Pittsburgh Flag Football League

No starting quarterback? Lacking a star defender? The aforementioned circumstances were irrelevant to the undefeated CYCLONES who slid past the undermanned JOE’S PROS in a chippy, thrilling 27-26 win.

“This is a huge win,” backup Quarterback CJ Yurchak said. “It’ll take us into the playoffs as the number one seed. And we’ll get that first round bye in the playoffs.” CJ played like a man possessed, passing for three touchdown passes. Add an interception return for a TD to his game’s work and you have one player single-handedly scoring every point for the CYCLONES.

In the early going things were running pretty smoothly as far as the tempo of the game. That all ended when both teams who were undefeated before this match up began to turn up the intensity of their play. One CYCLONE was a tad too intense, Yurchak’s brother Paul who was ejected from the game for a tackling penalty.

Although most players would’ve lost their composure, CJ used his brother’s ejection as motivation to put the CYCLONES on his back. Starting Quarterback Dan Sloan was missing for the second time this season, so CJ ascended from his backup QB role to starter. The results were CJ turning in a classic iron man performance. In addition to his three touchdown passes, CJ registered two interceptions and a couple tackles to keep the CYCLONES perfect. “I was just reading the QB,” CJ said about his interception-TD. “I was covering my guy, seen the QB throw, so I broke of my man, read the pass, and stepped in front of it.”

Sloan is a very efficient quarterback when he plays; however a possible quarterback controversy may be on the horizon for the CYCLONES who with a perfect record are definitely focused on winning the PFFL championship. CJ is confident in his abilities to get the job done: “I’m just so athletic, that’s what I do. I can play any position.” As a Philadelphia Eagles’ fan I know a thing or two about quarterback controversies.

Given how undermanned the previously undefeated JOE’S PROS were, their performance against the league’s winningnest team was impressive. Before CJ went off for an all-time performance, JOE’S PROS was playing as if they had the reserves. Quarterbacks Joe Maylis and Henry Hall threw for two touchdowns each.

After a back-and-forth scoring race between both teams, JOES PROS had just scored a touchdown to cut their deficit to one point. At this point, the regulation game clock was unplugged, and JOE’S PROS was going for the decisive two-point conversion. A JOE’S PROS player dropped back to throw the game-winning conversion, and he completed the play to one of his teammates in the end zone. Unfortunately for the PROS, CYCLONES rusher Gary “Goose” Fisher snagged the quarterback’s flag for the game-clinching sack. Goose had trouble describing his play. “I don’t know,” he said. “I’m a rusher, that’s my position. I’m a do-worker because I do what I have to do.”

JOE’S PROS played extremely well, but as the saying goes: they were close, but no cigar.