FCF 2022 Results: Johnny Manziel Lifts Zappers to 1st Win After Terrell Owens Trade
The last winless team of the 2022 Fan Controlled Football league season is winless no more, as quarterback Johnny Manziel helped the Zappers score their first victory Saturday.
With Johnny Football rotating in at quarterback throughout the game, the Zappers took down Shoulda Been Stars 28-24 to improve their record to 1-4.
The win came in the Zappers' first game without Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens, who was traded to the Knights of Degen this week.
In addition to the Zappers' triumph, three other FCF games were scheduled for Saturday. Here is a look at the entire Week 5 slate and how each game played out.
FCF Week 5 Schedule and Scores
Zappers def. Shoulda Been Stars 28-24
Kingpins def. 8oki 34-28
Bored Apes Football Club def. Knights of Degen, 18-16
Glacier Boyz def. Beasts, 34-18
FCF Week 5 Recap
Glacier Boyz 34, Beasts 18
Glacier Boyz ended their two-game losing streak with an impressive 34-18 victory against Beasts in the final game on the Week 5 schedule.
History was made on the first play of the game, as the Glacier Boyz scored the fastest touchdown in FCF history. On the opening possession, Beasts quarterback Alphonso Howard bobbled a bad snap and lost the ball in the end zone when he was sacked.
Trailing 8-0 after four seconds, Beasts did settle in to erase the bad taste of that first turnover. Martavis Bryant got the first touchdown of the day for Beasts on a 13-yard catch from Howard.
Andrew Jamiel was a big-play machine for Glacier Boyz. He caught two touchdowns in the win, including one with 21 seconds remaining in the first half to extend the lead to 20-6.
It was a good day for Glacier Boyz wide receiver. Jordus Smith also had a touchdown reception. He also received a hearty endorsement from Terrell Owens as a potential NFL-caliber player.
Beasts tried to make things interesting late in the fourth quarter. Chris Barrett threw an interception with Glacier Boyz leading 28-12. Howard found Bryant in the end zone with 41 seconds remaining on fifth down to cut the deficit to 10.
Beasts were unable to convert on a two-point conversion to make it a one-score game. Glacier Boyz ran out the clock to secure the win and improve their record to 2-3.
Glacier Boyz will look to win back-to-back games for the first time this season against Zappers next week. Beasts (2-3) will attempt to end its two-game losing streak on May 21 vs. Shoulda Been Stars.
Bored Apes Football 18, Knights of Degen 16
Bored Apes Football remains undefeated after an 18-16 win over Knights of Degen thanks to stellar play by the defense.
With Knights of Degen driving and a chance to take the lead late in the fourth quarter, running back Terelle West had the ball knocked out of his hand inside the five-yard line. The Apes recovered in their end zone to preserve the lead and run out the clock.
The Knights scored 16 consecutive points after falling behind 6-0 in the first quarter. They led most of the game thanks to some terrific play by Ed Crouch.
Crouch kept the ball on an option play, avoided two defenders and made a cutback to the middle of the field to find the end zone in the final minute of the first half
The Knights defense nearly came up huge at the end of the first half. They got a stop on 4th-and-1, but the Apes were able to use their one fifth-down play to make something happen.
Deondre Francois took advantage of the extra down with a 32-yard touchdown run to cut the deficit to 16-12 at the break.
Clinging to a 16-12 advantage, Knights of Degen had an opportunity to extend their lead. But Bored Apes Football got a stop on 4th-and-goal to give the offense another chance to take the lead.
They were unable to capitalize on this opportunity when Francois threw an interception that was initially returned for a touchdown. The touchdown was called back due to a penalty, but the turnover stood with just under eight minutes left to play.
After the Bored Apes defense got a stop, Francois redeemed himself by hitting Darren Woods in the end zone for the go-ahead score with 3:25 left to play.
The Apes' defense made its stand and got the turnover on the next drive by the Knights to secure the win.
Bored Apes Football is the last remaining undefeated team in the league with a 5-0 record. They will look to secure their sixth straight win next week against 8oki. Knights (3-2) will attempt to get back on track when it takes on Kingpins.
Zappers 28, Shoulda Been Stars 24
Shoulda Been Stars entered Week 5 as a big favorite over the winless Zappers thanks to their 3-1 mark, and while they almost completed a huge comeback, they were unable to stave off the upset.
After falling behind 22-0 in the first half, Should Been Stars staged a furious comeback and got down to the Zappers' 15-yard line with two seconds remaining in the game, but they were unable to score the go-ahead touchdown.
While Manziel is the face of the Zappers, it was former University of Memphis quarterback Jason Stewart who took the bulk of the snaps Saturday.
On the strength of a pair of touchdown passes, Stewart staked the Zappers out to a 14-0 lead in the opening half:
Manziel got in on the act as well, throwing a scoring strike to wide receiver Terrance Williams to extend the lead to 22-0:
That touchdown had a decidedly Texas flavor, as Manziel starred and won the Heisman Trophy at Texas A&M before playing for the Cleveland Browns in the NFL, while Williams played collegiately at Baylor and for the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL.
It was from that point that Shoulda Been Stars made things interesting, starting with a touchdown pass from quarterback Slade Jarman to wide receiver Tyis Boykin with 15 seconds left in the first half:
That was followed by another Jarman touchdown pass early in the second half to shrink the deficit to 22-16:
The deluge continued when Stewart threw a pick-six on a ball tipped at the line of scrimmage to put Shoulda Been Stars ahead by two points:
All signs pointed toward Shoulda Been Stars completing the comeback with momentum firmly on their side, but Stewart bounced back with a touchdown pass to running back Shuncee Thomas to put the Zappers back on top:
At that point, Manziel expressed excitement over the play of Stewart:
Since Manziel is only playing in a part-time role rather than taking every snap this season, the emergence of another quarterback was of the utmost importance, and Stewart clearly came to play Saturday.
Now, the Zappers will look to keep rolling when they face the Glacier Boyz next week, while Shoulda Been Stars will attempt to bounce back against the Beasts.
Kingpins 34, 8oki 28
The Kingpins held on for a much-needed win, defeating 8oki 34-28 to improve to 2-3.
After scoring with two seconds left to cut the deficit to six, 8oki had a chance to tie it with a Hail Mary, but quarterback Mitch Kidd's pass was intercepted in the end zone to seal the victory for the Kingpins.
The teams traded touchdowns for much of the game, particularly in the first half when each side found the end zone twice.
The Kingpins got the scoring started with a dump-off from quarterback Tirri Jones to running back Daryl Virgies:
8oki answered with one of the most remarkable plays of the season, as Kidd fired the ball from his own end zone to wide receiver Malik Elion for a 49-yard score:
A rushing touchdown by Jones put the Kingpins back on top 12-8, but 8oki found paydirt again with just over two minutes remaining in the half.
Kidd orchestrated the play once again, finding tight end Chris Robb Jr. for a touchdown to put 8oki ahead 14-12 at halftime:
The lead was short-lived, though, thanks to a 38-yard touchdown run by Virgies with less than a minute left in the opening half to put the Kingpins back on top:
The see-saw affair continued early in the second half with Kidd's third touchdown pass, this time to running back Malcolm Ballard to make it 22-20 in favor of 8oki:
An overturned call for a touchdown led to another lead change, however, and the Kingpins used timely defense to help extend that lead.
Ballard was about to punch the ball in for a touchdown for 8oki, but he fumbled just before crossing the goal line, and the Kingpins recovered:
A long touchdown pass from Jones to wideout Collin Andrews made the score 34-22 with 19 seconds remaining and seemingly sealed the game:
While 8oki did make it interesting with a late touchdown and Hail Mary attempt, the deficit proved too much to overcome.
Both 8oki and the Kingpins are 2-3, and both teams have big games on tap next week, with 8oki facing Bored Ape Football Club and the Kingpins taking on Knights of Degen.
