02-03-2018, 11:20 AM
(This post was last modified: 02-08-2018, 06:15 PM by Supersquare04.)
Back at it again. This set of games saw the Wraiths have probably the hardest set of 3 games all season. The West Coast teams are always good and to play all 3 back to back to back is pretty rough. Unfortunately for the Wraiths, we only managed a 1-2 record on this 3 game set, but it was also that last time we will have to see any of these teams until the Ultimus.
Week 10 - @ ARI
This game was a huge test. ARI is a great team, even after all the off season crap. We knew coming into this season, we would have to be able to beat ARI, OCO, and/or SJ on the road to be able to secure home field advantage and have a shot of having home field for the Ultimus. Well, those hopes were dashed in a huge way because ARI took it to us. The pummeled us 41-28 on their home field.
For the past few games, I've been noticing trends some trends in the YKW games. Our run game has been poor, we are sloppy with the ball, we've given up tons of points early in games, and our 3rd down conversion rate hasn't been great. It was just that we were playing weaker teams so we came away with a win and everyone was happy. Well, those trends caught up to us on this 3 game set. First, ARI taught us a lesson on ball control and efficient offense.
ARI had the ball for 6 more minutes than YKW. While both teams had similar 3rd down efficiency at about 40%, ARI just put together better drives. It started with a better run game. YKW had 50 yards on the ground at a 3.0 average. ARI was a bit better with 64 for a 3.8 average, which is pretty good in this sim. Having that run game as an option increases time of possession and creates shorter 2nd and 3rd downs. Both positives. The way King Bronko played in this game, I'm not sure the shorter 2nd and 3rd downs were necessary, but he took advantage. Bronko went 74% completion, 386 yards, and 5 TDs and 0 picks. That is some crazy stat line there. The efficiency of Bronko made ARI a threat to score on every drive, and they pretty much did.
YKW just wasn't very good. They had two turnovers, took 6 penalties for 62 yards, and only possessed the ball for 5 mintes in the 4th quarter. That's no way to come back in a game. This game was just many of the trends I've noticed in the past few weeks coming to fruition to result in a loss YKW needed if we wanted to steal home field advantage away from OCO.
Verdict: Sim Gods got it right. Outplayed in every area.
Week 11 - vs OCO
Maybe the second game everyone had circled on their calendars this season. OCO pumped us pretty good when YKW was on the road so this was YKW retribution. And well, YKW took it to them on the scoreboard, but it may not have been as dominant as the scoreboard showed.
First, to the good things for YKW. Our run game finally eclipsed 50 yards, gaining 70 yards on 22 attempts. While the average of 3.2 yards per carry is nothing to write home about, at least it showed a more balanced attack from the YKW offense. YKW was also very disciplined, only committing 3 penalties for 22 yards. Finally, Akselsen had another very strong game. At this point in the season, it's pretty expected that Akselsen in going to throw over 300 for at least 3 touchdowns. That's just how YKW operates. Akselsen lived up to the expectation throwing for 334 yards, 4 TDs, and only 1 pick. What was really impressive was his efficiency. He threw for 61% completion and an average of 11.9 yards. Again, scary good numbers that allow YKW to put some huge drives together. On that note, YKW only went 3 and out 4 times the entire game, with two of those coming in the two minute warnings as they were trying to run clock. So, very efficient offense.
The other half of this story is how poorly the OCO team played. No one player player poorly, but asa a team, they just couldn't put it together. Their run game was pretty weak, but that's expected in these pass heavy offenses like YKW and OCO. Boss had an average game, 2 TDs and 1 INT. But the blemish was 11 penalties for 100 yards. That's an entire length of the field, handed to YKW. OCO had more yards in penalties than YKW has had rushing yards in a game the entire season.
So the combination of OCO poor team play with an above average day from the YKW run game and Akselsen led to a pretty substantial 20 point score differential. The team stats, aside from the penalties, were actually pretty close. Time of possession was within 3 minutes, 3rd down efficiency was the same, so I don't think the scoreboard reflected what the team stats showed.
Verdict: Sim Gods gave the win to the right team, but the score was a little lopsided.
Week 12 - vs SJS
The final California team came to Yellowknife to try to even the season series. YKW stole a game on the road early in the season, so SJ was looking to steal a game, secure a playoff spot, and dash YK hopes of securing home field advantage. And they did all 3. SJ came in and beat up on the Wraiths to win 27-17.
This will be a shorter review. Anyone looking at the stat sheet will tell you what went wrong. Akselsen had an okay day, Kennedy was great, both teams were about 30% on 3rd down. The same old stuff I've been saying all season. The reason YKW blew it at home was the disgusting run game. A week after gaining 70 yards on the ground, yKW went back to their old was and stayed under 50. YKW gained a whopping 33 yards on 18 carries. An average of 1.8 yards. The is rough.
SJ even had a brutal game in terms of penalties. They took 12 penalties. They were trying to hand us the game. But the bad run game and an unfortunate pick 6 made all the difference. This really hurt the home field advantage hopes for the Wraiths. OCO was rolling late in the season, so losing at home to SJ was a tough one to take.
Verdict: Sim Gods got it right. A dud by YKW
Thanks for reading.
Week 10 - @ ARI
This game was a huge test. ARI is a great team, even after all the off season crap. We knew coming into this season, we would have to be able to beat ARI, OCO, and/or SJ on the road to be able to secure home field advantage and have a shot of having home field for the Ultimus. Well, those hopes were dashed in a huge way because ARI took it to us. The pummeled us 41-28 on their home field.
For the past few games, I've been noticing trends some trends in the YKW games. Our run game has been poor, we are sloppy with the ball, we've given up tons of points early in games, and our 3rd down conversion rate hasn't been great. It was just that we were playing weaker teams so we came away with a win and everyone was happy. Well, those trends caught up to us on this 3 game set. First, ARI taught us a lesson on ball control and efficient offense.
ARI had the ball for 6 more minutes than YKW. While both teams had similar 3rd down efficiency at about 40%, ARI just put together better drives. It started with a better run game. YKW had 50 yards on the ground at a 3.0 average. ARI was a bit better with 64 for a 3.8 average, which is pretty good in this sim. Having that run game as an option increases time of possession and creates shorter 2nd and 3rd downs. Both positives. The way King Bronko played in this game, I'm not sure the shorter 2nd and 3rd downs were necessary, but he took advantage. Bronko went 74% completion, 386 yards, and 5 TDs and 0 picks. That is some crazy stat line there. The efficiency of Bronko made ARI a threat to score on every drive, and they pretty much did.
YKW just wasn't very good. They had two turnovers, took 6 penalties for 62 yards, and only possessed the ball for 5 mintes in the 4th quarter. That's no way to come back in a game. This game was just many of the trends I've noticed in the past few weeks coming to fruition to result in a loss YKW needed if we wanted to steal home field advantage away from OCO.
Verdict: Sim Gods got it right. Outplayed in every area.
Week 11 - vs OCO
Maybe the second game everyone had circled on their calendars this season. OCO pumped us pretty good when YKW was on the road so this was YKW retribution. And well, YKW took it to them on the scoreboard, but it may not have been as dominant as the scoreboard showed.
First, to the good things for YKW. Our run game finally eclipsed 50 yards, gaining 70 yards on 22 attempts. While the average of 3.2 yards per carry is nothing to write home about, at least it showed a more balanced attack from the YKW offense. YKW was also very disciplined, only committing 3 penalties for 22 yards. Finally, Akselsen had another very strong game. At this point in the season, it's pretty expected that Akselsen in going to throw over 300 for at least 3 touchdowns. That's just how YKW operates. Akselsen lived up to the expectation throwing for 334 yards, 4 TDs, and only 1 pick. What was really impressive was his efficiency. He threw for 61% completion and an average of 11.9 yards. Again, scary good numbers that allow YKW to put some huge drives together. On that note, YKW only went 3 and out 4 times the entire game, with two of those coming in the two minute warnings as they were trying to run clock. So, very efficient offense.
The other half of this story is how poorly the OCO team played. No one player player poorly, but asa a team, they just couldn't put it together. Their run game was pretty weak, but that's expected in these pass heavy offenses like YKW and OCO. Boss had an average game, 2 TDs and 1 INT. But the blemish was 11 penalties for 100 yards. That's an entire length of the field, handed to YKW. OCO had more yards in penalties than YKW has had rushing yards in a game the entire season.
So the combination of OCO poor team play with an above average day from the YKW run game and Akselsen led to a pretty substantial 20 point score differential. The team stats, aside from the penalties, were actually pretty close. Time of possession was within 3 minutes, 3rd down efficiency was the same, so I don't think the scoreboard reflected what the team stats showed.
Verdict: Sim Gods gave the win to the right team, but the score was a little lopsided.
Week 12 - vs SJS
The final California team came to Yellowknife to try to even the season series. YKW stole a game on the road early in the season, so SJ was looking to steal a game, secure a playoff spot, and dash YK hopes of securing home field advantage. And they did all 3. SJ came in and beat up on the Wraiths to win 27-17.
This will be a shorter review. Anyone looking at the stat sheet will tell you what went wrong. Akselsen had an okay day, Kennedy was great, both teams were about 30% on 3rd down. The same old stuff I've been saying all season. The reason YKW blew it at home was the disgusting run game. A week after gaining 70 yards on the ground, yKW went back to their old was and stayed under 50. YKW gained a whopping 33 yards on 18 carries. An average of 1.8 yards. The is rough.
SJ even had a brutal game in terms of penalties. They took 12 penalties. They were trying to hand us the game. But the bad run game and an unfortunate pick 6 made all the difference. This really hurt the home field advantage hopes for the Wraiths. OCO was rolling late in the season, so losing at home to SJ was a tough one to take.
Verdict: Sim Gods got it right. A dud by YKW
Thanks for reading.
Code:
1108 words. Ready for grading
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