Matt Skaff, Lindsey McCaghren (the First Lady of the PGF), and the competitors of the PGF are getting a well-deserved rest this week. Brandon McCaghren and Conscious Keelan have put together a great product for all of us grappling fans. After a very successful first third of the season, they’re due some R&R. As a fan who has made the PGF part of my schedule for my Friday nights, I hardly know what to do with myself. So…..I took a break from building my fantasy analysis (forthcoming) and decided to review some match-ups we should all really look forward to watching next week. Without further ado, here’s my top 7 highly anticipated fights for week #5:
#7 – Seth Tatum (blue) v Eric Longar (brown) – Seth Tatum has been a standout as a blue belt consistently in the top 10 of the PGF from week to week. Eric Longar has underperformed on paper as a brown belt, but he’s giving up a lot of weight in almost every match. Seth is 6’3” and 180lb so Longar will be giving up length and weight. But can the cagey brown belt take down the blue belt upstart? Or will this match just be another notch on Tatum’s belt in his quest to get what seems to be an overdue purple belt from BMAC? Seriously, if Tatum finishes in the top 10, he’s got to have a good argument for a purple belt. If I have to write down Skaff’s prerequisites for a purple belt from his podcast and go through PGF footage to give matches and time hacks to give proof, I might just do it.
#6 – Elijah Carlton (black) v Roger Coehlo (black) – A black belt battle could be fun. The one spoiler is Roger (a fourth degree black belt) was choked/killed by Nilo Burgener in Week 2. In week 1, Elijah took out Nilo with a break off a traditional triangle position (should’ve been a kill if patient). Per the transitive property (google that stuff), Elijah should take out Roger. Still, I have to believe Roger’s fourth degree pride and time off should make it a match to watch.
#5 – Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) v Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (blue) – I’ll admit, I think the Elbow Genie/Elbow Bae gets the win via break fairly easily. I couldn’t help but include this match due to the two nicknames of different hemispheres of the body. Geiger has the collegiate wrestling and a love of knee bars, but the Elbow Genie has shown the ability to break almost any joint on the body. Moreover, when the Manderson is impressed with your grips (like he was of Roberts), the Elbow Genie is likely to grab a hold of Geiger and break something. Still, I think the athleticism of Geiger should make it a fun fight.
#4 – Roger Coelho (black) v Moises Carrasco – I still don’t know what belt Moises holds, but he’s good. He’s a Cobra BJJ product out of Tuscaloosa and has an amateur MMA record of 3-2, with a #7 ranking amongst AL heavyweights according to tapology.com. He’s shown patience and a love of the front headlock/darce/etc. setup. Roger is a 4th degree black belt that’s run into some problems against Nilo and couldn’t finish off Tatum (blue belt) or Elkins (brown belt). Roger still has the sickest foot sweep of the PGF, but this match could be a real fight.
#3 – Seth Tatum (blue) v Jeremy “Kneebar Barrista” Geiger (blue) – two 10th Planet Decatur guys here. You have to think they have faced off dozens if not hundreds of times on the mats there. This match is where the Securities and Exchange Commission should cite BMAC and the First Lady of the PGF for insider trading considering their fantasy teams. They’ve likely seen many of these rolls and have an unfair advantage in anticipating a victor. Regardless, you have a top 10, triangle or back-take master in Tatum vs a collegiate wrestler who hates on people’s knees. It’s #3 v #6 in the Eastern Conference. Tatum has a 16 point advantage. If Geiger could pull the upset (by knee bar perhaps?), it would really boost him in the rankings. I’m picking Tatum, but look forward to a good match.
#2 – Matt “Scarecrow of Death” Harrison (brown) v Mario Gaor (purple) – Mario Gaor could put Matt Elkins (see below) a run for the money for the worst schedule so far. He’s faced three black belts and one brown belt (and would’ve face another black belt if Ridge Blackburn hadn’t been hurt). Mario is a technical competitor with some slick moves. But talking about slick moves, he’ll have to face the Scarecrow of Doom. The SOD is a triangle master. Everyone thought his play was just to pull guard and hit that lanky triangle, but he’s lately shown some good top game as well, leading to some mounted triangles. I have to give the odds to the Chewjitsu product – the SOD. In this battle of tacticians, the lankiness factor will win out (plus he’s a brown belt v a purple belt).
#1 – Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown) v Matt “Manderson” Anderson (beast white belt) – it’s the Thing vs the Hulk. Elkins has probably had the highest strength of schedule in the PGF. Anderson has been subbed by two brown belts and the Kneebar Knight. Both are at the top of the weight limit with lots of strength. I believe Manderson is touted as the strongest PGF member, but Elkins has to be in the top 4. Elkins has the wrestling advantage, but Manderson is a judo brown belt. That stylistic matchup could be fun. I would have to pick Elkins. His wrestling skills plus his extensive training (brown belt) should be the mix of skill and strength needed to take out Manderson. But, even though we all think the Thing should beat the Hulk…many times the strength of the Hulk gets him out of trouble. As Manderson has world class powerlifting strength, he rates Hulk-like respect. This match should be FUN!
Okay, now back to re-watching PGF matches so I can find the keys to getting back to first place in the fantasy league…
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