More incoming transfers and other links

Another day, another transfer. This time Donahue landed former Oregon wing Matt Humphrey. Like Taylor, Humphrey will sit out next season and have two years remaining when he does suit up. He was a bit of a disappointment at Oregon given his recruiting rating coming in, yet is supposed to be a good, high energy kid.

Spaz added LB/FB prospect Nick Lifka to the recruiting class. His high school coach had very good things to say about BC's fit for Lifka.

Scout.com likes what they see in current commit Brian Miller.

EDSBS is marking the biggest dickish moves in college football history. Not surprisingly Lou Holtz's fake punt in 1992 made the list.

Donahue adds depth with transfer

The Donahue staff grabbed a critical transfer in former Monmouth forward Travis Taylor. Taylor will be eligible for the 2011-2012 season and have two years remaining in his college career. Although we won't know his impact for another season, Taylor was very good for Monmouth (arguably their best player). Plus we really need the depth after we graduate all of this year's seniors. This is a solid (and much needed) pickup. I also expect at least one more incoming transfer this summer to bolster the 2011-2012 team.

Noreen heading to WVU and other links

After seemingly talking to every program in the country, Kevin Noreen signed with West Virginia. It's a good program but from what I gather, I don't think his style of play will mesh with Huggins more physical, bang'em schemes. Best of luck to him, but the whole thing seems like a missed opportunity for him and BC's new staff. The good news is that Donahue's first elite camp went really well and the staff is laying the foundation for their new approach.

Ohio prospect Shaq Washington is set to make his announcement and is still considering BC.

Several baseball players were honored with postseason awards.

Nice weekend at the Hayes house and other links

Soon to be Eagle (hopefully) Kevin Hayes was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the 2010 NHL Draft. Everyone is assuming Hayes will come to BC, but Chicago also acquired his brother, current Eagle, Jimmy in a trade. Would they have done that if they weren't going to press him to skip BC and go straight to pro hockey?

Jo-Lonn Dunbar was back in Upstate New York to host a football camp and talk about the NFL.

Here are some of the upcoming storylines for the 2010-11 basketball season.

Sample vuvuzelas played over BC's biggest moments

As you know, I am a fan of the vuvuzelas. In honor of the World Cup, Youtube has created a feature that allows you to play the horn over highlights. Just click on the soccer ball icon on the right side of the time box on any Youtube clip to hear it (sorry but the feature doesn't work when embedded). You can listen to the Flutie Hail Mary

Or Matt Ryan at Virginia Tech.

Now that the U.S. is out of the Cup, there won't be much of a BC angle. But let's hope Charlie Davies is a big factor in 2014.

Flutie still a fan and other links

ESPNBoston posted a Q&A with Doug Flutie on his latest news. He mentions Billy and BC sports throughout. Since this is Billy's last year, I fear we might not see Doug as much in the coming years.

Andy Katz thinks Reggie could skip his senior season and enter the NBA draft in 2011.

BC grad Kofi Sarkodie-Mensah aka Kofi Kingston will be wrestling at the DCU when WWE hits New England.

Most of you probably read this but it looks like the Hockey team's T crash may have been the fault of the T Driver.

Sanchez's tough luck and other links

Former Eagle Tony Sanchez was having a great first season in the minors until Tuesday when a stray pitch broke his jaw. He will have surgery and is out indefinitely. He should fully recover...let's just hope the bad luck surrounding the Pirates doesn't trickle down to their prospects.

NC State hired Maryland's AD to run their athletic department. I don't feel strongly one way or the other about Yow, but wonder if she'll pressure TOB to finally win.

Want to go on record with your season prediction: check out BCI's feature that let's you predict throughout the season.

Know your likely BC bowls: EagleBank Bowl

Since we know BC will never be selected for the top bowls, the only options are playing our way into the Orange or getting sent down to the afterthought bowls. The ACC has some new bowl affiliations this year, so I thought we should take the time to learn about our likely destinations. This will be a series of posts over the summer. Part III is the EagleBank Bowl.

Bowl: EagleBank Bowl
Named Sponsor: EagleBank. Since the bowl is new and made for TV, it has never been without a sponsor name that I could reference. The actual bank is a regional D.C. based financial institution. Do the players get free checking as part of the gift bag?
History: Does two years count as history? Both games have been decent, but no real history has been made yet. Nothing historic or memorable took place in the 2008 or 2009 EagleBank Bowls.
Opposing Conference: The Naval Academy, the MAC, the Big Ten and Conference USA.
Date: December 29, 2010. The game will be on ESPN at 2:30 ET. This is actually a big improvement over their original slot prior to Christmas.
Location: Washington, D.C. Our nation's capital doesn't need a lot of background from me. There is plenty to do and see. The weather is cold (as anyone who went to Maryland last year can tell you), but not as bad as Boston. The cool thing about the game is that it is held at RFK. The Redskins' old home is certainly outdated, but the seats are close to the action and the stadium has seen a lot of great football.
Fun Fact: The bowl has a sponsorship program that allows fans to buy tickets for military families. This is a nice idea and does two good things -- adds atmosphere and provides a nice bonus for those serving our country.
Prediction: We are not going to D.C. this year. The EagleBank Bowl selects the eighth ACC team and I don't see a situation where we will be there. We will play in the game some year, but I don't expect it to be this season. If/when we go, it actually will be a good opportunity to finally sell tickets since we have so many alums and fans in the area.

All America honors and other links

The Sporting News named Kuechly and Castonzo to their All America teams. Surprisingly Kuechly made first team while Castonzo was third. I would have expected Castonzo to have more support from a national publication.

Derrick Knight's cousin (who is from Mass) is headed to NC State. TOB played up the BC connection as they are with Matt Ryan's cousin John Loughery.

Scouting services still think Herzy has great NFL potential.

Donahue adds another to the 2010 class

One of my fears has been eased as Steve Donahue added another commitment to this current class in Florida guard Gabriel Moton. Donahue recruited Moton at Cornell but saw him commit to the Air Force Academy. When Donahue switched jobs into the ACC, his pitch to Moton became more appealing. Can you blame Moton? Would you rather spend your summer in basic training or playing hoops at the Plex and taking one class at BC?

Moton should play right away and see most of the minutes that had been penciled in for Heslip. Now for balance and impact sake, let's hope Donahue gets another under the radar guy this summer.

(Thanks to the commentors for posting the links during the day.)

Lynch's gift creates another new opportunity for BC

I occasionally whine about our fanbase and bemoan that we are lacking in big sports boosters. But I don't mind that we don't have our own version of T. Boone Pickens as long as we have guys like Peter Lynch. For those who didn't see it, Lynch just gifted BC $20 million to start a new "academy" aimed at teaching leadership to young educators moving onto jobs in the Boston area.

When I give my measly amount to BC each year, I never designate how I want it spent. I figure it is the Board's job to decide that. If I had Lynch's money I would probably give more specific demands on how it should be spent. I just hope that I would spend it in the right way. Maybe instead of getting the football team a private jet, I could just ask Lynch what he would do.

Bicknell honors his father and other links

Bob Bicknell is now coaching with Buffalo and credits his father for most of his success. I hope the Bicknell's patch things up with BC, because it was nice have Jack SR back around when Jack JR was on Jags' staff.

I didn't note this early in the week, but BC announced the newest members of our Hall of Fame. Congrats to all those who were honored.

HD considers Kuechly the 14th most important player in the ACC. Rivals considers him the 78th most important in their 100.

Jamie Silva is hosting his football camp next week in Rhode Island.

Ryan Glasper is trying to catch on with Connecticut's UFL team.

One of Phil Steele's formulas has us going 11-1 this season.

Davies is the US's biggest supporter

Lost in the excitement and controversy surrounding one of the best games in the history of US Soccer, is that the Americans are playing without one of their top goal scorers, BC guy Charlie Davies. Given all he's been through (horrific car accident, hard recovery, followed by disappointing cut from the US team) no one would blame Davies if he chose to keep a low profile and deal with the emotions of this all by himself. Fortunately for us, he's not. He's out in front cheering on his teammates and country men. We obviously miss his skills, but I think the team misses his spirit, hence the flat openings. Hopefully Charlie's cheering section will send positive vibes to the boys for the rest of their run.

If you are on twitter, be sure to follow Charlie during the World Cup and on his continued recovery.

Know your likely BC bowls: Sun Bowl

Since we know BC will never be selected for the top bowls, the only options are playing our way into the Orange or getting sent down to the afterthought bowls. The ACC has some new bowl affiliations this year, so I thought we should take the time to learn about our likely destinations. This will be a series of posts over the summer. Part II is the Sun Bowl.

Bowl: Brut Sun Bowl
Named Sponsor: Brut -- the men's deodorant and aftershave company. BC guy alums from the '90s will have to confirm this, but I think we got a sample of Brut deodorant in one of those welcome boxes from when you check into the dorms. I know they threw in Right Guard at times too, but I think Brut was part of it because I had an unused travel size Brut stick rolling around in my stuff for ages. As for sponsorship, Brut is fine, I guess. We've had so many random companies associated with our games, what's wrong with a company dedicated to making guys smell good?
History: The Sun Bowl has a great history. It is the fourth oldest and continuous bowl and has a strong payout of $1.9M. Although the early games attracted regional teams, many of college football's biggest programs like Alabama, Oklahoma and USC have played in the game. Because of its age and history the Sun Bowl has always had decent TV coverage and time slots.
Opposing Conference: Pac 10. The Pac 10's got good depth yet their fans don't travel. So if we end up in the Sun, we will face a good team in front of a truly neutral crowd. Not bad.
Date: December 31, 2010. The game will be on CBS at 2 PM ET. December 31st day games are not bad, since they won't encroach on anyone's New Year's Eve plans.
Location: El Paso, Texas. Of all the places to go, El Paso is not a bad spot. It has a unique feel, will have decent weather and there is good golf and other things to do. In most years, El Paso would be a fun place to spend New Year's. In the past, those looking for a little fun, something wild, etc could always cross the border for the night. Now...not so much. All that violence you read about in Mexico is butting right up against the border, taking some of the cheesy charm out of El Paso. The real downside to El Paso is that it is hard to get to...even if you are in Texas. El Paso is closer to Phoenix than it is to Dallas. There are very few direct flights from the east so most Eagles will probably have to connect through Chicago, Dallas or Atlanta.
Fun Fact: The Sun Bowl takes place in the Sun Bowl Stadium and is only half a mile from the Rio Grande. The stadium also looks cool on TV as it is built into a hill.
Prediction: The ACC Championship game loser cannot fall below the Sun Bowl, so there is a very real chance we could play here. I actually don't think it is a bad spot -- nice little history, a unique destination, potentially interesting opponent. I just fear that no BC fans will make it to the game. I don't think I could swing it. If the ACC keeps its affiliation with the Sun Bowl, we will end up there eventually but probably not this season.

Things still uncertain in our old home

The surprising thing about the conference shuffle is that you didn't see many posts or articles calling for BC to rejoin the Big East. The "BC back to the Big East" meme is a favorite of the old timers in the media and the spitballing Big East bloggers. This time around everyone assumed the Big East was going to collapse, so BC moving back wasn't even relevant. And it now appears that BC is in a stable, protected conference at least until the next TV contract. Our old conference, the Big East, remains in turmoil. Here is an excellent State of the Conference from USF bloggers Voodoo Five (HT BCI). I feel sorry for Pitt, Syracuse and even Rutgers. They were all poised for bigger and better things and now are back in conference purgatory. The ACC is not perfect, but it's home.

Know your likely BC bowls: Independence Bowl

Since we know BC will never be selected for the top bowls, the only options are playing our way into the Orange or getting sent down to the afterthought bowls. The ACC has some new bowl affiliations this year, so I thought we should take the time to learn about our likely destinations. This will be a series of posts over the summer. Part I is the Independence Bowl.

Bowl: AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl
Named Sponsor: AdvoCare V100. Advocare is a over the counter multivitamin and mineral supplement. Their current claim to fame is that they are not banned by the NCAA! I would hope not. I am guessing the bowl goodie bag will be filled with powders and vitamins that you can only find at GNC. This is a sponsor any Strength and Conditioning coach should love.
History: The Independence Bowl has a fairly decent history. It has been played since 1976 and is the 9th oldest in college football. Although it has never been a major bowl, some of college football's elite programs have made stops in Shreveport along the way, including Notre Dame, Washington, LSU, Georgia and Nebraska.
Opposing Conference: The Mountain West. So we could likely see some teams we have played in recent years like BYU or Colorado State.
Date: Monday, December 27 at 4:30 pm. That's a tough slot to make for anyone. I don't think I would be able to swing it. Fortunately the game is on ESPN.
Location: Shreveport, Louisiana. Let me first state that the goal of this series is not to mock the bowl hosts. That said, Shreveport is a really bad spot for a bowl game. It is hard to get to for most fans on the east coast. It has the chance to be real cold during the game. There are some historical sites to check out and a collection of third-rate casinos, but that's about it. It is not like you could even stay in New Orleans and drive to the game -- they are 400 miles apart.
Not so Fun Fact: Last year when Georgia played in the Independence Bowl, the strip clubs in Shreveport were advertising on the Atlanta sports radio stations...so we have that to look forward to.
Prediction: We are going to the Independence Bowl. I will publish the whole series and hope for an ACC championship, but I think we end of here regardless of our record.

Dust settles on conference expansion for now

Since Texas is staying put, it looks like the conference shake up business is settling down. A few mid majors might move to fill out slots in the Pac 10 or Big XII, but BC is not going anywhere. This is really the best news we could have hoped for. We are part of an ACC with a better TV deal and can continue to grow our ACC roots. If anything, the what if game just reaffirmed we are where we belong. The thought of playing West Virginia again or UConn annually seemed to upset most BC fans (it did this one). The ACC is not perfect and I don't think we will ever be appreciated there, but it is our home...for now.

So how long will this peace last? I only see two things that could force BC's hand.

1. Notre Dame decides to join a conference. This would have a ripple effect across the whole landscape. If the Irish ever decide to join a conference, you can be sure that BC would be rumored to follow. If they went to the Big Ten we would be listed as an appeasement (Catholic, private, rival). If they went to the Big East you would hear talk of us "coming home."

2. The BCS conferences break away from the NCAA. I think the issue is too complicated because of the non-revenue sports. But if the NCAA starts a DIA playoff, you know the BCS conferences would talk of doing their own thing.

Bringing a horn to the Heights

Watching the World Cup sparked an idea. Next season the Super Fans should start blowing vuvuzelas when the other team is on offense. I know this would annoy most of the stadium. The down in front, whale pants crowd would be in an uproar. But the student section filled with the cheap plastic horns could finally give BC a unique home field advantage. Mississippi State fans bang cow bells all game. This could be our thing...yet with only a more international and obnoxious flair. As the BC's jumbotron used to say "Signal Deafening Noise!"

Just when I think I am done, media fires up Big Ten talk

I don't think BC will ever get a Big Ten invite, but it has to be mentioned that today three different articles all picked BC as the best candidate for the Big Ten. Interestingly two of the articles are built on the idea that Notre Dame would be the 13th Big Ten team and we would be their "partner" at 14. Who says that only BC fans consider this a rivalry.

First this short bit from the Courier Post in south Jersey.

The school to go after would be Boston College.

That would bring the Boston TV market to the Big Ten Network and add an instant rivalry. In addition to Notre Dame-Michigan, Notre Dame-Michigan St. and Notre Dame-Purdue, you’d also have Notre Dame-Boston College. And remember, Penn State-Notre Dame has had its moments, too.

Then there was this profile from an Iowa paper. Every one keeps mentioning the academics, but I think that aspect is overblown. If the Big Ten was making decisions based purely on academics they would have invited Mizzou before Nebraska.

This article is all about Notre Dame, but sees BC as a key chip in luring the Irish in.

The conference would then add a 14th school - I vote for Boston College, which would draw the Boston market and add a natural rivalry to entice Notre Dame - and be done with expansion. No need to add Rutgers, Maryland or Missouri if Notre Dame is already on board.

As I keep saying, we are not going to the Big Ten, but it is refreshing to hear BC praised. At times it feels like we are unappreciated in the ACC.

Will probation impact USC in 2013, 2014?

I've been focusing on the conference realignments, so I haven't mentioned the NCAA's sanctions against Southern Cal. The Trojans were hit with a two-year bowl ban and a 30 scholarship reduction (spread over three years). Although USC leadership was whining about the bowl bans, the scholarship issues will be more impactful. But how impactful is the question. Will it even matter by the time we play USC in 2013 and 2014? Let's look at the two most similar cases and how long it took the powers to recover.

Alabama
Hit with scholarship reduction beginning in 2002
2002 record: 10-3
2003 record: 4-9
2004 record: 6-6
2005 record: 10-2

Miami
Hit with scholarship reduction beginning in 1996

1996 record: 9-3
1997 record: 5-6
1998 record: 9-3
1999 record: 9-4

As you can see, the second year has been when the programs bottom out. By that time most of your experienced talent has graduated and your less talented and smaller recruiting classes are more important to the program.

Using the same patter for USC, you would have to expect the 2010 season to be solid with the worst of it coming in 2011. By the time we play them in 2013 they should be back on the upswing. But I do have one caveat in all of this -- I don't think much of Lane Kiffin as a coach. I don't see him as the type that will 1) see this out and stay at USC, 2) have the plan in place to return them to the Carroll glory days.

Regardless of how good they are or who the coach is, I still plan on making the trip out to see BC in the Coliseum. Let's hope the Trojans troubles make for easy wins for BC.