I'm bored so I am going to post some stuff to see if there is any life at all out there.
Oceania Power Rankings
Championship Contenders
#1 - Walking Dead (3-0) - Call it a homer pick, but we have beaten WL teams in ranked scrims (both wins over teams that are 2-1 in WL) and taken care of business in league play so far. Until / unless we lose, I will have us as the top pick.
#2 - Dirty Island Gurupies (3-0) - Real good team that looks to have improved from last season by added some of their WL dots that were on the demoted New Orleans Gurupies team which made the WL semi finals. They are a major contender as they showed by handling the Brantford Smoke. They have not lost a game (scrim or otherwise) yet and look to be firing on all cylinders. I, for one, am glad two teams can promote from OPC, as beating this team will be a tough feat for any team.
#3 - Razorback Nation (3-0) - The Hogs are battle tested having played a ton of ranked scrims thus far. They have taken care of business in league play thus far but their first big test is coming up. We shall see if they are truly a contender after their game against WD.
#4 - Sumatra Seahawks (3-0) - These guys remind me of what OPL used to be. Sumatra and EEA used to own Zeta, taking turns winning Zeta and losing to Alpha in the gold trophy game
Those were the days. I have nothing but respect for everyone involved with this team. They are off to a solid start, but their competition as not been the strongest, so you have to wonder how they will fare in the middle part of the schedule. I think these guys will do well enough to get a 3-5 seed but my gut tells me they are not going to be quite good enough to get back to WL for a seventh time.
#5 - Brantford Smoke (2-1) - Their only loss is to Dirty Island, so this team could well deserve a higher rank. However, they lost to DI by the same score last season, and also lost to Sumatra and Razorback, so I need to see them win against those guys before moving them up. Still, this team has to be considered a contender and should not be taken lightly come playoff time.
Playoffs or Bust
Seems like a pretty big drop off between the top 5 and this group of teams. Some of these teams will make the playoffs, but I don't think any of them are a real threat to win the two games it takes to get to WL.
#6 - Asau Kings (2-1) - A team full of HCreek dots is something to be wary of. However, this team is into decline, with a little bit of Chemistry issues, and should be competitive in alot of games, but by playoffs should be a non-factor. For now, I have them in the 6 spot, by virtue of their win over BPN. I imagine this will not persist the whole season.
#7 - Banzai Pipeline 'Nites (2-1) - Another old OPL team that brings back memories of the good ole days. It's kind of funny that I have to pick between them and Offtopica for the 7 seed, since yello and beenlurken used to have some pretty epic forum exchanges. I guess it is just further proof of the decline of GLB that it isnt even worth arguing over anymore. BPN has historically been a solid team, but at least in my time in OPL (Season 18 - 26) was never able to get over the hump to being a contender. So far, that looks to still be true.
#8 - Offtopica Miracle (2-1) - OPL wouldn't be OPL without Offtopica. First off, congrats yello on getting to WL. That is an accomplishment I doubted you would achieve, but you gathered the right people to you, which is what an owner is supposed to do. Unfortunately, it seems that after your successful Season 34 campaign, things have not gone as well. This season looks to be more of the same to me. Don't get me wrong....I feel pretty confident OTM will make the playoffs, but most of the big time talent you had is gone or otherwise focused, so I would be pretty surprised if you are able to make a run in the playoffs.
#9 - Gold Coast Michelin Men (1-2) - GCMM has one of the toughest opening schedules, and it does not let up much until Week 7. The upcoming game with Fiji is critical if they want to avoid being in a real hole this early in the season. Similar to Paris, GCMM could open the season 2-4 but still be in decent shape to make the playoffs. They need to be sure to beat the teams in the 6 - 10 range tho.
#10 - Paris Smexies (1-2) - They opened with two of the best teams in the league and lost both games. However, they beat Fiji, which is a step in the right direction if they want to be a solid playoff team. The schedule remains tough for them, and they could easily end up 1-4 after 5 games. Even if that happens, they will not be out of the mix, as the main focus for them is how they do against the mid-tier teams with whom they are competing for a playoff berth.
#11 - Asau Assassins (2-1) - Their first two in-conference foes are bottom of the league teams, and they lost to a mid-tier SE Asia opponent. They have some work to do if they want to show they are a true playoff contender. Beating their neighbor, the Kings would certainly go a long way toward that.
#12 - Fiji Ventures (2-1) - It's hard to know what to make of this team. They have the second highest EL as a team, which would make you think they are a contender. However, they lost pretty handily to a Paris team that thus far looks middle of the road. That does not bode well for Fiji.
Playoffs, don't talk about playoffs. Are you kidding me? Playoffs?
#13 - Offtopica Grace (0-3) - Yello has some work to do if he wants this team to stay in Nat Pro. Still alot of dotball to be played tho, so they are not out of the picture yet.
#14 - Gridiron Avatars ~ Luminescent (0-3) - They aren't getting blown out by the good teams, which could mean they are better than they appear. However, they will need to find a way to score more than 7 points if they hope to have a shot at the playoffs.
#15 - Guam Chamoros Rising Sun Devils (0-3) - Hard to imagine a scenario there this team wins very many games, but who knows.
#16 - Mothball Mobsters (0-3) - Every league needs a bye week team. This is it for OPC.
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Oceania Week 4 Game Picks
Sumatra over Offtopica Miracle by 24
Gridiron over Mothball by 49
Brantford over Paris by 35
Asau over Asau by 17
BPN over Offtopica Grace by 34
GCMM over Fiji by 50
Dirty Island over Guam by 100+
GotW - Walking Dead over Razorbacks by 13
Oceania Power Rankings
Championship Contenders
#1 - Walking Dead (3-0) - Call it a homer pick, but we have beaten WL teams in ranked scrims (both wins over teams that are 2-1 in WL) and taken care of business in league play so far. Until / unless we lose, I will have us as the top pick.
#2 - Dirty Island Gurupies (3-0) - Real good team that looks to have improved from last season by added some of their WL dots that were on the demoted New Orleans Gurupies team which made the WL semi finals. They are a major contender as they showed by handling the Brantford Smoke. They have not lost a game (scrim or otherwise) yet and look to be firing on all cylinders. I, for one, am glad two teams can promote from OPC, as beating this team will be a tough feat for any team.
#3 - Razorback Nation (3-0) - The Hogs are battle tested having played a ton of ranked scrims thus far. They have taken care of business in league play thus far but their first big test is coming up. We shall see if they are truly a contender after their game against WD.
#4 - Sumatra Seahawks (3-0) - These guys remind me of what OPL used to be. Sumatra and EEA used to own Zeta, taking turns winning Zeta and losing to Alpha in the gold trophy game
Those were the days. I have nothing but respect for everyone involved with this team. They are off to a solid start, but their competition as not been the strongest, so you have to wonder how they will fare in the middle part of the schedule. I think these guys will do well enough to get a 3-5 seed but my gut tells me they are not going to be quite good enough to get back to WL for a seventh time.#5 - Brantford Smoke (2-1) - Their only loss is to Dirty Island, so this team could well deserve a higher rank. However, they lost to DI by the same score last season, and also lost to Sumatra and Razorback, so I need to see them win against those guys before moving them up. Still, this team has to be considered a contender and should not be taken lightly come playoff time.
Playoffs or Bust
Seems like a pretty big drop off between the top 5 and this group of teams. Some of these teams will make the playoffs, but I don't think any of them are a real threat to win the two games it takes to get to WL.
#6 - Asau Kings (2-1) - A team full of HCreek dots is something to be wary of. However, this team is into decline, with a little bit of Chemistry issues, and should be competitive in alot of games, but by playoffs should be a non-factor. For now, I have them in the 6 spot, by virtue of their win over BPN. I imagine this will not persist the whole season.
#7 - Banzai Pipeline 'Nites (2-1) - Another old OPL team that brings back memories of the good ole days. It's kind of funny that I have to pick between them and Offtopica for the 7 seed, since yello and beenlurken used to have some pretty epic forum exchanges. I guess it is just further proof of the decline of GLB that it isnt even worth arguing over anymore. BPN has historically been a solid team, but at least in my time in OPL (Season 18 - 26) was never able to get over the hump to being a contender. So far, that looks to still be true.
#8 - Offtopica Miracle (2-1) - OPL wouldn't be OPL without Offtopica. First off, congrats yello on getting to WL. That is an accomplishment I doubted you would achieve, but you gathered the right people to you, which is what an owner is supposed to do. Unfortunately, it seems that after your successful Season 34 campaign, things have not gone as well. This season looks to be more of the same to me. Don't get me wrong....I feel pretty confident OTM will make the playoffs, but most of the big time talent you had is gone or otherwise focused, so I would be pretty surprised if you are able to make a run in the playoffs.
#9 - Gold Coast Michelin Men (1-2) - GCMM has one of the toughest opening schedules, and it does not let up much until Week 7. The upcoming game with Fiji is critical if they want to avoid being in a real hole this early in the season. Similar to Paris, GCMM could open the season 2-4 but still be in decent shape to make the playoffs. They need to be sure to beat the teams in the 6 - 10 range tho.
#10 - Paris Smexies (1-2) - They opened with two of the best teams in the league and lost both games. However, they beat Fiji, which is a step in the right direction if they want to be a solid playoff team. The schedule remains tough for them, and they could easily end up 1-4 after 5 games. Even if that happens, they will not be out of the mix, as the main focus for them is how they do against the mid-tier teams with whom they are competing for a playoff berth.
#11 - Asau Assassins (2-1) - Their first two in-conference foes are bottom of the league teams, and they lost to a mid-tier SE Asia opponent. They have some work to do if they want to show they are a true playoff contender. Beating their neighbor, the Kings would certainly go a long way toward that.
#12 - Fiji Ventures (2-1) - It's hard to know what to make of this team. They have the second highest EL as a team, which would make you think they are a contender. However, they lost pretty handily to a Paris team that thus far looks middle of the road. That does not bode well for Fiji.
Playoffs, don't talk about playoffs. Are you kidding me? Playoffs?
#13 - Offtopica Grace (0-3) - Yello has some work to do if he wants this team to stay in Nat Pro. Still alot of dotball to be played tho, so they are not out of the picture yet.
#14 - Gridiron Avatars ~ Luminescent (0-3) - They aren't getting blown out by the good teams, which could mean they are better than they appear. However, they will need to find a way to score more than 7 points if they hope to have a shot at the playoffs.
#15 - Guam Chamoros Rising Sun Devils (0-3) - Hard to imagine a scenario there this team wins very many games, but who knows.
#16 - Mothball Mobsters (0-3) - Every league needs a bye week team. This is it for OPC.
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Oceania Week 4 Game Picks
Sumatra over Offtopica Miracle by 24
Gridiron over Mothball by 49
Brantford over Paris by 35
Asau over Asau by 17
BPN over Offtopica Grace by 34
GCMM over Fiji by 50
Dirty Island over Guam by 100+
GotW - Walking Dead over Razorbacks by 13
Edited by Plankton on Jul 31, 2013 22:27:40
