#CFC10 Summer Previews & Predictions – JUNIOR VARSITY (2): Do or die already & battle of ranked teams

Week 1 is under the belt and week two promises to be just as exciting and unpredictable.

Heading into week two the major question has to be…Are the Oshawa Hawkeyes for real? After a 51-0 drubbing of usually competitive Metro Toronto Wildcats, the Hawkeyes enter Week 2 in the unfamiliar role of favourite as they battle against 0-1 Toronto Thunder.

Although the Thunder-Hawkeyes game will draw a lot of the attention this week there will be a other matchups with early season implications.

Here are the Week 2 Previews and Predictions for the junior varsity level:

 

Essex versus Mississauga OVFL 2014 Playoffs

#4 ESSEX RAVENS (0-1) @ MISSISSAUGA WARRIORS (0-1)  Sat. May 30th 12h00 St. Marcellinus CSS

THE MATCHUP: Both the Ravens and Warriors got off to a disappointing start with lopsided losses in Week 1. The Ravens fell 37-18 to a very good Nigara Spears team, while the Warriors were spanked 47-18 by London Jr. Mustangs.

Many things were expected from the Mississauga Warriors in 2015 and an 0-2 start was not amongst them. Oddly enough, the junior varsity Warriors mimicked their bantam brethren on offense…some pass, no run. They HAVE to improve on this, not only if they hope to win this weekend, but if they don’t want their 2015 to slip away.

Essex Ravens had a little more success offensively, with running back Jacob Savoni rushing for 123 yards on 16 carries and a major. But at the end of the day, they still fell by 19 and that had a lot to do with their inability to stop the run.

Niagara rambled off 281 yards on the ground and although the Ravens defence only gave up 36 yards through the air, it still totals over 300 yards against and giving up that many on the ground has to wear on a defense over 60 minutes.

MISSISSAUGA PLAYERS TO WATCH: DB James Traynor, REC Josiah McKoy, DB Eric Colonna

ESSEX PLAYERS TO WATCH: RB Jacob Savoni, DL Connor Sykes, LB Zach Papineau, REC/KR Dante Lewis

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: The Warriors had little to no success running the ball in Week 1. However, the Ravens had even less success stopping the run last week so somethings gotta give!  Look for the Ravens to execute a more balanced attack and to drastically improve on the 281 yards surrendered via the run in Week 1. The Warriors are better than their opening day result, but will be hard pressed to improve on their 5-3 record from last year.

Look for the Ravens to pull away in the second half and hold on for the ‘W’.

FINAL SCORE: ESSEX 24 MISSISSAUGA 18

David Maecker

#10 OSHAWA HAWKEYES (1-0) @ #7 TORONTO THUNDER (0-1)  Sat. May 30th 15h00 Mary Ward CSS

THE MATCHUP: The Oshawa Hawkeyes, who finished 0-8 in 2014 shocked many by hammering the Metro Toronto Wildcats 51-0 to start the season last weekend. To put things in perspective, the 51 points tallied by Oshawa in Week 1 were four more than the 47 that they scored in the entire 2014 season!

The Hawkeyes have to be feeling good about themselves as they cracked the #CFC10 for the first time in a very, very long time. Week 2 offers a chance to show they are for real as they face a formidable task in the form of the Thunder. The Thunder pushed the two time runner-up Myers Riders to the limit in their season opener falling 28-21. The Thunder defence was very good causing four turnovers (three interceptions,one fumble) and holding an offense that averaged over 50 points a game last season to under 30.

OSHAWA PLAYERS TO WATCH: QB David Maecker, RB Aaron Watkins, REC Matt Hurley, LB Brenden Pointe

TORONTO PLAYERS TO WATCH: DB Adrian Greene, QB Elijah Blake, LB Markcus Jean-Loescher, RB Daniel Adeboboye, OPC DL Chris Sabat

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: The Hawkeyes drastically improved and will make some noise this season. Pivot David Maecker was brilliant in Week 1 completing 14 of 19 passes for 242 yards and four touchdowns However, the Thunder is much better against the pass and when it’s all said and done, may be amongst the league’s best. Look for Maecker to have some success against the Thunder defence; however, the Thunder will be just a little stronger in the end.

FINAL SCORE: TORONTO 31 OSHAWA 24

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