BC-Syracuse preview

It is probably too early to put a tag on anything Hafley has done or say "Hafley's teams do..." but so far we seemingly play up (and down) to our opponent. That is great when playing Clemson. Not a good approach when taking on a depleted Syracuse team. The Orange are bad and reeling. BC is coming off a very emotional loss. This is the perfect opponent to set things straight. Let's do this and not take anything for granted.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game)
Babers' contract with Syracuse is just the latest reminder that you don't want to get into expensive long-term contracts with college coaches. In most cases you are only bidding against yourself. But the problem is that the size of the buyout often keeps a school from making a move when one needs to be made. Babers turned one great season into a huge deal. And now that it looks like a fluke, Syracuse can't move on becuase they can't afford his allegedly $17 million buyout. (Like BC, Syracuse is a private school, so they don't have to report the size of the deal.) I am all for giving publicity extensions to reassure recruits, but committing big bucks to anyone is rarely worth it. If Hafely continues to have success, BC should pay him, but not lock themselves into anything that is burdensome.

Three Simple Keys
1. Get Long involved in the game. The deep balls and aggressiveness of last week was good. However, getting the ball to Long is a higher percentage play (in most cases) and helps both the running game and those home run balls we keep attempting.
2. Get pressure with just the front four. We got burned on blitzes last week. Syracuse's QBs are a mess (Culpepper is the likely starter) but they still have an offense designed to get rid of the ball quickly. If we get pressure with just four, there should be lots of chances to get turnovers and very few big plays.
3. Don't forget to runover them if needed. Our running attack isn't as good as last year's. But Cuse is still a mess at stopping the run. If we are struggling in the passing game, just give the ball to Bailey. It worked last year.

Gambling Notes
-- Syracuse leads the all-time series 31-21
-- BC is 5-12 in the Carrier Dome
-- Babers is 2-2 against BC
The current line is BC-14

Factoid
The home team has lost four straight in this series.

Scoreboard Watching
It is all about Clemson vs Notre Dame. Did we expose the Tigers last week? I think we sort of woke them up. I also think they were looking past us a bit. Now they get their shot at Notre Dame. I think they will bury the Irish to make a statement. But Notre Dame needs a strong showing too. The winner will basically control the ACC and probably end up in the playoffs (even if they lose an ACC Championship Game).

I hope to see...BC with less than six penalties. I keep harping on it, but it is ridiculous at this point. BC enters this weekend 101st in fewest penalties per game. We are not talented enough to get away with that.

BC is in trouble if...we turn the ball over. Syracuse is not a good defensive team. We should score at will against them. The only way they stay in the game is if we give them the ball.

Overall
Mentally I have to get over Syracuse being the spoiler of many seasons. Hafley doesn't carry any of that baggage, so we shouldn't either. I think BC has more talent and a more explosive offense. They can't keep up with us and BC win's comfortably.
Final Score: BC 34, Syracuse 21