Week 5 MVP Award Winner –
The Rickster (33 Points)
When The Rickster made his usual late-season charge last year to finish in 2nd Place as the Club Champion Runner-Up with 382 Points (9 Points behind the winner), nobody was surprised. Over the past few years, The Rickster has made it a habit to crank out outstanding picks in the months of November and December. When he does so, he rises up the standings week after week, heading for the top. For example, last season he won either the MVP Award or the MVP Award Runner-Up during 4 of the final 10 weeks. But this season, The Rickster is starting his run much earlier in the season. That could mean doom for the rest of the club. The Rickster scored 33 Points last week to claim the Week 5 MVP Award. His steady rise in the standings has gone from 15th to 12th to 7th, and now to a tie for 2nd Place. All eyes are on The Rickster to see if he can reach 1st Place. Also, will he continue to pick conservatively and avoid the trap of Triple Jeopardy? Last season, he went 2-3 in TJ games and thus far this season he is 0-0, having not yet selected it. He is fully aware of how dangerous it is to select TJ and risk losing Points from your final score. A quick look at the Current Standings reveals that 2 players are 3-0 at picking TJ this season, while one player has a painful 0-4 record at picking it and has left 8 Points on the table that he could have had. The Week 5 MVP Award Runner-Up was Slick Chick with 32 Points. Slick Chick has been warning us on Club Chat for several weeks that she was about to make her move. For instance, she said: “Watch out the Slick is on the rise” and “Watch out cuz the Slick is back!“. If anyone didn’t take her warnings seriously, they will now. So anyone preparing to take on Slick Chick in Head to Head Weekly better pick very carefully. (As fate would have it due to automatic division scheduling, Slick Chick will actually be taking on The Rickster this week in Head to Head.) The Rickster and Slick Chick were 2 of only 6 players who correctly picked Buf over KC on the Sunday night game, with the others being Mr. T, The Icelandic Cod, Hoosier Daddy & MJD Hogg. Speaking of outstanding players this season, none have impressed the club more than Drummer Boy. Every single week, Drummer Boy has consistently made solid picks and found himself in the Top Five. However, last week he posted 31 Points, which has propelled him into a 6 Point lead at the top of the charts in 1st Place. If he continues to pick with such great rhythm, there may be no stopping him from finally winning his first Club Championship trophy. It is still very early in the season, but we are beginning to see a bit of separation at the top of the pack. The current Top Five consists of #1 Drummer Boy, #2 Bob Swerski & The Rickster (6 Points back), #4 New York City Sewer Rat (12 Points back), and #5 Fearless Tuna (16 Points back). I also wanted to make special mention of four other players who struggled earlier in the season, but who had outstanding performances last week – Stinkerbell (28 Points), Mr. T (27 Points), Hoosier Daddy (24 Points), and Nighthawk (26 Points). Keep an eye on these four players, everyone, as they are heating up.
Head to Head Weekly is currently being dominated by Drummer Boy (4-0). He faces a showdown with division rival Captain Jack Sparrow this week (which will be a very challenging match). Can Drummer Boy complete a sweep of Division One and reach 5-0, which will be halfway to an undefeated regular season? We will soon find out. In Pro Bowl Team Weekly, Wild Animals remain the class of the league, as they stunned Daddy & His Boys 74-73 to remain undefeated at 4-0. I can’t help but wonder if this match was a preview of the Pro Bowl Final later to come this season.
