Boston College Eagle
2012 Record: 2-10 (1-7 ACC)

OFFENSE

Scheme: New head coach Steve Addazio and offensive coordinator Ryan Day have expressed the desire to have a strong running game. That will be easier said than done for a BC team that was awful at running the ball last year. All of last season, the Eagles ran for over 100 yards as a team just four times and two of those were against Maine and Army. One of the key things to watch will be if Day sticks with the ground game or shifts to the more wide open passing attack BC has utilized the past few years.

Quarterbacks: If any one player has been indicative of BC’s struggles, you could make a case for senior QB Chase Rettig. Rettig is on his fifth coordinator in four seasons, which seems like some kind of record. Beyond that, though, Rettig has been frustratingly inconsistent, looking like a future NFL player with one throw and then making a rookie mistake on another. Rettig (3065 yards, 54%, 17 TDs, 13 interceptions) has the size and arm, but he is erratic and has thrown nearly as many interceptions as touchdowns in his career. Addazio has already stated that he is looking for the senior to become more of a leader and game manager.

If Rettig struggles, the Eagles have two upperclassmen they could turn to. Junior Josh Bordner is a big, athletic guy who more fits the mold that Addazio likes. However, Bordner is still raw as a passer. Don’t be surprised if Bordner comes in for a few plays per game to run the ball. Senior Mike Marscovetra is a better passer than Bordner and has appeared in ten games during his career.

Running Backs: Long one of the better running teams in the country, the Eagles have been quite bad running the ball lately and part of the problem is a lack of talent, and/or durability, at the running back spot. Once Montel Harris was kicked off the team a few years back, the BC ground game really struggled and it may again this year.

Andre Williams, a big back at 6-0, 220, with some speed, is the sure-fire starter. Williams (584 yards, 4.5 average, 4 TDs) has strength and quickness and could be the tough runner Addazio wants. That being said, Williams missed four games last year and cannot afford to get banged up this year because BC lacks depth here. Junior Tahj Kimble is the best talent on the bench, but he is recovering from an ACL injury and could be limited. Sophomore Dave Dudeck (118 yds, 3 avg, TD, 21 receptions, 155 yds, TD) is a much better receiver than runner at this point, but was the #2 in spring after Rolandan Finch decided to transfer. Don’t be surprised if true freshman Myles Willis, a smaller guy with speed, gets a long look.

Receivers/Tight Ends: This unit is not elite by any stretch, but is the most talented part of the offense. That is largely due to senior Alex Amidon and junior Spiffy Evans. Amidon (78 recs, 1210 yds, 7 TDs) set school records for receptions and yards last year. While not possessing elite size or speed, Amidon just gets open and catches the ball. The fabulously named Evans (22 recs, 257 yds, TD) is a dynamite athlete, but he has been more valuable as a return man than receiver thus far in his career. That being said, he has the ability to have a breakout season.

Beyond Amidon and Evans is uncertainty. Sophomore Harrison Jackson impressed the coaches in spring, but he caught just one pass last year. Classmate Dan Crimmins has great size at 6-5, 220, but did not make any catches last year and some have talked about him moving to tight end. Iowa transfer Marcus Grant played in five games as a Hawkeye and has potential, but is largely an unknown. The x-factor is senior Bobby Swigert. Swigert (22 recs, 249 yds) was one of the ACC’s best possession receivers early in his career, but his production dropped off last year and he injured his knee late in the season. If he returns healthy, he presents a solid, experienced third wideout.

The Eagles lost a good tight end when Chris Pantale graduated and there is not much experienced talent stepping up in his place. As of now, it appears senior Mike Naples, junior C.J. Parsons, and sophomore Brian Miller will man the spot. Naples is a solid blocker, but has only four career catches. Parsons and Miller are better receivers, but have less experience.

Offensive Line: Remember when BC used to annually produce NFL offensive linemen? Yeah, those days are over. Last season, the offensive line could not run block or pass block effectively and the hope is that an infusion of new talent will help. In some ways, this unit cannot be worse.

The Eagles must replace two starters at tackle who combined for 62 career starts. BC hopes Florida transfer Matt Patchan can step right in and win the LT job. Patchan undoubtedly has talent, but he struggled with injuries throughout his career at UF and cannot necessarily be relied upon to last all 12 games. Battling Patchan will be sophomore Dave Bowen, a promising youngster who saw some snaps last year and looked good in the spring. Joining them on the left side will be either junior Harris Williams or classmate Bobby Vardaro. Williams missed almost all of last year due to a foot injury, but has a much higher ceiling than Vardaro, who struggled last year.

BC might be pretty set on the right side with Ian White and Seth Betancourt. White was lost after nine games to injury, but he was by far the team’s best blocker and will line up at either RG or RT. Betancourt, a junior who started six games last year, will man the other spot on the right side and has potential. Speaking of potential, junior center Andy Gallik, who has 15 career starts, looked good in the spring and the coaching staff is excited about him.

An x-factor in the battle for playing time is a trio of redshirt freshmen. Win Homer, Jim Cashman, and Frank Taylor were all well regarded recruits who should push for playing time. Homer, a 4-star recruit, could definitely be in the mix at guard while Cashman could push for time at tackle. Taylor is currently penciled in behind Gallik at center. These guys are the future.

DEFENSE

Scheme: Former coach Frank Spaziani made his name as a defensive coordinator and BC was actually respectable on defense for much of Spaz’s tenure as head coach, except in generating sacks. The lack of a pass rush eventually led to the Eagles giving up some big passing yards at times, but new coordinator Don Brown has some pieces and parts to improve this group. Spaziani was more of a bend but don’t break guy, while Brown, who coordinated in the ACC at Maryland, is much more about attacking. He’ll utilize a 4-3 like Spaz did, but expect much more blitzing.

Defensive Line: Brown has some nice players at tackle, especially after senior Kaleb Ramsey was granted a sixth year. Ramsey has been injured for much of the past two years, but he impressed the coaching staff with his power and athleticism. If he can just provide depth, that will help. Sophomore Connor Wujciak (24 tackles) did not make a lot of big plays, but he has the potential to be a future star due to his strength and quickness. BC has good depth too with senior Jaryd Rudolph and junior Dominic Appiah. Rudolph (16 tackles) is undersized, but held his own last year. Still, he’s just a backup. Appiah (18 tackles, 1.5 for loss) had a sophomore slump after a solid freshman year, but has the talent and size to push for a starting job.

Based on Football Outsiders statistical metrics, BC was the worst pass rushing team in the country last year. And according to NCAA stats, the Eagles ranked 120th in sacks, registering just six all year! But this isn’t an aberration. BC has ranked no higher than 90th since 2008. Part of the issue was Spaz’s scheme, but an even bigger problem is a simple lack of talent at end and that is the case again this year. BC has plenty of guys on the roster, but no difference makers. Senior Kasim Edebali (59 tackles, 7.5 for loss, 1.5 sacks) is athletic and quick, but doesn’t have many pass rushing moves and needs to produce more. Junior Brian Mihalick (22 tackles, 3.5 for loss) is built more like a tackle at 6-8, 285, but his production has not matched his towering size. Classmate Mehdi Abdesmad (25 tackles, 3 for loss) is an effective strongside run defender, but lacks pass rushing skills. Due to that, he may move to tackle. Sophomore Kieran Borcich (16 tackles) started three games last year, but is another guy that is better against the run than pass.

Linebackers: The Eagles have churned out some good linebackers in recent years and they have some nice talent and experience here. It all starts with senior Kevin Pierre-Louis, who has started since his freshman year. Pierre-Louis (85 tackles, 4 for loss, 2 sacks) lacks ideal size, but has great quickness and instincts. He has missed three games each of the past two years and BC really needs him to avoid the injury bug. Classmate Steele Divitto (92 tackles) is solid against the run and fundamentally sound. He won’t wow you, but he won’t make glaring mistakes either.

Leading tackler Nick Clancy graduated and that leaves a spot open at MLB. Divitto may move there from SLB or the spot might go to highly touted sophomore Steven Daniels. Daniels (25 tackles) has lots of strength and power and showed promise as a freshman. BC has two good options on the bench too in junior Sean Duggan and classmate Josh Keyes. Duggan (39 tackles) is a jack-of-all-trades who can play any position and has played in 22 games. Keyes (20 tackles) is undersized, but has great speed and range.

Secondary: BC returns 10 players who logged time in the secondary last year. The Eagles don’t have any 5-star recruits back here, but there is a lot of good, effective talent in the defensive backfield. If BC can generate any pass rush, the Eagles could be much improved defensively because this unit can be solid.

The most talent is probably at cornerback where Manny Asprilla, Al Louis-Jean, C.J. Jones, and Bryce Jones form a nice quartet. Asprilla (42 tackles, 2.5 for loss, 2 interceptions) is small and therefore struggles against big, physical receivers, but he is a solid all-around cover guy. Louis-Jean missed last year due to injury and the coaches are ecstatic to have him back. A 4-star recruit, Louis-Jean started twice as a freshman in 2011 and looked great before his injury. With size, speed, and athleticism, he could evolve into a top corner. C.J. Jones (13 tackles) injured his knee in 2011 and was limited to seven games last year, but he seems fully recovered now and has a good overall skill set. Bryce Jones got his feet wet as a freshman last year, mainly on special teams, and has the size to help out when needed.

Despite the graduation of Jim Noel at SS, the depth chart is just as stacked at the safety spots. At SS, junior Spencer Rositano will start with classmate Dominique Williams behind. Rositano (56 tackles, 2 for loss, 3 ints.) is good against both the pass and run. Williams has played both safety and corner and provides a bit better coverage skills. At FS, the Eagles have a nice combo in junior Sean Sylvia and sophomore Justin Simmons. Sylvia (86 tackles) started most of last year at corner, but struggled a bit in pass coverage and was moved to FS. He has the size and ability against the run to excel. Simmons (42 tackles) started most of last year, but has fallen behind Sylvia. At minimum, he provides experienced depth.

Special Teams: Despite the graduation of punter Gerald Levano, the Eagles should be solid on special teams due to the return of kicker Nate Freese and return man Spiffy Evans. Freese connected on 18 of 20 field goals last year with his only misses from 40+ yards. Evans, meanwhile, averaged a crazy 25.3 yards per punt return, with one touchdown, and is extremely dangerous. Oddly, though, Evans has been fairly mediocre at kick returns, an area where BC needs improvement. Sophomore Alex Howell, who may be the new placekicker once Freese graduates, is in line to take over the punting role.

Schedule: Despite dropping rival Notre Dame, BC does not have an easy road. The nonconference schedule is pretty weak with the glaring exception of a road game at USC. The real issue is the ACC schedule, which sees the Eagles travel to face FSU, Clemson, and North Carolina. In reality, though, pretty much every game will be a struggle for BC.

Overall: Last season’s 2-10 record makes it seem BC has a pretty bare cupboard, but I actually think the Eagles have some nice pieces and parts. And I also think Addazio made a smart move by hiring Brown to run the defense. Brown engineered very good units at both Maryland and UConn and should improve BC. All that aside, the season will hinge on the offensive and defensive lines. The offensive line has to open more holes for the running game and the defensive line must produce more big plays, especially in the pass rush. That being said, BC gave up 214 rushing yards per game so the front seven needs to improve in all areas. I’m not sold on Addazio but I do think Boston College can improve by three or four wins, likely ending with a 5-7 record.