GroupThink 3 - Sizing up the Kitty Hawk Flyers

[QuikSand]

Incidenally, even though we have slipped to 7-5, we now have Sparks back healthy, and we're still in the playoff hunt. Here's the standings in the NFC:

Front Office Football: The Fourth Edition
2020 Regular Season Standings
   
  NC North              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Ypsilanti               10  2   0   .833  342   213   8-2     2-2       
Champaign               6   6   0   .500  234   237   6-4     3-1       
Sault Ste. Marie        6   6   0   .500  257   213   6-4     3-1       
Thunder Bay             3   9   0   .250  175   279   2-8     0-4       
   
  NC South              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Bermuda                 9   3   0   .750  258   216   8-2     4-0       
Kitty Hawk              7   5   0   .583  305   258   6-4     1-3       
Athens                  4   7   1   .375  223   228   4-6     3-1       
Mazatlan                1   11  0   .083  111   283   1-9     0-4       
   
  NC East               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Texarkana               8   4   0   .667  265   219   7-3     3-1       
Providence              7   5   0   .583  223   232   5-5     2-2       
Hawk Mountain           6   6   0   .500  296   267   5-5     3-1       
Norfolk                 3   9   0   .250  201   281   3-7     0-4       
   
  NC West               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Puget Sound             8   4   0   .667  275   228   6-4     3-1       
Death Valley            6   6   0   .500  233   237   5-5     3-1       
Memphis                 6   6   0   .500  220   261   5-5     1-3       
Sacramento              3   9   0   .250  194   245   3-7     1-3        

[QuikSand]

During the last four games, it's tough to try to compare the performances of LBs Gillespie and Shon, since their roles were a bit different. Here’s an attempt to look at their performances when they were each serving as our starting weak-side linebacker (presumably getting equivalent action):

Starting at WLB        Week    Tck    Ast    Sack    Blkd    Hurr      Game Result

Gillespie                1      4      1       0       0       0       L 33-27
Gillespie                2      8      2       0       0       2       W 33-30
Gillespie                3      3      1       0       0       0       W 34-23
Gillespie                4      3      1       0       0       0       W 30-17
Gillespie                5      4      3       1½      0       0       L 13-10
Gillespie                6      8      0       2½      1       0       W 33-30
Gillespie                7      3      1       0       0       0       W 38-13
Gillespie                8      6      1       0       1       1       W 17-3

Shon                     9      5      1       1½      1       0       L 27-17
Shon                    11      3      1       1       1       0       L 27-24
Shon                    12      6      2       0       0       1       L 24-7

The 13th week is a mystery – Shon was not listed as starting, and got hardly any playing time, it seems – I can’t tell why.

Gillespie posted another 1.5 sacks during the four games he spent as a pass-rushing DE, but only 1+1 tackle in that period.

For the entire season, here are their overall stats:

                       Tack   Asst   Sack   Blkd   Hurr   PRPct  TkPct
Gillespie               41     12     5.5     2      4     4.1    12.6
Shon                    16      5     2.5     4      1     5.7    14.2

[Buzzbee]

Just based on those numbers, it looks to me like Shon has been a tad more productive in his limited starts. And consider that Shon played 2 of his 3 games against Ypsilanti and Bermuda, if that makes any difference.

[QuikSand]

I think the battle between Shon and Gillespie seems pretty much even... but for now the current setup seems fine (Shon at WLB, Gillespie pass-rushing DE).

[Fritz]

Peter went out the same time martin came back in, so I just plugged martin in to RDE normal, LDT rush.

This does not look like a good formula as martin was in for 3 pass plays the first two games of this batch.

[albionmoonlight]

I agree that Shon has played a little better than Gilliespe, though, with Martin out, we can keep playing them like we played them.

How did Martin get OUT with an injury. I thought that he was sitting out at questionable?

I may or may not be able to get to the games tonight. If not, I have no problem with Fritz keeping up the simming tomorrow. Either way, I will wait for Buzzbee to write up some scouting reports.

[albionmoonlight]

When Martin is healthy, I think he should play DE the whole way. Both he and Beigen (sp?) are good enough all around DEs.

[Fritz]

We have had the fewest 3rd down opportunities in the league. Is that good or bad? good I think.

We also have the second fewest penalties. I wonder if that is a byproduct of chemestry.

[Fritz]

Originally posted by albionmoonlight
How did Martin get OUT with an injury. I thought that he was sitting out at questionable?

he healed, played, and was injured again.

[Fritz]

little oddities

TE Quik, who is not currently slotted has 6 rushing attempts
FB Kowalski, our nominal starter has 1



getting job done

FB Rubble has 36 catches for 400 yards (11.1 avg) and a TD. He has been in the game for 282 pass plays, second only to WR Song.

He has rushed 44 times for 222 yards to lead the team with a 5.0 avg. His long run is 53 yards, second on the team. He has been in on 283 run plays. All this while only starting 7 of 12 games.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by Fritz
We have had the fewest 3rd down opportunities in the league. Is that good or bad? good I think.

We also have the second fewest penalties. I wonder if that is a byproduct of chemestry.

After I get done with my scouting reports, I may try to look through the rosters to see what teams have numerous conflicts and then check their penalties to see if there seems to be any correlation. Theoretically I would anticipate # of penalties would be more contingent on Cohesion, but stranger things have happened.

[albionmoonlight]

I put Quik in as FB1 when Kowalksi tweaked his knee. It's funny that he got six more attempts than Kowalksi during that brief time.

[Fritz]

Originally posted by albionmoonlight
I put Quik in as FB1 when Kowalksi tweaked his knee. It's funny that he got six more attempts than Kowalksi during that brief time.

so I see. didn't catch that one.

if that happens again perhaps we should slip Wayne into that role and slot quick as the TE3. TE3 sees almost no action outside of goal line.

[Buzzbee]

SCOUTING REPORT: Napa Valley Caskmasters
Overall summary:

Offensively the Caskmasters have lots of weapons. Thier QB is accurate and doesn't throw many picks and he's got very good targets at WR. The ground game is good enough to prevent focusing on the passing game. The teams that beat them were lucky enough to have 1 of the 2 receivers out of the game.

Defensively we are catching them at a good time. The LB corp is pretty banged up and their star is Doubtful. Finesse plays up the middle might confuse the heavy pass rush and get us to the soft LB's. Don't count on the big play as their SS and FS tandem don't give up much. Stick to the short and medium passes and pound them with the run.

Ok stat summary first, tendencies second, and player profiles third.

KEY STATS:
Record: 9-2-1
(Tie was to Athens Argonauts who beat us)

Key Offensive Stats:
5th in the league in PPG (25.1)
13th in rushing yards (1292)
11th in passing yards (3150)


Key Defensive Stats:
3rd in the league in Defensive PPG (16.8)
5th in rushing yards allowed (1038)
22nd in passing yards allowed (2909)


+7 Turnover margin

TENDENCIES:
10th in Rush Attempts (352)
18th in Pass Attempts (412)

Offense:

Rushing              Attempts         Yards        Avg.

Left                    90             392        4.35

Middle                198              740        3.73

Right                  52              172        3.30



Rushing              Attempts         Percent      Yards        Avg.

Short                  227            71.3          1119       4.92

Medium                142              65.4        1422       10.01

Long                    42             47.6          609       14.50        

Defense:
4-3 defense. Defensive line likes to rush the passer (40 sacks). DB's like bump and run coverage while the LB's are best suited for zone. They don't give up the big pass play as opponents have managed a puny 26.6 percent completion percentage on long passes an an 8.58 Yard Per Attempt avg.

PERSONNEL:
Offense:
They've got a solid QB who likes to throw short (227 Att) and medium passes(142 Att), but can go deep when he needs to (47.6% completion for deep passes). RB is an elusive back with power, and has great hands out of the backfield. The backup gets a pretty good number of carries and has done pretty well.

The receivers are damn good. Starting Flanker has only started 4 games due to injury but is a serious threat. The starting SE is a difference maker and had 3 TD's and 192 yards in the first game of the season. He sees about 8 or 9 balls a game.

On the Offensive Line they have the Law firm of Levine, Levine and Devine, but those guys are average. The real stud is LG Escobedo. C Briggs is good too. The interior line is the strength, but the tackles are nothing to sneeze at.

Defense:
The D Line is anchored by RDE Dusty Atkins. He is a pass rush monster (17.5 sacks), but is weak on run defense. The rest of the D line is fairly weak, but is also geared toward a passrush. The Caskmasters are banged up at LB. Out of 7 LB's, 2 are out, 1 is Questionable, and 1 is Doubtfull. The 3 healthy LB's are not that good. Stud MLB O'Neil is Doubtful, which should help our running game tremendously. The CB's are pretty good, with the RCB being the better of the two. They like bump n' run and man 2 man. SS Monty Foreman is an All League stud. 66 Tackles, 23 assists, and 4 picks make him someone to stay away from. The FS is also capable of stepping up and making the tackle.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
SCOUTING REPORT: Athens Argonauts

Offense

Athens is a pass oriented team (5th in attempts, 2 in completions) but most of their stuff is short yardage (12th in passing yards, 6.35 in Yards Per Attempt). Fortunately for us their stud Flanker Wes Gomez is out for 4 weeks. Unfortunately for us there isn't a lot of dropoff to their backup Flanker Stanley Wooden, and their SE has gotten most of the tosses and most of the yards.

Rushing wise they are in the middle of the pack in terms of attempts, yards, and yards per carry. They average 94 YPG and 3.4 YPC.

The OL is strong at the tackles and LG, but weak up the middle. On paper they seem more geared toward run blocking than pass blocking and the 16 sacks given up seem to support that.

Defense
Looking at their talent you wouldn't think it, but Athens is leading the league in rushing defense. RDE CJ Benton being out for 27 weeks probably won't help their run defense though. The strength of their D is their talent and depth at MLB and the ability of the Corners and Safties to step up in stopping the run. They are good at that.

On the other end of the spectrum, they are 24th, 25th, 30th, and 27th in Pass Attempts, Pass Completions, Yards, and Yards per Attempt, respectively. They generally run a hard hitting zone, but the LB's are adept at man-2-man coverage. They have talent at CB and SS, but so far they haven't lived up to expectation.

Their defensive line is banged up. 3 of 4 DE's are OUT! The one remaining is weak. The starting MLB is out, but the have 2 MLB who can step up and might even be better. Their two top Flankers (both very good) are out, so DOUBLE TEAM THEIR STUD SE!!!! The other recievers are weak.

RESULTS FROM 1st GAME:

Originally posted by albionmoonlight
Kitty Hawk (10) at Athens (13)

Just as Buzz predicted, they passed often and well. They went 25-30 for 291 yards. My attempts at trying to stop the pass did not go so well. On the plus side, we did get 6 sacks and Reynolds got another interception.

However, their ball control passing game allowed them to hold the ball for 37 minutes compared to our 22.

Our ball control was not there. On offense, Finley had 10 rushes for 38 yards; Rubble was 7-18 and Withers was 5-27.

Sparks had a solid game: 18-25 for 230 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.

Defense takes the blame for this one. You can't let the other guy go 25-30 and expect to win.

No major injuries.

With their DE's and WR's out, I expect a different complexion to this game. We've got 'em at home too!

{EDIT: They are still a passing team. 28th in Rushes and Yards, 1st and 2nd in Pass Attempts and Completions (9th in Passing Yards, thought). Defensively, they are still tough on the run, but not as much so, and fairly porous against the pass.}

[Buzzbee]

SCOUTING REPORT: Tijuana River Raiders
Record: 5-7

Overview:
Offense
They are another passing team (22 in Rushing Yards, 13th in passing yards), although not as much so as the Argonauts. The River Raiders #1 receiver (FL) is currently Questionable, but should be full strength in 2 weeks. I'm guessing he'll play against us, but probably not at full strength. The O Line is stout on the left side, and not to shabby from C to RT.

Defense:
In a nutshell, they give up the run and are decent against the pass. The run stiffing ability will probably be hampered by the loss of their best defensive player, LDE Randall Turnbull. The backup DE's are average, so this won't help their already suspect run defense. The pass defense is pretty solid. Within the top 12 in the league in Att., Comp., Yards, and Avg.

Without Turnbull, they don't have any real superstar, but they are good at most positions.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
SCOUTING REPORT: Mazatlan Marauders

This is a game we should win. The Marauders are giving up just under 30 points per game, but only scoring just over 11 per game. They have been hampered by an injury to their starting QB, but with their receivers, I'm not sure how much difference he will make if he is back in time for the game against us.

Turnover margin has killed them --> -12 in 4 games.

Offense

Injuries could play a big factor here. QB Jeff Francis is currently out for 5 weeks with a broken ankle. His backup has completed some passes, but too many of them have been to the other team. If Francis is a probable for our game, it could make a big difference. He is a definite step or two above his backup. TE Trent Lyon will just be coming back from injury and hopefully won't be back to game form by then.

They've got some talent on the O Line, particularly at the Tackles and RT especially, but they don't seem to use it. The Marauders have only rushed 89 times in four games for 348 yards. Their passing hasn't been much better with their backup playing all but the first half of the first game.

Defense
The run defense is porous. Last in the league in Rushing Yards and they give up an average of 4.1 YPC. The pass defense is suspect as well. They have corners who are good in run support and man 2 man coverage, but not much else. The safeties are average at best. Based on the numbers, they seem to give up short chunks on pass defense since they've allowed a lot of completions but have a low Yards Per Attempt (6.09)

Not much has changed. In looking at their offensive summary, I'm reminded of that Phil Collins song:

I can't run...I can't pass....

The Marauders are DEAD LAST in rushing yards and passing yards.

Defensively they are a little better. 18th in Yards Per Carry, 12th in Passing Yards, and 6th in Yards Per Pass Attempt.

No real injuries to report. They have a somewhat sizable list of probables. HOWEVER, QB Jeff Francis, who I believe missed the first game against us should be back from his broken ankle. He's a good QB and it might make things a little more difficult.

DT's and LB's are GOOD! CB's and S's are not.

[Fritz]

I anjoy reading your scouting reports Buzzbee.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by Fritz
I anjoy reading your scouting reports Buzzbee.

Thanks for the compliment. I try to make them just a little bit entertaining to break things up a bit.

Things I've noticed:

My first report tends to be pretty detailed and in depth. Lots of figures and analysis. However, after reading through a few, I think the ones at the end tend to be more useful. Less crap to wade through since I'm tired of the tedium and tend to distill the info into the most useful nuggets.

Also, its difficult to accurately portray how good, or bad, a player is without using numbers. I'll use terms like stout, solid, capable, weak, stud, etc. to try to convey my thoughts, but those are really subjective. Is stout better than solid?

Anyway, enough rambling. Thanks again for the compliment. I really should learn just to smile and say thank you.

Thank you.

[albionmoonlight]

I agree about the scouting reports. It helps the "immersion" factor of the game a lot--not to mention being helpful. Solid work, Buzzbee.

[Buzzbee]

Thank you.

[QuikSand]

Good stuff.

So, uh... (from the impatient wing of the GT pen)... when do we play the games?

[Buzzbee]

If Albion is simming, it will probably be tonight since, like me, he can't play at work.

I would imagine that unless Albion wants to make any gameplan changes based on my scouting reports, you or Fritz could go ahead and sim. Of course Albie isn't online at the moment, so we'll have to wait to get the answer to that.

And even if Albie does want to make changes, one of you could make the modifications.

Or, we can wait until tonight.

[Buzzbee]

Dola -

Since the end of the season is coming up, what file are we going to use for the draft file? I think the TCY GT is dried on the vine. I'm guessing just sim the next season in TCY and go from there.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
Since the end of the season is coming up, what file are we going to use for the draft file? I think the TCY GT is dried on the vine. I'm guessing just sim the next season in TCY and go from there.

I agree.

[albionmoonlight]

If Fritz is good to go today, he can sim until the end of the season.

Don't make any changes re: Napa Valley.

For the game against Athens--for the "normal" defensive game plan, and for every game plan in which we have the lead:

(1) change the "aggresive run" to 25 and the "aggressive pass" to 75; and

(2) change the run expectation for first and ten and for second and medium (the box one down and to the left of the first and ten box) to 37%.

Also, without the game in front of me, I do not know offhand how to make it so that we double team their stud SE, but I want us to do it all game. If you can figure that out, Fritz, please make that change and sim through the Athens game, too.

I'll check in again after we play Athens.

[Fritz]

I will see what I can do, but I am going into a meeting and then *gasp* have some work that requires most of my attention.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by Fritz
I will see what I can do, but I am going into a meeting and then *gasp* have some work that requires most of my attention.

If you can, great. If not, then perhaps the "impatient wing" would like to step in and sim.

I would be happy to do it, except that I'm at work and don't have access to the game.

Otherwise, we can simply wait until this evening to finish out the season.

[QuikSand]

This evening is fine by me... really.

[albionmoonlight]

If Fritz can't do it by today, I should be able to do it tonight.

If you can't sim, Fritz, do you have any offensive tweaks that you would like me to make based on scouting reports?

[Fritz]

sorry guys. I have taskings that will prevent me from looking at the game until monday, although I will still check in.

[albionmoonlight]

Napa Valley (17) at Kitty Hawk (22)

Our kicker went 5 for 7 in this game, including 2 for over 50 yards. While it stinks not to get it in the endzone more, it is nice to get five field goals on the day.

On defense we had a good game. We continued to dominate against the run, holding them to 43 yards on the ground. They passed for 223 yards, but we sacked them 5 times and got two picks. All in all, our execution on D appears to be to stuff the run, and to get big plays against the pass. The downside, as I have said before, is our propensity to give up yards through the air.

Shon may have sewed up the WLB position with 1.5 sacks. Gillispe was shut out as the pass rush DE.

Rubble had 5 rushes for 38 yards and 7 catches for 53 yards and a touchdown. All he does is move the chains.

Finley went 22-60 and Strong went 10-43. Between the three backs, we had a good, ball control rushing game.

Sparks went 17-29 for 217 and a touchdown. He was named MVP, though I think it should have gone to the kicker.

___________________________________________________________________

Athens(20) at Kitty Hawk (32)

Thank you Buzzbee. Based on the proposed game plan, I tweaked the defense to take advantage of their injuries and committed to stopping their passing game. As a result, their first two drives ended in interceptions. They ended up 21 of 43 with 6 sacks and 2 interceptions on the day—a far cry from the 25-30 that they used to carve us up last time we met.

Finley had 26 rushes for 197 yards. Our rushing yards outnumbered our passing yards 237 to 138.

Biegen is out with a strained foot ligament. I don’t know if we will ever have both of our DEs healthy at the same time. Martin will return next week, and we will continue our platoon system to replace Biegen.

The big news of the day, however, is that Earnest “Barney” Rubble is OUT for the year with a torn rotator cuff.

I did not want to sim anymore without getting input on how to change up the offense without our utility player. Discuss.

[albionmoonlight]

gt3c (pay no attention to wierd name)

[albionmoonlight]

gt3d

[QuikSand]

Drat... Rubble is defintely a useful player for us, but now we're short a man in that role. Might it make sense for us to use one of our current rookies at reserve RB as FB2 and receiving back?

[Buzzbee]

My suggestion:

You could activate Atkins, just to have him available, but you really don't need to. Take Finley and plug him in on Passing Downs and Near Certain Pass. Make TE Wayne the starting FB, and Quick the backup FB. Wayne is a better blocker anyway. Then for TE start Diana (he's probable) with either Quick or Wayne as the 2nd and 3rd TE's. Quick is a better receiver, Wayne is a better blocker. Depends on what you want out of your TE. I'd say blocking.

If you did activate Atkins you would need to inactivate someone like LB Davidson to make room. FOF4 makes us carry two FB's, so we can't inactivate Rubble unless we convert a TE (only position that CAN convert to FB) or sign a free agent.

My $0.02.

[Buzzbee]

Dola -

UPDATED SCOUTING REPORT: Tijuana River Raiders

Starting QB is DOUBTFUL with an abdominal strain. His backup is an intelligent QB (17 formations) who is a capable backup. I don't recommend any changes based on this recent injury.

[Buzzbee]

Double Dola -

UPDATED SCOUTING REPORT: Mazatlan Marauders

Starting QB Jeff Francis is out for 4 weeks with a broken ankle. He tried to come back too soon and it wasn't fully healed. His backup has started 9 games this year, and is probably a big reason the Marauders are in the basement. His numbers are gaudy: 49.8 completion percentage, 1857 yards for a 4.6 avg, only 5 TD's and 28, yes...count 'em, 28 INT's. His QB rating is a pathetic 38.0.

Starting SE is also out (Torn Rotator Cuff) along with starting SLB Thurman Strickland.


I would say focus on the running game since the QB sux, but since he has completed 14% of his passes to the other team I think we might want to swap the defensive line for CB's and S's.


This game SHOULD be a Kitty Hawk victory and solidify at least a Wildcard spot.

[Buzzbee]

Triple Dola -

In looking at the standings, Bermuda is 10-4 and we are 9-5. Our last two games are definitely winnable. Bermuda plays Napa Valley (10-3-1) and the Athens Argonauts (4-9-1) who tied Bermuda 4 weeks ago. If we win out and Bermuda loses, we've got a shot at getting a bye in the first week of the playoffs. The chances are slim, but they are there.

[QuikSand]

I'm comfortable with any decision regarding the backs... but we ought to stick with our rule and keep group leader FB Kowalkowski (sp?) in as the nominal starter there, if he remains healthy (I don't have the game open). My thinking was not to activate Atkins, but to use our either Strong or our current HB3 (forgetting his name here) as the "utility" back -- but slotting Finley in for passing downs makes sense to me, too.

[albionmoonlight]

Kowalkowski is healthy.

The big drop off may be at tight end/H-Back where, as Fritz pointed out, Rubble seemed to be getting a lot of his passes.

I agree with using Finley as our "passing downs" back.

[albionmoonlight]

Dola--

Also--it sounds like Fritz cannot sim until Monday. If QS has access to the game and wants to sim the last two games of the season (I set the D gameplan and depth chart before I mailed the game back) today, that might be a good place to leave it for the weekend. We can come back on Monday and discuss/sim the playoffs.

If, however, no one can sim today, I can sim the last two games this weekend.

Also--we are interviewing applicants in chambers today. I should be checking the board like normal; however, depending on how interviews go, I may be away from my desk for hours at a time. It's hard to know right now.

[Buzzbee]

Originally posted by QuikSand
I'm comfortable with any decision regarding the backs... but we ought to stick with our rule and keep group leader FB Kowalkowski (sp?) in as the nominal starter there, if he remains healthy (I don't have the game open). My thinking was not to activate Atkins, but to use our either Strong or our current HB3 (forgetting his name here) as the "utility" back -- but slotting Finley in for passing downs makes sense to me, too.

Good catch on starting Kowalski. I had forgotten he was our backfield leader.

Withers is the other RB if I remember correctly. I think Strong was the better pass catcher of the two.

QS - Was it you who proposed a theory regarding Route Running as a leading factor in how many "Targets" a receiver gets? If that is true, then Rubble probably saw a fair amount of action because he was relatively high in route running. Subbing in a lesser back may result in fewer "targets" and therefore make it less less risky to plug in a lesser player.

[albionmoonlight]

Should I sim over the weekend based on the discussion that we have had? Is there any more discussion to be had?

[Buzzbee]

I'm ok with simming over the weekend, but QS and Fritz may have different ideas. It might be best to go ahead and sim the two games remaining and then use the weekend to prepare for the post-season and perhaps sim through it if we progress that far. It sounds like Fritz is fairly busy, so a slower pace this weekend might be the best thing. Plus I know I have some stuff planned as well.

Question: Assuming we make the playoffs, are we going to take it one game at a time so that we can scout and tweak game plans based on the opponent, or are we going to continue with the current system of simming multiple games? This is of course with the condition that we actually win a playoff game.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
QS - Was it you who proposed a theory regarding Route Running as a leading factor in how many "Targets" a receiver gets? If that is true, then Rubble probably saw a fair amount of action because he was relatively high in route running. Subbing in a lesser back may result in fewer "targets" and therefore make it less less risky to plug in a lesser player.

Yes, that is my theory, and I believe in it strongly - so I agree, putting someone with lesser "route running" skills into that TE slot will probably yield fewer passes there, which is probably for the best.

I'm comfortable with you going ahead... this discussion has been fine, I think. And if I get a chance later today, I will do it.

[QuikSand]

Originally posted by Buzzbee
Question: Assuming we make the playoffs, are we going to take it one game at a time so that we can scout and tweak game plans based on the opponent, or are we going to continue with the current system of simming multiple games? This is of course with the condition that we actually win a playoff game.

That would be my plan - we really try to scout the hell out of the playoff opposition, and take those games one at a time. Even I can live with that.

[albionmoonlight]

Kitty Hawk (17) at Tijuana (14)

A QB with a history of interceptions who is having the best season of his career loses his safety valve receiver during the stretch run to the playoffs. I really expected 4 INTs this week from Sparks.

Instead he went 11-27 for 166 yards and no interceptions. Strong was the leading receiver with 4 catches. It does not look like Sparks tried to force things to work and make dumb plays. It does, however, look like he needs someone to whom to throw the ball. 11-27 for 166 yards is not going to get it done in the playoffs.

Rushing the ball, we still do fine. Finley was 24-97 and Strong was 14-58.

On Defense, we worked on stopping the pass, and we did a pretty good job. They went 21-40 for 197. I'll take a 50% completion percentage when we can get it.

By our standards, they did run the ball well on us (127 yards), but that is to be expected as a tradeoff.

Our defensive front seven is all banged up, but most of them are probable, so we will play them and hope for the best.

[albionmoonlight]

Dola--

Bermuda lost last week, so we are both 10-5 going into the last week of the season.

[albionmoonlight]

Kitty Hawk (35) at Mazatlan (3)

We kicked their butts as expected.

Our D went back to crushing the run, holding them to 47 yards. We also held them to around 50% completion percentage with 5 sacks on the day.

On O, we kept running the ball well, with Finley and Strong combining for over 200 yards. Strong was again the leading receiver with 4 catches.

DE Martin chimed in with 1.5 sacks. It is nice to have him back. He may have gotten 20 sacks if he had stayed healthy all year.

Bermuda won a one point game, so it is the wildcard for us.

Unfortunatley, the big news (again) is related to an injury. Sparks is OUT for the next four weeks with a separated shoulder. We also have some injuries to our receivers. We can discuss these as part of the Monday discussion on the playoffs.

11-5 in our first year. Not bad atall, guys.