Yet another Eagle in Atlanta

11 years ago, the Falcons changed their franchise by selecting Matt Ryan in the First Round. He will retire with every Falcon record imaginable. If he is going to be a Hall of Famer, he will probably need four or five more years of elite play. A key component to the final stretch of his career will be a fellow BC guy Chris Lindstrom, who the Falcons selected with the 14th pick.

Lindstrom's story is a good one for BC. He was a solid, local recruit, who BC identified and closed early. He got good coaching and got better every year. Lindstrom also deserves a lot of credit for his work the past 12 months. He shot up draft boards with his senior year, great week at the Senior Bowl, strong combine and good workouts.

On a personal note, I am giddy. Matt changed what it was like being a BC fan here in Georgia. Adding another critical piece from BC will make all their success in the next few years that much better. And I think Lindstrom will be a difference maker here. The Falcons line has been bad since Shannahan left. Lindstrom will give Matt more time.

Congrats to Lindstrom. Congrats to the BC staff for getting him here. Go BC. Go Falcons.

Matt Ryan talks about the birth of his twins

With Matt Ryan in the public eye and his wife Sarah active on social media, their silence following his day off during the playoffs for a "personal matter" was worrisome for anyone paying attention to Sarah's pregnancy. As Sarah explained in an Instagram post, she was put on bed rest in January and the twin boys were born very premature in Atlanta in February. The Ryans are now speaking publicly about their new expanded family and all seems well. I generally try to avoid getting into off the field stuff, but they have been such a high profile BC couple and still supportive of the school, that the public news and health of the babies is something I think is worth sharing. Below is Matt talking about the process as he prepares for his golf tournament which supports the hospital that is literally across the street from where his kids were born.

Another Atlanta commit and other links

Sam Schmal verballed to BC this weekend. He's Cam Seward's teammate at Westminster and yet another Georgia recruit. Schmal had interest from multiple BCS programs but according to Rivals, BC was his only firm BCS offer. He's a tall kid who might grow into a Offensive Line position. I like the pickup and think it speaks for recruiting excitement when teammates commit to the same school. Also, congrats to Coach Al Washington. He's making BC a factor in metro-Atlanta.

Michael Adams was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame.

Marty Reasoner is fighting for a spot with the Islanders.

Latest recruit joins the growing list of Eagles in Atlanta

Atlanta athlete Cameron Seward committed to BC Friday. Al Washington was just in Atlanta, so I assume he was locking the commitment down. Seward is listed as an "athlete" and could play multiple positions for BC. My guess is they won't push him in any direction until the class is a filled. Seward attends Westminster -- an academically rigorous school -- so I assume BC's pitch of "academics and athletics" carried some weight with him.

For Addazio this commitment helps on two fronts. First it bumps up our ranking even further. It also shows he can win the head-to-head battles with other BCS programs with kids from outside our usual recruiting areas.

Another option for the ACC Championship Game?

[Eds note: This might be a little too Atlanta-ish for BC fans but bear with me, as it might impact the ACC.]

Just when it seems like the nomadic ACC Championship Game has found a relevant home in Charlotte, Atlanta suddenly becomes an option! If Arthur Blank builds a new stadium for the Atlanta Falcons it will have a major ripple effect on both the SEC and ACC games.

For those of you not following the Falcons's stadium story, here is the quick summary. The Georgia Dome is aging and not owned by Arthur Blank. The Falcons owner wants to build a stadium in downtown Atlanta that he would own and control the ancillary revenues. Because he plans to pay for the construction, Blank wants to save a few dollars and build an open air stadium instead of a dome.

If the Falcons leave the Georgia Dome, the aging stadium's relevancy takes a big hit. Without the Falcons, it is less likely to get any needed upgrades and there is a question as to if it could even stay open.

The SEC has stated that it wants to keep its championship game indoors. If the Georgia Dome goes away, would the SEC move its championship to New Orleans? If the SEC did move their game, the ACC could easily play a few ACCCGs in Blank's new stadium. The new locale offers easy travel for most of the conference and plenty of hotel rooms. Plus -- like Jerry Jones before him -- I predict that Blank will pay top dollar to have marquee events on his field.

If the state of Georgia keeps the Dome just to keep the SEC game in town, the ACC might still be able to play their Championship in Atlanta. If the SEC is playing down the street, why can't the ACC play their game on the Friday before in Blank's new building? Or even late Saturday after the SEC game is over. If you have two stadiums there is no reason to think both games could be played on the same weekend. Plus, in this scenario, the ACC gets to be the party crashers and ensure that there is plenty of buzz and excitement during championship weekend.

The ACC has been trying to emulate the SEC's Championship for six years. But one crucial ingredient was always missing -- Atlanta. If the stadium musicals chairs causes the SEC to rethink THE ATL, I think Swofford and company would be smart to swoop in on the opening. It could offer stability and revenue and piss off a bunch of SEC fans.

The newest Eagle in Atlanta

Baby boy ATL_eagle arrived this morning. Mrs. ATL and son are both doing well. His sisters are excited to have a boy around. Now that we have three kids, my wife and I are switching from man-to-man to zone. Thanks to all for your thoughts and prayers.

Rest up, we are in the late spots for the ACC tourney

By finishing 6th in the ACC, BC will face No. 11 Virginia in the night cap slot on Thursday. The tipoff is scheduled for 9 PM ET, but the game never starts on time. Look for it to begin at 9:15 at the earliest and probably closer to 9:45.

If BC advances, we'll be in the late spot Friday night too. The ACC has the split deal with Raycom and ESPN for the tournament. For those in Raycom markets, you'll see BC. For those outside Raycom's coverage map, you'll have to watch the first round in a bar or via one of ESPN's package outlets (360 or Fullcourt). Friday's game will be on ESPN 2.

If you are making the trip to the ATL, remember there is a BC event Wednesday night. For those interested in two sport double headers, the baseball team is also in town this weekend too.

Attention Atlanta area BC fans!

There are still some ridiculously low fares on Airtran to Tampa. You can fly Saturday morning and return Saturday night for less than $150 round trip. Mrs. ATL and I are doing that, so is Senor Atlanta and BC Atlanta Guy Mod6A.

O-K-L-A-H-O-M-A A-T-L-A-N-T-A

I like a good show tune probably more than your average blogger, but this appearance and clip is beyond me. It has to be one of the most awkward moments I've seen in an effort to promote football season tickets. I think the Falcons are headed in the right directions, but, ah, the Fox Theatre crowd is very different from the Georgia Dome crowd.


(Thanks to Andrew and KSK for unearthing this clip.)

Plug in the AJC

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution produced a "welcome package" for Matt and included a plug for this blog.

IF YOU'RE HOMESICK

> Atlanta Chapter, Boston College Alumni Association (www.bc.edu/chapters/atlanta).

> Atleagle.blogspot.com: Blog that's all BC sports all the time by Bill Maloney, class of '98.

> Atlanta Red Sox Nation: Decatur-based Meetup group (http://redsox.meetup.com/138). Next meeting: May 27.

Of course they made the classic mistake that all Eagles outside of Boston face: the assumption that we are all Sox fans. I am pretty sure Matt roots for the Phillies. Other than that, I appreciate the shout out. Welcome to Atlanta.

FAQs from Atlanta

I enjoyed meeting or reconnecting with many of you on Saturday. A couple of questions came up and I just want to clarify a few things.

Do I hate Eagle Action and the posters there?

I don’t hate the Eagle Action posters. On the contrary, I like and know many of them. I haven’t been frequenting the EA boards much, but it has little to do with the posters. As for the Eagle Action writers, it is a mixed bag. Mike Shalin was always nice to me when I was a student and did a good job for the Herald. Steve Conroy does a good job with the Herald and is a very good writer. The other guys I don’t read enough to have a strong opinion on. I do not care for Mike Farrell and I’ve explained myself repeatedly here. I also don’t care for Eagle Action’s founder Mike Rutstein. Eagle Action hit its lowpoint with me during the coaching search when they threw out tons of rumors under fake bylines and outright plagiarized a few other papers. Because that shoddy work was done under pennames, you’ll never really get to the bottom of things (but I don’t blame Conroy or Shalin). Maybe things will get better with Yahoo’s acquisition of Rivals. Until then, I’ll keep my distance from certain parts of EA.

Am I going to start a Amazon wish list, take donations, etc?

While I appreciate the comments, I don’t do this for the money. This is a hobby and AOL and my fulltime job keep me comfortable. If you feel the need to “pay” for this content please give to the BC fund in your own name or click on my google ads every once in a while.

Where did I get the pants?

The pants are catching on. I saw four others wearing them Saturday. You can get your own at Pennington & Bailes.

Fan stuff: Atlanta tailgate and Blaudschun challenge

For those coming to Atlanta this weekend, please join the BC club of Atlanta at a pregame tailgate at Jocks & Jills on 10th street. For more information check out this site.

I've been in the AJC before, but they didn't bother to contact me for this article. Instead all around nice guy and former chapter head Mike Romaniello gets quoted. Mike recently got engaged, so he's on a roll.

Finally, a few people sent me notes about Mark Blaudschun's comments on BC fans in this article. For those who don't want to read the whole thing, here are the important quotes:

BC's 2-0 start has caught the attention of the voters in the polls. The Eagles made their initial appearance in the AP Top 25 at No. 21, and went from 25 to 19 in the coaches poll.

But what to make of the BC fans, who continue to arrive late and leave early?

If you want Top 25 respect, you have to act like a Top 25 program on the field and in the stands.

I don't care for Blaudschun but I understand what he is getting at. BC fans should do a better job staying for the whole game. The crowds have been good so far this year, but there is no reason to leave until the final whistle. I still think there is a mix of old BC fans who are more concerned with tailgating and traffic. I applaud the younger alumni and students who are doing a great job showing up, making noise and staying for the whole game. I've written about this before, but I think that as the Super Fans graduate the culture of BC sports will continue to change and change for the better. Me and many students mocked the SuperFans when they started 11 years ago, but we were wrong and part of the old BC mindset. The SuperFans are the future and are setting a great example.