Fourth-and-Goal (Div C) – Week 7
Thursday’s Terrible Threat
Welcome to this week’s edition of Fourth-and-Goal. Before I get onto my weekly shtick of recapping games and power rankings, I’d like to bring your attention to something. Those who have been scheduled with early games on Thursdays likely know the enemy that I’m talking about. Able to change the entire course of a football game, this is something that needs to be dealt with. We need to unite against the common enemy that is the Champlain Bridge. This enemy has been known to cost teams entire games and, at the very least, have players show up frustrated and disorganized. How can it be defeated? It has two weaknesses – Preparedness and Punctuality and I suggest you use both on Thursdays so that you and your team are not stuck with any unpleasant surprises and/or late arrivals.
With that, let’s look at what’s gone on this week:
Rip and Run Stand United
No Matt Young? No problem. Rip and Run put up a strong, seamless front without any weak links. Doug McKernan stepped in from option QB and quarterbacked the entire game for Rip and Run. Having completed only slightly less than 4 out of every 5 passes; McKernan spread the football efficiently and effectively. Having spoken to Matt Young about his absence, I now see why Young was none too concerned about how his teammates would step up. Les Franciscains didn’t have a rough outing, but had trouble making those third down catches against the stingy Rip and Run defense and were forced to punt numerous times. Rip and Run are currently the dark horse team in the division, and have a lot of stock in McKernan, who is currently at 11 touchdowns without a single interception.
Longhorns Continue to Struggle
Rewind five weeks. The Rude Bwoys were arguably one of the weakest teams in the (at the time) weaker Conference A. The Longhorns were a smart and able group who I predicted would make a deep postseason run. Back to the present; the Rude Bwoys are now poised to win Conference A and have the top seed in the playoffs and the Longhorns look like they will be the bottom seed. What happened, you may ask. Essentially injury and repeat absences are what seem to be plaguing the once-formidable Longhorns. The men in burnt orange simply need to field their full roster in order to play up to the Division C standard. The Rude Bwoys have been having a bit of inconsistency at the Snapper position, but this doesn’t seem to hold them down in the slightest; they are as red-hot as the jerseys they wear. With a 3-0-0 divisional record, they have essentially secured the top seed in Conference A.
Roster Limitations
(Excerpt from FlagPlus Football Roster Information, Spring 2011)
http://flagplusfootball.com/register.php#
– A player can only throw in one division
– Should a team violate any roster regulation throughout the course of the season, that team will automatically forfeit their game(s), and be obliged to release the other division player for the remainder of the season.
There’s obviously a method to my madness; I’m not for quoting things unnecessarily. (It is better to keep one’s mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and resolve all doubt. – Abraham Lincoln) Essentially, the Predators had beaten G.O.A.T. by roughly two touchdowns. However, due to the fact that Leon Holder has previously thrown in our B division, he is not allowed to throw a pass in Division C. Some people seem to be of the opinion that if this rule has no bearing on the course of a game, why enforce the rule? However, my retort is as follows: Whether or not a rule has an effect on the course of a game (a viewpoint which is HIGHLY subjective in and of itself) is irrelevant. It’s not at our discretion to pick and choose which rules suit us. Now, while in a situation like this, the team’s captain is somewhat at fault for overlooking a rule like this, they are not 100% to blame. Typically, a higher division player is someone who has enough league experience to know better. When a lower division team asks you to play for them, and you’ve been in this league for long enough, you should know better. I’m even fairly certain that you do.
Power Rankings
1: Mysterious and Magical Men – Still the best, despite a close win this week. There`s really not much left to say about them that hasn`t been said yet. Each player is a legitimate threat on the football field. Be wary.
2: Park-X Streets – Not #1 just yet. They have a legitimate opportunity to prove that they do belong in the number one position; however this will be a very different team without Billy Seretis. Can they continue their run?
3: Rude Bwoys – Undefeated in their last 5 games. As previously said, they look stronger now than they ever have in the past, even with the inefficiencies on offence.
4: Spring Cleaning – Two heartbreaking losses in the last two weeks; they run the risk of falling into a slump. Facing off this week against a frustrated Predators team, they need to strike early and strike often in order to come out on top.
5: Sphinx – Not really a dark horse team anymore… Even though this is a first-ever Spring season for the Sphinx, it is without a doubt a successful season as they elevate their competition every season, yet have over a .500 record.
6: Kardiac Kids – Divisionally 2-0-0. They seem to have done nothing wrong since Week 4. It appears that their level of competition is about to get steeper, but for a team as enthusiastic as this one, I don’t see it being a problem. I’ve also gone without mentioning Jordan McLaren, who is instrumental to this team’s success.
7: Eagles – Huge win this weekend against a struggling Spring Cleaning team. They have a light remainder of the season, so it looks like the Eagles will be in contention for some of the top spots in Conference A.
8: X-Men – Were it not for the fact that we’ve seen them play as a complete unit, those on the outside looking in could almost assume that Robin Bigras has been the QB all long. A strong supporting cast and football smarts is certainly an asset for this already efficient football club.
9: The Commission – Spiraling fast. Ahead of FOTC in the rankings due to the fact that their 1-1-0 divisional record is keeping them in strong contention; they can still win the games that really count.
10: Flight of the Conchords – The race for a playoff spot in Conference A is getting tighter and tighter. Hopefully they’ve learned from last season’s mistakes and will be able to make the adjustments to avoid being on the outside of this season’s playoffs as well.
Stray Observations
– Please stop running up the score on teams. There’s nothing quite as classless as celebrating when you’re up 45-7. The rules are made in such a way that the plus/minus has almost no account in determining your playoff standing (we learn from our mistakes) and we’re a recreational league… Be a man; do the right thing.
– Would like to shed some light on Marc-Olivier Ouimet. During the Falcons/No Names game, Gene Harrisson of No Names took a bad knee injury. Once Harrisson left the field, and the game continued. Ouimet, however, left the game and the sidelines in order to get Gene some ice. I’m sure that this was a completely selfless act on Ouimet’s part, but I’d like to say that sometimes people take notice.
– I’d love to seek out a league sponsor in Febreeze; it would do nothing but good for you and those around you. Especially in Brossard, but ESPECIALLY in Lachine.
Quick Picks
Hopefully by now you’ve noticed that I’m only right about half the time. Noteworthy is the fact that I went 3-0 in my last-week’s WEPL predictions. However, that’s Division D. One can only hope I’ll get over .500 in this Division at some point.
Les Franciscains vs. Rude Bwoys – Rude Bwoys
Spring Cleaning vs. Predators – N/A
Flight of the Conchords vs. Falcons – Falcons
X-Men vs. Kardiac Kids – Kardiac Kids
FAs vs. G.O.A.T. – G.O.A.T.
Eagles vs. No Names – Eagles
Sphinx vs. The Commission – Sphinx
Spicy Meatballs vs. Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies – Fire Breathing Rubber Duckies
Rip and Run vs. Longhorns – Rip and Run
Park-X Streets vs. Mysterious and Magical Men – Mysterious and Magical Men
Until next week, I can be contacted at [email protected]
Feel free to let me know how I’m wrong. Please don’t skimp on the details.