SILVER (and Black) and GOLD
SUPER-16 With time ticking down on the regular season, the Week 10 Game of the Week may be one of the biggest match-ups so far this season as the AF#25 1 Eye Til I Die (7-2-0) takes on the AF#14 Who Dat Saints (6-3-0). Both ballclubs are likely headed to the post season, but neither have officially secured their advance and seeding is all still wide open, with this game promising to play a pivotal role in both. The S16‘s Raider franchise entered the league in 2015 while the Who Dats became the league’s third incarnation of a Saints franchise in 2016, and both have been league powerhouses from the very beginning. However, these two have only faced each other in head to head play one time, in the Who Dats’ very first game in the Super 16, in week 1 of 2016. That match ended in a 205-189 victory for the black and gold who would go on to lose Super Bowl V while the silver and black would finish under .500 (6-7-0) for the only time in their 4 seasons with the league. For this rematch, they are ranked 2nd and 4th in the league, with the Saints receiving a 10 point advantage in the latest line out of Vegas, and we could be seeing a preview of a possible playoff match-up.
Other important games to follow this weekend include the AF#13 Birds of Prey (6-3-0) vs The Dawg Pound (4-5-0) SimulPlay match, with the Birds battling the Who Dats for the South and the Dawgs battling to keep their post season longshot alive. BoP is in a standings tie with New Orleans, but has the head to head tiebreaker, so this game, along with the Game of the Week could create some separation between them in advance of their SimulPlay showdown in two weeks. Also still battling for the South Division title, the league #5, BIGDOGINTEX (5-4-0) has what should be an easy game against the 15th ranked SF BowMen (2-7-0), but the BowMen are coming off of a huge upset win last week against rival 1 Eye and shouldn’t be underestimated. Another big contest out west will feature the defending champion Arizona Firebirds (4-5-0) who’ve been lost in the desert most of the season, but after stringing together a pair of consecutive wins, suddenly have a path to the division crown should the one eyed bandit self destruct. They’ll be facing the Jaw Breakers (4-5-0) who are last place in the East, but still just 1 game out of the lead in the hotly contested division and are currently ranked 4th in the entire league in total scoring. The Steel Curtain (5-4-0) vs Northern Fins (4-5-0) match-up is already well underway after Thursday night, and will also play a big roll in deciding how the East will shake out. Finally, in what may wind up being one of the most often checked scores of the weekend, the entire league will become Philadelphia fans as the Eagle has landed (4-5-0) plays part two of their double header with an AF#6 WRATH OF ODIN (9-0-0) club that will be playing at bye week strength and could be in the most vulnerable position they’ve been in all season.
Playoff Picture:
North Division
- WRATH OF ODIN has clinched the North Division Championship
West Division
- 1 Eye Til I Die needs a minimum of 2 wins and 1 Arizona loss to clinch the Division. The two will meet head to head in week 11; 1 Eye has 1 head to head win over the Firebirds already which could come into play as a tiebreaker.
- Arizona can win the division by winning out (4 games) and having 1 Eye lose 4 or if 1 Eye loses 3 – including once to Arizona – and Arizona overtakes them in total scoring
South Division
- There are no scenarios in the South that are uncomplicated, as all 4 teams can still make a run for the division title.
East Division
- Like the South, all East Division teams remain elligible to win the division crown
Wild Cards
- The most likely Wild Card teams right now, would be whichever clubs fall 2nd and 3rd in the South, but Arizona, The Dawg Pound, Motor City, and the entire East Division have legitimate chances of landing a spot.
- A lot of the above will no longer be accurate after this weekend’s games – and THAT’s November football in the Super 16!