Tuesday, December 31, 2019

Super Bowl XV


#7 Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6) def #4 MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4), 133.0 - 83.5

Another year, another Soliman upset over Alvin. Ouch. Last year Pogiboys was the lower seed but this time they were the odds on favorite to win. Instead, Sweep the Leg Zabka put up their highest scoring week of the season en route to a well, a total rout.

Pogiboys had only one week sub 83.5 points — back in WK7 when they threw up 70.5 — and Sweep the Leg had been putting up dual 56.0 and 59.5 points as recently as the last two weeks of the regular season. However, Alan’s team pulled themselves together for their playoff run, taking down top ranked Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada, and then sneaking by Squirtle Squad in RD2 by a mere +2.5 points. Zabka averaged 106.8 points during the 2019 playoffs after putting up a PF of only 72.3 over the course of the regular season.

After six seasons in Maize and Blue, Alan has managed a 49-28-1 (0.636) regular season record, six playoff appearances, four division titles, three Super Bowl appearances, and two championships. That’s a strong case for being the best owner in MnB history, especially given the time frame he’s accomplished this in. Two rings for Drew and Devonta!

Drew Brees, Devonta Freeman, Tyler Boyd, and Jared Cook all threw up 20+, and even with DK Metcalf tossing up a zero -- Odell Beckham Jr. was even benched for the title tilt -- Zabka really had no reason to fear Pogiboys because Nick Chubb started the day off with a mere four points, which was not what we predicted.

Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce did their thing but Chubb and DeAndre Hopkins came out flat, as did Patriots defense. The third highest scorer for Pogiboys? How about Raheem Mostert with eleven points. For Pogi, it’s back for another regular season run and then a prayer and a bit of luck for the next Super Bowl. Should MoRRie’s Pogiboys consider a name change to the Vikings or Bills? Sorry Alvin, better luck next year, again...

Monday, December 30, 2019

Toilet Bowl V

#14 Mandalorian Warriors (4-9) def #16 P-Funk All Stars (3-10), 48.5 - 38.5

In the year of our Baby Yoda, it was only fitting that Matt’s Mandalorian Warriors entered their first Toilet Bowl finals and then took next year’s number one overall pick from P Funk. Along the way, they upset Cameltoe and Bamfers, an impressive feat for the fourteenth power ranked team.

It’s been a long road back to respectability for Mandalorian. Since their 2013 title, the Warriors have gone 27-49-2 (0.355) and recent years have produced four, two, and then four wins again. Of course, all of this has been by design, as the Warriors have been busy acquiring multiple early round picks for the 2022 season and on. Without a full tally, we believe they have something like six RD1 in 2022 and then three in 2023.

It wasn’t exactly a stellar Toilet Bowl, but Baker Mayfield and Rex Burkhead led the way for Mandalorian, taking down Adrian Peterson and the Not Quite All Stars. AP is still around? Seriously? For P Funk, coming up empty in their first Toilet Bowl finals is a bit disappointing, but after three straight years of being the lowest ranked team — two wins in 2017, one in 2018, three this year — it has to be at least a bit of joy knowing they were capable of some major upsets along the way.

Congrats to the Warriors and we’re excited to see what the future holds for this team! Let's hope it's brighter than the mid-episodes of the Disney+ show!

Friday, December 20, 2019

Super Bowl Preview 2019

#4 MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4) vs #7 Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6)

After putting up a historic 107.0 points per game last year, Pogiboys come right back this season and topped their own record, scoring 109.1 points per game, resetting the new high mark for Maize and Blue -- we’ve been tracking this stat since 2013. (Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada put up 104.4 ppg this year, good for fourth overall historically.) Regular season accolades are de rigueur for they just can't seem to win the big one, even as recently as last year's disappointing Super Bowl XIIII showing. Can XV finally be their breakthrough?!

Pogiboys faced a real softball schedule this year, going against the second lowest PA this season, with opponents putting up just 77.7 PA. That gave the 2019 Pogiboys a historic +31.5 PF/PA each week. Impressive right? What’s more impressive is how Alvin managed to lose four games this season. Maybe he was trying to not get too far in the lead. (Interestingly, three of the top five PF/PA difference seasons were set this year, with Xur beating opponents by +25.8 and Another Bad Creation with +24.6)

Despite losing The Big House division title to Aaron’s The Autumn Wind in the last week of the regular season, Pogiboys wrapped up their last month with three wins and just one loss, and then came back strong to defeat TAW when they re-met in the first round of the playoffs. Having avenged that WK13 loss, Pogiboys advance to their fourth Super Bowl -- and first back-to-back showing -- after taking down Team Grrrrific in the Eastern Conference championships.

All that stands between Alvin and his long awaited title is one foe. Unfortunately, that foe is 2017 champ Sweep the Leg Zabka, and they have a history of big escapes and daring upsets. Despite a 1-4 start the season, Alan righted the ship by winning four straight from WK6-9, and the regular season on a 6-2 tear, and they’ve shown no signs of stopping after upending top ranked Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada in the first round off the playoffs and then winning an absolute nail biter versus Squirtle Squad last weekend. Seriously, that win was only by +2.5 points, and Alan has to be thankful for whoever the hell Terry McLaurin is. Heading into their third Super Bowl appearance in just their sixth season for Sweep is quite a feat.

They’ll be facing an uphill battle in the championship game as they were one of two teams to enter the postseason with negative PF/PA, and the largest at -9.1 per week. Is Drew Brees and Devonta Freeman enough to take down Patrick Mahomes, Nick Chubb, DeAndre Hopkins, and Travis Kelce? Plus that vaunted Patriots defense?

While every positional advantage seems to favor Pogiboys — plus a huge disparity in PF consistency — the meme spewing Zabkas aren’t afraid of anyone and if they can pull off their second title win against the long suffering Pogiboys, well…. this league might really need to be renamed to something other than Maize and Blue eh?

Playoff Results 2019: Matchups

RD1
Eastern Conference
#2 Another Bad Creation (9-4) vs #8 Team Grrrrific (7-6)
#3 The Autumn Wind (9-4) vs #4 MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4)

Western Conference
#1 Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada (11-2) vs #7 Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6)
#5 Squirtle Squad (7-5-1) vs #6 Pooh Bears (7-6)

Toilet Bowl RD1
#9 Stink Pink Gators (6-6-1) vs #16 P-Funk All Stars (3-10)
#10 Ann Arbor Bamfers (6-7) vs #15 Jedi Knights (4-9)
#11 Team Cameltoe (5-8) vs #14 Mandalorian Warriors (4-9)
#12 Fockers (5-8) vs #13 Italian Stallionz (4-9)


RD2
Eastern Conference Championship: #4 MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4) vs #8 Team Grrrrific (7-6)
Western Conference Championship: #5 Squirtle Squad (7-5-1) vs #7 Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6)

Toilet Bowl Matchup #1:  #12 Fockers (5-8) vs #16 P-Funk All Stars (3-10)
Toilet Bowl Matchup #2:  #10 Ann Arbor Bamfers (6-7) vs #14 Mandalorian Warriors (4-9)


RD3
Super Bowl: #4 MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4) vs #7 Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6)
Third place: #5 Squirtle Squad (7-5-1) vs #8 Team Grrrrific (7-6)

Toilet Bowl: #14 Mandalorian Warriors (4-9) vs #16 P-Funk All Stars (3-10)

Tuesday, December 10, 2019

Power Rankings 2019

Here are the final overall rankings from the season.   These power rankings represent the inverse draft order for next season, with the exception of the Toilet Bowl winner.

Playoff brackets have been updated accordingly.  There are three primary groups: Eastern Conference, Western Conference, Toilet Bowl.

Overall Power Rankings
1.  Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada (11-2) - Green and White Division Champion.  Best Overall Record.
2.  Another Bad Creation (9-4) - Mark Dantonizzo Division Champion.  Wins H2H vs The Autumn Wind.
3.  The Autumn Wind (9-4) - The Big House Division Champion.  Wins H2H vs. MoRRie's Pogiboys.
4.  MoRRie's Pogiboys (9-4)
5.  Squirtle Squad (7-5-1) - Ohana Division Champion.  Next best overall record.
6.  Pooh Bears (7-6) - Next best overall record. Wins tiebreak vs Zabka and Grrrrific via Total Points For.
7.  Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6) - Wins H2H vs Team Grrrrific.
8.  Team Grrrrific (7-6)

Non-playoff Teams
9. Stink Pink Gators (6-6-1)
10. Ann Arbor Bamfers (6-7)
11. Team Cameltoe (5-8) - Wins tiebreak vs Fockers via Total Points For
12. Fockers (5-8)
13. Italian Stallionz (4-9) - Wins tiebreak vs Mandalorian Warriors and Jedi Knights via 3-way H2H winning %.
14. Mandalorian Warriors (4-9) - Wins H2H vs Jedi.
15. Jedi Knights (4-9)
16. P-Funk All Stars (3-10)


PLAYOFF MATCHUPS
Eastern Conference
Another Bad Creation (9-4) vs Team Grrrrific (7-6)
The Autumn Wind (9-4) vs MoRRie’s Pogiboys (9-4)

Western Conference
Xur and the Ko-Dan Armada (11-2) vs Sweep the Leg Zabka (7-6)
Squirtle Squad (7-5-1) vs Pooh Bears (7-6)

Monday, December 2, 2019

Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Regular Season All-Time: Owner

With a revamped -- and sortable -- historical spreadsheet, we can now easily parse out data from the last fifteen years of Maize and Blue. Fifteen years! Let's take a look at who the best regular season owners have been:


And below is by franchise, discounting ownership changes: