Pool Participant Profile: Jonathan McLeod

Jonathan's string of mediocrity continued in 2011

Birthplace: Fredericton, NB.

Current residence: Eastern Passage, NS.

Profession: Pastor.

Wife: Marsha.

Children: Connor (11), Cohen (7), Sophie (1).

Church: Forest Hills Fellowship Baptist Church.

Nickname(s): Minister of Prognostication, Johnny B. Goode, Big Johnny Mac.

Favorite NFL team: Patriots.

Most hated NFL team: Jets. (Dishonorable mentions: Colts, Steelers.)

Favorite quote from week 16: "It's time to shut up, fat boy!"--Brandon Jacobs to Rex Ryan.

Favorite NFL personality: None. (Or does Frank Caliendo count?)

Most annoying NFL personality: Terry Bradshaw.

Favorite sport: Baseball.

Favorite athlete(s): Dustin Pedroia, Tom Brady, Jordan Eberle.

Favorite Christmas gift: Backpack for my laptop.

Which of your parishioners do you want to win the pool: John or Patrick? Next question.

Favorite movie: Citizen Kane.

Favorite TV show(s): Lost, Seinfeld. Currently watching Person of Interest.

What three items would you want if you were stranded on a deserted island? Flint, egg-laying hen, Swiss army knife.

What would you do if you won this year's pool championship? Go to Disney World!

Week 16 - Tebow-Mania? Tweet-Mania!

Week 16 Results

Jonathan - 13-3 (+3.5)
Bob - 11- 5 (+0.6)
Joel - 11-5 (+0.6)
John - 11-5 (+0.6)
Patrick - 11-5 (+0.6)
Roger - 11-5 (+0.6)
Jarrett - 9-7
Jeremy - 9-7

Jonathan, knowing he desperately needed a first place finish in week 16 and being an AFC East expert, decided to go with Buffalo against Denver. He even sent a tweet to Mr. Tim Tebow prior to the game.

@TimTebow Sorry. Need to gain ground in my football pool so I'm picking against you. Prove me wrong.
— Jonathan McLeod (@jonrmcleod) December 24, 2011

Well, as we all know now, the Minister of Prognostication was not proven wrong. And now Patrick not only has to think about catching John, but also has to prevent Jonathan from sneaking into second.

Week 16 notes: (1) John is still first in total points, but Patrick is first in total bonus points. (2) Jonathan is now first in PF-PA, but fourth in total bonus points. (3) Patrick is only two wins ahead of Jonathan. (4) John is already ahead of Bert's 2010 point total (184.75).

--Jonathan

Week 16 was Jonathan's week, hands down. He made his move. Not that he's likely to catch anyone ahead of him, but he certainly lost me and has forced Bob to have a good week 17 in order to catch him. Here are the standings after week 16.

1. John
2. Patrick -2.33
3. Jonathan -8.85
4. Bob -1.82
5. Joel -7.42
6. Jeremy -4.93
7. Roger -4.40
8. Jarrett -13.01 

Races to watch: John vs. Patrick, Jonathan vs. Bob, Joel vs. Jeremy, Jeremy vs. Roger. Actually, depending on how wild Patrick goes trying to catch John and given the volatility of week 17, Jonathan might even have a chance at 2nd. John's been in 1st place since week 4. But what matters is who's in first place after the last game has been played. Right, Patriots? According to Jonathan, we find out this week whether I'm a false prophet.

Best pick of the week: Bills over Broncos.

Worst pick of the week: Bucs over anyone.

Critical game of the week: Eagles at Cowboys.

Hey Pat (and Jarrett), wouldn't it be nice if you'd picked the Eagles once or twice in the past 3 weeks?

--Joel Kuehner

Pool Participant Profile: John Couch

A warm sweater is always a practical Christmas gift

Birthplace: 48.424181,-89.269656

Current residence: 44.608011,-63.479921

Profession: http://www.forces.ca/en/job/navalcombatsystemsengineeringofficer-82.

Wife: http://www.facebook.com/johnandstephaniecouch.

Children: 2.28 (Daniel, Hannah and ?).

Church: http://www.fhfbc.org.

Nickname: Sofa. [Editor's note: Also known as "Commander Couch" around these parts.]

Number of years as pool champion: Two, as far as I can recall.

Favorite NFL team: No firm allegiances (Bills 1988-1993, Packers 1993-1999, Browns 2000-2010ish). [Editor's note: Looks like John is once again looking for a new favorite team.]

Most hated NFL team: No reason to hate anyone.

Favorite NFL studio personality: Chris Berman.

Most annoying NFL studio personality: Michael Irvin.

Favorite sport: Hockey.

Favorite athlete: I like Joel’s Tebow pick, anyone singing “Our God is an Awesome God” during warm-ups is worth cheering for.

Christmas wishlist: Anything practical.

Favorite movie: Life is Beautiful.

Favorite TV show: Arrested Development.

What three items would you want if you were stranded on a deserted island? Bible, emergency position-indicating radio beacon, and do we have advance notice as to the expected climate? Should it be an Arctic climate, I’m going with extreme cold weather clothing. For temperate and tropical climates, I will chose a knife as my third item.

What would you do if you won this year's pool championship? Haven’t quite decided what I am going to do, probably nothing dramatic, maybe retire. [Editor's note: Bulletin board material for Patrick? He said, "what I am going to do," not "what I would do."]

Why does e=mc(squared)? Because we don’t yet have a better way to account for energy-mass equivalence.

Pool Participant Profile: Joel Kuehner

Eleven years serving as Commissioner and all he got was this lousy hat!

Birthplace: Fredericton, NB.

Current residence: Buffalo, NY.

Profession: Engineer.

Wife: 1 (Karen).

Children: 4 (Laura, Nicole, Lucas, William).

Church: First Baptist Church of Marilla.

Nickname: The coolest guy on the planet. [Editor's note: I knew it got cold in Buffalo, but not that cold.] 

Favorite NFL team: Detroit Lions.

Most hated NFL team: New York Jets.

Favorite NFL analyst: Chris Collinsworth (if John Madden is not acceptable). Chris has grown on me. I like Dungy too.

Least favorite NFL analyst: Terry Bradshaw.

Favorite sport: Football.

Favorite athlete: Maybe Tebow. I respect him at least.

Christmas wishlist: Pants, farm tractor.

Favorite movie: The Princess Bride. [Editor's note: Inconceivable!]

Favorite (Current) TV show: Person of Interest.

What three items would you want if you were stranded on a deserted island? Bible, boat, airplane.

What would you do if you won this year's pool championship? Buy a lottery ticket; odds are about the same.

Week 15 - False Prophet?

Week 15 Results

Bob - 10-6 (+2.5)
Joel - 10-6 (+2.5)
Jarrett - 9-7 (+0.33)
Jonathan - 9-7 (+0.33)
Patrick - 9-7 (+0.33)
Jeremy - 7-9
John - 7-9
Roger - 6-10

We're about half-way done the pool now, and John has broken 100 points. I'm not sure he's catchable, even for you guys who think you're close. He's just statistically too consistent. [...] Sorry to burst everyone's bubbles (except for John's).--Joel, week 8

Well, it's now week 15 and Patrick's bubble is alive and well. The Mighty Morand has surprisingly managed to pull within 2.34 points of John. Certainly, the PIT/SF game was the most critical of the week. If the Steelers had won on Monday night, there would be a virtual tie for first. It seems Commander Couch is getting a bit reckless, admitting that he picked Denver to make watching the game with Jonathan more interesting. (Or was that an excuse for a foolish pick?)

But let's not forget this week's winners: Bob and Joel. "Big Herm" is now in third and determined to prevent the Forest Hills Boys from keeping all the medals in Dartmouth/Eastern Passage. "The Prophet" Joel also has visions of third place dancing in his head. Too bad his head has also been full of many bad picks. Question for Joel: If anyone had correctly picked the Colts to win in week 15, would they still have been given worst pick of the week? Word is that Jonathan, "The Minister of Prognostication," is not only aiming for third spot, but also first place in points for (now second behind Patrick). This would allow him to take home the (uncoveted) "Tough Luck" award.

"Golden Boy" Jeremy didn't have a very golden week. But Kuehner clan bragging rights are still in reach as he's only 2.23 points behind Joel. And what can be said about Roger "Ace" Fenton? Not much good can be said when you get beat by both "participants-in-training." "Moody" Jarrett (a.k.a., the human 10-second delay), could still escape the basement with two strong closing weeks.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

--Jonathan

Week 15 has come and gone, and the jockeying continues. The leader board looks roughly as follows, with point differentials relative to the person ahead, and rounded to the nearest 0.5:

1. John
2. Patrick -2.5
3. Bob -10.5
4. Jonathan -3
5. Joel -4.5
6. Jeremy -2.5
7. Roger -7
8. Jarrett -10.5

What does this mean? This means that: John has a chance of being caught. Patrick has a chance of catching someone. Bob has a chance of being caught. Jonathan has a chance of catching someone, and of being caught. Joel has a chance of catching someone, and of being caught. Jeremy has a chance of catching someone, and of being caught. Roger has a chance of catching someone. Jarrett should submit picks more often.

I'll qualify all of that with the fact that really, John is sitting pretty and Patrick has no chance of catching anyone, due to the email I sent out around week 8.

Best pick of the week: Seahawks over Bears.

Worst pick of the week: Jets over Eagles.

Critical game of the week: Steelers @ Niners.

Too bad no one picked the Colts. They would have, for the first time ever, received best pick of the week (because it would have been, unless someone had also picked KC) and worst pick of the week (because I'm a man of my word).

Sorry, Roger, about Oakland. That one had me worried as soon as I saw you'd picked them. I knew Oakland could very well win that, and I thought you had a pretty decent loner.

--Joel

Week 14 - Kuehner Fever

Week 14 Results

Jeremy - 15-1 (+3)
Joel - 13-3 (+1.5)
Patrick - 13-3 (+1.5)
Jarrett - 12-4
Jonathan - 12-4
John - 12-4
Roger - 12-4
Bob - 11-5

Did the rumored tongue-lashing from Bert "Double Crown" Kuehner actually take place? If so, it was effective as both Kuehner boys posted good weeks. But it was the Golden Boy, Jeremy, who took top spot. The only pick he got wrong (SF) was also picked wrong by everyone else.

"Tacos in the wild?! I haven't been this excited since that one time I thought I might actually have a chance to win the pool!! Hey, anyone know if there's a bathroom close by?"--Joel Kuehner (Jeremy, less excited, is on the right.)

For the second week in a row, the Mighty Morand narrowed the gap between him and Commander Couch.   But if Patrick would have put a little faith in his Jaguars, he would be 1.5 points closer! The importance of each point is now magnified.

Week 14 notes: (1) Patrick is now 4.67 points behind John. (2) If Patrick had picked the Jaguars, he would only be 3.17 points behind. (3) Jonathan has now passed Bob for third, which means that the Forest Hills Boys are now 1-2-3.

It's said, "Bad company spoils ruins good morals" (1 Cor. 15:33 ESV). Perhaps it should also be said, "Bad company spoils good football sense." (Jarrett is front row center.)

--Jonathan

Well, week 14 is in, and Jeremy is the big winner, with a stellar 15-1 record. Fortunately for him, he did 2 better than everyone else. Otherwise, there would have been some controversy. Why? Well, his Thursday pick was a consensus pick. And my policy is to allow consensus picks, especially for pretty one-sided games. However, I don't (intentionally, at least) allow consensus picks to give you bonus points. So, in other words, the bonus points are based on Jeremy going 14-2. Since 14-2 is still better than everyone else, he gets full bonus. Actually, on a week with only 4 games that matter, getting 2 better than everyone else is pretty good.

Jeremy blew by me, Jonathan has squeaked by Bob, and Patrick is continuing his mission to squeeze by John.

Best pick of the week: Jaguars over Buccaneers.

Worst pick of the week: Dolphins over Eagles. (Come on, all you Dolphin bandwagoners. Philly's badness and Miami's goodness are relative.)

Critical game of the week: Giants at Cowboys (ridiculous).

Three weeks left, with one of them being a free-for-all.

--Joel

Week 13 - Patrick Strikes Back

Week 13 Results

Patrick - 13-3 (+3)

Jonathan - 12-4 (+2)

John - 12-4 (+1.5)

Jarrett - 9-7

Bob - 9-7

Jeremy - 9-7

Joel - 8-8

Roger - 8-8

Just when everyone thought John was going to run away and hide, the Mighty Morand responds by putting 16 big points up on the board, narrowing the gap between him and Commander Couch. With four weeks to go, everything is setting up for an epic struggle between two of the pool's Forest Hills Boys. As HNIC's Bob Cole might say, "EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING!" The third Forest Hills Boy, Jonathan, presently sits in fourth, 0.92 points behind Bob. Jonathan's goal is now to finish in third, which would give the Forest Hills Boys a clean sweep of the medal podium.

The Forest Hills Boys: Jonathan, Patrick, and John

You may have noticed that two "participants in training," Connor (Jonathan's 11-year-old son) and Gillian (Patrick's 7-year-old daughter), have started making picks. Last Sunday Connor boasted, "You could just make random picks and do better than some people." However, Connor's picks were not completely random in week 13. He has stated that he will always pick the Patriots (not forced by Jonathan). And he was also counselled by his father to consider win-loss records. The result: a 10-6 record--better than Jarrett, Bob, Jeremy, Joel, and Roger. On Monday morning, when Jonathan informed Connor, "You did better than some of the guys in the pool," Jonathan's other son, six-year-old Cohen, asked, "What guys in the pool?" If this football thing involved a swimming pool, Cohen was ready to sign up.

The Football Pool Blog is presently trying to substantiate rumors of a Sunday evening Kuehner family conference call. One source claims that reigning pool champion Bert scolded his two sons, Jeremy and Joel, for their weak 2011 performances. If true, Christmas with the Kuehners could be a bit awkward this year.

Week 13 notes: (1) John is now 7.17 points ahead of Patrick--certainly not an insurmountable lead. (2) John is third in points for/against (behind Patrick and Jonathan) but has 6 more wins than Patrick and 9 more than Jonathan. (3) Jarrett (despite missing 2 weeks of picks) is now closer to Jeremy, Joel, and Roger than those three are to John. (4) Gillian (perhaps foolishly) has more faith in her father's favorite team, picking the Jaguars to win in the Monday night game. (5) Jonathan is now tied with Bob in wins.

Will John enjoy a smooth ride to the championship? Or are there bumps ahead?

--Jonathan

Well, needless to say, week 13 was essential for Patrick. If he wants any hope of catching John, he needed week 13, and he needs at least a couple more of them. Of course, it would be better for him if John had relented a little, allowing his complacency to take over. But the entire Dartmouth trio was strong this week, thanks to Jonathan's after-the-fact "Oh yeah, by the way, I picked Seattle." Dismal week for me; I'm still barely in 4th. Poor week for Bob as well, but he's still holding onto 3rd by a hair over Jonathan.

Best pick of the week: Seahawks over Eagles. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Worst pick of the week: Jaguars over Chargers. Why did I rationalize over my gut?

Critical game of the week: Panthers at Bucs. If you got that right, you got points.

Most suspicious pick of the week: Seahawks over Eagles.

--Joel

Pool Participant Profile: Patrick Morand

Alone on Morand Island: I'm smiling, but I'm really crying inside (see below).

Birthplace: North Bay, ON.

Current residence: Dartmouth, NS.

Profession: Sales and marketing. (Editor's note: a bit vague?)

Wife: Tara.

Children: Gillian (7).

Church: Forest Hills Fellowship Baptist Church.

Nickname: Yes I Said It First. (Editor's note: Has anyone ever called Patrick this, other than himself?)

Favorite NFL team: Jaguars.

Most hated NFL team: Dolphins.

Favorite NFL studio personality: Jimmy Johnson.

Most annoying NFL studio personality: Boomer Esiason.

Favorite NFL analyst: Troy Aikman.

Favorite sport: Hockey.

Favorite athlete: Cal Ripken Jr., Dale Hunter, Esa Tikkanen, Ulf Samuelsson, Alex Ovechkin, Bernie Nicholls, Marshall Faulk, Kurt Warner, Chris Hoiles, Kelly Hrudey, Adam Jones (not "Pac Man"), Mickey Tettleton, Mark Brunell, Tim Tebow (just added). (Editor's note: Thanks for narrowing it down to just a few, Patrick.)

Christmas wishlist: Stanley Cup.

Favorite movie: The Shawshank Redemption.

Favorite TV show: Seinfeld.
Who do you like least between Mike Milbury and Don Cherry? Cherry.

What three items would you want if you were stranded on a deserted island? Laptop with Wi-Fi, satellite TV, and a McDonald's restaurant. (Editor's note: Sadly, Patrick will lack a power supply for his computer, TV, and restaurant.)
What would you do if you won this year's pool championship? Start planning to repeat. Extra answers: "Win the pool? Win the pool? I'm just trying to win one week!" "If I win the pool then everyone will know I am who I thought I was." "I play to win the game." (Editor's note: Those added answers are actually things Patrick would say, not do. But maybe that's being a bit too picky.)
How many TVs do you have in your rec room? Two.

Announcing the 2011 Football Pool Awards

Soon the Football Pool Blog will begin accepting nominations for the 2011 Football Pool Awards. Below is a list of the awards (other than the gold, silver, and bronze medals).

• Gold Medal: given to the person with the most points this season.
• Silver Medal: given to the person with the second most points this season.
• Bronze Medal: given to the person with the third most points this season.
• Winner Award: given to the person who picks the most winners this season.
• Bonus Award: given to the person with the most bonus points this season.
• Score Award: given to the person with the best points for/against record this season.
• Comeback Award: given to the person who improved the most from last season.
• Perseverance Award: given to the person who best overcame adversity this season.
• Lifetime Achievement Award: given to a person with outstanding past performance.
• Rookie of the Year: given to the person with the best performance in his first season.
• Best Fan Award: given to the person whose favorite NFL team performed the best this season.
• Best Brother Award: given to the person with the best record who also has a brother in the pool.
• Kuehner Award: given to the person with the most points this season whose last name is Kuehner (sponsored by the Bert Kuehner Foundation).
• Best Blogger Award: given to the person who contributed the most to the pool by blogging.
• Pastor's Award: given to the person who best balanced pastoral and pool responsibilities.
• Roger Federer Award: given to the person whose name most resembles a famous professional athlete.
• Comments Award: given to the person who contributes the most undeleted comments to the Football Pool Blog.
• Double Crown Award: given to the person who wins the pool and whose favorite team wins the Super Bowl in the same season (won by Bert Kuehner in 2010).

Week 12 - John Sails to Victory Once Again

Week 12 Results

This week's winners:

  

John - 14-2 (+3)
Bob - 13-3 (+1)
Joel - 13-3 (+1)
Roger - 13-3 (+1)
Jarrett - 12-4
Jeremy - 11-5
Jonathan - 10-6
Patrick - 10-6

See what I did there? John...sailing...he's in the navy. Pretty clever, huh?

Following a couple of poor weeks earlier in November, John had been complaining that his navy duties were affecting his picks. But now after a strong week by Commander Couch and a poor week by Patrick, John is once again comfortably in first. It was thought that Patrick might pose a challenge to John, but, as Dennis Green might say, it seems he is who we thought he was.

A few notes: (1) Bob is now only 3.33 points behind Patrick. (2) Joel has surpassed Jeremy for Kuehner family bragging rights. (3) Roger is now tied with Jeremy in sixth place. (4) When interviewed, Jarrett thought he had missed only one week of picks instead of two.

The McLeod brothers might not be doing too well in the pool, but at least their Patriots are having another fine season. (Hey, wasn't there someone in this pool who kept saying the Jets were going to win the AFC East?) Unfortunately, the other favorite teams of the pool participants aren't doing so well (Jaguars, Bills, Browns, Eagles). And what's going on with Joel's Lions? After a Suh-weet start, their season is turning sour.

Here's a question for you: would you rather have your favorite team with the Super Bowl or you win the pool?

If John puts as much thought into his weekly picks as he did to construct the above apparatus, it's no wonder he's doing so well this season!

--Jonathan

Mr. Complacency no more. John pounds the mouse and thumps the keys to take solo first place in week 12. John's picks were the same as mine, except he picked BAL over SF. His picks were the same as Bob's, except he picked NYJ over BUF. John was right on both accounts.

In case no one noticed, Bob is now in second place in terms of Right-Wrong picks, with 118 to Pat's 117.  Roger also pulled off another strong week. Jarrett had a pretty good week as well, but will it be too little too late?

Best pick of the week: Broncos over Chargers. Kudos to the Tebow believers.

Worst pick of the week: Colts over Panthers. I said before that any Indy pick automatically gets worst pick of the week.

Critical game of the week: Niners at Ravens.

--Joel

Current Standings