If it wasn’t for the fog of sickness which unexpectedly descended onto my week, this recap would have been posted asap. Because my team won and I played well. Those are the recaps that you can’t wait to get out there. And it’s actually not fair to some great players from Week 9 that I will discuss that I’m sneaking this in late on a Saturday night on the eve of a League Week. Moreover, I don’t think TBI made a big enough deal of the the storylines I will get to. Though I did watch TBI in prime fever dream sweat storm so I could have missed a lot. I mean….was I hallucinating or was Vegh the guest?
Week 9 was not exactly Red Sunday but I think it’s safe
to say at this point that the correlation between League games and injuries is no coincidence. No, I’m not saying Leagues are a mess….and I’ll be straight….the chorus of “Leagues are a mess” is so tired and lame and not true – and if you are part of that chorus….check yourself. Maybe the mess is not Leagues. Leagues are great. I’m extremely proud of last week and extremely excited for tomorrow.
First things first, I’m proud of the battles. I’m proud that my QB, Yehuda Feit, had a game he needed to have. He lead his team. He found his receivers. He spread the ball. He was poised. He was accurate. He put up points. He helped us win. I’m proud of Yaron who – we will get to the game – mounted a furious comeback that truly could have imploded the Top Guns if it had fully succeeded. I’m proud of the dudes who got hurt and played hurt like Singer, and Zada, and Storm. Guys who bleed for their teams and face the “realities” of going home with injuries and paying the price all week – only so that they can come back and risk it all again. For what? For the the goddam glory, that’s what! For Jewball. For themselves. Because everyone else walking into #!%n Gourmet Glatt without a limp or stiff back or a throbbing wrist has no clue. Not a f***n clue. So I’m proud to be on this side of the equation.
Of course the king of Week 9 was Pray. We will get to him shortly, but it’s late and I don’t want to forget the essence of why Week 9 mattered. Hopefully I don’t lose patience with this recap and call it a day. The Benjys pizza might keep me up a while.
Game 1 was Leagues, making up for the Week 7 League game between Top Guns and Lionhearts which was canceled when LH suffered every curse in the tochecha at the same time.
Yaron’s squad was still banged up and the LH had to go up against a (more or less) full strength TG. I’ve already spoiled the result. TG did what they were allegedly supposed to do on Draft Night. That’s win. But it wasn’t as easy as it should have been. Once Singer went down with an ankle in a scary scene that thankfully looks like a week to week instead of a season ender – things got a little too interesting. Feit had a ton of completions and scored twice early with Jack. Munch and Dobs kept Yaron in check, but Sting had a rough day letting multiple passes slip through his usually reliable hands. Even with all that, Storm had 2 late TDs and all of a sudden Yaron was driving to win the game. It was a terrifying moment for TG, but the result was a stalled drive..Jewball to Munch and Dobs for being the difference in the end.
Game 2s were compromised by the injuries from Game 1. For Dachs’ team, Zada and Storm became Jordan and Rabin and it was enough to make Pray have a very successful return to Jewball. So let’s talk about Pray for a second. As the guy says in every mussar schmooze…….I’m saying this for me. The week before Sukkos we hear Pray got hurt. Maybe playing football. Maybe building a sukkah. Maybe rescuing Logan and PJs from a fire in Daveo’s basement. No one is sure. How hurt? He’s done for the season. Major tear. He’s spending Yom Kippur in a wheelchair. Surgery to follow. Rehab. Maybe we see him February. Maybe. This is all real and possible. It’s a major blow to our season. We see the ramifications right away. Game quality struggles. Moral struggles. Leagues are mess (just kidding!). Much thanks to Perla for being sent by God to give us a fighting chance in the interim. We were not able to see Pray at QB and we didn’t know when we would see him again.
Here is what we did see. A smile always on his face. A constant positive demeanor. An unbreakable optimism. A relentless drive to be back on the field. A commitment to US. Did he miss a single game? Did he miss a single moment? Did he not film. And cheer. And support? And just allow us to feed off his Prayness so we don’t lose his QB skills AND him! Sure, he may have been there for himself…but tell me every game wasn’t better and didn’t feel more right because he was on the sidelines. Hobbling at first….but then walking…then walking and throwing…and finally on Thanksgiving….playing the game. And then in Week 9 – against all odds – playing Jewball….getting stats, getting a W, and of course getting a Jewball. Guys, everything Pray did since the moment of his injury is textbook role model heroics. He would not be denied. Pray, may you continue to heal and come back better than before. May this injury be the last of your career. May you continue to be an influence on all of us where we can strive to come close to the dedication and loyalty and commitment to our game and family that you showed over the past few months. Prime, I think we all finally get it. : )

Just to give the new Power Ranking leader some credit…..Pray wins on the back of Zinn who put up two scores. The second of which was completely on me. No mercy tomorrow. Want to thank the new blood that came down – they aren’t on the chat, but they definitely shared our vibe – so thank you to whoever brought them.

Game 2 Game 2 was Perla v Yaron and it ended in a tie. It’s almost as if it never happened.