Word from the Mouth: Double Reverse Bias! edition

Word from the Mouth: Double Reverse Bias! edition

Kevin Kousaie

The NFL kicked off this week and the refs haven’t missed a beat. I’m not a Cowboys fan, but they got hosed on more than one call, the ref who left his mic on needs to be fined at the least, if not fired. (ed’s note: For what? Discussing the call? He wasn’t saying “let’s just say” in the sense of “let’s tell people X happened”, he’s saying it in the sense of something like “let’s just say he was clearly holding him”. Also, the refs were fine in that game. Anyone calling out the refs for that game are at this point just clearly calling themselves out for their anti-Brady biased. I don’t really care about the NFL (college ball, baby!), but it is tiring to hear people call out a non-existent pro-Brady bias in the NFL when anyone who knows anything about business would understand that literally the exact opposite would be the desire of the NFL. Anyway, if you think the refereeing was biased in that game, you’re the one who is biased.)

This year the NFL is allowing players to wear all sorts of different numbers which will make it more like college and a lot more confusing for the QBs. It looks like the No Fun League is trying to make it more fun for the players. I want them to really allow players to celebrate. Who doesn’t love the Joe Horn cell phone, or the TO ball signing or even the good old dunk over the cross bar? I would love to see the MFL allow some more big play celebrations, but then it might not be spontaneous anymore and teams and players might start planning them ahead of time like they did in basketball.

 

Week 2 Recap

 

Division 1

 

Gros Coqs vs Bitter Boys (44-20)

 

Most of the players on Gros Coqs were coached by Mario from Bitter Boys, so you know that both teams wanted to prove they were better and be able to hold it over the other. I know Bitter Boys added a few players, but they need to add a few more if they want to beat the Gros Coqs. Dom is too good for any rusher on their team and the receivers are all solid and will find holes to sit in. Everyone other than Bitter Boys knew this wasn’t going to be close and it wasn’t. Bitter Boys were only able to stop Gros Coqs from scoring once all game. Defensively Gros Coqs forced JS into some bad throws and anything Bitter Boys got they had to work hard to get. After this game it seems that the student has now become the master and won’t be handing back the reins anytime soon.

 

Division 2

 

Joey’s Haters vs KOLB (14-42)

 

For a team that is supposed to be so good, Haters really looked average at best. Max is finally able to add running back into his arsenal, but he needs to be more accurate when throwing. I found that one of the issues Haters had was that on third and fourth down they wouldn’t go deep enough to get the first down. One-time Lesniak was falling to make a catch and he did catch it past the line, but he started to fall to make the catch before the line which brings the ball to where he started to fall. It sucks cause it would have been a score at the beginning of the game. KOLB have added a few players this season and with the speed those guys have, and the way Jonathan runs around buying extra time teams better watch out and stay back or else expect to give up 40 like Haters did this week. I know that a few players were complaining about being hit, but from what we saw there was nothing there and anyone that knows KOLB they are out to have fun and not beat you up, as the clock was rolling down they were calling their timeouts just so Haters could get a few extra plays on offense. There was one collision that happened when Alexandre was rushing and his legs hit Max’s and he split his eye on Max’s elbow. A flag was thrown and he left the game to bandage it up, but returned later on. This game was never close and even if the Schillers were there it wouldn’t have made a difference.

 

OG Panthers vs Outlaws (34-33)

 

This game had a bad finish to it for Outlaws and a great one for OG Panthers. The first half was completely dominated by OGs. In the first half OGs were able to march up and down all day putting up points and Outlaws couldn’t even slow them down. Outlaws tried everything to try and get pressure on Charles and force a bad throw or two and couldn’t do it. On the other hand, Terry was all over David all game long. David tried to run a few plays that Steve runs, but every QB needs to run what works best for them. Halftime rolls around and the score is 25-14 OGs who are also starting with the ball in the second half. I spoke to Rob at half about making a little tweak to the defense so we could get a more favorable matchup and it seemed to pay off. Stu moved to rush and that left Outlaws with a little more athleticism and speed everywhere else. One that opening drive Stu was able to bat a ball away and got close enough to force a bad throw that was picked off by Nick. Outlaws from that point started to come back and it wasn’t until their last Drive of the game for OGs to do anything, but they were smart and went for 2 and gave them a 7-point lead. This is when Outlaws need to be smart and make a few plays. Now is time for the play that cost Outlaws the game. David found Justin down the sideline wide open and he walks into the endzone. After the play there was some talking going on and Justin was flagged for unsportsmanlike which is a 10-yard penalty. The penalty was added onto the convert so going for 1 from the 15 for the tie or going for 2 from the 20 was no real difference. The pass got picked off and the game was over. OGs beat Outlaws for the second season in a row during the regular season.

 

Division 3

 

Average Joes vs Blackout (28-6)

 

Last week Blackout was able to pull out the win because they were more athletic. This week if they wanted to win, they need to outplay Average Joes. As you can see from the score that didn’t happen. Edwards from Average Joes asked me what I knew about Blackout before the game, and I told him they are athletic and their QB can run, but looks for the deep ball. From the looks of it my input really helped in the way of 6 picks on defense. Jason didn’t play his best game or even close to it, but when your defense gets you 6 extra possessions you can play that way and still get the win. Other than the way Average Joes played defense there isn’t much that happened in this game. All Jason had to work with were short fields and the few times he had to drive the ball the length of the field he was forced to punt. Average Joes might be a top team in the division, but will have to play better if they are to beat some of the other good teams.

 

Iron Wolves vs Petits Phoques (53-13)

 

I was there watching this game and once the beat down was already underway all I could think was maybe Petits Phoques should lose Alexis and get moved to D4. I asked Vince if this was their full roster and he said they were missing Chuck and Etienne and that would have helped them out, but they still would have lost this game. Petits Phoques are here to have fun and play the game. Their QB is new and will develop as the season goes along. On the Iron Wolves side everything was working for them. Their defense stepped up made a few plays, Cat was back sacking QBs, and even Jon got a pick (ed’s note: the MFL is rigged!). With how much of a cap in the rosters there was here it was never going to be close and Petits Phoques never had a chance, but at least they had fun and the winning will get there soon enough.

 

Division 4

 

Gold Rush vs Bines (18-32)

 

Gold Rush was without Travis this week which hurt any chances they might have had to win. Gold Rush also had a few other players subbing for them this week and it was like they weren’t even there. Both Loic and Gabriel are very good players, but weren’t used the way they should have been. Bines is a new team to the league, but I have seen them play twice already and from what I have seen they look legit. Simon their QB is a baller, but against a stronger more organized defense he won’t be able to run as much and he won’t have wide open receivers to hit. Thomas balled out on offense torching gold Rushes defense for 116 yards, 2 TDs and a 1-point convert. I want to see Bines play a team that has played before and that has their roster that week, both their wins were against depleted teams.

 

Phoenix vs Mimosa Crew (24-7)

 

I can tell you from playing in this game that we work the clock most of the game and it seemed to have worked. Phoenix was able to move the ball most of the game and didn’t have many big plays. We’re are all about controlling the game and limiting your possessions. From last season to this season Mimosa Crew might not be as good of a team, but I will tell you that Curren has become a better passer. Last season he would take off running and this year he sits and waits for his players to get open. When the game was starting out, I had no doubt that we would win the game, but after the first few drives, I knew it was going to be a game. Vince opened the scoring with a pick 6 and from there I had the offense going knowing that it was going to be on me to make sure we protect the ball and put-up points. I can see both teams getting better as the season goes along and if we are to see a rematch it will have to be in the playoffs.

 

That’s it for this week’s recaps hope you enjoyed and if I didn’t cover your game go watch Terry and Will on the Podcast.

 

Top Performances of the Week

 

I can see by now that you all have figured it out that you must ball out and win your game to make my list. Unlike Jon, I look over all the stats and I also get to hear from the other refs who made big plays in their games. This week I had tons of players to pick from, but only a few could make my list. If you didn’t make it this week you still have plenty of time, just keep balling out. You don’t need to tell me you balled out and give me your stats. That will get you banned for a few weeks and you will be labeled a Marvin and be given a nickname like D4 player of the century, that is something you don’t want. Now here are this week’s winners.

 

Division 1

 

Offense

I had a hard time picking between two teammates here, but I ended up going with the player that ended the day with more TDs. Jonathan Svetna is this week’s winner. In the two games he played he had 11 catches for 99 yards, 5 TDs and a 2point convert.

 

Defense

This pick was a little easier to make. Kris Hope is a player everyone in the league knows and probably played with once or twice since he is there almost all day on Saturday and always looking to get into more games. This week Kris had 3 tackles to go along with his 3 picks. I can tell you that if Kris wasn’t there this week, Henchmen lose.

 

Division 2

 

Offense

With my pick here I went with a player that my team played against and we couldn’t stop all game long. Francis Savard-Vocino had 7 catches for 92 yards and 3 TDs.

 

Defense

Everyone except QBs overlook the rushers all the time, but when you have to play a player like Jimmy Maddaloni you won’t forget him. Jimmy only had 6 tackles this week with 5 of them being sacks.

 

Division 3

 

Offense

I would love to hear from Brian Tinning on what it’s like to not get yelled at all game for every little mistake. Is this the way you would have performed pulling in 7 catches for 77 yards, 2 TDs and 2 1-point converts?

 

Defense

It seems to be a trend going on in the MFL this season. Before 2 or 3 sacks were great in a game now it seems like 5 is the new number. We had 1 player do it last week 2 players this week, are we getting 3 players next week. Colin Legault is an absolute beast on the field he had 7 tackles and yes 5 sacks to go along with forcing countless bad passes.

 

Division 4

 

Offense

I almost went with a receiver for my pick here then I saw David Brisson and his stat line and couldn’t ignore what he did this week. David went 16 of 22 for 230 yards, 5 TDs and a 1point convert through the air. On the ground David ran 3 times for 36 yards and 2 TDs.

 

Defense

It’s not very often you see a QB getting the award for his defensive skills, but this week Adam Gorzen did it. Adam had 1 tackle and 2 picks on defense, leading his team to victory.

 

There you have it, week 2’s top performers. I know that there were a lot of players that could have made my list, but I couldn’t put you all up here. Try a little harder next week and you might make my list.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

We are back to pick more games this season after Terry won it all in the spring and he is still in the lead after week 1. Right now, it’s still early and it also helps that a few of his teams had byes this week, but over time it will balance out and the crown (which I still haven’t given to him) will end up with someone else.

Here are the standings after week 1 and then you will see my picks for this week’s games and like always my picks are in bold.

 

 

Division 1

 

Gros Coqs vs Bitter Boys

They are younger faster and way more athletic.

 

Outlaws vs Centurions

The big 3 of Marvin, Svetna and Smuda.

 

Outlaws vs Holy Trollers

The Trollers did improve over the off season but they can’t compete with the intelligence of Steve.

 

Henchmen vs Honor Game

They are the more complete team, plus Honor Game will need time to get use to the stronger competition.

 

Division 2

 

Iron Wolves vs Les Tannantes

This is a rematch of last years D3 finals and this time Tannantes won’t be playing a tight game beforehand.

 

Joey’s Haters vs KOLB

Haters are a really good team and KOLB are still banged up looking for new players.

 

D#Nasty vs Vultures

Vultures had a hard game last week that they learn from and come out and use their athleticism to their advantage.

 

Outlaws vs OG Panthers NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Division 3

 

Thunder Buddies vs Pananches

I’m going with Thunder Buddies. Have you seen that roster? If you haven’t seen it, take a look and don’t forget this is D3 not D1.

 

Mustard Tigers vs Jagerbomb

They are a very good team, plus last season Brian went 0-5 as a QB and I can see that streak continuing this week.

 

Average Joes vs Blackout

There is too much experience on this team for them to lose unless Jason screws the pooch.

 

Iron Wolves vs Petits Phoques

It will be a long day for Petits Phoques if they can’t figure out their QB. Iron Wolves are going to feast on it like a bunch of wild dogs.

 

RawSauce vs Flamboyant Flamingos

I just feel that RawSauce has the better QB at this point and the best player on the field in Yves.

 

Division 4

 

Free Agents 4 vs Airborne

This is going to be an ugly game but Airborne pulls it off based on the experience of the QBs.

 

Phoenix vs Mimosa Crew NA

I don’t pick my games.

 

Idaho Udapimps vs Sneaky Snakes

They have the better roster from what I know about these teams.

 

Drama Club vs Spin Doctors

I have to assume Raph has his roster back this week and if they do, they should win this one easily.

 

Gold Rush vs Bines

I think that their defense is better than Gold Rushes offense.

 

There you have it my picks for the week. I can tell you some of those picks were easy for me to make, but a few were really hard for me, but I hope that I got most of he right so I can crawl out of the basement of this seasons picks and slowly work my way back to the top (ed’s note: “back”?).

 

Power Rankings

 

Power Rankings are back and after week 1 I already have to make a few changes.

I will show you my ranking and then explain why I made those changes after you’ve seen them.

 

Division 1

 

1) Outlaws

2) Gros Coqs

3) Holy Trollers

 

Division 2

 

1) Outlaws

2) Joey’s Haters 

3) Les Tannantes

 

Division 3

1) Thunder Buddies

2) Average Joes

3) Panaches

 

Division 4

1) Sneaky Snakes

2) Phoenix

3) Bines

 

For D1 I had to kick Henchmen off my list since they lost to the Trollers in week 1. I can’t see them staying off for long with the roster they have.

D2 after the way they got beat up I couldn’t leave OG in my top 3. I moved up the Haters and added Tannates to the mix.

With Iron Wolves get slapped around by Panaches I kicked off Iron Wolves and added Panaches after moving the other teams up a spot.

Spin Doctors are off my list, after a game like that they don’t deserve a spot up here. Sneaky Snakes looked very strong and moved from 3 to 1. Phoenix had a so-so game, but still managed to win the game. With Bines beating who I had at 1 last week, why not add them up here and see if they can keep moving up?

 

There you have it my rankings for the week. Just remember that the season is just starting and I am still feeling the teams out and where they should be in the division.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Football is back. Not just with the MFL, but the NCAA and this week the NFL is back as well. I know most people prefer to watch the NFL (ed’s note: fools!), but I miss being able to get up Saturday, relax a little order some pizza, and watch NCAA all day long. At least I can still watch the late games when I get back home Saturday night and NFL all day Sunday. Football is a game of emotions and intensity. How you handle those emotions and if you play with intensity more often determine who wins the game. Most of the time when a team comes out flat and gets down early its over for them, this is where you have to dig deep and make 1 play at a time to slowly creep back into it. Just remember play fast, play hard, be safe, have fun and remember that we are just playing a game. See you all Saturday.

 

Word from the Mouth: Still Salty After All These Years! edition

Word from the Mouth: Still Salty After All These Years! edition

Kevin Kousaie

Week 1 is in the bag and it went off without any issues. We had a welcome back BBQ this week and I want to give a shout out to Mo for coming and spending his Saturday taking care of the grill. I’d love to get some feedback from you guys the players on what you thought about the BBQ and if you’d like to do it again in the future.

I was planning on writing my article this week while on my flight to Vegas and before getting hammered all week. Plans changed and my trip was cancelled, so I have decided that I’d still get hammered all week since I am still on vacation, what do I have to lose?

I can tell you I definitely didn’t lose any games this weekend and I plan on keeping that streak going for as long as possible.  Now with my intro done, I’ll jump right to my recaps of the week’s games.

 

Weekly Recap

 

Division 1

 

Honor Game vs Gros Coqs (37-44)

 

I only know what I heard about this game and that was it was loaded with offense. I know that Honor Game is still looking to fill out their roster and it might take a week or two to get it straightened out. I also heard that Dave threw another pick this week with no one around. I’m just writing what I heard, but Dave did come up a division and Gros Coqs are a top team in the division. The only other thing I heard was that Honor Game is missing a playmaking safety. From when I looked over the game play by play, Honor Game had a chance to tie or win the game, but with little time left on the clock just couldn’t get it done. They shouldn’t put their heads down; (ed’s note: a semi-colon? Who wrote this?) they should look at the positives and get ready for next week.

 

Division 2

 

Outlaws vs KOLB (41-22)

 

I had to miss this game since I was needed to ref at this time. I know KOLB were missing players and had a few new players playing with them for the first time. By now everyone knows that Steve is going to be on point with the offense and only needs to get a stop or two from his defense and in this game the defense stepped up and forced three turnovers. When you can’t stop the Outlaws offense and the defense plays like this you will never beat them. Julien stepped up with 2 sacks and forced Jonathan to throw a few passes before he wanted to which allowed David to get his 2 picks plus the 1 Nick got. It seems that whenever Outlaws need a play, Nick was the one making it in this game.

 

Outlaws vs Vultures (45-26)

 

Let me start by saying that a new team having to play the defending D2 champs from last season in week 1, even if they are weaker, isn’t fair. Vultures are a new team with a QB that hasn’t played the position before, so it will be a learning curve for him and the team. As the game went along the Outlaws tried a bunch of different things including a switch at QB. As I think back on this game all I can remember is Kris running a few corners and Steve placing the ball perfectly time after time. One thing that I noticed about Vultures is it seems like they played a lot of man, yes they might be fast and really athletic, but when you play man and you are getting beat by big Stu and myself you might want to rethink your game plan. The funny thing was that they let everyone run by them for big plays. Then on defense me and Stu were playing safety and they never threw the ball up near us. When you see the old guy and the fat old guy you must attack them. I can bet you that if this was week 10 that the game would have played out differently.

 

Division 3

 

Blackout vs Chiefs (22-18)

 

From seeing this game, you can tell both teams are very athletic and very inexperienced. In time both these teams will figure it out. Let me start by saying both QBs need to stop running around and just get the ball out of their hands faster. Also, not so many deep shots. Allow your WRs to do all the work for you. The first half of the game was very sloppy and both teams were feeling the other out, with the half ending 6-0 for Chiefs. In the second half a few more plays were made and when the game looked to be over Blackouts made a statement by showing no quit and getting back into the game. Blackouts overcame 12 points in under 10 minutes when they didn’t do much before that. Trevin from Blackouts will need to do more spreading the ball around if they want to beat some of the better teams in the division. Chiefs were in the league last season and weren’t very good, but this week even being 11 players they looked good and were almost able to win the game on the last play, but the ball fell short.

 

Iron Wolves vs Panaches (37-44)

 

The first half was a slow and boring half and both teams took long drives and no defense was played with the score being 13-12 Panaches (ed’s note: it was 18-13 Iron Wolves) when the half time whistle was blown. Second half was a very different story, Iron Wolves looked bad in the second half, like really bad. Panaches started with the ball in the and on their first play Guillaume scored a TD making a few Iron Wolves players miss a tackle or two. This is now where it seems that the game slips away from Iron Wolves in my opinion. On fourth down and 1, Jon throws a beautiful pass to Marvin running up the seam with steps on the defender and the ball goes off his hands and falls incomplete. Panaches capitalized and made the game a two TD game. With Iron Wolves not being able to get any stops in the second half and being forced to go for it on more fourth downs than you’d like to the game got away from them.  Marvin’s big drop on fourth down which would have been 6 points was the difference in this game. I guess since Marvin was D4 player of the century moving up to D3 might have been too big of a leap for him.

 

Division 4

 

Drama Club vs Phoenix (20-21) OT

 

This was a game of two halves. First half was dominated by Phoenix. Drama Club couldn’t figure out how to slow down Julian on offense. The defense was led by Gab who dominated the line and forced 3 bad throws that end in picks plus Gab had 5 sacks on the day. Second half was owned by Drama Club, they started the second half with a sack that was a safety and you could tell that it gave them a spark. Drama Club scored on that drive making it a 12-8 game Phoenix. In the second half, Drama Clubs defense really stepped up with Simon getting a pick 6 to go along with the other 2 picks they got in the game. Phoenix had a bunch of drops that didn’t help them on offense as they did nothing in the second half. Simon was trying to talk trash and calling me Matt Ryan, but what he must realize is that with 3 minutes left and being down 8 points, who led his team into the end zone to force overtime? Then in OT got the win. Yes, I played really poorly in the second half, but when it matters I stayed focused and helped my team win the game and in the end winning the game is all that matters and individual stats don’t mean banana pudding.

 

Spin Doctors vs Bines (18-27)

Let me start by saying that Spin Doctors broke the sub rules and still lost the game. I know Raph is going to say he didn’t have his players and people were dropping balls, but all I’m hearing are excuses. When you are the reigning QB of the year and the champs from last season, you cant come out and play like that. Bines looked decent in their first outing in the MFL and in time once they’ve learned the game, they might even become one of the better teams in the division. Simon, their QB, looked to run a little more than I like to see, but he was able to buy time whenever he needed to. This game was really close at one point and it looked like Spin Doctors were going to pull it out, but Raph threw 2 of his 3 picks when his team was going into score. Spin Doctors will get better, but losing week 1 looks bad for them. Bines will be fine, but when they meet again, I can see this being a totally different game.

 

That’s it for my recap, but can you believe that out of 16 games 3 went to OT? I’m not sure, but I feel that was more than last season when we had over 200 games played. All this tells me is that the division are closer in competition and that the season is going to be really good with a lot of close games.

 

Top Performances of the Week

 

For anyone new to the league this section of my article is where I pick my players of the week. I will normally pick one player on both offense and defense. Now here are the rules to making my list: you have to ball out and help you team win, you also can only get my nomination for the highest division that you play in unless you are playing a different position in another division. If your team loses and you put up some ridiculous stat line there might be a chance that you make my list, but it has only happened one or twice in the past. Now let me unveil who my picks for week 1 are.

 

Division 1

 

Offense

The player I went with is Charles Rousseau-Belanger from Gros Coqs. Charles grabbed 7 balls for 126 yards and 3 TDs. This week there was no one better than Charles, Honor Game couldn’t keep up with him.

 

Defense

This week I went with a player that has moved back to a position that he hasn’t played in a few seasons and a move that I wanted to make a few seasons back, but it never happened. I had to go with a former teammate of mine, JC Ferland. JC had 3 tackles that were all sacks. Those are just the stats on the stat sheet, but you didn’t see the constant pressure he brought.

 

Division 2

 

Offense

I have no clue who this guy is but what I can tell you is that he tore it up this week. Jeremy Rooney you better be up to the challenge because it might come as easy the rest of the season after a game like this. Jeremy had 11 catches for 107 yards and 4 TDs.

 

Defense

This was the hardest person to pick, since so many of the guys who balled out also play in D1. I ended up going with a teammate of mine from the Outlaws Julien Clouette. Julien played a game and a half since he was a little banged up but he did help his team win both games. Julien had 5 tackles and 3 sacks in his time on the field.

 

Division 3

 

Offense

I narrowed it down to two players based off stats, but I saw Guillaume Tumblom rip it up against Iron Wolves D3 so I gave him the extra bump for being their and seeing how he was unstoppable. Guillaume had 5 catches for 102 yards, 3 TDs and a 1point convert.

 

Defense

This might have been my easiest pick ever. It took all of 10 seconds to pick Alex Morin this week. Alex had 1 tackle to go along with his 4 picks which he took 3 back to the house. I know it was against a new QB from Petits Phoques, but why you still throwing near him.

 

Division 4

 

Offense

I know everyone might be mad at my pick here, but deal with it. I picked a teammate of mine and someone who made me look good multiple times, Julian Sablowski. Julian started out strong cooled in the middle, but then stepped up at the end. Julian had 7 catches for 77 yards, 2 TDs, 2 1point converts and a 2point convert. Ya, those numbers might not pop off to you, but he caught a TD, 2 point convert at the games end to tie it and then the OT winner.

 

Defense

Again, I went with another teammate of mine and this person would get the award from anyone looking over the stats. Gabrielle Chaput made 6 tackles and 5 sacks. Anyone who rushes knows getting 2 or 3 sacks in a game are great, but getting 5 is out of this world. By Gab hustling all game long she was able to force a few bad throws that led to picks.

 

Those are my picks for player of the week and I know not everyone will be happy with them and might feel they should be here instead. All I can say is keep balling out and eventually you might see your name here. Just because you didn’t get up here week 1 it’s not the end, you still have 9 more regular season weeks and possibly 2 more in the playoffs if your team makes it that far.

Fall Season Predictions and Power Rankings!

Fall Season Predictions and Power Rankings!

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

I was going to lose this section and make it more like fantasy football, but picking new players every week. Maybe I’ll change it up next week since the rosters will be up by then.

This week the picks are going to be hard to get right since so many teams haven’t submitted rosters yet. I will base my picks off what I know about the teams and maybe make a few lucky guesses.

Last season Terry was the champ, but this season we will crown a new champ even if we must cheat. Here are my picks and like always they are in bold.

 

Division 1

 

Honor Game vs Gros Coqs

 

I know what Gros Coqs bring to the table and with Honor Game getting bumped up a division you don’t know. Plus Dave and his squad are still going to be thinking about how they blew it in the D2 finals last week.

 

Centurions vs Bitter Boys

 

With Bitter Boys losing Guillaume (their best player) not sure what that team will look like and Centurions are a solid team from top to bottom.

 

Holy Trollers vs Henchmen

 

Both teams at this point are a bit of an unknown and I have heard whispers that Henchmen might have a few studs getting added to their roster.

 

Division 2

 

Les Tannantes vs OG Panthers

 

I went OGs just because I know that their team is going to show up and I can’t say the same for Tannantes.

 

Iron Wolves vs Joey’s Haters

 

Jon is smarter than anyone who is calling the defense on the Haters, so Jon finds a way to win in a close one.

 

Outlaws vs Vultures NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Outlaws vs KOLB NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Division 3

 

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Petits Phoques

 

Vacations are over and that means the Flamingos will be at full strength.

 

Blackout vs Chiefs

 

I went Chiefs because they have a little experience and I seem to know nothing about blackout.

 

Les Petits Phoques vs Average Joes

 

This season Average Joes get into the playoffs and that means starting the season off with a hot start.

 

Iron Wolves 3 vs Panaches

Jon has this team stacked (ed’s note: what?) and it will be hard for him to lose this game.

 

Division 4

 

Phoenix vs Drama Club NA

 

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Sneaky Snakes vs Free Agent 4

 

Just based on experience alone they should win this game.

 

James Neumann Team vs Mimosa Crew

 

I’ll take Mimosa in this one. Last season they gradually got better and playing a team in know nothing about they should win, but it could go either way.

 

Spin Doctors vs Bines

 

I’ll take the D5 champs from last season against a new team.

 

Airborne vs Gold Rush

 

If Airborne can’t stop or even slow down Travis it will be a long day for them.

 

There you have my picks for week 1 of the fall season. Hopefully, I can do better than the 67% of games I got right last season. Good luck to everyone playing this week.

 

Power Rankings

 

Power Rankings are back, and you all know what that means, you all get to see where I feel you are amongst the best teams. Week 1 is always hard because I don’t know all the teams and not all the rosters are in and there is always a surprise team or two that comes out of nowhere and demolishes everyone. Here are my top 3 per division.

 

Division 1

 

1) Outlaws

2) Gros Coqs

3) Henchmen

 

Division 2

 

1) Outlaws

2) OG Panthers

3) Joey’s Haters (ed’s note: and yet the Wolves will beat them, apparently…)

 

Division 3

 

1) Iron Wolves

2) Thunder Buddies

3) Average Joes

 

Division 4

 

1) Spin Doctors

2) Phoenix

3) Sneaky Snakes

 

Those are my rankings. If you didn’t make it up that doesn’t mean you’re a bad team it means you have to show me you deserve to be up here. Win a few games beat a top team do something and eventually if you earned a spot up here, you’ll get it.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Let me start by tell you just in case your team captain hasn’t told you, this week we will be having a Back to Football BBQ at the field on Saturday, I’d say from 11 to 3:30 or whenever we run out of food. There will be music to listen to while you are scarfing down hotdogs, burgers, chips, drinks and donuts from La Beignerie which is owned by a player in the league. They are fabulous by the way.

Stay after your game or come early and grab a bite and watch a little football before heading home. This is something that we used to do often when the league was much smaller (ed’s note: and when Covid wasn’t a thing), and we felt it would be a good way for new players to get to know one another while scouting a future opponent.

With all that being said the new season is here go out, have fun, and remember this is a game and no one is calling you up afterwards to turn pro, so take it easy. We all have places to be on Monday. Thanks for reading and see everyone who is playing this week on Saturday.

 

Word from the Mouth: Now With Added Salt! edition

Word from the Mouth: Now With Added Salt! edition

Kevin Kousaie

Here we go, the last article of the spring season. Let me start by thanking all of you players for making the league what it is. Without you it would just be me walking around the park with no shirt on (ed’s note: which is what he does on Fridays). Yes, we had a few hot days and the final game of the season sucked with the rain, but we made it through without getting shut down from Covid.

With the season over, some of the teams won’t be back for the fall, but we do have a few new teams coming and the fall season will be just as much fun as the spring.

This past weekend was the finals for all our divisions, we got to crown a few first-time champions and a few that have been there before.

Congratulations to all the winners and for the teams that didn’t win this should give you extra motivation for next season.

 

Championship Weekend Recap

 

Division 1

 

Ninja Turtles vs Centurions (33-30) Semifinals

I didn’t see this game, but I do know that at one point everyone thought that Centurions had the game in the bag and that they were going to the finals. Then Ninja Turtles stepped up and came from eleven down with under ten minutes left. I was very surprised to see that happened with the Centurions since they have a very good defense. The player that made all the difference was Wade, who took the switch from QB to WR and played lights out scoring 3 TDs and getting a pick on defense as well and 2 of those TDs were down the stretch and gave his team the lead and the win.

 

Finals

 

Outlaws vs Ninja Turtles (32-31)

 

I don’t know how, but Steve did it again and pulled a win out when it looked very bleak. Tam was able to outperform Steve statistically, but in the end all that matters is who had more points when the final whistle blew. There was a point in the game where Steve threw a pick and it look like Ninja Turtles were going to punch it in and extend their lead, but the Outlaws defense stepped up and got the ball back. I’ve played with and against Steve enough times to know that when he got the ball back with under eight minutes left his goal was to score and use up all the clock. Five minutes and few penalties later they punched it in and now it was up to the defense to seal the game. They gave up a big score quickly then Outlaws answered right back with a big score of their own. The game had under two minutes left and Ninja Turtles need to score and get a 1-point convert to tie it or 2 for the win. Tam had just over a minute and three timeouts to go 45 yards. First play deep out on the sideline, second play same sort of route, quick screen to AJ, next play quick hook. Ninja Turtles were just a few yards away from scoring when Smuda was called for a contact penalty placing the ball on the one-yard line. Turtles get in in on the next play and left one second on the clock. Ninja Turtles have a big choice to make go for the tie or the win, they went for the tie and the ball was thrown just inside the endzone and the defender was able to get a hand in and knock it away. Outlaws are now your back-to-back-to-back-to-back champs. Can they get 5 in a row? Come back in the fall and find out.

 

Division 2

 

Petits Phoques vs Outlaws (33-42)

 

Phoques were missing a few players for this game, but everyone that was there stepped up and made plays. Playing in this game was tough. Our defense had struggled all season long giving up big play after big play and this weekend was the same. Just before half, Outlaws had a two-score lead with 20 seconds left so you’d feel that it would end that way. Well, two plays later, Phoques were attempting a convert. Petits Phoques started the second half with the ball and scored easily, but miss the convert and are down 2 points. After a punt from Petits Phoques Steve gets sacked for a safety from Charlie and it is all tied up. Dom decides to throw it the length of the field where Boris makes a beautiful catch and gives them the lead. Outlaws answered right back and after a few changes of possessions Dom lead Petits Phoques to a score with six minutes left to take the lead. You know Steve will score to tie it and got the convert to take a one-point lead. Steve left just under two minutes on the clock and plenty of time for Dom to march the field, score and win the game. Dom ended up throwing a pick and Outlaws scored and went for two to seal the game, they got it and game was over.

 

Honor Game vs OG Panthers (27-14)

 

I’ll leave this for Will and Terry since they both played in this game and all I know is OG had the lead at half, but then Will came out of the game and Marvin went in. Then Honor Game dominated the second half.

 

Finals

 

Honor Game vs Outlaws (47-50)

 

Going into this game I was surprised that it was this match up and I’m sure I wasn’t the only person thinking that. The last time these two teams faced off it was an 8-point game with a pick 6 on the last play, so Honor Game had to be confident going into the finals. Honor Game had a 2 for 1 which is when you score right before half and then start the second half with the ball and score. This gave them a 10-point lead. I’m on sidelines and you can almost feel the game slipping away. Outlaws kept fighting to get back into it. With 8 minutes, Outlaws had brought the deficit from ten points to nine. We get in the huddle and Josh says guys I’m not giving up now let’s go and win the game. We go down and score, but miss the convert and are now down three points. All game Dave has been running the same play on Stu and Steve is fed up and yells something at Stu and on the very next play Stu breaks on the ball and picks it off, leaving Outlaws a chance to get the lead. Steve leads a scoring drive and with under a minute Honor Game can go in and win the game. On their third play Marvin runs a post, but slips and Dave lets it rip, but the only player that was there was Justin in an orange shirt. From having a so-so defense all season it stepped up in the playoffs for Outlaws who are your D2 champs.

 

Division 3

 

Iron Wolves vs Old School (43-14)

 

I almost feel bad for Old School not having Dahic there, but when Covid gets you it gets you and you’re forced to quarantine. Old School beat Nice TDs last week and they were never going to beat Iron Wolves the way Jon built his roster. Nicholas was filling in for Dahic at QB, but he had no chemistry with the team and probably hadn’t thrown in a while. At half it looked like a game at 14-7 then the second half started, and the points just kept going up and up and when it was all over Iron Wolves put up 43.

 

Deep Threats vs Les Tannantes (24-32)

 

I didn’t see this game and I didn’t hear anything about it, but my bet is that Deep Threats didn’t do what they did all season. JC held the ball too long looking for Svetna and was taking sacks. No one other than Svetna made any plays, this was the Deep Threats team from 2 seasons ago not the spring 2021 version the one I was impressed with. Jasmin was solid when he had the ball in his hands tossing 4 TDs, no picks and was smart enough to avoid Svetna when passing the ball. With under two minutes left JC had time to drive the field and got the ball inside the red zone, but couldn’t score to tie the game.

 

Iron Wolves vs Les Tannantes (43-26)

 

At the start of the season, I didn’t see this match up for the title, but I did see one of these teams here and it wasn’t Iron Wolves who Jon had contemplated moving to D4 before the season began. The first half of the game was won by Les Tannantes and it looked like Iron Wolves were done for. Then Jon made a few adjustments and lit a fire under his players asses and Iron Wolves completely dominated the second half with ease. I think that the big difference in the second half was Les Tannantes was tired from the first game that came down to the wire and Iron Wolves just coasted in their game. I know Iggy had a very good game on offense, but to me the game was won by Jonathan their rusher as he had 3 sacks and I’m sure that the 3 picks Jasmin threw were from all the pressure he put on him. I know Jon will add in how it really went down, but on Sunday he was saying how they were losing at half and that they were out of it. When you win by 17 and you were down 12 that is a huge comeback. There you have it, the most stacked team in division 3 winning the title.

 

Division 4

 

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Thunder Buddies (7-24)

 

Before this game even started, most of us knew it wasn’t going to be pretty for the number 1 seed, they were missing players, had a sub and were only 6. The Thunder Buddies team they faced wasn’t the same as in the season. Thunder Buddies were missing Rosalie their rusher, so Terry filled in. This was not a cool move on their behalf. The game was close in the first half with Thunder Buddies taking the lead on the last play of the half. Second half it was all Thunder Buddies as they strolled into the finals for the second straight fall season.

 

RawSauce vs Pananches (26-20)

 

Just from looking at the stats you would have figured it was a lopsided game, but it wasn’t, it was close right up to the last whistle. It sucks that both teams were missing players and if they had been there it might have made a difference. At the end of the game Panaches went down and tied it up leaving just seconds on the clock, it looked like overtime was coming. Then somehow RawSauce was able to get a few plays and scored with zeros on the clock and made their way to the finals.

 

RawSauce vs Thunder Buddies (26-27)

 

This was a game that shows you why a good rusher is important. Terry was more of a runner then he was a passer, same number of completions as rushing attempts and same amount of yards. This was a very close game that might have had the best ending of the day. RawSauce is up 7 with 34 seconds left it seems to be over and RawSauce is the new D4 champs. Terry throws two incomplete passes and then runs for a bunch of yards. On the last play of the game Terry goes to play slot and Simon steps in at QB and throws it to Terry who uses his body to catch the ball for a TD. Now its time for the convert, 1 ties it and 2 wins it. Terry decides to go for 1 and the tie. Terry rolls out throws it and the ball gets picked off and ran back for 1, but then you look around and see a flag on the floor for roughing the passer. This time Terry goes for 2 and hits Simon just inside the end zone and next to the sideline the 2 points are good, and Thunder Buddies won their second championship. To me, just like the last one they got, it should have a star beside their name. They did win it fair and square, but Terry knows he should not be rushing in D4.

 

Division 5

 

Phoenix vs Spin Doctors (12-24)

 

Spin Doctors won this game from a complete team effort. All season this team got better each week and showed that it’s not always the best team that wins, it’s the team that plays best together. From playing in this game, I don’t remember many big plays happening that made a huge difference in the game. The first half was a close game going back and forth and both teams marching the field. Spin Doctors did get a few lucky breaks by ways of dropped interceptions and one of those did go for the only big play of the day. After all these years, Raph was finally able to claim his first title and he had to go from D1 to D5 to get it (ed’s note: it’s difficult to read this through all the salt). I liked most of the guys from Spin Doctors, they were there to have fun and learn the game and winning a title was a bonus.

 

Congratulations to all the winners. Now that you won one, it’s time to start thinking about repeating and everyone coming after you.

 

Finals MVPs

 

I’m going to get right to it. If you were at the get together on Sunday you know that the league gave trophies to who they felt deserved the award, but now its my turn to tell you who I think it was and a quick reason why.

 

Division 1

 

I know everyone feels that the QBs should get it every time, well not this time around. I went with Jonathan Svetna. Svetna had a solid game on offense and came up with a pick on defense as well. When Svetna got his pick Ninja Turtles might have sealed the game if that doesn’t happen.

 

Division 2

 

After being yelled at by Steve a few times this season the guy you’d never expect to make a play on defense did. If you watched the game, you know I’m talking about Stu Lambon. Players on our team have referred to it as The Pick. Without Stu making a play, Outlaws don’t win.

 

Division 3

 

I had a hard time picking the winner from Iron Wolves as there were so many players that balled out, but I eventually narrowed it down to James and Iggy. I know everyone wants to see big numbers on offense, but you need to do it on both sides of the ball for me so I went with James Langshaw. James scored twice on offense and had a big pick on defense. Sorry Iggy, next time get more than 3 tackles.

 

Division 4

 

When the pressure is on what do you do? In Simon’s case you step up and get it done. Simon Duchesne had 2 picks on defense plus a pick 1 a bunch of catches. Oh, and I forgot to mention the TD pass on the last play of the game to bring his team within a convert of tying it, that’s not all he caught the 2 point convert to win it while getting bumped out of bounds. Simon did everything he could to make sure that his team won the game.

 

Division 5

 

In this game was hard to make a pick because it was such a team effort from Spin Doctors. I have to give it to Raph Levy with 4 TDs and no picks, he deserved it. First title ever in MFL and it’s about time for someone deemed as a HOF.

 

Those are my picks for finals MVP they might not be your picks, but they are mine and I wasn’t able to see every play that happened, so I looked over the numbers and heard a few things around and made my picks that way.

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