Word from the Mouth: Over 10 Yards! edition

Word from the Mouth: Over 10 Yards! edition

Kevin Kousaie

What a great weekend for football. The weather was great with loads of great games and countless players balling out looking in midseason form. 

Jon posted an article about how the clocks work and if you didn’t know how they work, you should take a quick look. 

Hope you all took advantage of the long weekend because you know what’s coming. Fall weather and that means rain, but even better (ed’s note: better? As in rain is a good thing?) you get all the leaves changing color and for all the pumpkin fans out there you get pumpkin spice drinks.

 

Recap

 

Division 1

 

Lockdown vs A-Team (25-32)

Dave struggled this week throwing 5 picks and only 3 TDs. Andrew balled out scoring 3 TDs and getting 1 pick on defense. Lockdown is a newly formed team, but all have experience playing flag and looked good most of this game. Simon played smart, not forcing many throws. In the second half it looked like A-Team was going to lose, but Andrew got his pick and returned it for the game winning TD.

 

Outlaws vs Iron Wolves (40-26)

Outlaws jumped up 22 points 8 minutes into the game, it looked like the game might be over early, but slowly Iron Wolves clawed back into the game. Rory and Marvin were studs for Outlaws scoring 5 TDS and 2 picks between them, it was hard for Iron Wolves to match up with that combo of height and speed. New player for Iron Wolves Isaiah was the one bright spot for Iron Wolves, scoring twice and countless blocks on defense as a rusher.

 

Division 2

 

Thunder Buddies vs Average Joes (26-18)

Defense was the big winner in this game. Between both teams there were 7 picks and 2 sacks, which made it a very low scoring game. (ed’s note: 26-18 is low scoring?)

 

Division 3

 

Mustard Tigers vs Phoenix (26-44)

What a difference a week makes for a team. Last week it looked like Phoenix shouldn’t be in D3 and this week they really stepped up on both sides of the ball. Early in the game Phoenix stepped up on defense and had short fields most of the first half. Phoenix had 5 picks and 3 sacks on defense and Khalil was up in Brian’s face all game long. At half the score was 25-6 Phoenix and in the second half the teams were even with both teams scoring 19 points. Jeremy led the way for Phoenix with 2 TDs and 3 picks, but it was a complete team effort. Alec had a rebound game from last week where he struggled to catch the ball and this week he caught everything, even bad passes. I want to apologize to Mustard Tigers for being a dick and calling timeouts late in the game when we were up, which isn’t cool. So, sorry about that.

 

Division 4

 

Bines Low Fat vs Drama Club (32-26)

Bines were only 6 players and for a roster their size, that isn’t good. JF had a good day going 20 of 28 for 206 yards and 5 TDs. Thomas balled out getting over 10 yards (ed’s note: I’m assuming this is a typo, but I’m leaving it indicating Kevin believes that over 10 yards is balling out) and scoring 3 TDs. Ben was the player that pops off the stat sheet, but Roxanne was the player Simon relied on when a play was needed. Roxanne had 8 catches and scored twice. The difference maker in this game was Shawn who had 5 sacks and was in Simon’s face most of the game.

 

Division 5

 

Slot Machine vs Drama Club (20-2)

At the start of the game, nothing was working for the two QBs. Slot machine had difficulty connecting with the snap which allowed Roxanne to have a safety on the first play while Drama Club had too many incomplete passes. Slot Machine decided to change the center and it changed everything. Drama Club had their chances as two of their interceptions put them in a really good position, but they just never managed to find their rhythm thanks to 2 interceptions and 2 sacks from Karmina.

 

TD Hunters vs Los Pollitos (19-25)

Los Pollitos and TD Hunters had a good game to watch. Despite dropping passes in key situations, they both found ways to put points on the board. The momentum changed sides when Samuel joined Louis-Philippe on the last play of the first half and on the first drive of the second half for two TDs (ed’s note: I have no idea what “joined” means in this context, but I picture a Voltron sort of thing). Losing by six and with 3 minutes to go, TD Hunters had time to cross the field and bring the game into overtime, but they couldn’t complete enough passes to succeed.

 

Phoenix vs Binettes (34-12)

Mathieu played a good game for a first timer. Julien and Mark were great for Binettes getting 10 catches for 115 yards and 2 TDs, then making 11 tackles, 2 sacks, and 1 pick on defense. What they needed was a third player to step up and make an impact. On the Phoenix Side of things their offense was led by Vince and Felix, but everyone caught the ball at least 3 times each. The difference in this game was defense. Gabe set the tone with her rushing, getting 1 sack for a safety, but forcing bad throws all day leading to 4 picks. What Phoenix did well was making tackles and not allowing YAC. 

 

I’m sure you’ll want to know more about what happened, so wait until Wednesday night (ed’s note: that’s tonight!) and Terry will have the podcast up then. 

 

Studs & Duds

 

Week 2 down and everyone is playing their asses off, so making my picks was a bit difficult. Here is who busted their ass this week to make a difference in their team’s games.

 

Studs 

 

Division 1

- Rory Kelly killed it in his 2 games played. He pulled in 18 catches for 248 yards and 5 TDs. On defense he made 5 tackles and had 1 pick. 

 

Division 2

- Max Rosenfeld had 3 catches for 29 yards and made 6 tackles and sealed the win with a pick. 

 

Division 3

- Terry Babalis went 40 of 52 for 289 yards, 6 TDs and ran 1time for 2 yards.

 

Division 4

- Francis Martins caught 5 balls for 45 yards and 1 TD. Francis also made 4 tackles and had 2 picks.

 

Division 5

- Kordell Holness-Lightbody made 7 catches for 124 yards and 3 TDs. On defense he had a pick 2 and that’s it.

 

Duds

 

Division 1

- David Daoust 5 picks thrown.

 

Division 2

- Victor Okoro only 1 catch for 5 yards, for a player of your skillset you need to make a bigger impact in the game.

 

Division 3

- Kevin Kousaie for pulling an Armenti. So you all know what that is, it’s when you’re up late in the game and you use timeouts to score another TD and extend the lead. (ed’s note: I would 100% call unsportsmanlike conduct on this as a referee and I encourage all referees to penalize Kevin any time you feel like it)

 

Division 4

- Iron Wolves for allowing Kris to throw a pass which is an automatic forfeit which might hurt them come playoff time.

 

Division 5

- Nico Poitevin for his 3 picks and not scoring any points on offense.

 

There you have it, my Studs and Duds for week 2.

 

Congratulations if you made it, better luck next week if not.

 

Rules of the Game: Timing

Rules of the Game: Timing

Jon Evans

This is a reprint of an older article about the timing rules in the MFL, but it’s been updated to reflect some rules that have changed as well as giving some more clear examples of how things work.

 

So, if you want to know about how the clocks in the MFL work, read on!

 

The Game Clock

 

MFL games are played in two halves of 22 minutes of partial stop time each.

 

That seems pretty straight forward, but a lot of people aren’t sure of what is meant by ‘partial stop time’. Well, the game clock starts and stops as follows:

 

- The game clock is stopped at the start of the game until the first snap of the ball, unless the referee has deemed that the scheduled game start time has passed and will indicate to the time keeper to start the game clock.

 

- The game clock is stopped on all scoring plays and remains stopped through the convert (if applicable) and only starts again on the first snap of the ball after the change of possession.

 

- The game clock stops on all changes of possession and remains stopped until the first snap after the turnover. So, if you get that late interception for that one last chance to drive down and win the game, you don’t need to call a timeout!

 

- The game clock CAN be stopped on all penalties. The non-offending team can choose to stop the clock after accepting the penalty, but they must inform the officials that they wish to stop the clock, otherwise it will continue to run.

 

- The game clock will also be stopped during the administration of a penalty. So while the refs are discussing the call and moving the bags, the game clock is not running!

 

- The game clock stops on all timeouts called and remains stopped until the next time the ball is in play. Timeouts last 15 seconds, and the referee will blow the play in once they have deemed both teams are ready, assuming they get ready in a reasonable amount of time!

 

- The game clock always starts running on a snap of the ball, except for during convert attempts.

 

Okay, so that covers the game clock. Simple enough, right?

 

The Play Clock

 

There are of course two clocks in football, so now we’ll cover the play clock.

 

The play clock determines how much time an offensive team has to put the ball into play before being called for delay of game. Here’s everything you need to know about the play clock:

 

- The play clock is generally started at 45 seconds.

 

- The play clock begins counting down for a play as soon as the previous play is over. This is why teams often find themselves running low on time after longer plays since they are losing time while they get to the distant huddle.  

 

Teams face this issue at all levels of football, but it’s part of the game! In fact, this timing is exactly what is done in the NFL.

 

- The play clock starts at 25 seconds on all plays where the clock is not started until the ready for play whistle is blown.This encompasses:

- A convert attempt

- The first play after a convert attempt is completed

- The first play after a turnover

 

The only exception to this is at the start of a half where the play clock begins at 45 seconds when the ready for play whistle is blown.

 

The clock is shorter on these plays because it only starts once the bags have been placed and the referee has blown the play in, rather than as soon as the last play ended. The length of time it takes the referees to place the bags and for teams to get ready on these plays is often much longer than a normal play, so 45 seconds might be too short, but it would be too long if we gave 45 seconds once the play was in fact ready.

 

The End of a Half

 

The last timing rule that seems to confuse some players is how the “Last Play” system works.

 

In the MFL, once the game clock reaches zero time remaining, the next play blown in by the referee will be announced as the last play. “Last Play” will always be announced before the play is blown in, so both teams should always be aware that it is the last play of the half.

 

Here’s a couple of examples:

 

- The game clock is at 5 seconds and counting down, at 3 seconds left the referee blows the play in. During the play the clock reaches 0 seconds. Before the next play is blown in, the referee will announce that the upcoming play is the last play.

 

- The game clock is at 10 seconds and counting. The referees are in the process of placing the bags and leaving the field. Before the referee can signal ready for play the time expires, so before whistling the play in, the referee announces that it is the last play.

 

So you can see that the timing of when a play is blown in is very important at the end of a half! If a ref blows a play in with 1 second left then there are two plays left, but if they only get it in a second later, it’s the last play!

 

So, that raises the question of when is the play blown in? For a play to be blown in, it requires the following:

 

- The bags are set for the upcoming play

 

- Both referees are in position

 

- The entirety of the offense and the football are behind the line of scrimmage

 

This last point can lead to some interesting clock manipulation. For example, let’s say that the offense wants the next play to be the last play of the half and there are 20 seconds left after a play. Let’s say that it’s fourth down at midfield and the offense just wants to throw it up one time, but they don’t want to give the other team the chance to do the same. Well, if they just have one player wait on the defensive side of the line of scrimmage until the play clock reaches zero, they can then get onside and the referee will announce that it’s last play before blowing it in. This is because there are zero seconds on the clock and the referee could not blow the play in until the offense was onside. This may seem like a small thing, but I have seen it done right and wrong many times in my career as a player and a referee!

 

I hope that makes everything about timing in the MFL completely clear to all our players!

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 2

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 2

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

Early in the season making picks sucks because we always have a few teams that surprise us. Last week I went 50% which is horrible, but it was still better than Willie at 47%. I plan on picking it up this week. Here are my picks in bold like always.

 

Division 1

 

Centurions vs Jagerbomb

They are the better team and more consistent.

 

Iron Wolves vs Outlaws

They won’t lose this week, Demario will dip his way for 3 total TDs.

 

Iron Wolves vs Outlaws

Outlaws rebound after the previous game. (ed's note: so they will lose this week)

 

Lockdown vs A-Team

A-Team will muscle their way to a victory in this game.

 

Division 2

 

Average Joes vs Thunder Buddies 

They will confuse Jason with how their defense lines up and flies all over the place.

 

Division 3

 

Villains vs Red Cats

I think Terry might struggle week 1 with this new team and Red Cats are a very athletic team.

 

Phoenix vs Mustard Tigers NA

I don’t pick my team's games.

 

Division 4

 

Udaho Idapimp vs Mustard Cubs

I think with Eric missing that Udaho struggle in key situations and in keeping the chains moving.

 

Bines Low Fat vs Drama Club

They are just the better team if they all show up. 

 

Jagys and Chill vs High on Audibles 

This team is loaded, and they have a pretty good QB in Rob.

 

Airborne vs Cyclones 

The difference in this game will be Lazar.

 

Iron Wolves vs Drama Club

Mr. Hope.

 

Royale with Cheese vs Udaho Idapimp 

I think somehow Yann pulls it off late in the game with a deep pass to Gab for the win.

 

Royale with Cheese vs Trolling Holers 

If Josh doesn’t do anything stupid, they should win this game easily.

 

Division 5

 

Slot Machines vs Drama Club

It's not a new team, just a new QB, but I think it will be a low scoring game and Drama Club win because of their defense.

 

Blue Badgers vs Free Agent #2

Just because I know a few players on the team and can’t say the same for Free Agent #2.

 

Big Booties vs My Ball Zach Ertz

Rob has enough weapons to pull this one off, especially since My Ball Zach Ertz has a new QB.

 

Phoenix vs Binettes NA

I don’t pick my team's games.

 

Jungle Squad vs Tropic Thunder

They are just the better team with or without their regular QB. 

 

TD Hunters vs Los Pollitos

They just need to stop Sam and they win.

 

My Ball Zach Ertz vs Grizzlies 

They are more athletic across the board.

 

Free Agent #1 vs Legendaries

Their defense will be strong, and they have too much high-end talent not to score a few times.

 

There you have it my picks for week 2.

 

Power Rankings

 

Rankings this week aren’t going to be perfect, but I did get to see an bunch of teams play last week and I know more of what to expect from others, but it will take a few weeks to settle in on who deserves to be ranked where. 

 

Division 1

1- A-Team

2- Outlaws 

3- Lockdown 

 

Division 2

1- Nice TDs 

2- Idaho

3- Pocket Rockets

 

Division 3

1- Pocket Rockets 

2- Red Cats 

3- Villains 

 

Division 4

1- High on Audibles

2- Bines Low Fat

3- Iron Wolves

4- Jagys and Chill

5- Royale with Cheese

 

Division 5

1- Grizzlies

2- Mimosa Crew

3- Phoenix 

4- TD Hunters

5- Legendaries 

 

I told everyone last week that changes were going to be made and you can see that they have been made. It's early in the year and teams are still trying to figure it out.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Last week was week 1 of NCAA (ed's note: week 0!) and there weren’t many games being played. This week is the real start to the season with most teams playing. NFL is starting next Thursday as well. I much prefer NCAA as the games are just more exciting and don’t seem as boring as NFL games. 

I’ve been playing Madden the last few days and at first it wasn’t bad, but after playing so many games its just like the rest of the crap. Next summer NCAA is coming back and that will be way better. 

 

It looks like nice weather all weekend which is great, no one will be forced to play in the rain like last week. The season just started, but let's not forget we are playing a game, so go out, have some fun, and don’t take it too seriously.

Word from the Mouth: Dipping Sauce! edition

Word from the Mouth: Dipping Sauce! edition

Kevin Kousaie

I’m not going to lie, it was nice to be back out there on Saturday after having a week off. The day seemed to fly by and didn’t seem like we had 6 time slots, but when I got home once the day was done I was beat.

This season we have changed to rule and allowed players to dip once again. I got to see it a few times from Demario and once from Dilan. The difference between their two dips is Demario is still going at a good speed and gets so low and Dilan slows down a bit, but can’t drop as low. We will wait to see what happens with the dip moving forward and I’m not sure how I feel about it.

 

Recap Week 1



Division 1



A-Team vs Iron Wolves (34-32)

This game had it all, Offense, Defense, Special Teams and how could you miss all that bananarama talking going on. The one thing this game didn’t have was a good finish. With 10 minutes left it was 26 all. After both teams turned it over on downs, Dave drove A-Team down to score and got the 2-point convert with just over a minute left. For the Wolves, Willie dropped as a second QB and was able to hit Demario on a short pass and he ran by everyone to score. This is where the game flops for me. On the game tying 2-point convert attempt, Demario dropped the snap and the game ended like that.



Division 2



Thunder Buddies vs Idaho Udapimp (40-46)

This was a game that had both teams missing players and for them to both score this many points is surprising. Idaho couldn’t stop Dilan who had 13 catches for 134 yards and 3 TDs, not bad for a defensive guy. The thing that cost Thunder Buddies the game was 3 picks from Steve. Brady did a really nice job of spreading the ball around always finding the open player. Both teams were trading scores until Jeremy took his pick back for 6 which gave Idaho a 2 score lead after that there was no catching back up for Thunder Buddies.



Division 3



Phoenix vs Double Dippers (14-49)

This wasn’t a game to write home about (ed's note: but apparently good enough for an article write up!). Both teams were missing key players, but Phoenix has a few new players and it will be a work in progress and take a few weeks to all get on the same page. David picked us apart and made it look easy. Eric had 9 catches for 101 yards and 1 TD. Nico picked me off 3 times giving Double Dippers a short field all game. Phoenix got down early, and we tried a few things we normally wouldn’t, but that’s week 1 for you. When we play again in a few weeks it will be a better game guaranteed.



Division 4



Cyclones vs Sour Peeps (12-26)

Sour Peeps have a solid defense led by Lambert, Etienne

who both got 2 picks, and Samuel getting 1 as well making 5 on the day to go with 3 sacks from Paul (ed's note: I'm not fixing this sentence. It's too far gone). It all started with Paul being up in Alex's face all game. Sour Peeps jumped out to a 20-6 halftime lead then started with the ball and scored right away giving them a 20-point lead. By the time Cyclones scored to make it 26-12 there was 10 minutes left and Jocelyn knew he just had to waste time with the ball. Cyclones should be a better team when they are all there, they were missing a few players this week.



Division 5



Phoenix vs Free Agents #1 (20-19) OT

This game was exciting and came right down to the wire. When Christanis picked me off and ran it in for 6 points, then later in the first half when Daniela scored her second TD of the game giving Free Agents #1 a 13 point lead, it wasn’t looking good for Phoenix. David scores a TD for Phoenix on the last play of the half making it a 1 score game. After a pick, Vincent scored to tie it at 19. Late in the game Free Agents #1 was driving and close to punching it in, but were stopped and turned the ball over. Scott looking to play hero stepped in front of a pass and gave Free Agents one last chance at getting a win. On their first play Ian threw a pick and Phoenix didn’t have enough time to capitalize on the turnover so we went to OT. Phoenix failed on their first attempt and on Free Agents turn Christanis bobbled the ball and got flagged short of the goal line. After another failed attempt by Free Agent #1, Kat was able to make the catch in the endzone and secure the win for Phoenix.



TD Hunters vs Bear Hood (14-6)

4 of the first 5 possessions ended in an interception! It's the start of the season and the rust has been felt for two QBs who don't have a lot of experience. David was also Bear Hood's rusher and easily dominated with his speed and multiple pass knockdowns. In addition, communication problems caused route problems and offensive errors for TD Hunters. After Bear Hood's first touchdown, TD Hunters seemed out of solutions. Luckily for them the defense did its job, because it could have been ugly. After a deflected pass landed in the hands of Zenyace for an interception in their own end zone, TD Hunters simply looked to make easier plays and it did them a favor as they finally managed to get 2 touchdowns before the last minute of the game. On the last play, David threw a side pass to Benjamin so he could throw a deep pass, but he didn't expect Matthieu to show up as second rusher. Destabilized, Ben retreated to avoid the pursuit of Matthieu, but got caught in his own end zone for the safety.



There you have this week’s recaps. I know I can’t be everywhere at once, but if you want to let me know what happened in your game or about some play that happened you can reach out to me like Gold does and I'll include it in my recap or at least say something about it.



Studs & Duds



It was week 1 and that means its time to set the tone for the fall season and with the way people played, we're in for a great season.



Studs



Division 1

- Svetna when you score 4 TDs in a game there is a good chance you win Stud of the week.



Division 2

- Shawn Haney 3 TDs and 3 picks in the same game



Division 3

- David Brisson picked apart the Phoenix defense going 21 of 31 for 253 yards and 7 TDs.



Division 4

- JF was 23 of 36 for 254 yards and 5 TDs, he ran 5 times for 53 yards and made 1 tackle 1 pick on defense.



Division 5

- Dag Wiesbrok played 2 games and made plays in both. Dag made 17 catches for 180 yards and 3 TD. On defense he made 2 tackles.



Duds



Division 1

- Demario Cooper for dropping the snap on the convert with a chance to tie it and go to OT.



Division 2

- Jason Armenti 6 picks. Welcome to D2.



Division 3

- Kevin Kousaie throwing 5 picks.



Division 4

- Marvin Steinberg for having more rushing attempts than completions. You are playing QB not RB, throw the ball.



Division 5

- Rob White for ball distribution top player has 94 yards and next is 12 yards.



There you have it your Studs & Duds from week 1.

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Predictions and Power Rankings Week 1

Kevin Kousaie

Predictions

 

Back to making picks and this season will be better than last season. Last year the media team made their picks and Jon won by 1 game over Willie. This season I’m not sure if we will be doing picks again since everyone has lots going on. Here are my picks in bold like always. 

 

Division 1

 

Jagerbomb vs Outlaws

Better chemistry.

 

Iron Wolves vs A-Team

Out to prove they are the top dogs in D1.

 

Division 2

 

Idaho vs KOLB

They are loaded and have great chemistry. 

 

Average Joes vs Nice TDs

Great defense that will cause issue for Jason.

 

Thunder Buddies vs Average Joes

Speed kills and it looks like Joes have more of it.

 

Thunder Buddies vs Idaho

More talent on their roster.

 

Division 3

 

Double Dippers vs Phoenix NA

I don’t pick my teams games. 

 

Division 4

 

Cyclones vs Sour Peeps 

They are just a bit better but not by much. 

 

Iron Wolves vs Udaho

Better QB if I am seeing that correctly and Simon is playing QB for Udaho.

 

Top Shooters vs High on Audibles 

Way too much talent on this team at least on paper.

 

Drama Club vs Royal with Cheese 

Uber talented roster.

 

Top Shooters vs Cyclones 

Marvin is smart enough to know where to attack this teams and shouldn’t have much trouble if he plays smart.

 

Airborne vs Jagy & Chill

Simon has played QB on more than one occasion and Leo hasn’t so there is a learning curve.

 

Division 5

 

TD Hunters vs Bear Hood

I think David is going to have a big game on both sides of the ball.

 

Low expectations vs Los Pollitos

Sam is the best player on the field he finds a way to win a close game.

 

Les Last Calls vs Mimosa Crew 

I think Mimosa Crew will have issue in this one trying to stop Seb.

 

Drama Club vs Bear Hood

They have the best player on the field in David and that should be enough to get them the win. 

 

Phoenix vs Free Agent #1 NA

I don’t pick my teams games.

 

Free Agent #2 vs Jungle Squad

This will be an ugly game but Free Agent #2 has the better and more experienced QB.

 

Tropic Thunder vs Grizzlies 

Jesse won’t be stopped on offense and will end up getting 2 picks on defense as well.

 

Mimosa Crew vs Big Booties 

Rob takes control of this game and feeds Max the ball and gets 3 TDs.

 

That’s all I have for picks this week.

 

Power Rankings

 

I am basing my rankings off rosters and what I know about the team as well as my expectations at least for week 1. I will be doing top 3 for D1, D2 and D3. For D4 and D5 I will be doing top 5 since those divisions are bigger. Now to the rankings.

 

Division 1

1- A-Team

2- Jagerbomb

3- Lockdown 

 

Division 2

1- Idaho

2- Pocket Rockets

3- Nice TDs

 

Division 3

1- Pocket Rockets 

2- Red Cats 

3- Villains 

 

Division 4

1- High on Audibles

2- Bines Low Fat

3- Royale with Cheese

4- Iron Wolves

5- Trolling Holers

 

Division 5

1- Grizzlies

2- Les Last Calls

3- Mimosa Crew

4- Tropic Thunder 

5- Big Booties 

 

There you have it my rankings going into week 1 of the season. I can tell you this list isn’t perfect and I can tell you that next week it won’t be looking like this and changes will be made. 

 

Final Thoughts

 

Netflix released Swamp Kings this week and anyone who knows College football will enjoy it, but it’s not like the Johnny Football one that came out a few weeks ago. 

I really don’t have much to say, I’m just eager to get back out on the field and play some football after a few weeks off. 

With the new season about to start lets all remember we are playing a game and it's for fun, so go out and enjoy yourself and don’t kill anyone. Thanks, and see you all Saturday.

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