McGovern to Philadelphia Eagles

Long-time BC staffer Bill McGovern is leaving BC to join Chip Kelly. I teased this news on Twitter Friday, but waited to make the full announcement until I got further confirmation (as I've been burned before). Although I appreciate McGovern's contributions to BC over the years, I think it is best that he moves onto new things.

First McGovern gains NFL experience. He also gets to be part of the Chip Kelly-NFL grand experiment. If this works, it could be the type of coaching hire that changes the League. Finally it allows Addazio and McGovern to have a fresh start with the BC Defense.

McGovern was invaluable to BC over the years, but no one knows how this transition was going to work. Taking a demotion and working for yet another BC coach might have dulled McGovern's energy and outlook. Was he ready to recruit hard again? Was he going to work well with Don Brown? McGovern's been very adaptable over the years, but this was going to be different.

This also allows Addazio to distance himself from Spaz. The continuity benefit that McGovern provided isn't as critical with Day and Washington on board. Now the staffer most closely associated with Spaz is gone...and although there was plenty of blame to go around for our 2012 defense, it was technically McGovern's job. There was some subtle pressure to keep McGovern, so now Addazio has free reign to hire any LB coach he wants.

I think McGovern will do well with Kelly and in the NFL. Players love him and he's a sound position coach. Best of luck to him.

Frye, McGovern confirmed by BC

The two most often rumored staff members became official when BC announced that Addazio hired Justin Frye as Offensive Line coach and former Defensive Coordinator Bill McGovern will transition back to Linebackers coach. Frye is a bit green to get such a critical position for BC, but I think he will benefit from working under Addazio (himself a former OL coach). As one of the younger members of the staff, you have to assume that Fyre will be a key recruiter.

Bill McGovern staying on is more complicated. Addazio will be the fifth BC coach McGovern has worked under and that should carry some weight. McGovern is beloved by former players and many went to bat for him this go around. He's obviously well liked and is now a BC parent, so I respect his relationships and ties to the school. It is important to have people like that around the program. However, McGovern is the embodiment of many of the issues of the last ten years. We need new ones and going 2-10 confirms that. Once a valuable recruiter, McGovern has been sidelined a bit as Spaz's DC. Is he ready to hit the road again and become our man in New Jersey? Can he work with Don Brown after serving as DC last year? How will he adjust to the demotion? These are all big factors. I am happy for McGovern that his professional life didn't disrupt his personnel life too much. He doesn't have to uproot. But I hope he buys in to his new role. It will be critical for Addazio's success.

Fire Spaz (2012 edition)

I know it is early and we are only 1-2 but I think it is time to start calling for Spaz's job again. All the same old problems resurfaced today's loss. Anemic offense (once again unable to score more than two TDs), bend but don't break defense to the extreme, and sloppy, sloppy play (drops, penalties and missed tackles). I hoped Doug Martin and Chase Rettig would make this season fun. Instead I just feel bad for them. Chase Rettig is the Job of BC quarterbacks. The guys around him drop or fumble away scores, his defense can't get the other team off the field and we cannot run the ball.

Spaz is not going to fix things. I still think we are better than we are playing, but this guy is not making the adjustments to take advantage of our manageable schedule.

I will have second viewing thoughts and grades up late Sunday night. I might have a vent before then. I am frustrated but feel like this whole lame duck season has been a waste of everyone's time. That game wasn't fun to watch and I fear we are going to have this empty feeling over and over again this fall.

Even Job thinks Chase Rettig is catching some tough breaks.

Will Spaz let Bill McGovern really be Defensive Coordinator?

Spaz's issues with his offensive coordinators are well known. Supposedly Doug Martin will have autonomy and unrestricted play calling. We'll see if it actually becomes a reality. The less discussed coordinator is on the defensive side. Although Bill McGovern's first stint at BC predated Spaz's arrival, the two are tied together in most BC fans' minds. After Gene promoted Spaz, Spaz named McGovern DC. There are times though when McGovern is coordinator in name only. Gameplan preparation and calls within the game still have Spaz's fingerprints. Gossip says that McGovern is frustrated but didn't leave like the other disgruntled staffers because of his ties to the school and hopes of being a head coach somewhere. 

I think McGovern was a fantastic linebacker coach and a valuable recruiter. I don't know what to think of him as a DC. We added new wrinkles last year -- including extensive use of a three-man front. But how much of that was McG and how much was Spaz? We'll never know. I hope Spaz learns from the offensive issues and gives McGovern more autonomy. I don't think it can hurt the actually defense and it might improve staff morale. 

BC using coordinators as face(s) of the program?

BC posted this "thank you" video as an invite to a special practice for season ticket holders. Notice anyone missing? It is just a silly Youtbue video but I find it very telling that the school left out the Head Coach. This is college football. Your head coach is the face of the program. Ours isn't even mentioned in a direct marketing message to our most loyal customers.

There are many likely explanations for Spaz's absence. He's not particularly good on camera. He's never really shown any sort of enthusiasm for this sort of thing. And I think BC has heard enough to know that Spaz is not very popular with our fan base. No reason to trot him out when it will just dampen excitement about the upcoming season.

I like Bill McGovern and Doug Martin. Both are capable coordinators and leaders. Martin's been a head coach and I know McGovern wants to be one, so giving them face time is not a bad idea. Let's hope they are also given autonomy this year (which hasn't been Spaz's strong suit with coordinators). If these two are given real power, season ticket holders will probably be happy they renewed.

What to do about Spaz's staff

At any normal BCS program, retaining a 3rd-year coach who just went 4-8 would require some staff changes. BC is not a normal program. Spaz doesn't have a 100% control in staffing, so I don't know what will happen. Obviously I have been way off before so take this all with a grain of salt. I have no direct contact with any current staffers so this is all second hand gossip mixed with my opinion.

Dave Brock
Brock needs to come back. Although our offense was terrible this season, it is not fair to Chase Rettig or the other offensive players to make another change. Brock is who Spaz wanted all along (over Day or Rogers) so I assume he is safe. If Brock comes back, he needs to have 100% control of the offense from Day 1. If he wants to scrap everything and switch to an option or a spread or whatever, it needs to be his call. He has BCS experience and has been the lead recruiter on many of our key offensive players. I also think that Brock should have a say in the offensive staff. If he thinks we need to make a change on a position coach, then we should make it. We can't have dissension on the staffs. We cannot have guys undermining each other based on their offensive preferences or cliques. If Brock returns, Spaz has his guy in place for the most critical BC season in 13 years.

Ben Johnson
Johnson received a battlefield promotion when Rogers was fired. The Tight End play remained consistent and supposedly Johnson has been good on the recruiting front. Johnson also has a history with Brock. There is absolutely no reason to make a change here.

Sean Devine
Sean Devine may be a great recruiter. He may be a really hard worker who is passionate about BC. He may have a great feel for Chip Kelly's offense. Those are all great attributes. But he's paid to coach our offensive line and the offensive line play has been declining for three years. I hear from football alumni at random times, but one recurring theme is former BC Olineman frustrated watching our current squad. They are never throwing players under the bus. Instead they are pounding their keyboards about technique and assignments. The coachable things. Perhaps Devine should stay on, but not as OL coach. BC needs to find a great OLine coach who can restore our tradition and help the guys on the roster develop.

Mike Siravo
People who following recruiting closely complained about Jags's approach to recruiting. Many of those same recruitniks are upset with Spaz's disappointing recruiting results. The one constant is recruiting coordinator Mike Siravo. Although we were in the same class, I don't know Siravo personally but he has plenty of defenders. They will tell you Mike works very hard but is undercut by his head coaches. The head coaches' folks will conversely throw Siravo under the bus and say he is Gene's boy. Who knows at this point? Siravo's career has been closely tied to Gene. I doubt he is forced out unless Gene decides to cut him loose.

Bill McGovern
Everyone talks about Spaz's loyalty, but Bill McGovern had a stint at BC well before Spaz hit the scene. McGovern is also a BC parent. I don't want him out. If anything I hope that like Brock he gets more autonomy in 2012. The rumors surrounding Spaz and McGovern are always interesting. Some people have referred it to an old married couple. But if the breakdowns in this year's defense are due to Spaz's meddling, then I want him to leave McGovern alone. Or, if Spaz is going to be the DC and call the plays, then let the public know about it.

Day 2 and other links

The second day of practice was uneventful. Unlike Monday, the weather cooperated. The team is still not in full pads yet.

Spaz and McGovern know the young players will have to step up and everything cannot be dependent on Kuechly.

HD called Rettig the most improved QB in the conference. I also think Rettig's stats from last season are somewhat misleading. While his percentages and TD to INT ratios weren't great, I think you have to look at them in relation to what he was asked to do. I think you'll see a big jump in efficiency this year.

Another day, another glowing Alex Albright story. I just wish that Rob Ryan didn't have to take a backhanded shot at Herzy while complimenting Albright.

Ryan Purvis is now one of Tampa's more experienced Tight Ends. He should make an even bigger impact this year.

The Colts signed Josh Beekman. I hope he sticks as it would be nice to see Beekman and Costanzo on the same line.

Abner Logan has a BC offer but he is determined to visit other schools.

BC opened as a seven point favorite over Northwestern. Now the line is to BC-3. It looks like the early smart money jumped on Northwestern.

2011 Position Previews: Defensive Backs

New season. New format. Instead of a digestible combo of factoids and opinions, I am going to write in a more narrative, free style post. As always, feedback is appreciated.

I've read that NFL GMs don't like to draft Nick Saban's defensive backs because they never know if the guys are great or just so well coached that they appear great. BC suffers from a similar problem. Our DBs are so well coached and well schemed that no one really respects their individual talent.

It is a relatively simple formula. Our DBs have specific assignments. We play mostly zone coverage. They are drilled to keep their players infront of them. They read the QBs to make smart plays on the ball. And they all tend to be good tacklers. Spaz and McGovern deserve credit for this, but so does Mike Siravo. Under Siravo we've plugged in a series of players and rarely seen a dropoff in performance. [Criticism for Siravo's working as a recruiting coordinator is a different conversation for another time.]

For something so functional our fans tend to bemoan our defensive strategy. People kill the cushion that our DBs allow. It can be frustrating and against good QBs we get picked apart. I understand the frustration, but you cannot argue with the end results. We rarely allow big plays. We make bad QBs look really bad. We frustrate the other offense more often than we frustrate our own fans. But because we are not pressing coverage it often appears that our DBs are slow and not difference makers.

Even by BC standards, this year's crop of defensive backs is really lacking in star power. I expect that to change by season's end. Donnie Fletcher is our most experienced corner. He's played since day 1 and will play the field corner position this year. Fletcher tackles well and can make plays on bad passes. I expect an All-ACC season from him. CJ Jones and Jim Noel will fight for the other corner spot. Based on recent years, I think they will probably split snaps. True freshman Albert Louis-Jean is also expected to play as a freshman.

While the fundamental philosophies are shared, the BC safeties are asked to do some different things. They support the run and also have more freedom to leave their zones, either to help or pick off a pass. The Safeties are expected to be Okechukwu Okoroha and Dominick LeGrande. LeGrande has played all over at BC and been good in most spots. Okoroha came on late last year and was solid.

Other guys who could see time include Sean Sylvia, Dominique Williams, James McCaffrey, Ameer Richardson and Spenser Rositano. And don't expect the top guys to stay strictly in their corner or safety designation. Noel could move back to Safety and LeGrande has played corner in the past. My guess is that we'll play the best guys and interchange them.

As I write these previews I start wondering how the season will turn. In a way, I think the DBs capture the confusion. I think things will be very good. I think the talent is better than outsiders think. Yet I don't know if other factors (the schedule, the offense, Spaz) will undermine the DBs's (and team) end results.

The truth about the blitz

I am not trying to pick on the defense here. We lost this game because we were bad on both sides of the ball. I wanted to show this play though to address one of the myths floated that Spaz/McGovern don't blitz. We actually blitz a decent amount. We just don't design or execute it particularly well. Sure, part is personnel. If you are blitzing with Herzy and with a front four that has Raji and Brace, your blitzes look good. But the past few weeks our blitzes have been ineffective and that was just one of the reasons we lost today. Take a look at this example.

Virginia Tech's second possession. 3rd and 8. VT leads 3-0.


It makes sense to blitz here. It is a crucial down and a stop here keeps VT from scoring. Taylor is still not a natural passer. Let him (and VT) beat us in the air. We set up in our base.

This is where the problem starts. LeGrande tips off his blitz well before the snap. Taylor is ready and so is the VT OLine and RB.


The element of surprise is gone. But we stay with the blitz. Why not? It is 3rd and long and LeGrande has been playing well. McLaughlin is now covering the slot receiver. Now this is why I say VT is good, but not that good. A good QB and well coached passing offense would see McLaughlin on the slot, make an adjustment and throw the quick out or slant and burn McLaughlin. VT didn't.


The ball is snapped and LeGrande does in fact blitz. However, he is swallowed by the tackle (but his containish play makes me wonder if he was not there to spy Taylor). Regardless there is no pressure on the VT QB...yet another anemic blitz. Taylor doesn't go to the slot. In fact the slot guy goes away from Taylor. But his movement draws McLaughlin.


Now McLaughlin is out of position to cover the RB releasing from the backfield. I don't know if it is his man or if Kuechly should have moved over, but regardless, it is a blown assignment. The RB runs free and Taylor has an outlet. (Because it is a little blurry, the VT RB is the guy by the ref in the middle of the field.)



Easy catch. Easy first down. VT would go on to score and open the floodgates.




This play wasn't a disaster and certainly wasn't the biggest error of the day. But it illustrates some of the struggles of the defense the past few weeks. Poor design, poor execution and a blown assignment. Let's get it fixed soon.

Report: BC will promote McGovern

A smaller news site out of New Jersey reports that Bill McGovern will be our next Defensive Coordinator. It is probably true, but I am surprised it didn't break at one of the Boston outlets or on one of the BC message boards.

McGovern is a solid selection and helps with continuity on the defensive side of the ball. He briefly served as interim DC under Dan Henning more than a decade ago. McGovern has coached under three different BC Head Coaches and clearly likes the school and the area. He is also an important recruiter for us in northern Jersey.

There have been grumblings that McGovern felt neglected and slighted as BC took its time in naming him as Spaz' successor. Supposedly Spaz made a play for a few big names. In the end this move makes sense. The next question is how involved will Spaz be in defensive game prep and in-game play calling?

2008 Position Previews: Linebackers

This is the first part of my position by position breakdown of the 2008 roster.


LINEBACKERS

Once again the strength of the defense will be the linebackers. Despite losing two starters to graduation, the unit should be our deepest and most talented.


Overview
The cliché regarding Spaz’s defenses is that he uses the same scheme regardless of personnel, opponent or game situation. That’s not true. Increasingly he’s used more variety in his front seven packages and sent blitzers from various positions. The old dog has been able to add new tricks due to the talented and diverse group of linebackers. This year is no exception. In fact, BC has one of the most experienced units in college football. Take a look:

Toal – 36 games played, 25 games started
Akins – 39 games played, 5 games started
Herzlich – 27 games played, 16 games started
Francois – 38 games played, 7 started
McLaughlin – 23 games played, 3 started

Those five are just the LBs who have started. We are also adding some younger players into the mix. The depth and talent should allow Spaz to continue to tinker and keep BC competitive as our offense transitions.

The Players
LB – Brian Toal, SR, 6’0, 252lbs
LB – Mark Herzlich, JR, 6’4, 238lbs
LB – Kevin Akins, SR, 6’2, 220lbs
LB – Robert Francois, SR, 6’2, 245lbs
LB – Mike McLaughlin, JR, 6’0, 250lbs
LB – Darius Bagan, SO, 6’2, 233lbs
LB – Dan Williams, FR, 6’2, 224lbs
LB – Will Thompson, FR, 6’1, 233lbs
LB – Mike Morrissey, SO, 6’2, 210lbs
LB – Nick Clancy, FR, 6’2, 215lbs
LB – Alex DiSanzo, FR, 6’2, 220lbs

I am hoping a healthy rejuvenated Toal comes back and has a huge year. When fit and focused he is probably our best linebacker in pass coverage and just as capable as running a QB down. Herzlich is a beast and also very savvy. I expect him to have an all ACC season. Akins struggled early last year but played very well down the stretch. His effectiveness as a late blitzer was somewhat neutered last season…teams just expected and protected against it. This year – with an even better front four – should allow Akins to run at QBs again. Francois is always a steady performer. At this point I don’t expect a leap in his performance, but his consistency will be an asset this season. McLaughlin is a decent tackler. In all his playing time, he has not yet had a game changing moment, but he is a serviceable player. Morrissey got on the field on a regular basis last season. I don’t know where he fits into the mix this year. The real unknowns are Williams, Bagan and Thompson. All were highly touted recruits. Hopefully they will all get regular playing time this season as they will be critical to filling voids in 2009. Clancy and DiSanzo are true freshmen. Because of the depth we don’t need to play them this year. If they are capable, one or both might play this season.

Outlook
Even if you exclude the true freshmen, there is more than enough talent at linebacker this year. It is to the point where guys like Morrissey and McLaughlin might have fewer snaps than they played last year (a good problem to have).

Overlooked in all of this is that LB is one of our best coached positions. Credit goes to Bill McGovern for their performance.

The preseason magazines are filled with the “best this” and the “best that.” You won’t read much nationally about of our guys in the middle. That’s too bad as they will be what holds this team together in 2008.