1955 Week 5

Boston Independents - 19, Providence Gold Stars - 20 - Richardson Stadium - August 13, 1955 - 1 PM ET - CBS
The long time rivalry looked much different this season with QB Connor O’Rourke and QB Brian Meadows leading the way instead of the usual Larry Larson and Bruce Woodard. However, that didn’t stop the match from being as gritty as ever. The fans still hated the opposing fan base and the fact that the teams were in different places didn’t seem to matter. To open up the game it was a pair of turnovers as DB Victor Bean would snag a pick off of Meadows before LB Brent Harper would steal it back from RB Johnnie Stafford. It would take till the second for a team to score. That would end up being Providence on a long drive which ended in a WR Peter Brooks touchdown catch. The score was still 7-0 at halftime. In the third, Boston would get to the endzone with RB Joel Bonner before adding a field goal off of a DB Lester Murphy interception. O’Rourke wouldn’t back down and would regain the lead on a 20-yard pass to WR Peter Brooks. Boston would continue to put pressure on the Gold Stars with another field goal heading into the final quarter. Boston would stop Providence on several occasions throughout the final frame and their offense would once again reach the endzone on a WR Ethan Walters touchdown. Boston would miss on the 2-point attempt, unfortunately. Providence now had to come from behind in front of the dreaded Boston crowd, but it didn’t seem to faze Connor O’Rourke. He would march the offense the entire field not missing a single throw. The perfect drive would be capped off with a WR John Osborn touchdown which would seal it for the Gold Stars in a nail biter.  

Worcester Athletics - 24, Long Island Raiders - 24 - Worcester Stadium - August 13, 1955 - 4 PM ET
A very important game for both of the typical bottom dwellers in the New England division. Worcester needed to pull themselves back into the race while Long Island was looking to continue their hot start. Long Island would be the one to get off on the right foot, continuing their momentum from last week. QB Lyle Painter would get the team down for an early 0-10 lead on a touchdown pass to WR Robert Lang, followed by a field goal. Worcester’s offense was not working too well and had only 1 first down in the opening frame. The defense would help out a bit with a huge stop deep in Long Island territory. That would give Worcester some field position to work with and would lead to a touchdown from RB Marcus Devonshire. The game would remain 7-10 heading into the break. Long Island would breakthrough with an early touchdown on a pass to WR Darryl Duke to extend their lead. Worcester would grab some momentum back with QB Riley Kiernan marching the offense down the field for a WR Michael Mcleod touchdown. The score got the defense into it and they would come up with a huge interception with DB Alexander Bradley. Kiernan would then go back to the endzone with WR Clyde McIntosh on the ensuing drive. Long Island was now down by 4 and needed to get something going. Unfortunately, their defense would suffer another blow with LB Sharquay Bradford going down after taking a blindside block on a Marcus Devonshire run. Long Island was not happy sparking some shouting, but Worcester would still get away with a field goal. Long Island was not going to go away quietly as Painter started moving the ball up the field. Unfortunately, he would fall short of half, but the defense was there to bail them out. DL Tyrone Affalo would nail Marcus Devonshire as he made it up the middle knocking the ball loose. LB Elijah Goldwater would pick it up and bring it to about the 6-yard line where RB Gene Fischer would eventually punch it in. No one would score from that point ending the game in a stunning tie.  

Buffalo Blue Wings - 17, Ontario Tigers - 12 - Buffalo Civic Stadium - August 14, 1955 - 3 PM ET - CBS
The battle of the Great Lakes kicked off Sunday’s NAAF action. Buffalo was looking to continue their climb back into the divisional race while the Tigers were looking to keep up with the top dog Royals. It would be a defensive showdown early on. Neither team gained much ground as they traded drive after drive. Eventually, the Tigers would grab a field goal to make it 0-3 heading into the second. Buffalo would get a spark in the second from their defense. DL Sean Bowen would make his way around the OL and would get to Duane Logan. He would be able to get a hand on the ball but would be brought down awkwardly. The ball would fly up and come down in the hands of LB Lloyd Mathis resulting in a turnover. Unfortunately, Bowen would re-aggravate his injury from last season and will likely miss a game. However, Buffalo would take advantage of the interception with a touchdown drive led by RB Arthur Conner. The Tigers would struggle to get their offense going and Buffalo would add a field goal heading into the half. The game would remain gritty, with neither team budging, but Buffalo would slowly start to make some ground with Angelo Medina making a couple plays on his feet. Eventually, the team would get back to the endzone on Conner’s second of the game. The Tigers would get a field goal on their next drive, but their offense was not the same as it had been. The weakened Buffalo DL started to show a bit with RB Laurent Brazeau gaining some yards in the final quarter. Brazeau would eventually get the Tigers close enough for Logan to find WR Wilbert Benjamin in the endzone for the score, cutting the lead to just 5 after a failed 2-pointer. Unfortunately for Ontario, the Blue Wings defense would hold strong for the remainder of the game leading to Buffalo’s third straight win.  

Montreal Rouge - 13, Ottawa Royals - 31 - Mount Royals Stadium - August 14, 1955 - 6 PM ET - CBC
The Royals-Rouge Rivalry was the finale of the league’s rivalry week, and Ottawa was looking to continue their hot start to the season. QB Jean Matieau would have some fun with the Montreal defense. Picking them apart over the entire opening half. It would lead to 3 touchdowns, 1 to WR Allen Atkins, another to WR Willard Brooks, and the final to RB Alexei Volkov. Montreal on the other hand had rookie QB Rigobert St-Hilaire starting his first game after Lee Rogers was benched for his outburst last week. St-Hilaire had seen the field a bit over the team’s last two games and was finding a bit more comfort in this one. The QB would help RB Élisée Marchal get to the endzone as well as setting up a field goal in the final minutes of the half. They were still down 10-21, but it was a start and St-Hilaire would continue to show some flashes of potential. Unfortunately, he would still have to go through some growing pains with an interception to DB Uzzia Hayes followed by a fumble trying to get away from LB Mickaël Beaumont. The turnovers would lead to another pair of Ottawa scores. A field goal would be followed up by a short toss to rookie WR Mackenzie Jones for his first career touchdown. Montreal would manage to snag a field goal, but it was a rough week for the squad once again. 

Players of the Week 

OFF: QB Conner O’Rourke PRO - 3 Passing Touchdowns,  345 Passing Yards 

DEF: DL Tyrone Affalo LI - 1 Forced Fumble, 1 Sack, 7 Tackles

Injury Report
DL Sean Bowen BUF - 1 Week
LB Sharquay Bradford LI - Season
DL Calias McDonough - 1 Week

Standings
NORTH
Ottawa 5-0
Buffalo 3-2
Ontario 3-2
Montreal 1-4

NEW ENGLAND
Long Island 3-1-1
Providence 3-2
Worcester 1-3-1
Boston 0-5

Power Rankings
1 - Ottawa -
2 - Buffalo +1
3 - Ontario -1
4 - Long Island -
5 - Providence -
6 - Worcester -
7 - Boston -
8 - Montreal -

Week 6 Games
LI (3-1-1) @ OTT (5-0) - AUG 19 - 7 PM ET - CBS
WOR (1-3-1) @ MTL (1-4) - AUG 20 - 1 PM ET
BOS (0-5) @ PRO (3-2) - AUG 20 - 4 PM ET - CBS
BUF (3-2) @ ON (3-2) - AUG 21 - 3 PM ET - CBC

Now that we have reached the second half, any predictions about the second half of the season? possible changes to anyone's predictions?

Lets keep it going Wings!

Please don't collapse again Tigers, it was looking so promising.

1955 Week 6

Ottawa Royals - 30, Long Island Raiders - 17 - Royals Stadium at Brewer Park - August 19, 1955 - 7 PM ET - CBS
The division leaders squared off in Ottawa to kick off week 6 of the NAAF season. It would be the Royals who would flex their might once again in this one. Ottawa would open up the scoring on a 36-yard RB Alexei Volkov touchdown run, before following it up with a WR Allen Atkins touchdown. Long Island was trying to get back into the game, but nothing was going their way. QB Lyle Painter would throw an interception to DB Mingan Oliver in the second which would lead to a Royals field goal. Long Island would finally break their silence with Painter leading them to the endzone in the final minutes of the half. WR Travis Gallagher was the recipient of Painter’s TD pass. The second half would start once again with Ottawa scoring. QB Jean Matieau would find WR Allen Atkins in the endzone for his second of the game and a 23-7 lead. Long Island was still able to stay in the game with a field goal drive near the end of the third. They would get back to the endzone midway through the 4th on a run from RB Gene Fischer to cut the lead to only 6. However, Ottawa’s offense would make quick work of the Raiders defense leading to another touchdown to RB Alexei Volkov. The Royals would hold on to their unbeaten season with the win over Long Island.  

Montreal Rouge - 27, Worcester Athletics - 7 - Mount Royal Stadium - August 20, 1955 - 1 PM ET
QB Lee Rogers came back from his 1 game benching determined to get back on the winning side. The QB would show he still had skill escaping pressure in order to pick up a 1st down, followed by a deep shot to WR Marty Jay. Jay would reel it in for a touchdown giving Montreal a 7-0 lead. Worcester, who has not been able to get a footing on their season would continue to stumble after QB Riley Kiernan would be picked off by DB Quentin Xavier. Montreal would go on to score another touchdown on a pass to WR Ray Lopez. Rogers would get Montreal back for a field goal before the half to make it 17-0. Worcester would march down the field early in the 3rd only to have Xavier reel in his second interception. Montreal would add another field goal to extend the lead 20-0 going into the final quarter. Worcester would finally get on the board in the 4th with a WR Clyde McIntosh touchdown, but Montreal would not be stopped. RB Élisée Marchal would cap off the day for Montreal with one more touchdown leaving the Athletics dumbfounded over another loss. Rogers was very happy about the win and talked about the benching as a wake-up call. Hopefully, he can continue to keep the upward swing into the rest of the season.  

Providence Gold Stars - 21, Boston Independents - 20 - New Providence Stadium - August 20, 1955 - 4 PM ET - CBS
The rematch between the Gold Stars and Independents would once again be a nail biter. Both defenses showed up early to shut down the offense early. Neither team would score in the opening frame, but Boston would get the upper hand after DB Lester Murphy came down with a pick to set up a RB Joel Bonner touchdown to start the second. Providence wouldn’t take too long to answer with QB Connor O’Rourke connecting with WR Peter Brooks for a touchdown. The score would remain at 7-7 into the break. Boston was looking to finally snap the winless streak this season and they put themselves in a great position to open the second half. With a pair of quick scores. They would grab a field goal, followed by a touchdown pass to TE Richard Stewart, who had missed all of last season. The final quarter had the Gold Stars down by 10. They would get the ball rolling when DB Lee Wolfe would pick off Meadows early on and take it back to the house for six. Boston would manage a field goal to counter, but Providence’s offense would be tough to stop on their next drive. O’Rourke would lead them the whole way to the endzone. He would cap off the drive with a pass to RB Johnnie Stafford out of the backfield. Boston would get a last-ditch opportunity but Providence’s defense would come up with a big stop forcing Boston to turn it over on downs and earning the Gold Stars another win. 

Ontario Tigers - 32, Buffalo Blue Wings - 35 - Kitchener-Waterloo City Field - August 21, 1955 - 3 PM ET - CBC
The final game of the week was also a rematch between Ontario and Buffalo. The Tigers were looking to rebound from the loss last week and they would get off to a good start. QB Duane Logan would lead the offense for an early score with WR John Rivera catching the scoring pass. Buffalo, however, was sticking right with the Tigers, as they would march back the other way for a tying score to WR Samuel Floyd. The game would continue to be back and forth with the Tigers answering right back with a RB Laurent Brazeau score. Buffalo would be stopped on their next drive but wouldn’t be held back from tying it back up again on a RB Arthur Conner touchdown. Ontario would sneak in a field goal just before the break. The second half was much the same with Buffalo taking their first lead on a QB Angelo Medina scramble into the endzone. The Tigers would answer back with a touchdown following that on a deep shot to WR Wilbert Benjamin. Buffalo would strike next with WR Samuel Floyd using his speed to get past DB Paul Gregory and go all the way to the endzone. Buffalo would be up 24-28 going into the final frame. Ontario was not ready to lose another game and would start the 4th aggressively, unfortunately, this would not go according to plan with DL Jonathan Brown knocking the ball loose from Brazeau and giving Buffalo a prime chance to score. They would follow through with Arthur Conner’s second of the game. Ontario would double down following the mistake and answer back quickly with WR Marqués Gardner scoring. They would get the 2-pointer to cut the lead to only 3. The Tigers would get another chance after a defensive stop, but they were unable to break through the Blue Wings defense and would ultimately fall short once again.  

Players of the Week

OFF: QB Angelo Medina BUF - 2 Passing Touchdowns, 1 Rushing Touchdown, 268 Passing Yards

DEF: DB Quentin Xavier MTL - 2 Interceptions, 3 Tackles, 3 Knockdowns 

Injury Report
LB Marco Price BOS - Day-to-Day
OL Melvin Marshall BUF - 2 Weeks
WR Jake Hadder MTL - 5 Weeks
DL Napoléon Chevalier ON - Day-to-Day
DB Karl Shannon PRO - Day-to-Day
OL Derek Palmer PRO - 2 Weeks

Standings
NORTH
Ottawa 6-0
Buffalo 4-2
Ontario 3-3
Montreal 2-4

NEW ENGLAND
Providence 4-2
Long Island 3-2-1
Worcester 1-4-1
Boston 0-6

Power Rankings
1 - Ottawa -
2 - Buffalo -
3 - Ontario -
4 - Providence +1
5 - Long Island -1
6 - Boston +1
7 - Montreal +1
8 - Worcester -2

Week 7 Games
MTL (2-4) @ BOS (0-6) - AUG 26 - 7 PM ET
ON (3-3) @ LI (3-2-1) - AUG 27 - 1 PM ET - CBS
BUF (4-2) @ PRO (4-2) - AUG 27 - 4 PM ET - CBS
OTT (6-0) @ WOR (1-4-1) - AUG 28 - 3 PM ET
*OTT clinches playoff with Win + ON Loss

Last edited by Wallflower (7/19/2020 2:04 pm)

1955 Week 7

Boston Independents - 20, Montreal Rouge - 10 - Richardson Stadium - August 26, 1955 - 7 PM ET
A very different Boston-Montreal battle with both teams at the bottom of their division instead of the top. It would be all defense early with neither team gaining a first down until 4 minutes left in the first. It would be on a RB Élisée Marchal run which would be his final on the day. LB Silas O’Brien would tackle Marchal and the star RB would not be able to get off the field on his own power and will likely miss the rest of the season. That put a major damper on Montreal. Boston would take over not long after and would be the first to score on a RB Joel Bonner touchdown. Montreal would go to RB Pierre LeStrange out of the backfield and he struggled a lot early. Lee Rogers would be the player they would have to rely on now. Rogers would get a field goal to keep them in it 7-3 at the half. Boston would continue to put up points with a field goal followed up with a WR Ellis Lindholm touchdown. The defense would keep throwing Montreal off of their game with LB Brent Harper punching the ball out of LeStrange’s hands and then S Michael O’Brien picking off Rogers. Boston would hold the 20-3 lead going into the final frame. Rogers was frustrated again but he showed a bit more composure and was able to orchestrate a late touchdown drive to cut the lead in half. He would connect with WR Ray Lopez to cap off the drive, but that was all they had.  

Long Island Raiders - 27, Ontario Tigers - 23 - Long Island Stadium - August 27, 1955 - 1 PM ET - CBS
The Tigers rolled into Long Island looking to avoid their third straight loss. QB Duane Logan would get the team rolling early with a long drive that would get them on the board quickly with a WR Wilbert Benjamin touchdown. The Raiders would have some trouble in their attempt to counter and would lose the ball on a RB Gene Fischer fumble. The Tigers would add a field goal to their lead. The Raiders would finally get on the board with a field goal early in the second, but Ontario would continue to put up points with a pair of field goals. The Raiders would manage a late field goal to cut the lead to just 10 before the break. The Tigers would get a great spark early in the third with DB Louie White picking off QB Lyle Painter which would set up a RB Laurent Brazeau touchdown to make it 6-23. It seemed like the Raiders had no answers for the Tigers, but Painter would pick things up following the interception. He would get the Raiders to the endzone on the next drive finding WR Robert Lang. The defense would also come alive with a huge stop and then a big turnover as DB Slay Mitchell would take the ball from Logan. The Raiders would tack on another touchdown with a pass to TE Johnny Mantle IV. The Tigers were all the sudden only up by 3. They would get conservative and just ran the ball with Brazeau. With the return of DL Vernon Spears, the Raiders were able to stop him and would get another chance. Painter, who is not known for going deep, would take a shot at WR Robert Lang and the receiver would catch it taking it down to the 11-yard line. Painter was then able to toss it to WR Darryl Duke for the touchdown and the lead. The Tigers were panicked and Logan would try to make something out of nothing and was picked off by DB Francis Veillette as the Raiders continue to defy expectations. 
*This also marks the most wins in a NAAF season for the Hawks/Raiders franchise. 

Providence Gold Stars - 13, Buffalo Blue Wings - 24 - New Providence Stadium - August 27, 1955 - 4 PM ET - CBS
Buffalo was looking to continue their current hot streak against the Gold Stars and they would be quite successful in the feat. QB Angelo Medina was able to get the offense moving early to go up 0-3 early in the game. QB Connor O’Rourke was not so successful with the Blue Wings defense and was sacked on his first drive twice. Buffalo would eventually get an interception with DB Ollie Guy which would give them a touchdown chance which RB Arthur Conner would punch in to make it 0-10. Providence was still unable to get the ball rolling on offense, but their defense would hold Buffalo to 10 points for the rest of the half. The Gold Stars would finally break their silence in the third with O’Rourke finding WR Peter Brooks who would run it 15 yards after the catch to score. Buffalo would counter with a touchdown of their own as WR Joseph Barry would score. Providence would cut the lead on 7 with a field goal, but Buffalo was back in the endzone on their next drive with Arthur Conner once again. Providence would only manage another field goal as the Buffalo defense would hold strong for the team’s 5th win in a row. 

Worcester Athletics - 25, Ottawa Royals - 20 - Worcester Stadium - August 28, 1955 - 3 PM ET
The Athletics have not had anywhere near the success they have wanted all season, but the return of WR Christian Venegas would be a huge help in a big game against the unbeaten Royals. QB Riley Kiernan wasn’t able to get to the endzone early but a field goal would give them 3-0 lead. Ottawa’s offense was not quite on point in this game, possibly underestimating the Athletics and they would not score in the opening quarter. The Athletics would add a second field goal before the second quarter began. Ottawa would finally break their silence with a WR Chester Bennett touchdown to make it 6-7. However, the Athletics also found their groove at this point with the offense getting to the endzone. WR Christian Venegas would score the touchdown to give them the lead back. They would miss the 2-pointer, but the defense would come up big with S Shawn Jensen picking off QB Jean Matieau. That would turn into a touchdown with RB Marcus Devonshire to set the score at 19-7 at halftime. Ottawa would be quick to get points out of the break with a field goal, but the Athletics were not going to back down and matched it minutes later.  Ottawa would still find the endzone again with RB Alexei Volkov to make it 22-17. The final minutes of the game were intense with each team trading chances. Ottawa would get another field goal chipping away at the lead. Worcester would not be able to counter and Ottawa had another chance. The Royals inched their way down the field. As they would get closer, Matieau would look to his favourite target, Allen Atkins. The WR would be in the right position, but a much younger DB would get aggressive and steal the game. DB Alexander Bradley would snag the ball and take it deep into Ottawa territory. The Athletics would wind down the clock and get a field goal to hold on for the shocking win.  

Players of the Week 

OFF: QB Lyle Painter LI - 3 Passing Touchdowns, 345 Passing Yards 

DEF: DB Alexander Bradley - 1 Interception, 4 Tackles, 4 Knockdowns 

Injury Report
S Frazier Brooks BUF - Day-to-Day
RB Élisée Marchal MTL - 3 Weeks
OL Bravon Covington OTT - Day-to-Day
OL Benjamin Harrell PRO - 3 Weeks 

Standings
NORTH
Ottawa 6-1
Buffalo 5-2
Ontario 3-4
Montreal 2-5

NEW ENGLAND
Long Island 4-2-1
Providence 4-3
Worcester 2-4-1
Boston 1-6

Power Rankings
1 - Buffalo +1
2 - Ottawa -1
3 - Long Island +2
4 - Providence -
5 - Ontario -2
6 - Worcester +2
7 - Boston -1
8 - Montreal -1

Week 8 Games
WOR (2-4-1) @ BOS (1-6) - SEP 3 - 1 PM ET - CBS
PRO (4-3) @ LI (4-2-1) - SEP 3 - 4 PM ET - CBS
*LI clinches playoff spot with win + ON loss or tie
MTL (2-5) @ BUF (5-2) - SEP 5 - 3 PM ET
*BUF clinches playoff spot with win + ON loss or tie
OTT (6-1) @ ON (3-4) - SEP 5 - 6 PM ET - CBC
*OTT clinches playoff spot with win

Last edited by Wallflower (7/19/2020 10:16 pm)