Statement Wins, Big Performances, and Win Number One

With the long weekend here, the scheduling is a little off this week as FPF, has tried to accommodate schedule requests, while at the same time attempting to give as many players a chance to enjoy the extra time off as possible. Last week however, we saw a full slate of games, and we were treated to some solid football action. Some teams had statement wins, a few kept with the status quo, while others earned their first check in the win column.

We also saw several standout performances by several players. Some were done by rookies, and others were from big names who gave us a little reminder that they are still here, and we should put some respect on their names.

Here we go…

After scoring a huge (58-50) upset win over the Braves last week, the Party Crashers looked to make it two in a row as they took on the Allstars, last Monday at Stade de Montreal.

Despite starting off in a (20-7) hole early, due to touchdowns by Paul Lapierre, Patrick Jérome, and Quaid Johnson, the first half was tight, as the Party Crashers would rebound with scores of their own from Emile Taillefer and Phil Pharand to head into the break trailing (20-14).

 The second half of the contest was another story, as the Allstars defense put the clamps on their opponent’s offense, by forcing a punt on their opening possession, then recording interceptions from Wade Shallcross Jr., and Matt Bond on consecutive drives.

The Allstars offense took advantage of the extra possessions, as Quarterback Kevin Wyeth, would find Jérome for his second touchdown of the evening, and would also connect with Snapper Tony Lalla for a pair of TDs. Adding salt in the wound, was a trip to the endzone by Jacques Void with two plays left in the game.

It’s always great to see a good guy and football lifer like Lalla get on the scoreboard. He is an underrated key piece to the Allstar’s offense, and his connection with Wyeth, goes all the way back to their days together as Chateauguay Raiders.

The Party Crashers have shown they belong in Division A. To beat the team at the top of the food chain, they will need to cut down on the mistakes, protect the ball, score more than six second-half points, and hold the Allstars to less than nine yards per play.

The Allstars made it a perfect two for two in the win column, as they also beat The Apocalypse (42-30).

At first glance, you could probably chalk the win for the Allstars up to the performance of Quaid Johnson, and rightfully so, as the former Concordia Stingers, put on a brilliant display, as he registered four touchdowns, including the game-winner.

The Apocalypse only trailed (20-18) at halftime. Although they got a 40-yard touchdown from James Ohayon, and a 30-yard TD from Stephen Osman, they couldn’t keep pace with their opponents in the second stanza due to a turnover on downs that came during a clock-killing nine-play drive. The Allstars’ offense on the other hand, would score quickly on consecutive drives that lasted three, three, and four plays respectively.  

Another key to the Allstars win, was the play of Chris Milard. After failing to go over 100 yards in every game during the Winter Season, Milard, has become a focal point of the Allstars offense this year, as the veteran Receiver has gone over the century mark in two out of his team’s last three games, including finishing this outing with 109 yards and TD on six receptions. While he might occasionally run the wrong route, Milard, still possesses the speed, strength, and skill to create separation, and be an impactful player that opposing defenses must always be aware of when he is on the field.

Speaking of defense, Milard also made an impact on that side of the ball as well, as he recorded a game-high two pass deflections, to go along four tackles.

After being on the bye-week during last week’s action, Mo’ Khans, Mo’ Problems, returned to action in a big way, with a dominant win over KGP.

In football, and any sport for that matter, stats only tell a part of the story. With that being said, if you told me that as a defense, you will be facing AJ Gomes, and both Sean and Rory Semerjian, and you held the trio to a combined seven catches and neither of them would go over 60 yards, I would rightfully assume that you would have a pretty good chance of winning the game.

Unfortunately for KGP, those number only tell half the story, as both Semerjian brothers found the endzone (With Sean doing it twice). While AJ Gomes had a pedestrian two catches for 14 yards, his younger brother Nicholas Gomes-Risso, had four receptions for 32 yards and two TDs as well.

What stood out the most in the (41-14) win by Mo’ Khans, Mo’ Problems, was their suffocating defense, as they held KGP, to a season-low 14 points. In the first half, the MKMP, played to near perfection on that side of thew ball, as they forced two turnovers on downs. The TD by their opponents came on their last possession of the half, by Snapper Julien Paiement.

The second half saw almost the same result, as KGP turned the ball over on downs on their first possession. While they did get a touchdown on their second drive via a 2-yard TD grab by Gabe D’Amico-Mazza, they would turn the ball over again, this time on a pick-six by AJ Gomes.

For KGP, the loss was their first since falling (26-21) to The Apocalypse to kickoff the season. Phil Cutler and his team will have a chance to rebound when they take on the Party Crashers Monday night at Stade de Montreal, in a Division 2 Semi-Final rematch that saw KGP win the contest (38-32).

After calling them out last week, the Braves and their defense, responded with an enormous (27-26) victory over Mo’ Khans, Mo’ Problems.

The Braves were short-handed for the matchup, as they were missing Quarterback Jonathan Maheu. Filling in for the 7-time All-Star and future FPF Hall of Famer, was Rec/DB William Trottier. Trottier, who is in his first year with the Braves, and B-Raves in Division B, has QB experience, as he threw for 1,704 yards and 35 touchdowns for the BBallers in Div. 2 this past Winter Season.

The dual-threat QB didn’t look out of place, as he went 12 of 14 for 141 yards, with four touchdowns and one interception. He would also add 21 rushing yards. He would throw the game-winning TD on a 2-yard pass to Receiver Guillaume Beland, with three plays remaining in the contest.

Other new additions to the Braves roster helped them pull out the victory, as the duo of Francois Rocheleau and Nicky Farinaccio, made an impact as well. Both players scored touchdowns as Receivers and provided tight coverage on defense. Farinaccio, would even tie for the team lead in tackles with six. I’ve seen Farinaccio play in Co-Ed over the years, and he is a legit playmaker especially on defense.

While the defense gave up two touchdowns to AJ Gomes, the unit did a spectacular job of limiting the teams other Receivers, as the combination of Rashawn Perry, Sean Semerjian, Nicholas Gomes-Risso, Isiah Allard, and Tam Vilaydeth were held to one catch each. Other pass-catchers in Rory Semerjian had two grabs, but he was kept out of the endzone, as was Benjamin McMahon, who despite having eight receptions, gained only 33 yards.

They may not have solved their Rusher problem, but the win for the Braves was huge, and a statement one at that, given they were able to knock off a championship contender without their starting QB.

After getting blown out (44-20) by BYOB in Wek 2, Touch It Catch It, earned back-to-back wins this past week, with victories over the Junkyard Dogs, and Mangoose.

In the (48-27) win over the Junkyard Dogs, Touch It Catch It Quarterback Fred Mallette, had the breakout game his team has been waiting for, as the former All-Star had 239 yards, seven touchdowns, and only six incompletions. He also contributed on the other side of the ball, as he intercepted JYD QB Jason Rossie.

Helping Mallette in the win was Receiver Isiah Allard, who led his team in catches, yards, and touchdowns with five, 84, and two respectively.

Two-Way threat Marc-André Lapointe had the biggest impact of all as he made plays on both sides of the ball, as he recorded two TDs as a Receiver, and a pair of interceptions as a defender.

The loss for Junkyard Dogs was a rough one, as it wasted a sensational performance by Hinsley Adams, as the speedster had four catches for a game-high 92 yards, as well as two touchdowns. If that wasn’t impressive enough, he also produced five sacks.

Looking at the bigger picture, coupled with the loss to the B-Raves two nights later, JYD, is now on a three-game losing streak, with tough games against the Moretti Crime Family, BYOB, Brand New, and Thor’s Hammer on tap. Good luck.

After the offensive explosion against JYD, Touch It Catch was able to rely on their defense and a late game interception by Nicholas Groppini, to defeat Mangoose (14-13). Both teams combined for 328 yards, only seven trips to the redzone, and five turnovers on downs.

Both teams won’t have to wait long to square of again, as they will go head-to-head for the final time in the regular season Thursday night in Brossard. Will we see the same defensive slugfest, or will we witness some fireworks on offense? We shall see.  

 The back-to-back wins by Touch It Catch It, must serve as a confidence booster, as they get set for their rematch against none other then BYOB this Thursday in Brossard, after falling to them at the same venue (44-20) just two weeks ago.

After losing their first two games of the season by a combined eight points, the Moretti Crime Family earned their first win of the campaign with a (38-33) upset victory over Brand New.

The game featured a lot of marquee performances from players on both squads. For Brand New, the Chris Milard Show continued in Division B, as he recorded four touchdowns, including two in the second half.

The Brand New offense also got a boost from Jordan Lessard, as the rookie threw two touchdown passes, and added another one when he picked off opposing QB Joey Taylor, and ran it back for a TD.    

For the Moretti Crime Family, defensive specialist Gabriel Wiseman, took over on offense, as he led his team with six catches for 74 yards and three touchdowns.

The team also received a big outing from the duo of Joel Malkin and Justin Lerner. The receivers played a big role in their team’s win, as they combined for 12 grabs for 119 yards and three touchdowns. Both players also played a big role in the team’s game-winning drive.

This matchup came down to the final minute. After a go-ahead touchdown by Milard, to put Brand new ahead (33-32), the Moretti Crime Family had six plays to respond.

After an incomplete pass on first down, Taylor was able to connect on consecutive passes to Malkin, for a gain of 19 yards and a new set of downs. After connecting with Lerner for a gain of 15 yards, the Moretti Crime Family were in the redzone. On the next play, Taylor found Wiseman for a 6-yard TD to re-establish the lead (38-33) with one play left in the game.

One the final play of the game, a pass by Robby Robinson of Brand New fell incomplete, giving the Moretti Crime Family the win.

After shaking off the rust earlier in the season and needing to develop chemistry with his offense, Quarterback Joey Taylor has looked sharp the past two outings, as he has thrown 12 touchdown passes and both his QB Rating and completion percentage have gone up as well. This team will only go as far as their QB will lead them. The more he gets comfortable and looks like the Taylor of old, the more dangerous this team will be. Two out of their next three games sees the Moretti Crime Family in favorable matchups. This team could hit the midway point of the season firing on all cylinders.

Before we get there, this was a spectacular finish between two good teams. Luckily for us, we won’t have to wait to long for a rematch, as both squads square off for the final time in the regular season on July 17th in Lachine.

Picks (favorites in bold)

Party Crashers vs Mo’ Khans, Mo’ Problems – Mo’ Khans, Mo’ Problems

Party Crashers vs KGP – Party Crashers (Upset Special and My pick for Game of the Week in Division A)

Thor’s Hammer vs Mangoose – Thor’s Hammer

Junkyard Dogs vs Moretti Crime Family – Moretti Crime Family

Touch It Catch It vs BYOB – BYOB

Brand New vs BYOB – Brand New (My pick for Game of the Week in Division B)

Mangoose vs Touch It Catch It – Touch It Catch It

Last Week: (8-0)

Regular Season: (15-2)

Upset Special: (3-0)

That is it for this week. I hope everybody is enjoying the long weekend. Grab a beer, hit a BBQ, spend some extra time with the family, get an extra workout in, get some practice, or do all the above.

Good luck to everybody in their games this week. In next week’s article, I will unveil my official power rankings, so look out for that.  

If you liked, loved, or hated the article, or simply feel that I left something out, do not hesitate to reach out to me at [email protected], or reach me on Instagram @brent_b51