Ireland update? and other links

BCI put two and two together and think that Georgia Tech clearing up their 2016 schedule means that BC and the Yellow Jackets are Ireland bound. Bates keeps denying it publicly, but the maneuvering does make sense. The logistics or the game require plenty of time and plenty of marketing to our fanbase so it will have to be announced soon if it is to happen in 2016.

An EO poster dug up this link to a recent BC tax filing. Page 46 lists Addazio's total comp as $2.5M.

Eric Hoffses reported that Basketball brought in a preferred walk-on. Now we just need some impact players.

Talking recruiting with Eric Hoffses

Although most of the big names are committed elsewhere, Jim Christian's new staff is working hard to find a player or two who can make an impact next season. To get a better feel for what to expect, I asked Eric Hoffses for a quick update on Christian's recruiting. Here's what he said:

Eric Hoffses: There aren't a lot of guys left in 2014. Probably the biggest target remaining that the new staff is going after is Idrissa Diallo. He originally signed with Cal but requested a release with their coaching change.

Diallo is kind of opposite of what Donahue looked for in big men in that he lacks offensive skills right now. The positives are that he is long and athletic and an above average defensive player. He's fast for his size too. There's lots of upside with him.

Diallo is visiting, but I think its more realistic the new staff will find a 5th year transfer that can make an impact for next year rather than an incoming recruit that can make an impact.

Darryl Hicks out with ACL tear

This sort of slid under the radar, but Eric Hoffses reported the incoming basketball freshman Darryl Hicks tore his ACL. No official word from BC yet, but you have to assume he will now take a medical redshirt. Losing Hicks is tough, but it really doesn't change the expectations for the season. I didn't expect Hicks to come in and displace Hanlan or Rahon in the starting line-up nor significantly cut into their minutes. It leaves us a little thin in the backcourt, but BC managed around it last year.

I hope Hicks has a smooth recovery. The silver lining of it all is Hicks potentially getting a fifth year helps the scholarship distribution.

Spaz's good intentions are all wrong and other links

(This is going to sound like I am raining on some hard-working kids parade. That's not my intent.) As the Heights reported, Spaz awarded scholarships to Mike Javorski and Ted Davenport. That is great news for those guys and I am happy for them and their families. Getting a BC scholarship is a huge honor and provides a huge financial relief. But one of the problems with Spaz is his roster management. The reason he constantly has available scholarships every August is because he can't find enough good talent that want to  play football in the ACC and get a free education!!! Every year Spaz wastes a huge resource! He has a lottery ticket that no one wants to collect. That is mismanagement. I know Javorski and Davenport worked hard and this is no slight to them. But when their coach complains in two weeks that we have no talent at Running back or injuries have hurt us on the Line, remember that he doesn't use every scholarship. We could have brought in three or more Penn State players, but good ol' Spaz wasn't going to chase those kids! People think my complaints with Spaz are because of the losing or the interviews. That's only part of it. The guy is not capable of running a BCS program. I am glad this won't be our problem much longer. I hope Javorski and Davenport have great seasons!

Hoffses has a very good write up on the last scrimmage. It looks like we've settled into an Oline of Cleary, White, Gallik, Vardaro and Wetzel. Let's hope they play well and we roll out the same crew all season long.

BC finalized their game schedule for Spain and the ACC released the basketball schedule.

The ACC coaches voted BC 4th in their preseason poll.

DominiqueWilliams is mentoring younger players at Brockton.

Women's Ice Hockey selected their captains.

This is the Golden Age of BC football coverage

How quickly things can change when it comes to media. Only a few weeks ago, it seemed like Boston's flagship newspaper might not even cover BC. Fortunately Julian Benbow started this week and has already written features on Bollman and the running backs. The Herald's Rich Thompson embraced his new role and is producing at least one BC article a day. This is probably the best combination on the BC beat since Vega and Shalin's days. But the two main papers aren't the only ones pumping out content.

Ironically, Blauds departure from the Globe has actually increased his BC coverage. His blog has near daily posts on BC. I still have issues with Blauds tone and approach, but now that he is on his own he seems to be taking BC and his readers more seriously. Better late than never.

Eric Avidon doesn't exclusively cover BC, but he does write more BC features than most other Boston-area sports writers.

I've sung Eagle Action's Eric Hoffses praises before. Fortunately Rivals is releasing more of his content to non-subscribers. We know about Heather Dinich at ESPN, but some might not realize that CBS Sports has an ACC blog too.

And when things are slow or there isn't much news, BCeagles.com can be counted on to put up player interviews.

In addition to all of this, there a multiple BC blogs and twitter accounts. Plus ESPN and the ACC put out plenty of video content.

I don't think we'll ever get as much news at bigger programs, but I think we need to appreciate how much original content and coverage we get now.

Catching up on basketball recruiting with Eric Hoffses

In addition to his work on the BC beat, Eric Hoffses also covers college basketball recruiting in New England for Rivals.com. With Donahue and his staff in the middle of the important and competitive summer recruiting circuit, I thought I would check in with Eric and get a feel for BC's recruiting plans.

Q: The summer recruiting season is in full swing. Who are the most realistic names on Steve Donahue's short list? 

Eric Hoffses: Samuel Dingba from the Salisbury School is a guy I could see being a fit in the class 2013. He’s a 6’6” power forward that’s a good defender and rebounder and plays bigger than his size. BC offered him in May. There is a real need for a power forward and he seems like the most likely guy to fill the void. If you are a believer that the current core of freshmen are the real deal then you will think Dingba is a great fit. He would fill a void that is missing on the current roster.

Q: Who is the biggest reach/elite recruit that you could see BC landing? 

Eric Hoffses:  Noah Vonleh is tops on the list, and I’ll talk about him more in a bit. If you are looking for a player that’s going to be a top 100 guy and has a good chance to come to BC I’d pay attention to 2014 player Kaleb Joseph. He is a PG from Nashua, NH that plays for Cushing Academy. He can do it all from scoring, to passing, to being a leader. Joseph is a real good kid too and it’s not lost on him that BC was the first big name school to offer him. This is a big weekend coming up for BC. A lot of the top New England prospects in the class of 2014-2015 are coming in for their Elite Camp. It gives the staff a good opportunity to evaluate players in their offense, and it gets big name players on campus.

Q: Do you expect anyone to commit over the summer? 

Eric Hoffses: Probably not unless it’s a fringe/under the radar prospect and I don’t think the staff is going to push for any of those right now. With a low amount of available scholorships the staff has to be selective. There isn’t a need to panic yet with so much time left. The players can’t sign until November in the early signing period, so they probably won't start committing until late August/September.

Q: Do you think Donahue will over recruit given the number of scholarships available? Can he risk it on the chance that a current player will leave? 

Eric Hoffses: No I don’t. It’s believed that they have 3 scholoroships to give out between the 2013 and 2014 classes right now. They are going to keep at least one open for superstar Noah Vonleh. For those who haven’t heard of Vonleh, he’s one of the highest ranked players in the class of 2014 and he’s from Haverhill, MA. He plays at New Hampton prep, one of the local prep schools that BC has had a very good relationship with (2012 recruit Olivier Hanlan played there). Unlike some other superstars who have came through New England, there’s at least a small chance BC could land him. He still mentions BC in interviews alongside the likes of North Carolina, Syracuse, ect. I think the staff sees a real chance at landing some huge names in the 2014 class. This is the class that people who follow hoops closely in this area have been talking about for years. I’m talking about the type of guys that can come in and average double digits as a freshman. With that being the case they aren’t going to leave themselves shorthanded. It’s going to have to be considered a huge disappointment if BC doesn’t land any of the big names in this class.

Other BC voices

As the BC blogosphere and twitterverse have grown, we all seem to be commenting on the same topics. But there are some unique voices out there that might get lost in the noise. Here are some other BC folks who at times are overlooked or not given enough credit. Follow their work for insight, passion and humor.

BCMike: twitter and BC Draft. Mike is a fellow Georgia transplant and has been active on various BC message boards and platforms for years.

Dave Levy: twitter and Heights and Lows. Dave's twitter feed is not exclusively BC sports, but it is media and sports heavy. Heights and Lows takes a more lighthearted approach to BC sports.

The Heights: twitter and tumblr. The Heights Sports section is in the middle of a great run. For the past six or seven years they've been building their depth, improving their reporting and breaking more news.

Greg Joyce: twitter. Greg will edit the Heights Sports section next football season. With the fate of Spaz, Gene and the ACC in play, the Fall will not lack for storylines or news.

Stephen Sikora: twitter. Another Heights Sports staff writer. He live tweets during games.

Austin Tedesco: twitter. Austin closed the school year with a strong Steve Donahue interview.

Prof. Ed Taylor: ETEagle Blog. CSOM Accounting Professor and die hard BC fan.

Eric Hoffses: twitter. As I've said before, I am not a fan of Eagle Action, but I am a fan of Hoffses. He is easily the best guy covering -- not just commentating on -- BC sports.

Soaring to Glory: Blog. Their individual previews of the players are worth the read.

Around the Res: Blog. They are the only ones who can get Gene to answer their questions!

I know I didn't cover everyone. If there is someone or some blog that I overlooked, please add it in the comments section.