves in 2 weeks time. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

DB Quarter-Final 1 Recap: Messengers of Happiness 39, Darkside 19

The Prophecy: ”Of course, if you could pick one person to produce a game-plan capable of slowing the Darkside offence down, it would probably be Rochdi Benabdelkader.”

The Lie: ”Despite his (Jacques Void’s) questionable status and the aforementioned impact of defensive mastermind Benabdelkader, I still think the Darkside offence will be too much for the Messengers to handle. ”

Rochdi Benabdelkader’s broken hand may have affected some of his offensive plays, but it certainly had no effect on his ability to call a defence. Both teams looked a bit sluggish early on, but Darkside’s struggles continued into the second half, and a big part of that has to do with the defensive play of the Messengers of Happiness. They forced 4 INTs (3 by Gino Di Fazio and 1 by Robbie Robinson), a season high for their defence. Once Darkside started falling behind, their offence became more predictable and the MoH defence took advantage. Special credit has to go to Benabdelkader, who played a superb game despite the injury to his (non-throwing) hand. But beyond him, it seemed like every member of the Messengers contributed heavily. Whether it was the superb two-way play of Enrico Pierre and Nareg Yessayan, or the brutish intensity of Kenton Lowe, or the lighting-quick blitzing of Matt Kiroauc (particularly against equally-quick Robbie Robinson), this was a total team effort. As for Darkside, they played their worst game at the worst possible time. It was a team with a lot of potential, with veteran experience and young game-breakers. But there is no substitute for execution in the playoffs, and Sunday night, they just did not execute.

DB Quarter-Final 2 Recap: Gladiateurs 34, My Ditkas 15

The Prophecy: ”There are a few things in the Glads’ favor too. They have the better QB (Frank Lebeau, W12 QB of the Year) and their defence is underrated.”

The Lie: ”Facing a team as fast and athletic as the Ditkas could tire them out and lead to mistakes, and there just isn’t any margin for error in this game. ”

Was I ever off on this one. The Ditkas’ Adam Ciampini put it best after the game: ”we are the biggest underachievers in FlagPlus Football”. The Ditkas had the talent to be a top-tier team in DB and contend for a championship. Instead, they finished 4-6 and were beaten soundly by a Gladiateurs squad that only had 6 players (All-Star Charles Baillargeon was out with an injury). How you get outworked by a team with no subs is beyond me, but the Ditkas were completely off in this game. Nathan Thompson threw 2 INTs (both to his Gladiateur counterpart Frank Lebeau) and the Ditkas’ offence looked generally out of sync all night. They seemed deflated fairly early on, and even when the score was still somewhat close, most of the observers could tell which way this game was headed. This win is a testament to the smarts and iron will of the Gladiateurs, who knew they had a tall order and still managed to play a great all-around game when it counted most. Frank Lebeau, as usual, was their star, distributing the ball well and having a major impact on both offence and defence. An impressive victory for a team in a difficult situation.

DB Quarter-FInal 3 Recap: Triple Sixers 25, Maniax 24

The Prophecy: ”Yes, the Maniax are still one of the most physical and athletically gifted teams out there. There is a potential that the Maniax could get into the Sixers’ heads with a few big plays (and we all know they have the ultimate big-play guy in J.-R. Verger).”

The Lie: ”I really have a hard time seeing the Maniax keeping up with the Sixers in this one. The Sixers are a simply a much better team, at practically every position.”

Best game I saw this weekend. It was as intense as it was physical, a perfect representation of what a high-level playoff game can be. The Sixers were solid, but unspectacular. It was enough for this game (barely), but it won’t be in future rounds. Aside from a couple of deep touchdowns to Pat Jerome, The Maniax did an excellent job limiting the Sixers’ offensive output. Their defensive ability, and a fairly decent outing by their offence gave them a chance to tie or win the game late. They were down by 7, with 3 plays left. To the surprise of no one, J.-R. Verger dominated the next 2 plays. First he outfought tough coverage from Mathieu Thuot to come up with a catch that got the Maniax offence within striking distance of the endzone. The next catch was a huge TD grab, which seemed to totally swing the momentum of the game…until Verger got caught up in the moment, spiked the ball, got penalized with an OC and got kicked out for 3 plays (including the now-crucial extra point). That penalty ended what chance they had at accomplishing the upset. It wasn’t so much the extra yardage they had to travel, though that certainly didn’t help. It was the fact that the Maniax were facing their biggest play of the season, without the ultimate big-play guy. You can figure out the rest…

DB Quarter-Final 4 Recap: Big TDs 27, Blazers 24

The Prophecy: ”They’ve shown an ability to surprise in the past, and the Big TDs do have to take them seriously for that reason. ”

The Lie: ”Their own defence hasn’t stopped anybody all year, and I doubt they’ll suddenly find their way against both the QB of the Year (Jamil Springer) AND the Two-Way Player of the Year (Paul Lapierre).”

Another game that I did not see coming. That the Blazers put together a good effort on offence was no shocker, especially with Sean Kennedy back in the line-up (he only played 5 games during the regular season). The big surprise for most of the people who have followed this team was how solid their defensive performance was, particularly in the passing game. Unfortunately for them, Jamil Springer showed why he’s considered the top dual threat QB in FPF, compensating for a lack of yardage in the aerial domain with several spectacular rushes. It was a spirited effort by the Blazers, and a big scare for the Big TDs, but in the end, a late INT pass Leon Holder sealed the deal and the better team won. That being said, the Blazers can hold their heads high with this effort, as they gave their opponents all they could handle.

DA:

Semi-Final: 2. Rainmakers (7-4) vs 3. Mercenaries (4-6)

Match-up:

Rainmakers offence vs Mercenaries defence: 2^nd(32.8) vs 4^th (35.5)

Mercenaries offence vs Rainmakers defence: 3^rd (31.6) vs 2^nd(29.6)

Week 5: Rainmakers 32, Mercenaries 20

Week 8: Rainmakers 38, Mercenaries 32

So, let’s recap what we know. The Rainmakers won the 2 previous match-ups. The Rainmakers are favoured in the offensive AND defensive match-ups. The Rainmakers were near the top of DA for most of the season, while the Mercenaries needed a Week 9 victory over the Snookers (and some help) to even qualify for the playoffs. The Rainmakers will welcome C.-A. Sinotte, Addley Dufour and Bobby Mikelberg back to their line-up this weekend. The Mercenaries needed a league exemption to be able to use Brandon Pierre (which is the reason the Rainmakers were allowed to bring in Mikelberg, and also why Andre Knights is a part of DA Finest’s playoff roster), adding a little bit of depth to a short bench.

We still don’t know if Jacques Void will be able to return from his injury and even then, to what extent he can contribute. His potential absence is balanced out by the departure of the three-time Two-Way Player of the Year Michael Chitayat from the Rainmakers roster for the balance of the playoffs.

The Mercs do have one ace in the whole, which is big-game experience. They can rely on not one, not two, but three former Playoff MVPs (Carmine Pollice, Shane Williams and Paul Lapierre). Those are guys who have seen and done it all in this league, and who have what it takes to win in pressure-packed situations like this. And while that will certainly help them compete, I don’t think it will be enough for them to win.

Prediction: Rainmakers win.

DB:

Semi-Final 1: 2. Triple Sixers (8-3) vs 3. Gladiateurs (7-4)

Match-up:

Triple Sixers offence vs Gladiateurs defence: 7^th (30.5) vs 8^th (36.3)

Gladiateurs offence vs Triple Sixers defence: 4^th (31.7) vs 2^nd (25.3)

Week 2: Triple Sixers 41, Gladiateurs 31

Dans leur premier match des séries, les Sixers ne m’ont pas impressionné. Certes, les Maniax ont joué un match exceptionnel, mais quand t’es une des meilleurs équipes de la division, il faut pouvoir prendre le meilleur des adversaires, rester calme et jouer ton jeu. Je pense qu’ils ont été pris par surprise par l’effort des Maniax. La même erreur ne peut pas se répéter contre les Gladiateurs, qui ont offert une performance dominante face aux Ditkas la semaine passée. Si les Sixers ont sous-performé, les Glads ont certainement sur-performé, surtout en considérant l’absence de Charles Baillargeon. Il y a 2 semaines, Alex Lever m’avait mentionné que le plus tôt qu’il pourrait être disponible serait en finales, si les Glads se rendent jusque la. Si c’est toujours le cas, cela veut dire que les Sixers joueront contre une équipe avec seulement 6 joueurs. Ils se doivent d’exploiter cette lacune et il faudra surtout éviter de commettre des erreurs. Frank Lebeau a démontré ce qu’il peut faire si on lui laisse une chance, et si les Sixers jouent un match comme ils l’ont fait en première ronde, il le démontrera de nouveau.

Ceci étant dit, je crois que les Triple Sixers ont appris leur leçon et qu’on leur verra confirmer une présence en finales.

Prediction: Triple Sixers

Semi-Final 2: 1. Big TDs (8-3) vs 4. Messengers of Happiness (7-4)

Match-up:

Big TDs offence vs MoH defence: 4^th (31.7) vs 7^th (34.3)

MoH offence vs Big TDs defence: 3^rd (33.4) vs 1^st (25.0)

Week 5: Big TDs 32, Messengers of Happiness 19

Fearless prediction : this will be the best game of the weekend (at least in Divisions A and B). It’s also the game I’m having the hardest time predicting (which means I’ll probably get it wrong). The Big TDs are the top seed, and they’re playing a team that struggled mightily down the stretch of the regular season. If you had asked me to predict this game 2 weeks ago, I would have said Big TDs.

Now? I’m not so sure.

The MoH offence was on a roll last week, putting up 39 points and basically doing whatever they wanted on the field against a fairly decent defensive unit. This week, they will face the toughest defence in DB, a group that hasn’t allowed more than 24 points in a game since Week 7 (6 weeks ago). Rochdi Benabdelkader’s broken hand didn’t do much to hurt the MoH against Darkside. But against a defence like this, any little error can be fatal. The MoH won last week by being more prepared and more precise than their opponents. I’m not sure they will have the same advantages against the Big TDs.

Unlike the MoH, the TDs did not appear to be prepared or precise enough to win their first round match-up, and yet they held on for a tight victory. A big part of that was due to timely rushing by Jamil Springer and a defensive effort that produced 3 INTs. This week, they are playing a smart QB who will know how to limit the mistakes that have plagued other pivots against the TDs. They are also facing one of the top rushers in FPF, Matt Kirouac, a guy who is widely regarded as one of the few players who can hope to contain someone as versatile as Springer. In addition to Springer-Kirouac, the other big match-up may be between Nareg Yessayan and Paul Lapierre. There are few players who can match up with Lapierre’s unique combination of size and athleticism, but Yessayan is one of them. These two match-ups will go a long way towards defining who wins this game.

In the end, because of those match-ups, I will pick the Messengers of Happiness as the winners (sorry guys). I think Benabdelkader will figure out a way to make life difficult enough for the TDs offence for them to achieve a margin of victory. I don’t expect this to be a very high-scoring match up, nor do I think it will be turnover-filled. I just expect it to be well-played, physical and intense. Can’t wait to see it all unfold.

Prediction: Messengers of Happiness

I know some of the teams I picked against will be mad, or think I’m an idiot. Feel free to prove me wrong. I honestly don’t care who wins or loses, I just enjoy a well-played game. The playoffs are truly the best time to be an FPF analyst. I’m looking forward to seeing what you guys bring to the table. Good luck to everybody still playing.

That’s it for this week.

Special thanks to:

Darkside, My Ditkas, the Maniax and the Blazers. There’s no shame in losing in the playoffs. Better luck next season.
Daron Basmadjian Fan Club, for somehow notching 4 pick sixes in the same game, 3 by Gordon Hogan. One more win until the big one. Keep it up. I’m still waiting for my t-shirt though.

Think I’m wrong? Think I suck? Think I’m great? Think anything? Drop me a line at [email protected] and let me know how you feel. Whether it be interesting topics for the column, game facts I may have missed in my coverage or just some good old-fashioned hate mail, I welcome any and all comments.