And then there were four...

Congrats to the Final Four, it has been a long season and you deserve the props. THIS HAS BY FAR BEEN THE CLOSEST MOST COMPETITIVE YEAR THIS LEAGUE HAS EVER SEEN...I dare somebody to tell me different. So seriously congrats on making it this far.

The MNF game meant so much to the first round games and it ended up being good for the league. Hopefully this week sees the same type of results. There is a consolation bracket so do not give up! How you finish out in the playoffs could effect next years draft pick. So play out the season...PLAY TO WIN (ask Quasi what happens if you dont).

Let's look at the matchups.

#1 KILLA CALI (12-2) vs. #4 BUCKEYES (11-3) This game has the makings of the championship right here. Buckeyes on a 7 game winning streak and Killa riding a 10 game streak. Buckeyes looking to redeem himself from the week 6 loss (156-142) that ending up being quite the high scoring affair which shows how these teams can really put up the numbers. Buckeyes coming off a solid effort vs. Cocoon last week putting up 135 with a lot of help from Peyton Mannings bid day...with the Colts vs. Detroit this week we could see big numbers for Peyton again. Killa came out and made a statement vs. Quasi last week with the "Monday Nite Miracle"..nah how bout the "Monday nite Manifesto Meltdown"? It was the first match-up between the two teams and it was pretty exciting to watch until the 2nd half. Jim brought up a good point on how important the week 13 games were as if some teams would've won that last game and grabbed a better seed it looks like they may have advanced to the semi's. This game marks the 2nd time these two have met in the semi's (Buckeyes won in '03). This is Killa's 5th trip to semi's (2-2 all-time) and Buckeyes makes his 3rd appearance (1-1 all-time).

#2 BLIND MONKEYS (10-4) vs. #3 $HAIL-MARY$ (11-3)
This monkey hears no evil, speaks no evil and sees no competition. The Monkey again finds a way to win, as he drives all his opponents absolutely bananas. Monkeys will really need to put up some serious points this week facing the #1 scoring team. Monkeys has had 3 games this year of scoring over 140 but he will really have his work cut out for him this week as Mary is averaging 155 ppg. Last weeks win vs. Bengals was Monkeys first win in the playoffs as he drops Bengals to 0-2 all-time in the post-season. This is the 1st matchup between these two teams this season but Monkeys holds the advantage all-time (1-0) (week 3 '07, 171-111 ). This is Hail's 3rd trip to the semi's (1-1 all-time) and he looks to have the advantage in personnel and in matchups this week. Hail looks to be the favorite to win this thing (also the poll favorite, 36% of the votes). He posted a 183 with Barber and Winslow on the bench, so there is no telling what this team is capable of.

Consolation Bracket
#8 Quasimofo's (8-6) vs. #5 Cocoon of Horror (9-5)
#6 Diaper Dandies (9-5) vs. #7 Bengals (8-6)
In consolation games the #7 and #8 are both 3-2 all-time. The #6 is 1-2 and the #5 is 1-3 all-time.

NFLL Fun Facts
- This is the 1st time in NFLL history that the top 4 seeds have advanced to the semi's.
- None of the 4 teams that made the semi's last year advanced this year.
- The trend continues as there has never been a back-to-back champion.

Other news and notes:
- I need a date that you guys want to meet for the flask presentation. New Years eve is always cool like we've done in the past but I think its going to be hard to get everyone together that night. Maybe week #17 we can meet somewhere or maybe somebody wants to host? Just an idea, its not really necessary just trying to find out what you want to do.
- I'm counting on everybody being back for next year. I know there are set backs and arguments every year but again...we learn and adjust for next year. So I encourage you all to stay in the league and provide ideas that can help the league be better. I know that trades are still a problem so please contribute some feedback.
- Jeru will be back next year to run JERU (RIP) so Outlaw if you want the Nutz franchise its yours, just let me know. And don't worry you can change the name. I know Outlaw never sees this site so if somebody can let him know.
Thanks all, good luck and once again Congrats to the Final Four. KILLA OUT...