More Media Day stuff

Friday's Media Day resulted in a lot of coverage Saturday.

The Globe went with a Quinton Porter angle. Quinton has talked a lot about Peterson's influence. Please, please, please let some of it show up against BYU.

The Herald had a feature and a notebook. The feature focused on Kiwi (the AP also sent out a Kiwi article). If any of his linemates can draw attention and the occasional double team, I think Kiwi can have a big year. The notebook talked about the running backs. Callender remains somewhat fragile, so look for L.V. to start.

The Patriot-Ledger delivered a rare and welcome article on BC. A good angle too: overlooking our openers. I was at TOB's first game -- a loss to Temple in Philly. Openers have been rollercoasters ever since. BYU will not be a walk over. The team better be ready to play.

In an unrelated basketball note, Craig Smith is kicking ass at the University Games.

Media Day

Is it really Media Day if the official school site is the only one with coverage? Here is the news: Justin Bell out (probably for the season) after foot surgery. Andre Jones did not qualify. Frantz Joseph will transfer. Bell would have added nice depth. Joseph is no loss. Jones? Who knows. He was highly recruited, but I always wonder about a guy's dedication when he cannot get his act together in class.

Here are some pics. Kiwi with short hair.




Trueblood taking the short hair thing one step too far.




BCeagles.com posted a Media Day photo gallery.

Here is the transcript from TOB's press conference

Tailgating and trip planning

Here is an article on BC’s push to extend tailgating hours. Non-BC fans cannot comprehend how big an issue this is to Eagle fans. BC is in the middle of leafy suburbs and residents around the campus hate BC. The school and the neighbors go to court over issues big and small, so any progress in the tailgating rules would be a big win for the school and the fans (who long to tailgate for more than two hours).

The tailgating issue led into something I’ve been meaning to address: the BC gameday experience for visiting fans. A few ACC fans coming to Boston for the first time have emailed me wondering about where to park and what to expect. My advice: don’t drive. There are very few quality parking spots on campus and they are all taken by BC boosters. If you drive, you’ll get stuck at very inconvenient satellite parking lots, where the atmosphere is non-existent.

So if you are coming to Boston for a BC game, don’t try to approach it like a normal football weekend. Here are my recommendations for what to do and not do when coming to Boston this fall.

First recommendation: fly. With the rising gas prices, driving is getting more expensive anyway. And driving anywhere in New England on a Friday in the fall can be painful. There are enough low cost airlines flying into Logan that you can get reasonable rates.

Second rec: stay in Boston or Cambridge. You can get cheaper hotels outside the city, but you’ll need a car. By staying in Boston or Cambridge you can stick with cabs and the T (Boston’s subway). And if you are coming all the way to Boston, you might as well get a feel for the city. You won’t get that at the Hampton Inn in Burlington. To save a few bucks, book through Hotwire. Mrs. ATL_eagle and I usually stay in the Back Bay area near Newbury St.

Third rec: get a meal in the North End. The North End is Boston’s Italian neighborhood where you can get some of the best Italian food on the East Coast. Yes it is touristy. Yes it will be wicked crowded and tough to get a table on a Friday or Saturday, but it is worth it and once again: how often are you in Boston for a football weekend?

Fourth rec: get some seafood. Cliché, I know. But if you went to San Antonio wouldn’t you order Tex-Mex? Get a cup of Clam Chowder. You can’t miss at most places. Legal Seafood’s is pretty good and you’re bound to stumble into one of their many locations on your trip.

Fifth rec: take a cab to the game and take the T after. The B-line will take you right to BC’s campus, but it will drive you nuts with the constant stops. A cab will get you close enough to campus on a Saturday morning for a reasonable price. After the game, a cab is much tougher to find. So get on the T. You’ll probably be a little tired at that point so who cares about how many times the T stops.

Sixth rec: find a tailgate. This is dicey as I’ve never tried walking up to strangers at BC. If we are tailgating, we know where we are going. But I’ve seen BC fans welcome strangers many times. Don’t be a jerk, walk the rows of cars and chat up any friendlies. Since we don’t have any bad blood with any ACC fans, you’re bound to find someone who will give you a beer.

Final recommendation: do something touristy (Fodor’s guide stuff). There is not enough time to do everything in one weekend, but you’re in Boston, so at least hit one of the big tourist spots. I would recommend the Museum of Fine Arts, the New England Aquarium, or the Freedom Trail. I would skip the Museum of Science (I never thought it was that great), Faneuil Hall (overrated) or a Duck Tour. But do whatever excites you.

Boston is a great town. Just don’t expect or treat it like your typical college football roadtrip and you’ll have a great time.

SI stuff and other links

SI sees us as a middle of the pack team. The newstand preview ranked BC at 37 and Stewart Mandel predicted a third-place finish in the division. In a somewhat contradictory move, the same article also listed us as a team on the rise.

Other nuggets from their coverage include selecting Kiwi as the best player in the conference.

SI giveth respect and then taketh away. John Walters names the Top 10 moments of the Orange Bowl and then disses BC by picking Flutie’s pass as No. 2 moment? WTF? The pass is arguably the most famous play in college football. How can it be the second most important college moment in the Orange Bowl history? (Don’t worry. I’ll get over it.)

Here is a pick of the new museum within the Yawkey Center.

To read more on the new digs click here.

In basketball news, Smith and Dudley were named preseason candidates for the Wooden Award.

Humpday links

Practice began this week. There’s been very little news and even less coverage.

The Washington Post wrote another welcome to the ACC piece.

Chris Fox is the latest in a long-line of Xaverian Brothers recruits. My old roommate, KirkDogg, also graduated from the southshore football power.

The team elected Kiwi and Ross team captains for 2005. With the honor, Kiwi becomes a rare two-year captain.

Here’s a riveting recap of Day 2 of practice.

Yes, I am a two-faced homer

I’ve been taking back-handed shots at Will Blackmon all offseason. Then SI.com had to go and post this sweet picture.

I’m in love all over again. Blackmon for Heisman!

Media bias

Fans cry bias whenever they are slighted by a writer or sports network. In most cases they should just calm down and take off the aluminum hats. But I think we all agree that there is media bias…and we eat it up when our team is portrayed favorably.

I don’t think good writers go out of their way to trash or praise a school. But I do think that if they have a good relationship with a school, and if the school fits an angle they are following, that said school will be top of mind and lead to favorable coverage.

Here’s an example. Pat Forde went up to BC during basketball season and received the royal treatment. He wrote a glowing story about the school. Four months later, we’re in football season and I think he still has the clam chowder on the brain. He picks us as a sleeper here. And in this list he mentions Blackmon and Toal as “hot” two-way players.

Atlanta vs. Boston

Sports and food can make a city great. In most cases Boston has Atlanta beat. Better Italian, Chinese, pizza, seafood, donuts. Boston has better fine dining and greasy spoons. The passion for the Red Sox and Patriots dwarfs anything Atlantans feel towards the Braves and Birds. But Atlanta’s two equalizers in the debate over which is the better city are barbeque and the passion for college football.

Exhibit A

I took this picture at the Pig-N-Chik. This is my favorite barbeque place and is less than two miles from my house. It is 1090 miles from BC and there is Boston College pennant hanging in the restaurant! In Boston, you’d be hard pressed to find anything BC-related two miles away from campus. (Yet every Dunkin Donuts north of Hartford has a Red Sox sticker or trinket on display.)

The southern traditions of the SEC and ACC mixed with the Big Ten and Big XII transplants has made Atlanta the melting pot of college football. On weekends it seems like anyone who is not at a game is in a sports bar watching one. School flags hang on front porches or whip out of car windows. The passion is contagious. I am pumped up about the season just thinking about it.

I miss going to games at Alumni, but living in Atlanta and watching the game via satellite with a nice pulled pork sandwich is not a bad tradeoff.

Blogpoll roundtable No. 5

Loyal reader LBIEagle took one look at the blogpoll on Brian’s blog and wondered how a real poll could include Temple in the Top 25. I reminded him that it was the “test” poll and that the real one would be up next week. Moments later, Brian sent out an email with the latest roundtable question. He’s the founder of the poll and a good guy, so I am glad he served as his own critic before the inevitable happened -- our poll turned out just as biased and lopsided as the “real” polls.

Human polls are inherently flawed because they are entirely subjective. I prefer them to the computer polls, but ultimately you are at the mercy of the voters. As Brian pointed out, even the most diehard college football fans in the world can only be very knowledgeable about a dozen or so teams. Look at it this way: let’s say you could watch 168 hours of football in a week (assuming no sleep or outside interests…which is probably the case with some of us). On an average weekend there is more than 200 hours of Division 1A football. So barring time machines and mega-Tivos, you can’t be an expert on every team. As a voter you are left to base some of you perspective on scores, reputations, bias, and numerous other subjective things. I have confidence that the blogpoll will deliver interesting results. Just remember the blogpoll voter makeup when Temple is in the Top 25 and Ohio State is not.

Now onto Brian’s question. Check out Mgoblog for other pollers comments.

Tell the world where the teams you know the most about should be ranked and why.

The team I know most about is Boston College. However, in ranking them, I am totally at a loss. There are two unknowns for most BC fans: how will Quinton Porter play and who the heck are these teams we’re playing? At this point I think Tom O’Brien can squeak out seven wins in any conference in the country. I also think we’ll win a crappy bowl. So starting the season at No. 22 seems right.

I live in Atlanta. I spend a lot of time sitting in traffic. While cruising the interstate at 25 mph, I listen to the flagship station of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. There is no way this team deserves to be Top 25. Their defense should be very good. They have some great playmakers on offense. But Reggie Ball is not a consistent performer. And if things don’t start well, I think we could see a Mackovic-like mutiny on Chan Gailey.

Until I enrolled in the University of Georgia’s Terry School of Business, I loathed the Bulldogs. My surprisingly pleasant experience with the school and pending graduation converted me. I now consider the Dawgs my second team. That said, my knowledge of UGA football is minimal compared to my BC knowledge or the knowledge of your average Dawg fan. But I still know more than most outside the southeast. This season is Mark Richt’s real test. He is replacing his steady hand at QB, working without his bad cop Defensive Coordinator and his SEC division went through a major upgrade this season. I say letdown for the Dawgs. Third place finish in the East and a Peach Bowl date. Most polls have them as a Top 20 team. I think they should be 23-25.

Being in a different conference, I haven’t followed Pitt as closely as I normally would’ve but I have a hard time believing they are a Top 25 team. They weren’t that great last season. They just stepped up as BC and WVU melted. And the new coach is tinkering with what worked best last season -- the offense. They shouldn’t be ranked.

Notre Dame was underachieving last season. They enter this season unranked. I like Charlie Weis and think he’ll get these guys to perform. I think they should start the season at 21 or 22. They’ll finish the season in the Top 20.

Links and media criticisms

Here is another story on Ross Applegate and his road trip that ended with a BC commit.

If you’re reading this and a gambler (hey, this is a BC blog) you might want to check this out.

SI.com launched their college preview with an interesting look at cutting-edge offenses. A good job, in general. My one gripe is on this historical piece. Guys who work for the big sites are generally my generation (25-35). Most do good work. But I often find things lack historical perspective. How can you do a history piece on modern offense and start in 1997??? Obviously the first thing that stands out to me is that there is no mention of Flutie and his aggressive young offensive coordinator, Tom Coughlin. Flutie graduated holding dozens of NCAA passing records. Also, there is nary a mention of Norm Chow’s work at BYU or Mouse Davis or Don Coryell. I understand that the focus was on the spread, but others laid the ground work for today’s offense du jour many years ago.

Heading into the season, SI.com is leaps and bounds ahead of ESPN.com. The worldwide leader in sports led their preview with a blog-like conversation between Forde and Maisel. One problem -- this is a big pimp for their Insider, as this sort of thing will be subscription-only soon. ESPN might grow their revenue with this, but they won’t grow their audience. There is too much good, free stuff out there -- like this dual piece from EDSBS and BGS. You better bring something cool to the table if you are going to charge.

22 worked for Flutie

The coaches unveiled their preseason poll. BC enters the season at No. 22. In addition to BC, four other ACC teams cracked the top 25. Not a bad start for the new conference.

It is refreshing to be recognized by the coaches, but this is the poll that matters.

Schedules and change of scenery

John Walters takes an interesting look at out of conference scheduling. He also points out that BC has one of the easiest out of conference schedules for 2005.

Here’s an article on BC and Louisville moving conferences. Straight forward apart from that they quote Jerry Petercuskie. When did the assistant start giving interviews? It was good to hear Jerry confirm the boost to recruiting.

Link-o-rama

I scour the internet looking for BC links, so you don’t have to…

The official BC site posted an interview with Josh Beekman. It seems like the O-line is going to miss Peterson as much as I am. Check out how the interviewer works in some of the talking points into the questions.

Unlike his teammate, Craig Smith did make a USA Basketball team.

Here’s an article on new members adjusting to the ACC.

This is a rehash of offseason BC stuff from Scout.com. Rivals would be wise to start giving away more of their stuff for free. As I read more and more college blogs, it confirms my belief that there is no need to pay of content.

This is an interesting press release from CSTV and ISP (one of BC’s marketing companies). We are getting closer and closer to every game being live over the internet. This is not a big deal and probably a step down in experience if you root for a premier team. This is great news if you root for a team like BC. For example, it is very unlikely that BC-Ball State will be picked up by any broadcaster. It is also unlikely that my pregnant wife would be up for a trip to see us take on the MAC power. If the game were streamed, I could watch from the comfort of my own home. Now, I’ll be stuck listening to the radio stream and using the gametracker.

Here’s another article on Boston movers and shakers trying to attract college championship games. Baseball will work. Mens basketball will work. Lacrosse will work. Everything else? Forget it. I know the Krafts would love to do it, but I see the ACC Championship game in Foxboro as a ticket sales disaster.

Here is an article on the Fenway Sports Group educating fans on the ACC. Bobby Bowden doesn’t even know who is in the conference these days, so imagine what Sully from Braintree is thinking.

Adidas is buying Reebok. This is great news since most BC fans despise our Reebok-designed apparel. The biggest complaint about Reebok is that they wouldn’t even produce maroon jerseys for us. They had no interest in spending money on BC, but needed to lockdown the only major sports school in their U.S. backyard. I imagine in this new arraignment, Reebok will drop out of the college game and we’ll be an Adidas school. Adidas better make maroon jerseys.

The Sporting News named Boston the best sports town in America. It is mostly a Pats, Red Sox thing, but they do mention BC as part of the success.

If you’re not reading Every Day Should Be Saturday, you should. Today -- per my suggestion -- they featured Spaz as their mustache of the day.

Dream job

Internet whipping boy Pete Fiutak loves him some BC. In CFN’s ripoff of the blogpoll roundtable, Fiutak selected BC as the school where he’d most like to coach. I love BC, but even I wouldn’t pick the job as the best in Division IA.

CFN didn’t ask my opinion on which job I would take, but I’ll give it anyway. North Carolina is very appealing, as is Stanford, but I think I would pick UCLA. It has got the right combo of weather, recruiting base and the opportunity to succeed. If Karl Dorrell gets run this year, look for many coaches to send out feelers on the job, including TOB.

Weekend news

Jerry York underwent prostate surgery Friday. The prognosis is good.

Here is an article on this season's freshman class. They are not highly-regarded, but TOB seems unconcerned.

Dudley dissed and other news

Jared Dudley was the last man cut from the Under-21 team. Given quotes like this “He did all the small things that make your team win” from the Phil Martelli, I think they were short-sighted in selecting the roster. Politics were probably in play too, as selector Jim Boeheim got his player on the team. Martelli spoke of Dudley’s tweener status as the reason he was cut. Dumb, dumb, dumb. In a tournament you need heady players who do the little things. Not size. Jared plays best with a chip on his shoulder, so hopefully this will motivate him this season.

More ink on the Georgia boy headed to BC. Not a ringing endorsement. I’m going to be a double-homer and say that he is going to be the Atlanta version of Glenn Foley and not another stiff.

Here is another article on the new voice of Boston College Football. This is a nice feature, but Meterparel should be warned that most diehard BC fans already hate him from his work on Dennis & Callahan.

Blogpoll roundtable No. 4

Here is my response to the latest Blogpoll roundtable. Head over to The Blue-Gray Sky to read what other pollers had to say.

1. Who are your rival(s)? I smell a conspiracy. I think this line of questioning is just an excuse for hundreds of BGS readers to write “BC is not our rival!” My response: “doth protest too much.” BC-ND doesn’t have the long-running history of other rivals, but it does have many important elements: student bodies and alumni networks that are very similar and have overlap outside of the schools, a unique feature (the last two Catholic schools playing IA football), a few memorable moments and most importantly bad blood. I’ve already given my perspective on the past, present and future of this rivalry, but thought I would expound on one aspect that the guys at BGS asked about -- pranks. Since there is little to do in South Bend on a Friday night, Notre Dame still holds good, old-fashioned pep rallies. In the fall of 1997, my drunken roommate stumbled upon the rally and did what until then was unthinkable -- he heckled the fans and speakers. He was shouted out and didn’t think much of it until it made the papers, was mentioned as a motivating factor by the players and Bob Davie and generally pissed off Irish fans. This was the start of a mini-tradition of BC players and fans being generally rude and obnoxious on any trip to South Bend. They can look down on us and demand to take us off their schedule, but with every little piece of turf we take and with every BC win, the rivalry becomes more heated.

2. Size up your chances in your rival games this year. Ugh. We’re in a new conference and not playing Notre Dame. Can someone talk Holy Cross into returning to Division IA?

3. If you could start up a new rivalry with another team, who would it be? BC fans are going to hate me for this, but I honestly think we should play UConn every year. Their litigious ways and slanderous comments during the Big East split makes it unlikely we will ever play them again, but I think it would make a good rivalry based on location and the fact that BC fans, in general, hate Uconn fans. Never has a nice run in chick hoops generated so much arrogance in a school and its fanbase. Talk to a UConn fan and you would think that their school is better than Harvard and has the athletic potential, success and history of Notre Dame, Alabama, UCLA, Michigan, Tennessee and Kansas combined. To sum it up, I would enjoy kicking their teeth in every year.

4. Overall, what do you think the best rivalry in college football is? No game consistently combines the history, passion and relevance to the national scene like Michigan-Ohio State. Plus you know it was Jim Tressel who trashed Michigan in The Sporting News preview.

5. Lastly, game trophies. What are the best and worst rivalry trophies out there? I love Paul Bunyan's Axe. It’s always funny to see uninsured, unpaid young athletes run around like crazy with sharp things. Worst rivalry trophy: the Maloof Trophy (New Mexico-New Mexico State). The trophy is not that embarrassing, but if you are going to win something from the Maloofs, wouldn’t you rather have courtside seats for the Kings, or a night in the Real World Suite at the Palms? A trophy? Couldn’t they at least arrange for Trishelle or Peja Stojakovic to hand over the trophy at the post game ceremony? No Maloof-related celebs…that’s gotta be a letdown for the players.

Say hello to the new kid

Many ACC writers took Day 2 of the ACC Football Kickoff to focus on the new northern team in the conference. (Taking the the new kid in school analogy a step too far, I would say BC would be a foreign exchange student who everyone is curious about on the first day. But not the hot chick type, more like the Asian guy that you lose interest in once you get him to swear in English in front of the teacher.)

My hometown paper’s esteemed college writer (BTW, am I the only Blog Poll member who likes Tony Barnhart?) led with a BC angle.

The Greenville paper likes the love BC is showing the ACC.

The Sun-Sentinel rehashes our final two years in the Big East.

The writers honored Kiwi as the Preseason Player of the Year. I hope his haircut doesn’t have a Sampson-like effect.

Most of the writers think we will finish behind Florida State in our division. However, none of the Bowdens seem to know who is in what division.

In Bowl news, the ACC locked up eight bids for 2006. But the conference is still short invites for this year. Look for Swofford and any of the teams on the outside to start begging for slots in this year’s fourth-tier bowls.

Finally, here is a picture of TOB holding court with reporters.

I never would have pegged him as a Mountain Dew drinker.

Three writers, one good effort

Being a college beat writer is not easy. You have to protect the subjects or risk losing access. There are only so many human interest stories to play up. And in BC’s case there is rarely breaking news. The two BC beat writers Mike Vega and Mike Shalin (I guess he kissed and made up with the Herald) do an okay job. At times they knock stuff out of the park. Other times it feels like they mail it in.

Maybe they are adjusting to the new surrounds, but they both wrote straight-forward “mail it in” stuff from their first ACC Football Kickoff. Both writers focused on Will Blackmon, who has been written about to death this summer. No new info (Will adjusting, used both ways, he’s excited, etc.). Normally no one would notice these “C” efforts and even fewer would care, but now fans can read any writer online. “C” efforts look even worse, when a writer from another part of the country takes a fresh look at BC star Mathias Kiwanuka. Kudos to the writer, Mike Harris. Instead of focusing on Kiwi’s Ugandan background (old news), he broke the story about Kiwi’s hair (new news) and provided a deeper explanation of why Kiwi came back for his senior year (Coach Willis). I read a ton of BC stuff and the last place I expect to learn about our players is from newspaper writers who don't cover BC.

ACC Simpsons

Some Miami fan made this image. Slighted ACC fans are now posting their Comic Book Guy rebuttals all over the internet (“we’re obviously Groundskeeper Willie”). BC fans won’t complain. Mayor Quimby is perfect.

Flutie's legacy

A week after writing a nice article on Bill Flutie, Jackie MacMullan follows it up with an article on his cousin, Dougie. Dougie is Doug Flutie’s autistic son. Flutie will always be remembered for the game in Miami, but what he is doing for his son and other families with autistic children is more important.

Barnhart likes BC

The AJC's Tony Barnhart restates his belief that BC will compete in the ACC. He also touches on some other issues in the conference. The article includes the coaches on the Hot Seat. BC faces all three this season.

“Let’s put on a show” and other things

BC fans were considered the wine and cheese crowd of the Big East. The ACC, with its contingent of snooty private schools, is somewhat considered the wine and cheese conference. So when the two merge, how do you overcome this soft stigma? With a nice song and dance act!

In real news, the ACC Sports Journal published an article on BC recruiting which includes good quotes from TOB and short profiles of some of our recent commitments. Most BC fans know our pitch, but it is interesting to hear TOB confirm it.

Music men

The future conference affiliations for the second- and third-tier bowls are falling into place. It looks like the ACC is close to locking up a relationship with the Music City Bowl. The ACC rep would face a SEC rep. This could create a little overlap with the Peach Bowl pairings, but it is better than going out to Boise.

Despite my presence, BC did not travel well to the 2001 Music City Bowl. It was a great game and TOB’s first win over a ranked opponent.

In reading all of these bowl articles, I’ve notice a common theme -- every committee plans on moving their date closer to New Year’s Day. This façade is funny to me. Like playing in the MienkeCarquestInsightGMAC Bowl is much more prestigious on December 30 as opposed to December 27. And that the date is the only reason people don’t travel to these games. The fact is that they are disappointments for many fans. When the whole season is built around conference championships and BCS games, it is hard to get the juices flowing for the third-level games. And as much as the committees want the 30th or 31st, ESPN is still calling the shots. They can only broadcast so many games and would rather have a Bowl Week, not a Bowl Long Weekend. As long as ESPN is the only game in town, Music City will be played whenever Bristol deems it appropriate.

Spring recap/preview Part VII

Running Backs

Under Tom O’Brien BC defined predictable. One of the hallmarks of the BC season was a focus on the ground game, with the featured back passing the 1,000 yard mark. Then came 2004: A dynamic QB and a platoon of young and injury-prone tailbacks led to a shift in the offense. Andre Callender, L.V. Whitworth and A.J. Brooks all played well and showed potential, but collectively they could not match Derrick Knight and Horace Dodd’s production from the year before.

Running Backs	Attp per game	Yds per game	TDs
Knight/Dodd	32	170	21
Whit,Cal,Brooks	30	137	10

**I did include Ross' stats, did not include QB rushing

This season, I think BC will revert back and focus on the ground game. I expect to see attempts increase and hopefully production will as well. I like all three and think whoever wins the role will have a great season. And if anyone struggles early, expect a quick hook (exhibit A: Dodd in 2002, exhibit B: Ross 2004). So here are the guys fighting for the starting job:

Andre Callender showed the ability to catch the ball and has the most elusive style of the three.

L.V. Whitworth is more of a power runner -- he’ll hit the hole and whoever is standing in his way. Fortunately in the Tire Bowl he showed the ability to adapt and finally ran around and away from defenders.

A. J. Brooks showed the best burst and seems to have the most speed. His big play ability could be needed, but I think the coaching staff has already tagged him as the No. 3 guy. Meaning he is unlikely to get a shot at the starting job. In fact, I bet after summer practice the coaching staff will potentially redshirt him. A.J. was supposed to redshirt last season, but injuries to Andre and L.V. forced the staff to use him.

While their styles are slightly different, their areas in need of improvement were all very similar -- staying on their feet, reading and reacting to the blocking and staying healthy.

Mark Palmer will start the reason at fullback. I think he can have a big season and could be a good safety net for Quinton Porter in the passing game. But blocking is the fullbacks first resposibilty in BC’s offense. If he doesn’t block well, Paddy Lynch will get some snaps. (If Lynch and Palmer struggle, I would like to see Whitworth used as Fullback. But there is no way Mr. Predictable would try that.)

BC will run the ball. And then run some more. I expect to see a healthy Whitworth run for 1,000 yards. Callender running for 500 and catching a few balls. Brooks will probably draw the short straw, but will hopefully benefit from a redshirt year.

New Eagle in Atlanta

As much as I try to avoid recruiting news, I felt the need to include something on the latest commit. Marietta, Georgia native and Walton High School's starting Quarterback Ross Applegate verballed to Boston College last week.

Ross is a big kid (TOB’s QB prototype) and plays for a perennial power here is Georgia. He is not as heralded as other Metro Atlanta QBs, but had interest from many other ACC schools. What excites me -- aside from the Atlanta aspect -- is that he plays at a high-level of competition. I think one of the differences between Paul Peterson (who came from a high-level Junior College) and Quinton Porter and a lesser extent Brian St. Pierre, was that Peterson played with and against many DIA players prior to BC. Porter and BSP did not. Walton sends kids to division IA and IAA schools every year. Ross should be prepared for the pressure, speed and rigors of playing in the ACC.

Also, here is a BC preview from Pack Pride. Some things are a little off, but that is to be expected. I am sure fans of other ACC schools will note my mistakes when I start talking out of my ass previewing their teams.

Friday links

Here's more on the next generation of Fluties. Nice touch by TOB to invite Billy's parents up to his office to make the offer. Eagle fans have often wondered how the somewhat charisma challenged O'Brien closes these kids. This confirms my belief -- he's good with parents.

Kenpom shoots holes in the home-court advantage myth. He uses the difference between the ACC and Big East as his springboard into the research. Basically it is tough to beat Duke because of Coach K and the five guys on the floor, not because of the Crazies.

My shilling for EverydayshouldbeSaturday continues with this link. This time they list their ACC All-Name team. Kiwi, Jazzmen and Tribble make the cut.

So long, Shalin and other things

Wednesday night on WEEI, Mike Shalin confirmed that he is no longer with the Boston Herald. The Herald has not announced his replacement. Supposedly the paper is struggling, so it wouldn't surprise me to see them cut coverage from a beat status to just game stories. There were times when I felt Mike and Mike (the two BC beat writers) left a lot to be desired, but I am sad to see Shalin go. His basketball coverage stood out this season. Who knows if the team's play inspired him or he just hit a groove, but it was noticeably better. Best of luck to him in his new endeavors.

Nice article on our two Columbus boys. I’m glad someone finally admitted that they let the Fiesta Bowl slip through their fingers.

Here’s an article from the News & Record on our lack of rivals in the ACC. These things take time and I would gladly have the blank slate of the ACC than the litigious BS of the Big East.

Blogpoll roundtable No. 3

Blog Poll roundtable No. 3, this time hosted by Michigan blogger Straight Bangin'. Check out his site for other blog pollers answers.

1. Which unheralded player on your team will be the hardest to replace? Which seemingly inconsequential player could make the biggest impact? While he received enough ink from Eagle in Atlanta to be considered overheralded, I have to go with Paul Peterson. The Mormon Flutie converted more Catholics than Brigham Young. More importlany he made BC football fun again. I have admitted to my hetero-man crush on Peterson many times. As for seemingly inconsequential player making a big impact, how about BC fullback Mark Palmer. The success of our running game is most often attributed to our massive line. The fullback was overlooked until Palmer struggled with his blocking last year. He has great hands, but needs to open holes. If he is serviceable enough with his blocking to stay on the field he could be an underrated offensive weapon.

2. Which regular-season game that won’t feature your team would you pay the most money to see this season? Why? I am going to actually list a game that I was going to attend for free. Here’s the story. My wife’s company has a pimped-out suite at Sanford. We only use it once a season when there is not a BC conflict. This year we were scheduled for the Arkansas-Georgia game. At the same time, we’ve been blessed and are expecting our first child this winter. Birthing classes are Saturday mornings in October, so I’ll miss our trip to Athens. But no fear, the baby will not interupt my viewing of BC football.

Bonus: Which rivalry game would you most like to attend? This question is harder to answer. All the storied rivalries have some appeal. But I am a patriot and a traditionalist, so I’ll say Army-Navy.

3. If your team were a rapper, who would it be and why? (Read Straight Bangin' to understand this joke.) This is easy. BC would be House of Pain. Both groups’ styles are straight forward and really white. Both are lacking in the skillz and skill positions. And as Notre Dame fans will be quick to point out: both try too hard to be Irish. (I don’t believe that BC wants to be Notre Dame, but I had to beat the Notre Dame fans to the punch on the joke.)

Midweek news

No real news on BC, so here are some items of interest that are related to BC.

The Fenway Sports Group is slowly flexing its muscle. To read this article you have to subscribe to some yokel paper in Washington. Don’t bother. I’ve signed up and read it so you don’t have to. Highlights include:

• FSG is involved in more than just BC. They are dealing with signage and selling MLB.com’s ads.
  

• BC was a natural first step and the ACC aspect made it very appealing to the Red Sox.
  

• ISP doesn’t usually like partnering with others, but the Red Sox’s name and the Boston College aspect made it worth the risk.
  

• None of this money counts towards MLB revenue sharing. I applaud the Red Sox on this last point. Like the Yankees, they have a valuable brand for which their owners paid an exorbitant amount of money. They have to pay off huge debts and budgets and the Kansas City Royals and Devil Rays are not entitled to every penny the big market guys earn, especially when the teams are aggressive and are trying to grow their businesses.
  

Here is an article on Chris Snee and his recovery from a mysterious illness. Not only is he a BC alum, he is married to a BC grad and his head coach (who is also his father-in-law) is former BC coach Tom Coughlin.

Finally I am on my way to Canada to kick Korey Banks’ ass. How dare he cheap shot my boy, Paul Peterson?

News and views

The Big XII is in the Gator Bowl mix. If the present discussion gets finalized the ACC would face a four-year rotation against either the Big XII, Notre Dame or the ACC.

SI.com published Athlon Sports' BC preview. It is pretty straight forward and covers what is in their preseason magazine. I'm kicking myself for already buying the mag at Borders.

I don't spend too much time on recruiting news, but this signee caught my attention. Bill has big shoes to fill if he remains a QB. (By the way, Bill is Doug's nephew -- not his son.)

Same field, new logo

From bceagles.com. I cannot wait to see the ACC logo in the lane on the Basketball court.

New voice of Boston College Football

Word is that John Meterparel is the new voice of Boston College football. Supposedly this has been in the works for a few months. Yet there is no press release from BC athletics. I wish John luck, but I’m disappointed that they didn’t bring back former BC announcer Sean Grande. My gut tells me Meterparel sees this as a springboard job. It would be nice to have a voice of BC for decades, rather than a few seasons. Given BC’s position in the Boston media hierarchy, the job will probably always attract short-timers.

The deal also shows the growing influence of the Red Sox in BC marketing. Meterparel is an announcer for the morning program on the Sox Flagship station and the Fenway Group helped put this pairing together.

Where we are going and were we aren’t

CFN released their preseason bowl predictions. They think BC will face Mizzou in the Champs Bowl. These things are fun time-fillers, drive fan interest and take very little time to put together. Hell, I can tell you where BC will go (assuming we’re bowl eligible again).

First where you won’t see BC: any BCS game and Charlotte. Last year was our best chance to put BC in the BCS. As optimistic as I am getting about this season it would take a string of miracles topped by us winning the ACC championship in Jacksonville to qualify for a BCS game. Not going to happen this year. You can also cross Charlotte off since we went last year as the Big East rep and they will always pick an ACC team within driving distance.

Where we might go: Gator Bowl or Peach Bowl. While the Peach would be a dream come true for me, I would be equally happy with the Gator. Both are long, long shots. The Gator invite would only happen if these specific dominoes fall. First, Notre Dame would have to qualify for the Big East slot. Their fans would buy enough tickets to offset BC’s poor travel record and the TV ratings would be appealing to the network. But -- here is the rub -- to get the invite BC would have to have a strong enough conference record, but still lose to the division to FSU. Because if BC makes the ACC Championship game and loses, we are not being invited back six weeks later. Ticket sales would be terrible. The Peach Bowl will only happen if we win the division and then lose in Jacksonville. I also think the Peach would only consider us if our SEC opponent guaranteed a sellout (Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, Tennessee or South Carolina).

Where we are probably going: Boise or Champs (Orlando’s JV Bowl). I would prefer Orlando, but with the god-awful bowl games we’ve played in, it is only a matter of time before we are on the Blue Turf. These slots are all determined by who has been where and what matchup makes the most sense travel and television wise. Season records take a back seat to money (just look how UVA got jobbed last season).

Of course there is also the “fill a slot” route which we have taken before. This is where BC is barely bowl eligible and doesn’t get one of the guaranteed ACC slots. In this case we would fill whatever slots cannot be filled by someone else. Unfortunately this scenario is much more likely than the Peach Bowl.

Harris fills BCS slot

The Harris Interactive College Football Poll will replace the AP Poll in this year's BCS. I don't think this will fix the BCS' problems. In my mind the national champion will come from this Poll.

How things have changed

A poster on Eagle Action brought this picture to my attention. It is former BC athletic director Bill Flynn touching up the logo on the basketball court. I don’t know the date but imagine -- based on the hair and logo -- that it was taken in the late ‘70s. It is a nice tribute to a guy who put his heart and soul into BC athletics. It is also a sign of how things have changed in college sports. Now there are whole teams of people working in these departments and the AD is a CEO, not a down and dirty, do what must be done, jack of all trades. Can you imagine an AD from any Division IA school doing this today?

Spring recap/preview Part VI

Defensive Line

The defensive line has one of the best players in the country and two question marks.

ACC fans should learn the name Mathias Kiwanuka now since you’ll hear his name over and over in the pregame preambles on TV and radio. Kiwi has speed and size and is probably a top ten pick in next year's NFL draft. I don’t expect him to dominate in the ACC because he is going to be the focal point of all opposing offensive game plans. Last year, when he was more well known, some teams were able to neutralize him for long periods. Kiwi has speed, but is still somewhat slender and has trouble with double teams.

Kiwi will probably be a combine monster, but what is most overlooked about his style of play is his relentlessness. He really plays to the whistle and has been known to make downfield tackles and pick up a sack after getting knocked down and/or held. This style of play keeps us in games and will hopefully serve as a good lesson to his inexperienced teammates.

The only other experienced player on the D-line is Al Washington. Al is a little undersized to play the interior, but has been very reliable. He only collected a few tackles last season, but that was somewhat expected given that Bulman, Kiwi and Mettling were always around the ball. I don’t think he’ll have an all-conference season, but I do think he take advantage of Kiwi’s double teams.

The real pressure is going to be on the other spots. There is an assortment of guys who will get playing time. At End, Nick Larkin played well in spot duty last season but he is lean like Kiwi. He and Jake Ottolini (who he’ll split time with) will need Ron Brace and Justin Bell to take up space at the other tackle spot.

The rest of the unit is pure speculation. Jerry Willette, Ryan Thompson, B.J. Raji, and Jeff Burns will all get a chance to play. I am going to follow a hunch and say that Keith Willis will surprise and get serious playing time by the end of the season. Who knows? These guys are all blank slates. Hopefully they get good coaching.

As a whole the D-line should be solid. Kiwi’s presence alone will take a lot of the pressure off of the inexperienced guys. Plus they have a great group of linebackers and a respectable defensive backfield behind them. I worry about them stopping the run, but we don’t face that many running teams. If any of the unknowns steps up, this could be the best BC defense of all time. More likely, they'll all play okay and Kiwi will get manhandled and the linebackers will carry the team.

Smith, Stewart and Swindle

USA basketball invited Craig Smith to its World University Games Trials. Even if Craig doesn’t make the team, it is nice to see him recognized. In my opinion having Craig and Jared play this summer for USA basketball will raise their level of play this winter. Plus, the basketball team could use some good news.

My former colleague Stewart Mandel wrote about the conference realignment. Although it seems obvious, he is the first one to point out the imbalance in the two ACC divisions. Florida State will be the division favorite every year, but there is no reason to think other schools won’t raise their level of play. And if Bowden’s career starts to mirror JoePa’s, any school could be playing in Jacksonville.

Finally, blogs are filled with media critics (including me). The raw reactions and the pointing out of the missteps of the mainstream pundits is one of the most interesting aspects of this medium. So when I laughed out loud at this rebuttal of Trev Alberts by Orson Swindle (one of the contributors to Every Day Should Be Saturday), I felt I should link to it despite lack of BC content. The Every Day guys are also participating in the Blog Poll.

News of the day

Dennis Dodd writes a conference shift piece. I really think these guys should start calling their columns/articles/features blogs because Dennis takes a colorful approach to things with this piece that strays from traditional journalism (for example: calling the ACC raiders, when he knows this was a long dance among many teams). He can do what he wants, but at least as a blog the expectations for bias and opinion are different.

Here’s an interesting story on a BC assistant getting snubbed for a job with the BU women’s hockey team...because he is a man. Gender bias works both ways, I guess. I wonder how many women apply for jobs with men’s sports? I am not a lawyer, but the BU coach was dumb for telling the candidate that he didn’t get the job because he had a penis. Gary Barnett is the only football coach I could see saying something like that.

Princeton named Mike Fassel its director of football operations. Mike is a good guy who has overcome a lot, so best of luck to him. If he stayed healthy last year (he got hurt horsing around in his dorm room) I think we would have beaten Wake and Pitt. While I would like to think his two BC degrees made the difference in the hire, his connections didn't hurt.

Here is an interview with John Swofford on the new ACC. They mention the U.S. News rankings, but I have a feeling that BCS rankings are (and will be) more important.

"Bad boys, bad boys..."

Earlier in the week I wondered why the Globe wasn't writing more positive stories on BC. Well a few days later they come out with an expose on the travails of the basketball team. Fortunately it is a holiday weekend so this won't get too much coverage. I've already said that the Williams incident might be the tipping point. Most of this info was already out, but I did learn that DeJuan Tribble was with Sean the night of the bust. It was good to hear that Ryan Sidney had pulled his life together. I loved him as a player and just wish he kept his nose clean at BC.

None of this is funny, but I did laugh at the hit and run on Ted Kennedy's wife's car.

Here is their timeline on the recent problems.

In an attempt to add balance the Globe wrote about the football program keeping clean...except for that whole kidnapping thing.

Happy and sappy thoughts on the ACC

Just like I wanted to put the negativity of the Big East behind me, I will use this entry as one last chance to gush and thank those who contributed to BC’s move to the ACC (in his or her own little way). After this I am back to news and my marooned-colored glasses form of analysis. (Who am I kidding? I am sure I’ll gush about a player, team or moment here and there.)

As Gene DeFilippo said, this is probably the biggest moment in BC sports history. So I’ll start by thanking Gene. He is far from perfect, but his dedication, networking and politicing where the key to BC’s entry.

Thanks to John Swofford. While not totally what he envisioned, his bold moves created this new conference and for his selection of BC, I am grateful.

Thanks to the fans and adminstrators of Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech and Miami. Without their support BC could have been hung out to dry many times.

Thanks to all the coaches and athletes who have served Boston College in the last ten years. Without your success on the field of play, BC would not have been considered for this opportunity.

Thanks to all the great administrators and athletes (most notably Doug Flutie and Bill Flynn). The foundation you laid is the reason BC athletics have thrived in the past 20 years.

Thank you to Father Leahy. Many questioned your understanding and dedication to athletics when you arrived, but with this ordeal, you have proven your love of sport and the school.

Thank you to Father Monan. You saved and transformed BC many years ago.

Finally thanks to the Boston College alumni. Without our success, generousity, and spirit there is no BC. The life of a school is its students and alumni. The community we joined in our late teens is nothing without us. As the cheer says: “We are…BC!”

Ever to Excel

Eagle in Atlanta Classic

For those who missed it, I thought I would repost this piece I wrote about the successes and failures of teams joining new conferences. (As always, I apologize for the funky layout of the tables in blogger.)

Hoops preview

ESPN weighs in with its midsummer ACC basketball preview. It is an interesting format with most of their talking heads contributing. Good comments on BC throughout, however, there is no mention of Sean Williams anywhere. There are three explanations for the oversight:

1. Al has got word out there that Williams will be back by January (and the OK State transfer rumors are false)

2. Good old-fashioned lazy reporting (unlikely since Katz has Al on speed dial) or

3. The brains in Bristol don’t think as much of Williams as Kenpom and I do.

ACC-eptance news

There’s plenty of links and news to mark BC's first official day in the ACC.

First, a celebration letter from Gene DeFilippo. Here is our press release. Our new conference also made an official announcement. Check out the front page for the new conference logo and the big “It’s Official” headline.

The Globe and the Herald covered the celebration party at Fenway. Interesting to note that neither of the BC beat writers wrote the stories. While BC fans focused on the ACC, most of the media focused on Fenway potentially hosting an ACC tournament.

Finally, for some southern flavor, here is the News-Record’s coverage of the festivities.

New kid in town

One more day

Today is BC’s final day in the Big East. To celebrate the occasion predictable BC critic Mark Blaudschun recapped the history of the move and the behind the scenes dealing. Mark is a big Big East guy and has not been flattering to BC in this process and clearly announced his pessimism about our ability to compete in the ACC. He also quotes an unnamed athletic official (most likely former Syrcause AD Jake Crouthamel or former UConn AD Lew Perkins) who accuses BC of lying and double dealing -- despite legal evidence that counters the accusation. It’s too bad he took this angle because other papers in ACC country used this chance to write positive things. You’d think BC would get the benefit of the doubt from their local paper. The Herald didn’t even bother with an article.

The whole thing was a mess and tomorrow I will focus solely on the positive and the bright future ahead in the ACC. When the drama was in full swing in 2003, I thought a great book could be written about all characters involved. But the moment has passed and I know I don’t want to revisit what happened. But this shows that being in the big pond has its benefits.

Although BC will be a member of the ACC July 1, we get skipped in this year’s ACC-Big Ten challenge due to the imbalance in members. If Notre Dame would just join the Big Ten, this wouldn’t be a problem! (At this point I get a kick out of baiting Irish fans.)

Blogpoll Q&A

The guys running the Blog Poll are putting out questions for the participants to answer. It is sort of a way to fill space in the summer and get people familiar with each other’s blogs. Here is my take on this week’s questions. Check out Every Day Should be Saturday for other blogger’s opinions.

1. What's THE critical game of the season on the
national scene? We're looking for the one that will
influence the most outcomes in a single span of sixty
minutes.

Believe it or not Pittsburgh at Louisville on November 3. How can a Thursday night game at Papa John’s be so important? Because I think that might be the Cardinals only hurdle on their ridiculously easy schedule. The Big East is terrible and there is no reason to think Louisville won’t run the table. In past years that might have meant a trip to Memphis. This year -- as a member of a BCS conference -- it could mean a trip to Pasadena. If the Cardinals waltz into the Rose Bowl, outraged fans of one-loss teams from the SEC, Big Ten and other real conferences will force another change on the BCS.

2. What's the most critical matchup for your team?

The most critical game for BC is Florida State’s first visit to the Heights on September 17. Aside from it being the first official ACC game, it will also be the first real test of BC’s experienced but flawed team. Everyone has a different opinion how this division will play out, but if BC wins, it could be a confidence boost the team could ride into the Conference Championship in Jacksonville.

3. What's your wingnut upset prediction of year?

How about Notre Dame ending USC’s win streak? Getting killed by USC was probably the biggest factor in Ty Willingham’s demise. While not filled with as much talent as the Trojans, I think Charlie Weis might be able to surprise the Trojans here. Plus Weis was part of those Parcells staffs that always had Pete’s number in the NFL.

The national guys love BC and TOB

Some love from the guys at CFN. And Stewart Mandel lists O’Brien as one of his most underrated coaches. When BC fans read this stuff, many laugh at the thought of O’Brien leading this team to any major bowl and cry that he is overrated.

In defense of the national writers (some are good, some are bad) most DO NOT know as much about BC as diehard BC fans know about BC. They couldn’t. The good beat guys read a lot and watch a lot of football. But they are watching the top teams. They might see one whole BC game a year and a few quarters here and there. In those moments BC comes off as the little engine that could. They also look at TOB’s record and say “man, he wins 8 games and bowl every year.” They are less likely to pay attention to the games when the team does not come to play (Syracuse) or notice when TOB does his best to lower expectations in every interview.

So whose perspective and predictions are right: the BC fans or the national guys?

I would like to think that I am a balanced BC fan and here is my take. TOB is frustrating but he has done many good things for the school and team. I don’t think we will ever get to that next level (BCS games). I don’t think he is underrated or overrated -- he is what he is: a pretty good, but not great, college football coach. As for the sleeper team stuff…I don’t know. I am devouring previews and still don’t know what to expect in the ACC. I’ll make my official preseason prediction in July.

News and notes

More information is coming out about the death of Scott Laio. It seems the BC rower died from a fluid and electrolyte imbalance and heat stress. So sad. With all the top amateur and professional athletes pushing themselves to extremes in weight and heat, I am surprised we don't hear about more cases like this.

There's news out of South Bend about Notre Dame's future schedule and BC’s tentative place on it. Despite reports, I think BC will remain on the Irish's slate because unlike most other BCS conference teams, we will probably be willing to give them unbalanced series. ND blog Blue Gray Sky has us on most of the future schedules. Last time I said BC would be fine with or without the Irish, hundreds of ND fans sent me nasty emails.

Someone else's take

The ACC Area Sports Journal has a nice primer on BC titled 10 Things ACC Fans Might Not Know About Boston College. Nothing new. It does talk about most of the BC talking points: "gambling," "Flutie," and the "bowl streak." I assume most real college football fans know about those things. To the writer's credit he also gets into some things that only a BC fan would know like the tailgating issues and the fan support in Boston.

Recruiting "gurus"

As I have mentioned, I used to get excited about recruiting. Now I stay aware of the BC happenings, but temper my excitement. Too many busts and too many self-styled gurus have put a bad taste in my mouth. Years ago Evil A and I had numerous run-ins with Mike Farrell. Farrell started covering BC and has turned himself into an East Coast guy for Rivals. He occasionally appears on ESPNews. I could disparage him for numerous things, but ultimately what bothered me about Mike is that he was representing my school and influencing what happens to the team I support in an unofficial and unsanctioned capacity. And his rumored actions were displeasing to this Boston College alum. Who knows what sort of encouragement he may or may not have received from the BC staff? And who knows what truly went on during his phone calls with recruits, but ultimately the whole thing stunk. In my opinion his role as a broker/reporter crossed lines. Hence I don’t support giving these guys money and wouldn’t mind the NCAA getting in and regulating recruiting experts. Why rant now in the middle of summer? Well ESPN the magazine ran a piece about the recruitment of Myron Rolle and it confirmed a lot of my worst fears about the process. Fellow bloggers have already picked it apart (here and here). The article really targets Tom Lemming, but there are many sharks in these waters. (BTW, Lemming has been known to shill for BC too.)

My advice to fans: don’t get emotional and don’t pay for anything. My advice to players and their families: don’t tell the “gurus” anything. Dealing with the coaches is hard enough.

Hockey and hoops news

Two items of interest from Friday’s Boston papers. First, the Celtics signed a new radio deal. Their games will be broadcast on WRKO the sister station to sports powerhouse WEEI. Unfortunately for Boston College, the Celtics will take priority and preempt any conflicting Eagles basketball games. Hopefully, Entercom (the parent of both stations) will announce BC’s radio alternative soon.

The other interesting item was that Boston lost out on its bid for any of the upcoming NCAA Hockey finals. Hockey has not caught on in the Sun Belt, but the Sun Belt cities obviously were aggressive in winning the rights to host the championships. This is a sign that Boston and local area ADs cannot count on hosting the NCAAs every few years.

York has cancer

BC hockey coach Jerry York was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Reports seem optimistic about his recovery. Jerry’s a nice guy, championship coach and has the charisma that other BC coaches are lacking at times. I wish him the best and hopefully he won't miss a beat.

Spring recap/preview Part V

Defensive Backs

BC cannot seem to develop a tall corner. Lenny Walls was a JUCO transfer who fell in our laps and Will Blackmon -- while talented -- did not work out. So now we are a back where we have been the majority of TOB’s reign -- starting two undersized corners that will have to face a series of tall receivers in a pass-focused conference. Fortunately both projected starters are serviceable and our coverage doesn’t leave them too exposed.

Senior Jazzmen Williams is listed at 5’8 but is reliable. His playing time has increased each season and I expect him to be his consistent self this year. Williams is not much of a ball hawk, only grabbing one interception last season.

DeJaun Tribble, while also short at 5’9, showed a lot of promise as a freshman. His play was so strong that he unseated the oft-mentioned Will Blackmon as a starter midway through the season. After getting a DNP and being a nonfactor in the opener, Tribble worked his way into the backfield and saw some time on special teams too. He also grabbed two picks. Like his predecessor, I expect the opponents to challenge Tribble deap. He needs to stay focused and let his speed make up for his lack of size.

Strong Safety is the strength of the defensive backfield. Much was expected of Ryan Glasper and he played well. The real surprise was Jamie Silva, who proved to be a great runner supporter and one of those hustle/energy guys that the team needs. Both should get playing time next year. The BC-issued preview makes it seem like they will split time. I would rather see Glasper move to Free Safety and keep Silva at the Strong spot. Because it is clear both show more promise than the projected starter at Free Safety -- Larry Anan. Larry looked lost at times last year and got attention with some bonehead plays. Maybe he’ll be more comfortable at FS this season. Taji Morris, Brad Mueller and Kevin Akins should all get some playing time this season too.

I worry about this group, because their adjustment to the ACC will probably be the most demanding. The Big East had some passing teams and unique offenses but not the overall depth that the ACC has. Plus last season the defensive line put so much pressure on the opposing QBs that it relieved a lot of the strain on our DBs.

I like our safeties and just hope they can help our corners. I also hope Tribble can develop into an all-conference player. After QB, this is the second biggest area of concern.

Dudley talks; Gurley goes South

Nice Q&A with Jared Dudley on his Under 21 tryout, his summer plans and thoughts on next season. TRay will be disappointed to hear that the guys don’t hang or call each other much in the summer. When we were on the Heights, the hoops players had each other on speed dial.

Newton North hoops prospect Anthony Gurley is going to Wake Forest. It’s a shame to lose out on a guy who played High School ball 15 minutes from campus, but I think the recruiting class will be fine. And in my opinion most Massachusetts high school players tend to be a little overrated.

Spring recap/preview Part IV

Special teams

Inept special teams cost BC wins in 2002 and 2003. Last season was more of the same, however, the improved return game also contributed to a few key wins.

This season I expect the return team to be even stronger. Will Blackmon -- one of the nations leading punt and kick returners -- will now focus exclusively on offense and special teams. As I have repeated, Will has a ton of talent and is very good at finding the holes in the special teams coverage. Without the pressure of playing corner Will should really blossom. Plus after being a washout on defense, this might be his best and only way into the NFL. Dejaun Tribble also successfully returned some punts last season. Look for Andre Callender or one of the wideouts to get a chance to return a few kickoffs too.

Past breakdown on punts could be attributed to poor snaps. That shouldn’t be a problem this year. The consistent long snapper Francois Brochu returns for his final season in 2005. He’ll be snapping to Johnny Ayers. Ayers had a good first season. He only muffed a few and never really cost us a game. A little more consistency and our punting should be fine.

Kicking is the biggest question. Ryan Ohliger was maddening in 2004. Beyond 40 yards he was nearly perfect. Against WVU he had ice water in his veins. Other times he couldn’t make a chip shot. His best play was a fake that he turned into a TD against North Carolina. I am attributing most of his troubles to freshman jitters. If he can’t improve, he’ll get the hook.

Overall I feel good about our special teams. I don’t expect them to win games Beamer style, but as long as they don’t blow it, BC should be okay.

Dudley gets an invite

USA Basketball invited Jared Dudley to the Dallas tryouts for the Under 21 team. I imagine he doesn't stand out in these sorts of events due to size and build, but anyone who watches him on a regular basis knows that he would be a leader and a clutch player on Team USA. Let's hope he makes it and plays well.

More previews, TV and blogging news

College Football News came out with their Boston College preview. In the past this site has been lacking in quality and full of inane comments and polls, so I was very surprised with this solid and for the most part, accurate preview. Hats off to the writer Pete Fiutak.

The Army game will be on national TV. I wonder if ESPN Classic will break out the old fonts and graphics like they did during live basketball coverage.

As I mentioned earlier in the week -- don’t pay for recruiting content. As the Notre Dame signing of John Ryan proved, local papers will get the news to the web for free. Some BC fans were upset about being trumped by the Irish again, but as I have stated before, I no longer get emotional about recruiting wars. I wait until they get on the field to get worked up.

They’re playing football in Canada and BC alums Marc Parenteau and Paul Peterson are getting some snaps.

Michigan Blogger Brian Cook has started a blogger poll. I am participating. We’ll see how it goes. His work has led me to other college sports bloggers like Every Day Should be Saturday, who have interesting things to say about their teams and about BC. Non-BC fans seem to be more optimistic about our chances this year.

The truth about TOB

The Sporting News' Matt Hayes wrote a mailbag that caught the attention of a few BC fans. Asked to make a prediction about the Penn State job, Hayes riffed "...Tom O'Brien will skyrocket to the top of the list after Boston College's successful inaugural season in the ACC.

While I am glad that columnists anticipate a successful first season in the ACC, TOB is not going to Penn State or any other premiere job. Not gonna happen. Ever. He has already been down the aisle with two programs that would have been upgrades (Georgia Tech and Washington). In both cases he lost out when the alumni base was underwhelmed. ADs like TOB. He leaves boosters and fans cold. Just look at BC. The man has done a very good job, but his stubbornness and stoicism has the die-hards hoping that he moves on. A group that knew him well -- UVA -- passed on him and brought Al Groh back. While at UVA Groh hasn’t accomplished much more than O’Brien but perception and demeanor make a huge difference. Plus I think TOB is too smart to take the Penn State job. It is a top program and annual contender waiting to happen, but following Paterno could be tough; especially if Joe hangs around and casts a shadow. Some coaches have all the confidence in the world and think the can outshine the legend. TOB is more selective than that. If he wanted out of BC, he would be gone by now. That is why he only is mentioned when it is a strong program in a down cycle.

The only way he takes over Penn State or gets hired for any other primo job is if we have an amazing Top 5, conference championship type season. And if that happens BC will pull out every thing we have to keep him.

My bet is he is on the Heights until he retires.

No (BC) stone unturned

Summer remains a lean news time, but here are a few items of note.

Akida McClain cut a deal. It looks like he will avoid any serious punishment. This is good news for BC basketball. With Sean Williams’ future uncertain, Akida should get some minutes spelling Smith and Dudley.

Two takes on BC’s preparation for joining the ACC. I don’t love the new slogan, but it is certainly not the worst one to come out of BC sports marketing. I am glad Gene dismissed the exorbitant travel costs claim that the Big East schools threw around. In the article from Charlottesville Daily Progress, they mention an ACC celebration party at Fenway -- another welcome sign of the Red Sox influence.

Brian Curtis, who wrote Every Week a Season, is now a columnist for CSTV.com. In his latest article, he says that even with our departure that the New Big East will not be that bad. I have to disagree. Louisville is one of the best teams in the country, but I expect the rest of the teams to really struggle out of conference.

Nice article on some BC baseball recruits. Looking for BC stuff on the web has confirmed one of my beliefs -- don’t pay for recruiting news. Most of recruits are big names somewhere and in many cases get free coverage from small-town papers. Plus any of the good stuff from the “gurus,” will end up on some message board.

Friday links

Gene D. is trying to mend fences with Syracuse. Some might say adding the Orange back to the schedule is about travel, but I think it is more about recruiting. A charter flight to upstate New York is not that much cheaper than one to North Carolina. But telling kids in New Jersey, New York and New England "we play over half our schedule within driving distance of your home" will counter attack any anti-ACC spin Big East coaches might use against us. While I didn't like the way Syracuse's admins ripped us and certainly didn't like losing with the Fiesta Bowl on the line, it is good to see Gene move on.

Loyal reader LBI Eagle found this ACC preview. I'll continue mine in the next few weeks.

Sportsline created a Hot Seat chart. These sorts of things are pure speculation, but fun to fill the offseason. They don't think TOB is under any sort of pressure. I agree. It will take two losing ACC seasons before firing talk would ever start.

Bowl games, baseball and boxing

Interesting article in the Orlando Sentinel on the implications of the TV deal for the premiere Orlando bowl (f/k/a the Citrus Bowl) and how it will impact all the other second tier bowls. Basically the expanded BCS devauled their offering and so their payout should decline. Which means conferences might switch slots. The Sentinel makes a prediction on how it will shake out. Still doesn't look good for a Disney World trip for the Eagles, but most of the ACC options appear to be in the southeast.

MLB held its draft this week. I normally don't cover much BC baseball but it is nice to see a few kids get drafted. If I had only been tall and a lefty. Future draftees that aren't on the Cape are now playing in the Berkshires.

Finally, an odd note at the end of Ron Borges' column. It seems that former BC lineman Derric Rossy is now a boxer. The heavyweight ranks are so thin now, maybe he can make a run.

Summer shopping

Nice article on Sportsline about Al Skinner's penchant for finding underrecruited and overlooked stars. The article also mentions a chance for Williams to return. If he can be back for conference play in January, I don't think the team will miss a beat. And if the staff finds another star -- even better.

Slow news week

BYU confirmed ABC will pick up the BC game. This is regional coverage, so I imagine it will play in New England and the Rockies. Anyone else who wants to see it will have to get Gameplan or find a sports bar. The game is Labor Day weekend so I'll probably be at the Sports Grill at Carillon Beach (where I watched the Syracuse debacle).

More Flutie-Pats stuff.

Speaking of Doug, Boston College's endowment passed the $1 billion mark. Many attribute the school's ascendancy to Flutie's play. He was a factor, but alumni check books and Father Monan's focused fund raising transformed the school to what it is today.

TRay found another Peterson story. This one focuses on his adjustment to Canada.

Spring recap/preview Part III

Linebackers

This is the easiest section of the recap/previews to write because it should be the strength of the team this season.

Superstar Brian Toal earned Big East Rookie honors and adjusted to the speed of the college game quickly in his first season. His brother got better each year while at BC, so there is optimism that he’ll be even better this season. If his learning curve accelerates, there is no reason to think he can’t make 90 tackles next season. Toal and the other returning starters, Ray Henderson and Ricky Brown, combined for 233 tackles last season.

Ray Henderson had a nice season and made a few big interceptions last year, but he is not a dominant player. He can pick his moments and seems to read opposing QBs well (it doesn’t hurt that he was a former QB). He also comes off as one of those screamer/emotional leader types. I usually want those guys to zip it, but it may be needed given TOB’s stoic nature.

Brown had the most unassuming 80 tackle season you could imagine. He is finally getting a chance to play to his potential. Hopefully he’ll have another strong year.

With the front four applying a lot of pressure last season, these three were able to drop back and wait for action to come to them. They probably won’t have that same luxury this year. Our opponents will probably pass more and our defensive line is not as experienced.

For years, BC fans bemoaned the state of our LB corp. In addition to talent, this season brings depth as both Jolonn Dunbar and Tryonne Pruitt showed ability and aggressiveness in spot duty last year.

Overall I expect these guys to hold the defense together. Spaz plays a frustrating bend but don’t break style and will rarely blitz the LBs. I just hope they can keep up with the more talented playmakers in the ACC and don’t freelance too much.

My tribute to Paul Peterson

I don’t know Paul Peterson. His story -- the unwanted underdog -- is great, but that is not why he is my favorite BC athlete of all-time. In honor of his and his wife’s recent graduation, I thought I would write one final tribute to him.

I was only eight during Doug Flutie’s run at the Heights. While I remember the Miami game and have watched his BC games on ESPN classic, I didn’t really live through them as a diehard fan. Paul Peterson might be as close to Doug Flutie as I’ll ever get. While his accomplishments don’t measure up to Flutie’s, his success and style of play -- given his surroundings -- made Peterson’s nearly as special.

I became a BC student in the fall of 1994 and have watched every game since. In that time we have had some quarterbacks who showed flashes of brilliance and pro potential, but all still played safely within the system. We also had our share of robotic stiffs. Peterson was different. Whether it was his age and JUCO experience or his need to compensate for his size and arm strength, Paul saw the field differently and made choices his predecessors did not. When he first arrived you heard reports of things being different, but TOB and Bible still went with Quinton Porter (who fit their prototype). Peterson saw limited play but couldn’t (or wasn’t given the chance to) unseat Porter. When Quinton went down with an injury, and the season on the brink Peterson played well in a comeback win against Rutgers. This is when I started gaining confidence, but it was the next week against Virginia Tech where he confirmed he was something special. BC was a heavy underdog going into Blacksburg. The team was playing well and Peterson was making the plays to keep drives alive. Then he rolled right on a scramble and flung a ball to Grant Adams in the endzone. A 30-yard TD should not be a big deal, but I jumped off of my couch. That was not what was supposed to happen to BC during broken plays. Prior to Peterson, everyone would come back toward the QB to bail him out. With Peterson, it changed. He turned broken plays into big plays. And had the confidence to take a risk. BC football was exciting again.

Peterson kept up this style of play through the end of the 2003 season and the start of the 2004. Then Wake Forest. He moved the ball, but we just couldn’t get it in the endzone and missed three back-breaking field goals. Wake made a fluke play late in the game to take the lead and eventually win. I was sitting there, stunned and disappointed. As the players walked into the locker room, one guy remained on the field -- Paul Peterson. He was crouched with his helmet in his hands. For the first time in a long time, it looked like a player cared as much as I did. I am sure others have cared more, and as a spectator, I don’t claim to get as emotionally of physically involved as a player. But seeing Paul share my frustration connected with me more than taking a class with a player or hanging out with one in my mod.

The season progressed, with its share of highs (Notre Dame) and lows (Pitt and Syracuse). Regardless of how many clunkers he might have thrown or my frustration with other parts of the team, Peterson made the games fun and gave me the confidence we were never out of it.

When I started this blog around the holidays, I wrote about how I skipped the Tire Bowl out of frustration with the Syracuse loss (in which Peterson did not play). At the time it seemed like the team looked past the Orange or missed the Peterson’s leadership. Well, I decided if they didn’t care, I wasn’t going to care. Of course I still watched the game. I regret missing it in person, because it summed up what made Peterson so special. Although his hand was still hurting, he moved the ball effectively and kept the team in the game. Then, while scrambling, he lost the ball due to the same injured hand. Staying poised, Peterson fell on the ball and got trampled. Broken leg. Season over. Game over. College career over. Many guys would have pouted or at least focused on the injury. But there was Paul watching the jumbotron and cheering as the team converted a fake kick into a touchdown. Big smile on his face. It wasn’t the Flutie pass, but it was a dramatic end to a great run.

Paul, thank you for the joy you brought to this fan. Thank you for making the games exciting. Thank you for caring. Your BC career was too short, but I will certainly remember it fondly. Don’t give up your dreams. (Doug Flutie didn’t stick in the NFL until his mid-30s.) Best of luck to you and Meghan (whom my friend Logitano met at Temple. His assessment: “She’s hot”.) As you follow your path I know you will continue to exemplify our alma mater’s motto -- Ever to Excel.

Friday news and notes

A few things of note for Friday morning.

Sean Williams has a history of trouble. This won't help his cause to be reinstated at BC.

Gordon Watt is headed to Purdue. Best of luck to him.

In BCS news, it looks like the coaches' votes will be public.

Yawkey and talking

The new Yawkey Center is getting rave reviews. Hopefully our Boston correspondent can get some pics before the public.

In other news, McClain's lawyer is claiming that Akida is innocent. What would you expect his lawyer to say?