Hofstra abruptly dropped their football program this morning. That leaves BC with an opening in their 2010 schedule. No word on who BC might look to in order to fill the void. I expect we will find another FCS (DIAA) school. I would love to see another FBS (DIA) opponent.
You can check out other teams' future schedules here. If we go FBS, the Big Ten might have some openings. UConn is also available since they were supposed to play Northeastern.
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We should absolutely play UConn. It's a no brainer. Hell, might even get 20,000 fans to Alumni.
UConn was supposed to play Northeastern on the *same day* we were going to play Hofstra. It's serendipity. Let's resume this series and finally start developing a "natural" (read geographic) football rivarly!!
Despite the bad blood we probably should just schedule UConn. It would be a decent game against a DIA opponent. Things is Geno will never do it.
Surprised to see the first three in favor of UConn. Last time I said we should start a rivalry people got mad. It really is the best chance we have at a good local rivalry. Probably would be a sell out (definitely more than Hofstra) and yea Gene hates UConn and Uconn (Calhoun) really hates us but isn't that how rivalries are born, good old fashioned dirty hate?
Under literally no circumstances should BC play UConn. It's a no win situation.
There it is
Checking the future schedules on the website you provided a link to I see Air Force needs one more non-conference opponent. BC should play them! Playing one of the academies is always a big draw for them and BC. With BC's history of playing Army and Navy isn't it about time BC invites AF to Boston.
Putting UConn on the schedule helps UConn a lot and does little for BC except help ticket sales....to UCONN FANS. I don't think beating them would do much to improve recruiting. Why give them the opportunity?
On the other hand, this may be a case where we let fate take over. Serendipity indeed. Anyway, I'm just plain tired and bored of hating on ND. Even though we gave them (I mean, they won) the game this year, the "rivalry" has gotten old and doesn't mean as much since they have become a generallyl mediocre program. A local foe on the rise might be fun.
I'd only get behind a football game v. UConn if home and home basketball games were reciprocated.
Out of principle, I'd be opposed to playing them, but I agree: there is nothing like some good hate to instill some passion in a schedule (just ask Max Hall).
Though I am also at fault with this, the arguement v. a UConn game is the same as ND's arguement v. playing us annually.
BC and UConn would both want a home game to replace Hofstra & Northeastern.
I would have thought someone would bring up that Boise offer by now.
Boise already has 4 out of conference games + 8 conference games scheduled for next year.
Plus: after the bruhaha with Kiwi, I wouldn't mind giving that school the cold shoulder.
loneeagle, that's pretty interesting - I was thinking exactly the same thing. We always see Army and Navy, but never get to see Air Force (and they're probably the best of the three.) I'd be all for that.
So I was a little interested in the CAA since they just lost two teams from the north division. In searching FCS stadnings, I see Old Dominion is a FCS independent, and I think they're CAA for basketball, so maybe that conference brings them in. ODU football went 9-2 this year. Congratulations Monarchs.
Otherwise, maybe they try for Marist or Bryant?? Or they just stick with 10, and move a south team up north like Delaware, or scrap the divisions.
No UConn - not next year. Not ever. I would not go to that game and it would only benefit the Huskies. Would be absolutely 100% against it.
Any BCS school would be a welcome change and I like the idea of Air Force.
UCONN WOULD BE PERFECT!!!
who cares about what the CAA does? can we get a little big sky love?
I would actually love to play UConn. It's one of the few schools I actively loathe. Yeah, their fans are classless (in 2004 they wouldn't stop yelling "Let's go U Conn" during the national anthem) and their athletic department, school, and state still seem to mad at us, but what would be better than destroying them on the field? Would anything be as cathartic? I am all for it. I'd even give up the home game just to beat them.
Clearly, I am not thinking logically here and do not apply logical arguments in rebutting my claim.
I agree with all the sentiments above - What does BC gain playing UConn? We're already playing Syracuse for the next decade, that should emerge as our rivalry game. Playing UConn and winning doesn't do much for our prestige, and if we lose it would signal the end of BC's New England football dominance.
I'd like to see BC schedule a competitive team (like Boise) even on the road, to give our program so national exposure. Obviously Penn State would be ideal, but I doubt that plan would come together by the beginning of next season.
Boise State all the way.
given how BC fares bowl-wise, our record +/- 1 out-of-conferecne loss would not matter much for bowl purposes, so therefore we should go for a quality opponent. I think it would make our guys better and be a good pre-conference challenge.
But for Pete's sake, not Uconn. Think like ND: why let this lesser, but rising program on our schedule. No win for BC; big wins for the dogs of Storrs
And let's not go MAC again either.
AF sounds great.
Can we get Standford?
Boise State is playing VTech next year
and Duke is playing Alabama!
Gene D said at the Alumni round table down here in e-mail that under no circumstances would he schedule UConn again
University of Texas has an open date on October 9th as well.
Just sayin'
No way that happens, but they do need a 4th non-conference opponent (after Rice, Wyoming and Florida Atlantic).
Wow. I can't believe this talk about UConn. There is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to be gained for Boston College to legitimize UConn football by playing them. Zero, Nada, Zilch--NOTHING. It is completely ridiculous to waste a spot we could get with an already established Big Ten team, or a PAC-10 team, even an SEC or Big 12 team--conferences which we sorely need to engage, than to play the one university that has done nothing positive to BC to even consider re-establishing a relationship with that program. Does everyone who thinks this UConn deal is a good idea have a recurrent early onset
Alzheimers affliction? The same folks who want to rejoin the Big Least evertime we lose in the ACC are singing their tired old song once again. We get no credibility from beating a UConn--they, however, have a win-win in any scenario wherein they play us close and lose, or we look bad against them and win. Where are the positives? (Other than drunken bragging rights in a Storrs bar?)
It's so counter-productive toi building a strong schedule that helps our image, the way that beating ND and any ACC team has done in the past 10 years. Why go back to the provincial BS that BC finally escaped when it walked on the Big Yeast? We learned that beating an Indiana or Michigan means alot more than winning anything against the Connjobs can
ever do for us.
Move On, People. Share some love with some big time schools who think we'll be an easy win and then shock the world.
Michigan and USC both have open dates next year that coincide with BC TBA's. Think of it. Doesn't the thought immediately erase the thought of UConn as an alternative??? What fun would some games like these be?
BC v Michigan would be awesome!
especialy, since we are likely to beat them.
But if we played them in the BIG HOUSE -- i think not just Shinskie by every BC guy would be freaked!
USC would be a different story. but a great one too.
Michigan! We played them in the early 90's and they kicked our ass. I think we can take them now.
If Michigan and Texas are free I take back what I said about Yukon. Schedule one of those two, but most likely Michigan since Texas will probably want to schedul Slippery Rock State Teacher's College.
mod34b - yes, we can get Stanford... in about 3 weeks!
As a fan, I am willing to give up a home game to play a quality opponent in their place. It makes my per-tailgate cost much higher, but saves me $45 on a ticket.
But for example, I'd take "At Michigan" over "Home vs Maine" or "Home vs MAC Team" any day.
As stated above, unless we can make the BCS Title Game, non-conference losses don't harm us, so bring it on with Mr Kuechly and Mr Herzlich blowing people up.
Why not UNH? We haven't played them in our little tour around the New England FCS teams yet. They are regularly involved in the FCS championship tourney (for those who don't know, sometimes championships are decided in something called a playoff) and are probably better than half of the nonconference foes we play. I think they've beaten an FBS opponent for several years straight. Of course I have no idea if they are available for that date, but we should definitely play them.
Since noone seems to be able to read these schedules. There are really no options for a 2010 game with Texas or Michigan. Look at the Texas schedule again. At the bottom it states that they are already schedules to play UCLA for their other non-conference game but it has not finalized the date. Michigan has a full schedule. I hate UCONN and know Gene wont schedule them.
Just accept we will be playing a hofstra equivalent and drop the hope of playing a BCS team with a long rich tradition.
No UConn no! Classless bunch and an uninspiring game.
Hofstra is no loss off the schedule. Pride is such an awful nickname, like it is some sort of remedial school - the old one, Flying Dutchmen, was much better.
I think the arguments against playing UConn are irrational at best. Talk about "moving on", can we get over the petty animosities stemming from our departure from the Big East and their response to it? It's history, and even as history it's irrelevant. We bitch about the lethargy and indifference of BC football "fans" at Alumni stadium and then refuse to play probably the only team other than ND that can elicit any kind of emotion whatsoever among the base.
The notion that either of these programs are capable of conferring credibility or legitimacy upon the other is a joke. Seriously. No AD, coach, or recruit at any level is going to think, "Wow. UConn is playing BC. I guess the UConn program has really made it to the big time. I better put them on my wish list." So then, are we just afraid of losing to UConn? If that's the case, then maybe we should only consider UNH, Holy Cross, Old Dominion ...
The fact that many of the faithful contributors to this board seeth at the mention of UConn confirms that they are our most natural and visceral rival. They'd fill the Hofstra date, but they'd be replacing ND on the schedule.
Why not UNH, Richard? As good as UNH is, no one is going to care if we beat another FCS school. As Michigan showed a few years ago, only bad things can happen when you play top-notch FCS teams. By that, I mean that a win is assumed, so people will only care if you lose. Plus, I'm tired of playing OOC teams that we clearly out-class (Notre Dame excepted). It was awesome when we played Penn State a few years ago, even Wake Forest. Back in 2003 our non-conference schedule was Wake Forest, Penn State, Ball State, and Notre Dame. That's a pretty awesome slate. One gimme, two decent teams, and one game that meant a lot to the fans. That should be Gene's goal every year.
I'm in favor of UConn because I think it's our best shot (who knows if Syracuse will ever be good again) at an intersectional rivalry going forward.
Those are good points. Still, I think UNH would be a good game for us. I agree that we need more FBS foes. I think the Big Ten is a good place to go, since clearly the Big East is quite controversial.
First, I think a good Pac-10 name or Michigan would be the best b/c it gets us more exposure and some press in areas we could recruit better. That being said, I think GDF has shown he doesn't think we're ready to have a tough non-conference.
With that said, UConn becomes our best option because:
1) Money: It's probably gonna be a sell out for both schools and given the nastiness we could start some stupid trophy tradition and then start subsequent merchandising (tshirts, hats, etc...)
2) Recruiting: This game won't build buzz for people to come up to New England. However, strong tradition and multiple options might discourage the few really good local recruits from skipping town and going south to other programs.
3) Location: There's nothing like the experience of being a group of students/young alums getting rowdy in a hostile crowd which with ND leaving and Maryland being our nearest foe just isn't an option right now (No, this is absolutely not and endorsement to go back to the Big Least)
4) UConn beating us being a big deal is jut silly. Will it piss everyone on this board off? Yes, absolutely. Will anyone outside of New England care? No. If anything, IMO, it will serve to piss off players and local fans and make them more motivated for the next game.
5) Calhoun's face in his luxury box when BC wipes the floor with UConn.
1 game. No return date. At Alumni. Those would be my terms to UConn for playing a game of convenience against them. No negotiations. If they don't like them, take a hike. That is all.
A single game against UConn provides all the downside potential with none of the upside potential. UConn presents an opportunity to create a lasting, passionate rivalry. If we're only willing to plug a whole left by Hofstra, then we can just throw anybody in there -- it won't make a lick of difference if it's a big name or a wtf. I'm more interested in something that truly adds value to the program.
And Syracuse will never bring any heat.
We actually don't have to fill the Hofstra date, do we?
How about a week off - unrealistic b/c of ticket sales etc?
Why would we want to play UNH? That's completely idiotic. We have NOTHING to gain by beating a FCS team, no matter how "good" they are. Literally not one bowl committee will care. If we play an FCS team, I don't want a challenge, I want a cakewalk because a win is a win, but a loss is horrendous.
Historically, I always viewed Syracuse as our "rival" and therefore we don't need another Big East Team like CT back on our schedule. I'd much rather our OOC rival be Syracuse.
Air Force would be a very good draw and opponent, I believe - and it would be nice to schedule them. To show you how old I am, the Air Force game my freshman year was great - we won 13 to 7, after Air Force won handily the previous year. They also brought their Falcon and the half time show was super - they may have brought their Drum and Bugle Corps as well.
There are 3 more games on the college schedule than there were my freshman year - and I think every team can use a cake walk. But I'm sick of Kent State and the MAC and playing FCS schools - it's BS. We should aspire to better things.
There were some very good suggestions previously - even if we can't get them this year, try for later. Boise, Michigan, Texas, USC, Penn State. I always felt that BC began its climb to become a real program by scheduling Texas in 1974 (I can't believe the Longhorns came to Chestnut Hill twice before we went to (the slaughter in) Austin. The close victory in 76 was a tremendous boost.
I'd also search for some interesting (tough but potentially winnable) games up and down the East (Coast) - East Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia. We should search out one game each year with the SEC and East Carolina should get out of Conf. USA.
The BCI guys psoted availability. TCU has two open slots and is available that day.
That'd be solid, though likely a loss.
^ TCU game would be great (even better if they came here). And considering how Clemson almost beat TCU this year (albeit in Death Valley), I think BC could give them a good game.
Big Jack -- I respect your position, and like you, I'm an old timer (class of '78), but I have never considered Syracuse our rival. Sure, I was pissed when they knocked us out a few years back, but I was mad at BC, not Syracuse. I'm willing to be proven wrong, but I just don't think there's any natural competitive spirit between the schools. With UConn its intense and immediate, not something we'd have to hope we can develop. Moreover, UConn's program is on the rise, while Syracuse is spiraling down.
I agree that Air Force would be great. I'd like to see us play one of the academies every year.
The problem with UConn is that it fails the 3 prong test for a good rivalry:
a. History: Too few games against them
b. Something at stake: "bragging rights" just isn't enough. Most great rivalries are conference games (i.e., UF-UGA, UT-OU, UM-OSU) or pass the history part of the test (Army-Navy, ND-USC).
c. Proximity: Check.
One of 3 not enough for me.
The animosity here is not from good-natured, heated games on the field. It comes from a multi-million dollar lawsuit that cost BC and the CT Public a lot of wasted money. That's not rivalry material, that's "walk away from this tire fire asap" material.
Our only concern should be getting butts in seats. But I fully expect BC to schedule (and crush) someone like Maine in front of yet another pathetic crowd.
Only reason to play a FCS team is to get bowl eligible. The bowls are mostly all nonsense anyway. BC will play in 2nd or 3rd tier games with only 1 exception. The only way we get into a good bowl is to win the ACC championship game.
So that being the case lets schedule home and home series with marquee teams. Texas, USC(already done), Tennessee, Georgia, Ole Miss, etc. Fun places to plan a road trip in the fall. Make that fun non conference game every year our real bowl game. I can plan a Sept or Oct trip to Austin, TX months in advance. Planning a trip on Dec 26th with 3 weeks notice is difficult.
At the end of the day who cares if we lose at USC/Texas/Tennessee. It does not affect our bowl status and gives the fans fun games to go to both at home and on the road. In addition it gets us another game on TV rather than the internet.
Here is the full list of teams with open slots, from the guys at BC Interruption. I think TCU would be great for the program, and they could be looking for a BCS conference team to fill one of their two open spots. Thoughts?
Program Conference Open Slots Available 10/9?
TCU Mountain West 2 Yes
Akron MAC 1 Yes
Western Michigan MAC 1 Yes
Connecticut Big East 1 Yes
UTEP Conference USA 1 Yes
Navy IA Independent 1 Yes
Air Force Mountain West 1 Yes
Arkansas State Sun Belt 1 Yes
New Mexico State WAC 1 Yes
San Jose State WAC 1 Yes
Utah State WAC 1 Yes
Missouri Big 12 1 No
Northwestern Big Ten 1 No
Arizona State Pac-10 1 No
Washington State Pac-10 1 No
Kentucky SEC 1 No
I tell you the fact that a very crappy FSU team can be considered the ACC #3 (when they are ACC #7)and thus (apparently) garner the Jan 1 Gator Bowl again serves to show how lame the bowls really are.
LOoping back to the topic -- let's fill our empty slot with our own in-season bowl -- TCU on real TV! And If we win a big game, our "buzz" factor also improves.
We know we will only get a hot bowl once a half-decade - maybe. Let's go for high stadards during the season and dump the MAc and FCS crowd.
You guys are amazing. Eagle in Brighton is correct:
ND : BC :: BC : UConn
The absolute, obstinate refusal to schedule UConn is the same dance ND gives the Eagles.
Cajun Eagle, your A and B are not entirely correct.
The lack of history is a combination of UConn only recently moving into D1A football + BC's refusal to play them.
And apparently bragging rights ARE enough motivation, because nearly everyone on this board needed a change of underwear at the very idea of scheduling a New England peer.
Coast,
ND stopped scheduling us because we started beating them. The all-time series is now 10-9 in their favor, but we've won 7 of 9.
BC's refusal to schedule UConn, on the other hand, has nothing to do with them beating us. We are 10-0-2 against them all-time, outscoring them 284-59. Granted, some of those games were a long time ago, so even if we focus on just the last ten years, we're 4-0 against them with a combined score of 130-40. BC's refusal to schedule UConn has nothing to do with fear of losing, and everything to do with the lawsuit they filed.
So the two situations are really not comparable.
I've said my piece on UConn. I accept the argument for a strong OOC opponent. I just don't want another Buffalo/Kent State/Northeastern. If we have to play creampuffs to be eligible to play in a tier three bowl, I say the hell with that.
Mod10 - you're probably right about Syracuse in today's context expecially. But don't you think even in our Cotton Bowl year, we needed that November victory over Syracuse to get the invitation? We had the bowl game in hand before we played Miami that year. There were other years when we absolutely had to beat Syracuse. Marrone might get them going.
UCONN must publicly apologize to BC for bringing the lawsuit.
Cajun Eagle - Not all great rivalry games are conference games - I give you UGA-GT; South Carolina-Clemson; (used to be anyway - Florida-FSU;
I'm with my classmate Big Jack on this one; i.e., Syracuse was definitely a BC rivalry through the 60's 70's, and 80's.
My first BC game was a last second victory over SU freshman year. I trekked up to Archbold to sit in the snow and ice in subsequent seasons.
For BC alums like me, living in New York, especially upstate, SU is the rival.
I, too, would love Air Force back on the schedule. That 13-7 victory was great. I can still see Margo sitting on her sawhorse/perch disdainfully watching those tiny falcons flitting about over Alumni.
BC should be shooting higher than a UConn.
UConn has made strides. Great. BC has been there, done that, bought the t-shirt.
Time to expand our parochial horizons into uncharted territory.
Improve recruiting. Go South or West.
UConn...come on.
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