[MIJB#19]

General Manager Notes: Stayin' Alive
Week 15, 7 losses on our track record, a negative points differential, but we're somehow still alive.

We've congratulated the Gothenburg Giants on their division title, that franchise's first since 2076. We beat the IHOF's worst team, by record at least, the Bordeaux Vineyards, 40-24. It didn't come easy, even. A punt return touchdown by Gabe Broady and a pick six from Craig McCorkle were required to separate ourselves from the Vineyards.

Ellis MCAlister completed 28 of 37 passes for 312 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Leonard Belin ran for 66 yards and a score, averaging 4.7 per carry, while Raul Curie scored on a one-yard run. Theodore Bondy was unsurprisingly our leading receiver, with 11 catches for 144 yards and the sole score.

At 1,829 yards receiving, Bondy is 59 yards ahead of Hanalei's Taylor Clayton, the number two in the league. At 139 receptions Bondy's actually 5 behind Clayton. But let's not talk about records anymore, it'll require a couple of sensational once in a lifetime kind of games to go there. More importantly, we're somehow still alive in the race for the last wild card.

It won't come easy though, we'll have to beat the AOC Midwest leading Iowa Cobbers and then follow up by avenging the Paris Musketeers on the road. We'll also require some other teams across the league to fall apart. The 8-6 Houston Mustangs beat us in week 3, we'll need them to extend their losing streak by 2, or at least see them fall behind the San Antonio Tidal Force, currently 7-7 and behind Houston. We'll also need the 8-6 Tucker Tigers to stumble on at least one of their last two opponents.

Are my hopes up? Not quite yet. We've been very hot and cold this season. Our running game is average, our passing game is average, our pass defense is average, our run defense is hair pulling bad underachieving. I'm saying this week in week out, but it continues to be true, our run defense is enigmatically bad. I'm given my staff a chance to fix it every week, but they haven't found the solution yet. Except for the home games against the Tucker Tigers, Gothenburg Giants and Harlem Apollos.

For now, it's an old tune getting another turn, we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive.