Commentary

Kinney, DeGarmo lead AIC semis

Updated: December 17, 2011, 12:50 AM ET

By Jim Wilkie | ESPN.com

Former Queensryche guitarist Chris DeGarmo and Alice in Chains drummer Sean Kinney have taken halftime leads in the semifinals of the third annual Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League.

Alice in Chains FFL charities

Each member of the Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League will put a valuable item up for auction. After the season, the net proceeds from the auction will go to the league champion's chosen charity. Here are the charities each member of the AIC&FFFCL is playing for this season:

Jerry Cantrell
Charity: MusiCares

William DuVall
Charity: Boys And Girls Clubs of America

Vinnie Paul
Charity: Little Kids Rock

Randy Wolf
Charity: Ronald McDonald House of Milwaukee

Ann Wilson
Charity: Boys And Girls Clubs of America

Sean Kinney
Charity: American Diabetes Association

Duff McKagan
Charity: Ronald McDonald House

Chris DeGarmo
Charity: Make a Wish

Mike Inez
Charity: The Gentle Barn

Jay Ferguson
Charity: The Little Baby Face Foundation

DeGarmo's 149-105 lead, including results from Thursday night's game, over Alice in Chains guitarist Jerry Cantrell is so big that the league founder has conceded defeat in a note on the league's message board (click on the link to see the photo):

Nothing To Lose
Posted: Dec. 14, 5:31 a.m.
Jerry Cantrell
Aroma Of Tacoma

Girlschool? More like I'm getting schooled by my ex-girl and Chris. No way I'm coming back from a 40-plus point deficit so I'll shake up my lineup and take some gambles. Good luck in the Super Bowl, Chris. Gonna have to be next year for me. Tight race for your prospective opponents.

Re: Nothing To Lose
Posted: Dec. 14, 1:41 p.m.
Chris DeGarmo
Mach Six's

Well, my brother, I certainly do appreciate your fine choice of Heather [Ankeny] to be providing not-so secret guidance for the Mach Six's. Kinda like building your own chicken coop and then buying a hungry fox for your next-door neighbor! I'm loving it! (And taking notes …)

The other semifinal is too close to call, however, with Kinney leading Alice in Chains singer William DuVall 98-91.

Each participant will put one valuable item up for auction by the end of the season. The league champion will get to designate which charity receives the net proceeds of the auction. More details on the auction will be announced soon.

Weekly updates on the Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League, trash talk and interviews with the owners will be published in ESPN.com's The Life and Music sections throughout the season. Members of the league also will drop by for occasional chats on SportsNation, as Cantrell and Vinnie Paul did last week.

Here is a look at the postseason matchups and last week's results:

Alice in Chains & Friends Fantasy Football Charity League final regular-season standings

Rk	Player	Team	W	L	T	PF	PA	GB
1.	Sean Kinney	Team Nosering	8	5	0	1,226	1,163	--
Last week: Leads Team DuVall 98-91 after one half Next up: Team DuVall (7-6) Team Nosering added Jets RB LaDainian Tomlinson and Buccaneers TE Kellen Winslow, and dumped Rams QB Sam Bradford and Titans RB Javon Ringer.
2.	Jerry Cantrell	Aroma of Tacoma	8	5	0	1,194	1,172	--
Last week: Trails Mach Six's 138-91 after one half Next up: Mach Six's (7-5-1) Cantrell sure did shake up the Aroma Of Tacoma roster with a bunch of moves. The Aroma picked up Cowboys RB Felix Jones, Falcons WR Julio Jones, Bengals K Mike Nugent, Lions TE Brandon Pettigrew and the Cardinals' D while they dumped Titans WR Damian Williams, 49ers RB Kendall Hunter, Chargers K Nick Novak, Colts RB Donald Brown and Chargers WR Malcom Floyd.
3.	Chris DeGarmo	Mach Six's	7	5	1	1,349	1,164	.5
Last week: Leads Aroma Of Tacoma 138-91 after one half Next up: Aroma Of Tacoma (8-5) Mach Six's are just four-point favorites and have the edge in five categories with two pushes. DeGarmo didn't stand pat, either, picking up Texans TE Owen Daniels and the Titans' D while dropping Packers RB Brandon Saine and the Cowboys' D.
4.	William DuVall	Team DuVall	7	6	0	1,312	1,196	1
Last week: Trails Team Nosering 98-91 after one half Next up: Team Nosering (8-5) Team DuVall are just two-point underdogs and have the edge in three of nine positions, according to the ESPN fantasy computers.
5.	Ann Wilson	Annie's Dogs	7	6	0	1,221	1,213	1
Last week: Trails Dallas' Best 111-94 after one half Next up: Dallas' Best (6-7) Annie's Dogs are 14-point favorites, although the computers give them the edge in just four categories. You can't say this very often: Wilson should have played Jets QB Mark Sanchez (25 points) instead of Packers QB Aaron Rodgers (17 points) last week. Titans WR Nate Washington's 19 points were left on the bench as well.
6.	Jay Ferguson	Dallas' Best	6	7	0	1,133	1.193	2
Last week: Leads Annie's Dogs 111-94 after one half Next up: Annie's Dogs (7-6) Ferguson could have had an even bigger lead if he hadn't benched Falcons QB Matt Ryan (28 points), Steelers WR Antonio Brown (21) and the Eagles' D (22) last week.
7.	Vinnie Paul	The Brickwall Paul	6	7	0	1,133	1,138	2
Last week: Trails Team McKagan 98-44 after one half Next up: Team McKagan (5-7-1) The Brickwall Paul have a lot of ground to make up, but the fantasy computers have them as 15-point favorites with the edge in seven categories.
8.	Duff McKagan	Team McKagan	5	7	1	1,073	1,229	2.5
Last week: Leads The Brickwall Paul 98-44 after one half Next up: The Brickwall Paul (6-7) Team McKagan lost Cowboys RB DeMarco Murray (two points) for the season and would have been better off with Bears RB Marion Barber (17 points) last week. Rams WR Brandon Lloyd (eight points) would have been an improvement over Buccaneers WR Mike Williams.
9.	Mike Inez	Your Real Dad Al Davis	5	8	0	1,189	1,213	3
Last week: Leads Team Valley Trash 95-42 after one half Next up: Team Valley Trash (5-8) Your Real Dad Al Davis are 16-point favorites and have the edge in five categories with one push. Inez picked up Broncos WR Demaryius Thomas and the Falcons' D and dumped Steelers WR Hines Ward and the Rams' D.
10.	Randy Wolf	Team Valley Trash	5	8	0	1,029	1,178	3
Last week: Trails Your Real Dad Al Davis 115-42 after one half Next up: Your Real Dad Al Davis (5-8) Tough season for Team Valley Trash, which lost Bills RB Fred Jackson and Chiefs QB Matt Cassel with season-ending injuries.