Boston College Football: The Curious Case Of Rolandan Finch

The Heights sports editor Greg Joyce wrote a great piece on the inexplicable absence of running back Rolandan Finch from the Eagles' two-deep. Last year's leading rusher has been relegated to the scout team and didn't even travel with the team to Winston-Salem for last weekend's game against the Demon Deacons.

Joyce pressed Spaz for an answer as to why Finch was seemingly in Spaz's doghouse.

"No doghouse, Deuce is working hard," Spaziani said.

"He's been working on and off the scout team, going to meetings, and you can only get so many backs ready to play," Spaziani said Thursday. "We needed to make sure we designated something, that's all."

When asked who was in line behind starter Andre Williams should he struggle, Spaz remained elusive.

"It’s a good question, because just fumbling alone, as itself, it’s a big factor, but then there’s a lot of stuff that goes into it. Are you preparing not to fumble? Where you’re at with some other things, your other options."

When pressed further as to who the third-string running back is after Williams and converted SS David Dudeck, Spaz named converted DB James McCaffrey, not Finch, as the third stringer. As for the "batting order" at running back, Spaz rattled off a list of players that includes Finch, but also includes a former WR, a former DB, a QB and a walk-on who earned a scholarship in fall camp.

"Right now, it's [Dudeck] and then we go McCaffrey, Finch, [quarterback Josh] Bordner, [Mike] Javorski, there's a list of guys."

All this despite starter Andre Williams giving Finch a vote of support following Saturday's loss to Wake Forest.

So what is Spaziani not telling us about Finch? You would think for a coach who has three games left in his coaching career, he'd be pulling out all the stops to get some semblance of a running game going. When your program's run game ranks 122th nationally and has generated 32, 8 and 12 yards on the ground over the last three games, one would think that starting a guy actually recruited to play running back would be a priority over starting a true freshman converted safety, a former defensive back, a quarterback or a walk-on. But that's just me.

Hat tip: bblaqus