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Week 13 provided a lot of good football. TB felt lucky about its predictions that were 5 out 7. This week looks to provide another quality slate of games, but before we go there, here is our continued thoughts on how the playoffs are shaping up.
American Conference Observations:
Teams out of the hunt: There have been no changes since the TEN WEEK REVIEW.
Wichita, Louisiana, Houston, St. Louis, Hartford, Fresno and Los Angeles. These teams are playing exactly .500 ball since the TEN GAME REVIEW ... so these teams have the potential to influence the playoff picture, a lot.
:shoot: SPRINT for a BYE: Montreal (12-0), Cleveland (10-2), Portland (10-2), and Murfreesboro (8-4).
Montreal, Cleveland and Portland had wins last week. All three teams have tough match-ups in this week's scheduled games. This week's winners will stake a definite claim for a playoff bye ... and Murfreesboro will sit back and see how bad their loss to Norfolk really hurt them for a bye. Right now the Mules are on the outside, looking in but are hopeful that the other three will experience a lapse of concentration in the coming week and let them have the chance to push the reset button. Injury wise, Montreal took the only big hit with starting LG out for the three weeks.
oke: The Wild Card SCRUM: Five teams continue to grab and claw in the scrum for any type of leverage for the remaining two playoff slots (the championship of the AC/East and a wild card slot are at stake). Listed in the order of difficulty of remaining schedule (easiest to hardest): Anchorage, Iowa City, West Virginia & Boston (both of these teams have the exact same remaining opponents), and Norfolk. Any team that runs the table will be in for sure ... and this is a possibility.
Anchorage (6-6) The Lynx were outmatched against Cleveland this last week. Things get much easier from here on out. The only playoff hopeful that remains on their schedule is Vermont. The Lynx just must take 3 of 4 and with winning those, there is optimism. But even if they do this, it still may not be enough if they find themselves in a tie at 9 wins. In head-to-head tie breakers, Anchorage would lose to Norfolk and Boston but win vs. West Virginia. Anchorage visits one win Orlando this week
Iowa City (6-6) Iowa City also lost last week and like Anchorage has only one other playoff hopeful on the remaining schedule - Montreal. At 9 wins, Iowa City would lose a head-to-head tie breaker vs. West Virgina and their conference record is the second worst behind Anchorage. They host one win Lansing this week.
West Virginia (8-4) The Beasts continue to find themselves in a three-way slug-fest for the AC/East crown. We just do not want to know what body parts are being pulled in that scrum! WV also lost a starting tackle but look to have a solid replacement in the wings. They travel to Tulsa this week and would like to win since Norfolk appears in their their rear view mirror and will come knocking next week.
Boston (7-5) Boston played a heart breaker against undefeated Montreal last week. It is obvious that the AC/East is not lallygagging around and the Dragons are very much a part of this behavior. Boston gets a little reprieve this week as visit Little Rock who came to life last week versus Reno.
Norfolk (7-5) Surprisingly, the Vipers extend their win streak vs. AC South division champion – Murfreesboro. Seems like Norfolk has found a stingy defense which has allowed an average of 6 points in the last four games. But it will take more than defense from here on out. The road to their playoffs is not a pretty one as the Vipers are the only team in the IFL that finds a playoff hopeful for every game on their remaining schedule. Georgia is next.
National Conference Observations:
Teams out of the hunt: One new team added to the list. Reno, who found a way to lose to Little Rock last week, gets this honor despite being mathematically still in the hunt. Dakota, Lansing, Little Rock, Orlando, Reno, Salt Lake City
:shoot: SPRINT for a BYE: Pennsylvania (9-3), Tulsa (10-2) & Newark(10-2).
Newark lost to Pennsylvania which plays HUGE for a potential bye. Tulsa won. But with this said, playoff byes remain undetermined at this time. All three teams have incredible games this week ... the smoke may settle a little after they have been played.
oke:The Wild Card SCRUM: This leaves seven teams still in the NC scrum -- looking to snatch one of three playoff berths (championship of NC/West and two wild cards) -listed in order of weakest schedule to hardest schedule: Vermont, Vancouver, Oakland, Georgia, Texas, Lawrence, Madison.
Vermont (7-5) The Mountaineers beat Lansing as expected. Their schedule continues to look favorable for a playoff bid. Los Angeles is next. Don't want to stumble here.
Vancouver (7-5) The Killer Whales are back on track and must continue to find the correct formula as they travel to Murfreesboro. A win here would be huge and could set them up for a showdown for the NC/West crown.
Oakland (8-4) As we mentioned last week, we wanted to see a little more or Mr. Mann. He showed us a 19-33 performance with 2 ints. The jury is still out on whether he can take Oakland over the top vs their remaining schedule. A loss against Louisiana this week would be devastating. The team's eight wins is a definite plus at this time.
Georgia (7-5) Georgia has been playing very well the past few weeks. They just hung a goose egg on Orlando last week. Now they visit Norfolk ... and this could be the game that "tells the story" for each team's season. Norfolk brings a seven game winning streak to the game. Georgia has played a playoff hopeful five of the last six weeks, besting Pennsylvania & Boston and losing to Texas, Tulsa and Madison. We think the Georgia/Norfolk game will be a great one.
Texas (8-4) Back to back wins against West Virginia and Lawrence have put the Trojans in the drivers seat for wild card berth. However, that ride has a few pot holes in the road which they need to avoid. One of them is this week against a dangerous Hartford. This is sort of a must win since Tulsa and Boston are in the wings.
Lawrence (6-6) We almost added the Phantoms to our "OUT" list but in deference to the outstanding manager at the helm and the fact that the loss last week was to a good team, we are still hanging in for that "promised" miracle run. It should start this week against Fresno. This takes nothing away from Fresno, who could be one of the best teams not contending in the playoffs and may finally put the last nail in the Phantom coffin.
Madison (7-5)The Demons came up big against Oakland last week. Cleveland is next, then a break against Lansing which is only the calm before the storm. The fireworks finale is set against Montreal and Pennsylvania. Simply put, the nastiest of schedules.
TB picked 5 of 7 last week. There are six great games that include a playoff hopeful on each side of the field this week. Some of them may be a preview of an Imperial Bowl match-up. Here's our slant on them:
Montreal at Pennsylvania … the Lions still have not lost at home and this includes the victory over Newark last week. Will the Firebirds need two cartoon postings this week? We think the winning streak will continue ... not for Montreal but for Pennsylvania's winning streak at home.
Newark at Portland … the Seals also have not lost at home. QB Caro, at home, easily out-whoppers the "burger king's" efforts. TB predicts a second loss in a row for Newark.
Cleveland at Madison … both teams are playing pretty good. We see that Madison leads the league in turnover ratio and have a hunch that this may be the difference in this game. The Demons upset the Clawz in a close one.
Georgia at Norfolk … this should be a slug-fest. Let the best man stay standing. Home field advantage edges Norfolk for the W.
West Virginia at Tulsa … A wild one for sure. West Virginia's O-line is a transition. Rodriguez out but LT Grant back to replace. RG Hodges not fully healthy. Tulsa has had a problem winning the big one this year. We think this is another big one but Tulsa is at home. The Pennsylvania and Newark losses were away and Tulsa has not lost at home. We think the TigerHawks will put West Virgina away.
Vancouver at Murfreesboro … Despite the Mules locking up their division, they still have an outside chance for a bye with some awkward play of the teams currently ahead of them now. So we see Murfreesboro bringing their "A" game and not having any difficulty with Vancouver.
The analysis this week sort of reveals how important home field advantage looks to be this season. This should add a little extra incentive to claiming those playoff byes.
American Conference Observations:
Teams out of the hunt: There have been no changes since the TEN WEEK REVIEW.Wichita, Louisiana, Houston, St. Louis, Hartford, Fresno and Los Angeles. These teams are playing exactly .500 ball since the TEN GAME REVIEW ... so these teams have the potential to influence the playoff picture, a lot.
:shoot: SPRINT for a BYE: Montreal (12-0), Cleveland (10-2), Portland (10-2), and Murfreesboro (8-4).
Montreal, Cleveland and Portland had wins last week. All three teams have tough match-ups in this week's scheduled games. This week's winners will stake a definite claim for a playoff bye ... and Murfreesboro will sit back and see how bad their loss to Norfolk really hurt them for a bye. Right now the Mules are on the outside, looking in but are hopeful that the other three will experience a lapse of concentration in the coming week and let them have the chance to push the reset button. Injury wise, Montreal took the only big hit with starting LG out for the three weeks.
oke: The Wild Card SCRUM: Five teams continue to grab and claw in the scrum for any type of leverage for the remaining two playoff slots (the championship of the AC/East and a wild card slot are at stake). Listed in the order of difficulty of remaining schedule (easiest to hardest): Anchorage, Iowa City, West Virginia & Boston (both of these teams have the exact same remaining opponents), and Norfolk. Any team that runs the table will be in for sure ... and this is a possibility.Anchorage (6-6) The Lynx were outmatched against Cleveland this last week. Things get much easier from here on out. The only playoff hopeful that remains on their schedule is Vermont. The Lynx just must take 3 of 4 and with winning those, there is optimism. But even if they do this, it still may not be enough if they find themselves in a tie at 9 wins. In head-to-head tie breakers, Anchorage would lose to Norfolk and Boston but win vs. West Virginia. Anchorage visits one win Orlando this week
Iowa City (6-6) Iowa City also lost last week and like Anchorage has only one other playoff hopeful on the remaining schedule - Montreal. At 9 wins, Iowa City would lose a head-to-head tie breaker vs. West Virgina and their conference record is the second worst behind Anchorage. They host one win Lansing this week.
West Virginia (8-4) The Beasts continue to find themselves in a three-way slug-fest for the AC/East crown. We just do not want to know what body parts are being pulled in that scrum! WV also lost a starting tackle but look to have a solid replacement in the wings. They travel to Tulsa this week and would like to win since Norfolk appears in their their rear view mirror and will come knocking next week.
Boston (7-5) Boston played a heart breaker against undefeated Montreal last week. It is obvious that the AC/East is not lallygagging around and the Dragons are very much a part of this behavior. Boston gets a little reprieve this week as visit Little Rock who came to life last week versus Reno.
Norfolk (7-5) Surprisingly, the Vipers extend their win streak vs. AC South division champion – Murfreesboro. Seems like Norfolk has found a stingy defense which has allowed an average of 6 points in the last four games. But it will take more than defense from here on out. The road to their playoffs is not a pretty one as the Vipers are the only team in the IFL that finds a playoff hopeful for every game on their remaining schedule. Georgia is next.
National Conference Observations:
Teams out of the hunt: One new team added to the list. Reno, who found a way to lose to Little Rock last week, gets this honor despite being mathematically still in the hunt. Dakota, Lansing, Little Rock, Orlando, Reno, Salt Lake City:shoot: SPRINT for a BYE: Pennsylvania (9-3), Tulsa (10-2) & Newark(10-2).
Newark lost to Pennsylvania which plays HUGE for a potential bye. Tulsa won. But with this said, playoff byes remain undetermined at this time. All three teams have incredible games this week ... the smoke may settle a little after they have been played.
oke:The Wild Card SCRUM: This leaves seven teams still in the NC scrum -- looking to snatch one of three playoff berths (championship of NC/West and two wild cards) -listed in order of weakest schedule to hardest schedule: Vermont, Vancouver, Oakland, Georgia, Texas, Lawrence, Madison.Vermont (7-5) The Mountaineers beat Lansing as expected. Their schedule continues to look favorable for a playoff bid. Los Angeles is next. Don't want to stumble here.
Vancouver (7-5) The Killer Whales are back on track and must continue to find the correct formula as they travel to Murfreesboro. A win here would be huge and could set them up for a showdown for the NC/West crown.
Oakland (8-4) As we mentioned last week, we wanted to see a little more or Mr. Mann. He showed us a 19-33 performance with 2 ints. The jury is still out on whether he can take Oakland over the top vs their remaining schedule. A loss against Louisiana this week would be devastating. The team's eight wins is a definite plus at this time.
Georgia (7-5) Georgia has been playing very well the past few weeks. They just hung a goose egg on Orlando last week. Now they visit Norfolk ... and this could be the game that "tells the story" for each team's season. Norfolk brings a seven game winning streak to the game. Georgia has played a playoff hopeful five of the last six weeks, besting Pennsylvania & Boston and losing to Texas, Tulsa and Madison. We think the Georgia/Norfolk game will be a great one.
Texas (8-4) Back to back wins against West Virginia and Lawrence have put the Trojans in the drivers seat for wild card berth. However, that ride has a few pot holes in the road which they need to avoid. One of them is this week against a dangerous Hartford. This is sort of a must win since Tulsa and Boston are in the wings.
Lawrence (6-6) We almost added the Phantoms to our "OUT" list but in deference to the outstanding manager at the helm and the fact that the loss last week was to a good team, we are still hanging in for that "promised" miracle run. It should start this week against Fresno. This takes nothing away from Fresno, who could be one of the best teams not contending in the playoffs and may finally put the last nail in the Phantom coffin.
Madison (7-5)The Demons came up big against Oakland last week. Cleveland is next, then a break against Lansing which is only the calm before the storm. The fireworks finale is set against Montreal and Pennsylvania. Simply put, the nastiest of schedules.
TB picked 5 of 7 last week. There are six great games that include a playoff hopeful on each side of the field this week. Some of them may be a preview of an Imperial Bowl match-up. Here's our slant on them:
Montreal at Pennsylvania … the Lions still have not lost at home and this includes the victory over Newark last week. Will the Firebirds need two cartoon postings this week? We think the winning streak will continue ... not for Montreal but for Pennsylvania's winning streak at home.
Newark at Portland … the Seals also have not lost at home. QB Caro, at home, easily out-whoppers the "burger king's" efforts. TB predicts a second loss in a row for Newark.
Cleveland at Madison … both teams are playing pretty good. We see that Madison leads the league in turnover ratio and have a hunch that this may be the difference in this game. The Demons upset the Clawz in a close one.
Georgia at Norfolk … this should be a slug-fest. Let the best man stay standing. Home field advantage edges Norfolk for the W.
West Virginia at Tulsa … A wild one for sure. West Virginia's O-line is a transition. Rodriguez out but LT Grant back to replace. RG Hodges not fully healthy. Tulsa has had a problem winning the big one this year. We think this is another big one but Tulsa is at home. The Pennsylvania and Newark losses were away and Tulsa has not lost at home. We think the TigerHawks will put West Virgina away.
Vancouver at Murfreesboro … Despite the Mules locking up their division, they still have an outside chance for a bye with some awkward play of the teams currently ahead of them now. So we see Murfreesboro bringing their "A" game and not having any difficulty with Vancouver.
The analysis this week sort of reveals how important home field advantage looks to be this season. This should add a little extra incentive to claiming those playoff byes.
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