BCDraft

1/6/12 draft: why the MNC line up stinks

2012-01-06T21:29:00.002-05:00

As the Championship game comes around we would like to draft our top reasons for displeasure.

1M) Been there, done that

Not only has this game already been played, it¹s not like we¹rereplayingsome amazing game that had a ton of drama, fantastic plays andexcitingplay. The last time these two got together, paint drying got a 8.3sharefrom Nielsen.

2W) If you can't win your division, you shouldn't compete for the NC

I think this is where I call for a revamp of the way the NationalChampionship is played. I am not necessarily calling for a playoffsystem, but I just think you have to win your division, to play thewinner of another division. Isn't that what its all about? Being anational Champion? The SEC championship has already been settled, sonow,there is a potential that a SEC champion loses to another SEC team forthe NC, this makes no sense. Well wait it does.. $$$ and that¹s theonlytype of sense it makes.

3M) It¹s not fair to LSU

So let me get this right‹LSU beats Alabama, wins their division andconference (as Wesley pointed out) and now all Alabama has to do isclipLSU the *SECOND* time they play them to become the national champion?How in the world is that fair? Let¹s say for the sake of the argumentthat ŒBama wins. Now you have one win for each, one loss foreachŠexceptLSU played one more game (SEC title game). All others being equal,shouldn¹t the title stay with LSU even if they lost?

4W) Okie St

Really this matchup should be against OSU and LSU. Both winning theirconference. And its not exactly like OSU had a cakewalk season beatingmany teamss by 59 or greater and having one blemish against IowaState (who had a pretty decent year ) in double overtime on a Friday night.If Iwas Gundy, Id be more than just a pissed off man that's 40.. I wouldpetition the BCS for angling what they wanted all along an $EC rematch

5M) SEC SEC SEC!!

This whole conference superiority thing has gotten so entirely out ofcontrol it's not even funny. The press has brainwashed the majority offans (and themselves) into believing that only the SEC matters andonlyteams from the SEC are worthy of playing for a national championship.It's just fucking crazy. LSU should be there. I get that. They'reundefeated and deserve to be there.But let's look at Alabama. They played one ranked team in LSU, who weallknow they lost to. OOC, they scheduled North Texas, a DougMartin-lessKent State, and Georgia Southern...ALL at home.If this was a team from the Big Ten or PAC-12 people would bescreamingand stomping their feet over such a schedule.Listen, I'm not an idiot--I do think the SEC is a terrific footballconference. I just think it's the ONLY football conference.There are good teams outside of the SEC, too. I promise.

6W) Why Monday?

I think it is time for the BCS or someone to say, lets have aChampionshipSaturday so our ratings are at their highest, more people can enjoy thegame, easier to travel for etc.Don't understand the "biggest game of the year" on a Monday.

7M) The element of surprise is gone

I understand this kind of goes to the "been there, done that" point,buthere I'm talking about the lack of excitement going into the gamebecausewe already know how they match up.Will LSU's D be able to shut down the Alabama rushing attack??Yes.Will Alamaba's D shut stop the mediocre LSU rushing attack?Yes.Any offense at all?No, not really.How will they match up?Like to hefty school girls slapping each other for three hoursstraight.I don't know about you, but I am REALLY excited about this matchup! Somany surprises in store!!

8W) The fans

You paint such an awesome visual of two hefty girls slapping eachother,for some reason I think this happens in a fast food place..But I digressI hate saying this, but living in the south makes this extra hard forme.Maybe its a hint of jealousy, I am not quite sure, maybe its the abilityfor two teams to have a very short drive to their "nationalchampionship"game. Im not sure. But I just can't handle all the fans going crazy overthe potential that their team is dominant once again, and every team inthe SEC is second only to the New England Patriots .So no matter what happens, I lose.

9M) SEC Spin

I feel your pain, Wesley. Of course, you're actually *IN* Alabama so itsurely is exacerbated for you.Here in going with the spin that casual fans and SEC fans are going toput on this championship. Meaning, it will be another brick in the wallof the supposed SEC dominance in championship games, even though an SECteam has to win by default this year.An example of what I'm talking about is my former boss. He's more of acasual fan and he was talking about how Auburn dominated Oregon in theMNC Game. What? Yeah apparently Auburn just killed them. Those PAC-10 guys justcan't hang with SEC ballin', he informed me.Weird, I told him. I thought it was a field goal game that could havefor either way late in the fourth quarter.

10W) My personal quagmire of who to root for

As most fans of football, I can always root for one over another, even ifI have no dog in the race. Well in this case, there really is no outcomethat I am happy with. At All. If both Teams could lose and forfeit theirfuture seasons I would probably be most pleased. Go Commercials?

BCDraft SPECIAL: Interview with CJ Jones

2011-12-09T07:41:00.001-05:00

We'd like to thank the BCDraft readers for the great response we had to the most recent interview. We're also very fortunate to keep it rolling with another great BC player, this week we bring you CB/DB CJ Jones.

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BCDraft: CJ, when you were being recruited out of the State of DuPont…er, Delaware, there was a good bit of buzz surrounding you.

Why did you choose BC over schools like NC State, Louisville, and others? What schools made your final cut, and why did you pick to be an Eagle over the others?

CJ Jones: While being recruited I took the time to visit most of the schools that showed interest or have already offered me. I then sat down with my parents to discuss pros and cons of each school. I liked BC because of my chances of getting on the field as a freshman. Also, the degree value from Boston College. I also like that fact that there are plenty of other schools surrounding BC, which is great socially. Even though it’s cold, it’s only a little bit colder than where I am from [Delaware]. NC State, Louisville, and BC were my finally three. Like I said I wanted to play [early] so that was a big factor.

BCD: You had some tough luck this year when you injured your (right?) knee. Did this injury take place during the Duke or UCF game?

What happened?

How did you know you were injured?

CJJ: I got injured in the UCF game on the opening kick-off when one of my teammates rolled up on my knee when trying to make a tackle.

BCD: From all reports the surgery went well. Can you talk about your rehab and when you hope to be back on the field?

CJJ: The surgery was real good Dr. Gill, the Pats team doc did my surgery. I started pre-habbing once I got injured and I am now rehabbing everyday of the week. Just working on movement and strength. My knee has improved a lot since surgery. [I] may be [ready in the] spring if not, definitely by the summer.

BCD: There were some departures during the off-season in the secondary as well as injuries. This forced a lot of completely green true freshman into the starting lineup. Can you tell me what youngsters have impressed you and what you like about them?

Who should Eagles fans keep an especially keen eye on?

CJJ: Spencer Rositano and Manny Asprilla both played real good this year. I know they weren’t expected to play this year but they both played well. They were aggressive, mentally tough, and they showed that they had some skills out there also. They both have great athletic ability and instincts, too. The Eagles fans should be on the look out for both of them in the secondary next year.

BCD: Eagles fans assume you’ll be granted a medical redshirt waiver for the 2011 season. Is this accurate?
CJJ: Yes

BCD: Would you rather:

A) Make the game winning INT for TD play on the 50 yard line

or

B) Tackle a WR with such force that he fumbles and a team mate recovers the fumble and runs it in for the winning score?

CJJ: I would want to do both. But as corner everyone wants to make a game winning INT for TD, so if I had to choose it would be "A".

BCD: What is your view on whether or not players should get paid to play?

CJJ: I actually wrote a paper on this in favor (laughs), but there are pros and cons if there pay for play I think it would take years to even develop a system for it, but with all the problems there’s been in college football now a days I don’t think this ever happen till college football is cleaned up.

BCD: This past year was a very tough one on players, coaches, and fans alike. What signs did you see this past year (that we may have not) that should give us hope and promise for a better tomorrow in the 2012 season?

CJJ: Well we were young again this year due to injuries but that’s no excuse though. I think we developed a lot of depth for the next season and also that depth will now have experience and the good teams in college football have depth and I think we are going to have that going into the next season.

BCD: Who is the toughest BC wide-out (WR) to cover in practice, in your opinion? What makes them so difficult to cover?

CJJ: Off-Coverage I would say Swigert, he does a lot of shoulder, head, body, movement that gets your mind going (laughs) but you just got to keep your poise. Man-Coverage, I would say Larmond. Big, physical, fast, [and] hard to get a good jam on.

BCD: Every player creates bonds with other players on the team, can you talk about that? Are there particular players that you are close with?

CJJ: I really look up to Colin [Larmond, Jr.] and Montel [Harris], as big brothers, but my room suite are the main guys that I have been around with since freshman year: [Alex] Amidon, [Tahj] Kimble, [Dominic] Appiah, Dom. Williams, Andre Williams, and the new edition, Al Louis-Jean.

BCD: How do you get in the zone to prepare for the game, what music is on your Ipod?

CJJ: I put on my Beats by Dre headphone and play my #Beastmode playlist, it has Young Jeezy, Rick Ross, Lil Jon, etc...just music with hard beats to get in that angry mode. I’m a nice, laid back guy--but when it’s game time its time to transform into another person.

BCD: When you first stepped on campus at BC was it what you were expecting? What class have you enjoyed most?

CJJ: Somewhat, there were some surprises along the way but, you know it is the quiet Hills of [Chestnut] Hill. [As far as favorite classes] ,well this year none of my classes were favorites but last year I had this business class called Portico and we did a lot of group business projects and just learn the fundamentals of business.

BCD: Can you talk about your relationship with the Coaches? Is there any particular coach that you are close with?

CJJ: I have a relationship with the coaches where I think they think a lot of me and sometimes, especially this season, I would come by to talk with the coaches--mainly the defensive ones--on what I saw and give my thoughts and opinions and I think that is a little nice relationship to have with the coaches

BCD: What do you do to blow off steam? Play Madden...listen to music?

CJJ: Xbox 360, Call of Duty, 2K11 Basketball, NCAA Football, any game, I became a gamer once I got [the] injury, but I also like to draw and listen to music.

BCD: Who do you model your style of play to? What professional football player do you look up to?

CJJ: Well when I watch a game I watch all corners, try to take a little something from everybody that I like, even some college corners on the other teams. But I like Nnamdi Asomugha; I like what he brings to the game as corner.

BCD: We asked Spiffy Evans this question and got a big kick out of it—so pardon our lack of creativity with this one, but let’s see if you have a fun response as well…

When traveling to away venues, often times players (and coaches) can hear a good deal more from the stands than most lead on.

What is the most funny and most memorable thing or things you have heard while traveling to away games (PG rated, please)?

CJJ: Well all the ones that I heard were pretty bad, so I don’t know if I could say those... (laughs) I tried not to be close to the crowd for they get me.

BCD: What does "CJ" really stand for?

CJJ: "CJ" stands for [the] middle and last initial [of my name], Cornel Jones. People have been calling me CJ since forever, so it makes no sense to call CJ Jones, but that started in high school with the newspapers giving me that name so I just stuck with it. My real name is William.

BCD: Where did the nickname "Cadillac Jones" come from?

WCJ: One of my trainers back at home came up with the name "Cadillac". One day he just randomly called me that while working out cause he said I do everything so smooth and it has stuck with since then.

BCDraft would like to sincerely thank CJ Jones for his time and participation in this great interview. We wish him a speedy recovery and look forward to cheering him on in the 2012 season.

BCDraft SPECIAL: Interview with Spiffy Evans

2011-12-01T18:31:00.003-05:00

Well Eagle fans, the tough season ended on an uptick with BC defeating Miami for the first time *IN* Miami since Doug Flutie did it in ’84. Seriously? Seriously. Almost sad to have such an accomplishment cap off a tough and weird year, but we’ll certainly take it.

Moving on to the off-season, we’ll start doing some more player interviews. Our first for the “2012” season is true freshman who recently completed his first year of college football, Wide Receiver and Return man Mr. Spiffy Evans.

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Spiffy, thank you so much for taking the time to sit down with us today. Let’s get started with the most obvious question that most BC folks want to know about Spiffy…

BCD: Where in the world did the awesome nickname “Spiffy” come from?”

SE: My grandfather gave it to me a while back. And it's stuck with me since

BCD: I [Wesley] got to meet a lot of your family in Miami, Great People, even with some custom BC/Spiffy gear, how is it living this far away?

SE: I have my days when I just hate it and there are days when I wouldn't want to be any where else. It sucks being away from family and friends but I try to remindmyself each day that I'm doing this for a greater cause.

BCD: What brought you to Boston College over other schools? Can you tell us how the recruiting process went?

SE: The recruiting process was crazy. I had over 30 offers but my mom felt stronglyabout BC. My dream school was always Alabama but when I had to consider my future, Boston College was a better fit academically.

BCD: Other than Football, what all do you want to get out of College.

SE: I want to get my degree. That's what I will need in order to have a successful future as well as make my family proud.

BCD: I [Wesley] know you are a fan of quotes, what are some personal favorites to you that help motivate?

SE: Well I make a lot of quotes daily so which ever one fits my mood I roll with. Here is aquote off the top of my mind, "I find motivation in my family because I'm an inspiration to them all. Guess its interdependent relationship." My favorite of all may be “Patience is a virtue”.

BCD: After a fairly hard season this year, what are your expectations for the team in 2012?

SE: [The] sky is the limit for us in 2012. I feel with a good winter and summer we will grow stronger as a unit and get the results we train for in the season to come.

BCD: Spiffy, what was your first year at school like? Was it like you had anticipated?

SE: My freshman year has been a learning as well as a growing experience. This long stay away from family has called for me to grow up and cherish everything more. I’ve become more responsible. I didn't anticipate it being this way. All of the other schools which I considered had huge fan base and large campuses so the smaller more education focused BC is the bigger difference. All in all I'm enjoying The Heights, good people decent food and I'm in Boston.

(this makes us sad we didn’t ask the Presto’s vs. Pino’s question…)

BCD: Can you tell us about your relationship with the coaching staff? Do you have a close bond with any of them?

SE: All the coaches are great guys. I don't have any close connection with any of them as I had in high school. But Coach Ben Johnson is cool.

BCD: You didn’t start off the year returning kicks. What happened that made the coaching staff give you a chance back there as atrue freshman?

SE: In high school that was my thing—kick returns, as well as punt returns. I started out on scout team helping the kick of coverage get work. Once my redshirt was burned during UCF week coach Dawson decided to give me a shot, which I appreciate so much. It's given me some game experience which I wouldn't have gotten otherwise.

BCD: While overall the year was a tough one looking at wins and losses, what was your favorite memory or memories from your first year as an Eagle?

SE: Going toNorte Dame and walking onto the field with my brothers to the left and right of me was crazy. As well as returning kicks there I dreamed of that. Can't forget going to Clemson and V-Tech. But nothin’ beats playing at home in front of friends and family and on my first kick return running the kicker over. It was great.

BCD: Do you have any personal goals in football? Any personal goals in life you can share?

SE: Well from a football stand point I want to be an All-American, also to break all the receiving records, TD records, and return records. In my life I want to continue being a role model for people—especially kids, as well as making my family proud and starting a family. Above all staying grounded in faith.

BCD: Any team goals that you hope to help the team accomplish in 2012 and beyond?

SE: Win the first game and everyone that follows as a unit, as one. All our othergoals will fall in place if we can be one.

BCD: A lot of times players can hear many of the things opposing fans yell or shout. What’s the most memorable or funny one (PG rated version, please) you heard this past season?

SE: Well I’ve heard a lot of vulgar as well as pleasant things. But the most memorable isafter Clemson’s game when all the fans were on the field a guy snatches my towel and said: "I'll take that, Skippy!"…too funny. Also, vs. V-Tech the chant of "Number 7 gonna die" as I fielded every kickoff return.

BCD: Well, despite my [Mike’s] wife being a Hokie, there’s a reason why I’ll never go and see another game in Blacksburg. I feel ya there.

If you could say one thing to the BC Eagle diehards out there, what would it be?

SE: Keep faith, because WE ARE BC!

BCDraft would like to thank Spiffy Evans for this time for this interview as well as his service to Boston College on and off the field. We can’t wait to cheer you on as well as the rest of the boys next season.

Keys to the Game vs. Miami

2011-11-25T12:16:00.001-05:00

Keys to the Game

1W) Don't allow the big play

BC did a good job of stopping the big play last week against Notre Lame,
but Miami lives and dies by it. If we are going to win, Miami is going to
not be able to convert these

2M) Leave it all on the field

It¹s be a frustrating season for all involved from the true freshman to
the fifth year senior(s?). Point is this take it out on Miami. Leave it
on the field. Allow it to fuel you. Make sure that this final game of
this season is done with every ounce of everything you have and you
walkaway knowing you left every little bit of it out there.

3W) Scoring over 24

I am sticking with this. The D is going to be able to do some things, but
if the Offense isn't able to put up over 24 points, its going to make it
happen in Coral Gables. If Brock can show he can get a gameplan for over
24 points, it may leave us all on a high note for next year. If not, its
going to be a longer and colder offseason.

4M) Force Jacory to make the throws

Harris has my respect as an athlete and he can be a good QB, however if
we force him to be a pocket passer downfield and play back, we'll be in a
good position to force some turnovers.

5W) Defensive TD, LB

Mike I agree completely with your assessment of Harris, and if force him
to make the throws we will be in a good position.
Going off my last pick of scoring over 24, I think that the Offense is
going to need some help from the D. I am not going to say Kuechly needs to
do it , but our strongest corp is the LB crew, I think and hope that one
of them is able to do a pick 6

6M) o-line wearing down D-line

It might not pay immediate dividends, but we need our O-line to grind out a drive or two on the ground to beat up the Miami D-line and keep them from pinning their ears back and coming after Chase when we do pass.

7W) Max Homecoming

Holloway will be able to play in front of friends and family this week, as
we play in Florida. As Max has had nothing short of a very hot hand on
Defense lately, we will need him to continue that streak and show everyone
that it is actually more than just a streak, it is his style of play that
we can look forward to enjoying for another year! And what a great place
to do it!

8M) Punt coverage

We had an outstanding week last week with Quigs and the punt team. This week we'll kick to Benjamin and possibly others with breakaway speed that can make a big difference in field position. We need to contain the returns and have another great day by Quigs.

9W) ALJ

As ALJ has progressed as a true freshman, we were able to see him slowly
grow on a field, when we needed players in the worst of ways. Coming in
as a highly touted four star CB that we were able to get after he
de-committed from the U, expectations are high, and will continue to be. I
hope for ALJ to show the U what they missed when he changed his mind, and
for us Eagle fans a glimpse into the future

10M) Chase, set your feet

We touched on this earlier with the O-line protecting the QB but the other half is Chase finding space to set up and get his feet set. If his footwork is down he can throw a terrific ball--we need Chase to make sure he puts himself in a position to be able to have His feet set.

Worst of the Worst vs. Notre Dame

2011-11-22T12:08:00.002-05:00

1M) 0-3 vs. Notre Dame

It used to be us making fun of this game saying that a rivalry is a game where the other team wins occasionally. Now, and for the entirety of this season, we’re the punchline. We’re 0-3 in our last three games to ND. Yes, this one was closer, but they don’t give you “you lost, but hey at least it was close” awards. Spaz has never beaten Notre Dame, and has given us precious reason to believe he’s ever capable of doing so.

2W) The BC Tease

Wow Mike , that is definitely a gut check first round pick, I unfortunately agree.
On my second pick , I am going to go with something close to that. As the gameprogressed, I honestly thought we could get a W.. Maybe it was my own will but I was really thinking it would happen. But we just couldn’t produce the points to make it happen.

3M) The dropped D-Fletch INT

I’m as big of a D-Fletch fan as you’ll find, but he had a game to forget on a couple of really key plays. I’m only going to address one here: the dropped INT on the goal line. ND only wound up getting three out of it, but as it turns out—those three points could have made quite the difference and certainly would have moved momentum in our direction much earlier in the ballgame. For a player like Asprilla orALJ, or any other of the green D-backs this drop would have been borderlineexcusable. First game at ND, big rivalry game, not a lot ofexperience, etc., but D-Fletch has had all of those things and is a very good CB. That drop really hurt us early on…and sadly correctly set the tone for how the game would go.

4W) Freese onsides kick

Rightwhen you knew this was going to be what gave us another opportunity to win, or be the nail on the coffin. We all witnessed what may have been the worst onsides kick in BC history.
I like Freese, I really do he is a very talented player, but that onsides kick gave us no opportunity to recover

5M) Wasting Quigley’s Day

Oh man…Wesley, I couldn’t agree with you more. What a fantastic kick in the junk that was. I stilllike Freese and think that while this year has been tough for him, he’s a good kicker overall—but man oh man was that onsides kick a thing of legend (in as bad of a way as possible). If Ididn’t know better, I’d think this was a secret Spaz strategy to catch them off guard 30 yards down the field. Brutal way to end the game.

I’m going to flip the coin theother way and talk about the wasted efforts of the silver lining that was Ryan Quigley’s day Saturday. Simply put, he kept us in the game. If you look at the total offense numbers, it’s a blowout on paper. It was only due to Twig’s amazing punting day that we even stayed close. This is not to forget the awesome day the punt coverage team had as well—certainly not a one man show and together they were simply terrific. Truly a shame that such a performance was wasted on a loss. Had we won, this likely would have been a top 3 best of the best call-out.

Lastly, let’s take a moment toappreciate how GOOD our punters have been recently. Much of the talk recently has been about how spoiled we’ve been as fans/alums for the QB play we had prior to / including Crane (this is where most split). While that’s a fair topic, let’s not forget Johnny Ayers and his outstanding four years and now the three plus that we’re getting out of Quigley. You only really notice them, generally speaking, when they do something bad. We haven’t paid attention to the punting game inalmost a decade. We need to appreciate this fact.

6W) Not getting over 14

Really the Defense had a good gameplan and executed it. Holding ND to 16 points is what it needed to do to obtain a win, so I would say that the defense did their part. The offense on the other hand was nothing short of offensive. After being put in repetitive good position with the ball, the offense reminded me of groundhog day as it was uber predictable. Not enough shots down field, when tosses toPantale were working they didn’t continue to go there. You need to play to win, and I have to say our Offensive game plan seemed to play not to make mistakes.

7M) O-LinePassProtection

Agreed on the point line, Wesley. It’s a little sad when you look at this year—and Spaz’s tenure for that matter—and you realize we’ve only scored over 20 points something like four times in two years against FBS competition (Duke, Wake, Kent State, and Maryland. I won’t even bother at that collective winning percentage; you can make a healthy guess). That’s not even addressing the 13.33 (13, 13, 14) pts/game average in the three recent bowl games—not that we’ll have to worry about that this year.

Sigh.

Here with my 4th pick, 7th overall I’m going with the O-Line pass protection. Yes, I know they’ve been beaten up all year, but now folks are getting after Rettig more and more. I’m not. When Chase has time to throw and sets his feet (this happens maybe 1/5, 1/6 plays), he throws a tight, accurate ball. When the line breaks down, Chase admittedly gets happy feet and when that happens he’s as accurate as a drunk throwing beads at Mardi Gras—except it looks like he’s not having nearly as much fun.

So yes, I agree Chase needs to calm down those happy feet—but look to the cause…the lack of protection from the O-line.

8W) Hearing the ND band play our song

Now Granted I like hearing Shipping up to Boston over and over, and the Notre Dame band did about as well as any French bandcould do. But let me set them straight real quick.
That song is associated to Boston College, Irish and tradition. All things that Notre Dame has tried to be attached to for years, but has failed miserably.

9M) Jonas Gray injury

No kidding. It’s not like the name of the City of Boston isn’t right in the song title or anything for “Shipping up to BOSTON”. Sheesh. ….and these are the kids who like to pretend like they’re wicked smaht. What a bunch of retahds.

For number nine I’m going with the Jonas Gray injury. I know it wasn’t a BC player but the announcers did talk at length at how the young man has turned his life around and had worked so hard at becoming a better football player and person—and that it was all finally paying off for him and he was now looking like a strong candidate to be drafted into the NFL. It was very sad to see the knee injury occur and all you can do is wish this young man the best and tell him if he needs a roadmap for how to overcome adversity and make your way into the NFL, check out #58 for Big Blue on Sunday Night Football.

10M) The rest of the BC programs getting losses as well

Mike I agree, Gray was absolutely destroying us as well, he is just a huge back to bring down. Hope nothing but the best for the guy.
It wasn't just a rough weekend for the football team. Hockey, Basketball, and pretty much every other team that was fielded over the weekend came back with a loss.. A'int that a kick in the pants.

Keys to the game vs. Notre Dame

2011-11-19T11:24:00.001-05:00

Keys to the Game.

1W) Keep the foot on the Gas

28 pts or bust
Ok, Boston College has shown that it can go for 30 mins on offense.. I
hate to say it , but 14points isn't going to win against ND. It will take
twice of that to win.
28 points is what it takes, which really isn't much. But If we are able
to hit the 28 point water mark. I think there will be a W.

2M) It¹s the Holy War

What I mean by that is this: don¹t worry about the records. Don¹t worry
about the point spread. Don¹t worry about the expectations. Don¹t worry
about what the media is saying. This is the Holy War. These are the
only two FBS Catholic Schools playing football. Both with proud Irish
roots. Ours, of course, are real‹my ancestor¹s ship didn¹t dock in
Indiana. I digress

This is a rivalry game. Get up for it. Soak in the ambiance that is
Notre Dame Stadium. Know that despite what some of their lesser fans
might argue, this is a rivalry game and one which has never paid
attention to rankings or spreads. This is a rivalry game, and anything
can happen.

3W) Chase Rettig Rollouts

You know one thing that I saw in the first couple of games that seemed to
die off as of late? The Roll outs from Chase. Although I have seen a
marginal improvement from the O Line, I still like when Chase Rolls out,
and buys some more time for himself and the receivers. And I kinda think
he is even more accurate when doing this , as he focuses less on the
Defense coming after him and more about the throw

4M) no Redzone fumbles

We are simply not good enough to get away with fumbling the ball in our
own red zone nor can we afford to miss an opportunity to put up points
while in theirs.

If we are going to pull this upset, we need to limit the turnovers but
specifically we can't have the killer ones like we did vs. FSU.

We do that, this game gets quickly out of hand.

5W) Keuchly out tackling Teo.

Although I really don't think this is going to be much of a competition,
I don't think that I am going to be the only one counting and matching
these at home.
As both players we be competing for the overall win, I do think the
individual competition of who is a better LB will be an interesting one.,
and I already know who I would pick.

6M) team leaders providing the spark

we know the team isn't going to rally around Spaz or his incoherent
mumblings, do we need our guys to self-motivate and inspire each other.

Early in the season when searching for excuses and we and creative ways
to throw out players under the bus, Spaz said we lacked leadership.

Prove him wrong, step up and be a leader of yourself and your teammates.

7W) Trick play.

I don't know if it's a flea-flicker or what, but I want to see something
that makes me realize that they are willing to try something different.
No this doesn't include the Bordner option. I want to win the game, and
play that way

8M) Holloway making 'em howl

Last week Max had a breakout performance where he consistently dominated
the opposing tackle and harassed Glennon all game long.

If Max can keep this mean streak going and put the same sort of pressure
on Rees (or whomever else they decide to throw back there) that allows us
to play that soft opportunistic zone that Spaz / Govs love to run.

He was THE game changer last week, of we see it happen again this week it
could be the start of something special.

9W) Chase Completion % over 60

Now let me put the disclaimer that he needs to throw the ball over 20
times, but a completion rate over 60% is all that I think he needs to
achieve.
Chase has had some happy feet understandably, those happy feet have a hard
time being consistent, possibly utilizing draft pick 3 he can help improve
his % to 60, but by doing that, I believe we win. And 60% isn't an insane
number.

10M) Asprilla / Sylvia taking chances

Listen, we're 24.5 point underdogs. If we play back and just hope turnovers come our way, we might be waiting a very long time.

We need to take chances and be aggressive on D in the passing game and try to get interceptions and big returns.

I understand the risk on being aggressive here, but I think it's a risk we need to take to win.

Best of the Best vs. NC State

2011-11-17T11:24:00.001-05:00

Hooray! We won the Ginger Bowl!

-------------------------------------
1) Max's Motor

I don't know what or who possessed Max Holloway on Saturday, but I
sure
hope he comes back often. The last time I recall a DE position
playing
for BC that was as dominant as Max was on Saturday, he wore 94.
That's
Mathias Kiwanuka for those of you who thought Herzy was the only
great
Eagle ever to dawn the numberŠ Truly an outstanding performance,
multiple pressures, sacks, forced fumblefor
more out of Max. Just a truly tremendous game by Holloway.

2w) Rettig to Larmond
Mike I couldn't agree more, are we seeing the max that we hear so
much
about in doing camp?

The pass from Rettig to Larmond was as good as they come, perfect
touch,
great route running, and a TD what more do you want haha.. Oh top
that
off with mamas boy written on his towel that he displayed after the
td,i'm guessing this could be a recurring thing

3m) Bordner read-option TD

I absolutely agree with this one, Wesley--you took my pick out from
under
me. Chase has been beaten up--both by the press of recent and by
the
D-linemen coming after him this year--and this play showed all of
the
haters what he can do. Just a perfectly thrown ball with supreme
accuracy and just enough air under it so that a great move by
Larmond
off
the line of scrimmage was rewarded with six. Great call.

For my second pick, third overall, I'll go with the Border
read-option
on the goal-line. Just like we called for in the keys to the game
(link), Bordner caught
the NC State a little off guard and walked into the endzone for the
first
BC touchdown.

It was used again with not as much success (as it turned into a
reliable
QB sneak with little threat of a pitch/handoff and zero threat of a
pass), but this was a great play call and execution close to the
goal
line.

4W) Luke getting 18
Now you just read the number, 18 right? That's what most
statisticians
will read and say, another day at the office for Luke.. But then you
would
only know about 1/10th of the story. Luke had 9 going into the 4th
quarter, and injured his shoulder. I think a lot of us BC fans were
concerned about Luke's health, and sad about the potential of not
hitting
the 10 or greater streak he has been on.. But Luke came back and
made
9
tackles in the 4th quarter alone.
Like I said , you look at the stats of 18, and although those are
impressive, understanding that Luke went out with an injury, and
then
came
back in possessed is the real story.

5M) Chase to Amidon bomb

If you had the misfortune of watching the Florida State / BC game,
then
you know we rarely ever took shots downfield (or had the time to
throw
them, for that matter). This time, the line held up enough to give
Chase
time to move laterally and see that Amidon had beaten his man on a
"go"
route. The ball was actually beautifully placed in a space that
ONLY
Amidon could have caught it, there was zero chance of an INT on that
pass.

Amidon made a terrific adjustment with his body from where he was
towards
the sidelines, secured the ball and got one foot in bounds all
before
the
NC State Corner had an idea of what was going on. This huge chunk
of
yardage set up the Bordner TD run and put BC out in front--where we
would
never look back (strange to type that this year).

6W)Quinn Sack

Yes, Quinn had a penalty, but I was very impressed with the amount of
pressure that Quinn put on NC State, and really got the opportunity
to
demonstrate his strength when he was able to keep his pads low.

7M) Kickoff / Punt return coverage

It may sound faint, but TJ Graham is a game-breaker. The fact that we
were able to keep him under wraps and not allow him to hurt us at all.

8W) First half offensive play calling

Honestly , the first half of offensive play calling was hands down the
best play calling we have seen all year. There was plenty of different
sets, good change of pace, and was pretty successful ( would have been
more successful without some drops etc) with that said, the second half
was atrocious.
Dave Brock, when scripting a game plan, do the whole game next time, we
need it.

9M) Sylvia blitz

One of our biggest problems with bringing pressure has been when we have
blitzed, we've telegraphed it well ahead of time.

On this play, Sylvia walked up to the line and got a great jump, pursued
into the backfield and --this is the great part--leapt at the running
back and brought him down before he had a chance.

10W) Duggan
You know as Duggan is a true freshman, stepping in the starting role for
an injured KPL, he has done nothing short of an awesome job.
Duggan was able to grab a handful of tackles, and overall is outplaying
his experience. Has he made some mistakes, sure, but he is a very pleasant
surprise.

Draft 11-11-11: Keys to the Game vs. NC State

2011-11-11T12:52:00.007-05:00

We call this week PatriotGolfer week,as the old disciplinarian comes back in town, the Eagles will have their last home game of the 2011 season.

1W) Don't try to out TOB, TOB.

As it goes without saying, Spaz has a lot of tendencies of TOB, playing not to lose would probably be one of the biggest ones. It's kinda like thatmovie where the guy tries to outrun the semi truck but just cant seem to keep the gas pedal over 65 consistently. If we do get a lead, I hope Spaz somehow has a transformation and just keeps driving..

2M) Blitz Glennon every down

I’m not even joking. A joke would be “hey, I bet Glennon is better than Russell Wilson”. Glennon, like his brother, stays in the pocket entirely too long and often makes bad decisions as he somehow is able to sense the rush yet does nothing to elude it. The kid actually does throw a pretty ball if you give him plenty of time for himself and the play to develop, and a solid two yard pocket with no one pressuring him. In other words, our typical front four rush.
We need to blitz all the time vs. Glennon. Sitting back and watching him have time we’ll get hurt. Pressure him and we’re bound to get rewarded with multiple turnovers.

3W) Chase Enfuego

I somewhat disagree with you on that last one , as much as I enjoyed seeing Asprilla light up Manuellast week, I actually think we are lacking in a couple areas to be successful on that.
1)being lack of Defensive line push 2) KPL is out If both of these two points were different I would completely agree with you.
I think for us to be successful this week we need Chase to show everyone that he is the leader on the Offense, that means rollouts, shaking defenders and making good decisions with the ball. Yes I agree that the O Line hasn’t been doing him a ton of favors, but leaders, lead. So here is your chance to show that you are a leader

4M) All (a)Bordner run-option

Huh? The lack of defensive line push is *exactly* why we need to blitz. If we could create pressure with our front four consistently we wouldn’t have to blitz. Unfortunately, we do need to blitz to create pressure. Iagree with you it’s tough with KPL out, but his run-stop game is arguably much better than his pass D anyway. Duggan has been solid in his absence Ithink.
I’m still a Chase fan—I really am. However, I have to agree with a poster who I saw recently said he thought Chase was getting “David Carr’d”. I struggle not to agree with this. I think Chase is getting a little gun shy to the pressure—and who could blame him with the pass protection being what it’s been thus far. I still think he has all of the tools but they’ve not come together this year as much as he and the rest of us would like.
My key here is to run the Bordner run-option. I don’t know why it worked so well….well, minus the goal-line fumble. Part of it was just because FSU was unprepared for it, but as Wesley and I can tell you from seeing Bordner in person, the kid is physically imposing. You don’t think QB when you see him, you think slightly underweight TE. I think he can do some damage at this run-option thing and gosh knows TOB won’t adjust to it if it’s actually effective. I think we trot it out early and milk it if it’s effective.

5W) D Fletch – Lives!

I think the biggest positive of having Bordner in the game is the threat of him jumping in, as teams have to plan for it and lose the focus on the other items in place, so I like the change of pace.
Haha and I do followthe rationale of no d line push is a reason to blitz, but if your Dline is unable to #OccupytheOLine, when we blitz it ends up being futile, and we just end up with players way out of position for no gain.
Donnie has been one of our most heralded players in the secondary in awhile, although he has been very quiet this year. As it is his senior year, this is going to be his last time to shine in front of the BC Eagles Faithful, so it is time for him to add somefootage for tapes for the pros to look at.

6M) Coaching to win, not to lose by a little

Haha, I like #OccupyThe0Line Iwonder if the students are planning an event for *our* O-Line…. Sigh….

This is a little like your first key, but specifically addresses something that the media and the “roving horde of BC bloggers” have addressed ad nauseum this week: the 4th quarter milking the clock drive and subsequent punt from the FSU side of the field down by 30.

Even if you (I’m hoping a strong IF) have lost all hope that we can be competitive and still fight back in a game, you have to be aggressive enough for me to think that maybe you still want to try to win the game and do some damage. Spaz needs to put the kids in a position where they can fight back and try to win the game—not learn how to gracefully turn over and die so the final score doesn’t reflect how much of a beating we truly endured.

7W) Fan support

This probably won't be the most popular item on the list, but it is something that matters. As a fan you have an association to the team, whether you went to the school or not, you are what fills the stadium, what generates money for the school, and one of the most noticeable items when glancing at games is the fan support in the stadium. Heck when you hear recruits talk about things, one of the biggest items is the feeling / buzz during the game whether the team won or lost.
I agree, Boston College has a ton of hurdles. Lack of tailgating, Staties, rough product on the field, Unemotional coaches, etc etc etc. But as fans its what we have signed up for, whether we think the coach should be returning for additional year or not… As this is the last home game for the seniors , I'd like to see good fan support as it looks to be a pretty nice Saturday on the Heights.

8W) LB’s keying the run

TOB is going to want to run when he can. Yes, I want us to blitz and be aware of the hot routes (red seven…RED SEVEN!!!) but I think our backers can get the upper hand early by jumping the run and forcing NCSU to be one-dimensional. If we can force them to pass and get pressure, I think we’ll have a good chance at a W.

9W)Keeks being Keeks

We say it most weeks, but its very true, Kuechly week in and out is our best tackler, thisgame could easily be his last game at the heights ( something I hadn't really thought of before)
I hope that I am wrong, but it is very possible as he is already viewed as a first round pick. I would like to see Keeks going out whether it be the for the season or for his career with a bang.

10M) Freese hitting his mark

I think this will be a very tight, close game. One that is likely determined by less than a touchdown…which means that our kickers will most certainly play a roll. Freese will need to be money for us if it’s a close game and be ready to trot onto the field to kick the game winner at a moment’s notice. Get that Duke monkey off your back and win the game!

RECAP:
Wesley drafted: Don’t out TOB TOB, Chase en fuego, D-Fletch Lives, Fan Support, Keeks being Keeks
BCMike drafted: Blitz Glennon, all aBordner, Coach to win, LB’s key the run, Freese hits his mark

11/9/11 draft: Spaz's replacement

2011-11-09T11:20:00.002-05:00

It's been a ~~up and~~ down year for BC, and the one saving grace is that the curtain is certainly closing on the Head Coaching career of Frank
Spaziani.

Coach, thank you for all of your year as a Defensive
Coordinator and we appreciate you stepping up and taking thereigns when
we needed some consistency at the head of our table. We hope you
thoroughly enjoy retirement and visit Alumni Stadium often.

Since Spaz will be gone in a couple weeks, let's focus our attention on who will be replacing the mustachioed one at the Head Coaching spot.

Some are reaches, others would be easy gets.

--------------------------------------------------

1M) Mike Leach

Despite what you may have heard about him, Mike Leach is a good guy and
one who values education for his players and teams. In fact, while at
Texas Tech, Leach had the Red Raiders leading the country in graduation
rates for a public institution. Now, if you know anything about Texas
Tech‹that accomplishment is that much more impressive.

Leach would bring a long, painfully overdue level of excitement and
energy to TheHeights and create a buzz in Chestnut Hill that hasn?t been
here since Matty Ice and Jags were. Yes, he would likely take a couple
seasons to get ?his guys? in house, but I have no problem believing that
he could take this current team and turn them into a bowl team in his
first year.

2W) Ruffin McNeill, Eastern Carolina

I do like the thought of Mike Leach , and I think he would be a fit as well, but I think a some of the whalepants crowd would have a bit of a
problem with Leach, just based on the name, not necessarily anything past
that.

On my choice, I actually am going with Ruffin McNeill, who actually was a
DC under Leach, and is currently the HC at East Carolina. At ECU he has
done some pretty good things, and able to compete with the bigger
programs in the Carolinas. Although he is an ECU Alum, I have to think
that BC could actually give him a pay increase, something that they
couldn'tt necessarily give everyone.

3M) Steve Logan, Tampa Bay

Yes, THAT Steve Logan. He was tied to Jags and dismissed because of his affiliation bit at the end of the day he was, at the supreme least, responsible for one of the best offenses and teams Boston College has ever had.

He did interview for the position when it became open which shows his interest and unlike just about every other possible outside candidate, he know what BC is like and what BC is about.

4W) Al Golden, Miami

BCMike as I do like the thought as Steve Logan as a HC, I think it would take an AD change to make that happen, so we may see that opportunity.

I am going with Al Golden, as I liked Golden when he was a candidate in 2009, and went to Miami, but due to the recent issues in Miami, it seems that there may be an out clause for Al pending sanctions, see cbssports article (http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6270202/33070687) So we may actually get a second chance at what I think is a very good coach, who has some ties to BC and the NorthEast

5M) Tony Sparano

I expect Tony to be available after this season and I love his X's and O's.

He's in a borderline unwinable situation on the NFL and while he's likely to be kicked out of Miami he's be a big hot in Chestnut Hill.

6W) Bill O'Brien, New England

I honestly do not know much about Bill O'Brien, outside that he is the current Offensive Coordinator for the Pats and has ties to BC. But there have been current rumors that he has sent GDF multiple emails on how to improve the program and is very interested in the Program, and obviously has ties to the North East

7M) Rick Trickett, FSU

We need to get back to what we traditionally do best and that's the O-Line. Trickett is known as one of the best line guys out there and could help us earn back the title we've so clearly lost.

8W) Kevin Sumlin, Houston

Currently the Head Coach at the University of Houston, but has coached at at Oklahoma/Texas A&M and Purdue to name a few Sumlin is a tested Head Coach that has a proven track record in a tough area to compete. Although Sumlin doesn't have any ties in the Northeast, I still think he could be successful.

9M) Kirby Smart, Alabama

Kirby has followed Nick Saban around for the majority of his career—but wherever he’s gone, he’s helped make teams better. It’s true that Smart has no Head Coaching experience, but that’s why this is not as much of a stretch as some might think. He’s looking for a major program to give him a shot to be a head of a program and I’m sure he would rather have a go of it elsewhere other than the SEC attempting to rebuild a program and going against his alma mater, his mentor’s school, and his former employer (UGA, Alabama, and LSU, respectively), the ACC would be a perfect fit for Smart as he’d be able to stay on the East Coast and likely compete immediately.

10W) Butch Jones, Cincinnati

This one hasn't really been floated out there, but I think that it should. Butch ran a good program when he was at Central Michigan, and was able to compete with the higher competition, and now he is in Cincinnati and after a rough first year seems to slowly be getting his program in place, I think Butch has some serious potential, and could be a good Head Coach at the Heights!

Recap:

BCMike: Leach, Logan, Soprano, Trickett, Smart

Wesley: McNeill, Golden, O'Brien, Sumlin, Jones

Draft:11-3: Keys to the game vs. Florida State

2011-11-02T17:27:00.002-04:00

Well it is that time again, game time, as the Eagles come off of their first ACC win, they have a tough test at home on a short time of rest against the Seminoles of Florida State. As this is the first game that is on prime time, the Eagles will try to have their best game forward for the nation to see..

1W) Stop EJ Manuel

I am hoping to see a good amount of blitzes, and some great penetration by the Dline , as EJ is a Quarterback that can beat you in multiple ways. This game I think is going to come down to putting EJ Manuel on his back , a problem we have had with allquarterbacks we have faced this year and not letting him move around in thepocket, or have any quick runs. Already rushing for three touchdowns andhaving a QB rating of 155 means we have to stop him from being successful against us at all costs.

2M) Rise and Shine for Prime Time

It’s been a tough year, but now you’ve won a game (convincingly, at that) and things are feeling good. The spotlight of the nation is now turned upon you…at home…at night…in primetime. It’s time for us to rise up and play our best ball in front of the nation. Feed off the moment and play the best game of the year Thursday night.

3W) Deep Threat

ANNNNDDDD you stole my next draft pick.. Maybe that is a good sign, I think being ready for being on regular espn, not 2 3 or the ocho is a change, so we are undefeated on thatchannel!!
There is no doubt that Florida State watched the film of us vs Maryland, which must look like a boot leg tape of the paris hilton video, but nonetheless they see the constant running that the Duece did over and over and over.. They will be loading the box, trying to stop that run, which will be a great opportunity to dump it over their heads.

4M) O-Line U earning their namesake

While Deuce Finch gained much of thefame for his incredible 243 yard performance in the end-of-days conditions this past week vs. Maryland—and rightfully so—the thing I think most BC fans were happy about is how well our O-Line played. Truly their best game of the year and it wasn’t even close. For whatever reason—they jelled. Was it the conditions? The competition? The back in the backfield? Who knows. What I do know is we saw our O-Line dominate for the first time in YEARS against a D-1 opponent. It’s time to bring sexy back…in the form of our lost title…O-line U.

You dominate like you did vs. Maryland and O-Line U might just be back.

5W) Coaches take Chances

We aren't going to be favored at home, Florida has florida athletes, which typically we do not get. So to beat them we are going to have to go outside of our typical scope. We are going to have to take some chances, go for it on fourth, and play to win, not to keep it close.

6M) Superfans being Super

People in the media and BC haters love to give our fans a hard time…but truthfully, our student section is among the loudest, best organized in the nation. I’ll honestly put them up against any school, any day (it’s the rest we have an issue with). We need our kids to be hyped up and create a genuine homefield advantage for us…something that helps fuels our players and makes the FSU kids wonder hey—what happened here—and what sort of hostile environment did we just walk into? If we are going to win this game it will be a team effort—not just the players and the coaches—but the fans in the stands making Alumni the sort of homefield advantages that Thursday night games have been for our Eagles over the years.

7W) Secondary stepping up

Great Call on the SuperFans, I truly hope we look better on this Thursday night vs. our future ACC Brethren Pitt did last week.
As the Dline is going to be my thermometer in if we win or lose, secondary .. Is going to be the secondary. The secondary is going to more than likely play strict zone as they typically do, but have to cover their zone a bit tighter as CJ has been very successful at 10 yard slants and curls. Hopefully our secondary is ready, because I see them as a key to victory.

8M) Duggan doin’ damage

Still gives me the creepy-crawlies that Pitt is coming to the ACC. I was / am still all for Syracuse, but I could have passed on Pitt and been fine. Still better than the other Big East dregs I suppose. Moving on…

Sean Duggan has played very well as a true frosh when he was throw into the mix earlier this year and stepped up making his first start in KPL’s absence last week. He played well but we need him to step it up one more notch and be ready for the bright lights, big opponent, big stage game he’s about to play in. We know what Keeks will come to the table with, and Devitto has been solid. We need Duggan to dig deep and do damage (+5 points for alliteration, right?).

9W) Playing for something

HAHA get over it BCMike.. I actually see a value in Pitt over some of the other choices.
The Bowl game is still a possibility, although its hard, its possible. I think the playing for something can keep these guys going. So here we go!

10M) Get Pantale & Anderson involved EARLY

I know it seems like we say this every week…and frankly, I’m pretty sure we have. However, if we’re going to try to run effectively on the ‘Noles, it means keeping Florida State from stacking the box and from having their LB’s and Safeties creep up to help the run. Simply put, the easiest way to do that is to throw to the tight ends early and establish them as pass-catching threats. We do that, it opens up a lot for us…and we’re going to need a lot opened up if we’re going to pull this upset. Get ‘em involved, and get ‘em involved early

Recap:

Wesley: Stop EJ, Deep Threat, Take Chances, Secondary, Playing for something

BCMike: Primetime, OLineU, Superfans, Duggan, Tight Ends

Best of the Best vs. Maryland

2011-10-31T14:49:00.002-04:00

As we stated in the last post, if its a best of the best, it will probably get out there a bit earlier than a worst of the worst.. and well we didn't have to be held accountable for that , it was an easy one for BCMike and I.
so without further ado, here... we .... go!!!

1M) We won

Call it a cop-out, I don't care. We finally won a game vs. a d-1 (FBS) opponent and I'm flying sky high.

I'll have specific points later, but to me the best part about this win is that WE FINALLY FUCKING WON A GAME.

2W) Run blocking
Call it a weak Maryland d line, but it was exactly what we needed and called for in the keys to thegame, now ifthey would just involve the tight ends in the game outside of blocking

3M) Deuce going for double-deuce

Deuce Finch was apparently just slow playing us all. We all liked the kid, but I don’t think anyone had in mind his 243 yard, 2 TD performance. As Eagle in Atlanta pointed out, it wasn’t a couple of big runs that inflated the stats but rather a constant grind of 7, 8, 9 yard carries with a 20 yarder sprinkled in here and there. Yes, he had a couple fumbles—both in the red zone (one in ours, the other in theirs) which hurt us and could have let us get a blowout, but the weather was tough on all parties Saturday.

4W) Duggan stepping up

With kpl out for now with an injury I thought Duggan did a good job filling in and gave a glimpse into the future. And as he gets bigger, I feel we are going to have a great player. Solid tackler and good instincts, a lot like another player that came from st x

5M) Amidon end-around

Alex once again had another team under-estimating his speed as he took the pitchfrom Chase and turned the corner. Great blocking by all, but terrific job by Alex turning on the jets and zooming past all of the defenders into the endzone.

6W) Getting to actually watch the game

On Saturday I was actually in Pittsburgh, as some of you know I travel frequently. Well the duke tech game was running over and I started watching the game on my phone, the guy running bettis sports bar saw me trying to watch, came by and put the BC game on for me, I knew it was going to be a good day then

7M) Keeks INT

Keeks of course turned in another stellar performance racking up tackles and diagnosing plays faster than a half-hour special of HOUSE, but getting a turnover is always great. Keeks was WAY back in zone coverage and easily picked off O’Brien who was trying to force the issue. I thought for a second he was going to find his way into the endzone for a pick-6, but the INT wasgreat itself. Four turnovers on the day for BC, this one was the prettiest.

8W) Sylvia INT

To balance out the Keeks INT, The Sylvia INT was what I thought put MO on our side. Sylvia not only made an athletic move to get the ball, but was able to bring the ball back so the Eagle would be able to make a move with the Ball on Offense. Not too shabby for a Freshman, Redshirted or not.

9M) The Maryland Footballs

Honestly, this game could have been different if Maryland hadn’t dropped so many passes. Yes, I know it’s bad weather and you need to run to win, but numerous Terps dropped multiple balls vs. our Eagles. Conservatively I think there were 10 drops, but the real total is likely closer to 15. I don’t know if the Maryland balls were some sort of new Under Armour Hyper-Suck model or what, but the Terps had an unbelievably hard time holding onto the ball Saturday…which is just fine by me.

10W)Ability to do the Best of the Best

First and foremost , I am a BC fan, I hope that is 100% understood. So When BC loses I don't enjoy being clever on the worst of the worst.. I would 1000x more rather to do the best of the best, and frankly its easier, my kind of memory is more agreeable with the wins, rather than the losses. So I tend to remember the big plays of BC a lot better than the ones against them.

Week 10 Ballot

2011-10-31T10:07:00.001-04:00

BCDraft Ballot - Week 10

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	--
2	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	2
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
4	Stanford Cardinal	2
5	Boise St. Broncos	--
6	Clemson Tigers	-4
7	Houston Cougars	7
8	Oregon Ducks	--
9	Nebraska Cornhuskers	7
10	Oklahoma Sooners	3
11	Michigan Wolverines	6
12	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
13	Arkansas Razorbacks	-2
14	Penn St. Nittany Lions	5
15	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
16	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	9
17	Kansas St. Wildcats	-8
18	Wisconsin Badgers	-11
19	Cincinnati Bearcats	1
20	Southern Miss. Golden Eagles	1
21	Michigan St. Spartans	-11
22	Arkansas St. Red Wolves	--
23	Arizona St. Sun Devils	--
24	Texas Longhorns	--
25	Georgia Bulldogs	--
Dropouts: Texas A&M Aggies, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Iowa Hawkeyes, BYU Cougars

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

Keys to the Game vs. Maryland

2011-10-28T16:35:00.005-04:00

It's another gameweek, so its another chance to chase that W RIGHT?
Here are the keys to victory against the Terps of Maryland!

1W) Play a full 60 minutes

We seemed to play a great first half last week AT Tech, if we can
stretch the game play for thefull 60 minutes, we will have no
problem beating the Terps. Let's see if our Eagles have it in them
to do so.

2M) Focus on the dream

By the numbers, BC is still bowl eligible. I¹m sure the Coaches are
tired of listening to the haters, the fans, the blogs, the media,
etcŠbut what about the players? Want to shut everyone up? Focus on
the prize:
if BC wins out‹a tall goal by any measurement‹BC will go bowling.
Keep
the dream alive and play THROUGH Maryland. They¹re what stands
between you and your goal.

This is your Superbowl. Every game from here out is. Make it count.

3W) Deep threat
You know mike you are right, if we somehow put together a win streak
and go bowling.. Wow.. I may just have to go lol.
We do have the talent, we just haven't been able to line it all up yet.
Number three is a Steal. Larmond I am calling you out. We require a
few DEEP passes to Larmond for the W, without it , it won't happen,
Maryland's pass defense hasn't been overly stellar, so here is your
chance, you are a better than average WR, here is your stage to prove
it.

4M) Bring the blitz

Maryland is in a QB controversy and that means two kids trying to
prove themselves and likely taking chances they shouldn't. Let's
bring the blitz early and often and force Brown and O'Brien to think
quick while trying to impress--hopefully that results in some INT's for us.

5W) Scoring 24 points.

I'm making a bold prediction here, we score 24 {which we haven't
against div 1) and we win. That's all

6M) Be aggressive

We know what Edsall will be Ginger-like the same as Spaz... But we
need to be aggressive to win.

7W) O Line Run Blocking

Here is where I talk about an area that we have consistently improved
throughout the year. Run blocking has slowly got better and better as
the year has progressed. A back like Montel can help hide the
problems, but with Montel out the Oline needed to continue to
improve, and they have.
Are they great now? No, simply they are not, but they have
dramatically improved, allowing us to occupy time possession and give
our D a breather.
For us to beat Maryland as I took the Deep threat to Larmond earlier
is going to be to pound it on the ground, as Marylands rush Defense
is one of the worst in the Nation at 110.
Duece/Dre/Tajh.. Tie those laces tight! And just as importantly, O
line keep improving and making holes where the RB expect them.

8M) Chase being patient

Many times (and for good reason considering the lack of pass blocking),
Chase has quickly fired to the first option available...many times the
safety valve before the route has even opened up.

We don't need Chase to throw to the first safe, open guy-- we need
Chase to throw to the BEST option regardless of who comes open first.

Yes, the line needs to allow him tone to do this; but of they do we
need Chase to be patient and find the best man, not necessarily the first man.

9W) Don't out Ugly the uniforms

Haha, this really doesn’t play into the w/l column for the game, but as we are both Under Armor teams, and we will be dawning our white jerseys with stained glass and helmet with stained glass, I believe Maryland will be dawning another new helmet/ uniform design that hasn’t been seen yet. As I like the changes for our home jerseys and am fairly indifferent on the away ones, think we will get a reminder that we are thankful we don't look like Maryland

10M) Make big plays

When Mathias "Kiwi" Kiwankua was here, he would always tell his teammates "Make a play...make big plays", and that's what we need here. If you have an opportunity to hit a homerun, you need to hit a homerun. If that's a sace, it's a ssack. Maybe it's an INT for a TD. Maybe it's shedding that fourth tackler for a TD run. Maybe it's channelling your inner Usain Bolt and finding a way to outrun that last d-back on a fly route.

Point is our guys need to step up and make big plays when they have the chance.

We make big plays on Saturday, I think we walk away with a W.

Recap:

Wesley: 60, Deep Threat, 24pts, Run-Block, Unis

BCMike: Dream, Blitz, Aggressive, Chase-Patient, Big Plays

Draft: 10/26: Worst of the Worst vs. VT

2011-10-26T11:45:00.004-04:00

As the Losses continue to mount, there is no doubt that BCMike and I have a harder and harder time writing up the worst of the worst. Believe me , we would crank out a Best of the best with a ton more Vigor! But, we are committed in good times and hard times. The Tech game showed some improvement, but we still have some work to do, meanwhile, here are the worst of the worst from the game.

1M) The Tease

Allowing me to think how wonderful it would be to wear my BC shirt with pride on Monday, giving everyone a hard time for making fun of my team every day this season…then taking that dream away in the second half.

2W) The Halftime adjustments

Virginia Tech made them, and we didn't. We came out the second half flat, and with no more tricks in the bag, and our house of cards fell to the ground.

3M) Inability to diagnose / stop the WR screen

VT ran one WR screen to see if it worked. It did—so they tried it again—and again….and again. Each time we were equally unable to stop it. It was very frustrating as VT was pretty plainly telling our guys that "hey, we're going to keep on running this play until you stop it"…and we couldn't. Very depressing.

4W) The D Line

Do I think our D Line is talented? Yeah I do, but they lack the consistency to put constant pressure on a QB, or even to stop the run. Throughout the game our guys appeared winded, and just plain getting beat by the O Line of Tech, and I think our D line has a standard to live up to ( see Raji, Brace) and frankly theyaren't able to do it .

I am excited to see Ricci and Ramsey next year together as I think they have some serious potential up the middle.

5M) Chase missing the open man

It wasn't too often that Chase had enough time to throw and actually had a man wide open. Amidon (it waseither Amidon or Bobby Swigert) was wide open with no one around him. Chase put just a little too much steam on the ball and overshot the WR who could have backpedalled in. It's not too often we're going to get a TD handed to us on a plate. When it's offered, we really need to take advantage of it—particularly by a club as good as VT.

6W) Dbacks in the 2nd half

Something happened at half time, not sure if it was a make a wish program that allowed kids to play DB for BC or what, but after a stellar first half by our DB's they were unable to cover Tech's Wide out's , bad positioning, timing, etc. It really was bad all around. The Key play that stuck in everyones mind was our best player in the secondary Donnie Fletcher getting horribly out maneuvered in the end zone, allowing a Tech Touchdown.

7M) The "here ya go" D on the last drive of the 1^st half

If you're an Eagles fan who has watched our team from the beginning, you probably had a little bit of D?j? vu when you saw VT drive the ball 80 yards in the last minute of the first half. Looked an awful lot like Northwestern, didn't it? We played way back, looking to prevent the 50 yard play that was never coming. We gave up large chunks of yardage and allowed VT to score right before the half, stealing the momentum and leaving us with a "what just…just…happened…?" feeling on D despite playing exceptionally well up until that point in the game.

8M) Andre Williams Running

Mike you areexactly right, I think we all knew what was going to happen going into the 2nd half.

Let me preface this with I like what we saw from Deuce against Tech, and I know the O Line didn't do anyone a tremendous amount of favors, but where did Andre Williams rushing go? The Andre williams that absolutely crushed Syracuse? The one with speed, vision, and power.. It wasn't there against Tech, and I sure hope that we see it in the future.

9M) Jim Noel missed INT

Good call on Dre. I'm a fan as well, but he just didn't hit the holes hard like he has been. Not sure if he's still banged up or not, but we need him to WANT to run over people if he's going to be effective.

Logan Thomas didn't bring his A-Game vs. our Eagles, but we didn't take much advantage of it, either. On a tipped ball, the pass went up in the air and directly to Jim Noel. Yes, he had to dive for it—but since I've seen Jim make plays easily a hundred times more athletic than that one it's simply one he should have had and one we could have really used.

10W) Being 1-6

BCMike, I was REALLY thinking I would see how this loss effected your home life as the final pick ..

Like Mike stated in his first pick , we were given hope, but being 1-6 and our only win being to Umass, and making us officially out for a bowl game this year hurt, I cannot lie. I love bowl games, even the crappy ones, We showed a lot more fight in this game, but the result was VERY painful.

Recap:

BCMike: Tease, WR Screen, Chase missing, here ya go, Noel missed INT

Wesley: Halftime, Dline, Dbacks, Dre, 1-6

Week 9 Ballot

2011-10-24T09:52:00.000-04:00

BCDraft Ballot - Week 9

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	--
2	Clemson Tigers	3
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
4	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	2
5	Boise St. Broncos	2
6	Stanford Cardinal	2
7	Wisconsin Badgers	-5
8	Oregon Ducks	1
9	Kansas St. Wildcats	1
10	Michigan St. Spartans	1
11	Arkansas Razorbacks	3
12	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
13	Oklahoma Sooners	-9
14	Houston Cougars	3
15	Virginia Tech Hokies	-2
16	Nebraska Cornhuskers	-1
17	Michigan Wolverines	1
18	Texas A&M Aggies	1
19	Penn St. Nittany Lions	2
20	Cincinnati Bearcats	4
21	Southern Miss. Golden Eagles	--
22	Texas Tech Red Raiders	--
23	Iowa Hawkeyes	--
24	BYU Cougars	--
25	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	-9
Dropouts: West Virginia Mountaineers, Illinois Fighting Illini, Washington Huskies, SMU Mustangs

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

10/21/11 -- Keys to the Game vs. VT

2011-10-21T10:05:00.002-04:00

Keys to the Game (please also read BCI's Keys to the drinking game this week, it's a funny read).

--------------------------------------------------------

1W) Get Spaz to read previous weeks Keys to the Game

Seriously I think BCMike and I put in a good bit of effort to make this blog not just
entertaining but have a lot of technical thoughts put together. I personally don't believe Spaz puts the same thought into his game plan.

So this week I will be emailing him and GDF a link to our keys of the game, repeatedly, and I encourage all of readers to do the same. Most of our previous keys to the game , tend to be like groundhog day as we see the same mistakes week-in, week out, lets see some improvement!

2M) Match VT's early intensity

You know Wesley, I'm going to have to agree with you. I'm not sure how much time Spaz & Co. put into the game plan, but it really couldn't hurt to take a look at our keys. Can't get much worse. Maybe they did for the UMass game..?

My first key here is a simple one‹one we have not done the last two times Spaz has lead us into Blacksburg to get embarrassed on an epic level we need to match VT's intensity out of the games. The crowd will be hopping (after more than two to three hours of tailgating), jumping up and down, rocking out Metallica's "Enter Sandman" and the Hokies will be geeked early on. I'm here to tell you from watching VT at home on TV and in person, this team seriously feeds off of it's fans more than most.

If our guys enter the game timid and unsure, we'll get humiliated like we have the last two trips to Lane Stadium. If our guys can get themselves excited and ready to play (please note that I am learning from our staff and putting the blame/pressure on the players, not our coaches), we could have a chance to pull the upset…but if we get down big early, the crowd and that team will swallow us up.

3W) Tight Ends Utilized

Guess this Is just back to harping on number 1, but we HAVE GOT TO UTILIZE THE TE's, have to. Not just an additional blocker either, as potential receivers. Even if the DL is pushing the OL back the TE's should have an area to work as a escape valve for Chase, hopefully the Bye week they were able to test this.

4M) O-Line Pass blocking like the 2nd half of Clemson

Yes, it got ugly early in Death Valley last week, but the team did come back a little bit in the 2nd half. Particularly, it seemed like Chase had much more time to throw and really did make the most out of it. The first quarter or so I thought the O-Line was trying to murder Chase by allowing shot after shot to come his way, but they did not sure how or what was different‹in the second half.

I think I'm in the majority that believes that Chase is our guy, but it doesn't matter who is back there if we don't give him time. Yes, he still needs to get better at the short passes and hit the occasional wide-open deep man, but he's more than serviceable if we provide him time to throw.

That's on the O-Line. We don't do that, we frankly don't have a chance.

5W) Pressure Logan Thomas

You know , Logan Thomas was supposed to be the 5th coming of Michael Vick, well he isn't , and I am sure I will get hit over the head for saying this , but I do not think he is as good of QB as Chase Rettig, he may get protected a bit better and have some different options, but true talent, I don't think he has. That being said I would love to see us get into this QB's head, by having some blitz patterns chasing him around and making him very uncomfortable!

6M) Swigert breaks out...again

It's no secret that we'll need numerous players to step up and have career-type days if we're going to knock off the Hokies on Saturday.

My candidate? Bobby Swagger. He had a fantastic game vs. Clemson two weeks ago and looks to be forming a bit of chemistry with Chase.

We need the WR's to step up big-time vs. the talented VT secondary, and Bobby will be the one to lead that charge.

7W) Freese Making them count

Swagger, haha. You know I agree with your point, but I think you have the wrong receiver, I would probably have chosen Amidon, he has really impressed me as a gritty tough runner, although Swagger is showing some good skills.

Call me wearing the grotesquely maroon glasses, but I think this game will be close, and we are going to need Freese to show that he is the man, which I think he is very capable of doing.. Expect Freese to raise his longest Fgs.

8M) Beware of Long-Ball Logan

I've been ~~forced~~ able to watch a few VT games this year and there are four things I can tell you about the kids as a cliff's notes version.

One, the kid is über calm under pressure. Almost to a fault so. Yes, we can pressure him like any other QB, but he doesn't get "Glennon flustered" like a previous Hokies QB would.

Second, he's learning. He's not quite there yet, but you can actually see incremental improvement week after week. Yes, he still makes "rookie" mistakes, but he's making fewer and fewer of them as the season progresses. Three, he throws a very, very pretty ball. I know this really doesn't have much impact on the game, but you'll see what I mean when you watch the game. It's a bit of a long wind up, and perhaps it's just the abnormally long frame for a QB, but it's a pretty passing motion and produces a very pretty thrown ball.

Lastly, and this is to my point at number 8, he throws a very nice deep ball. This probably isn't hurt by the tight spiral the kid throws, but some guys are just very good deep ball throwers--much more than the rest of their passes--a la Auburn's Jason Campbell.

It's this fourth one that we really have to watch out for. We need to respect the fact that while he's only a Sophomore and has only been the starter for a handful of games, he's cool under pressure enough to allow a big play to develop and put the ball where it needs to be deep down the field.

9W) Youth earns its stripes

BC has some youth, but in its secondary it is VERY evident. Kinda keying on Mikes pick on number 8, I really want our Secondary to show up and play strong, at times the 10 yard cushion / zone makes sense, but your tackles have to be VERY good, well lets see that tackling!

10M) Tune out the critics, have fun

It can't be easy being a player at BC right now. We're in the midst of one of our worst seasons in several decades and we're entering the toughest part of our schedule.

The writing is on the wall that Coach Spaz will be fired at the end of the year, and that means a lot of change and uncertainty. Critics, writers, fans, alums, blogs (like ours), etc., have all been boisterous in their dislike of where the program and team currently is and where it appears it's going.

However, for the players to grow, have fun, and develop--they just need to play the game. Just have fun, guys. Go out and enjoy competing with each other against a great opponent. Give it your all, work as a team to accomplish the great upset. Learn from each other. Lean on each other. Hopefully this team will grow together as we plow through the bottom half of our schedule and if we can have some fun while doing so, I bet we'll manage a couple upsets along the way.

RECAP:
Wesley drafted: Give Spaz our Keys, TE's utilized, pressure Logan Thomas, Freese, Youth stepping up
BCMike drafted: Match VT intensity, O-Line pass block, Swigert, beware of long ball, have fun

10/17/11 Draft: Week 8 Balllot

2011-10-17T08:21:00.001-04:00

BCDraft Ballot - Week 8

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	--
2	Wisconsin Badgers	--
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
4	Oklahoma Sooners	--
5	Clemson Tigers	--
6	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	--
7	Boise St. Broncos	--
8	Stanford Cardinal	--
9	Oregon Ducks	1
10	Kansas St. Wildcats	6
11	Michigan St. Spartans	10
12	South Carolina Gamecocks	-1
13	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
14	Arkansas Razorbacks	-2
15	Nebraska Cornhuskers	--
16	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	-7
17	Houston Cougars	3
18	Michigan Wolverines	-3
19	Texas A&M Aggies	--
20	West Virginia Mountaineers	-3
21	Penn St. Nittany Lions	--
22	Illinois Fighting Illini	-8
23	Washington Huskies	--
24	Cincinnati Bearcats	--
25	SMU Mustangs	--
Dropouts: Arizona St. Sun Devils, Baylor Bears, Wake Forest Demon Deacons, North Carolina Tar Heels, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, Louisiana Ragin Cajuns

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10-10-11 Draft: Worst of the Worst vs. Clemson

2011-10-10T17:00:00.001-04:00

Wesley is away and traveling, so I might be doing this one on my own. We'll start off with my first pick and if he's not back by tomorrow, I'll draft alone (sad, right?)

Ok.... Worst of the Worst vs. Clemson....here we go!

-------------------------------------
1M) The @BCGeneD tweet

It’s one thing to give the fans of alumni a hard time if we’re winning loads of games and getting lauded in the press for how great we are. It’s another thing to do it while we are clearly in the midst of the worst season of football Boston College has seen in literally decades.

Many commented on the Gene tweet, most citing poor performance by the team, well below average coaching, boring play-calling, with some even commenting on the relatively lackluster home schedule. The truth of the matter, in my opinion, is that none of those things actually has any sort of drastic effect on BC fans getting butts in seats prior to kickoff. This is clearly an issue with the tailgating/gameday atmosphere at Boston College.

If you have two, maybe sometimes three hours to rush in, pay an exorbitant amount of money for a spot, spark your grill, find your friends, and finally get around to cracking a cold one you’re realistically looking at 1.5-2 hours of active tailgating. That’s simply not cutting it. If Gene (who I still support but is apparently intentionally making it increasingly more difficult to do so) wants to know why BC fans aren’t in their seats before kickoff, he should have taken a tour of the Clemson tailgating fields at 8AM, seven hours before kickoff.

Or at UCF at 8AM, twelve hours before kickoff.

Once you—be it a student, alum, casual fan, or family member—have had your fill of tailgating, eating, drinking, hanging out, playing games, talking football, catching up with folks…you’re READY for the game. You WANT it to start. It’s not that BC fans don’t want to go to the game or don’t look forward to it, it’s that College Football is an EVENT. The game is PART of the event, the showcase, the main act. But please, don’t kid yourself. Most folks going to a BC game this year, save the die-hards, aren’t going for the stellar lineup of opposing teams or the paltry 1-5 record. They’re going there to try to enjoy the EVENT, not just the game.

2W)

Week 6 Ballot (draft)...thoughts?

2011-10-10T10:24:00.000-04:00

BCDraft Ballot - Week 7

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	--
2	Wisconsin Badgers	--
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
4	Oklahoma Sooners	1
5	Clemson Tigers	-1
6	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	1
7	Boise St. Broncos	-1
8	Stanford Cardinal	--
9	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	--
10	Oregon Ducks	--
11	South Carolina Gamecocks	8
12	Arkansas Razorbacks	--
13	Virginia Tech Hokies	1
14	Illinois Fighting Illini	-2
15	Michigan Wolverines	-2
16	Kansas St. Wildcats	--
17	West Virginia Mountaineers	8
18	Arizona St. Sun Devils	4
19	Baylor Bears	4
20	Houston Cougars	-2
21	Michigan St. Spartans	-4
22	Wake Forest Demon Deacons	--
23	North Carolina Tar Heels	--
24	Rutgers Scarlet Knights	--
25	Louisiana Ragin Cajuns	-5
Dropouts: Texas Longhorns, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Nebraska Cornhuskers, Florida St. Seminoles

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

2011-10-06T17:22:00.002-04:00

Here are our keys to the game vs. Clemson, Wesley and I's favorite road every other year we play the Tigers. Unfortunately we're both traveling this weekend and can't make the game, but we'll be there drinking beers in spirit.

===========================================================

1W) Tight Ends involved

I know we say it like clockwork, but Spaz is clearly not getting these cliff notes I email him and GDF every week. In short get the tight ends involved, they are a talented group, and a good safety valve if the O line is getting beat

2M) Hampton Staying back on Sammy

Our secondary will have it’s hands full (more than usual) as we take on the Frosh WR Phenom Sammy Watkins. It’s been much publicized, and rightfully so, that Clemson has beaten three ranked teams in a row, so the numbers Sammy is putting up aren’t exactly like the cupcakes most D1 programs boast about entering the mid-point of the year. Watkins, in his true frosh campaign has 31 receptions, 471 receiving yards, and six TD’s. Put another way, he has more TD’s caught than we’ve thrown this year.

Clemson is going to look to blow us out early and hope our kids don’t fight back. We need to protect against the big plays and that means Hampton Hughes staying back protecting against the big play deep vs. Sammy Watkins.

3W Tahj

Respect Tajh, he actually is a very good qb who is mobile, fast, great at short passes and a great decision maker. Honestly all of the attributes in a qb that does very well against Boston college

4M) Dre, Deuce, and Kimble steppin’ up

Montel is out vs. Clemson. We need Andre, Deuce, and Tahj (ours, not theirs) to carry the load and attempt to keep the Clemson defense honest by having a good ground game on Saturday. I’ve really liked Andre when he has room, Deuce’s straight ahead power, and love Tahj catching the ball out of the backfield. All three need to step up now that Montel’s gone again.

5W) Remind Clemson who is who.

Its no real secret, everyone is holding their collective breath in Death valley after beating three ranked teams in a row, the are known to come out flat and lose the winnablegames, therefore screwing their season. In comes Boston College, with the ability to win games they are drastically favored against.., perfect storm? Possibly

6M) Stay calm through the storm

As Spaz reminds us at every opportunity he’s given, he’s chosen to play a ton of younger guys who may not have played at Clemson before. Playing at Clemson to a hopped up Clemson crowd can be very initimidating for a young team, just ask the young team we had two years ago (wait, how can we still be “young”, then? Never mind…) which put forth one of the most putrid offensive efforts ever displayed while wearing a BC uniform. We need our young guys to stay confident, and I know that’s asking a lot, but they need to try to block out the rowdy Clemson fans and just “do work”.

7W) Rettig leads

Your last one makes me want to play in traffic.

if Boston college is going to have a chance to win, Rettig is going to have to have a stellar game, allot of things go into that, but a completion rate over 70% and no picks is what to look for.

8M) Spiffy and Kimble

I have to say I like what I’ve seen out of Spiffy back there returning kicks with Kimble. Chances are pretty good that we’ll have more than one kickoff to return on Saturday, but we can change the momentum of the game with a good kick return for a TD…or, at least out to the 50. Our special teams needs to step up and help BC gain good field position for us to have a fighting chance.

9W) Offensive line Cohesion

Another one of those we have said since the first game, the offensive line has players on it, I truly believe that , the problem is they all break down at different times, and in short they just arent used to playing with eachother. The offensive line needs to set its groove, especially is number 7 is going to happen , they are going to have to help settle Rettig's (un)happy feet so he can have a chance to succeed, and our Rbs will need holes to run through.

10M) Coach / Play-call aggressively

Yes, this is a little risk/reward here, but there’s quite literally zero way we win this game if we approach our playcalling and coaching conservatively. On offense we need to take shots, we need to score. We’re not going to win this game by scoring under 20 points like we have every game this season vs. D1 opponents. Yes, we might turn the ball over now and again but it will be worth it, attempting to play the conservative ball control offense vs. Clemson is going to get us embarrassed, and in short order.

10/6/11 Worst of the Worst vs. Wake

2011-10-06T10:57:00.001-04:00

Another loss, another "worst of the worst". Yeah, we're getting mighty sick of it, too.

Good thing we're playing Clemson this week!!!

----------------------------------

1M) The non-safety safety

Yeah, yeah—I know, we didn’t lose by two points…but it did change the game and would have been a truly needed boost to our D which finally got some pressure on Price. We got screwed out of two points and a safety which would have really been nice.

2W) pass protection

Sucks, isn't there, and plain and simple isn't fair to Chase.

3M) Montel’s fumble

It’s great having Montel back, but a fumble at the goal line by anyone else and the fans would have been calling for blood. This was a terribly timed mistake and removed a “as-sure-as-you-can-be-with-this-team-this-year” touchdown.

4M) Sylvia getting beat on a crucial 3rd down

Not trying to bash one player, as it was a lot more than one play that caused this to be a loss. But it was a crucial 3rd down , and we got beat , which made a comeback insurmountable.

5M) Stupid personal foul penalties

You’re not going to find us agreeing with Frank Spaziani much this year, but this is one we can agree on—those two personal foul penalties were stupid and we’re simply not nearly a good enough team to get away with things like that vs. D1 competition. I know we’re all overly frustrated by this year thus far but take it out on the field the right way between whistles—not after them.

6W) Not getting pressure on Tanner Price

Mike I couldn’t agree more on the penalties. Another gripe of mine was not getting the pressure on Tanner Price that we needed. I think we are REALLY missing Kaleb Ramsey out there , and I hope that he is able to make it on the field soon. Although Kasim Edabali had a good day with some decent swats, we weren't able to consistently put pressure on Price. Even when we sent a blitz, it got belly bounced back.

7M) Timing the blitz by smoke signals

I love that we’re finally bringing pressure by sending LB’s and DB’s, but we were really ostentatious about it, bouncing around the line, showing we were coming WELL before the snap. Part of this can be attributed to the youth that Spaz has chosen to put out on the field, but let’s remember why a blitz works: The o-line/RB is confused as to whom to pick up at the last second, blocks get missed, and a QB unprepared to deal with half the time he had thought he was going to have when he snapped the ball now has to think quick or crap himself. If we let the opposing team know before the snap of the ball what we’re going to do and give a well-coached club an opportunity to adjust, nine times out of ten they’re going to do it.

8W) Fans

The fans did not show up, and I understand a combination of a bad product on the field, the weather, heck the announcer wanted to blame it on the Red Sox having their own debacle earlier on in the week. But I still think the fans should show up and support the team. Regardless of opponent, weather, event, etc. A fan is a fan is a fan is a fan. I think some people forget that fan is short for fanatic, how can you be a fanatic about something if a 20% chance of rain and a tough year stops you from supporting?

9M) Watching Grobe’s bag-of-tricks

If you’ve read this blog for a while, you know I admire Coach Grobe and think he does an extraordinary amount with what he’s got. Yes, there are ups and downs but for in-game coaching I think he’s among the best. He didn’t decide to go uber-conservative, but rather dug into his bag of tricks for that HB/Screen/pass flicker thing which hurt us big time down to our 5 yard line. It was like a little reminder of how creative and well timed plays like that can be, something we haven’t seen much of under Spaz’s tenure.

10W) Seeing another loss to another team we should beat

If you add all the missteps up, you do end up with a loss, but the most painful thing for me is that this is like Duke, NW etc a team we not only could , but should beat.. EVERY SINGLE YEAR!!

We are young, but we have talent, and it will eventually start to rise to the top, but right now its hard to get a home loss to Wake

10-3-11 Week 6 Ballot

2011-10-03T12:09:00.002-04:00

BCDraft Ballot - Week 6

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	--
2	Wisconsin Badgers	4
3	Alabama Crimson Tide	-1
4	Clemson Tigers	6
5	Oklahoma Sooners	-2
6	Boise St. Broncos	-2
7	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	-2
8	Stanford Cardinal	-1
9	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	3
10	Oregon Ducks	3
11	Texas Longhorns	7
12	Illinois Fighting Illini	7
13	Michigan Wolverines	4
14	Virginia Tech Hokies	-6
15	Texas Tech Red Raiders	8
16	Kansas St. Wildcats	--
17	Michigan St. Spartans	3
18	Houston Cougars	6
19	South Carolina Gamecocks	-5
20	Louisiana Ragin Cajuns	5
21	Nebraska Cornhuskers	-12
22	Arizona St. Sun Devils	--
23	Baylor Bears	-7
24	Florida St. Seminoles	--
25	West Virginia Mountaineers	--
Dropouts: South Florida Bulls, Florida Gators, TCU Horned Frogs, Iowa St. Cyclones

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

9/30/11--Keys to the Game vs. Wake Forest

2011-09-30T13:20:00.003-04:00

Fresh off our our ~~most recent latest meaningful~~ only win, we hope to ride the good vibe over the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest.

Below, Wesley and I take a shot at what needs to happen for our Eagles to get the W.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1Mike) For the love of God, make adjustments on D

Spaz was out-coached by Pat Fitzgerald, George O’Leary, and to a lesser extent David Cutcliffe. What did all of these coaches do? They tested different things vs. us and whenthey found something that worked, they repeated it on offense, daring our defense to change or adjust. As Eagles fans are all to keen to, we did not make any adjustments on defense and allowed whatever was hurting us to be replicated ad naseum. You might not be a huge Jim Grobe fan—but I promise youthis. If he finds something that’s working, he’s going to wear it out. Our staff needs to be proactive in changing to defend what is working for our opponent instead of laying back in our soft zone assuming that eventually they’ll throw an interception deep.

2Wesley) Forced Turnovers

Last week was a nice win, although it was against UMASS. But a big item of the win was the forced turnovers a plenty. 2 Fumbles and 2 Interceptions makes a win come a lot easier.

3M) Feed Montel

Last year vs. WakeForest, Montel ripped of nearly 200 yards and had three TD runs. Yes, it’s his first game back as the “starter” officially and I know we want to handle him with kid gloves to make sure he doesn’t get hurt again, but Montel has a great knack of not taking the full shot and rarely ever gets truly hit by an opponent. If he believes he’s ready to go, we need to rely on him and feed him the ball early and often—and don’t let up until he’s put up similar numbers to last year.

4W) Kuechly be Kuechly

Mike, I am sure I am like you and I am very excited to see Montel back in the starting role, and see him doing what he does best.

Unfortunately I see BC vs Wake being a VERY close game, and that pains me, but it is going to take something special to win. I think Kuechly's ability to take over a game is going to be what pushes this over the top

5M) O-Line run blocking

Wesley I agree with you—this game is likely going to be a close one. Given how the two close games we’ve played turned out, I’m not exactly excited about that. Hopefully you are right and Keeks will have an opportunity to make a game-changing play.

Our line played much better last week, although it was against a much smaller, undermanned UMass squad. The first three games against FCS squads didn’t go nearly as well for us. Our O-Line needs to ride the positive wave from the Minutemen game and execute up front giving Montel space to operate. They also pass-blocked well last week for Chase, I’d like to see them do it against a team that plays in the D-1.

6W) Rattle Tanner Price

So far Tanner Price has put up some impressive numbers as a Sophomore, he is 61 of 98 and has only thrown one pick this year to 6 Tds, which are some numbers as BC fans I think we envy. We need the Defensive line to show different schemes to get to the QB, I personally have liked the LB zone blitz that I have seen that sends KPL in. As our Ends basically try to just hold contain this gives a good shot up the middle although it opens up a hole for a slant or similar to a TE, but I like the look. We need more plays that get into the Qbs head, and more push up the middle.

7M) Continue to use the Tight Ends

I have to say I agree with you again here, Wesley—just like how last week I suggested mixing it up by bringing LB’s/DB’s/anyone with a helmet to create pressure since our front four haven’t been able to generate any, it was nice to see us selectively do it vs. UMass last week.

Speaking of suggestions last week, we finally got our TE’s involved early. What did that do? Well it opened up the field and allowed Chase to have his first three TD performance of the year. When the TE’s are in play, that makes the Safeties play honest and that gives us mismatches at various places on the field given the routes. If the TE’s can be ignored, it makes the game that much tougher for both Chase and our WR’s who have struggled to get open early on. We use the TE’s, it opens it up for all. We need to hit them early and often again.

8W) Build on the mo'

Yes it was just Umass, but I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried about the game last week. The team has some mojo now, build on it, be confident, and go forward. As the schedule increasingly gets more difficult, Wake is an ideal opponent at this point in our schedule.

9M) Play for all 60

In our first three FCS games we clearly were gassed by the 4th quarter. We know our games with Wake traditionally go down to the wire and that means the 4th quarter is going to be when the game is decided. We need to be playing for a full 60 if we want to walk out of Alumni with our second straight win.

10W) Offensive Game Calling

Mike I don't know about you, but I have really liked the offensive game calls (majority) over the past two games. I felt like we utilized a deep threat, slowly getting the TE's involved a bit more and are spelling out a run. Offensive line being the biggest area needed of improvement at this time, but as I have cussed the play calling in the past I have to say that this is better than what I have seen.

RECAP:
BCMike drafted: Make adjustments on D, Feed Montel, O Line run blocking, TE usage, play 60
Wesley drafted: Forced turnovers, Keeks being Keeks, rattle Tanner Price, buld on Mo, Offensive play calling

Week 5 Ballot (draft)

2011-09-26T07:51:00.001-04:00

Here's a draft of our week five ballot. Let us know your thoughts and what needs to be fixed!

BCDraft Ballot - Week 5

Rank	Team	Delta
1	LSU Tigers	1
2	Alabama Crimson Tide	2
3	Oklahoma Sooners	-2
4	Boise St. Broncos	-1
5	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	4
6	Wisconsin Badgers	-1
7	Stanford Cardinal	-1
8	Virginia Tech Hokies	-1
9	Nebraska Cornhuskers	-1
10	Clemson Tigers	3
11	South Florida Bulls	1
12	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	2
13	Oregon Ducks	-2
14	South Carolina Gamecocks	1
15	Florida Gators	2
16	Baylor Bears	--
17	Michigan Wolverines	4
18	Texas Longhorns	4
19	Illinois Fighting Illini	--
20	Michigan St. Spartans	5
21	TCU Horned Frogs	--
22	Iowa St. Cyclones	2
23	Texas Tech Red Raiders	--
24	Houston Cougars	--
25	Louisiana Ragin Cajuns	--
Dropouts: Florida St. Seminoles, West Virginia Mountaineers, Texas A&M Aggies, Fla. International Golden Panthers, Arkansas Razorbacks, Penn St. Nittany Lions

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

2011-09-25T19:47:00.004-04:00

Hey! We won! I don't care if it was against UMass, UMalaysia, or U-Haul, a win is a win is a win at this point.

Wesley and I joyfully give you our first "best of the best" post in 2011, long overdue as most would agree. Here we go...

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1Wesley) KPL TD

UMass was driving and looking like it was about to score, believe it
was Max Holloway that this the UMass QB and put the ball up for grabs,
when KPL grabbed it and took it back for a TD.

2BCMike) Chase to Lars

Getting the TE involved for the first passing TD of the year was a
great way for Chase to get the monkey off his back and show we weren't
scared to pass in the red zone.

Many BC fans were nervous before this game started, including yours
truly...but after this play I knew we were going to win.

3W) Montel back

Just having Montel back is a good feeling , although he didn¹t take all
the snaps, and looked like he still needed to shake some rust off, I am
glad to see him on the field.

4M) 37 yards, Chase to Larmond, Jr.

Beauty of a pass, great to watch Colin burn someone deep and get his
first score since the 2010 season.

5W) Hampton Hughes Pick

I guess I coulda just said Hughes pick, but I like the formality of his
name.

NFL in his genes, and the heart of a walk on , its hard not to
root for Hampton. This was the first pass of the game, and Hampton Hughes
did a great and athletic job of getting in front of the receiver in the
last minute to grab it.

6M) Montel 4th down carry

Montel's first action of 2011 came on a 4th down with the Eagles needing one yard. The first defender had Montel dead to rights in the backfield but as he's so often done, he found the space to get through and get the first inside the five.

If we get stonewalled there it could have been a major boost for the Minutemen but instead it allowed our Eagles to score three plays later.

7W) Freese being perfect

You know when your kicker starts missing "normal" kicks you are headed
down a slippery slope , and a potential point of no return that BC fans
are all to familiar with.

But Freese being able to beat the funk was huge,
although the game didn’t depend on his kicks, getting his mojo back was
huge, hopefully he can keep it

8M) Keeping aggressive in the 2nd half

Great to see us put a boot on the neck when they were down instead of playing conservatively and allowing them back in it.

9W) Kimble extension

Kimble did a great job of extending out forwhat seemed like almost three yards on what looked like a play that was going nowhere ended up being 6

10M) Keeks getting to ten plus

Keeks only had four tackles in the first half, so it was great to see him get to 11 for the game and keep the streak of double digit tackles going at 26.

RECAP:
Wesley drafted: KPL 96 yd td, Montel back, Hampton Hughes INT, Freese perfect, Kimble extension
BCMike drafted: Chase to Lars, Chase to Larmond, Montel 4th and 1, Keeping aggressive, Keeks ten plus

Draft 9-24 Keys to the Game vs. UMass

2011-09-24T09:39:00.010-04:00

Keys to the Game vs. UMass

1W) Forget that it is UMASS

If we focus on it just being UMASS, we will lose, but if we focus on

Them being the opponent of the week, and address them accordingly we will

should win.

2M) Play for Pride

0-3 start means barring something miraculous, the bowl streak is over.

We¹re currently the laughing stock of football along with Oregon State.

Let¹s be driven by personal pride and take it out on the Minutemen.

3W) Do the little things right

Do the little things right, the rest will happen. Make the field goals,

wrap up well. You are the more talented team, but that doesn¹t mean you

cannot be beat ( by any means) Do the small things, the win will follow

4M) Impose your Will

Our O-Line has been far from the BC tradition of O-Line-U, but

here¹s a chance to get ourselves on the right track vs. a comparatively smaller

UMass front four. They¹re athletic and no pushovers, but we should be

able to overpower them. Let¹s get our confidence back, let¹s get

O-Line U back.

5W) Half time adjustments

Make them if needed. It really is that simple, so far this year I

haven't seen any when they were needed, so we haven't been able to score much in

the second half, and our opponents have, unfortunately it really is that

easy.

6M) Be Aggressive

Playing conservatively has gotten us nowhere. We play this one close to

the vest, we will be in a close game in the 4th quarter which is

Exactly what UMass wants.

7W)Make the Kicks

Mike I agree, lets put it all out there for 60.. There is nothing to

really lose. Freese has been a version of Dr.Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde. He shows that he

Has the ability to drain them from long, but has missed some very standard

ones. Freese needs to show he is the man.

8M) Use our TE's (both) early and often

One of the more bewildering occurrences is the lack of usage of one of

our strengths, our great TE's. UMass may be able to selectively match

up, but won't be with two TE's on the field.

9W) Donnie Fletcher

Mike I think we mention the TE's every week, although we saw them in some

spot plays last week , I think neither of us are satisfied with the amount

of action that they have received. Donnie, this is your game to shine, you came back to finish your career at

the heights, and show that you have NFL abilities.

Injuries have slowed this course a bit, but here is your opportunity for a

highlight reel. LeeGOOOOOO!

10M) Don't coach this game as if your job depends on it

Coach the game because your job *does* depend on it. You lose this one, Spaz---you're out. No question.

Recap:

Wesley: Forget its UMass, little things, half-time adjustments, Kicks, Fletch

BCMike: Pride, Be Aggressive, Impose Will, TEs, Coach

9/23/11 -- Worst of the Worst vs. Duke

2011-09-23T14:12:00.003-04:00

So sue us. We're a little on the depressed side, if you haven't noticed. Here's the worst of the worst from the Duke loss.
------------------------------------------------

1Mike) Freese missing the XP

Missing an extra point is just something that never seems to go unpenalized. Sure, you can put the blame on Freese for missing the chip-shot at the end to win it, but let’s be clear here—we wouldn’t have lost had he missed that kick, we would still have been tied. That would have had us playing things differently from the get-go.

2Wesley) The same play

Bubble Screen was used about 2,264 times from Duke, and the worst thing is we didn’t do anything to stop it.

3M) Not centering the ball

If you decide that you’re going to kick for the win, take the play before to CENTER the ball. Kicking from that close in using the far hashes in CFB does not make that an easy kick. Yes, he could have made it and should have, but at that tight of an angle, I firmly believe that if that ball was centered, Freese makes that kick and we’re all collectively complaining how we barely beat Duke vs. wallowing in the new fact that we are one of only two winless BCS AQ teams.

4W) The deep tosses

Mike, I agree the ball should have been centered, but it wasn’t really what caused the loss, and it really shouldn’t have ever gotten to that point in my mind.

As much as I hated those dink and dunks, you had to know they were going to toss a couple deep, well they did.. And they were successful , and it was intensely painful to watch our DB's whiff on defending them.

5W) The FG miss

It’s not often you’re afforded the opportunity to correct a mistake in a game. Freese missed the XP earlier which put BC in this situation, and he had the opportunity to give the Eagles the first win of the year. The kick wasn’t super duper easy, but a scholarship players in a BCS AQ conference needs to hit that kick.

6W) The Stadium

One thing I would add is that I didn’t really mind the Offensive playcalling, outside of abandoning the run… no that’s not a segway, I am just trying to be somewhat positive.

When the internet was all nice and warmed up for me to watch the game ( yes that is pathetic) but the stands were barren. If we expect the product on the field to be somewhat decent, we should support the players accordingly.. I understand not everyone will appreciate the coaching or the end result, but we need to do a better job of supporting them

7M) The Gift TD

At least they were being aggressive, but our DB’s colliding into each other in a “Bad News Bears” style, gift-wrapping a Duke 50 yard touchdown throw to let them back into the game after BC started out10-0 was just brutal.

8W) The lack of halftime adjustments

Mike you stole my line, I was calling us the bad news bears all day long lol.. Good call

When we went into halftime, we were up, but Duke had recently scored. But we had plenty of time during the half to come back strong and make adjustments.

But Zero adjustments were made during the half, and the same things that were working against us in the first half continued to be successful in the second.

9M) The squib kick before halftime

Hey, if you’re in a game and the kick returner has already hurt you badly and there’s 10 seconds left on the clock—I get it. Squib kicking it is a good idea as you generally prevent any type of big return in exchange for giving your opponent cherry field position with what, maybe 4 seconds remaining. Doing this with over a minute and a half while your opponents have three timeouts left (and are unlikely to kneel down like we are) was borderline criminally stupid. Duke did what any team possessing a coach not fresh off a lobotomy would do, they aggressively marched down the field, judiciously using timeouts when necessary, and scored.

10W) The Spaz Half time show.

Am I being nit picky? Hmmm yeah I am. Let me say this, I think Spaz has a lot of passion, he gets after the guys as needed, shows some excitement during the game. BUT HE NEVER shows it to the media. Which is how he can interact with his audience. If Spaz wants to be all coach talk all the time, well he better start getting an unblemished record.

RECAP
Not going to bother a poll for this one. We all lose.

Week 4 Blogpoll Top 25 (Results)

2011-09-21T10:08:00.003-04:00

Here's the week 4 blogosphere Top 25 (our votes were counted! can you believe it?)

Results for Week 4

#	School	Points/blog	SD	Delta
1	Oklahoma Sooners (54)	24.68	2.33	2
2	LSU Tigers (39)	24.26	2.19	--
3	Alabama Crimson Tide (11)	23.17	1.79	-2
4	Boise St. Broncos	21.46	0.41	--
5	Wisconsin Badgers	20.22	0.62	2
6	Stanford Cardinal	20.13	1.49	-1
7	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	17.14	3.27	1
8	Texas A&M Aggies	15.75	4.10	1
9	Nebraska Cornhuskers	15.66	4.15	2
10	South Carolina Gamecocks	13.99	3.89	--
11	Oregon Ducks	13.61	4.68	2
12	Florida St. Seminoles	13.50	5.08	-6
13	Virginia Tech Hokies	12.89	3.69	1
14	Arkansas Razorbacks	12.88	3.96	-2
15	Florida Gators	12.05	3.44	1
16	West Virginia Mountaineers	9.70	3.21	2
17	South Florida Bulls	8.77	4.13	2
18	Baylor Bears	7.88	4.03	2
19	Clemson Tigers	6.50	4.28	20
20	Texas Longhorns	6.36	3.87	3
21	Michigan Wolverines	4.54	4.19	4
22	USC Trojans	4.53	4.81	2
23	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	3.42	4.14	10
24	Illinois Fighting Illini	3.40	3.93	11
25	TCU Horned Frogs	2.87	2.84	1
Others Receiving Votes: Iowa St. Cyclones \| Houston Cougars \| Fla. International Golden Panthers \| North Carolina Tar Heels \| Michigan St. Spartans \| Vanderbilt Commodores \| Miami Hurricanes \| California Golden Bears \| Maryland Terrapins \| Missouri Tigers \| Utah Utes \| Arizona St. Sun Devils \| Ohio Bobcats \| San Diego St. Aztecs \| Mississippi St. Bulldogs \| Penn St. Nittany Lions \| Ohio St. Buckeyes \| Iowa Hawkeyes \| Georgia Bulldogs \| Pittsburgh Panthers \| Notre Dame Fighting Irish \| Auburn Tigers \| Temple Owls \| Texas Tech Red Raiders
Updated: Sep 20, 2011 6:32 AM PDT

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Rankings 2011

9/19/11 -- Top 25 poll week 4

2011-09-19T10:38:00.001-04:00

Here's our preliminary ballot for week four....let us know what to change!

BCDraft Ballot - Week 4

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Oklahoma Sooners	--
2	LSU Tigers	--
3	Boise St. Broncos	--
4	Alabama Crimson Tide	--
5	Wisconsin Badgers	--
6	Stanford Cardinal	--
7	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
8	Nebraska Cornhuskers	--
9	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	--
10	Florida St. Seminoles	--
11	Oregon Ducks	--
12	South Florida Bulls	--
13	Clemson Tigers	--
14	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	--
15	South Carolina Gamecocks	--
16	West Virginia Mountaineers	--
17	Florida Gators	--
18	Texas A&M Aggies	--
19	Fla. International Golden Panthers	--
20	Arkansas Razorbacks	--
21	Michigan Wolverines	--
22	Texas Longhorns	--
23	Penn St. Nittany Lions	--
24	Iowa St. Cyclones	--
25	Michigan St. Spartans	--

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

9-16-11 Draft: Keys to the Game vs. Duke

2011-09-16T12:32:00.018-04:00

Keys to the Game vs. Duke

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

1W) O Line Who? (trademark'd )

Lately our once strong point has transformed into a huge question mark, at times we have gone from O Line U, to O Line Who?I think we can salvage this, I think we have the right players in place, they just need to all get on the same page and run the correct assignments.
But the biggest question is Which O line shows up against Duke?

2M) D-Fletch and ALJ locking it down

Duke has a couple of really talented WR’s that we¹ll need our corners to do a number on if we want to stimy the Duke Offense.D-Fletch isn’t at 100% yet I don’t think but we’ll need him to play like he is vs. Vernon and the rest of the Blue Devil WR’s. I though ALJ actually played well vs. UCF, evenif he wasn’t really challenged all that often.
If our corners can step up and shut down Renfree / take advantage of this errant throws if we force them, we could possibly walk out of Alumni with a W.

3W) Throw to the damn TE's

We have some Great TE's, use them for the love of God.. Pantale is a stud, and so is Lars, and their backups are very good. If the WR's are not able to get separation the TE's should be at least somewhat open

4M) Red Zone production

Not that we were actually ever near the Red Zone in week two, but

we were in week one and didn¹t convert.
If were inside the 20 vs. Duke, we really need to stick it in (stick it in, stick it in). This is a non-negotiable. We are literally one of the lowest

scoring teams in the nation currently.

5W) Dave Brock Showcase

Its time to shine. You know you have to think that this is a perfect storm for Brock to look great. 2 rough weeks and then lined up with an easier opponent, at home with a hungry team.. All you have to do is convert. So do it.

6M) D playing for 60 minutes

We clearly were not ready for Northwestern¹s hurry-up and despite a good three (okay, two and a half) quarters of defense vs. UCF, we finally gave up the ghost and allowed them to start to gash us late in the 3rd and throughout the 4th quarter.

We need to play 60 minutes of defense or be ready to don the title of undeniably the worst team in the ACC, and one of the worst teams in the nation.

It’s that big of a game, in a sense.

7W) Time of possession

While Duke isn't necessarily a possession team, they are more of a pass and score as much as they can ( which typically isn't a ton, but they take what they can get) BC will have to give the Duke offense the least amount of time possible to make something happen.

Last week against UCF the BC lost the possession war almost 2 to 1, therefore leaving the D on the field for the majority of the game.

8M) Throw a freakin' TD pass

Let's get this monkey off of our backs early. We’re entering our third game and we don’t have one passing touchdown? Seriously? With Chase?
These things simply don’t add up.

We need both Chase and the WR’s / TE’s / RB’s whoever the heck he’s going tothrow it to…to step up and make it happen. We need to make forward strides in this area.

9W) Out-coach Cutcliffe

Now I admit , I like coach Cutcliffe, I think he is a talented man.. I want to see Spaz out coach Cutcliffe, which will be a daunting task.

10M) Send in the backs

I think out-coaching Cutcliffe is a tall order, Wesley. I think we’ll have our hands full and I think Brock will very likely see looks from Duke they’ve not shown yet…isn’t that what YOU would do to a brand spankin’ new OC who has had the job less than a week?
Not that we needed the additional challenge, mind you. UCF provided a pretty darn good blueprint for others to follow.

For my last pick here, I’m asking Spaz & Govs to come out of our sit back, bend-but-do-not-break D.
Yes, in the past it’s been successful. It simply hasn’t been this year. We keep on giving up chunks of yards and consistently giving up positive plays, which keeps our D on the field long enough to get worn down, beaten down, and by the 4th quarter, run down.
We need to start CREATING negative plays on D, give our kids something to get excited about, a reason to get amped. Let’s start sending LB’s, start sending CB’s, start sending safeties. Mix it up. Create pressure.

We need to get pressure on Renfree and our front four hasn't been able to do that yet this year on a consistent basis. We need to bring pressure regardless of the risk that vacating the secondary or middle of the field, I want to see us throwing LB's and d-backs at Renfree to generate pressure and keep Renfree guessing.

RECAP
Wesley drafted: O-Line-Who?, throw to the damn TE's, Brock time to shine, time of possession, out-coach Cutcliffe
BCMike drafted: D-Fletch & ALJ on lockdown, Red Zone scoring, full 60 on D, Passing TD, send the backs

9/15/11 Draft: The silver lining from UCF

2011-09-15T09:40:00.016-04:00

Sure, Saturday's loss to UCF was demoralizing on many levels, and as with all game losses, Wesley and I were forced to write yet another "worst of the worst" post recently.

But you know what? There's always a silver lining. It can be tough to find sometimes, but if you squint hard enough and skew your view, you just might be able to find the good parts of the weekend.

Here's our take.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1W) Got to go to Disney

You know , Disney isn't just for the kids anymore, Iactually had a 12 hour day full of rides, decent food, and good times with friends,Orlando has a good thing going with that Disney thing.

2M) Free Crazy Bread

For those in attendance, you know that the announcer came on the PA and let everyone know when the score was 16-3 that if UCF got to 21 points, there would be free Crazy Bread offered to all those in attendance at their local Little Caesars pizzeria. When my wife called to see how the game was going, I said “WE WON!!....crazy bread”. It felt better than saying we got rolled 30-3.

3W) Max Ricci played very well for a true frosh

I think Ricci caught a lot of crap even before he committed to the Eagles, well he showed that he belonged on the field when he was on it. He constantly had a greatpush on the Offensive line, and I would really like to see him lined up next to Ramsey, as I feel like it would be our two best Tackles on the field

4W) I didn’t lose my wallet

I wasn’t able to key-in on Ricci as much as you were, but I have to say “I called it!”

http://bcdraft.blogspot.com/2011/02/draft-2-22-draft-new-bc-commitments.html. Max’s early performance is all the more impressive given that he and everyone else was under the impression he would be red-shirtin

g until he was called into action vs. Northwestern unexpectedly. I remember you commenting that he was one of the few DT’s who was actually getting a genuinepush up the middle.

For number four here, I have to take the face that I didn’t lose my wallet. I know, bizarre…but I thought I had, and this made the end of the day that much worse. Thankfully my buddy JC found it and saved me from trying to scavenge the bleachers and campus of Central Florida Sunday morning before my flight back to Atlanta. Let me also just say that as a newly married man I can empathize with all of you who have been telling me this sort of thing for years. While I was bummed about “losing” it, all I could think of was the hard time (and rightfully so) my wife would give me for losing my wallet after tailgating for 8 hours and traveling to an away football game. Thankfully, that conversation never had to happen. Easy top five pick there for me.

5W) Got a suntan and didn’t burn

You know if you follow @BCMike22 on twitter, we had a lot of fun playing the ring toss game at UCF, well we actually spent about 12 hours outside for the game. Well I got a nice tan , no burn,.. Good stuff

6M) Nate Freese was perfect!

Agreed, Wesley. That Central Florida sun was BEAMING early on. I live in Atlanta and I know you live in Alabama…but let me say it’s just noticeably stronger in Orlando. Thankfully we did find some shade to chuck the pigskin around in and knock back some brewkowskis.

Nate connected on 100% of his tries on the day. Mind you, that was one field goal and the entirety of our scoring for the whole 60 minutes of football, but it was a nice kick from 43 yards out. Can’t say Nate didn’t do his job Saturday—one of the few who improved (if not the only one who improved) from last week’s loss to Northwestern.

7W) Met some cool UCF fans tailgating

Let me just start with the UCF fans do it right, the tailgating is to a Tee, huge and honestlybetter than Alabama , Auburn, Florida, Clemson ,etc BY FAR!! Yes Write that down. We setup camp on the outskirts of the busiesttailgating, ( as we went the free route)

and were right next to a guy that had two grills, a deep fryer, a broiler and a gas stove.. He made his own wings, hot, teriyaki etc, was very impressed, very friendly folks as well.

8M) The Welles Crowther tribute

I have to say I was on “alert” for bad UCF fans given what I had read, particularly those near “Memory Mall”. While we were heckled a little before the game, by and large the UCF folks kept to the themselves and were nice when we approached them. I know one of them was even kind enough to allow us to use their grill to heat up some dip—so some credit definitely goes there.
As far as the UCF fans IN the game, I don’t really give them high or low marks. Some kept to themselves, others clearly were trying to start fights with our fans, and still others (sitting in the BC section) would just constantly chirp at our fans for no good reason. There were a couple shots leaving the stadium and on the way to the car, but all in all no where near as bad as I had been prepared to deal with, and still the majority supported the Welles tribute which earns very high market in my book.

Speaking of Welles, my 4th pick 8th overall here is a steal. While the game greatly diminished the overall spirit of the trip, one could not help but be moved by theamazing tribute the UCF & BC fans did for Welles on Saturday. There were literally red bandanas everywhere. My hat (and bandana) is off to the UCF & BC fans who participated, and for both schools getting behind the cause on such short notice. (insert pics of bandanas as well as pic of the Crowther girls here)

9W) Road Fans
The BC travel group was actually pretty strong! I would actually say they about 2-3k were louder than the non student crowd can be at Alumni. They stood up when they should, and stomped on the metal bleachers with glee.. The travel crowd was definitely into the game.

10M) We’re still in the hunt for the Orange Bowl

I know, I know…but factually, it’s true. As a BC fan you should know there are only two ways we ever play in a BCS bowl game. One, we go undefeated while no other team in FBS does. The second is if we win the ACC Championship game, we go to the Orange Bowl. While it’s completely true that no team in all of the NCAA has a worse record than our Eagles currently do, the folks at the Discover Orange Bowl don’t care (well, I’m sure they do, but contractually they can’t) as long as we win the ACC, which means only ACC games count.

RECAP:
Wesley drafted: Disney, Ricci play, no sunburn, cool UCF fans, BC traveled well
BCMike drafted: Free Crazy Bread, Did not lose wallet, Freese prefect, Welles tribute, Orange Bowl hunt

9/13/11 Draft: Worst of the Worst vs. UCF

2011-09-13T11:56:00.004-04:00

Well, our Eagles are 0-2 for the first time since...oh hell, I don't know and am too depressed to look it up.

Below are our takes on "Worst of the Worst" for this past week's game in Orlando vs. the UCF Knights.

==============================================

1BCMike) Not getting 1 yard on 3rd and 1, 4th and 1

If we are “O-Line-U”, then getting a necessary 3rd and 1 is a foregone conclusion. It should happen. Not some of the time, ALL of the time. On those rare plays that the D just happens to guess right and floods the gap you’re attacking, you TRULY have to be angry enough and embarrassed enough to shove it down their throats on 4th and 1 (presumably less by this point).
With the game still up in the air, down by 13, we went for it under these circumstances and were stuffed twice. Yes, it’s true that we’ve done that to other teams—but other teams aren’t O-Line-U.
I’m not sure we are any longer, either.

2Wesley) CJ Jones injured on kickoff

Now this is football and there are going to be injuries, but ones to people that show a lot of promise, on a team that’s already been through the ringer with injuries is hard, especially in an area that we are already very thin.

3M) 30 unanswered

Agreed that it was tough to see CJ Jones go down—I was looking forward to seeing him develop this year. I hope he’s able to rehab his knee and gets a medical red shirt—I assume he will.

On the same note—what’s up with using our starters on the kick-off team? I shudder every time I see Luke out there. We’re simply not deep enough to continually have more and more starters get injured on special teams.

On Saturday, BC gave up 30 unanswered points. This is clearly bad on two levels. One, we didn’t score past the opening field goal, and two—we gave up a ton of points for the second straight game.

Before Saturday night, that had only happened TWICE in the past 118 games BC has played. By “that”, I mean giving up 30 unanswered points.

Once, as many of you may have guessed, was vs. VT two years ago in Lane where a Spaz-lead Eagles team was thoroughly embarrassed 34-0 at halftime before throwing a couple meaningless scores up on the board. The other was back in 2003 vs. an insanely talented Miami BCS bowl team—and even then, we did answer late with two scores.

This past Saturday was the first time in modern history we gave up 30 in a row without answering, and without scoring a touchdown.

What did that VT team and that Miami team have in common? Both were BCS bowl participants. Will UCF be? They could be, but it’s safe to say that this loss to UCF goes down as one of the worst in the program’s modern-day history.

Tough also not to note that two of these three outliers have come on Spaz’ watch—both away from The Heights.

4W) Losing the time of possession battle

It's not going to be a bit surprise to anyone that BC likes to run the ball first, to control the clock , get the Defense a breather, well BC was unable to come even close to breaking even, so when BC is unable to get its bread and butter, it will inherently lose. Our Eagles lost the time of possession battle almost two-to-one, which I felt like the Defense played pretty strong for the first half, but by the second half with that amount of time on the field were unable to hold the dam, and the water gushed by.

5M) My Dad showing up in a USF Bulls Green T-Shirt

Now, this takes a little bit of explaining.

Here’s some important base facts that are necessary for the story: My parents retired to Bradenton, Florida about five years ago, my Dad likes to cheer for the local team wherever he is, and he’s been to BC away games with us before where fans have booed us for wearing BC colors.

My Dad, believing he was doing the smart thing by NOT wearing BC colors but rather supporting another area Florida school walks up to our tailgate sporting a USF Bulls T-Shirt. Now, as BC fans you might not know this—but USF and UCF hate each other with an impressive amount of vitriol. Think Alabama-Auburn but without the BCS AQ and mutual respect. I mean they *HATE* each other. You would think that perhaps my Dad would have picked up on this living in Florida for a number of years, but no.

So basically my Dad walked in wearing the one thing that would above all else send the drunken UCF fans (to be fair, they’re tailgating for 8 hours before the game, it’s tough to keep anyone sober for that long) into a tizzy while thinking he’s doing the exact opposite. While the UCF fans weren’t BC fans on that one day, they hate USF 24/7.

Thankfully we had packed another BC shirt he was able to wear instead, but watching my Dad’s face as we told him he was walking into an Indian Village with a “I’m with Custer” Bulls Eye T-Shirt was pretty priceless. Glad we had that shirt; otherwise things could have gotten ugly.

6W) Zero WR separation

Hahaha, that is just hilarious! Well it's only funny because you were able to outfit him in some BC gear.. Agreed that would have been a very unpleasant sight if he would have wore the USF colors.

On number six , I am going to go with zero Wide Receiver separation. I am not going to automatically default our WR's on this one, UCF has a very talented group of DB's and does a great job of defending the pass, but the lack of separation made it near impossible for a pass to be squeezed in to move the chains, and made it for one very long evening.

7M) Giving up in the 4th

I hate to say it, but it looked like we gave up in the 4th quarter. Yes, there was an early score in the 4th but the box score doesn’t lie—21 points in the 4th quarter—again, unanswered. Yes, we were beaten soundly but the final score of 30-3 makes it look like it was a thrashing from the get-go rather than the tight, albeit ugly game it was in reality for the first three quarters at 9-3. The offense did increasingly more three and outs and the D, particularly the D-line, just looked gassed once again and the UCF running attack started picking up steam.

It’s easy to get demoralized down by a couple of scores in the 4th quarter, but we expect our guys to fight with every bit of their being on every play. Part of that has to be attributed to the general lack of depth, injuries, and collective age of the unit—but a large portion of this has to be our coach’s responsibility as well.

It was embarrassing being a BC fan on Saturday during that game—but being a BC fan in the 4th was just brutal.

8W) Overall Line play

Now I am aware mike has driving it home as his first pick where he mentions the line. But I want to really drive this point home.

There was not enough holes being made for a successful run, the only successful runs were stretch plays. And Chase was not getting anywhere near the amount of time needed to complete a pass,therefore making have antsy feet. And I do not blame him for having those.

We have a lot of people playing hurt, and a lot of young guys on the line, but to be successful even to hit 500 this year, we need the Offensive line to dominate, or its not going to happen at all.

9M) Rettig firing short-range bullets

Listen—I’m as big of a Chase fan as you’ll find, but Saturday was not his day. While it was true that he wasn’t given much of a line to throw behind and the WR’s weren’t generally getting great separation, his short throws were borderline uncatchable sometimes. It seems that Saturday regardless of how long the throw was, no matter who the throw was to, it was going as hard as Chase could possibly throw it. On those short routes—which by and large was all that we ran vs. UCF, these guys are 3-5 yards away and are having the ball come zipping out at 100 MPH less than two seconds after the play has started.

I’d really like to see Chase put some TOUCH on the short passes. We all know he has the gun necessary to get the ball in to the tight space if need be, but on the routes where it doesn’t have to be 100 MPH it would have been nice to have seen him throw a more catchable ball to our guys.

10W) Starting 0-2 in the season

You know it's hard to dig out of a hole, but 0-2 to start the season, puts a damper on everyone's parade. Maybe we should start with cupcakes? Granted UCF is a talented team. 0-2 to start the season puts the team, fans, coaches and others all at a place they would rather not be.

RECAP:
BCMike drafted: Can't get 1 yard, 30 unanswered, Dad USF shirt, 4th Q give-up, Rettig short bullets
Wesley drafted: CJ injury, Losing TOP, WR 0 separation, overall line play Starting 0-2

Pics from BC @ UCF

2011-09-11T22:09:00.003-04:00

It's taking entirely too long to upload all of these, so...

HERE'S A LINK TO ALL OF THE PHOTOS

Hope you enjoy. If you want a full size version for whatever reason, email us and we'll throw it your way.

9/9/11--Keys to the Game @ UCF

2011-09-09T07:26:00.008-04:00

This week, we head south to Florida to take on the ~~Golden~~ Knights of UCF. While other programs feasted on cupcakes in week one and have another on the schedule this week, again we face a bowl team with BCS buster expectations.

Wesley and I will be at this game as well, on the sidelines snapping shots and reporting what we see. Make sure to follow @BCMike and @BCDraft to check in with our posts/pics during the game.

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1Mike) ALAMO UCF

Pissed that we lost the first time in seven season openers?

Embarrassed your line got pushed around?

Angry that you let a team who couldn't pass terrifically well take advantage of your soft passing zone which is completely appropriate for a passing team but is woefully inadequate for a team that wants to pound the ball up the middle or counter runs on the edge put up two bills on you?

Well guess what.

You'll have a chance to replay this game. Channel that anger and disappointment into making what went wrong right.

2W) O line U, n'sync

You know they day when you play golf, drive for show, putt for dough. Well I think this applies to football as well.

As pretty as that deep pass was, the o line helped make it happen, this week.against ucf is critical for the unit to get in.sync for other big things to happen

3M) Converting in the Red Zone

What's next Wesley, backstreet boys? Maybe some nice "O-town" in honor of Orlando?

Last week, we came down in Northwestern's Red Zone multiple times, coming away with 10 points (sorry, I'm giving 7 to Keeks for the pick-almost-six).

When we enter the Red Zone, we NEED TO SCORE. I don't blame Groza candidate Nate Freese fr missing two kicks last week. Know why? They shouldn't have been tried in the first place---they should have been touchdowns, like his one made field goal from the first drive was.

4W) Freese is Freese

Haha, I knew you would like that one. But I know you have to agree with me on that .

I am not sure you fans noticed it or not but last week, there was a zombie inside of Nate Freese's Jersey. I wasn’t aware of this until after the game , but it was later confirmed, and that Zombie was marched over to Area 51.

This week we will rely, when needed on the real, and very reliable Nate Freese kicking our Field Goals and extra points.

5M) Going Deep Early

Here I'm asking us to go DEEP early. That means Amidon fly route, maybe Larmond.

We need to STRETCH the UCF D. These guys are very stout against the run and we need to loosen up the secondary early and keep them out of the box.

We accumulated a ton of passing yards last week but no real bombs. It's time to stretch the field.

6W) RB showing patience and power

Mike unfortunately I think we lost, what would be a constant great option deep with Momah for the season, but I am calling for that deep threat to be used early and often, too.

Although Andre's numbers showed decent, I overall wasn't impressed. He tried to bust through holes with his speed and not his strength. I think he is a VERY effective back, and I think he will show more of what he is capable of this week vs Central Florida.

Hopefully Montel will get some Reps at RB this week, but I am not holding my breath, as his safety long term is without question the most important.

7M) Loading the box

Frey-frey attempted all of ten passes last week and by all accounts two of those ten should have been picked.

UCF has a veritable stable of backs who can all tote the rock. We need to stack the box and force Godfrey to beat us through the air. If he starts consistently beating us through the air, we revert back to put standard bend-but-don't-break D; but first make him prove it and clamp down on that powerful UCF rushing attack.

8W) BC players focused

Call me crazy, but I believe this will be UCF's Superbowl of the year.

This is the game they want all the fans at, This is the one that is televised.

After having our loss last week, our team is going to have to come out focused and not let the fans, possible downpours, etc be a distraction. We have to want it more than they do!

9M) Special Special Teams

UCF boats some of the best KR and PR numbers in the nation last year. Yes, it’s true this is bolstered by playing in C*USA, however they’re nothing to sneeze at.

Ours, however, sadly are. We called out our KR and PR team last week and didn’t really have much success with it. From being in-person and watching the game, there was a lot of running full speed up to the pile, then limping / mushing forward into the pile (the one exception was the one decent return Kimble had).

We need our guys to hit the hole hard and fast and earn these big play opportunities when they present themselves. On the other side, we need to make sure we are disciplined in our lanes and contain their return guys.

I think we all believe this will be a close game and field position will no doubt play a key factor in deciding who comes away victorious Saturday night.

10W) Keeks being Keeks

Luke had 18 tackles last week, yes 18.

As I am sure other players performance will be better next week, we need Keeks to continue to bring the lumber and be the rock of this team for us to be successful.

RECAP:
BCMike drafted: Alamo UCF, Red Zone conversion, Going deep early, loading the box, special special teams
Wesley drafted: OL-U being nsync, Freese is Freese, RB patience, BC focused, Keeks being Keeks

9/7/11 Draft:: Worst of the Worst vs. Northwestern

2011-09-07T07:33:00.019-04:00

Worst of the Worst

It's been a long time since we started out 0-1. It's also been a long time since someone has run over 200 yards up on us on the ground....and It's been awhile since we had put up 375 in the air. While there truly were a good handful of positives, nothing really matters when you lose. Here, Wesley and I examine the worst of the worst from our 2011 season opener.

==================================================

1Wesley) The last toss of the game

Not only did we lose some valuable time on the clock, it ended up being our last throw, which I was expecting to have three end zone chances.

ground for minutes after making everyone concerned about the seriousness of the injury, fortunately it was reported that it was nothing serious after the game.

2Mike) O-line U takes a vacation

Rettig scrambled right, and got blindsided sacked, to top that off, he laid on the Worst run blocking I have seen at BC in years. Pass blocking was bad early and got a little better by the end of the game but as a whole this was a day to forget for the starting five.

3W) Missed kicks

Mike I agree, run blocking wasn't near where it should be, I

am still not understanding all of the position changes on the line

(outside of injury) just a week or so prior to game time.

We have gotten spoiled with field goals lately, there is no doubt about that. When Freese missed two in a row, it hurt, badly. I think he is entitled to a bad game, but missing these could have altered the outcome of the game, hopefully Freese is back to his normal self against UCF.

4M) Not punching it in opening drive

The first play was a great play for BC and accounted for more than half of DreW

ill's rushing yards on the day.It was a phenomenal start but Andre got pushed out just two yards short.
Our inability to punch it in on that run / on first down / on second down / on third down gave NU the first real victory of the game as the Wildcat defense forced a FG instead of a TD shoved down their throats on the road the first drive / play of the year.
It as a huge missed opportunity and set the tone for the rest of the game--which wasn't good for BC.

5W) Mobile QB

Mike I have to agree there as well, definitely a momentum breaker, when you start off that strong you have to be able to finish the job. Andre ran high, and tried to beat

the defense with his speed only, he is a very talented back, but needs to be a little

more patient. I am not sure what it is, if we just have a mental block, unable to make adjustments, or what, but a dual threat QB continues to give us fits.
This is a lot of the reason that I was hoping that Persa would play. Id rather have someone that tries to beat us constant in the air than have to worry about them
optioning or running it themselves.

6M) Lack of vertical passing game (until it was too late)

Agreed with the mobile QB hurting us. Colter rushed 23 times on us and ran the

read option going to the back another 15 easy. We just consistently gave up positive yards and that hurt for sure.

Six here I'm saying lack of deep passing. It seemed like when we did actually go downfield, we had a great deal of success even tough several of those were lucky "500!" balls that Momah got.
Regardless, we continue the short passing game / inside rushing game despite facing 10 in the box on press coverage. We needed to go deep early to prove we were capable (link to keys) and we simply didn't do it enough to have them respect the mid to deep passing game.

7W) Poor Tackling

This is one of those things that probably irritates me the most.
Goes hand in hand with O line U, how did what we were known for end up being a weak point? There were several plays where we just had a hard time wrapping up

. I am not sure if this is attributed to youth, people out of position, or just a very mobile team. I expect BC to be able to be a solid tackling team, and I expect to see that soon.

8M) Being unprepared for the hurry-up

It was blatantly clear that our D, specially our D-line was

unprepared for the hurry-up offense that Northwestern ran. We were gassed early and gave up numerous easy four to six yard runs after plays that gained yardage.

I don't know if that falls on the coaches or players for lack of conditioning, but it was embarrassing to see.

9W) Not able to stop the line

Mike I agree, with being unprepared for the hurry up, and it made it even worse that there were no adjustments made.
On number nine I am going with the run d not showing up, another BC staple is stopping the run, they were number 1 in the nation last year in that area.. that¹s correct, number 1!
Meanwhile on Saturday Northwestern was able to put up more than 200 yards on the ground, hence beating Boston College at their own game.

10M) Forcing ALJ to play 10+ yards off the ball

I don't typically complain about the BC D-back cushion, but our staff had to

A) Reevaluate when Colter was the QB and B) when Northwestern through a five yard out for the 15th time to ALJ's side.

I get it that he's a true frosh. I get it that you don't want to get beat deep. However, you're facing a run-first QB that showed early he could not throw downfield early if any pressure was applied.

This non-adjustment allowed NW to drive down the field in the last two minutes of the first half in painfully easy fashion and tie the game up before halftime.

RECAP
Wesley drafted: Last toss, missed kicks, mobile QB, poor tackling, unable to stop the line
BCMike drafted: O-Line U vaca, not punching it in, no vert passing, unprepared 4 hurry up, ALJ cushion

Week 2 Poll

2011-09-05T12:04:00.001-04:00

Let us know what you think....feedback will help us change it for the final submission...

BCDraft Ballot - Week 2

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Oklahoma Sooners	--
2	LSU Tigers	6
3	Boise St. Broncos	2
4	Stanford Cardinal	-1
5	Alabama Crimson Tide	-1
6	Virginia Tech Hokies	--
7	Wisconsin Badgers	--
8	Florida St. Seminoles	1
9	Oklahoma St. Cowboys	1
10	South Carolina Gamecocks	3
11	Nebraska Cornhuskers	3
12	Baylor Bears	--
13	Oregon Ducks	-11
14	Central Florida Knights	6
15	Michigan St. Spartans	--
16	Northwestern Wildcats	6
17	Ohio St. Buckeyes	6
18	Iowa Hawkeyes	--
19	Penn St. Nittany Lions	--
20	BYU Cougars	--
21	Mississippi St. Bulldogs	--
22	Arkansas Razorbacks	-1
23	Florida Gators	--
24	West Virginia Mountaineers	-6
25	Maryland Terrapins	--
Dropouts: Auburn Tigers, TCU Horned Frogs, Texas A&M Aggies, Missouri Tigers, Mississippi Rebels, Arizona St. Sun Devils

SB Nation BlogPoll College Football Top 25 Rankings »

8/2/11 -- Keys to the Game vs. Northwestern

2011-09-02T07:31:00.006-04:00

Folks, it's finally here! Game one of the 2011 season vs. the Northwestern Wildcats starts tomorrow at noon. If you're going to be at Alumni Stadium, keep your eyes out for Wesley and I, make sure to stop by and grab a beer with us. We'll be the ones grabbing beers from everyone else.

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1M) Pressure Persa

Yes, we know that Persa is questionable, but if he¹s not and Colter starts; the same goes for him ten-fold.

Our defense is effective at preventing the score and generating turnovers. The Wilcats will likely move the ball with relative ease between the 20¹s, but they'll find it much tougher to do so once near the Red Zone. Our D will do a fine job regardless, but if we can actually PUT PRESSURE on him and force him to be aggressive, our chances at a turnover increase dramatically. If we give him enough time back there, I feel confident that he'll able to eventually find the open man and make us pay. The front four need to generate a pass rush and make the Northwestern QB throw it before he wants to. Back seven just do what you do man.

2W) Cohesive Offensive line for the Eagles

With the recent changes of Center Guard and tackle for the Eagles I am a bit concerned if they have had the opportunity to gel enough to function well as a collective unit, if not this could be an issue as they will be unable to create holes where a run needs to exist or provide the amount of protection that Rettig needs to do a few check-downs. If they do gel, they should be able to push the previously weak D-line by Northwestern around to their liking, and therefore having offensive successes.

3M) Prove to them that Goodnight Gary is gone

Teams were used to loading the box on us first and second downs. We need to come out aggressive and show we're willing to pass on any down and to any distance.

I'm calling for some aggressive pass calls early and often so the D is forced to relax a little and open it up some for Dre Will.

4W) Covering Northwestern's Wide outs

Persa is going to be the one getting all of the hype, but as with most story lines in the world there are definitely two sides.

Persa, or whomever ends up tossing the ball come game-time, has some options to throw to, but most notable is going to be Jeremy Ebert, a senior listed as one of the best in the Big Ten. He averaged 15.4 yards per catch last year, and would like to do it again this year. With our secondary in so much flux they will have their hands full covering Northwestern's talented Receivers.

5M) Kicking butt on kick returns

Good call with the wide-outs, Wesley--there are two sides for sure.

Next up, I'm going with our kick and punt return teams. Did you know that last season BC had one of the worst KR/PR stats in the NATION?

It's true, worst in ACC and 3rd worst in the nation. We need newly appointed returner Bobby Swigert & Co to give Rettig and the offense workable field position.

6W) Kaleb Ramsey ready

With a couple of true freshman on the d line, we really need the anchor at d-tackle, for both leadership and experience.

I believe we have that angry bull rusher rusher Ramsey, the only concern is if he has adequately healed to demonstrate his dominance.

7M) Hampton Hughes hangin'

Hampton Hughes hasn't played a whole lot of of college football yet. He has only been on the defensive ball for a couple weeks since being moved over from the WR group. If you were the o-coordinator for Northwestern...would you go after him? Know I would.

Hampton needs to be up to the task and alert early. If he gets beat early in the game it will be tough to keep playing confidently In his new job.

8W) Andre's ankle

Andre sprained his ankle about a week and a half ago, and a great depth at RB became a scary thin one. Oh what a difference a week makes, Andre says he is going to play like he is 100% but isn't necessarily commenting whether he really is or not . As much as I would love to see us have an arial attack against the Cats, they have repeatedly shown they are next to putrid against the run.

Dominating the ball control with the ground and pound isnt the most sexy gameplan, but it is something that I think we should start with, and Andre will be key to that.
Our other Rbs that are not recovering from injuries didn’t take a snap last year, so having Andre healthy is going to be VERY key.

9M) Keeks being Keeks

Luke received a lot of press this off-season; and deservedly so. However, it's human nature to want to show off when expectations are as high as they are with many calling him the nation's best LB.

Luke needs to relax and play his game that got him all of the accolades he's received thus far.

10W) Fan support

Mike I agree, Keeks has gotten some serious hype, I think he comes through on the delivering as he did his previous two years, but we will see.

On my final pick , I am going with fan support, its going to be a day game, and our first game of the season, with an opponent that our fans will recognize, but not feel is a direct rival, Make no bones about it , NW is a quality opponent, especially for an opener. The team will need the support of the fans to have a form of home field advantage.

RECAP:
BCMike drafted: Pressure Persa, NO Tranq, Kick returns, Hughes hangin, Keeks being Keeks
Wesley drafted: Cohesive OL, NU WR's, Ramsey ready, Andre's ankle, Fan support

Draft 11-11-11: Keys to the Game vs. NC State
	Wesley drafted: Dont out TOB TOB, Chase en fuego, D-Fletch Lives, Fan Support, Keeks being Keeks
	BCMike drafted: Blitz Glennon, all Bordner, Coach to win, LBs key the run, Freese hits his mark

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Keys to the Game vs. VT
	Wesley: Give Spaz our Keys, TE's utilized, pressure Logan Thomas, Freese, Youth stepping up
	BCMike: Match VT intensity, O-Line pass block, Swigert, beware of long ball, have fun

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9-30-11 Draft: Keys vs. Wake Forest
	BCMike: Make adjustments on D, Feed Montel, O Line run blocking, TE usage, play 60
	Wesley: Forced turnovers, Keeks being Keeks, rattle Tanner Price, buld on Mo, Offensive play calling

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9/25/11 Draft: Best of the Best vs. UMass
	Wesley: KPL 96 yd td, Montel back, Hampton Hughes INT, Freese perfect, Kimble extension
	BCMike: Chase to Lars, Chase to Larmond, Montel 4th and 1, Keeping aggressive, Keeks ten plus

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9-16-11 Draft: Keys to the Game vs. Duke
	W: O-Line-Who?, throw to the damn TE's, Brock time to shine, time of possession, out-coach Cutcliffe
	BCM: D-Fletch n ALJ on lockdown, Red Zone scoring, full 60 on D, Passing TD, send the backs

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11-9 draft: Spaz's Replacement
	BCMike: Leach, Logan, Soprano, Trickett, Smart
	Wesley: McNeill, Golden, O'Brien, Sumlin, Jones

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Draft:11-3: Keys to the game vs. Florida State
	Wesley: Stop EJ, Deep Threat, Take Chances, Secondary, Playing for something
	BCMike: Primetime, OLineU, Superfans, Duggan, Tight Ends

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Keys to the Game vs. Maryland
	Wesley: 60, Deep Threat, 24pts, Run-Block, Unis
	BCMike: Dream, Blitz, Aggressive, Chase-Patient, Big Plays

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Draft: 10-26: Worst of the Worst vs. VT
	BCMike: Tease, WR Screen, Chase missing, here ya go, Noel missed INT
	Wesley: Halftime, Dline, Dbacks, Dre, 1-6

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Draft 9-24 Keys to the Game vs. UMass
	Wesley: Forget its UMass, little things, half-time adjustments, Kicks, Fletch
	BCMike: Pride, Be Aggressive, Impose Will, TEs, Coach

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9-15-11 Draft: The UCF Weekend Silver Lining
	Wesley: Disney, Ricci play, no sunburn, cool UCF fans, BC traveled well
	BCMike: Free Crazy Bread, Did not lose wallet, Freese prefect, Welles tribute, Orange Bowl hunt

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9-13-11 Worst of the Worst vs. UCF
	BCMike: Can't get 1 yard, 30 unanswered, Dad USF shirt, 4th Q give-up, Rettig short bullets
	Wesley: CJ injury, Losing TOP, WR 0 separation, overall line play Starting 0-2

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9-9-11 Draft: Keys to the Game @ UCF
	BCMike: Alamo UCF, Red Zone conversion, Going deep early, loading the box, special special teams
	Wesley: OL-U being nsync, Freese is Freese, RB patience, BC focused, Keeks being Keeks

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9-7-11 Draft: Worst of the Worst vs. Northwestern
	W: Last toss, missed kicks, mobile QB, poor tackling, unable to stop the line
	M: O-Line U vaca, not punching it in, no vert passing, unprepared 4 hurry up, ALJ cushion

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8-2-11 Keys to the Game vs. Northwestern
	BCMike: Pressure Persa, NO Tranq, Kick returns, Hughes hangin, Keeks being Keeks
	Wesley: Cohesive OL, NU WR's, Ramsey ready, Andre's ankle, Fan support

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