2014 Preview Questions: Will this be like Addazio's second year at Temple?

Last season was great. Even after losing much of last year's team there is plenty of optimism about Year 2 of Addazio. Temple fans know that optimism. They shared it when Addazio led them back to the Big East in his second year. Yet things did not go well. Temple slid back to their all too familiar losing ways and the coach bailed when BC came calling. I don't expect this season to be easy but I also don't expect a repeat of Addazio's second year in Philly. Fortunately there are enough differences between the two situations for BC fans to feel hope.

The conference transition. Switching conferences can be tough. It is even tougher when there is a big jump in talent. As strong as the program was, Temple still probably wasn't ready to move from the MAC. Addazio recruited well, but much of that talent was young in 2012.

New Offensive Coordinator. Want to add a degree of difficulty to a conference move? How about changing OCs! I like Ryan Day and Addazio is a former OC, so all his Coordinators are influenced by him, but things were bumpy in Year 2. Some of it was due to injuries and depth. Eventually they started clicking once they started using creative run schemes (sound familiar?) but it was too late to save the season record.

Frontloaded schedule. After taking on Villanova, Addazio took on Maryland and Penn State out of conference. BC's out of conference schedule is not as challenging and we get to start our season at home or in Gillette.

The other change is that Addazio is two year wiser. He's now been through a Year 2. Ideally he's learned and can avoid the same mistakes that hurt Temple in 2012.

2014 Preview Questions: How good is the Atlantic Division?

Winston's game-changing Hail Mary.

The ACC Media predicted a 6th place finish for BC. Considering how Carolina-centric the crowd is at the Media Days, our lowely standing is not a surprise. But is BC really that bad? Is the Divison that good?

Florida State returns their Heisman Trophy winning QB and much of the talent that won the National Championship. I think even the most biased BC fan will admit that the 'Noles will be good this season. Clemson lost a lot of their best skill players, but given their recruiting the past five years, I think it is fair to rank them above BC. Transitioning to a new conference could cause problems and they are also replacing lost stars, but Louisville comes into the division with arguably the best offensive coach in the conference. That will be a tough game. But after that, I think there are a series of teams that all have major questions. 

Syracuse -- reason why they might finish below BC. Still relatively young. Tough schedule could hurt momentum. Terrible passing game. We play them at Alumni. 

NC State -- reason why they might finish below BC. Coming off a terrible season. Breaking in a new QB. Still very young. 

Wake Forest -- reason why they might finish below BC. Tough schedule that could torpedo the season. Making major schematic changes from previous staff. Clawson started slow at his previous stops.

I don't know if BC will finish 4th or 7th in the Atlantic. But I don't think the division is loaded. Outside of Florida State every team is flawed. The bottom of the Division is manageble. It is just a matter BC covering our flaws better than our peer programs. 

2014 Preview Questions: Is Steven Daniels the best player on Defense?

With all the "Dude" talk and Heisman hype, no one really mentioned that Steven Daniels had a great season. He was active. He was versatile and he was our best tackler. When Daniels got near someone he brought them down. When watching the games back, rarely did he miss a tackler and no one shook him off. He finished the year with 88 tackles (3rd best on the team). This season -- with so few impact players returning on defense -- might be Daniels' time to shine. He will either get swallowed up by the void left in the linebacking corp or take over and dominate.

Daniels' road to the Heights was lined with a few pot holes. He was supposed to be the next great St. X recruit. However, he spent a year Worcester shoring up his academics. Meanwhile the greatest St. X-BC player in school history, Luke Kuechly, was rewriting the record book at Daniels' position of Linebacker. Could anyone fill Kuechly's shoes? Daniels first season was okay but didn't project for his explosion as a sophomore. Last year he finally showed glimpses that he could live up to the St. X legacy.

I don't know how Brown will use Daniels this year. Daniels has enough speed to be used more often in blitz packages. But he can also be used to cover the space left open by other guys rushing. Either way I think he's going to be a difference maker.

2014 Preview Questions: How good is the Offensive Line?

Given BC's history with OLine play, it is surprising that it took until last year for an offensive coach to say "forget skill players, maybe we should just put out eight offensive lineman." The jumbo packages combined with the spread proved to be a good wrinkle. It played to our strengths and depth. I am sure this year we will see new wrinkles, but I don't think teams will be as surprised or that we have the same depth to pull it off. The big question is how good can this Oline be? Their success as a unit will impact BC's season more than any other.

During the decline under Spaz, the most obvious weakness was offensive line play. Mistakes, confusion and sloppy technique were evident. One of the reasons for last season's turn around was simply better position coaching. Which shouldn't have been a surprise since Addazio was a former OLine coach. You assumed that he would put an emphasis on the unit and find a good position coach (which he did in Justin Frye). In Year 2 -- with another year of good coaching -- things should be better. But it is not always that simple.

The middle of the line returns. Vardaro, Gallik and Williams should all probably be in the same position as last year. But those three were also the most inconsistent of our starters last season. Vardaro and Gallik would play really well some games and struggle in others. With Gallik receiving a series of preseason accolades, I assume the coaches are expecting a big season season from him.

But who replaces the Tackles? It is assumed that it will be another Florida transfer Ian Silberman and Seth Betancourt. But the coaches could easily move Vardaro and Williams wide and use Silberman and Betancourt on the interior. It really depends on what Frye thinks is most important, position familiarity or putting you best talent at Tackle.

I also don't know if and how often we will go big. Opponents have had a whole offseason to prepare. Without the surprise will the big packages be as effective? Also, do we have the depth? Are the guys on the bench able to come in and play? Are we better off with multiple Tight Ends? Unlike our questions at WR, I have more confidence that the Oline will come together. The talent and coaching is too good for it not to come together. And if it doesn't come together...we're screwed.

2014 Preview Questions: Who will be our deep threat

For all of last season's innovative mix of spread and jumbo packages, the fundamentals of BC's offense were decades old. We ran the ball over and over and then used play action to connect on deep passes. I have enough confidence in the offensive line and the mix of running backs, that I think they can duplicate Andre Williams' production as a group. I have not seen Murphy play much, but his arm seems adequate enough to connect on deep passes. The big question is who will catch the deep balls?

Speed is really the key on long passes. If you cannot get separation downfield, a fast DB can catch up to the Reciever while the ball is still in the air. Amidon's deceptive speed was a perfect compliment to our passing game last year, as he blew by opponents with regularity.

The returning pass catchers lack many essential skills but especially speed. A lot is expected of converted QB Josh Bordner, but he's not going to run by ACC DBs. Harrison Jackson's health is in question. No one knows if Bobby Swigert will be 100%. Crimmins is a possession guy. Barksdale is untested. Dudeck brings a few dimensions to the O but he's not a scorcher. It is no wonder that the coaching staff is still scouring college rosters for a 5th year guy. Shakim Phillips is expected to return, but we can't count on that until he completes his UConn degree.

Of the incoming freshmen, there is potential. Nat Dixon, Gabriel McClary, Troy Flutie, and Thaddius Smith all have the chance to come in and contribute as true freshman. All they have to do is show they can run fast and still catch the ball.

After last year, I do trust Addazio and Day to do the best with what talent they have. If we don't have anyone who can catch it deep, we probably won't throw it deep very often. But before they abandon something that worked so well last year, I hope they try it once or twice with a new guy.

2014 Preview Questions: Where will the the sacks come from?

Don Brown's defensive schemes are designed to pressure QBs and generate sacks. While the whole of the unit still wasn't great, BC's defense did generate a lot of sacks last year. It was a welcome change to the bend but don't break days of old. Year 2 of Don Brown will probably bring even more pressure, however, I have no idea where it will come from.

Here were BC's sack leaders from last year:

Kasim Edebali -- 9.5 sacks
Kevin Pierre-Louis -- 6 sacks
Josh Keyes -- 3.5 sacks
Steele Divitto -- 3 sacks
Steven Daniels -- 3 sacks
Mehdi Abdesmad -- 2 sacks
Kaleb Ramsey -- 2 sacks
Brian Mihalik-- 2 sacks

It is nice to have Keyes, Daniels, Mihalik and (hopefully healthy) Abdesmad back, the two biggest sackers are gone.  Much is expected of true Freshman Harold Landry, but can he match KPL's 6 sacks? Can any of the returning guys double their efforts?

I think Brown will figure something out. I also think last season's total of 36 sacks is reachable, but to do so multiple guys will have to step up and perhaps some of the DBs will have to be involved as a new wrinkle.