Game 1:
After losing the coin toss Swag's offense trotted out to start the game. It was clear that Freek were not going to let Jason Holte beat them as he saw double coverage on every single play. Swag were expecting this sort of treatment, and on the very first play Holte ran a deep drag which allowed Neil Payne to clear underneath for a solid gain on first down. Then Oobie Peterson worked in the soft spot under Holte for a big gain on an out route, and after a couple more short patterns Neil Payne scored his first touchdown for the team. The extra point would fail, and the blue defense stepped onto the field with a 6-0 lead. Freek found some success on a couple of intermediate routes, but Bryan Ziebelman came up with a huge interception to hand the ball back to the offense. Another confident march down the field was capped with an Oobie Peterson touchdown and Andy Nikolenko 2 point conversion which made the score 14-0 good guys. Freek would respond in a big way, finishing off a solid drive with an impressive leaping touchdown catch by Krawiec. Tyler and Wes Parsel both met the football at its highest point but Krawiec was able to wrestle the ball away from his defender for the 6. The very next play, however, a blown coverage led to a 50 yard catch and run touchdown from Payne to give Swag the 20-6 advantage they would take to halftime.
The second half would be a different story. Freek Nation came out of halftime with a touchdown to cut the lead to 8. Then Swag were held without a score, breaking their streak of 9 straight possessions with a touchdown to start the season. Freek drove right down the field and would tie the game on a diving touchdown catch by Allen Hoekstra and a successful 2 point try. Swag would then be forced to punt after failing to gain a yard on the next possession, and after Hoekstra caught another touchdown pass from Jeff Swanson the blue offense took over with 18 seconds to go and facing a 6 point deficit. Dylan Tasher and Holte failed to hook up on a deep cross on first down, but were able to pick up decent yardage on a second down deep comeback route. With no choice but to go to the end zone on the final play of the game the pass intended for Holte was knocked down. Final Score: Swag 20, Freek Nation 26.
Player of the Game: Neil Payne. With the Freek defense focused on taking away Holte Payne was able to make them pay to the tune of 5 catches for 90 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Game stats can be found here
Game 2:
Swag were out for blood after their shocking loss in the first game, and Drunken Embarrassments were the team unlucky enough to be lined up opposite them. The game started off testy as players and spectators from both sides were chirping at each other. Swag started with the ball and strung together an impressive drive that was capped by an Oobie Peterson touchdown catch. As is starting to become typical the extra point failed but Swag still had a very important early lead. The Embarrassments would answer however, as Ernie Jackson led them right down the field for a touchdown and then a 2 point conversion that gave them an 8-6 advantage. After a couple of short to medium completions came a scary moment for Swag. Looking for Holte on a corner route, Tasher's arm was hit by Will Scott on a blitz, hurting the Swag quarterback. Tempers would flare on both sides and sidelines but after the penalty yardage was marked off Tasher remained in the game, and Andy Nikolenko exacted a little revenge as he trucked 2 defenders on his way into the end zone for a go-ahead score. Payne would add the conversion to put Swag back on top 14-6. The defense would hold the Embarrassments to a punt situation and if not for an impressive flag pull by Andy van Garder, Holte would have been off to the races on the return. Wes Parsel got loose for a 44 yard touchdown reception which gave Swag a 20-6 halftime lead.
Determined not to repeat their mistakes from the first game, Swag came out of halftime incredibly focused and set about building on their lead. Holte and Nikolenko would add touchdowns, Payne would score another conversion and a late Embarrassments touchdown would only serve to make the scoreline a little more respectable. Final Score: Swag 34, Drunken Embarrassments 14.
Player of the Game: Dylan Tasher. Playing through pain in his throwing elbow for most of the game Tasher was still masterful, throwing for 256 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Game stats can be found here
Season Stats
League Leaders Through Week 2
No comments:
Post a Comment