We updated the "Fab Finish Football" rules for SECOND SEASON in the June newsletter, and added a Canadian Football version. Our tournaments used standard game play rules, but the "Fab Finish" Late-Game Scenario Generator set the stage for the final minutes of play, and only the END of the game was played. For this event, we used the "Fab Finish" Scenario Generator to re-play the 2017 pro football play-offs—both Canadian and American—using the actual playoff fields, to see how our version differed from the real thing.

For the American (NFL) component, everyone chose one of the eight 2017 "wild card weekend" teams: Los Angeles, Atlanta, New Orleans, Carolina, Buffalo, Jacksonville, Kansas City and Tennessee. For the Canadian (CFL) component, it was a choice of Saskatechewan, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Edmonton.

Each game started with five minutes left to play. The winning coaches advanced to the next round; losing coaches chose a NEW team from among the "bye week" teams: Philadelphia, Minnesota, New England, Pittsburgh, Toronto and Calgary. We again set all games with five minutes to play. Winners continued on, all the way to the championship games!

Our COLD SNAP participants included Keith Curtis, Randy Coryer, Grant Fines and Sean Culnan. SECOND SEASON participants were Dale Buckingham, David Kaufmann, Chris Day, Travis Jansen, Mike Boling George Adams and Keith Avallone.

Fab Finish Football: COLD SNAP

Semi-Final Round

• Winnipeg 40, Edmonton 35 (Trailing 35-32, the Bombers marched down the field for the winning score.)
• Ottawa 27, Saskatchewan 23 (Tied at 20-20, the Riders put together a drive that resulted in Crapigna's 25 yard field goal. But the Stamps responded with a last-minute game-winning drive, Harris finding Stanley on a 6-yard touchdown pass in the final seconds.)

Final Round

• Winnipeg 31, Calgary 28 (A wild ending that required three overtimes to settle! The Bombers kept the Stamps off the board in the third OT, and won it on a 40-yard Medlock field goal.)
• Ottawa 18, Toronto 17 (Another crazy ending! Score tied at 17 in final seconds. RedBlacks Maher punts into the end zone, Toronto unable to get the ball back out; the single point sends Ottawa to the title game!)

Championship Game

• Ottawa 34, Winnipeg 33 (Trailing 33-31, Ottawa's Maher was again the hero, booting a 25-yard field goal with 2:47 to play. RedBlacks defense stopped a late Bomber drive to seal the championship win!)

Fab Finish Football: SECOND SEASON

Wild Card Round

• Carolina 32, New Orleans 30 (Gano kicks 37-yard FG as game ends.)
• Atlanta 36, Los Angeles 33 (Bryant FG breaks 33-33 tie, late Falcon interception kills Rams drive in Falcons territory.)
• Jacksonville 28, Buffalo 27 (Lambo's 32-yard FG with :04 to play wins the game for Jags.)
• Kansas City 27, Tennessee 26 (Succop's 49-yard FG draws Titans to within a point, but KC defense makes the thin lead hold up with last-minute turnover.)

Divisional Round

• Jacksonville 40, New England 36 (Tied at 33-33, Patriots get FG with 4:45 left to take lead, but Jaguars bounce back with touchdown drive!)
• Pittsburgh 27, Kansas City 21 (Chiefs end game at Steeler 17-yard line.)
• Carolina 27, Minnesota 24 (No scoring in final six minutes, Panthers advance)
• Atlanta 28, Philadelphia 24 (Bryant's 54-yard FG with 1:49 to play extends Falcon lead to four, forcing Eagles to go for touchdown to win. Philly makes it inside Atlanta 30 before running out of time.)



Conference Championships

• Jacksonville 26, Pittsburgh 21 (Steelers unable to convert late fourth down to keep drive alive.)
• Carolina 10, Atlanta 9 (This played out like the Falcons-Eagles game: low scoring, defense-oriented. No scoring in final six minutes, Falcons with best chance to score but stuffed by Panthers defense.)



Championship Game

• Jacksonville 28, Carolina 27: An unlikely matchup, for sure, but one with historical significance: both clubs entered the league the same year (1995), and neither has won a championship. Trailing 24-21 with six minutes to play, the Jags hopes were dampened when Carolina consumed all but the final two minutes on a short drive that ended with Gano booting a 40-yard field goal to increase Carolina's lead to six points. However, Jacksonville QB Bortles led a last-gasp drive that included a pair of fourth-down conversions that set the Jags up first and goal from the Panther 9-yard line with 30 seconds to play. A quick pass to Hurns put the ball at the four, and after throwing incomplete on second down, Bortles found Yeldon in the flat, and Yeldon scampered in for the score. Lambo's extra-point put the Jags on top, and after a couple of long-pass knock-downs, Jacksonville was our champion!

Questions? Comments? Let us know!