Henning to UNC? and other links

EDSBS had a little fun with UNC and offered a few suggestions on who they should hire. One of their top choices was Dan Henning. Looking back at Henning, it was amazing that he was ever hired by BC. At the time, the move was panned by most BC fans. Now it would be an internet uproar. Henning couldn't manage kids or his offense. He did not have any roots in Boston nor BC. Yet we hired him. Thankfully it only lasted three years.

Thomas Claiborne signed with Tampa. I believe Claiborne's 2010 season was an aberration but I will be surprised if he stays on with the Bucs. I think he's still too short to be an NFL lineman.

We may get ignored when it comes to traditional licensing products, but you can get a BC boat fender. Does this mean BC fans own a lot boats? Maybe they are buying the boats with their BC credit cards.

Mayock's biggest day and other links

Most of us have watched ESPN's Draft coverage, but don't forget the NFL Network's broadcast. The star of that show is BC's own Mike Mayock. Mayock has spread his wings a bit with game coverage, but he is really at home as a talent evaluator.

Local papers in Illinois are loving the Costanzo story.

Chris Hovan's first post NFL job will be coaching high school football in Florida.

Another Herzy interview.

Thomas Claiborne once seemed like a definite draftee. An inconsistent season combined with some squabaling with the coaches made him much less desirable. Put he still has potential, as you can see from this workout.

Softball's season has been a bit of a letdown. However they have set the school record for HRs in a season.

The Thomas Claiborne affair

I realize some of you avoid the rumor and innuendos that surround the program, so let me catch you up. A few weeks back our Spaz moved Thomas Claiborne out of the starting lineup. Public explanations were vague as to why the preseason All ACC player and three year starter was not starting but the word was he was being outplayed. Yet in most of those games Claiborne was quickly reinserted back into the game. His play was inconsistent but he was still effective enough. At the time there was plenty of gossip that Claiborne had spoke out against the coaching staff and was being punished.

Now, weeks later, Claiborne is playing again and he and Spaz are openly addressing their past issues and are publicly on the same page. So it seems like there was some truth to the rumors of discontent and that the benching was a subjective mix or performance and punishment. What does it all mean for BC, Spaz, Claiborne and this season?

One of the most critical roles of a head coach is managing the all the people involved in the program. The complexity of managing a unit or position is multiplied because now you have other coaches to worry about and you have final say. As with any diverse and big group, you can't manage everyone the same way. The best coaches understand that. I worry at times that Spaz has a little TOB in him in that he would hurt himself, the team and a player out of stubbornness disguised as principle. Did Claiborne mouth off? I buy it. Anyone can see that he is an emotional guy. But punishing him in a way that might hurt his career and your struggling team might not be the best message. You have to respect that player A and player B are different and respond differently to coaching and structure. If you lose a player or leader, that hurts the mood of the team and recruiting.

When we look back on this year the inconsistency of the offensive line is going to be a real focal point. It is a shame that things might have been different if emotions and pride hadn't gotten in the way of things.

As for why I didn't address this when it first happened? I am in my usual tough spot. I don't know Thomas or Spaz. No one who knew what was going on could go on record, so instead of stirring things up I just let it be. It doesn't surprise me that Spaz finally addressed it in the safe harbor of the Globe and Herald and after he is feeling a little safer about his own job. I just hope he has learned from this. Sometimes the difference between a five game losing streak and say going 2-3 is how you handle the players' emotions and not just the Xs and Os.

Depth Chart shuffle and other links

The Depth Chart came out and surprised some people with the new look at RG. Mark Spinney will start over Thomas Claiborne. I asked BC for an official explanation and did not get one. The consistent rumor I did hear was that this was not performance based, rather an internal "team rules" sort of thing and that Claiborne will probably play Saturday.

Isaac Johnson is heading to Cincinnati. Best of luck to him, but the whole thing seems weird. What is going to happen in Cincy that he couldn't have accomplished here?

Catch up with former Eagle Markell Blount.

Reading too much into the preseason All Conference team and other links

The ACC media members selected four Eagles onto their Preseason All-ACC Football team. The honorees were Anthony Castonzo, Thomas Claiborne, Montel Harris and Luke Kuechly. The only team with more was UNC. If we had the second most players on the squad and some of our better players were snubbed, does this mean we have the best talent in the ACC this year? I don't think we have the best talent, but the gap between BC and the conference powers is not a wide as the media or some at BC would leave you to believe. I think the team and the fans should use this list as a confidence boosters. BC can compete for the division. Don't let the excuse makers lower expectations. We are all about "ever to excel."

This preview thinks BC will go 10-2. I love the optimism, but don't think our schedule is as easy as they do.

Mike Gambino hired his first assistant Scott Friedholm. The Providence grad has coached at Navy and Maine.

Ryan Quigley spoke with his hometown paper while coaching at a kicking camp. He seems like another good BC guy.

IMG acquired our radio rights holder ISP Sports. This probably doesn't mean a whole lot for BC. The only real synergies might come in ad sales and marketing programs when IMG puts their marketing clients in ISP's broadcasts.

Here is a decent season preview from a Virginia blog.

BC hoops recruit George Matthews is trying to decide if he should go to prep school for a year or give college a shot now.