1967 Division Semi-Finals
Providence Gold Stars VS. Montreal Rouge - New Providence Stadium - September 16, 1967 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy - 23ºC | 73ºF
1st Q
The loud and proud Providence fan base provided an immediate helping hand to their team by creating a lot of problems for Montreal’s communication. The Rouge would have 3 false starts and no first downs in the first two drives due to the loud stadium. The Gold Stars, on the other hand, got off to a solid start with QB Connor O’Rourke leading them down the field. After a smart play call leading to a WR Doug Piva catch, O’Rourke would finish off the drive on a beautiful pass to WR Cedric Peterson, who had to reach up over DB Jayson Klyde, to score a touchdown. Providence had the early lead, but Montreal was able to bounce back as the 1st quarter was winding down. QB Gene Bishop would notice a bit of a hole downfield and would find WR Yahui Sun for a 42-yard play. A few plays later, RB Hugo Hughes used his speed, while also getting a great block from TE Hunter Ziegelbauer, to get around the outside and into the endzone.
PRO 7-7 MTL
2nd Q
The momentum that Montreal picked up from their touchdown did not last long. Early in the second quarter, QB Gene Bishop would not be able to escape the Providence pass rush and would have the ball knocked loose by DL Ryan Sargent. The fumble allowed the Gold Stars to score a field goal and retake the lead. Montreal would aim to bounce back later in the quarter, but after only one first down Bishop was hit again, this time during his throw by DL Craig White. The ball wobbled over the middle of the field and S Paul Christopher would beat WR Yahui Sun to the ball to get the interception. Providence took the momentum and rolled down the field to get back into striking range. QB Connor O’Rourke would fire home the touchdown by throwing a bullet right into the gut of WR Owen Paisley on the goal line. Paisley grunted as he caught the ball and then fell back into the endzone. The Providence defence would keep up their strong play to shut Montreal down for the rest of the half.
PRO 17-7 MTL
3rd Q
The third became a chance for defence to shine. Both teams were struggling to move the ball with only 53 yards gained by any team in the quarter combined. However, Montreal did still find a way to score after DL Lucas Kipling would strip the ball from QB Connor O’Rourke in field goal range. After just a measly 3 yards gained, K Arthur Kettinger would make it a 1-score game once again.
PRO 17-10 MTL
4th Q
Providence’s offence clicked back into gear to start the final quarter. A long drive would lead to the Gold Stars regaining their 10-point lead on a K Elvis Franklin field goal. Montreal continued to struggle, especially with their top WR Taylor Karis being completely shut down by DB Neville Falkner. Karis had not caught a single ball all day, but he finally had his moment in the 4th. Bishop was scrambling from more pressure and would throw to his favourite target. Karis, who had Falkner right on his back, would reach out and grab the ball while falling forward to make a stellar catch to keep the Rouge drive alive. They wouldn’t get much further, so they would escape with only a field goal, cutting the lead to 7. Montreal’s defence would stop the Gold Stars on the ensuing drive, forcing a 2 and out. WR Yahui Sun would return the punt and would slip past a pair of Gold Star defenders and find open field. Sun scrambled for a 34-yard return giving Montreal great field position and momentum. Bishop would pick up a first down on their first play, however, the second play would be an incomplete pass. On 2nd and 10, Bishop would drop back again and would see Taylor Karis mismatched onto DB Perry Ferris. He fired the pass at his top WR on the crossing route. The pass was slightly behind, but Karis was able to reach out, but only with his right hand as his other arm was pulled by Ferris. The ball would hit Karis’ hand and pop up and into the arms of Neville Falkner. The Gold Stars DB would return it back into Rouge territory before being stopped by RB Hugo Hughes. The Rouge were livid that there should have been pass interference, but nothing was called. Providence’s offence trotted onto the field and would run down the clock for a couple of plays. Eventually, RB Rashed Smith would slip through a hole created by a Rouge mistake and would dart to the endzone untouched. Smith celebrated the score and even waved goodbye to S Garet deVale. It certainly didn’t sit well with the Rouge as it caused some shoving in the dying plays. In the end, the Gold Stars were moving on.
London Tigers VS. Louisville Thunder - Western Fair Stadium - September 17, 1967 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 25ºC | 77ºF
1st Q
QB Buck Murphy took the field for his first career playoff start, ready to go up against QB Riley Kiernan who was making his 16th playoff start. Murphy’s playoff career did not get off to a great start, as his first pass attempt would be picked off by DB Jackson Miles. The Tigers would take the first lead with a field goal following the pick. Murphy was quick to brush off the interception and get the Thunder offence moving. Eventually, Murphy would throw a beautiful toss to WR Lloyd Lane, who made a great cut to get open in the endzone, to score a touchdown and give Louisville the lead.
LDN 3-7 LOU
2nd Q
The second quarter would start with the Tigers cutting the lead to one with a field goal. After their defence made a great stop, they had the ball back with an opportunity to take the lead. Kiernan would drop back from the Tigers’ 41-yard line and toss the ball to the check down in RB Austin Andrews. Andrews caught the ball and turned up field only to be pummelled by LB Calvin Hardy. The ball squirted loose and LB Le’Darius Wynn jumped on it to give Louisville the ball. Unfortunately, they only would get a field goal out of it. The Tigers bounced back from the turnover with a long and methodical drive. RB Austin Andrews would punch in the touchdown to give the Tigers the lead with less than a minute left in the half. Louisville did not have a lot of time to work with, but after a pair of quick plays to WR Casey Coleman and WR Carter Henderson, Buck Murphy would see WR Lloyd Lane open after DB Jackson Miles was caught off balance. Lane would catch the long pass with no one around him and would take it to the house, silencing the crowd in London.
LDN 13-17 LOU
3rd Q
The Thunder had the momentum coming out of the break. The offence continued to move the ball with poise, getting down to the 24-yard line. The Tigers would make a stop with DB Jackson Miles preventing Lloyd Lane’s 3rd touchdown of the game. K Frank Hughes came out to add to the Thunder lead. However, Hughes’ kick came off awkwardly and missed the uprights. No Tigers were back to return as they didn’t think Hughes would miss the kick so it would go through the endzone for a single. The missed kick seemed to give the Tigers new life. They would get their own field goal on the ensuing drive to pull to within 2-points. Louisville, on their ensuing drive, would start to move the ball again, however, they were faced with more pressure from the Tigers’ defence. Buck Murphy didn’t seem fazed by it as they moved the ball to midfield. On 1st and 10 from the Tigers’ 49-yard-line, Murphy would drop back to pass and DL Richard Blunt would break through the line. Murphy masterfully escaped the sack and saw a man downfield. He tossed the ball to WR Casey Coleman, only he was off balance and the ball was off-target landing in the arms of DB Bernard Wilkins. K Nimrod Handsworth would give the Tigers the lead, following the turnover.
LDN 19-18 LOU
4th Q
The pressure was turned all the way up for the final quarter of play. The teams traded drives but were unable to score until Louisville got a big play out of WR Casey Coleman to set up a touchdown run from RB Rodney Clark. Louisville would go for 2 and Murphy would find Coleman in the endzone to give them a 7-point lead. The Tigers were running out of time and QB Riley Kiernan had to step up. The veteran QB showed his experience by slowly picking apart the Thunder defence while remaining completely calm in the pocket. Time was running thin by the time the Tigers were in the redzone. Kiernan would make a great escape from the Thunder D-line from the 12-yard line, before tossing a touchdown to WR Russell Wilcox, who caught the ball right on the goal line with DB Jayden Mills right on him. The game was now tied, but Louisville still had a sliver of time left. RB George Seahorse would have a strong return on the next kick-off, giving Louisville solid field position. The Tigers sent the pressure, but Murphy remained confident and made several great passes to set up K Frank Hughes to win the game with 2 seconds left. Hughes was still a bit nervous seeing as he missed the previous kick. The home crowd was not helping with the Tigers’ fans trying to make as much noise as possible. The ball was snapped and Hughes took his steps and let his foot connect with the ball. It wasn’t quite right. The ball fluttered through the air and was beginning to veer far left. However, there was enough power behind it that it curved just inside the left upright. The Thunder swarmed their kicker as they were off to Buffalo.
Injury Report
LB Dallas Dillard LDN - Day-to-Day
Players of the Week
Division Finals Preview
East Division Final - Long Island Raiders VS. Providence Gold Stars
Head-to-Head: W1 - PRO 23-20 LI
All-Time Playoff Head-to-Head: Have Never Met in the Playoffs
The last time these two franchises played in a playoff game was back in 1941 (27th McCallister Cup) when the Gold Stars topped the Hartford Maroons 20-3. They will finally face off in the NAAF playoffs for the first time this weekend. Both teams bring sturdy defences to the table. Long Island has probably the best crew in the league with Providence being in the top half as well. With defences both being strong, it could come down to offence. In that respect, Providence has the most versatile offence. The Raiders very much stick to the run, especially with QB Stanley Troyer having a down year, while Providence can both air it out and run the ball. With that, I think the Gold Stars will upset the Raiders and head to the McCallister Cup.
My Pick: Gold Stars
West Division Final - Buffalo Blue Wings VS. Louisville Thunder
Head-to-Head: W12 - BUF 23-28 LOU
All-Time Playoff Head-to-Head: 2 Games, both have one 1
Neither of the Blue Wings and Thunder playoff games have been particularly close. Both times the winning team only allowed 6 points. I believe it will be different this go around as both teams have much better offences. Louisville showed this week that they have the resilience to keep fighting, however, it is unlikely that their defence will have as much success against the Blue Wings as they did the Tigers. Even if Louisville puts on a show, I still think the Blue Wings are just that much better and will take the win and head back to the McCallister Cup.
My Pick: Blue Wings
Long Island Raiders VS. Providence Gold Stars - Long Island Stadium - September 23, 1967 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 15ºC | 59ºF
1st Q
It was all defence right from the start of this showdown. The Raiders would punt on their first drive, and then the Gold Stars would give it back after QB Connor O’Rourke was chased down by DL Pionk Bjorkkstrand for a big sack on 2nd down. On the Raiders’ second drive, QB Stanley Troyer would look to make something happen, but his throw down the field was off the mark and DB Neville Falkner easily grabbed a pick. Unfortunately, the Gold Stars did not get anything out of it, as RB Rashed Smith would have the ball punched loose by LB William Washington II leading to another turnover. With both teams struggling to hold onto the football, there would be no scoring in the first quarter.
LI 0-0 PRO
2nd Q
Providence did start to get the ball moving for the first time in the second quarter. QB Connor O’Rourke would get the Gold Stars down to the 24-yard line, before taking a shot at the endzone. WR Cedric Peterson had a bit of space heading towards the front corner of the endzone. O’Rourke would see it and toss the ball his way, however, O’Rourke’s pass was under-thrown and DB Rutherford Winters would cut in front and pick it off. The turnovers just kept coming after that with the Raiders eventually losing the ball after WR Troy York caught a pass and then fumbled due to a hit from LB Victor Falkensteig, and then Providence would give it back when WR Owen Paisley had the ball knocked loose by DB Rutherford Winters following a reception. Following the Paisley fumble, the Raiders would become the first team to score with K Henderson Schumacher hitting on a 41-yard kick. Providence was unable to answer back before the break.
LI 3-0 PRO
3rd Q
After a 1st half with 5 total turnovers, both teams would focus on doing their best to keep possession. It would work overall, with the Raiders getting back into Gold Stars’ territory. From the 32, Troyer would hand it off to RB Dareion Fields and the star RB would find a tiny hole and fly through it. His speed would carry him past several defenders before he slowed down just enough to make DB Perry Ferris look silly with a stellar spin-move before scoring the first major of the game. Providence needed to answer as the Raiders’ offence had found their mojo. O’Rourke looked to start the drive off on a good foot. His first pass was toward WR Owen Paisley who had a deep curl route. As the pass was on the way, DB Lauri Hayha was passing just in front, covering WR Doug Piva and got a hand on it popping it up. Fortunately, he couldn’t catch it and Paisley reacted and dove to make the catch for a first down. After the close call, O’Rourke would keep the drive going. Eventually, he would find WR Doug Piva, who would catch the ball on an in-route before making a quick cut-up field. He would break off a tackle attempt from DB Alexander Bradley before getting some blocking help. Piva would pick up 38 yards on the play. A couple of plays later, O’Rourke would find WR Cedric Peterson in the endzone to keep the Gold Stars in the game.
LI 10-7 PRO
4th Q
The final quarter would be intense, however, there was a return of turnovers early on. O’Rourke would throw his second pick of the game after DL Dean Leanman tipped a pass at the line and LB Ed Krzano would get underneath it, however, Providence would get it right back with Troyer throwing his second pick to DB Elvin Waters. Providence would take advantage of the Waters interception, scoring a field goal to tie the game up. With the game locked at 10, both teams would be desperately trying to score, but yet again defence was faring better than the offence. Eventually, Long Island would pick up some yards but would be forced to punt. Henderson Schumacher’s kick would fly and skip into the endzone. RB Ronnie Byers would be the return man and would have to make sure it gets out of the endzone to not give up a single. He was only able to get to the 5-yard line, before being tackled. O’Rourke would attempt to get the Gold Stars out of the shadow of their own goalposts, but for the 3rd time of the game, he would be picked off, and once again by DB Rutherford Winters, giving the Raiders great field position. The Raiders would try to run the clock as they inched their way down to the 2-yard line. Everyone in the stadium expected them to give it back to RB Dareion Fields, but the Raiders would pull out the play action. As Troyer rolled off the line, LB Kurt Warlock was able to get into the backfield to challenge Troyer. Troyer would be forced to lob the ball into the endzone. It was a risky throw especially with DB Neville Falkner closing in on WR Chad Anderson, but Anderson would reach up and grab it to score a touchdown. The crowd exploded with excitement. The Raiders' defence would hold off the Gold Stars to clinch their 3rd McCallister Cup appearance in 4 years.
QB Stanley Troyer took the field for the Raiders getting his 4th straight start in a semi-final/division final game, becoming only the 3rd QB (Larry Larson, Jean Matieau) to reach that many.
LI - 54 - LB William Washington II
PRO - 95 - DL Craig White
Buffalo Blue Wings VS. Louisville Thunder - Milton Charles Stadium - September 24, 1967 - 7 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 13ºC | 56ºF
1st Q
The thunderous roar of the Blue Wings’ fans ironically gave the thunder a tough time early on with communication. Combined with the aggressive defensive play calling, it was a disastrous first 2 plays for the Thunder as QB Buck Murphy would be sacked before throwing a beautiful pass to the ground on second down. His confusion and frustration may mean that there was supposed to be a receiver there. As for Buffalo, their offence was hitting it off on their first drive. After RB Jimmy Golden gave them a couple of strong runs to put them in scoring range, Lemieux would fire a perfect pass to WR Julius Drake who made the touchdown grab despite both DB Jayden Mills and S Johnny Berger closing in to compete for the ball. Later on, Louisville would be driving with a little more gas in the tank, but the drive would be stalled when S Wesley Jones would pick off an errant Buck Murphy pass. The Blue Wings’ offence picked up right where they left off and drove the field again. However, once they got down to the 5, the Blue Wings would try to get in around the outside with RB Jimmy Golden. S Johnny Berger read the play and went for Golden’s waist. The RB got too confident and tried to jump the tackle, but it would spill disaster and Berger’s speed and where he connected, Golden would lose the ball and fall awkwardly onto the field. DB Bobby Bastian would pick up the fumble and return it 24 yards before QB Charles Lemieux pushed him out of bounds. Golden would remain on the field and would be slow to get off the field.
BUF 7-0 LOU
2nd Q
While the Blue Wing trainers looked at Golden, the Thunder started to put together a strong drive. They would march all the way down to the redzone before Murphy would hit WR Casey Coleman on the post route to score and tie the game up at 7. When the Blue Wings retook the field RB Théodore Lemieux was in place of Golden, as their starting RB was done for the day. Théodore Lemieux came out and put together a string of strong runs for 34 yards on 3 carries. They once again were threatening to score and Charles Lemieux would pull out the play-action from 5 yards out. After faking it to his brother, Charles looked off the defence before firing it over to Théodore. LB Sam Wynn jumped up to make a tackle, but Théodore spun off it and would get into the endzone to make it 14-7. The Thunder hoped to keep the back and forth going on their next drive, but a great play call for the Blue Wings would work to their advantage. S Wesley Jones would be sent in on the safety blitz on second down for the Thunder. While QB Buck Murphy saw it and looked to get the ball off quickly, RB Rodney Clark was a little behind and Jones slipped right past to hit Murphy as he threw. The ball would flutter into the arms of LB Orion Carter. The Lemieux brothers returned to the field and once again and Théodore Lemieux would score a touchdown on a 4-yard run to make it 21-7 at halftime.
BUF 21-7 LOU
3rd Q
The second half would start on the wrong foot for the Blue Wings as WR Tracy Driscoll would bobble the kickoff return. He luckily recovered, but after a short run and a dropped pass from WR Jimmy Jack, Buffalo had their first 2 and out on the day. The Thunder would take over and found themselves looking to shift the momentum back into their favour. It would start well as Murphy threw a contested ball to WR Casey Coleman who would make the grab over DB Dean Hawkins. The Thunder continued down into Blue Wings territory. From 30 yards out, Buck Murphy would huck up another contested ball to his favourite target WR Lloyd Lane. DB Ezra Power did what he could but Lane won the battle and came down with the touchdown. Buffalo was quick to counter with Charles Lemieux leading the Blue Wings back into scoring range. From 40 yards out, Charles Lemieux would make a stellar throw, fitting the ball into a very tight window between 2 Louisville DBs. WR Jimmy Jack made up for his earlier drop and took the pass to the house to put the Blue Wings up by 14 once again.
BUF 28-14 LOU
4th Q
The final quarter became crunch time for the Thunder. However, despite a couple of great plays from the offence, QB Buck Murphy would throw his 3rd interception of the game after getting a little too aggressive. DB Ezra Power came down with it to give Buffalo the ball. Luckily for Louisville, their defence was able to stop Buffalo. Louisville still came out aggressive again, knowing that they needed 2 touchdowns still. QB Buck Murphy was making it work with several key throws getting Louisville back into scoring range. They got down to the 7-yard line, but Buffalo would force back-to-back incompletions, setting up 3rd and Goal. Murphy took the snap and felt pressure coming. He stayed calm and rolled a bit to his left where he saw TE Rex Williamson break off from his block. Murphy threw it to the TE who would take it in for his first career touchdown at a very important time. Louisville still had plenty of time so they gave the ball back to the Blue Wings. Charles Lemieux would have just over 4 minutes to work with. Charles and his brother would attempt to eat up the clock, taking as much time on each snap. However, after a couple of runs, Charles decided to catch the Thunder by surprise and go aggressive. It worked well with WR Julius Drake getting open for an 18-yard play. They kept it going as OC Soni Dionne got the okay from HC Maurice Evanson to go aggressive with still a lot of time left. They would get to the redzone before Théodore got a few more runs to get closer. Then he would find a hole from the 6-yard line to score his 3rd touchdown of the game and give Buffalo the 35-21 lead. At this point, The Thunder had to get really aggressive, they would quickly find themselves on 3rd down again, and Buck Murphy was almost sacked, but he did get the ball away only to fall dead with no one around it for another turnover. Buffalo would hold on to win earning their 3rd McCallister Cup berth in 4 years.
This win also marks Charles Lemieux’s 5th straight playoff win, he joins Larry Larson and Jean Matieau as the only QBs to complete the feat. He’s tied Larson’s record of 5 straight but is still 3 behind Matieau’s 8 straight.
LOU - 38 - S Johnny Berger
Injury Report
RB Jimmy Golden BUF - 1 Week
OL Elliot Winterbottom LI - 1 Week
WR Carter Henderson LOU - 2 Weeks
OL Tyler Cunningham PRO - 6 Weeks
Players of the Week
49th McCallister Cup Preview
Buffalo Blue Wings VS. Long Island Raiders - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park
Head-to-Head 1967: W9 - BUF 27-16 LI
All-Time Playoff Head-to-Head: 2 Games, BUF has won both games
A rematch of the 46th McCallister Cup is what will go down in Canada’s Capital. Both teams have been the dominant teams over the last 4 years. They are the only 2 teams to take home the Cup over the last 3 and will continue that trend regardless of who wins. As for the actual matchup, the two teams should both have strong defences to cause issues for the opposing offence, however, Buffalo seems to have a significant advantage offensively, even if they may not have their star RB in Jimmy Golden. Long Island can play well if RB Dareion Fields gets going, but they will need QB Stanley Troyer to step up in order to win. With several interceptions this week, Troyer certainly doesn’t bring a lot of confidence. Overall, Buffalo as a whole has outplayed just about everyone this season, and I don’t see that changing in this game.
My Pick: Blue Wings
Fun Fact: This McCallister Cup will be the first meeting between the two division winners in the game since the Royals and Raiders met in 1958.
Before we do get to the 49th McCallister Cup we will have the Hybrid Hall of Fame Unveiling!
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