Boston College vs. Syracuse: Steve Addazio Press Conference Highlights

On Monday, Addazio sat down with the media at his weekly press conference to talk about last week's tough loss to Florida State and this weekend's matchup with the Syracuse Orange.

Full transcript here. Here are some of the highlights:

Opening Statement...

We all know that we have a big week ahead of us: Rival week against Syracuse. We had great meetings with the team, reviewing the tape and getting the stage set for this game. It's a really important game for us. I'm looking forward to getting back in the film room, back on the field. We're attacking a really good Syracuse team. They play hard; they play tough; they've got really good players. You play these games, and to me, you throw the records out. We've got two good teams here. It will be a real Northeast, nose-to-nose, physical, knock-down contest. We have a good week to prepare for it and stay focused, but it's a short week with a lot of distractions with the holiday. It's a little bit out of the normal routine, but we have to do a good job managing it.

And most importantly, 12 #OrangeEagle points on the line...

On the importance getting the seventh win of the season....

I've heard a lot of talk about the game. Our staff and team are preparing and playing as hard as we can. This game means the world to us. We have done a lot of great things this year and our season isn't defined by this game. This game is this game, which is a rivalry game and really important. This football team has overcome and battled through a lot of losses in terms of personnel from last year. We've done a lot of tremendous things. My message is: we're going to win this game because that's what we do. We are going to go into this game and we want to beat our rival.

Alright alright alright. Love the emphasis on the rivalry game with Syracuse. Agree that while it's just one of 12 games, this one is a real important one to get for a number of reasons.

On the aftermath of the FSU loss...

I think when you play those kind of games, they take a toll on you emotionally. There's no doubt. You have to re-bite and re-gather. Everyone in the country feels that way, it's not just us. But to act like that doesn't take a toll on you—it does. I feel it today. There was a lot of preparation for that game as a coaching staff and as a team. This game coming up, we have a lot going for us. It's at home, it's senior day.

The key is to keep your team as physically and mentally fresh as you can. It's a real fine line and I've struggled with that this year. We seem if we don't hit enough, we are weak, but if we hit too much, we look like we are lethargic and tired and slow. The bye week was nice because we could re-juice. I'm really thinking a lot about how I want to handle this week of practice. I want our team to play as fast as we can play and as physical as we can play in this game on Saturday. How do we put our guys in the best position to play hard and fast? I don't want to overwhelm them mentally and physically. Just let them go play. It's fragile when you get down to the end like this. We have this young team balanced with some older guys, so we have to be right in our leadership with how we do this. I think we have handled this well. They understand the importance of this game. We have to go out and play with the same intensity and passion that we have been.

How Addazio bounces back in this spot will be telling as to how the rest of the Addazio era will go. The FSU loss was a major letdown. The players might feel like there's not a lot to play for. It's on Addazio and the coaching staff to get them re-focused and motivated.

On Syracuse as a team...

[Syracuse] has had as many depletions as we have had. Everyone has. They suffered one at quarterback; that one sometimes is a little more significant. But they have lost the same as us. We lost our best offensive lineman game one; we lost our best defensive lineman game four; we lost one of our top emerging corners for the season. We've taken our hits too.

Getting a read on them? I think they're a lot like us in a lot of ways. They play hard, 33rd in total defense and in rushing defense. You know how I said Wake Forest is pretty salty on defense? I think Syracuse is pretty salty on defense. They took a hit offensively a little bit; they had a couple things go on there. Scott [Shafer] is a great coach. He's trying to manage what they're doing in terms of where their offense is headed. I think he has done a really good job with them. They're schematically really good on the other side of the ball. They're physical up front, their linebackers can really run. [Cameron] Lynch is leading them in sacks; he's a really active player. Brandon Reddish has three interceptions; he's a really talented guy. Up front, on their offensive line, Rob Trudo is outstanding. Sean Hickey at tackle, they've got some really good running backs. We all know Prince-Tyson Gulley and Adonis Ameen-Moore. I think those guys are really talented.

They've got a good coaching staff. Their head coach is about tough, hard-nose football on both sides of the ball. It's why it's a rivalry. The teams are going to push each other and it's going to be too tough teams meeting in Boston. It's an incredibly important game to us—like they all are—but this one game doesn't define our season.

We have ourselves a good ol' fashioned #hardnosed off, folks!

On the schedule this season...

It's been a really interesting year. We've played a really tough schedule. We swapped Louisville for Maryland. We swapped Colorado State for New Mexico State. It's been a roller coaster ride like I knew it would be. It's been a challenging schedule. We have played our very best against some of our best opponents. It would be nice to close it out with a win on Saturday. It would be nice if we could get it rallied up this weekend and play hard.

The BCI staff was actually chatting about this the other day. BC is a game off the pace they were last year going into the Syracuse game (7-4, 4-3 ACC), but the schedule has been more challenging. Trading home games between FSU and Clemson is probably a wash, but Colorado State at home is an upgrade over New Mexico State on the road, Louisville at home a serious upgrade over Maryland on the road, Virginia Tech on the road this year after getting the Hokies at home, etc. On net, probably a slightly more difficult schedule this year.

What the challenges the team has overcome...

We knew we would have our challenges this year and I think that our team and players have done a great job to bring us to where we are right now. We have maximized our team. We have to continue to do that. And that's what it's all about. We've overcome the injuries we had to overcome and managed all the situations. When I took this job I knew it would take time. Don't be fooled just because we've come out of the blocks and been bowl eligible two years in a row, there is a lot of work to be done. When you get to a point where you're bowl eligible in two years we have to keep pushing. We've got one recruiting class in place right now. We have to continue to build. Credit the guys who have been here and worked and bought in. We're 26 guys down from the day I walked in this year. The fifth-year players we have brought in have helped us manage our roster. We will lose four of our offensive linemen; that's the oldest part of our team. That's no easy task. This is very much an exciting work in progress.

I hope our fans and alumni are proud of our team. We're a scrappy, hard-nosed football team that doesn't have a lot of room for error. We always have to play at our top end. When we dip below that it really shows. It showed in the Louisville game. We can't afford to have those breakdowns; win it in the fourth is what has come down to. It puts us in a situation where we can compete in the game. It means we're not playing from behind, we can stay within what will give us the best chance to win. If we get out of that framework right now it's hard. While we're different than a year ago, we have to stay within our structure. It will change in the future, but right now we have to play a close to the vest game. Toughness, physicality, possess the ball on offense, keep the field position in tact those types of things that are important when you are evaluating what type of team we are. Play to our strengths, steady in the boat, and try to go win that fourth quarter. This game will be no different.

On this year's senior class...

Faithfulness and loyalty will always be rewarded. They have been rewarded; they've played in two bowl games. They are able to walk out of here being able to say that they helped turn around the program. Those are big positives and it wasn't easy. This group has really had to come out of their shell to develop. It's been a real work in progress. When you have a bunch of younger guys contributing and it's affecting older guys' positions that's not easy. It's hard; I appreciate it. It's a tough program too. Every year is unique to itself. It's an interesting dynamic.

On Saturday's Senior Day...

It's one of the best parts of coaching college. You watch those guys coming at you and you process what they have been through and you see their parents, and they were just so young and now it's like `Wow, that athletic journey is over.' I get all that. I'm a sentimental person to begin with. It's a big thing for all involved. I think kids don't usually realize that it's all coming to an end until now. They come back three months later and they're overwhelmed by how much they miss it. I hope they can use the emotion as a motivation and not a distraction. It's one of my favorite times of the year in a sad way. I have the seniors get up and talk to the team before their last regular-season game. It's interesting to hear them talk a little bit. Those are those cool moments that games like this produce.

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Anything else you wish Addazio had addressed? Anything else stand out to you this week?