Boston College Athletics
Photo by: Mike Slade
Lessons Learned: The Monkey Off Their Backs
October 30, 2016 | Football, #ForBoston Files
Public perception is totally different on Sunday than it was on Friday.
Before Saturday's game, I looked at this weekend as an opportunity for Boston College football to take a step back and get away for a little bit. After four straight games at home, it presented an opportunity to simplify the game to an "us against the world" mentality at all levels, from their daily routines to where they were sleeping.
I also looked at this weekend as a good opportunity to pick up that elusive first conference win because it was against a wild card NC State team. The Wolfpack is good with solid players, but it also proved the Pack was capable of being beaten with the right gameplan. BC just had to answer the call.
With a 21-14 win over the Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium yesterday, consider the objective accomplished.
"I'm proud of our football program," head coach Steve Addazio said following the win. "They played with unbelievable resolve and took a step forward today in learning how to bring the best out of each other. It was a goal we had and we did that today. To win this game took something out of everyone. Everyone had to contribute, and that's where we are right now. We have a collection of guys that are battling every day."
The win represents a decided shift in public perception of the Eagles football program. After losing to Syracuse, there were doubts that BC would be eligible for a bowl this year. It extended the ACC losing streak to 12 games.
By beating NC State, BC's now proven it can beat a team in a hard-fought game. It proved the Eagles know how to win against a talented team and they proved that they could beat a conference team.
"This team has a lot of faith in each other and this program, and that comes from the administration down," Addazio said. "I'm really proud to be coaching this football team. I know it's only one game but we took an important step today. NC State is a really good football program with a great defense, and we played them on the road. We had time of possession for almost 35 minutes which is a critical stat."
People might not realize how critical this win impacts bowl eligibility. Had BC lost, it would have been 3-5, meaning it could only afford one more defeat with some ultra-talented, more-seasoned rosters still left. The Eagles regained the mulligan if they need it and they've taken a giant step forward in the process.
More of what we learned against the Wolfpack:
**It was a giant step forward for the offense, which achieved balance and possession against NC State. All season long, Steve Addazio has talked about how there needs to be a synergy between the offense sustaining possession and the defense getting off the field. If the offense can create long drives, the defense can be well rested. Then the defense will be geared up to stop the opposing offense quickly and get off the field. That would lead to another long drive and the cycle would begin again.
At times this year Boston College struggled with that concept. Against NC State, it proved itself true. The Eagles possessed the football for over 36 minutes, balancing each quarter with between eight and 10 minutes. They balanced 218 passing yards with 204 yards rushing. They balanced short plays with explosives ones.
Redshirt sophomore running back Jon Hilliman rumbled for 74 yards on 20 carries, allowing BC to chew up the clock and draw the Wolfpack towards the middle of the field. The Eagles then switched play calling to run jet sweeps with sophomore Jeff Smith, leaving the sides open for the big, explosive 60-yard touchdown run.
Graduate quarterback Patrick Towles went 18-for-33 with an average of 6.4 yards per attempt, but BC switched up the play calling to include multiple explosives. Sophomore tight end Tommy Sweeney was open over the middle most of the afternoon, and the redshirt freshman Davon Jones pass play came right out of the scribble pad of creativity. Towles didn't throw a touchdown pass but he didn't have to.
"(The coaches) were switching stuff," Sweeney said. Â "And we were switching right back at them. Coaches did a phenomenal job. All our guys bought in, and we did it - we did a lot of aggressive play calling. We had the ball for 35 minutes, and you can't really teach that."
**Because the offense was so efficient and effective, it allowed the defense to do things it would normally do. Playing without their defensive coordinator Jim Reid, who was home with a personal medical issue, the Eagles held running back Matt Dayes to under 100 rusing yards. Dayes, who tallied 100 yards in three straight games this year, had arguably his worst performance as a result.
Last week, Dayes only touched the ball five times in a 54-13 loss to Louisville. This week, he had a regular workload with 19 touches. He wound up with only 45 yards, 24 of which came on one play. Without that play, he would have had 21 yards on 18 carries, or an average of 1.2 yards per carry.
Forced to use the passing game more heavily, NC State put up numbers and created a couple of explosive plays, but it took them out of their comfort zone. Determined to get Dayes involved, Ryan Finley attempted a down-field pass for the running back that was intercepted by junior linebacker Ty Schwab. Finley failed to convert three fourth-down conversion attempts and, in the end, intercepted a pass lofted too far over the receiver.
"We knew what type of protections they were going to do," junior Harold Landry said. "We didn't know that we had a good idea of what they were going to do versus our look that we were going to give them on third down, on first and second down. They tried to go fake against us on first and second down, but I think we were pretty prepared. We just had a really good game plan and we went out and executed.
**One of my favorite football documentaries is the "Do Your Job" special about the New England Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX victory. There's a whole segment dedicated to Malcolm Butler's interception and the preparation that went into it happening. It broke down how the Patriots knew about Seattle's pick plays, how many times they practiced with different people, and when and where the decision was made to go heavy three corners in the end zone.
The contrast of sidelines coupled with how one player can create an opportunity for another, how it relates back to practice and play design is truly awesome for someone who appreciates the X's and O's of football.
Two plays, one on each side of the ball, are the direct result of practice. If Jones doesn't compete that pass to Sweeney in practice, BC can't run that play in a game. If the offense doesn't block the right way or if Sweeney doesn't run the right route to turn around at the right time, it can't be run during the game itself. Seven games into the season, that play baked in the oven for a couple of weeks but wasn't ready until yesterday.
"We repped that play for a couple of weeks," Towles said. "Davon's been practicing; he loves it, obviously. He gets to throw the ball, so he gets excited about that. He got a great look forward. It was a very aggressive call, which I love."
The second play is junior defensive back Kamrin Moore's interception. Defensive red zone formations and coverages depend more on what personnel the offense puts out on the field since it's about protecting the paint moreso than the yardage. Identifying the right formation to use and trusting the process to stay the course is huge in that scenario.
"All week we knew that in the red zone they put the formation into the boundary, single receiver into the field and that he was about to fade," Moore said. "So I had the outside leverage and just cut the ball; he threw it to me."
**The win knocked out the pink elephant in the room. BC ended a 12-game ACC losing streak and no longer has to worry about dubious distinctions. It's a great win, one that went down to the wire, and one that allows for a breath of fresh air and relief.
"We had to collectively execute," Addazio said. "It takes everyone right now. That's okay with us. We'll continue to grow and develop this team. We had 18 freshmen and sophomores on the field and 13 of them on defense (throughout the game). That's cool because we're going to have a lot of people that are going to be here for a while, and they learned a valuable football life lesson."
It's one game and moving forward, the Eagles are looking at hosting one of the best teams in the nation on Saturday. Louisville is coming to town on Saturday and there's no rest or time to sit back and enjoy this for too long. It's okay to celebrate and wins should be extolled. When that plane lands in Boston, however, it's back to business to get ready for the Cardinals.
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I also looked at this weekend as a good opportunity to pick up that elusive first conference win because it was against a wild card NC State team. The Wolfpack is good with solid players, but it also proved the Pack was capable of being beaten with the right gameplan. BC just had to answer the call.
With a 21-14 win over the Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium yesterday, consider the objective accomplished.
"I'm proud of our football program," head coach Steve Addazio said following the win. "They played with unbelievable resolve and took a step forward today in learning how to bring the best out of each other. It was a goal we had and we did that today. To win this game took something out of everyone. Everyone had to contribute, and that's where we are right now. We have a collection of guys that are battling every day."
The win represents a decided shift in public perception of the Eagles football program. After losing to Syracuse, there were doubts that BC would be eligible for a bowl this year. It extended the ACC losing streak to 12 games.
By beating NC State, BC's now proven it can beat a team in a hard-fought game. It proved the Eagles know how to win against a talented team and they proved that they could beat a conference team.
"This team has a lot of faith in each other and this program, and that comes from the administration down," Addazio said. "I'm really proud to be coaching this football team. I know it's only one game but we took an important step today. NC State is a really good football program with a great defense, and we played them on the road. We had time of possession for almost 35 minutes which is a critical stat."
People might not realize how critical this win impacts bowl eligibility. Had BC lost, it would have been 3-5, meaning it could only afford one more defeat with some ultra-talented, more-seasoned rosters still left. The Eagles regained the mulligan if they need it and they've taken a giant step forward in the process.
More of what we learned against the Wolfpack:
**It was a giant step forward for the offense, which achieved balance and possession against NC State. All season long, Steve Addazio has talked about how there needs to be a synergy between the offense sustaining possession and the defense getting off the field. If the offense can create long drives, the defense can be well rested. Then the defense will be geared up to stop the opposing offense quickly and get off the field. That would lead to another long drive and the cycle would begin again.
At times this year Boston College struggled with that concept. Against NC State, it proved itself true. The Eagles possessed the football for over 36 minutes, balancing each quarter with between eight and 10 minutes. They balanced 218 passing yards with 204 yards rushing. They balanced short plays with explosives ones.
Redshirt sophomore running back Jon Hilliman rumbled for 74 yards on 20 carries, allowing BC to chew up the clock and draw the Wolfpack towards the middle of the field. The Eagles then switched play calling to run jet sweeps with sophomore Jeff Smith, leaving the sides open for the big, explosive 60-yard touchdown run.
Graduate quarterback Patrick Towles went 18-for-33 with an average of 6.4 yards per attempt, but BC switched up the play calling to include multiple explosives. Sophomore tight end Tommy Sweeney was open over the middle most of the afternoon, and the redshirt freshman Davon Jones pass play came right out of the scribble pad of creativity. Towles didn't throw a touchdown pass but he didn't have to.
"(The coaches) were switching stuff," Sweeney said. Â "And we were switching right back at them. Coaches did a phenomenal job. All our guys bought in, and we did it - we did a lot of aggressive play calling. We had the ball for 35 minutes, and you can't really teach that."
**Because the offense was so efficient and effective, it allowed the defense to do things it would normally do. Playing without their defensive coordinator Jim Reid, who was home with a personal medical issue, the Eagles held running back Matt Dayes to under 100 rusing yards. Dayes, who tallied 100 yards in three straight games this year, had arguably his worst performance as a result.
Last week, Dayes only touched the ball five times in a 54-13 loss to Louisville. This week, he had a regular workload with 19 touches. He wound up with only 45 yards, 24 of which came on one play. Without that play, he would have had 21 yards on 18 carries, or an average of 1.2 yards per carry.
Forced to use the passing game more heavily, NC State put up numbers and created a couple of explosive plays, but it took them out of their comfort zone. Determined to get Dayes involved, Ryan Finley attempted a down-field pass for the running back that was intercepted by junior linebacker Ty Schwab. Finley failed to convert three fourth-down conversion attempts and, in the end, intercepted a pass lofted too far over the receiver.
"We knew what type of protections they were going to do," junior Harold Landry said. "We didn't know that we had a good idea of what they were going to do versus our look that we were going to give them on third down, on first and second down. They tried to go fake against us on first and second down, but I think we were pretty prepared. We just had a really good game plan and we went out and executed.
**One of my favorite football documentaries is the "Do Your Job" special about the New England Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX victory. There's a whole segment dedicated to Malcolm Butler's interception and the preparation that went into it happening. It broke down how the Patriots knew about Seattle's pick plays, how many times they practiced with different people, and when and where the decision was made to go heavy three corners in the end zone.
The contrast of sidelines coupled with how one player can create an opportunity for another, how it relates back to practice and play design is truly awesome for someone who appreciates the X's and O's of football.
Two plays, one on each side of the ball, are the direct result of practice. If Jones doesn't compete that pass to Sweeney in practice, BC can't run that play in a game. If the offense doesn't block the right way or if Sweeney doesn't run the right route to turn around at the right time, it can't be run during the game itself. Seven games into the season, that play baked in the oven for a couple of weeks but wasn't ready until yesterday.
"We repped that play for a couple of weeks," Towles said. "Davon's been practicing; he loves it, obviously. He gets to throw the ball, so he gets excited about that. He got a great look forward. It was a very aggressive call, which I love."
The second play is junior defensive back Kamrin Moore's interception. Defensive red zone formations and coverages depend more on what personnel the offense puts out on the field since it's about protecting the paint moreso than the yardage. Identifying the right formation to use and trusting the process to stay the course is huge in that scenario.
"All week we knew that in the red zone they put the formation into the boundary, single receiver into the field and that he was about to fade," Moore said. "So I had the outside leverage and just cut the ball; he threw it to me."
**The win knocked out the pink elephant in the room. BC ended a 12-game ACC losing streak and no longer has to worry about dubious distinctions. It's a great win, one that went down to the wire, and one that allows for a breath of fresh air and relief.
"We had to collectively execute," Addazio said. "It takes everyone right now. That's okay with us. We'll continue to grow and develop this team. We had 18 freshmen and sophomores on the field and 13 of them on defense (throughout the game). That's cool because we're going to have a lot of people that are going to be here for a while, and they learned a valuable football life lesson."
It's one game and moving forward, the Eagles are looking at hosting one of the best teams in the nation on Saturday. Louisville is coming to town on Saturday and there's no rest or time to sit back and enjoy this for too long. It's okay to celebrate and wins should be extolled. When that plane lands in Boston, however, it's back to business to get ready for the Cardinals.
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Players Mentioned
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