Welcome back! Yet another week of fast and furious flag football action (say THAT 5 times real fast) to cover, so let's get to it.

Games of the Week Results

8 on 8 Indoor
Cowboys vs. 5 Stars - I predicted a high-scoring game here, but I was only half right. The 5 Stars showed some offensive firepower in a 25-6 takedown of the Cowboys. With this win, 5 Stars becomes one of the top contenders for the 8 on 8 Indoor title.
Tri-State Falcons vs. Cincy Tigers - No game - More on that later.

8 on 8 Outdoor
Rapid Fire vs. Cincy Tigers - The battle of first place teams saw Rapid Fire come out on top . A fun game to play, just as I had expected. The Rapid Fire defense stepped-up in this one, as their 6 interceptions were too much for the Tigers to overcome.
Cowboys vs. Rapid Fire - I'm not sure what happened between Rapid Fire's first game of the day and this one, but we definitely developed a case of the "dropsies". For the first 3/4 of the game, none of the Rapid Fire receivers could catch a cold, and the Cowboys took advantage. Late in the game, however, Rapid Fire found a sudden burst of energy, and mounted a comeback. There was too little time left on the clock, however, and the Cowboys pulled out the win, 18-16. Best finish to a game I've seen this season.

Now, you'll notice that one of my games of the week didn't happen. That's because the Cincy Tigers and Legion of Doom both decided not to play in the 8 on 8 Indoor league. Losing these two talented teams is a big blow to the league. However, the 6 remaining teams will still battle on to find out who's the best. At this point in the season, I would have to say that the Tri-State Falcons and 5 Stars are the favorites. These two teams won't meet until Week 4, so a lot can change between now and then.

Standings
Let's take a look at all of the league races and see if any true favorites are emerging.
Starting with the 8 on 8 indoor league, the first place Tri-State Falcons (2-0) and second place 5 Stars (1-0) have both looked impressive in the first two weeks. The Falcons will have their first real test of the season this week when they play the Cowboys (0-1). The 5 Stars have a double-header this week (as do the Cowboys), which includes a rematch with the Cowboys. Being so early in the season, there's still lots of shuffling in the standings each week, so I'm only going to cover the top 2 or 3 teams here until some of the races for the lower spots heat up.

In the 8 on 8 outdoor league, forfeits are springing up like the dandelions in my yard. Of the 5 scheduled games, only 2 were actually played. In the North Conference, the Patriots won via forfeit against the Warriors, moving them into first place in the conference at 2-1(2-3). Rapid Fire split their non-conference double header against the Tigers and Cowboys, which puts them in second place at 1-0(4-1). Run 'n Gun took a forefeit win in a non-conference game against the Bengals, to move their record to 1-1(2-3), keeping them in third place in the conference.
In the South Conference, there were no in-conference games, so the standings remain unchaged, with the Cincy Tigers 2-0(4-1) in first place, Team Cincinnati / Vikings 1-0(4-1) in second place, and the Cowboys 1-1(4-1) in third place.

With 2 weeks left in the outdoor season, the South Conference looks much tougher than the North Conference. Three teams in the South Conference have overall records of 4-1, while Rapid Fire in the North Conference is the only team with a winning record at 4-1. The stretch run in this league should be interesting.

Games of the Week
8 on 8 Indoor
Flossin' vs. Lobos - 7:00 PM - Battle of 1-1 teams. Two young teams here with something to prove. Look for 2 or 3 touchdowns per team here in a close game.
Tri-State Falcons vs. Cowboys - 8:00 PM - This is a game that all teams should be watching very closely. As I stated before, this is the first real test for the Falcons, and if there are any chinks in the armor, they'll show in this game.
8 on 8 Outdoor
Cincy Tigers vs. Team Cincinnati / Vikings - 11:00 AM - If the Tigers win this game, they clinch the South Conference championship. If the Vikings win, then it's anybody's game down the stretch. Look for both teams to come out on fire in this one.
Bengals vs. Patriots - 12:00 PM - The Bengals, when they manage to get enough people to play, have a very stingy defense, and a running game to boot. The Patriots play solid fundamental football. Hopefully the Bengals will all show this week and give us fans a good game.

A new feature debuted on CincyFlag.com this week, the CFFL Weekly Poll. I will be announcing the results of the poll in this column every week. The poll question this week was, "Which team do you think will win the 8 on 8 outdoor championship?" 47 people voted, and Team Cincinnati / Vikings came out on top. Here are the official results:
1. Team Cincinnati Vikings - 12 votes
2. Rapid Fire - 10 votes
3. Cincy Tigers - 9 votes
4. Cowboys - 5 votes
    Warriors - 5 votes
6. Patriots - 2 votes
    Run 'n Gun - 2 votes
    Bengals - 2 votes

Let's finish up with the website of the week. This week, I'll give the nod to the Cincy Replacements (http://www.cincy-replacements.com) of the 4 on 4 league. These guys have been playing in the CFFL since it's inception, and are always a force to be reckoned with.

That's it for this week, kids. Until next time, keep your flags on!