You've got to watch Addazio's C21 talk

In April, Addazio took part in BC's Agape Latte series that is part of the school's Church in the 21st Century movement. He touches on all sorts of issues of his faith and how faith and Catholicism is so intertwined into the Boston College community. But that's not what makes the lecture a must see.

What I found fascinating starts a little after the 11:00 mark. For the first time Addazio confirms that he was scheduled to interview at BC until his knee infection kept him from getting to Boston. As we know, Gene promoted Spaz and wasted everyone's time for the next four seasons. Spaz taking over always seemed fait accompli, but Addazio's missed interview will remain a big "what if" moment for BC fans. If he got the job then, Addazio probably keeps Tuggle at QB and runs a spread offense from Day 1. Our offensive line probably would have maintained its tradition of excellence. I think it is safe to say recruiting would have been better. I don't know what we would have done on Defense. Even if Addazio had wowed Gene in a face-to-face interview, I bet keeping Spaz would have been a condition of the job. Think of how differently things would be now if we were in Year 5 of Addazio and not coming off back to back losing seasons. Addazio might not turn out to be our savior now, but I think he would have outperformed Spaz.

So enjoy the lecture. Addazio is good in this setting and you can see how his personality connects with people. Even if you are not interested in his faith, the football aspects and the BC aspects are still worth your time.

BC-NC State preview

I finish every book I read. It is a weird habit and I have really had to force myself through some awful books just to get to the end. Part of me always thinks that I will find some redeeming quality in the writing. Most of the time I just ask myself "who ever thought this was a good book and worth publishing?" I feel like this game represents the end of a terrible book. There were a few bright spots during Spaz's run, but I think the question many of us will be asking when it is over is: "who ever thought he would be a good head coach?"

Hot Seat Thermometer

NA. I don't know the exact moment Spaz will be fired, but it will happen. It is just understood at this point. I don't think it will take up much of Bates' energy. Sullivan will work out most of the details with Spaz. I think the assistants will be thanked for their efforts, encouraged to communicate with recruits and told they have a chance with the new coach. When these changes happen assistants react in variety of ways. I hope these guys respect BC and Bates enough to do a decent job recruiting while they look for new jobs.

Overlooked Storyline: Players will say anything 

The players had nothing but good things to say about Spaz to the media this week. No one should read anything into it. Players -- especially at a place like BC -- are always going to say the right things about the coach. Mouthing off doesn't do them any favors. Fans have to watch the coach, but the players have to live and work with the guy. 

Three Simple Keys

1. Drop eight into coverage a lot. Glennon is not going to kill us with his legs. If we give him small windows, he will make mistakes.

2. Challenge them deep. Things have improved somewhat, but NC State's DBs have been beaten deep throughout the year. We can be aggressive downfield.

3. Get a big special teams play. Their punt coverage is not good (and cost them the UNC game). Spiffy should get decent returns.

Gambling notes

-- Spaz is 2-1 vs NC State

-- TOB is 1-4 vs BC

-- Spaz is 3-2 in the state of North Carolina

The current line is BC+14.5

Factoid

For all the people who say how tough it is to win at BC -- win or lose -- Spaz will have the lowest winning percentage of any BC coach since Ed Chlebek. Even if Spaz wins his mark will only improve to .442. The much-maligned Dan Henning finished with a .458 percentage.

Scoreboard Watching
I am watching all the MAC games. Odds are our new coach is in that league right now.

I hope to see...
No more redshirts burned. There were plenty of guys who could have redshirted this year but didn't. Spaz owes it to the guys who sat to let them be. Given them a chance to earn that extra year with the new coach. Even someone like Shinskie shouldn't play. He could potentially be a valuable back up next fall.

BC is in trouble if...
We don't pick up their blitzes. As I said, the big plays are there for the taking, but we have to keep Rettig upright to get the ball downfield.

Bottom Line
When Gene was around this game had extra motivation for the staff. I don't think anyone gives a shit any more. If Spaz didn't go for the glory last week, why should this week be any different? I think we will see a low scoring ugly game but TOB gets the bragging rights in the last game for the two long-time colleagues.
Final Score: NC State 20, BC 12

Understanding the "A List"

When the ideas of the search plan leaked more than a few scoffed at the idea that any current BCS-level coach would ever consider a move to BC. Even with the chaos of the last 48 hours, there is still some underlying qualities that make the BC job attractive. Per ESPN's Insider:

I know a couple of guys who actually want this job, even if it isn't officially open yet. They saw the ACC as vulnerable, even before this new round of realignment. They think there's room for BC, despite the academic limitations that similarly hamstring Duke and Wake Forest.

It's a beautiful city and campus and, let's be honest, the conference isn't that challenging to make the Matt Ryan years seem that distant. A couple of solid players on both sides of the ball, and the Eagles could be equipped to be a conference contender. Frank Spaziani, most everyone believes, is simply in over his head.

The three most well-known names to be rumored targets of BC are Dan Mullen, Bill O'Brien and Al Golden. We can assume all three will be contacted. I don't expect any to take the job, but there is still a chance one might. You make the phone call to find out. All three have specific reasons as to why they would take the call.

Dan Mullen
By everyone's accounts Dan Mullen has done a great job at Mississippi State. But he is a New Hampshire native and has family ties to New England.
Why would he leave? Remember the Cam Newton scandal. Mullen had successfully recruited Newton only to see Auburn boosters buy off Cam's dad to have him sign with the Tigers. That is the world in which Mullen has to operate. Plus he will always be behind LSU and Alabama is his own division. Mullen will leave Mississippi State. It is only a question of when and which job. He will be a top candidate for all the open SEC jobs.
Why BC? Aside from the family issues, Mullen might want to come to BC to escape the SEC. Even if Tennessee or Auburn come calling with promises of more money and the chance to actually compete with the Sabans and Miles, he still has to get dirty. He still has to recruit borderline kids and he still has to look the other way when someone throws money at these kids. I don't want to say that everyone at BC is a choir boy, but it is definitely a different sort of atmosphere. He can win the division in the ACC. He won't at MSU. Also if he comes to BC and rebuilds successfully, he will then have proven himself twice and be able to get any key job out there.
Will it happen? I don't think so. Mullen is going to have his choice of jobs and despite his ties to the area, I don't think that will be enough to have him pass on Tennessee or Auburn.

Bill O'Brien
O'Brien thought he knew what he was getting into at Penn State. Replacing a legend and healing a community is one thing, but the devastating sanctions were not anticipated.
Why would he leave? Losing coaches rarely get a second chance to be a head coach. Even though the team is playing well and even though he is saying the right things, Penn State will be playing with one hand behind their back for the next five years. If O'Brien presides over PSU's decline, no one is ever going to offer him a big time gig again.
Why BC? O'Brien was married in St. Ignatius. His wife is a BC grad. He grew up in the Boston suburbs. He dreamed of coaching in the ACC. He wanted the BC job last year, but BC didn't fire Spaz.
Will it happen? O'Brien has been very non-committal in his recent interviews. Any coach who leaves a school after one year is going to get vilified in the media and on the recruiting trail, but I have to imagine where there is smoke there is fire. Why wouldn't he be more demonstrative in his love and desire to stay at Penn State? He was gung ho right after the sanctions. Has the reality kicked in? If he's going to bail on Penn State, he will only do it for a job he really wants and in a place where he really wants to be.

Al Golden
Even going back to his days at BC, Golden's name always managed to float for a bigger and better opportunity. Now that Miami is facing huge sanctions, his name is popping up again.
Why would he leave? Golden is a smart guy and a guy who is always thinking about his next move. When he took the Miami job, I am sure he worked through scenarios in which he would leave and don't think BC would have been on that "Next Job" list. You take Miami as a path to National Championships or the NFL. But a bomb went off shortly into his first year and there are looming sanctions. His AD bailed and the school self-imposed a second bowl ban. Like O'Brien he needs to get out before sanctions sink his W-L record and his long-term career prospects.
Why BC? If not for timing, Golden would have been BC's head coach. He took the Temple job in 2006. If he had stayed at UVA one more year, Gene probably would have hired him. Our old AD couldn't steal him from Temple after one 1-11 season. Al could have replaced Jags too, but Gene never really looked beyond Spaz. Now BC would be a safe haven. He could rebuild and still be positioned for a very good job in four or five years.
Will it happen? Of the "A List," this is the most probable. He wants out and there are only so many jobs. He will be in the mix for the SEC spots, but I don't see them rushing to hire Golden. To them he is some guy who has been "ok" at Miami. BC fans on the other hand know about his recruiting and work ethic, know what a miracle the Temple rebuild was and know that he was dealt a bad hand at Miami.

Blauds spills the beans on Bates meeting

Early last week Brad Bates met with some key BC-friendly advisers off campus. I knew about it but kept it off the blog for a variety of reasons. Now that Blauds is writing about it, I can add my two cents. He is correct on BC's approach. Bates will explore some bigger names who might at least take BC's call. I don't think BC or Bates would expect the Dan Mullens of the world to leave their current jobs, but it is important to make the call. The other names mentioned in the article are all valid with the exception of Blauds' buddies Tim Murphy and Mark Whipple. Murphy has a huge advocate in Chip Kelly, but I think BC will go with a younger coach. Whipple is just old news at this point and no one at BC is going to go to bat for him this go around.

Blauds hit most of what I heard but missed a few things.

 -- There will be an emphasis on prior head coaching experience. That might seem obvious based on BC's desire to go for a big name. But where it might not play out as expected is in the hot college coordinator vs the MAC head coach. Experience is going to matter and having that knowledge and track record of running a program is going to be a big plus for a candidate. Considering our last three head coaches had never been head guys prior to BC, this is a change.

-- There will be NFL names kicked around. Pete Carmichael Jr.'s name has been out there for a long time, but other names will emerge. Former Coughlin protege Tim Sullivan has fans. Dirk Koetter's name has been floated. Expect Eric Mangini's name to get out there. Greg Roman will be called. Two-time BC bridesmaid Kevin Gilbride is probably going to be passed over based on age. The NFL stuff may seem in conflict with my first point, but I think and some close to the program think that a good process needs to at least explore the NFL names. There is too much upside with some of these guys to ignore.

-- Remember BC's approach during the AD search. There was an emphasis on experience as an AD. There was an emphasis on candidates who respect the student athlete. The coach's values (and although not mentioned, his religion) will be important. BC will operate on its own timeline, not the fans or media. There's not much worry in saving Spaz's recruiting class. It is about getting the right hire for the next five to ten years.

-- Spaz is done and its not going to take up much of Bates' time. Everyone wants Spaz gone but it is just a technicality at this point. Negotiating Spaz's buyout and dealing with all that is involved with be mostly on Leo Sullivan. Bates will be part of the process, but will be dealing with the search and the other demands of his new job.

Blauds has been all over the place with regards to AD stuff, but he got pretty close on all of this. Maybe he'll redeem himself in the coaching search.

Spaz waves white flag

My outrage is muted at this point. One game just captured how pathetic Spaz is in his approach to BC football.

I will have my normal grades and stuff up late Sunday.

Getting to know Dave Doeren

BC's last three head coaches had been career assistants prior to coming to the Heights. This time around it might make sense to hire someone who has been a Head Coach before and therefore has a different learning curve. One of the popular early names being floated for the job is Northern Illinois Head Coach Dave Doeren. In my opinion Doeren would be an excellent fit at BC and I predict he will be a finalist for the job.

Finding talent

Every potential coach will arrive at BC with a recruiting plan. What I appreciate about Doeren is that his past recruiting success can directly translate to BC. He was recruiting coordinator at Kansas and Wisconsin. He led the efforts that produced a rare Orange Bowl trip for the Jayhawks and Wisconsin's recent run. While neither school is a Northeast Catholic college, both rely heavily on finding and developing three star talent in the Midwest. Doeren didn't (and at Kansas couldn't) really chase after the elite four and five star recruits. Instead the process involved a lot of groundwork with coaches, a lot of player evaluation and leveraging camps and friendly high school programs. Wisconsin even recruited in New Jersey, so he brings those relationships with him too. 

Head Coaching Experience

While it has only been two years, Doeren would come to BC with the understanding of how to run a staff, the demands on his time and how to lead an entire organization. I haven't watched enough NIU games to speak to his Xs and Os, but the guy is currently 20-4 lifetime. He's doing something right. NIU was in a good place when he took over, but he's made them better. Depsite losing his offensive coordinator in the offseason, the team is still trucking along. I don't know if he would bring his whole staff with him to his next job, but he's already shown the ability to find quality assistants and replace them as they move on to better jobs.

In my opinion the only downside to Doeren is his lack of connection to BC or the Northeast. He's a Kansas native and has spent most of his career in the Midwest. But he is Catholic and has worked at private schools before. The lack of familiarity shouldn't be a dealbreaker. Father Leahy and Brad Bates are both Midwestern guys who took jobs at BC even though they didn't have ties to the area.

I don't know if BC and Doeren will be a match, but based on his trackrecord, Doeren is headed for big things.

One blogger's perspective on the coming Spaz narrative

As I predicted, now that there is no hope that he can turn things around, Spaz defenders and apologists are trying to shape the narrative that Spaz is a “good guy and great coach” who just couldn’t get the job done at BC. That is not reality. Spaz never should have been hired and has not done a good job while head coach. Whenever you talk or write about Spaz, his defenders always bring up Jags. Spaz’s predecessor hasn’t been employed by BC since 2009. He is irrelevant to the conversation and Spaz’s current situation. Spaz’s record is of his own making. It is not Jags or anyone else's. Show me any other fanbase in college sports that would accept that sort of logic in a coach’s fourth season?


The Job 
As we begin a search again it is important to remember what the job entails and why Spaz was never a good fit. Being a head coach is about more than football knowledge. That is the basic requirement. You need to have good people skills, management skills and organizational skills. You are in charge of more than a dozen staffers and grad assistants. A head coach is responsible for more than 100 players. And the job is not just babysitting those players. To be effective you need to develop them as football players and you need to find 20 to 25 high school students to replace your departing players every year. Finally the head coach must be the face of the program. He is the persona you are going to sell to recruits and fans. He is also the lead spokesman to the media. Spaz – even prior to becoming head coach – was considered a bit of a prickly personality, a disinterested recruiter and an awkward media presence. All those factors were the reason he didn’t get the job when TOB left. None of them changed two years later.


The stability of the hire
In the coming weeks you’ll read that BC turned to Spaz during its time of need after the Jags situation blew up. The timing and the situation were of BC’s making but they were highly unique. BC was also coming off two very successful seasons. Making a hire based on continuity and stability was not necessarily a bad decision. Hiring Frank Spaziani was. At the time BC had two better options than Spaz on staff. Steve Logan and Jack Bicknell Jr. were both very interested in replacing Jags. Both had previous experience as Head Coaches and both understood the demands of being a head coach. Of course neither were truly considered because Gene Defilippo wanted to keep his influence on the program. Gene knew that Spaz was more malleable and dependent on him than Logan or Bick ever would have been.


Loyalty
Defenders are quick to write about Spaz’s loyalty to BC, but I’ve never understood how you measure this or justify it as a reason for the hire. What other business, school or team would place a multi-million dollar organization in the hands of someone based on loyalty? You could argue that Barry Gallup has been more “loyal” to BC than Spaz ever was. He wasn’t really considered by Gene. Also where was Spaz’s true loyalty? Most who know him best say that he stayed at BC not solely because of his love of the school, but because he didn’t want to move his family and Gene promised him an important role with the new coach. If BU had an ACC football program and they had hired TOB, do you think Spaz would have stayed at BC out of loyalty? He stayed because it was best for his career and family. That is what 99% of us would do too. He should not be faulted for staying but the act shouldn’t be turned into some noble work of charity by Spaz.

Recruiting and rosters
Spaz has been quick to remind everyone of all the problems he inherited. Regardless of the validity of those problems, he has now had four years to fix them. There should be no holes in the roster or depth chart. If old players weren’t good enough, he’s had ample time to replace them with new players. He is not even using his full scholarship allotment each year. That’s neglect. There are many varied and successful strategies to recruiting. Spaz’s strategy has been to get low-hanging fruit who will commit to BC on his timetable (the summer). I have no problem with that if it works. Based on our declining record I would say it hasn’t. We’ve also had a fair bit of roster attrition. Some attrition is natural in college football, but you have to question the environment created when guys with completed BC degrees leave under varied circumstances. I know there are plenty of great guys on our current roster. But having great character on our roster is not a Spaz thing. BC has been recruiting and molding young men for decades. It predates him and is part of our culture. It will be part of our culture after he is gone too.

Staffs, Coordinators and Kevin Rogers
Coaching football is not a one-man band. You need trusted assistants at every position. Gene influenced Jags’ staff (and forced Spaz on Jags) and then did the same thing to Spaz. Perhaps that dynamic doomed Spaz from the start. How could he expect his staff not to undercut him with Gene when he had whispered to Gene and undercut TOB and Jags when he was an assistant? When the time came for his first staff, he went outside of Gene’s network to bring in his old friend (and twice retired Gary Tranquill). Tranquill could have been a good sounding board and adviser to a first-time coach but he never should have been put in charge of the entire offense. When Tranquill retired for a third time Spaz and Gene disagreed on the new OC. The compromise was Kevin Rogers. We all know how it ended, but no one wants to go on record with what led up to the ending. I was not there (obviously). Only the coaches were. It is alleged that Spaz punched Rogers at halftime of the UCF game. Spaz’s friend and confidant Blauds will acknowledge that Rogers bled from the mouth and there were angry words, but claims there was nothing physical. Did they serve shards of glass in the Coach’s Box at UCF? Did Rogers bite his tongue from arguing? Did he have miraculous case of 30 minute TB? The denials don’t even matter at this point. The staff changes tell enough of the story. This was not a good working environment. And because of that our offense has been dreadful for four seasons. How you prepare, the systems you use and how you teach impact the results on the field. Spaz never seemed to figure that out or trust anyone else enough to fix it for him.

Game Management
All of Spaz issues could be overlooked if we won more. That is that case at every school. But we didn’t. Our strategies and gameplans have been suspect many times. His use of timeout and the clock have caused endless frustration. In four seasons and almost 50 games, Spaz has never comeback from a deficit of more than seven points. How does that happen? We should have lucked into one small comeback over the years. But this is the same guy who trotted out the same defense for a decade. Why did anyone expect him to become a great situational manager once he was put in charge?

History
We will get a new coach and be good again one day. But don’t let BC critics or Spaz apologists rewrite this decline. Spaz wanted the job for a variety of reasons, was a thorn in Jags' side while Jags was here and then led BC down this slow decline once he finally got his turn. He never should have been hired in the first place.

Second viewing thoughts and grade report: Notre Dame

BC should preserve this game in some sort of time capsule. That way if future BC fans want to know what life was like under Spaz, they'll have the perfect example in this game. You had a fanbase and a team dying to compete and win (to the point that players were crying), yet we had an ineffective offense, breakdowns on defense and got overpowered in the trenches. As we move on from this mess, people are going to debate how much talent our new coach inherits and how long it will take to rebuild BC. I don't know but I think the simple key for whoever takes over is to get back to having great offensive and defensive lines and make sure they execute well. We've done that many times before and can do it again. And great line play covers a lot of other weaknesses. Too bad the buy who spent the past 16 years here never bothered to figure it out.

Offense: D

The only guy I felt remotely happy for after the game was Rettig. I am sure he doesn't care about stats or praise, but he played well against a Top Ten defense and earned some recognition. He moved well in the pocket and rolling. He made a bunch of good tight throws without wasting too many. He had too near TDs on long plays that Dudeck and Amidon should have pulled in. My only gripe is that as the game dragged on he started to feel the pressure in the pocket before it got there and took sacks.

Finch had a nice return to action. He only really had one explosive play, but he showed his value and versatility in catching five balls. Dudeck had some nice moments early but we didn't use him as much once the game progressed. As I mentioned earlier, he has to pull in that TD pass on the wheel route.

The drops and not coming back to the ball killed us. Evans had some momentum killing drops. Amidon was okay, but he needs to come back to the ball more when he is in tight man coverage. Swigert was good. The ball was a little behind Elliot on the INT, but he still should have pulled it in. Pantale was fine catching but has some issues blocking.

The offensive line was not good. We needed them to be great and we didn't get consistent protection or push from them. Cleary had some issues (as I mentioned in a previous post). Gallik struggled. Vardaro was inconsistent. Betancourt got the start in place of White and let a few different guys blow past him on the way to Rettig. Wetzel was fine.

Martin pulled out a lot of tricks, but I don't think we were aggressive in the right way. Notre Dame has killed drives all year. Dinking and dunking was not going to be the way to beat them. We needed to challenge them downfield more. We didn't do that. I also don't understand all the play action once the line started breaking down.

Defense: C

The defensive line was bad. Maybe their worst game all year. No push and no big plays. Wujciak played the best but he was far from a starr. Murray was okay but didn't make any big plays. Appiah played more in the second half and didn't do much. Edabali was quiet. Ricci got pushed around. Mihalik didn't get much pressure.

The linebackers were a mixed bag. Take Divitto for example. He had some big plays like the fumble strip but still missed tackles and was passed on. Duggan was aggressive but got burned in pass coverage. Daniels was covering a lot of ground but always seemed a step behind the play. Joy didn't play as much. Clancy didn't return after his head injury. One thing that killed us was the option. Duggan kept getting blocked leaving Divitto to guess on the QB or pitch each time. Stopping that play only works if either Divitto moves onto the QB and hopes the corner gets the pitch or Duggan gets there too. Either way it was a breakdown by the LBs.

Sylvia was very active and made a lot of plays, but still let his man go free on Notre Dame's first TD pass. They must have seen something in his coverage because they kept throwing to his side. Asprilla wasn't tested as much. I liked what I saw from Simmons. Rositano was okay.

Once again, I don't understand our aversion to risk. When we brought pressure or forced Golson to make a bad throw, it worked. Yet we were dropping nine guys in coverage at few times and giving Notre Dame time to work to someone open. We weren't ready for the option even though we've played Army and Georgia Tech. And our third down performance was embarrassing.

Special Teams: C

Freese was fine. So was Levano. Spiffy tried but didn't break anything significant. We contained them for the most part on our coverage teams.

Overall: D

I don't feel Spaz is mismanaging the games at this point. We went for it on 4th multiple times. You could quibble with his second field goal but at that point you needed multiple scores so you might as well kick the field goal. But as I wrote at the beginning, all the hallmarks for a Spaz loss were in this game. At this point that is on him.

All our problems captured in one play

Occasionally I will break down one play to show what I feel are bigger problems. No team is perfect so this can feel like I am cherry picking bad moments, but I picked this play because of when it happened, the breakdowns that happen and how it killed the game.

This is the situation. We just forced another Notre Dame turnover and are driving with the hope of making it 21-14. There is over 11 minutes left. We converted on the first series and are at the Notre Dame 38. Incomplete on 1st down. WE CALL A TIMEOUT! I understand. We are behind. We want to make sure everyone is on the same page and we a ready to roll out our best plays. Right? Right? Out of the timeout we come with one back (Finch), Two Tight Ends on either side (Pantale and Naples) and two wide receivers.

Naples motions to the field side and we start the stretch play (zone blocking). This is a bread and butter play for most good offenses in college and pro football. At the snap there are no initial problems. Cleary and Pantale double their man, the middle of the line is losing the battle, but if Duece can get by them, he should have plenty of space to turn the corner and get a nice run.    

This is where things breakdown. Cleary releases to the second level to block Te'o (who is so overrated compare to Kuechly, BTW). The problem is Pantale is losing his battle. Clearly cannot release that early! We have to win upfront before trying the second level. You can also see Vardaro losing his battle. This is important because now Duece doesn't have a cutback if Pantale gets bowled over.

This is where it all blows up. Pantale loses his man. Te'o runs right by Cleary and the right side of the line collapses. It is now 3rd and 13. The drive is effectively dead and the game is over all because BC couldn't deliver on a simple stretch play out of a timeout!

Like I said, this is cherry picking. But one of the failures of Spaz's tenure is to ever establish an offensive identity. Maybe it was the guys he picked to run his offenses. Maybe it was the way the team prepared. I don't think it is talent. Cleary and Pantale are good ACC level players. They didn't play well Saturday, but they've certainly shown the ability to handle this play. But I don't know what goes on on a week to week basis, but this is a breakdown of communication and execution out of a timeout on a critical drive.

People love to rewrite history with regards to Dana Bible and Steve Logan. One things I will credit both with, is that they both had plays they could call on and deliver over and over again. Not home runs. Not game changers, but simple easy to execute plays that kept the ball moving and helped keep drives alive. In five coordinators we have never gotten to that place with Spaz.

Same old, same old for Spaz and Co

Spaz is now 0-4 against Notre Dame. Our offense couldn't score again. Our defense couldn't get them off the field -- allowing Notre Dame to convert 10 straight third downs. Missed tackles, dropped passes, getting pushed around the line...all the trademarks of the season were there for a national audience to see.

The only upside is that Rettig received some positive national attention.

I will have second viewing thoughts and grades up late Sunday night.

Men's soccer knocked out of ACC Tourney and other links

Clemson knocked BC out of the ACC men's soccer tournament with penalty kicks. After two OTs, the shootout is a brutal way to lose. BC finishes the season 8-5-5. 

Pat Forde addressed Spaz in his Forte-yard dash column. I think he undersells the quality of the job. Support is not great and recruiting is tough, but the pressure is low and the conference is very winnable.

Greg Joyce wrote a great column on Duece Finch. As the No. 2 running back on the depth chart, Finch will play this weekend. 

Not close

Wake is not a good team but neither are we. A good BC team wouldn't have wasted multiple opportunities to take control or comeback in this game. A well coached BC team wouldn't have been so ill prepared to contain Wake's best players. Rettig forced things giving Spaz another excuse for this loss.

The mood of the the state of the program was captured by these two tweets (1 and 2)

I'll have second viewing thoughts and grades up late Sunday night.

Spazoween 2012

Spaz may not inspire our fanbase to buy tickets or support the team, but he does inspire some good Halloween costumes. This version of Spaz made an appearance at Alumni Saturday. The clownshoes are a nice touch.

There won't be blood

Since the embarrassment in Tallahassee, I've been pounding the drum to fire Spaz now. Based on multiple conversations I've had the past week with people closer to the situation, it doesn't sound like Brad Bates sees it the same way. Barring any issue with the players, Spaz is going to finish the season. I don't agree with the mindset, but I understand why Bates wants it that way.

Whatever benefit Bates gets from firing Spaz is offset in his mind by the temporary mess it creates. If you fire Spaz you have to promote a interim. That's a political process. That will leave hurt feelings on the staff and team. You also then create a situation where the interim might build momentum, win a few games and build a coalition to get the job full time. I think we all agree BC needs a clean start, so I understand that aspect of this. I also think Bates wants the players and staffers to finish the season the right way. From what I gather the players are still playing hard and united. Hopefully it pays off. While it appears at times that the coaching staff is checked out, let's hope they realize that working hard the rest of the way will help their reputations.

There is also a rumor floating around that BC and Spaz have already come to terms on a buyout and resignation timeline. Not true. It might come to that, but nothing has been broached or even outlined directly with Spaz yet. He's still the coach.

BC hired Bates for a reason and to do a lot more than make a coaching change. He's making evaluations and preparing a process. I respect that. The fan and blogger in me might not want to hear it, but the ultimate goal is to rebuild BC football.

Make the most of it: some advice to current BC football players

Spaz suspended Colin Larmond Jr. He gave the pat "violation of team rules" explanation. The prevailing rumor is that Larmond voiced displeasure with his playing time and BC's direction and Spaz sat him. I understand where both are coming from.

The season is falling apart and Spaz rationalizes that he's got to take control. He's probably got a "you're with us or against us" attitude. Every shaky program in every sport does something similar.

I also feel for Larmond. He came back for a 5th year and isn't even playing on a really bad team. BC could use him. He sees friends like Montel Harris and Dominick LeGrande having good seasons elsewhere. He is probably wondering why he came back. Oh and Spaz sucks. Like really sucks. Not many would want to play for him. But Larmond is learning a good life lesson. There are times to take a stand and there are times to suck it up and make the most of a shitty situation. My advice to the current players is to get back on the field and play.

To the Seniors, you need to suck it up because you don't have much football left. Even if you hate football or are burned out, you will one day look back fondly on these times. You'll be with teammates or catch BC on TV and think back to your time. Don't let it be filled with regret. Don't wish that you had played instead of watched the last few games. You have six weeks left. Practice and play as hard as you can. Leave everything out on the field. Don't do it for Spaz. Do it for yourself and all the people who supported you along the way.

To all the players expected to return, you need to practice and play hard because your new coach is watching. We haven't hired anyone yet, but any new coach worth his salt is going to review every piece of data he has to better understand the team. If you are lacking effort now or are not playing through nagging injuries, do you think the new coach and his staff are going to have faith in you? They are going to move on and fill the roster as quickly as they can with "their guys." You'll be even more of an afterthought. The only way to prevent that is to build your reputation now as a hard worker and a coachable guy.

As I've been reminding BC fans, this is not the first time a BC season has fallen apart. The players need to remember that too. This disaster can be personally or professionally rewarding if you just suck it up and play.

Blog fighting (nothing to see here)

(Eds note: this is all self-serving blogger stuff that I try to avoid. If you don't care, feel free to skip this post.)

Blauds wrote this Sunday. He's written about me before, but I've just ignored it. I don't think two writers going back and forth is all that entertaining or informative. However, in this case it starts to creep into the personal and the logic is so flawed, I thought I should responded. His post is sort of all over the place, so let me take on his main points one by one.

1. "Get a credential"

I've been getting credentialed for BC events for nearly 18 years. The reason I am not a regular in the BC press box is more about geography rather than willingness to face the subjects I write about. I covered all the teams for WZBC in the 1990s and have been blogging about BC since 2005. I've been credentialed for away games and bowl games throughout the southeast. I've covered some of the same events Blauds has as a member of the media. I took this picture. Notice the guy to Purvis' right?

I will be credentialed this Saturday. But not so I can "introduce myself to Spaz and tell him what I think." I've met Spaz twice. Once when I was a student and once after the Champs Bowl. Could he put my face to this blog? Doubtful. He didn't seem to care at the time. But why would I go up to him after the game and say: "You are failing. You need to be fired!" Does any member of the media do that? Does any member of the BC community do that? I do not take calling for anyone's job lightly. Despite my extreme doubts about Spaz's capabilities as a Head Coach, I didn't call for him to be fired until last season. But Spaz is a public figure with a public job that is covered by media and debated by fans. People writing, talking and speculating about his job comes with the territory. He knows this and is paid handsomely for it. And if Blauds or he ever feel sorry for him, they only need to look at the scrutiny other Boston sports figures face (Bobby V anyone?) and other college coaches face in other parts of the country. Gene Chizik won a National Championship two years ago and now fans are attacking his wife on Facebook. In the whole scheme of things Spaz gets off easy.

But regardless of the fairness or appropriateness of me calling for a change, Blauds implies that I don't back up my words or statements. One of the reasons I have been open about my identity from the very beginning was the personal belief that having my name attached to everything I post would be the best filter for what I write and how I approach my subjects. Even with that I have made hundreds of mistakes and have dozens of posts that I wish I had never written. But I haven't deleted them. I have apologized. But this is my blog and these are my words.

Even when I was a student and going to Dan Henning's press conferences and flying on the team charter as part of the WZBC crew, I said Henning should be fired. We all did. But not to his face. That's not cowardly. It is just how things are done and Blauds knows this. We had a forum (radio) and we covered and discussed BC. But during our broadcasts we also offered our opinion. And at the time we said Henning should be fired. Now I have a different forum (this blog). I provide news and opinion and it is my opinion that Spaz should be fired. And if I happen to meet Brad Bates this weekend and he asks my opinion, I will share with him what I have already written.

2. "A HEALTHY roster of players that Spaziani recruited is not that a bad a team."

I agree with Blauds on this point. He sees it as a defense. I see it as an indictment of Spaz's tenure and record. This BC team is not as talented as some of our best but it is not as bad as some say. I believe a different coach and different staff could be getting more out of them. Regardless of health, Florida State WRs were running free through zones on Saturday. Yet players were missing assignments or getting caught out of position. Are guys trying to do too much? Are they not paying attention? Did they stop caring? No one knows, but you cannot get rid of 85 players at once. You can change the head coach. This team is underachieving by every measure. If Blauds thinks this is a six or seven win roster, then how can he come to the conclusion that Spaz is getting the most out of what he has? Every team has injuries and it costs them a game or two. Not five.

3. Firing Spaz now accomplishes nothing.

I paraphased that point, because I need this blockquote to capture all of the logic misteps Blauds made here:

"Give BC a head start on finding a new coach? Are you kidding me.

Do you actually believe that Bates is not looking and checking names and availability right now?

Do you not think that when the regular season ends a decision will be made and made quickly.

Fire Spaz now will give a boost to the players on the team? Really. I talk to players on that team. I see them on the practice field. I see them walking around campus. They are mad as hell. But changing coaches, put in someone like Doug Martin in on an interim level. Again that will accomplish? Maybe that is done at places where football is more important than going to school or playing by the rules. But at BC?"

I do believe that Bates is already considering names and I do believe he will have a quick process once he moves forward. But Blauds is either forgetting or ignoring recent college football history if he thinks firing a coach early and moving on in the process early doesn't have its advantages. The last two schools to hire Urban Meyer did so in season and after they got a head start on the process. Now I don't think BC is going to bring in the next Urban Meyer, but for the sake of a simple and credible strawman to help Blauds see the light, let's say Bates has an eye for BC grad and Saints Offensive Coordinator Pete Carmichael Jr. If Spaz is no longer BC's head coach and if Carmichael wants the job, hiring him early allows Carmichael to build his staff, contact recruits and get planning on rebuilding BC. I know something that aggressive and progressive won't happen, but firing Spaz does declare to the football world: "this job is open and available." Bates will hear from dozens of potential candidates. Starting to sort through the process now is not a bad thing.

As for the players at this point they deserve better. They deserve someone who believes in them and will do everything he can to win these games. I don't go to practice (once again, geography) but you don't need to live in Cleveland Circle to judge the mood of the players and the team. Just look at social media or what player parents are writing on the blogs and message boards. Putting Martin or McGovern in charge for the rest of the season changes the mood. It won't change the team dramatically or wipe away their flaws overnight, but it is one of the only options BC has. It has nothing to do with going to class or playing by the rules.

Because this has already gone on long enough...

I don't know why Blauds decided to call me out now. Maybe because among the hundreds of anonymous BC fans on message boards and blogs, I am one of the few with a clear name to attach to my argument. It doesn't matter. I stand by what I say. I've been wrong before and will be wrong again. But this time I am confident in my opinion. BC football and its players would be better off if Bates fired Spaz midseason. Their careers on finite. Most of them only have a few games left and want to win. As I've said, they deserve better. They always have.

Spaz is pathetic and Bates shouldn't wait to fire him

What did Spaz say to his players and coaches at half? "That's enough." "Nice 30 minutes, now let's hurry up and get out of here." That was a waiving of the white flag if I've ever seen one. We showed a little fight towards the end of the first half, but Rettig got picked and that seemed to be the end of it. We don't have the same talent as Florida State, but most of our early mistakes were breakdowns. These guys either aren't being coached well anymore or have stopped listening. Either way, it makes for some painful viewing.

Just some notes:

• This is the fourth time that Spaz's teams have failed to score double digits. 
• This is the 15th time in 44 games that Spaz's teams have scored 14 points or less. 
• Spaz is now 0-5 against the spread. 
• This is the fourth time a Spaz team has lost by 21 or more. 

I was of the belief that BC should not fire Spaz midseason. I felt he deserves these losses on his record and the change won't benefit BC much. Tonight's disaster changed my mind. Why keep him? He is just doing further damage to the players' psyches and burning redshirts. Fire him now and get a jump start on the search and give the players a little signal that things can and will get better.

I'll have second viewing thoughts and grades up late Sunday.

Brad Bates

BC could have gone in many directions in hiring a new Athletic Director. They went the safe and sound route in hiring Brad Bates. And given where we are and what lies ahead, I have no problem with the Bates hire. Is he going to change BC in dramatic ways? I don't think so, but his experience and track record leave me to believe that he is competent enough to lead Boston College through some tough decisions and major projects over the next few years.

Bates comes to BC after a decade at Miami of Ohio. Of all the rumored finalists, that alone made him the most qualified. Miami isn't a BCS level program but they have major football, basketball and hockey and have academic standards higher than most of their fellow MAC programs. Bates has hired many coaches over the years (both good and bad) and BC will benefit from that experience.

BC will present new challenges for Bates. He'll have to evaluate football quickly, repair relationships with certain alumni, evaluate our facilities and then lead a major fund raising effort to cover all of BC's current and future athletic needs.

I am optimistic about Bates' future. I also trust in Father Leahy's process. His record of major hires is very good. He decides what he wants in a candidate and the methodically finds the right person. It is not on other's timeline. It is on his and BC's timeline.

I will have more on Bates today and in the coming days. I will also pull back the curtain a bit to let you know how we got here and where all the different speculation came into play.

Welcome Brad and Ever to Excel.

Second viewing thoughts and grade report: Army

At times when I watch these games back I struggle to figure out what went wrong. This one wasn't very tough. We had numerous breakdowns on defense. The offense was far from perfect, but we scored enough points. Spaz's game management was cowardly and he's clearly not learning from his own mistakes. But even then his miscues could have been overcome if we had just played better defense. Make one more stop. One more big play and this is a different game. Didn't we justify this hire based on Spaz's defensive acumen?

Offense: B-

Rettig was okay. He's not setting to throw as often and that is going to come back to haunt him soon. He missed some open men and had a few bad throws. He's doing a better job of moving in the pocket. Of course the protection around him is getting even worse.

It is a shame we wasted Andre Williams' best day. He obviously had a great run on the 99 yarder, but he also had some other nice runs. Also of note, he was solid in his pass blocking. Dudeck looked good and showed good awareness in getting open. Sinkovec was fine, although he dropped a pass.

I only counted three drops on the day for the WRs and Tight ends. Amidon was good and got plenty of space. We probably should have gone to him more. Coleman was fine. Swigert was good. Larmond finally got a pass thrown his way. Porter allowed a sack.

I was wrong about the Oline. I thought they were progressing and just had a rough game against Clemson. Against a tiny Army front they looked terrible. They rarely overpowered in the run game and made multiple mistakes in pass protection. Cleary and Wetzel both allowed sacks. Vardaro was better. White made some mistakes (although many of our best runs came off of his blocks). Gallik allowed too many guys through. At one point he and White got totally faked on a simple Army stunt.

I thought the play calling was fine. We scored enough to win and Martin had some new wrinkles (the end around to Amidon). We also built off of plays that worked like Dudeck releasing late on the wheel route. Williams' big run was the same play we used to get a big fourth down in the Northwestern game. If I had one issue it was that we didn't attack enough downfield. Army's DBs are bad and we could have exploited them more. I thought the play calling on the final drive was terrible. How can you not try one pass? But we don't know how much of that was Martin and how much was Spaz.

Defense: F

Once again our problems on defense started up front. How did we not dominate a game against Army? Even if you say we don't have the talent, we still have the size. Yet no push. No big plays. No making the B back pay. Terrible all around. Appiah played a lot but didn't do much. Rudolph was ok but got pushed around. Edebali saved a TD and also blocked a pass, but missed plenty of tackles. Abdesmad was a disaster on assignments and contain. Did you see how many times they ran right by him? Ricci and Murray played a little and probably should have played more. It is not like our other DTs looked good.

Divitto played like his 2011 self. Much better effort and productivity overall. Clancy was not as strong. He made some tackles but also missed and got stuck in traffic on many of Army's big plays in the middle. Duggan was aggressive but I think it cost us a few times.

Sylvia played really well and did a good job shedding blocks. Maybe we should keep him a corner. He can cover the short stuff yet still provide support on run plays. Rositano was okay. He and Noel had some big hits but also missed some assignments on their big plays. Simmons was fine in limited action. Asprilla was fine but often away from the action.

The announcers mentioned our spacing a few different times. It even seemed obvious to me that there was a problem. Our DTs were a mile apart at times and Army exploited the space with runs right up the middle. Where is the position coaching? Why didn't they spot that? Why didn't we try something new? I know that facing an option is a guessing game and about assignments, but we didn't even try to pressure them or even shift on the Dline on occasion. BTW, prior to this game Army completed 11 passes all season. They completed five on us and attempted 12. They clearly saw something. Yet no adjustments -- even as they were still throwing late in the 4th quarter. Getting beat like that by Army is all about preparation. Many of our guys were out of ace or missed assignments. We are no longer well coached on that side of the ball.


Special Teams: D

Our punting is bad. But we are not making things better by putting Levano in these pressure situations. Is it time to try Powell or someone else? I don't know, but it is something to think about. McCaffery's bad touch on the final return was a mental lapse. When things start to fall apart, those are the things that happen. Guys press. They think too much. It was a factor. We also made mistakes on our punt returns and didn't do much in our kick coverage.

Overall: F

Outside of our roster issues, the decline on both lines and the inability to stop any type of offense, I felt there were two areas where Spaz's mismanagement costs us the game. The first was allowing Army to kick a field goal right before half. How many times has Spaz mismanaged either our or our opponent's final possession before the half? At what point does he learn that you can't just go conservative in the final minutes? You have to keep the other team guessing. You have to try something new. Other teams will scout us.

The other blatant mismanagement was the running it three times after the fourth down stop. Then confusion regarding the punt and the delay of game! So we put our struggling punter in a deeper hole?! Our best player is Chase Rettig. What we do best is pass. Army is terrible against the pass. Why not try one pass on the last drive to get the first down?

Spaz stinks. Plain and simple. This was just the latest game where we lost to a team with less talent and where we screwed up possessions and didn't make any adjustments.

I'll stick to my belief that our talent is better than our record. Our coaching is not. I don't think this is the worst BC team of all time and think we will find another win or two before the season is over. If we do it won't be because of Spaz. It will be in spite of him.

BC Radio Flagship station calls for Spaz's job

Meter and Pete Cronin have to be careful of what they say about BC and Spaz. They work for IMG Radio, but it is with BC's endorsement. However, WEEI (the station that carries the BC games in Boston) doesn't have to censor themselves as much. Yesterday after our broadcast wrapped up, Pete Sheppard did his usual college football postgame show and started it off with a rant on Spaz. He pulled no punches and called Spaz an embarrassment  I am not a Sheppard fan, but he's pretty on target with critique of Spaz and the position coaches.

The good news is that someone in Boston is paying attention.

(Thanks to Jane for the tip.)