Spaz back to coaching and BC still with openings

Former BC head coach Frank Spaziani is returning to the sidelines. He accepted a job as New Mexico State's Defensive Coordinator. The job reunites him with his final BC OC Doug Martin.  I plan to write about ageism and coaching after the full staff is in place, but I am surprised Spaz was hired. He will be 69 in April and is the same age Gary Tranquill was when he came out of retirement to coach at BC. It will be interesting to see how he does. The New Mexico State job really requires a miracle worker. I don't know all the details of BC's settlement with Spaz, but him taking this job probably confirms that he is no longer receiving any payments from BC. (Most of the buyouts have provisions when a coach takes a new job.)

The Iowa media looked into the Seth Wallace gossip and don't have any new news (and don't think there is much to it). We won't know more until Addazio fills his final two spots. Neither of the major coaching coaching sites have any rumor or gossip about who Addazio is considering for his openings.

In-game comments post: New Mexico State

A sign of a well coached and mature team is the ability to take every game and every opponent seriously. New Mexico State is struggling, but this game is important for BC. We need to play well and come out with the win. Let's hope we stay focused. Leave your comments and thoughts below.

You can also follow me on twitter.

An appreciation for Doug Martin

The obvious storyline to Saturday's game is BC facing its former Offensive Coordinator and now current New Mexico State Head Coach Doug Martin. As much as last season was painful and there are many things the previous staff did that set BC back, I really hold no animosity towards Martin. In fact his short stay was one of the few positives of last year.

There is a mercenary aspect to big time coaching. Few jobs have stability and you go where you are wanted and where there is a healthy pay check. All the guys who joined Spaz's final staff knew that. They all took the job for various professional reasons but I think all knew to rent rather than buy (figuratively). Because of that mentality and because the season went south early on, you heard stories and watched as the coaches started checking out on the season and BC. I never heard that about Martin. In fact, I heard just the opposite.

The offense wasn't much better while Martin was calling the plays, but I think we can fairly say that most of the problems were systemic. The offense was never good under Spaz because of how he managed his staff, his roster and his practices. I think under a different regime and different circumstances Martin might have been a guy who thrived at BC. 

Martin went from one unstable situation to another when he was thrust into the Head Coaching job at New Mexico State. It seems destined for failure. Other than this weekend, I wish him luck in turning it around.

Two good BC-related articles and other links

Bill Connelly's preview of BC is pretty solid. I also appreciate that he led with how one coach can unravel a good foundation. He's also a bit pessimistic about Addazio (given things went at Florida and Temple).

Holly Anderson's New Mexico State preview pushed a few buttons among BC fans. I didn't perceive anything as a slight. We stunk last year. What bothered me more was how Spaz's assistance to Doug Martin was portrayed. What happened to all his "loyalty" to BC?

Here is Q&A with Senior transfer Matt Patchan.

Reports have Charlie Davies set to join the Revs. Former Eagle Alejandro Bedoya signed with Nantes in France's top league.

Crazy Predictions: A Season Preview. Part 4: BC will win three road games

Having been at this a long time, I try to keep things fresh. For this year's Season Previews I am going to make a few outlandish predictions based on my hunches. 

The media thinks BC will finish last in the division. Vegas has a little more optimism but still puts our win total at 4.5. People close to the program think it would be a miracle if we got to six wins. I am not ready to publish my game-by-game predictions, but I do think we are going to be a good road team this year.

I like Doug Martin and respect his familiarity with our roster, but we will beat his New Mexico State team in Las Cruces. They are terrible. Road games can be tricky but by November, when we play them, we will be battle-tested and have a much better understanding of our strengths and weaknesses. Our talent is not BCS level, but it is still much better than New Mexico State's. This game will be a "W."

The Aggies only count for one victory. Our others are a bigger question mark. I don't think much of USC but the talent disparity is in their favor and playing in the Coliseum is tough. At Clemson seems very unlikely at this point. We've never beaten North Carolina as a member of the ACC. That leaves Maryland and Syracuse. 

We finish our season with the Terps and Orange on the road. I know that each game is an individual event, but I do think confidence and early success can impact how a team plays later in the season. I wish we played these two earlier. We very well could enter the stretch at 2-8. But that is where I think the new coaching combined with the veteran team helps. I know Addazio will be pulling out all the stops to get a few more wins. I also know that our seniors will want to end their disappointing careers on a high note. I think we will be super motivated. Conversely, I also think Maryland could be in a fragile state. It is their final ACC season and they could very well be ready to fire Randy Edsall. Syracuse is at a more stable position, but you never know how they will be after a 11 games with a new coach and new conference. 

I think three games are very winnable Maybe we will even surprise one of our other road foes. Either way, we are getting to three road wins. 

Thaddius Smith commits and other links

Pennsylvania athlete Thaddius Smith committed to BC early this Monday afternoon. He is expected to play WR. While his offers are mostly FCS level, I love that Addazio targeted and closed him early.

Although still enrolled at BC, Luke Kuechly is working out in Charlotte the next two weeks.

Donahue is recruiting his former Cornell player Errick Peck hard. He has one year left and can transfer immediately  Although he is only 6'6, he could give us some depth on the front line. I am all in favor of picking up guys for depth who won't impact our long-term scholarship balance. BC is also after some big men for the 2014 recruiting class.

Spaz is spending some time helping Doug Martin at New Mexico State. I would worry about them preparing for BC, but our schemes will be so different from theirs, that it won't be much of an advantage.

Report: TOB in talks w/UVA and other links

David Teel is reporting that TOB is considering joining Mike London's staff at UVA. While not a done deal, this is the most unpredictable thing I've ever read about the most predictable man in the business. TOB doesn't need the money. As a BC booster recently told me: "Tom still has his first communion money." TOB told many former staffers and players that NC State was his last job and that he was nearing retirement. However, he didn't leave NC State on his own terms. Maybe being fired struck a nerve. Or maybe he realized he's still too young to retire. I don't know, but I am surprised he would consider a staff job. I heard he had interest in Cincinnati. He has a long relationship with London and always loved UVA. Maybe he will go back into coaching. Just when you think you know a guy...
London did clean house and does need a DC, but I don't think Spaz will be in play. TOB is an empty nester and Spaz still has kids in school in Massachusetts. I doubt Spaz is willing to sacrifice any buyout money to go be an assistant somewhere else.

This is from a few days ago, but Doug Martin is returning to New Mexico State. Best of luck to him.

Johnny Gaudreau is on a great run in the World Juniors.

The Heights posted a good preview of the basketball team heading into ACC play.

The women's basketball team lost to Hampton.

Luke Kuechly might not win Defensive Rookie of the Year, but he is getting credit for changing the Panthers defense.

All our problems captured in one play

Occasionally I will break down one play to show what I feel are bigger problems. No team is perfect so this can feel like I am cherry picking bad moments, but I picked this play because of when it happened, the breakdowns that happen and how it killed the game.

This is the situation. We just forced another Notre Dame turnover and are driving with the hope of making it 21-14. There is over 11 minutes left. We converted on the first series and are at the Notre Dame 38. Incomplete on 1st down. WE CALL A TIMEOUT! I understand. We are behind. We want to make sure everyone is on the same page and we a ready to roll out our best plays. Right? Right? Out of the timeout we come with one back (Finch), Two Tight Ends on either side (Pantale and Naples) and two wide receivers.

Naples motions to the field side and we start the stretch play (zone blocking). This is a bread and butter play for most good offenses in college and pro football. At the snap there are no initial problems. Cleary and Pantale double their man, the middle of the line is losing the battle, but if Duece can get by them, he should have plenty of space to turn the corner and get a nice run.    

This is where things breakdown. Cleary releases to the second level to block Te'o (who is so overrated compare to Kuechly, BTW). The problem is Pantale is losing his battle. Clearly cannot release that early! We have to win upfront before trying the second level. You can also see Vardaro losing his battle. This is important because now Duece doesn't have a cutback if Pantale gets bowled over.

This is where it all blows up. Pantale loses his man. Te'o runs right by Cleary and the right side of the line collapses. It is now 3rd and 13. The drive is effectively dead and the game is over all because BC couldn't deliver on a simple stretch play out of a timeout!

Like I said, this is cherry picking. But one of the failures of Spaz's tenure is to ever establish an offensive identity. Maybe it was the guys he picked to run his offenses. Maybe it was the way the team prepared. I don't think it is talent. Cleary and Pantale are good ACC level players. They didn't play well Saturday, but they've certainly shown the ability to handle this play. But I don't know what goes on on a week to week basis, but this is a breakdown of communication and execution out of a timeout on a critical drive.

People love to rewrite history with regards to Dana Bible and Steve Logan. One things I will credit both with, is that they both had plays they could call on and deliver over and over again. Not home runs. Not game changers, but simple easy to execute plays that kept the ball moving and helped keep drives alive. In five coordinators we have never gotten to that place with Spaz.

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.

We have no running backs and that's a good thing

We held a situational scrimmage Sunday and are down to one healthy running back. While Spaz's amateur roster management frustrates me to no end, I do think there is a silver lining to the situation. If we are forced to be one dimensional, we might finally use a modern college football offense and actually score some points!

BC has a pocket passing QB and an inconsistent offensive line. It is time for Rettig to be in the shotgun and start flinging the ball quickly. Under three different coordinators Spaz's offenses rarely score more than 20 points. Yet we never open things up. I don't know if it is Spaz's edict or lack of faith in the QBs, but for whatever reason we have not done something most other college teams can. Maybe now that we have an OC that likes to pass, a Junior QB and one legitimate running back, we will finally throw.

What Spaz doesn't seem to understand is that his conservative nature has barely paid off in wins (20-19) and has been beyond boring to watch. BC fans are going to complain after any Spaz loss, so why doe he care if he can keep it close. If we lose to Miami 48-45 and throw it 50+ times, I know fans will gripe, but some of us will welcome the new look and feel.

Things I don't want to hear as practice officially starts

Practice begins Monday.The offseason issues we've been dissecting will now get that much more attention locally and nationally. Although I know we will hear about the following endlessly, I hope the media at least tries to come up with something new and avoid the hollow excuses of seasons past.

1. Spaz finally has his guys. This was used as a major excuse last year. If we win this year or lose this year it won't be because of "Spaz's guys." Spaz and his recruiting coordinator have been around for the recruitment of every player on the roster.

2. New vibe around the offense. I like Doug Martin and think he'll be a breath of fresh air. But we won't know what the offense is really like until Miami. Let's not forget the "new" offense and the great feel the players had for Gary Tranquill, Kevin Rogers and Dave Brock.

3. Injuries. We will lose players in practice. Someone will get lost for the season.You know who else will deal with those issues? Every other team in college football.

4. Replacing Luke Kuechly. We will miss him but every college in the country is replacing a great player. Linebacker is our deepest position and the front seven is much improved. Kuechly will be missed but he shouldn't be an excuse for losing.

Key Players for 2012: Tahj Kimble

This is a series on the key players for the 2012 season. Big things are expected for some, while others will need to improve over their previous performances. If 2012 is a good year, it will be in part due to the key players overachieving.




Sophomore Running Back, Tahj Kimble

What he's been: Kimble spent his first season of eligibility as a change of pace back. He only started one game and only ran for 156 yards. Kimble was more valuable as a returner on special teams. Kimble isn't as big as the other running backs but he's shifty and has decent speed. While his stats weren't impressive, his TD catch against Duke was the type of play that makes me think he has potential to be very good.

What he needs to be: We need a play maker. I don't know if Kimble will still be on special teams. I don't know if he will be given a chance to be an every down back. But there should be enough opportunity somewhere for Kimble to make a difference. He can use that potential and help BC's offense break out of its doldrums.

Why I like his chance to shine: Maybe I am grasping at straws or playing too much on the Logan-Martin connection, but I see Martin using Kimble like Logan used Andre Callender. With Logan, Callender became one of BC's best pass catching running backs. Using a RB in the passing game has been nonexistent since Logan left. It's a shame since it can be a great outlet for a maturing QB. If Martin is true to form and wants to  shake up the offense, he will throw the ball to Kimble.  And once he's established as a threat, that will open up other things around the field.

Most of the players I'm counting on are upperclassmen. But the odds say some of the younger guys will have big seasons too. I think Kimble could be one of those guys. The key will be his maturity and Martin finding a way to get him the ball.

Key Players for 2012: Chase Rettig

This is a series on the key players for the 2012 season. Big things are expected for some, while others will need to improve over their previous performances. If 2012 is a good year, it will be in part due to the key players overachieving.

Junior Quarterback, Chase Rettig

What he's been: We all hoped Rettig would be a phenom. That he would some how save the Spaz era from its offensive funk and lead BC to unexpected glory. Instead, he's been mediocre. He completed just over half of his passes last year and never put together back-to-back great games nor enough sustained drives. Apologists for Rettig like me blame the system, the talent around him and of course the way his Spaz has screwed up the offense. But even the biggest Rettig cheerleaders have to admit he's yet to have a memorable BC moment or done anything to get on an NFL radar.

What he needs to be: Someone who can put the team on his back. I know the offensive line has been terrible, leaving Chase running for his life. I know plenty of passes have been dropped and no one is making big plays. But a truly great QB would show more by now. He's started 21 games. He's finally is a simplified offense that will get the ball out of his hands. If Chase does have an accurate arm, if he is as cerebral as people say, if he can get off throws in a collapsing pocket, now is his chance to show it.

Why I like his chances to shine: I don't know if Doug Martin is going to be a miracle worker, but QB's can make huge leaps with a new offense. Just look at Dominique Davis. He went to East Carolina and became one of the most accurate passers in the country.

Last year I thought Rettig would be great. I thought his toughness and preparation would overcome the offensive limitations. Here I am a year late thinking the same thing. But the difference is Doug Martin. We finally have an experienced OC running a current, simple offense. Rettig will be asked to make quick decisions and get the ball out fast. I think he can do it. I also think that throwing 400+ passes will give him a rhythm and a confidence that he's never had at BC.

How I talk myself into thinking we are going to be good...

You can see it on the BC message boards. You can see it on twitter and on the blogs. Optimism is rising. People are looking forward to the BC Football season. On Eagle Outsider they sarcastically call this "10-2 season." It is that time of year when every aspect of the team and season still has hope and promise. Despite my best judgement and spending half of my posts speculating on Spaz's future, I am falling into this same trap. The closer we get to kickoff and the more I read, the more I think BC might surprise people this year. I am not ready to post my predictions for the season, but here are a few reasons why I do think this team should be bowl bound.

The Schedule
It looks tougher on paper than it really is. Our toughest opponents come to us. We play three of our first four at home. Playing FSU and Georgia Tech on back-to-back weeks is a bit rough, but playing Georgia Tech any time forces a team to regroup. If you have to play a gimmick offense, you might as well do it after facing a top 10 team. Maybe it will serve as a rally point after playing the 'Noles.

Underrated talent
Look at that depth chart again. It is not an all star lineup, but I think our front seven will be better than last year. I love some of the young DBs (Keyes, Asprilla) and think with a healthy Noel and improved ALJ, we can be solid defensively. I still think Chase Rettig can be great. I have real hope for Doug Martin and think our WR and TE talent is good enough. The biggest question is the offensive line. But as someone who has preached for a OL coaching change, I keep telling myself that Bollman will make a difference.

Emotion and Pride
Football is an emotional game and emotional sport. Point fingers at whomever you like, but BC had awful team and coaching chemistry last season. When I see Al Washington posting on Facebook about his excitement, when I hear about the 5th year Seniors wanting to end their careers on a high note, when I look at the new field, I think that positive energy and emotion will carry us to an extra win or two.

As long as these two (see pic below) stay out of the way and Spaz coaches to win, I think this might be a fun season. Is anyone else talking themselves into a big year?

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.

Phil Steele likes BC more than most

Phil Steele made his name by publishing the most thorough, analytical and detailed college preview annually. He boasts that he's right when everyone else is wrong. In his latest edition, one of the teams Phil thinks will surprise is BC.

Phil's not behind BC for just some random reasons. He's always put an emphasis on returning starters and BC's rates high in that department. Steele also likes that BC faces most of its toughest opponents at home. BC's close losses from last season are also factored in (Steele think luck tends to revert to a mean -- so BC will do better in close games this year). Steele also predicts improvement from Rettig (due to Martin and maturity) and thinks our offensive line will be better than it has been in years.

Although he touts BC as a +3.5 on his new Stock Market metric, Steele's not predicting greatness for our Eagles. The magazine has us 4th in the division and playing Army in the Military Bowl. Still, that is relatively high praise when most magazines expect us to have another losing season.

I understand where Steele is coming from. All his factors give me some optimism. We should be better on offense. The defense does have some good returning talent. I like Doug Martin and what he represents. Yet I don't think it is that simple. Steele believes that some of the bad losses will even out this year. I'm not there ready to take that leap. Many of the reasons we've been in so many close games under Spaz is because he manages the games that way. He doesn't put teams away and doesn't go for broke when we trail. Is that suddenly going to change this year?

I want BC to win. I want to make a bowl game. I may not care for Spaz, but I love BC and watching winning football is fun. I hope Steele is right, but I still think this year will be as frustrating as last year.

Martin shares thoughts on split QB snaps and other links

When Spaz first used Bordner against FSU, I didn't like it, but I understood. He was trying to do anything to jump start the offense. As things improved towards the end of the season and Rettig showed some improvement, I hated the Bordner packages. They were predictable and killed momentum. Fortunately it sounds like Doug Martin prefers one QB. This is what he said to HD:

Boston College used two quarterbacks last year -- starter Chase Rettig and backup Josh Bordner – but first-year offensive coordinator Doug Martin said that won’t be the case this season, at least not intentionally. 

“I don’t see us doing that,” he said.


Rettig finished the spring as the Eagles’ top quarterback, followed by Bordner, but Martin said he is comfortable with both of them.

The Mets drafted incoming Baseball Freshman Chris Shaw. Shaw says he's still coming to BC. New York has until July 15 to sign him. Recent BC baseball grads Matt Brazis and Anthony Melchionda were both taken in last week's MLB Draft.


Basketball Prospectus liked Ryan Anderson's freshman year statistically.

John Muse signed with the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Big Ten Network will carry the BC-Northwestern game. It will be a 3:30 pm start.

This is a really good article that explains the ACC-Raycom relationship. It also dismisses all the conspiracy theories regarding John Swofford -- including that BC got into the ACC because his son worked at BC during expansion.

The co-ed sailing team was unable to follow up the women's title. They finished seventh overall.

This is from earlier in the week, but ESPN thinks BC is the least desirable basketball job in the ACC. I think this drastically overlooks our history and BC's advantages. I would argue that BC is a better job than Miami, Virginia Tech, and Clemson.

Can Martin make Chase Rettig better?

I don't blame Chase Rettig for our offensive problems. Behind a better offensive line or with consistency from his offensive coordinator, the results could be very different for him. I predict that Rettig will make significant progress this year under Doug Martin. But how much progress should we expect? To get a better understanding I tried to measure that last two times Martin took over an offense as an offensive coordinator/play caller. The most recent example was last season at New Mexico State. Prior to that, Martin's last Year 1 rebuilding job was as offensive coordinator under Dean Pees at Kent State in 2003. I didn't get into Martin's years at ECU because Steve Logan was calling the plays and I didn't consider Martin's time as Head Coach at Kent State as he was recruiting to his own system, not trying to make an inherited player better.

New Mexico State 2011 After seven seasons as Head Coach in Kent State, Martin did not waste any time getting back into football. He took the OC job at New Mexico State last year with the hope of sparking their offense. He inherited Matt Christian as quarterback. A Senior, Christian started as a JR after transferring from Junior College. As a JUCO Christian completed 58% of his passes. In his Junior year at NMSU, he completed just 49.6% of his passes and threw 7 TDs and 6 INTs. Under Martin, Christian showed solid improvement. His accuracy improved to 52.3% and he also improved his TD/INT ratio to 15/8. That seems pretty mundane, but when you consider a 5.44% improvement in accuracy and a 114% improvement in TDs, that sort of spike could help Rettig.

Kent State 2003 Josh Cribbs was a phenom before Doug Martin got to Kent State. But entering his JR year (2003) Cribbs needed to bounce back from a sophomore slump (48.9% completion percentage, 4 TD/14 INT). Under Martin's tutelage Cribbs improved his efficiency and productivity even though his completion percentage remained flat. He completed 48.9% in 2003 but improved his yardage by 1410 yards and his TD/INT ration to 14/9. But even though it wasn't in Martin's first year, Cribbs also showed that an inaccurate passer can improve dramatically as he completed 64.5% of his passes as a senior.

Regardless of the coaching Rettig should get better next year. Most of our playmakers returns and the offensive line can't get much worse. Martin might not be a miracle worker, but there's nothing to suggest he's going to screw Rettig up. At this point all we are asking for his some excitement and a little hope.

A glimpse into the new offense via Steve Logan

Steve Logan is long gone from BC, but with his former protege Doug Martin taking over the offense, I predict you will see some of Logan's touches on the new offense. There are two big takeaways from these two videos: 1. how the offense is taught and 2. what is the core philosophy.

The best part for me is the discussion is getting rid of the ball off of the five step drop. It speaks to an aggressiveness that has been lacking from BC for the entire Spaz era. Logan concedes that the QB will get hit, but he also has faith that his guy will get rid of the ball and that a big play will be there.

Spring Game: a day of missed opportunities

We've learned not to read too much into the Spring Game. However, there are themes to the most public football event of the spring. This year I sensed an overriding feeling of missed opportunities. It started with the lousy weather and continued to the QBs making mistakes despite a depleted secondary.

The weather couldn't be helped. Moving the schedule forward necessitated the Spring Game in March. In Boston that's always dicey. Because of the unpredictable weather BC cancelled "Family Fun Day" and had smallish crowds. I hope we return to our normal Spring schedule next year. It might not make an impact on the field, but I think ending the Spring on a nice day creates a sense of optimism among the fans.

For those of us who watched online, the day started ignominiously. The feed was timing out and we couldn't see the first 20 minutes. Later the game came in.

As for seeing Doug Martin's new stlye, it wasn't drastic change. The formations were all pretty standard. The play was inconsistent and all the QB struggled at times. I don't know if that's attributed to the new scheme, the weather or talent issues. Rettig's rough numbers left some people wondering about the QB position battle. Spaz quelled that after the game by reinforcing that Rettig will be the starter next year. I remain in the Rettig fan club. This was just a glorified scrimmage. We've seen Chase execute against ACC defenses. How he does in an empty Alumni in March means very little.

There's nothing to read into the defense. Injuries and roster depth forced Spaz to put all sorts of raw or random guys on the field as the game progressed.

The Heights took lots of pictures. Check out their shots. You'll notice lots of empty seats.

Ultimately the Spring Game is about getting ready for next year. I hope BC's marketing arm use next year's Spring Game to see how they can grow the fanbase. Leaving the game to die in March doesn't do much for anyone.