1966 NAAF SEASON
1966 Week 1
Long Island Raiders - 33, Boston Independents - 17 - Long Island Stadium - June 23, 1966 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
14-0 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Larry Mossholder
2nd Q
17-0 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
17-1 BOS - Single K Johnnie Berg
17-4 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3rd Q
17-11 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
20-11 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
27-11 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Troy York
30-11 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
30-17 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
33-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
The Raiders entered the 1966 season with the goal to have a more active offence. It appears that they have succeeded in that goal so far with a 33-point performance against the Independents.
QB Stanley Troyer was more consistent through the air with a pair of touchdown passes, while RB Dareion Fields moved the ball on the ground.
Boston’s offence was slow to start with Braddock throwing an interception to DB Rutherford Winters in the opening quarter, and only putting up 4 in points in the first half.
The second half was promising with the Independents coming back, but RB Dareion Fields could not be stopped late and the Raiders rolled to their first win of the season.
Halifax Mariners - 38, Indiana Victors - 33 - Atlantic Stadium - June 24, 1966 - 6 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
7-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
10-7 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
2nd Q
17-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> RB Ronald O’Sullivan
17-10 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
23-10 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
3rd Q
23-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
26-13 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
26-20 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
29-20 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
4th Q
29-23 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
29-30 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
32-30 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
32-33 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
38-33 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
The Mariners and Victors had an offensive shootout to kick off their season.
QB Lyle Painter looked solid right out of the gate, getting the Mariners up 23-10 by the end of the first half, however, the Victors slowly crept back into the game.
QB Tom Applewhite made a few mistakes early but recovered in the second half to get the Victors the lead in the 4th.
After both teams traded field goals, Lyle Painter would hit WR Jav Kerrigan for a deep shot looking to get into field goal range.
However, DB Cameron Taylor had an uncharacteristic missed tackle which freed the WR for a long touchdown to give the Mariners the win as the crowd chanted “JAV! JAV! JAV!...”.
Louisville Thunder - 10, Ottawa Royals - 27 - Thunder Stadium - June 25, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
2nd Q
3-7 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
3-14 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
3rd Q
10-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
10-17 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
4th Q
10-20 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
10-27 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
The Thunder were shocked by the Ottawa Royals in their opening game.
Ottawa’s game-plan was pretty simple, but the run-heavy style worked marvellously against the weaker front-7.
RB Corbyn Knight and RB Wally Morton combined for 224 rushing yards on the day. Louisville honestly had no chance to stop them.
The Thunder offence was also struggling from the opening snap, mainly due to their own mistakes; specifically, QB Leonidas Dumont, who threw a pair of interceptions and only completed 48.5% of his passes on the day.
DB Sergio Alvarez and S Randall Green had the picks for the Royals, Alvarez’s pick was his career first.
*Interesting Fact: Ottawa loves playing in Louisville, having a 4-1 overall record when visiting the Thunder which includes the only time a crossover team won a playoff game in 1963. (also their overall head-to-head is 6-2 Royals.)
Toronto Steelheads - 27, Buffalo Blue Wings - 34 - Anderson Stadium - June 25, 1966 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3-7 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
3-10 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
2nd Q
6-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
13-10 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
13-17 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
3rd Q
13-24 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
20-24 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> RB Max Tracy
4th Q
20-27 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-27 TOR - QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
27-34 BUF - QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
The Blue Wings were able to take down the Steelheads on the road with a great performance out of RB Jimmy Golden.
The star running back had 2 touchdowns on the day and 142 rushing yards.
The Steelheads were able to keep themselves in the game with a strong comeback which had the game tied late.
However, in the end, QB Charles Lemieux would lead an excellent game-winning drive to give Buffalo the win in the end.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 25, Montreal Rouge - 20 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - June 26, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
2nd Q
7-0 PIT - PTD QB Buck Murphy -> WR Wilson Queensgate
7-7 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
3rd Q
10-7 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
16-7 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
16-10 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
19-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
19-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
19-20 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
25-20 PIT - PTD QB Buck Murphy -> WR Jack Duncan
QB Gene Bishop’s return to football was a lackluster one.
He struggled to get comfortable in the first half being sacks twice and throwing an interception; he did recover in the second half to lead the Rouge back into the game.
Montreal took a late lead, but the Blacksmiths were able to answer back on an excellent called offensive drive from HC Ted McMahon.
QB Buck Murphy played the drive well and allowed the team to come away with the win.
Providence Gold Stars - 10, London Tigers - 16 - New Providence Stadium - June 26, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
2nd Q
3-7 PRO - FG K Maurice Lafayette
3-10 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3rd Q
10-10 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Doug Piva
10-13 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
4th Q
10-16 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The new-look Gold Stars did not get off to the start they hoped against the veteran Tigers.
London was able to get up early on a great run from RB Austin Andrews, and then K Nimrod Handsworth was able to take care of the rest, kicking 3-straight field goals.
Providence’s defence did look solid with a pick from DB Neville Falkner, and a strip-sack from DL Craig White.
Their offence, however, was not where they hoped and they turned the ball over several times in the first half.
In the 7 total turnovers in the game, DB Bernard Wilkins would get his first career interception for the Tigers.
Injury Report
OL Bubba Hankins BOS - Day-to-Day
QB Jack Owens BUF - Day-to-Day
DB Rutherford Winters LI - 3 Weeks
OL Taylor Forbes LOU - 4 Weeks
TE Ryan Hatcher OTT - Day-to-Day
LB Sam Wheeler OTT - Day-to-Day
OL Benedict Benedicto PIT - 9 Weeks
DL Calias McDonough PRO - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 1-0
London 1-0
Pittsburgh 1-0
Indiana 0-1
Toronto 0-1
Louisville 0-1
EAST
Ottawa 1-0
Long Island 1-0
Halifax 1-0
Montreal 0-1
Providence 0-1
Boston 0-1
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island
2 - Buffalo
3 - Toronto +1
4 - Halifax +1
5 - Boston -2
6 - Indiana +3
7 - London -
8 - Ottawa +3
9 - Louisville -3
10 - Pittsburgh +2
11 - Montreal -3
12 - Providence -2
Week 2 Games
TOR (0-1) @ OTT (1-0) - JUL 1 - 5 PM ET - Canada Day
LOU (0-1) @ MTL (0-1) - JUL 2 - 3 PM ET
BUF (1-0) @ LI (1-0) - JUL 2 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (1-0) @ LDN (1-0) - JUL 3 - 1 PM ET
PRO (0-1) @ IND (0-1) - JUL 3 - 4 PM ET
PIT (1-0) @ BOS (0-1) - JUL 4 - 5 PM ET - 4th of July
1966 Week 2
Ottawa Royals - 9, Toronto Steelheads - 20 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - July 1, 1966 - 5 PM ET - Canada Day - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
2nd Q
0-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
6-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
6-17 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
4th Q
9-17 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
9-20 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
Toronto bounced back from their loss to the Blue Wings with a strong win over the Royals.
Their defence was able to step up and manage the Royals’ run-game that shredded the Thunder last week.
The Royals were able to still get into scoring range consistently, but QB Landon Ross struggled to complete drives, throwing 2 interceptions in Toronto territory.
S Charles Clerk and DB Orville Blake made the interceptions, Clerk’s interception was his career-first.
RB Max Tracy had a great day for Toronto with a pair of touchdowns and 135 Rushing Yards.
Montreal Rouge - 38, Louisville Thunder - 10 - Mount Royal Stadium - July 2, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
14-0 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
17-0 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
17-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
24-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
3rd Q
24-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
31-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
4th Q
38-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
The Rouge bounced back from their rough game against the Blacksmiths with a dominant win over the Thunder.
WR Taylor Karis took over the game when DB Oliver Langstrom went down with an injury.
Despite the efforts from the rest of the Louisville secondary, Karis was able to find the endzone 4 times as there were just too many weapons to manage on the day.
QB Gene Bishop looked a little more comfortable in the pocket as the Montreal O-line played much better this week.
The second straight embarrassing loss from the Thunder could be a major concern for the squad, especially with the horrid play of QB Leonidas Dumont, who threw another 3 interceptions.
Long Island Raiders - 24, Buffalo Blue Wings - 13 - Long Island Stadium - July 2, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
7-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
7-10 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
3rd Q
14-10 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> RB Dareion Fields
4th Q
14-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
21-13 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
24-13 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
The Raiders cemented themselves as the best team in the NAAF with a strong win over the Blue Wings; they certainly are looking like heavy favourites to repeat after the win.
Buffalo was able to get some offence going in the first half, but Long Island was able to shut them down in the second only allowing 3 points.
The lack of offence could also be pit on the absence of RB Jimmy Golden who left the game early with an injury.
DB Alexander Bradley was strong in the absence of DB Rutherford Winters and grabbed an interception, while LB William Washington II dominated the middle of the field with 10 tackles.
The Raiders' new offensive strategy continued to work as QB Stanley Troyer had another strong outing, throwing a pair of touchdowns in the win.
London Tigers - 20, Halifax Mariners - 27 - OT - Western Fair Stadium - July 3, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
2nd Q
3-7 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
6-7 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
6-10 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
3rd Q
9-10 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
15-10 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
17-10 LDN - 2PT RB Austin Andrews
4th Q
17-13 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
17-20 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
20-20 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
OT
20-27 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The first OT matchup of the season saw the Mariners come out with their second win of the season on a touchdown from RB Ronald O’Sullivan.
The teams went back and forth with the Tigers taking a lead into the 4th, but Halifax bounced back to take a late lead before K Nimrod Handsworth tied the game back up to force OT.
QB Lyle Painter continued to look good for the Mariners throwing another couple of touchdowns in the win.
The Tigers, on the other hand, did continue to struggle when it came to getting into the endzone, but Handsworth was able to be reliable with 4 field goals on the day.
Indiana Victors - 14, Providence Gold Stars - 17 - Victory Stadium - July 3, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
2nd Q
0-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
3rd Q
0-17 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
7-17 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Orlando Barrack
4th Q
14-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Gold Stars were able to take advantage of a slow start from the Victors and jump out to a 17-0 lead.
Tom Applewhite struggled in the first half, but got it together in the second half to make a comeback, but ran into DB Neville Falkner who clinched the win with an interception.
O’Rourke looked a lot better than his first week; he still threw one interception (to his former teammate DB Cameron Taylor), but was overall a lot more like his old self.
Boston Independents - 34, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 11 - Richardson Stadium - July 4, 1966 - 5 PM ET - 4th of July - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-4 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
10-4 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
2nd Q
17-4 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
20-4 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3rd Q
27-4 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> TE Tobias Lindholm
27-11 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
4th Q
34-11 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
Boston bounced back from their loss to the Raiders by crushing the Blacksmiths on the 4th of July.
It was a slow start, but once the offence and defence got rolling, the Blacksmiths did not stand a chance against the Independents.
Braddock was pretty much perfect with no interceptions and a pair of touchdown passes on the day.
RB Tresean Jones got involved as well near the end and scored to secure the game.
Pittsburgh was just a mess overall, but they did have a strong drive in the second half with QB Magnus Torrensen getting some action after Murphy threw 2 interceptions and only 67 passing yards in the first 3 quarters.
Injury Report
DB Mordecai King BOS - 1 Week
RB Jimmy Golden BUF - 1 Week
DL Ted Madison BUF - 1 Week
TE Oliver Chandler HFX - Day-to-Day
WR Bernard Sandeirs LI - Day-to-Day
DB Oliver Langstrom LOU - Day-to-Day
LB Le'Darius Wynn LOU - Day-to-Day
OL Fabrice Beaufort OTT - 2 Weeks
S Graham Kensington PIT - 4 Weeks
DB Perry Ferris PRO - 3 Weeks
OL Elmer Tanev PRO - 4 Weeks
WR Angus Stevenson PRO - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
OFF: WR Taylor Karis MTL - 4 Receiving Yards, 143 Receiving Yards
DEF: LB William Washington II LI - 10 Tackles, 1 Pass Defended
Standings
WEST
Toronto 1-1
London 1-1
Buffalo 1-1
Pittsburgh 1-1
Indiana 0-2
Louisville 0-2
EAST
Long Island 2-0
Halifax 2-0
Montreal 1-1
Boston 1-1
Ottawa 1-1
Providence 1-1
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Toronto -
4 - Halifax -
5 - Boston -
6 - London +1
7 - Indiana -1
8 - Montreal +3
9 - Ottawa -1
10 - Providence +2
11 - Pittsburgh -1
12 - Louisville -3
Week 3 Games
OTT (1-1) @ LDN (1-1) - JUL 8 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-1) @ IND (0-2) - JUL 9 - 12 PM ET
MTL (1-1) @ BUF (1-1) - JUL 9 - 3:30 PM ET
BOS (1-1) @ LOU (0-2) - JUL 9 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (1-1) @ HFX (2-0) - JUL 10 - 1 PM ET
LI (2-0) @ TOR (1-1) - JUL 10 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
0-7 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
2nd Q
0-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
6-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
6-17 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
4th Q
9-17 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
9-20 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
Toronto bounced back from their loss to the Blue Wings with a strong win over the Royals.
Their defence was able to step up and manage the Royals’ run-game that shredded the Thunder last week.
The Royals were able to still get into scoring range consistently, but QB Landon Ross struggled to complete drives, throwing 2 interceptions in Toronto territory.
S Charles Clerk and DB Orville Blake made the interceptions, Clerk’s interception was his career-first.
RB Max Tracy had a great day for Toronto with a pair of touchdowns and 135 Rushing Yards.
Montreal Rouge - 38, Louisville Thunder - 10 - Mount Royal Stadium - July 2, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
14-0 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
17-0 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
17-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
24-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
3rd Q
24-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
31-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
4th Q
38-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
The Rouge bounced back from their rough game against the Blacksmiths with a dominant win over the Thunder.
WR Taylor Karis took over the game when DB Oliver Langstrom went down with an injury.
Despite the efforts from the rest of the Louisville secondary, Karis was able to find the endzone 4 times as there were just too many weapons to manage on the day.
QB Gene Bishop looked a little more comfortable in the pocket as the Montreal O-line played much better this week.
The second straight embarrassing loss from the Thunder could be a major concern for the squad, especially with the horrid play of QB Leonidas Dumont, who threw another 3 interceptions.
Long Island Raiders - 24, Buffalo Blue Wings - 13 - Long Island Stadium - July 2, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
7-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
7-10 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
3rd Q
14-10 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> RB Dareion Fields
4th Q
14-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
21-13 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
24-13 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
The Raiders cemented themselves as the best team in the NAAF with a strong win over the Blue Wings; they certainly are looking like heavy favourites to repeat after the win.
Buffalo was able to get some offence going in the first half, but Long Island was able to shut them down in the second only allowing 3 points.
The lack of offence could also be pit on the absence of RB Jimmy Golden who left the game early with an injury.
DB Alexander Bradley was strong in the absence of DB Rutherford Winters and grabbed an interception, while LB William Washington II dominated the middle of the field with 10 tackles.
The Raiders' new offensive strategy continued to work as QB Stanley Troyer had another strong outing, throwing a pair of touchdowns in the win.
London Tigers - 20, Halifax Mariners - 27 - OT - Western Fair Stadium - July 3, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
2nd Q
3-7 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
6-7 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
6-10 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
3rd Q
9-10 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
15-10 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
17-10 LDN - 2PT RB Austin Andrews
4th Q
17-13 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
17-20 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
20-20 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
OT
20-27 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The first OT matchup of the season saw the Mariners come out with their second win of the season on a touchdown from RB Ronald O’Sullivan.
The teams went back and forth with the Tigers taking a lead into the 4th, but Halifax bounced back to take a late lead before K Nimrod Handsworth tied the game back up to force OT.
QB Lyle Painter continued to look good for the Mariners throwing another couple of touchdowns in the win.
The Tigers, on the other hand, did continue to struggle when it came to getting into the endzone, but Handsworth was able to be reliable with 4 field goals on the day.
Indiana Victors - 14, Providence Gold Stars - 17 - Victory Stadium - July 3, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
2nd Q
0-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
3rd Q
0-17 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
7-17 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Orlando Barrack
4th Q
14-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Gold Stars were able to take advantage of a slow start from the Victors and jump out to a 17-0 lead.
Tom Applewhite struggled in the first half, but got it together in the second half to make a comeback, but ran into DB Neville Falkner who clinched the win with an interception.
O’Rourke looked a lot better than his first week; he still threw one interception (to his former teammate DB Cameron Taylor), but was overall a lot more like his old self.
Boston Independents - 34, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 11 - Richardson Stadium - July 4, 1966 - 5 PM ET - 4th of July - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-4 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
10-4 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
2nd Q
17-4 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
20-4 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3rd Q
27-4 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> TE Tobias Lindholm
27-11 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
4th Q
34-11 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
Boston bounced back from their loss to the Raiders by crushing the Blacksmiths on the 4th of July.
It was a slow start, but once the offence and defence got rolling, the Blacksmiths did not stand a chance against the Independents.
Braddock was pretty much perfect with no interceptions and a pair of touchdown passes on the day.
RB Tresean Jones got involved as well near the end and scored to secure the game.
Pittsburgh was just a mess overall, but they did have a strong drive in the second half with QB Magnus Torrensen getting some action after Murphy threw 2 interceptions and only 67 passing yards in the first 3 quarters.
Injury Report
DB Mordecai King BOS - 1 Week
RB Jimmy Golden BUF - 1 Week
DL Ted Madison BUF - 1 Week
TE Oliver Chandler HFX - Day-to-Day
WR Bernard Sandeirs LI - Day-to-Day
DB Oliver Langstrom LOU - Day-to-Day
LB Le'Darius Wynn LOU - Day-to-Day
OL Fabrice Beaufort OTT - 2 Weeks
S Graham Kensington PIT - 4 Weeks
DB Perry Ferris PRO - 3 Weeks
OL Elmer Tanev PRO - 4 Weeks
WR Angus Stevenson PRO - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Toronto 1-1
London 1-1
Buffalo 1-1
Pittsburgh 1-1
Indiana 0-2
Louisville 0-2
EAST
Long Island 2-0
Halifax 2-0
Montreal 1-1
Boston 1-1
Ottawa 1-1
Providence 1-1
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Toronto -
4 - Halifax -
5 - Boston -
6 - London +1
7 - Indiana -1
8 - Montreal +3
9 - Ottawa -1
10 - Providence +2
11 - Pittsburgh -1
12 - Louisville -3
Week 3 Games
OTT (1-1) @ LDN (1-1) - JUL 8 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-1) @ IND (0-2) - JUL 9 - 12 PM ET
MTL (1-1) @ BUF (1-1) - JUL 9 - 3:30 PM ET
BOS (1-1) @ LOU (0-2) - JUL 9 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (1-1) @ HFX (2-0) - JUL 10 - 1 PM ET
LI (2-0) @ TOR (1-1) - JUL 10 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 3
London Tigers - 17, Ottawa Royals - 14 - Western Fair Stadium - July 8, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
2nd Q
7-7 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> TE Ryan Hatcher
3rd Q
7-14 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
14-14 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
17-14 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers and Royals went back and forth on Friday night, with the Tigers coming from behind in the 4th for the win.
RB Austin Andrews continued to look good for the Tigers fully taking on the #1 running back role on the team.
Ottawa looked better with QB Landon Ross finally throwing a touchdown and leading the team to a 14-7 lead heading into the 4th.
The Royals did find success with a strong run-game once again as well with their two backs continuing to put up strong numbers.
Indiana Victors - 24, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 15 - Victory Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
14-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Orlando Barrack
2nd Q
14-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
17-9 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
3rd Q
17-15 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
4th Q
24-15 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
QB Tom Applewhite played the best game of his career, throwing 3 touchdowns in leading the Victors to a win over the Blacksmiths.
The team had a great start with a pair of scores in the opening quarter, while the defence shut down the Blacksmiths.
DB Cameron Taylor also looked more comfortable in the defence with a pick in the win.
RB Stavros Black had a strong game, especially in the 2nd and 3rd quarters with a pair of touchdowns.
QB Buck Murphy still started this game despite being pulled last week; he performed better in this game and gave the team a shot to win.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 33, Montreal Rouge - 22 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
10-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
10-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
17-3 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
17-6 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
17-13 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
3rd Q
20-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-13 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
27-16 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
27-22 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
30-22 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
33-22 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
The Blue Wings came through with a strong win over the Rouge without their star RB.
QB Charles Lemieux stepped up with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions in the win.
Montreal struggled with the Buffalo D-line early on, but the O-line picked it up later to help the Rouge get back into the game.
WR Taylor Karis continued his superb start with his 6th touchdown of the season as QB Gene Bishop looked a little more comfortable as the game went on.
Louisville Thunder - 24, Boston Independents - 27 - Thunder Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
7-3 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
7-10 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
7-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-13 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
17-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
4th Q
17-16 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
24-16 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Otto Washington
24-22 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
24-24 BOS - 2PT QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
24-27 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
The Thunder looked much better after back-to-back horrid games to start the season, however, they still were unable to hold off the Independents who would come back for the win.
Braddock came through with his usual late-game comeback helping lift Boston to their second straight win.
He got some help from the defence late, who forced Louisville to a quick 2 and out and gave Braddock enough time to get in field goal range.
QB Leonidas Dumont still looked much better than he had been in this game throwing a touchdown and only one interception.
WR Felix Fontaine also grabbed his first career touchdown that helped to tie the game, breaking a tackle to get into the endzone.
Halifax Mariners - 19, Providence Gold Stars - 14 - Atlantic Stadium - July 10, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
2nd Q
6-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
6-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
6-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
12-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
4th Q
19-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The Mariners got up early with a pair of first-half field goals and the defence causing issues for the Gold Stars.
QB Connor O’Rourke did find a way to deal with the pressure and got a pair of touchdowns to get his team up 6-14.
Halifax was able to adjust and rebound, scoring their own two touchdowns thanks to RB Ronald O’Sullivan.
The Mariners' defence also stepped up late with DB Joe Robinson grabbing an interception and DL Wayne Baxton getting a forced fumble as well.
The Mariners’ 3-0 start marks the franchise’s best start since 1956 when they last went to the McCallister Cup (they started that season 9-0).
Toronto Steelheads - 16, Long Island Raiders - 26 - Anderson Stadium - July 10, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy/Windy
1st Q
0-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
0-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
2nd Q
7-6 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
7-9 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3rd Q
7-16 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
10-16 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
10-19 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
10-26 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
16-26 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
The Raiders had another strong performance in their 3rd win of the season, taking down the Steelheads in Toronto.
RB Dareion Fields had a great performance with a pair of touchdowns that helped give the Raiders a commanding lead.
Toronto tried to make a late push, but the touchdown came far too late and the Raider would easily hold on to start 3-0.
Injury Report
TE Tobias Lindholm BOS - Day-to-Day
WR Piers Key LOU - Day-to-Day
OL Erik Nelson PIT - 1 Week
DL Chester Avery TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
OFF: QB Charles Lemieux BUF - 2 Passing Touchdowns, 355 Passing Yards
DEF: DL Wayne Baxton HFX - 1 Forced Fumble, 6 Tackles, 2 Sacks
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 2-1
London 2-1
Indiana 1-2
Toronto 1-2
Pittsburgh 1-2
Louisville 0-3
EAST
Long Island 3-0
Halifax 3-0
Boston 2-1
Montreal 1-2
Ottawa 1-2
Providence 1-2
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax +1
4 - Boston +1
5 - Toronto -2
6 - London -
7 - Indiana -
8 - Montreal -
9 - Ottawa -
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 4 Games
LDN (2-1) @ IND (1-2) - JUL 14 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
MTL (1-2) @ PRO (1-2) - JUL 15 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
LI (3-0) @ OTT (1-2) - JUL 16 - 3 PM ET
TOR (1-2) @ PIT (1-2) - JUL 16 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (3-0) @ LOU (0-3) - JUL 17 - 1 PM ET
BOS (2-1) @ BUF (2-1) - JUL 17 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
7-0 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
2nd Q
7-7 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> TE Ryan Hatcher
3rd Q
7-14 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
14-14 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
17-14 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers and Royals went back and forth on Friday night, with the Tigers coming from behind in the 4th for the win.
RB Austin Andrews continued to look good for the Tigers fully taking on the #1 running back role on the team.
Ottawa looked better with QB Landon Ross finally throwing a touchdown and leading the team to a 14-7 lead heading into the 4th.
The Royals did find success with a strong run-game once again as well with their two backs continuing to put up strong numbers.
Indiana Victors - 24, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 15 - Victory Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
14-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Orlando Barrack
2nd Q
14-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
17-9 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
3rd Q
17-15 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
4th Q
24-15 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
QB Tom Applewhite played the best game of his career, throwing 3 touchdowns in leading the Victors to a win over the Blacksmiths.
The team had a great start with a pair of scores in the opening quarter, while the defence shut down the Blacksmiths.
DB Cameron Taylor also looked more comfortable in the defence with a pick in the win.
RB Stavros Black had a strong game, especially in the 2nd and 3rd quarters with a pair of touchdowns.
QB Buck Murphy still started this game despite being pulled last week; he performed better in this game and gave the team a shot to win.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 33, Montreal Rouge - 22 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
10-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
10-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
17-3 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
17-6 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
17-13 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
3rd Q
20-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-13 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
27-16 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
27-22 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
30-22 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
33-22 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
The Blue Wings came through with a strong win over the Rouge without their star RB.
QB Charles Lemieux stepped up with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions in the win.
Montreal struggled with the Buffalo D-line early on, but the O-line picked it up later to help the Rouge get back into the game.
WR Taylor Karis continued his superb start with his 6th touchdown of the season as QB Gene Bishop looked a little more comfortable as the game went on.
Louisville Thunder - 24, Boston Independents - 27 - Thunder Stadium - July 9, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
7-3 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
7-10 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
7-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-13 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
17-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
4th Q
17-16 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
24-16 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Otto Washington
24-22 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
24-24 BOS - 2PT QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
24-27 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
The Thunder looked much better after back-to-back horrid games to start the season, however, they still were unable to hold off the Independents who would come back for the win.
Braddock came through with his usual late-game comeback helping lift Boston to their second straight win.
He got some help from the defence late, who forced Louisville to a quick 2 and out and gave Braddock enough time to get in field goal range.
QB Leonidas Dumont still looked much better than he had been in this game throwing a touchdown and only one interception.
WR Felix Fontaine also grabbed his first career touchdown that helped to tie the game, breaking a tackle to get into the endzone.
Halifax Mariners - 19, Providence Gold Stars - 14 - Atlantic Stadium - July 10, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
2nd Q
6-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
6-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
6-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
12-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
4th Q
19-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The Mariners got up early with a pair of first-half field goals and the defence causing issues for the Gold Stars.
QB Connor O’Rourke did find a way to deal with the pressure and got a pair of touchdowns to get his team up 6-14.
Halifax was able to adjust and rebound, scoring their own two touchdowns thanks to RB Ronald O’Sullivan.
The Mariners' defence also stepped up late with DB Joe Robinson grabbing an interception and DL Wayne Baxton getting a forced fumble as well.
The Mariners’ 3-0 start marks the franchise’s best start since 1956 when they last went to the McCallister Cup (they started that season 9-0).
Toronto Steelheads - 16, Long Island Raiders - 26 - Anderson Stadium - July 10, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy/Windy
1st Q
0-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
0-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
2nd Q
7-6 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
7-9 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3rd Q
7-16 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
10-16 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
10-19 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
10-26 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
16-26 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
The Raiders had another strong performance in their 3rd win of the season, taking down the Steelheads in Toronto.
RB Dareion Fields had a great performance with a pair of touchdowns that helped give the Raiders a commanding lead.
Toronto tried to make a late push, but the touchdown came far too late and the Raider would easily hold on to start 3-0.
Injury Report
TE Tobias Lindholm BOS - Day-to-Day
WR Piers Key LOU - Day-to-Day
OL Erik Nelson PIT - 1 Week
DL Chester Avery TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 2-1
London 2-1
Indiana 1-2
Toronto 1-2
Pittsburgh 1-2
Louisville 0-3
EAST
Long Island 3-0
Halifax 3-0
Boston 2-1
Montreal 1-2
Ottawa 1-2
Providence 1-2
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax +1
4 - Boston +1
5 - Toronto -2
6 - London -
7 - Indiana -
8 - Montreal -
9 - Ottawa -
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 4 Games
LDN (2-1) @ IND (1-2) - JUL 14 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
MTL (1-2) @ PRO (1-2) - JUL 15 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
LI (3-0) @ OTT (1-2) - JUL 16 - 3 PM ET
TOR (1-2) @ PIT (1-2) - JUL 16 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (3-0) @ LOU (0-3) - JUL 17 - 1 PM ET
BOS (2-1) @ BUF (2-1) - JUL 17 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 4
Indiana Victors - 33, London Tigers - 10 - Victory Stadium - July 14, 1966 - 7 PM ET - TNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
14-0 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
2nd Q
14-7 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
17-7 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
20-7 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
20-10 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
23-10 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
4th Q
30-10 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
33-10 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Victors rolled on to their second straight win, dominating the Tigers at home.
QB Tom Applewhite continued to show his potential with another passing touchdown, though he got lots of help from the run-game which opened up with the injury to London’s DL Richard Blunt.
London had another frustrating game where they just looked completely outmatched which was not helped with the injury on defence.
Providence Gold Stars - 14, Montreal Rouge - 21 - New Providence Stadium - July 15, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
2nd Q
7-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
14-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
14-14 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
4th Q
14-21 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
A duel of touchdowns was what the fans of Providence got on Friday Night with the Rouge getting the last laugh on WR Taylor Karis’ 7th touchdown of the season.
DB Neville Falkner had an early interception which helped the Gold Stars get the early lead.
They would out-duel the Rouge in the first half, but after the break, their offence just could not get back on the board with Montreal’s defence stepping up.
WR Yahui Sun had a great day as well scoring a pair of touchdowns for the Rouge.
Ottawa Royals - 14, Long Island Raiders - 30 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - July 16, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
0-10 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
2nd Q
0-17 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Troy York
7-17 OTT - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Marshall Leonard
3rd Q
7-20 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
7-23 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
14-23 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
14-30 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
The Raiders maintained their unbeaten record, taking down the Royals on the road.
The defence continued to play to their usual standard, while the offence held a steady pace in scoring throughout the game.
RB Dareion Fields was the main game-changer being almost unstoppable for the Raiders and rushing for 161 yards.
The Royals did try to change things up in the second by throwing QB Lee Rogers on the field for a couple of drives after QB Landon Ross had a couple of earlier interceptions.
Ross would eventually return later in the game and help the team to their second touchdown, but it was a tough day for the Royals’ offence overall.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 16, Toronto Steelheads - 20 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - July 16, 1966 - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
2nd Q
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3-10 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> TE Jesse Butler
3rd Q
6-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
13-10 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
13-13 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
16-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
16-20 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
The Blacksmiths and Steelheads game came down to the wire with Pittsburgh holding onto a narrow lead.
However, QB Todd Baker showed up and lifted the Steelheads over the Blacksmiths with a game-winning drive in the 4th.
Pittsburgh struggled down the stretch with more injuries to their O-line which certainly hinders them significantly in the run game.
Louisville Thunder - 12, Halifax Mariners - 31 - Thunder Stadium - July 17, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
3-7 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
2nd Q
3-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
3rd Q
3-17 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
6-17 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
6-24 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
4th Q
12-24 LOU - PTD QB Rigobert St-Hilaire -> WR Lloyd Lane
12-31 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
The Mariners grabbed their 4th win of the season, keeping pace with the division-leading Raiders.
QB Lyle Painter threw another 3 touchdowns in the win to keep up his strong start to the year.
As for Louisville, things went from bad to worse and both QB Leonidas Dumont and DB Oliver Langstrom left the game with injuries.
QB Rigobert St-Hilaire came in for relief and did throw one touchdown after second-year WR Lloyd Lane broke loose for a 43-yard touchdown.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 27, Boston Independents - 18 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 17, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
7-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
7-6 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-6 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
17-6 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> RB Théodore Lemieux
3rd Q
17-9 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-15 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
24-15 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
24-18 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
27-18 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
The Lemieux duo took down the Independents to claim their second straight win of the season.
Despite not having Jimmy Golden, the Blue Wings looked like a true force on offence moving through the Boston defence with ease.
Boston has looked questionable to start the season, though to be fair, they have played probably the two best teams in the league in their first 4 games.
They still managed to keep it close, but Buffalo was just one step ahead the whole time.
Injury Report
DB Nick Ulbach BUF - 4 Weeks
DL Wayne Baxton HFX - 2 Weeks
DL Richard Blunt LDN - Day-to-Day
RB Eric Sydney LI - Day-to-Day
WR Larry Mossholder LI - 3 Weeks
QB Leonidas Dumont LOU - 4 Weeks
RB Greg Dix LOU - Day-to-Day
DB Oliver Langstrom LOU - 3 Weeks
OL Jimmy McKay PIT - 2 Weeks
OL Tommy Yorke PIT - 2 Weeks
RB Max Tracy TOR - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
OFF: RB Dareion Fields LI - 2 Rushing Touchdowns, 161 Rushing Yards
DEF: DB Aquilio Ruiz HFX - 2 Interceptions, 4 Tackles, 2 Passes Defended
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 3-1
Indiana 2-2
Toronto 2-2
London 2-2
Pittsburgh 1-3
Louisville 0-4
EAST
Long Island 4-0
Halifax 4-0
Montreal 2-2
Boston 2-2
Ottawa 1-3
Providence 1-3
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Boston -
5 - Toronto -
6 - Indiana +1
7 - London -1
8 - Montreal -
9 - Ottawa -
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 5 Games
IND (2-2) @ OTT (1-3) - JUL 22 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-3) @ HFX (4-0) - JUL 23 - 12 PM ET
LOU (0-4) @ LI (4-0) - JUL 23 - 3:30 PM ET
BUF (3-1) @ PRO (1-3) - JUL 23 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
TOR (2-2) @ BOS (2-2) - JUL 24 - 1 PM ET
MTL (2-2) @ LDN (2-2) - JUL 24 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
14-0 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
2nd Q
14-7 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
17-7 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
20-7 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
20-10 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
23-10 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
4th Q
30-10 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
33-10 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Victors rolled on to their second straight win, dominating the Tigers at home.
QB Tom Applewhite continued to show his potential with another passing touchdown, though he got lots of help from the run-game which opened up with the injury to London’s DL Richard Blunt.
London had another frustrating game where they just looked completely outmatched which was not helped with the injury on defence.
Providence Gold Stars - 14, Montreal Rouge - 21 - New Providence Stadium - July 15, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
2nd Q
7-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
14-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
14-14 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
4th Q
14-21 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
A duel of touchdowns was what the fans of Providence got on Friday Night with the Rouge getting the last laugh on WR Taylor Karis’ 7th touchdown of the season.
DB Neville Falkner had an early interception which helped the Gold Stars get the early lead.
They would out-duel the Rouge in the first half, but after the break, their offence just could not get back on the board with Montreal’s defence stepping up.
WR Yahui Sun had a great day as well scoring a pair of touchdowns for the Rouge.
Ottawa Royals - 14, Long Island Raiders - 30 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - July 16, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
0-10 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
2nd Q
0-17 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Troy York
7-17 OTT - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Marshall Leonard
3rd Q
7-20 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
7-23 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
14-23 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
14-30 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
The Raiders maintained their unbeaten record, taking down the Royals on the road.
The defence continued to play to their usual standard, while the offence held a steady pace in scoring throughout the game.
RB Dareion Fields was the main game-changer being almost unstoppable for the Raiders and rushing for 161 yards.
The Royals did try to change things up in the second by throwing QB Lee Rogers on the field for a couple of drives after QB Landon Ross had a couple of earlier interceptions.
Ross would eventually return later in the game and help the team to their second touchdown, but it was a tough day for the Royals’ offence overall.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 16, Toronto Steelheads - 20 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - July 16, 1966 - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
2nd Q
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3-10 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> TE Jesse Butler
3rd Q
6-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
13-10 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
13-13 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
16-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
16-20 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
The Blacksmiths and Steelheads game came down to the wire with Pittsburgh holding onto a narrow lead.
However, QB Todd Baker showed up and lifted the Steelheads over the Blacksmiths with a game-winning drive in the 4th.
Pittsburgh struggled down the stretch with more injuries to their O-line which certainly hinders them significantly in the run game.
Louisville Thunder - 12, Halifax Mariners - 31 - Thunder Stadium - July 17, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
3-7 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
2nd Q
3-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
3rd Q
3-17 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
6-17 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
6-24 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
4th Q
12-24 LOU - PTD QB Rigobert St-Hilaire -> WR Lloyd Lane
12-31 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
The Mariners grabbed their 4th win of the season, keeping pace with the division-leading Raiders.
QB Lyle Painter threw another 3 touchdowns in the win to keep up his strong start to the year.
As for Louisville, things went from bad to worse and both QB Leonidas Dumont and DB Oliver Langstrom left the game with injuries.
QB Rigobert St-Hilaire came in for relief and did throw one touchdown after second-year WR Lloyd Lane broke loose for a 43-yard touchdown.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 27, Boston Independents - 18 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 17, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
7-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
7-6 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-6 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
17-6 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> RB Théodore Lemieux
3rd Q
17-9 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-15 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
24-15 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
24-18 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
27-18 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
The Lemieux duo took down the Independents to claim their second straight win of the season.
Despite not having Jimmy Golden, the Blue Wings looked like a true force on offence moving through the Boston defence with ease.
Boston has looked questionable to start the season, though to be fair, they have played probably the two best teams in the league in their first 4 games.
They still managed to keep it close, but Buffalo was just one step ahead the whole time.
Injury Report
DB Nick Ulbach BUF - 4 Weeks
DL Wayne Baxton HFX - 2 Weeks
DL Richard Blunt LDN - Day-to-Day
RB Eric Sydney LI - Day-to-Day
WR Larry Mossholder LI - 3 Weeks
QB Leonidas Dumont LOU - 4 Weeks
RB Greg Dix LOU - Day-to-Day
DB Oliver Langstrom LOU - 3 Weeks
OL Jimmy McKay PIT - 2 Weeks
OL Tommy Yorke PIT - 2 Weeks
RB Max Tracy TOR - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 3-1
Indiana 2-2
Toronto 2-2
London 2-2
Pittsburgh 1-3
Louisville 0-4
EAST
Long Island 4-0
Halifax 4-0
Montreal 2-2
Boston 2-2
Ottawa 1-3
Providence 1-3
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Boston -
5 - Toronto -
6 - Indiana +1
7 - London -1
8 - Montreal -
9 - Ottawa -
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 5 Games
IND (2-2) @ OTT (1-3) - JUL 22 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-3) @ HFX (4-0) - JUL 23 - 12 PM ET
LOU (0-4) @ LI (4-0) - JUL 23 - 3:30 PM ET
BUF (3-1) @ PRO (1-3) - JUL 23 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
TOR (2-2) @ BOS (2-2) - JUL 24 - 1 PM ET
MTL (2-2) @ LDN (2-2) - JUL 24 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 5
Ottawa Royals - 30, Indiana Victors - 20 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - July 22, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
10-0 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
2nd Q
13-0 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
13-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
13-10 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
16-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
16-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
23-17 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
4th Q
23-20 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
30-20 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
The Royals got their second win of the season with a bit of an upset over the Victors.
QB Landon Ross played much better than he did against the Raiders, he threw a touchdown and only 1 interception.
As for QB Tom Applewhite, he did not look as good in this battle, throwing a pair of interceptions himself, but also just not being able to generate much offence down the field.
The defence didn’t play too badly but struggled against the Royals’ run game which is a big reason they lost the game.
Halifax Mariners - 35, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 18 - Atlantic Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PIT - RTD RB Carter Roy
7-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
2nd Q
7-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
14-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
14-11 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
3rd Q
21-11 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
28-11 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> TE Oliver Chandler
4th Q
28-18 PIT - PTD QB Buck Murphy -> WR Wilson Queensgate
35-18 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The Mariners and Blacksmiths had a close battle going in the first half, with the Blacksmiths getting up early.
However, in the second half, Painter and the Mariners picked it up and put up 21 points in the second half to take the win.
WR Shane Steadman continues to have a strong start to the season catching another pair of touchdowns for his squad, bringing his total to 6 on the season.
QB Buck Murphy had some problems today with 2 fumbles and an interception, which may lead to a short leash for the starter over the next couple of games with some younger talent waiting for a chance.
Long Island Raiders - 34, Louisville Thunder - 13 - Long Island Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
10-3 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
2nd Q
17-3 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
17-6 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
24-6 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
3rd Q
24-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
27-13 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
34-13 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
A monster 4-touchdown game from RB Dareion Fields saw the Raiders crush the winless Thunder.
The Raiders defence had their way with QB Rigobert St-Hilaire, who struggled in his first start for the Thunder.
St-Hilaire threw 2 interceptions and fumbled twice in the game which might lead to the team looking for another option for next week against the Victors.
LB William Washington II continued his strong performance on the season by forcing one of the two fumbles on St-Hilaire and racking up 9 tackles.
Providence Gold Stars - 9, Buffalo Blue Wings - 24 - New Providence Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
2nd Q
3-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3-10 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3rd Q
6-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
6-17 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
9-17 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
4th Q
9-24 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
The Blue Wings grabbed another win on the back of RB Jimmy Golden’s return to the lineup.
Providence’s offence struggled especially when they got within scoring range; they were only able to get into the redzone once in the game, and immediately got shut down.
QB Charles Lemieux has continued to take another step forward showing that he is legit one of the best QBs in the league and it isn’t just Golden carrying the load.
Boston Independents - 17, Toronto Steelheads - 28 - Richardson Stadium - July 24, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
7-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> RB Kendall Morgan
2nd Q
14-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
14-14 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
3rd Q
17-14 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-21 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
4th Q
17-28 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Samuel Petri
The Steelheads grabbed their second straight win, upsetting the Independents on the road.
The game was very back and forth in the first half that left the game tied at 14, however, in the second half, Toronto’s defence stepped up and allowed the offence to build up a lead.
Boston certainly won’t be happy about a 2-3 start to the season, which may be a starting point for some further changes to the team in the near future if they can’t turn this around.
London Tigers - 20, Montreal Rouge - 17 - Western Fair Stadium - July 24, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 LDN - QB Riley Kiernan -> RB Austin Andrews
7-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
10-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
10-10 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
3rd Q
17-10 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
4th Q
17-17 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
20-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers picked up a narrow win over the Rouge on the back of a last-minute field goal from K Nimrod Handsworth.
RB Austin Andrews continued his strong performance this season with a receiving touchdown and 104 yards on the ground.
RB Hugo Hughes also made an impression by getting more carries in this game, scoring a touchdown and putting up 67 yards on the ground over RB Scott Mallard-White, who had only 47 yards despite getting more carries.
WR Derek Cross also finally found the endzone for the first time this season, this comes after leading the team last season with 8 touchdowns on the year.
Injury Report
DL Ted Madison BUF - Day-to-Day
DB Ezra Power BUF - Day-to-Day
DB Aquilio Ruiz HFX - Day-to-Day
OL Jeffrey Uduike LDN - 2 Weeks
LB Gene Bensen LI - 5 Weeks
LB Le'Darius Wynn LOU - 1 Week
WR Carter Henderson OTT - 1 Week
Players of the Week
OFF: RB Dareion Fields LI - 4 Rushing Touchdowns, 186 Rushing Yards
DEF: DB Jackson Miles LDN - 1 Interception, 7 Tackles, 3 Passes Defended
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 4-1
Toronto 3-2
London 3-2
Indiana 2-3
Pittsburgh 1-4
Louisville 0-5
EAST
Long Island 5-0
Halifax 5-0
Montreal 2-3
Ottawa 2-3
Boston 2-3
Providence 1-4
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Toronto +1
5 - London +2
6 - Boston -2
7 - Indiana -1
8 - Ottawa +1
9 - Montreal -1
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 6 Games - RIVALRY WEEK
LI (5-0) @ HFX (5-0) - JUL 29 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-4) @ TOR (3-2) - JUL 30 - 12 PM ET
IND (2-3) @ LOU (0-5) - JUL 30 - 3:30 PM ET
BOS (2-3) @ PRO (1-4) - JUL 30 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
OTT (2-3) @ MTL (2-3) - JUL 31 - 1 PM ET
LDN (3-2) @ BUF (4-1) - JUL 31 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
3-0 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
10-0 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
2nd Q
13-0 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
13-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
13-10 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
16-10 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
16-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
23-17 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
4th Q
23-20 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
30-20 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
The Royals got their second win of the season with a bit of an upset over the Victors.
QB Landon Ross played much better than he did against the Raiders, he threw a touchdown and only 1 interception.
As for QB Tom Applewhite, he did not look as good in this battle, throwing a pair of interceptions himself, but also just not being able to generate much offence down the field.
The defence didn’t play too badly but struggled against the Royals’ run game which is a big reason they lost the game.
Halifax Mariners - 35, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 18 - Atlantic Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PIT - RTD RB Carter Roy
7-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
2nd Q
7-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
14-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
14-11 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
3rd Q
21-11 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
28-11 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> TE Oliver Chandler
4th Q
28-18 PIT - PTD QB Buck Murphy -> WR Wilson Queensgate
35-18 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
The Mariners and Blacksmiths had a close battle going in the first half, with the Blacksmiths getting up early.
However, in the second half, Painter and the Mariners picked it up and put up 21 points in the second half to take the win.
WR Shane Steadman continues to have a strong start to the season catching another pair of touchdowns for his squad, bringing his total to 6 on the season.
QB Buck Murphy had some problems today with 2 fumbles and an interception, which may lead to a short leash for the starter over the next couple of games with some younger talent waiting for a chance.
Long Island Raiders - 34, Louisville Thunder - 13 - Long Island Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
10-3 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
2nd Q
17-3 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
17-6 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
24-6 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
3rd Q
24-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
27-13 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
34-13 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
A monster 4-touchdown game from RB Dareion Fields saw the Raiders crush the winless Thunder.
The Raiders defence had their way with QB Rigobert St-Hilaire, who struggled in his first start for the Thunder.
St-Hilaire threw 2 interceptions and fumbled twice in the game which might lead to the team looking for another option for next week against the Victors.
LB William Washington II continued his strong performance on the season by forcing one of the two fumbles on St-Hilaire and racking up 9 tackles.
Providence Gold Stars - 9, Buffalo Blue Wings - 24 - New Providence Stadium - July 23, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
2nd Q
3-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3-10 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3rd Q
6-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
6-17 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
9-17 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
4th Q
9-24 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
The Blue Wings grabbed another win on the back of RB Jimmy Golden’s return to the lineup.
Providence’s offence struggled especially when they got within scoring range; they were only able to get into the redzone once in the game, and immediately got shut down.
QB Charles Lemieux has continued to take another step forward showing that he is legit one of the best QBs in the league and it isn’t just Golden carrying the load.
Boston Independents - 17, Toronto Steelheads - 28 - Richardson Stadium - July 24, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
7-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> RB Kendall Morgan
2nd Q
14-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
14-14 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
3rd Q
17-14 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-21 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
4th Q
17-28 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Samuel Petri
The Steelheads grabbed their second straight win, upsetting the Independents on the road.
The game was very back and forth in the first half that left the game tied at 14, however, in the second half, Toronto’s defence stepped up and allowed the offence to build up a lead.
Boston certainly won’t be happy about a 2-3 start to the season, which may be a starting point for some further changes to the team in the near future if they can’t turn this around.
London Tigers - 20, Montreal Rouge - 17 - Western Fair Stadium - July 24, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 LDN - QB Riley Kiernan -> RB Austin Andrews
7-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
10-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
10-10 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
3rd Q
17-10 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
4th Q
17-17 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
20-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers picked up a narrow win over the Rouge on the back of a last-minute field goal from K Nimrod Handsworth.
RB Austin Andrews continued his strong performance this season with a receiving touchdown and 104 yards on the ground.
RB Hugo Hughes also made an impression by getting more carries in this game, scoring a touchdown and putting up 67 yards on the ground over RB Scott Mallard-White, who had only 47 yards despite getting more carries.
WR Derek Cross also finally found the endzone for the first time this season, this comes after leading the team last season with 8 touchdowns on the year.
Injury Report
DL Ted Madison BUF - Day-to-Day
DB Ezra Power BUF - Day-to-Day
DB Aquilio Ruiz HFX - Day-to-Day
OL Jeffrey Uduike LDN - 2 Weeks
LB Gene Bensen LI - 5 Weeks
LB Le'Darius Wynn LOU - 1 Week
WR Carter Henderson OTT - 1 Week
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 4-1
Toronto 3-2
London 3-2
Indiana 2-3
Pittsburgh 1-4
Louisville 0-5
EAST
Long Island 5-0
Halifax 5-0
Montreal 2-3
Ottawa 2-3
Boston 2-3
Providence 1-4
Power Rankings
1 - Long Island -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Toronto +1
5 - London +2
6 - Boston -2
7 - Indiana -1
8 - Ottawa +1
9 - Montreal -1
10 - Providence -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 6 Games - RIVALRY WEEK
LI (5-0) @ HFX (5-0) - JUL 29 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
PIT (1-4) @ TOR (3-2) - JUL 30 - 12 PM ET
IND (2-3) @ LOU (0-5) - JUL 30 - 3:30 PM ET
BOS (2-3) @ PRO (1-4) - JUL 30 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
OTT (2-3) @ MTL (2-3) - JUL 31 - 1 PM ET
LDN (3-2) @ BUF (4-1) - JUL 31 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 6
Halifax Mariners - 24, Long Island Raiders - 17 - Atlantic Stadium - July 29, 1966 - FNF - 6 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
3-7 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
3-14 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
10-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
3rd Q
10-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
17-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> RB Ronald O’Sullivan
24-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
It seems that WR Jav Kerrigan is making a habit of coming up clutch with another great touchdown.
The Mariners ended up taking the win in the battle of the unbeaten squads moving them to the top of the league for the first time in many seasons.
The Raiders had a strong start to the game being up 14-3, but Halifax figured out the defence and managed to score 17 in the second half to take the win.
The teams do have one more match this season (week 11) so the division is still wide open.
*Fun Fact: The Mariners’ win over the Raiders is their first win over the team since Week 8 of 1956 (22-19) when they still were the Athletics.
Toronto Steelheads - 23, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 20 - Anderson Stadium - July 30, 1996 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3-7 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
2nd Q
10-7 TOR - RTD RB Lukas Ivarsson
10-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3rd Q
13-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
20-10 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
4th Q
20-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
20-20 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
23-20 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
The Steelheads topped the Blacksmiths for the second time this season after K Bob Randall nailed the game-winning kick in the fourth to hold off the Pittsburgh comeback.
Toronto’s 3rd straight win keeps them in a great position in the West right behind Buffalo, and with Max Tracy returning to the lineup next week, they should be even better moving forward.
As for the Blacksmiths, they started QB Magnus Torrensen this week and the QB had 1 touchdown and a pick in the start, keeping the team in the game until the end.
Louisville Thunder - 11, Indiana Victors - 27 - Thunder Stadium - July 30, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
3-10 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
2nd Q
3-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4-17 LOU - Single K Frank Hughes
3rd Q
4-24 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4th Q
11-24 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
11-27 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Victors bounced back from their loss to the Royals with a strong win on the road in Louisville.
RB Raymond Green had a strong outing against the weaker front 7 of the Thunder, scoring two touchdowns.
DB Kelly Kirkland had another strong game for Indy with a pick and 6 tackles.
The Thunder decided to change things up and gave QB Nikolas Diakos his first start; the young QB performed alright but struggled to get a footing in until the final quarter.
Providence Gold Stars - 29, Boston Independents - 24 - New Providence Stadium - July 30, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
6-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
13-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
13-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3rd Q
20-10 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
23-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
23-17 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
4th Q
23-24 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> TE Tobias Lindholm
29-24 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
The Gold Stars pulled off their second win of the season on the back of a 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke.
WR Cedric Peterson also had a great game with 2 of the touchdowns, while LB Kurt Warlock had his first career forced fumble for the defence.
Boston’s struggles continued, though they were able to get a late lead, the defence was not able to stop the Gold Stars offence to hold on.
There was also some more aggression in this game between the teams as they both have had frustrating starts and they may have taken it out a bit on each other; this included quite the shoving battle between WR Alexei Dubois and DB Dennis Kirchner.
Montreal Rouge - 22, Ottawa Royals - 19 - Mount Royal Stadium - July 31, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
7-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
7-6 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
7-13 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
14-13 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
4th Q
14-16 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
14-19 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
20-19 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
22-19 MTL - 2PT QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
A close duel between the Rouge and Royals came down to a final drive where QB Gene Bishop found WR Derek Cross in the endzone of the game-winning score.
The crowd at Mount Royal Stadium made a great atmosphere for the rivalry showdown that went back and forth; even when Ottawa made some plays there were cheers as the fans made the trip down.
RB Hugo Hughes continued to outperform Scott Mallard-White which could lead to the team continuing to lean into the younger RB for the future.
QB Landon Ross looked alright, but still has not really shown that he can get the team to the next level which brings more questions to the Royals heading into the second half of the season.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 34, London Tigers - 28 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 31, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
10-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
10-7 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
2nd Q
17-7 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
3rd Q
17-14 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-14 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
20-21 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
4th Q
27-21 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
27-28 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Dwayne Alexander
34-28 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
Another classic Buffalo-London battle came down to the wire with the Blue Wings narrowly coming out on top off of a WR Julius Drake touchdown in the final minute.
QB Riley Kiernan went toe-to-toe with QB Charles Lemieux as they kept up with each other throughout the contest, but it was Lemieux who got the last laugh with a clutch last-second drive.
RB Austin Andrews also continued to play well with another couple of touchdowns to give London a great chance at victory, however, they came up just short and will be looking for revenge next week.
Injury Report
DL Austin Antonio BOS - 11 Weeks
DB Mordecai King BOS - Day-to-Day
DB Lou Lake BUF - 3 Weeks
OL Johannes König - 2 Weeks
DL Bernard King HFX - Day-to-Day
LB George Yokoi LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Olympus Heights LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Keith Gavelstein LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Jordan Buckner OTT - Day-to-Day
DL Mickey Daly PIT - 8 Weeks
DL Dale Rothery TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
OFF: QB Connor O’Rourke PRO - 3 Passing Touchdowns, 268 Passing Yards
DEF: DL Pat Butler HFX - 1 Forced Fumble, 6 Tackles, 2 Sacks
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 5-1
Toronto 4-2
Indiana 3-3
London 3-3
Pittsburgh 1-5
Louisville 0-6
EAST
Halifax 6-0
Long Island 5-1
Montreal 3-3
Providence 2-4
Ottawa 2-4
Boston 2-4
Power Rankings
1 - Halifax +2
2 - Long Island -1
3 - Buffalo -1
4 - Toronto -
5 - London -
6 - Indiana +1
7 - Montreal +2
8 - Ottawa -
9 - Providence +1
10 - Boston -4
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 7 Games
LOU (0-6) @ PIT (1-5) - AUG 4 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
HFX (6-0) @ TOR (4-2) - AUG 5 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
LI (5-1) @ IND (3-3) - AUG 6 - 3 PM ET
BOS (2-4) @ MTL (3-3) - AUG 6 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (2-4) @ OTT (2-4) - AUG 7 - 1 PM ET
BUF (5-1) @ LDN (3-3) - AUG 7 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
3-0 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
3-7 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
3-14 LI - RTD RB Dareion Fields
10-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
3rd Q
10-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
4th Q
17-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> RB Ronald O’Sullivan
24-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
It seems that WR Jav Kerrigan is making a habit of coming up clutch with another great touchdown.
The Mariners ended up taking the win in the battle of the unbeaten squads moving them to the top of the league for the first time in many seasons.
The Raiders had a strong start to the game being up 14-3, but Halifax figured out the defence and managed to score 17 in the second half to take the win.
The teams do have one more match this season (week 11) so the division is still wide open.
*Fun Fact: The Mariners’ win over the Raiders is their first win over the team since Week 8 of 1956 (22-19) when they still were the Athletics.
Toronto Steelheads - 23, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 20 - Anderson Stadium - July 30, 1996 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3-7 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
2nd Q
10-7 TOR - RTD RB Lukas Ivarsson
10-10 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
3rd Q
13-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
20-10 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
4th Q
20-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
20-20 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
23-20 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
The Steelheads topped the Blacksmiths for the second time this season after K Bob Randall nailed the game-winning kick in the fourth to hold off the Pittsburgh comeback.
Toronto’s 3rd straight win keeps them in a great position in the West right behind Buffalo, and with Max Tracy returning to the lineup next week, they should be even better moving forward.
As for the Blacksmiths, they started QB Magnus Torrensen this week and the QB had 1 touchdown and a pick in the start, keeping the team in the game until the end.
Louisville Thunder - 11, Indiana Victors - 27 - Thunder Stadium - July 30, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
3-10 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
2nd Q
3-17 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4-17 LOU - Single K Frank Hughes
3rd Q
4-24 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4th Q
11-24 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
11-27 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Victors bounced back from their loss to the Royals with a strong win on the road in Louisville.
RB Raymond Green had a strong outing against the weaker front 7 of the Thunder, scoring two touchdowns.
DB Kelly Kirkland had another strong game for Indy with a pick and 6 tackles.
The Thunder decided to change things up and gave QB Nikolas Diakos his first start; the young QB performed alright but struggled to get a footing in until the final quarter.
Providence Gold Stars - 29, Boston Independents - 24 - New Providence Stadium - July 30, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
6-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
13-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
13-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3rd Q
20-10 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
23-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
23-17 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
4th Q
23-24 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> TE Tobias Lindholm
29-24 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
The Gold Stars pulled off their second win of the season on the back of a 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke.
WR Cedric Peterson also had a great game with 2 of the touchdowns, while LB Kurt Warlock had his first career forced fumble for the defence.
Boston’s struggles continued, though they were able to get a late lead, the defence was not able to stop the Gold Stars offence to hold on.
There was also some more aggression in this game between the teams as they both have had frustrating starts and they may have taken it out a bit on each other; this included quite the shoving battle between WR Alexei Dubois and DB Dennis Kirchner.
Montreal Rouge - 22, Ottawa Royals - 19 - Mount Royal Stadium - July 31, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
7-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
7-6 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
7-13 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
14-13 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
4th Q
14-16 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
14-19 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
20-19 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
22-19 MTL - 2PT QB Gene Bishop -> WR Yahui Sun
A close duel between the Rouge and Royals came down to a final drive where QB Gene Bishop found WR Derek Cross in the endzone of the game-winning score.
The crowd at Mount Royal Stadium made a great atmosphere for the rivalry showdown that went back and forth; even when Ottawa made some plays there were cheers as the fans made the trip down.
RB Hugo Hughes continued to outperform Scott Mallard-White which could lead to the team continuing to lean into the younger RB for the future.
QB Landon Ross looked alright, but still has not really shown that he can get the team to the next level which brings more questions to the Royals heading into the second half of the season.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 34, London Tigers - 28 - Milton Charles Stadium - July 31, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Daniel Irons
10-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
10-7 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
2nd Q
17-7 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
3rd Q
17-14 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-14 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
20-21 LDN - RTD RB Austin Andrews
4th Q
27-21 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
27-28 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Dwayne Alexander
34-28 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
Another classic Buffalo-London battle came down to the wire with the Blue Wings narrowly coming out on top off of a WR Julius Drake touchdown in the final minute.
QB Riley Kiernan went toe-to-toe with QB Charles Lemieux as they kept up with each other throughout the contest, but it was Lemieux who got the last laugh with a clutch last-second drive.
RB Austin Andrews also continued to play well with another couple of touchdowns to give London a great chance at victory, however, they came up just short and will be looking for revenge next week.
Injury Report
DL Austin Antonio BOS - 11 Weeks
DB Mordecai King BOS - Day-to-Day
DB Lou Lake BUF - 3 Weeks
OL Johannes König - 2 Weeks
DL Bernard King HFX - Day-to-Day
LB George Yokoi LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Olympus Heights LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Keith Gavelstein LDN - Day-to-Day
DL Jordan Buckner OTT - Day-to-Day
DL Mickey Daly PIT - 8 Weeks
DL Dale Rothery TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 5-1
Toronto 4-2
Indiana 3-3
London 3-3
Pittsburgh 1-5
Louisville 0-6
EAST
Halifax 6-0
Long Island 5-1
Montreal 3-3
Providence 2-4
Ottawa 2-4
Boston 2-4
Power Rankings
1 - Halifax +2
2 - Long Island -1
3 - Buffalo -1
4 - Toronto -
5 - London -
6 - Indiana +1
7 - Montreal +2
8 - Ottawa -
9 - Providence +1
10 - Boston -4
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 7 Games
LOU (0-6) @ PIT (1-5) - AUG 4 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
HFX (6-0) @ TOR (4-2) - AUG 5 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
LI (5-1) @ IND (3-3) - AUG 6 - 3 PM ET
BOS (2-4) @ MTL (3-3) - AUG 6 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (2-4) @ OTT (2-4) - AUG 7 - 1 PM ET
BUF (5-1) @ LDN (3-3) - AUG 7 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 7
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 31, Louisville Thunder - 13 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - August 4, 1966 - 7 PM ET - TNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
2nd Q
14-0 PIT - RTD RB Carter Roy
14-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
21-3 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
3rd Q
21-10 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
28-10 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray Lawrence
4th Q
28-13 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
31-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
The Blacksmiths rolled to their 2nd win of the season, taking down the lowly Thunder.
QB Magnus Torrensen was strong in his second start of the season, tossing a pair of touchdowns in the second half.
QB Nikolas Diakos started once again for the Thunder and he was not great, throwing 2 interceptions in the first half before being pulled for QB Rigobert St-Hilaire.
The struggles only seem to pile on for the Thunder who now slip to 0-7 with their season likely done.
Toronto Steelheads - 29, Halifax Mariners - 27 - Anderson Stadium - August 5, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
3-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
6-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
6-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
2nd Q
9-7 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
9-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
3rd Q
16-14 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
19-14 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
19-21 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
4th Q
26-21 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> TE Jesse Butler
26-27 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
29-27 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
Just one week after ending the Raiders’ unbeaten season, the Mariners’ own perfect record was taken down by the Steelheads.
Toronto came to fight and with a steady offence and strong game from K Bob Randall, they were able to squeeze out a close win to improve to 5-2 on the season, claiming their 4th straight win.
Halifax was right in the fight until the end but came up just short off of a missed 2-point conversion attempt that would have had the game tied.
Indiana Victors - 20, Long Island Raiders - 16 - Victory Stadium - August 6, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
2nd Q
3-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
6-6 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
13-6 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
13-13 LI - DTD INT DB Alexander Bradley
4th Q
13-16 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
20-13 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
The Victors came away with a huge win over the Raiders who now have dropped two straight.
Outside of their second straight loss, the Raiders also lost RB Dareion Fields to a potential regular season-ending injury; the injury certainly affected the Raiders' offence who was only able to put up a single field goal against the Victors defence without Fields.
RB Eric Sydney came in for Fields and did fumble twice while Troyer threw an interception.
DB Alexander Bradley kept them in the game with the first defensive touchdown of the season.
WR Ed Edwards ended up being the hero for the Victors who made a great catch to score the game-winning score with DB Rutherford Winters all over him.
Montreal Rouge - 20, Boston Independents - 18 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 6, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
2nd Q
7-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
10-7 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3rd Q
10-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
4th Q
17-17 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
20-17 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
20-18 BOS - Single K Johnnie Berg
The Rouge escaped their matchup against Boston with a win after K Johnnie Berg missed the potential game-tying kick, which WR James Hess caught in the endzone before sacrificing a single point.
Braddock was solid for the Independents, but the rest of the team struggled with mistakes that ultimately cost them the game.
QB Gene Bishop continues to look better with each game and has put the Rouge in a great position in the East to push for the playoffs.
Ottawa Royals - 14, Providence Gold Stars - 28 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - August 7, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
7-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
2nd Q
7-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
3rd Q
7-21 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
4th Q
14-21 OTT - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Marshall Leonard
14-28 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
The Gold Stars grabbed their second straight win with a 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke.
It is an important win for the Gold Stars who now have a step on the bottom two spots in the East Division and keep pace with the Rouge.
Ottawa decided to change things up this week and started QB Lee Rogers over Landon Ross; Rogers was able to get the offence rolling a little more, but it was not enough to overcome a fairly strong Gold Stars’ defence.
London Tigers - 22, Buffalo Blue Wings - 30 - Western Fair Stadium - August 7, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
0-14 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
2nd Q
3-14 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-17 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
6-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3rd Q
9-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
9-20 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
12-20 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
12-23 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
4th Q
18-23 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-23 LDN - 2PT QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Dwayne Alexander
20-30 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
23-30 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers hoped to get their revenge on the Blue Wings, but Nimrod Handsworth’s leg was not good enough to get them over the top.
Buffalo continued to roll with their 5th straight win as RB Jimmy Golden was able to break into the endzone twice in the game.
The game did have quite the back and forth through the middle two quarters where there were 7 straight field goals made.
London’s season could get worse at this point as they did lose RB Austin Andrews who had been easily the team’s best offensive weapon this season.
Injury Report
DB Mordecai King BOS - 10 Weeks
LB Kyle Essena BOS - 9 Weeks
WR Joshua Lafleur HFX - 6 Weeks
RB Austin Andrews LDN - 7 Weeks
RB Dareion Fields LI - 5 Weeks
LB Kenneth Mercer PRO - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
OFF: K Bob Randall TOR - 5 Field Goals, 2 Extra Points
DEF: DB Neville Falkner PRO - 1 Interception, 2 Passes Defended, 8 Tackles
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 6-1
Toronto 5-2
Indiana 4-3
London 3-4
Pittsburgh 2-5
Louisville 0-7
EAST
Halifax 6-1
Long Island 5-2
Montreal 4-3
Providence 3-4
Boston 2-5
Ottawa 2-5
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo +2
2 - Toronto +2
3 - Halifax -2
4 - Long Island -2
5 - Indiana +1
6 - Montreal +1
7 - Providence +2
8 - London -3
9 - Ottawa -1
10 - Boston -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 8 Games
HFX (6-1) @ BOS (2-5) - AUG 11 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
MTL (4-3) @ LI (5-2) - AUG 12 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
OTT (2-5) @ BUF (6-1) - AUG 13 - 3 PM ET
IND (4-3) @ TOR (5-2) - AUG 13 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (3-4) @ PIT (2-5) - AUG 14 - 1 PM ET
LOU (0-7) @ LDN (3-4) - AUG 14 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
7-0 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
2nd Q
14-0 PIT - RTD RB Carter Roy
14-3 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
21-3 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
3rd Q
21-10 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
28-10 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray Lawrence
4th Q
28-13 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
31-13 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
The Blacksmiths rolled to their 2nd win of the season, taking down the lowly Thunder.
QB Magnus Torrensen was strong in his second start of the season, tossing a pair of touchdowns in the second half.
QB Nikolas Diakos started once again for the Thunder and he was not great, throwing 2 interceptions in the first half before being pulled for QB Rigobert St-Hilaire.
The struggles only seem to pile on for the Thunder who now slip to 0-7 with their season likely done.
Toronto Steelheads - 29, Halifax Mariners - 27 - Anderson Stadium - August 5, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
3-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
6-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
6-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
2nd Q
9-7 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
9-14 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
3rd Q
16-14 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
19-14 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
19-21 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
4th Q
26-21 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> TE Jesse Butler
26-27 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
29-27 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
Just one week after ending the Raiders’ unbeaten season, the Mariners’ own perfect record was taken down by the Steelheads.
Toronto came to fight and with a steady offence and strong game from K Bob Randall, they were able to squeeze out a close win to improve to 5-2 on the season, claiming their 4th straight win.
Halifax was right in the fight until the end but came up just short off of a missed 2-point conversion attempt that would have had the game tied.
Indiana Victors - 20, Long Island Raiders - 16 - Victory Stadium - August 6, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
2nd Q
3-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
6-6 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3rd Q
13-6 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
13-13 LI - DTD INT DB Alexander Bradley
4th Q
13-16 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
20-13 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
The Victors came away with a huge win over the Raiders who now have dropped two straight.
Outside of their second straight loss, the Raiders also lost RB Dareion Fields to a potential regular season-ending injury; the injury certainly affected the Raiders' offence who was only able to put up a single field goal against the Victors defence without Fields.
RB Eric Sydney came in for Fields and did fumble twice while Troyer threw an interception.
DB Alexander Bradley kept them in the game with the first defensive touchdown of the season.
WR Ed Edwards ended up being the hero for the Victors who made a great catch to score the game-winning score with DB Rutherford Winters all over him.
Montreal Rouge - 20, Boston Independents - 18 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 6, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
2nd Q
7-7 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
10-7 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3rd Q
10-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-10 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
4th Q
17-17 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
20-17 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
20-18 BOS - Single K Johnnie Berg
The Rouge escaped their matchup against Boston with a win after K Johnnie Berg missed the potential game-tying kick, which WR James Hess caught in the endzone before sacrificing a single point.
Braddock was solid for the Independents, but the rest of the team struggled with mistakes that ultimately cost them the game.
QB Gene Bishop continues to look better with each game and has put the Rouge in a great position in the East to push for the playoffs.
Ottawa Royals - 14, Providence Gold Stars - 28 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - August 7, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 OTT - RTD RB Wally Morton
7-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
2nd Q
7-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
3rd Q
7-21 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
4th Q
14-21 OTT - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Marshall Leonard
14-28 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
The Gold Stars grabbed their second straight win with a 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke.
It is an important win for the Gold Stars who now have a step on the bottom two spots in the East Division and keep pace with the Rouge.
Ottawa decided to change things up this week and started QB Lee Rogers over Landon Ross; Rogers was able to get the offence rolling a little more, but it was not enough to overcome a fairly strong Gold Stars’ defence.
London Tigers - 22, Buffalo Blue Wings - 30 - Western Fair Stadium - August 7, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-7 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
0-14 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
2nd Q
3-14 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-17 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
6-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3rd Q
9-17 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
9-20 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
12-20 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
12-23 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
4th Q
18-23 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-23 LDN - 2PT QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Dwayne Alexander
20-30 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
23-30 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
The Tigers hoped to get their revenge on the Blue Wings, but Nimrod Handsworth’s leg was not good enough to get them over the top.
Buffalo continued to roll with their 5th straight win as RB Jimmy Golden was able to break into the endzone twice in the game.
The game did have quite the back and forth through the middle two quarters where there were 7 straight field goals made.
London’s season could get worse at this point as they did lose RB Austin Andrews who had been easily the team’s best offensive weapon this season.
Injury Report
DB Mordecai King BOS - 10 Weeks
LB Kyle Essena BOS - 9 Weeks
WR Joshua Lafleur HFX - 6 Weeks
RB Austin Andrews LDN - 7 Weeks
RB Dareion Fields LI - 5 Weeks
LB Kenneth Mercer PRO - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 6-1
Toronto 5-2
Indiana 4-3
London 3-4
Pittsburgh 2-5
Louisville 0-7
EAST
Halifax 6-1
Long Island 5-2
Montreal 4-3
Providence 3-4
Boston 2-5
Ottawa 2-5
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo +2
2 - Toronto +2
3 - Halifax -2
4 - Long Island -2
5 - Indiana +1
6 - Montreal +1
7 - Providence +2
8 - London -3
9 - Ottawa -1
10 - Boston -
11 - Pittsburgh -
12 - Louisville -
Week 8 Games
HFX (6-1) @ BOS (2-5) - AUG 11 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
MTL (4-3) @ LI (5-2) - AUG 12 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
OTT (2-5) @ BUF (6-1) - AUG 13 - 3 PM ET
IND (4-3) @ TOR (5-2) - AUG 13 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
PRO (3-4) @ PIT (2-5) - AUG 14 - 1 PM ET
LOU (0-7) @ LDN (3-4) - AUG 14 - 4 PM ET
1966 Week 8
Boston Independents - 17, Halifax Mariners - 31 - OT - Richardson Stadium - August 11, 1966 - 7 PM ET - TNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Nick Nacker
2nd Q
6-7 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
6-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
3rd Q
12-14 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
14-14 BOS - 2PT QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
17-14 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-17 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
OT
17-24 HFX - RTD RB Don Gregson
17-31 HFX - DTD FUM S Jay Shepherd
The Independents bounced back to put up a strong fight against the division’s top team, but unfortunately were not able to do anything in the extra frame and fell behind by 14.
The Mariners had to face adversity in Boston with RB Ronald O’Sullivan getting taken out late in the game, but RB Don Gregson would come through with a big touchdown in relief and DL Wayne Baxton forcing a fumble and allowing S Jay Shephard to take the fumble back for the score.
With the win, the Mariners continue to put themselves in a great position in the East, holding off the Raiders for another week.
As for Boston, they are reeling with their 5th straight loss and could see their season slipping away.
Long Island Raiders - 20, Montreal Rouge - 17 - Long Island Stadium - August 12, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
7-7 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
10-7 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
10-10 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3rd Q
10-17 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
17-17 LI - RTD RB Eric Sydney
4th Q
20-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schmacher
The Raiders bounced back from their back-to-back losses with a win at home against Montreal.
They were able to overcome the absence of RB Dareion Fields with RB Eric Sydney having a much better game with no fumbles.
Montreal had a chance to win the game, but the Raiders found a way to climb back into the game and take a late lead.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 27, Ottawa Royals - 10 - Milton Charles Stadium - August 13, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
14-0 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
2nd Q
14-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
17-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3rd Q
24-3 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
24-10 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
27-10 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
Buffalo rolled on with a strong win over the Royals to maintain their spot at the top of the West Division.
RB Jimmy Golden had his way with the Royals’ defence scoring a pair of touchdowns and 110 rushing yards.
The Royals struggled with both of their QBs in Lee Rogers and Landon Ross, who both were flipped in and out to see who could get rolling.
Toronto Steelheads - 31, Indiana Victors - 27 - Anderson Stadium - August 13, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
7-3 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
2nd Q
10-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
17-3 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
17-10 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3rd Q
24-10 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
24-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
4th Q
24-20 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
24-27 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
31-27 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> RB Max Tracy
Max Tracy balled out in a huge win for the Steelheads who aim to keep pace with the Blue Wings at the top of the division.
Tracy had 3 touchdowns in the game and over 125 yards combined through the air and on the ground.
QB Tom Applewhite did lead quite the comeback for the Victors who were able to take a lead in the 4th quarter, but their defence was unable to stop the Toronto offence from scoring right back.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 31, Providence Gold Stars - 21 - New Providence Stadium - August 14, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
6-0 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
6-7 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
6-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
12-14 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
14-14 PIT - 2PT RB Stavros Black
3rd Q
17-14 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-21 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
4th Q
24-21 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
31-21 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
Pittsburgh came through with a huge win on home field managing to put up 31 points against one of the better defences in the league.
QB Magnus Torrensen continued to show off his talents with a pair of touchdowns which puts him at 6 through 3 starts.
RB Stavros Black also played a large role in the win with the game-winning touchdown and a 2-pointer.
As for Providence, this is a disappointing loss, despite a good performance from RB Rashed Smith who made the Gold Stars’ run-game exist for the first time in a while.
London Tigers - 24, Louisville Thunder - 7 - Western Fair Stadium - August 14, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
2nd Q
10-0 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
17-0 LDN - RTD RB Alex Warren
3rd Q
4th Q
24-0 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
24-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
The Tigers bounced back from their back-to-back losses to the Blue Wings with a strong win against the Thunder.
RB Alex Warren stepped up in the absence of RB Austin Andrews and was able to make the most of the weak front-7 of the Thunder.
Kiernan also looked better in this game with a pair of touchdowns through the air.
Louisville continued to look hopeless.
Their defence was strong out of the gate, but slowly the Tigers were able to move the ball on the ground and Louisville could not compete.
QB Nikolas Diakos played the full game this time, but it’s unlikely he sees the field again, especially with QB Leonidas Dumont finally due to return from injury.
Injury Report
OL Alen Williams BUF - 8 Weeks
LB Orion Carter BUF - 4 Weeks
RB Ronald O’Sullivan HFX - 6 Weeks
DL Fred Webster IND - 9 Weeks
DB Jackson Miles LDN - Day-to-Day
OL Jerry Winecoff LI - 2 Weeks
OL Amos Sewell OTT - Day-to-Day
OL Peter Kingsley OTT - 4 Weeks
WR Cedric Peterson PRO - Day-to-Day
Players of Week
OFF: RB Max Tracy TOR - 2 Rushing Touchdowns, 1 Passing Touchdown, 88 Rushing Yards, 37 Receiving Yards
DEF: LB Dallas Dillard LDN - 1 Interception, 1 Forced Fumble, 10 Tackles
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 7-1
Toronto 6-2
Indiana 4-4
London 4-4
Pittsburgh 3-5
Louisville 0-8
EAST
Halifax 7-1
Long Island 6-2
Montreal 4-4
Providence 3-5
Boston 2-6
Ottawa 2-6
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Toronto -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Long Island -
5 - Indiana -
6 - London +2
7 - Montreal -1
8 - Providence -1
9 - Pittsburgh +2
10 - Ottawa -1
11 - Boston -1
12 - Louisville -
Week 9 Games
PIT (3-5) @ OTT (2-6) - AUG 19 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
BUF (7-1) @ HFX (7-1) - AUG 20 - 12 PM ET
*BUF clinches playoff spot with Win or LDN Loss + PIT Loss
*HFX clinches playoff spot with Win or LDN Loss or IND Loss
TOR (6-2) @ MTL (4-4) - AUG 20 - 3:30 PM ET
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win + IND Loss
LDN (4-4) @ LI (6-2) - AUG 20 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
*LI clinches playoff spot with Win
BOS (2-6) @ IND (4-4) - AUG 21 - 1 PM ET
LOU (0-8) @ PRO (3-5) - AUG 21 - 4 PM ET
1st Q
3-0 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-7 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Nick Nacker
2nd Q
6-7 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
6-14 HFX - RTD RB Ronald O’Sullivan
3rd Q
12-14 BOS - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
14-14 BOS - 2PT QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
17-14 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
17-17 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
OT
17-24 HFX - RTD RB Don Gregson
17-31 HFX - DTD FUM S Jay Shepherd
The Independents bounced back to put up a strong fight against the division’s top team, but unfortunately were not able to do anything in the extra frame and fell behind by 14.
The Mariners had to face adversity in Boston with RB Ronald O’Sullivan getting taken out late in the game, but RB Don Gregson would come through with a big touchdown in relief and DL Wayne Baxton forcing a fumble and allowing S Jay Shephard to take the fumble back for the score.
With the win, the Mariners continue to put themselves in a great position in the East, holding off the Raiders for another week.
As for Boston, they are reeling with their 5th straight loss and could see their season slipping away.
Long Island Raiders - 20, Montreal Rouge - 17 - Long Island Stadium - August 12, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
2nd Q
7-7 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
10-7 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
10-10 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3rd Q
10-17 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
17-17 LI - RTD RB Eric Sydney
4th Q
20-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schmacher
The Raiders bounced back from their back-to-back losses with a win at home against Montreal.
They were able to overcome the absence of RB Dareion Fields with RB Eric Sydney having a much better game with no fumbles.
Montreal had a chance to win the game, but the Raiders found a way to climb back into the game and take a late lead.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 27, Ottawa Royals - 10 - Milton Charles Stadium - August 13, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
14-0 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
2nd Q
14-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
17-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3rd Q
24-3 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
24-10 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
27-10 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
Buffalo rolled on with a strong win over the Royals to maintain their spot at the top of the West Division.
RB Jimmy Golden had his way with the Royals’ defence scoring a pair of touchdowns and 110 rushing yards.
The Royals struggled with both of their QBs in Lee Rogers and Landon Ross, who both were flipped in and out to see who could get rolling.
Toronto Steelheads - 31, Indiana Victors - 27 - Anderson Stadium - August 13, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
0-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
7-3 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
2nd Q
10-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
17-3 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
17-10 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3rd Q
24-10 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
24-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
4th Q
24-20 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Silas Peyton
24-27 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
31-27 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> RB Max Tracy
Max Tracy balled out in a huge win for the Steelheads who aim to keep pace with the Blue Wings at the top of the division.
Tracy had 3 touchdowns in the game and over 125 yards combined through the air and on the ground.
QB Tom Applewhite did lead quite the comeback for the Victors who were able to take a lead in the 4th quarter, but their defence was unable to stop the Toronto offence from scoring right back.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 31, Providence Gold Stars - 21 - New Providence Stadium - August 14, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
6-0 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
6-7 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
6-14 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
12-14 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
14-14 PIT - 2PT RB Stavros Black
3rd Q
17-14 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-21 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
4th Q
24-21 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
31-21 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Jack Duncan
Pittsburgh came through with a huge win on home field managing to put up 31 points against one of the better defences in the league.
QB Magnus Torrensen continued to show off his talents with a pair of touchdowns which puts him at 6 through 3 starts.
RB Stavros Black also played a large role in the win with the game-winning touchdown and a 2-pointer.
As for Providence, this is a disappointing loss, despite a good performance from RB Rashed Smith who made the Gold Stars’ run-game exist for the first time in a while.
London Tigers - 24, Louisville Thunder - 7 - Western Fair Stadium - August 14, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
2nd Q
10-0 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
17-0 LDN - RTD RB Alex Warren
3rd Q
4th Q
24-0 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
24-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
The Tigers bounced back from their back-to-back losses to the Blue Wings with a strong win against the Thunder.
RB Alex Warren stepped up in the absence of RB Austin Andrews and was able to make the most of the weak front-7 of the Thunder.
Kiernan also looked better in this game with a pair of touchdowns through the air.
Louisville continued to look hopeless.
Their defence was strong out of the gate, but slowly the Tigers were able to move the ball on the ground and Louisville could not compete.
QB Nikolas Diakos played the full game this time, but it’s unlikely he sees the field again, especially with QB Leonidas Dumont finally due to return from injury.
Injury Report
OL Alen Williams BUF - 8 Weeks
LB Orion Carter BUF - 4 Weeks
RB Ronald O’Sullivan HFX - 6 Weeks
DL Fred Webster IND - 9 Weeks
DB Jackson Miles LDN - Day-to-Day
OL Jerry Winecoff LI - 2 Weeks
OL Amos Sewell OTT - Day-to-Day
OL Peter Kingsley OTT - 4 Weeks
WR Cedric Peterson PRO - Day-to-Day
Players of Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 7-1
Toronto 6-2
Indiana 4-4
London 4-4
Pittsburgh 3-5
Louisville 0-8
EAST
Halifax 7-1
Long Island 6-2
Montreal 4-4
Providence 3-5
Boston 2-6
Ottawa 2-6
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Toronto -
3 - Halifax -
4 - Long Island -
5 - Indiana -
6 - London +2
7 - Montreal -1
8 - Providence -1
9 - Pittsburgh +2
10 - Ottawa -1
11 - Boston -1
12 - Louisville -
Week 9 Games
PIT (3-5) @ OTT (2-6) - AUG 19 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
BUF (7-1) @ HFX (7-1) - AUG 20 - 12 PM ET
*BUF clinches playoff spot with Win or LDN Loss + PIT Loss
*HFX clinches playoff spot with Win or LDN Loss or IND Loss
TOR (6-2) @ MTL (4-4) - AUG 20 - 3:30 PM ET
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win + IND Loss
LDN (4-4) @ LI (6-2) - AUG 20 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
*LI clinches playoff spot with Win
BOS (2-6) @ IND (4-4) - AUG 21 - 1 PM ET
LOU (0-8) @ PRO (3-5) - AUG 21 - 4 PM ET
1966 Trade Deadline
Heading into the deadline there was lots of talk about running backs being the hottest commodity in the trade market with Long Island, Halifax, and London all with regular-season ending injuries to their star backs. Boston, Ottawa, Louisville, Pittsburgh all had backs that they were willing to move, so there was a lot of talk between the 7 teams ahead of the deadline. Around the league, there was a lot of excitement and anxiety about where players may end up.
Heading into the deadline there was lots of talk about running backs being the hottest commodity in the trade market with Long Island, Halifax, and London all with regular-season ending injuries to their star backs. Boston, Ottawa, Louisville, Pittsburgh all had backs that they were willing to move, so there was a lot of talk between the 7 teams ahead of the deadline. Around the league, there was a lot of excitement and anxiety about where players may end up.
Monday, August 15, 1966 - 4:10 PM ET
A minor trade was made between the Thunder and Rouge on the eve of the trade deadline that saw the Rouge add DL Troy Hunt to boost their depth on the D-line in exchange for a 4th Round Pick in this upcoming draft.
Tuesday, August 16, 1966 - 1:03 PM ET
It was quiet for the morning of the deadline with some moves seeming to rely heavily on some other deals getting done. The first domino to fall was with Boston’s RB Kendall Morgan. Morgan was likely the best RB available, being a former 3rd overall pick and a long-time starter for Boston. With his long tenure and Boston’s unwavering loyalty to their players, they gave him a bit of say on where to go and he wanted to be in Long Island. The Raiders were probably in the best position out of the teams available, plus they run the ball a lot, meaning Morgan will be important. In return for the star RB, Boston will get Long Island’s 1st Round Pick, OL Aaron Sharpless, and RB Henri Létourneau. RB Tresean Jones is expected to pick up the starting role for the Independents for the remainder of the season.
Tuesday, August 16, 1966 - 3:48 PM ET
With Morgan gone, it started to open the door, however, it still took until almost 4 O’clock for another trade to go through. Now this trade may have been delayed more so because of the sheer size of the deal. Halifax and Ottawa had been talking about several deals for a while now, but they never pulled the trigger. However, now that the season was coming to a close, everything seemed to align and the two squads would combine the deals to make a mega 8-piece trade (6 players, 2 picks). The deal would see the Mariners grab RB Wally Morton to replace RB Ronald O’Sullivan (who is out for the season), WR Sam Nash to replace the injured WR Joshua Lafleur, LB Douglas MacDougall, a local Maritimer, to boost their LB core, and QB Lee Rogers for more insurance behind QB Lyle Painter. Going back to Ottawa was QB Michael Benedict, who is expected to get a couple of starts down the stretch, LB Enzo Morello, for some youth on the defence, and Halifax’s 1st and 3rd Round Picks from the upcoming draft. The deal is huge but should work out well for both squads as Halifax is shooting for the Cup and the Royals are continuing to work on their rebuild.
Shortly after the Royals-Mariners trade, the Royals went over to Louisville to grab a RB to replace Wally Morton. RB Stuart Beasley was acquired by the Royals from the Thunder in exchange for the Royals’ 5th Round Pick in this year’s draft.
Tuesday, August 16, 1966 - 4:45 PM ET
As the deadline rolled around there was one last trade sent through. The London Tigers were still looking for a running back to replace Austin Andrews. Both Kendall Morgan and Wally Morton had both been traded and so there were fewer options available. In the end, it worked out for GM Joseph Johnson of the Tigers who was able to negotiate a much better deal with the Blacksmiths for RB Cody Barnes. The trade originally saw the Tigers having to trade a 3rd rounder and DB Gord Honk, but Johnson got them to go down to a 4th rounder instead since there was no other team that was going to make a trade for Barnes.
1966 Week 9
Ottawa Royals - 11, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 20 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - August 19, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
0-10 PIT - RTD RB Starvos Black
7-10 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
3rd Q
7-17 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
4th Q
8-17 OTT - Single K Ira Foster
11-17 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
11-20 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
Pittsburgh rolled to their 3rd straight win, making it their longest win streak to this point.
QB Magnus Torrensen continued to show off with another big win which is turning many heads around the league to see if he could be an option for the future for a team.
QB Landon Ross remained the starter as the recently acquired QB Michael Benedict was still learning the playbook for the time being; Ross performed alright in the first half but was unable to help the Royals overcome the Blacksmiths.
Halifax Mariners - 26, Buffalo Blue Wings - 35 - Atlantic Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
7-7 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
2nd Q
10-7 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
13-7 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
13-14 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
3rd Q
13-21 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
19-21 HFX - RTD RB Don Gregson
4th Q
19-28 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
26-28 HFX - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Shane Steadman
26-35 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
A battle between the two top teams in the league was a close one, but the Blue Wings edged out the Mariners for their 6th straight win.
RB Jimmy Golden was a key piece for the Blue Wings as he was able to get past the strong Halifax D-line.
RB Wally Morton was solid in his first start with the Mariners, scoring a touchdown and rushing for 78 yards.
QB Lee Rogers also had to make his Mariners debut as QB Lyle Painter took a tough hit in the 4th quarter that prevented him from returning; he did throw a touchdown on the drive that Painter was injured on.
*BUF clinches playoff spot
Montreal Rouge - 30, Toronto Steelheads - 25 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
3-0 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
10-3 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
2nd Q
10-6 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
13-6 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
20-6 MTL - QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
3rd Q
20-13 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Samuel Petri
20-16 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
27-16 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
27-19 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
27-25 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
30-25 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
The Rouge ended the Steelheads’ 5-game win streak with a huge win on home field to solidify their position in the last Eastern playoff spot.
QB Gene Bishop was strong with a pair of touchdowns while RB Hugo Hughes got it done on the ground.
Toronto on the other hand was slow out of the gate, mostly because of a strong performance from S Garet deVale who had a pick and 8 tackles.
The Steelheads picked it up in the second half, coming back down 14 at the break to pull within two, however, the Rouge did an excellent job of running out the clock with the combination of Hugo Hughes and Scott Mallard-White.
Long Island Raiders - 31, London Tigers - 16 - Long Island Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
7-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
2nd Q
14-3 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Troy York
14-6 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3rd Q
17-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
17-9 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
24-9 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
4th Q
24-16 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> TE Tranquille Rousseau
31-16 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
The Raiders crushed the Tigers on Saturday night due to a big boost in the run game with RB Kendall Morgan.
Morgan had a pair of touchdowns in his Raiders debut and helped the offence get back to what they do best.
The Tigers looked flat on their side for the most part; Riley Kiernan was able to move the ball aright, but the team lacked the ability to find the endzone against the Raiders defence which left them too far behind.
LB William Washington II had another great day for the Raiders with a sack and 11 tackles.
*LI clinches playoff spot
*HFX clinches playoff spot with LDN’s Loss (first playoff appearance since 1960..Gene Bishop was their QB)
Indiana Victors - 26, Boston Independents - 20 - Victory Stadium - August 21, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
10-3 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> TE Emmanual Hines
10-6 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-13 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
3rd Q
13-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
20-13 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4th Q
23-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
23-20 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
26-20 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Independents fell yet again, losing their 6th straight game and calling a lot into question for the team heading into this offseason, as they will officially not go to the playoffs for the first time since 1956.
RB Tresean Jones was not too bad in his first career start for the Independents, scoring a touchdown and rushing for 83 yards.
Indiana had a good game, especially on defence with DB Cameron Taylor grabbing an interception in one of his best games of the season and LB Marshall Langenbrunner having 7 tackles and a forced fumble.
Providence Gold Stars - 16, Louisville Thunder - 14 - New Providence Stadium - August 21, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
6-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
6-7 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
13-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
13-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
4th Q
16-14 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
It almost seemed that QB Leonidas Dumont’s return to the lineup might have been the key to getting a win for the Thunder this season, however, Providence’s defence shut them down after their second touchdown.
QB Connor O’Rourke only needed to get into field goal range to take the win and stay in the fight for the playoffs.
Both teams had a little trouble with keeping the ball with 5 total turnovers in the game.
Injury Report
S Manuel Ray BUF - 1 Week
QB Lyle Painter HFX - Day-to-Day
LB Harvey Phillips LI - 2 Weeks
LB Gideon Jura LDN - Season
DL Chester Avery TOR - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
OFF: RB Jimmy Golden BUF - 3 Rushing Touchdowns, 103 Rushing Yards
DEF: S Garet deVale MTL - 1 Interception, 8 Tackles, 4 Passes Defended
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 8-1 -x
Toronto 6-3
Indiana 5-4
Pittsburgh 4-5
London 4-5
Louisville 0-9
EAST
Halifax 7-2 -x
Long Island 7-2 -x
Montreal 5-4
Providence 4-5
Boston 2-6
Ottawa 2-6
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island +2
3 - Halifax -
4 - Toronto -2
5 - Indiana -
6 - Montreal +1
7 - Pittsburgh +2
8 - London -2
9 - Providence -1
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Boston -
12 - Louisville -
Week 10 Games
OTT (2-7) @ HFX (7-2) - AUG 25 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
BUF (8-1) @ LOU (0-9) - AUG 26 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
*BUF clinches West Division with Win or TOR Loss
IND (5-4) @ MTL (5-4) - AUG 27 - 3 PM ET
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win + PRO Loss + PIT Loss + LDN Loss
*IND clinches playoff spot with Win + PIT Loss + LDN Loss + PRO Loss
LI (7-2) @ PIT (4-5) - AUG 27 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
LDN (4-5) @ BOS (2-7) - AUG 28 - 1 PM ET
PRO (4-5) @ TOR (6-3) - AUG 28 - 4 PM ET
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win + LDN Loss
1st Q
0-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
0-10 PIT - RTD RB Starvos Black
7-10 OTT - PTD QB Landon Ross -> WR Marshall Leonard
3rd Q
7-17 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
4th Q
8-17 OTT - Single K Ira Foster
11-17 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
11-20 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
Pittsburgh rolled to their 3rd straight win, making it their longest win streak to this point.
QB Magnus Torrensen continued to show off with another big win which is turning many heads around the league to see if he could be an option for the future for a team.
QB Landon Ross remained the starter as the recently acquired QB Michael Benedict was still learning the playbook for the time being; Ross performed alright in the first half but was unable to help the Royals overcome the Blacksmiths.
Halifax Mariners - 26, Buffalo Blue Wings - 35 - Atlantic Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Zachariah Pembroke
7-7 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
2nd Q
10-7 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
13-7 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
13-14 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
3rd Q
13-21 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
19-21 HFX - RTD RB Don Gregson
4th Q
19-28 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
26-28 HFX - PTD QB Lee Rogers -> WR Shane Steadman
26-35 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
A battle between the two top teams in the league was a close one, but the Blue Wings edged out the Mariners for their 6th straight win.
RB Jimmy Golden was a key piece for the Blue Wings as he was able to get past the strong Halifax D-line.
RB Wally Morton was solid in his first start with the Mariners, scoring a touchdown and rushing for 78 yards.
QB Lee Rogers also had to make his Mariners debut as QB Lyle Painter took a tough hit in the 4th quarter that prevented him from returning; he did throw a touchdown on the drive that Painter was injured on.
*BUF clinches playoff spot
Montreal Rouge - 30, Toronto Steelheads - 25 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy - GAME OF THE WEEK
1st Q
3-0 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
10-3 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
2nd Q
10-6 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
13-6 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
20-6 MTL - QB Gene Bishop -> WR Taylor Karis
3rd Q
20-13 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Samuel Petri
20-16 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
4th Q
27-16 MTL - PTD QB Gene Bishop -> WR Derek Cross
27-19 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
27-25 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
30-25 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
The Rouge ended the Steelheads’ 5-game win streak with a huge win on home field to solidify their position in the last Eastern playoff spot.
QB Gene Bishop was strong with a pair of touchdowns while RB Hugo Hughes got it done on the ground.
Toronto on the other hand was slow out of the gate, mostly because of a strong performance from S Garet deVale who had a pick and 8 tackles.
The Steelheads picked it up in the second half, coming back down 14 at the break to pull within two, however, the Rouge did an excellent job of running out the clock with the combination of Hugo Hughes and Scott Mallard-White.
Long Island Raiders - 31, London Tigers - 16 - Long Island Stadium - August 20, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
7-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
2nd Q
14-3 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Troy York
14-6 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3rd Q
17-6 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
17-9 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
24-9 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
4th Q
24-16 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> TE Tranquille Rousseau
31-16 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
The Raiders crushed the Tigers on Saturday night due to a big boost in the run game with RB Kendall Morgan.
Morgan had a pair of touchdowns in his Raiders debut and helped the offence get back to what they do best.
The Tigers looked flat on their side for the most part; Riley Kiernan was able to move the ball aright, but the team lacked the ability to find the endzone against the Raiders defence which left them too far behind.
LB William Washington II had another great day for the Raiders with a sack and 11 tackles.
*LI clinches playoff spot
*HFX clinches playoff spot with LDN’s Loss (first playoff appearance since 1960..Gene Bishop was their QB)
Indiana Victors - 26, Boston Independents - 20 - Victory Stadium - August 21, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
10-3 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> TE Emmanual Hines
10-6 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
10-13 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
3rd Q
13-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
20-13 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
4th Q
23-13 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
23-20 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
26-20 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
The Independents fell yet again, losing their 6th straight game and calling a lot into question for the team heading into this offseason, as they will officially not go to the playoffs for the first time since 1956.
RB Tresean Jones was not too bad in his first career start for the Independents, scoring a touchdown and rushing for 83 yards.
Indiana had a good game, especially on defence with DB Cameron Taylor grabbing an interception in one of his best games of the season and LB Marshall Langenbrunner having 7 tackles and a forced fumble.
Providence Gold Stars - 16, Louisville Thunder - 14 - New Providence Stadium - August 21, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
6-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
6-7 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
13-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
3rd Q
13-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
4th Q
16-14 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
It almost seemed that QB Leonidas Dumont’s return to the lineup might have been the key to getting a win for the Thunder this season, however, Providence’s defence shut them down after their second touchdown.
QB Connor O’Rourke only needed to get into field goal range to take the win and stay in the fight for the playoffs.
Both teams had a little trouble with keeping the ball with 5 total turnovers in the game.
Injury Report
S Manuel Ray BUF - 1 Week
QB Lyle Painter HFX - Day-to-Day
LB Harvey Phillips LI - 2 Weeks
LB Gideon Jura LDN - Season
DL Chester Avery TOR - 2 Weeks
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 8-1 -x
Toronto 6-3
Indiana 5-4
Pittsburgh 4-5
London 4-5
Louisville 0-9
EAST
Halifax 7-2 -x
Long Island 7-2 -x
Montreal 5-4
Providence 4-5
Boston 2-6
Ottawa 2-6
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island +2
3 - Halifax -
4 - Toronto -2
5 - Indiana -
6 - Montreal +1
7 - Pittsburgh +2
8 - London -2
9 - Providence -1
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Boston -
12 - Louisville -
Week 10 Games
OTT (2-7) @ HFX (7-2) - AUG 25 - 7 PM ET - Thursday Night Football
BUF (8-1) @ LOU (0-9) - AUG 26 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
*BUF clinches West Division with Win or TOR Loss
IND (5-4) @ MTL (5-4) - AUG 27 - 3 PM ET
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win + PRO Loss + PIT Loss + LDN Loss
*IND clinches playoff spot with Win + PIT Loss + LDN Loss + PRO Loss
LI (7-2) @ PIT (4-5) - AUG 27 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
LDN (4-5) @ BOS (2-7) - AUG 28 - 1 PM ET
PRO (4-5) @ TOR (6-3) - AUG 28 - 4 PM ET
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win + LDN Loss
1966 Week 10
Halifax Mariners - 17, Ottawa Royals - 20 - Atlantic Stadium - August 25, 1966 - 7 PM ET - TNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
2nd Q
3-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
10-3 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
3rd Q
10-10 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
10-17 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> WR Colby Bancana
17-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Sam Nash
17-20 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
The final Thursday Night game started slow in the first half, but by the 4th quarter, the game came to an electrifying conclusion.
QB Michael Benedict made his first start for the Royals in a game against his former team just a couple of weeks after being traded.
He had a great game with a touchdown and game-winning drive to give the Royals the shocking upset win.
The Mariners looked a little shaky in this one with QB Lyle Painter having to shake off the injury he suffered last weekend which allowed the Royals to stay in the fight.
WR Sam Nash did find the endzone for the first time this season to help the Mariners tie up the game late.
Louisville Thunder - 22, Buffalo Blue Wings - 27 - Thunder Stadium - August 26, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
7-3 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
7-10 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
14-10 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
3rd Q
14-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
20-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
22-13 LOU - 2PT QB Leonidas Dumont -> TE Christopher Gist
4th Q
22-20 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
22-27 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
The Thunder gave the Blue Wings a run for their money taking a shocking 22-13 lead heading into the final quarter, however, QB Charles Lemieux picked apart the defence to get into the endzone twice to steal the game.
The win for the Blue Wings gave them the West Division, which was decided before the final week of the season for the first time since 1958.
QB Leonidas Dumont had his best game in a while with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions on the day, but it was just not enough and Louisville fell to a stunning 0-10.
LB Le’Darius Wynn had his first career forced fumble in the game for the Thunder
*BUF clinches West Division
Montreal Rouge - 9, Indiana Victors - 28 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 27, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3-7 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
3-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3rd Q
6-14 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
6-21 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
9-21 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
9-28 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Victors came through with an important win over the Montreal Rouge.
Their defence rallied for a stellar performance keeping the Rouge down to just 9 points; they were helped with the fact that QB Gene Bishop left the game early with an injury.
QB Mike Key replaced him and just could not get the ball going, throwing a pair of interceptions.
DB David Jones and DB Kelly Kirkland had each of the picks for the Victors.
RB Raymond Green had a great day for Indiana with 3 touchdowns on the ground, running all over the Rouge defence.
It is a tough loss to swallow for the Rouge who now could be without their starting QB for the rest of the season and Providence, Pittsburgh, and London breathing down their neck.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 14, Long Island Raiders - 24 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - August 27, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
2nd Q
7-0 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murry-Lawrence
7-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
7-10 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
7-17 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> TE Micheal Bowman III
4th Q
14-17 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
14-24 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
The Raiders were able to end the Blacksmiths 3-game win streak and retake the top spot in the East Division.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to play well for the Raiders, scoring a pair of touchdowns.
Pittsburgh did not look too bad, but they just were not good enough to get past the very good Raider defence.
Boston Independents - 27, London Tigers - 30 - Richardson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-3 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
2nd Q
7-10 LDN - RTD RB Cody Barnes
7-13 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-20 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> TE Tranquille Rousseau
3rd Q
7-23 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
14-23 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
14-30 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
27-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
Despite Nathaniel Braddock’s best effort to come back in the 4th quarter (and 4 touchdown performance), it was not enough to top the Tigers leaving the team at 2-8 heading into the final few games of the season.
The defence could not stop the Tigers throughout the game which left them in the 16-point hole in the 4th, which leaves a lot of fans heavily questioning HC Johnathan Fox, who is supposed to be a defence-centred coach.
London kept themselves in the fight with this win; RB Cody Barnes was also a little more comfortable in his second game with the Tigers.
Toronto Steelheads - 21, Providence Gold Stars - 31 - Anderson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
10-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
2nd Q
10-3 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
10-10 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
13-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3rd Q
13-17 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
13-24 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
4th Q
19-24 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
21-24 TOR - 2PT QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
21-31 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
A 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke gives the Gold Stars a huge win to pull them within striking distance of the final playoff spot in the East Division.
The Steelheads did a good job of breaking through the Gold Stars defence with RB Max Tracy, but by the end of the game Providence locked it down to hold on for the win.
It does become a tough loss for the Steelheads who are now sliding into a vulnerable spot in 2nd in the division after starting 6-2.
Injury Report
DB Adam Levesque IND - Day-to-Day
LB Pepper Burress HFX - 1 Week
QB Gene Bishop MTL - 3 Weeks
TE Hunter Ziegelbauer MTL - Day-to-Day
DL Bartolo Cruz PRO - 4 Weeks
Players of the Week
OFF: QB Nathaniel Braddock BOS - 4 Passing Touchdowns, 371 Passing Yards
DEF: DB Kelly Kirkland IND - 1 Interception, 7 Tackles
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 9-1 -y
Toronto 6-4
Indiana 6-4
London 5-5
Pittsburgh 4-6
Louisville 0-10
EAST
Long Island 8-2 -x
Halifax 7-3 -x
Montreal 5-5
Providence 5-5
Ottawa 3-7
Montreal 2-8
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana +2
4 - Halifax -1
5 - Toronto -1
6 - Providence +3
7 - Montreal -1
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh -2
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Boston -
12 - Louisville -
Week 11 Games
MTL (5-5) @ OTT (3-7) - SEP 2 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win + PRO Loss + LDN Loss
PIT (4-6) @ BUF (9-1) - SEP 3 - 3 PM ET
PRO (5-5) @ BOS (2-8) - SEP 3 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (7-3) @ LI (8-2) - SEP 4 - 2 PM ET
*LI clinches East Division with Win
TOR (6-4) @ LDN (5-5) - SEP 5 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win
LOU (0-10) @ IND (6-4) - SEP 5 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day
*IND clinches playoff spot with Win + LDN Loss
*Also surprisingly Ottawa is still alive, but it’s very slim chances
1 - Ottawa must win both of their final games (VS. MTL, @ BOS)
2 - Ottawa must beat Montreal by more than 3 points.
3 - Providence must lose both of their games (@ BOS, VS LI)
4 - Montreal must also lose in Week 12 (VS. HFX)
5 - Pittsburgh must lose to Buffalo this week
6 - London must lose to Toronto this week
7 - Pittsburgh must beat London in week 12.
8 - In the end, Ottawa would have to finish with a better point differential than both Providence and Montreal….not very possible (MTL +4, PRO -9, OTT -44)
This scenario would give Ottawa the final spot in the East Division playoffs
1st Q
0-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
2nd Q
3-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
10-3 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
3rd Q
10-10 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
4th Q
10-17 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> WR Colby Bancana
17-17 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Sam Nash
17-20 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
The final Thursday Night game started slow in the first half, but by the 4th quarter, the game came to an electrifying conclusion.
QB Michael Benedict made his first start for the Royals in a game against his former team just a couple of weeks after being traded.
He had a great game with a touchdown and game-winning drive to give the Royals the shocking upset win.
The Mariners looked a little shaky in this one with QB Lyle Painter having to shake off the injury he suffered last weekend which allowed the Royals to stay in the fight.
WR Sam Nash did find the endzone for the first time this season to help the Mariners tie up the game late.
Louisville Thunder - 22, Buffalo Blue Wings - 27 - Thunder Stadium - August 26, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
7-3 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
7-10 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
14-10 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
3rd Q
14-13 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
20-13 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
22-13 LOU - 2PT QB Leonidas Dumont -> TE Christopher Gist
4th Q
22-20 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
22-27 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
The Thunder gave the Blue Wings a run for their money taking a shocking 22-13 lead heading into the final quarter, however, QB Charles Lemieux picked apart the defence to get into the endzone twice to steal the game.
The win for the Blue Wings gave them the West Division, which was decided before the final week of the season for the first time since 1958.
QB Leonidas Dumont had his best game in a while with a pair of touchdowns and no interceptions on the day, but it was just not enough and Louisville fell to a stunning 0-10.
LB Le’Darius Wynn had his first career forced fumble in the game for the Thunder
*BUF clinches West Division
Montreal Rouge - 9, Indiana Victors - 28 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 27, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3-7 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
2nd Q
3-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
3rd Q
6-14 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
6-21 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
9-21 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
9-28 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Victors came through with an important win over the Montreal Rouge.
Their defence rallied for a stellar performance keeping the Rouge down to just 9 points; they were helped with the fact that QB Gene Bishop left the game early with an injury.
QB Mike Key replaced him and just could not get the ball going, throwing a pair of interceptions.
DB David Jones and DB Kelly Kirkland had each of the picks for the Victors.
RB Raymond Green had a great day for Indiana with 3 touchdowns on the ground, running all over the Rouge defence.
It is a tough loss to swallow for the Rouge who now could be without their starting QB for the rest of the season and Providence, Pittsburgh, and London breathing down their neck.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 14, Long Island Raiders - 24 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - August 27, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
2nd Q
7-0 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> WR Nathan Murry-Lawrence
7-3 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
7-10 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
7-17 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> TE Micheal Bowman III
4th Q
14-17 PIT - RTD RB Stavros Black
14-24 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
The Raiders were able to end the Blacksmiths 3-game win streak and retake the top spot in the East Division.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to play well for the Raiders, scoring a pair of touchdowns.
Pittsburgh did not look too bad, but they just were not good enough to get past the very good Raider defence.
Boston Independents - 27, London Tigers - 30 - Richardson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 1 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-3 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Evan Clanton
2nd Q
7-10 LDN - RTD RB Cody Barnes
7-13 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
7-20 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> TE Tranquille Rousseau
3rd Q
7-23 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
14-23 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
4th Q
14-30 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Max Sutton
20-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Felix Fontaine
27-30 BOS - PTD QB Nathaniel Braddock -> WR Alexei Dubois
Despite Nathaniel Braddock’s best effort to come back in the 4th quarter (and 4 touchdown performance), it was not enough to top the Tigers leaving the team at 2-8 heading into the final few games of the season.
The defence could not stop the Tigers throughout the game which left them in the 16-point hole in the 4th, which leaves a lot of fans heavily questioning HC Johnathan Fox, who is supposed to be a defence-centred coach.
London kept themselves in the fight with this win; RB Cody Barnes was also a little more comfortable in his second game with the Tigers.
Toronto Steelheads - 21, Providence Gold Stars - 31 - Anderson Stadium - August 28, 1966 - 4 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
10-0 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
2nd Q
10-3 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
10-10 PRO - RTD RB Rashed Smith
13-10 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
3rd Q
13-17 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
13-24 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
4th Q
19-24 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
21-24 TOR - 2PT QB Todd Baker -> WR Ben Roland
21-31 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
A 3 touchdown performance from QB Connor O’Rourke gives the Gold Stars a huge win to pull them within striking distance of the final playoff spot in the East Division.
The Steelheads did a good job of breaking through the Gold Stars defence with RB Max Tracy, but by the end of the game Providence locked it down to hold on for the win.
It does become a tough loss for the Steelheads who are now sliding into a vulnerable spot in 2nd in the division after starting 6-2.
Injury Report
DB Adam Levesque IND - Day-to-Day
LB Pepper Burress HFX - 1 Week
QB Gene Bishop MTL - 3 Weeks
TE Hunter Ziegelbauer MTL - Day-to-Day
DL Bartolo Cruz PRO - 4 Weeks
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 9-1 -y
Toronto 6-4
Indiana 6-4
London 5-5
Pittsburgh 4-6
Louisville 0-10
EAST
Long Island 8-2 -x
Halifax 7-3 -x
Montreal 5-5
Providence 5-5
Ottawa 3-7
Montreal 2-8
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana +2
4 - Halifax -1
5 - Toronto -1
6 - Providence +3
7 - Montreal -1
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh -2
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Boston -
12 - Louisville -
Week 11 Games
MTL (5-5) @ OTT (3-7) - SEP 2 - 7 PM ET - Friday Night Football
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win + PRO Loss + LDN Loss
PIT (4-6) @ BUF (9-1) - SEP 3 - 3 PM ET
PRO (5-5) @ BOS (2-8) - SEP 3 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
HFX (7-3) @ LI (8-2) - SEP 4 - 2 PM ET
*LI clinches East Division with Win
TOR (6-4) @ LDN (5-5) - SEP 5 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day
*TOR clinches playoff spot with Win
LOU (0-10) @ IND (6-4) - SEP 5 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day
*IND clinches playoff spot with Win + LDN Loss
*Also surprisingly Ottawa is still alive, but it’s very slim chances
1 - Ottawa must win both of their final games (VS. MTL, @ BOS)
2 - Ottawa must beat Montreal by more than 3 points.
3 - Providence must lose both of their games (@ BOS, VS LI)
4 - Montreal must also lose in Week 12 (VS. HFX)
5 - Pittsburgh must lose to Buffalo this week
6 - London must lose to Toronto this week
7 - Pittsburgh must beat London in week 12.
8 - In the end, Ottawa would have to finish with a better point differential than both Providence and Montreal….not very possible (MTL +4, PRO -9, OTT -44)
This scenario would give Ottawa the final spot in the East Division playoffs
1966 Week 11
Ottawa Royals - 17, Montreal Rouge - 26 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - September 2, 1966 - 7 PM ET - FNF - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
0-10 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
2nd Q
0-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3-13 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
10-13 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> TE Ryan Hatcher
10-16 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
10-23 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
4th Q
17-23 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
17-26 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
The Rouge came away with an important win over the Royals behind a great performance from RBs Scott Mallard-White and RB Hugo Hughes.
The two backs were used for 70% of Montreal’s offence in this game as they took advantage of the weaker Royals' D-line.
QB Mike Key had the start for Montreal but only threw for 76 passing yards on the day with the run-game being so successful.
QB Michael Benedict looked solid for the Royals again, though he needed to get to the second half to find a bit of a rhythm against the Rouge defence that stepped up.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 34, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 19 - Milton Charles Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
10-3 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
2nd Q
10-6 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-6 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
17-13 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> TE Tanner Tint
3rd Q
24-13 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
24-16 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
4th Q
27-16 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-19 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
34-19 BUF - DTD INT DB Ezra Power
Buffalo decided to rest a few starters in the second last game of the season, namely RB Jimmy Golden and DL Lonnie Vincent.
It did not slow them down as they cruised to a solid win over the Blacksmiths to be the first team to top 10 wins since 1962.
Pittsburgh still put up a fight and made it a one-score game heading into the final quarter, but the Blue Wings pulled away with a huge Ezra Power pick-6.
Boston Independents - 6, Providence Gold Stars - 23 - Richardson Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
0-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
3-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-13 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3rd Q
3-20 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
4th Q
6-20 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
6-23 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
The Gold Stars’ defence had a brilliant game against Nathaniel Braddock and the Independents' defence.
They only allowed 6 points and forced 4 turnovers; DB Neville Falkner had one pick and S Paul Christopher, DL Craig White, and LB Viktor Falkensteig each had a forced fumble.
QB Connor O’Rourke didn’t need to do a lot, but he still threw 2 touchdowns and 205 yards in the win, which is Providence’s 3rd straight (and 5th in their last 6) which keeps them right in the battle for the playoffs heading into the final week.
Boston looked bad throughout the game, Braddock had his worst game in a long while just one week after a stellar performance in the loss to London.
Long Island Raiders - 27, Halifax Mariners - 17 - Long Island Stadium - September 4, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
7-3 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
14-3 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
14-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
17-10 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3rd Q
17-17 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
4th Q
24-17 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
27-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
A late forced fumble from LB Deon Wiggins ended up being the deciding play in a battle for the East Division crown.
The turnover allowed the Raiders to extend their lead to 10 and pretty much end the game.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to put up scores with his new team with another 2 touchdowns in this game.
The Mariners are in a tough spot after losing 4 of their last 5 games putting them in a position to potentially lose 2nd place in the division.
QB Lyle Painter has cooled off since the start of the season and will need to step up big time if the team wants to be fighting for a title.
*LI clinches East Division
*FUN FACT: this is the first time the East Division has had a back-to-back winner since 1958-1959 (Ottawa)
London Tigers - 15, Toronto Steelheads - 28 - Western Fair Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-7 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
2nd Q
3-14 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
3rd Q
3-21 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
9-21 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Fredrick St.Pierre
4th Q
9-28 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
15-28 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
The Tigers had to face several blows to their roster during a vital game against the Steelheads.
K Nimrod Handsworth left the game after taking a hit on a punt in the 1st quarter, leaving the Tigers without a kicker, S Niel Graham also left with a brutal season-ending injury, and WR Max Sutton was also taken out by a big hit from S Charles Clerk.
Toronto took advantage of the battered Tigers and put up 28 to end their 2-game slide and finally book their ticket into the playoffs.
RB Max Tracy had a big day with 3 touchdowns and 129 rushing yards.
The loss for the Tigers is costly as an Indiana win could end their season.
*TOR clinches playoff spot
Indiana Victors - 35, Louisville Thunder - 28 - Victory Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
7-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
14-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
14-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
3rd Q
21-14 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
28-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
28-21 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
4th Q
28-28 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
35-28 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> TE Emmanual Hines
A touchdown duel in Indiana came down to the wire after Louisville came back from a 14-point deficit, but the Victors ended up getting the last laugh with TE Emmanuel Hines heroically breaking into the endzone for the game-winning score.
WR Ed Edwards had a big day with a pair of touchdowns and 93 yards, despite facing a very strong Louisville secondary.
Louisville’s secondary did get the best of QB Tom Applewhite a couple of times with a pair of picks.
RB Rodney Clark was a star for the Thunder who unfortunately now fall to 0-11 with a risk of being the 4th team to go winless in NAAF history.
*IND clinches playoff spot
*LDN is officially out of the playoffs
Injury Report
WR German Maksimov BOS - Day-to-Day
DL Timmy Kerr BOS - Day-to-Day
OL Johannes König BUF - Season
WR Jav Kerrigan HFX - Day-to-Day
WR Max Sutton LDN - Day-to-Day
K Nimrod Handsworth LDN - Day-to-Day
S Niel Graham LDN - 6 Weeks
DB Jayden Mills LOU - 1 Week
DL Khalid Al-Amin PIT - 7 Weeks
Players of the Week
OFF: RB Max Tracy TOR - 3 Rushing Touchdowns, 129 Rushing Yards
DEF: LB Deon Wiggins LI - 1 Forced Fumble, 8 Tackles, 1 Sack
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 10-1 -y
Toronto 7-4 -x
Indiana 7-4 -x
London 5-6
Pittsburgh 4-7
Louisville 0-11
EAST
Long Island 9-2 -y
Halifax 7-4 -x
Montreal 6-5
Providence 6-5
Ottawa 3-8
Boston 2-9
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana -
4 - Toronto +1
5 - Halifax -1
6 - Providence -
7 - Montreal -
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh -
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Louisville +1
12 - Boston -1
Week 12 Games
OTT (3-8) @ BOS (2-9) - SEP 10 - 12 PM ET
*Losing team gets the 2nd overall pick
HFX (7-4) @ MTL (6-5) - SEP 10 - 3:30 PM ET
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win or PRO Loss
*Winner will host the East Division Semi-Final
LI (9-2) @ PRO (6-5) - SEP 10 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
*PRO clinches playoff spot with Win + MTL Loss
LDN (5-6) @ PIT (4-7) - SEP 11 - 12 PM ET
TOR (7-4) @ LOU (0-11) - SEP 11 - 3:30 PM ET
*TOR clinches 2nd in the West with Win or IND Loss
IND (7-4) @ BUF (10-1) - SEP 11 - 7 PM ET - Season Finale
*IND clinches 2nd in the West with Win + TOR Loss
1st Q
0-3 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
0-10 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
2nd Q
0-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
3-13 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3rd Q
10-13 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> TE Ryan Hatcher
10-16 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
10-23 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
4th Q
17-23 OTT - RTD RB Corbyn Knight
17-26 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
The Rouge came away with an important win over the Royals behind a great performance from RBs Scott Mallard-White and RB Hugo Hughes.
The two backs were used for 70% of Montreal’s offence in this game as they took advantage of the weaker Royals' D-line.
QB Mike Key had the start for Montreal but only threw for 76 passing yards on the day with the run-game being so successful.
QB Michael Benedict looked solid for the Royals again, though he needed to get to the second half to find a bit of a rhythm against the Rouge defence that stepped up.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 34, Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 19 - Milton Charles Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 3 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
10-3 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> WR Julius Drake
2nd Q
10-6 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
17-6 BUF - PTD QB Charles Lemieux -> TE Paul Arturberry
17-13 PIT - PTD QB Magnus Torrensen -> TE Tanner Tint
3rd Q
24-13 BUF - RTD RB Théodore Lemieux
24-16 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
4th Q
27-16 BUF - FG K Ryan Perch
27-19 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
34-19 BUF - DTD INT DB Ezra Power
Buffalo decided to rest a few starters in the second last game of the season, namely RB Jimmy Golden and DL Lonnie Vincent.
It did not slow them down as they cruised to a solid win over the Blacksmiths to be the first team to top 10 wins since 1962.
Pittsburgh still put up a fight and made it a one-score game heading into the final quarter, but the Blue Wings pulled away with a huge Ezra Power pick-6.
Boston Independents - 6, Providence Gold Stars - 23 - Richardson Stadium - September 3, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-7 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Cedric Peterson
0-10 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
2nd Q
3-10 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
3-13 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
3rd Q
3-20 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
4th Q
6-20 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
6-23 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
The Gold Stars’ defence had a brilliant game against Nathaniel Braddock and the Independents' defence.
They only allowed 6 points and forced 4 turnovers; DB Neville Falkner had one pick and S Paul Christopher, DL Craig White, and LB Viktor Falkensteig each had a forced fumble.
QB Connor O’Rourke didn’t need to do a lot, but he still threw 2 touchdowns and 205 yards in the win, which is Providence’s 3rd straight (and 5th in their last 6) which keeps them right in the battle for the playoffs heading into the final week.
Boston looked bad throughout the game, Braddock had his worst game in a long while just one week after a stellar performance in the loss to London.
Long Island Raiders - 27, Halifax Mariners - 17 - Long Island Stadium - September 4, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
7-3 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
14-3 LI - PTD QB Stanley Troyer -> WR Casey Coleman
2nd Q
14-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Shane Steadman
17-10 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
3rd Q
17-17 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
4th Q
24-17 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
27-17 LI - FG K Henderson Schumacher
A late forced fumble from LB Deon Wiggins ended up being the deciding play in a battle for the East Division crown.
The turnover allowed the Raiders to extend their lead to 10 and pretty much end the game.
RB Kendall Morgan continued to put up scores with his new team with another 2 touchdowns in this game.
The Mariners are in a tough spot after losing 4 of their last 5 games putting them in a position to potentially lose 2nd place in the division.
QB Lyle Painter has cooled off since the start of the season and will need to step up big time if the team wants to be fighting for a title.
*LI clinches East Division
*FUN FACT: this is the first time the East Division has had a back-to-back winner since 1958-1959 (Ottawa)
London Tigers - 15, Toronto Steelheads - 28 - Western Fair Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 2 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
3-0 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-7 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
2nd Q
3-14 TOR - PTD QB Todd Baker -> WR Edmund Landry
3rd Q
3-21 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
9-21 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Fredrick St.Pierre
4th Q
9-28 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
15-28 LDN - PTD QB Riley Kiernan -> WR Russell Wilcox
The Tigers had to face several blows to their roster during a vital game against the Steelheads.
K Nimrod Handsworth left the game after taking a hit on a punt in the 1st quarter, leaving the Tigers without a kicker, S Niel Graham also left with a brutal season-ending injury, and WR Max Sutton was also taken out by a big hit from S Charles Clerk.
Toronto took advantage of the battered Tigers and put up 28 to end their 2-game slide and finally book their ticket into the playoffs.
RB Max Tracy had a big day with 3 touchdowns and 129 rushing yards.
The loss for the Tigers is costly as an Indiana win could end their season.
*TOR clinches playoff spot
Indiana Victors - 35, Louisville Thunder - 28 - Victory Stadium - September 5, 1966 - 6 PM ET - Labour Day - Weather: Partly Cloudy
1st Q
7-0 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
7-7 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
2nd Q
14-7 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
14-14 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
3rd Q
21-14 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Ed Edwards
28-14 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
28-21 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
4th Q
28-28 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
35-28 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> TE Emmanual Hines
A touchdown duel in Indiana came down to the wire after Louisville came back from a 14-point deficit, but the Victors ended up getting the last laugh with TE Emmanuel Hines heroically breaking into the endzone for the game-winning score.
WR Ed Edwards had a big day with a pair of touchdowns and 93 yards, despite facing a very strong Louisville secondary.
Louisville’s secondary did get the best of QB Tom Applewhite a couple of times with a pair of picks.
RB Rodney Clark was a star for the Thunder who unfortunately now fall to 0-11 with a risk of being the 4th team to go winless in NAAF history.
*IND clinches playoff spot
*LDN is officially out of the playoffs
Injury Report
WR German Maksimov BOS - Day-to-Day
DL Timmy Kerr BOS - Day-to-Day
OL Johannes König BUF - Season
WR Jav Kerrigan HFX - Day-to-Day
WR Max Sutton LDN - Day-to-Day
K Nimrod Handsworth LDN - Day-to-Day
S Niel Graham LDN - 6 Weeks
DB Jayden Mills LOU - 1 Week
DL Khalid Al-Amin PIT - 7 Weeks
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 10-1 -y
Toronto 7-4 -x
Indiana 7-4 -x
London 5-6
Pittsburgh 4-7
Louisville 0-11
EAST
Long Island 9-2 -y
Halifax 7-4 -x
Montreal 6-5
Providence 6-5
Ottawa 3-8
Boston 2-9
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana -
4 - Toronto +1
5 - Halifax -1
6 - Providence -
7 - Montreal -
8 - London -
9 - Pittsburgh -
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Louisville +1
12 - Boston -1
Week 12 Games
OTT (3-8) @ BOS (2-9) - SEP 10 - 12 PM ET
*Losing team gets the 2nd overall pick
HFX (7-4) @ MTL (6-5) - SEP 10 - 3:30 PM ET
*MTL clinches playoff spot with Win or PRO Loss
*Winner will host the East Division Semi-Final
LI (9-2) @ PRO (6-5) - SEP 10 - 7 PM ET - Saturday Night Football
*PRO clinches playoff spot with Win + MTL Loss
LDN (5-6) @ PIT (4-7) - SEP 11 - 12 PM ET
TOR (7-4) @ LOU (0-11) - SEP 11 - 3:30 PM ET
*TOR clinches 2nd in the West with Win or IND Loss
IND (7-4) @ BUF (10-1) - SEP 11 - 7 PM ET - Season Finale
*IND clinches 2nd in the West with Win + TOR Loss
1966 Week 12
Boston Independents - 16, Ottawa Royals - 19 - Richardson Stadium - September 10, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
3-6 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3-13 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> TE Ryan Hatcher
3rd Q
6-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
9-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
4th Q
9-16 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
16-16 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
16-19 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
The Royals and Independents had a battle of field goals to close out the season, in the end, Ottawa would get the last laugh to secure their 4th win of the season.
QB Michael Benedict was not as good in this game as he was in the previous 2, but he did still perform enough to get the win.
QB Oscar Rigano got the start for Boston, a long-awaited opportunity for the veteran, and played pretty good overall, but still made some key mistakes.
DB Sergio Alvarez had a pick for the Royals closing out a strong rookie season in style.
Montreal Rouge - 24, Halifax Mariners - 23 - Mount Royal Stadium - September 10, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
2nd Q
7-3 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
7-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
14-10 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
3rd Q
14-13 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
17-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
17-20 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
17-23 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
24-23 MTL - PTD QB Mike Key -> WR Derek Cross
WR Derek Cross created a Montreal miracle, scoring a game-winning touchdown with just 12 seconds remaining.
Mike Key aired out a prayer to Cross down the field with the Mariners barring down on the WR, but he managed to come down with the catch and then take it the rest of the way for a touchdown to give Montreal the win and book their ticket to the playoffs.
The Mariners were shocked by the loss, especially since they were up 17-23 at that point; they come limping into the playoffs having lost their last 4 games and will now have to return to Montreal next weekend.
S Garet deVale was an important part of the Montreal defence in the win as he grabbed both a pick and a forced fumble along with 7 tackles.
Providence Gold Stars - 20, Long Island Raiders - 7 - New Providence Stadium - September 10, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
2nd Q
10-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
10-7 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
17-7 PRO - PTD QB Terry Bourbon -> WR Doug Piva
4th Q
20-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
The Gold Stars found that they would be out of the playoffs just moments before their game against the Raiders, so QB Connor O’Rourke got the start, but was eventually replaced by QB Terry Bourbon in the later parts of the game.
The Raiders gave QB Sammy Townsend the start to give him a chance to get comfortable in the offence in case of a catastrophic injury to QB Stanley Troyer.
He did not perform that great, throwing 2 interceptions and having a fumble as Providence’s defence needed to get some frustration out about missing the playoffs.
DB Perry Ferris did get his first-career interception finally in the last game of the season.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 18, London Tigers - 13 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - September 11, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
10-3 PIT - PTD QB Louis Vaughn -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
3rd Q
10-6 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
10-13 LDN - PTD QB Ulysses Lawyer -> WR Max Sutton
4th Q
11-13 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
18-13 PIT - PTD QB Louis Vaughn -> WR Jack Duncan
It was a huge opportunity for two young QBs as Louis Vaughn and Ulysses Lawyer each got their first career start against each other.
In the end, this year’s first overall pick ended up coming out on top with a great 2 touchdown performance making the fans of Pittsburgh excited about the future of the team.
Lawyer did alright for the Tigers but struggled to move the ball in the first half.
Pittsburgh came through with the win to give them a 5-7 record on the season which was a massive improvement on last season’s 2 wins (this also included a strong 4-2 record on home field this season).
Louisville Thunder - 27, Toronto Steelheads - 17 - Thunder Stadium - September 11, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
7-3 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
2nd Q
7-10 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
10-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
17-10 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
3rd Q
20-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
4th Q
20-17 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
27-17 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
The Thunder entered the final quarter of the game with a 10-point lead, however, unlike the last few games the team held on for the win to prevent the winless season.
QB Leonidas Dumont played well for the Thunder, as he has since returning from his injury, and finally, it was enough to get the team a win.
Toronto struggled defensively to stop the Thunder offence and could not get the win on the road which opened up the door for the Victors to potentially take 2nd in the West Division.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 14, Indiana Victors - 26 - Milton Charles Stadium - September 11, 1966 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
7-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
7-6 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
2nd Q
7-9 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
14-9 BUF - PTD QB Jack Owens -> TE Paul Arturberry
3rd Q
14-12 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
14-19 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Denis Langlois
4th Q
14-26 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Victors made a lot of errors in the redzone which led to 4 straight field goals to start the game, but when the pressure started to mount about winning this game, they pulled through with a pair of late touchdowns to clinch 2nd in the West.
The defence gets a lot of praise for how they played in the second half, as they shut down the Buffalo offence that was having their way in the first half.
Buffalo did start QB Jack Owens in this game, and he did a good job in the first half, though getting a big help from RB Jimmy Golden who made up most of the offensive yards in the game.
Injury Report
OL Stanley Witt BOS - Day-to-Day
DB Dean Hawkins BUF - Day-to-Day
WR Orlando Barrack IND - 2 Weeks
LB Jeremy Trudeau MTL - 5 Weeks
WR Edmund Landry TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
OFF: QB Leonidas Dumont LOU - 2 Passing Touchdowns, 212 Passing Yards
DEF: S Garet deVale MTL - 1 Interception, 1 Forced Fumble, 7 Tackles
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 10-2 -y
Indiana 8-4 -x
Toronto 7-5 -x
Pittsburgh 5-7
London 5-7
Louisville 1-11
EAST
Long Island 9-3 -y
Montreal 7-5 -x
Halifax 7-5 -x
Providence 7-5
Ottawa 4-7
Boston 2-10
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana -
4 - Montreal +3
5 - Toronto -1
6 - Halifax -1
7 - Providence -1
8 - Pittsburgh +1
9 - London -1
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Louisville -
12 - Boston -
Playoff Preview
EAST DIVISION SEMI-FINAL
Montreal Rouge VS. Halifax Mariners
It will be a rematch of this past week’s crucial battle between the Rouge and Mariners. Same teams, same place. QB Gene Bishop is questionable to return for the game and the Rouge are likely going to have to rely on QB Mike Key to pull through in the playoffs. But with the strong run-game and S Garet deVale having a career season, the Rouge will not be counted out. As for the Mariners, they are looking to finally end their slide, as they have lost their last 4 games to slip to 3rd in the East after a 6-0 start. QB Lyle Painter is going to need to step up and the D-line will have to find a way to shut Montreal’s run-game down. It’s going to be a very intense matchup, but I think the Mariners will get revenge and win their first playoff game since 1956.
My Pick: Mariners
WEST DIVISION SEMI-FINAL
Indiana Victors VS. Toronto Steelheads
Much like the East Semi-Final, the Victors stole home field at the very last moment. They will be rolling in on 4 straight wins and a franchise-best 8-4 season. Their offence has been all-around good, and the defence has made many strides. Indiana should be comfortable in their first home playoff game. As for Toronto, it’s been a rocky second half, but they are still hungry to win the McCallister Cup on home field. The coaching staff for this team has managed to surprise the league by getting a team that isn’t the most skilled into the playoffs in 3 straight seasons, so they can’t be underestimated. However, Indiana is the hot hand and I think they will get the win in this one.
My Pick: Victors
1st Q
0-3 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3-3 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
2nd Q
3-6 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
3-13 OTT - PTD QB Michael Benedict -> TE Ryan Hatcher
3rd Q
6-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
9-13 BOS - FG K Johnnie Berg
4th Q
9-16 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
16-16 BOS - RTD RB Tresean Jones
16-19 OTT - FG K Ira Foster
The Royals and Independents had a battle of field goals to close out the season, in the end, Ottawa would get the last laugh to secure their 4th win of the season.
QB Michael Benedict was not as good in this game as he was in the previous 2, but he did still perform enough to get the win.
QB Oscar Rigano got the start for Boston, a long-awaited opportunity for the veteran, and played pretty good overall, but still made some key mistakes.
DB Sergio Alvarez had a pick for the Royals closing out a strong rookie season in style.
Montreal Rouge - 24, Halifax Mariners - 23 - Mount Royal Stadium - September 10, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Mostly Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
2nd Q
7-3 MTL - RTD RB Hugo Hughes
7-10 HFX - PTD QB Lyle Painter -> WR Jav Kerrigan
14-10 MTL - RTD RB Scott Mallard-White
3rd Q
14-13 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
17-13 MTL - FG K Arthur Kettinger
4th Q
17-20 HFX - RTD RB Wally Morton
17-23 HFX - FG K Albert Wickerweaver
24-23 MTL - PTD QB Mike Key -> WR Derek Cross
WR Derek Cross created a Montreal miracle, scoring a game-winning touchdown with just 12 seconds remaining.
Mike Key aired out a prayer to Cross down the field with the Mariners barring down on the WR, but he managed to come down with the catch and then take it the rest of the way for a touchdown to give Montreal the win and book their ticket to the playoffs.
The Mariners were shocked by the loss, especially since they were up 17-23 at that point; they come limping into the playoffs having lost their last 4 games and will now have to return to Montreal next weekend.
S Garet deVale was an important part of the Montreal defence in the win as he grabbed both a pick and a forced fumble along with 7 tackles.
Providence Gold Stars - 20, Long Island Raiders - 7 - New Providence Stadium - September 10, 1966 - 7 PM ET - SNF - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 PRO - PTD QB Connor O’Rourke -> WR Owen Paisley
2nd Q
10-0 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
10-7 LI - RTD RB Kendall Morgan
3rd Q
17-7 PRO - PTD QB Terry Bourbon -> WR Doug Piva
4th Q
20-7 PRO - FG K Elvis Franklin
The Gold Stars found that they would be out of the playoffs just moments before their game against the Raiders, so QB Connor O’Rourke got the start, but was eventually replaced by QB Terry Bourbon in the later parts of the game.
The Raiders gave QB Sammy Townsend the start to give him a chance to get comfortable in the offence in case of a catastrophic injury to QB Stanley Troyer.
He did not perform that great, throwing 2 interceptions and having a fumble as Providence’s defence needed to get some frustration out about missing the playoffs.
DB Perry Ferris did get his first-career interception finally in the last game of the season.
Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - 18, London Tigers - 13 - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - September 11, 1966 - 12 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
0-3 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
3-3 PIT - FG K Al Highlander
2nd Q
10-3 PIT - PTD QB Louis Vaughn -> WR Nathan Murray-Lawrence
3rd Q
10-6 LDN - FG K Nimrod Handsworth
10-13 LDN - PTD QB Ulysses Lawyer -> WR Max Sutton
4th Q
11-13 PIT - Single K Al Highlander
18-13 PIT - PTD QB Louis Vaughn -> WR Jack Duncan
It was a huge opportunity for two young QBs as Louis Vaughn and Ulysses Lawyer each got their first career start against each other.
In the end, this year’s first overall pick ended up coming out on top with a great 2 touchdown performance making the fans of Pittsburgh excited about the future of the team.
Lawyer did alright for the Tigers but struggled to move the ball in the first half.
Pittsburgh came through with the win to give them a 5-7 record on the season which was a massive improvement on last season’s 2 wins (this also included a strong 4-2 record on home field this season).
Louisville Thunder - 27, Toronto Steelheads - 17 - Thunder Stadium - September 11, 1966 - 3:30 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy
1st Q
0-3 TOR - FG K Bob Randall
7-3 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Lloyd Lane
2nd Q
7-10 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
10-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
17-10 LOU - PTD QB Leonidas Dumont -> WR Piers Key
3rd Q
20-10 LOU - FG K Frank Hughes
4th Q
20-17 TOR - RTD RB Max Tracy
27-17 LOU - RTD RB Rodney Clark
The Thunder entered the final quarter of the game with a 10-point lead, however, unlike the last few games the team held on for the win to prevent the winless season.
QB Leonidas Dumont played well for the Thunder, as he has since returning from his injury, and finally, it was enough to get the team a win.
Toronto struggled defensively to stop the Thunder offence and could not get the win on the road which opened up the door for the Victors to potentially take 2nd in the West Division.
Buffalo Blue Wings - 14, Indiana Victors - 26 - Milton Charles Stadium - September 11, 1966 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Clear
1st Q
7-0 BUF - RTD RB Jimmy Golden
7-3 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
7-6 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
2nd Q
7-9 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
14-9 BUF - PTD QB Jack Owens -> TE Paul Arturberry
3rd Q
14-12 IND - FG K Ross Poindexter
14-19 IND - PTD QB Tom Applewhite -> WR Denis Langlois
4th Q
14-26 IND - RTD RB Raymond Green
The Victors made a lot of errors in the redzone which led to 4 straight field goals to start the game, but when the pressure started to mount about winning this game, they pulled through with a pair of late touchdowns to clinch 2nd in the West.
The defence gets a lot of praise for how they played in the second half, as they shut down the Buffalo offence that was having their way in the first half.
Buffalo did start QB Jack Owens in this game, and he did a good job in the first half, though getting a big help from RB Jimmy Golden who made up most of the offensive yards in the game.
Injury Report
OL Stanley Witt BOS - Day-to-Day
DB Dean Hawkins BUF - Day-to-Day
WR Orlando Barrack IND - 2 Weeks
LB Jeremy Trudeau MTL - 5 Weeks
WR Edmund Landry TOR - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Standings
WEST
Buffalo 10-2 -y
Indiana 8-4 -x
Toronto 7-5 -x
Pittsburgh 5-7
London 5-7
Louisville 1-11
EAST
Long Island 9-3 -y
Montreal 7-5 -x
Halifax 7-5 -x
Providence 7-5
Ottawa 4-7
Boston 2-10
Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo -
2 - Long Island -
3 - Indiana -
4 - Montreal +3
5 - Toronto -1
6 - Halifax -1
7 - Providence -1
8 - Pittsburgh +1
9 - London -1
10 - Ottawa -
11 - Louisville -
12 - Boston -
EAST DIVISION SEMI-FINAL
Montreal Rouge VS. Halifax Mariners
It will be a rematch of this past week’s crucial battle between the Rouge and Mariners. Same teams, same place. QB Gene Bishop is questionable to return for the game and the Rouge are likely going to have to rely on QB Mike Key to pull through in the playoffs. But with the strong run-game and S Garet deVale having a career season, the Rouge will not be counted out. As for the Mariners, they are looking to finally end their slide, as they have lost their last 4 games to slip to 3rd in the East after a 6-0 start. QB Lyle Painter is going to need to step up and the D-line will have to find a way to shut Montreal’s run-game down. It’s going to be a very intense matchup, but I think the Mariners will get revenge and win their first playoff game since 1956.
My Pick: Mariners
WEST DIVISION SEMI-FINAL
Indiana Victors VS. Toronto Steelheads
Much like the East Semi-Final, the Victors stole home field at the very last moment. They will be rolling in on 4 straight wins and a franchise-best 8-4 season. Their offence has been all-around good, and the defence has made many strides. Indiana should be comfortable in their first home playoff game. As for Toronto, it’s been a rocky second half, but they are still hungry to win the McCallister Cup on home field. The coaching staff for this team has managed to surprise the league by getting a team that isn’t the most skilled into the playoffs in 3 straight seasons, so they can’t be underestimated. However, Indiana is the hot hand and I think they will get the win in this one.
My Pick: Victors
