Don't read too much into the Jim Paquette news

Friday afternoon, Loyola and Jim Paquette announced that he would step down as their AD in June. The news immediately sparked internet speculation that he is coming to BC as the new Athletic Director. After talking to a few people this evening, I am pretty sure this is coincidence and Paquette is unlikely to get the BC job.

I haven't written much about the AD search lately because there hasn't been real news. BC's fundraisers are answering some big donor questions and the school has signed Parker Search, but no hard news on interviews, finalists or even a hard timeline. But this is what I do know and how it fits in with the Paquette situation.

-- BC is telling donors that they want someone who has hired multiple coaches -- and hopefully a football coach -- in a previous job. This would seem to eliminate Paquette right off the bat. Loyola doesn't have a football team and Paquette never made a football hire. He has hired coaches while in Baltimore but never under the microscope or challenges of a Power 5 type revenue sport hire.

-- The new AD will not have ties to Gene Defilippo. This might not be fair to Paquette or any of the other BC staffers from the GDF era, but it is understandable position from BC. If they want new energy, new ideas and a new face to present to the donor and sports community, it doesn't look great to bring in Gene's righthand man.

Then there is the timing on Paquette's part. The BC job has open to speculation ever since BC publicly announced that Bates' contract had not been extended. He's been a lame duck since. Any interested candidate has had ample time to work the back channels and prepare for an opportunity. Someone like Paquette would especially have insider info that most candidates would not have. If he thought he was in the mix for this job, would he make such a big change now? Leaving Loyola does nothing to help his candidacy. If anything it might raise questions. I haven't talked to Paquette about this -- but I doubt he takes this risk if BC were an immediate option.

I could still see Paquette return to BC in some capacity or even become AD one day years from now. But given the timing and the public stances of BC's current leadership, I don't think he is getting the job now.

Keeping it in the family

It is natural to turn to your alumni and long-time employees when looking to fill a critical role like AD. The hope is that familiarity makes any transition smooth and that the passion for the school guides your program to new heights. All colleges consider this during major hires. Because we are replacing an AD who never really fit in, it seems even more obvious that BC should go with "BC guy/gal" right now. I don't think BC has some sort of quirky or impenetrable culture that only an insider can understand. But I do think this time around we should strongly consider someone with real ties to BC. Our coaches and fundraisers have a credibility issue with our fan base. If one of our own takes over, some of that skepticism will die down.

Here are a few candidates with BC ties who might be considered this time around.

Jim Paquette -- Athletic Director at Loyola

If anyone could hit the ground running with fund-raising, it would be Paquette. The Providence grad already served a decade as Gene's primary fundraiser and has led a number of big projects while at Loyola. He knows the administrators. He knows the big donors. He knows what has worked and hasn't worked at BC. Paquette can be the face of the Department and will understands the BC culture. There are only two issues related to Paquette's candidacy: his association with Gene and his lack of experience running a Department with Football. The association with Gene is something he can easily talk around in the interview process. He just has to explain how his vision for BC would take the best aspects of Defilippo era yet avoid his old boss's pitfalls. In my experience, Jim is not as much of a lightning rod as Gene, so I don't think he will rub anyone the wrong way. But he also has more personality than someone like Bates. As for Football experience, while he doesn't deal with it at Loyola, he certainly dealt with it at BC. He doesn't need to have Xs & Os expertise. He just needs to set expectations for the program, get the resources the program needs and find the right coach to lead that program. 

Bottom Line: I think Paquette would be the safest hire. But in this process he needs to prove that he is the type of leader who can not just return BC to its 2000s success, but take BC to that next level.

Ed McLaughlin -- Athletic Director at Virginia Commonwealth

McLaughlin is a 1995 BC grad but has built his career away from BC. Yet every step has been a step towards a place like BC. He worked for Hockey East. He worked in the area at Merrimack. He was the AD at a Catholic school (Niagra) and has now been at a mid-major power like VCU. While he has never raised money at a Power 5 school, I think his familiarity with BC and work at private schools can help any transition. Like Paquette, McLaughlin is not at a football school. But VCU basketball comes with some of the pressure and expectation that an AD faces at a football school. 

Bottom Line: McLaughlin can sell his love and ties to BC but doesn't carry the baggage of having worked at BC. Of the people tied to the school, his fresh perspective offers the biggest upside.

Chris Iacoi --  Sr. Associate Athletic Director, Chief Financial Officer at UCLA

Iacoi is the youngest among this "family" group. He graduated from BC in 2001 and worked for the school for a dozen years. Like Paquette, Iacoi was part of the success during the 2000s. However, unlike Paquette, he has never run his own department. While he has been part of critical business decisions, marketing deals and financial operations, he has never led a major fundraising campaign.  

Bottom Line: Iacoi's rise is impressive, but he would never sniff this job if not for his BC's degrees and previous work at the school. He is a likely candidate down the road, but I don't think now is Chris's time.

Vaughn Williams -- Athletic Director at Kennesaw State

Williams also worked at BC during the first half of Gene's tenure. He played football and graduated from UMass and also has a Masters degree from BC. Between his time at BC and Kennesaw, Williams worked at UConn. I know many BC fans are not aware of Kennesaw State, but as a Georgia resident, let me tell you how impressive their rise has been. Since he's been there, KSU has started a FCS Football team and has plans to make the jump to FBS. They also have some of the most elaborate and expensive Lacrosse facilities in the southeast. Williams wasn't involved with fundraising a BC, but has done enough of it at KSU to think he could adjust to our alumni and fans.

Bottom Line: Vaughn should be interviewed. It would be a big leap from KSU to BC, but he has enough of the boxes checked to at least get a chance to sell his vision for the Athletic Department.

Current Staffers

You could make some case for many of the current Athletic Department staffers like Jaime Seguin, Steve Novak, John Kane, Jill Hegarty, and Tom Peters. Many of them are BC grads and long-time loyal staffers. However, promoting from within would send the wrong message to our frustrated fans.

Bottom Line: I don't think BC will promote from within. 

These guys are not getting the job

Regular comments poster mod34b asked what I thought of Ed McLaughlin, Jim Paquette and Ken Kavanaugh. Since their names keep popping up on blogs and message boards, I thought I would put their candidacies to rest. All three are supposedly good guys and may be the AD at BC one day, but none are getting the job now.

Ed McLaughlin just got hired by VCU. I don't think BC is going to steal him away after just a few months. I also think his lack of experience dealing with major media or a football program hurts. Although it shouldn't be a factor, I think age will play a role too. Ed is only 39. I think BC will want someone a little more accomplished or experienced with the movers and shakers of college sports media. As I said, Ed could very well be running BC's Athletic Department one day. It won't be this school year though.

Jim Paquette could probably transition to the role with ease. He was one of Gene's right-hand men for years. He knows the coaches, the support staff and most of the big donors. Those attributes are his problems too. BC made the change so they could move on from Gene and rebuild some relationships. That sentiment would come off pretty hollow if BC replaced Gene with one of his key guys.

Ken Kavanaugh is a BC grad and the current Athletic Director at Florida Gulf Coast University. If I just wrote "Kevin Kavanugh is a BU grad and the current Athletic Director at Florida Gulf Coast University" would he even be mentioned? I obviously root for any fellow Eagles, but there is nothing other than his BC affiliation and relationship with Jerry York that makes Kavanaugh a likely candidate. It looks like he is doing good things in leading FGCU to Division I, but BC needs an AD with more football and/or media marketing  experience.

Paquette leaving for Loyola and other links

Jim Paquette, one of BC's key athletic fundraisers, is leaving the Heights to become the AD at Loyola. While this might be under the radar for many BC fans, this is a big deal. Paquette and Gene's other fund raisers have been a critical part of BC's success and now Gene will have to find a replacement who can bring in big dollars in a down economy. It will be interesting if Gene promotes from within or brings in an outsider. Speaking of revenue, this SI.com article lists the revenue of most of the major Athletic Departments.

Four BC football players made the All-ACC Academic Football Team. Congrats to the guys and keep up the good work.

Mike McLaughlin is getting ready for the Combine. In this Q&A he credits Coach Loscalzo for a real change in attitude around the program.

This article with Kuechly is a few days old, but he shares some of his likes and dislikes and talks about his freshmen year and playing with Herzy next year.