Wait! I'm here, I just couldn't post this last night due to some site outages.
On to the second game of the playoffs!
First, congrats to all that moved on from week 1. It is great to see truly competitive games; I wish each week during the regular season was so contested...but I digress.
Now let's get down to it. There was only one upset from round one, where I firmly called for two. It is apparent to me now that the Gods winning is directly proportional to being picked to lose!
Alpha
#1 Sparta -vs- #5 Krakow
Sparta continues to roll, downing Liverpool (not so easily, I might add) en route to a showdown with Krakow. The ornery Kraks have been fuming over the week 3 loss to Sparta, constantly reminded of Bubble Wand stiff arms and Grill Wrecker drop-kicks (yeah yeah, play along). Will the fearsome Kraks be eating chicken this week?, albeit, not the tender, delicious chicken that we're used to, but tougher, muscular battle chicken...but these are crocodiles, they don't have the delicate palate that us humans do.
In any event, it will be difficult for Knowshon to get in gear versus Sarcanic Rodeo and the dreaded Chicken defense, so look for Jacky Thunder and Wes Felker to lead the assault. Sparta, meanwhile will dust off Bubble Wand and Grill wrecker and look to smack the reptiles right in the mouth.
Krakow's turnaround will end tomorrow. Sparta is just too much for the Kraks to handle. But please, please prove me wrong, and give Chernobyl a chance at a 3rd home playoff game!
28-17 Sparta
#2 Chernobyl -vs- #3 Rotterdam
Rotterdam marches in to The Reactor this week looking for a reckoning. A loss to the Disaster at midseason left a sour taste in the mouths of the Rampage, and now they are looking to up the ante with a playoff upset.
Stat Styles and his band of buffalo(am I right?) will continue to test the Chernobyl secondary, totally 281 yards passing in the previous contest. Meanwhile, Kung Foo Grip and the Disastrous defense will need to be sharp, looking for any lose balls.
This game is about as easy to predict as a coin flip. The last game's score was misleading due to two huge turnovers by the Rampage, and they'll look to correct the mistakes. That said, it's my party and I'll do what I want to, so I'm picking the Disaster to win at home!
Overtime 24-21 Chernobyl
Zeta
#1 Brown Bay -vs- #4 Belgrade
Bears at Packers. Sounds like a classic rivalry in the making, and the names alone should help to create additional animosity. There was surely no love lost in the previous meeting between these two, when Brown Bay put down Belgrade 24-17 at midseason, a statement game that Brown Bay didn't want to let slip away.
But the Bears are a resourceful lot, and look back at the 8/21 showdown and think more about the mistakes and poor execution than the lack of game planning. These two teams are quite similar, relying on a steady dose of HB and unyielding defense to put the opponent to rest.
In the battle between LaDainian Peterson and Owen Detts, I'm placing my bets on LP. Bruce Almighty has rallied the troops and has vowed to put the heat on Brainn Brohm.
I look for Belgrade to get everybody's attention, and everybody loves an underdog...
24-17 Belgrade
#2 Spanish -vs- #3 Hungary
Shardaddy and his ecclesiastical tribunal shocked the Eastern Europeans late this season with a victory over the then undefeated Hippos. But they come in to this game as underdogs to most, and will need to prove that the previous game was no fluke.
Fueled by solid game planning, Spanish simply took the ball and rarely gave it back, as the Hippos lay starving on the sidelines, watching as their defense was persecuted and condemned.
But aeaf123 vowed that day to let the playoffs do the talking, and now the time has come to backup up that claim. I expect Chris Broussard and Johnny Lee will both do the lion's share of work for their respective teams, but I think aeaf123 may have schemed for long enough to expose a weakness. If this game goes to the air, Mother Stuffer will rise to the challenge.
31-21 Hungary