BC enters the polls and other links

BC debuted in the AP Poll at 23. They are just on the outside of the Coaches' Poll.

Sad end to Brian Toal's BC career. If he gets healthy by the combine, I still think he could be drafted.

HD is moving us up in her Power Rankings.

Two Atlanta area prospects had different takes on their recruiting visit. Drew Little seemed excited about the experience. Joel Kight seemed to notice the weather.

Georgia LB Jonathan Davis still plans on visiting BC.

BC fans give the refs some assistance

For those who missed it, here is the clip of a late flag on a pass interference call in the second quarter. The reason it was so late? It came from the stands.

The BC boards are divided about this little incident. Some found it funny (myself included). Others found it classless. I think it was harmless, but don't want to see it become a regular occurrence at homes games.

Second viewing thoughts and grade report: Virginia Tech

The rewatch on this game was reinforced my initial impressions. I felt better about the good things and worse about the rough patches. Overall though, you have to take some solace in that we spotted Virginia Tech 17 points and still won by five.

Offense: B-

Calling Crane streaky doesn’t really capture his issues. I’ll cover the good stuff first before hammering him later in the paragraph. The good news is that I think he is freezing less. He looked much more sure of himself. There seem to be fewer breakdowns between him and his WRs. His decisions when the plays broke down were much better including the deep fly to Robinson to set up the final TD. His touch passes in the red zone were excellent and on the money. He made good decisions in the option and ran hard. In the second half Virginia Tech brought much more pressure. It slowed our offense but Crane stood in the pocket and still got rid of the ball (in most cases). Now the bad, his first throw was terrible, behind and into multiple Hokies for an interception. The Hokies sat in their zones, watched him and jumped his throws repeatedly (hence our best passes were fades, deep balls or broken plays – throws that are harder to jump). By my count he had eight really bad throws (a quarter of his attempts). He took a horrible sack on a critical drive in the fourth. He is holding the ball too long in the pocket. When he should throw it in the stands he forces it and when he should take a risk he throws it away. I think he’s going to cost us at least one more game before this is all over. North Carolina will be an interesting test since they are ballhawks.

Last season Castonzo struggled mightily against Virginia Tech. This year facing the same scheme, he played nearly perfect. He’s also looking much better against the run. His LG Clif Ramsey also had another strong game. Tennant also got notice from the TV guys. His blocking and protection call outs are so consistently good, he should definitely be first team all ACC. My one quibble with Tennant's play remains the snaps out of the shotgun. He has a high snap almost once series. He also snapped a low one on Crane’s second “Pick 6.” With those three playing so well, it is frustrating to watch the other side of the line struggle. Breakdowns on the rightside contributed to one of the fumbles, a blocked FG and the second INT. Claiborne jumped on the first series which left us in third and long. Crane followed it with the first “Pick 6.”Claiborne also struggled with the delay blitzes and with communication with Lapham. Rossi played well, but did not get considerable snaps. Lapham had a really rough game. His run blocking was a mixed bag and he was the weakest member during pass protection. He lost his man on a few occasions. The whole right side struggled but Lapham has me worried. Teams are going to start attacking him. He needs to step up.

Haden seems healthy and is a punishing runner for such a small package. He also showed very nice hands and adjustments on his one catch. The commentators criticized Harris' pass protection but they were somewhat offbase. Harris has to slow his man. It is on Crane to get it off on time. If Harris gets blown up but slows his guy, Crane needs to have the ball out. Regardless, Harris had another strong performance. I’ve figured out his strength – his ability to stop and start. The first TD was a perfect example. He hit the line. Stopped as the play and blocks moved around him, then exploded into the first hole. He even did the stop and change of direction on his one kick return. McCluskey wasn’t as active but played well.

Momah finally gives us a playmaker in the redzone. He’s physical, has good hands and can get separation. Impressively he made a huge catch on the deep post too. Jarvis had a bad drop early. He made up for it later with some solid catches. Gunnell played well. Megwa was only credited with one catch in the box score, but by my count he had two and looked good after the catch. Robinson made some huge plays. Unfortunately he also had three drops. One of them would have been a TD. Purvis only caught one ball, but he remains smart – on his one catch he made an effort to stay inbounds and kept the clock running. Purvis also did a good job run blocking. Anderson had a bit of a rough night. He missed a man in pass protection and he and Crane had a mix up on one of his routes.

The play calling was good. We were aggressive when we needed to be and effectively killed clock when we needed to in the fourth. My one complaint was second half adjustments. VT dialed up more blitzes and we kept stalling drives. Some of it was on Crane, but we could have had more looks for them. Used a QB draw or something to catch them off guard. However, the final drive (which didn't generate points) closed out the game and ate a ton of clock.

Defense: A

The game was won on the defensive line. Brace had his best game of the year. He did a great job occupying space and made some nice plays including getting a hand on Taylor on the final series. Raji was a little more inconsistent. Yes, he had some big plays, but he also made a few mistakes and gave up on a few plays. Ramella may not be a dominant pass rusher, but he stays home and keeps contain. Against a guy like Taylor that is a crucial attribute. Giles was quiet. The second teamers (Newman, Willette, Ramsey, Scafe) also deserve much credit. They played well too especially Newman and Scafe.

Toal’s loss stinks. He was putting together a nice comeback. That said, we are okay. Francois is capable and experienced and looked very good last night. Herzy had another monster game. I was most impressed with his speed. He was closing on Taylor in the open field! McLaughlin looked good and made some nice stops. The second team LBs didn’t see as much action which is understandable when you are focused on one mobile QB.

Paul Anderson delivered another solid performance. In addition to his pass coverage, he is also a solid run supporter. Donnie Fletcher is playing beyond his years and kept making good tackles. Davis struggled a bit. He made some plays but also lost Taylor on some of the long runs. Gause looked good. I know he got dinged again, but he was still out there later in the game making plays. Bowman played too. Because Taylor was all over the place, guys like Rollins got less action. Akins played well. He did a great job spying.

Spaz has used the same scheme against Virginia Tech for the past few seasons…this was one of its best efforts. Focused on stopping the run and containing the QB, he sparingly blitzed. Signature plays in this case would see the four down lineman putting up a slight rush and just sort of pausing in their positions. Akins spied Taylor a few yards outside of the pocket and everyone else just waited back in zones. It worked over and over. I was also impressed by the run stopping on 3rd and short and 4th and short.

Special Teams: B+

Bennett’s kickoffs were probably his best of the season. He launched them high and deep. The coverage team also looked much better than last game and kept VT from breaking anything.

Punt Return looked good. Gunnell showed the advantage of just returning a punt instead of fair catching. He makes one guy miss and then things start to fall into place. Punt returns are not done in a vacuum. Gunnell got good blocks from Rollins and Isaac Johnson. Hats off to Ryan Lindsey too. He’s been battling depth charts and injuries. I was glad he got on the field and contributed with the blocked punts.

Aponavicius'one FG attempt was not great. It was low, but the line deserves some blame too. The reason for the miss was mostly a protection breakdown from Castonzo and Lapham.

Jeff Smith made two mistakes. One big (the fumble) and one little (the bobbling). Both show a lack of concerntration. In the postgame of the NC State, Jarvis explained that he held the ball with two hands in traffic, because "Logan is always preaching it." If he knows that why isn't Jeff Smith doing a better job protecting the ball in traffic.

Overall: B+

Leave it to Bob Davie to discuss the difference between this coach and our previous one. His example of the contrast: following Crane’s second INT returned for a TD, BC got back on the field and pushed for a TD. Many coaches would have sat on the ball and hoped to regroup at halftime. Not our coach. First play run. Second play pass but near the sideline to stop the clock. Third play pass. However, the play broke down and Robinson took off. The TD was what we needed. I also thinks Jags is just hitting the right notes (whether its dealing with Crane or promoting Lindsey to first team punt return). Let's hope he keeps it up.

Vote for Gunnell!

ESPN nominated Rich Gunnell's clutch punt return for this week's Pontiac Game Changing Performance. Go to espn.com to vote for him and BC might win $5,000 towards our scholarship funds.

Toal rumors not good

I haven't seen anything official, but my sources on this are pretty solid: Toal broke his leg. He is unlikely to return. Ryan played with a fracture in 2006, but a being a pocket passer is very different from playing LB in the ACC. Too bad. He was putting together a nice season.

Helter skelter and still winning

We got the full Dr. Chris and Mr. Crane experience tonight. But this is what we can expect the rest of the season. I think the coaching staff has accepted the good and the bad with him. They just hope his good plays are bigger than his bad. Tonight they were. In fairness to our QB, a few other guys on offense also had screw ups.

Thankfully our defense was awesome...again. Huge plays throughout and they really confused Taylor. The maligned special teams had a few big moments too.

We are now officially in the driver seat. Who would have predicted that after Georgia Tech?

I'll have grades and second viewing thoughts up late Sunday.

In-game comments post: Virginia Tech

BC's biggest test to date. A win tonight puts BC in the driver seat. Let's go Eagles!

I will not be online during the game. Leave your comments below.

Gameday links

The team is saying the right things about tonight's game.

The Hockey team beat Bowling Green Friday night.

The injury has slowed Josh Haden's adjustment to college football.

Cherilus is having a rough time in Detroit.

Game Watches: Virginia Tech

Because of the growing parity in the ACC and lack of ranked teams ahead, this might be our last primetime game for the season. That is reason enough to watch it with other BC fans.

Here are the Game Watches I know about. Email me or post in the comments any I have not listed.

Atlanta Game Watch
Famous Pub
2947 N. Druid Hills Rd (Toco Hills Shopping Center)
Atlanta, GA 30329

Chicago Game Watch
Finley Dunnes Tavern
3458 N. Lincoln Avenue
Chicago

Los Angeles Game Watch
McCabe's Bar & Grill
2455 Santa Monica Blvd.
Santa Monica

Minneapolis-St. Paul Game Watch
Majors Sports Cafe Golden Valley
6440 Wayzata Boulevard
Golden Valley, MN

New Jersey Game Watch
Liberty Bar and Grill
61 14th Street
(Between Washington and Hudson)
Hoboken, NJ

Newport Beach Game Watch
Sharkeez
114 McFadden Place
Newport Beach, CA

Philadelphia Game Watch
The Fieldhouse
1150 Filbert Street
Philadelphia

Phoenix Game Watch
Gallagher's Sports Grill
7575 N. 16th Street
Phoenix

San Francisco Game Watch
Shanghai Kelly's
2064 Polk St. (cross Broadway)
San Francisco, CA

Sarasota Game Watch
Gecko's Grill & Pub
5585 Palmer Crossing Cir.
Sarasota , FL

Tampa Game Watch
Champps Restaurant & Bar
International Plaza
2223 N West Shore International Plaza
Tampa, FL
(I have a feeling the baseball game will be on too.)

Washington, DC Game Watch
Porter's Dining Saloon
The corner of 19th and M, Sts. NW and is walking distance from the Dupont Circle, Farragut North, and Farragut West Metro stations

Beamerball and other links

The Hokies are young and struggling on offense, but still embody the Beamer style of football. Virginia Tech sees the game as a rivalry.

Two nice features on unsung BC Guys: James McCluskey and Justin Tuggle.

BC recruit Luke Kuechly is placing a premium on academics.

Perseverance paid off for Tim Bulman.

Georgia WR Stephen Hill is visiting BC this weekend.

John McCain's daughter was campaigning at BC.

BC is still courting UVA commit Paul Freedman.

Dan Patrick talked to Matt Ryan this week.

Although they got his first name wrong, Tennant made CFN's honorable mention All-America team.

Support BC cheerleader Molly McGrath in this sideline spirit competition.

BC-Virginia Tech preview

Still flying under the radar nationally, this game serves as a proving ground for BC. Win and we’ll surely be ranked and talked about as an ACC contender. Lose and it is regrouping time as the team faces a tough stretch to close the season.

Narrative talking point that you’ll tire of by the end of the game. “Matt Ryan blah, blah, blah, Matt Ryan, blah, blah, blah.” I love Matt Ryan more than anyone, but my fear is that with him back in town and playing Virginia Tech we’ll hear too much about the Falcons star. If Crane plays well: “he looks like Matt Ryan right there.” If he struggles: “They could use Ryan right now.” If Davis comes off the bench and plays well: “you know Ryan came off the bench early in his BC career.” The possibilities are endless. And you know what? None of it matters. To paraphrase Rick Pitino, Matt Ryan is not playing Saturday night. BC is going to win or lose with the guys we have.

Three Simple Keys
1. Force Taylor to throw the ball. Contain, contain, contain on the runs. If Taylor is forced to put it in the air, the Hokies become much less efficient. I hope he throws 25+ times Saturday night. The more he throws, the better things get for BC.
2. Stick with the run. Although we ran the ball less in our win than we did in our loss last year, I actually think being patient and a little stubborn with the rushing game is the way to go against the Hokies. We moved the ball better in Jacksonville and had more total yards. (The loss was due to redzone issues.) Running over and over will also help Chris Crane.
3. Improve kickoff coverage. The Interruption guys and I had a talk about this offline. Jeff actually timed Bennett’s hangtime on kicks. The numbers were mixed. Regardless of hangtime, the kicker is not the only issue. Our coverage has not been good. Giving the Hokies a short field will kill us.

Gambling Notes
-- Jags is 10-3 when favored
-- Virginia Tech is 4-3 as an away underdog over the last eight years.
-- Beamer is 5-2 in Chestnut Hill
The current line is BC-3

Factoid
Since BC broke Virginia Tech’s long win streak in the series, the Eagles are 3-2 against the Hokies. However, Virginia Tech has actually outscored BC 100-96 in those five games.

Scoreboard Watching
We are the night game so technically most of the games will be over by the time we take the field. Still I will be paying attention to Clemson-Georgia Tech. How will the Tigers react? I hope it is a rough loss and they have completely thrown in the towel by the time we play them.

I hope to see…
BC fluster Taylor. In my opinion, he is the key to the game. If we can force two or more turnovers from him and have him complete less than 50% of his passes, BC wins.

BC is in trouble if…
The right side of the line cannot protect Crane. Lapham and the Claiborne/Rossi combo have been pretty good this season. This will be their biggest challenge to date. They need to be perfect Saturday so that Crane has time in the pocket.

Bottom Line
I really like how our defense matches up against their offense. Georgia Tech and North Carolina both held them to 20 points. We can do the same or better. I don’t think Chris Crane will have another NC State day, but Harris/Haden will pick up the slack.
Final Score: BC 24, Virginia Tech 16

Is it all about Crane? and other links

I don't know if I buy the "it's all on Crane" angle developing. Look at the Georgia Tech game. He struggled and we still almost won. I think we need Crane to be good to win the division, but on a game to game basis we can compete regardless of how well he plays.

I wonder how accessible Ryan will be during the game? I hope he's in the box and not on the sidelines. His shadow is large enough already. We don't need Crane or Davis coming back to the bench and seeing the BC legend there.

The defense sounds worried about Taylor.

The Bobcats picked up Dudley's option.

I hadn't given much thought to Frantz Joseph until EDSBS's humorous post on him. Before he made a name for himself at FAU, he was a lightly regarded scout team member at BC. Being buried on the depth chart and homesickness curtailed his stay in Boston. His return to southern Florida has done wonders and he's put together a nice career. He's just another example of how hard it is to predict the physical and mental maturity of guys in their late teens.

For those who like wonky football stuff, check out Smart Football's post on line splits. It gets into the differences in a zone scheme like ours and a wide split team like Texas Tech. What is relevant to BC is that our current line coach (Bicknell Jr) worked at Texas Tech prior to coming back to BC.

Guest Blogger: Gobbler Country

Virginia Tech is probably our most familiar opponent. But that doesn't mean we know everything there is to know. To get more insight into the Hokies, I've asked VT blogger Gobbler Country a few questions. Our exchange follows.

Taylor has not had to win a game with his arm. Are his stats misleading or is he still a very raw passer?

Gobbler Country: I think a lot of it has to do with the fact he's throwing to four freshman receivers. Last year he was throwing to four senior receivers, so he looked much better. He still occasionally has problems with getting his feet set before delivering a pass, but I think as chemistry develops between him and the four receivers he'll look more like he did throwing the ball last year.

Last season Foster had two different game plans against Ryan. In Blacksburg he brought a lot of pressure. In Jacksonville he dropped more into coverage. What do you think he'll do against this version of BC offense?

GC: I think you'll see more of what you saw in Jacksonville, but for different reasons. The front four have done a good job pressuring the quarterback this year and we won't need to blitz as much to get pressure. You'll see the defense drop back and let the defensive ends to get to the quarterback early. However, if that fails, that's when they'll start blitzing.

We can't give Crane time to throw because we've had a lot of problems with miscommunication in the deep middle part of the field this year. The cornerbacks have been outstanding, but we've seen some busted assignments between the rover and free safety.

Virginia Tech is in a similar position to BC: they've won games, but one early upset has fans and the media doubting the team's accomplishments and potential. Are you pleased with how the Hokies have played?

GC: I am only because I've accepted the fact that every game is going to come down to the wire. We just aren't going to go out and beat a team by three touchdowns this year even if they are Western Kentucky. If you had told me after the ECU game that we were going to win five in a row, I would have called you crazy. So I'm happy with the way the team is playing because they're winning. I'm also happy with the way the team has handled themselves in close games despite being so inexperienced.

Look at the Nebraska game. The Huskers were the team of juniors and seniors and we were the team of freshmen and sophomores. But at the end, they were the ones committing turnovers and dumb penalties, not us.

What is your prediction for Saturday's game?

GC: Both teams will have success stopping the other's running backs. However, I think both quarterbacks will have decent games on the ground. It will come down to turnovers and because of that I like Tech's chances. The Hokies are a young team, but have played with poise I didn't know they had. Virginia Tech, 20-14.

FOR MORE ON VIRGINIA TECH GO TO Gobbler Country.

Graduation success and other links

BC continues to shine in the NCAA's graduation metrics. Our 92 rating tied Duke for best in the ACC and was and fourth nationally.

Mark Jones and Bob Davie will be calling the Virginia Tech game Saturday night. The pair was good luck last season (they called the Georgia Tech and Clemson games).

Andy Katz thinks BC can be an at-large team.

Frank Beamer respects Chris Crane's skills.

Here is a nice profile on BC target Kevin Newsome. In this article he speaks very highly of Virginia Tech.

Reading between the lines

BC is favored this Saturday night. Most sports books have it as a 2.5 or 2 point spread. What's the big deal about being favored? It is a very rare occurrence when we face Virginia Tech.

BC has played Virginia Tech 15 times with the first game coming in 1993. According to Phil Steele's records, we have officially been the underdog in every game since 2000.

I don't have point spread data beyond 2000, but if you look at game recaps from 1995 to 1999, you'll see that Virginia Tech entered each of those games with a higher ranking than BC. I would assume they were favored in all of those contests.

The last time I believe that BC was favored was 1994. It was Dan Henning's first home game...BC lost. Assuming that the very good 1993 team was also favored, that means BC has only been favored twice in 15 games.

Point spreads don't win games. They are merely a reflection of perspective (the betting public's and the oddsmakers'). I am glad to see it shifting in BC's favor.

Clemson thoughts

As you watch the Tommy Bowden mess unfold at Clemson, all BC fans should thank our lucky stars for Gene D. Our AD is not perfect by any means. I could go on about fundraising issues, marketing challenges or various other complaints, but his iron grip on the Athletic Department has its upside during moments like this. Just compare and contrast Bowden-Clemson with O'Brien-Boston College.

Paying for results
Walking out of Death Valley after BC's win last fall, it was clear that the majority of Clemson fans were tired of Bowden. A few weeks later Arkansas came calling and offered him their job. Clemson, fearing a missed opportunity with their returning talent, got in a bidding war and resigned Tommy with a $4 million buyout. In 2006 when TOB had turned off a good portion of BC fans and NC State came calling, Gene D. let TOB walk. He could have opened up the checkbook and probably got TOB to come back. He certainly risked wasting Matt Ryan's senior year with an unknown coach. But he rolled the dice that change needed to be made. He wasn't going to get in a bidding war for a coach he and his fans didn't want.

Dealing with Alumni and Boosters
It seems like Clemson boosters were calling the shots here and forced the move after Bowden fumbled away the Wake game and then threw his QB under the bus. When BC made its change, the Alumni were kept at a distance (for the most part). There were some gripes afterwards from movers and shakers like Greg Barber but it was an university and athletic department decision, as it should be.

Protecting the students
After the Bowden news broke Clemson players started sounding off in the media with a variety of vicious quotes about their former coach. I couldn't believe this. It didn't surprise me that this guys were pissed. It did surprise me that no one from the school rounded them up and gave them talking points and media coaching. Where was their AD? Where was their SID? Why didn't one of the assistants get them in a room and remind them to take the high road in all interviews? When TOB left BC all you heard were a few cookie cutter sound bites from team leaders. All praised TOB and all spoke positively of the future at BC. Letting your student athletes speak off the cuff like Clemson did is irresponsible. The kids are too close to the situation and lack perspective. How bad does Cullen Harper look right now? If Clemson had any leadership someone would have controlled media access to the players.

BC has had its rough patches, but a smart and empowered AD makes a world of difference when things are in flux.

HD's midseason report and other links

HD put out midseason reports on half the ACC today. Here is the BC version. Not much we don't already know.

Slightly disappointing news on the recruiting front as Kyle Koehne committed to Florida. All reports indicate BC was the runner up. I do my best not to get emotional about recruiting. The reason I find this disappointing is that I know the staff was high on him and his school has produced some good "BC Guys" like Trueblood and Kiwi.

Florida QB Nico Flores still likes BC.

Towards the bottom of this article it mentions BC offering 2010 QB recruit Joe Boisture a scholarship. He's a big pocket passer from Michigan. It's been a while since we had an impact player from Michigan.

The Virginia Tech game falls on Matt Ryan's off week, so he is returning to campus for the game.

Even veteran's have bought into Matt Ryan's ability.

Blogpoll ballot

Only two news teams cracked my Top 25. You'll notice that one of the newbies is a little school in Chestnut Hill. I did my best to avoid their inclusion for fear of another curse, but they deserve the ranking. I also moved UGA up. I thnk they are the best and most accomplished one loss team.

Games I watched
Wake Forest-Clemson 75%
Troy-FAU 25%
Texas-Oklahoma 75%
Notre Dame-North Carolina 50%
South Carolina-Kentucky 20%
LSU-Florida 50%

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Alabama	--
2	Texas	3
3	Penn State	3
4	Texas Tech	--
5	Oklahoma State	9
6	Georgia	2
7	Florida	10
8	Oklahoma	6
9	Brigham Young	4
10	Utah	--
11	Virginia Tech	--
12	Georgia Tech	--
13	Southern Cal	3
14	Boise State	5
15	Ball State	3
16	Tulsa	4
17	Ohio State	4
18	North Carolina	4
19	Michigan State	4
20	Pittsburgh	4
21	Wake Forest	4
22	Missouri	19
23	LSU	16
24	Minnesota	2
25	Boston College	1

Dropped Out: Vanderbilt (#9), Northwestern (#15).

Noon for North Carolina

The North Carolina game will be a Noon ET game on Raycom. Get your game watches ready. I am surprised by the time. I thought Carolina's recent run would make this an ESPN night game. I guess the guys in Bristol are expecting us to lose to the Hokies and therefore remain unranked.

Virginia Tech Rewind

Here is a quick refresher on our last two regular season games against the Hokies. (We'll pretend like the game in Jacksonville never happened.)

2007

2006