MID-SEASON CHECK-IN (aka yes, the league admin is still alive...)
We are halfway through the season, so it is time to see how the Blind Squirrels are doing for another year. But before that, my apologies for the relative lack of game info this season…I just got slammed by life and have been trying to dig out ever since.
Halas Division – Toronto leads pre-season pick Lyon by half a game and both teams would be in the postseason if things ended today. Reno is 3 games back and an off-season move from Aspen to Las Vegas doesn’t seem to have been the answer to the Wampas’ ailment. The leaders will play again in a couple weeks, but beyond that, Toronto has a friendly schedule that features 8 back-half opponents with just 24.5 wins to their credit thus far. Lyon will have to try to close ground against a slate that posted 34 first-half wins.
Brown Division – Rochester was the pick and Rochester is a game up on both Hawaii and Maine while Natchitoches is four games back. The Americans have a game against each of their closest pursuers coming up with the contest against Maine important given the Event’s head-to-head win earlier this year. Looking at the back-half schedules, Rochester’s opponents won 37 games in the first half, Hawaii’s took 28 and Maine’s won 32. The Islanders were a pick for the wild card preseason, but are a game and a half off that pace right now.
Shula Division – Salem and Parlor City sit atop the division with identical 7-1 records, but the Witches get the nod by virtue of a head-to-head win which they have a chance to avenge this week. The Squirrels called Salem while insulting Phantom fans with a no-playoff prediction. The former might have been a good call. The latter flat-out sucked. Arkansas is 4 games back and Bennington 5. Salem’s back-half opponents have 28.5 wins right now. Parlor City’s have 40.
Walsh Division – Tallahassee is undefeated and the Squirrels are smiling. Tennessee is 4 games back and Boise and Star City are both 1-7. Clearly the pick of Star City for a wild card slot is not looking like a good one for the Squirrels this season.
Knoll Division – Glendora is unbeaten and 3 ahead of Perth, exactly where the Squirrels forecast them to be. Brooklyn and Santa Fe are each 1-7. The Dragons and Wallabies have two games against each other, so there’s plenty of opportunity to close the gap, but Glendora’s opponents have 34 wins while Perth’s have 42, one of the highest counts in the league. That’s bad news for Wallaby wildcard hopes.
Landry Division – Coos Bay and New Jersey share 7-1 records, three games better than Rancho Cucamonga and five better than Tacoma. The Crusaders took the first head-to-head meeting with the Red Rocks this season. The rematch is in two weeks, but both teams sit pretty for the post-sesaon, which was the Squirrels’ call. New Jersey opponents in the back half of the schedule won 38.5 games. Coos Bay opponents posted 30.5 wins. RC’s hopes are pinched by the fact that they’ve already played 3 of their 4 games this season against the divisional leaders.
Parcells Division – Milwaukee, at 6-2, is the only team with a winning record in the division. Canton is next-closest with a 2-1/2 game gap between them. St. Louis is 3-5 with Ft. Drum taking up the tail at 2-6 overall. The Wild were the call here, so the Squirrels are feeling good. Wild opponents in the back half of the season only won 27 times in the first eight weeks of the season, so Milwaukee fans are feeling pretty good about their chances too.
Gibbs Division – Charleston is 6-2 and a game in front of Mt. Washington as both were picked to advance in the preseason. Columbus City and San Diego log in at 3-5 overall. The Geechee dropped the first head-to-head against Mt. Washington, so a week 15 rematch could loom large. This could be a great race as both teams have opponents who won a total of 32 times in the front half of the year.
Overall, 8 teams enter the back half of the season in the Stripes Conference within 2 games of one of the two wildcard positions, so a good chase lies ahead.
