April 17, 2013 by Charlie Eisenhood in Analysis, Rankings with 3 comments
Just four teams played in Week One in the American Ultimate Disc League, so there wasn’t much movement in the Ultiworld Power Rankings. But the AUDL has already seen its first highlight make it into ESPN’s SportsCenter Top 10 Plays, a layout grab from the New Jersey Hammerheads’ Anthony Sapichino in their preseason scrimmage against the Philadelphia Phoenix.
This week, we have the first big action across the league, including a marquee matchup between #3 Madison and #1 Windy City.
Here are the full Week 2 Power Rankings, and see below for some discussion.
1. Windy City Wildfire — Handled their business against Cincinnati, blowing out the Revolution on the road 26-15. They will have their hands full with a talented Madison team coming to Chicago this weekend.
2. Toronto Rush — Back-to-back road games for the Rush this weekend against the Breeze and the Phoenix. Both should be wins, but the schedule isn’t in their favor.
3. Madison Radicals — A preseason matchup against the Wildfire was close throughout. Expect another close game in what should develop into one of the best rivalries in pro ultimate. They also face the Mechanix on Sunday in a back-to-back road trip.
4. Minnesota Wind Chill — Another team with double away games, the Wind Chill will have their hands full with two experienced AUDL teams in the Alleycats and the Revolution. Both teams got a warmup last week. The Wind Chill are a better team on paper, but can they slow down Cameron Brock in front of a home crowd in Indianapolis?
5. Indianapolis Alleycats — The Alleycats are coming off of a road win in Detroit but will have a much bigger test against the Wind Chill in their home opener. This will be an important early season test for last year’s AUDL runner-up.
6. New York Empire — The Empire open their season at home against Rochester, a team with AUDL experience from year one. But the athletic New York team should have the edge, also bringing some solid experience from the Connecticut Constitution to their lineup.
7. Cincinnati Revolution — The Revolution will look to get back on track after a tough game against the Wildfire last week. They face the Wind Chill on Sunday afternoon.
8. New Jersey Hammerheads — The Hammerheads got a narrow win, 21-19, over the Philadelphia Phoenix in a preseason game over the weekend. That should give them some confidence when they face Rochester on Sunday. The parity in the middle of the Eastern Division should make for close, exciting games.
9. Philadelphia Phoenix — Those predicting a terrible AUDL Philly team due to the MLU’s Spinners taking most of the top players look offbase. While this team likely would not beat the Spinners, they bring in some solid Pennsylvania talent, including a lot of guys from Lancaster. However, the Rush shouldn’t have trouble with them in Philadelphia this weekend.
10. Detroit Mechanix — Detroit lost to the Alleycats in their home opener last weekend, and unfortunately won’t have any easier time against Madison this weekend. But they will have new coach Ken Porter on the field this weekend. How much of a difference will he make?
11. Rochester Dragons — Back-to-back road games against New York and New Jersey will give us a good sense of this Rochester team. Will their experience shine through against the new AUDL opponents?
12. DC Breeze — After finally signing most of their players this week, the Breeze can now really focus on improvement. They will likely be working on plays and chemistry against the Rush, who are likely to roll over them.
