1971 NAAF Playoffs: Quarter-Finals

Roster Moves
BUF: LB Dallas Dillard | Active Roster -> Injured Reserve
BUF: LB Basti Gräbner (Rookie) | Reserve List -> Active Roster
MIN: RB Hugo Hughes | Active Roster -> Injured Reserve
MIN: WR Sebastian Dassler | Active Roster -> Injured Reserve
MIN: RB Allen Navarro | Reserve List -> Active Roster
MIN: WR Montana Stole | Receive List -> Active Roster
PRO: QB Red King | Active Roster -> Injured Reserve
PRO: QB Daryl Plum (Rookie) | Reserve List -> Active Roster

(8) Buffalo Blue Wings @ (1) Pittsburgh Blacksmiths - Riverfront Stadium of Pittsburgh - October 9, 1971 - 2:00 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy - 18°C | 64°F - Attendance: 48,474

1st Quarter
A crazy crowd in Pittsburgh gathered in the old Riverfront Stadium for the first playoff game in the city in over 2 decades. The excitement was almost overwhelming. Early on, the game was slow. Both teams struggled to move the ball. Buffalo’s offence was being shut down by a determined Blacksmiths’ defence, while the absence of WR Orlando Barrack and WR Edward Washington was starting to show for the Blacksmiths with several dropped passes from their replacements. The Blue Wings would eventually find a way to get some points on the board after WR Jimmy Jack escaped a tackle attempt from DB Aiden Sargent to pick up 16 yards and set up K Ryan Perch for a field goal. The opening quarter would end with the Blue Wings up 3-0.
BUF 3-0 PIT

2nd Quarter
Pittsburgh’s offence rebounded in the 2nd with RB Max Tracy starting to become a factor. The veteran RB would slowly chip away at the Blue Wings’ D-line, while QB Louis Vaughn would occasionally toss a pass to keep Buffalo honest. Eventually, Tracy would break through to the endzone midway through the 2nd to give Pittsburgh the lead and re-energize the home crowd. Buffalo’s offence would struggle with the noise from the Pittsburgh faithful and had a couple of miscommunications throughout the quarter. The worst of which saw WR Tracy Driscoll make the wrong cut allowing DB Zed McLaughlin to catch the ball uncontested for an interception. Pittsburgh would add a field goal to their lead before the half.
BUF 3-10 PIT

3rd Quarter
The Blue Wings would attempt to knock the Blacksmiths off their game in the 3rd. The defence, especially, getting a little more physical and rough around the edges. They came at the Blacksmiths with more aggression. Overall, they stayed within the rules and kept it clean if just physical. Pittsburgh’s offence would start to feel it with QB Louis Vaughn taking a couple of licks as the team only picked up a single first down in the first 8 minutes of the quarter. On the other side, Buffalo’s offence would manage to get down for another field goal to cut the lead down to just 4. On Pittsburgh’s next drive after the field goal, they would catch a break with QB Louis Vaughn firing a quick pass to WR Taylor Austin. Austin slipped past DB Dean Hawkins and picked up 23 on the play. On the next play, RB Max Tracy would pick up another 1st down. After another Tracy run for 2 yards, Vaughn would go back to the air. He didn’t get the ball off as quickly this time, so he had to move around in the pocket. Eventually, he saw WR Justin Anger open up and Vaughn would jump up to get the pass to him. However, as he was in the air, DL Ned Hedman would hammer him from the side. Vaughn went to the ground fast and landed on his throwing arm. The QB yelled out in pain and remained on the ground. Anger had caught the ball but they were well short of the first. Vaughn would end up leaving the game with a fracture in his throwing arm leading QB Leif Christiansen to complete the game. Despite the injury, Pittsburgh remained in front after heading into the 4th.
BUF 6-10 PIT

4th Quarter
In the final frame, the Blue Wings looked to take advantage of the Blacksmiths’ situation. They loaded up the box and aimed to shut down RB Max Tracy and force QB Leif Christiansen to throw the ball. The plan worked and an inaccurate throw from Christiansen would lead to a DB Charles Grimm interception in Pittsburgh territory. QB Charles Lemieux would lead the Blue Wings down the rest of the way before RB Robert Erwin would punch it in from 2 yards out to give them back the lead, 13-10. If they weren’t nervous already, the fans of Pittsburgh certainly were now as their team fell behind. The offence leaned heavily on RB Max Tracy through the next drive. Tracy did some damage, picking up 25 yards, but eventually, the Blue Wings would force a punt. After Buffalo gave the ball back, the Blacksmiths got rolling again. RB Max Tracy put the team on his back and helped them get into field goal range. K Nigel Stewart would come out to kick a 36-yarder, but his boot would be pulled wide left. WR Boris Bohka elected to take the ball out of the endzone and proceeded to return it back to the 37, almost getting into open field if not for a desperate hand to the foot from LB Kyle Essena. The Blue Wings would feed off of the momentum. QB Charles Lemieux would begin to march the offence down the field. He would find WR Jimmy Jack, then TE Paul Arturberry, and then WR Tracy Driscoll who made a contested catch over DB Zed McLaughlin. After RB Yancy Harrison broke away for 12 more yards, Lemieux would step back to throw. He waited patiently, evading a tackle attempt from DL Matthias Hartmann before firing a shot to the back of the endzone where WR Julius Drake would make the catch to extend Buffalo’s lead to 10. Pittsburgh did not give up. RB Max Tracy continued to pick up chunks of yards while Christiansen settled in and made a couple of strong throws. However, they were also chewing up the clock. They would eventually settle for a field goal to make it a one-score game again. However, they only had 58 seconds left. An onside kick would need to be attempted. Buffalo would easily get possession of the ball on the attempt. They would be able to run the clock, stunning the Blacksmiths and handing them their first loss since week 3. 


(7) Vancouver Wolves @ (2) Montreal Rouge - Mount Royal Stadium - October 9, 1971 - 7:00 PM ET - Weather: Cloudy/Light Rain - 8°C | 46°F - Attendance: 46,491

1st Quarter
Light showers fell over Mount Royal Stadium as the 2nd Quarter-Final began between the Rouge and Wolves. The ball would be a little slippery early on in the game, with the kickoff being fumbled by Vancouver returner, RB Nikki Yang. Montreal would recover and quickly close the distance on the endzone. Rookie RB Bo Frazier, would punch in the early touchdown to give Montreal a 0-7 lead. Following the score, the teams would trade 2 and outs before Vancouver would catch a break on a big play from RB Jeremiah Morrow. The veteran RB, weaved his way through the Rouge defence for a big 26-yard gain to get over midfield. QB Kevin Westwood would then connect with WR Keshawn Johnston to get down to the 12, where Morrow again found a hole and, this time, got into the endzone to tie the game. 
VAN 7-7 MTL

2nd Quarter
As the first quarter had come to a close, the Rouge were driving down the field. The rain started to let up at this point, but it did not make the ball any less slippery. QB Gene Bishop would take a snap but lost his grip on the ball as he pulled back to throw. A pile formed and Vancouver came away with possession. However, Vancouver wouldn’t have much luck, as on second down, Westwood’s pass to TE Johnny Temple would connect, but the TE fumbled it soon after allowing Montreal to get the ball back. The Rouge would take care of the football on the ensuing drive and get into field goal range, where K Frank Hughes would connect to make it 7-10. As the conditions continued to dry up, Vancouver would get a little more aggressive through the air. QB Kevin Westwood would make a couple of strong throws to get the Wolves over midfield. He eventually hit WR Akira Sakamoto for a big gain to get down the 16 when Sakamoto found a hole in the Rouge’s zone coverage. Montreal tightened up in the secondary to adjust, but then the Wolves went back to the run game. RB Jeremiah Morrow would cut up the Rouge defence to get down to the 5. From here, Vancouver would bring an extra back on the field in RB Ed O’Connor to make a hole for Morrow. However, they pulled a play action which left WR Keshawn Johnston one-on-one. DB Lamar Brown made a solid play at the ball, but Johnston would win this battle securing the catch for a touchdown to give Vancouver the lead. 
VAN 14-10 MTL

3rd Quarter
As the 3rd began, Montreal would join Vancouver in turning to the pass attack. QB Gene Bishop would dish out a couple of solid throws early on. While the early attempts failed to gain any points for Montreal, the Wolves were not having much luck themselves against the adjustments the Rouge had made defensively. Eventually, Montreal would be able to break through on a great catch from WR Taylor Karis. Now deep in Vancouver territory, rookie WR Antonio Villanueva would make his presence known as he would make a catch towards the sideline before allowing his would-be tackler to fly past him and out of bounds. He then started up the field spinning off another tackle to score a touchdown and regain the lead for his team. Vancouver’s offence would continue to sputter. Westwood would look to create a spark with a deeper throw, but it was slightly underthrown and S Mathieu Cazenave would get under it for an interception. Montreal would add 3 more points following the turnover.
VAN 14-20 MTL

4th Quarter
Montreal was in control of the game as the 4th quarter began, but the Wolves just needed a play to shift momentum. They would get it in the form of a sack by DL Qian Zhou. Zhou’s sack on Bishop would force Montreal to a 3rd and long, taking them out of field goal range. On the punt return, RB Nikki Yang made up for his earlier mistake and brought the ball all the way back to the line of scrimmage. From there, the Wolves would continue to move the ball. RB Jeremiah Morrow was continuing to pick up yardage, while quick passes from QB Kevin Westwood would keep the drive alive. Vancouver eventually ended up at the Montreal 10 before Westwood hit TE Johnny Temple at the goal line. Temple was able to fall back into the endzone for the touchdown. Vancouver now led 21-20. The excellent drive from the Wolves would not deter the Rouge who bounced back with a strong drive of their own. They would mix things up in the backfield, throwing RB Raymond Green in for some rushes alongside RB Bo Frazier. Through the air, QB Gene Bishop continued to connect with WR Taylor Karis and WR Antonio Villaneuva. Montreal would march down to the 13 before Bishop would hit Karis for a touchdown to regain the lead. The Rouge would attempt a 2-point conversion to make it a 7-point game, but a great defensive play from DB Apollo Duckworth would prevent the additional score. After the touchdowns from both teams, the game would slow with both defences finding ways to stall the other team. Vancouver would manage to score a single off of a great punt from K Sterling Brooks, but they were still down 22-26. Vancouver would have the ball with just over 2 to play deep in their own territory. After a good throw to WR Akira Sakamoto to pick up a first down, the Rouge would make a sneaky play. S Mathieu Cazenave would slip around the edge on a safety blitz. His speed was too much for the O-line to pick up and RB Jeremiah Morrow missed it. Westwood attempted to escape realizing the blitz, but then DL Alan Franjkovic got free from his blocker and hit Westwood from the front. The ball would slip out of Westwood's hand as he tried pulling it back in. Cazenave would jump on it to give Montreal the ball. The Rouge would kill some of the clock before hitting a field goal to extend the lead to 22-29. Vancouver was still within a score. Westwood did his best to get the Wolves down the field. They would reach the Montreal 37 before they were forced to take a shot at the endzone. Westwood took two shots down the field, both came up incomplete after one was a bit overthrown and the other was deflected away by S Etienne LaMond. Montreal would get the win and would be welcoming the Blue Wings to Mount Royal Stadium next week.



(5) Louisville Thunder @ (4) Providence Gold Stars - New Providence Stadium - October 10, 1971 - 2:00 PM ET - Weather: Rain - 18°C | 64°F - Attendance: 65,395

1st Quarter
Rain poured down onto Providence as the Gold Stars hosted the Louisville Thunder for the 3rd Quarter-Final match. As expected, both teams heavily favoured running the ball. RB Tresean Jones did what he could for the Gold Stars, but ultimately was unable to gain ground against a solid front 7 from the Thunder, while RB Neil Bradley for Louisville was having his own struggles against the Gold Stars’ front. Providence would eventually catch a break with Bradley losing his grip on the ball resulting in a fumble, recovered by the Gold Stars. However, they would be unsuccessful in turning it into points as RB Tresean Jones would be stuffed for a loss before WR Owen Paisley would fail to get a grip on QB Landon Ross’ pass. The eventual field goal attempt from K Gilbert O’Neill would end up no good as the teams would remain scoreless through the first quarter.
LOU 0-0 PRO

2nd Quarter
The second quarter would continue much the same as neither team found much ground to stand on. The field became slippery with the mud. A couple more fumbles would occur, but still a lack of scoring. As the quarter was inching to a close, the Thunder started to gain some ground. A couple of passes would get the team close to midfield, WR Casey Coleman being one of the few to consistently bring in the ball in the first half. They would eventually be stopped around midfield. They would pin the Gold Stars deep and then force a 2 and out. Providence would punt the ball back and WR Ben Graham would return the ball all the way down to the 23, threatening to score. The Thunder continued to push the ball, and with the help of a penalty for pass interference, would get down to the 3, where RB Neil Bradley would score the lone points of the first half.
LOU 7-0 PRO

3rd Quarter
As the second half began, the rain was finally starting to let up but was continuing to fall throughout the early stages of the 3rd. An early mistake from the Gold Stars would give Louisville a chance to score when QB Landon Ross attempted to get the ball to WR Justin Palmer, the ball slipped in his hand and fluttered more than it should have. DB Aquilio Ruiz was in a better position than Palmer and would come up with the interception. They were once again in range to score, but the Gold Stars would hold them off with DL Bartolo Cruz getting to QB Buck Murphy on 2nd down. K Elvis Franklin attempted a field goal, but slipped a little in the mud and the kick deflected awkwardly wide. It didn’t bounce much after hitting the ground in the endzone and WR Mark Taylor was not prepared for it. He rushed to fall on top of it and succeeded in recovering, but was in the endzone so Louisville still got a point. The Gold Stars remained conservative on offence, continuing to lean on RB Tresean Jones and RB Bob Sanders. It started to work for a couple of drives as they gained some ground, but the Gold Stars could not get into Louisville territory. On a late drive in the quarter, the Gold Stars were once again pinned deep. Needing to get a first down on 2nd and 12, Ross dropped back to pass but was met with great pressure. The O-line did not hold up and DL Aaron Henderson got to Ross. As Ross was going down, his own knee would knock the ball loose. Several attempts were made at recovering the ball, but it continued to squirt loose and closer to the Providence endzone. Eventually, DL Lucas Kipling would grab the ball at the 4-yard line. From there, RB Neil Bradley would punch it in to give the Thunder a 15-0 lead. 
LOU 15-0 PRO

4th Quarter
The rain had finally stopped in the 4th. All that remained in the air was the chorus of boos raining down from the frustrated Gold Star fans. Overall, Providence’s defence had played a great game, but the offence was suffering. Whether it was the rain clearing or just desperation, the Gold Stars finally started to move the ball more effectively through the air. Ross gathered himself and made some good throws, but it wasn’t enough. The short passes were not picking up enough to sustain drives at times. However, they would get some help from their defence. Louisville had also gotten a little more aggressive. Their passing game was working, with Buck Murphy moving the ball considerably better than the Gold Stars could. However, luck would run out with S Tom Parrish picking off Murphy to thwart a Thunder scoring chance. On the Thunder’s next drive, LB Kurt Warlock would make a big play, creating a fumble off of RB Neil Bradley, whose run up the middle was blown up by a big hit from Warlock. The Gold Stars would take advantage of the Warlock fumble. Ross would hit WR Justin Palmer for a big play before Ross hit rookie TE Kairos Knight for a touchdown to give the Gold Stars life. The fans had hope and were back in the game. Providence kept trying to get back down the field. They had one drive to get to the Louisville 31, but they turned it over on downs when Ross couldn’t get a pass off before DL Aaron Henderson got to him. The defence would force a 2 and out on the ensuing drive to get the ball back. The next drive was short-lived. After a failed run on first down, the Gold Stars would attempt a screen on the next play to RB Bob Sanders. The Gold Stars would punt hoping to keep Louisville from scoring. It worked, but the Gold Stars lost a lot of time. The team was forced to pull some riskier plays from the playbook and it would eventually end in an interception from S Tom McDougall. The Thunder were off to the Semi-Finals, while Providence would not get a chance to play at home for the title.


(6) Ottawa Royals @ (3) Minnesota Serpents - Midgard Stadium - October 10, 1971 - 7:00 PM ET/6:00 PM CT - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 17°C | 62°F - Attendance: 50,204

1st Quarter
The Serpents and Royals rematch of the 1969 East Division Semi-Final would start slow with both teams trying to find their offensive identity, while the defences were well in control. However, the opening score would come from a Royals mistake when QB Ulysses Lawyer, making his first career playoff start, threw an interception to DB Jayson Klyde. The mistake would turn into a field goal shortly after with DL Bernhard Hartmann deflecting a pass at the line that was likely to pick up the 1st down with WR Evan Clanton open on the other end. The field goal would be the lone score of the opening quarter.
OTT 0-3 MIN

2nd Quarter
RB Tyler Kuhn would start to find a groove in the 2nd, as the Royals’ D-line struggled to keep up. The field only opened up more when LB Wallace Jordan would leave the game with an injury suffered while tackling Kuhn. Minnesota paired up their rushing attack with some smart passes from the former Royal QB Martin Keller. Eventually, Kuhn would get into the endzone to give the Serpents a 0-10 lead. Much like the Serpents, the Royals would also turn to the run game to start to pick up the pace. RB Corbyn Knight would have himself some solid runs, taking advantage of an also weaker box in Minnesota’s defensive strategy. Knight’s rushing would open up the passing game a bit and WR Colby Bancana would slip free for a big gain to set up the Royals at the 8-yard line. Then, QB Ulysses Lawyer would toss a touchdown pass to TE Luiss de Brands. Following the Royals’ touchdown, the Serpents would have another strong drive to get deep into Royals’ territory. However, Keller would take a gamble at the endzone, looking for WR Ferdinand Matthews. The pass was going toward the back of the endzone, but DB Sergio Alvarez reached up and made an excellent grab to intercept the pass and stop the Serpents’ attack.
OTT 7-10 MIN

3rd Quarter
Despite the setback at the end of the 2nd quarter, the Serpents remained focused on offence and once again found themselves threatening to score. However, this time RB Tyler Kuhn would be shut out from the endzone by the Royals’ front. Minnesota would settle for a field goal to make it 7-13. Much like the Serpents, the Royals’ offence was continuing to pick up yards. Lawyer would make a couple of big throws while RB Corbyn Knight would clean up the drive, getting into the endzone to give Ottawa their first lead of the contest, 14-13. The Royals were then able to force a 2 and out on the next drive and looked to be taking the momentum back. However, the Serpents’ defence stood tall and didn’t allow the Royals to score. Eventually, Minnesota’s offence would make it into Royals territory again to regain the lead on a 3rd K Ray Bough field goal. 
OTT 14-16 MIN

4th Quarter
Minnesota continued to build off of their late score in the 3rd. The offence remained poised and confident despite facing a solid Royals defence. QB Martin Keller was delivering the ball with confidence and RB Tyler Kuhn continued to have his way on the ground. Eventually, Kuhn would break away for a big 38-yard run, before scoring a touchdown from 9 yards out on the next play to give Minnesota a 9-point lead. The pressure was starting to mount on the Royals. QB Ulysses Lawyer was starting to feel it, getting rushing in the pocket before nearly throwing an interception if not for WR Marshall Leonard becoming a DB to break up the potential pick. Luckily for Ottawa, their defence was getting a handle on Kuhn and the Serpents’ offence, so they were staying within 9 points. Eventually, the Royals would break through with WR Charles Toothacre finding a way to get wide open. He would pick up a big 24-yard gain. They would still get stopped short of the endzone, but a field goal would at least cut the lead down to 6 and make it a 1-score game. The Royals’ defence continued to hold off the now-conservative Serpents’ offence and got themselves another chance to score. Lawyer remained composed as the Royals marched down the field. However, he would have a misstep. On a 2nd and 10, Lawyer would force a pass where it shouldn’t have been thrown. A small window had opened up for a pass to WR Marshall Leonard. However, just as quickly as the window opened, it closed up and DB Davey Woods caught up and undercut the throw for the interception. Woods would weave his way through the Royals’ offence-turned defence. He almost got away but RB Corbyn Knight was able to get enough of him to knock him down. The Serpents would then feed RB Tyler Kuhn and even bring in RB Allen Navarro to change it up. They would get close enough to put up another field goal and regain their 2-score lead. Ottawa showed desperation on offence for the remainder of the game but came up empty-handed. The Serpents would hold on for a strong win and their first playoff win in the NAAF.  


Injury Report
LOU: DL Craig Cromwell - Day-to-Day
LOU: S Jay Shephard - Day-to-Day
MIN: DL Ferris Kane - Day-to-Day
MTL: DL Watson Watt - 1 Week
MTL: DL Gregory Jacquet - Day-to-Day
MTL: OL Elias Schenk - Day-to-Day
OTT: LB Wallace Jordan - 2 Weeks
OTT: OL Matt Helmut - Day-to-Day
PIT: QB Louis Vaughn - 10 Weeks
PIT: DL Teddy Piper - 2 Weeks
PRO: WR Russel Wilcox - Day-to-Day
VAN: DL Jared Kendall - Day-to-Day
VAN: S Nick Parker - 2 Weeks
VAN: OL Nick Bowen - Day-to-Day

Players of the Week


OFF: RB Tyler Kuhn MIN - 2 Rushing Touchdowns, 112 Rushing Yards


DEF: DL Aaron Henderson LOU - 3 Sacks, 1 Forced Fumble, 7 Tackles

Semi-Final Preview
(8) BUF (7-7) @ (2) MTL (12-2) - OCT 16 - 7:00 PM ET
1971 Head-to-Head: W1 - BUF 37-41 MTL
Historic Regular Season Head-to-Head: BUF 13-13 MTL
Historic Playoff Head-to-Head: BUF 1-1 MTL
The Blue Wings and Rouge met in Montreal in their first game of the season. In that matchup, the Rouge would win an offensive shootout. Back then, the Blue Wings were healthy at the start of the season, and the Rouge had a strong performance. There is reason to believe that Montreal should be able to handle Buffalo again. However, the Blue Wings are riding the high and confidence of overcoming immense odds in the last two weeks, so you cannot count them out. Expect another heated duel, but based on how Montreal has been able to handle competitive games all season, I expect them to come out of this game on top.
My Pick: Rouge

(5) LOU (9-5) @ (3) MIN (10-4) - OCT 17 - 7:00 PM ET
1971 Head-to-Head: Did Not Play
Historic Regular Season Head-to-Head: LOU 0-3 MIN
Historic Playoff Head-to-Head: Have Not Played
Minnesota finally got past the first round. Louisville returns to the final four just 2 years removed from an 0-12 season. So far in their regular season meetings, the Serpents have had the upper hand winning all 3 matchups. Going into their first playoff matchup, the Serpents are eager to build off of a strong and poised performance against the Royals, while the Thunder are looking to kickstart an offence that has not been the same over the last 5 or so weeks. Overall both teams are glad to have defences that are best against the opponents' strongest offensive weapon. Louisville’s D-line was all over the Gold Stars backfield last week and has the potential to stop RB Tyler Kuhn, while Minnesota’s heavy secondary package is great at stopping the pass attack that Louisville is known for. The game will likely be decided on which team can execute outside of their comfort zone. Based on that, I will place my bets on HC Soni Dionne and the Serpents to keep the train rolling.
My Pick: Serpents

1971 Semi-Finals

Roster Moves
LOU: LB Le’Darius Wynn | Injured Reserve -> Active Roster
LOU: LB Elias Ragsdale | Active Roster -> Reserve List

(8) Buffalo Blue Wings @ (2) Montreal Rouge - Mount Royal Stadium - October 16, 1971 - 7:00 PM ET - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 15°C | 59°F - Attendance: 46,497

1st Quarter
There was a hint of revenge in the air as the Montreal Rouge hosted the Buffalo Blue Wings for a shot to make it to the McCallister Cup. The Rouge hoped to get back to the big game for the first time since 1966, where they had lost to the Blue Wings 30-12, while Buffalo aimed to continue their dominance. Montreal would come out of the gates rolling defensively. DL Alan Franjkovic would get a sack before DB Jean Paul du Pont would knock away a pass to force a quick 2 and out. Offensively, Montreal was a little slow to start, also going 2 and out, but as their defence continued to roll, the offence would eventually get kick-started. WR Antonio Villanueva would be the one to break loose, turning a 7-yard pass into a 19-yard play. QB Gene Bishop would fire a couple more passes to WR Taylor Karis and TE John Schall to get down to the 23. From there, Bishop would fire a shot up the seam to WR Yahui Sun. Sun would make the grab and be heading straight for the endzone. He saw S Wesley Jones closing and braced for a hit. The hit would nail Sun awkwardly, which led to him being out for the rest of the game, however, despite the hit, he managed to fall over the line for a touchdown to give Montreal a 0-7 lead. Buffalo tried to get back into the game but was finding no luck only getting 21 yards in total in the quarter.
BUF 0-7 MTL

2nd Quarter
Buffalo remained calm after being outplayed in the opening quarter. QB Charles Lemieux would get on the field and lead a strong bounce-back drive to get the Blue Wings into field goal range. They would take a shot at WR Tracy Driscoll to the endzone, but DB Lamar Brown had it locked down and broke up the pass. Buffalo would settle for a field goal to make it 3-7. After the Buffalo score, the Rouge would look to respond. This time led by a couple of solid run plays from RB Bo Frazier, the Rouge would get back into Buffalo territory and match Buffalo’s field goal to make it 3-10. After the teams traded short drives, the Blue Wings would get a big play from WR Tracy Driscoll. The receiver got the better of DB Lamar Brown this time and then used his speed to pick up a total of 42 yards. The Blue Wings continued to roll on the drive getting down to the 8-yard line. Threatening to score on 1st and Goal, QB Charles Lemieux would drop back to throw. He would turn to his left looking to hit WR Jimmy Jack towards the sideline. However, Lemieux floated the pass a bit and it hung up in the air. DB Jean Paul du Pont saw his opportunity and caught the ball in stride. Mount Royal Stadium erupted as du Pont returned the interception 92 yards the other way to score a touchdown and give Montreal a 3-17 lead heading into halftime.
BUF 3-17 MTL

3rd Quarter
Playing with confidence and a 14-point cushion (though that wasn’t too much for Buffalo to overcome in Week 15), the Rouge defence would continue to shut down the Blue Wings’ offence. Lemieux would be sacked 2 more times in the quarter, while RB Yancy Harrison would net 1 yard on the ground after having several negative plays. Offensively, Montreal was still hit or miss, but they would eventually get a field goal after WR Taylor Karis made a great grab up the sideline to get them in range. Buffalo would come up empty-handed and down 17 with 15 minutes to play.
BUF 3-20 MTL

4th Quarter
In the early stages of the 4th, Buffalo would get its spark back when WR Julius Drake would break a few tackles to pick up 14 yards and then RB Yancy Harrison would grab another 12 on the next play. Buffalo kept the ball rolling. QB Charles Lemieux would dish it out to all of his receivers to eventually get back to the 11-yard line. After a short 4-yard run from Yancy Harrison. Lemieux dropped back again while running the same play as the interception before. Lemieux would not make the same mistake as before and this time connected with WR Jimmy Jack on the same route to score a touchdown and cut the lead down to 10. The Rouge fans got a little weary after the excellent Buffalo drive, but they stayed behind their team. The defence got help from the loud fans as a miscommunication between Lemieux and Driscoll would result in a 3rd and long. Montreal would get the ball back and then it was their turn to march down the field. However, they would suffer a 3-yard loss on first down when RB Bo Frazer would get wrapped up by DL Jordan Fordham. On 2nd down, QB Gene Bishop would need to get a first and would do exactly that, hitting WR Chad Anderson for 15 yards. The Rouge continued to crawl down the field, matching any good Buffalo stop with an equally good first down play. Eventually, at the 12, Bishop would drop back and get pressured. The QB would roll out and WR Taylor Karis would change up his route to match. In doing so, Karis was open and Bishop would hit his favourite target for another touchdown to reinstate the 17-point lead. The Rouge drive was ultimately a killer for the Blue Wings’ comeback attempt. They would be unable to get close enough to score even a field goal before Montreal would add one themselves to make it a 20-point game. With more urgency, the Blue Wings would get one drive down to the Montreal 30 but were then turned away after a failed 3rd down attempt. Montreal would get their revenge and send themselves to the 53rd McCallister Cup. 
*This marks the first time in the NAAF’s history that the Buffalo Blue Wings have won and lost a playoff game in the same season. Previously, the team had either won it all or lost in their first game.


(5) Louisville Thunder @ (3) Minnesota Serpents - Midgard Stadium - October 17, 1971 - 7:00 PM ET/6:00 PM CT - Weather: Partly Cloudy - 21°C | 70°F - Attendance: 50,223

1st Quarter
A beautiful day in Minneapolis would make for great conditions for a battle between the Serpents and the Thunder for the final ticket to the 53rd McCallister Cup. The game would start off with a bang when QB Buck Murphy would throw an interception on his first pass. DB Austin Sherebernikoff would be the one to get the interception. The Serpents took over Louisville territory. It didn’t take long for them to get inside the 5 before RB Tyler Kuhn would get the first points on the board. The fans at Midgard Stadium were excited about the quick start. The defence would feed on the energy and continue to hold the Thunder back with great defensive play from their secondary. However, after the early touchdown, the offence was having their own troubles with Louisville’s defence that was building off of a strong performance last week that stalled the Gold Stars’ run game. The first quarter would end 0-7 for the Serpents.
LOU 0-7 MIN

2nd Quarter
The game continued to move forward in much the same way to start the 2nd quarter. Both offences continued to have a tough time with the opposing defences. However, the Thunder would finally break through with a good play call from HC Lou Granger. The play was able to get WR Ben Graham open behind the Minnesota secondary. QB Buck Murphy was all over it. His pass would fly over everyone and into the arms of Graham who would take it to the house to make it 7 a piece on a 61-yard score. Following the quick score, the Serpents looked to get it back, but their drive would come up short with QB Martin Keller losing the ball while trying to escape the pocket. DL Gavin Shaw had got his arms around Keller so his throwing arm was pinned against his body. Keller’s fingers slipped and the ball came loose just as he was going down. Some Serpents believed he was down before the ball came out, but the refs called it a fumble. Luckily for Minnesota, their defence would hold off the Thunder and force a punt. The teams would trade a couple more drives. In the final minutes, Minnesota would get something going. QB Martin Keller rebounded from the fumble nicely, dishing the ball out to his receivers to get the team into field goal range as the clock hit :00. With one last play, K Ray Bough would look to get Minnesota out front. He would succeed, just not in the way he wanted as his kick would float wide left and then bounce through the endzone to give Minnesota a single before the half.
LOU 7-8 MIN

3rd Quarter
The 2nd half would start a little slow with each team getting a 2 and out to start. Minnesota’s next drive would see them get a first down, but not much more before they punted again. Louisville’s offence came back on the field and they switched things up, heavily going to RB Neil Bradley. Bradley, being actually a solid rushing option, would manage to lift the Thunder into field goal range with 37 yards on 4 carries. Louisville would kick a field goal, however, just like Minnesota before them, would see the kick sail wide and through the endzone, knotting the game back up at 8. As the quarter went on the Minnesota defence would continue to show some cracks. RB Neil Bradley’s rushing attack was eating away at the weak 6-man front, forcing them to sometimes bring in some extra help in the box. The move risked thinning out the secondary, which Louisville would take advantage of. WR Casey Coleman would get more involved, making a pair of great plays to get Louisville close to the endzone. Another Bradley rush would land the Thunder at the 11. Murphy would drop back and take another shot at WR Ben Graham. Graham had a little window, but Minnesota’s secondary had it covered in their zone and DB Davey Woods would reach up and deflect the pass away. However, he had to jump up and he came down awkwardly on his ankle. The DB fell and could barely put any weight on his injured ankle as he was then taken off. Bad news for the Serpents, and good news for the Thunder. HC Lou Granger would then make a call to get WR Casey Coleman one-on-one with DB Austin Sherebernikoff. As good as the young DB was, he was not beating Coleman and would completely outclass him to give the Thunder a 15-8 lead.
LOU 15-8 MIN

4th Quarter
The game was starting to slip away from the Serpents following the Thunder touchdown. Luckily, the defence would recover, forcing a turnover on the next drive when Murphy tried to get a little too aggressive. S Calvin Hobbes jumped on a ball that should not have been thrown and got Minnesota back in striking range. The offence would clean up the drive with QB Martin Keller connecting with WR Ferdinand Matthews for the touchdown. The interception by Buck Murphy was a mere bump in the road for the Thunder. The offence was right back to moving the ball with purpose. RB Neil Bradley continued to have a strong performance while the passing game was just as effective. The drive had Minnesota on the back foot once again. From 16 yards out, Murphy would hit WR Casey Coleman again who would slip into the endzone to give Louisville a 22-15 lead. There was frustration beginning to boil on the Serpents’ sideline, but HC Soni Dionne kept them together. Talking to as many players as possible, trying to fire them up. Unfortunately, they would fail to muster much on their first crack on offence after the touchdown. However, their defence regained their composure and held Louisville stagnant. It would be a slow build-up of intensity as the clock was becoming a factor for the Serpents. The passing game had become a larger focus for the Serpents down the stretch, but they never gave up on the run game. They had faith in the backfield, which was reinforced by a massive 23-yard ramble for RB Allen Navarro. Tyler Kuhn would pick up a few more yards on the next play before QB Martin Keller fired a missile to WR Ferdinand Matthews. Suddenly, Minnesota was in range with a good chunk of time on the clock. They would take a few cracks at breaking into the endzone, coming close on a TE Hunter Ziegelbauer reception that gave them a first down at the 6. Everyone figured, with a fresh set of downs, the Serpents would run the ball. That’s why, when QB Martin Keller faked the handoff to RB Tyler Kuhn, the stadium held its collective breath. Time slowed as Keller flipped and took a shot to Evan Clanton. Clanton secured the toss to eventually tie the game. Louisville would fail to score on the next drive, leading to overtime for a ticket to the McCallister Cup (just the 4th time in NAAF history).
LOU 22-22 MIN

Overtime
After the highest-scoring quarter of the game, the extra frame would see both teams slow right back down. The defences were holding their own, and the offences were getting a little tired at this point. Some mistakes would start to creep in. Louisville would get into Minnesota territory, but a fumble by WR Ben Graham would give the Serpents back the ball. Later on, QB Martin Keller would make a poor throw leading to an interception by LB Daniel Timothy. On the whole, the quarter was a gruelling one. As the final minutes approached, the Serpents would find themselves just over midfield starting to threaten field goal range. QB Martin Keller would drop back looking to pick up some yards through the air. The Serpents would double-team DL Aaron Henderson to prevent him from getting to Keller, but Henderson would use that to his advantage, shoving both linemen in toward Keller to collapse the pocket. Keller would slip away but was quickly attacked from the other side by DL Lucas Kipling. Keller eventually hit the dirt for a loss of 9 after attempting to escape. So on 2nd and 19, Keller would drop back again. Pressure was in his face again, but he would get the ball away. He had checked it down to RB Tyler Kuhn. Kuhn would slip past one tackler and start to make his way closing in on the first down, but a diving LB Le’Darius Wynn would trip him up 3 yards short of the first. The Serpents would be just outside field goal range, so they would send K Ray Bough out to attempt a punt into the endzone for a single. Bough got a good leg on it, but they were contending with WR Ben Graham back there. Graham would take the ball on a hop and quickly cut to get out of the endzone. WR Montana Strole was sent out to match the speed of Graham. Strole managed to get down there first and get a hand on Graham, but the Rookie of the Year candidate would slip away and then go on to return the ball up to the Louisville 38. Then, Louisville’s offence looked to build off of the momentum. QB Buck Murphy would hit WR Doug Piva for a short out route and then went back to WR Ben Graham for a big-time play up the seam. WR Casey Coleman would make one more grab before Louisville would kneel to kill the clock and set up K Elvis Franklin for the game-winning kick. With :00 on the clock, Franklin would hit the kick to send the Thunder to the McCallister Cup for the first time since 1965.


Injury Report
LOU: OL Gordie Hammarstein - 2 Weeks
LOU: OL Jerry Hankins - Day-to-Day
MIN: OL Paul O’Doherty - Day-to-Day
MIN: DB Davey Woods - 6 Weeks
MTL: WR Yahui Sun - Day-to-Day
BUF: LB Basti Gräbner - 3 Weeks

Players of the Week


OFF: WR Casey Coleman LOU - 2 Receiving Touchdowns, 124 Receiving Yards


DEF: DB Jean Paul du Pont MTL - 1 Interception, 1 Defensive Touchdown, 2 Passes Defended, 4 Tackles

53rd McCallister Cup Preview

(5) LOU (9-5) VS (2) MTL (12-2) - OCT 24 - 7:00 PM ET - New Providence Stadium - Providence, RI
1971 Head-to-Head: Did Not Play
Historic Regular Season Head-to-Head: LOU 5-7 MTL
Historic Playoff Head-to-Head: LOU 1-0 MTL (1962 44th McCallister Cup: LOU 23-16 MTL)
The Thunder and Rouge will meet in the McCallister Cup for the second time. The first time was back in 1962, when the Thunder would win the championship on home field. Fast forward to 1971 and the two teams are meeting once again, this time neither team is the home team, but Montreal is the team with the better record, which wasn’t the case back in 1962. In fact, this marks the first time Montreal has entered the McCallister Cup with a better record than their opponent since 1951 when they won over the Boston Independents. Going into the game, it is all about redemption for the Rouge. HC Malachi Knowles has been redeeming himself all season after leaving Louisville following an 0-12 season in 1969 and turning the Rouge around in his first season with the team. QB Gene Bishop, who everyone figured would be on his way out of Montreal after this season following a few disappointing years, has turned it back on and looks to finally get Montreal back over the hump. The team as a whole has a chance to avenge the loss suffered in 1962 as well. The team is very balanced under Knowles. They have a strong defence supported by young star power in DL Alan Franjkovic and DB Lamar Brown and a rejuvenated offence with plenty of exciting weapons like WR Antonio Villanueva and RB Bo Frazier, as well as WR Taylor Karis. All season long the Rouge have been finding every way to win, and they are certainly the favourites to win. On the other side, is the Louisville Thunder who, after the disappointing 0-12 season, have turned it around extremely quickly. Just 2 years after not winning a single game, the team is in the McCallister Cup and has a solid shot of winning it all. WR Casey Coleman has been one of the biggest factors in the turnaround when HC Lou Granger made him the team’s captain. Coleman has become the leader the team has needed, tough and determined, cementing himself as the league’s best WR. Next to QB Buck Murphy and rookie WR Ben Graham, the Thunder have put together the most explosive offence in the league over the past two years. Additionally, the offence should also have WR Lloyd Lane back in the lineup for the big game. Defensively, they have also turned it on in the playoffs, being able to stall out a pair of great rushing offences in Providence and Minnesota behind fantastic play from DL Aaron Henderson and former Rouge DL Lucas Kipling. Overall, the game features two teams that both have a very good chance of winning, expect to see a great battle for the championship. 

Damn, both my teams fall in the Semis

I'm no Louisville fan but I appreciate their moxie to get to the Cup and win it against a really good team. Congrats to them! Now we need to see Pittsburgh get their act back together and Halifax figure out what they're doing.

Great to see the Thunder win the McCallister Cup. Its cool for me to see Le'Darius and Xerxes get title, as well as Al Washington get rings. Here's hoping the success will continue next year!