Grand Finale
The Super 16’s AF#3 Who Dat Saints (9-3-0) have the league’s second best lifetime win percentage (.625) and went all the way to the Super Bowl in their inaugural season (2016), but this year, they’ve been on an absolute tear. Three times in the 2019 season they’ve been ranked as the AF#1 team in the Association, and have never ranked outside of the Top 5. Of their 3 losses on the season, 1 was by stat correction and by only a single point, while another was by just 20. They lead the league in scoring by over 100 points on the nearest challenger, and have topped 200 points in 8 of 12 games, by 240 in 4 of 12. They have just one Achille’s heel….
The AF#28 Birds of Prey (9-3-0) are the winningest ball club in the league with 80 career wins (.708) including several in the playoffs as well as 3 Super Bowl victories in 4 appearances. They’ve represented the Super 16 3 times in the AF Pro Bowl – including this season – and were named Association Champions after their win in the 2015-16 edition. When the Who Dat Nation entered the league in 2016, Birds of Prey vowed to adopt Tweety Bird as their logo if the Saints could beat them…..and then spent the rest of the season as the Tweety BoP when the Who Dats slid by them, 231-218, winning first ever meeting between these two. The Who Dats haven’t beaten them since.
In 8 match-ups over 3 seasons, Birds of Prey are almost undefeated vs the Who Dats, beating them 7 consecutive times, including 2 times this season – 2 of the Saints only 3 losses. This latest instalment in the saga may be the biggest one of all. With both teams at 9-3 in the final game of the regular season, it’s become a de facto Division Championship Game, and the winner will not only be crowned S16 South Champs, but will receive a first round bye in the playoffs, relegating the loser to Wild Card status. If that’s not enough, the match is a SimulPlay Game, live in primetime, with the eyes of the nation watching on Thanksgiving night! Get the dishes done early, grab some pie, and hold on.
AF#3 – AF#28
9-3-0 – 9-3-0
All-Time
35-21-0 – 80-33-0
Head To Head
1-7-0 – 7-1-0
Spread
+26 – -26
Results
W 209 – 185
UPDATED: They say the 8th time’s a charm – well, they don’t say that at all, but it was the case for AF’s Warrior Goddess of the Who Dat Nation in the season finale against rival Birds of Prey as the Saints (10-3-0) take the win, the South Division Championship and the 2019 #1 seed. That relegates Birds of Prey (9-4-0) to the #5 Wild Card spot.
Defending Champion WRATH OF ODIN (10-3-0) had already clinched the North Division Championship and a first round bye, and they will fill the league’s #2 seed. Eagle has Landed (8-5-0) finished with a 2 game win streak to secure their first ever East Division Championship and will fill the #4 seed.
As usual, the Wild, Wild West was full of drama, as division leader SF BowMen (8-5-0) had a slim path to their own first round bye, but Odin’s win shut the door on that. Despite losing their finale to the Arizona Firebirds, however, the Bay City Archers still secured their first ever West Division Championship and seed #3. The Firebirds (7-6-0) were hoping that a week 13 win combined with the Bronco upset of 1 Eye Til I Die (7-6-0) would send them to the playoffs and send the black and silver home for the holidays based on division and head to head tiebreakers. The Firebirds and Broncs both did their part to make that happen, each pulling off upsets against their division rivals……but alas, a closer inspection of the League Rules reveals two sets of tiebreakers – one for determining Division Champions in the case of tied standings, and a second set for determining Wild Cards and overall playoff seeding. First tiebreaker in that set of tiebreakers is total points, and it gives 1 Eye the #6 seed by a margin of just 23 points on the season….the right week 13 line-up would’ve given the Firebirds those 23 points. The same total points tiebreaker gives SF the #3 seed over The Eagle at #4.
So the 2019 playoff bracket is now set, with the Saints and ODIN taking the first round BYE, Eagle has landed will take on Birds of Prey, and SF BowMen will face 1 Eye Til I Die. The S16 uses a movable bracket (like the NFL) so the Who Dat Saints are guaranteed to play the lowest seeded winner in round 2, and Odin will play the other winner.