PROGRAMMING NOTE
First, the forecast: Snow. Lots of it.

Also, a note that we are switching it up this week. Here is the Big Finish submitted for your approval. Tomorrow we'll have the second half of our bowl picks. I know you all are waiting with bated breath regarding our Music City Bowl pick (spoiler alert: no surprise there).

Also, we are entering the second annual "students are home for the holidays, BC news slows, football season essentially over, mild blogger burnout, ACC Championship Game depression, and so on, and so forth" period for the blog. Posting will slow over the last two weeks of December as Jeff and I enjoy the holidays and exchange gifts. I'm thinking of getting Jeff Clemson Tiger paw whale pants (good god! Retail $135.00?! Don't they know we are in a recession?) while Jeff is going to buy me this lovely, collegiate polo shirt of my second favorite college football team.

As always, if you have comments or suggestions on how to make this site better, hit us up with an email.


Brian: Jeff, my boy J.P. Giglio of the Raleigh News & Observer writes that this year is the "Year of the Sophomore" for ACC basketball. Outside of the North Carolina Tar Heels, the league is rife with talented second year players. BC leads the way with four sophomore starters - Sanders, Raji, Southern and Trapani (transfer). Giglio goes on to predict that BC will make the NCAA Tournament behind the play of its sophomores. Are you surprised?

Jeff: I keep on trying to tell people that this basketball team is half decent and can make the tournament but BC fans don't seem to want to listen to me or agree with me. I like the team's chances of making the dance given what I know today and the improvement I expect to see throughout the year. Saying Boston College WILL make the dance instead of saying they will have a chance or will be considered is slightly surprising, but if BC were still in the Big East everyone would be talking about BC as one of the 87 teams from that conference that should make it this year.

Brian: As you said, I think the Eagles CAN make the tournament this year. To pencil them into the tournament right now, however, is a different matter entirely. And ESPN's bracketologist Joe Lunardi seems to agree with me. ACC teams in as of November 12 were North Carolina (1), Duke (2), Miami-FL (5), Wake Forest (7), Virginia Tech (9), Clemson (10). Still, there seems to be something entirely unholy about releasing a bracket in November!

Jeff: That bracket was compiled over a month ago. The Eagles might slip in there the next time Mr. Bracketologist updates.


Big Finish

Brian: From the depths of the truly bizarre, a Michigan football fan auctioned off his fanhood and the high bidder was the Ole Miss program with a bid of $301. Jeff, how much is your BC fandom worth to you? What would it take for you to fully convert to, say, being a Clemson fan? $5?

Jeff: To auction my fanhood off to just the highest bidding school would take more than $301.00. But if I could pick, I'll sell to Clemson for $100.00.

... Duke $250.00
... LSU $275.00
... Georgia $325.00
... Connecticut $4,000.00
... South Carolina $5,000.00
... Rutgers $15,000.00
... Oregon $20,000.00
... Notre Dame $75,0000.00
... Boston University $75,001.00

Brian: It takes a bigger man than myself to admit to everyone your fandom can be bought fairly easily. But Duke $250?! Seriously? Have fun with 4-8 football seasons. You might want to up that number as I could fairly easily raise that capital. And I hear the ACC is in the market for a Duke blogger? It would take an inordinate amount of money to buy my fandom - the highest rates going to Big East programs, Hockey East programs, ACC programs and Notre Dame.


Jeff: College hockey is pretty slow these days but Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Globe takes the opportunity to grade the Hockey East teams at the break and gives the Eagles a B-. That cool with you?

Brian: A think it's fair. Muse's play has been inconsistent and aside from Bradford, our other scorers need to step it up. But it's only December and York-led teams seem to find a way of coasting through the first three months only to turn it on in March and April. (Side note: what happened to grading on a curve?! No As?)


Brian: If it feels like the college football season has already flown by, that's because it has. The Wiz of Odds reveals that an average of 12 minutes and 8.69 plays have been lost per game given the new clock rules set down by the Football Rules Committee. Jeff, your thoughts?

Jeff: Adjusting the clock rules was a terrible idea. They should've considered shortening halftime by a few minutes, starting games on time, and shorterning TV timeouts in order to fit games into the allotted TV program times before changing the rules on the field of play.


Jeff: Is Vanderbilt a bowl team?

Brian: After reading that, I would say no. But, as we all know, my first impression is incorrect.


Brian: On the second page of this Globe article, GDF states that he anticipates only using 2,000 of the 10,000 tickets allotted to BC for the Music City bowl. You surprised?

Jeff: I'm not at all surprised that its a low number. If the fact that neither you nor I are going is any indication, there will not be too many BC fans there and consequently I don't want to hear any bitching when we fall to the lowest possible bowl next year also.

Brian: I'll continue to bitch about the bowl system regardless of the BC travel issue. But next year when the H-Bowl is out of the ACC rotation, BC will have softer landing spots come December - Florida, Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington DC, San Francisco or Nashville ... Tennessee probably being the least desirable of all of them.


Brian: Last one, BC squares off with ex-Big East and regional rival Providence on the hardwood Saturday afternoon. BC has won 5 straight while Providence has won 3 straight. Who ya got?

Jeff: BC of course.