Word from the Mouth: Let's Talk About Bogus Sacks! edition

Tuesday, May 31st Kevin Kousaie

After years away from playing at Park Arthur Therrien, we finally made it back to where the league started to grow exponentially. We have been playing at Le Ber for years now and the last few seasons we have been looking for a second location and now we have one. With 50 teams in the league a second field was needed. Moving forward we will be playing games at both each week, so captains look at the schedule and make sure that you let your team know where you are playing.

What will be the hardest thing for players this weekend will be for guys who play on multiple teams having to travel between locations, but it’s only a few minutes drive and you shouldn’t have any issues. Plus, maybe if you are heading from Le Ber to Arthur Therrien and want Wille to give you a shout out on the podcast, stop by Centre Pizza and grab him a slice, you might get a new fan as well as a new Bestie.

The best part about the new field was all that grass. Like any field that isn’t synthetic, the upkeep is tough on it and might not be leveled everywhere, but it beats playing in the dirt.

This weekend was great weather and it only rained for a little while, wasn’t too hot, and we had a nice breeze all day. I hope for the same this upcoming weekend.

One thing that I want to mention is that on June 23, the Als have their home opener and the league has been offered tickets at a cheaper price. If you want to go, message Jon and he will have more info for you. The league does something like this once or twice a year and its always fun. We get together before the game, have a few drinks, eat some food, go watch the game, and once Jon is drunk it’s time to make some deals. Anyone who has been before knows what I’m talking about.

Week 4 Recap

Division 1

Outlaws vs A-Team (24-41)

I won’t talk much about this one. I do have to say that I was stupid and changed my pick Friday night and went against A-Team. This is the first time that I have ever seen A-Team cheering on their teammates when something went wrong, but after all those fights and yelling matches with refs, other teams, and themselves, they finally played a complete game and showed what they can really do when they play without distractions. Let’s hope this is a turning point for them. I’m sure Will let Terry know all about this on the Podcast.

Trollers vs Bitter Boys (54-18)

What do I say about a game that was over very early in the game? All off season there was talk of moving Bitter Boys down to D2. Bitter Boys were missing their rusher along with probably their best player and Trollers took advantage and beat up on a weaker team. I’m willing to bet that after the game, the Trollers were very proud of the way they played. After the way Max played last week this was a good sign for them that he looks to be back and playing well. All game whenever a play needed to be made, Max looked towards Phil who got it done having an outstanding game, scoring 3 times. I’m not saying that Bitter Boys would have won, but I will say that if Guillaume and Felix are there on defense this is a different game, but at the end of the day you can only play the team that shows up not the players who don’t.

Division 2

Tannantes vs Iron Wolves (31-30)

I just want to mention that this game was fun to watch. I now wonder if ending the first half with 2 plays left was the right call for Iron Wolves. Yes, they were up and maybe felt that they had this game, but you weren’t inside your own redzone, and you had space, so you didn’t have to worry about a safety. Second half was more back and forth, but once we reached 3 minutes left is when it got exciting. Tannantes made the only convert of the day. Jon used all but 20 seconds of the clock before scoring. You had to figure that Iron Wolves would be playing soft coverage trying to take the deep ball away, and that’s what they did. Vincent hit Simon short, and he made a bunch of yards then Vincent had two more short completions before hitting Simon for the game winning score with zeros on the clock.

Marvels vs Redzone (32-24)

The first half of this game was dominated by Marvels. Redzone started out fast scoring on their first possession with a big play, but they cooled off right after that. The big thing that stood out to me was the poor clock management from Redzone as the first half was winding down. With three and a half minutes and all 3 time outs, you should get more than 7 plays off. I know that time warnings were given, but like all refs when something doesn’t go the way a player wants it to, we get yelled at and by we I mean the refs. Second half, Redzone started to make a game of it but it was too late. Max and Marvels made the score look better than what it was when Max wanted to end the game by getting a first down on their own 5 yard line and failed. Mike took one play to punch it in, but at that point Marvels knew it was over and just didn’t want to get hurt. Redzone started out slow after their opening drive and they had a too many drops that were easy catches. When theses teams play again, I think Redzone comes out on top.

Division 3

Chiefs vs Jagerbomb (27-34)

I was there for this game and it was early in the day, but after seeing so many games over the weekend I can’t remember much about this one. I can tell you it was closer than I expected it to be. I do remember Simon connecting with Loic on a big play only for Loic to get tackled with 2 yards left to go. After all that Simon got Loic in on the very next play. What ended up making this game close was that Chiefs scored to end the half and then scored to take the lead when they started with the ball in the second half. With just under 6 minutes left Jagerbomb went up by 7 and I expected their defense to make a play to end the game and they did, but not when I thought. After chewing clock and marching down the field Chiefs had multiple chances inside the redzone to win the game. After an incomplete pass, Avery hit James for 2 yards and on the next 2 plays Jagerbombs defense stepped up and knocked away Avery’s passes and ended the game.

RawSauce vs Iron Wolves (7-31)

Let me start by stating that RawSauce were only 6 players and were without their QB, so I don’t really see this as be a meaningful game to judge a team on. Ludovic is up north for work taking care of people in need. This was a typical Jon game, run the same few plays take a shot here or there, but nothing too fancy just enough to keep the defense guessing. I would say that the Iron Wolves defense played great getting 1 sack, 2 picks, and 1 of those going back for 6 points, but they were playing against a back up QB so that doesn’t count. The biggest question I have about this game was Gabriel from Iron Wolves showed up late and my bet would be he went to the wrong field. Which makes me wonder, did Jon the commissioner of the league not tell his team about the field chance or did Gabriel forget (ed’s note: it had nothing to do with the fields!). This is something that needs to be looked into by the higher ups. Jon was missing a few players this week, but it gave him an opportunity to work on timing with some of his other players and the one player that seemed to benefit from all this extra time was Chanwoo, who would end the day with 6 catches for 91 yards, a td, and a convert. Chanwoo also jumped a few routes on defense, but wasn’t able to come up with the ball.

Division 4

Sooners 45 vs Bouchers (8-20)

Sooners 45 started out by scoring on their opening drive and then the wheels feel off the wagon and they couldn’t move the ball. I thought that Sooners were going to be a good solid team, but after a performance like this I don’t know where to put them. After the game I spoke to a few people, and they had mentioned that on key downs Diego would throw an incomplete pass or try and run on short yardage and he just couldn’t maintain his footing and would slip. On the other side of things, Bouchers and their enormous roster couldn’t play worse than last week and wanted to prove that it was a fluke. Lukas did the smart thing this week and used his checkdowns and didn’t force the ball deep. He also did a better job of getting everyone involved on offense. On the defense they did a good job containing Diego and not allowing him to run and they also batted a few balls away. To me Sooners 45 is all about getting big plays. As for Bouchers, they are more of the conventional team that will suffer because of the size of their roster. I thought Sooners 45 were going to be a better team, but after this one I have no clue where to put them or how I feel about them.

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Airborne (13-18)

I can tell you that Airborne is officially on a winning streak, but how long can it last? They really like those tight games this is their second game in a row where it went down to the last play of the game. Last week they went to OT and this week they won on the last play of the game. I wouldn’t say that it was a pretty game from either team, but it was a close game with excitement in it. Gabriel got an interception with under 2 minutes left and having the lead all Flamingos needed to do was get a first down and the game would have been over. Airborne stepped up on defense and was smart using their timeouts to make sure they had time on the clock to try and score. Guillaume was able to get a 10-yard completion before hitting Max for a big 34 yard gain and putting them on the 1 yard line where Guillaume hits his son on a drag route for the third time on the day and wins the game. And just like that Airborne is 3-1 with the best record they have ever had to start a season? Will it continue? Probably not.

Division 5

Cyclones vs Bucks (49-0)

This game was over 5 minutes into the game. Cyclones had way more size than Bucks and all Yann had to do was keep throwing it deep and allow his taller receivers to just catch the ball. Yann has a really good player in Lazar, he is tall fast and will get better over time. I know Yann spread the ball around, but at a certain point you need to stop worrying about stats and start thinking about the integrity of the game. Bucks are a nice bunch of women and have a few players who really know what they are doing and how the game is played, but what they are missing is size. I had mentioned to their QB Pascale that she was allowed to use a smaller ball and she said she was ok with the one she had. To me if she were to use a smaller ball it would make a huge difference. It would allow her to get a better grip of the ball and add yards to her throws and it would also make it easier for her players to catch the ball.

Phoenix vs Knight Triangles (19-8)

Knight Triangles were without their QB and maybe it would have made a difference in the game, I’m just not sure. The first half was scoreless and then the first points were scored by the defense of Knight Triangles when Tyler sacked me for a bogus safety, but I’ll just leave it alone. Then when Knight Triangles got the ball, they were able to march the field and score after only a few plays. They missed the convert which would have made it a 2-score game. Once Phoenix got the ball back, they scored on 3 consecutive drives and sealed the game. I was able to hit Vince on a short 5-yard TD, followed by a 13-yard run for a score, and then put the game out of reach hitting my guy Joey on a 7-yard TD. With the game winding down and phoenix being up 10 we needed a first down to end the game, but Knight Triangles stepped up and forced a 3 and out, but didn’t use any of their timeouts and this allowed the seconds to bleed off the clock which they could have used if they were able to score quickly enough. In the end none of that mattered. The one play that sticks out to me was when Myriam caught her first pass ever and the defenders were chasing her and the scream or yell she let out was great and it put a smile on most of our faces.

There you have this week’s recap. I might not have covered your game this week, but maybe Terry and Will will talk about it, so give the Podcast a watch on Wednesday night.

Player of the Week

This week I don’t have to apologise for screwing up and giving the award to a plyer in the wrong division. This week I had a few easy choices and a few that I wasn’t sure who to go with until I started writing who I feel earned this week’s award. When I am making my picks, I try to avoid giving it to players who played in blowouts since most of the time the matchup isn’t favorable going into it, but there are those rare occasions when I have no choice but to give it to a player in one of those games. Here are this week’s winners.

Division 1

Offense

- Phil Pharand hauled in 10 passes for 152 yards, 3 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Ashton Thibault made 3 tackles, had 2 picks and returned 1 for 6 points.

Division 2

Offense

- Simon Anctil caught 10 passes for 92 yards, 1 TD(game winner with no time left) and a 1point convert.

Defense

- Tameem Riman mad 1 tackle and had 2 picks.

Division 3

Offense

- Simon Duchesne went 20 of 28 for 213 yards, 5 TDs and 2 2point converts.

Defense

- Jerome Hovington made 4 tackles and had 2 picks.

Division 4

Offense

- Victor Davis Made 5 catches for 63 yards, 3 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Jerome Lavallee had 1 tackle and 3 picks.

Division 5

Offense

- Kayla Gauthier made 5 catches for 39 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Benjamin Malette had 2 tackles and 1 pick which he returned for 6 points.

There you have the winners from week 4. I know that there might have been a few players who felt they should have made my list, but I can’t put everyone up here just because you feel you played well. I put players up on my list who balled out and if it’s close, I look to see you performed above expectations and let’s not forget to be on my list you have to be the best of the best, there are no points for second place.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 3

Thursday, May 26th Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

Another week down and another win by this guy. At this point of the year it’s way to early to say it’s in the bag or at least to pick the winner. Will is so far back that he needs help and lots of it just to get out of last place.

Last week I made a few last-minute adjustments to my picks once I looked a few things over. I went 11 and 6 which is not great, but it keeps me in the lead. On the season I sit at 33 and 17 which is still only a few games up on Terry and Jon and way in front of Will. According to Will he is making a comeback in the second half of the season. I just hope that it’s not too late at that point.

Now for my picks and like always they are in bold.

Division 1

A-Team vs Outlaws

I just can’t see how A-Team will keep it together for the whole game and beat a superior Outlaws team, but I think I might swing for the fences and take A-Team for the win. As per Willie they have a stacked roster.

Holy Trollers vs Bitter Boys

Even after Max didn’t play his best football last week, he always shows up and dominates Bitter Boys and I expect the same.

Division 2

Outlaws vs Nice TDs

Even after last weeks struggles, I have to take Outlaws for the easy win, better team more chemistry plus Steve isn’t losing twice in a row.

Tannantes vs Iron Wolves

After a poor performance in week 1 this rematch will go the other way and Tannantes will explode on offense in this game.

Marvels vs Redzone

I must go with Redzone since I have a feeling Mike leads the offense to a lot of points this weekend.

Division 3

Chiefs vs Jagerbomb

Jagerbomb is too strong for Chiefs and I also assume most if not all their players will be there this week.

Thunder Buddies vs Average Joes

In a game that can go either way I ended up picking Thunder Buddies only because Terry can run and it will cause problems for Average Joes defense if they cant contain him and force him to throw.

Jackrabbits vs Idaho Udapimps

At this point of the season Idaho is firing on all cylinders and I cant see them getting stopped, plus Nico is still out and I have no clue who will be QBing for Jackrabbits.

Panaches vs Manitoboys

After a few weeks of playing with these guys Leon knows who he has and what they can do and will light it up this week.

RawSauce vs Iron Wolves

Jon is going to be under pressure all game long, but with him dumping the ball off quickly he will chew clock and keep it close, but under control.

Bouchers vs Sooners 45

I just think they are the better team. Bouchers have too many players and it doesn’t allow them to get into rhythm.

Mustard Tigers vs The GOATS

Tigers eat goats at the zoo for breakfast and I’ve been told 11 o’clock is feeding time. Goats showed me nothing last week and against an experienced team they don’t have a shot.

Wizards du Groupe SG vs Canal Club

Wizards are taking too long to understand the game and Canal Club has a very good running QB who will be hard to stop. This will be closer than expected, watch and see.

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Airborne

Last week Airborne got their first ever winning streak going and I expect it to continue this week. I think Airborne just have a more complete roster with fewer holes to fill.

Division 5

Cyclones vs Bucks

Lazar is so much taller than all the women on Bucks so all Yann will do is throw it up and let him come down with it.

Phoenix vs Knight Triangles NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

Drama Club vs Heisenberg

I know what I get with Drama Club and that is an easy win. They are the better team and its not even close.

Titans vs Hard Target

Titans win as they will be more organised and should be able to make a few more plays.

There you have it my picks for this week. I hope the Crystal ball keeps working for me. The view from the top is nice, plus I like looking down on people even if it is only Terry, Jon and Will.

Power Rankings

Did you win, did you lose, is your team going up or are they falling? Now is the time I tell you where your team sits. After 3 weeks being played and some teams only playing 1 game it’s still a little hard to rank everyone, but I’m going to do it anyways.

Division 1

#1- Outlaws

#2- Centurions

#3- Gros Coqs

Division 2

#1- Iron Wolves

#2- Tannantes

#3- Redzone

Division 3

#1- Average Joes

#2- Idaho Udapimps

#3- Thunder Buddies

#4- Jagerbomb

#5- Old School

Division 4

#1- Phoenix

#2- Cereal Killers

#3- Sooners 45

#4- Airborne

#5- Canal Club

Division 5

#1- Knight Triangles

#2- Remplacants

#3- Drama Club

#4- Phoenix

#5- Cyclones

That is how my rankings are right now we all know that next week there will be changes made and a few of those changes might be huge. What is funny is that in the higher divisions most of the teams have been around for a while, so you know the players and what to expect from them, where in the lower divisions it’s a surprise each week.

Final Thoughts

Some people think that allowing Demario to play in D2 isn’t fair and they might be right on that. I don’t play in D2 so for me if he fits under cap then why wouldn’t you want him on your team? (ed’s note: obviously this is arguing for myself, but you can seriously look at the players some teams have in D2 and say Demario is so much better than them that he specifically should not be allowed?) I know I would.

I was at the field for most of Saturday and you want to know who I didn’t see? That was Kris who is normally subbing in at least 2 games a week. I hope that he is okay and nothing happened to him. I’m sure he will be back soon enough to tear it up in whatever game he is playing in, plus get upset with a ref or two for a bad call.

I know football is supposed to be played by big macho men who get to go out and push, shove and hit other players all game long, but not here in the MFL. We are all out here to have fun, get some exercise, and maybe drink a few beers after the game. Let’s all remember that please.

This week please remember that we are playing at Park Arthur Therrien. It’s only a few minutes from where we are now, but let your teammates know in case some captains forgot to mention it.

Thank you and good luck to all this week. Remember we are playing for fun, so go have some and try not to get hurt.

See you Saturday.

Word from the Mouth: New Field! edition

Tuesday, May 24th Kevin Kousaie

I’m going to start by saying that after 2 weeks of predicting the weather, I might have to give that up. I have got it wrong both times, but I want to point out that when I look at the weather on Monday that is what it says and we all know a lot can change in five days.

I am a person that needs to keep busy and am always moving doing something. That is why I normally hate long weekends and most of you reading probably think I’m crazy for saying that. This weekend it was nice to have the extra day off since it was the first week of Brossard.

This season we have 4 time slots in Brossard compared to 2 in past seasons, so both days are full days of football. At least for me they are.

By now your captain must have told you that we have secured a second location to play at this season. We will be playing this week at Park Arthur Therrien which is only a few minutes away from where we have been playing. I will mention that this field has a chalet, which means there is a washroom, no more going in the bushes (ed’s note: unless you prefer the bushes!).

I’m sure that everyone will be happy about the location except maybe Willie. He will no longer be able to walk up the street and get pizza and poutine while on break or in-between games. I was going to say he is smart enough to figure it out, but I’m not so sure on that. With a little help he might figure out how to order it to the field.

Week 3 Recap

Division 1

Since I didn’t get to see any of the D1 games this week and Terry was refereeing both of them, Terry and Will can cover it on the Podcast.

Division 2

Outlaws vs Tannantes (22-40)

This was a game that didn’t turn out the way most of the Media Team expected it to. When you can hold Steve to 3 TDs, your defense is doing something right and this week Tannantes had their defense dialed in. They only had 3 picks, but their rusher was in the QB’s face all day long. Often I’ll agree with Steve about receivers running wrong routes and that did happen a few times in this game, but Steve also missed on a few throws as well. As for Outlaws defense, they need to figure that out and soon. More than once near the goal line, the Outlaws allowed multiple Tannantes receivers to wander around the back of the endzone with no one within at least 3 to 4 yards and that might be being generous. Other than the pick that Julian had in the endzone, Vincent played a perfect game for Tannantes. When you face Tannantes everyone worries about Phil, and you should worry but you also need to know that there are other players who can make plays. At one point in the game Phil ran a hook and go at about 10 yards and he could have sat on the hook as the defender was already 10 yards down field.

Division 3

Average Joes vs Jagerbomb (32-20)

This was the game that Willie picked on the podcast to be over 90 points scored. I went out on a limb and messaged the Media Team with a bet for Willie. This bet was ridiculous, every point over 90 I would give him 100$ and every point under he would have to pay me 1$. When I made this bet I had no clue Simon wasn’t going to be there this week. Jagerbomb ended up missing a bunch players. For me Average Joes as good as they are should have been able to win by more than just 12. Average Joes played defense like they can by getting 3 picks as well as 3 sacks, they also didn’t allow JF to run all over them. Jason threw 5 TDs to just 1 pick which is a great ratio, but what would this game have been like if the entire Jagerbomb team was there? This could have been a finals preview, but we will have to wait 9 or more weeks to see this rematch which will end up happening in the playoffs.

RawSauce vs Old School (0-31)

After this game as Dahic is leaving he goes to me and says you picked against us and we won 31-0 and it was nothing. Let me clear this up I did initially pick against Old School, then Friday night I was checking through the rosters and noticed that RawSauce was missing their QB and a few other players, so I made the switch and had Old School for the win. This was the second week in a row that RawSauce was going with a backup QB since Ludovic was missing. I guess its better to be missing players early in the season rather than late in the year. I know William was filling in at QB, but how do you not get your best player Yvan the ball as much as you can. I won’t be surprised if other teams come and ask Old School what they did to lock Yvan down, that can’t all be on the QB. Dahic on the other hand was able to find his guys open all day long. Big Alex was able to elude tacklers at will. When was the last time you saw Alex go for 54 yards in a game, yet on only 4 catches? That’s remarkable, good job buddy.

Division 4

Phoenix vs Bouchers (52-6)

To start the game, Phoenix was only 6 players as Rob was running late. Lukas was able to take the ball and drive it to start the game and he made it look easy. Then their defense stepped up and forced a 3 and out. On Bouchers next possession is when it started to go down hill for them. Nick had a pick that he took to the 1-yard line. Phoenix scored easily on that possession. Rob has finally arrived and the first time he steps on the field he picks off a pass, which set up another score. Next possession Julian steps in front of a pass in our endzone and scoots up the sideline and scores a TD. At this point of the game we knew that this game was all but over, so we started to take it easy and try a few different things (ed’s note: that’s some quality trash talk, right there). The thing about this game was we got up early, scored often, and I knew from last season that Lukas likes the deep ball, so we played conservative on defense all day. Phoenix is loaded with studs and can play any style of defense to match the opponent’s offense. (ed’s note: maybe some players might have to be moved for cap purposes…)

Black Diamonds vs Sour Peeps (33-6)

Watching this game, nothing impressed me in this one (ed’s note: way to sell it!). Lesniak has a big arm and likes the big plays, but that won’t work against every team. I was more impressed by Sour Peeps and how they hung in there and kept trying. Kim didn’t get much help from her receivers this week. There was a bunch of times where she would hit her receivers in their hands, and they would drop it. I told her to come see me before her next game so I can give her some stickem for her receivers. Yes, stickem isn’t allowed (ed’s note: says who?), but if you’re going to use a smaller ball why not cheat even more. I know in some other leagues that if a woman is playing QB they can use a smaller ball, but as of right now we require everyone to use the same size ball for it to be fair. Sour Peeps are mostly new players and are still learning the game. I was trying to help a few of them out during the game and I also spoke to a few of them after the game just to give a few pointers. I had noticed that more than once they were in the right position on defense, but when they would attempt a tackle would twist and get out of position. Sour Peeps just need more games played to understand the game better.

Division 5

Cyclones vs Mimosa Crew (38-0)

This game was completely dominated by Cylones. Yann got off to a good start and was able to keep it going until he got hurt and had to leave the game. After the game I spoke to Yann who thinks that newcomer Lazar might be the best player in the division. I haven’t seen him play yet, but his stats looked good against a team that is still trying to figure out their identity. I like Mimosa Crew, they are a fun group of people, but if Curren can’t run and is forced to pass it will be tough for them. I know I bug Curren about running so much, but in some cases you have to. Are Cyclones going to be a powerhouse team in the division? I doubt it, but if they play like this all season then maybe they are.

Heisenberg vs Titans (13-19)

Titans were able to get their first win of the season as the game was winding down. Tomy was at QB for Titans since Steve wasn’t there this week and maybe it should be a permanent move. Tomy looked like he knew what he was doing and was able to get everyone involved on the offense. I feel that if the switch at QB gets done Titans would improve at both QB and Receiver. Ian played decent for Heisenberg, but just forced a few too many balls. Once he cuts down on the interceptions, I think Heisenberg might win a game or two this season. No one on Titans stood out as much as Robert did leading the way on defense with 3 picks. When Titans were leaving the field they let me know I should keep picking against them so they can keep proving me wrong by winning. It is not like I pick against you, I just pick the team I think is better and after the way you played week 1 what was I to expect? Ben showing up and dominating the game?

There you have it my week in review, if I didn’t talk about your game then go and see what Terry and Will might have to say about your game on the Podcast.

Players of the Week

Let me start by saying not one is perfect, but I am pretty close to it. Last week I snuggled up and want to apologise to David for getting his hopes up and him thinking he had made my list. It’s not as if David didn’t earn it, but it slipped my mind that he is playing on Outlaws in D1. I also want to say that the winner of D2 offense last week should have been Vincent Dion from Tannates. He was 23 of 33 for 193 yards, 5 TDs, 2 1point converts and threw 1 pick.

This week, I’ll try and get it right the first time. Now here are my winners.

Division 1

Offense

- Dominic Lefort went 15 of 22 for 184 yards, 6 TDs and 6 1point convert through the air and rand twice for 20 yards.

Defense

- Louis-Philippe Berdier made 4 tackles, 1 sack and a pick he returned for a TD.

Division 2

Offense

- Guillaume Turnblom made 4 catches for 72 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Simon Anctil had 4 tackles and 2 picks.

Division 3

Offense

- Jerome Hovington made 6 catches for 75 yards and 3 TDs.

Defense

- Olivier Bernier had 3 tackles which were all sacks.

Division 4

Offense

- Gabriel Somma caught 5 passes for 70 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Samer Assi had 1 tackle and 3 picks.

Division 5

Offense

- Yannick Brisebois was 17 of 23 for 220 yards, 5 TDs and 2 1point converts.

Defense

- Charles Barbeau made 2 tackles, had 2 picks and returned 1 for a TD.

There you have this week’s winners and as far as I can tell they all went to the players in their top divisions. Congratulations to this week’s winners and good luck to the rest of you trying to make my list over the next few weeks.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 2

Thursday, May 19th Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

So not far, so good. Two weeks down and I’m in the lead as I have won both weeks. It looks like all I needed to do was switch the batteries in my crystal ball and I started picking winners again. Last week I went 10 for 17 which isn’t great, but a win is a win and it brings my total up to 22 and 11 on the year. Realistically, I don’t really care that much if I win, but most of us on the media team want to see Will wearing patriot gear all day (ed’s note: I vote we make him do this regardless of who wins). If I lose, I have said I’d go get a stupid tattoo of all the other media team’s favourite teams on me, and we all know that the Cowboys and Dolphins both suck and I can’t do that to my body which is a shrine (ed’s note: he didn’t trash talk the Irish!). Fingers crossed I can keep on the winning ways. Now to my picks in bold like always.

Division 1

A-Team vs Centurions

I think A-Team is the better team and wanted to pick them, but I just feel that they can’t keep their composure and will lose because they can’t stay focused.

Gros Coqs vs Holy Trollers

With both teams coming off a bye week and Trollers yet to play a game, this was a hard choice to make. Knowing that Gros Coqs have had issues with players showing up and until they show they can all show up, it will always be an issue at least in my mind.

Division 2

Outlaws vs Tannantes

I was tempted to go with Tannantes in this onem but then remembered how good Steve and the Outlaws offense looked last week and couldn’t pick against them.

Marvels vs Iron Wolves

I think both teams have good rosters, but I feel that Marvels haven’t played this season and have a few weaker players that Jon will find and exploit.

Division 3

Average Joes vs Jagerbomb

I think this will be a great game to watch, but I just feel that with all the extra experience that Jagerbomb have it gives them the slight edge.

Panaches vs Bines

Panaches has had it hard up to this point in the season, but this week they get it done. Last week Panaches stayed with Joes most of the game and Joes are a better team than Bines.

Rawsauce vs Old School

I have to assume that last week was a fluke for RawSauce and that their QB Ludovic will be back. They get the win easily this week.

Manitoboys vs Idaho Udapimps

Idaho isn’t all about potato farming, these guys are here to play defense, put up lots of points, and win games and that’s what they will do this week.

Division 4

Phoenix vs Bouchers NA

I don’t pick my own team games.

Black Diamonds vs Sour Peeps

This game could be turnover city and a lot of 3 and punts, but at the end of the day, Black Diamonds were able to find the endzone last week and Sour Peeps couldn’t.

GOATS vs Cereal Killers

Goats are an unknown team to me and having not played the first 2 weeks, I can’t expect them to beat a good team in Cereal Killers.

Super Friends vs Mustard Tigers

Tigers don’t care about friends and when they are hungry for wins will do what they need to. Super Friends struggled last week and playing an experienced team will struggle again this week.

Airborne vs Canal Club

I went with Airborne because I think they will be able to stop Francois from running wild and make him throw the ball.

Flamboyant Flamingos vs Wizards du Groupe SG

Wizards just have better athletes and should be able to use that to their advantage this week.

Division 5

Cyclones vs Mimosa Crew

I want to go with Mimosa, but I just feel at some point Curren will get stopped running and be forced to throw. Plus, this week Cyclones are still a player or two short and that means they might get subs who could make an impact on the game.

Knight Triangles vs Drama Club

Drama Club should win with ease. They have more experience and Knight Triangles haven’t played a good team yet.

Les Remplacants vs Improbables

I just feel with the experience that Improbables has they have the advantage.

Heisenberg vs Titans

I think after a tough week 1 that Titans get it done. They seem to know what to do and where to be on defense.

There you have my picks for this week and I hope they are good. I had a hard time picking a few of the games and was going back and forth on them and ended up with these teams winning.

Power Rankings

It’s that time of the week where you can see if you have done enough over the past two weeks to make my rankings or stay in them if you were there before. I won’t keep you waiting any longer here is my list.

Division 1

#1- Outlaws

#2- Holy Trollers

#3- Centurions

Division 2

#1- Outlaws

#2- Iron Wolves

#3- Marvels

Division 3

#1- Jagerbomb

#2- Average Joes

#3- Thunder Buddies

#4- Idaho Udapimps

#5- Bines

Division 4

#1- Phoenix

#2- Mustard Tigers

#3- Cereal Killers

#4- Canal Club

#5- Sooners 45

Division 5

#1- Drama Club

#2- Knight Triangles

#3- Improbables

#4- Phoenix

#5- Mimosa Crew

This week I made a few changes from last week and I gave the boot to a few teams as well. It might take a few weeks for me to get my rankings correct, but right now it’s early in the year, so if you have won your games and keep winning you should eventually see your team up here. Right now, I have if based off if you have won and the roster that you have, but once more games are played it makes it easier for me to tell you where you rank.

Final Thoughts

We made it through a hot one this past week. This weekend we have another long day, but hopefully we get some clouds and a little bit of a breeze if it doesn’t rain at all (ed’s note: it should only rain towards the end of the day and not much, but it’s supposed to be really windy!). I know that Jon is still looking at get a second location and I will keep you posted once I hear something.

For a long time now the league has asked refs to look professional with shirts tucked in and black or white hats and I agree that we need this to be in place, but for some reason all the shirts I own for football have no sleeves and that’s the way it’s going to stay, plus I hate tan lines. I was also told years ago if I went and had the lines tattooed on me, I wouldn’t have to wear a shirt (ed’s note: no one ever said this, he’s trying to gaslight an entire league!), that was all lies and now because of health issues I won’t be able to do that.

As everyone know the refs are located in-between the fields and that is where we keep all our things. What people need to stop doing is if you are not refereeing, stop coming and hanging out, just because you play and are refereeing afterwards all this does is bring more people over. It gets me so mad when players say, “ya but I’m refereeing later”, that’s great that you are, but then at half you are there getting water which then brings your team with you so you can talk it just becomes to many people (ed’s note: it’s fine if you’re refereeing that day to be there all day, but teammates please keep to the other side of the fields).

Now with all that out of the way let’s all remember that we are playing a game and it’s for fun, so go out enjoy yourself, try not to get hurt or to hurt anyone else. Thank you and see all Saturday.

Word from the Mouth: It's Too Damn Hot! edition

Wednesday, May 18th Kevin Kousaie

Anyone who was out there all-day Saturday and is still alive, congratulations on that. Last week when I wrote my article it was calling for rain and I can tell you I much I’d rather have the rain than it be 30 plus degrees outside with minimal breeze and no clouds. Anyone who saw me at the end of the day knows I was dead and I’m not joking about that. I almost had to go spend the night in the hospital after suffering heat stroke and not being able to keep any fluids down.

Other than almost dying it was a great way to lose some weight, it was a good 10 pounds easily.

I want to thank the people who took over my games at the end of the day and the ones who stuck around and did the takedown. I appreciate it and it would have taken me hours to do it.

I’m no weatherman, but the app on my phone is saying 28 this weekend with a 30% chance of rain. Let’s hope its cooler than last week.

Week 2

Division 1 Recap

Bitter Boys vs Centurions (27-32)

I picked Centurions to win, but I expected it to be by a bigger score. Bitter Boys were playing their first game of the season and Centurions just came off a big win the week before. When your first pass of the season is a pick 6 you, know that’s not a good sign. JS looked for the easy completion and Yves stepped in front and walked it into the endzone. It didn’t take long for JS to get that back as only a few plays later he hits Guillaume for a big score to tie it up. After giving up scores on Centurions next 2 drives, the game just seemed out of reach. Bitter Boys did end up making it close in the end by scoring a TD on the last play of the game. If it hadn’t been for the 3 picks by JS, Bitter Boys might have pulled off the upset. Maybe next time they will.

Division 2

Outlaws vs Nice TDs (36-18)

Like everyone that doesn’t play on Nice TDs, we knew this was going to be a hard game to watch since it was expected to be a blowout. When I saw that Kris was playing QB for nice TDs I knew that there were going to be issues, especially when you saw the roster. I know Kris started the game by throwing 2 straight picks and Jafar was giving him a hard time about it, but don’t worry, Jafar did his best Tua impersonation late in the game and boy was it ugly. With 15 minutes left in the game and being up 36-6 Steve pulled himself from the game and that is when Nice TDs started to make the game interesting. I won’t say Kris struggled, I would blame it on drops and possibly a bad call. Yes, I will admit that it might have been a catch, but from where I was, I am unable to make that call. Would it have made a difference? Maybe, but probably not. It was in the first half and Nice TDs could have done something, but Steve could have stayed in the game and put up 50 points if he wanted to. You know what the best part of this game was? Seeing Jaf complete his first 2 passes short and thinking he was unstoppable only to try and go deep and get picked by Francois who took it to the house. I’m not a fan of taunting, but I would have allowed in this case just because Jaf was pestering Kris early in the game.

Division 3

Jagerbomb vs Manitoboys (37-14)

It sucks when your big, tall rusher Jeremy isn’t there to face a QB who gets rid of the ball fast in Simon. Alex did a decent job of it, but he isn’t Jeremy. Leon opened the scoring by finding Alex on a what I want to say was a post route, but I could be mistaken. After that it was all Jagerbomb the rest of the way. Some players and teams only care about stats, but it’s not that with Jagerbomb. After opening the second half with a big completion and a quick dump off Simon and JF switched positions. It took JF all of 1 play on the ground to reach the endzone from 9 yards out. After Jagerbomb scored Leon put a very nice drive together spreading the ball all over and keeping the defense guessing where he was going with the ball. Watching the game, you had a feeling that Manitoboys was starting to come back, that was until the defense got back out there. JF hit Loic for a huge 42-yard gain and left them just short of the endzone. On the next play JF was able to get Loic into the endzone since he couldn’t make it an extra 3 yards the play before. Not all the life has been sucked out of Manitoboys and any shot at a comeback is down the drain. Both teams stalled out on their next drive and the game came to an end.

Panaches vs Average Joes (24-36)

This was a fun and exciting game to watch. Both QBs played fantastic and other than getting sacked once, the defenses were just there making tackles. I spoke with Felix and Amile before the game and they had mentioned that they had lost a few players from the winter season and that they were teaching a few new players the game. If that is the case and they were able to hang with the big dogs in week 2, what are they going to be like further down the line? When Panaches scored to tie it a 12 with 19 seconds left in the half you had to figure it was going to stay that way, Jason had other plans and 3 timeouts. Jason hits Nick for 8 yards, then Nick for 23 more yards and to cap it off hits the Gator fan Ryne for the score as time runs outs. Second half begins and Felix takes no time to tie it back up. Jason and Average Joes score twice unanswered to take a 30-18 lead. Panaches wasn’t done just yet and Felix knew he needed to score and score quickly he did. It was now up to the defense to make a stop and get them the ball back. Was Jason going to have one of his moments and blow it for his team? Not today at least. Jason milked every second of the play clock before the snap and slowly marched down for the score. With under a minute left and it being as hot as it was Panaches knew the game was over so they called it and went to cool off and relax.

Division 4

Super Friends vs Airborne (13-25)

Before the game I was asking Jacob why he and his brother left Flamingos, and this is what I was told. That they are all friends on both teams, but they are closer friends with the players on the new team. Everyone on the media team picked against Airborne and were we very wrong. You must wonder if Airborne has turned a corner or they were just playing a new team that didn’t know much about the game yet. Airborne looked like a good in this game. Guillaume was on point under center and on defense they were where they needed to be. After all these years, has Airborne figured out what works for them? Jacob looked off after not throwing since last year. Alex looked good running routes, but far too often Jacob had him running deep and wasn’t able to connect with him. Super Friends on the other hand need a bunch of work and I’m sure that Jacob and Alex will get this team in shape. Other than when Adam broke on the ball and picked it off and ran the field for a score, Super Friends were lost on defense. I missed the second half of this game, but was told nothing eventful happened. By this point in the day, it was 35 plus degrees in the sun, and no one wanted to be out there longer than they needed to be.

Wizards du Groupe SG vs Weakest Link (8-12)

I know very little about this game, but what I can tell you is that Marvin and his one arm was able to convince Jon to let him play. It might only be at QB, and he has never thrown before so it is new to him. Marvin might not be the best thrower in the division, but my bet would be that he is right up there as a runner. One arm Marv ran 6 time for 87 yards and 1 score. Marvin should be lucky my team already played his team because you know what happens to a deer when it gets hit by a tractor trailer, lights out. Even with Marvin playing, if he doesn’t play defense, I can’t see Weakest Link doing much damage. Wizards on the other hand have a ton of athletes that are still figuring the game out and once they do teams need to watch out for them. The first win is always the hardest and Marvin got his out of the way, how long before Remi gets his?

Division 5

Titans vs Phoenix (0-33)

This week Phoenix had a new player in Khalil who is the brother of Myriam. When we first brought him on, I was like great, we have a second safety, but then he wanted to rush. At first, I was a little sceptic of this since we already have a great rusher in Gab. The way Gab showed she was multi talented was very impressive. Gab ended the day with 2 picks with one run back for a score and a sack as well. Not to bad for the birthday girl playing out of her regular position. For Phoenix this was a good game where everyone contributed and there is still room to improve. Titans were playing there first game of the season and didn’t have their stud QB ben from last spring, so it was going to be a struggle for them. Steve had a hard day under center, it was a fast rush and was under constraint pressure. When he did have time to throw it was had to be short. At one point he took a deep shot against me where Matteo had a step on me, but Steve threw it so far out of bounds that there was no way it was ever going to be caught. If I had been Steve, I would have tried it again at least once. The first half was dominated by Phoenix and the second half was just played with nothing exciting happening.

Heisenberg vs Knight Triangles (7-13)

I know very little about this game other than Heisenberg needing a few spares, so Simon and Yann were there helping and were the only reason why Heisenberg got on the score board. After the performance Knight Triangles had last week, everyone was ready to put them as one of the favorites to win it all. Well after this week those expectations have dropped dramatically. Knight Triangles couldn’t do much on the ground or through the air. On defense they managed to get 3 picks and a sack, but this was against a will little to no experience player at QB. All the scoring was done on 3 consecutive drives. The first by Knight to end the half, followed by Knight starting with the ball in the second half and then Yann went QB for Heisenberg and marched them down to score. Other than those 3 drives the game was slow boring and nothing exciting happening. This is what you expect to see in D5 early in the season.

There you have it, this week’s wrap up or at least from my side. You should tune in to Terry and Will on MFL Access to see what they have to say about what they say out there this weekend. The leagues podcast which goes up on Wednesday and you can catch it on our Facebook page or YouTube channel.

Player of the Week

Last week I talked about giving a prize to the winner like I did in the fall and what I have come up with is one prize for the entire league. That means if you win my player of the week your name will get entered a draw with everyone else that has one and I will pick a random name from a hat to see who one. You can only get nominated for the highest division you play in and yes if you get more than 1 nomination your name goes in more than once. Here are this week’s winners.

Division 1

Offense

- Guillaume Roberts pulled in 8 passes for 117 yards and 2 TDs.

Defense

- Felix Bergeron made 4 tackles and had 3 sacks.

Division 2

Offense

- David Gutkovsky went 6 of 9 for 35 yards, ran once for 5 yards, caught 5 passes for 59 yards and 1 TD.

Defense

- Francois Rochette made 4 tackles, 2 picks and returned 1 for a TD.

Division 3

Offense

- JF Daloze went 5 of 11 for 63 yards and 1 TD. JF also ran 4 times for 21 yards and a TD, he also caught 4 passes for 19 yards and 3 TDs.

Defense

- Victor Okoro made 7 tackles and had 4 sacks.

Division 4

Offense

- Steve Morisseau made 6 catches for 142 yards and 4 TDs and 1 1point convert.

Defense

- Caio Brayner had 3 picks and returned all 3 for TDs.

Division 5

Offense

- Lakshmi Sharma grabbed 5 passes for 59 yards, 1 TD and 1 2point convert.

Defense

- Gabrielle Chaput made 3 tackles, 1 sack 2 picks and returned 1 for a TD all on her birthday.

Those are my picks for this week’s players of the week. Congratulations to all the winners this week, and for those who didn’t make it better luck next week.