Im going to be analyzing the play on both sides of the ball in the matchup between the Tijuana Luchadores and Minnesota Grey Ducks in week four. So lets get started with the scoring summary.
FIRST QUARTER
The First quarter was relatively lackluster in terms of points scored, both defenses came out strong, preventing any touchdowns, and allowing only a single field goal for each team. The Grey Ducks opening drive ended with a 42 yard kick from Bill Brasky. The Luchadores were finally able to get points on the board with three minutes left in the quarter when Jack Burton launched a 34 yard kick through the uprights. Quarter end, tie game 3-3.
SECOND QUARTER
At the start of the quarter Jack Burton landed another field goal, this time from 33 yards out, giving Tijuana the lead 6-3. The Grey Ducks responded with the games first touchdown, a 2 yard run by Sim Snowbow. Brasky makes the extra point making it 10-6 Minnesota. Around the 4 minute mark Tijuana scored with a third field goal from Jack Burton, a forty yarder that sailed through the goalposts. 10-9 Minnesota. Neither team could score before the half.
Halftime score 10-9 Minnesota.
THIRD QUARTER
After a huge return from Vermillion, the Grey Ducks hit paydirt in the first minute of the half with a power run from Mike Rotchburns up the gut a single yard for the TD. 17-9 Minnesota. This quick strike gave the Ducks momentum that would carry them through the rest of the game. Seemingly unable to get through Minnesotas stout defense, Tijuana settled for another field goal, this time a 32 yarder from Jack Burton bringing the score to 17-12. The Grey Ducks responded with a field goal from 30 yards out making the score 20-12 to end the quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
James Vermillion brought another touchdown to Minnesota with a 1 yard run to make it 27-12. The Ducks were starting to run away with it at this point. Then with just under 5 minutes left the Luchadores finally hit paydirt with 5 yard touchdown pass from Boss jr to Theeks. The score is now 27-19, not ideal for Tijuana but still manageable. Unable to snag a touchdown or run the clock out, the Ducks settled for a field goal making it 30-19 at the two minute warning. In the final seconds, seemingly for pride, Mike Boss jr threw his second touchdown pass, a 15 yarder to doug Howlett. A failed 2 point conversion ended the game. 30-25 Minnesota.
The final score here makes this a closer game than it was. Thebfirst half was neck and neck, however after halftime the Ducks poured it on. Tijuanas only two touchdowns came with less than 5 minutes left in the game, and one of those TDs was a non factor, happening as time expired. The Grey Ducks defense played phenominally in the games earlier quarters. The Minnesota offense was finally able to move the ball and hit paydirt when it mattered. The Grey Ducks that played today, can be a team that could beat anyone. They just have to maintain consistency.
QB - once again a weakness in Minnesota, Snowbow completed 12/25 for 97 yards and an Interception. Yet he still did JUST enough to get the win. The Grey Ducks are a running team, with even the QB finishing with 40 yards on 4 carries and a rushing TD. Tijuana QB Mike Boss Jr on the other hand completed 16/29 187 yards, 2 touchdowns and an INT. He was obviously the better thrower, at least at the end of the game. So he gets the edge at the QB postion despite not getting the most important stat, the victory.
Edge - Tijuana
RB - Rotchburns was the star of the show for Minnesota tallying 93 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown, with a whopping 5.8 ypc. Vermillion struggled to move the ball consistently with 17 carries and 55 yards. He did snag himself a touchdown which slightly makes up for his low 3.2 ypc. Tijuana running back scampered for 95 yards on 17 carries and a solid 5.6 ypc. He was unable to hit paydirt however. Theeks ran for 69 yards on 14 carries for a 4.9 ypc. Theeks did have 11 recieving and a recieving touchdown though. But since Neither Tijuana back could reach the endzone through the ground however, im giving Minnesota the edge.
Edge - Minnesota
WR - howlett was the top reciever of the game with 6 catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. Vequain also recorded a respectable 4 catches and 61 yards. The Minnesota recievers had the ball spread around much better, with chambers leading pack at 3 catches for 58 yards. Akerele snagged 3 catches himself for 33 yards and Willy Weasel also with 3 catches for 20 yards. The obvious edge goes to Howlett, however as a team I think had Minnesota thrown the ball more they would get the edge, but as it stands Tijuana gets the edge.
Edge - Tijuana
OL - The Minnesota OL played well, only allowing 1 sack from Tijuanas feared pass rush. S. Moss and T. Shaft each had 5 pancakes, while R. Testy had 3. Manclaw aided the blocking front with 3 pancakes of his own. The Tijuana OL allowed 3 sacks, and their lead blockers of the game were Faramir with 4 pancakes and Davis with 3. Its safe to say the Minnesota OL perfromed better all together and so they get the edge.
Edge - Minnesota
DT - Luchadores DTs Dimby and Slattery played decent football against the run, with Dimby finishing with 3 tackles and Slattery with 2 tackles. Neither one applied much pressure to the QB, meanwhile the lone Grey Duck DT with tackles was Brooks with two. Neither teams defensive tackles made a huge impact, however Tijuana did have the better DTs in the game today giving them the edge.
Edge - Tijuana
DE - The Minnesota Defensive ends played a great game, starting with Van Sanzo who had 3 tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack and Ranger had 2 tackles and a tackle for loss. The Tijuana ends Isaac and Wrecks combined for 3 tackles, with two of them coming from Isaac. In the arena of Defensive ends, Minnesota wins by a mile.
Edge - Minnesota
LB - Once again at the top for Minnesota is Chainbreaker and the Rookie star Gleel. Chainbreaker had 12 tackles, a tackle for loss and 2 sacks. He was disruptive to say the least. Gleel finished with 5 tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack. Alongside them was Mash who recorded 4 tackles in the victory. Tijuana Linebacker N. wright finished with 8 tackles and a tackle for loss while Schell had 7 tackles and a tackle for loss. Worth a mention was Tate who had 5 tackles, a sack and a pass defense. As a unit Tijuanas Lindbackers played well, however Its hard to chose between them and Chainbreakers killer performance. Had Gleel put up his usual 8-9 tackles thry would take it easy, however this time, Tijuanas Linebackers make it close. I thi k Minnesota Linebacker corps has the advantage got the simple reason that Tijuana had no rushing touchdowns while Minnesota had 3.
Edge - Minnesota
CB - The top of the pyramid for Minnesota was Hilliard who recorded 5 tackles, forced AND recovered a fumble, blocked 2 passes and snagged an interception. Gath played his best game yet with 4 tackles and a pass defense, while Lenkins had 3 tackles and notched a sack. Tijuanas Alexander Arnold had 2 tackles, but broke up 3 passes and picked off Snowbow. Triplett recorded 2 tackles and Gillion had a tackle and a pass defense. Alexander Arnold and Hilliard were both lockdown defenders all day, but Hilliard having more tackles and more importantly the fumble and recovery gives him the edge here. The other Minnesota corners also outplayed their Tijuana counterparts giving Minnesota the edge at Corner.
Edge - Minnesota
SS - Minnesota Grey Duck Oliver Sloan recorded 9 tackles on the day. While he didnt affect the passing game much he was a big reason why Tijuana didnt score on the ground. Tijuana Strong Safety N. Footballeague recorded 4 tackles on the day. Without much else to go on, more tackles alone gives Sloan the edge at Strong Safety.
Edge - Minnesota
FS - Minnesota Rookie Damian Blackfyre played his worst game yet in his debut season recording only 2 tackles and unable to prevent Tijuanas two passing touchdowns. On the other side for Tijuana Bowie led the team in tackles with 10. Bowie was more of a safety net for Tijuana and he played that part well. You could argue the same thing for Blackfyre, however he wasnt as effective as Tijuana threw 2 passing TDs.
Edge - Tijuana
K - the numbers at kicker are close. For Minnesota, Brasky nailed two kicks at the 40/49 yard range while Burton only had one. Burton did have three kicks from 30/39, and one extra point. Brasky had 1 kick at the 30/39 yard range and 3 extra points. Neither Kicker missed any field goals or extra points, but im more inclined to give Brasky the edge because he had the extra 40/49 yard kick.
Edge - Minnesota
All in all this was great game to watch, and despite the ducks breaking away at halftime, Tijuana gave it their all and tried to mount a comeback. Unfortunately for them the score was closer than the game actually was with Tijuana scoring a TD for pride in the closing seconds. Despite that, they both played a great game and will be teams to watch in the future.
Who got the Edge :
QB - Tijuana
RB - Minnesota
WR - Tijuana
OL - Minnesota
DT - Tijuana
DE - Minnesota
LB - Minnesota
CB - Minnesota
SS - Minnesota
FS - Tijuana
K - Minnesota
FIRST QUARTER
The First quarter was relatively lackluster in terms of points scored, both defenses came out strong, preventing any touchdowns, and allowing only a single field goal for each team. The Grey Ducks opening drive ended with a 42 yard kick from Bill Brasky. The Luchadores were finally able to get points on the board with three minutes left in the quarter when Jack Burton launched a 34 yard kick through the uprights. Quarter end, tie game 3-3.
SECOND QUARTER
At the start of the quarter Jack Burton landed another field goal, this time from 33 yards out, giving Tijuana the lead 6-3. The Grey Ducks responded with the games first touchdown, a 2 yard run by Sim Snowbow. Brasky makes the extra point making it 10-6 Minnesota. Around the 4 minute mark Tijuana scored with a third field goal from Jack Burton, a forty yarder that sailed through the goalposts. 10-9 Minnesota. Neither team could score before the half.
Halftime score 10-9 Minnesota.
THIRD QUARTER
After a huge return from Vermillion, the Grey Ducks hit paydirt in the first minute of the half with a power run from Mike Rotchburns up the gut a single yard for the TD. 17-9 Minnesota. This quick strike gave the Ducks momentum that would carry them through the rest of the game. Seemingly unable to get through Minnesotas stout defense, Tijuana settled for another field goal, this time a 32 yarder from Jack Burton bringing the score to 17-12. The Grey Ducks responded with a field goal from 30 yards out making the score 20-12 to end the quarter.
FOURTH QUARTER
James Vermillion brought another touchdown to Minnesota with a 1 yard run to make it 27-12. The Ducks were starting to run away with it at this point. Then with just under 5 minutes left the Luchadores finally hit paydirt with 5 yard touchdown pass from Boss jr to Theeks. The score is now 27-19, not ideal for Tijuana but still manageable. Unable to snag a touchdown or run the clock out, the Ducks settled for a field goal making it 30-19 at the two minute warning. In the final seconds, seemingly for pride, Mike Boss jr threw his second touchdown pass, a 15 yarder to doug Howlett. A failed 2 point conversion ended the game. 30-25 Minnesota.
The final score here makes this a closer game than it was. Thebfirst half was neck and neck, however after halftime the Ducks poured it on. Tijuanas only two touchdowns came with less than 5 minutes left in the game, and one of those TDs was a non factor, happening as time expired. The Grey Ducks defense played phenominally in the games earlier quarters. The Minnesota offense was finally able to move the ball and hit paydirt when it mattered. The Grey Ducks that played today, can be a team that could beat anyone. They just have to maintain consistency.
QB - once again a weakness in Minnesota, Snowbow completed 12/25 for 97 yards and an Interception. Yet he still did JUST enough to get the win. The Grey Ducks are a running team, with even the QB finishing with 40 yards on 4 carries and a rushing TD. Tijuana QB Mike Boss Jr on the other hand completed 16/29 187 yards, 2 touchdowns and an INT. He was obviously the better thrower, at least at the end of the game. So he gets the edge at the QB postion despite not getting the most important stat, the victory.
Edge - Tijuana
RB - Rotchburns was the star of the show for Minnesota tallying 93 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown, with a whopping 5.8 ypc. Vermillion struggled to move the ball consistently with 17 carries and 55 yards. He did snag himself a touchdown which slightly makes up for his low 3.2 ypc. Tijuana running back scampered for 95 yards on 17 carries and a solid 5.6 ypc. He was unable to hit paydirt however. Theeks ran for 69 yards on 14 carries for a 4.9 ypc. Theeks did have 11 recieving and a recieving touchdown though. But since Neither Tijuana back could reach the endzone through the ground however, im giving Minnesota the edge.
Edge - Minnesota
WR - howlett was the top reciever of the game with 6 catches for 88 yards and a touchdown. Vequain also recorded a respectable 4 catches and 61 yards. The Minnesota recievers had the ball spread around much better, with chambers leading pack at 3 catches for 58 yards. Akerele snagged 3 catches himself for 33 yards and Willy Weasel also with 3 catches for 20 yards. The obvious edge goes to Howlett, however as a team I think had Minnesota thrown the ball more they would get the edge, but as it stands Tijuana gets the edge.
Edge - Tijuana
OL - The Minnesota OL played well, only allowing 1 sack from Tijuanas feared pass rush. S. Moss and T. Shaft each had 5 pancakes, while R. Testy had 3. Manclaw aided the blocking front with 3 pancakes of his own. The Tijuana OL allowed 3 sacks, and their lead blockers of the game were Faramir with 4 pancakes and Davis with 3. Its safe to say the Minnesota OL perfromed better all together and so they get the edge.
Edge - Minnesota
DT - Luchadores DTs Dimby and Slattery played decent football against the run, with Dimby finishing with 3 tackles and Slattery with 2 tackles. Neither one applied much pressure to the QB, meanwhile the lone Grey Duck DT with tackles was Brooks with two. Neither teams defensive tackles made a huge impact, however Tijuana did have the better DTs in the game today giving them the edge.
Edge - Tijuana
DE - The Minnesota Defensive ends played a great game, starting with Van Sanzo who had 3 tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack and Ranger had 2 tackles and a tackle for loss. The Tijuana ends Isaac and Wrecks combined for 3 tackles, with two of them coming from Isaac. In the arena of Defensive ends, Minnesota wins by a mile.
Edge - Minnesota
LB - Once again at the top for Minnesota is Chainbreaker and the Rookie star Gleel. Chainbreaker had 12 tackles, a tackle for loss and 2 sacks. He was disruptive to say the least. Gleel finished with 5 tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack. Alongside them was Mash who recorded 4 tackles in the victory. Tijuana Linebacker N. wright finished with 8 tackles and a tackle for loss while Schell had 7 tackles and a tackle for loss. Worth a mention was Tate who had 5 tackles, a sack and a pass defense. As a unit Tijuanas Lindbackers played well, however Its hard to chose between them and Chainbreakers killer performance. Had Gleel put up his usual 8-9 tackles thry would take it easy, however this time, Tijuanas Linebackers make it close. I thi k Minnesota Linebacker corps has the advantage got the simple reason that Tijuana had no rushing touchdowns while Minnesota had 3.
Edge - Minnesota
CB - The top of the pyramid for Minnesota was Hilliard who recorded 5 tackles, forced AND recovered a fumble, blocked 2 passes and snagged an interception. Gath played his best game yet with 4 tackles and a pass defense, while Lenkins had 3 tackles and notched a sack. Tijuanas Alexander Arnold had 2 tackles, but broke up 3 passes and picked off Snowbow. Triplett recorded 2 tackles and Gillion had a tackle and a pass defense. Alexander Arnold and Hilliard were both lockdown defenders all day, but Hilliard having more tackles and more importantly the fumble and recovery gives him the edge here. The other Minnesota corners also outplayed their Tijuana counterparts giving Minnesota the edge at Corner.
Edge - Minnesota
SS - Minnesota Grey Duck Oliver Sloan recorded 9 tackles on the day. While he didnt affect the passing game much he was a big reason why Tijuana didnt score on the ground. Tijuana Strong Safety N. Footballeague recorded 4 tackles on the day. Without much else to go on, more tackles alone gives Sloan the edge at Strong Safety.
Edge - Minnesota
FS - Minnesota Rookie Damian Blackfyre played his worst game yet in his debut season recording only 2 tackles and unable to prevent Tijuanas two passing touchdowns. On the other side for Tijuana Bowie led the team in tackles with 10. Bowie was more of a safety net for Tijuana and he played that part well. You could argue the same thing for Blackfyre, however he wasnt as effective as Tijuana threw 2 passing TDs.
Edge - Tijuana
K - the numbers at kicker are close. For Minnesota, Brasky nailed two kicks at the 40/49 yard range while Burton only had one. Burton did have three kicks from 30/39, and one extra point. Brasky had 1 kick at the 30/39 yard range and 3 extra points. Neither Kicker missed any field goals or extra points, but im more inclined to give Brasky the edge because he had the extra 40/49 yard kick.
Edge - Minnesota
All in all this was great game to watch, and despite the ducks breaking away at halftime, Tijuana gave it their all and tried to mount a comeback. Unfortunately for them the score was closer than the game actually was with Tijuana scoring a TD for pride in the closing seconds. Despite that, they both played a great game and will be teams to watch in the future.
Who got the Edge :
QB - Tijuana
RB - Minnesota
WR - Tijuana
OL - Minnesota
DT - Tijuana
DE - Minnesota
LB - Minnesota
CB - Minnesota
SS - Minnesota
FS - Tijuana
K - Minnesota