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DIVISION 1 round 1 analysis Wolves&Playmakers The Playmakers have been a formidible round 1 opponent recently, knocking off the Larrys last Spring and the Bad Boyz in the Fall. Don`t look for that trend to continue this week though when they take the field against the defending champs. Although they appear to have added some youth and speed to the team they do not have enough speed to keep up with the Wolves. Coming off a subpar outing against some C league team last week look for the Wolves to rebound and use the big play to go up early and often, putting this game away in the first half. Wolves 31-13. Diesel&MacDaddies Who would have thought we would see Diesel as the #2 seed? A soft schedule? You can make that argument and I would say at least softer than the other division champs, but keep in mind this is a team on an upward track that seems to have found its groove. They will take on MacDaddies, a division opponent and the #3 in the division who they did not play during the season. The MacDaddies dodged a bullet in the standings because if my math is right, if the Playmakers had scored another 6 pts or allowed 6 pts less Mutiny would be in and MacDaddies out. Though they are usually in it, MacDaddies missed the D1 playoffs last spring but went all the way to the D2 championship game. Diesel won the D2 last Fall. Even though we have #2 and #15 I think these 2 teams are a lot closer in reality and the MacDaddies have been here plenty of times they are not happy just to be here. I will give the nod to Diesel, but not by much. The MacDaddies defense will come to play. Diesel 17-14. D.M.(aka DMOB)&All Makes Someone had to play "them" and All Makes got the short straw. It was mentioned here about how All Makes has given powerhouse teams a scare in the playoffs, but in this case D.M. is less likley to overlook them than those other teams simply because D.M. is not familiar with most teams in the league. I have no doubt D.M. will win this game the only question is how close will it be? The answer to that is how well All Makes can hold on to the ball on offense. If they can keep the game close in the first half and make every possession count for something, either field position, or a score we could be looking at a 24-14 or 21-10 type game. If All Makes goes for broke to catch up we`re looking at the 42-7 type. With nothing to lose, All Makes goes for broke and they get what they ask for, D.M. 42-7. Dietze Nuts&Outlaws Another division game, with Dietze Nuts having won the earlier meeting this Spring 28-7. Outlaws are riding a 4 game winning streak but those were wins over teams with a combined 5-23 record, nothing to hang your hat on. The team they are facing Sunday has a better record than 2-5, 1-6 or 0-7, and the ride stops here. The guy who will put an end to the Outlaws season is the same guy who took the Outlaws to the final four last year, the Dietze Nuts QB. Dietze Nuts did not field a team last Spring, and they infamously blew a 2 score lead against the Sharks in the D1 semis last Fall, a game they should have won by all accounts. Their only hiccup this season was a 4 pt loss to the Coyotes, but there was also a surprisingly close game against the Penetrators (what the hell was that all about?). I don`t think Dietze Nuts gets past the Sharks in the second round, and they won`t have a 2 score lead at any point in that game, but they will take care of business against the overmatched Outlaws. Dietze 28-3. Sharks&Vegas Nights The Sharks own every title in the area except this league and they are looking to make it a clean sweep. Drawing Vegas in the first round would likely not be their ideal choice. Although they are 5-0 against them the recent games have been hard fought and close 5 pt wins. Vegas is still a step behind both the Sharks and Bad Boyz in the MD fraternity, but not far back enough that a win is a given. Vegas is the team in this game with the most to prove and they absolutely think they can win it. If the Sharks get sloppy we could see a round 1 upset in this game, but I do not think the Sharks look past Vegas. Look for another close game between these rivals, Sharks 24-17. Lazy Sundae&Bad Boyz The good news for the Bad Boyz is that they did not draw the Playmakers in round 1. Lazy is the higher seed but Bad Boyz get homefield thanks to DMOB. If Diesel had a soft schedule finishing 7-0, what can you say about the 6-1 team from the same division? Throw the rankings out the window for this game, and don`t forget that Bad Boyz knocked Lazy out of the playoffs last spring en route to the championship game when Lazy was the defending champ with homefield. You have to think the Bad Boyz are itching for a rematch with DMOB, as this is a team that takes the field believing they can beat anyone in front of them. Lazy usually turns it up for the playoffs, but something seems a little off this season for them. I have a feeling this game could turn into a rout, Bad Boyz 28-7. Outcast&Larrys Now here is a bonafide rivalry, 8 yrs and counting. These teams met at States last Dec with the Larrys on the winning end of a 37-6 whuppin, but they split their Fall meetings with Outcast winning the regular season game and Larrys taking the playoff match. As well as these teams know each other look for a closer game than 37-6 but the winning team stays the same, Larrys. Outcast never seem to find that 5th gear come playoff time while the Larrys do. Pressure on the QB and smart offense is the way to beat Outcast and the Larrys do both well. In the regular season I would call this game as a tie, but its the playoffs. Larrys 21-13. Coyotes&Rhinos A weeknight D1 team ventures out into the Sunday league and as expected posts a good showing. The Coyotes/Dietze/Outcast division was likely the strongest outside of MD. If the Coyotes had not had to play Outcast on the back end of a double header they could be 7-0 and the 3 seed. This team is used to going up against much tougher competition during the season and is battle tested. They beat the Rhinos their first season in the weeknight league a few years back. The Rhinos have slouched off a little but that little is enough to put them behind the Coyotes in my book. Look for a close back and forth game in the first half with the Coyotes pulling away in the second and winning 27-14. DIVISION 1 round 2 quick analysis Wolves&Coyotes: Wolves defense is the key here in a low scoring game, Wolves 14-7. Diesel&Larrys: Larrys get by the over-achievers by forcing a few ints, 20-17. D.M.&Bad Boyz: Second time around Bad Boyz get closer, but no cigar, D.M. 24-13. Dietze Nuts&Sharks: No late game comeback necessary this time, Sharks 35-14. DIVISION 3 analysis (C League) Lets start off with the big game whi