THE PEERLESS PURPLE PENGUIN PROGNOSTICATIONS (PPPP): WEEK SEVEN!!!
.Wow. What a week!
Teams are beginning to assert themselves as they position themselves for the run to the playoffs. It’s hard to believe that we’re almost halfway through the season, and we’ve already had some TERRIFIC matchups! River City continues their rampage winning their fourth game in a row in convincing fashion. Now they’ll face their sternest test of the season in the Louisville (Loo-ISS-vill) Baby Kittens who look to rebound after dropping their contest with Atlanta.
Lincoln emerged from its recent slumber this week to play the kind of game that we usually expect from the team from the Heartland. After losing to Appalachian, barely squeaking by Houston, and being thumped by the Thundercats, Lincoln looked to be a bit wobbly despite the designated stat padding game against Texas. This week, facing a tough Syracuse squad, Lincoln notched a convincing victory. Let’s see if that’s a springboard for a mid-season surge or a tantalizing fluke.
I’m not embarrassed to admit that Louisville caused much anxiety throughout the Purple Penguin Population this week, and they gave us quite a scare in a game that was MUCH closer than the score indicated. Terrific game, Kittens!
Now, on with the Predicting already!!!
Season Results: 40-5
Week Four Results: 6-1
Houston at Baltimore Prediction: None Actual: HOU 73-3
Texas at Saginaw Prediction: SAG 52-0 Actual: SAG 158-0
Appalachian at Cleveland Prediction: APP 38-0 Actual: APP 49-20
Jax Beach at Richmond Prediction: JAX 28-13 Actual: JAX 59-30
River City at Roswell Prediction: RVR 31-17 Actual: RVR 60-23
Lincoln at Syracuse Prediction: SYR 28-21 Actual: LIN 36-23
Red Bank at Sin City Prediction: RBK 35-10 Actual: RBK 51-13
Atlanta at Louisville Prediction: ATL 28-24 Actual: ATL 35-17
(8) Richmond Empire (0-6) at Appalachian Lycans (6-0)-----Appalachian continues to roll on, but unlike last year, this Empire team is headed in the RIGHT direction. It’s a bit too soon for them to expect to compete with the Lycans, though. Don’t get too frustrated, Richmond, your time to shine is coming (in about two weeks!)……….APPALACHIAN-63 RICHMOND-0
(7) Cleveland Buckeyes (0-6) at Houston Armageddon (4-2)-----Houston started off with a couple of tough losses to Red Bank and Lincoln with the obligatory domination of the Domination sandwiched in between. Since then, they have been golden, beating two playoff hopefuls before traveling to Baltimore to put a beat down on the Hustle. Cleveland has had a rough go of it since their near upset of the Showboats, and the Armageddon look to be hitting their stride. Sorry Buckeyes. At least Houston isn’t wearing maize and blue...………HOUSTON-42 CLEVELAND-10
(6) Baltimore Hustle (0-6) at The State of Texas Domination (0-6)-----Finally a game where I get to say something good about the Hustle, which hopefully won’t be interereted as “hatin’” Both teams are rebuilding, but Texas is using CPU players and Baltimore is using (mainly) humans. This ain’t chess so the CPU players haven’t got a chance...……..BALTIMORE-24 TEXAS-3
(5) Roswell Invaders (1-5) at Jax Beach Juggernauts (3-3)-----Roswell’s season started promisingly with a 40 point win against Richmond. Since then there’s been no joy for the Invaders as they’ve not only lost five in a row but haven’t been competitive in any of those games. Their lowest margin of defeat was over 36 points. Not sure how Roswell plans to put the brakes on this skid, but Jax Beach is not an easy team to do it against. There’s decent talent on the Invaders, but it’s just not coming together yet...…..JAX BEACH-30 ROSWELL-10
(4) Sin City Showboats (4-2) at Atlanta Purple Penguins (6-0)-----Sin City’s 4 wins came against opponents who are a combined 1-23. Their two losses came against teams that are 10-2. Which of these categories do the Purple Penguins most resemble? Yeah, it’s actually not that hard a question. After their big win against the Baby Kittens last week, the Showboats only hope is a violent violet letdown. Not gonna happen....…..ATLANTA-56 SIN CITY-9
(3) Louisville Baby Kittens (5-1) at The River City Ransom (4-2)-----Very tough los against the Purple Penguins last week for the Kittens. They were the first team to score a TD against Atlanta this year, but that’s small consolation. Can they bounce back against a suddenly rejuvenated River City Ransom? Aboslutely. Atlanta couldn’t control Kyle Kortnue with a gaggle of L25 and L26 CBs, so expect him to bust out this week against the Ransom. River City has been impressive, but it has come against the lower echelon of the league and may not be representative of this team’s true strength (or lack thereof). This is a statement game for the Ransom---a win solidifies their legitimacy to the claim of playoff contender. A loss relegates them to middle tier status. I’m impressed with what the Ransom has done this year, but I think the Kittens would be too much for them normally, and MAD Kittens are especially dangerous! (“Meow DAMMIT!!!”)...……..LOUISVILLE-42 RIVER CITY-14
(2) Syracuse Samurai (3-3) at Red Bank Thundercats (5-1)-----If this were last year, considering the talent on the Syracuse roster, I might have gone with them to beat the Thundercats. But that was then and this is now. There are a few key differences between last year’s Red Bank team and the 5-1 powerhouse in its current incarnation. First, last season Red Bank wasn’t quite sure just how good they were. This year they know. Second, last year the Thundercats had to rely on their powerful running game. This year they’ve added quality to the receiving corps and are no longer a one dimensional offense. Third, Ryan DeAngelis continues to make me look bad by producing quality game after quality game. Last year’s club would have lost to a Syracuse because they would not have had the talent or the confidence to exploit Syracuse’s major weakness in the secondary. This year’s team suffers under no such handicap..….…..RED BANK-27 SYRACUSE-17
(1) GAME OF THE WEEK: Saginaw Spirit (3-3) at Lincoln Freedom Warriors (4-2)-----Yes, this is the game of the week because of its importance to these two teams fighting for playoff relevancy. Saginaw has beaten teams it’s supposed to beat, but can’t win against the tougher squads—at least so far. Lincoln would have fit the same description, but revitalized their playoff position by winning against Syracuse last week. Saginaw desperately needs a quality win to invigorate their playoff chances or they may find themselves on the wrong side of a tiebreaker yet again. I foresee a defensive struggle as both teams are solid on that side of the ball and have areas of weakness on offense. This could boil down to a big play or a turnover making it anybody’s ball game, but Lincoln showed me something last week, so they’re the pick...……..LINCOLN-24 SAGINAW-14
As I was going through this week’s picks, it became apparent to me that our conference has almost separated into three different divisions:
Division One: Roswell, Richmond, Cleveland, Baltimore, and Texas. None of these teams has won a game against any team outside their group of five. Unless there are drastic changes, the first division may well be playing primarily for bragging rights among themselves while the other 11 will fight it out for the 8 playoff berths.
Division Two: River City, Sin City, and Jax Beach. These teams have beaten every Division One team they have faced, but none have been able to muster a victory against any of the Division Three teams. If they plan to make the playoffs, this situation will have to change for them---and soon.
Division Three: These are the top 8 teams in the conference, but it’s interesting to see their records against each other:
(1) Appalachian (2-0)
(2) Atlanta (2-0)
(3) Red Bank (2-1)
(4) Louisville (1-1)
(5) Lincoln (2-2)
(6) Houston (2-2)
(7) Syracuse (0-3)
(8) Saginaw (0-3)
Despite Syracuse and Saginaw (and Houston) having lost every game they have played so far against teams listed above them, they still are included in this group because (i) cutting it down further reduces the number of games to compare too extensively, but more importantly (ii) there will be 8 playoff teams so even if Syracuse or Saginaw were to end up winless against this group, they would still make the playoffs.
How much does all this mean at this point? Probably not much. But teams that are aspiring to a playoff position need to be able to beat their competitors in this group to assure themselves of a decent seeding.
OK, that’s it for this week!. As always it seems nowadays, there are some very interesting games on tap for us. Good luck to everyone (whenever they’re not playing the Penguins!)
.Wow. What a week!
Teams are beginning to assert themselves as they position themselves for the run to the playoffs. It’s hard to believe that we’re almost halfway through the season, and we’ve already had some TERRIFIC matchups! River City continues their rampage winning their fourth game in a row in convincing fashion. Now they’ll face their sternest test of the season in the Louisville (Loo-ISS-vill) Baby Kittens who look to rebound after dropping their contest with Atlanta.
Lincoln emerged from its recent slumber this week to play the kind of game that we usually expect from the team from the Heartland. After losing to Appalachian, barely squeaking by Houston, and being thumped by the Thundercats, Lincoln looked to be a bit wobbly despite the designated stat padding game against Texas. This week, facing a tough Syracuse squad, Lincoln notched a convincing victory. Let’s see if that’s a springboard for a mid-season surge or a tantalizing fluke.
I’m not embarrassed to admit that Louisville caused much anxiety throughout the Purple Penguin Population this week, and they gave us quite a scare in a game that was MUCH closer than the score indicated. Terrific game, Kittens!
Now, on with the Predicting already!!!
Season Results: 40-5
Week Four Results: 6-1
Houston at Baltimore Prediction: None Actual: HOU 73-3
Texas at Saginaw Prediction: SAG 52-0 Actual: SAG 158-0
Appalachian at Cleveland Prediction: APP 38-0 Actual: APP 49-20
Jax Beach at Richmond Prediction: JAX 28-13 Actual: JAX 59-30
River City at Roswell Prediction: RVR 31-17 Actual: RVR 60-23
Lincoln at Syracuse Prediction: SYR 28-21 Actual: LIN 36-23
Red Bank at Sin City Prediction: RBK 35-10 Actual: RBK 51-13
Atlanta at Louisville Prediction: ATL 28-24 Actual: ATL 35-17
(8) Richmond Empire (0-6) at Appalachian Lycans (6-0)-----Appalachian continues to roll on, but unlike last year, this Empire team is headed in the RIGHT direction. It’s a bit too soon for them to expect to compete with the Lycans, though. Don’t get too frustrated, Richmond, your time to shine is coming (in about two weeks!)……….APPALACHIAN-63 RICHMOND-0
(7) Cleveland Buckeyes (0-6) at Houston Armageddon (4-2)-----Houston started off with a couple of tough losses to Red Bank and Lincoln with the obligatory domination of the Domination sandwiched in between. Since then, they have been golden, beating two playoff hopefuls before traveling to Baltimore to put a beat down on the Hustle. Cleveland has had a rough go of it since their near upset of the Showboats, and the Armageddon look to be hitting their stride. Sorry Buckeyes. At least Houston isn’t wearing maize and blue...………HOUSTON-42 CLEVELAND-10
(6) Baltimore Hustle (0-6) at The State of Texas Domination (0-6)-----Finally a game where I get to say something good about the Hustle, which hopefully won’t be interereted as “hatin’” Both teams are rebuilding, but Texas is using CPU players and Baltimore is using (mainly) humans. This ain’t chess so the CPU players haven’t got a chance...……..BALTIMORE-24 TEXAS-3
(5) Roswell Invaders (1-5) at Jax Beach Juggernauts (3-3)-----Roswell’s season started promisingly with a 40 point win against Richmond. Since then there’s been no joy for the Invaders as they’ve not only lost five in a row but haven’t been competitive in any of those games. Their lowest margin of defeat was over 36 points. Not sure how Roswell plans to put the brakes on this skid, but Jax Beach is not an easy team to do it against. There’s decent talent on the Invaders, but it’s just not coming together yet...…..JAX BEACH-30 ROSWELL-10
(4) Sin City Showboats (4-2) at Atlanta Purple Penguins (6-0)-----Sin City’s 4 wins came against opponents who are a combined 1-23. Their two losses came against teams that are 10-2. Which of these categories do the Purple Penguins most resemble? Yeah, it’s actually not that hard a question. After their big win against the Baby Kittens last week, the Showboats only hope is a violent violet letdown. Not gonna happen....…..ATLANTA-56 SIN CITY-9
(3) Louisville Baby Kittens (5-1) at The River City Ransom (4-2)-----Very tough los against the Purple Penguins last week for the Kittens. They were the first team to score a TD against Atlanta this year, but that’s small consolation. Can they bounce back against a suddenly rejuvenated River City Ransom? Aboslutely. Atlanta couldn’t control Kyle Kortnue with a gaggle of L25 and L26 CBs, so expect him to bust out this week against the Ransom. River City has been impressive, but it has come against the lower echelon of the league and may not be representative of this team’s true strength (or lack thereof). This is a statement game for the Ransom---a win solidifies their legitimacy to the claim of playoff contender. A loss relegates them to middle tier status. I’m impressed with what the Ransom has done this year, but I think the Kittens would be too much for them normally, and MAD Kittens are especially dangerous! (“Meow DAMMIT!!!”)...……..LOUISVILLE-42 RIVER CITY-14
(2) Syracuse Samurai (3-3) at Red Bank Thundercats (5-1)-----If this were last year, considering the talent on the Syracuse roster, I might have gone with them to beat the Thundercats. But that was then and this is now. There are a few key differences between last year’s Red Bank team and the 5-1 powerhouse in its current incarnation. First, last season Red Bank wasn’t quite sure just how good they were. This year they know. Second, last year the Thundercats had to rely on their powerful running game. This year they’ve added quality to the receiving corps and are no longer a one dimensional offense. Third, Ryan DeAngelis continues to make me look bad by producing quality game after quality game. Last year’s club would have lost to a Syracuse because they would not have had the talent or the confidence to exploit Syracuse’s major weakness in the secondary. This year’s team suffers under no such handicap..….…..RED BANK-27 SYRACUSE-17
(1) GAME OF THE WEEK: Saginaw Spirit (3-3) at Lincoln Freedom Warriors (4-2)-----Yes, this is the game of the week because of its importance to these two teams fighting for playoff relevancy. Saginaw has beaten teams it’s supposed to beat, but can’t win against the tougher squads—at least so far. Lincoln would have fit the same description, but revitalized their playoff position by winning against Syracuse last week. Saginaw desperately needs a quality win to invigorate their playoff chances or they may find themselves on the wrong side of a tiebreaker yet again. I foresee a defensive struggle as both teams are solid on that side of the ball and have areas of weakness on offense. This could boil down to a big play or a turnover making it anybody’s ball game, but Lincoln showed me something last week, so they’re the pick...……..LINCOLN-24 SAGINAW-14
As I was going through this week’s picks, it became apparent to me that our conference has almost separated into three different divisions:
Division One: Roswell, Richmond, Cleveland, Baltimore, and Texas. None of these teams has won a game against any team outside their group of five. Unless there are drastic changes, the first division may well be playing primarily for bragging rights among themselves while the other 11 will fight it out for the 8 playoff berths.
Division Two: River City, Sin City, and Jax Beach. These teams have beaten every Division One team they have faced, but none have been able to muster a victory against any of the Division Three teams. If they plan to make the playoffs, this situation will have to change for them---and soon.
Division Three: These are the top 8 teams in the conference, but it’s interesting to see their records against each other:
(1) Appalachian (2-0)
(2) Atlanta (2-0)
(3) Red Bank (2-1)
(4) Louisville (1-1)
(5) Lincoln (2-2)
(6) Houston (2-2)
(7) Syracuse (0-3)
(8) Saginaw (0-3)
Despite Syracuse and Saginaw (and Houston) having lost every game they have played so far against teams listed above them, they still are included in this group because (i) cutting it down further reduces the number of games to compare too extensively, but more importantly (ii) there will be 8 playoff teams so even if Syracuse or Saginaw were to end up winless against this group, they would still make the playoffs.
How much does all this mean at this point? Probably not much. But teams that are aspiring to a playoff position need to be able to beat their competitors in this group to assure themselves of a decent seeding.
OK, that’s it for this week!. As always it seems nowadays, there are some very interesting games on tap for us. Good luck to everyone (whenever they’re not playing the Penguins!)
Last edited Aug 12, 2008 21:39:46
