Decade in Review: Ten most important people

This is another look back at this momentous decade in BC sports. The following are the men who did more to shape BC sports than any other. (As always feel free to tell me who I overlooked or overrated.)

1. Gene DeFilippo
Gene has many critics. They are quick to point out that much of BC's success the last decade came on the shoulders of coaches he did not hire. Gene also rubbed plenty of fans and alumni the wrong way with his heavy handed practices on Donor Based Seating and tailgating. Yet there was no one who was more influential on Boston College sports in the last 10 years. Gene's micromanaging changed the direction of our fundraising efforts, closely protected the image of the school with the media, and enhanced some of the things BC already did very well (graduate players, etc.). All his good deeds and mistakes are just a drop in the bucket compared to the most important accomplishment of Gene's tenure, which was getting BC in the ACC. Gene's people skills and politicking are the main reason we were involved in the initial ACC talks and stayed involved even when hope was lost. If you want to know what a difference a good AD makes, look at Pitt and Syracuse. If they had someone like Gene on their side, neither would still be stuck in the Big East. Gene is far from perfect, but this was his decade and BC is better for it.

2. Frank Spaziani
During the longest sustained success of BC Football there was one constant -- Frank Spaziani. Spaz's consistent defenses kept BC in countless games when we should have been overmatched. He took on a bunch of "great offensive minds" and came out ahead. He rarely got the attention or recognition he deserved. Most importantly he made the players on the defensive side better with his teaching and with his schemes. Spaz's ultimate legacy will be his record as head coach, but we shouldn't over look how much he helped BC in the '00s.


3. Jerry York
In the past ten years, Jerry York has won four Hockey East Titles and three Beanpots. He led BC to six Frozen Fours. And most importantly brought home two National Championships. If a basketball or football coach had that sort of success at BC, we would probably rename the school after him. York has been the best coach on campus during the past ten years and one of the best guys around. Let's hope we get another ten years from him!

4. Matt Ryan
It is appropriate that BC put Matt in their commercial shortly after his graduation. Ryan embodies everything we want in a BC athlete. The fact that I also could have filled the Top Ten moments list with just his highlight also makes his time at BC important. He's a gentleman, a fierce competitor, a winner, and a good guy. We are fortunate that we got to witness his coming of age this decade and we are also fortunate that he will be a great ambassador for the school over the next ten years.

5. Al Skinner
This week is not ideal to talk about Al Skinner's impact on BC sports over the last ten years. But a few bad losses cannot overshadow Skinner's many accomplishments during the '00s. Skinner is not your stereotypical college hoops coach, but he was the right guy for BC and has provided great performances and exciting basketball.

6. Troy Bell
I felt the need to place Bell right behind Skinner. Skinner deserves most of the credit for BC basketball's success but if not for Bell, Skinner might not still be here. Bell put the team on his shoulders and provided a template on how to win at BC. He rewrote the BC record books and earned numerous individual and team honors. BC was basketball wasteland when Bell arrived. Ten years later, we are a consistent tourney team. Thanks, Troy.

7. Tom O'Brien
TOB's legacy is somewhat diminished by Jags and Spaz's success in the post TOB era. But you cannot overlook all that TOB did in his time at BC. He is the program's winnigest coach and provided much-needed stability during the '00s.

8. Mike Mottau

There are so many BC hockey players that you could point out as critical to the past decade or as representatives of BC sports. I selected Mottau because he was the only star of the past ten years to win the Hobey Baker award. Mottau also served as a success story for York to recruit with. Many of the talented players who came to the Heights were hoping to be the next Mottau. We haven't had a Hobey Baker winner since, but we've had plenty of great hockey.

9. John Swofford
Swofford was the visionary behind the ACC's expansion. When his first attempt fell short of the goal, he stayed focused and got BC into the conference. As I've been mentioning over and over, the move to the ACC was by far the most important event of the past ten year and it all started with Swofford.

10. Father Leahy
Leahy is not hands on when it comes to BC sports. But he picks his moments well (coaching changes, conference changes, etc). BC is coming off a great 10-year run and it was all on Leahy's watch. He deserves credit for not screwing it up and providing the right kind of leadership.

Decade in Review: Ten best moments

This is another look back at this momentous decade in BC sports. The following are the moments where BC came out on top and we were all on cloud nine. (As always feel free to recount your own BC highs in the comments section.)

1. BC joins the ACC
While the move to the ACC doesn't have the defined moment that a victory provides, there was no bigger deal for BC sports than moving to the ACC. The revenue, security and branding the move ensured helped take BC sports to the next level. Father Leahy and Gene deserve credit for getting the ACC back to the table after the first attempt fell apart and for closing the deal when the second chance arose. The fact that BC has been very competitive in the new conference is the cherry on top. In the ever changing world of college athletics, BC now has a permanent place at the table and a world class conference for our athletes and fans.

2. BC's comeback in Blacksburg
It lacks the historical importance of Flutie's Hail Mary, but Ryan's comeback in Blacksburg will remain his defining college moment and the highlight of one of BC's best seasons. It had all the elements you want: a national TV audience, a win despite the clock and the odds, and a total team effort. The magical season did end but for a moment it seemed like it was our turn on top.

3. The 2001 National Championship
When Jerry York took over the hockey program in 1994, many wondered if BC could ever rebuild and return to its former glory. This title was the culmination of that rebuilding effort. After near misses the prior years, this was also proof that BC could win the big one.

4. The 2001 Big East Championship
Much like Jerry York, Al Skinner took over a program in ruins. His first few years were real struggles, but Troy Bell's strong freshman year offered hope. The 2000-01 season started off surprisingly well and never really slowed down. BC won the regular season and then capped it off with a BE Tourney run at MSG.

5. The 2004 Big East Championship
I'll concede that the BC Women's run in the 2004 Big East Tourney has probably been forgotten by many BC fans. That unfortunate because it was a huge accomplishment and the highlight of women's sports in the past ten years. (Plus they beat the UConn women in route to the finals, which is always nice.)

6. The basketball team starts 20-0
Like some of the moments above, it felt like the team could do no wrong. And this wasn't a cream puff, fluky streak. We beat Clemson, UCLA, UConn, West Virginia, Georgetown and a host of other real programs. It also saw the emergence of Jared Dudley as a dominant player. The second half of the season included an early exit from the Big East Tournament and a disappointing showing against UW-Milwaukee but the start of the season will be tough to top.

7. Beating Notre Dame in the green jersey game
The Irish were undefeated and in their latest "return to glory." Handing them their first loss was important but the jerseys were also a statement. Wearing special uniforms for the BC game was acknowledgment that we were a special game and a rival. This was the signature win of the TOB era.

8. The 2008 National Championship
If the 2001 Championship was the culmination of the rebuild, this title showed that BC could do more than just make the Frozen Four. It also relieved the sting of the two tough losses in the 2006 and 2007 Championship game.

9. Winning at Clemson in 2007
Another Ryan comeback and another classic with the Tigers. The difference with this game though was that it clinched the division title and put BC in the ACC Championship game.

10. Beating No. 6 Duke in 2009
There are plenty of other basketball wins that could have made the list, but this game marked a couple of milestones. 1. we finally beat Duke. 2. It legitimized BC's earlier win at North Carolina. 3. It gave BC another resume win. 4. It happened in front of a home crowd. 5. We finally beat Duke.

Honors keep rolling in for Kuechly and other links

Luke Kuechly continued to earn recognition for his outstanding play this year. Sports Illustrated named his second team All America. (Castonzo earned honorable mention from SI.)

CFN named him first team.

The Sporting News handed out accolades to some BC freshman. Chris Pantale and Kuechly made Freshman All ACC. Kuechly made their first team, national team too.

Jared Dudley has become a dangerous shooter from long range.

Did anyone else know that the BC band performed at the Heisman ceremony? Pretty cool.

The guys from BC Draft held an interview with Johnathan Coleman.

Freshman Steven Whitney earned Hockey East Rookie of the Week honors.

Decade in Review: Ten worst moments

This is another look back at this momentous decade in BC sports. I will get the pain out of the way with a recap of the lowest of the lows. (As always feel free to recount your own BC horrors in the comments section.)



1. Syracuse 2004
Some readers have told me to let this game go already. I don't think I ever will. Part of me changed as a BC fan that day. In fact, I had so much frustration and emotion after that I decided to start a BC sports blog only a few days later. This loss is the worst in my opinion because the stars will never be as aligned as they were that day. BC was 60 minutes from a BCS bowl game. The supposed ceiling was going to be busted. All we had to do is take care of business against a lame duck Syracuse team at home. You know what happened. The loss stinks. In retrospect trying to win with Matt Ryan is his first start was a daunting task. But what made the day so terrible is that we didn't even show up. We were run over from the very first drive and Syracuse never looked back. It was a gutless performance on what should have been TOB and BC's crowning achievement.

2. The Jags firing
Others might view this as a great moment of the last ten years. I won't and hope that history doesn't get scrubbed or rewritten by the victors (in this case, GDF). You can listen to all the rumors out there regarding Jags, but at the end of the day BC was not better off for firing him when and how they did. He blew it. Gene blew it. And it never had to be that way. Jags' two seasons were exciting and filled with emotion and hope. Would it have burned out or blown up eventually? I don't know. Will Spaz be the better long term solution? I don't know. I do know that I felt pretty low when this happened and I think BC sports suffered because of the pissing match between our current AD and our former coach.

3. "We're up, aren't we?"
BC fans are a forgiving lot. We all wanted to believe that TOB was going to get it one day and bring us beyond the near misses. However, this throw away quip to Erin Andrews during halftime of a BC-Miami game was the final straw for many BC fans. I wrote a lengthy post in response to that game and TOB's comments. We may be guilty of reading too much into what he said. For many though it symbolized TOB's stubbornness, lack of a killer instinct and lack of personality. As for a low moment, most BC fans were finishing their turkey and wondering "how long do I have to put up with this attitude." The answer was not for long.

4. Any time Bob Hohler wrote about BC. [I am using Hohler as an entry to capture two aspects that stink as being a BC fan. 1. The Boston media's relationship with the school. 2. As much as we hate to admit it, sometimes our jocks are not choir boys.] If something bad happened in the last decade off the field with BC sports, you could count on the Globe to send Bob Hohler over to campus for a quick hit piece. The Globe never asked their normal BC beat writer to cover potential scandal. That would have been too risky. If the beat guy pissed off BC, he might lose access. So instead the Globe would send a hatchet man and we'd lose the beat guy's perspective and access. Hohler's accounts always seemed to overstate the wrong doings and often took overly negative takes on the circumstances. I know it was not Hohler's fault when BC athletes got in trouble. But he and the Globe took the bad news of the '00s and added an extra bit of negativity each time.

5. Tom Mutch's inappropriate relationships with his players.
Mutch crossed the ultimate line when you are a coach. It was swept under the rug, but that doesn't make the situation any less shameful. Mutch deserves most of the blame, but BC is also at fault for not uncovering it earlier. If not for sexting, Mutch might still be coaching at BC.

6. Losing to Villanova in the 2006 NCAA Tournament.
There are a few different NCAA tourney losses that I could have put in here. The reason I felt this was most painful is because it was probably the best collection of talent BC had in the Skinner era. We played so well at times in that game, yet lost on some bad calls and mental lapses. If we were going to make a run, that was the team that should have done it.

7. Patrick Eaves collision with Joe Exter.
Although he was the scapegoat, this wasn't Eaves fault. As for why it makes my worst moments, I guess because of how dangerous and violent the incident was. We enjoy these sports and forget how much these kids are sacrificing each time they step onto the field or ice. If this had happened in the Youtube era, Eaves would have been national news.

8. Sean Williams getting kicked off the basketball team.
Williams might be the greatest waste of talent to ever come through BC. He blew multiple second chances and let his team and his family down. Sean's love of weed will always leave BC fans wondering what could have been.

9. Getting snubbed by the ACC during their first attempt at expansion.
It all worked out in the end, but the ACC's original expansion to 11 was very scary at the time. BC did everything right yet got left at the alter due to conference politics. When it happened, I thought we were facing a long uncomfortable life as the unwanted team in the second rate Big East.

10. BC getting their bubble burst in 2003.
Every year there is a team that deserves to make the NCAA Tournament that doesn't. In 2003 it was BC. All the talking heads came to our defense, but it didn't matter to the selection committee. It was a shame as Troy Bell's BC career ended in a second round NIT loss to Temple.

[Ed's note. There are many more losses that I could have included, but also wanted to touch on other sports and other issues that were frustrating, maddening or historically bad.]

My BC All-Decade Team

Everyone is putting together their Decade in Review posts, so I thought I would get the ball rolling with my all decade teams. I was pretty subjective in my selection and tried to think of guy's individual season as opposed to careers. Therefore a guy like Alex Albright made the second team at DE based more on his sophomore season. Toal's career was injury filled, but his freshmen year was amazing, so he made the team. I considered any player who played during the '00s. The toughest calls were the offensive line positions. With only two teams, I had to leave off some great players like Augie Hoffman, Pat Ross, and Paul Zukauskas. Leave you thoughts or selections below.

First Team Offense

QB -- Matt Ryan
RB -- William Green
RB -- Derrick Knight
TE -- Sean Ryan
WR -- Rich Gunnell
WR -- Brandon Robinson
OT -- Marc Colombo
OT -- Anthony Castonzo
OG -- Josh Beekman
OG -- Chris Snee
C -- Dan Koppen

First Team Defense

DT -- Ron Brace
DT -- BJ Raji
DE -- Mathias Kiwanuka
DE -- Antonio Garay
LB -- Mark Herzlich
LB -- Jolonn Dunbar
LB -- Ricky Brown
CB -- Dejaun Tribble
CB -- Will Blackmon
S -- Ryan Glasper
S -- Jamie Silva

First Team Special Teams
K -- Steve Aponavicius
P -- Johnny Ayers

Second Team Offense

QB -- Paul Peterson
RB -- Andre Callender
RB -- Montel Harris
TE -- Ryan Purvis
WR -- Dedrick Dewalt
WR -- Will Blackmon
OT -- Jeremy Trueblood
OT -- Gosder Cherilus
OG -- Clif Ramsey
OG -- James Marten
C -- Matt Tennant

Second Team Defense

DT -- Tim Bulman
DT -- Doug Goodwin
DE -- Nick Larkin
DE -- Alex Albright
LB -- Mike McLaughlin
LB -- Josh Ott
LB -- Brian Toal
CB -- Jazzmen Williams
CB -- Lenny Walls
S -- TJ Stancil
S -- Paul Anderson


Second Team Special Teams
K -- Sandro Sciortino
P -- Kevin McMyler

Ticket sales start strong and other links

It seems that ticket sales are strong for the Emerald Bowl. Little if any credit is given to BC. I know we are not bringing the band, but I think we will have a good showing from the Bay Area BC fans.

BC added another member to this year's recruiting class in OL prospect Andy Gallik. He seems like a prototypical BC lineman. Gallik was recruited by Dave Brock, who is shaping up to be the best hire of Spaz's offseason.

ACC Sports took a look at Spaz's defensive philosophy and results.

What to make of the basketball team

Lapses are expected in any basketball season. Skinner teams are notorious for their their hiccups and no shows against some of the worst teams on their schedule. Unfortunately for this team, with the loss to URI, we now have four losses in the first ten games. Even if URI, Harvard and Northern Iowa end up being better than we anticipated, a good team shouldn't have lost all three. Losing all three is a sign of bubbles. It also negates any momentum from the Providence, Michigan, Miami run. Now there is no wiggle room. The team cannot lose another non-conference game and probably needs to win 9+ ACC games. No way we get in with a 8-8 ACC record.

As for Sunday's game, here are my thoughts...

-- Handling the press and free throw shooting are problems...but not the more troubling problems. Both areas have often been an issue for Skinner teams. We still could have won with the turnovers and missed foul shots.
-- The major problem remains defense. URI was 9-15 from 3 (and many of those were open looks) and interior D. How many times did they exploit mismatches or get cuts to the basket?
-- The other issue is our offense. We got impatient on offense and didn't set up the flex enough. We don't need to take 3s. The Dudley-Smith teams rarely took them. Instead we need to work for better shots in the flex. We only had 11 assists! That is troubling. These guys are veterans and should know where to find points in the offense.
-- We need to find a good lineup. Sanders probably tried to do too much tonight, but the bigger problem is that we now lack a good plan for minutes. I think Jackson needs more playing time. I have no idea who should sit more. My guess is that our best lineup is Sanders-Raji-Trapani-Jackson-Paris.

I still have faith. Al tends to pull things together and there is still a lot of talent on this team. But they need to play much, much better from here on out and it starts at D.

Another hockey win and other links

The hockey team beat Providence 3-1 in a Hockey East game Saturday. This is BC's best start since the 2003-2004 season.

This is an interesting article on Under Armour and its impact on basketball recruiting (HT: BCI).

BJ Raji is upsetting some division rivals with his comments on the Bears.

The Giants will lean on Kiwi down the stretch.

Who is Weber State and what are they doing on BC's schedule

When Hofstra dropped football, it left an immediate hole in BC's 2010 schedule. We hoped and prayed for an interesting replacement. Most expected another DIAA/FCS team from the north east. Instead we got Weber State. Needless to say this is a missed opportunity.

I don't mean to slight Weber State in any of this. They are a nice school with a fine athletic tradition. But they are a DIAA program from Ogden, Utah. People wonder if the southern ACC schools register with the casual Boston fan. Can you imagine the head scratching that will go on when they hear we are playing Weber State?

But let me put aside any slights to Weber for a moment and address the reason this is a missed opportunity.

1. The DIAA game should always be strategicly placed in the schedule. We are opening with Weber on Labor Day weekend. I predict 25,000 for the game. If we had placed Weber on Parents Weekend, we could have approached a sellout.
2. It throws out the "good for New England" game. When BC first started adding DIAA teams back to the schedule, Gene spun the games as good for New England. Most cynics saw through it, but there were some legitimate benefits. The regional schools always brought decent crowds and BC was able to get a safe win and provide a nice pay day to a fellow New England university. As Northeastern showed, all DIAA schools need money. Instead of benefiting UNH or Maine or some other New England school we are paying a Utah program to be our patsy.
3. We put a damper on any buzz related to Herzy's first home game. This game could be Herzy's return to football. It should be on national TV. Now we will probably be lucky to get an ESPN 360 feed. I know you can't build a schedule based on contingencies. But ESPN, BC and the ACC should have done more to arrange for a good opponent for Herzy's sake.

I understand that Gene was under time constraints. I understand that playing another FBS school would have made the schedule unnecessarily difficult. But there had to be a better resolution than Weber on Labor Day weekend. It is too bad we didn't find one.

Brian Kelly from a BC perspective

Prior to our 2006 game against Central Michigan, I wrote the following:

This could serve as Brian Kelly’s audition for the BC job. Yes it is the longest of long shots, since TOB is not leaving Chestnut Hill any time soon. But if CMU were to hang with us and go on to a winning season, people would take notice. We will search a conference like the MAC for our next coach. With a few winning seasons, a Mass native like Kelly would certainly be on the short list. And if (God forbid) CMU beats BC, look for some BC fans to try to hire Kelly on Friday.

Little did I know we would make a coaching change after the season. Kelly wasn't in the mix of candidates to replace TOB though...because he had already moved on to Cincinnati. If Kelly hadn't taken the Cincy job, he certainly would have earned an interview with Gene.

Now, three years later, the Massachusetts native has ascended to the highest profile position in college football. Will he be the one to finally turn around our Catholic rival? I don't know. At the time of their respective hires, I thought Davie, O'Leary, Willingham and Weis would all be good fits for the Irish.

While I have no love for Notre Dame, I am not naive or myopic when it comes to their potential. Despite what most college football fans and talking heads say, Notre Dame is not irrelevant. A good coach can win there. Kelly might be that guy. If he's not, the Irish will be making a change again in three or four years.

As for BC, Kelly and what could have been, I don't have any envy of the Irish. Kelly could have done good things at BC, but there are plenty of very good coaches out there. Right now I wish him luck right up until we play them.

Excited for USC and other links

ESPNBoston began its coverage of the Emerald Bowl with this article. As you would hope the guys are all excited to play USC. The link also includes a video with Andre Ware, who infamously predicted a terrible season. Ware doesn't mention his prediction in the clip.

Nathan Gerbe scored his first NHL goal on Wednesday.

Herzy won the Disney Spirit award Thursday night. As soon as the video of his speech is on the internet I will link to it.

Harvard? Again? Really?

This wasn't supposed to happen. The team was ready. They were supposedly focused. We were coming off an impressive string of victories. Yet we lost to Harvard again. I still can't believe it. I didn't see the game, but followed online. If you did the same, you will know how we lost -- we shot poorly and played poor defense.

Where do we go from here? Like last year, we need to regroup quickly. Our resume is spotty so we will probably be on the bubble all year. Let's hope Sanders gives this team a boost.

Phoenix BC fans: Meet Jared Dudley

Having attended the Matt Ryan event here in Atlanta, I strongly suggest any aagle fans living in Arizona to come out for the Jared Dudley meet and greet. Details are below. Congrats to the Phoenix Chapter for putting this together.

BC alumnus Jared Dudley is in the middle of a great season with the Phoenix Suns, and the BC Alumni Association Phoenix Chapter has arranged a meet-and-greet with Dudley following the Suns' January 8 game at US Airways Center in downtown Phoenix. Jared will join BC alumni and friends for a group picture, and the Suns will have other great giveaways for all attendees. The BC Phoenix Chapter will also receive recognition on the US Airways Center jumbotron.

The Suns have put together three discounted ticket options for the BC Phoenix Chapter. While the largest number of people thus far have expressed interest in purchasing tickets at the Lexus Club, everyone who attends will be a part of the meet-and-greet with Jared regardless of the ticket option selected. Wearing of BC gear is encouraged as well. As always, friends and family are welcome, and please contact Adriana Clifton '98 at adrianaone@yahoo.com or Jim Gruber '98 at jim_gruber@yahoo.com with any questions.

Place your order as soon as possible, because the Suns' hot start has tickets going fast and there may not be seats available at the December 21 deadline!

Pete Carroll rebuilding other links

Pete Carroll is hoping to use the Emerald Bowl as a new spring practice and hoping to reenergize his team. I don't know if that is good news or bad news for BC.

Chris Crane is part of the new Arena Football League. His former teammate Jolonn Dunbar's season is over now that he has been put on injured reserve.

The Band/Bowl controversy is now getting mainstream media attention (LA Times, Globe).

BC grad Joe Joe Tessitore will be the play-by-play man for our bowl. Joe does a great job and I am sure he won't let his alumni status impact his calls.

BC might not be the best at selling bowl tickets, but look what happens to the TV ratings when we are not around. This has to be a major disappointment to ABC/ESPN and the ACC as the game was moved to prime time to help ratings.

Finally, here is a better version of Jackson's dunk.

No band in San Fran and other links

No link on this first tidbit, but the band will not be making the trip to California. Supposedly they are just another victim of the terrible economy. Really though it is no surprise. We rarely bring the band to these sorts of things. It is a shame. We should at least bring the pep band. Maybe next year the band can start raising funds before the season and go regardless of the funding from the Athletic Department.

The ACC named Corey Raji the player of the week.

Incoming football recruit cJ Jones was named Gatorade Player of the Year for Delaware.

One of the gifts from the folks at Emerald will be a new watch.

This is an interesting article from the WSJ regarding the growing ranks of Haitian immigrants playing football. I find it interesting since BC has been recruiting Haitian for many years now.

No movement in HD's latest power rankings.

Likes and Dislikes from the Miami win

At the outset of the season, I said we would know about this team after the Providence-Michigan-Miami stretch. I didn't anticipate a sweep all while playing without Sanders. I and the rest of the college basketball world would be very high on BC right now if not for the no show at the Paradise Jam. Still beating Miami was important today and highlighted many of the team's strengths. Here are my thoughts. (Leave your comments below.)

Likes
-- Rebounding (obviously). Like the Michigan game this team won the game on the boards. It was twofold. It improved our efficiency offensively and also limited their opportunities. The closest thing we have to a great rebounder is Raji, but all the guys are good rebounders for their positions and seem to undertand the importance of working the boards.
-- Getting to the line. They shot six free throws. BC shot 25. Although conversion wasn't great, getting to the line like that is a good sign. Skinner's best teams always drew a lot of fouls.
-- Reggie Jackson. He had some mistakes and missed a bunch of 3s, but Jackson is proving that he can make big plays down the stretch and is comfortable in that role.

Dislikes
-- Scoring droughts. As we allowed them back in the game, we had no offensive answer. We need one play or one player that we can count on to break another team's run. Right now, we don't have one.
-- Pressure. We didn't handle Miami's pressure well in the second half and they used it to chip away at the lead.
-- The officiating. I hate pointing the finger at the refs, but they blew the charging call on Jackson and I felt they were giving Miami whistles down the stretch.

San Francisco sounds good to me

As expected, BC is headed to San Francisco for the Emerald Bowl. What wasn't expected until late last night was BC's opponent -- USC Trojans. Yes, that USC. The one with Pete Carroll, a slew of five-star recruits, history, tradition, etc. This happens to be the worst USC team since Carroll's first year, but it is still USC. It is not only a real bowl opponent, it is a college football heavyweight. I will not be in San Francisco, but I encourage any of you who have the time and don't have other obligations to head out west. This bowl might not have a storied history, but you'll get to see a good team in a good park in a great city.

Here are the pros and cons of the Emerald Bowl. Leave your thoughts in the comments.

Pros
-- Great destination
-- Great name opponent
-- In prime time
-- Will be the only game on at that time
-- In a city with a good BC alumni base
-- USC won't bring the same crowd that other potential opponents like Cal or Stanford would have
-- USC might not be especially motivated or excited to play in this game
-- AT&T is a cool park (for fans)
-- A chance for a signature win for this year's team
-- A chance to get to nine wins
-- A chance to see and be seen by California recruits


Cons
-- USC is USC in name only and not that good this year
-- December 26
-- Very far from most BC fans
-- While a great city, San Francisco won't be all that thrilling or warm for the players
-- The game is played in a baseball stadium, which is part novelty but part joke. The endzones but up against the walls and both teams share a sideline
-- No history for the bowl and very little excitement among casual fans or recruits

This is a great opportunity and better than most of the recent bowls BC has been in. I don't expect a huge showing, but hopefully BC fans can rally behind this event. And one final reminder to anyone going: buy your tickets from BC! We only get credit when you buy from our ticket office.

Weekend round up

I'll have separate posts on the basketball game and the bowl, but here are some links from the weekend.

Ramella received the Scanlan Award at the annual team dinner. The Scanlan is the highest award given to a BC football player and represents on the field and off the field success.

Below is a video clip of Reggie Jackson's "charge" in the final minute of the game.

The BC women beat Monmouth this weekend.

BC takes down BU

The hockey team remained red hot with a 4-1 victory over Boston University at BU. This follows the win over UMass on Friday. BC is unbeaten in their last five and will certainly move up in the polls.

Hockey starts weekend off on right note and other links

BC moved up the Hockey East standings with a win over No. 9 UMass Friday night. The guys face BU Saturday night.

Future Eagle Kevin Pierre-Louis was named the Gatorade Player of the Year for Connecticut.

Herzy received a standing ovation when he accepted the Commissioners Cup at the ACC awards in Tampa.

The Michigan media caught up with Josh Southern after our game against the Wolverines.

The selections haven't even been confirmed and already the Stanford media is complaining about playing BC.

For those who missed it, Charlie Davies is doing better and thanking his fans.

An opening in BC's schedule

Hofstra abruptly dropped their football program this morning. That leaves BC with an opening in their 2010 schedule. No word on who BC might look to in order to fill the void. I expect we will find another FCS (DIAA) school. I would love to see another FBS (DIA) opponent.

You can check out other teams' future schedules here. If we go FBS, the Big Ten might have some openings. UConn is also available since they were supposed to play Northeastern.

Pics from Ann Arbor

Thanks to Kelly Z for these shots from last night.

Bounce back night for BC hoops

Michigan may be overrated, but that was a big win for the basketball team last night. It was also my first chance to watch them play this season. Here are my thoughts. (Be sure to add yours in the comments section.)

Likes
-- I appreciated the defensive effort. The guys limited second chances by rebounding well. You also saw a little bit of 2-3 zone, which I don't think Michigan was expecting. There was good help D and even some good one on one battles late in the game.
-- Patience on offense. As mentioned by everyone (Globe, Herald) Raji got a ton of easy baskets. He also converted at a great rate. I don't think you can depend on Raji to carry the team, but last night should be a lesson to everyone of how to get points in this offense. When Sanders returns I hope he works towards the basket like that and doesn't start chucking 3s.
-- Transition and handling the press. BC did a great job in transition and burned Michigan with a few fast breaks. They also got back on D and broke the press when Michigan applied it. Maybe up tempo and pressure won't be an Achilles Heel this year.

Dislikes
-- Letting Michigan back in the game. The final score doesn't show how much BC controlled. They let down a bit defensively in the final few minutes. We cannot do that against good teams.
-- Free Throw Shooting. Raji missed late and the others missed a few. Corey will be fouled late in the game until he shows he can make them.

In other news, the BC women bounced back too with a nice win over Iowa.

Game watches for ACC/Big Ten Challenge

The Boston Alumni Chapter put together a game watch for tonight's game. Info below.

JA Stats
99 Broad Street
Boston, MA 02110

Includes half price appetizers

If any other groups are doing anything please feel free to post in the comments.

Comm Ave Rivalry gets WSJ treatment and other links

York and Parker share the spotlight in this WSJ piece on BC and BU hockey. It is a shame that BC fans (including this one) don't always appreciate what we have in hockey.

Josh Southern is excited about playing in Michigan against former high school foes.

The key tonight is BC's defense of Michigan's perimeter shooting.

Seeing Evan Smotrycz at Michigan leads the Globe to ask if BC ignores local talent. In the article Duquette explains BC's philosophy.

For those who missed it, Kuechly picked up another award. This time as the ACC Defensive rookie of the year.

Jared Dudley's post NBA career plans include college coaching. That puts him inline to take over after Al's replacement retires.

The BC women will take on Iowa tonight as part of their version of the ACC/Big Ten challenge. The game will be on the Big Ten Network.

Blogpoll Ballot

Because of a hectic travel schedule I didn't file a blogpoll ballot last week. That sort of gave me an excuse to start from scratch. Doing so left me with a ballot very similar to the writers and coaches. Although the jinx is not a concern I still had trouble voting for BC given how they finished.

Games I watched
BC-Maryland 100%
Georgia-Georgia Tech 50%
Texas-Texas A&M 50%
Auburn-Alabama 50%

Rank	Team
1	Florida
2	Alabama
3	Texas
4	Cincinnati
5	TCU
6	Oregon
7	Iowa
8	Penn State
9	Boise State
10	Georgia Tech
11	Virginia Tech
12	Miami (Florida)
13	Ohio State
14	LSU
15	West Virginia
16	Pittsburgh
17	Oregon State
18	Brigham Young
19	California
20	Oklahoma State
21	Nebraska
22	Houston
23	Stanford
24	Central Michigan
25	Northwestern

BC finally speaks about the Under Armour deal

Although the deal has been done for over a month, BC and Under Armour finally announced their new partnership. Under Armour will be the official provider for BC uniforms, apparel, and shoes. This year will be the last season our teams wear Reebok. Reebok had outfitted BC since 1994.

The financials of the deal were not included but assume it was pretty lucrative. Reebok had a window to match UA and I was told that they didn't because Under Armour came in with such a high number.

Although this doesn't directly impact the play on the field, I am excited about the switch. UA provides a cache that recruits will like and a wide variety of merchandise for BC fans.

How do you think a tight-fitting, breathable, maroon and gold t-shirt will look with my whalepants?

More honors and other links

Congratulations are in order for Anthony Castonzo and Luke Kuechly, as both were named first team All ACC. Boston College, North Carolina and Miami were the only schools with multiple first-team selections. Montel Harris and Matt Tennant are part of the second team. Honorable mention and freshman will be out later this week.

The ACC also named Kuechly the defensive back of the week for his play against Maryland.

HD placed BC 6th in her weekly power rankings.

Multiple sources are leaking this and I put it up on Twitter, but BC is going to the Emerald Bowl. Nothing has been officially announced yet since there are some contingencies for other bowls based on the results of the ACC Championship Game. However, we are not part of those contingencies and will be in the Bay Area the day after Christmas.

Soccer loses and other weekend links

The men's soccer team season ended with a 6-4 loss to Drake in the NCAA tournament. The high scoring affair put an end to the uneven season. The nice point is that they ended the season well and now regularly expect to make the playoffs. For those who missed it, the women's team got bounced from the NCAAs by Stanford on Friday night.

Everyone has us going to San Francisco to most likely play Stanford in the Emerald Nut Bowl.

HD gave Steve Aponavicius a helmet sticker despite his one miss.

Basketball back on track (for now)

After the disaster in the Caribbean, I feared that the season could unravel as early tonight. Fortunately we beat Providence without Rakim and without making a 3-pointer. I didn't see the game, but it looks like we were much more efficient on offense, better on the boards and less careless with the turnovers. If anyone saw the game, feel free to leave your thoughts below.

Winning is what matters

Congratulations to the seniors and Spaz. We didn't win the division, but 5-3 is an accomplishment.

As for the game, it was much closer than it had to be. I grew frustrated with the redzone play calling and also thought we screwed up the clock management/prevent defense...again. Regardless, we won...again. Now we just have to wait for our bowl news next week.

I will be traveling Sunday so I won't have the second viewing thoughts and grades until late Monday.

In-game comments post: Maryland

This is our last football game for a few weeks. It is also Spaz's chance to end the regular season on a high note. Let's go Eagles!

I will be at the game and not online. Leave your thoughts and comments below.

Turn out to watch BC and the Terps

Despite our travel rep, BC fans turn out for Maryland. I am sure that much of that is due to the large alumni population in the DC area. Because of large gathering of Eagles the DC Club is hosting a pregame tailgate. Here is the info:

Alumni Association is hosting a pre-game tailgate inside the Samuel Riggs IV Alumni Center, located on the University of Maryland campus, from 12:30 until 2:30 p.m. Kickoff is at 3:30 p.m. The Alumni Center is located next to the stadium.


I don't think I will make it to the tailgate but I will be at the game. I'll be in Section 2, Row FF with my dad and wife. Come by and say hello if you are there.

BC-Maryland preview

In my opinion this is the least intriguing game we've played in years. Not much is at stake. I don't think we play a particularly exciting brand of football. Maryland doesn't have much to play for. It defines anticlimactic. That said, I will be there in person and always enjoy the game day experience.

Narrative talking point that you’ll tire of by the end of the game. "Is this Friedgen's last game..." There are plenty of conflicting stories on whether or not Maryland is ready to make a move with their head coach. My fear is that Maryland will come out motivated and playing well and we will be forced to listen to various iterations of "they are trying to win this one for their embattled coach." Friedgen always moves the ball against Spaz. If he does again Saturday it won't be because his team has extra motivation.


Three Simple Keys
1. Stop the run. Maryland ran for 196 yards last week and nearly upset Florida State. If they do that to us, we could be in trouble.
2. Limit turnovers. Shinskie has been reckless lately and now he enters the gaming trying to win the job for next year. Let's hope the pressure to perform makes him more conservative and not more of a gambler.
3. Contain Torrey Smith on kick returns. He's talented and gives them a boost via field position. We need to kick it away from him or keep him from breaking anything big.


Gambling Notes
-- Spaz is 1-3 against the spread on the road
-- Friedgen is 5-3 in his final game of the regular season
-- BC is 2-1 all time in College Park
The current line is BC-6

Factoid
BC's new apparel provider will be Under Armour. UA was founded by two Maryland students and the Terps were the first team to wear Under Armour gear.


Scoreboard Watching
Watch whatever you want at this point. We are not in the mix for Tampa. We are 99% certain for the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco. If anything root for the ACC teams in out of conference matchups like Georgia Tech and Florida State.

I hope to see…
BC with a positive turnover margin. (I still can't believe how many plays the defense made last week that were given back by Shinskie.)

BC is in trouble if...
BC is down at halftime. I think last week was a lesson in how we are not the best team to try to come back throwing the ball.


Bottom Line
I think BC will win this game. I do fear the Turtle in that Fridge can always move the ball on Spaz. We've won these games in the past with turnovers. I think that will be the model this weekend too. Although there is nothing on the line, a win is important. We need to end the season on a high note.

Final Score: BC 28, Maryland 17

Guest Blogger: Turtle Waxing

Esquire from Turtle Waxing is back to tell us about the Terps and the Fridge's future. My answers and his questions are below.


1. Your offensive line was a problem earlier in the year. Is it still the main issue on offense?

TW: The line probably had its best game of the season last week against FSU but it is still a weak spot on the offense. Left tackle Bruce Campbell is capable of playing at an All-ACC level but has missed a number of games due to injury. He finally looks like he is shaking the rust off and dominating. There are a number of young kids mixed in the bunch and while right tackle R.J. Dill has struggled at times he also seems to be improving. The constant shuffling of the line due to injury and performance issues has not helped matters. With the mobile Jamarr Robinson at quarterback it helps the line's pass blocking. When Chris Turner was healthy he was like an old Drew Bledsoe at quarterback: he could make some plays with a weak arm but was likely to take a drive killing sack because he held on to the ball too long.

With RB Da'Rel Scott back from injury the running game is much better.

2. You've only held one opponent under 20 points all year. Obviously there are problems on defense. Is there one aspect of the D that is creating most of the issues?

TW: Lack of talent and experience. The defensive line is a patchwork affair and there are not any guys in that group who would scare a decent offense. The front four do little to disrupt the running game or rush the passer so I would guess the problems start up front, just like with the offense. The linebackers are decent but not great in coverage and have struggled when blockers get by the DL into the second level. With the problems at defensive end the outside linebackers have been beat to the edge by speed backs for big gains.

Defensive coordinator Don Brown plays a blitzing style that will give up big plays. The corners have struggled in one-on-one coverage when they are hung out to dry on the blitz. The safety play has been slightly disappointing as Terrell Skinner and Antwine Perez are big hitters but have failed to make big plays.

To be fair the defense has held the offense of Virginia (13), Duke (17), Clemson(13) and Rutgers (20) to 20 points or less but special teams mistakes and Chris Turner's history of giving touchdowns to the defense either through interceptions or fumbles has inflated those scores.

3. What do you think will happen with Friedgen after the season? What do you want to happen? In hindsight, do you think the coach in waiting situation was a bad idea?

TW: That is the $100,000 question. Right now it seems likely that both Friedgen and offensive coordinator (head-coach-in-waiting) James Franklin will be back next season. There doesn't seem to be the political will to pay out the $5 million required for both coaches given the current economic climate and fiscal deficits in the state.There have been painful cuts to staff and departments to close the budget gap and I doubt paying $5 million for a buyout and then committing the same financial resources to a new staff would play well.

If it was financially possible I would prefer that Friedgen be bought out. I think the Friedgen era has run its course at Maryland and some new blood with a better focus on recruiting would improve the program's fortunes. He has done some great things for the school and football program but asking for repeated raises every time he went to a bowl game and then going 35-37 the last few seasons sealed his own fate in many ways. I don't want Franklin made the head coach either so it is best to clean house and start fresh.

The coach in waiting contract was a horrendous mistake. Much worse than the Friedgen extension, which at least made sense at the time, in that Franklin had little track record other than washing out as an NFL position coach and offensive coordinator at a middling Big XII program. The contract that he was given guaranteed him either $1
million or a five year contract at the average of ACC head football coaches. With Clemson's Dabo Swinney making it to the ACC title game and triggering large contract bonuses Franklin's deal would approach Freidgen's current deal of $2 million per year. Putting $10 million dollars into a young assistant who appears overwhelmed with the responsibilities of offensive playcalling would be insane. If the athletic director was as smart as she thinks she is should would have called Franklin's bluff, as Boston College has done recently, and told him if he could find a better job to go take it. Odds are it would have been easy to hire him in a few years once Friedgen was on his way out and at that point Franklin might have even proven he is capable of being a head coach.

4. What is your prediction for Saturday?

TW: I think you would have to go with Boston College in this game. There is always the possibility of a rally around the leader moment with this team but they have lost so many close games I doubt some fire in the belly will change much. I don't see the offense moving the ball as well on BC as they did against a bad FSU defense. The key in my mind will be Boston College limiting turnovers. If BC doesn't turn the ball
over I think they will win comfortably. If Don Brown's blitzes force BC into mistakes then you could be in for a tough battle. My prediction is that BC will win going away, 31-17.

Herzy doing well after surgery

Sandy was on Twitter to share the good news regarding Mark's surgery. He expects to be on the sideline this Saturday. That is clearly something for which we give thanks.

Paradise lost

I and many others had aspirations of BC being a sleeper this season. I am questioning that now after another dismal showing in the Paradise Jam. We were without Sanders, but that is no excuse for losing in such a fashion. BC controlled in the first half and then got blown away in the second. The defense did not perform well and the offense doesn't seem to know who or where to go with the ball. That shouldn't be happening with a veteran team.

All is certainly not lost, but the guys need to regroup quickly. The Providence-Michigan-Miami stretch is approaching and we need to win two of those to right the ship.

Sorry for the delay in grades

It was a issue with my "blogger" account.

Dana Bible has cancer and other links

Sad news from Raleigh as former BC assistant Dana Bible has been diagnosed with leukemia. Keep his family in your thoughts and prayers.

November 23 marks the 25th anniversary of Doug Flutie's famous Hail Mary. You often hear how Flutie changed BC, but Forbes notes that it changed the college TV landscape. Here is a refresh for those who were born after the famous day.

Luke Kuechly was named ACC Freshman of the week.

Both soccer teams continue to advance in their respective NCAA Tournaments. The men face Drake next Sunday. The women play Stanford on Friday.

Incoming QB Chase Rettig's season is over after losing in the California playoffs.

Second viewing thougths and grade report: North Carolina

I thought UNC was going to be a tough matchup but didn't see the game playing out this way. Unfortunately we wasted a good defensive effort and another solid game form Harris.

Offense: C-

It is now safe to say Shinskie is regressing. The lone sign of improvement was his ability to checkdown to Harris and Pantale. But can you applaud the few instances of checkdowns when he keeps chucking it up into traffic? In addition to his bad decisions, were a couple of really off target throws. The first INT was too high. He threw some deep balls that couldn’t be caught inbounds. He overthrew a few other guys over the middle. UNC has a good pass rush, but Shinskie also held the ball too long in the pocket. Marscovetra didn’t get much time to prove himself, but his INT was also bad.

Harris did everything we could ask. He had tough runs. He made something out of nothing on the numerous runs. He got to the outside and made good reads and cuts throughout. It was a shame to waste such a good effort in a loss. McCluskey didn’t get to do much.

Despite our lousy passing stats, the WRs played well. Gunnell did a good job of finding soft spots and making the catch. Jarvis made a nice catch. Larmond didn’t get much thrown his way.

Pantale looked very good again. All the TEs blocked well and helped Harris break his big runs. Anderson had a pass that he should have caught.

When you see Harris put up good rushing numbers, does that mean the offensive line played well? I say no. I think this was their worst performance since Virginia Tech. Costanzo struggled at various times with their speed and looked like he blew an assignment in one of our red zone runs. Richman looked okay. Claiborne got overpowered a few times before he went down. Lapham got beat on the fumble that was returned. The guys did have their moments when things got better. They were good on many run plays, but there were plenty of miscues that caused Shinskie to force things up.

Let me clarify this since the offensive coordinators are often the whipping boys for message boarders and bloggers. Tranq is a better play caller than Bible. I don’t think he is as good as Logan. Yesterday, I felt he called some good plays (I loved the counters to take advantage of UNC’s aggressiveness.) I also like that he likes to throw the ball downfield. But his goalline plays were too conservative and he didn’t help Shinskie out with once it became clear that Shinskie was having a bad day. Where were the short passes or some of the quick outs? Why keep putting it up into traffic against a team of ball hawks? I but most of the blame for the offense on the Shinskie, but Tranq didn’t do him any favors.

Defense: B

You saw how much a difference maker a healthy Scafe can be. He was making good plays throughout and showed good speed too. Giles made one of the best plays of his career with the INT. Newman was okay. Rossi had a decent game. Ramella was ok.

Kuechly had another game where he was all over the field. McLaughlin's final game at Alumni was solid and better than his past few weeks. Morrissey and LeGrande both played very well. Together the LBs were better in coverage than they've been the past few weeks and also filled the holes quickly when stopping the run.

The DBs played really well. Rollins saved two different TDs and made some nice tackles. Davis played really well, as did Bowman. It was probably the best they've played in tandem all season. Gause made a few mistakes, but was okay. Fletcher was good.

It was a shame wasting such a solid defensive effort. We rarely blitzed but I think the game plan was solid. It kept Yates off balance. We slowed their run game and forced turnovers.

Special Teams: B

Quigley punted well.

LeGrande didn't break anything, but ran hard.

Gunnell had one return.

Steve made his chip shots.

Overall: C

Shinskie's mistakes were clearly the big issue. I did like that Spaz's guys fought back and made it interesting. What caused me to nudge Spaz down though was kicking field goals down 21. Hindsight showed that it wasn't the difference, but once again I think it reflects attitude. You are down big and have a chance to turn the game. Why kick field goals? Giving up on bigger scoring opportunities just puts that much more pressure on your defense. I also didn't like that Spaz didn't challenge the fumble that McLaughlin recovered while he did challenge the spot on the 3rd down. The spots are rarely overturned on review. When your QB is melting down it is tough to win, but I felt like Spaz didn't necessarily push the right buttons. Now we are playing for pride. Let's see how they respond.

Giving it away

For the first time in a long time we are officially eliminated from the Atlantic Division race. A weird game in that we were out of it early, made it interesting and then fell apart again. Congrats to the defense though more making things happen and playing hard.

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

In-game comments post: North Carolina

It is the home finale and a must win. Let's hope the guys go out on top.

I will not be online during the game. Leave your thoughts and comments below.

I guess this means more beach time

A few years ago BC went down and won the Paradise Jam. It was an unexpected run and announced that they were a team to be reckoned with. I thought this year's Jam would be another spring board. Instead we lost to St. Joes Friday. The big news is that Sanders went down early with an ankle injury. The team hung with Hawks but couldn't take a lead in the second half.

The good news is that the team rebounded well and the PGs were careful with the ball. We also made our free throws.

The area of concern is the porous defense. St. Joes got too many easy baskets and too many open looks from 3.

Instead of facing Purdue, BC will now deal with South Dakota St. in the consultation game.

I hoped for a better result but we've bounced back from plenty of early season stinkers in the past. Let's hope Sanders is not out long and the defense gets better quickly.

How to watch tonight's basketball game and other links

For those of you trying to watch BC's opener in the Paradise Jam, try this link.

We now have an official hot dog.

HD held a quick Q&A with Marcellus Bowman.

Game Watches: North Carolina

The game is on ESPN 2, but that doesn't mean you cannot watch it among BC fans. Check out your local chapter's watch. There are only a few games left!


Atlanta Game Watch
STATS
300 Marietta Street NW
Atlanta, GA

Chicago Game Watch
Trinity Bar
2721 N. Halsted (Diversey & Halsted)
on the border of Lincoln Park and Lakeview

Dallas Game Watch
Christie’s Sports Bar
2811 McKinney Avenue
Suite 22
Dallas, TX


Los Angeles Game Watch
Sonny McLean's
2615 Wilshire Blvd.
Santa Monica

New York City Game Watches

Still
192 3rd Ave @ 17th
Manhattan


Pat Obrien's
88st and 2ave

Phoenix Game Watch
Gallagher's Sports Grill
7575 N. 16th Street, Phoenix

San Diego Game Watch
RT's Longboard Grill
1466 Garnet Avenue
Pacific Beach, CA

San Francisco Game Watch
Shanghai Kellys
2064 Polk St
San Francisco

Sarasota Game Watch
Gecko's Grill & Pub
5585 Palmer Crossing Cir.(Clark Road & Honore Ave.)
Sarasota, FL

Washington, D.C. Game Watch
Porter's Dining Saloon
1207 19th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036

BC-North Carolina preview

I hate entering this game with our destiny still dependent upon Clemson losing. Fortunately the noon start means the guys will take the field with an open mind and no idea what will happen between Virginia and Clemson later in the day. UNC cannot win their division, but they are on a definite upswing. This should be another tough game.

Narrative talking point that you’ll tire of by the end of the game. “Alumni Stadium is a very tough place to play. BC is undefeated at home…” As you’ve probably read and heard already, BC has a chance to go undefeated at home for only the second time since 1985 (the 2006 team also went undefeated at home). I don’t want to diminish our fans or stadium, but I don’t think Alumni has suddenly become some sort of house of horrors for visitors. This streak is more about the tough team, the schedule and a little luck. Let’s hope that one day the tight quarters and the weather are complimented by a raucous bunch of fans who get their early and make noise throughout. Right now though the home field advantage is really due to the guys on the field.

Three simple keys
1. No missed assignments up front. Carolina doesn’t do many exotic things with their defensive line. It is more about using their talent and speed to blow up what we are trying to do. In my opinion the game will come down to how our offensive line handles their front four.
2. Get the third and fourth options involved in the passing game. I’ve been harping on this for weeks, but it takes on even more importance this week. UNC will be locking in on Shinskie and looking to pick off everything. If we are going to win it will be because he is passing to Megwa, Flutie, Harris and McCluskey, not Larmond/Gunnell and Jarvis.
3. Stop the run after the catch. Last year the Heels had our secondary spinning sideways with runs after the catch. Nicks is gone but they still have playmakers on offense. Our DBs need to wrap up anyone near them.

Gambling Notes
-- Butch Davis is undefeated against BC
-- BC is 6-2 at home in the month of November since entering the ACC
-- BC is 6-0 against the spread at home this season
The current line is BC-3.5

Factoid
BC has played North Carolina twice in NFL stadiums but never in Alumni.

What I hope to see…
McLaughlin have a big day. He’s one of the rare two time captains in BC history. This is his last home game and he’s played half a season and not at 100%. I would love to see him go out on a high note with some big plays.

BC is in trouble if…
Shinskie decides to give a few more “what the hell” chucks into triple coverage. If Virginia was able to turn those into scores, North Carolina surely will.

Bottom Line
I’ll be honest, I don’t have a great feeling about this game. North Carolina is a bad matchup for us defensively and I don’t know if we will score enough points to win. I think it will be sort of a plodding, close game that turns on one big play. I am holding out hope for a win, but don’t expect a pretty performance.
Bottom Line: BC 20, North Carolina 17

New look for The Heights and other links

In honor their 90th anniversary The Heights has updated their web site. Definitely check it out and I recommend reading the Heights' sports section on a regular basis. Over the past few years it has been the launching point for some very good BC writers.

In other news to be proud of, BC continues to be the leader in graduating its student athletes. Football should be especially proud since it is only one of six programs with a rate above 90%.

Disney is honoring Herzlich with its Disney Spirit Award. Well deserved. I wonder if they have optioned his movie rights already!

Although we've had a special connection with the Cincinnati area, even the folks back in Ohio realize how special Luke Kuechly is.

Since we bypassed hoops recruits last year, these are the names you need to know for next season.

Like Kuechly, I don't know where we would be without Montel Harris.

The Seniors are looking to close out their final home game with a win.