WEEK 6 REVIEW

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Category: The Sentinel

Created: Tuesday, 26 September 2023 19:11

Published: Tuesday, 26 September 2023 19:11

Written by Jeff Krol

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Week six is in the past, and it is safe to say the great games are just going to continue to keep rolling each weekend as the race for co-ed touch football immortality is coming up upon us! The weather once again cooperated, where everybody was shedding their layers by noon time. My impression of the league so far: who the heck knows who is going to win it all in each division! It feels like anything can happen. With that let’s take a look at some of this weeks games!

BC: 

Blach-ur-anus 46, Steph’s Misty-rious Infection 31

Garrett made his grand return after a two week hiatus and it could not have come at a better time. The new Steph infection was down quite a few players, but Frank Laudico was still ready to sling it, hitting his ladies time after time for gains. Nobody has ever accused Garrett of being the smartest QB (just kidding, we love Garrett) but he was strategic the entire game, taking advantage of his open receivers ability to get open. In the end, the lady touchdowns made the difference as BUA made enough to get the win.

D1:

Losing Streak 36, Legends 24

This was a game of turnovers and a little bit of controversy, but we will get to that in a minute. Jordan Lawson looked focused and ready for this battle, delivering strike after strike to his talented receivers. Joey Batts made his return to QB for Legends, and was overall sharp but made some uncharacteristic turnovers that swung the game in the LS direction. On one of those picks, Chris Nelson picked the ball off and ran to the goal line and pitched to a girl, but a Legends defender made a great effort and deflected the ball into the endzone. In the end it was ruled dead ball at the spot it was deflected, but it raised some questions on if it should be a touchback. May need to get the rules committee together and add some clarification for the future. In the end, Jordan found Chris for a touchdown on 6-0 to seal the game, and a huge win for LS. 

Frodo Swaggins 39, Sticky Bandits 30

Garrett was able to gather the fellowship around Frodo and looked comfortable in the pocket throwing to his receivers. Garrett was able to complete substantial passes to Katie, Dri, and Tori repeatedly. The nail in the coffin was when Tori ran an out and up over Brandy Clarke, scoring a much needed 8 points. On the other side of the ball, Josh Schneider made it his personal mission to try and pick Mike Thomas off, running all over the field demonstrating his value as a top 5 defender. Sticky was down 19 points and felt momentum coming back their way. Mike Thomas scored a gender touchdown with around 5 minutes left. Sticky managed to get the stop they needed for one last drive, but couldn’t punch the ball in as Mike tried to his Nicole Sharick on a front line out. Congrats Garrett and Frodo for finally getting in the win column!

D2: 

Freeballers 42, Scared Hitless 32

Freeballers were the dominant team, especially with a quarterback the team refers to as HIM. Adrian Cannon played stellar defense all game making quarterbacking miserable for Dylan Day. On several occasions Adrian broke up some deep shots to the guys of SH. Dylan did find the occasional open receiver hovering the sideline or goal line. Once SH had 4 guys available, they started to move the ball better, but attendance seems to be their issue thus far. As the game was coming to a close, Freeballers decided to stop playing defense and let SH get a gender touchdown and the two point conversion to let the game become a little more interesting. Freeballers ended up running enough time off to seal the deal. 

D3: 

Keller Whales 39, Bullet Club 38

This was a back and forth all afternoon, and was exciting with a lot of offensive fireworks. BC got up early with well-run and precise drives that ended in touchdowns to George Lombardo. KW would not let that stop them, driving the ball down the field to make it a game and then on the last play of the half, got a nice catch in the back corner of the endzone to make it a tight game. This game felt like each offense was scoring on every drive, until BC didn’t on a missed pass from Langley to old veteran Tommy Hughes, giving KW the edge in the end as the Keller Clan celebrated a hard-earned win. 

The Family 40, Wanderers 38

The Family has been blitzing through their competition since some early hiccups, and may just be perhaps the most athletic team in TSL. Led by Terrell Bolden, who was sharp and accurate all game, TF moved the ball down the field time and time again for scores. Not to be outdone by TF’s athleticism, Wanderers might be one of the smartest teams out there, and they showed it again with methodical drives down the field. On one pass, Frank found his brother, Alan Laudico, who made a jump cut, breaking the ankles of the TF defender. A loud “OOOOOO’ was yelled out by even the defenders teammates Alan shook him so bad. In the end, the high-powered offense of TF was too much, and they get yet another victory. 

D4: 

ILF 35, PWI 0

This was a game of substitutes and captains who are too arrogant to request bye weeks when 90% of their teams are out of town. John Langley was in the middle of his 5th quadruple header of the year and there was no wear to be found. Langley threw to “Drunk enough to catch, not drunk enough to fall over” Meg and Brett Fiend repeatedly, racking up a score of 35-0. Brett had three touchdowns, in the front of the endzone, back and all around, and was practically begging John to let him join THK. Derek Pew was the QB of PWI and the wind was against him, every pass over 15 yards would sail and curve thanks to an errant gust of wind. 

Father Baker 36, Buffalo Vice 32

Buffalo Vice was fully staffed and started off hot, hitting deep routes and using their height to their advantage. Caitlin Mason’s efforts in the first half proved to be another threat to a stacked offense. She was juking past Robin and catching long touchdown passes on Maddie Norton. Not to be outdone by Caitlin, Maddie scored on a stop and go, while on another drive, Robin was left wide open that resulted in a deep touchdown pass. The interesting change of this game was that Father Baker was again on a missionary trip so Father Coniff filled in for him. At the end of one half, Vice was ahead by two scores. Father Coniff quickly learned what the nuns prefer to run on offense, who was the best in confession, and was best in coverage. Father Coniff provided holy guidance on defense which led to stops. Due to some uncharacteristic drops by BV guys, some defense by Molly Santo and Britnee Perry, and a game-sealing interception by Father Coniff, Father Baker pulled off the upset. 

D5:

GUCCI 46, Not So Sticky 6

This game was over in the first ten minutes, as the sub-filled Not So Sticky roster never stood a chance against the high powered GUCCI machine.  Kelly Kane often gets the credit (and rightfully so) for being the badass alpha female that keeps GUCCI rolling, but Laura Territo didn't disappoint either with a gorgeous interception to break the spirits of NSS once and for all.  People stopped asking for score checks after the first half, as this was never really in question.

WEEK 4 REVIEW

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Category: The Sentinel

Created: Tuesday, 12 September 2023 20:10

Published: Tuesday, 12 September 2023 20:10

Written by Jeff Krol

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Week 4 has come and gone, we are now halfway through the TSL season, but don’t let that bum you out! We have so much more season to go. The weather cooperated for us, with cooler temps and a bit of overcast to protect you non-sunscreen wearers from yourselves. We had rematches galore, gender team battles, and new teams out to make a point which makes the mid-point of the season that much more interesting. Let’s take a look!

D1:

Eyes Downtown 40, Sticky Bandits 26

It would appear the Sticky receivers adopted the Kansas City Chiefs catching drills, because they just couldn’t avoid costly drops! ED carved up the Sticky defense (it would appear they weren’t so sticky on defense), utilizing Derek Bongiovanni’s size and speed, Nick Angelos glorious hair, and the athleticism of Kayla, Amber and Katie. The ED defense was playing on turbo time as they earned two sacks by lead rusher Blase, a pick by Amber Hay and a game-ending toe-tap pick by Cody Stumpf who exclaimed “you’re done!” as he caught it.

Legends 39, Eyes Downtown 38

ED recruited a foreign exchange athlete swapping out Johnny Yioulos for mustached Italian athlete named Mario. This Mario Man was jumping all over the field, bouncing on his opponents, eating mushrooms, and trying to use flowers to throw fireballs. Bobby McConnell aired out a deep ball to Mario, who jumped up in the air, catching the football, screaming “wah-hooooo!” as he landed in the end zone. ED and Legends went back and forth in their second bout in three consecutive weeks. After some controversial calls, Legends came out on top to hold on to their undefeated season. 

D2:

Can’t Touch This 36, Scared Hitless 23

The girls of SH are drastically underrated as they have incredible hands and speed. The SH defense was able to sack Ryan Dougherty 5 times. Despite the sacks, CTT was able to get the ball in the end zone multiple times with deep shots, back line routes and toe taps. The receivers showed their great chemistry with him, finding openings in the defense all game long. 

D3:

The Malones 50, Bullet Club 37

The Malones are extremely skilled, and their record was not indicative of the talent they possess. TM has a QB with a good arm and he put it on display, completing quite a few deep passes over the BC defense. The ladies for TM have skill, and they showed what they were about with catch after catch. BC was abandoned once again by their QB Langley, but Tommy Hughes led the charge well. After getting down early, Tommy did what all wily vets do, and led the comeback to take a late lead. A controversial touchdown call marred this a bit, but in the end, TM came out on top for their first win. 

Let’s Get Reccked 57, Wanderers 14

The surprise of the day, Wanderers were playing with three girls and three guys the whole game. LGR was playing with four guys and four girls, so seemingly a mismatch, and it was. The availability of subs and consistency allowed for Buchilis’ team to have a massacre win over the wanderers. LGR scored a bunch with no struggle at all, and the whole team was celebrating after the game. 

D4:

Cunning Stunts 53, Father Baker 44

This game was the highlight of the day and proved exactly why we need to have gender teams. These two teams showed the perfect example of what happens when all the best girls in the league play against one another; they score a bunch of points, draw a crowd, and play exciting football. Father Baker was missing their Father Baker, as he was doing missionary work in Chicago. He was replaced with Father McConnell who had the holy ghost in all of his throws. Touchdowns were had by all, whether they were deep routes, a Katie Salisbury Juke, or a 6 play drive. The game came down to who could capitalize on their extra points and the final drive. Joey Batts intercepted the ball on fourth down of the final drive to seal the victory. 

D5:

Come From Behind 38, GUCCI 23

GUCCI is the total package with the TSL's greatest female QB and a slew of athletic, physical receivers for Kelly to work with.  They might still be the favorites to win D5, but if they lose (again) in the playoffs, we wouldn't be shocked if Come From Behind was the team to do it.  Paul Lovullo was his usual lethal self on Saturday, and GUCCI just didn't have an answer for his connection with Rob.  Athletes were diving over each other to make plays and it was obvious both teams wanted this one, but only Come From Behind could come out on top.

D6:

Pit Harade 34, Back That Pass Up 14

Nick Stutzman from Two Tuddies was subbing as QB for Pit Harade, but you'd never know it was his first game throwing for this team.  His chemistry with Mike Malicki in the end zone was unstoppable, and Back That Pass Up had no answer for Mike's height or Sam Pezzino's speed.  Buddy Lee calls a great game for both of his teams, but his receivers dropped a number of passes that might have given Back That Pass Up a chance to keep up on the scoreboard.

WEEK 5 REVIEW

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Category: The Sentinel

Created: Tuesday, 19 September 2023 19:18

Published: Tuesday, 19 September 2023 19:18

Written by Jeff Krol

Hits: 764

On what was another beautiful day out there at the rose garden on Saturday, the games were absolutely electric! I get the feeling some of the neighbors around the fields may get annoyed with all the yelling they hear, but it must not be too bad, seeing as how we get no complaints. So far the fields have held up pretty well, it must be the change in how they are aligned. I heard some early complaints about it, but it seems those have subsided since we don’t have craters causing injuries. Let’s take a look at some games!

Breakfast Club:

BDD 40, Blach-ur-anus 32

BUA had Nick Hawes stepping in at QB with Garrett out, and the game started hilariously with a pick on the first play. Micah was slinging the rock for BDD and was accurate and on point early, finding his girls easily. BUA started to make a comeback in the second half, but BDD fended them off with key plays made by Stoner Dave. 

D1:

Eyes Downtown 27, Legends 13

Legends continues to do that thing where they throw someone different out at QB, like they are just toying with the rest of D1 and aren’t taking the regular season too seriously. This time they had to as Joey Batts was not there, and ED took advantage. Bobby McConnell was ready to average previous losses, and this time had his big target Derek Bongiovanni to throw to. Nick Angelo was all over the field making play after play. ED continues to show they are a serious player to win the whole thing. 

Legends 31, Sticky Bandits 30

Coach Jay was in action for the Sticky Bandits this week and had an early pick to set the Sticky Bandits up for an early two score lead.  Andy Smigiera responded quickly though and found wide open touchdowns to Travis and Shbend to close the gap and preserve the Legends' undefeated season (for another hour at least).  Andy and Mel also had great picks in coverage for the Legends.

D2: 

Freeballer 58, Can’t Touch This 18

Just when you think that CTT is unstoppable, they met their match! Well, at least for this matchup. Hogan is QBing for Freeballers now, and perhaps they found their match as he stood back there, directed the offense, and delivered strikes to his receivers. Adrian was all over the place on both sides of the ball, showing he is truly on of the top players TSL has to offer. Ryan Dougherty moved his team down the field, they just couldn’t capitalize early when given chances, and it snowballed a bit from there. Definitely see this rematch being a lot more fun!

D3:

Keller Whales 30, Bullet Club 19

Keller Whales are led by Damian Keller and boy does he have a solid arm. Early on in a tough spot on 4-1, Damian delivered a deep strike to Katie Keller to set up an early score. Langley was back at QB for BC, and we’re not quite sure if he was too amped up, but he was a bit off on some pretty open throws, mixed with a couple drops from his receivers. With the game close towards the end, the rusher for KW made an outstanding play to one hand a pick and take it for a TD. KW converted on the 2-point to ice the game. KW just knows how to play!

D4:

THK 31, Buffalo Vice 29

This was perhaps the game of the 10am time slot as this game was back and forth the entire way. THK had some momentum early but failed to score early which caused an early deficit. And then, the deep ball came out and Langley found Pistol Pete and Mike Burke on deep routes for touchdowns. Andy Clark was sharp all day, but a key pick early set THK up. One note: the tall guy from BV had the interception of a lifetime, with a SICK one-handed interception. At the end, with the game on the line, Pistol Pete came up with a goalline pick to seal the deal. 

PWI 43, Puckett All-Stars 30

I have to say, PWI might not be the most athletic team, but boy are they rock solid! Buddy Lee has continued to improve with every High Noon he drinks, and his receivers just catch the ball. Buddy had his guys and girls getting open against PAS’s tough man defense, driving the ball down the field with ease. PAS was missing a couple players but had their core, but in the end a few too many mistakes and an upstart PWI took them down and made their claim as a D4 championship contender again. 

D5: 

Gucci 37, Cobblestone 20

Let me start by saying this: Darryl Carr gets the love he gets because no matter what, he is going to have his team play. What a rockstar. Cobblestone only had 4 players and played their hearts out to make this as competitive as possible. Gucci was just simply too good and took advantage of that. Gucci is just a different team when Kelly is back there, and they had their big guy Thomas Fields back too. In the end, it was a clear mismatch, but give Cobblestone their props for going out there and playing anyway. Darryl could have taken the easy way out and forfeit, but good for him for playing. 

Cobblestone 56, NSS 40

So here we REALLY give props. Cobblestone won with FOUR PLAYERS. NSS, how did that happen??  When a team has only four defenders, you should score against them every time.  Instead NSS somehow threw multiple picks.  We don't know the girl's name on Cobblestone but it feels like we will soon -- she was unstoppable on both sides of the ball.

D6:

Mighty Drunks 54, Blitzkrieg 15

Blitzkrieg is a team that always looks like they are having a great time no matter the outcome of the game. In this case, Mighty Drunks were eating up the field, scoring a bunch of points on offense and stopping Blitzkrieg in their tracks on defense. The QB of MD looked calm and comfortable, picking whatever receiver he wanted to show off in the moment. 

Blitzkrieg 49, pit Harade 36

Pit Harade had Gordon at QB who would try to go deep too often and not take advantage of the easy 10-15 yard completions he had available. The game was very back and forth and felt like neither team wanted to win. Blitzkrieg’s men would run deep routes with smiles on their faces, trying to haul in the ball over and over again. In the end, Blitzkrieg’s redzone offense was more consistent, utilizing the back line and sealed the win with a deep ball touchdown with a minute left in the game. 

WEEK 3 REVIEW

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Category: The Sentinel

Created: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 19:23

Published: Wednesday, 06 September 2023 19:23

Written by Jeff Krol

Hits: 861

Hello friends! I can’t believe we are already through three weeks of the season! It always feels like the weeks between sessions drag on but once we get back to football, it just flies on by! There were a lot of interesting games out there, some teams looking to make a statement, while others fell back a little bit. Who starred, and who flopped? Let’s take a look!

Breakfast Club

BDD 40, The Dirty Dozen 18

This one was a bloodbath. BDD basically has multiple QB’s who can all play, and they used them. TDD was led by Micah, who continued to try to hit his girls deep downfield but seemed to hit on none of them. It would appear Becca put together the winning roster, again, which is pretty boring. We will see how the rest of the BC league does.

D1

Sticky Bandits 37, Losing Streak 18

Was this a game that showed how good Sticky is, or, how LS struggles when they do not have Chris and Kai? Sticky was missing most of their weapons too, but as long as they have Mike Thomas it doesn't seem to matter. Adrian Cannon continuously made plays down the field, with great runs after catch while Drew Colosimo made a nice catch on a fade route into the endzone early on. Jordan Lawson had some struggles, but was not as far off as he may think he was, with some deep balls being just out of reach. LS had a chance to make this a close game at half, but Ralph Finney made his way out of the field, causing a “too many men on the field” penalty, nullifying a touchdown at the end of the half. From there, Sticky did what they do and cruised on, playing mistake free. 

Legends 48, Eyes Downtown 43

What a game this was, and the QB controversy was born for Legends! Sean was out there slinging the ball all over, finding his girls and guys for big chunks at a time. ED got behind early, but came clawing back as Bobby McConnell found use in Ben Stack and his ladies countless times. This was a “defense optional” type of game, but in the end, the early deficit was just a little too much for ED to overcome. I do come away from this believing that ED may have the unit this year to take the title, even in a loss. Not having a few key pieces I think impacted this one. 

D2

Mavericks 47, Thread 20

As talented as the Mavericks are, I am not sure many saw this one coming. Thread was coming off a grueling win over untouchaballs, so that may have played an impact as they appeared a little gassed throughout the game. Jordan rebounded from his LS loss with vengeance in his eyes, repeatedly finding his ladies all over the field. Money Mike Burke could be heard from fields away with his enthusiastic positivity, which we all love to see! Manny Batcho was communicating at a high level on defense, and rallied the troops to stifle Thread. 

Can’t Touch This 47, untouchaballs 41

CTT continues to show they are the favorite in D2, taking care of business against a tough untouchaballs team. Burr was short girls, so he called in Maddie Norton who was all over the field making plays. QB Ryan for CTT was electric again, finding open guys and girls at will, and was unstoppable. CTT has much of the same guys, minus a couple and the chemistry was obvious from the jump. Neither defense played strong, but CTT made enough plays on defense to seal with win. 

D3

Bullet Club 42, 716 39

The new-look 716 may not have a win yet, but they seem to have the pieces to make some noise. B has assumed the QB role, so that brought some stability. They still have Derek pew, although not throwing, James Cellato, and both made a ton of plays. James notched a few picks and touchdowns, and was all over the field. BC is now led by Langley at QB, and we can’t figure out if that is an upgrade over Jeff Easton or not. BC moved the ball at will on offense, and new addition George Lombardo was a monster with a ton of receptions. Back and forth the whole way, BC went down the field and Nick Buzek notched what proved to be the game-winner. 

The Family 68, Malone’s 46

Defense was clearly not a priority in this one, when you see over 100 points combined put up! The Family is in the running for best jersey’s in the TSL, and they have a ton of fun while playing. Family loves to take deep shots, led by Terrell Bolden at QB and has the speed and athleticism to do so. Whoever is number X on the team has caught a lot of attention for his noteworthy catches. There is some chatter that there may have been collusion to try to break the single-game points record scored in TSL history. 

D4

ILF 42, TMA 22

With the addition of Boccio, the expectation was he would single-handedly turn this game into a blood bath. Early returns were not as good, as Ryan Henry overthrew Boccio a handful of times, but the overall thought is give this team a few more games, and they will be cooking with oil. ILF was carried once again by their girls who continually found open spots in the defense. Highlight of the day was Jason Neth’s pick-6 to give the Falcons a sizeable lead to cruise with. 

Puckett All-Stars 40, THK 20

PAS stayed in D4 after winning the spring championship, and they look poised for another run. Returning a lot of the same team, with a new QB (looks like TJ is back out there), while making a couple additions, they still have the speed and athleticism to make a run. PAS got out to a big early lead, and never looked. Back. Langley has struggled against PAS and continued to do so again, throwing some errant passes that stalled multiple drives. There was an ejection in this one, we will not get into but it added a bit of flare!

D5

The BAADies 57, Spinelli’s 52

Okay, so we love to pick on Garrett in this program, but I have to say, he made some crazy plays on defense in this one! Garrett tormented Nick Hawes with by my count three interceptions that really swung the game. Spinelli’s did what they do best; not calling plays but still lighting up the scoreboard. In the end, Garrett and his girls made too many plays. Talia is a cheat code with his mix of size and hands, making a few nice grabs, especially one in the back corner of the endzone to help seal things. 

Come From Behind 20, Gucci 17

Well after so many games with no defense, we get a big change with not much offense in this one! Gucci was without Kelly Kane, and that absolutely matters. Gucci was undefeated with her, and dropped two games without her. CFB is a staple in this league, with Paul Lovullo slinging the rock like he’s 22 again. CFB has some tall guys at receiver, and dependable girls. Not sure the name of who filled in at QB for Gucci but I have to assume he will bow to Kelly Kane upon her return and tell her to never miss a week again!

D6

Balls Deep 26, Blitzkrieg 7

Will the real Blitzkrieg please stand up? I still can’t figure this team out. Light Red hoody guy is throwing, but the offense was just inconsistent and unable to generate much. Balls Deep seems to be the Graves Bros incarnate, so they know how to play this game at that level and get wins. They will be a factor in the end. Some nice deep passes from their QB (I will need to learn his name, he throws a solid ball) and in the end, their defense held Blitzkrieg down to get the win. 

Back That Pass up 21, Two Tuddies 18

BTPU wins! BTPU wins! Remember last week when I told you they were poised to break through at some point? Man, am I good! Alex and his crew have ben taking one on the chin for a while and continued to learn, and they pulled off perhaps the upset of the season, beating what many assume to be the D6 favorite in two tuddies. It should be noted that Chris Wolcott was playing with Gucci at this time, but don’t let that take anything away from BTPU. They played tight defense and made enough plays to win on offense. I need to learn more about the players, they seem like a fun group!