Well, the playoffs are here and it's time to break things down a bit and see what's what. 16 teams are in, 16 teams are out. Who has the best chance of going all the way? Who is ripe for an upset? Read on to find out how I see things in the first round.
Note: All games are given a number for upset potential. Upset implies the lower seed beating the higher seed and is my own opinion for the likelyhood of such a thing happening.
Alpha Conference
1. Krakow Cows (16-0) vs. 8. Bratislava Vampires (8-8)
Previous Matchup: Week 2, Cows win 43-9.
Commentary: Anyone who manages to go undefeated in GLB deserves all the accolades they receive. The Cows stayed at or near the top of AA4's Power Rankings since their inception and are eager to prove that they're the best of the best. The Vampires squeaked into the playoffs but they've had problems all year matching up well against the better teams in the conference so expect the Cows to handle their business and move on to Round 2.
Upset Potential: 0/10
4. Fehérvár Enthroners (11-5) vs. 5. Tallaght Outlaws (11-5)
Previous Matchup: Week 14, Enthroners win 20-10.
Commentary: This game is a rematch of two good teams in the middle of the playoff pack. The relatively low score doesn't denote how well the Enthroners controlled the game, which was kept from getting out of hand because of a few turnovers on their part. Since the win was accomplished recently, they obviously hold the upper hand in this contest, but the Outlaws are not to be dismissed. They're just as good as the Enthroners and this contest could go either way.
Upset Potential: 8/10
2. Dallas Smoke Stacks (14-2) vs. 7. Moscow Bears (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 13, Smoke Stacks win 33-10.
Commentary: A very strong Dallas team comes into the playoffs riding a 13-game winning streak while the Bears are a team that has trouble pulling out wins against mediocre teams, let alone the cream of the crop. There honestly isn't much to comment about here because the Smoke Stacks controlled their last game from start to finish and things don't look to have changed enough to believe it will be anything less the second time around.
Upset Potential: 0/10
3. Minsk Ninjas (14-2) vs. 6. International Players (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 12, Ninjas win 22-0.
Commentary: The Ninjas only two losses on the season came against the #1 and #2 seeds in Alpha, and in their previous matchup they held the Players a mere 130 yards. While the Players made a quick turnaround after a midseason losing streak in order to make the playoffs, they are still a team in flux and don't look to be able to put up much of a fight against a superior Minsk team.
Upset Potential: 1/10
Zeta Conference
1. Odessa Falcons (16-0) vs. 8. France Fire (7-9)
Previous Matchup: Week 7, Falcons won 49-3.
Commentary: Odessa is ranked the best team in the AA4 Power Rankings and France is a 7-9 team that barely made the playoffs. My commentary? I hope France brings plenty of vasoline.
Upset Potential: 0/10
4. London Head Hunters (13-3) vs. 5. Grodno Buckaroos (11-5)
Previous Matchup: Week 9, Head Hunters won 15-7.
Commentary: This is an odd matchup because despite their record, the Buckaroos have to be one of the weakest 11-5 teams this reporter has ever seen. The midseason contest between these two was a low scoring affair, highlighted by defensive stops, but not showing much on Offense. The Buckaroos didn't even score until the last two minutes of the game. The Buckaroos held well against some of the midcard playoff teams but they never had a real breakout game that said "We're here!". I'd like to say this contest could go either way but I think the Head Hunters will pull out a win and get a rematch against the Falcons in Round 2.
Upset Potential: 3/10
2. Warsaw Warriors (15-1) vs. 7. Carluke Cobras (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 5, Warriors won 23-13.
Commentary: Their first matchup was actually pretty good, with Warsaw not being able to put the game away until there was less than 5 minutes to go into the contest. For the Cobras, this game signified the start of their climb out of the cellar of Zeta where after a week 8 loss to the Tricity Hares they managed to put together a 6-game winning streak. However, since their week 5 contest, the Warrios have only gotten better. There is upset potential here, but it's small and will require a perfect game from the Cobras.
Upset Potential: 3/10
3. Tricity Hares (14-2) vs. 6. Volgograd Berserks (10-6)
Previous Matchup: Week 10, Hares won 17-6.
Commentary: Their earlier matchup was highlighted by some very good defensive playing, so expect this game to exhibit the same. Despite being 10-6 team, the Berserks have exhibited some of the better defensive efforts of the league that doesn't belong to an undefeated team, holding all but 2 teams to less than 20 points and never allowing more than 24. They need that type of play in this game because their offense has yet to field more than 27 points in a game, and only went over 20 points 3 times total. The Hares are in a similar spot, but they've managed to win more games and are the favorites here as a result. Despite the disparity in win-loss records, these two teams match up very well and there is definite upset potential here.
Upset Potential: 5/10
Note: All games are given a number for upset potential. Upset implies the lower seed beating the higher seed and is my own opinion for the likelyhood of such a thing happening.
Alpha Conference
1. Krakow Cows (16-0) vs. 8. Bratislava Vampires (8-8)
Previous Matchup: Week 2, Cows win 43-9.
Commentary: Anyone who manages to go undefeated in GLB deserves all the accolades they receive. The Cows stayed at or near the top of AA4's Power Rankings since their inception and are eager to prove that they're the best of the best. The Vampires squeaked into the playoffs but they've had problems all year matching up well against the better teams in the conference so expect the Cows to handle their business and move on to Round 2.
Upset Potential: 0/10
4. Fehérvár Enthroners (11-5) vs. 5. Tallaght Outlaws (11-5)
Previous Matchup: Week 14, Enthroners win 20-10.
Commentary: This game is a rematch of two good teams in the middle of the playoff pack. The relatively low score doesn't denote how well the Enthroners controlled the game, which was kept from getting out of hand because of a few turnovers on their part. Since the win was accomplished recently, they obviously hold the upper hand in this contest, but the Outlaws are not to be dismissed. They're just as good as the Enthroners and this contest could go either way.
Upset Potential: 8/10
2. Dallas Smoke Stacks (14-2) vs. 7. Moscow Bears (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 13, Smoke Stacks win 33-10.
Commentary: A very strong Dallas team comes into the playoffs riding a 13-game winning streak while the Bears are a team that has trouble pulling out wins against mediocre teams, let alone the cream of the crop. There honestly isn't much to comment about here because the Smoke Stacks controlled their last game from start to finish and things don't look to have changed enough to believe it will be anything less the second time around.
Upset Potential: 0/10
3. Minsk Ninjas (14-2) vs. 6. International Players (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 12, Ninjas win 22-0.
Commentary: The Ninjas only two losses on the season came against the #1 and #2 seeds in Alpha, and in their previous matchup they held the Players a mere 130 yards. While the Players made a quick turnaround after a midseason losing streak in order to make the playoffs, they are still a team in flux and don't look to be able to put up much of a fight against a superior Minsk team.
Upset Potential: 1/10
Zeta Conference
1. Odessa Falcons (16-0) vs. 8. France Fire (7-9)
Previous Matchup: Week 7, Falcons won 49-3.
Commentary: Odessa is ranked the best team in the AA4 Power Rankings and France is a 7-9 team that barely made the playoffs. My commentary? I hope France brings plenty of vasoline.
Upset Potential: 0/10
4. London Head Hunters (13-3) vs. 5. Grodno Buckaroos (11-5)
Previous Matchup: Week 9, Head Hunters won 15-7.
Commentary: This is an odd matchup because despite their record, the Buckaroos have to be one of the weakest 11-5 teams this reporter has ever seen. The midseason contest between these two was a low scoring affair, highlighted by defensive stops, but not showing much on Offense. The Buckaroos didn't even score until the last two minutes of the game. The Buckaroos held well against some of the midcard playoff teams but they never had a real breakout game that said "We're here!". I'd like to say this contest could go either way but I think the Head Hunters will pull out a win and get a rematch against the Falcons in Round 2.
Upset Potential: 3/10
2. Warsaw Warriors (15-1) vs. 7. Carluke Cobras (9-7)
Previous Matchup: Week 5, Warriors won 23-13.
Commentary: Their first matchup was actually pretty good, with Warsaw not being able to put the game away until there was less than 5 minutes to go into the contest. For the Cobras, this game signified the start of their climb out of the cellar of Zeta where after a week 8 loss to the Tricity Hares they managed to put together a 6-game winning streak. However, since their week 5 contest, the Warrios have only gotten better. There is upset potential here, but it's small and will require a perfect game from the Cobras.
Upset Potential: 3/10
3. Tricity Hares (14-2) vs. 6. Volgograd Berserks (10-6)
Previous Matchup: Week 10, Hares won 17-6.
Commentary: Their earlier matchup was highlighted by some very good defensive playing, so expect this game to exhibit the same. Despite being 10-6 team, the Berserks have exhibited some of the better defensive efforts of the league that doesn't belong to an undefeated team, holding all but 2 teams to less than 20 points and never allowing more than 24. They need that type of play in this game because their offense has yet to field more than 27 points in a game, and only went over 20 points 3 times total. The Hares are in a similar spot, but they've managed to win more games and are the favorites here as a result. Despite the disparity in win-loss records, these two teams match up very well and there is definite upset potential here.
Upset Potential: 5/10
Last edited May 27, 2008 13:25:02
