Food For Thought (D4) – Week 9

 

Out of the fire and into the frying pan… Such seems the fate of most teams vying for a last minute playoff spot. With six teams and three unclaimed seeds in each conference, the last week of the season has us holding our collective breath.

While some teams are on the rise, others are slowly declining. Of the twelve teams still in the hunt, Lobster Dinner, Primetime, the Sharks and Barbarianz Squad are currently surfing on a two-game winning streak. In the case of Lobster Dinner, they haven’t suffered a loss since mid-season and constitute one of the hottest teams in Conference A.

On the flip side, Run’n’ Wild, les Patriotes, the Commission, Those Guys and Mongoose (especially) may be playing their worst football of the season. In the case of les Patriotes, the absence of their all-star quarterback, Étienne Chauvin, isn’t helping their cause. Meanwhile, Run’n’ Wild will have a hard time not stumbling since one of their leaders Mark Guerriero will most likely be missing this week.

 

For all you lazy people who don’t want to calculate the path to a playoff spot yourselves, here are the detailed scenarios:

Conference A

Monstars: These purple meanies automatically qualify with a tie or a win. If they lose, they will need a loss from two of the following teams: Lobster Dinner, Razorbacks, Primetime or Mongoose. A tie also works (except for Lobster Dinner).

 

Lobster Dinner: A tie or a win guarantees them a playoff spot. If they lose, they need a tie or a loss from two of the following three teams: Razorbacks, Primetime or Mongoose.

 

Razorbacks: If they win, they are in (except if Primetime wins and the Mongoose tie or lose). If they tie, they need the Mongoose and Primetime to tie or Primetime to lose and the Mongoose to tie or lose. If they lose, they need Primetime and Mongoose to lose and Run’n’ Wild to lose, tie or win by a margin smaller than 21 minus the Razorbacks’ margin of defeat.

 

Primetime: If they win, they need either the Razorbacks or the Mongoose to tie or lose. If they tie, they need the Razorbacks and the Mongoose to tie or lose (both can’t tie). If they lose, they are eliminated.

 

Mongoose: If they win, they need both Primetime and the Razorbacks to tie or lose. If they tie, they need the Razorbacks and Primetime to lose. If they lose, they are eliminated.

 

Run’n’ Wild: They qualify only if the Razorbacks, Primetime and the Mongoose all lose and their margin of victory is higher than 21, minus the Razorbacks’ margin of defeat.

 

Conference B

Patriotes: If they win or tie, they automatically qualify. If they lose and the Kludgies, the Barbarianz Squad and the Commission win, they are eliminated.

 

Kludgies: If they win or tie, they automatically qualify. They are eliminated if they lose and two of the following three teams win: the Barbarianz Squad, the Sharks or the Commission.

 

Barbarianz Squad: If they win, they qualify. If they tie, they need both the Sharks and the Commission to tie or lose. If they lose, they are eliminated.

 

Sharks: Assuming they win….If the Barbarianz Squad lose or tie they qualify. If the Kludgies lose they qualify. If the Commission win and les Patriotes lose, they qualify.

If they tie, they need the Barbarianz Squad to lose and the Commission to tie or lose. If they lose they are eliminated.

 

The Commission: If they win and the Sharks win, they need two out of the following three teams to lose to qualify: les Patriotes, the Kludgies and the Barbarianz Squad (they can also tie). If they win and the Sharks lose or tie, they only need one of those three teams to lose or the Barbarianz Squad to tie. If they tie or lose, they are eliminated.

 

Those Guys: If they win and the Commission and the Barbarianz Squad tie or lose, they qualify. If the Barbarianz Squad win, they can still qualify if their margin of victory is larger than 37 minus the Kludgies’ margin of defeat. If they tie or lose they are eliminated.

 

Concerning the teams who have already qualified, congratulations are in order for the Jets, the Park-X Streets, the Gators, The Family, the Longhorns and the Hard Knocks who have all clinched their respective divisions!

 

And now, the Power Rankings and some predictions (as good as Maximum Carnage have been this season, they have fallen out of the rankings due to long-term injuries to key players):

 

1. THE FAMILY (8-1): The regular season champions and the favourites to reach the finals.

Prediction: The Family 42 – Rams 20

2. SPHINX (7-2): Mathieu Fafard and Étienne Cloutier are perhaps the best QB-receiver combination in all of D4.

Prediction: Sphinx 33 – X-Men 26

3. LONGHORNS (7-2): Overlooked by many (including myself) quarterback Jon Moodie has been masterful at the helm this season.

Prediction: Longhorns 32 – The Commission 26

4. JETS (7-2): The conference-leading underdogs!

Prediction: Jets 34 – Run’n’ Wild 27

5. TOP GUNS (7-2): Definitely under-rated, they have one of the best defensive players in D4: rusher Maurice Kaddis.

Prediction: Top Guns 27 – Eagles 22

6. GATORS (6-2-1): Perhaps the role of dark horse will suit them better in the playoffs. Less pressure can’t hurt their chances.

Prediction: Gators 28 – Razorbacks 25

7. X-MEN (7-2): A very balanced team; they still lack that decisive edge that will put them on top.

Prediction: X-Men 26 – Sphinx 33

8. PARK-X STREETS (7-2): They constitute one of the most efficient defensive-minded teams in FPF.

Prediction: Park-X Streets 22 – Mongoose 19

9. HARD KNOCKS (6-3): A very promising rookie team; QB Philippe Podtetenev is a rising star.

Prediction: Hard Knocks 38 – Barbarianz Squad 27

10. MONSTARS (6-3): They need to win this game to enter the playoffs on a high…They might have peaked too early in the season.

Prediction: Monstars 26 – Maximum Carnage 29

 

Don’t forget that Monday we will be announcing the recipients for all 4 individual awards!

Once again, I hope you have enjoyed this article. Good luck to all for this weekend’s games. For those who don’t like my predictions, I hope you prove me wrong (once again)!

If you have any suggestions, comments or wish to make a more direct contribution to this article, please contact me at [email protected]