Spaziani Talks Spring Ball, Continuity As A Key To Success

In a rare offseason media appearance, Frank Spaziani joined Jack Arute and Randy Cross on the SiriusXM College Football Playbook on Friday. Arute and Cross asked Spaz what he saw in spring ball that gets him excited about this fall.

"We started a little bit early and you know, we had a lot of young players last year. And what I saw in the spring, we would have liked to have more guys participate. Let me just say that off the top. We had a lot of injuries. A lot of our guys were going through spring practice for the first time. They got that experience. They learned a little bit more about what it takes. Individuals got better. We've got a great attitude. Everybody's adapting to some of our new coaches. We came out of there ready to take the next step in the summer workouts and get ready for the preseason."

Spaz preached continuity as the key to success for the Eagles football program, pointing to fellow ACC member and cross-divisional rival Virginia Tech as a perfect example.

"You look at the successful programs year in and year out, you're going to find a lot of continuity there. Take our conference, for example. Virginia Tech didn't get good overnight. Those guys have been there forever. Frank (Beamer) has been there forever. That's the kind of stuff that breeds success. Yeah, you're always going to have some change, guys are going to move, they got ambition and want to move on, but the core philosophy and the core attitude has to be there. The continuity has to be there."

Spaz also downplayed the notion that Boston is a pro sports town and interest is waning in Eagles football as a result.

"It's seem very logical, but there is a core of people here. There's a niche of people that care and want to make sure that we're putting our best foot forward, we're excelling... you know, the Jesuit philosophy here 'Ever to Excel.' We have a core of fans and core of people that really care. Yes, there is a little diversity here with the professional teams, but that doesn't undermine anything that we're trying to accomplish here. If anything, our people are just as excited and motivated to have a good football program as anywhere in the country."

I don't want to revisit history, but a couple of years ago, we were the #2 in the nation. It was one of the best stories going around. That's not flying under the radar. I mean, it can be done here and it will be done. And that's what we need to do. We're in a great place with a lot of advantages that other schools don't have."

Listen to an excerpt of the interview over at SiriusXM Sports.