Boston College 21, Duke 16: Umm, Yeah. OK.
by Brian Favat on Nov 13, 2010 3:16 PM EST
in Boston College Football
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PrintSo BC wins another football game. And I should feel ... how, exactly?
The coaching on both sidelines was terrible. Spaz nearly gave me a heart attack towards the end with some miserable clock management.
Were we trying to ice Sean Renfree on the final play by calling a timeout?
Get in his head or something?
Spaz did realize we may have needed that timeout if Duke scores the touchdown there, right?
For his part, Cutcliffe's coaching in this game was equally poor. I don't know what he was thinking when he continued to go back to using backup QB Brandon Connette. That offensive set might have been effective during the year, but Duke hasn't played a team half as good against the run as BC.
The old, tired saying is "a win is a win." I'll take it, I guess. The defense came up large when it had to and Kuechly -- 20+ tackles, 2 pass breakups, forced fumble, fumble recovery, etc. etc. -- and Max Holloway had monster games.
Full analysis on Monday. Go Eagles!
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Tranq
Tranq was better for three quarters but really turtled up on the two three-and-outs and it almost cost us the game. I can’t believe people are patting Spaz on the back for a 5 point win against Duke. Wake and Duke have terrible defenses and our coaches still can’t do anything. The biggest positive was Rettig looking really good today.
One of those two turtled drives was a result of Spaz benching Harris because of the two fumbles. That send what lesson to him, exactly? That the offense can’t move the ball without you? When you most need a first down and not a three-and-out, you put Montel in the game. Don’t care how many fumbles he has.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
We won a gave when Harris fumbled twice in the redzone
I don’t care how, against who, or where. I’ll be super excited about that anytime this season.
We are winning in spite of coaching. I’m not exactly “super excited” about this.
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To be clear, I’m happy / excited for the players. Not excited about the future of the program.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
Sorry Jeff, I have Brian’s back on this one. BC came within about 4 yards of blowing what looked like an easy win today against a bad team. BC sat on the lead for almost the entire 4th quarter (BC ran 3 pass plays in the 4th, what else is new), benched the star RB for a possession when he needed confidence, and there was some very questionable clock management at the end which thankfully didn’t come back to bite us. Spaz/Tranq turtled up in crunch time.
Not to say there was nothing positive, because there was (the defense was great and Rettig will be a star), but this was more like a non-loss than a win. Like a Duke fan said in your GT today, if Cutcliffe doesn’t bring in the terrible backup QB in that goal-to-go situation, they probably win.
Now we have writers like HD telling us we should be happy to just be in a bowl this year. BC got the easiest schedule I can remember, could have won 10 games this year if not for their dithering, but now have one of the worst offenses in the nation, and we’re supposed to be happy with being a .500 barely bowl-eligible team? This season will be, at best, a major disappointment considering what could/should have been. A couple wins against mediocre teams doesn’t change the fact that BC has massively underachieved this year.
Soaring to Glory: A slightly relevant BC blog
by SoaringtoGlory on Nov 13, 2010 9:58 PM EST up reply actions
We didn't almost lose because of coaching.
We almost lost because Montel Harris fumbled twice on the way to atleast 6 points, probably more. This game isn’t even remotely close if he doesn’t have those two fumbles.
I understand they turtled in the 4th with the offensive play calling, but sometimes its more about execution than it is about coaching. I am one of the harshest critics of the coaches.
Good and bad
The fumbles were bad, but Montel still did a lot of positive things today.
The game was close because of the two fumbles. It also wouldn’t have been “even remotely close” if Montel doesn’t gain 100+ yards and score a touchdown.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 13, 2010 10:11 PM EST up reply actions
We almost lost because of coaching ... Cutcliffe's coaching
Duke had 4 … count them … 4 possessions in the red zone. On each of those four possessions, at some point Cutcliffe swapped out Renfree for Connette. Duke got just 9 points (3 FGs) on 4 red zone possessions.
Connette was 2-5 passing for 22 yards, and rushed for -8 yards on 5 carries. That’s awful.
Duke leaves Renfree in on 1-2 of those red zone possessions, and BC probably gives up at least 1 touchdown to their offense.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 13, 2010 10:16 PM EST up reply actions
Future of program???
I think u r putting a bit too much weight on this game. R boys are learning to win. It’s like a tiger cub learning to hunt. It is an essential skill
Today our BC cubs won ugly. Tomorrow they will win sweet
Nonsense
What happens when our “cubs” go up against a real tiger? We get destroyed because we don’t have a coaching staff that teaches these guys to grow up. Look at what happened to Shinskie. This coaching staff gave him Gary Coleman’s disease; he’s a perpetual “cub.”
Cubs
Good points bcnyceagle, especially the “never grow” up Shinskie idea. Peter pan shinskie in spaz’s never land. Ha! But our cubs actually did beat some Tigers this year.
I guess on the plus this year is that we did not completely embarrass ourselves like we did last year vs Clemson and va tech. Although ncsu was embarrassing this year.
Agree
The fact that BC didn’t embarrass itself against Clemson and Virginia Tech this year is definitely a win.
On the other hand, the fact that we lost to N.C. State by 27, a team that we beat by 32 the year before, was pretty disheartening (a 59 point swing year-over-year!). And the fact that we lost to Notre Dame at home after we left something like 21 points on the field last year on the road and lost by 4 was pretty bad, considering we basically have the same team we had last year.
Not all of that falls on coaching, but a good chunk of the blame certainly does I think.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:26 PM EST up reply actions
Good Game Guys!
(well aside from the odd coaching). I hope you guys can at the very least acknowledge that Duke is no longer a total joke and isn’t a completely unworthy member of the conference in football.
Should be a fun season next year if we play you (I don’t know), given that we should be a bowl team next year. And god knows our defense can’t get worse.
Good game
No, Duke’s not a total joke as they’ve been in the past. You guys have come a long way under Cutcliffe. It’s just a shame no one shows up to the home games.
We do play next year — at BC. And then, we’ll won’t see you guys for another 4-5 years.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
Duke bowl bound in 2011?
Looks like some tough sledding in 2011. Not sure I can find six wins on the schedule.
Wins – Richmond, Tulane, at FIU, Wake Forest
Losses – Florida State, Virginia Tech, at Miami, Georgia Tech, at North Carolina
Toss ups – at BC, at Virginia
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BC as a Tossup
I disagree with this characterization but it’s a sad state of affairs that under Spaz that we can even have a conversation about how competitive a home game against Duke will be
BC-Duke next year
Probably leans BC win, but I have a big question mark about next year’s offensive line. We’re not completely starting from scratch but there are some big shoes to fill next year on the line.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 11:57 AM EST up reply actions
I generally agree
But in a weird way our poor o-line play this year makes me less nervous about that. Next year’s OL has a much lower level of play to replicate than I expected – I think it’s feasible that they are more or less comparable to this year (which isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement).
Agreed with that
Though the bar I’d set for the offensive line every year is closer to my expectation of their play going into the season than their actual performance this year. Still there are a lot of starts to fill.
Gone: Castonzo, Claiborne
LT John Wetzel 6-8 303 Jr.
LG Nathan Richman 6-6 300 Sr.
C Mark Spinney 6-4 282 Sr.
RG Ian White 6-5 288 So.
RT Emmett Cleary 6-7 300 Jr.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:21 PM EST up reply actions
That looks right
I think that the OL has been the biggest disappointment of this year, so I have very little faith in Devine to coach them up next year. On the bright side, Richman/Spinney/Cleary all have considerable starting experience and White/Wetzel both have played to varying degrees and will be in their third year in the program. I’m curious about the backups – it looks like our recruits from this year could make up the rest of the two-deep:
LT: Betancourt
LG: Vardaro
C: Gallik
RG: H. Williams
RT: Kramer
Only other options I can think of are Bryan Davis and either Bourne or Goodman but who knows what’s going on with both (either injuries or somethign else).
Also ...
And I know I keep saying this, but BC has a much, much tougher schedule in 2011. Only six home games. The Eagles draw:
Northwestern (7-3)
at UCF (7-3)
UMass (6-4)
at Notre Dame (5-5) — but has beaten us two years running
Florida State (7-3)
N.C. State (7-3)
Duke (3-7)
Wake Forest (2-8)
at Virginia Tech (8-2)
at Maryland (7-3)
at Miami (7-3)
at Clemson (5-5)
Likely will play 10 bowl teams next year, with some brutal road trips to Blacksburg, Miami Gardens, Clemson, South Bend. Definitely a step up from the 3-4 bowl teams we played this year.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:36 PM EST up reply actions
This looks like it will be similar to this year
3-1 OOC, 4-4 in the ACC, 7-5 overall. I think the best we can hope for is to get to 5-3 in conference and have a 2008-like clusterfuck that lets us go to Charlotte.
Non-conference play
To be honest, I think 3-1 in non-conference play is very optimistic.
Northwestern is a good program. Pat Fitzgerald has the Wildcats on the cusp of breaking through in the Big Ten.
Central Florida is having a really good year (despite this weekend’s SMU hiccup) and that one is on the road.
I think until proven otherwise, Notre Dame continues to be a loss, especially on the road.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
2011 Projections
If I had to guess, based on a rough projection of next year and weighing heavily the home/road split:
Wins – UMass, Duke, Wake Forest
Losses – at Notre Dame, Florida State, at Virginia Tech, at Miami
Toss up – N.C. State, at Maryland, at Clemson, Northwestern, at UCF
Lots of question marks and not a lot of guaranteed wins.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
Methinks you overestimate UNC and Virginia.
(We have beaten UVA 3 times in a row).
Anyhow, I wasn’t really referring to the schedule as much as how ti seemed the team was progressing. This was known from the start to be a rebuliding year, after our star QB graduated. If he was a year more experienced, we would’ve probably beaten Wake and Army (especially army) and all of sudden had 5 wins. We lose basically nothing on offense (1 Olineman and Austin Kelly, the #3 option receiver), and the D can’t get any worse.
The D can’t get any worse, but ACC offenses can get better, especially with a lot of young QBs in the conference.
Unfortunately, the deck is fairly stacked against Duke playing in a division with Virginia Tech, Miami, Georgia Tech and recently surging North Carolina.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 11:56 AM EST up reply actions
I don’t know why I gave Duke a guaranteed win over Wake Forest though, considering this year’s head-to-head result.
Doh.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 11:55 AM EST up reply actions
Clemson
Happy to see Clemson lose. Those guys as usual are going nuts at shakin ’the southland. Fire Dabo, fire everyone. Boycott this and that
Biggest. Crybabies going.
Every year they think they are going to the BCS bowl, but it is never to be. So overrated too in the beginning of every season.
Ha !!!!
After the Clemson loss ...
ESPN showed the Atlantic Division standings and had BC below Clemson. Someone needs to write them and complain.
Fourth place in the Atlantic by virtue of the head-to-head, baby!!
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:27 PM EST up reply actions
FWIW
I’ve never been impressed with Dabo. I think they might be onto something.
Tommy Bowden 2.0?
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:27 PM EST up reply actions
He has time.
He’s really young, but certainly the unrealistic expectations going into each season don’t help his cause.
Clemson had a BRUTAL schedule this year. And, oh by the way, I would like to pat myself on the back for predicting a 6-6 (3-5) Clemson season. Some of my other predictions though … yeesh.
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by Brian Favat on Nov 14, 2010 12:32 PM EST up reply actions
Speaking of brutal schedules...
I’m beginning to wonder whether, at this point next season, we’re going to regret going 7-5 or 6-6 against one of the easiest schedules we’ve ever had.
If we were currently running through next years schedule, we’re looking at a good shot at 1-11/2-10 season right now (assuming Clemson gets a bump at home and Duke has a 3rd year Renfree; NC State only beat UCF by 1 TD). Do we really have enough confidence in our coaching staff to coach our players to improve that much? This lost opportunity of a season may have been lost for nothing at all once next season completely exposes these coaches.
Real downer
Bcnyceagle. Most of the real negative nancies are over at Eagle in Atlanta. U might be more comfortable making 1/11 predictions over there.
You probably shouldn’t read the comments section if you think that discussing realistic expectations is being a “negative nancy.”
1-11 is really only if Wake improves significantly (which is entirely possible considering they are also a young, inexperienced team, but they also do have a good coaching staff.) Remember, we only won by 10 pts. 2-10 is an entirely reasonable possibility though considering what we’ve seen from this coaching staff in terms of player progression (ie. the entire returning O-line regressing, Shinskie turning back into a rookie, etc).
Not to mention, my post was mostly hypothetical. Do I really think that we’re going to be that bad? No, 2-10 is a possibility, but its not a probability. We might win a few tossups, but then we’ll still be struggling to be bowl eligible. I was supposing what would have happened with the current team in next years gauntlet. It would be ugly. In fact, it would be so ugly that I don’t think Spaziani would have survived the year, and that probably would have been for the better.
BC is not going 2-10 next season
That said, there’s no way this team is going 10-2 next season either, which (I think) wasn’t an unrealistic expectation and one I had for this team going into the season.
This year’s schedule was very manageable. Next year’s schedule will be very tough with Miami rolling back onto the schedule and Virginia (and then Duke) off it. Basically, any time you draw both Duke and Virginia from the Coastal side of the Division — since we already have a disadvantage playing the best Coastal team every year — you have to capitalize.
Not to mention the years of playing two MAC schools and a I-AA school in non-conference play are behind us, with non-conference dates with programs like Notre Dame, Syracuse, Northwestern, USC, Stanford — all BCS programs on the rise. Heck, even schools like UCF and Army are playing better football and won’t be pushovers.
BC Interruption, SBN's Boston College Eagles blog
BC will probably keep having mediocre 6-8 win seasons for as long as Spaz is here, with no ACC Atlantic titles, and the All-is-well crowd will rejoice every year that we made a barely-meaningful bowl game.
Soaring to Glory: A slightly relevant BC blog
by SoaringtoGlory on Nov 14, 2010 5:02 PM EST up reply actions
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