Inside the Red Zone (D1) – Week 9

 

After nine weeks of football, five of six teams have clinched a playoff spot. They are Montreal’s Finest (8-1), Demons (7-1-1), Expos (5-4), Rainmakers (5-4) and Old Skool (3-4-2). Congratulations to these five teams for reaching the next stage. That said, there is one spot left and it will go to either the Redhawks or the Express.

If you think that’s exciting, it gets better. The Redhawks and the Express will play each other on Saturday to decide who gets the last spot. It’s a must-win situation for the Express, a loss or a tie is not good enough. I definitely like the Express’ chances because they have been in many games like this in the past. Furthermore, they are the defending champions and surely want a chance to be able to defend their crown in the playoffs. Regardless, good luck to both teams and one thing is certain, it will be an electric atmosphere.

This weekend will be the last week of the regular season so if you’re in contention for an award, this is your last chance to stay ahead of the race. Let’s see who has a chance to win an individual award in this Winter 2011 Division 1 season. Before I can do that, here is this week’s edition of Behind The Flag.

L’Express: C’est des DBs!

The Express have been in FlagPlus Football since Winter 2006. They’re a great example of a team who works and plays hard, and thrives on challenges. They won their first championship in Winter 2008 Division 2 season where they upset the Demons in the semi finals. In Winter 2009, they moved up to Division 1 and made the playoffs despite having a tough season. Unfortunately, they lost in the first round. In Winter 2010, they had an up and down regular season but clinched a playoff spot on the last weekend of the season for a second straight year. They upset both the Montreal’s Finest in the semis and Expos in finals, en route to their first Division 1 championship (second in FlagPlus Football). In a nutshell, if you want to look up to a team in FlagPlus Football in terms of attitude, work ethic, leadership and loyalty, it’s L’Express.

Here is my interview with Patrick Chenard, who despite the deep pool of talent on the team, has become the face of the franchise.

1. Mathieu Thuot is the captain of L’Express but Who is the leader on offense and defense?
Thuot is not only our captain but he’s also a big leader on both sides of the ball. Nic-Arsenault Hum and Bruno Collette are also two great leaders on defense.

2. How tough has it been this season without SCC?
For sure it’s more difficult to play without the best WR in the country, but over the last few weeks, I have started to get more comfortable without him. Furthermore, the others receivers have started to step up their game too.

3. Do you believe L’Express would repeat as champions if SCC was playing?
Of course! Even without him our only goal is to make another upset and win another championship.

4. Why does L’Express always fight to make playoffs on the last week? (Three years in a row)
It’s always fun to have a bit of suspense at the end of the season!

5. The CLR Forces helped you out AGAIN by beating the Redhawks last week, is there a partnership between you guys?

Haha! There is no partnership but we respect each other a lot! Maybe they are L’Express fans and they like to see us in the playoffs.

6. AS QB, who is the toughest rusher for you? The toughest defense?
There are a lot of good rushers but Kevin Wilson is one of those that can make a game tougher for me. A good defense always comes with a good rusher and this year, Old Skool defense is a tough one to play against.

7. How confident are you in this week’s match up against Redhawks?
I’m confident and my players are too. We are going to make things happen and we are going to prove that we are the best team once again.

8. What is your game plan against Redhawks this Saturday? Do you guarantee a win?

The only thing that I can guarantee is that we’re going to play our best football of the season.

8. If you’re in the playoffs, how confident are you against Old Skool? Montreal’s Finest?

We know that we can beat anyone, it won’t be easy, but if we make plays and if we control the ball well, I think that we can go all the way.

9. Is it true that your first play on offense is usually a “stop and go” for Nic Arsenault Hum?

Hahaha! No it’s not true, but sometimes it still happens.

11. What does L’Express do for next year if they lose to the Redhawks? Old Skool? Montreal’s Finest? (Considering that you might barely make the playoffs)

I don’t know what’s going to happen with L’Express next year, we’ll see.

12. Do L’Express need to recruit someone to help the void left by SCC?

No one can replace a guy like him, but I think I have a couple of guys who can do a great job as wide receiver.

Any additional comments?

Good luck to the RedHawks this Saturday. Both teams need to win and this should be one of the most exciting games of the season. [Well Pat, they only need to tie!]

The Amazing Race

Quarterback

Kevin Wyeth: 182-255 for 2041 yards with 52 TDs, 2 INTs, 2 sack and 131.2 QB rating.

Chad Byers: 133-178 for 1575 yards with 43 TDs, 5 INT, 5 sacks and 129.1 QB rating.

Wide Receiver

Marc Champagnie: 47 receptions, 699 yards, 18 TDs.

Akked Moore: 49 receptions, 583 yards, 18 TDs.

Defensive Player

Patrick Chenard: 14 tackles, 6 INTs (1 for TD), 3 PDs.

Kishon Thompson: 24 tackles, 5 INTs (1 for TD), 1 PDs.

Two-Way Player

Michael Chitayat: 44 receptions, 454 yards, 11 TDs; 22 tackles, 3 INTs, 1 PD.

Tim Kraemer: 45 receptions, 437 yards, 11 TDs; 10 tackles, 4 INTs, 1 PD.

The Heisman (in that order)

1. Kevin Wyeth

2. Chad Byers

3. Carmine Pollice

 

That’s it for this week’s column. As always please email me for feedback/suggestions at [email protected]. Good luck to all teams this weekend and see you all next week Inside The Redzone.