Blogpoll Ballot

Here is my latest blogpoll ballot. For those of you looking to follow the blogpoll you can see the results at Brian's Michigan blog. I continue to rank BC higher than almost anyone. Part of that is my huge bias, but I've also seen plenty of football and think BC is playing better than many teams.

Games I watched
-- NC State-BC 100% (twice)
-- Penn State-Notre Dame 50%
-- South Carolina-UGA 50%
-- Rutgers-Navy 50%
-- Marshall-WVU 25%
-- LSU-Virginia Tech 25%
-- Auburn-USF 25%

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Southern Cal	--
2	LSU	--
3	Oklahoma	--
4	West Virginia	--
5	Florida	--
6	California	--
7	Texas	2
8	South Carolina	2
9	Georgia Tech	4
10	Louisville	3
11	Penn State	4
12	Boston College	2
13	Ohio State	3
14	UCLA	4
15	Alabama	4
16	Wisconsin	4
17	Clemson	6
18	Rutgers	6
19	Nebraska	7
20	Oregon	6
21	Arkansas	5
22	Texas A&M	2
23	Georgia	12
24	Virginia Tech	16
25	Washington	1

Dropped Out: Auburn (#17), TCU (#21), Hawaii (#22), Miami (Florida) (#25).

Second viewing thoughts and grade report: NC State

After the game I called this an ugly 20-point win. Well after watching it back, I’m feeling a little different. This was one of those games that looked much better upon further review. Sure we gave up yardage and struggled in the passing game but it was a good effort and some guys are doing a good job stepping up.

Offense: B-

This was possibly Matt Ryan’s worst performance since the 2004 Syracuse game. Uncharacteristically, he was on target early and started scattering as the game progressed (it’s usually the opposite, with Ryan getting sharper as the game progresses). By my count he had eight incomplete passes that were off or forced. The protection was good enough, I think that the receivers and NC State’s good pass coverage made him hold a second too long or force into bad routes. I am not worried and actually think he’ll bounce back against Georgia Tech next week.

The running game was obviously much better. Hats off to AC. Everyone mentioned his rushing but he also added another 53.5 yards in receiving and returns for 211 total yards. He obviously did a great job reading the holes, but I was also impressed with his second efforts and runs after the first contact. This is a guy who had his own corner in the TOB doghouse, so it was nice to see him prove something to his former coach. He also put the game away with his work on our first drive of the fourth quarter. AC got the accolades, but LV looked good in his return. I worried about him in the new offense but he responded well and even showed a little burst. McLuskey was a nice surprise. He did a fantastic job on the lead blocks throughout the game. Brooks…nothing of note outside of his work in the passing game. As LV gets healthy, AJ might be back on the sidelines.

The RBs couldn’t have produced without the offensive line. The right side played really well again. Very impressed with Tennant as he is doing a great job of getting off the line. Ramsey had a mistake early but we near perfect the second half. Castonzo played well too. Poles was inconsistent but better than the man to his left. Now criticizing the Line is nitpicky (since they did play much better than NC State) but Cherilus did not have a great, all-ACC type day. Outside of the penalties, he still played inconsistently.

The Wide Receivers were awful. Nine inexcusable drops. Part of it was NC State’s coverage, but much of it was just straight up mental errors. Although he had his drops, Robinson played ok and was doing a great job on the running blocking. Challenger -- terrible. Flat out. Very unexpected from such a usually consistent performer. The young guys are getting grouped together in this report, but no one distinguished themselves. The Tight Ends were nonfactors overall (but did do a good job in a jumbo package near the goal line).

Logan called a decent game. It wasn’t the ballet of the Wake game and certainly created some frustration and uneasiness, but he’s shown he can adapt. Our long-distance passing wasn’t clicking so he kept it on the ground and added some shorter crossing routes and short passes to the flats. Despite the ascetics, the guy deserves credit – we’re scoring points.

Defense: B+

The defensive line is really confounding. They are doing a great job shutting down the run. Multiple guys are getting on the field and trying really hard. Brady Smith has done a good job replacing Raji. Albright continues to play well. Ramella might be one of the most sound, stick with his responsibility type guys we have. Brace was a beast. Giles looked good when he got on the field. Yet with all that praise, they are still having a hard time generating any pressure on the passing game. One of the reasons we’ve been picked apart the past two games is because the front four cannot do anything disruptive. But at the same time, they are doing a great job clogging lanes on the run game. I don’t know what the solution is, but we need to tweak something.

The linebackers are also part of the problem in the passing game. They all read the run very well and really react quickly (look for teams to go heavy play action in the coming weeks to take advantage). Yet like the front line, these guys all seem a step too slow when they are covering their men or zones. Dunbar deserves credit for creating points, but it wasn’t his best game. Akins looked slow. I was shocked when he didn’t run down Beck. Pruitt played well enough. Herzy had another outstanding game – probably the best of the linebackers again. Not only is he all over the field with his tackling, he’s proving to be very versatile.

The DBs were very very good. How can that be when you give up 400 passing yards? All the big plays were due to deep routes when the coverage breaks down. The picks were a product of reading Beck and just some natural athletic plays. Glad to see Morris step up. Anderson looked improved from Week 1. Tackling has been good in the secondary.

Spaziani…what can you say? This was the bend but don’t break prototype. But Spaz did mix it up. NCSU ran 78 plays and we were in a three-man front for 15% of them. We also blitzed close to 10 times. I applaud the variety and giving Beck different looks worked. My complaints come in not doing it enough. If a raw QB cannot handle the zone blitz or a true blitz or a 3-4 look, yet is settling in against a 4-3 cover two zone, then avoid the cover two and keep mixing it up. Yet Spaz would go traditional/conservative and allow some big plays. Overall, the D is keeping scoring down, so I can’t complain too much.

Special Teams: B

Due to all the fair catches on our returns this is easy: our punt coverage might be the best in the country. Our kickoffs might be the worst. I’ve been impressed with our new special teams coverage (even the busted KRs) so I am sure things will get better once a kicker actually puts some leg under it.

Overall: B

As I said, the game got better the second time around. It was nice to see how effective Spaziani’s unique packages were. I also think the offense would have appeared much better if Ryan and the receivers had connected on even a quarter of their misses. Regardless of what I think about each unit, the most important thing is the win. Outside an Xs and Os standpoint, I think Jags handled the TOB return better than expected.

Bring on Tech!

TOB sent 'Pack'ing

That is the ugliest 37-17 win you'll ever see. But 2-0 in the ACC is all that matters. It's also nice to have the TOB stuff behind us for now. Initial thoughts:
-- The Oline is getting better and I think LV and AC will thrive in the scheme
-- The defense was classic Spaz (and that is a backhanded compliment)
-- The punt coverage was excellent. the kickoffs...not so much
-- I thought Ryan and the WRs would struggle and they did

A win is a win. Bring on Tech! I'll have grades and second viewing thoughts up late Sunday.

In-game comments post: NC State

Last week there seemed to be decent interest in the in-game post, so I'll do it again. Since this game is on TV, I won't be online. For those who are, this post is open to leave your thoughts, vent or celebrate. To comment, you have to register with blogger/google. It is free and easy.

As for new news -- Raji is done for this year and will redshirt. Obviously this is a loss, but not an insurmountable one. We have good depth along the Dline. It is also a chance for Raji to focus on school and his weight. I'll leave the speculation on Raji going pro for another time.

Friday roundup

David Glenn has a good take on TOB's first game against BC. Another storyline that is not getting mentioned is that Jags got his first big break from current NC State DC Mike Archer when Archer was the head coach at LSU. Prior to LSU, Jags was at Northern Illinois.

NC State's best defensive lineman is out with a knee injury.

Here is a good stats page on BC football.

As of this posting Raji's status was still unknown and unlikely for NC State.

This is the first article where TOB really seems to miss BC and Boston.

Ty Hall's dad is probaby the most photographed BC fan of alltime. I hope he keeps showing up next year.

Finally, the pictures keep rolling in. These two are from Mike G.

BC-NC State Preview

This is only one game. As far as rankings and ACC standing, it has no more importance than last week’s game against Wake or next week’s against Georgia Tech. Yet we all know there is something different about taking on TOB. Jags correctly joked that TOB is not going to be suiting up and all that matters is who plays. I agree. Emotion won’t impact the game, but it will impact how everyone feels after.

Theme that won’t be discussed on television
There will be plenty of gushing on both sides about Matt Ryan, but what probably won’t be discussed is the role NC State and their current Tight End Marcus Stone played in Ryan’s path to the Heights. Ryan was not TOB and Dana Bible’s first QB target for the 2003 recruiting class. They wanted and went after Stone ahead of Ryan. It was only after Stone committed to NC State that BC turned its focus to Ryan. Stone flamed out as a QB and is now catching passes. Ryan might be the ACC player of the year. Shows you what a crapshoot recruiting can be.

Three simple keys
1. Apply pressure to Beck. BC’s front seven must generate more pass rush on Beck than we did against Wake. If NC State’s new starter has as much time as the Deacon’s passers did, he’ll pick us apart. This is where Spaz has the advantage of going against Bible. He knows what works against this scheme and understands it better than NC State’s QB does. Beck needs to be on his back throughout the game.
2. Finding space for the receivers. Last year NC State did a great job of shutting down our receivers with tight, physical man coverage. Although they have a new defensive coordinator, I expect them to continue to use their physical advantage against our smallish wideouts. Expect to see some double moves and such to get our guys free. I also expect more passing to Tight Ends and RBs this week.
3. Establish some sort of rushing game. Ultimately I don’t care about the mix of run and pass. Last week we got in a hole and went away from it. No problem. However, this week, I expect TOB to do everything he can to shutdown Ryan. In order to offset that, we’ll need to run the ball somewhat effectively.

Gambling notes
-- TOB is 5-5 in conference openers
-- TOB is 8-21 versus ranked teams
-- BC has won 12 straight at home
The current line is BC-14

What would be a pleasant surprise? A BC blowout. As much as I’d love to see a romp, I am not expecting one. This game should be very hard fought and if I were a betting man NC State and the points would be very tempting.

What would be a letdown? Losing. Losing always stinks, but losing to TOB when favored would put a damper on the new regime and the current mood of the BC fans.

What would be a shocker? Losing in a comeback. NC State made a furious run in the second half of their first game and nearly won it. I would be shocked if that scenario played out this week. First Jags has the “don’t let up” mentality and second, I don’t think Bible would make the right in-game adjustments against his former colleague Spaziani. As we know, Bible will stick to the gameplan despite what the time and score might call for.

Bottom Line
I think BC wins, but it will be closer than I’d like. I expect Ryan to have some trouble and for the Wolfpack to move the ball on us. We’ll win, but it won’t be an exhilarating TOB exorcism.
Final Score: BC 31, NC State 27

More pics, more links

Brian sent along these shots from Saturday. Reminder to all students: use your cameras and phones to take some cool videos and put them on YouTube. Some of you are seated 15 feet from the endzone. You could and should get some cool shots.





This article features the brother of BC recruit Josh Haden, but gives a look into the intense strength and conditioning the whole family is going through.

If you watch ESPN's College Gameday, you should read Gunslinger's Gameday recap. You'll never view the show in the same way.

Beware of a motivated TOB

From Wednesday's Globe:

Make no mistake: O'Brien wants to win this game as much as any game he has coached in. His North Carolina State players will be aware of that, even though he'll try to keep them focused on the X's and O's.

That quote should scare any BC fan and anyone who has followed O’Brien’s career. Despite the endless list of games where his teams came up short, each year O’Brien’s team would seemingly win the game that mattered most to him. These games weren’t necessarily meaningful in the grand scheme but they either bought him cache or extracted some sort of TOB-related revenge. The bowls are another example of this. TOB was embarrassed in his first bowl, a shellacking by Colorado. After that BC became a third-tier bowl juggernaut.

Knowing all this, the BC game is setting up to be a typical TOB will win. Given his new position, he should probably spend all his capital on the UNC game. However, we Irish sometimes hold grudges above common sense. Here's a quick look back at TOB's "must win" games.

1997. No real classic TOB game. I think he was just trying to win any game. However, per the Globe article one of his “friends” (my guess is Petercuskie, Welsh or TOB himself) was quick to remind Blaudschaun of the big win over a 7-5 West Virginia.

1998. No big win, but the first glimpse of the Notre Dame obsession. BC was reeling heading into the game against a ranked Irish team. Five straight losses meant a bowl was unlikely and the unproven head coach knew he needed some good will. What happened? BC played the game of its season and nearly upset Notre Dame.

1999. In a generally good season and his first winning campaign, TOB notched his first win over Notre Dame. His ability to casually work this win into every conversation, recruiting story and interview should have been the first tipoff that he wanted extra credit for beating the Irish.

2000. No signature TOB win in a long season. His hopes at upsetting Notre Dame again took a hit when Tim Hasselbeck went down with an injury forcing him to start Brian St. Pierre.

2001. He beat Notre Dame in a Saturday night game on ESPN. It still took him until the end of the season (his 58th game as head coach) to finally beat a ranked team. Who says BC fans aren’t patient?

2002. An up and down season that included numerous Big East losses. However, in between two bonehead defeats to Pitt and West Virginia, TOB managed to beat an undefeated Notre Dame team in South Bend. While the skeptical message board guys were starting to get frustrated by the conference losses, the casual BC fans reacted in a way that would make Pavlov proud “wohoo! We beat Notre Dame!!!” TOB knew what he was doing.

2003. A near disaster of a season due to TOB and Bible sticking with Quinton Porter, only to be saved by the great Paul Peterson (but that is a story for another time). Focus on a stretch in October and November that would help determine the Big East. Oct. 18, a 39-14 loss at Syracuse. A reel gutless performance that TOB blamed on flight delays. Nov. 1, a 24-13 home loss to Pitt as he kept playing an ineffective QB. Nov. 8, a 35-28 loss to West Virginia. But the people weren’t noticing the Emperor’s clothes because during that stretch TOB managed to beat Notre Dame again on Oct. 25, 27-25.

2004. He played for OT against Pitt in a crushing loss. His team didn’t show up against Syracuse, but when he was down against Notre Dame the playbook got thrown out the window and Paul Peterson led a great comeback en route to a 24-23 win.

2005. No Notre Dame, no problem. TOB had a bigger personal score to settle against Al Groh and/or Virginia fans. Although he would never admit this in an interview, I have heard and believe that TOB always wanted to succeed his mentor George Welsh at Virginia. However, when Welsh stepped down, the UVA Administration barely even gave TOB a sniff at the job. So when he finally got the chance to take on the ‘Hoos, you knew he’d win. This game meant nothing to BC fans, but everything to TOB. The parrellels to this game and Saturday’s scare me.

2006. This lacked the classic “TOB will win at all costs” game. The rushing Matt Ryan back in time for Florida State has that feel but in fairness to TOB, I think Ryan and everyone around the program wanted him to play.

Despite BC being the heavy favorite, this game and any future game against an TOB coached team will always be dangerous for BC.

Skins gets an extension

BC and Skinner agreed to a contract extension that will carry into the 2013 season. Well deserved for Al and well done by Gene.

How I feel about TOB’s return

Let me get this out of the way early in the week. I don’t hate TOB. But I am glad he’s someone else coach now. The media and other fans often wonder why some BC fans weren’t more upset when the old Marine left Chestnut Hill. Like any long relationship, there are a million things you could point to: coming up short in big games and the endless list of excuses and lowering of expectations in the media. Those aren’t my biggest gripes or the reason I was glad he moved on. My problem with TOB is that he never embraced BC publicly. You always got the feeling he never wanted to be here. I think he took the job as a stepping stone to get the UVA gig when Welsh retired. As we know that didn’t turn out his way. He was also the bridesmaid for jobs at Georgia Tech and Washington. This desire to move on started to show in how he interacted with fans, recruits and many of his players.

Instead of saying “we are BC” and we can win here, TOB always used what BC is and was as a reason for coming up short or to make his efforts look more heroic. He’s still doing it. Check out this quote in the Herald.

Asked if he felt at all underappreciated toward the end of his stay at BC, O’Brien paused ever so briefly before answering.

“I know this,” he said. “I know anyone in my profession and all my peers, every time I see them, quite frankly, they say how amazed they were at how things happened, the way that we played and what our staff accomplished. That’s all I care about. The people in this profession that know football know what was accomplished there in the last 10 years.”

Yet as I’ve shown, BC is a winning program. TOB did well, but he was not a miracle worker. But that mindset, whether he is spinning or really believes it, is the heart of the problem. He feels like he did great work and was never appreciated. Just look at what he said to his mouthpiece at the Sporting News.

Boston College fans won't soon forget O'Brien's departure after 10 years on The Heights. BC will get an up-close look at O'Brien on September 8, when the Wolfpack visits Boston College. So, Tom: How do you think fans will react?

"I know what they should do," he says. "But I don't know what they will do."

TOB doesn’t get it and never will. The losses were part of the problem, but TOB’s inability to open up to the fans and embrace BC was as big a problem as coming up short. How could he ever win championships at BC when he never believed BC could win it all?

Jags may never be as successful on the field as TOB, but his attitude and approach are welcome. He uses everything BC is as a selling point not a hindrance.

I don’t begrudge those BC fans who’ll give TOB a polite applause. That’s their right. In ten or so years, I am sure we’ll bring him back to honor his accomplishments in Boston. When that time comes and we’ve all moved on, I’ll give TOB the credit and applause his accomplishments earned. This Saturday I’ll boo.

[For those who don't think I am balanced on the subject of TOB, check out this series. I think it is pretty fair. Ten years or TOB: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.]

Blogpoll Ballot

I saw a ton of football this weekend and changed my opinion on a few teams and conferences. Seeing the Big Ten stumble had me lower the most Big Ten schools. I also gave a boost to the SEC for a strong opening weekend (aside from the Vols). And obviously I am very high on BC.

Games I watched
Wake at BC 100% (twice)
LSU at Miss St 100%
FSU at Clemson 75%
App St at Michigan 50%
ECU at VT 50%
Ok State at UGA 25%
Tenn at Cal 50%
KSU at Auburn 25%
Bowling Green at Minnesota 25%

Rank	Team	Delta
1	Southern Cal	25
2	LSU	24
3	Oklahoma	23
4	West Virginia	22
5	Florida	21
6	California	20
7	Louisville	19
8	Virginia Tech	18
9	Texas	17
10	South Carolina	16
11	Georgia	15
12	Wisconsin	14
13	Georgia Tech	13
14	Boston College	12
15	Penn State	11
16	Ohio State	10
17	Auburn	9
18	UCLA	8
19	Alabama	7
20	Texas A&M	6
21	TCU	5
22	Hawaii	4
23	Clemson	3
24	Rutgers	2
25	Miami (Florida)	1

Dropped Out: Michigan, Tennesse, Florida State

Pics and links

Thanks to Bob V for sending these along. I always appreciate any pics or video readers send.






Here are a few Labor Day news items...

Jags is not taking TOB lightly and is considering using Bennett on kickoffs.

The Camp Foundation named Tribble the defensive player of the week.

NC State named a new starting QB this week. TOB is going with Harrison Beck instead of BC killer Danial Evans.

NCSU also lost their leading rusher for the season.

Second viewing thoughts and grade report: Wake Forest

Great win and a very solid effort overall. Initial reports from Alumni said that the stadium was full (nearly), loud and people are excited. Others have said and written this already, but I am very glad that Steve Logan is around to be Jags’ mentor and sounding board. Many coaches could have panicked down 14-0, but Jags got on his headset and got the reassurance he needed. After watching the game again, I am more excited about our offense and more concerned about our defense.

Offense: B+

From the looks of things, Matt Ryan called an audible on the very first play of the game. INT. So much for that. Watching back, Ryan might have made the right call, but Robinson and Purvis were not on the same page. Both broke routes weirdly and neither were where Ryan thought they would be. It could have been a crushing blow to a new offense and a QB given the reigns for the first time. But Ryan showed he’s as mentally tough as he is physically. As in the past, it took him a series or two to get on target. Once he did he looked great. His throws were on time and he did a good job scanning the field. He also did a great job selling the play action and developing the screens. The best throw was his TD to Robinson. He got the player he wanted in the right situation, threw the ball before the corner was ready, and put it only where BR could get it. Ryan also did a good job of running the no huddle/hurry up offense. Great day and a great start to the season.

Although their stats were unimpressive and Brooks fumbled, I think the Running Backs played pretty well. Both AC and Brooks made things happen off of screen passes. Nothing exploded from the ground game, but both seemed comfortable reading and reacting to the new running scheme. Brooks’ fumble could have been a killer, but he didn’t let it bother him and in a refreshing change the coaching staff did not bench him. New fullback McCluskey didn’t play much (we used a lot of single back sets) but made a few nice blocks.

The receivers were great. Beating their men. Hanging onto passes. Not dropping easy catches. The personnel hasn’t changed but our WRs were explosive for the first time in years. Robinson stood out with this routes and with his toughness over the middle. Challenger did his usual job of finding soft spots. The younger guys did well too.

The Tight Ends were not factors. Purvis had a few catches, but that was it. Loyte saw a little playing time and but didn’t get anything thrown his way. What was interesting is that for the first time in a few years, the Tight Ends were not liabilities to our run blocking (another benefit of the zone scheme).

Speaking of the zone scheme, the line was excellent. You wouldn’t have known that three of the guys were first time starters. In fact, the right side of the line outperformed their more experienced counterparts on the left. Both Poles and Cherilus got beat leading to two Ryan sacks. But Poles also deserves credit for coming back and laying a guy out on Ryan’s second TD. I didn’t notice any issues with the zone blocking on the run plays. Nothing broke for a long run, but Wake was also unable to penetrate and no one was tripping over each other. The pass blocking was excellent. Ryan had time. The best part: no false starts and no holding penalties. I think the line will be the best surprise of the season.

I think the Steve Logan hire might have been the best move Jags made in his career. In addition the mentor role I mentioned in the intro, Logan called a great game. I love the aggressiveness. I loved the variety of sets, from traditional I, two TEs, three wide, to empty backfield. Down 14-7, he attacks with a deep TD bomb. Time running out in the first half, he attacks and got another TD. My favorite series was with six minutes left in the half and BC had the ball deep in its own end. Ryan threw a deep ball on a go route to the left side with Challenger in single coverage. Challenger couldn’t hang on and it was nearly pass interference. Next play Logan went back to the same route, against the same corner. Another no call. Next play? Deep go route on the left against the same corner. Complete for a first down. The drive didn’t even end in a score but the mentality of exploiting matchups and remaining unpredictable was fantastic. Even as our talent graduates, Logan is creative enough to keep us effective. Plus we scored in the red zone without just trying to push it in with Toal. Great job. Any QB prospect and or wide receiver should be lining up to play for Logan.

Defense: B

The defensive line concerned me watching back a second time. They were great against the run and kept Wake from effectively using their misdirection run plays. But they were unable to generate any pass rush at all. Both Wake QBs had plenty of time to throw when we didn’t blitz. This is where we missed Raji. When he is on, he can get to the QB once or twice on his own. Scafe looked good in Raji’s place. Brace was quiet. Larkin played well, but his only sack came from an inside move when Herzy and Akins forced the QB right into Larkin’s lap. Ramella looked a step slow but held contain well. Albright probably had the best game of the linemen.

The Linebackers had some very good pluses yet gave me one cause for concern. First, the good. For the first time in five years, they held their positions and effectively shut down Wake’s misdirection and stretch plays. The bad: pass coverage. Dunbar, Pruitt and McLaughlin all seemed lost or slow on their coverage assignments. Dunbar did well in the other areas. Pruitt was quiet. Akins, while still one dimensional, did a good job creating pressure. He was one of the few weapons that actually disrupted Wake’s offense. The best all around game among the Linebackers was easily Herzlich. He created pressure from the edge, had some flawless tackling and did the best job in coverage.

The DBs are getting some flak on the message boards, but overall I don’t think they were the reason Wake tore us apart in the passing game. There was no pressure upfront and less than average coverage from the LBs. Tribble obviously stood out. Not only was his coverage and ballhawking good but he’s also become a very good tackler. Silva, unlike last year, held his position and contain and helped stop Wake’s run game. Morris looked better than he has in the past. Rollins played well too. Anderson struggled in one on one coverage but did pretty well against the run.

Spaz did okay. We were aggressive (I counted twelve blitzes). He adjusted due to the loss of Raji with at least five 3-down lineman sets. He continued dropping linemen into zone coverage. He tried a variety of men in the middle of the line. Yet with all the adjustments we still got picked apart by a non-passing team. I will give him credit for finally keeping Wake from making a big play. For some reason, we didn’t rotate nearly as much as we did last season. Guys who played big minutes last year like Giles and Davis didn’t get much playing time yesterday. In spite of all the yardage, the defense made stops when they had to and only allowed two TDs. We know what we’re getting in Spaziani. We’ll be frustrated this year, but in the end, the performance will be good enough for us to win the majority of our games.

Special Teams: B-

Great punt coverage. Robinson seemed to embrace the gunner role and Ayers should be thankful.

The kick returns were a little lacking, but I think we’ll improve when Smith returns.

Punt returns…eh. Not much to go on. It seemed like Tribble was more than happy to allow fair catches.

The kickoffs were cringe inducing. Something has to be done ASAP. Aponavicius is a great story and should continue with short field goals and extra points, but unless something changes, he doesn’t have the leg for kickoffs. The squibs will come back to haunt us. This should be priority number 1 for the next week. Get Bennett on the field. He must be better than this.

Overall: B

What a difference. Down early and not panicking. Players excited on the sidelines. A coach showing just a little personality (Jags getting handsy with the line judge). It’s what we’ve all longed for. If this continues, we’ll all be saying “TOB who?” The game wasn’t perfect but we made good adjustments and won with excitement and passion. BC football is fun again! Very good start

A nice start

I would consider leaving the ACC if it meant we never had to play Wake Forest again. I can never relax against the Deacons. This had all the makings of a typical Wake meltdown, but things were different. Jags kept the team calm and kept attacking. Good win.

Quick thoughts before I post my review...
-- I liked the attacking offense
-- I think the D played pretty well (though I may feel differently after watching it back)
-- Mixed day on special teams
-- Good turnout from the BC fans

Finally, congrats to Jags. We have a long way to go and it was a far from perfect day, but he and his staff are a breath of fresh air and I am looking forward to next week and the rest of the season.

Grades and second viewing thoughts will be posted Sunday.

In-game comments post

Trying something that I used occasionally during basketball -- an in-game comments post. Since this game is on TV, I won't be online. For those who are, this post is open to leave your thoughts, vent or celebrate. To comment, you have to register with blogger/google. It is free and easy. We'll see how it goes.

As for the game, I think we'll be fine without Raji. This post in the Globe did the best job explaining the situation.

Today marks the beginning of a new era. Go Jags and GO BC!!