1961 Division Semi-Finals
East Division Semi-Final
Boston Independents VS. Providence Gold Stars - Richardson Stadium - September 17, 1961 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy/Light Rain - 15ºC | 59ºF
1st Q
The weather was certainly not the prettiest for the month of September. It was a cold and damp air that made it feel a little cooler than usual. Clouds covered the skies for the entirety of the game, with moments of rain throughout. However, the chilly weather would not slow down the Gold Stars’ offence on their opening drive. QB Connor O’Rourke would pick apart the Boston offence on the drive taking them down to the 18 before finding WR Cedric Peterson one-on-one against DB Carson Scott to score a touchdown. Boston would come out of the gate slow, starting with a pair of 2 and outs. DL Calias McDonough made an impact on those drives with a sack and 2 tackles. Providence would continue to put on the pressure and grab a field goal before the quarter ended.
BOS 0-10 PRO
2nd Q
QB Nathaniel Braddock has received a lot of criticism recently from the media in Boston, but also the media from the ACFL stating he made a mistake going to the NAAF. On top of that, he “failed” to get the team the division win in last week's game against the Royals. He knew he wasn’t playing well and had to be better, so we went out in the second quarter hungrier than ever. On their first drive, Braddock would break Boston’s silence by driving the team down the field and then tossing a touchdown to WR Ellis Lindholm to make it 7-10. The Independents defence would also pick up the pace against the Gold Stars’ offence, stalling them out. Braddock would get into a zone making a big play near the end of the half. Providence would put more pressure on, but Braddock was able to weave out of pressure and hit WR Ellis Lindholm for a 43-yard play that put the Independents on the 4-yard-line. RB Eddie Thompson would punch it in to make it 14-10.
BOS 14-10 PRO
3rd Q
The tide had turned quickly on the Gold Stars and they struggled to get any traction early in the 3rd. Boston on the other hand would add to their lead with a field goal on the second drive of the half. The Gold Stars would aim to get some momentum with their defence. As they started playing a little more aggressively. On a Boston drive, Braddock would throw the ball to WR Paul Franklin on a slant to the sideline, however, the ball was a little off target and Franklin couldn’t get it. He would still turn right into DB Jared Francis who would lay out Franklin and start a scrum. Franklin would not return to the game with a minor injury. The hit fired up the Gold Stars who would grab a field goal shortly after to cut into the lead before starting another long drive. QB Connor O’Rourke would get the team down into the 10-yard line and then would look for WR Christian Venegas for the touchdown. Unfortunately, the pass was a little off and rookie DB Lawrence Ralph would jump on the pass and intercept it. Boston would take over and Braddock would fire back with an 80-yard drive that ended with a RB Kendall Morgan touchdown.
BOS 24-13 PRO
4th Q
Boston turned up the heat on defence in the 4th. There were several instances of Boston players laying into several Providence players which was in retaliation after more of the same from the Gold Stars. This would cost the Gold Stars after RB Marcus Devonshire took a couple of shots, which would injure him and take him out of the game. Providence would focus more on the air attack but even that ran into an issue with WR Sammy Moss catching a pass from O’Rourke only to be stripped shortly after by DB Petr Westerburg. The ball would be picked up by S Drew Porter and Boston would jump on the opportunity and score another touchdown with Braddock connecting with WR Clyde McIntosh. Providence’s momentum was dissipated at this point, but O’Rourke would not give up. He would lead the Gold Stars back onto the field and would get the team back to the endzone via WR Christian Venegas to cut the lead to 11 with 3:24 left. Despite the late score, Boston’s defence was playing strong and would be holding off the remaining Gold Star attacks. O’Rourke made a couple of strong plays to extend drives on the 3rd down, but eventually, LB Brent Harper would make a big play on 3rd down knocking the attempted pass out of TE Micheal Bowman III’s arms to cause a turnover and clinch the game for Boston.
West Division Semi-Final
Louisville Thunder VS. Buffalo Blue Wings - Thunder Stadium - September 17, 1961 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 19ºC | 67ºF
1st Q
The first playoff game in Louisville ended up starting very sloppy. Both teams were struggling with the first 4 drives of the game ending in a 2 and out. On the fifth drive of the game, Louisville would get the first 1st down of the game with QB Leonidas Dumont connecting with TE Christopher Gist. There would be a plethora of turnovers as well with RB Jimmy Golden dropping coughing up the ball to the Thunder, which was then returned following QB Leonidas Dumont dropping a snap. The final one of the quarter would be S Johnny Berger picking off QB Charles Lemieux to finally put the Thunder in scoring range by the end of the quarter.
LOU 0-0 BUF
2nd Q
The Thunder would take the interception and turn it into the first points of the game. Dumont got the Thunder into range with a toss to WR Ben Roland and then K Theodore Provost would kick a field goal to make it 3-0. Louisville seemed to get a bit of a grasp on offence, but still was struggling to complete drives. They would get a second field goal later following another Buffalo fumble off of WR Daniel Irons. The game was slow and went into the break 6-0.
LOU 6-0 BUF
3rd Q
The game was much more the same out of the break with both teams struggling to move the ball. It would end up being another turnover to break the silence. QB Leonidas Dumont would be receiving more pressure from the Buffalo D-line that already had 3 sacks in the game. He would look to make a play to WR Piers Key, but the ball was off the mark and DB Lou Lake would pick it off. QB Charles Lemieux would get the Blue Wings into field goal range and K Donald Brewer would cut the Thunder lead in half. Dumont would bounce back from the interception and would get the ball back into scoring range to make it 9-3 after the 3rd.
LOU 9-3 BUF
4th Q
In the final quarter, the Blue Wings would play with a little more urgency. RB Jimmy Golden would explode for a 23-yard play which would set up the Blue Wings deep in Louisville territory, however, they would be forced to kick a field goal after DL Theo Conte would bring Charles Lemieux down for an 8-yard sack. Buffalo was only down by three and had some momentum going now, but WR Piers Key would take it away on the next kickoff. The WR would return the kick all the way to midfield with DB Dean Hawkins stopping before escaping the main pack. Dumont would take the opportunity and get the Thunder down into the redzone. He would then connect with WR Piers Key in the endzone to make it 16-6. The Thunder defence would then respond to the offence's success and clamped down on the Blue Wing offence. DB Oliver Langstrom would top off the game with another interception that would set up the Thunder for another field goal and they would hold on for their first playoff win in franchise history.
Injury Report
RB Marcus Devonshire PRO - Day-to-Day
OL Georgio Stephan BUF - Day-to-Day
WR Daniel Irons BUF - Day-to-Day
WR Paul Franklin BOS - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week - (best player of each game rather than offensive and defensive)
1961 Division Final Preview
East Division Final
Montreal Rouge VS. Boston Independents - Mount Royal Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 3 PM ET
Head-to-Head: W7 BOS 27-14 MTL, W11 MTL 23-15 BOS
The Rouge and Independents rivalry goes all the way back to the early days of the NAAF when the two teams were the cream of the crop. They continued to duke it out in the basement of the division for a while, but now they are the centre of a QB rivalry. QB Gene Bishop, who was going to likely be the first QB taken in the 1958 draft, was overshadowed by QB Nathaniel Braddock making the shift to the NAAF. Bishop continues to try and prove himself against Braddock and wants to prove that he is the better QB. Braddock has not acknowledged the rivalry all that much but knows that Bishop is a good player and that Montreal is a tough team to beat. The two QBs are likely to come out with their best in the game which will likely lead to an offensive shootout. In the end, I like Braddock after this week’s performance against the Gold Stars.
My Pick: Independents
West Division Final
London Tigers VS. Louisville Thunder - Western Fair Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 7 PM ET
Head-to-Head: W4 LDN 28-20 LOU, W12 LOU 10-30 LDN
The Tigers proved that they have not slowed down at all following their McCallister Cup win last season. They were able to top the Thunder in both of their games against the team this season and they have a strong chance to do it again this week. Louisville is up for a tough task missing most of their secondary with DB Alexander Bradley and DB Jayden Mills. They will get DL Tyrone Affalo back, but they will have to find a way on the offence in order to keep up with the Tigers and QB Riley Kiernan. The Tigers will be managing the game without RB Clifford Russell, but since he has been out, the Tigers have not skipped a beat and still look as strong as before. I think it’s a safe pick, but the right one to say the Tigers take home the win.
My Pick: Tigers
1961 Division Finals
East Division Final
Montreal Rouge VS. Boston Independents - Mount Royal Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 28ºC | 84ºF
1st Q
The Bishop-Braddock battle was the talk of the media for the week leading up to the game between the Rouge and Independents. It was Braddock who would get his team going early. On the team’s opening drive, he would march Boston down to the Montreal 33 before K Johnnie Berg put the first points on the board. The Rouge would not be able to match on their first drive, but their defence would pick it up after the score. HC Dean Reed, former head coach of the Independents, would target some of Braddock’s weaknesses. Nathaniel Braddock would face a lot more pressure from the Montreal D-line and would be sacked twice in the quarter. The offence would feed off the defence and QB Gene Bishop would look to make a play. Bishop would find WR Derek Cross for a 38-yard gain that would set up RB Scott Mallard-White for a touchdown to put the Rouge on top 7-3.
MTL 7-3 BOS
2nd Q
The pressure was constant for Braddock, but he started to adjust and get settled again. He started making plays again, and Montreal would start sending a little more pressure. On a 2nd and 7, Braddock would aim to get the first down through the air. Montreal would send a blitz that would immediately collapse the pocket. Braddock felt it closing in so he scrambled and managed to escape and see WR Paul Franklin. He would turn and make an impressive throw on the run hitting Franklin perfectly for a 16-yard gain. The Independents would find the endzone a couple of plays later with RB Kendall Morgan taking in a touchdown. Montreal would answer back with a field goal before the half to tie the game up.
MTL 10-10 BOS
3rd Q
The game kept going back-and-forth in the 3rd. Boston would get a strong drive early, however, they would not be able to score when DB Quentin Xavier would pick off Braddock. QB Gene Bishop and the Rouge would look to counter the drive, but they were stalled out at midfield. Neither team was able to score until late in the quarter. Gene Bishop would finally find a way to get into Boston territory. He just had to do it on his feet. Bishop would scramble out of the pocket and pick up 23-yards on the ground to get down to the 36. It would take a few more plays for Bishop to then fire a pass to WR Robert Lang to make it 17-10. Boston would try to get it back and were moving down the field with the quarter coming to an end.
MTL 17-10 BOS
4th Q
Boston was ready to make the push to start the quarter, but their drive would be cut short after RB Kendall Morgan took a big hit from DL Hubert Tessier that would knock the ball loose. Boston would recover the ball but had to punt it away instead of kicking a field goal as the play took them out of range. The offence would recover on their next attempt following a defensive stop and would move the ball down the field. QB Nathaniel Braddock continued to dish out pass after pass as he methodically brought the Independents into range. Finally, he would connect with WR Clyde McIntosh to get down to the 1. QB Randy Sellers would take a QB sneak into the endzone to tie the game back up at 17. Time wound down as the teams traded a couple of drives. Neither team wanted to head to an extra frame. The Rouge had the ball with just 2:34 left in the game. QB Gene Bishop was doing a good job of keeping the drive alive. The game was falling onto his shoulders for Montreal. He would pull through by marching the Rouge down into the redzone. From 15 yards out, Bishop would look to fire to the endzone on 2nd and 10. Bishop would throw the ball to WR Derek Cross who had found some space in the endzone. The ball would land in Cross’ hands, but S Drew Porter would be able to get in there at the last second to knock the ball loose and cause an incomplete pass. Despite the miss, Montreal was still able to kick a field goal to retake the lead with 1:16 left. Boston would take over and now the game was on Braddock’s shoulders. The young QB would start the drive with a couple of passes to WR Ellis Lindholm and TE Tanner Tint. Then he would hit WR Clyde McIntosh who would break a tackle and pick up 21 yards to get into Montreal territory. The Rouge would tighten up on defence, but Boston kept the ball moving down to the 10-yard line. Time was also getting tight with 12 seconds to go. Braddock would have one last chance to try and win the game. He would drop back from the 10 and would sit in the pocket. The Rouge started to pressure him and Braddock shifted and he would have to take a shot. He would fire towards WR Ellis Lindholm who had 2 guys on him. The WR would find a way to get his hands on it and would hold on for dear life. He would maintain possession and the referee raised his arms to signal the touchdown. The Rouge had no time left and the Independents would be heading back to the McCallister Cup for the first time since 1954 (which also was in Ottawa).
West Division Final
London Tigers VS. Louisville Thunder - Western Fair Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 18ºC | 66ºF
1st Q
Offence was the name of the game early between the London Tigers and the Louisville Thunder. London would make noise on their opening drive with QB Riley Kiernan tossing a 42-yard shot to WR Max Sutton which would then set up WR Jack Duncan for a touchdown to put the Tigers up quickly 7-0. The Thunder would look to counter on their next drive with RBs Stavros Black and RB Rodney Clark both getting the ball moving on the ground. It would eventually be RB Rodney Clark who would score a touchdown to knot the game up just 6 minutes in 7-7. The teams would trade a couple of drives, but the Tigers would soon find the endzone again with Kiernan connecting with WR Max Sutton for a score and a 14-7 lead after the first.
LDN 14-7 LOU
2nd Q
London would keep up the pressure in the second with the defence coming up with a fumble. DL Olympus Heights would manage to get his hand on the ball and knock it loose from RB Rodney Clark. The Tigers would take over at the Thunder 40 and would turn that into a field goal to make it 17-7. The Thunder would bounce back from the mistake a little bit later and would put together a strong drive. QB Leonidas Dumont would find WR Piers Key for an 8-yard pass, which Key would manage to turn into a 19-yard play. The Thunder would find the endzone a couple of plays later on the legs of RB Stavros Black to make it 17-13 following a missed convert from K Theodore Provost. Louisville would continue to ride the momentum with their defence making a play on the ensuing drive. The Tigers were only a couple of plays into their drive when TE Kent Moller would be targeted for a quick pass. LB Benjamin Pittman, a former Tiger, anticipated the play and broke it up. The ball was deflected up off Pittman’s shoulder and LB George Yokoi would come down with an interception. Louisville would capitalize on the play and Dumont would take a shot at the endzone for WR Ben Roland who would score to put the Thunder up 17-20 at the break.
LDN 17-20 LOU
3rd Q
The Thunder would come out of the break looking to add to their lead. RB Rodney Clark would make up for his earlier fumble and would help get the Thunder down into Tigers’ territory on the first drive of the half. The Tigers’ defence would hold strong and force Louisville to kick a field goal instead, but it was now a 17-23 lead for the Thunder. With the Tigers going from a 4-point lead to a 6-point deficit, Riley Kiernan would come on to the field swinging with a superb drive that marched the Tigers down the field. The team would get all the way down to the 2 before RB Eric Sydney punched it in to make it 24-23. Louisville’s offence was still able to move the ball well throughout the quarter but was struggling to finish with the Tigers’ defence making some strong stops. DB Jackson Miles would reel in a pick for the Tigers which stopped the Thunder on one of their better drives. Louisville would eventually get another field goal, but the Tigers would match it to make it 27-26 heading into the 4th quarter. LDN 27-26 LOU
4th Q
The final quarter of play would continue the high-paced play. The Thunder would be aiming to get back on top early, but they would fail to do so after Leonidas Dumont took a sack from DL Richard Blunt. The Tigers would get the ball back and once again K Nimrod Handsworth would add to the lead to make it 30-26. It was starting to become make-or-break time for the Thunder with the clock slowly ticking away. Leonidas Dumont would need to come up with a big play. Dumont would follow through finding WR Truman Harry for a 23-yard gain and then another play to WR Ben Roland to put the Thunder into scoring range. The Tigers’ defence would tighten up to try and slow down the Thunder offence. They would be successful and forced the Thunder to a 3rd and 2. Louisville would go for it and they would give RB Stavros Black the ball. The RB would be met with a stiff D-line, but with a helpful block from OL Taylor Forbes, he would get just enough for the first. The Thunder felt like they had a chance. Dumont kept dishing the ball and they inched closer. However, they would find themselves on 3rd down again. This time they needed 6 yards so Dumont went to the air. He would look around for a target with some pressure coming. Eventually WR Piers Key would slip off a defender into some open space. Dumont would throw it at him, but the ball was a wobbler and Key just got his fingers on it. The ball would flutter into the arms of LB Aengus Lynch who would grab the ball and take it back a few yards before being taken down. The Tigers would run down the clock and grab another field goal to clinch their 3rd straight McCallister Cup appearance.
Injury Report
LB Dallas Dillard LDN - Day-to-Day
TE Christopher Gist LOU - 6 Weeks
LB Sebastian Andrews III - 4 Weeks
Players of the Week
EDF: QB Nathaniel Braddock BOS - 2 Passing Touchdowns, 313 Passing Yards
WDF: DL Olympus Heights LDN - 1 Forced Fumble, 2 Sacks, 6 Tackles
43rd McCallister Cup Preview
London Tigers VS. Boston Independents - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - October 1, 1961 - 6 PM ET
Head-to-Head: Did not play
For the second time in NAAF history, the two teams meeting in the final did not face each other during the regular season. Their last battle had the Tigers winning 26-23. The Tigers have been the toughest team to shake this season with their only loss being to the Blue Wings (27-28) in week 7. However, Boston has looked like one of the best teams since the playoffs have started. QB Nathaniel Braddock has turned it up a notch with back-to-back strong games. It will be his first shot at the McCallister Cup, which will be something new for a game that has not had a QB playing in their first Championship since Riley Kiernan in 1956 with Worcester. Both defences have shown their strength as well in the playoffs so this game should be a fairly close match that should lead to another great McCallister Cup. This was my predicted McCallister Cup match-up so I’m going to stick with the team I picked from the start and go with the Independents to win this game.
My Pick: Independents
East Division Final
Montreal Rouge VS. Boston Independents - Mount Royal Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 28ºC | 84ºF
1st Q
The Bishop-Braddock battle was the talk of the media for the week leading up to the game between the Rouge and Independents. It was Braddock who would get his team going early. On the team’s opening drive, he would march Boston down to the Montreal 33 before K Johnnie Berg put the first points on the board. The Rouge would not be able to match on their first drive, but their defence would pick it up after the score. HC Dean Reed, former head coach of the Independents, would target some of Braddock’s weaknesses. Nathaniel Braddock would face a lot more pressure from the Montreal D-line and would be sacked twice in the quarter. The offence would feed off the defence and QB Gene Bishop would look to make a play. Bishop would find WR Derek Cross for a 38-yard gain that would set up RB Scott Mallard-White for a touchdown to put the Rouge on top 7-3.
MTL 7-3 BOS
2nd Q
The pressure was constant for Braddock, but he started to adjust and get settled again. He started making plays again, and Montreal would start sending a little more pressure. On a 2nd and 7, Braddock would aim to get the first down through the air. Montreal would send a blitz that would immediately collapse the pocket. Braddock felt it closing in so he scrambled and managed to escape and see WR Paul Franklin. He would turn and make an impressive throw on the run hitting Franklin perfectly for a 16-yard gain. The Independents would find the endzone a couple of plays later with RB Kendall Morgan taking in a touchdown. Montreal would answer back with a field goal before the half to tie the game up.
MTL 10-10 BOS
3rd Q
The game kept going back-and-forth in the 3rd. Boston would get a strong drive early, however, they would not be able to score when DB Quentin Xavier would pick off Braddock. QB Gene Bishop and the Rouge would look to counter the drive, but they were stalled out at midfield. Neither team was able to score until late in the quarter. Gene Bishop would finally find a way to get into Boston territory. He just had to do it on his feet. Bishop would scramble out of the pocket and pick up 23-yards on the ground to get down to the 36. It would take a few more plays for Bishop to then fire a pass to WR Robert Lang to make it 17-10. Boston would try to get it back and were moving down the field with the quarter coming to an end.
MTL 17-10 BOS
4th Q
Boston was ready to make the push to start the quarter, but their drive would be cut short after RB Kendall Morgan took a big hit from DL Hubert Tessier that would knock the ball loose. Boston would recover the ball but had to punt it away instead of kicking a field goal as the play took them out of range. The offence would recover on their next attempt following a defensive stop and would move the ball down the field. QB Nathaniel Braddock continued to dish out pass after pass as he methodically brought the Independents into range. Finally, he would connect with WR Clyde McIntosh to get down to the 1. QB Randy Sellers would take a QB sneak into the endzone to tie the game back up at 17. Time wound down as the teams traded a couple of drives. Neither team wanted to head to an extra frame. The Rouge had the ball with just 2:34 left in the game. QB Gene Bishop was doing a good job of keeping the drive alive. The game was falling onto his shoulders for Montreal. He would pull through by marching the Rouge down into the redzone. From 15 yards out, Bishop would look to fire to the endzone on 2nd and 10. Bishop would throw the ball to WR Derek Cross who had found some space in the endzone. The ball would land in Cross’ hands, but S Drew Porter would be able to get in there at the last second to knock the ball loose and cause an incomplete pass. Despite the miss, Montreal was still able to kick a field goal to retake the lead with 1:16 left. Boston would take over and now the game was on Braddock’s shoulders. The young QB would start the drive with a couple of passes to WR Ellis Lindholm and TE Tanner Tint. Then he would hit WR Clyde McIntosh who would break a tackle and pick up 21 yards to get into Montreal territory. The Rouge would tighten up on defence, but Boston kept the ball moving down to the 10-yard line. Time was also getting tight with 12 seconds to go. Braddock would have one last chance to try and win the game. He would drop back from the 10 and would sit in the pocket. The Rouge started to pressure him and Braddock shifted and he would have to take a shot. He would fire towards WR Ellis Lindholm who had 2 guys on him. The WR would find a way to get his hands on it and would hold on for dear life. He would maintain possession and the referee raised his arms to signal the touchdown. The Rouge had no time left and the Independents would be heading back to the McCallister Cup for the first time since 1954 (which also was in Ottawa).
London Tigers VS. Louisville Thunder - Western Fair Stadium - September 23, 1961 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Clear - 18ºC | 66ºF
1st Q
Offence was the name of the game early between the London Tigers and the Louisville Thunder. London would make noise on their opening drive with QB Riley Kiernan tossing a 42-yard shot to WR Max Sutton which would then set up WR Jack Duncan for a touchdown to put the Tigers up quickly 7-0. The Thunder would look to counter on their next drive with RBs Stavros Black and RB Rodney Clark both getting the ball moving on the ground. It would eventually be RB Rodney Clark who would score a touchdown to knot the game up just 6 minutes in 7-7. The teams would trade a couple of drives, but the Tigers would soon find the endzone again with Kiernan connecting with WR Max Sutton for a score and a 14-7 lead after the first.
LDN 14-7 LOU
2nd Q
London would keep up the pressure in the second with the defence coming up with a fumble. DL Olympus Heights would manage to get his hand on the ball and knock it loose from RB Rodney Clark. The Tigers would take over at the Thunder 40 and would turn that into a field goal to make it 17-7. The Thunder would bounce back from the mistake a little bit later and would put together a strong drive. QB Leonidas Dumont would find WR Piers Key for an 8-yard pass, which Key would manage to turn into a 19-yard play. The Thunder would find the endzone a couple of plays later on the legs of RB Stavros Black to make it 17-13 following a missed convert from K Theodore Provost. Louisville would continue to ride the momentum with their defence making a play on the ensuing drive. The Tigers were only a couple of plays into their drive when TE Kent Moller would be targeted for a quick pass. LB Benjamin Pittman, a former Tiger, anticipated the play and broke it up. The ball was deflected up off Pittman’s shoulder and LB George Yokoi would come down with an interception. Louisville would capitalize on the play and Dumont would take a shot at the endzone for WR Ben Roland who would score to put the Thunder up 17-20 at the break.
LDN 17-20 LOU
3rd Q
The Thunder would come out of the break looking to add to their lead. RB Rodney Clark would make up for his earlier fumble and would help get the Thunder down into Tigers’ territory on the first drive of the half. The Tigers’ defence would hold strong and force Louisville to kick a field goal instead, but it was now a 17-23 lead for the Thunder. With the Tigers going from a 4-point lead to a 6-point deficit, Riley Kiernan would come on to the field swinging with a superb drive that marched the Tigers down the field. The team would get all the way down to the 2 before RB Eric Sydney punched it in to make it 24-23. Louisville’s offence was still able to move the ball well throughout the quarter but was struggling to finish with the Tigers’ defence making some strong stops. DB Jackson Miles would reel in a pick for the Tigers which stopped the Thunder on one of their better drives. Louisville would eventually get another field goal, but the Tigers would match it to make it 27-26 heading into the 4th quarter. LDN 27-26 LOU
4th Q
The final quarter of play would continue the high-paced play. The Thunder would be aiming to get back on top early, but they would fail to do so after Leonidas Dumont took a sack from DL Richard Blunt. The Tigers would get the ball back and once again K Nimrod Handsworth would add to the lead to make it 30-26. It was starting to become make-or-break time for the Thunder with the clock slowly ticking away. Leonidas Dumont would need to come up with a big play. Dumont would follow through finding WR Truman Harry for a 23-yard gain and then another play to WR Ben Roland to put the Thunder into scoring range. The Tigers’ defence would tighten up to try and slow down the Thunder offence. They would be successful and forced the Thunder to a 3rd and 2. Louisville would go for it and they would give RB Stavros Black the ball. The RB would be met with a stiff D-line, but with a helpful block from OL Taylor Forbes, he would get just enough for the first. The Thunder felt like they had a chance. Dumont kept dishing the ball and they inched closer. However, they would find themselves on 3rd down again. This time they needed 6 yards so Dumont went to the air. He would look around for a target with some pressure coming. Eventually WR Piers Key would slip off a defender into some open space. Dumont would throw it at him, but the ball was a wobbler and Key just got his fingers on it. The ball would flutter into the arms of LB Aengus Lynch who would grab the ball and take it back a few yards before being taken down. The Tigers would run down the clock and grab another field goal to clinch their 3rd straight McCallister Cup appearance.
Injury Report
LB Dallas Dillard LDN - Day-to-Day
TE Christopher Gist LOU - 6 Weeks
LB Sebastian Andrews III - 4 Weeks
Players of the Week
43rd McCallister Cup Preview
London Tigers VS. Boston Independents - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - October 1, 1961 - 6 PM ET
Head-to-Head: Did not play
For the second time in NAAF history, the two teams meeting in the final did not face each other during the regular season. Their last battle had the Tigers winning 26-23. The Tigers have been the toughest team to shake this season with their only loss being to the Blue Wings (27-28) in week 7. However, Boston has looked like one of the best teams since the playoffs have started. QB Nathaniel Braddock has turned it up a notch with back-to-back strong games. It will be his first shot at the McCallister Cup, which will be something new for a game that has not had a QB playing in their first Championship since Riley Kiernan in 1956 with Worcester. Both defences have shown their strength as well in the playoffs so this game should be a fairly close match that should lead to another great McCallister Cup. This was my predicted McCallister Cup match-up so I’m going to stick with the team I picked from the start and go with the Independents to win this game.
My Pick: Independents
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