by Alana Klein

It’s the FINAL COUNTDOWN!!

If you’re an “Arrested Development” fan like me, you’ll know that the greatest illusion will always be

This weekend’s games

• Michigan @ Ocenanside: This game doesn’t count towards the standings for Michigan, but it does for Oceanside. (During the schedule adjustment, Michigan picked up a 13th game.) While this game is irrelevant to the playoffs, Oceanside could view this game as one for pride. They won their first game of the season and haven’t picked up a W since.
  
• Nashville @ Albany: The Game of the Year. Each team has already clinched a 1st-round bye, but this one will decide home-field advantage. Nashville has been the most consistently strong team while Albany has had difficulty with that all season, seeming to play to the level of their opponent. Scroll down for the playoff scenarios.
  
• Washington @ Minnesota: The Monsters can take a big step towards securing the 3-seed with a win while Washington has been on a slide lately and could play their way out of the postseason.

Tiebreaker-clinching scenarios

• The Michigan-Oceanside tiebreaker is irrelevant to the postseason seeding.
  
• If Nashville wins, they hold the tiebreaker over Albany. If Albany wins by 9 or fewer points, Nashville wins the tiebreaker. (A 9-point win would result in a head-to-head tie and the tiebreaker would go to total points scored. Nashville is ahead by a considerable margin.) If Albany wins by 10 or more points, they would hold the tiebreaker.
  
• The winner of the Washington-Minnesota game clinches the tiebraker outright.
  

PLAYOFFS?! Don’t talk about playoffs!

* Please note that when I use the word “clinch” in this section, that means that the team is guaranteed to have at worst that spot in the playoffs, but they can improve upon it. For example, a team that has “clinched” the 3-seed could possibly finish with the 2- or the 1-seed, but is not at risk of dropping to the 4-, 5-, or 6-seed.

Albany Firebirds:

• Clinched: 2-seed and a 1st round bye
• Highest possible seed: 1

• Clinches 1-seed and home field advantage with:
  • win over Nashville by 10+ points
    

Beaumont Renegades:

• Has not clinched a playoff spot
• Highest possible seed: 6

• Clinches a playoff berth with: *this scenario could end in a 3-way tie, of which the tiebreaking procedure is not clear
  • win over Kentucky AND
    • win over Minnesota (Week 15) AND
      • Minnesota win over Washington
    • Michigan loss to Oceanside AND
      • score more total points than Michigan for the season (current point totals: Beaumont [348], Michigan [489])
        

Kentucky Barrels:

• Clinched: 4-seed and a home playoff game
• Highest possible seed: 3
  
• Clinches 3-seed with:
  • win over Beaumont AND
    • Minnesota loss to Washington OR
    • Minnesota loss to Beaumont (Week 15)
      

Michigan Arsenal:

• Has not clinched a playoff spot
• Highest possible seed: 5
  
• Clinches a playoff berth with:
  • win over Oceanside OR
  • Beaumont loss to Kentucky OR
  • Beaumont loss to Minnesota (Week 15)
    
• Clinches 5-seed with:
  • win over Oceanside AND
    • Washington loss to Minnesota AND
      • a Beaumont loss
        

Minnesota Monsters:

• Clinched: 5-seed
• Highest possible seed: 3

• Clinches 4-seed and home playoff game with:
  • win over Washingtonwin over Beaumont (Week 15)
    
• Clinches 3-seed and home playoff game with:
  • win over Washington AND
  • Kentucky loss to Beaumont AND
  • win over Beaumont
    

Nashville Kats:

• Clinched: 2-seed and a 1st round bye
• Highest possible seed: 1

• Clinches 1-seed and home field advantage with:
  • win over Albany OR
  • loss to Albany by 9 or fewer points OR
  • loss to Albany by exactly 9 points
    

Washington Wolfpack:

• Has not clinched a playoff berth
• Highest possible seed: 5

• Clinches a playoff berth with:
  • win over Minnesota
    
• Clinches a 5-seed with:
  • win over Minnesota AND
    • Michigan loss to Oceanside