Welcome to the ACFW weekly recap, which has been renamed 'The Golden Shovel'. In these posts, statistics and results from the previous week will be discussed. And be warned: some people will be buried. Continue reading at your own risk.
Our first post for Season 14 comes with a bit of a delay since the commissioner has been out of town. Strike one for him. Two more and he's fired. It's only fair.
Money in the Bank saw Tess score a massive 84 points, almost 20 more than the second place team that night. Had she started Shane McMahon, that total could have even reached 100 or perhaps more. Regardless, a very impressive opening to the season and one of the strongest debuts in ACFW history.
Meanwhile, Carl scored only 20 points, continuing to do what he does best. Ben, our reigning champion, scored 55 points, just a few short of what a champ is expected to do. Austin finished in second but messed it up with a terrible week one performance. To summarize Money in the Bank in one sentence: Tess destroyed everyone else.
Following that show, teams changed a lot. Probably because everyone realized how much better they could be doing. Or worse in Austin's case, who threw away lots of potential points in statistically bad trades. Mcintyre, Zayn, and Rose scored 30.5 points and he traded that for Owens, Kay, and Ryder who scored an incredible 5 points. Wow.
A total of 15 team changes between everyone in the league sets a record for most changes in a week in league history! Also, 3 trades increases the total number of trades in league history to an astonishing 4! Congrats to everyone who helped set these records. Especially Austin who sacrificed nearly 25 points just to get a new spot in the record books.
But, week 1 is over. Week 2 is just around the corner. With plenty of time left before the season ends, anyone could become the champion. Even Carl, despite his intentions to only win next season.
Ben is seeking his fourth championship but is he the favorite? Newer players like Madelyn and Tess are looking hard to beat, Jacob is still actively seeking to reach the top of the mountain, Ben's hated rival Chris is still hunting him down, Jeff is silently waiting on an opportunity to strike, Austin is desperately trying to regain the streak of victories he had a few seasons ago, and Carl is hoping to be the first team to make a comeback from last place since Terry in Season 10.
The rivalries are running strong with Ben and Chris taking the spotlight. Strong rivals all the way back in season 1 and it's still going now almost six years later. It's apparently also spread to Madelyn who takes great pride in defeating Chris.
This week's quotes of the week go to...
"Turn my number backwards and I'm still last"
-Carl
"Yes I beat Chris"
-Madelyn
"I do get mad when Ben breathes"
-Chris
Perhaps the most entertaining part of the week was the race to be the first to claim Brock Lesnar which ultimately went to Ben. Now that he has Lesnar and Rollins, he seems to have the Universal Championship locked down.
With so many weeks left to go in the season, and so many amazing potential championship matches, anything can happen. Will we crown the first ever four-time champion? Will Jeff become a three time champion? Will Austin and Carl score more than 10 points in a week? These questions and more will soon be answered...
Make sure to stop by next week where we will again make fun of everyone except the first place team. Until then, good luck to all!
