ALPHA CONFERENCE ROUND TWO preview
#1 St. Petersburg Piranhas (17-0-0) –vs– #4 Tallin Kings (13-4-0)
The Piranhas enter Round Two after continuing their win streak to 17 games by defeating 8th-seed Prague Cowboys. This week they face off against the Tallin Kings who's opponent, the Budapest Devils, laid a big fat devil'd egg on the scoreboard. It should not come as a surprise that the Piranhas remain the team to beat in Alpha Conference. Out of the 1474 offensive plays they ran, they scored a touchdown every 18.7 snaps, averaging 38.4 points scored per game.
This game will be game scored somewhere in the mid-teens to low twenty's. The Kings average 93.6 defensive snaps per game which is not good if going up against a Piranhas offense that averaged 95.6 offensive downs per game. Both teams' defense are about even for pass and rush defense. However, St. Petersburg only allowed five touchdowns all season whereas the Kings allowed 15.
In the end, Tallin will fight hard and make a late push but it won't be enough to keep St. Petersburg from moving forward to the Conference Championship game.
#7 Uniontown Blue-collar Bruisers (11-6-0) –vs– #3 Scranton Invaders (14-3-0)
It was upset town last week as the Bruisers visited the other Prague team (though don't tell them that). Down at the half, Uniontown's Brett Unitas, engineered a second half mastery of his art, throwing for two touchdowns to seal the victory before draining the clock. This week, they'll need to field their best performance because Scranton is one hell of a mighty team on both sides of the ball.
Scranton's offensive line boasts three likely Pro Bowlers which allowed the Invaders to average 181.3 rushing yards per game, scoring 31 on the ground. Scranton is coming off an unimpressive, by their standards, 13-6 victory over the Mongols. The Bruisers strength on offense is their running game. Considering that the Bruisers had a 12/21 TD-Int ratio in their passing game, they will need to rely on their strength in running the ball and hope that they stay on the field long enough to keep the Scranton offensive line off the field where they cannot do any damage.
Sorry to say it folks, I just don't smell an upset this week. Scranton's defense is just too good to keep their imposing offensive line on the sidelines. Scranton runs away, scoring at least 27 while the Uniontown Blue-collar Bruisers struggle to get to double digits.
ZETA CONFERENCE ROUND TWO preview
#1 Percival Dungeoneers (17-0-0) –vs– #4 Mukachevo Siege (12-5-0)
Another matchup where one should not be surprised of the two teams. Percival trounced the Pirates in a 55-0 embarrassment while the Siege were able to be the unlikely Hare to their Tortoises ...erm, Turtles. In most fairy tales, the Tortoise usually wins a slow even paced battle through all of the obstacles while the Hare sprints as fast as he can to try and gain a far enough advantage. The thing about that story though is the Hare in the story slowed down, which allowed the Tortoise to catch up and eventually beat him. However, in this matchup, this Hare decided that if he's gonna start out sprinting, he's going to continue sprinting until they cross the finish line.
The Siege collapsed in a triumphant fashion not allowing a single Odessa Turtle player to cross the goal line. This week though, they face the top ranked offense in terms of scoring and top ranked defense in terms of allowing scores. The only way to beat Percival this week is for the Siege to stick to their guns and pray that they do more than just score their average of 24 points per game.
Percival walks away with an easy victory but the Siege will surprise with at least 13 points, the most scored against this team all season.
#2 Athens Hoplites (15-2-0) –vs– #3 Berlin Rebels (14-3-0)
Matchup of the Week! The Hoplites feature a Top Five Passing Offense while the Rebels (sorry, not my Black Sea squad folks, I know you wanted to see them
), while the Berlin Rebels feature a Top Five Rushing Offense. Which group will come out on top?
The Hoplites crushed the Leningrad Czars 30-3 last week using their passing to open the rush while their defense completely neutralized the Czars rushing attack. The question remains is will the #4 Rush Defense be able to force the Rebels Offense to stay on the sideline?
Last week the Rebels fought hard through three quarters but looked to their fullback in the fourth to push them over the top. This week they'll need to once again stay the course but open the playbook up some to keep the Hoplites off-kilter.
I'm going with a Rebels victory this week as they run the clock off and drain the Hoplites' defensive energy and moral. My score? 17-13, Berlin Rebels.
#1 St. Petersburg Piranhas (17-0-0) –vs– #4 Tallin Kings (13-4-0)
The Piranhas enter Round Two after continuing their win streak to 17 games by defeating 8th-seed Prague Cowboys. This week they face off against the Tallin Kings who's opponent, the Budapest Devils, laid a big fat devil'd egg on the scoreboard. It should not come as a surprise that the Piranhas remain the team to beat in Alpha Conference. Out of the 1474 offensive plays they ran, they scored a touchdown every 18.7 snaps, averaging 38.4 points scored per game.
This game will be game scored somewhere in the mid-teens to low twenty's. The Kings average 93.6 defensive snaps per game which is not good if going up against a Piranhas offense that averaged 95.6 offensive downs per game. Both teams' defense are about even for pass and rush defense. However, St. Petersburg only allowed five touchdowns all season whereas the Kings allowed 15.
In the end, Tallin will fight hard and make a late push but it won't be enough to keep St. Petersburg from moving forward to the Conference Championship game.
#7 Uniontown Blue-collar Bruisers (11-6-0) –vs– #3 Scranton Invaders (14-3-0)
It was upset town last week as the Bruisers visited the other Prague team (though don't tell them that). Down at the half, Uniontown's Brett Unitas, engineered a second half mastery of his art, throwing for two touchdowns to seal the victory before draining the clock. This week, they'll need to field their best performance because Scranton is one hell of a mighty team on both sides of the ball.
Scranton's offensive line boasts three likely Pro Bowlers which allowed the Invaders to average 181.3 rushing yards per game, scoring 31 on the ground. Scranton is coming off an unimpressive, by their standards, 13-6 victory over the Mongols. The Bruisers strength on offense is their running game. Considering that the Bruisers had a 12/21 TD-Int ratio in their passing game, they will need to rely on their strength in running the ball and hope that they stay on the field long enough to keep the Scranton offensive line off the field where they cannot do any damage.
Sorry to say it folks, I just don't smell an upset this week. Scranton's defense is just too good to keep their imposing offensive line on the sidelines. Scranton runs away, scoring at least 27 while the Uniontown Blue-collar Bruisers struggle to get to double digits.
ZETA CONFERENCE ROUND TWO preview
#1 Percival Dungeoneers (17-0-0) –vs– #4 Mukachevo Siege (12-5-0)
Another matchup where one should not be surprised of the two teams. Percival trounced the Pirates in a 55-0 embarrassment while the Siege were able to be the unlikely Hare to their Tortoises ...erm, Turtles. In most fairy tales, the Tortoise usually wins a slow even paced battle through all of the obstacles while the Hare sprints as fast as he can to try and gain a far enough advantage. The thing about that story though is the Hare in the story slowed down, which allowed the Tortoise to catch up and eventually beat him. However, in this matchup, this Hare decided that if he's gonna start out sprinting, he's going to continue sprinting until they cross the finish line.
The Siege collapsed in a triumphant fashion not allowing a single Odessa Turtle player to cross the goal line. This week though, they face the top ranked offense in terms of scoring and top ranked defense in terms of allowing scores. The only way to beat Percival this week is for the Siege to stick to their guns and pray that they do more than just score their average of 24 points per game.
Percival walks away with an easy victory but the Siege will surprise with at least 13 points, the most scored against this team all season.
#2 Athens Hoplites (15-2-0) –vs– #3 Berlin Rebels (14-3-0)
Matchup of the Week! The Hoplites feature a Top Five Passing Offense while the Rebels (sorry, not my Black Sea squad folks, I know you wanted to see them
), while the Berlin Rebels feature a Top Five Rushing Offense. Which group will come out on top?The Hoplites crushed the Leningrad Czars 30-3 last week using their passing to open the rush while their defense completely neutralized the Czars rushing attack. The question remains is will the #4 Rush Defense be able to force the Rebels Offense to stay on the sideline?
Last week the Rebels fought hard through three quarters but looked to their fullback in the fourth to push them over the top. This week they'll need to once again stay the course but open the playbook up some to keep the Hoplites off-kilter.
I'm going with a Rebels victory this week as they run the clock off and drain the Hoplites' defensive energy and moral. My score? 17-13, Berlin Rebels.
Last edited May 30, 2008 12:01:45
