Egghead Warrior's Blog

DISCLAIMER: This advice is just that, advice by a blue belt fan of the PGF. I make no promise of helping you win the $1,000. Also, McWhorter, you are banned from reading this blog. I’m still a little salty from you using my analysis to edge me out last year (just kidding, bud. best of luck!). Okay, now onto the monologue:

I’m a Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) superfan; a super fanatic. I’ll admit it. The PGF premiered a handful of months into the COVID-19 pandemic.  Many of us were sidelined in our locations – we couldn’t train.  We were not seeing competitions, etc.  But, here came a revolutionary idea for a grappling league.  So many of us were sidelined due to the pandemic, but we had 4+ hours of community on Friday nights as we shared in the live comments, interacted with the commentators, reveled in the highs and lows of the competitors we to know, and overall had something to be enthusiastic about when so many other things were not so great throughout the land.  For many of us, jiu jitsu is the best medicine. It’s meditation in motion. It’s the calm (even while folks are trying to choke us) that helps us weather the rest of life’s complications. For those of us who could not train due to orders, family health issues, etc., the PGF was the methadone for our jiu jitsu addiction. Reveling in the mastery of Elijah Carlton, Nilo Burgener, Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts, etc., we could also cheer on our favorite underdogs (Noah Randolph, Seth Tatum, Dallas Sharp).  Even as we toiled in our normal jobs, we had the promise of Friday nights and the diversion of contemplating which competitors to put on our fantasy teams.  So, yeah, I’m a PGF superfan.  It’s meant a lot to me in the last year.  I even bought this domain name and website hosting just so I could have some fun going back to my old journalism roots (probably before many of you were born), to have some fun writing about something I enjoyed.  On the eve of the second season of the PGF, I’d like to thank Brandon “BMAC” Mccaghren, Conscious Keelan, Lindsey Mccaghren, Matt Skaff, and all the competitors for the great times we’ve all had watching the PGF and the great times we’re assuredly going to have with this season’s shows.  The next paragraph will be my standard Mat Viper plug – they’ve been a huge help to the PGF as I understand it (still waiting for the PGF hoodie – I need another hoodie, bud).

If you haven’t already, consider supporting Mat Viper, the folks that brought us the PGF rashguards. The official rashguards are available at https://matviper.com/collections/rash-guards/products/pgf-official-blue-rash-guard (you can follow the link to find the orange one).  I finally snagged one of their sweet PGF t-shirts –(https://matviper.com/collections/tops/products/the-official-pgf-t-shirt). IT IS DOPE as the man-child (my teenage who is bigger than me) would say.  I didn’t realize it was going to be in rashguard-like material, but I really like it. It’s a very nice shirt to use for training or as a more athletic undershirt for a polo-type shirt (I have to wear that stuff out in town, don’t ask).

Now on to the analysis:

For your consideration, each fantasy team has 7 possible spots with a total salary cap of $120 for the week.  Any left-over funds do not carry over to the next week. I would normally do my analysis for each player after their name and salary cap amount. However, since the first week of season 2 of the PGF only has one match for each competitor, I’m going to list the competitors (sorted by price), then cover the matches below that listing. While one could hypothetically maximize their chances at success at playing all 7 roster spots, we often found during season 1 that sacrificing a roster spot to secure more “sure things” was the way to go.

SUPER PREMIUMS (you’re going to offset the expense by dropping a roster spot)

Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (brown) – $25

Sam “the Nice Guy” Barbosa (brown) – $24

PREMIUMS

Hunter Colvin (black) – $20

Matt “the Mane/Fade” Elkins (brown) – $20

Stephen “the Spoiler” Eakin (black) – $20

Jake Elkins (purple) – $17

Kemoy “RatedR/the Bully” Anderson (brown) – $17

AVERAGE

James Regina (purple) – $15

Joshua Gibbs (purple) – $15  

Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose” Primeau (purple) – $15

“MEGA” Mike Johnson (purple)- $15 – aka the world’s most mysterious man

Zack “Squidbilly” Edwards (brown) – $15

BELOW AVERAGE

N/A

PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…)

Evan “8 Mile” Stapler (blue) – $12

Randy “Blue Blood/NHS” Roden (blue) – $12

Grayson “Southern Samurai” Webster (blue) – $10

Justin “Judo” Williams – $10

SCHEDULE FOR WEEK 1:

PGF Week 1 Matchups:

1. Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton vs Grayson “Southern Samurai” Webster – DUNK – Elijah gets the 7. Grayson Webster seems like a really cool guy.  His Dad is a martial arts beast who like to do forms in the snow (true story). Still, Grayson’s main focus is his more traditional martial arts. He just got his blue belt recently.  Elijah is a killer. He eats blue belts for breakfast (still, much love Grayson, I’m a blue belt as well, even calling my fantasy team “Blue Belts Are People Too”).  But, this match was meant to make a splash and it will.

2. James Regina vs Kemoy “RatedR/the Bully” Anderson – Oooh interesting. Both these competitors are new to me. I only have tape of one Regina match. He seems to be a big leg locker/rubber guard guy (huge limbs being 6’5”), but Kemoy is a BEAST. Both have fought MMA. But, seeing Kemoy go against other 10th Planet competitors from the team duels makes me think he’ll win.  Kemoy also has six (6!) fights in the Fight to Win promotion in the last year – he’s game and focusing on jiu jitsu now. While Kemoy seems like he loves to tear off folks’ arms and take them home (kimuras everywhere), I think he might find a way to a kill with his bullying pressure.

3. Matt “the Mane/Fade” Elkins vs Randy “Blue Blood” Roden – Roden wrestled for Duke (D1/AAC). He’s obviously a smart guy, getting into Duke and being a NHS scholar in high school (as well as being undefeated his junior and senior years in high school). The Mane (dammit, why did you get a haircut?) has the better jiu jitsu as a brown belt and has great wrestling of his own (co-owner of Ironclad Wrestling and wrestled in college as well). Elkins should know how to get the kill; he rattled off 11+ in a row after a rough first week in PGF season 1. Still, Roden is game. Everyone associated with the PGF says to watch out for him. He’s a D1 wrestler and works as a wrestling coach at a BJJ school. I have to think Roden might just pull off the upset (no, not winning), he may force Elkins to not get any points. I have concerns here and my concerns make the premium $20 price for Elkins a questionable investment. I’m all about Elkins, but I’ll admit I’m hesitating until I see Roden’s game (and it’s a salary cap issue).

4. Evan “8 mile” Stapler vs Hunter Colvin – Colvin is better known for his leg locks than chokes. Still, we have the most pedigreed PGF competitor, a black belt, against a blue belt. C’mon. Again, we have a designed dunk to open the competition. Stapler allegedly has killer cardio, so he may be able to make Colvin work for it, but the Colvin’s getting the kill. This prediction doesn’t keep me from listening to Stapler’s music video daily (ok, maybe multiple times a day – seriously, it’s a masterpiece).

5. Jake Elkins vs Justin “Judo” Williams – I’m a big fan of judokahs. One of my main training partners when I first started bjj was a brown belt in judo – a great guy (cheers to you Armbar/Otter!).  Judokahs do practice ground fighting or Newaza as they call it; they’re normally great at arm bars (think Ronda Rousey). Still, Jake is a beast. He’s a high-caliber wrestler and purple belt under BMAC (which says a lot because 10th Planet Decatur is self-admittedly stingy with the promotions).  Jake took down a Gracie black belt in the semifinals of the inaugural 225 lb bracket. I think Jake’s taking down this judokah with a kill.

6. Mega Mike Johnson vs Samuel “the Nice Guy” Barbosa – Mega Mike Johnson is a social media black hole.  He’s got that stuff on lockdown.  He doesn’t have any searchable matches.  All I know is he’s a purple belt from SBG in Birmingham and is very strong.  From the promo videos, you can see him and he is built like Kirby Puckett (old school Minnesota Twins baseball player – or as my dad would say “like a spark plug”); basically ole boy has no neck and is thicc as the kiddos would say.  While Mega is strong, Sam is renowned as ridiculously strong.  During an interview of Barbosa in which I participated, I had issues resolving the Nice Guy he clearly is with the BEAST he turns into when competing. Sam suggests he may have some demons in there – well, those demons are going to propel him to a kill here.  Sam might need a little time, but I’m thinking the promoters scheduled another dunk to kick things off.

7. Joshua Gibbs vs Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau – I used to call Primeau the Pete Rose of the PGF because for a while in season one he was leading the fantasy standings. Of course, it was all live so it was fair-ish. Now, he can’t participate since he knows many of the outcomes of matches.  And, to be fair, allegedly he’s the “liquid terminator” because he sweats a lot – as another aside that’s kind of the way many aviator callsigns are made (even the cool ones are actually a dig at the pilot – I knew a pilot with the callsign “Virus” which sounds pretty b.a. but then he told me it was because he was sick a lot as a young pilot).  Okay, enough preamble, Primeau is a pressure/Sao Paolo passing monster.  Gibbs is a purple belt, but with a solidly traditional, mostly gi bjj background.  I can only find two Gibbs competition videos, both no gi, but neither seem to suggest he can stand up to Primeau.  Seriously, Primeau went for 1:10 (that’s one hour, 10 minutes plus) in the PGF season 1 final playoffs/tournament. Primeau knows the scoring/the game; he gets the kill and is a bargain.

8. Zack “Squidbilly” Edwards vs Stephen “the Spoiler/the Dream” Eakin – Very interesting. Eakin said words to the effect at the beginning before the match both of them agreed to not hurt each other.  That acknowledgement shows respect for the capabilities of each other.  Edwards is a self-admitted leg-locker.  He sells out for leg locks. Edwards received his brown belt in 3 years (RIDICULOUS) from 10th Planet Bethlehem – the folks who brought us Jon “Thor” Blank and Grace Gundrum (two HUGE name in bjj).  10th Planet Bethlehem folks know their leg locks. On the other hand, Eakin is one of two black belts in this competition (seriously, when is someone going to give Elijah his black belt?). Eakin received his black belt from 10th Planet San Diego (the Freaks) head Richie “Boogeyman” Martinez.  The FREAKS are known for their ridiculous leg lockers as well. I have to think Eakin will be able to defense Edwards’ leg locks. Does Eakin get the kill? I think it’s very possible. Eakin in his podcasts and on his Facebooks seems very happy/proud with how PGF season 2 finished.  Still, this match has too many variables involved for me to make a bet on either of these guys (especially in this matchup) just yet.

If you’re on this blog, you’re a fan of the Professional Grappling Federation (PGF). I’m working on one or two more PGF Season 2 blog posts as a previews for the upcoming season. I’m going to try to get back my old journalism mojo and see if I can write something to get some traction as a guest post in more mainstream media outlets – the PGF is too good not to go big, but it needs more publicity.

Regardless, after I spent hours yesterday going down the rabbit hole of cyberstalking all the competitors – getting info about them and watching all the matches I could on YouTube, Facebook, UFC Fight Pass, and FloGrappling, I finally hit the rack. I woke up to a nice little surprise – a PGF season 2 preview video. As every PGF product, it was very well done. It’s one minute and eight seconds of anticipation build-up for the season. Of course, I’m responsible for at least five of the 195 views of the video as of the publishing of this post and will probably watch it dozens more times before the first episode of the season drops.

Well, I have to get ready for work, but I thought I’d do a little breakdown of the video:

It opens to some competitor introductions like we had for the hype videos for the tournament from season 1. First, we see Hunter Colvin, then Matt “Mane-less” Elkins (got tired of the hair in his face I guess), then Sam Barbosa flashing the 10 for 10th Planet. Next, we see a more candid shot of Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton walking out in some sort of match intro flashing the double birds – already setting himself up to continue the heel role.

Then, we get some competition snippets. Matt Elkins showing some wrestling against Kemoy Anderson. Jake Elkins working for the takedown against Randy Roden (this should be a great wrestling matchup as both were D1 wrestlers). What looks like Randy Roden going for a double leg, but Sam Barbosa locking up a guillotine and wrapping up with his legs (alternatively it could be Barbosa went for the guillotine and Roden was just arching his head back as a defense similar to how to stay safe when executing a double-leg). Joshua Gibbs goes rolling for a leg lock against Mega Mike Johnson. Justin Williams trying for a leg lock against Hunter Colvin but Colvin masterfully defending and taking Williams’ back.

Next, we get some b roll from events off the mats.  We see Kemoy Anderson and Matt Elkins receiving massage therapy – a nod to the whole season being taped over less than one week. We see some team building for the contestants with the whole lot of competitors balancing a platform on one log fulcrum.  Then we see them having to work as a team to get each one through an elevated web (we were doing that leadership exercise more than 20 years ago in my college’s honors leadership course).  Next up is a little down time in the hot tub for Mega Mike Johnson and Zack Snyder. Some ropes course action happens next. And more competition in the form of paintball (I’m up, he sees me, I’m down guys).  It looks like Barbosa got banged up in the shin during paintball. Then we have Elkins brothers leading the way to BMAC’s favorite restaurant – Chilis. Matt Elkins apparently has problems seeing curbs.

Back to grappling footage with Mega Mike Johnson attacking Evan Stapler’s guard, but Stapler bothering his head as BMAC recommends. Then we see Red team competitor on the ground, looks to be Zach Snyder by the hair. Is he distraught because of a loss or because of an injury?  Looks like it might be Sam Barbosa from the blue team coming close to him on the mat in a similar fashion to a competitor who is sorry for injuring their opponent during a match.

The video closes with an epic roll call shot with the Red and Blue teams facing off while facing the camera.

The level of competition in the PGF jumped a lot for this season. Between the quality of competition and the outstanding production value BMAC and Conscious Keelan always bring – we should all be very excited for this season.

We’ve hit the end of the road for the regular season of the inaugural season of the Professional Grappling Federation (PGF).  Even as I type this piece, I have a mix of Boyz II Men’s “End of the Road” in my head, but a little Frank Sinatra’s “My way” added in there out of respect for BMAC going out on a limb trying something completely new.  It’s been a great run and Fridays will be a little less without the PGF.  I said thanks to Brandon and his team in my most anticipated matches post, so enough for the love.  Now is the time for smack talk. 

Some of this analysis is real; some may not be – my new nemesis McWhorter will just have to guess when I’m shooting him straight or trying to throw him off his game.  I’m doing my own personal analysis if I take the safe road ahead or go for broke with some high risk/high reward plays.  Either way whoever wins, tip of the cap to you McWhorter.  I’ll admit, I’m not good at smack talk, never was.  Of course, it feels good to have a pretty commanding lead over the Pete Rose of the PGF and the First Lady of the PGF, who both have insider info advantages over most of us (ha ha, so there.  Yeah, that’s about as good as I get on smack talk).

This week is really exciting. Not only is it the last week of the season, but the top four places in the league are completely in play.  To steal a little of my thoughts from my most anticipated matches post (in case you didn’t see it), here’s what I’m talking about: Elijah Carlton has been the odds-on favorite throughout the season.  He’s come out and submitted every opponent.  He built what seemed an unassailable lead over everyone only to see it chipped away by three opponents.  Nilo Bergener and Caleb McAllister have both amassed 86 points, only five behind Elijah.  Matt “the Mane” Elkins is just behind them with 84 points, only seven (one choke/kill) behind Elijah.  Not to get ahead of my fantasy analysis, but the Mane has three matches and is likely to get three kills, for 21 points, finishing with 105 points. Nilo Bergener looks to score another blackjack for 21 points in his three matches, finishing with 107 points (Mario Gaor is his most game opponent this week and has the best shot of forcing a break or draw).  Caleb McAllister and Elijah Carlton both have to face Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts who defeated Nilo Bergener.  If Caleb can only get 14 points (getting a draw with Roberts), he finishes with 100 points.  If Elijah can only get a break on Roberts, he’ll likely end up with 105 points to tie for second with the Mane (an even crazier scenario would be if Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger forces Elijah to only get a break, ending with 101 points in third overall).  If you put a gun to my head, I’m guessing Nilo wins it all.  He has the easier set of three matches and the lead over the Mane.  If I was the Mane, I would’ve spent the week trying to help the Elbow Genie and maybe Gladden or Gaor prepare for their opponents.

Enough prognostication on the overall winner, now on to the fantasy analysis:

SUPER PREMIUMS (you’re going to offset the expense by dropping a roster spot)

Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown) – $25 – Keahi “Mr. Congeniality” Makekau (white), Seth Tatum (blue), Robert Gladden (white). The Mane has been on a tear lately, moving up to second place in the Eastern Conference.  The Commish has put some extra respect and cost on his name, moving the Mane to the most expensive fantasy competitor.  With this week’s matchups, he could give Elijah Carlton a run for his money and the league championship money if he can secure three kills.  Elijah has one more match remaining for the season, but that includes Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts and Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger.  If either of those stalwart competitors can force a draw or just a break by Elijah, the Mane could sneak away with the championship, but he will still need some help from one of Nilo’s competitors.  Still, this scenario should give the Mane plenty of motivation to go for three kills. [21 14points].

Elijah Carlton (brown) – $24 – Eric Longar (brown), Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (blue), Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown).  Elijah has submitted every opponent.  Elijah’s modus operandi of late is to choke the easy competitors, but to settle for a break against stiffer competition (is there a pun there somewhere?).  Mike “Manscape” Richey forced Elijah to settle for a break, so the Knee Barrista could do the same.  The Elbow Genie has the best shot of either forcing Elijah to settle for a break or for possibly getting one of his own slick submissions.  More analysis of the Elijah v Roberts match provided in my most anticipated matches.  Best bet is two chokes and a break. [17 points].

Caleb McAllister (black) – $24 – Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Keahi Makekau (white), Seth Tatum (blue).  Caleb has been a force but has been taken to a draw by Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau and Moises Carrasco.  Their styles of force on force lend themselves to using up the six minutes.  Roberts’ style seems more to lend itself to high-tempo rolling with plenty of scrambles which might play into Caleb’s pace game.  Still, I’m betting on the McAllister v Roberts match being exciting but ending in a draw.  [14 points]

Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) – $23 – Caleb McAllister (black), Robert Gladden (white), Moises Carrasco (purple), Elijah Carlton (brown).  I think Roberts gets the break on Gladden and Moises, but I can’t predict a submission against Elijah or Caleb.  Roberts could choke the white belt, but I think he’ll settle for a quick break to keep his energy for the rest of his matches. [ 6 points]

Moises Carrasco (purple) – $22 – Dennis Smith (white), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Jeremy “Knee Barrist” Geiger (blue), Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Keahi Makekau (white).  Five matches make Moises again an intriguing pick.  But we’ve seen Moises get sucked into draws by determined competitors…and he’s two very determined competitors in Manscape and the Knee Barista.  These three large competitors could spend half the time on their feet also fueling the chances of a bye.  More analysis on Moises v Roberts in the most anticipated matches piece, but I think Roberts wins. [14 points]

Nilo “the Mop” Bergener (brown) – $22 – Robert Gladden (white), Mario Gaor (purple), Casey Willbanks (blue). There’s a very real possibility if Nilo can pull the blackjack he wins the inaugural PGF season.  He has every motivation to secure the kill on each opponent and the skills to do so. [ 21 14 points]

PREMIUMS

Joe “Cobra” Kai (brown) – $20 – Clay Malone (blue), Dallas Sharp (blue), Eric Longar (brown).  Kai was stymied by a very tough Louis Collins last week, forcing the draw, and Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall forcing the break (but he force Elijah to settle for a break as well).  Here, I think he gets the chokes.  I’m a little concerned with Longar’s skill and Malone’s size advantage, but Kai can make it happen.  [21 points]

Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown) – $18 – Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell. The SOD gets the kill on the Grey Goose, but could run into problems with Manscape.  The SOD’s triangles are vicious, but Manscape might be strong enough to keep posturing out of them unless he gets them locked in and at the proper angle very quickly.  In the battle of two of the hardest competitors to submit, we have to put money on a draw. [7 points]

Eric Longar (brown) – $17 – Elijah Carlton (brown), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Joe Kai (brown).  Longar has shown issues with giving up size advantages (he burned me one week on this issue when I put him on my team).  I can’t put any money on any submissions by Longar this week. [0 points.]

Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose” Primeau (purple) – $17 – Seth Tatum (blue), Robert Gladden (white), Robert Autrey (white).  The Pete Rose of the PGF takes out the two white belts and Tatum with his pressure passing.  Tatum could give a little trouble with his guard, but Primeau will still choke him out. [14 points]. PICK OF THE WEEK!

AVERAGE

Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (Blue) – $16 – Moises Carrasco (purple), Elijah Carlton (brown), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white).  Ouch, that’s some fierce competition.  The Knee Barrista is going to put on a show with his wrestling and athleticism and might even sneak in a break (knee bar of course) on Carrasco or Manscape, but the odds are too even to warrant a wager.  I’m not picking him for my team, but I’ll definitely be looking forward to his matches. [0 points].

Mario Gaor (purple) – $16 – Robert Gladden (white), Robert Autrey (white), Nilo Bergener (brown).  Loss to Nilo, but he gets the job done against the Roberts.  [14 7 points].

Seth Tatum (blue) – $16 – Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple), Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Dennis Smith (white), Caleb McAllister (black).  If Tatum isn’t wore out by his first two matches, he’s got a good shot at scoring the kill against Smith.  Tatum’s been a great competitor and I’ve been lobbying for him to get his purple belt since he’s had such a great showing in the league.  Unfortunately, he has to work on his leg defense if he wants to rank up.  Regardless, Tatum has made us blue belts everywhere proud to have him in our numbers.  [7 points.]

Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue) – $15 – Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple), Josh Diaddario (blue).  Boy Wonder gets a chance to earn some kills this week.  After starting out so strong, it’ll be hard to see him not make the tournament.  It seems Diaddaio and to a lesser extent Mitchell hold the keys to the kingdom for Randall, Malone, and Sharp.  All three men on the bubble face Diaddario; and Malone and Randall face both Diaddario and the Grey Goose. If Randall can secure kills against Diaddario and the Grey Goose, he’ll force Malone to go for two kills possibly causing him to end in a draw and lose out (cont. below).  [14 points]

Clay Malone (blue) – $15 – Joe Kai (brown), Josh Diaddario (blue), Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple).  However, if Malone gets one kill against Diaddario and only his straight ankle lock break against Mitchell, Malone and Randall would tie.  In that case, Randall actually has a break against Malone so one would have to think Randall gets in the tournament.  Someone should make sure Malone knows he needs these two kills. [14 points].

Matt Anderson (beast) – $15 – Josh Diaddario (blue). Manderson chokes Diaddario for not showing last week and making Anderson come back an extra week. [7 points]

Noah Randolph (blue) – $15 – Casey Willbanks (blue).  Noah’s making the tournament, so he could take it easy.  Still, look for Noah to want some momentum going into the tournament. [7 points]

BELOW AVERAGE

Josh Diaddario (blue) – $14 – Matt Anderson (beast), Canaan Brooks (blue), Clay Malone (blue), Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Dallas Sharp (blue).  It’s not a promising week for Diaddario.  AS mentioned above he has some very motivated competition.  Diaddario could still make the tournament if he recorded kills on all his opponents, but it’s highly unlikely.  His best bet to score points is if the wrong Canaan shows up tonight, but I think Canaan’s going to be motivated as well. [0 points].

Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple) – $14 – Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown), Canaan Brooks (blue), Clay Malone (blue).  He’s also facing very motivated opponents this week. [0 points].

Canaan Brooks (blue) – $13 – Josh Diaddario (blue), Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple), Robert Gladden (white). I’m going on a limb and saying the right Canaan shows in the final week, recording a leg lock against Gladden and a kill against the Grey Goose. [16 points…because we have a bet].

Dallas Sharp (blue) – $13 – Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Joe Kai (brown), Josh Diaddario (blue). The strength of Manscape versus the athleticism of Sharp should be a really interesting match to watch, but not one on which to bet.  Kai has the skill and athleticism advantage (or at least skill advantage and similar athleticism).  Sharp gets it done against Diaddario. [7 points].

Louis Collins (blue) – $13 – Done for the season.  Really showed a lot of grit refusing to let Joe Kai submit him.  I really liked watching his combination of wrestling and leg locks.  [0 points].

Mike “Manscape” Richey (white) – $13 – Moises Carrasco (purple), Dallas Sharp (blue), Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown), Eric Longar (brown), Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger.  Manscape has five matches – that alone merits consideration for a roster spot.  Still, Manscape has only submitted Michael Libby (first week before all the progress we’ve seen over the course of the PGF), Robert Autrey (a white belt), and Casey Willbanks (who only has one win).  Manscape is very hard to submit, with only Nilo and Elijah (two of the top PGF contestants) getting submissions.  I’m taking a chance and saying Manscape’s strength overwhelms Longar, but otherwise we see a lot of interesting draws here.  [7 points].

PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…)

Michael Libby (blue) – $12 – Robert Gladden (white).  Libby has shown some real improvement.  He gets the break. [3 points].

Dennis Smith (white) – $10 – Moises Carrasco (purple), Keahi Makekau (white), Seth Tatum (blue), Robert Gladden (white).  Smith gets the choke on Keahi and Gladden, finishing with a strong showing. [14 7 points].

Robert Autrey (white) – $10 – Casey Willbanks (blue), Mario Gaor (purple), Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau.  I’ll say he get the kill on Willbanks. [7 points].

Robert Gladden (white) – $10 – Nilo Bergener (brown), Mario Gaor (purple), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Michael Libby (blue), Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple), Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Dennis Smith (white), Canaan Brooks (blue).  EIGHT matches and half of them are against top competitors in the PGF.  He might have a shot against Libby or Canaan, but I think by the time he faces Canaan, he’ll be worn out and susceptible to a footlock.  We’ll have to see if this schedule gets broken up with some on Thursday. [0 points].

Casey Willbanks (blue) – $10 – Robert Autrey (white), Noah Randolph (blue), Nilo Bergener (brown). As a last-minute replacement, I have to take my hat off to Willbanks.  He stayed the course, going up against competitors with more experience and athleticism.  He never backed down. That’s true grit.  He’ll be better for having participated in this league.  Bravo Zulu. [0 points].

Keahi “Mr. Congeniality” Makekau (white) – $10 – Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Dennis Smith (white), Caleb McAllister (black), Moises Carrasco (purple).  Mr. Congeniality is in for another rough week, but he’ll learn a lot. Much like Willbanks, we all have to give Keahi props.  Going up against this level of competition week after week…as a white belt.  That takes a lot of guts.  He looks like he faces adversity with a smile and that usually leads to a very successful person in the long run.  [0 points].

I’m barely making my deadline due to a glorious Zoom-powered parents’ back to school night for my eldest son.  Nevertheless, your cure for a case of the Mondays is here.  Sadly, the final week of the season is upon us.  Let us not mourn the passing of the first season of the PGF, but revel in how awesome it has been.  Hat’s off to BMAC and team for creating something very compelling, beneficial for competitors and fans alike.  I know we’ve all seen the level of skill grow in many competitors and as one person in the chat said last Friday, it seems like we’re all buddies hanging out every Friday night. Again, thank you to BMAC and crew for expanding their community to include us all.

This week will both give us important information heading into the tournament and also determine the PGF’s first season champion.  Elijah Carlton has been the odds-on favorite throughout the season.  He’s come out and submitted every opponent.  He built what seemed an unassailable lead over everyone only to see it chipped away by three opponents.  Nilo Bergener and Caleb McAllister have both amassed 86 points, only five behind Elijah.  Matt “the Mane” Elkins is just behind them with 84 points, only seven (one choke/kill) behind Elijah.  Not to get ahead of my fantasy analysis, but the Mane has three matches and is likely to get three kills, for 21 points, finishing with 105 points. Nilo Bergener looks to score another blackjack for 21 points in his three matches, finishing with 107 points (Mario Gaor is his most game opponent this week and has the best shot of forcing a break or draw).  Caleb McAllister and Elijah Carlton both have to face Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts who defeated Nilo Bergener.  If Caleb can only get 14 points (getting a draw with Roberts), he finishes with 100 points.  If Elijah can only get a break on Roberts, he’ll likely end up with 105 points to tie for second with the Mane (an even crazier scenario would be if Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger forces Elijah to only get a break, ending with 101 points in third overall).  Okay, the nerd in me is getting out of control.  We’ll just have to see how the scenarios work themselves out.  Sufficed to say, there’s some great matches to anticipate for this week:

Bonus Match: Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown) v Mike “Manscape” Richey (white) –  I think this match will crown the toughest guy to submit (obviously excluding the top guys in the PGF). The SOD has been submitted by Dallas Sharp in one of the best matches in the PGF (great comeback by Sharp), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts, and Matt “the Mane” Elkins.  I’m not counting the Knee Barrista because I believe he tapped first. Manscape has only been submitted by Nilo and Elijah (two of the top four competitors in the league). Both these guys are TOUGH to submit.  I think the question is whether the SOD can get Manscape into his guard.  If the SOD gets you in his guard, it’s nightmare time.  Manscape is a super strong man. Can he overwhelm the SOD with his strength and wrestling?  The SOD has no problem sitting guard and catching opponents in his web.  I wouldn’t be surprised if this match went to a draw, but it will be entertaining the whole time.

5. Moises Carrasco (purple) v Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (blue) – This match pits a MMA fighter purple belt against a collegiate wrestler blue belt. Moises has shown he’s legit in bjj.  Even with a crazy schedule the last week, he has only been submitted this season by Elijah Carlton, who had to settle for a break.  Moises has taken PGF heavy hitters the likes of Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau, Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall, and Caleb McAllister to draws.  This MMA fighter has the defense and determination to make it a long match when he isn’t using his guillotine, darce, and peruvian neckties to submit his opponent.  The Knee Barrista won his moniker because he has four knee bars in the league to complement his top-notch wrestling skills. Geiger is the man on the bubble in the Eastern Conference.  He leads the next competitor, Josh Diaddario, by 11 points, but Diaddario has five matches.  The Knee Barrista has this match, a match against Elijah Carlton (the number one overall), and a match against Mike “Manscape” Ritchey who has only been submitted by the top two competitors in the PGF (Elijah and Nilo Bergener).  The Knee Barrista needs every submission he can get to assure his entry into the tournament on 2 October.  Moises is sitting at fifth place in the Western Conference.  While his place may not matter, he’s currently two points outside of the top eight in the league, meaning he’s OUT of the money picture unless he can score some submissions.  In this match, Moises and Geiger both have strong motivation to fight for the submission.

4. Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) v Moises Carrasco (purple)– As mentioned above, Moises Carrasco has proved his bone fides in the grappling arena.  Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts earned his name for a reason; he’s a stone cold joint breaking killer.  The Elbow Genie has thrown out conventional wisdom and eschewed the seven points offered by chokes/kills, opting to illustrate his breaking wizardry (okay, he’s actually choked three out of 14 competitors he’s defeated).  The Elbow Genie has been one of three competitors featured on BMAC’s Youtube Channel in a PGF Insider profile and is the first PGF competitor to have his best submissions earn their own video.  The reason he’s received this attention is pure skill and breaking potential.  He turned a slick side control escape into a heel hook against Nilo Bergener (who is widely regarded as in the top three in the league) and almost took out Matt “the Mane” Elkins in the first 60 seconds of their match.  While he ultimately lost to the Mane, it could have gone either way and you have to figure their familiarity with each other had to help Elkins.  The Elbow Genie’s match of the week fight against Kevin “the Liquid Terminator” Primeau lived up to expectations. While it was a draw, it was a very even match showcasing Primeau’s passing and Roberts’ slick submission setups.  The betting money has to go on the Elbow Genie in this match.  Roberts will likely sit guard which will save a lot of time other so he can attack submissions.  Roberts disregard for points means he’ll latch onto the first appendage available and look to take it home with him.  Moises showed some good passing against leg lockers in his first few matches, but those opponents were no Elbow Genie.

3. Joe “Cobra” Kai (brown) v Eric Longar (brown) – Skill and athleticism will shine in this match.  So often, both these competitors are giving up 10s of pounds against their opponents in the PGF.  While jiujitsu is known to give smaller folks a shot against opponents, the greater a size differential limits the range of techniques available to a competitor.  With these brown belts being similar in size, we should see their full arsenals at work.  Kai is third in the Western Conference. Longar is sixth in the Eastern conference.  Neither really needs to improve their rankings, but Longar could drop to eight if he’s not careful as he only leads Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger by three points.  In his best matches, Longar’s been known for his side-to-side passing.  Still, Longar hasn’t submitted anyone ranked above a blue belt. Kai has grown into one of the stars of the PGF, showing off his motor with constant passing and submission attempts. It will be hard for Longar to match Kai’s athleticism, but this match should show us if Longar can rise to the occasion when he’s in a fight in his weight class.

2. Caleb McAllister (black) v Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) – Caleb has been a great addition to the PGF.  He brings a strong drive and years of competitive experience.  He’s submitted everyone he’s faced with the exception of Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau and Moises Carrasco, with the latter somewhat stalling for a lot of the match with two long-held guillotines.  Caleb’s going to come in with a fast pace, looking for passing and submissions. Like the Roberts v Primeau match, it will be a question of Roberts’ submissions/guard v McAllister’s passing.  I’m a huge Elbow Genie fan, but there’s a good chance Caleb can pass Roberts guard.  The final question will likely be whether the Elbow Genie be able to pull off some more magic like he did against Nilo and almost did against the Mane?  McAllister’s a great talent, but no one is safe rolling with the Elbow Genie.

1. Elijah Carlton (black) v Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) – Ellijah’s been the pick to win the PGF from the beginning of the PGF.  He’s defeated all of his opponents, settling for a break instead of a kill on only five of his 15 submissions.  Essentially, it seemed like Elijah’s game plan was to assess his opponent’s strength, going for the kill against manageable opponents, settling for a break against trickier foes.  As the Elbow Genie, many fans think Roberts has a shot at an upset here. There’s no denying Roberts has slick submission setups from all over.  But as mentioned, we haven’t seen all of Elijah’s breaking game.  When he’s needed it, his leg locks and arm bars have shown up and they’ve been pretty. As mentioned above, Elijah is up by only five points over Nilo Bergener and Caleb McAllister and seven points over Matt “the Mane” Elkins. Will winning the season motivate Elijah to go for the kill or will he assess the Elbow Genie as a threat and try to go for the quick break?  Will Roberts be able to maintain his guard or recover it if Elijah passes?  Even more interesting, could we see a leg entanglement battle between the Elbow Genie and Elijah?  Elijah is the betting favorite, but this match should give us a lot of information going into the tournament.

I hope you like the roll-up of my most anticipated matches for Week 9.  I will push out my Week 9 fantasy analysis on Wednesday.

Congrats to McWhorter, Bull City Jiu-Jitsu, and The Winners on joining me with the top team scores of the week.  We all decided Noah-t to overlook Noah (McDojo show inside joke there). Now the Pete Rose of the PGF, Kevin Primeau, has had to give up his #1 position, sinking down to #3.  Kevin, you have a blue belt beating you: neener-neener. That’s gotta hurt. But really it was great seeing Noah’s skills and talent come to fruition in the PGF competition.  I think we all saw his promise in week 1 of the PGF, but didn’t really see the payoff until last week. 

The big question mark for this week will be Moises Carrasco.  He missed the last week of competition in the PGF due to a MMA fight. I’ve tried and can’t find the fight on YouTube or other places online. I can’t find out any info on the results or his health following the fight.  He could come in banged up or he could come in with great conditioning, following a MMA camp – no idea which is right.  He has three matches on Thursday and three matches on Friday.  The numbers of matches alone could make him an intriguing pick until you start looking at his competition (more below). We don’t know if he’ll be locked for fantasy teams (as in not allowed to add) after Thursday or if all teams will have to be in on Thursday (I’d prefer the former as it does not upset casual fantasy players and fans). Regardless, after this week, we should know if Moises is a contender in the PGF or a mma fighter with some decent chokes.

I’m going to have to cut the exposition short. I got home at 0100 last night and have to prep for a fantasy football draft which I didn’t realize was today (been busy on PGF fantasy).  At this point, I’m going to have to video chat my son to help me pick my team.

Don’t worry McWhorter, I’m going to reanalyze all my intel, checking my excel spreadsheets twice so I can ensure I return to my rightful place as #1 in the PGF fantasy league.  It has a nice symmetry to it, doesn’t it? He was at the top in the beginning, got knocked down, then had to fight his way back to claim the spot again in the end.

As a quick reminder if you haven’t seen in on the Facebook group, Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison is out with an injury, but is expected to return next week. 

If you haven’t already, consider supporting Mat Viper, the folks that brought us the PGF rashguards. The official rashguards are available at https://matviper.com/collections/rash-guards/products/pgf-official-blue-rash-guard (you can follow the link to find the orange one).  Since I can’t train currently (stupid Rona), I finally snagged one of their sweet PGF t-shirts – the black one looks “dope” as my teenager would say (https://matviper.com/collections/tops/products/the-official-pgf-t-shirt). I got my shirt in the mail while I was gone.  IT IS DOPE as the man-child would say (he’s 6’1″ 225 and slated to be the starting varsity DE as a 16 year old).  I didn’t realize it was going to be in rashguard-like material, but I really like it.

Now on to the analysis:

UPDATED SCRATCHES:

1. Matt Harrison

2. Matt Elkins

3. Josh Diaddario

4. Robert Gladden

SUPER PREMIUMS (you’re going to offset the expense by dropping a roster spot)

Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown) – $25 – Keahi “Mr. Congeniality” Makekau (white), Seth Tatum (blue), Robert Gladden (white). The Mane has been on a tear lately, moving up to second place in the Eastern Conference.  The Commish has put some extra respect and cost on his name, moving the Mane to the most expensive fantasy competitor.  With this week’s matchups, he could give Elijah Carlton a run for his money and the league championship money if he can secure three kills.  Elijah has one more match remaining for the season, but that includes Jonathon “Elbow Genie” Roberts and Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger.  If either of those stalwart competitors can force a draw or just a break by Elijah, the Mane could sneak away with the championship.  This scenario should give the Mane plenty of motivation to go for three kills.– [21 points].

Elijah Carlton (black) – $24 – Moises Carrasco (mma).  Currently, Elijah shows only Moises on his schedule for 11 September.  One match isn’t worth the super-premium price.  [7 points].

Caleb McAllister (black) – $24 – Dallas Sharp (blue), Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (blue), Moises Carrasco (mma).  I can’t find any info on Moises’ MMA fight (how it went, if he’s healthy, etc.) If all three opponents show, I believe Caleb should secure the 21 points.  Caleb’s skills and pace are hard to match.    [21 points]

Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) – $23 – Mario Gaor (purple), Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple), Robert Gladden (white).  The Elbow Genie was very close to having a phenomenal night.  He started off with a great heel hook off a scramble on Nilo.  At that point, many of us were thinking, uh-oh the Elbow Genie has been sandbagging the league and just waiting to tear limbs off and take that tournament championship.  Then, he got a choke on Libby, only his second kill of the season.  Finally, he almost took the Mane’s leg home in the first 60 seconds of their match.  Elkins stayed composed and found a way to escape, later choking Roberts.  Roberts showed great skill and grit fighting through those competitors. This week’s lineup isn’t as bad for Roberts, he’ll get breaks against Gaor and Gladden.  The Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose match should be very interesting.  Primeau’s been on a mission lately, getting kill after kill.  I think that match could go either way and is definitely one of the matches I’m anticipating the most.  [6 3 points]

Moises Carrasco – $22 – Thursday: Louis Collins (blue), Kevin Primeau (purple), Canaan Brooks (blue); Friday: Elijah Carlton (black), Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Caleb McAllister (black). ALL SIX MATCHES WILL COUNT TOWARDS THIS WEEKS FANTASY.  As I said before, Moises missed the last week of PGF competing in Strike Hard Productions (SHP) 55. Online it looks like he was competing at 170 lbs in an amateur championship fight.  I can’t find any info to help assess whether he’ll have any effects on his competition this week in the PGF. While having 6 matches makes him very tantalizing and he would seem a no-brainer, look at who Moises is facing.  We don’t have enough tape on Moises against hard competition to pick him over the likes of Elijah, Caleb, and the Pete Rose of the PGF.  Moises should have the strength advantage and MMA experience over his other opponents, but the remainder of his opponents have shown penchants for leg locking.  Of course, Moises is coming off of a training camp (maybe?) for a MMA match.  He could show up in beast mode and wreck a number of his opponents.  He’s a high risk/high reward option for this week. The final question will be when will he be frozen and not allowed on your team?  We can’t freeze all fantasy on Thursday, that would limit the value of the Walo’s McDojo show in picking their fantasy team (they wouldn’t get to) and it would freeze out all less fanatical fans who just make this a quick part of their Friday nights.  Probably too many questions for me to put him on my team or estimate his wins. [?? points] – UPDATE: draw against Primeau. Break against Collins

Nilo “the Mop” Bergener (brown) – $22 – Robert Gladden (white), Michael Libby (blue), Robert Autrey (white), Casey Willbanks (blue).  Talking about challengers for the throne. Nilo has five matches left.  He’s 12 behind Elkins and 16 behind Elijah.  The only challenge he should face is in the last week when he faces Mario Gaor – and Nilo should win that one.  Nilo’s a smart competitor and should be going for all kills to get his shot at the title. Three kills this week. [21 points] PICK OF THE WEEK! – Gladden was a scratch

PREMIUMS

SCRATCH Roger Coelho (black) – OUT FOR SEASON.

Joe “Cobra” Kai (brown) – $20 – Louis Collins (blue), Canaan Brooks (blue), Blake “Wonder Boy” Randall (blue).  I’ve been saying I’m a huge Kai fan all season.  I think everyone else has fallen in line by now.  My estimates for last week’s performance would’ve been spot on had the Scarecrow of Doom continued to show how dang hard it is to submit him.  Kai had the SOD in bad positions almost the entire match but couldn’t secure a choke or break.  This week, Kai should knock out Collins and Brooks with kills.  Both Collins and Brooks are footlockers, but I think Kai can disengage from that game, pass them and choke them out.  The Kai versus Randall match could be very fun to watch.  Randall has shown lots of energy and explosiveness similar to Kai.  Kai has the higher belt ranking.  Randall also has four matches this week, facing Kai in his final match.  While Randall has that youthful vigor, it’ll be interesting to see if he can keep up with Kai after having three previous matches.  Randall forced Elijah, his sensei, to settle for a break; he could do the same to Kai here.  [17 points]

Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown) – $18 – SCRATCH DUE TO INJURY, MATCHES MOVED TO THE 18TH. [0 points]

Eric Longar (brown) – $17 – BYE WEEK.  Longar’s had a tough time lately, facing three of the top PGF competitors in his last three matches and being choked each time. The 18th won’t be much better when he’ll face Elijah Carlton (black), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white, but beast), and Joe Kai (brown). [0 points.]

Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose” Primeau (purple) – $17 – Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (Blue), Moises Carrasco (mma), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Keahi Makekau (white). He was my pick of the week for the last two weeks, delivering the highest fantasy score of the season last week.  His performances the last two weeks have catapaulted him from 7th in the conference to 2nd. He’ll get the kills on Geiger and Keahi, but too much is unknown about Moises to make a call.  The Elbow Genie match should be great, too close to call as well.  [14 points].

AVERAGE

Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (Blue) – $16 – Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose” Primeau (purple), Caleb McAllister (black).  Ouch.  Knee Barrista’s last five matches of the season are all against beasts.  He’s currently ranked 7th in the Eastern conference but could slide out of the tournament if he can’t secure any submissions in his final matches.  He’s going to have to hope for a sneaky knee bar this week, but hope isn’t a course of action. [0 points].

Mario Gaor (purple) – $16 – Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Keahi Makekau (white), Seth Tatum (blue).  Mario’s got to bring his A game this week.  He’s a great competitor, but I don’t see how he escapes a match with the Elbow Genie with all his limbs.  He’ll get the kill on Keahi, but the match against Tatum should be interesting.  Tatum rose early as a star of the PGF securing a number of kills.  Looking back, most of Tatum’s kills were on blue belts or below.  If Tatum wants to make his case for his purple belt promotion, taking out a purple belt in the form of Mario would really help.  This match should be a great contest.  [7 points].

Seth Tatum (blue) – $16 – Michael Libby (blue), Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Mario Gaor (purple).  As stated above, Tatum racked up a lot of kills his first few weeks, then regressed to the mean when facing tougher competition later.  I have to believe Elkins gets the kill on Tatum. Tatum should triangle Libby. The question here is the Mario match.  Gaor’s a gamer.  It will be a real test for Tatum and could help him make the case for his purple belt at the end of the season. If I had to pick, I think Tatum steps up and gets the kill on Mario.  It’s tempting to say he settles for a break, but he hasn’t had a break all season; it’s kill or nothing for Tatum.  [14 points.]

Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue) – $15 – Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Moises Carrasco, Josh Diaddario (blue), Joe Kai (brown).  He’s on the bubble, but on the outside looking in currently.  At this point, he’s four points behind the Clay Malone who holds that 8th spot.  Randall is coming off the moral victory of forcing Elijah Carlton (current #1 and his sensei) to walk away with only a break.  He’s also going to have a tough night if all these matches come to fruition.  Manscape is a beast who should be able to mitigate the Boy Wonder’s usual wrestling advantage.  Randall’s giving up too much strength and size for this match.  Look for Randall to go for a quick leg lock against Manscape.  Diaddario has definitely upped his game during the PGF. Still, I have to believe Randall chokes him.  Moises is questionable whether he shows after his MMA fight; we’ll all have to wait to see how healthy he is.  Kai should prove too much for the Boy Wonder.  For as exciting as Randall has been, I’m a little bummed to think he will miss out on the tournament.  He’d be a great option for an exhibition match pitting two fan favorites who missed the tournament against each other. [10 3 points]

Clay Malone (blue) – $15 – Mike “Manscape” Richey (white).  The last man in the tournament for Western Conference. He got the kill on Smith last week to obtain that spot.  Richey is really hard to submit.  Even though Malone needs the kill, he’ll likely have to settle for a straight ankle lock if he wants to take out one of the strongest competitors in the PGF. [3 points].

Matt Anderson (beast) – $15 – Josh Diaddario (blue), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple), SCRATCHCoehlo. After coming on fire the first few weeks, Manderson has been on a losing streak.  He’s lost his last five matches.  Now, those five included Nilo, Elijah, Mario, and Kai – a murder’s row for sure.  This week’s lineup is much more manageable. As I said last week, I’m really looking forward to Manscape v Manderson.  During week 6, the commentators said Manscape is actually stronger than Manderson.  As Manderson is a national-class powerlifter, I am interested in seeing this matchup.  Is this the Hulk v the Thing matchup I have been anticipating? Manderson gets the break on Manscape. I’m concerned about Diaddario’s leg lock game. Going for Manderson’s legs seems to be key for smaller guys.  Still, I have a feeling Manderson wants to secure his spot in the tournament and muscles his way into three two submissions this week. [12 points]

Noah Randolph (blue) – $15 – SCRATCHBlackburn, Casey Willbanks (blue).  Noah got those of us who were Noah-t afraid 23 points last week (that’s a McDojo Show joke right there, son).  I’ll admit I got luckier than expected when he got two make-up matches for the night to turn what I thought was going to be a 14 point night into a 23 point night.  This week he has a scratch and a solid kill opportunity, but it probably won’t be worth his new price. [9 points]

BELOW AVERAGE

Josh Diaddario (blue) – $14 – Matt Anderson (beast), Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue).  Diaddario has shown a lot of improvement during the PGF, but it’s not going to be his week.  Both Anderson and Randall need kills to keep their hopes of the tournament alive. He could pull a sneaky leg lock on Anderson, but I don’t think it’ll happen.  Anderson should be expecting competitors to be targeting his legs by now. [0 points].

Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple) – $14 – Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown), Matt “Manderson” Anderson (beast), Louis Collins (blue).  He might have a shot at a leglock on Manderson or Collins, but I don’t think he’s getting any points this week. [0 points].

Canaan Brooks (blue) – $13 – [Thursday] Moises Carrasco (mma), [Friday] Keahi Makekau (white), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Joe Kai (brown), Robert Gladden (white). Five matches in one night.  I’m not sure I buy it.  Still, I think Canaan could get a kill against Keahi.  He’s got a shot at footlocking Richey. Kai will be a learning match as will Moises if he shows.  Canaan could get a footlock on Gladden.  Overall, Canaan could be a good bargain pickup to fill out your roster this week. [7 points].

Dallas Sharp (blue) – $13 – Caleb McAllister (black).  A great opportunity to learn from a black belt this week.  Sharp has a high motor like McAllister so it could be fun to watch.  Still, it’s likely McAllister gets a quick sub. [0 points].

Louis Collins (blue) – $13 – Joe Kai (brown), Moises Carrasco, Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell, Mike “Manscape” Richey (white). I’m not sure Collins was fully healed from his injury when he came back last week.  He tapped pretty early to Primeau’s Japanese necktie.  He has two weeks to heal more, but I hope he didn’t tweak his neck during that submission.  Collins seems to like leading with his wrestling, then falling back to leglocks if his wrestling doesn’t work.  Kai and Carrasco will win.  He has a good shot at breaks against the Grey Goose and Richey.  [6 points].

Mike “Manscape” Richey (white) – $13 – Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Matt Anderson (beast), Canaan Brooks (blue), Clay Malone (blue), Louis Collins (blue).  Manscape has five matches – that alone merits consideration for a roster spot.  Still, Manscape has only submitted Michael Libby (first week before all the progress we’ve seen over the course of the PGF), Robert Autrey (a white belt), and Casey Willbanks (who only has one win).  Manscape is very hard to submit, with only Nilo and Elijah (two of the top PGF contestants) getting submissions.  So, does Manscape use his wrestling and strength to smash the likes of Randall, Brooks, and Collins, or do those three go after his legs and get breaks?  Who wins “The Strongest PGF Competitor” match between Manscape and Manderson? Will Clay Malone go after that straight ankle lock or feel forced to try for a choke to make the tournament, exposing himself for a submission?  I’m a little frustrated because those 10th Planet Decatur fantasy players likely have a better idea of how these matches will turn out.  Even if I can’t put Manscape on my team, as a fan, I’m definitely looking forward to getting those questions above answered.  [10 points].

PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…)

Michael Libby (blue) – $12 – Seth Tatum(blue), Robert Gladden (white), Robert Autrey (white).  Coming off a nice upset last week against the Knee Barrista, Libby could get some momentum going before the getting thrashed by Nilo in his final match of the season.  Tatum’s likely to triangle him or get some other kill.  But Libby could sneak some footlocks on the two remaining Roberts. [6 3 points].

Dennis Smith (white) – $10 – Moises Carrasco (mma).  One match and a tough one if it happens. No go. [0 points].

Robert Autrey (white) – $10 – Casey Willbanks (blue), Nilo Bergener (brown), Michael Libby (blue). Autrey gets the kill on Willbanks.  He loses to Nilo and likely gets footlocked by Libby. [7 points].

Robert Gladden (white) – $10 – Nilo Bergener (brown), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown), Michael Libby (blue), Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Canaan Brooks (blue).  Five matches and three of them are against top competitors in the PGF.  He might have a shot against Libby or Canaan, but I think by the time he faces Canaan, he’ll be worn out and susceptible to a footlock. [0 points].

Casey Willbanks (blue) – $10 – Robert Autrey (white), Noah Randolph (blue), Nilo Bergener (brown). This is Willbanks’ last week.  As a last minute replacement, I have to take my hat off to him.  He stayed the course, going up against competitors with more experience and athleticism.  He never backed down. That’s true grit.  He’ll be better for having participated in this league.  He’s shown true character. Bravo Zulu. [0 points].

Keahi “Mr. Congeniality” Makekau (white) – $10 – Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown), Canaan Brooks (blue), Mario Gaor (purple), Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple).  Mr. Congeniality is in for a rough week, but he’ll learn a lot. [0 points].

Mike Johnson (purple) – $10 – SCRATCHCoehlo, SCRATCHBlackburn. Unless he gets some makeup matches, last week was Johnson’s last week.  “Success is going from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm,” according to Winston Churchill.  The British Bulldog would’ve been proud of Johnson’s performance and demeanor during the PGF.  He was always willing to defy the odds and give it his all.  Hat’s off to you.  You’re jiu jitsu game will be much better for this experience.  [0 points].

SCRATCH Ridge Blackburn (black) – Out for season.

Happy Labor Day weekend to everyone.  As this Friday (today) there’s no PGF, it seems like a good time to look forward to next week. It’s either that or grab a beer and head to the computer, constantly refreshing the YouTube feed, looking at it devoid of new matches and doing my best Nancy Kerrigan impersonation: “Why? Why? WHYYYYY? *sob* *sob* *sob*” (In case you’re too young to get the reference, feel free to google that stuff (GTS).

So here’s some methadone for you PGF-addicted folks like myself.  A little something to whet the appetite for next week’s PGF action. 

Bonus Match: Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown) v Mike “Manscape” Richey (white).  I think this match will crown the toughest guy to submit (obviously excluding the top guys in the PGF). The SOD has been submitted by Dallas Sharp in one of the best matches in the PGF (great comeback by Sharp), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts, and Matt “the Mane” Elkins.  I’m not counting the Knee Barrista because I believe he tapped first. Manscape has only been submitted by Nilo and Elijah (two of the top four competitors in the league). Both these guys are TOUGH to submit.  I think the question is whether the SOD can get Manscape into his guard.  If the SOD gets you in his guard, it’s nightmare time.  Manscape is a super strong man. Can he overwhelm the SOD with his strength and wrestling?  The SOD has no problem sitting guard and catching opponents in his web.  I wouldn’t be surprised if this match went to a draw, but it will be entertaining the whole time.

5. Caleb McAllister/Elijah Carlton v Moises Carrasco – Moises is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.  Heck, I still don’t know what BJJ rank he is.  I’ve found stuff online about him as a MMA competitor, tracked down the promotion he fought in recently, but I can’t even see if he won.  Let alone find any footage.  I do know he’s pulled off some nice chokes including a very solid darce and a dang Peruvian necktie (I’ve never got that dang thing to work). Being an MMA competitor like Matt “the Mane” Elkins should show he has athleticism and endurance.  But will his MMA background and bjj skills stand up to the challenge of facing two of the best competitors in the PGF?  Is Moises even healthy enough to compete in the PGF after his match?  Who knows, but I am very eager to find out.

4. Mario Gaor (purple) v  Seth Tatum (blue) – This match is a “I deserve my purple belt” match for Seth Tatum.  Seth hit the ground running in the PGF putting on display his strong triangle game.  His lankiness gives him great options for triangles and darces. He has a very strong guard.  Mario will be giving up a good deal of weight at Seth is near the limit.  Mario has energy but we’ve seen him susceptible to a quick double leg (against Roger Coehlo) and to a strong arm-in guillotine from Mike “Manscape” Richey (though they ended in a draw).  This match is very winnable for Seth.  If he does win, he can say I took down a 10P O’Fallon purple belt, might be time for that promotion.  On the other hand, Mario is on the bubble as the 8th place person in the Eastern conference.  He should have plenty of motivation to keep the likes of Diaddario and the Grey Goose at bay so he can make the tournament.

3. Joe “Cobra” Kai (brown) v Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue) – Joe Kai started off the PGF with a bang then had a few weeks off.  Recently, he’s come back with a vengeance, darcing folks left and right, even calling his shot on a flying triangle.  Kai has been the subject of both an interview on Matt Skaff’s Grappling Discourse podcast and the PGF Youtube profiles.  He’s a very thoughtful competitor, but what we see every week is a dynamic, high-paced grappler.  Kai’s standing at 3rd in the Western Conference.  Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall came into the PGF looking like a Boy Wonder.  The 16-year-old used great wrestling, good footlocks, and his high motor to make an impact.  Lately, Randall has fallen upon tough times, running into fellow wrestlers who were much larger men and losing to a number of the top competitors in the league.  His losing streak aside, Randall faces an opponent who is much closer to his size in Kai.  This match should be blur of activity as both men try to weaponize pace.   In the end, you have to put your money on the brown belt with the better record, but it should be much closer than what you imagine if you just thought of #2 going against #10.

2. Matt Anderson (beast) v Mike “Manscape” Richey (white). This match moved up a spot to second most anticipated roll. More waiting equals more anticipation I guess. This match should be the Hulk vs the Thing matchup I was expecting when Anderson faced Elkins.  In that matchup, I didn’t appreciate the craftiness of the brown belt.  Here, we have a white belt behemoth battle. Anderson is a national-level powerlifter, posting truly high-quality athletic stats at the combine.  That said, the commentators last week said Mike “Manscape” Richey is stronger than Anderson.  Chiseled from granite and meticulously manscaped, Richey has proven to be a very tough competitor to submit.  He even made Elijah Carlton settle for a break instead of a kill (the only other opponent to only suffer a break was Nilo Bergener who is only one point behind Elijah for the Eastern Conference lead).  While Anderson is a judo brown belt, Manscape has shown great wrestling.  I think we could be in for a match highlighting the respective opponents’ athleticism and grit.  Part of me really wants them to stand up at the end of the match and do an old school WWF/WWE test of strength with the interlocked fingers.  That’s the only way we can know who’s the strongest, right?

1. Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) v  Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple). Two candidates who should go far in the tournament collide for our most anticipated match.  Until last week’s loss against the Matt “the Mane” Elkins, the Elbow Genie had submitted every opponent, including top contender Nilo “the Mop” Bergener.  His loss could have gone either way; Roberts almost had the Mane in the first 60 seconds with a heel hook.  The Liquid Terminator’s only loss was to Elijah Carlton who is currently the top overall ranked competitor.  Primeau took Caleb McAllister to a draw. Primeau is currently 10 points behind McAllister for the Western Conference top spot.  Primeau has one more match left than McAllister, who will be seeing the Elbow Genie in the final week.  If Primeau can get a kill on Roberts, it would go a long way to setting him up to overtake McAllister for first in the West. In this match, Roberts almost certainly will sit guard.  Primeau refuses to sit guard.  So the question is whether Primeau can pass Roberts’ guard.  Primeau needs to put Roberts on the defensive if he wants to walk away with all his limbs attached.  Even then, we saw Roberts execute a bottom side control escape right into a heel hook for his win against Nilo.  When this season is over, I’m hoping they put together a series of top moves.  If so, that escape to heel hook will have to be on the list.  So on the 11th, two very bad men are going to face off and I can’t wait to watch. I hope you like the roll-up of my most anticipated matches for Week 8.  I will push out my Week 8 fantasy analysis on Wednesday.

In case you’re wondering where I’ve been, I got word from my dad’s doctor he had a week to live, so I hopped a flight back to Kansas. We’ve got everything ready to honor his last wishes, but he’s stabilized a heatbeat away from death so it’ll be a number of weeks before I have to spread his ashes. I didn’t share on greater facebook, etc. but if you’re actually reading this post, I figure who cares. I already lost my mother six years ago, so I’m a little spent. The PGF and my hobby of writing about it for fantasy etc. has been a hobby that has helped me deal with stuff. As a great man once said, all we need is something to be enthusiastic about (see Waterbabies). Thank you for the PGF and giving me something to urge me to start writing again and giving me something to take my mind off my father.

The Fan part of fantasy will be on display this week.  As I mentioned in my Week 7 Preview, we’re in a treat with many exciting matches scheduled.  But, these outstanding, competitive matches make it hard to weigh fantasy values.  Out of the remaining 30 competitors, I think only 12 have any real fantasy value for this week.  For the second week in a row, my pick of the week is Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau.  Yes, the Pete Rose of the PGF and your current fantasy leader only received 16 points last week, but if his third opponent would have showed, I am confident he would’ve got us the 21 points.  At only $16, which is about the average value for a player if you wanted to field a team of five, he’s a bargain.  Just like Pete Rose, he’s sure to bet on himself, so you better as well if you want a chance at catching up to him.  The old standbys of Elijah Carlton and Caleb McAllister should both net 21 points, but you’re paying a pretty penny for those points.  If you put them on your team, you’re almost guaranteed to have to only field a four-man team.  Matt “the Mane” Elkins and Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts cancel each other out this week.  Elbow Genie is always a risky pick as he continues to gravitate to breaks over kills. With the Mane and the Elbow Genie competing, it’s too hard to pick, limiting the value of both.  Nilo “Energizer Bunny” Bergener (just trying the nickname on for size) further degrades the Elbow Genie’s value.  Nilo himself only has one match making him a low point to dollar value, but the match which should be amazing is too close to project.  There’s other matchups on the schedule for which the fan in me is very excited, but the fantasy nerd in me eschews due to the uncertain outcomes.  In the end, the fan will win out.  I’ll plug in my numbers in my excel spreadsheet, pick my team, then forget about it as I watch a great night of jiujitsu.

If you haven’t already, consider supporting Mat Viper, the folks that brought us the PGF rashguards. The official rashguards are available at https://matviper.com/collections/rash-guards/products/pgf-official-blue-rash-guard (you can follow the link to find the orange one).  Since I can’t train currently (stupid Rona), I finally snagged one of their sweet PGF t-shirts – the black one looks “dope” as my teenager would say (https://matviper.com/collections/tops/products/the-official-pgf-t-shirt). Now on to the analysis:

SUPER PREMIUMS (you’re going to offset the expense)

Elijah Carlton (black) – $25 – Matt Anderson (beast), Louis Collins (blue), Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue).  At this point, it’s just a question of how well Elijah’s opponents acquit themselves when they face the consensus #1 competitor. [21 points].

Caleb McAllister (black) – $24 – Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Canaan Brooks (blue), Clay Malone (blue).  The Boy Wonder could give him some good engagement, but this night is a good one for Caleb.    [21 points]

Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown) – $24 – Eric Longar (brown), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts.  Some great matches. I think he gets the choke on Longar as he has the size advantage. As for the Elbow Genie, it’s a pick ‘em.– [7 points].

Nilo “the Mop” Bergener (brown) – $24 – Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown).  Only one match and it’s a blockbuster. As a fan, I’m super excited for this match, but as a fantasy guy Nilo isn’t a viable option this week. [0 points]

Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown) – $20 – Nilo Bergener (brown), Michael Libby (blue), Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown). The Elbow Genie has a tough night. These matches are going to be great but not viable for fantasy planning.  [3 points]

PREMIUMS

SCRATCH Roger Coelho (black) – OUT FOR SEASON.

Joe “Cobra” Kai (brown) – $19 – Mike Johnson (purple), Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown), Matt Anderson (beast).  I’m a huge Kai fan.  Johnson is a kill. The SOD is TOUGH.  He’s proven very hard to submit, but Dallas Sharp and Matt Elkins found a way.  I have to give Kai the benefit of the doubt on this match.  As for Anderson, Kai is quick, wily, and smart.  He should get on Anderson’s feet and get the break…unless the Manderson grabs him and crushes him. [17 points]

Matt “Scarecrow of Death” Harrison (brown) – $18 – Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Joe Kai (brown), Josh Diaddario (blue).  Manscape is chiseled from granite but can be caught by the SOD in a triangle.  Diaddario will likely have the same fate. [14 points]

Moises Carrasco – $18 – Louis Collins (blue), Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue), Canaan Brooks (blue).  The Boy Wonder could force a draw. Collins and Brooks likely go down. [14 points]

Mario Gaor (purple) – $17 – BYE WEEK.

AVERAGE

Blake “Boy Wonder” Randall (blue) – $16 – Caleb McAllister (black), Moises Carrasco, Elijah Carlton (black).  A murderer’s row for sure.  Boy Wonder is getting smoked this week.  It will be interesting to see him against Elijah, his black belt instructor/coach. [3 points]

Eric Longar (brown) – $16 – Matt “the Mane” Elkins (brown) and Kevin “Pete Rose” Primeau.  It’s always a bad day when you draw multiple folks with nicknames.  Longar has put together some great weeks, but this week he’s likely to put up a goose egg.  Longar is skilled, but he’s facing skilled opponents that have a good amount of weight on him. [0 points.]

Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (Blue) – $16 – Michael Libby (blue).  Knee Barrista gets the sub [3 points].

Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose” Primeau (purple) – $16 – Clay Malone (blue), Dallas Sharp (blue), Eric Longar (brown). Another big week for the Pete Rose of the PGF.  If he can’t take out two lower belts from his own gym (also having a lot of weight on Sharp), then he should quit the fantasy league.  He also has the weight advantage on Longar.  Finally, he still is only 7^th in the Western Conference. He needs to ensure these wins are kills to cement his place in the tournament.  [21 points]. PICK OF THE WEEK!!!

Matt Anderson (beast) – $16 – Elijah Carlton (black), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white), Joe Kai (brown). Another murderer’s row – Manderson has a tall task ahead of him.  He has to keep Kai off his legs, which many believe is his kryptonite. As for Elijah, it’s just a question of what type of showing he gives before submitting. I’m really looking forward to Manscape v Manderson.  During week 6, the commentators said Manscape is actually stronger than Manderson.  As Manderson is a national-class powerlifter, I am interested in seeing this matchup.  Is this the Hulk v the Thing matchup I have been anticipating? Manderson gets the break on Manscape. [3 points]

Seth Tatum (blue) – $16 BYE WEEK.

Clay Malone (blue) – $15 – Kevin “Pete Rose” Primeau (purple), Dennis Smith (white), Caleb McAllister (black).  This week is a tough draw for Malone. He’ll have some familiarity with Primeau, but will likely fall to old Pete Rose and Caleb.  I’m guessing he ankle locks Smith. [3 points].

SCRATCH Ridge Blackburn (black) – Out for season.

BELOW AVERAGE

Josh Diaddario (blue) – $14 – Noah Randolph (blue), Mike Johnson (purple), Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown).  He gets the choke on Johnson, but loses to the SOD.  As for Noah, I hope Noah gets the sub, but this match could end in a tie. [7 points].

Dallas Sharp (blue) – $13 – Kevin “Pete Rose” Primeau (purple), Dennis Smith (white).  He loses to Primeau but takes out Smith.  I believe he’s giving up weight, but he’s very athletic and a gamer for sure. [7 points].

Louis Collins (blue) – $13 – Moises Carrasco, Elijah Carlton (black), Mike “Manscape” Richey (white). We’ll see if Louis comes back after his injury made him pull out of week 6. These matchups are not what you want for your week back. [0 points].

Michael Libby (blue) – $13 – Jeremy “Knee Barrista” Geiger (blue), Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (brown).  As mentioned above, it’s not a good day when you face multiple opponents with solid nicknames.  Libby has shown some good work in the last few weeks, but I think he takes two L’s this week. [0 points].

Mike “Manscape” Richey (white) – $13 – Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (brown), Matt Anderson (beast), Louis Collins (blue).  I think Manscape is going to put on some great matches, but I don’t think we can trust him to deliver fantasy points.  He’s been noted as one of the hardest competitors to submit in the league.  [0 points].

Noah Randolph (blue) – $13 – Josh Diaddario (blue), Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple).  Noah gets two chokes, but I’m a big Noah fan so I might be jaded. [14 points]

Stephen “Grey Goose” Mitchell (purple) – $13 – SCRATCHBlackburn, Noah Randolph (blue), Mike Johnson (purple).  The Grey Goose gets his second choke and third submission against Mike Johnson. He gets the two points for the scratch, but loses to Noah. [9 points].

Canaan Brooks (blue) – $12 – Dennis Smith (white), Caleb McAllister (black), Moises Carrasco.  Canaan is coming off a very strong week 6 performance.  However, he’s going to have a tough time going against two of the top competitors in the PGF.  I’m betting Canaan gets a break on Smith, but loses to the top competitors. [3 points].

PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…)

Robert Autrey (white) – $12 – Robert Gladden (white). Pick’em match. [0 points].

Dennis Smith (white) – $11 Canaan Brooks (blue), Clay Malone (blue), Dallas Sharp (blue).  I don’t think it’s a good week for Smith. [0 points].

Robert Gladden (white) – $11 – Casey Willbanks (blue), Robert Autrey (white).  This week could be good for Gladden.  If you have $11 after picking others, you might want to add him. [6 points].

Casey Willbanks (blue) – $10 – SCRATCHCoehlo, Robert Gladden (white), SCRATCHBlackburn.  If you have $10 left, it’s a good week to pick up Willbanks. You get four points from the two scratches and has a shot at a submission against Gladden. [4 points].

Keahi Makekau (white) – $10 – BYE WEEK. Mike Johnson (purple) – $10 – Joe Kai(brown), Josh Diaddario (blue), Stephen Mitchell (purple). Tough week for Johnson.  [0 points].