Boston College Football: Defense Continues Strong Play

While the BC offense certainly played well and showed improvement to no surprise the BC defense was the overall winner in the first scrimmage.

Defensive Line

Zach Allen took the start at one defensive end spot with Harold Laundry sidelined while Kevin Kavalec lined up opposite him. In the middle it was Noa Merritt and Truman Gutapfel with a healthy mix of Wyatt Ray mixed in. Allen and Ray each had a sack.

It’s easy to see why Steve Addazio hyped up Gutapfel during Media Day last week because the senior defensive tackle just engulfs any running play that comes through his gap. I could really see him as a 2^nd or 3^rd Team All-ACC performer this year.

For the second unit, Jack Cotrell turned in a productive scrimmage with three batted balls.

Linebackers

The first string backer group was Matt Milano, Connor Strahan, and Ty Schwab. Strahan was a maniac during the scrimmage and was all over the field making tackles. He ended up the leading tackler and chipped in with a couple tackles for a loss as well.

The highlight from the second group came courtesy of freshman John Lamont who had a pick six off of Darius Wade. Lamont read the play beautifully and stepped in front of the receiver to pick off the pass. A few plays before, Lamont almost picked off Patrick Towles in the same exact fashion.

Secondary

The first and second team defensive backs each got busted on explosive plays but overall the units played phenomenal during the scrimmage. For the most part the backs made even 6-7 yard completions difficult for the BC offense.

Gabe McClary had an interception off of Patrick Towles in the scrimmage and Isaac Yiadom was basically glued on his receiver all day. William Harris had to exit the scrimmage after a big-time collision with Davon Jones. John Johnson had a huge tackle on Jon Hilliman which stopped the back after a 10 yard gain. The run would’ve gone for a minimum of 30 yards if Johnson hadn’t taken him down.

On the second unit, Lukas Denis had a nice day. The sophomore had a few legitimate pass breakups which would’ve went for completions if not for him knocking the ball away.

Special Teams

The Eagles practiced punt returns but only to the extent that the return men called for fair catches. Tyler Rouse and Thadd Smith served as the punt returners.

At the end of practice the team practiced about a dozen field goals with Colton Lichtenberg serving as the primary kicker. Lichtenberg was mostly good but did miss a couple. Mike Knoll got one attempt but it was blocked.