2/28 Draft: Things that make us optimistic in 2011

This is the time of the year where we're all optimistic, everything is possible and all of the glasses are half-full.

While last year's season was a roller-coaster ride the likes we haven't seen in quite some time--if ever--this season gives us plenty to look forward to. Here Wesley and I break down some of the things that have us plenty excited about the 2011 season.

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1M) Gary Tranquil is gone

Free at last, free at last! Thank Spaz almighty, I’m free at last! The ever-painful Tranq era blissfully comes to an end. Is Kevin Rogers the answer? I don’t know, but I can tell you one thing—the answer sure as hell wasn’t Gary Tranquil. The fact that I don’t have to watch: run off guard on 1st down, run off tackle 2nd down, and 7 yard pass play on 3rd and 8 drive in and drive out virtually guarantees it will be more fun to be an Eagles fan this year.

I’m sure Gary Tranquil is a nice guy (hell, maybe he’s a real a-hole, I don’t know), but as a football coach I don’t think I can think of one that was so ba….oh wait. Actually, Dana Bible was pretty brutal---but arguably much better than Tranq—something I never thought I would be able to say about anyone.

Which reminds me…why did we get rid of Steve Logan again? Anyone? Anyone?


2W) Returning QB that SHOULD show progression.

Man it sure is hard to follow up with that one. As all the draft experts probably would have taken that in the first round as well.

I am going with Rettig returning. Last year we anticipated that Shins would be back, and progress from where he left off in 2009, heck I was definitely cheering for the guy, and still am. But he didn’t progress, somehow he actually regressed in my opinion. Rettig played this year as a true frosh, and we had a record over .500, well I think with the OC change, and added focus, time etc for Rettig he will show that those glimpses of greatness were just foreshadowing the rest of his career at the Heights.


3M) This is how we do it

It’s Saturday, and I feel OK. The game is here on the East Coast, so I look to Montel and he turns it up—O-Line U made a hole bigger than a truck. Hit the TD dance ‘cause he made it—Eagles in the stands say “Monty yo you made it!”

The hood has been good to Montel ever since he was a lower case RB…but now he’s got the records---dolla dolla bills y’all!

Okay, enough of that—but it really will be terrific to have Montel back next year—and HEALTHY! I think the Andre Williams mix-up in tempo and style will really help Montel keep fresh and beat up defenses. Our running attack should be an excellent one next year if we can keep both of our backs healthy.


4W) No question on 1-2 punch

It seems like it’s a trend the past few seasons the backup RB leaves about midseason, now im not going to dive into why they left, how they left,etc. I wish both of them good fortune in their life. But it just seems like the 2 punch , of the 1-2 punch is a hard position to fill. At the end of the regular season last year I feel that question has been answered, and answered well. Andre Williams is a GREAT change of pace from a the shifty Harris. I truly feel confident with our running game, now they just need a crafty nickname.


5M) No Gary Tranquil

That’s right, I’m putting it here again. It’s not that I have a lack of other things to say, but rather this one deserves two high round call-outs.

I swear, I'm not being lazy here. The Tranquil offense literally drove me insane. The only person that's possibly more happy about this change than I am is my wife--as she'll enjoy not having to hear me kvetch about his play-calling / offense any longer.





6W) O-Line U back in rhythm

This is a prediction, mixed with hope and fluffy pink bunnies.

In 2010 , there was ENTIRELY too much rotation for an offensive line to create any cohesion , and even with VERY good players, they were put into bad positions. Another issue was the Man to Zone, Zone- Man, then back to Man issue, another topic really but stability is key on the offensive line. Although we are losing some great men from the line, I feel that the Offensive line is going to take a HUGE step forward from last year., and very excited to see the product they bring to the field.



7M) Young Guns playing early…again

One of the nice things about Spaz is that he’s shown he doesn’t care if you’re a 5th year senior or a true frosh—if you’re talented and the best guy for the job; it’s yours to take. Last year we saw plenty of young guys stepping in and making an impact as true freshman, which is exciting if you follow recruiting and like to get a glimpse of what the new guys bring to the table. I think you’ll see a lot of young guys hit the field this year again for our Eagles which I always really enjoy.


8W) Better Schedule

I am soo sick and DAMN tired of watching my team on ESPN3, or espn 360 if that’s what you wanna call it. Football isn’t intended to be watching intensely on a computer. Its made to watch on 70 inch screens, with the volume up full bore with multiple pitchers of beer on standby. With the dramatic improvement in the schedule we should have a lot more games that are televised in the more traditional manner.


9M) Sleeping Soundly with the kicking game

Truly a luxury, how many teams and fans can go into the year secure and happy with not one good kicker—but two in Twigs and Freese. We stressed this last year a good bit but it deserves mention again. Special teams truly are a large part of every game and not having to worry about a kicker who’s mentally schizo or a punter who gets a case of the shanks at an inopportune time, we have to guys who we can rely on game in and game out. It’s like a nice warm blanket of kicking confidence.


10W) And you thought they couldn’t be any better..

Granted we will miss Herzy, Morrissey, and others , our Linebacker corps will without question be better., with even more depth than they had last year. We have 3 very talented incoming freshman at LB, that will more than likely redshirt, or play sparingly. But the further emergence of KPL, and Superman Keeks, it would be hard to contend that we still will have one of the best group of linebackers in the league.. Only question is who fills the open void and plays with these two monsters? With plenty of options, I am going to sleep well tonight that we are like some waffle house hash browns in this area. (scattered, smothered and covered)


RECAP:

BCMike drafted: No more Tranq, Montel, Tranq gone, Young Guns, Kicking Game
Wesley drafted: Rettig progression, One two punch, OLine U, better TV sched, LB Corps

2-22 Draft: Things that make us optimistic in 2011
	BCMike: No more Tranq, Montel, Tranq gone, Young Guns, Kicking Game
	Wesley: Rettig progression, One two punch, OLine U, better TV sched, LB Corps
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Draft 2-22: Draft the new BC commitments

BC Faithful,

Apologize for the delay, we didn't intend on taking that long of hiatus, but sometimes life happens, and for that we apologize. We would like to get the thoughts on the newest commitments to the Boston College football program. Who is going to impact the program, do we have the next Matt Ryan? Kiwi? Let us know what you think!

1)ALJ, DB

Let me state the facts, our BIGGEST area of need, was secondary, I honestly don’t feel as if that was debatable. ALJ was very highly thought of, he is a local, and has some serious skills. After Randy Shannon left Miami, ALJ had to reconsider his options for his next 4-5 years of his life, and he chose the heights. I expect to see him getting some PT this season.

2) Max Ricci, DT

Yes, yes—I know—the stars aren’t there but you can’t teach size and Ricci’s got that plus the strength to go with it. BC’s been very fortunate to have some great LB’s to come through the program but they are more effective—as is our overall defense—when we plug up the middle with a big body and force single coverage on our DE’s. I think we’ll look back at Ricci being a key to this class in a couple of years.

3) Christian Suntrup, QB
You know, I always get a bit nervous when guys do press releases to announce where they plan to attend college, but Suntrup chose the Eagles, so I thoroughly enjoyed it. I come from the school of thought, that one Good QB recruited every year is what a school needs. Well we needed a stud qb, and I think we got one. Michigan and Miami came in late, but he held true to his BC commitment

4) Connor Wujciak, DE

While it’s true that nothing is guaranteed whenever you sign a brother of a standout player—more often than not that player is not only just as good, but better. Yes, there are exceptions to that rule but given what big brother has done at College Park I think we just notched another tick on our belt as “LB-U”.

5) Manuel Asprilla, DB

I hate to lump a player in with another , but I feel that Asprilla is a very similar recruit to ALJ.. while that is no disservice to Asprilla at all. He is a great talent , local, but was in my opinion a bit underrated. What I do think about Asprilla is he probably redshirts to put on some weight, and he wasn’t an early enrollee.

6) Sean Duggan, LB

Keeping the Cincy connection going strong, Duggan committed early on and I believe helped bring Daniels along with him to a smaller extent. Not that you can ever really profile a guy like Keeks and expect to get someone like his freakish ability, but Duggan to me looks like a Keeks, quacks like a Keeks, smells like a Keeks… I don’t know that he’s necessarily going to star at LB, but he’s a player and will star somewhere.

7) Steven Daniels, LB

I want to give Steven Daniels a round of applause on his recruiting process. Go ahead I’ll give you a minute. Daniels came out of the same Cincy connection that Duggan came from, and Keuchly . But without a doubt it seems that he wanted to make his own waves, because after Duggan committed to BC , Daniels was still a no comment stage. I felt that Daniels is ready to make some serious waves of his own, although the shadow of Keeks isn’t a bad place to be, he wanted and definitely deserved his own light. I think Daniels may get some PT, but nothing substantial unless injury, basically because of our incredible depth at linebacker right now. I personally would prefer to see him RS.

8) Curt Evans, WR

As long as I’ve been following recruiting, I’ve been able to come to one undeniable, unwavering conclusion: It’s a crap shoot. That being said, you always would RATHER have a “five star” guy than a “two star” guy, but to me the best judge of a talent is what sort of other offers a player has. Sure, there can be guys who are under-recruited and not offered by many; I’m not speaking about those guys. I’m talking about ones who scouts grow on as time goes by and wind up with an impressive offer list. That’s the case with Evans. I think he was wooed by just about everyone under the sun the last couple weeks of the recruiting process and I always dig guys that make their commitment to us and stand by it regardless of who comes knocking. Here’s to Evans having an outstanding career at The Heights—he’s already on his way to being a great Eagle by being a man of his word and honoring his commitment.

9) Liam Porter, OL

Mike good call with Evans.. a huge need at BC , I would probably put right behind Secondary.

I am going to go out on a small limb on my last pick with Liam Porter. I like the potential he has for several reasons. One big reason is he had some work to do in the classroom and he did it, this definitely shows some discipline. He always wanted BC, and wasn’t really recruited otherwise, and he met that goal, and I think he is going to come in with a nice sized chip on his shoulder for not getting too many looks and bulldoze some Defensive lineman, and show why he wanted BC, and why BC wanted him

10) Mehdi Abdesmad, DE

I don’t know why, but I really like taking flyers on international kids. Sure, sometimes they dominate because the lesser level of competition, but you can make the same argument as to why they’re under-recruited---people don’t think they can play with the big boys. Well, you can only beat what’s in front of you and some of these kids just need that extra challenge. Plus—let’s be honest here—we sincerely need someone (anyone?) to help pressure the QB so even if Abdesmad turns out to be merely serviceable he’s a great get for us.

Recap:

Wesley: ALJ, Suntrup, Asprilla, Daniels, Porter

BCMike: Ricci, Wojiack, Duggan, Evans, Abdesmad

Draft 2-22: Draft the new BC commitments
	Wesley:ALJ, Suntrup, Asprilla, Daniels, Porter
	BCMike: Ricci, Wojiack, Duggan, Evans, Abdesmad
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