News on Brace and other links

When Ron Brace died so suddenly, it raised plenty of questions. Fortunately there are more answers now. Brace died from a irregular heartbeat combined with high blood pressure.

BC is considered a sleeper for this year. I guess there is an upside to having such a bad season.

BCI is reporting that Baseball is set to hire LIU Brooklyn's Alex Trezza as an assistant coach.

Brace family speaks and other link

Ron Brace's family said he had a series of concussion with playing football.

BC Baseball is set to retire Pete Frates' number.

In addition to getting Drafted, Justin Simmons also just got married. That's a life-changing month.

Report:Brace suffered cardiac arrest

While the initial reaction to Ron Brace's death was sadness, there was also plenty of confusion. What caused such a young man die so suddenly? Throw in the lack of details and many were left to guess. Now the Globe is reporting that Brace died of a heart attack.  

There was no mention in the article if he had a previous heart condition nor his current weight. But even at his playing size, Brace was putting plenty of stress on his body and heart. Head injuries remain the focus of current and former football players. Maybe Brace's tragic death will get others to address size and weight for those no longer playing the game. 

R.I.P. Ron Brace

The nature of my location doesn't lend itself to much face-to-face interaction with active BC players. Ron Brace was one of the few I met and interviewed. If you are BC fan, you know that Brace died this weekend at the age of 29.

I have a hard time of making sense of much of life and an even worse time with death. Dying young like this is a tragedy because he had so much time ahead of him and clearly many teammates and friends that will miss him. I pray for those people.

When I interviewed Brace, it was summer 2008. We discussed Raji coming back from his redshirt year and Brace lit up talking about the potential the team had and how he and BJ would compliment each other. He had a smile describing it...like he knew something no one else in a room full of ACC Football people knew. Of course he was right and the 2008 Defense destroyed teams all year. It was one of the most special seasons I can remember and easily the most fun season to blog about.

I don't know what football meant to Ron Brace or what he felt after his playing days were over. Hopefully he realized he was part of something special and gave thousands of people joy. There is no explanation for why something like this happens to someone so young, but there is clearly proof that Brace made an impact in his short life.

Women's Hoops beats UVA and other links

The Women's Basketball team defeated Virginia Thursday night. The win improved their ACC record to 4-9. They play Miami on Sunday.

The Redskins signed Ron Brace. Let's hope a new system and new team give his career a boost.

BC is looking at New York DT prospect Thomas Holley. BC also offered Ohio WR Derek Kief.

The New York Times quoted BC's Warren Zola on the insurance ramifications of the Nerlens Noel injury.

In case you missed it: some links from the last few days

Virginia athlete Josh Tapscott committed to Spaz earlier this week. He's not highly rated, but I like his upside and picking up a kid in Virginia. BC also offered 2014 QB prospect Trace McSorley.

The Basketball team released their final roster. It includes Dragicevich and updates Kilcullen's for transfer.

One of the stats I do like is returning starters. If there is a real causation, we'll surprise people this year.

BC offered Cincinnati area OL prospect Dylan Wiesman. Regardless of the stars, I think BC needs to keep up a Cincinnati connection in this class.

Ron Brace's was honored by his high school.

Steve Flynn is excited about his walk-on opportunity at BC.

Heights and Lows embraced the idea of football returning to Fenway.

Super Bowl Eagles

For the second time in five years the two NFL teams with the most historical ties to BC are facing off in the Super Bowl. Below is a list of the BC connections. (Be sure to add any that I might have overlooked in the comments section.) [UPDATED]

New England Patriots
C Dan Koppen -- BC 2003 (currently on the IR)
DT Ron Brace -- BC 2009
Defensive Assistant Brian Flores -- BC 2004
Scout Dujuan Daniels -- BC 2002
Robert Kraft -- member of the Board of Trustees

New York Giants
LB Mark Herzlich -- BC 2011
LB Mathias Kiwanuka -- BC 2006
G Chris Snee -- BC 2004
KR Will Blackmon -- BC 2006
Tom Coughlin -- Former BC head coach
Strength and Conditioning Coach Jerry Palmieri -- held the same position at BC under Coughlin
Assistant Offensive Line Coach Jack Bicknell, Jr. -- BC 1985, also coached at BC under Jags and is the son of former BC coach Jack Bicknell
Wide Receivers Coach Sean Ryan -- Graduate assistant at BC 2001-2002
John Mara -- BC 1976
Chris Mara -- BC 1979

New blogs, new BC names for UConn and other links

Welcome Around the Res to the BC blogosphere. They are off to a promising start with this interview with Codi Boek. I wish Boek had gotten a little more playing time while at BC since he embodies so much of what we want our guys to be.

Bill McGovern is getting mentioned as a candidate for the UConn opening. In the past McGovern interviewed for openings at Holy Cross and UMass. I would be surprised if he gets the job, but good for him getting in the mix. As for the other BC-UConn connection, Jags is still mentioned yet his contract was not renewed with the UFL. Of course, this being Jags it is never that simple. The UFL called it a firing and said Jags wasn't getting it done on the field. Perfect timing when you are trying to get another job. What is interesting is that the UFL's news might have derailed his UConn shot yet his UFL GM said he is hoping Jags gets the UConn job?! What a strange two years its been for him.

The Patriots put Ron Brace on the IR which means he's done for the playoffs.

In case you missed this article on Wes Davis over the weekend, it is well worth the read.

I've harped on the Chip Kelly connections in the past. With the BCS Championship approaching I think you'll see more articles like with quotes from Sean Devine.

Freshman ready and other links

The Globe had a nice feature on our local freshmen. Many of these guys will redshirt, but let's hope they all develop and contribute. It would be nice if New England finally became a deep recruiting territory.

HD expects Kevin Pierre-Louis to make a big impact this year.

ACC Sports posted their Q&A with Anthony Castonzo.

BC target Chase Hounshell really enjoyed his visit to Florida.

People wonder why Dan Henning had trouble at the Heights...well this article on former DC Jim Reid gives some insight into how things worked.

Former Eagle Ron Brace's days in New England might numbered. Very strange that he's struggled to this extent and now can't pass a conditioning test.

My mock draft part 2

This is part 2 of my mock draft dealing with Raji and Brace. Both should go early, possibly both in the first round.

"With the fifth pick in the NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns select B.J. Raji, Defensive Tackle, Boston College."

For the second year in a row, I think BC will have a top 5 pick. That's a true accomplishment. The Bengals, Packers and Jaguars are also potential landing spots, but I think Cleveland will jump at the chance to get an anchor for their defensive line. As far as B.J.'s pro prospects, I think he can be a very good at this level. His maturity and focus remain a question, but I think his senior year and Senior Bowl speak to his willingness to put in extra effort. When the false drug test leak broke I compared Raji's experience to Warren Sapp. My analogy was based on the drug issue, but it may have been appropriate on a skill level comparison too. Raji can be as good as Sapp. Let's hope Saturday is the start of a brilliant NFL career.

"With the 7th pick of the second round, the Jacksonville Jaguars select Ron Brace, Defensive Tackle, Boston College."

I've read repeatedly that many teams looking at Raji are also considering Brace. Jacksonville has a need at DT and Brace will probably be available when they select in the second round. I think he'll be a good fit and a good pro. His upside is probably limited compared to Raji, but there is no reason he can't have a solid NFL career.

Ron Brace quotes

As you saw from the pictures, the media sessions are a bit of a free for all. I asked plenty of questions but many of the quotes have already surfaced in other articles. So, for this post, I thought I would provide the bits you might not have read and in more of an open format.

Brace on playing a year without BJ Raji

“I think it benefited me a lot and it’s also going to benefit him too when he comes back. Teams aren’t just going to be able to focus on one. They are going to worry about both of us.”

Brace on improving BC's pass defense

“That was something we noticed we needed to work on during the season as time went on. We had good games against the pass and some bad ones. We also want to put more emphasis on the pass and put more pressure on the quarterback."

Brace on how Raji’s return will impact the defensive alignments

“I think it will be mostly four-man fronts, but we’ll go back and forth [with three man fronts]. Because usually they want to have me and BJ on the field, or me or BJ and one of our four linebackers out there. It’s just the skys the limit with what we might do. We’re just going to throw a bunch of curve balls."

Brace on the summer training

“Every year our workouts get more intense…especially this year. It’s going to help us out even more. As a defensive line unit, we’re trying to work on our explosion, getting off the line. We’re doing a lot of work on our pass defense.”

Brace on interviews and dealing with the media

"I like to talk. People say I am a quite guy but I don’t mind talking at all. "

Brace on replacing vocal leaders

"I feel as though being a leader is not just a person who’s rah rah. You can also lead by example. That’s what I feel our class is more of...we’re more leaders by example. The last class was full of a lot of talkers and the locker room was just crazy. You had Matt and JoLonn, Pruitt, Gos…any given guy out there was a vocal leader. Where I feel our class lead by example. We don’t want to get on you but we still want you to do your job."

Brace on the young defensive ends

“Newman: he’s going to be a little beast at D end. He shows urgency. Urgency to get to the ball. Holloway, coming fresh out of high school. He decided to leave a half a year of high school early to come and train with us. That just shows you how dedicated he is at trying to get better.

"They’re going to bring that pop, that rush that we need."

Brace on video games

“I can remember the first time I was in the game as a starter I called my family about because it cracked me up. They had me in the game at 335, I think it was, but the body type -- you couldn’t tell. They made me look like a defensive end, tall, six pack. I said, I am going to have to buy this game just so I could look at it."

Brace on Brian Toal coming back

"I think it is going to be a big difference. He’s a competitor. He works hard. You can tell by the look on his face that he’s been working hard. He’s a real smart player too. I remember back while watching film, he used to tell us about reads. He brings a lot of experience that will help us, especially the freshmen.