Egghead Warrior's Blog

Coming into day two, Keahi Makekau has more fantasy points than half the competitors. He received that team point from Team Toehold’s drubbing of every other team. This fact should lead to a paradigm shift – all breaks might not be too bad. We may see folks adopting the old Elbow Genie approach to taking whatever you can find as soon as you can find it.

We also have saw two competitors take serious pops to joints (Kevin Primeau’s elbow and Evan Dewitt’s ankle) – it’s very likely one if not both may not be able to continue. If an alternate comes in, I’ll try to adjust as soon as I know for sure.

UPDATE: Evan Dewitt is confirmed as a SCRATCH. Josh Gibbs (purple) will substitute for his matches tonight. Kevin Primeau is a GO.

As always, I’ll come back and put more analysis as time allows, but Egghead wants to get some rolls in at the open mat. Until later this afternoon, this is what you get.

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

Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (brown) – $25; faces – Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (black) [KILL]; Joshua Gibbs (purple) [KILL]; and Noah Randolph (purple) [BREAK] – 15. Until someone beats Elijah, or heck, even gets a draw against Elijah, you have to bet on Elijah. We have a lineup of fan favorites facing Elijah tonight, but they’re not on his level. Noah, or pretty much all of them could get a moral victory by forcing a break. However, since Elijah settled for three breaks the first night, he’s going to be hunting for those kills tonight.

Jeovany Ortiz (black) – $21; faces Randy “Dumptruck” Roden [BREAK]; Isaac Stackhouse (purple) [BREAK]; Marcus Elkins (blue) [KILL] – 12 points. Jeo was many people’s choice to come in second this season if not to give Elijah a run for his money to win it all. Jeo had to settle for two draws and a kill. Tonight, he faces a problem for all in Roden – the smart money is to hope to get a break before he has a chance to further refine his leg lock defense (it’s definitely improved since season two). Isaac is just gritty enough to force Ortiz into a break as well. Marcus presents an interesting skill set and body type but Jeo is also lanky, but more experienced, likely leading to a kill.

Caleb McAllister (black) – $20; faces – Dane Leak (black) [DRAW]; Tyler Woolsey (purple) [KILL]; Manning Leverett (purple) [KILL] – 12 points. Honestly, I have no idea what’s going to happen in the Leak match. Caleb could get the pass and keep Leak on the defensive all match, but Leak is so skilled at recovering his guard or otherwise getting out of trouble. Either party could win, but I can’t put a possible win in the analysis. I’m a big fan of Woolsey, but Caleb’s extra experience, athleticism, and size should carry the day. After Leverett shining so bright the first night, we could see a return to the mean tonight, especially against the competition-proven black belt.

Dane Leak (black) – $20; faces David “Quadzilla” Evers [DRAW]; Caleb McAllister (black) [DRAW]; Noah Randolph (purple) [KILL] – 6 points. See above for analysis of Caleb match. I have to agree with Skaff that we could really see Evers not get submitted this season – Coach Drew Weatherhead has stressed Evers doesn’t provide an appendage or neck capable of being submitted. However, if you’re no the fence, I think Leak’s penchant for the RNC (and using a muffler to open it up) might just make him the guy to get a kill against Evers. As much as Noah is a fan favorite, he might be intimidated by the level of talent in this iteration of the PGF. Leak’s national-level competition experience shows us he has the ability to get the kill in that match.

PREMIUMS

Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (black) – $19; faces Joshua Gibbs (purple) [BREAK]; Eric Longar (black) [BREAK]; Mario Gaor (brown) [BREAK] – 9 points.  The Elbow Genie was set to face the Louisville Qualifier crew before Gibbs had to sub in for the injured Evan Dewitt. As mentioned above, the paradigm shift has likely occurred for many competitors. Unlike the first season, if the Elbow Genie can get breaks (and slip in a few in the first minute to take advantage of his namesake rule), he should make the finale. Don’t get me wrong, tonight won’t be a cake walk for the Elbow Genie, but he has the PGF pedigree and proven techniques to make a sweep of breaks happen.

Eric Longar (black) – $18; faces Joshua Gibbs (purple) [DRAW]; Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (black) [LOSS]; Manning Leverett (purple) [LOSS] – 0 points. We may have seen why the coaches passed on the black belt until the final active roster round. While season 3 is closer to his weight class, he is still a little undersized compared to most competitors. We’ve seen his continued outstanding passing, but not the finishes necessary to make him a good fantasy pick.

Evan Dewitt (black)  – $18; INJURY SCRATCH

Kevin “Liquid Terminator/Pete Rose of the PGF” Primeau (brown) – $18; faces Isaac Stackhouse (purple) [DRAW]; Tyler Woolsey (purple) [DRAW]; Kevin “Beuhrik” Beuhring (blue) [DRAW] – 0 points. The first rule of PGF Fantasy is “Never Bet Against Kevin Primeau.” Okay, many of us broke that rule for the first night given his crazy weight cut and the murder’s row he faced. This night was set to be his chance to come back big, but he suffered a horrible pop against the Elbow Genie when Primeau tried to lift his weigh out of an arm bar. Given his likely reduced capability (might be essentially down one arm), it’s hard to put him on the roster.

“Handsome” Kevin Sherrill (purple) – $17; faces Isaac Stackhouse (purple) [KILL]; Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (black) [KILL]; Carlos Andres (purple) [KILL] – 18 points. “Handsome Kevin” (HK) is coming off a rough night. He faced two of the top five competitors in the PGF. Despite showing great skill and athleticism, he left Monday night with no points. HK knows he needs to make an impact tonight to have a chance at making the finale tournament. Look to see his D1 wrestling and passing skills on display again as he finds ways to positional dominance. Unlike Monday, he should find ways to finish his kills tonight.

AVERAGE

David “Quadzilla” Evers (purple) – $16; faces Kevin “Beuhrik” Beuhring (blue) [DRAW]; Dane Leak (black) [DRAW]; Tyler Woolsey (purple) [BREAK] – 3 points. I’m picking the little tank over the Beuhrik. Baby Kevin wants to play the leg game, but Evers might just have the build and experience to win that battle. Still, I can’t imagine what Coach Applegate saw from last night in Evers that they may target. It’s too close to give Evers points in a fantasy roster pick analysis. Again, the match with Leak is too close to call, but if a gun was put to my head to pick a winner, I have to go with Leak by RNC. Woolsey is very skilled and may get a chance to show his top game against Evers. While Woolsey has great movement, we’ve seen Evers catch very experienced competitors and he will likely do the same here.  

Mario Gaor (brown) – $16; faces Randy “Dumptruck” Roden (blue) [BREAK]; Carlos Andres (blue) [BREAK]; Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (black) [LOSS] – 6 points. Mario has some very sneaky leg attacks (and other sneaky attacks in general). It could be tough to finish two of the the big wrestlers of the season, but I have faith Mario can find a way.  As for the third match, it’s the Elbow Genie…’nuff said.

Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (black) – $16; faces Manning Leverett (purple) [LOSS]; Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (black) [LOSS]; “Handsome” Kevin Sherrill (purple) [LOSS] – 0 points.

Tyler Woolsey (purple) – $16; faces Caleb McAllister (black) [LOSS]; Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (brown) [DRAW]; David “Quadzilla” Evers (purple) [DRAW] – 0 points.  

Carlos Andres (purple) – $15; faces Jeo Ortiz (black) [LOSS]; Mario Gaor (purple) [LOSS]; Randy “Dumptruck” Roden (blue) [LOSS] – 0 points.

Noah Randolph (purple) – $15; faces Dane Leak (black) [LOSS]; Kevin “Beuhrick” Beuhring (blue) [DRAW]; Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (black) [LOSS] – 0 points.

BELOW AVERAGE

Kevin “Beurick” Beuhring (blue) – $14; faces David “Quadzilla” Evers (purple) [LOSS]; Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple) [BREAK]; Noah Randolph (purple) [BREAK] – 6 points.

Manning Leverett (purple) – $14; faces Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (black) [KILL]; Caleb McAllister (black) [DRAW]; Eric Longar (black) [KILL] – 12 points.

Randy “Dumptruck” Roden (blue) – $14; faces Mario Gaor (brown) [LOSS]; Carlos Andres (purple) [KILL]; Marcus Elkins (blue) [KILL] – 12 points.

Joshua Gibbs (purple) – $13; faces Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts (black) [LOSS]; Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (brown) [LOSS]; Eric Longar (black) [KILL] – 6 points.

Matthew Boiles (blue) – $13; faces ALTERNATE.

PENNY STOCKS (NOT LIKELY TO MAKE YOU MUCH, BUT IF YOU HAVE MONEY LEFT IN YOUR POCKET…) – a reminder to all competitors, don’t take my comments personally. If I was competing, I would be squarely at the bottom of this category.

Isaac Stackhouse (purple) – $12; faces “Handsome” Kevin Sherrill (purple) [LOSS]; Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau (purple) [DRAW]; and Jeo Ortiz (black) [LOSS] – 0 points.

Louis Collins (purple) – $12; faces ALTERNATE.

Marcus Elkins (blue) – $12; faces “Handsome” Kevin Sherrill (purple) [LOSS]; Jeo Ortiz (black) [LOSS]; Randy “Dumptruck” Roden (blue) [LOSS] – 0 points.

Keahi Makekau (blue) – $11 faces ALTERNATE.

The Shark Week of Jiu Jitsu has arrived! The Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) will begin live-streaming a week of submission grappling competition starting 9 January. At 6pm CST, the 24 competitors will have ceremonial weigh-ins then compete in a pre-draft combine. The next day at 10am CST, the PGF Season 3 coaches will draft their teams. That evening, the 10th of January, the season’s live matches will begin with three matches per competitor per night. PGF Season 3 will wrap up with the post-season finale tournament on Saturday, 15 January. All the action, from the ceremonial weigh-ins, to the draft, to crowning the ultimate PGF Season 3 champion, will all stream live and free on YouTube. This article will lay out some of the history and background of the PGF, discuss the Coaches, the Competitors, the Schedule, the Post-Season Finale, and how ALL COMPETITORS ARE GETTING PAID. You can either read straight through the article or use these hyperlinks:

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

Professional Grappling Federation History:

The PGF is a submission grappling league where competitors amass points only through submissions in six-minute matches. Breaks (armbars, leg locks, etc.) earn three points; Kills (chokes) earn six points. Competitors who score a submission in less than one minute will earn a bonus point. At the end of 12 matches, the competitor with the most points will be the regular-season champion and first seed for the post-season Finale tournament.

Brandon Mccaghren (BMAC) began the PGF as a way to normalize competition for his students and as a project during the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic. BMAC knew to be a great competitor, his students needed repetitions in competing in general (not just on the mats, but the routine, mindset, etc around the competition). Having been around the jiu jitsu game for a while, BMAC wanted to tweak the normal competition rules to incentivize passing the guard and submissions. So, each competitor in the PGF gains in the rankings by accumulating points for submissions: originally seven points for a kill (choke) and three points for a break (any joint lock). If any match ended without a submission, the result was each competitor lost the chance to gain points via submission – meaning a draw was an outcome. This scoring scheme led to action-packed matches where competitors not only hunted for submissions but actively tried to pass guards to get chokes.

PGF Season 1 had a close-knit feel, with the competitors traveling to 10th Planet Decatur each Friday for a live-streamed show. Being live, the viewers could interact in real-time with the commentators, 10th Planet Decatur Black Belts Lindsey Mccaghren and Matt Skaff, and each other. In the first season, the fans of the competitors and viewers who found the show via algorithms built a community around a shared appreciation for jiu-jitsu.

For the second season, BMAC broadened the scope of competitors, seeking folks from far away states. To enable engaging a higher level of competitor from farther away, BMAC morphed the PGF season from 12 weeks into a seven-day gauntlet. With most folks being able to get off work for a week, the PGF was able to garner competitors from Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, etc. Due to constraints, the PGF filmed the entire regular season during that week and released the footage in two-block (a block was roughly a match for each competitor) segments each week. They then had their post-season tournament a few months after initial filming. While the production quality was very high, the fans missed the opportunity to interact with the commentators, live spectators, and competitors.

Season 3 will combine the best of both seasons 1 and 2. As stated above, the regular season will be from 9-15 January. The 9th will be the ceremonial weigh-ins and combine, the 10th will be the draft and first rounds of matches. The 11th-13th will have the remaining regular-season matches. The 14th will be a rest day (matches at least) for competitors but should have other content. Then, the 15th will be the post-season tournament. Season 3 also included a pre-season comprised of qualifiers where interested grapplers vied for a chance to be on Season 3. The qualifiers streamed live and are still available on BMAC’s YouTube channel. For the qualifiers, the PGF leadership help tournaments in Decatur, AL; Louisville, KY; Fort Myers, FL; Atlanta, GA; Jacksonville, FL; and Austin, TX. The qualifiers served to expose multiple markets to the PGF and to provide opportunities for the PGF to enlist top grapplers from many geographical areas. All told, BMAC took the six qualifier winners and 18 other grapplers who had competed in the qualifiers or had other experiences with the PGF.

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

COACHES:

The PGF will have four teams this season. Each team will have its own sponsor (e.g. Toe Hold Flip-Flops) and have its own coach(es). The coaches’ main job will be to build their teams through the draft. However, the Coach whose team wins the most will receive $500 worth of Bitcoin. Here are your Season 3 coaches:

1. Jake Elkins and Matt Elkins: the Elkins brothers!!!!! Jake Elkins is a wrestling aficionado, having been a AL state champ and wrestled in college. He’s a purple belt under BMAC/the Commish and has excelled at both teaching wrestling to National-level talent and has worked to adapt traditional wrestling to jiu jitsu. Matt Elkins is the younger brother of Jake, but the higher belt in jiu jitsu as a brown belt. Matt is also an AL wrestling state champion and was an MMA fighter until fairly recently. Matt has one of the most killer front headlock/chinstrap set of submissions around. Any competitor picked by this team should be leveling up their wrestling for jiu jitsu a lot during the season.
2. Eli Knight – if I have to explain how awesome Eli Knight is, I’m not sure how you got to this page. Please check out his YouTube Channel and Instagram. He has awesome techniques available: no-gi, gi, self-defense, basically everything you could want online. I’m very excited to see him as a part of the PGF.
3. Drew Weatherhead – Because Jiu Jitsu owner, BJJ black belt, regular on the Around the Mat show. If you only know him from the Around the Mat show, you might think Drew is just a funny Canadian guy. I assure you, check out his tutorials and technique videos. He’s a technician and will be great to see teach competitors and will be funny trading barbs with other coaches.
4. Sean Applegate – @Trapplegate10P is working on taking over the SE US grappling scene if not the world. He sent two of his lower belt students to take down two qualifiers and almost had another student take down a third. Applegate has another student who won CJJ Worlds and got to the round of 16 in the ADCC trials. Applegate is known as the authority on leg locks and as one of the calmest coaches matside. I wouldn’t be surprised if his team members started making pilgrimages to Atlanta after learning from Applegate.

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

LIVE DRAFT

At 10am, 10 January, the coaches will draft their teams live. The coaches above will have to vie for their draft order in a coaches’ challenge which will be streamed live as well. Immediately after the challenge, the coaches will have to pick their teams. Honestly, there’s a lot of excitement about this draft. Anyone who has ever played fantasy football knows the draft is half the fun of the season. The PGF Insiders had both a mock draft (with post-draft analysis) and a pre-draft show, highlighting their rankings and evaluations of the competitors as compared to Egghead Warrior’s Big Draft Board. Besides just weighing the talent of each individual, extra intrigue could be added when considering these coaches may have to choose between the objectively better grappler and one of their students. As PGF Season 2 alumn and PGF Season 3 broadcast team member, Stephen Eakin, pointed out in his The Dream Show Live Podcast, he can get more out of competitors coaching matside if he really knows the competitor and their style. His cohost and PGF Season 3 competitor, Isaac Stackhouse, further pointed out while there’s $500 of bitcoin on the line for coaches, they have a vested interest in their team’s long-term development – how far does loyalty go? They both pointed out the draft will drive or eliminate possible matchups as each competitor will not face another competitor selected for their team. Just like every draft, we’ll be looking forward to how it shakes out. Where will everyone land? What coaches make reach picks, selecting someone much earlier than their projected rank? Which coach and which competitor has the best smack talk during the draft? It’s going to be exciting.

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

COMPETITORS:

BMAC largely chose his competitors from the six PGF Season 3 qualifiers, the first known pre-season for a jiu jitsu league. Elijah Carlton and Caleb McAllister were given special invitations as the winner (Elijah) and runner-up (Caleb) of PGF Season 1 and runner-up of PGF Season 2 (Elijah). These competitors run the gamut from newly-promoted blue belt to seasoned black belts. They have D1 wrestlers and leg lock specialists. 24 competitors made the roster, but only 20 will be drafted to the main teams. Since the PGF will be a gauntlet that could test the wills and bodies of the competitors, each team will draft a backup player. This backup player will be able to step in for a teammate who cannot compete. The competitors are listed below. The numbers were from my Big Draft Board; they are not official.

1	Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton	Brown Belt, Southside Jiu Jitsu and 10th Planet Atlanta	Consensus first pick. The first person in the PGF Hall of Fame. 24-0 in PGF Season 1 (all subs); only lost two matches in Season 2. SUG superfight winner, High Rollerz Brown Belt Champ. The Bad Guy has a scary guard with ridiculous triangles, leg locks, and the experience to know to go for the kill.
2	Caleb McAllister	Black Belt, Renaissance Academy of Martial Arts	Runner-up in PGF Season 1. Season 3 will be at his natural weight. Caleb is a very experienced competitor at black belt. He’s got non-stop cardio. Between his pace and his knowledge base, he’s going to be hard to beat.
3	Dane Leak	Black Belt, Clinch Martial Arts	Experience competitor at black belt. High Rollerz wins. Three submissions at ADCC East Coast trials recently. Goes for the KILL and has a sneaky ability to defend leg locks right into mounting his opponent. He’s not well known in the Southeast, but he’s got a real shot at winning it all.
4	Jeovany Ortiz	Black Belt, One Nation Jiu Jitsu	All Jeo knows is jiu jitsu. He’s been training forever (since literally a kid) and he’s been teaching jiu jitsu and competing his entire adult life. He put on a good show at a very stacked Decatur Qualifier. He’d be higher, but he has losses to two of the folks higher than him.
5	Jonathan “the Elbow Genie” Roberts	Black Belt, SBG/Spartan	The Elbow Genie. A technician. So smooth and dangerous, they had to make a rule to appreciate his quick kills. He’s a fan favorite for good reason, his slick jiu jitsu. He still has a predilection for breaks versus kills (tip of the cap to his darce) which could lower his point totals, but since they put in the Elbow Genie rule, I have a feeling he’s going to get a lot of 4 pointers (3 points for break and 1 extra point for it being in less than a minute).
6	Kevin Primeau	Brown Belt, 10th Planet Decatur	The Liquid Terminator, the Pete Rose of the PGF (who isn’t taking my money). Primeau will be cutting down from 195 or so and will be 170 for all of one minute. He’s fully healed from his COVID experience that hampered him all season. The word on the street is he’s switched up his game to include more speed, meaning more time to get those kills. Other than Elijah, Primeau is the only person to compete in all three seasons of the PGF. Usually a man with many irons in the fire, I hear Primeau has taken out many of his distractions to focus on this season. In PGF Fantasy, we have a rule to never bet against Primeau. Coaches this season would do well to remember that rule.
7	Mario Gaor	Brown Belt, 10th Planet O’Fallon	Fans can check out Mario on @neckstepbjj Instagram page. When he won the Louisville qualifier, Mario took down two black belts with a double outside ashi ankle lock which shouldn’t work, but he dedicated an Instagram post to the PGF Insiders, showing how he made it work. Mario has wins over Longar, the Scarecrow of Doom, and Evan Dewitt from that qualifier as well as a number of solid victories in PGF Season 1.  At 5’6″ and 150 lbs, he’s one of the smaller competitors. But if Mario could do well in Season 1 against a much larger contingent of competitors, he should have a good showing in a pool of competitors closer to his size. Like many of the higher ranked draftees, Mario’s teaching of jiu jitsu has likely cemented his techniques and forced him to innovate as we all know the best way to learn something is to teach it.
8	Kevin Sherrill	Purple belt, 10th Planet Atlanta	Atlanta qualifier winner (over the other Kevin below). Sherrill was a Georgia state champion wrestler garnering a scholarship to a D1 wrestling program. He came back and started teaching wrestling. Now he’s a disciple of Coach Applegate at 10th Planet Atlanta – meaning he has killer leg locks to go with his wrestling. He should be very dangerous this season.
9	Kevin Beuhring	Blue Belt, 10th Planet Atlanta	Your Jacksonville qualifier winner (and Atlanta qualifier runner up). Started jiu jitsu in Sept 2020 and is wrecking folks! After winning the Jacksonville qualifier and some other competitions, Coach Applegate felt like he had to promote “Beurick.” Beurick goes for the legs, but as we saw from the Jacksonville qualifier, he’s adept at threatening the legs and turning that into a back take and RNC. The man is only 19. He’s going to be resilient and a sponge, soaking up all the knowledge around him during this competition. He very well may be the blue belt that will submit a black belt this season.
10	Tyler Woolsey	Purple Belt, Rogue Wave Martial Arts (formerly 10th Planet West Palm Beach)	Your Fort Myers qualifier winner. He’s the prodigal blue belt who returned home. Woolsey started in the 10th Planet system as a teenager. He competed at blue belt and traveled all over for training. Then, he had to take a break while he worked like crazy to afford college. Now a young professional, he’s back at murder yoga. He’s going to be exciting. Woolsey’s going to show us rubber guard, lockdown, flying triangles, etc. He should be a lot of fun to watch and a threat to do very well.
11	Evan Dewitt	Black Belt, Derby City MMA / S&G BJJ	Your Louisville qualifier runner-up. He has very smooth scrambling and transitions. He can go after the back or legs equally well. He may have been higher ranked, but he has a small sample size of readily available matches via open-source intel.
12	David “Quadzilla” Evers	Purple Belt, 10th Planet Huntsville	Your Decatur qualifier runner-up and first at-large bid. Quadzilla features a killer leg attack with ridiculous grips. At 5’5″ and 160 lbs, he’s one of the smaller competitors (other than those tree trunks). His preview video suggested he’s going to continue going back to the well with his leg attacks which would limit his points in the season unless he can emulate the Elbow Genie in securing those subs in the first minute. Of course, Evers could be using some misdirection on us. He’s wicked smart – let’s just say he’s the type of guy who could rock one of those “rocket scientist” bumper stickers you may have seen if you live near the aviation/space industries. Another competitor with limited footage, it will be interesting to see his full game this season.
13	Manning Leverett	Purple Belt, 10th Planet Jacksonville	Leverett had a great showing at the PGF Season 2 Finale in a super fight with a very game opponent. Unfortunately, he had an injury during the Jacksonville Qualifier against Louis Collins so we didn’t get to see much of him in the qualifiers. Leverett got one victory in the ADCC trials before falling to the same opponent who took out Leak in the Round of 32. Leverett won the Mid South Classic 3, but on Smoothcomp has a so-so record. At pick 13, he’s right in the middle of the pack and that seems about right. Still, he could be a value pick here.
14	Randy “Dumptruck” Roden	Blue Belt, Scramble BJJ and Wrestling	Honestly I would be surprised if Roden drops this far. This ranking is only based on Roden’s still limited time in jiu jitsu – going on about two years. Still, Roden is a multi-time Georgia state champion, being undefeated his junior and senior years. He parlayed those results into a scholarship to Duke University where he competed for five years (you can still find videos of him teaching technique like his deadly heel pick on their Facebook page). He’s probably the best athlete in this competition. On the feet, he’ll hit heel picks, throw bys, and don’t let him get double overhooks or you’re going for a ride. On the ground, he’s super smooth, flowing between positions, but he showed us in PGF Season 2 he needed to work on his submissions. In Season 2, he played the blue belt – the belt of surviving. Don’t get me wrong, he was trouble for any competitor, but he hadn’t solidified his killing strokes. Now, the word is he’s added some submissions, including leg locks and the “anal strangle” (his words, not mine check out the Atlanta qualifier to see it). In Season 2, the competitors were joking that they better not teach Roden anything – this time, with more time to work on his offense and great coaches, Roden could easily be the blue belt to submit a black belt or two.
15	Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison	Black Belt, Derby City MMA	A Season 1 fan favorite, the Scarecrow of Doom (SOD) has a killer closed guard. He’s a black belt under Nick Albin aka Chewjitsu. The SOD is a very game opponent, but we saw Mario Gaor effectively neutralize the SOD’s guard by going for leg attacks every time the SOD pulled guard. The SOD had a very close match for fourth place in the Louisville qualifier with Josh Gibbs (see below) and lost to the eventual runner-up at the Austin qualifier. It seems criminal to pick a black belt this low, but it’s hard to gauge his skill set against this new, young crew of killers. The fact he’s this far down on the board is more of a commentary on the quality of competitors this season than anything else.
16	Eric Longar	Black Belt, 10th Planet Crystal City	I may still be salty about putting him on my fantasy team one week in PGF Season 1 and getting no points. Longar was undersized for Season 1 which led to some problems. Now, in Season 3, he’s going up against folks his size or at least closer to his size. Longar has great side-to-side passing and nice flowing jiu jitsu. As we’ve discussed on the PGF Insider podcast, Longar was winning his match against Mario Gaor for the first 4-5 minutes until Mario pulled out that double outside ashi ankle lock. It will be interesting to see Longar’s progression since Season 1. But with his small sample size of competition footage outside of the PGF, I can’t rank him higher than this spot.
17	Noah Randolph	Purple Belt, 10th Planet Decatur	If Noah actually drops this low, the coach who picks Noah will have the steal of the draft (however he did drop to 19 in the PGF Insider mock draft). Despite fairly recently turning 18, Noah is a beast. He was VERY hard to submit in PGF Season 1. Noah is the secret student Matt Skaff noted as the Ninja Choke Master in his Grappling Discourse podcast. The PGF Insiders have been told Noah may have been wrecking black belts who have been visiting 10th Planet Decatur. Like other competitors, it will be very interesting to see how his jiu jitsu has grown since Season 1. I’m also interested in seeing what he might learn from whichever coach picks him – he might vibe with one of the outside coaches and open up an entirely new game. Sure, that’s hard to cement in a week, but it could be very interesting.
18	Carlos Andres	Purple Belt, American Top Team Tuscaloosa	Carlos was an outlier at the Decatur qualifier. He had a deep run but was relatively unknown. He’s 5’5″, and only 145 lbs, making him the smallest competitor. But we saw a man who showed us great wrestling, scrambling, and leg locks. His combination of wrestling and leg locks should be interesting to watch. Like a few others, his lack of a significant sample size of viewable matches hurt his ranking.
19	Louis Collins	Purple Belt, 10th Planet Muscle Shoals	At 5’9, 150, he’s one of the smallest competitors. But he’s tough as nails. Louis is one of two competitors in PGF Season 1 to make Elijah Carlton settle for a break instead of a kill (Nilo doesn’t count as Elijah could’ve gotten that triangle). While he’s got serious defensive prowess, I’m not sure how much his offense will be able to take out these other competitors.
20	Matthew Boiles	Blue Belt, Scramble BJJ and Wrestling	At 5’9″, 155 lbs, Boiles is one of the smaller competitors. At 19 years old, he’s one of the youngest competitors. But, you will not beat his motor and pressure. This kid will attack even the seasoned black belts. He’s going to be in the running for match/highlight of the night whether he’s on top or getting dunked on. He attacks with knee slices continually and keeps his center of gravity ridiculously low, making it hard to sweep him. His enthusiasm and good-natured demeanor is infectious. It wouldn’t be improbable for him to tire out a higher ranked belt and sneak in a submission or two.
21	Marcus Elkins	Blue Belt, 10th Planet Decatur / Ironclad Wrestling	The tallest Elkins…Marcus is the brother of PGF competitors and now coaches Matt and Jake Elkins. Like his brothers before him, Marcus was an Alabama state champion wrestler. He’s relatively new to the jiu jitsu game as a blue belt. Marcus has very few jiu jitsu competitions under his belt, but he’s been grappling his whole life. If PGF Season 2 Block 12 gave us a window into life at the Elkins’ household, we have to believe Marcus was baptized by fire at an early age. Marcus has a good darce but seems very susceptible to leg attacks. We’ll see if his wrestling can supplement his burgeoning jiu jitsu.
22	Isaac Stackhouse	Purple Belt, 10th Planet Perry	The Wandering Grappler, the Rudy of the PGF. Isaac went to every qualifier and competed in all of them except the last one where he was put into service as the camera man. Isaac has more grit than anyone on this list (tip of the cap to Kevin Primeau). Isaac has competed with all sorts of injuries including a likely broken ankle. He’s an old school MMA fighter that transitioned to jiu jitsu. His wandering schtick is really just about seeking out the best instructors and training partners around. I’m a huge fan of Isaac, but having competed in so many qualifiers, he has a lot of losses to other folks on this list.
23	Josh Gibbs	Purple Belt, Nomad BJJ	Gibbs is a PGF Season 2 alumn. He had to bulk up to compete in that season and is now back at his normal size. While I characterized his jiu jitsu as traditional, he was a tough competitor. He’s been working on new techniques and as a certified trainer, you know he’s going to be in shape. In the qualifiers, I believe he has a loss to Stackhouse and lost to the Scarecrow of Doom in different qualifiers. He’s a great guy and a talented competitor. With the great coaches we have, they may see a way to tweak Gibbs’ jiu jitsu to get a lot more submissions – so he may make a team’s roster.
24	Keahi Makekau	Blue Belt, 10th Planet O’Fallon	Keahi is a PGF Season 1 alumn. He’s a student under Mario Gaor and a big part of their Instagram page. He only got one win in the PGF against the original Michael Johnson. Still, he went from loss to loss with enthusiasm which is a sign of a successful person. He’s upgraded to blue belt and showed much better defense and a little nice offense in the Austin qualifier. He’s interesting to see his progress but still probably one of the least experienced amongst the competitors.

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

SCHEDULE:

You can refer to the table below. Every night with matches, means three matches for each competitor (12 matches for each competitor in the season). The true weigh-in will not be streamed, only the ceremonial weigh-ins. All events other than the early weigh-in and the Finale will be streamed on BMAC’s YouTube Channel. The Finale will be available to for streaming at summitgrappling.tv.

	Sunday 9 Jan	M 10 Jan	Tuesday 11 Jan	Wed 12 Jan	Thur 13 Jan	Fri 14 Jan	Saturday 15 Jan
1000	Weigh-in (not streamed)	LIVE DRAFT				Day Off
1200						Day Off	Finale begins (PPV)
5 pm		Pre-Show	Pre-Show	Pre-Show	Pre-Show	Day Off
6 pm	Ceremonial Weigh-in and Combine	Matches and Post-Show	Matches and Post-Show	Matches and Post-Show	Matches and Post-Show	Day Off

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

Finale:

The Finale will be held on Saturday, 15 January. It will take place at Epic Church in Decatur, AL. In this third season of the PGF, BMAC has partnered with Summit Grappling who will be providing 35 super-fight matches as an undercard. The Finale will begin at 1100. Fans can either order the PPV stream from summitgrappling.tv($29), or those who want to watch in person can order tickets online from summitgrappling.tv, or can purchase tickets at the event. General admission tickets are $35. Fans wanting to ensure their seats and be extra close to the action can pay $50 and reserve a specific seat in the first three rows of fans (yes, Egghead already has his ticket, front and center). The PGF portion of the Finale will include an eight-man, single-elimination bracket with seeding based on regular-season standings. As opposed to the last two seasons, matches will be using Eddie Bravo Invitational (EBI) rules with 10-minute matches. If no competitor scores the submission in regulation, the match will go to overtime where each competitor will take turns starting from a dominant position (back control or spider-web [arm bar]) – the winner will be chosen by the fastest submission or longest ride time. The final match to determine the winner will be no-time-limit, submission only.

PGF History, Coaches, Draft, Competitors, Schedule, Post-Season Finale, Player Pay

PLAYER PAY:

EVERYONE GETS PAID! BMAC is very proud that every competitor will receive some money. Players will initially be paid by their draft round. First rounders will receive $750 each, $500 for second rounders, and $100 for those last rounders. Fans will also have the ability to tip the competitors – if fans like the performance of a competitor, they can give them money via YouTube’s superchat feature, making sure to designate who they want to receive the money. Season 3 also has BOUNTIES. Different sponsors and fans have been offering bounties for certain submissions – e.g. Toehold Flip Flops will be offering free pairs of their high-end flip flops for every competitor who gets a toehold submission. During the qualifiers, the bounty for a twister got up past $150. Finally, the competitors who have the most-exciting match each night will also receive a bonus payment.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this breakdown of PGF Season 3. Feel free to share it with friends so they can have most if not all their PGF Season 3 questions answered. As a final reminder, all the matches during the regular season are open for fans to watch in person. I’ll be at all of them. I hope to see some of you there.

Now that we have the roster for PGF Season 3, the PGF Insiders decided to hold a mock draft. Walo, our fearless leader, assigned each of us a team affiliation. Then, Walo used a random draw to assign the draft order. Even though he tried to rig it, his coding skills were lacking and he ended up with the last pick.

Below is a description of the draft including analysis of each pick and a final grade for each team.

For a more detailed description of the coaches and the roster, please check out Matology 4.0 “The Roster” in the EggheadWarrior.com blog.

PICKING ORDER:

1. Chris representing (loosely, no actual affiliation other than fun) – Team Eli Knight

2. Egghead Warrior – Team Elkins (Jake and Matt Elkins – essentially Team Ironclad)

3. Miggy – Team Applegate/Trapplegate (whose team color will be pink and they will be sponsored by Toe Hold Flip Flops)

4. Walo – Team Drew Weatherhead

Of note, there will also be two Team Such and Such Burgers and Tacos with Red and Black as their team colors. Supernatural Survival Gear will also have a team, but odds are 50/50 whether their color is tie-dye or camouflage (they could have a regular color, but most their gear is one of those designs and it would make sense to let them provide their own team gear). This discussion of colors and teams reminds me of one hanging chad (see 2000 elections young pups) out there: will competitors be able to wear their own gear or only their team colors? In PGF Season 1, they only wore the Mat Viper provided rash guards, but PGF Season 2 allowed them to wear their own gear as well. It’s not a monumental issue, but something which will need to be decided.

THE DRAFT:

Round 1

Pick 1 (1) – Chris picks Elijah Carlton (Brown)(auto bid)

Analysis: The face of the PGF, the first guy in the PGF Hall of Fame, the Bad Guy…Elijah was the consensus number 1 pick. He’s a sandbagging brown belt with a killer guard that frightens most competitors. It took traveling up to 225 and facing Hunter “the Professional” Colvin for Elijah to get a loss…otherwise, Elijah has finished every other opponent.

Pick 2 (2) – Egghead Warrior picks Caleb McAllister (Black)(auto bid)

Analysis: The consensus #2 pick, the other recipient of an auto bid besides Elijah. They were the number one and two finishers in PGF Season 1, now they are actually both competing near their natural weight classes. Caleb has cardio for days and is an old school MMA fighter (super tough). He’s also a super nice guy and very smart. He competes a lot, liking to stay busy. I’m betting Caleb does a lot of research before the season and has strategies for going after every opponent.

Pick 3 (3) – MigE picks Jonathan Roberts (the Elbow Genie ) (Black)

Analysis: The man has a rule named after him (the Elbow Genie Rule where if you get a submission in the first minute you get an extra point). Roberts got his black belt after PGF Season 1, and MigE loves that EXPERIENCE. New fans might only know the Elbow Genie from his short run at the Decatur Qualifier. Roberts was injured (knee) which that along with family events kept him from subsequent qualifiers. Have no doubt, his jiu jitsu is slick. Do some searching on Youtube and you’ll see some Elbow Genie submissions you want to emulate. Sure, he looks like an accountant, but his fighting is more like THE ACCOUNTANT. MigE might have been able to get him in the second round, but it’s still a solid pick. If you want to remember the dominance that was the Elbow Genie in Season 1, you can look at his scores here.

Pick 4 (4) – Walo picks Mario Gaor (brown)(Louisville qualifier winner).

Analysis:  Fans can check out Mario on @neckstepbjj Instagram page. When he won the Louisville qualifier, Mario took down two black belts with a double outside ashi ankle lock which shouldn’t work, but he dedicated an Instagram post to the PGF Insiders, showing how he made it work. We’re all huge fans of Mario, but I think Walo was a little shaken when MigE picked the Elbow Genie and Walo scrambled to figure out his move. The Analysts at EggheadWarrior.com had Mario as a late round 2 to a early round 3 pick. Still, he’s a qualifier winner, having wins over Longar, the Scarecrow of Doom, and Evan Dewitt from that qualifier as well as a number of solid victories in PGF Season 1.  

Round 2

Pick 1 (5) – Chris picks Kevin Sherrill (purple)(Atlanta winner)

Analysis:  Here’s where we see Chris’ time spent on the homestead and tractor shopping affect his picks. Sure, @kevingrapples has a wrestling background and has blossomed under the tutelage of Trapplegate at 10^th Planet Atlanta. Sherrill showed some great skill at the Atlanta qualifier, winning it. Still, he’s a new purple belt. He could’ve probably held off until the third round to pick Sherrill. It’ll be interesting. I see a number of folks lower on this list who I think SHOULD beat Sherrill, but Sherrill’s going to come in with some motivation. By the numbers, this pick isn’t good, but it may be inspired. We’ll just have to see how it shakes out.

Pick 2 (6) – Egghead Warrior picks Dane Leak (Black)(Austin winner)

Analysis:  I said it on the show, but I STOLE Dane Leak even at pick #6. Leak secured three wins at the ADCC qualifiers, getting to the round of 32 before being eliminated. He has a very strong pack to the back for that RNC. He’s trained with Hunter “the Professional” Colvin and has that Okie strength going on. Leak won a very competitive Austin qualifier and could be a real contender for the season title. Well done on this pick, Egghead!

Pick 3 (7) – MigE picks Jeovany Ortiz (Black)(Decatur winner)

Analysis:  We should’ve known with MigE sporting the tie-dye shirt, the jersey preferred by Ortiz, he would go this way. Jovany Ortiz has some history with Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton, having faced him at the TN Top Roller 6 in 2018. To be fair, Ortiz also made it to the round of 32 at ADCC trials, losing to the eventual winner Kade Ruotolo. MigE might have one-upped me on this pick, but I think Leak may still be a better stylistic matchup against the Elijah and many others. Well, played MigE, a very good pick.

Pick 4 (8) – Walo picks Kevin Primeau (purple)

Analysis:  The first rule of PGF Fantasy is to never bet against Kevin “the Liquid Terminator” Primeau. Primeau had to remind me of this before the roster came out. Nobody hates Kevin more than Kevin is a saying we’ve heard from BMAC many times. Kevin will put himself through hell and ask for more. He’s a true warrior. Primeau showed us serious passing and grit on his way to the PGF Season 1 finale tournament.  At the finale, he only showed us the heart to go more than 70 minutes in an action packed match against Joe Kai. Primeau came back for PGF Season 2, only having recently recovered from a serious case of the Rona. We could see it in his matches where his normal, never stop cardio, just wasn’t there. The experience made him pull out the prison rules with wristlocks (YES!) and sneaky short arm bars. He’s cutting a lot of weight for this season so he should have a good weight advantage going into those later days. By the numbers, this pick is a serious reach. We were a little concerned if Primeau would get an at-large bid at all. Still, the PGF Insiders have some inside scoop from the Commish that tells us this pick might be a dang good pick after all. While I think Primeau was a solid third rounder, Walo could get some serious rewards by picking him just a little early. As you can hear in the podcast, many of the other drafters had their eyes set on “the Pete Rose of the PGF” for the next round. Nice pick, Walo. Walo probably didn’t remember all the stats of Primeau against other Season 1 alumni but you can find them here (draw against Roberts, kill against Collins, draw against Caleb, lost to Elijah via kill, kills against Longar and Keahi).

Round 3

Pick 1 (9) – Chris picks Randy Roden – (blue belt, Scramble BJJ).

Analysis:  Some financial advisers tell you to “invest in what you know.” It seems Chris went with this strategy in his picks. For those not in “the know,” Randy Roden was undefeated his junior and senior seasons in high school wrestling, earning a scholarship to Duke University. Roden wrestled in Duke’s D1 program and will have been doing jiu jitsu for around two years when PGF Season 3 rolls around. Coming into PGF Season 2, Roden had only one year of jiu jitsu under his belt and was a newly minted blue belt. We could all see Roden’s grace in his free-flowing movements on the mat. His defense was great, but as many new blue belts do, he struggled with submissions. As a PGF Insider, Chris does know from our interview with Roden that Roden has been working his leg lock game. This new attack strategy (why ignore 50% of the body?) should add a new dimension to his game. Add the new submission strategy to the fact that Roden is cutting A LOT of weight (he’ll be 170 for all of one minute) and you have a very difficult opponent to fact in PGF Season 3. Still, picking Roden as #9 is pretty high. I think he could have gotten Roden even in the fifth round, if not at least the fourth. The analysts at EggheadWarrior.com are calling this pick a pretty big reach. (Just for fun, check out 1:10:55 here for an interesting submission that shall not be named).

Pick 2 (10) – Egghead Warrior picks Evan Dewitt (Black)

Analysis: Another inspired pick by Egghead (hahahaha)! Evan Dewitt is a black belt, splitting time between Derby City MMA (Chewjitsu’s gym) and S&G BJJ. He’s a black belt so he’s got that EXPERIENCE. He showed great technique, both traditional and leg locking. He fell prey to Mario’s special double outside ashi ankle lock (that sneaky, fire sh!t). I don’t think he’ll fall for the same move and could be very dangerous in the PGF. A black belt in round 2 – solid pick.

Pick 3 (11) – MigE picks David Evers (purple)

Analysis:  So MigE now has the top two finishers from the Decatur Qualifier. We know “Quadzilla” has a great leg lock game, even defeating the Elbow Genie with his patented move. Quadzilla impressed BMAC with his stickiness when he gets a hold of a leg (just can’t strip those grips). He’s trained both under a Renzo Gracie black belt in Kansas and currently trains at 10^th Planet Huntsville so he also has a mix of backgrounds to pull from in matches. It’s an intriguing pick. We have a limited sample size of matches to analyze. He looks good but will being what appears to be a leg lock specialist hurt him on points? Will he be able to get to his favorite submission now that folks know his game?

Pick 4 (12) – Walo picks Manning Leverett (purple)

Analysis:  Leverett had a great showing at the PGF Season 2 Finale in a super fight with a very game opponent. Unfortunately, he had an injury during the Jacksonville Qualifier against Louis Collins so we didn’t get to see much of him in the qualifiers. Leverett got one victory in the ADCC trials before falling to the same opponent who took out Leak in the Round of 32. Walo has the hometown advantage of knowing what Leverett is all about and he made a great pick here. Leverett won the Mid South Classic 3, but on Smoothcomp has a so-so record. At pick 12, he’s right in the middle of the pack and that seems about right. Still, he could be a value pick here.

Round 4

Pick 1 (13) – Chris picks Isaac Stackhouse (purple)

Analysis: “The Wandering Grappler” is a fan favorite (including the PGF Insiders). As his moniker implies, Isaac trains with coaches all over the Southeast, giving him a lot of opportunities to get different looks and strategies to add to his kit bag. As “the Rudy” of the PGF, he said he would attend every qualifier until he earned a spot. True to his word, Isaac attended every qualifier, competing in all of them except the Austin qualifier where BMAC needed Isaac to run the camera. Like Primeau and Caleb, Isaac is an old school MMA guy. We saw his toughness, competing even after having what appeared to be a serious ankle injury at the Fort Myers qualifier. We are all going to cheer for him, but having attended every qualifier – we have seen him against many of these competitors. To be fair, his record against the other competitors is not great, making this pick a bit of a reach. Chris and Isaac are going to have to hope the Wandering Grappler’s grit turns into victories as the grind of the weeklong season wears down other competitors.

Pick 2 (14) – Egghead Warrior picks Tyler Woolsey (purple)(Fort Myers winner)

Analysis:  Woolsey is an interesting pick with a black belt and brown belt still on the board (the next two picks). He is a qualifier winner, having won the Fort Myers qualifier. Since the qualifier was the smallest in number of competitors, BMAC called an audible and had a mini-PGF season (having a round robin setup where all matches were six minutes, same scoring rules as the PGF. This unique qualifier setup should have given Woolsey a glimpse into how the PGF will run, along with its required tempo for matches. Woolsey rocks that old school 10^th Planet technique set, as he’s likely to lock in the rubber guard. Woolsey only recently received his purple belt, but he might be the biggest sandbagger on this list. The PGF Insiders have seen videos of Woolsey in tournaments seven years ago (as a blue belt) with BMAC and Applegate coaching him from the sidelines. Woolsey took a break in college to work on paying his tuition, but he’s been in the game a while. He’s a very smart cookie and I think he could be trouble for many competitors in this league.

Pick 3 (15) – MigE picks Matt Harrison (Black)

Analysis:  The SCARECROW OF DOOM (SOD)! Matt Harrison has a strong fan following in the PGF. As Season 1 was live, we could see the number of viewers swell anytime the SOD was competing. The SOD competed in season 1 as a brown belt but has subsequently earned his black belt from Chewjitsu at Derby City MMA in Louisville. Competitors will have to watch out for the SOD’s full guard – once he gets you there, a triangle is coming at you. Harrison competed in the Louisville qualifier (complete with fans dressed as Scarecrows) and the Austin qualifier. I think he got a triangle finish and a leglock in the Austin qualifier but didn’t make the finals. He made the consolation match in Louisville where Josh Gibbs and he both jumped guard at the same time…which looked like an attempt to ______ (the editors at EggheadWarrior.com will let you go back to the McDojo Show podcast recap of the Louisville qualifier to get Walo’s take on that move). The Scarecrow of Doom is a black belt, but has seemed beatable in the two qualifiers. Mario may have figured out the best strategy against the SOD – when the SOD goes to pull guard, Mario’s strategy was just to sit back for a leglock/ankle lock. But then again, the SOD might have been holding back. If Primeau has a new game to show us, I wouldn’t be surprised if SOD and his coach came up with something new. This season will still be a quick sprint, but since it’s live – competitors will have at least part of a day to strategize before that night’s matchups. If you really want to nerd out, you can see how the SOD did against other Season 1 alumni here (draws against Longar and Gaor, loss by break against Roberts, win by break against Keahi).

Pick 4 (16) – Walo picks Eric Longar (Brown)

Analysis:  Longar has been known for his side-to-side passing and throw-by takedowns. He had some problems in season 1, giving up so much weight with the 195 limit we had. Reviewing his scores from Season 1, we see he got draws against Noah, the SOD, Louis Collins, got a kill against Keahi, but lost via submission to Elijah, Primeau, and the Elbow Genie.  He’s still a brown belt, but you have to figure he leveled up since then. In his only qualifier match, Longar was winning for most the round against Mario Gaor, until Mario pulled out his jedi DOA ankle lock trick (see above). Ironically, Mario uses Longar as his uke in the video describing the technique. Again, with limited qualifier footage and little to no outside footage, Longar is a question mark. We’re now closer to his regular weight class (if not there), so he should do better than Season 1, but how much better?

Round 5

Pick 1 (17) – Chris picks Marcus Elkins (Blue)

Analysis:  The baby Elkins is fighting for the right to sit at the grown-up table next Thanksgiving. Sure, he matched his older brothers as a fellow state-champion wrestler in Alabama, but will he match them in their PGF success? While he weighs less than his older brothers, he’s definitely long which can often be a challenge for opponents. Marcus has shown a penchant for darces, buggy chokes, and of course, good ole wrasslin’. Marcus has had difficulty defending against leg lockers and this roster is full of leg specialists. He could definitely pull off some upsets, but I fear he’s going to be on the receiving side of a number of submissions this season. Congrats to him for being a father to be. The PGF Insiders can’t figure out if it’ll be a motivation or a distraction. Either way, I’ll say what I say to every father to be: sleep as much as you can right now, learn how to do everything one-handed (one had for baby, one hand can get things done), and my personal move, try to find some job excuse to miss the third trimester (I was successful 2/3 times) because things get a little crazy around that time. Congrats again, Marcus.

Pick 2 (18) – Egghead Warrior picks Kevin Beuhring (Blue)(Jacksonville Winner)

Analysis:  18, I got Kevin Beuhring at 18! Heck yeah! That’s about how many months this young man has been training jiu jitsu, but he’s killing it! Beuhring (Beurk) was the runner up at the Atlanta qualifier and then went down and won the Jacksonville qualifier. He’s another Trapplegate product out of 10^th Planet Atlanta. After the Atlanta qualifier, it looked like Beurhk might just be another leg specialist, but he showed us something in Jacksonville – he showed us how him threatening his opponents legs opened up other avenues of approach such as taking his opponents back and getting that RNC. Beurk is going to level up even more before Season 3 kicks off in January. Team Egghead Warrior got a steal here.

Pick 3 (19) – MigE picks Noah Randolph (Purple)

Analysis:  The real challenge in the PGF shouldn’t be to submit Noah, it should be to make him breathe through his mouth or make a facial expression while grappling. This kid is TOUGH (yeah, I said kid – he’s still in high school). Looking back at his Season 1 scores, I’m fondly reminded of how he almost won me the fantasy title (DANG YOU MCWHORTER!). Still, out of the current folks on the roster, Noah only has a kill against Keahi. He got a draw against Longar and was submitted by Elijah, Caleb, and the Elbow Genie. But have I mentioned he’s a high schooler yet? We’re going to have more than 18 months from Season 1 to Season 3. High schoolers change a whole lot in 18 months – they stop looking up to you and start looking down on you and calling you “short” and “old man” (or so I hear from those with seniors for kids). It’s not so much a secret that Noah is the ninja choke master at 10^th Planet Decatur (heck he almost put Primeau out with one at the Decatur qualifier – a match which was a split decision if you went by the commentators). The point is this pick is a quality pick. MigE got a tough kid with a lot of upside here at pick 19. If you listened to the podcast you could here all of us mad at MigE because we were all thinking we needed to grab Noah in the next round. Again, nice value pickup MigE.

Pick 4 (20) – Walo picks Carlos Andres (Purple)

Analysis:  Here’s another competitor with a limited sample size of matches available to analyze. Carlos took out Trenton Good, Lance McConnell, Anthony Collins, and David “Turbo Tax” Cooper before Quadzilla took him out. Carlos won the third place, consolation match against an exhausted Primeau (3:18:26 here). Skaff probably said it best: “Competitors are going to have to figure out how to pin Carlos. Otherwise, he’s gonna play in and out until he gets the submission attempts he wants.” Carlos combines great “Ironclad” wrestling with leg locks and submissions. The only reason he fell this far is his lack of film.   

Round 6 – the backups. We picked all 24, but this round would technically only compete if one of the above players was injured or had to pull out for other reasons.

Pick 1 (21) – Chris picks Keahi Makekau (Blue)

Analysis:  Keahi was Mario’s white belt who he brought along for PGF Season 1. Keahi was featured in many highlight reels of other competitors, but always shook it off and had fun out there. We saw a much improved but still having fun Keahi at the Austin Qualifiers. He showed some good defense and even threatened seriously with a kimura before losing the decision in his only match there. It’ll be good to see how he’s grown during the seasons. It will be interesting to see if he’s on Mario’s team – if not, will he give some good gouge on how to beat his instructor?

Pick 2 (22) – Egghead Warrior picks Matthew Boiles (Blue)

Analysis:  He’s out of Scramble BJJ, the same school as Randy Roden. Matthew Boiles in the Peter Parker of the PGF. He’s just a good kid. He’s the first guy the PGF Insiders sponsored for a qualifier spot (we also sponsored Marcus because others wanted to sponsor a friend of the show). When we put out the ad about us sponsoring folks, we got hit up by multiple individuals, coaches, training partners, etc. about needing to get Matty B in the PGF. His ride fell through to the Fort Myers qualifier so we had to settle watching him at the Atlanta qualifier. Check out his first match at 50:53 and hear how excited BMAC is at the pace and attacking shown by Boiles.  Boiles took out Isaac Stack house at 1:11:59 match – he didn’t get the sub but had position the entire match. Isaac seemed salty about the decision so that rematch could be fun. BMAC said he was very impressed with Boiles in that match, calling him “ferocious.”  

Pick 3 (23) – MigE picks Louis Collins (purple)

Analysis:  Collins is a tough customer. Don’t let his draft spot fool you. He has a very good record against opponents in this draft. He took Eric Longar and Mario Gaor to ties. He made Elijah settle for a break (yes, I was wrong on calling for the kill in that match). He got a break against Keahi. Collins is very tough and has been working hard since season one. He’ll be a hard out against anyone up and down this roster. He competed in the Atlanta and Jacksonville qualifiers – he’s committed to the PGF and a tough customer.

Pick 4 (24) – Walo picks Joshua Gibbs (Purple)

Analysis:  Gibbs is just a great dude. Anything I say here can and may be used against me since we live just about one hour from each other and I’m making it a point to travel down there to train this Spring. Gibbs will be fun. He’s always a game opponent. He had a very fun match against the SOD for third at the Louisville qualifier and had a very fun match against Isaac Stackhouse at the Atlanta qualifier. He’s not flashy. He has solid, fundamental jiu jitsu. Gibbs went way up in the weight class to compete in PGF Season 2 (225 limit). Now, Gibbs, who is a certified trainer I believe, can go back and compete in his natural weight class. This 55lb drop in weight limit should give him the ability to show off what his jiu jitsu really can do…and he’ll probably do it with a smile.

TEAM RESULTS:

Team “I think my team’s untouchable” Chris – aka Team Homestead

1. Elijah Carlton (auto bid)

2. Kevin Sherrill (purple)(Atlanta winner) – @kevingrapples

3. Randy Roden

4. Isaac “the Wandering Grappler” Stackhouse

5. Marcus Elkins

6. Keahi Makekau

Draft Grade – B-. Chris could’ve waited on most his selections. His first pick status is the only thing that saves this team (Elijah better kill it as always for Team Chris to stand a chance). Chris may have been contemplating animal husbandry too much when making these picks.

Team “Winner Only” Egghead

1. Caleb McAllister

2. Dane Leak

3. Evan Dewitt

4. Tyler Woolsey

5. Kevin “Beuhrk” Beuhring

6. Matty B (Matthew Boiles)

Draft Grade – A. Ok, so obviously I think I made out like a bandit. I got the consensus #2 at #2. I stole Leak at #6 who could threaten everyone. Evan Dewitt, a solid black belt with skills all around slips to me in the third, c’mon man! I got the two biggest sand baggers with Woolsey and Beuhrk (Trapplegate begrudgingly gave him his blue belt after he kept wrecking colored belts in competition). Plus, I got the Peter Parker of the PGF, the Tasmanian devil, Matty B…heck yeah I feel good about this draft!

Team “Chill” Miggy

1. Jonathan “Elbow Genie” Roberts

2. Jeovany Ortiz

3. David Evers

4. Matt Harrison

5. Noah Randolph

6. Louis Collins

Draft Grade – A. MigE was very sneaky in this draft. The Elbow Genie, given enough bud light fuel, is a very dangerous fellow. Ortiz was a very solid pick in the second round. MigE could see real upside from Evers, the SOD, and Noah. MigE felt the pressure of representing the guy who gave him his blue belt, so MigE performed. Well done, sir.

Team “My team’s gonna kick ya’lls teams’ asses” Walito

1. Mario Gaor

2. Kevin “Liquid Terminator” Primeau

3. Everett Manning

4. Eric Longar

5. Carlos Andres

6.  Joshua Gibbs

Draft Grade – B+. Mario probably was a reach for round 1. Primeau may have been an inspired pick if our insider info comes to fruition. Everett could go either way. He’s a burgeoning star, but we’ll see if he shines in this competition. Longar could be good now he’s at his own weight but we haven’t seen any wins, yet. Andres may be the steal of the draft with his scrambling and leg locks. Still, I doubt this team will be in contention for the title.

As Austin Powers would say, “I’m spent.” Hopefully this draft recap and analysis will give some thoughts to our coaches, fantasy players, and fans alike. As Walo said, any angst from our podcast or this article can be taken out on me, Egghead Warrior, as I train at 10P Decatur during PGF Season 3 (as long as I get my Christmas present – all I want is to travel to Decatur and train for a week). So, like last season, feel free to beat up on Egghead. Regardless, I’ll still probably be right in my picks. It’s the curse of a 20lb brain. HAHAHAHAHA. But seriously, thanks if you read all this way and thanks for supporting the PGF.

ARE YOU READY?????????? Brandon Mccaghren, aka BMAC, aka the Commish, announced the final PGF Season 3 roster on the PGF Insider show the week before last. This post is tardy, but that’s life in the fast lane. I’m going to give a quick recap of what we know about PGF Season 3 to any new viewers, then get onto the roster.

PGF Season 3 nuts and bolts: If you don’t know how PGF Season 3 is going to work, I’ll give you a quick recap of what we know. On 9 January, the Season 3 competitors will assemble in Decatur, AL. The first day, they will weigh in for the first and only time they have to make 170 lbs (so folks like Randy Roden and Kevin Primeau will be 170 for all of one minute, at least until they get that awesome Chilis cheesecake so popular with PGF competitors). That evening on the 9th, the competitors will partake in a combine. Season 1’s combine was streamed and included hang time from a pullup bar, a cone drill, broad jump, etc. The coaches of the four teams will DRAFT their teams the following day on 10 January. The competitors will have 12 matches during the regular season, with none of the matches going against their teammates, opening up the possibility of team points and eliminating the chances of COLLUSION (which would never occur in the PGF and destroy an Egghead’s chances at fantasy fame). With only 12 matches, not everyone will face each other round-robin style like season 2, it’ll be much more like PGF Season 1 where had to wait until the PGF Post-Season tournament to see Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton face off against Caleb McAllister. The competitors will have their three matches a day from Monday through Thursday with Friday serving as a rest day before the post-season tournament on Saturday, 15 January. The PGF is partnering with another promotion to have a full day of matches with the PGF post-season tournament being the main event. Different from the past two seasons, the PGF post-season tournament will be an EBI Rules match with three overtime periods (sorry Kevin “Pete Rose of the PGF” Primeau, no more 1hr+ matches).

Scoring: BMAC made the PGF full of incentives for action. The winner of the regular season and the eight competitors who will advance to the post-season tournament must accumulate as many points in their 12 matches as possible. Each match only lasts six minutes. Since the goal is to gain as many points as possible, a draw where both competitors earn no points is an outcome. Competitors can earn three points for a “Break” which is any joint lock (e.g. arm bar, leg lock, etc.). Competitors earn six points for a “Kill” which is a choke (anything under the nose is a choke so neck cranks count). Competitors can garner an additional bonus point, using “the Elbow Genie” rule – where any submission in the first minute of a match earns that bonus point. Again, there are no advantages, no referee’s rulings, there’s only submissions or draws. As we’ve seen in the qualifiers as well as the two prior seasons, this ruleset really drives the action.

As mentioned previously, the Competitors will be DRAFTED by the coaches of the four teams. EVERYONE who is drafted will get paid – and the draft order determines the minimum amount each competitor receives. First rounders will receive $750 each, $500 for second rounders, and $100 for those last rounders. At this time, the stand-bys (oh, am I skipping ahead?) have no preset amount they will receive. But before we talk about the roster, let’s look at our coaches:

Teams:

1. Jake Elkins and Matt Elkins: the Elkins brothers!!!!! I know some really smart guy who was lobbying for having the Elkins bros. coach this season. I think his moniker’s initials are E.W. Jake is a wrestling aficionado, having been a AL state champ and wrestled in college (I think all american, but sorry if I’m incorrect). Regardless, he’s a purple belt under BMAC/the Commish and has excelled at both teaching wrestling to National-level talent and has worked to adapt traditional wrestling to jiu jitsu. Matt “The Mane—still bummed he cut his hair” Elkins is the younger brother of Jake, but the higher belk in jiu jitsu as a brown belt. Matt is also an AL wrestling state champion and was an MMA fighter until fairly recently. Matt also has one of the most profesh and killer front headlock/chinstrap set of submissions around. As another wild aside, when I went to train at 10th Planet Decatur prior to the Season 2 finale, I found out Jake Elkins is their wrestling coach and Matt Elkins is their striking coach….are you kidding me??? Ya’ll folks living in and around Decatur are SPOILED! Any competitor picked by this team should be leveling up their wrestling for jiu jitsu a lot during the season.
2. Eli Knight – if I have to explain how awesome Eli Knight is, I’m not sure how you got to this page. Please check out his YouTube Channel and Instagram. Eli was one the guys who many of us on ship followed and downloaded technique videos when we were in port to figure out how to improve our jiu jitsu at sea. He had awesome no-gi, gi, self-defense, basically everything you could want online. I’m very excited to see him as a part of the PGF.
3. Drew Weatherhead – Because Jiu Jitsu owner, BJJ black belt, regular on the Around the Mat show. If you only know him from the Around the Mat show, you might think Drew is just a funny Canadian guy. I assure you, check out his tutorials and technique videos. He’s a technician and will be great to see teach competitors and will be funny trading barbs with other coaches.
4. Sean Applegate – @Trapplegate10P is working on taking over the SE US grappling scene if not the world grappling scene. He sent two of his lower belt students to take down two qualifiers and almost had another student take down a third. He has anothe student who won CJJ Worlds and got to the round of 16 in the ADCC trials. Applegate is known as the authority on leg locks and as one of the calmest coaches matside. I wouldn’t be surprised if his team members started making pilgrimages to Atlanta after learning from Applegate.

Okay guys, let’s get onto the roster. As mentioned previously, I’m late with putting this out. I’m also going to crib some notes from previous Matologies. Hey, my eldest is a senior and is in the H.S. football playoffs. He was recognized as the defensive player of the game in the last win and I’m about to fly out to see his next game. Work and travel for the man-child has been kicking my behind…so that’s my excuse for now. I’ll take my laptop with me and work while I’m out there to provide more content. I don’t think I’ll hit it in this post, but many of our competitor threw their hats in the ring at the ADCC trials. Their matches as well as other matches in the past will be used in our (McDojo Show/PGF Insider) pre-draft special and my fantasy analysis in the future. Okay, NOW ON TO THE ROSTER!!!!

1. Elijah Carlton (auto bid) – the Bad Guy who will be the first in the future PGF Hall of Fame received the first at-large/invitational bid. The Bad Guy will have competed in all three seasons suffering only two losses, both to Hunter “the Professional” Colvin last season. Of note, he trains under his local gyms, but is also a student of BMAC and Sean Applegate. Will Applegate pick the Bad Guy or will he use his knowledge to help someone defeat Elijah’s intrepid guard?

2. Jeovany Ortiz (Black)(Decatur winner) – Jeo brought smooth skill to the Decatur qualifier. His technique was very nice to watch. Jeo weathered a lot of aggression from other players, only to wear them out and submit them. Jeo has competed against Elijah and Caleb previously and should not be surprised when he faces them in Season 3 (links forthcoming). Jeovany was very chill during the qualifier. I need to review some tape on him. His skill is legit, but I’m a little worried about him playing to the level of his competition.

3. Caleb McAllister (Black)(auto bid) – PGF Season 1 runner up now gets to compete at his natural weight. McAllister is such a motivating person. Follow him at @calebmcallisterofficial on Instagram. He has a win over Elijah previously. He’s a former MMA fighter, solid black belt, who trains and competes relentlessly. Caleb will push anyone to their breaking point.  I really think the change in the post-season from pure submission only to EBI rules does not favor Caleb – no one would out work Caleb (tip of the cap to you Primeau). Regardless, I think we’ll all learn from watching Caleb’s performances and the way he conducts himself throughout the season – he’s all class.

4. David “Quadzilla” Evers (purple) – Evers is a beast, a little spark plug of grappling. Once he gets his grips on you, good luck getting free. Evers has a split lineage, first studying under a Renzo Gracie black belt in Kansas, then in 10P Huntsville. He said a lot of positional sparring has really helped him compete well. Of note, Quadzilla took out the Elbow Genie at the Decatur qualifier on his way to earning second place. If you can take out the Elbow Genie, you might do ok in the PGF. Evers is one of those guys who could be really interesting to watch. We saw he had a comfort zone in his leg locks but will he be able to go for the kills in the season to earn a bid to the post-season?

5. Kevin Sherrill (purple)(Atlanta winner) – Kevin (@kevingrapples) has been grappling since he was 13 (we really saw the old wrestler come out when he face Matthew Boiles in the semifinals of the Atlanta qualifier). I think he’s only been in jiu jitsu for a few years, but he can really grapple. He handily won the Atlanta qualifier. Of course all his opponents will want to check out the MidSouth Classic match of his against Matt “Maneless” Elkins to see how Matt used his patented guillotine to get a submission over Kevin…but then they’d have to match the quality of the Matt Elkin front headlock which will be hard to match. Regardless, Kevin is a VERY dangerous purple belt. Apparently, he’s accepted a position with X3 North Marietta as their no-gi grappling coach. It’s said the best way to master something is to teach it, so this position could really help him step up his game. One has to assume he got the green light from Sean Applegate before joining a possible competitor gym – if not, we could see some interesting stuff in the season.

6. Tyler Woolsey (purple)(Fort Myers winner) – Woolsey has a great story. He started off as a teenager learning the 10P system, but had to focus on work and school at college. After setting himself up as a professional, he came back to jiu jitsu and has been killing it. As a fun aside, the Commish sent Walo and I footage of Woolsey being coached/cornered by the Commish and Coach Applegate. Even as a brand new purple belt, I think Woolsey is sandbagging it a bit and will catch folks by surprise. He won the Fort Myers qualifier which was the smallest qualifier, but ended up being ran like a mini-PGF season, so Woolsey has had a bit of a taste of what the PGF has in store for him and his fellow competitors. This little experience might help him even more going into those first few rounds. While mat time is mat time, I think those folks who start then come back on occasion may have a surprising advantage on those folks who blitzkrieg the art. There’s something to be said for allowing concepts to really settle into one’s mind, to allow the subconscious to figure out solutions to issues. I think Woolsey is going to be an upset special in the making for fantasy.

7. Isaac Stackhouse (purple) – The Rudy of the PGF, Isaac has made it to all the qualifiers. As the Commish let slip with 18 minutes left in the feed of final qualifer, Isaac was present and ready to enter the Austin qualifier; however, due to Conscious Keelan being unable to attend, they needed a cameraman. We all know Isaac is an outstanding cameraman. The Commish offered the second at-large bid (which we all knew was coming) and asked Isaac to help out. Isaac is an old school MMA fighter. He came up rough in that scene and has no quit in him. Isaac trains with many instructors throughout the Southeast (as he wanders…get it?). In the long run, this mixing of instruction should make Isaac a more well-rounded grappler, but is it stunting immediate growth? Regardless, if you want to have a match where fans know anything can happen and it will be a battle, put Rudy in there. Isaac’s going to level up even more this season and surprise some folks with his grit and skill.

8. Kevin Primeau (purple) – The first rule of fantasy PGF is never bet against the Liquid Terminator; it appears that rule might be a universal rule, not relegated only to fantasy. As a quick note, he earned the nickname the liquid terminator thanks to his sweat glands and “The Pete Rose of the PGF” for his Season 1 prowess in the PGF Fantasy competition. Season 2 precluded Primeau from competing in the fantasy as it was previously filmed, but this season since it’s live will allow Primeau to once again compete against us mere mortal for fantasy supremacy. Primeau showed outstanding jiu jitsu in PGF Season 1, including a finale match which lasted more than 72 minutes. Primeau fell prey to the Rona before Season 2, but still showed up and competed. Due to his diminished cardio, we didn’t see the smash/Sao Paolo passes, but saw some crafty, prison-rules submission from Primeau. At the Decatur qualifier, we saw a lot of long smash passing by Primeau but not much else as his passing usually took around four minutes of the match. After he passed, Primeau didn’t have enough time to get the submission. I’ll agree with Walo that Primeau is one of the fan favorites and I’m sure he’ll deliver an entertaining PGF season. I think we heard from every participant in season 2 that they all knew they couldn’t look past Primeau. Season 3 competitors should heed the warning from the Season 2 folks – don’t sleep on the Pete Rose of the PGF.

9. Marcus Elkins (Blue) – The Elkins are like cowbell…I got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell. The baby Elkins brother has something to prove after his two elder brothers have had such great showing in the PGF. Just like he had to win a state championship in wrestling to leave the little kids table at Thanksgiving dinner; he will feel the pressure to show up and perform for the PGF. He’s been at multiple qualifiers. He’s shown some great darce submissions and great wrestling. And he brings a great story with his and his family’s ongoing connection to the PGF.

10. Dane Leak (Black)(Austin winner) – (Clinch Martial Arts Academy, a Jean Jacques Machado affiliate academy) – Owasso, Oklahoma? You couldn’t have even been from Broken Arrow? Just kidding, I have family in Okie land, so I make fun occasionally. Anyway, Dane made his presence FELT with a series of back takes and rear naked chokes to win the Austin qualifier. Dane let us know he used to train with Hunter “the Professional” Colvin (season 2 winner) often. Dane just celebrated 10 years in jiu jitsu. Dane’s just a bad man. He showed take downs, top game, bottom game, leglocks, as well as his favorite mount, to gift wrap, to backtake, to RNC finish. Dane had some really great matches and should be a real contender in the season. He also had the deepest run of all competitors in the ADCC trials (spoiler alert!).

11. Kevin Beuhring (Blue)(Jacksonville Winner) – Coach Applegate in Atlanta seems like he’s in the beginning stages of taking over the grappling world. As mentioned previously, he put the two Kevins out there to take down two qualifiers, then he sent his padawan to win the CJJ Worlds, then he sent another student to take down the PGF Austin qualifier – and he came close. 10P Atlanta is making a real case for folks to emigrate to their fine city (also, if you love burgers, hit up that Bocado Burger in Alpharetta, it’s one of the best in the country). But back to the second Kevin (I hear he prefers not to be called 10P Atlanta Kevin #2 – that’s a Mallrats callback to you youngins). Anyway, “Beurk” has been training a little over ONE YEAR. He’s shown himself to be deadly with those 10P Atlanta leg locks, but more importantly, he showed the ability to use the threat of the leglocks to takes game opponents’ backs and get other submissions. Beurk faced some great competition at the PGF Jacksonville qualifier, really showing his abilities. Beurk is a great story to watch for in Season 3. My feeling is he’s going to have to hope to hit submissions in time to gain the advantage of the Elbow Genie rule if he wants to get to the post-season. We’ve seen him use other submissions, but he still feels like a bit of a leglock specialist. Maybe I’m wrong. From all accounts, Beurk is making bjj his life and is hitting his stride in competition. We’ll see how far he gets.

12. Jonathan Roberts (Black) – The Elbow Genie was masterful, showing some beautiful jiu jitsu in Season 1. We need to see more, especially since this season will be closer to his true weight class. C’mon, Roberts has one of the best nicknames in the game and has a rule made/named after him. He won’t complain about it, but he had a bumm knee at the 10P Decatur Qualifiers and the same injury limited his ability to hit other qualifiers. Regardless, the Elbow Genie has earned his spot and we all look forward to some wizardry from the fairly new black belt this season.

13. Noah Randolph (Purple) – Noah Randolph was a fan favorite from season 1. His matches propelled many of us to the upper echelons of the fantasy ranks. He refuses to breathe through his mouth. He refuses to make any facial expressions. He refuses to tap to mere mortals. Noah’s also the worst kept secret of the Grappling Discourse Podcast (we all know Skaff was referring to Noah when he was talking about the ninja choke master). The word on the street is Noah has been wrecking visitors coming to 10th Planet Decatur (although I admit I missed the honor when I visited before the season 2 finale). What can I say, the calculus of grappling a high schooler is complex…if I win, I’m an old man beating up on a kid; if I lose (which I’m confident I would lose), I just lost to a teenager. Well, I’m sorry folks, but a lot of PGF Season 3 folks will be getting tuned up by this teenager.

14. Evan Dewitt (Black) – the runner-up from the Louisville qualifier. He’s a black belt from Chewjitsu’s gym (Derby City MMA). As we saw with the Scarecrow of Doom from PGF Season 1, they have a great set of fans. More importantly, Dewitt has some great jiu jitsu and was fun to watch. He was almost guaranteed a spot when they were in Louisville. It makes sense he’s on the list as he further solidifies the Derby City MMA folks but also gives us some Cincinnati coverage.

15. Matt Harrison (Black) – Out of Derby City MMA (Chewjitsu’s gym), Harrison earned the best nickname of the PGF in the first season. Dubbed “the Scarecrow of Doom,” which has a shorter nickname of the “SOD,” Harrison showed a ridiculous closed guard game leading to devastating triangles. Mario Gaor might have found a solution by always attacking the SOD’s legs when he goes for closed guard, but this strategy could be tricky. Regardless, it’ll be interesting to see the hardened veteran who is now a black belt – one thinks his coach and him will have some good strategies coming into this season. Also, it’ll be good to see the Derby City MMA army in the live chat.

16. Manning Leverett (purple) – was in season 2 finale and won a match against a very game opponent. This 10th Planet Jacksonville product was hurt in the Jacksonville qualifier but the Commish said he was interested in giving him a spot. He’s a young man and had a very respectable ADCC run. A lot of folks may look past him to their peril.

17. Matthew Boiles (Blue) – He’s a young blue belt and a real go-getter. Okay, I’m biased. The PGF Insiders picked him for a sponsored entry in the Atlanta qualifier, AND HE PROVED US RIGHT! He performed very well, pushing the pace in his matches, going for submissions. He lost in the semifinals to the eventual winner. The Commish said he wanted to see more out of him. So we tried to get him to the Jacksonville qualifier, but he couldn’t get off work. He was focusing on no gi worlds, but didn’t have the right IBJJF lineage (yeah, that’s some b.s.) to compete. Regardless, he’s the type of competitor who will either make a highlight or be someone else’s highlight and he’s just a great kid from every interaction I’ve had with him. I am insanely pumped he made the list and am now hoping he gets a roster spot. For all the coaches, you don’t get money based on your results. Please, take a young man who could use the benefit of your tutelage and show your prowess by how he progresses the season. And thanks BMAC and Keelan for giving the kid a chance.

18. Carlos Andres (Purple) – Carlos brought a wrestler’s scrambling along with solid leg locks to the qualifier for a deep run. As Walo said on the PGF Insider, we’ve been talking about Carlos Andres as an exciting competitor for months. Regardless of the qualifier, we always went back to Carlos as someone who needed to be considered for the roster. The PGF audience has limited exposure to Carlos, but we may be very pleasantly surprised to see his wrestling and jiu jitsu in the season.

19. Eric Longar (Brown) – Eric Longar looked much more comfortable in a competition near his normal weight when we saw him in the Louisville qualifier. Longar was actually winning his match against Gaor until the last minute when Gaor pulled off the ankle lock from double outside ashi. As a season 1 veteran, Longar should be comfortable with the format. Longar is a crafty black belt and has great side-to-side passing. He would be a good addition to the PGF. He could probably use a shave and a haircut as he is reaching mountain man status there. Still, Eric was always an X factor in season one which was at 195 lbs. At 170 pounds, he should be still bringing his lateral movement but with normal size for the weight class to back it up.

20. Joshua Gibbs (Purple) – our shipmate was a Season 2 alumnus who bulked up to try to meet the higher weight class. Now, he’s back nearer his natural weight. Joshua uses a more traditional jiu jitsu. He’s more likely to get a competitor in the full guard than to do anything flashy. Regardless, he has the heart to take matches the full way. Joshua will make competitors fight for any finishes they get. He had a great match in the 3rd place match against the SOD in the Louisville qualifier.

21. Louis Collins (purple) – Louis is a grit warrior. He’s a hard out. I bet against him, saying Elijah would get a kill against him and Louis made me eat my words. He’s a good mix of traditional and 10P styles. He’s very tough, adept at traditional jiu jitsu and very adept at leg locks.

22. Keahi Makekau (Blue) – KEAHI!!!!! He just earned his blue belt. He’s a vet from season 1 where he lost all matches except one (here’s looking at you original Mike Johnson). Regardless of all the matches and losses, Keahi faced each new match like a true warrior – with enthusiasm. In his Austin qualifier match, he showed much improved defense and was dangerously close to submitting his opponent with a kimura. It will be great for fans to see his growth from the inaugural season to now.

23. Mario Gaor (brown)(Louisville winner) – Mario came in and won a small but very competitive Louisville qualifier. A very undersized Mario entered PGF season 1 and found a lot of success against larger opponents. In the Louisville qualifier, we saw some of those slick moves we’ve been seeing on that @neckstepbjj Instagram page. Mario took down two black belts with a double outside ashi ankle lock which shouldn’t work, but he dedicated an Instagram post to the PGF Insiders, showing how he made it work. Mario will likely be underestimated this season, giving a chance to pull off some real upsets.

24. Randy Roden – (blue belt, Scramble BJJ)- Roden brings a story of seeing a great wrestler (D1 at Duke) who had just been training jiu jitsu for one year at the beginning of PGF Season 2 where he competed. The fact that Roden made the big cut to 170lb and has the ability to be exciting on the mats and show progress to the fans…well, that makes him a compelling watch this season. With his athleticism and overall grappling ability, Roden will only get deadlier with time. I’d be very surprised if he doesn’t get drafted.

Okay, now for some wrapup comments. So, we listed 24 instead of 20. Well, like a jury trial, we’re going to empanel some alternates from the get-go. Should a player get injured or have some other life event that compels them to leave the competition, the PGF will have four other competitors to take their place. In this scenario, potential competitors can still learn while main competitors can give their all without the concern of letting down their teammates if they get injured.

That’s it for the breakdown of the roster….for now. We’ll work on getting more footage and begin talking about skill sets/etc. of each competitor.

And that’s a wrap!!! PGF Austin Qualifier is in the books. No more qualifiers. No more chances for a Golden Ticket to the PGF Season 3 Regular Season. In Austin, we received our final Qualifier winner AND an at-large bid we’d all been expecting. BTW, if we’re going to announce at-large bids as almost an aside on a qualifier, I know some “Insiders” who would be more than happy to make a big deal about revealing these things. Some of these “Insiders” were about to start calling each other Soda Pop and Ponyboy (*that’s an Outsiders reference, son – I hope you all enjoyed that novel as much as Egghead did – or you could always enjoy the 80s movie version which was a star-studded affair…but I digress, a lot). Anyway, let’s talk a little PGF Austin Qualifier and where that leaves us with potential bids for those guys who threw their hats into the ring at the qualifiers.

As a quick recap, PGF Season 3 will run from 9-15 January. On 9 January, the players will arrive and weigh in immediately. That evening, they will compete in a combine. In season 1’s combine, there were events such as deadhang, broadjump, a cone drill, etc. Allegedly, some of the Season 1 competitors tweaked themselves in the combine, so this season’s participants would be smart to put out but not max out for fear of risking their matches. The next day, in the morning, there will be a draft where the four Coaches/Managers will pick their teams. As I covered in Matology 2.0, those coaches will be Jake Elkins (season 2 alumn and Ironclad Wrestling owner), Drew Weatherhead (Because Jiu Jitsu owner, BJJ black belt, regular on the Around the Mat show), Johnny Buck (Catch Wrestler, MMA veteran, Rogue Combat Club instructor, 10th Planet brown belt, he also “wears the wring” if you’re a Conroy fan), and Eli Knight (seriously, if you’re reading this article and don’t know Elij Knight from his YouTube Channel, Instagram, or otherwise, I’m surprised). The PGF Season 3 participants will be PAID based on their draft position, with $750 for first rounders, $500 for second rounders, and $100 for those last rounders. These numbers could be adjusted based on any future sponsorships they receive (AHEM, to you business types, you might want to sponsor these guys). Each team will have five players, leaving us with 20 participants. From Monday to Thursday, each participant will have three matches a night for a total of 12 matches. Teammates will not go against teammates, meaning less chances of COLLUSION to ruin Egghead’s fantasy hopes. The players will get Friday off, then the post-season tournament will commence on Saturday, 15 January. It’s going to be a gauntlet for these guys, but it’ll be “The Shark Week of Submission Grappling” for us fans. Okay, with the preamble aside, let’s get where we stand with bids, the qualifier, and the possible at-large bids.

THOSE WITH GOLDEN TICKETS:

1. Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton – the Bad Guy who will be the first in the future PGF Hall of Fame received the first at-large/invitational bid. The Bad Guy will have competed in all three seasons suffering only two losses, both to Hunter “the Professional” Colvin last season.

2. Caleb McAllister – PGF Season 1 runner up now gets to compete at his natural weight. McAllister is such a motivating person. Follow him at @calebmcallisterofficial on Instagram. He has a win over Elijah previously. He’s a former MMA fighter, solid black belt, who trains and competes relentlessly. Caleb will push anyone to their breaking point. Could we see the rubber match between Elijah and Caleb in PGF Season 3?

3. Jeovany Ortiz (black belt and Decatur qualifier winner) – Jeo brought smooth skill to the Decatur qualifier. His technique was very nice to watch. Jeo weathered a lot of aggression from other players, only to wear them out and submit them. Jeo has competed againt Elijah and Caleb previously and should not be surprised when he faces them in Season 3.

4. Mario Gaor (10P O’Fallon brown belt) – Mario came in and won a small but very competitive Louisville qualifier. A very undersized Mario entered PGF season 1 and found a lot of success against larger opponents. In the Louisville qualifier, we saw some of those slick moves we’ve been seeing on that @neckstepbjj Instagram page. Mario took down two black belts with a double outside ashi ankle lock which shouldn’t work, but he dedicated an Instagram post to the PGF Insiders, showing how he made it work. Mario will likely be underestimated this season, giving a chance to pull off some real upsets.

5. Tyler Woolsey (brand new purple belt, 10P West Palm Beach). Woolsey has a great story. He started off as a teenager learning the 10P system, but had to focus on work and school at college. After setting himself up as a professional, he came back to jiu jitsu and has been killing it. As a fun aside, the Commish set Walo and I footage of Woolsey being coached/cornered by the Commish and Coach Applegate. Even as a brand new purple belt, I think Woolsey is sandbagging it a bit and will catch folks by surprise. He won the Fort Myers qualifier which was the smallest qualifier, but ended up being ran like a mini-PGF season, so Woolsey has had a bit of a taste of what the PGF has in store for him and his fellow competitors. This little experience might help him even more going into those first few rounds.

6. Kevin Sherrill (10P Atlanta brand new purple belt). Kevin (@kevingrapples) has been grappling since he was 13 (we really saw the old wrestler come out when he face Matthew Boiles in the semifinals of the Atlanta qualifier). I think he’s only been in jiu jitsu for a few years, but he can really grapple. He handily won the Atlanta qualifier. Of course all his opponents will want to check out the MidSouth Classic match of his against Matt “Maneless” Elkins to see how Matt used his patented guillotine to get a submission over Kevin…but then they’d have to match the quality of the Matt Elkin front headlock which will be hard to match. Regardless, Kevin is a VERY dangerous purple belt. BTW, sorry for not being on the live stream and being able to help refresh folks’ memory on the winners. I appreciate Isaac trying to phone a friend by asking me on the stream, but I was taking my eldest on a college football recruit visit and couldn’t watch live.

7. Kevin “Beurk” Beuhring (10P Atlanta blue belt) – Coach Applegate in Atlanta seems like he’s in teh beginning stages of taking over the grappling world. He put the two Kevins out there to take down two qualifiers, then he sent his padawan to win the CJJ Wolds, then he sent another student to take down the PGF Austin qualifier – and he came close. 10P Atlanta is making a real case for folks to emigrate to their fine city (also, if you love burgers, hit up that Bocado Burger in Alpharetta, it’s one of the best in the country). But back to the second Kevin (I hear he prefers not to be called 10P Atlanta Kevin #2 – that’s a Mallrats callback to you youngins). Anyway, Beurk has been training a little over ONE YEAR. He’s shown himself to be deadly with those 10P Atlanta leg locks, but more importantly, he showed the ability to use the threat of the leglocks to takes game opponents’ backs and get other submissions. Beurk faced some great competition at the PGF Jacksonville qualifier, really showing his abilities. Beurk is a great story to watch for in Season 3. My feeling is he’s going to have to hope to hit submissions in time to gain the advantage of the Elbow Genie rule if he wants to get to the post-season. We’ve seen him use other submisisons, but he still feels like a bit of a leglock specialist. Maybe I’m wrong. From all accounts, Beurk is making bjj his life and is hitting his stride in competition. We’ll see how far he gets.

8. Dane Leak (black belt, Clinch Martial Arts Academy, a Jean Jacques Machado affiliate academy) – Owasso, Oklahoma? You couldn’t have even been from Broken Arrow? Just kidding, I have family in Okie land, so I make fun occasionally. Anyway, Dane made his presence FELT with a series of back takes and rear naked chokes to win the Austin qualifier. Dane let us know he used to train with Hunter “the Professional” Colvin (season 2 winner) often. Dane just celebrated 10 years in jiu jitsu. Dane’s just a bad man. He showed take downs, top game, bottom game, leglocks, as well as his favorite mount, to gift wrap, to backtake, to RNC finish. Dane had some really great matches and should be a real contender in the season.

9. David “Quadzilla” Evers (10P Huntsville purple belt). Evers is a beast, a little spark plug of grappling. Once he gets his grips on you, good luck getting free. Evers has a split lineage, first studying under a Renzo Gracie black belt in Kansas, then in 10P Huntsville. He said a lot of positional sparring has really helped him compete well. Of note, Quadzilla took out the Elbow Genie at the Decatur qualifier on his way to earning second place. If you can take out the Elbow Genie, you might do ok in the PGF. Evers is one of those guys who could be really interesting to watch. We saw he had a comfort zone in his leg locks but will he be able to go for the kills in the season to earn a bid to the post-season?

10. Isaac “the Wandering Grappler” Stackhouse – The Rudy of the PGF, Isaac has made it to all the qualifiers. As the Commish let slip with 18 minutes left in the feed, Isaac was present and ready to enter the Austin qualifier; however, due to Conscious Keelan being unable to attend, they needed a cameraman. We all know Isaac is an outstanding cameraman. The Commish offered the second at-large bid (which we all knew was coming) and asked Isaac to help out. Isaac is an old school MMA fighter. He came up rough in that scene and has no quit in him. Isaac trains with many instructors throughout the Southeast (as he wanders…get it?). In the long run, this mixing of instruction should make Isaac a more well-rounded grappler, but is it stunting immediate growth? Regardless, if you want to have a match where fans know anything can happen and it will be a battle, put Rudy in there.

PGF Austin Qualifier: Short shrift on this one today as it’s starting to get late and I still have hopes to make it to the 0600 class. They had 15 players sign up. These competitors included multiple Season 1 alumni. We have Keahi Makekau whose sole season 1 win was over Mike Johnson (season 1 Mike Johnson, not season 2 Mike Johnson, btw we’re looking for a season 3 Mike Johnson if you know a guy). Keahi was a fun part of season 1 as a true white belt who kept getting smashed but remained up beat and kept fighting. He represented a big part of what made Season 1 work – the scrappers who got dunked on but kept fighting every time with a smile on their faces. Keahi didn’t make it out of the first round, but I think he showed good progress on his defense and even got close to sinking in a kimura finish. 10P Atlanta sent Stephen Dana to try the three-peat. Stephen made it all the way to the semifinals before falling to the eventual winner in the semifinals. Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison was a fan favorite in PGF Season 1. He underperformed at the Louisville qualifier but performed very well at the Austin qualifier. He showed us his patented triangle and a leg lock on the way to eventually losing in the semifinals to the eventual runner up. Louis Collins showed his normal grit but fell in his first match to a very tough toe hold. I could talk a lot more about the qualifier, but it was less than two hours long and is worth everyone watching. If you want to check it out, look here.

So now I need to turn to my attempt at guessing what the Commish will decide when it comes to the remaining 10 spots for PGF Season 3. I’ve been wildly wrong before, but I’m still going to take a shot.

Best Bets (in no certain order):

1. Jonathan “the Elbow Genie” Roberts (black belt)- The Elbow Genie was masterful, showing some beautiful jiu jitsu in Season 1. We need to see more, especially since this season will be closer to his true weight class. C’mon, Roberts has one of the best nicknames in the game and has a rule made/named after him. He’s in there.

2. Evan Dewitt – the runner-up from the Louisville qualifier. He’s a black belt from Chewjitsu’s gym (Derby City MMA). As we saw with the Scarecrow of Doom from PGF Season 1, they have a great set of fans. More importantly, Dewitt has some great jiu jitsu and was fun to watch. He was almost guaranteed a spot when they were in Louisville. The Commish mentioned him when he was on the PGF Insider podcast and the Commish mentioned Dewitt again during the Austin Qualifier – chances are, he’s making it in.

3. Randy “Dumptruck” Roden (blue belt, Scramble BJJ)- Roden brings a story of seeing a great wrestler (D1 at Duke) who had just been training jiu jitsu for one year at the beginning of PGF Season 2 where he competed. The fact that Roden made the big cut to 170lb and has the ability to be exciting on the mats and show progress to the fans…well, that’s a run-on sentence but still a compelling argument for his admission to the regular season. With his athleticism and overall grappling ability, Roden will only get deadlier with time. I think the Commish likes the idea of helping launch Roden’s jiu jitsu career.

4. Matthew Boiles (blue belt, Scramble BJJ) – He’s a young blue belt and a real go-getter. Okay, I’m biased. The PGF Insiders picked him for a sponsored entry in the Atlanta qualifier, AND HE PROVED US RIGHT! He performed very well, pushing the pace in his matches, going for submissions. He lost in the semifinals to the eventual winner. The Commish said he wanted to see more out of him. So we tried to get him to the Jacksonville qualifier, but he couldn’t get off work. He’s going to the No-Gi Worlds with teammates so he should have a chance to make more of a case for admission to the regular season. He’s the type of competitor who will either make a highlight or be someone elses highlight and he’s just a great kid from every interaction I’ve had with him. I really tried to get him to the Jacksonville qualifier but his work and working towards the no-gi worlds kept him from attending. If there’s a kid that needs a shot at the PGF, I think it’s Matthew Boiles. I believe I can guarantee he would be a great competitor for the PGF.

5. Marcus Elkins – The Elkins are like Cowbell, and we need more cowbell. The baby Elkins brother has something to prove after his two elder brothers have had such great showing in the PGF. Just like he had to win a state championship in wrestling to leave the little kids table at Thanksgiving dinner; he will feel the pressure to show up and perform for the PGF. He’s been at multiple qualifiers. He’s shown some great darce submissions and great wrestling. And he brings a great story with his and his family’s ongoing connection to the PGF.

6. Noah Randolph or Kevin “the Pete Rose of the PGF” Primeau. They were both fan favorites in season 1. Kevin showed his cagey side in Season 2 after being diminished by the Rona. I’m a huge fan of both these guys and would love to see both make it, but I’m not sure it’s possible. Last time, I selected Noah because Kevin had too many irons in the fire and it’s a rough weight cut. Well, Kevin reached out and reminded me the #1 rule of PGF Fantasy is not to bet against Primeau. So, I guess there’s a real chance he’s in here. Plus, it might be hard for Noah to miss school for the week (he’s still in high school…and could whup most our butts).

7. Cameron Woodfell – He’s a blue belt out of 10th Plane Jacksonville and the runner-up for the Jacksonville qualifier. He’s been training more than a decade but is only a blue belt due to serving in the Navy and moving around so much. I’ve known a number of guys who’s careers have made them move all over and had it stunt their ranking. I think his performance (including taking out the 10th Planet West Palm Beach head coach and Raymond Paige who was the runner-up in the Fort Myers qualifier) as well as his story make him a great choice for an at-large bid. At this point, we also really need a 10P Jacksonville representative. They have a good fanbase and it would be good who carries the banner for Sam Barbosa.

8. Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison (black belt, Derby City MMA) – The SOD has a scary triangle. As mentioned above, he somewhat underperformed on his home turf in the Louisville qualifier – but that might have been the extra pressure from being in front of a little scarecrow. Harrison really showed up in Austin with a triangle and leglock submission. He lost in the semifinals, but is an alumnus and has been to two qualifiers. The Commish says that loyalty matters to him, so the SOD may have just punched his ticket.

9. Wesley Carter (brown belt, Queen City Grappling Club, Cincinnati, OH). This guy has aggression for days. He’s a fighter for sure and will push the pace. He was the runner up at the Austin Qualifier and should bring in another demographic from the OH area.

10. You pick from Manning Leverett (was in season 2 finale and won a match against a very game opponent); Eric Longar (black belt and season 1 alumnus with great side-to-side passing); Josh Gibbs (season 2 alumn and multiple qualifier participant), or Raymond Paige (Fort Myers qualifier runner up and came back for 10P Jacksonville), or Keahi Makekau (season 1 alumnus and Austin qualifier participant). They have all shown dedication/loyalty either as alumni of the PGF or making it to multiple qualifiers, or both. Honestly, I’m a fan of all of them. But going off what I’ve seen of their jiu jitsu and competition footage, I think Longar and Paige are the more exciting grapplers. But it’s really hard not to go with Gibbs. Gibbs would be at his natural weight class (went up for Season 2). He’s a great guy and definitely a company man. 

Okay, as Austin Powers would say, “I’m spent.” I need to hit the rack for class in the morning. Hopefully, this blather helps tide you over until we can talk on Thursday during the PGF Insider podcast.

EVERYONE GETS PAID! Of all the news we learned about the PGF in the last week, the Brandon Mccaghren‘s decision to pay all members of the PGF regular season has to be the top news. We’ll cover the details on the payments, other updates for season 3, a review of the Jacksonville qualifier, and more prognostication on at-large bids in this article. One more important fact if you only read the first paragraph – PGF Season 3 will go from 9-15 JANUARY 2022 including the post-season tournament, not November as previously planned. As has been previously reported, all matches will be broadcast LIVE on Brandon Mccaghren’s YouTube channel.

UPDATES: No sooner did my article hit the presses (or interwebs if you’re so inclined) than was it rendered incorrect by the Mccaghren (the Commish) and his PGF partner Conscious Keelan. Unlike the original plan of 16 competitors, the Commish has switched it to four teams of five (*checks his math*) so 20 overall competitors. Each of the four teams will have a coach, with Jake Elkins (season 2 alumn and Ironclad Wrestling owner), Drew Weatherhead (Because Jiu Jitsu owner, BJJ black belt, regular on the Around the Mat show), Johnny Buck (Catch Wrestler, MMA veteran, Rogue Combat Club instructor, 10th Planet brown belt, he also “wears the wring” if you’re a Conroy fan), and Eli Knight (seriously, if you’re reading this article and don’t know Elij Knight from his YouTube Channel, Instagram, or otherwise, I’m surprised). This group of coaches should be really fun. Sorry if too many asides in the parenthesis.

Besides mentoring and coaching the competitors, one of the main jobs the coaches will perform is selecting their teams in a LIVE DRAFT. Competitors will report to 10th Planet Decatur on 9 January. They will immediately weigh-in, the only time they will weigh in for the week so we could have some 190+ pounders not so far into this 170 league play. The evening of the 9th, the competitors will perform in a pre-season combine which I’m guessing will be similar to what we saw in Season 1.

The Coaches will have a draft to select their teams. The order has not been set, but may involve some sort of “Coaches’ Challenge” for more fun content. Regardless, competitors will be paid based on their draft position. So, the first round overall pick will receive the most money ($750 flat for first rounders), second round will get $500, and the last rounders including “Mr. Irrelevant” aka the last one drafted will receive the least amount ($100). The post-season tournament winner will also win $800, for a total starting pot of $10,000 for the competitors. But this pay will only be the start. To further incentivize great matches with lots of action, whichever two competitors are in the “match of the night” will each win $200 for that night. Finally, live viewers can give superchats over YouTube and designate who the money will go towards. So, fans or supporters can recognize the accomplishments of competitors in real time and reward them accordingly. PGF Insiders also believe there will be “BOUNTIES” on certain submissions like we saw at the Fort Myers, Atlanta, and Jacksonville qualifiers, where members of the chat pledged certain amounts for certain submissions. If someone could have hit “the wrister,” they would have walked away from Jacksonville with an additional $75 in their pocket.

This season, each competitor will have 12 matches. They will not compete against their teammates, allowing for possible team points similar to what we saw in Season 2, but without any possibility of COLLUSION ruining an Egghead’s fantasy chances. With 12 matches, it also means we may not see certain matches or might have to wait for them until the post-season tournament (ala Caleb McAlister v Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton in Season 1). The post-season will occur on at the end of the week, Saturday 15 January. This non-existent layoff will place a premium on staying healthy during the regular season.

JACKSONVILLE QUALIFIER: The tournament was held at 10th Planet Jacksonville which was a nice venue and looks to be a great place to train. 16 competitors registered with 15 making it to the tournament. The bracket and results can be found here. If you are interested in a great breakdown of the tournament, I’d recommend you check out the PGF Insider Podcast. As a summary, we had a lot of familiar faces at this tournament, we had PGF Season 1 alumn and purple belt Louis Collins (who made me eat crow when I bet against him in season 1 who was also at his second qualifier), the Wandering Grappler himself Isaac Stackhouse (who continued his 100% participation at all qualifiers), Raymond Paige out of 10th Planet West Palm Beach who we last saw in the finale of the Fort Myers qualifier, Manning Leverett from 10th Planet Jacksonville who we last saw winning the superfight at the PGF Season 2 Finale, and Kevin Beuhring out of 10th Planet Atlanta who we last saw in the finale of the Atlanta qualifier. In the end, Beurhing showed masterfal jiu jitsu, especially for a one-year white belt! He used his expert leg locks to submit opponents or to open them up for other submissions (e.g. RNC). All Beurhing’s matches ended in submission and ended usually early in the allotted time. Beurhing could be very compelling to watch, and may have a chance to make the post-season if he can take advantage of the Elbow Genie rule on enough opponents in the regular season. I’m glad I made sure to include Beuhring in my list for at-large bids (looks like I was right).

AT-LARGE BID PREDICTION UPDATES: For my jumping off point, please see my original matology post.

Current Golden Ticket Owners: These folks have their tickets punched for the PGF regular season: Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton (automatic bid winner for being the face of the PGF), Jeovany Ortiz (black belt and Decatur qualifier winner), Mario Gaor (Louisville qualifier winner and PGF season 1 alumnus), Tyler Woolsey (Fort Myers qualifier winner, new purple belt, and a great interviewee), Kevin Sherrell (Atlanta qualifier winner), Kevin Beuhring (Jacksonville qualifier winner), and David “Quadzilla” Evers (first at-large bidder winner and second place at Decatur qualifier). The Commish has extended an offer to another black belt that PGF fans should know, but has not received a commitment yet.

At-Large folks: Okay, I’m up against press time and I need to get this post out (e.g. it’s getting late and I want to hit the mats at the 0600 class tomorrow), so I’m going a little down and dirty on this portion. The Commish has shown an interest in folks who have pushed the pace and shown a willingness to take a chance. He’s shown an interest in competitors where fans can see how they have progressed. The Commish also likes loyalty, saying he likes a “company man” multiple times in interviews. He likes folks who show up to multiple qualifiers -providing a larger sample size to weigh their abilities and showing dedication. So with this guidance, who do we think have the best shot at getting the remaining 12 bids(remember we still have the Austin qualifier so that will take another spot)?

Best Bets (in no certain order):

1. The Wandering Grappler Isaac Stackhouse – every match we’ve seen him in has been good. Isaac is the Rudy of the PGF (he was a scrub at Notre Dame, but he made it on the field, so that’s something). If Isaac makes it out to the Austin qualifier, there’s about no way the Commish can’t give him a spot.

2. Evan Dewitt – the runner-up from the Louisville qualifier. He’s a black belt from Chewjitsu’s gym (Derby City MMA). As we saw with the Scarecrow of Doom from PGF Season 1, they have a great set of fans. More importantly, Dewitt has some great jiu jitsu and was fun to watch.

3. Manning Leverett – was in season 2 finale and won a match against a very game opponent. This 10th Planet Jacksonville product was hurt in the Jacksonville qualifier but the Commish said he was interested in giving him a spot.

4. Noah Randolph – I’m sorry Kevin “the Pete Rose of the PGF” Primeau but THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE! Well, not really, but the Commish is likely to only pick one of you. We’re all huge fans of Kevin’s but we know he has a lot of irons in the fire. Noah has a reputation for having improved a lot since season 1. He was already a fan favorite in season 1 and it would be great seeing his progress.

5.  Jonathan “the Elbow Genie” Roberts – he should have been 1 or 2, but I’m tired. The Elbow Genie was masterful, showing some beautiful jiu jitsu in Season 1. We need to see more, especially since this season will be closer to his true weight class.

6. Matthew Boiles – He’s a young blue belt and a real go-getter. Okay, I’m biased. The PGF Insiders picked him for a sponsored entry in the Atlanta qualifier, AND HE PROVED US RIGHT! He performed very well, pushing the pace in his matches, going for submissions. He lost in the semifinals to the eventual winner. The Commish said he wanted to see more out of him. So we tried to get him to the Jacksonville qualifier, but he couldn’t get off work. He’s going to the No-Gi Worlds with teammates so he should have a chance to make more of a case for admission to the regular season. He’s the type of competitor who will either make a highlight or be someone elses highlight and he’s just a great kid from every interaction I’ve had with him.

7. Randy “Dumptruck” Roden – Okay, so the Commish doesn’t like teammates going together. But, it could be a nice storyline with Roden and Boiles having a rivaly with Sherrell and Beurhing as it was Scramble BJJ against 10P Atlanta in the semifinals of the Atlanta qualifier. Roden brings a story of seeing a great wrestler (D1 at Duke) who had just been training jiu jitsu for one year at the beginning of PGF Season 2 where he competed. The fact that Roden made the big cut to 170lb and has the ability to be exciting on the mats and show progress to the fans…well, that’s a run-on sentence but still a compelling argument for his admission to the regular season.

8. Marcus Elkins – The Elkins are like Cowbell, and we need more cowbell. The baby Elkins brother has something to prove after his two elder brothers have had such great showing in the PGF. Just like he had to win a state championship in wrestling to leave the little kids table at Thanksgiving dinner; he will feel the pressure to show up and perform for the PGF. He’s been at multiple qualifiers. He’s shown some great darce submissions and great wrestling. And he brings a great story with his and his family’s ongoing connection to the PGF.

9. Cameron Woodfell – He’s a blue belt out of 10th Plane Jacksonville and the runner-up for the Jacksonville qualifier. He’s been training more than a decade but is only a blue belt due to serving in the Navy and moving around so much. I’ve known a number of guys who’s careers have made them move all over and had it stunt their ranking. I think his performance (including taking out the 10th Planet West Palm Beach head coach and Raymond Paige who was the runner-up in the Fort Myers qualifier) as well as his story make him a great choice for an at-large bid.

10 & 11. You pick from Eric Longar, Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison, Josh Gibbs, or Raymond Paige. They have all shown dedication/loyalty either as alumni of the PGF or making it to multiple qualifiers, or both (Josh Gibbs). Honestly, I’m a fan of all of them. But going off what I’ve seen of their jiu jitsu and competition footage, I think Longar and Paige are the more exciting grapplers. But it’s really hard not to go with Gibbs. Gibbs would be at his natural weight class (went up for Season 2). He’s a great guy and definitely a company man. 

12. Someone from 10th Planet Austin qualifier – I have to reserve one spot either for that unnamed black belt who the Commish gave an offer or for someone to shine bright at the Austin qualifier.

Okay, I gotta hit the rack. You can get more information and discussion of these things on any one of the BJJ 365 podcasts which will air tomorrow (Thursday, 16 September) on Brandon Mccaghren’s Youtube channel but which will also be available on Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts under BJJ 365.

The Professional Grappling Federation (PGF) Season 3 has 16 spots for regular season competitors. These 170lb or under grapplers will spend a week in Decatur, AL, competing in three matches a day on a live streamed YouTube channel, with multiple sets of commentators breaking down the matches beforehand, during the matches, and after the action.  These competitors will be housed in a lakehouse and gain exposure which can open doors to many other opportunities in the combat sports community. The Commish, 10th Planet Black Belt and 10th Planet Decatur owner Brandon Mccaghren, has setup a pre-season for PGF Season 3 where interested parties under 170lbs can compete in six qualifier tournaments spread throughout the country to earn a bid to the regular season. Seven spots will go to the winners of the qualifiers and a special invitation to PGF legend Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton, leaving nine “At-Large” bids to the PGF. In this article, we’ll explore the status of the bids thus far and finally, I’ll break down who I think should get the At-Large bids out of the competitors we’ve seen to date.

The Automatic Invite: Elijah “the Bad Guy” Carlton will be the first person elected to the PGF Hall of Fame. In the first season of the PGF, Elijah was undefeated in both the regular season and finale tournament. In the second season, the Bad Guy only lost twice – once in the regular season and once in the finale of the post-season tournament – both to Hunter “the Professional” Colvin who was recently on the United States Polaris team. Elijah has embraced the PGF, going for kills whenever possible but always having his leg locks in his back pocket. More importantly, Elijah represents the PGF well including wearing his PGF season 1 orange rash guard during a Submission Underground match. The Commish gave Elijah an automatic bid; it makes sense.

The Qualifier Winners: we’re four qualifiers in with two qualifiers to go. Out of a bracket of 34 competitors, Jiu Jitsu Nation black belt Jeovany Ortiz rose victorioius.  He has some history with the Bad Guy so it could be interesting to see them face off in the regular season.  PGF season 1 alumnus Mario Gaor, a brown belt out of 10th Planet O’Fallon, won a small, but very competitive bracket at the Louisville qualifier. Even though they were rained out of competing on the beach, Tyler Woolsey, a many-year blue belt out of 10th Planet West Palm Beach, won a mini-PGF tournament at the Fort Myers qualifier. Kevin Sherrell, a five-year blue belt from 10th Planet Atlanta, used the home-field advantage as well as some superior submissions to win the Atlanta Qualifier. These four represent 2/3 of the qualifier winners. The Jacksonville, FL qualifier will take place on September 11th and the Austin, TX qualifier will take place on 9 October. Each of these remaining qualifiers will lead to a bid.

The At-Large Bids:

Tendered Bid(s): as of the writing of this blog, only one official At-Large bid has been offered by the Commish. David “Quadzilla” Evers, a purple belt out of 10th Planet Hunstville, was the runner-up at the Decatur qualifier and impressed the Commish enough for a bid on the spot. Evers showed some ridiculous grips along with his leg locks, taking out many competitors including Jonathon “the Elbow Genie” Roberts. Evers trained under a Renzo Gracie black belt before moving to 10th Planet Huntsville. Evers credits lots of positional sparring with developing his sticky leg locks. While we have one tendered at-large bid, we have eight remaining at-large spots for the regular season. Let’s discuss who should receive the remaining golden tickets.

The First Three In: As discussed on the PGF Insider Podcast, myself along with Chris and Walo agree the first three in are very solid. First, we have Isaac “the Wandering Grappler” Stackhouse. Stackhouse has competed IN EVERY QUALIFIER thus far and plans on continuing until he wins or earns a roster spot through another means. At this point, Stackhouse is the Rudy of the PGF. He’s always game, giving solid grappling matches. Even his draws in qualifiers have been entertaining. The second competitor in should be Matthew Boiles, a blue belt out of Scramble BJJ. I must not the PGF Insiders sponsored his entry into the Atlanta Qualifer, but Boiles earned this call based solely off his jiu jitsu.  Boiles is a young buck, only a year or two depending on your math, out from high school.  He brings a wrestler’s pace, but with some solid jiu jitsu fundamentals. Boiles may not win every match, but as Conscious Keelan said – Boiles will either get a highlight on someone or be the highlight for someone in every match.  Boiles is just a good kid, who puts his heart out there and says “sir” more than a private in the service, which is why I’m strongly leaning towards nicknaming him Peter Parker. The third competitor in needs no introduction to PGF fans. Jonathan “the Elbow Genie” Roberts had an epic run in PGF Season 1. Roberts earned his moniker by destroying the competition with his powerful joint-lock game, usually within seconds of the match starting.  The Commish actually instituted the Elbow Genie Rule where competitors get one extra point if they earn a submission in less than one minute in response to the Elbow Genie almost not making the playoffs despite submitting almost all of his opponents. The Elbow Genie lost to Quadzilla Evers at the Decatur Qualifier, but Roberts was hurt during that qualifier (I’ve seen the pics of his knee). Regardless, the Genie’s work in PGF Season 1 should easily secure him a spot in this season where he’ll be close to his natural weight.

The Next Three In: Call it “The Three Wrestlers” but I’m saying my next three in will likely be Carlos Andres, Randy Roden, and Marcus Elkins. Carlos Andres, I believe, is a white or blue belt out of Ironclad Wrestling (the gym owned by Jake and Matt Elkins in Birmingham, AL). Carlos brought a wrestler’s scrambling along with solid leg locks to the qualifier for a deep run. As Walo said on the PGF Insider, we’ve been talking about Carlos Andres as an exciting competitor for more than one month. Next is Randy Roden. Roden is a PGF Season 2 veteran who has shown the ability to shrink himself down to 170 lbs.  He wrestled around 170 for years, so he is used to the cut.  Talking about Roden’s wrestling, he was undefeated his junior and senior seasons in high school which helped him become a D1 wrestler at Duke. Roden is a blue belt from Scramble BJJ in Rome, GA with only about 18 months of jiu jitsu in his pocket. Still, all the fans saw Roden’s athleticism and smooth flowing movements in the PGF. Roden has said he’s working on adding leg locks to his game as well. Roden largely ended up with draws in season 2, but that makes sense as he is a blue belt.  But now, if Roden has added some submissions to his tool kit, he could be really dangerous. Finally, the PGF needs an Elkins competitor. Matt “the Mane and later Maneless” Elkins competed in Seasons 1 and 2 of the PGF, making both post-season tournaments. Jake “Papa Bear” Elkins competed in Season 2 and earned a spot in the post-season tournament, but was unable to participate due to work. The swagger and banter provided by the elder Elkins boys have become a mainstay in the PGF. The Commish will be hard pressed to not include another Elkins in the PGF bunch. BTW, all the Elkins are state-champion wrestlers and there’s talk Marcus may have to sit at the kiddie table during Thanksgiving if he doesn’t show out at the PGF.

The Final Countdown! (or really just the Final Two): I think we first have to nominate Evan Dewitt from the Louisville Qualifier. He was listed as S&G BJJ but I think he may also train at Chewjitsu’s Derby City MMA and is a black belt. Dewitt was the runner up at the Louisville Qualifier and showed great leg locks and other jiu jitsu. He asked the Commish if he should plan on heading to Decatur and the Commish said he should keep it in mind, or words to that effect. Dewitt gives the PGF some differentiation in teams and another black belt to try to challenge Elijah. Okay, I was going with someone else, but I feel Walo Jay compelling me to make Kevin “the Liquid Terminator/ the Pete Rose of the PGF” Primeau my final competitor in to the tournament. Primeau showed outstanding jiu jitsu in PGF Season 1, including a finale match which lasted more than 72 minutes. Primeau feel prey to the Rona before Season 2, but still showed up and competed. Due to his diminished cardio, we didn’t see the smash/Sao Paolo passes, but saw some crafty, prison-rules submission from Primeau. At the Decatur qualifier, we saw a lot of long smash passing by Primeau but not much else as his passing usually took around four minutes of the match. After he passed, Primeau didn’t have enough time to get the submission. I’ll agree with Walo that Primeau is one of the fan favorites and I’m sure he’ll deliver an entertaining PGF season.

Who did I forget? Who else could have a compelling argument? Well, with only eight at-large bids, we’re going to have a number of unhappy qualifier competitors and fans. Folks who I thought of but didn’t include are Noah Randolph, Eric Longar, Matthew “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison, Raymond Paige, Louis Collins, and Kevin Beuhring. Noah Randolph is a Season 1 competitor who almost won me the fantasy challenge. He’s a deadly ninja-choke specialist, who refuses to breathe through his mouth or make facial expressions while grappling. He’s a good kid, a great grappler, and would be a good addition to our roster. But the Commish picked Primeau when Primeau and Noah went at it in the Decatur qualifier. It was a tough pick with at least one commentator saying he would have advanced Noah. Eric Longar looked much more comfortable in a competition near his normal weight when we saw him in the Louisville qualifier. Longar was actually winning his match against Gaor until the last minute when Gaor pulled off the ankle lock from double outside ashi. As a season 1 veteran, Longar should be comfortable with the format. Longar is a crafty black belt and has great side-to-side passing. He would be a good addition to the PGF. Matt “Scarecrow of Doom” Harrison received his black belt since Season 1 of the PGF and he has a ridiculously deadly triangle from guard. The SOD has a great fan following, including some folks who dressed up in scarecrow outfits for the Louisville qualifier. Still, the competitors seemed to be on to the SOD’s tactics – so much so that Josh Gibbs and the SOD both jumped guard at the same time. As I said on the PGF Insider Podcast, I didn’t really see anything different or new about the SOD, so he’s not making my list. Raymond Paige is interesting – he had good matches at the Fort Myers qualifier and he was a mma fighter. Paige should give us a better idea of what he’s about when he shows up to the Jacksonville qualifier in a couple of weeks. Louis Collins is a PGF Season 1 veteran and a tough out, who made me eat my fantasy words. Collins showed some moves at the Atlanta qualifier, but not enough to earn a bid. Finally, we have Kevin Beuhring, a white belt out of 10th Planet Atlanta whose been only training a year.  Beuhring looks like a leg lock specialist which doesn’t bode well for his chances to make the playoffs unless he can take full advantage of the Elbow Genie rule mentioned above. Still, Beuhring provides a compelling story if he’s in the PGF – he could be that white belt that comes out of nowhere and makes a real mark on the season.

We also need to remember we have two qualifiers left – Jacksonville and Austin. Jacksonville should bring in a lot of talent from Florida and the Southeast. Austin should bring a lot of talent from Texas, but also could bring in some folks from California. It would be foolish to think we won’t see one or two competitors make a real case for at-large bids in these qualifiers.

For the last few in/on the bubble, they may want to think about attending another qualifier or finding some other way to make their case to be on the roster. For us fans, trouble picking the roster is a great problem to have. As the Commish keeps tweaking the PGF, adopting more lessons learned from prior seasons and adopting proven strategies from other sports, we’re just going to keep seeing a better product.  For those who want to get lots of great competition experience and exposure, they need to get in those qualifiers and show the Commish something.

*an homage to Lunardi’s Bracketology pieces.