Boston College Athletics
Football Prepares For Preseason Practice
August 03, 2007 | Football
Aug. 3, 2007
For the Boston College football team and fans, the wait is almost over. It's been 227 days since Jeff Jagodzinski was named head coach of the Eagles. After a winter, spring and summer filled with new hires, moving trucks, conditioning drills, multiple meetings and media junkets, it's time to get down to business.
Coming off a 10-3 season and a seventh consecutive bowl game win, hopes are high on The Heights for a team that features 20 seniors who make significant contributions, nine returning defensive starters and seven returning offensive starters, including ACC Preseason Player of the Year Matt Ryan at quarterback. The unknown factor, of course, is how the team will adjust to Jagodzinski and his new staff.
"We really have confidence in Coach Jagodzinski," Ryan said. "He has a lot of experience. He's coached Brett Favre and that's exciting for me as a quarterback. He's very energetic, very passionate. He's high energy. He likes to get in people's faces. It gets you excited. Coach Jags has really developed some good relationships. He's a great fit for Boston College."
When Jagodzinski hired Steve Logan as his offensive coordinator, he created a reunion of sorts - the two men worked together at East Carolina from 1989-92. Logan came to BC after two seasons as quarterbacks and wide receivers coach with the Berlin Thunder of NFL Europe and one season as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with the Rhein Fire.
Jagodzinski announced early on that he would retain defensive coordinator Frank Spaziani and linebackers coach Bill McGovern from the former staff. Spaziani, who led the Eagles to a 25-24 win over Navy as interim head coach for the Meineke Bowl in Charlotte, will bring continuity to a defense that returns an extremely solid front seven led by senior Jolonn Dunbar.
"The defense is the same thing with a few wrinkles," Dunbar said. "There are a lot of guys who have played a lot of plays. We keep working hard and getting better. Our confidence level is extremely high. We have our front seven back, and we have Jamie Silva and DeJuan Tribble in the back."
In April, Jagodzinski named Jack Bicknell Jr. assistant head coach/offensive line coach. Bicknell, a three-year letterwinner on the BC offensive line and the starting center during Doug Flutie's Heisman Trophy year in 1984, came to BC from Texas Tech University, where he was offensive line coach.
With the staff and plans in place, it's time to get down to business. BC's incoming freshmen are scheduled to report on Saturday, followed by the upperclassmen on Sunday. Monday will mark the first official day of practice for a veteran team under new leadership.
"There are a lot of teams that have a chance to win the (ACC) title and we're one of them," Ryan says. "Now, we have to go out and take care of business. Everyone's goal is to win the championship. We have a new system, but we've had eight months to prepare. We're excited and everybody's ready to go."
