Sunday, November 08, 2015

Second viewing thoughts and grades: NC State

That was a frustrating re-watch. Not just because of the losing or the lack of energy. I am concerned because Fadule made things look better than they were or are. That's disconcerting when you only score eight points.

Offense: D

I don't want to predict or project too much on Fadule. I don't know if he can be a star or even lead us to a win. All I know is he's playing well for now. He made things happen and many of our best plays came when plays broke down and he found someone downfield. He showed good touch on his passes. The first INT wasn't really his fault. The second two he was just forcing things while trying to get BC on the scoreboard. I don't think he makes the best decisions on the reads or when to run. I also think he's got to be more careful when the pocket is collapsing.

The running backs didn't do much but that was because they weren't given much in the way of good blocking. Rouse had a few big runs up the middle, but nothing where he made a great play. Outlow had a nice catch and I was reminded that we should throw to him more often. Willis was bottled up. Wilson was fine in limited touches. Wofford was fine.

Thadd Smith played well. He made some nice catches and showed the ability to win one on one battles. Robinson looked good after the catch. I was frustrated by Dudeck being short of the first down multiple times, but he was really trying to bail Fadule out. Callinan had a few nice plays. As a whole this group's blocking was bad and kept a few plays from breaking. (Louie had a terrible block on one of Smith's sweeps.)

The Offensive Line did not play well. I've been praising Baker for weeks, but this game was not his best. He was overpowered repeatedly. Lindstrom also has some issues. Bowen played a bit better. Williams was not good again. I get so frustrated when he is literally blocking no one and standing there as a play breaks down around him.

Aside from criticizing the development of the Offensive line, I feel like Fitch and Addazio are failing the team in how they prepare and plan. Take all the options and read plays we have. By design these plays leave a man unblocked. In theory the unblocked player is far enough from the action or such a weakness on the other team that he won't impact the play. That didn't happen against NC State. Over and over, the unblocked man burst into the backfield to blow up the play. How does that happen? It is either bad design or bad scouting. But it is a coaching issue. I also get frustrated as we run sweeps or flanker screens and the downfield blocking is embarrassing. Why are we running these plays? Are they executing in practice? I don't know, but they've been drive killers. I also wonder why we have so many slow developing plays with an offensive line that cannot sustain blocks. Keep it simple. All of it. Good OCs tailor their schemes to their roster's strengths or create such a simple and consistent system, that they can plug in any player and still move the ball. We have neither.

Defense: B-

After a few slow weeks Landry bounced back and played well. Kavalec also looked better. NC State contained Wujciak and it impacted everything. Gutapfel was fine.

Strachan played very well and was forced into coverage often. He acquitted himself there too. Milano played well and was very active. Even before he got dinged up Daniels wasn't his normal disruptive self.

NC State went after Torres and McClary and came out ahead. That's not meant to bury those guys -- who were okay -- but to point out how dependent we were on Yiadom and Moore. Simmons played well and so did Johnson. There was a little confusion on the first TD, but all of the big plays were in part because we didn't get enough pressure up front. Harris got lots of playing time and looked good.

I feel the big plays and the score were a bit misleading to what Don Brown did. He puts his corners on an island and at times we will pay for it. My bigger complaint is that he didn't bring more pressure early as it would have helped the young corners. I still don't know what happened on their third TD. I don't know if it was a mistake or design that that box was full and there was no safety back.


Special Teams: B

The consistency of the Special Teams is encouraging. Walker keeps getting better on Kick Returns. The punts and punt coverage was good. We didn't have much to judge in the place kicking department. Alston made decent decisions on his fair catches.

Overall: D

Addazio is selling the future of this team hard to the media. Either he has extreme confidence in his own abilities or he full of bluster (and some other stuff). He points to gaps on the depth chart and roster and talks about the 27 upper classmen who aren't around. He is also sure to mention it wasn't his fault. I consider Spaz the worst BC coach in my lifetime and felt he gloriously mismanaged the team and recruiting, but Addazio just got smacked around by a third year coach who inherited TOB's NC State roster. It is not like the Old Marine left behind a stocked cupboard. The team who beat us were made up a a Florida transfer (sound familiar) and a bunch of young Doeren recruits. This is not just youth and bad luck. They're are preparation issues and coaching issues too and not filling gaps fast enough.

The other aspect that Addazio seems to overlook or under appreciate in his talks to the media are the Duke and Wake losses. Win both of those and this team is 5-5. Not bowl bound and not winning anything big, but there would be a better feeling about all aspect of the program. Instead we are 3-7 and looking at a potentially an 0-8 ACC season.

This loss wasn't unexpected but still disappointed. The team seemed flat from the beginning and scoring late felt more like we were avoiding complete embarrassment rather than making a comeback. The off week couldn't come at a better time.

57 comments:

Llyonnoc of the Woods said...

Name me one good or half decent coach that went 0 - 7 in league play in his third year.

Name me one parent concerned about his or her son's future who would feel comfortable sending him to play for Adazio.

The coach because of his head case actions gets almost as much TV coverage as the team on the field. Compare his demeanor with that of winning coaches.

He has had hree years to put together a team. He hasn't done it. He says wait. For what? Who wants to play for such a losing team and a coach who seems confused during the games.

The football and basketball teams used to break into the top 25 once in a while. Now we are hoping for a win or two. Remember this team beat Howard 76 - 0 which also shows the athletic department is inept in scheduling the equivalent of a high school team.

Dark days continue with no light at the end of the tunnel. BC will stay with the ACC because of the money but it is producing Colonial League teams.

mod34b said...

"The Offensive Line did not play well"

Well that is the understatement of the year. These guys are really bad, overmatched in every game and poorly coached. This OL cannot compete in the ACC.

Again this week BC offensive against FBS teams is Dead Last in Scoring offense and total offense. We are 112/128 in rushing offense - supposedly Daz's core football strength


Indeed, The OL is Daz's calling card. This OL is the foundation for Next year.

Who is psyched for 2016?

By the way , check out next year's OL recruits: 3 2-star recruits, one of whom only has Ivy League and lesser offers. The recruits know BC is not on the arc of success

mod34b said...

ATL. You wrote this a year ago on another blog. Think it is correct

ATLeagle wrote:
On a Macro level in college football Year 3 is the time when it starts coming together and you are what you are as a program and a coach (see the Hinton Grantland article). Even if you are not a factory or power, by Year 3 it should be coming together. In most situations Year 3 is when the majority of the roster is yours, you've shaken out the bad apples on the staff and the roster, the kids you inherited have now adapted to your system, and you've been through the conference twice.

On a micro level for Daz Year 3, I understand the limitations. I understand what he inherited. I don't expect a national championship or even a 10-2 season. But if we go 4-8 or 5-7, then we have problems. If we go 8-4 then I think we can start to recognize Addazio's ceiling (he's just a firey TOB). If we do go 10-2, then the guy is a much better coach than we've ever predicted. Addazio will probably bring in 30 scholarship players next year (4-5 fifth years and 25ish true recruits). Last year he brought in 28 true recruits (not including the 5th years). Add in the his first class (which was mostly Spaz) and you will have a roster of 70+ Addazio recruits. This will be his team.

Big Jack Krack said...

Why did Addazio push aside Cashman and Taylor in favor of Baker and Lindstrom?

Both of those players get knocked on their kersters regularly.

Tim said...

BC coaches in their third year:

Chlebek: 7-4 (including a win over #11 Stanford)
Bicknell: 9-3 (finished #19 in AP poll)
Coughlin: 9-3 (including wins over #1 Notre Dame and #13 Syracuse; finished #13 in AP poll)
O'Brien: 8-4 (beat Pitt, Syracuse, West Virginia, Notre Dame, Baylor)

Daz so far: 3-7 (1-7 against FBS; 0-7 in ACC)
Spaz: 4-8
Henning: 5-7

perkindc said...

Another BC coach in Year 3:

Jerry York 15-19 .447 winning % -- he had 6 consecutive losing seasons prior to that.

Listen, I'll be the 1st to jump all over Daz if we don't see a major improvement in year 4, but fans need to give this team some space to grow, make mistakes and build.

Tim said...

perkindc-
York was already a proven winner when he came to BC. He had won a national title at Bowling Green, along with a bunch of league titles. So he had some serious credibility as a head coach and had earned the patience of fans and administrators. Can't say that about Addazio.

Also, York did not ensure six consecutive losing seasons. He went 19-17-2 in his last season at BGSU.

Tim said...

endure, not ensure

mod34b said...

why do so many BC fans think they we have to buy into all the Daz excuses and "not judge him" until year 4 or year 5?

Daz is an OL guy, but his hand picked OL can't compete in ACC
Daz is an run guy, but his run game is among he worst in the FBS (112/128)
Daz is an offense guy, yet his offense is the Worst Offense in the ACC, P5 and entire FBS.
Daz's OL can run block
Daz's OL can't pass protect
Daz is a .500 coach (at best)
even Daz does not expect big improvement next year
Daz is a recruiting guy, but his 2016 recruiting is among the worst in the ACC

Daz is not a defense guy - thank god - and they are doing great without him. Imagine an offense with a Don Brown type running the show?

What is that patience for mediocrity (at best) will achieve? Will we feel better by giving a guy who makes nearly $3,000,000 a "chance"?

perkindc said...

I stand corrected. JY had 1 winning season in '93-'94.

Daz has been a CFB head coach for a grand total of 5 years. I'm giving him a mulligan this year--and I'll keep watching every game b/c I like to torture myself. He hits the 'hot seat' next August for sure. We all expect to see a much better offense next year and hopefully the wheels don't fall off before then. In the meantime, lets not get crazy. Everybody be cool.

mod34b said...

*can't run block

mod34b said...

perkindc, as you know hope is not a strategy.

What makes you rationally think a 0-for-ACC team can compete next year?

And asking rational questions and seeking rational answer is not "going crazy."

JBQ said...

As shown subsequently, Wake Forest is really a bad team. Fadule had 15 rushes for -14 yards. We shall see how embarrassing the ND game is. If BC is bounced at Fenway, then there is no choice but to get rid of Addazio. At the very least, they need an offensive coordinator with skill. Addazio can then just sit back and let him run the team. He seems to be doing that with the defense. Hats off to Don Brown. Actually, I did not see that coming. The defense has quite a few dominant personalities. One answer is to tell Addazio to back off and work on discipline and then let a new offensive coordinator run the offense. If that works, then you buy out Addazio and move on with the new guy.

Danny Boy said...

Mod, you ask what makes you think an 0-for-ACC team can compete next year?

My answer? A certain coach turned a 1-for-ACC (with a loss to Army) into a 7-6 team with all the same players. We all knew this was the year that the chickens came home to roost.

You think the guys on the line enjoy getting knocked on their ass? They know exactly what they need to do next year to be successful. They have a full off-season's worth of motivation in the dining hall and the gym. I would bet that you see every last one of them at least 20lbs heavier next year, with some more than 30lbs heavier. With a chip on their shoulder.

Do changes need to be made? Absolutely. Daz needs to release the reigns on the OC, and probably get a proven OC to restore confidence. He needs to find someone to either drill him on clock management, or take over completely. And he needs to treat 2016 like its a life or death situation (because it probably is).

mod34b said...

I think we already know what we got

mod34b said...

DannyBoy, between the subprime talent at OL, the sub-subprime coaching at OL and on O, I am not optimistic, especially if you look at the new recruits on OL.

Our OL can not run block
our OL cannot pass block
our OL cannot compete in the ACC
Daz said he expect only "incremental" improvement next year on OL.
We are the WORST offense in FBS (even Spaz did not reach such lows, although he was close)
We average 8 points per game in ACC play.

Yes, it is college ball so you can always expect the unexpected, but unfortunately, I expect the expected with Daz.

Why didn't Daz make sure he had enough OLs in year 3? Roster graduation/attrition issues of 2015 are not a surprise, but the nature of college football.

I am not giving Daz a pass on year 3. #launchDAZ

Hoib said...

I'm a Daz guy, am I disappointed w/ this year? Sure, but this notion that firing another coach, after one bad year, will solve our problems is misplaced. If we were to do that we'd have our 5th coach since 2006, that would be 5 blown years of recruiting out of 9. It would just make one of the big problems that caused this year worse. There are a ton of good jobs open already w/ more to follow. So there would be allot of competition for the next Nick Saban, which the dump Daz crowd is counting on. I hate to break this to you folks, but that guy isn't coming to BC. When we signed up for the ACC this was part of the deal. We play against allot of really good programs who have more resources than us. The problem most people on here have is they don't realize what a good year is. We had them under TOB, we just had a couple of decent years. Sometimes you lose in sports, it's how a person deals w/ defeat that tells you most about them.

Joseph said...

It seems that no matter what happens on any athletic field the majority of posters to blogs will blame the coach. TOB and JAGs were constantly pilloried for something or other. Losers who post insisting on perfection seem to be the norm. Not just here. Not just BC. But, everywhere. Putting coaches on the hot seat is almost as popular as fantasy football.

eagleboston said...

I agree Hoib. How many teams, even the elite ones, could win with the starting QB, starting running back, starting tight end and starting center out? That is on top of the leadership gap caused by the predecessor's horrible recruiting. Programs have step-back years. Period. Even the elite ones. Look at Iowa. Everyone was calling for Ferentz's head at the end of last seaon. Now they are 9-0 and in the top 10. To fire Daz now would be utterly stupid. No one is going to take the gamble of leaving their current program to come to BC when we don't give a coach the time to turn things around. Especially when you consider BC does not have compettitive facilities. If we are 0 for the ACC next year, then we can talk about moving on. But we have a young team, a very decent defense and both units return a lot of players. Give the coach the chance to build this program.

Guido said...

To Joseph : please do not put Jags in the same category as Tom O'Brien. Tom recruited well and his teams had very credible records and possessed great character. Jags in his short time here was the recipient of the recruiting of TOB. Enough said on that subject !!!!And I certainly could say MUCH more!!!!! But ,please gents - there is much chaos on the offensive side of the ball and this dysfunction has been evident from day ONE with the constant changing of QBs and the same is true on the make - up of the offensive line. Just think - we have a true Freshman playing in the O-Line who came to campus at 236lbs and is now playing the interior line at 260lbs(if one believes the program weights). He is being KNOCKED off the ball. CAN U NAME ANOTHER D-1 PROGRAM THAT IS PLAYING A TRUE FRESHMAN @ 260lbs in their OFFENSIVE LINE ????? Hello - are we that short on bodies ????? And if so ---- MY GOD !!!!!!!!

Knucklehead said...
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Knucklehead said...

Does anyone remember Castanzo his freshman year? He got beat consistently and was fairly undersized. He developed into a 1st round pick has protected Luck at a high level ever since.

Heres to hoping Addazio gets a good line together for next season.

If not we are in for another 3-4 years of futility because I don't foresee the school buying out Addazio at his current salary. Maybe the buyout is a fraction of the actual salary. If not then we are in trouble.

mod34b said...

Knuck - everyone remembers Castonzo.... he was effectively a red shirt freshman (he did a prep year) and was a star from the get go. He was on the All-ACC freshman team, and importantly the only freshman to start at BC in the past 10 years. Castonzo is not comparable to basket case Frosh we have now.

Why is Daz left holding his d**k in 2015 by having mainly Freshman OL to start?

in 2013 class, there we no OL in the class. Earth to Daz: get some OLs
in 2014, Daz pursues 53 OL. 51 turn him down. He lands 2 OL. 2!

So in the first 2 classes in the Daz regime he got just 2 OLs. He also looses 2 OL to concussion injury (or maybe he booted them) Is that stupid or what? effective recruiting is job #1 for a HC.

or let me guess -- this BC crowd wants to give Daz extra points and a trophy for trying really, really hard.

GP11 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
GP11 said...

Mod, I get your frustration. Some of your arguments hold water but you don't help yourself when others do not (like this one)...

There were no O-lineman (except for a guy named Patchan) in 2013 because Daz didn't recruit those kids. When you get hired in December, you need to keep the class from the predecessor together and hope to snap up a couple late bloomers or turn a couple kids along the way.

2014: 3 O-lineman (not including a transfer) signed which include the starting center and both backup tackles as of the most recent depth chart. 20 scholarships to O-lineman offered according to ESPN (which includes all the pie in the sky offers that have next to no shot from the start). Not sure what you mean by "pursuing" 53 lineman. Did he call them once? Did he say hi? What does that even mean?

2015: 5 O-lineman signed with 27 scholarships offered.

2016: 3 O-Lineman currently verbally committed.

I'd say the foundation from a numbers perspective is there. 11 scholarship lineman that will be Juniors or younger (the vast majority being redshirt freshman/sophomores).

In general, I'm frustrated too, but you don't just pull the plug in year 3. He's gotten enough rope to hang himself, so if he is as bad as you think, it will happen. Another season like this one and it could be next year, if not he won't make it past 2017 without an 8 win season. Bringing in a top-flight O-Coordinator needs to be #1 on the off-season list. For now, let's see if two weeks of prep will give us a chance against the domers.

Hoib said...

Knuck

I mentioned Castanzo recently. He looked veri lean when he first got here, and was NFL READY when he left. Let's hope the same for Lindsrum, who Daz is very high on.

Wesley said...

"Williams was not good again. I get so frustrated when he is literally blocking no one and standing there as a play breaks down around him."

#Truth
#UnfortunatelyeverySaturday

mod34b said...

Hoib ~ Castonzo was a 6'7" 295 lb brute as a frosh and an elite athlete who competed with the likes go Gosder Cherulius and other NFL level guys to win the starting job. He was an All-ACC frosh for a reason.

mod34b said...

Hoib - a Link for UUUU

Knucklehead said...

Mod,
The difference is that Costanzo had other guys on the line who were effective so he was able to develop(get burned fairly consistently) without it having a huge negative effect on the rest of the line and the offense. This team has 5(really 6-8 with the rotation) who have not played before this year really. So the entire line is effectively in the same "position" as Costanzo was. I don't think we have 5 future All ACC players on the line now however, I do think Baker is legit right now. I foresee the kid from Fairfield Prep Palazzo? developing. The other thing is that the starting center Frank Taylor was knocked out early in the FSU game which they have not been able to recover from. That injury forced Baker to center and now everyone is disjointed.

Costanzo was not 295 as a freshman. That is completely erroneous. He was 270.

Another example of developing was Robert Vardaro from Phillips Andover. He was forced to play and developed into a good competent 4 year starter.

I have said this 2-3 times but Adazzio should have forseen the line situation this season. It was Adazzio's failure that he didn't redshirt one of the starters last season(I am pretty sure one of them would have redshirted with the opportunity to attend BC for another year) or brought in a competent graduate transfer. If he is smart he is working his Ohio State and Temple connections for good QB and a good lineman for next season.

My concern now is that I don't see any improvement during the season.

My other concern is recruiting defensive linemen. Al Washington had done great with the ends. I don't see any interior linemen being recruited. Gutafel is playing great because he has Wojack cracking 2 skulls on every down opening things up for him. I don't see any bubba's who are going command double teams next season or going forward based on current recruiting. That is a MASSIVE concern for me. As much as Boston College has been o-line U it has also been D-line U.

Knucklehead said...
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mod34b said...

GP11, i read your post with eager anticipation. Waiting for some fascinating point i missed.

But it was all text and fury, signifying nothing.

you did catch me in a gotcha. in 2014 BC recruited 3, not 2, OL. But i can gothca u too. Frank Taylor was a Spaz 2012 recruit.

but these are meaningless points.


my point was that Daz's "cupboard s bare" 2015 argument is a bad argument and any supposed shortfall in OL is largely his fault.

When he came aboard in Dec 2012, national signing day was 2 months away and Daz knew there were no OLs on the list.. It would be tough (but still do-able) to get an OL at that late point. I get that Daz did not have great options for that signing day.

For 2014, Daz knew he had to redouble his efforts for 2014. Patchan was a good stop gap measure and was Silbeerman, but neither were going to be around more than 1 season.

Per Rivals DB, Daz and BC showed some interest in 53 OLs, but pulled in just 3, when he needed 6 or 7. Daz could not close the deal on OLs. So in a 2 year recruiting period he had 3 measley Ol recruits. He then tries converting 2 TEs to OT. Not working.

95% chance he is not fired this year. That is too bad as he is not the guy for BC. I agree as new powerful OC is needed, but i do not see that happening. Daz thinks he is a good OC. Go figure.

mod34b said...

knuck - sure some of these young OLs will develop into good OLs. I agree.

"Adazzio should have forseen the line situation this season" I agree

"My concern now is that I don't see any improvement during the season." I agree.

JERZeagle said...

You guys can bicker all you want about castanzo etc... But I think the real question is... Even if we are semi mediocre next year and begin to pick up some momentum... Don't you find addazios style and offensive scheme super boring and unappealing?

Like lets say we return to being serviceable at around an 8-4 clip... Which to be honest really isn't that great ... But lets say we aren't a complete and utter embarassment... everything about this program will still stink. All three years of addazios body of work have just been jv-esque. Even people who aren't really into football view our program as a joke.

It's just beyond depressing.

mod34b said...

Yes, JERZ, Daz blows in many dimensions

Bravesbill said...

For everyone who wants to give Daz a mulligan for this year, what will it take next year for you to call for his head? If he wins more games next year than this year, is that good enough for another year? What about just mere improvement? Does he need a .500 record?

CT said...

Not a mulligan. Just perspective.

Hard to imagine him not getting two more years.

What does he need? Nobody he knows to read blog posts-which represent less than 1% of anything. Get a QB, Wade or Brown, and fix the oline! Compete with Clemson and FSU. We nearly beat both last year. All of this is very doable and you don't even need to fire anyone. Yet.

GP11 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
GP11 said...

Mod, your expertise of the ways of the college football coach is truly unrivaled. I apologize for ever questioning you. Obviously a better coach would have been able to flip a handful (at least) of 4/5 star recruits upon being hired then immediately elevated a team from 2-10 to national title contender in a minimum of 2 years.

Bravesbill, I won't speak for others, but for myself, it's less about how many wins he needs and more about the general growth of the team. I think there are very few people left who are ride or die with Daz. He built a lot of capital with many for taking Spaz's lackluster roster and immediately making it to two bowl games. This year has exposed a lot of warts, but all of them are fixable. He needs to show growth from the team (continuing to improve the talent pool, developing the line, finding a reliable QB) and also individually (closing out winnable games a la Wake and Duke is a must, better halftime adjustments, improving the balance on offense).

Like CT said, I don't think these things are out of the realm of possibility. If they happen, we at least go to a bowl. If things break right, you're looking for 8-10 wins, and a great set up for 2017. We saw the last couple years that with the right talent, the offense works and is exciting. The line starts blasting big holes open for our backs to break off big runs and then we can capitalize off play-action for big gains in the passing game. His first two years he had senior QBs with good tools as well as quality O-lines. I'm happy to be patient for another year or two no matter how frustrating the past 10 games have been.

I don't know if Daz is the long-term answer. Frankly, it doesn't affect me one bit. I'm not going to stubbornly hold onto hope that he is the savior if we have a repeat of this next year or aren't sniffing a division title by 2017. At a minimum he has helped restock the talent pool and if the results are not there on the field next year someone else will be brought in who can hopefully improve the current team and continue to build for the future.

Napolean Bonaparte said...

I think all anyone can say is that we are extremely disappointed with the team and the head coach. If I was managing him - I would not fire him (in view of his contract and one bad year) but I certainly would be all over him re recruiting and the steps/progress he and his staff make in the off season to avoid a repeat of this season. Daz is the highest paid employee of the university. He should feel the pressure. I agree with most here that his primary focus needs to be the OL.

I feel far less troubled by Daz than I do with Brad Bates and the people who hired him. The contract extension he gave to Daz was totally premature and not just in hindsight. I never felt comfortable with Bates - always thought he was more an academician/bureaucrat than a solid manager and the wrong temperament for the job - not nearly aggressive enough in so many areas. Yes, he makes a good appearance and is highly articulate, measured and vocal about the education aspects of our athletes. But you need more than that for the AD's job. You need someone much more bottom line focused on winning as well - whether that means with respect to personnel or making proper investments to keep us competitive - and somebody who can handle the administration and build support among the trustees and alums.

The type of guy for the AD job would be someone like a Tom Coughlin. Someone for whom playing by and within the rules is a given - but someone you do not want to cross or disappoint - whether you coach football or field hockey. Somebody who rewards success but has a low tolerance for failure. Somebody like that would have had the facilities (practice, baseball)and parking issues much further along at this point and would have changed coaching personnel in perpetual losing programs like baseball, volleyball and women's basketball. Not cutthroat, not a win at all costs attitude - but definitely focused on excellence and people earning their paychecks.

Hoib said...

GP11

Very well put. I love these people who just shrug off an 8 win season like it's nothing. I've been watching since 72, and there haven't been all that many 8 win seasons. For most of that time we weren't playing ACC caliber teams. Why do we have a fan base that expects FSU type results when there is no history to back it up.

mod34b said...

GP11 - you've got some Donald Trump traits.... if you do not like a response off you go into insult and sarcasm mode . ... I would hope your BC liberal arts education would have prepared you better, but then again you might have graduated from BC's vocational program - CSOM. :-)

and let me just say that being better than Spaz, or improving on Spaz's results, is not an accomplishment that should carry any weight. 99% of HC candidates would have improved on the Spaz Error.

Bravesbill said...

Hoib, as much as I didn't like TOB, he led BC to how many 8 win seasons in a row? Heck, even Jags was able to string together back to back ACC Championship appearance, even after losing a lot of players after his first year. It's been done before and it certainly can be done again with the right coach.

The thing with Daz is that there are way too many problems things he cannot or will not solve. If there was a decent chance that he would be able to fix these problems, I might not have a problem keeping him around for another year. However, he is truly terrible at performing fundamental coaching responsibilities, like clock management, creating workable game plans, making in-game adjustments, personnel management, hiring qualified assistant coaches and coordinators, and now even recruiting, that I don't think there's any hope he can turn it around.

Hoib said...

BB

The period you bring up, basically the second half of the TOB era + Jags., is the most consistent era of good football we've played in my tenure going back to 72. Which is why it's a head scratcher to me that people had such issue's w/ TOB. We now play against stronger league competition than we ever have. Which makes it that much harder to achieve TOB like #'s let alone what the typical person on this blog expects. Now if we get a repeat next year of this, then Daz is gone, but w/ a huge cost. Another lost year of recruiting, and who will he be replaced w/? Not a tried and true top of the line HC, but a role of the dice coordinator, or some HC retread. Be careful what you wish for.

Hoib said...

Anthony Castonzo
6-7, 260 | Class of 2007
HometownLake Zurich, Ill.School (POST)PositionOffensive TackleStatus Signed Boston College

Danny Boy said...

HOIB, you alluded to the issue everyone had with TOB, but stopped just short. Yes, he produced the most consistent era in 40 years, but he maxed out. When you're consistently at 8 wins, you want someone to take you to the next level. TOB was not that guy. Its almost like he had a pathological resistance winning the must-win game every year.

We all thought Jags was taking us to the next level, but we'll never know the long-term viability there.

What is interesting to me is that everyone here acts as if we're ready to make the post-TOB jump, when in reality, after 7 years of turmoil, we're at a pre-TOB place. While I would kill to get back to consistent 8-win seasons, if we're still there after 10 years and consistently losing the must-win games, I'll be clamoring for an upgrade (and hope our AD is up to the task).

I think you're spot on with be careful what you wish for. If we fire Daz, especially this year, Nick Saban is not walking through the door. We're not going to get a name brand coach. We're either going to land a fallen star looking for a quick redemption story, or going to take a flier on an un-tested coordinator that could go either way.

mod34b said...
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mod34b said...

hoib.. if you are interested in accurate info, rather than propaganda to support Daz (you really like him and think he can coach, I see.. almost as much as the editors of BCI... what's the deal with that), see my prior link...indicating his playing weight as a frosh in 2007 - 295 lbs.... all his other OL line mates were over 300.

mod34b said...

DB - who's thinking BC can ever get a Nick Saban???? BC has never sought to pick off a successful brand name coach in any sport (maybe Hockey)

but would you trade Daz for Matt Rhule? in heartbeat....right.. ..

AD at BC is tough....you gotta find that emerging star HC.. BCAD needs real vision.... Daz had potential at first.... and seemed promising....but now we see he is largely exposed as very mediocre in most ways.

Hoib said...

DB

I think we are saying pretty much the same things. The difference is that in my 44 years and counting of closely watching the team, we've never gotten to the next level. So is it realistic to assume we can?

Knucklehead said...

Hoib,
Thanks for the back up on Costanzo.

In my 36 years this is the worst team the school has had. I think the year I was born we had no wins. It has been pretty good since then overall.

There have been several opportunities to get to the next level. Flutie lost to WV or Penn St in 84. After beating Texas in '72? the team had a couple crummy loses. David Green fumbled in an absolute fucking shit storm zoo Alumni Stadium against WV. The guy sitting two rows in from of me had a fucking heart attack literally. TOB was a complete stiff and fowled up the 3-4 ACC Championships games we got to.


Remember after the football gambling scandal. Everyone said the program was effed. It came back. I am concerned that we are going with a running QB and not a drop back pro-type. Doesn't fit.

I fucking love Boston College.

Hoib said...

Knuck

There have been more bad periods than good. Even the great 84 year we lost to both WVA & PSU. Back in thosedays we played what was known as Eastern football and those 2 were key rivals. So in our finest year since Chuckin Charlie, we really didn't get to the next level. We 've had plenty of years just as bad as this. That's why we've had so many coaches. I love BC too as evidenced by my many years of avid fandom, but I don't think we'll ever really compete w/ the factories. Once before I bite the dust I'd like to see an outright league title, but I'm running out of years.

Knucklehead said...
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Knucklehead said...

I agree that we have chocked a lot. We have had some bad years. This is the worst team we have had since 1979. With Spaz and Henning it was them who sucked. The players were pretty good. The next coach recovered the program pretty quickly. On this team the players are not very good and they are not improving. Next season will be a throw-away because we don't have a QB. The defense is good but losing Daniels and Wojack is going to ruin us next season. Strahan is a real good player but he and Landry are all we will have on the front 7-8.

I don't see the talent and more than that I don't see the player development needed to make average players good and good players very good.

The coach cannot recruit a kicker. We lost two games this season on account of the kicker. That should have been the number one priority of Adazzio after the Penn State embarrassment in the Bronx.

Coach,
Get off ESPN, stop glad handing for "Wheels Up" and recruit a goddamned kicker and a flipping QB. Do your freaking job.

Hoib said...

W/ u on the kicker, we have Alcott of good DBS coming back. I really like Milano, and Goodapple. The last Spaz team was worse. Completely uncompetitive on both sides of the ball. Our current team has an excellent D. Under Spaz it was death by bubble screen.

Joseph said...

"To Joseph : please do not put Jags in the same category as Tom O'Brien'

This is so typical of posters reations to others. I nver said that they were in the same category. I said that they were both pilloried. get it. Even when they had winning seasons people wanted more. Ego identification.

Joseph said...

"I think all anyone can say is that we are extremely disappointed with the team and the head coach"

What is this "we" stuff? There are plenty of people who don't agree with you. Give it another two years for the wine to mature before you judge it. Wait till the plant flowers before you call it ugly. Sorry that we are not all as smart as you, but there you have it.