Boston College Athletics
Photo by: Andrew Weber
Four Downs: Northern Illinois
September 02, 2017 | Football, #ForBoston Files
Here's what we learned from the Eagles' win over the Huskies
Through their spring and summer practice, Boston College sought to change its symbol of conservatism. Starting with the Quick Lane Bowl back in December, the Eagles began implementing a tempo-style attack, quickening their pace within their pro-style offense.
In its first unveiling, BC ran 92 plays in a 23-20 victory over Northern Illinois, well above its 2016 average. Its 22 seconds per play pace shaved more than eight seconds off last year's average and is stark contrast to last year's average of 70 plays per game at just under 30 seconds per play.
And it still wasn't fast enough.
"We wanted to get to 100," head coach Steve Addazio said following the win. "We had an opportunity in the third quarter where that was settling in, but we gave up a couple plays and a long drive on defense. We found a way to come back and be resilient."
A talented crop of youngsters led that charge. Anthony Brown became just the second freshman to start a season opener, joining Justin Tuggle's start against Northeastern in 2009. He went 26-for-42, both of which set new high marks for the Steve Addazio era, tying Glenn Foley (West Virginia, 1993), Shawn Halloran (Maryland, 1986) and Doug Flutie (Penn State, 1982) for 12th all time in single game completions.
He paired up with classmate Kobay White six times for 76 yards. White added 28 yards on kickoff returns, finishing his debut with 104 all-purpose yards. In the second quarter, he made a 20-yard catch to keep a scoring drive alive where he got himself open between two defenders.
There's plenty to break down from the Eagle victory, so here's some of what else can be learned from Friday night:
****
First Down: Anthony Brown
He wasn't publicly named the starter until minutes before the game, but Brown found out he was going to start earlier in the week. That did nothing to change his preparation or dull the competition level at practice between him and teammate Darius Wade.
"He graded the highest on preseason camp on work," Addazio said. "Both (Darius Wade and Anthony Brown) did very well. Anthony graded out higher. I needed to have something tangible and that's how we made our decision. It was off the body of work."
"I prepared (for this game) the same way I have throughout camp and (tried to) keep my teammates motivated for Darius or me," Brown said. "There were nerves for the first game but it slowly started to come to me."
He showed definitive flashes of what he showed in that preseason. BC's fifth offensive play of the game called for a deep ball to Michael Walker, a play the offense ran in its scrimmages throughout the preseason. Walker had a step, and Brown delivered a strike 50 yards downfield into the receiver's hands. Mycial Allen had to break it up at a second so late that the play looked like it could've been a catch and fumble.
Later in the game, Brown engineered two scoring drives that gave BC a 13-10 lead into halftime. With 6:32 left in the quarter, he led the offense 63 yards in 13 plays. He moved the sticks twice on third down, including the 20-yard pass play to White on a 3rd-and-8 to set up a field goal to cut a 10-3 lead to 10-6.
After a three-and-out gave BC back the ball, Brown went 5-for-6, including a 15-yard completion to White and a 21-yard pass to Walker. With 30 seconds left, he rolled left to draw defensive coverage away from the receivers. Walker snuck behind the defense, and Brown delivered a strike for his first career touchdown.
"I thought the way (Brown) handled the game before the half was great," Addazio said. "We were able to get timeouts, conserve time and get momentum right before the half. That was a big deal for us."
It wasn't perfect, and Brown was the first player to admit it. He threw an interception, and there were a couple of plays where his situational recognition was off. But those are items the Eagles can coach up with leadership on and off the field.
"One play, I threw it away and I should've pulled it down and gotten a few yards," Brown said in addition to his pick. "There are leaders on our offense. Jon Baker and Tommy Sweeney told me to keep my eyes on the next play so that's what I did and (we) just kept going.
****
Second Down: Pass Catchers
Both Steve Addazio and position coach Rich Gunnell entered the preseason high on Kobay White. They recognized him as a potential game changer in a group of athletes described as explosive. On Friday, he made the most of his opportunities, including that third down catch where he got himself open between two defenders, went up the elevator and caught a threaded pass.
Eight different Eagles caught passes. Michael Walker finished with eight catches for 50 yards and a touchdown. Jeff Smith had three catches, then added three rushes for 26 yards. Thadd Smith had six carries for 56 yards with a number of jet sweeps. Korab Idrizi had a couple of catches, and Jon Hilliman had three receptions out of the backfield. Ray Marten had two catches, including a difference-making touchdown.
"I believe that all of our receivers have connections with our quarterbacks," White said. "We worked all summer with everyone. (Anthony) has trust in every single receiver. All of us can make plays. We demonstrated that (on Friday)."
The next step is to do it for a full 60 minutes. Five out of their seven second half drives ended in punts, and three went for three-and-outs. It caused BC to lose the time of possession battle in the third quarter as NIU gained momentum.
"We had a few three and outs in the third period," Addazio said. "We had an eight-play drive and stalled. We had another 10-play drive and stalled. In the fourth quarter, we stalled a little bit. We'll continue to get better and better in the throw game. There's a lot of first time guys that are talented guys."
****
Third Down: Lukas Denis
Last year, Lukas Denis had the interception to seal bowl eligibility. He opened up this season without missing a beat. He registered four tackles, an interception and two pass breakups, one of which is a reason BC walked out of DeKalb with a victory.
At the end of the third quarter, NIU trailed 20-17 and drove inside the BC 10-yard line. After Ryan Graham completed a four-yard pass down to the BC four, he threw a third down pass to Christian Blake that Denis read perfectly. He nearly got the interception, which would've unquestionably resulted in a 99-yard run back. Instead, it forced NIU to kick a field goal, which tied the game at 20-20.
On the next NIU drive, the Huskies had fourth-and-one on the BC 35-yard line. Graham handed off to Chad Beebe, who went left and tried to cut to the first down line. But Denis cut off the angle and helped Connor Strachan finish off the play in the backfield, forcing a turnover on downs.
One drive after that, Denis helped Gabriel McClary with deep coverage. He ball-hawked the play, leapt and came down with the Eagles' first interception of the season.
"Every day in practice, Coach (Anthony) Campanile makes sure we get it right," Denis said. "He tells me what to read and what not to read. I knew (NIU) was going to look me off, so I just ran to the ball."
That's three big plays on three consecutive drives in the fourth quarter.
****
Fourth Down: NIU
This game was unquestionably going to be tough. Northern Illinois is a proud team with a proud tradition. Coming off of a 5-7 season, in the season opener at home, they weren't a token team by any stretch. There's no consolation in defeat sometimes, but they can walk off their field knowing they took steps to move back to a winning season.
"There's no doubt in my mind that NIU will have a great season," Addazio said. "They're a tough, physical team. They made some nice plays. Their quarterback did some really good things. For all the money on 4th-and-8, he's getting whacked and throws a hand grenade up there and completes it. I think that's a good football team. They competed really hard."
NIU made this game a tough, physical affair. They endured their struggles, but they worked through it and made adjustments. In the third quarter, they went on a long, 75-yard drive then immediately got the ball back. It forced BC's defense back on the field and landed momentum squarely in the home team's corner.
"We gave up a 75-yard drive and then went three and out," Addazio said. "I was hoping we would pin them in their zone, get the ball with good field position, go on another eight or nine play drive. To their credit, they went on a 75-yard drive and kept their defense off the field."
"It was a tough nosed game right down to the end," Kobay White said. "They punched us. We punched back. And in the end, we pulled (momentum) back."
****
The Point After: Wake Forest
BC heads back to Chestnut Hill this week for both their ACC and home opener against Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons romped Presbyterian in their opener, 51-7, behind breakout performances on both sides of the ball. Kickoff is slated for 1 PM and can be seen on ACC Network Extra.
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In its first unveiling, BC ran 92 plays in a 23-20 victory over Northern Illinois, well above its 2016 average. Its 22 seconds per play pace shaved more than eight seconds off last year's average and is stark contrast to last year's average of 70 plays per game at just under 30 seconds per play.
And it still wasn't fast enough.
"We wanted to get to 100," head coach Steve Addazio said following the win. "We had an opportunity in the third quarter where that was settling in, but we gave up a couple plays and a long drive on defense. We found a way to come back and be resilient."
A talented crop of youngsters led that charge. Anthony Brown became just the second freshman to start a season opener, joining Justin Tuggle's start against Northeastern in 2009. He went 26-for-42, both of which set new high marks for the Steve Addazio era, tying Glenn Foley (West Virginia, 1993), Shawn Halloran (Maryland, 1986) and Doug Flutie (Penn State, 1982) for 12th all time in single game completions.
He paired up with classmate Kobay White six times for 76 yards. White added 28 yards on kickoff returns, finishing his debut with 104 all-purpose yards. In the second quarter, he made a 20-yard catch to keep a scoring drive alive where he got himself open between two defenders.
There's plenty to break down from the Eagle victory, so here's some of what else can be learned from Friday night:
****
First Down: Anthony Brown
He wasn't publicly named the starter until minutes before the game, but Brown found out he was going to start earlier in the week. That did nothing to change his preparation or dull the competition level at practice between him and teammate Darius Wade.
"He graded the highest on preseason camp on work," Addazio said. "Both (Darius Wade and Anthony Brown) did very well. Anthony graded out higher. I needed to have something tangible and that's how we made our decision. It was off the body of work."
"I prepared (for this game) the same way I have throughout camp and (tried to) keep my teammates motivated for Darius or me," Brown said. "There were nerves for the first game but it slowly started to come to me."
He showed definitive flashes of what he showed in that preseason. BC's fifth offensive play of the game called for a deep ball to Michael Walker, a play the offense ran in its scrimmages throughout the preseason. Walker had a step, and Brown delivered a strike 50 yards downfield into the receiver's hands. Mycial Allen had to break it up at a second so late that the play looked like it could've been a catch and fumble.
Later in the game, Brown engineered two scoring drives that gave BC a 13-10 lead into halftime. With 6:32 left in the quarter, he led the offense 63 yards in 13 plays. He moved the sticks twice on third down, including the 20-yard pass play to White on a 3rd-and-8 to set up a field goal to cut a 10-3 lead to 10-6.
After a three-and-out gave BC back the ball, Brown went 5-for-6, including a 15-yard completion to White and a 21-yard pass to Walker. With 30 seconds left, he rolled left to draw defensive coverage away from the receivers. Walker snuck behind the defense, and Brown delivered a strike for his first career touchdown.
"I thought the way (Brown) handled the game before the half was great," Addazio said. "We were able to get timeouts, conserve time and get momentum right before the half. That was a big deal for us."
It wasn't perfect, and Brown was the first player to admit it. He threw an interception, and there were a couple of plays where his situational recognition was off. But those are items the Eagles can coach up with leadership on and off the field.
"One play, I threw it away and I should've pulled it down and gotten a few yards," Brown said in addition to his pick. "There are leaders on our offense. Jon Baker and Tommy Sweeney told me to keep my eyes on the next play so that's what I did and (we) just kept going.
****
Second Down: Pass Catchers
Both Steve Addazio and position coach Rich Gunnell entered the preseason high on Kobay White. They recognized him as a potential game changer in a group of athletes described as explosive. On Friday, he made the most of his opportunities, including that third down catch where he got himself open between two defenders, went up the elevator and caught a threaded pass.
Eight different Eagles caught passes. Michael Walker finished with eight catches for 50 yards and a touchdown. Jeff Smith had three catches, then added three rushes for 26 yards. Thadd Smith had six carries for 56 yards with a number of jet sweeps. Korab Idrizi had a couple of catches, and Jon Hilliman had three receptions out of the backfield. Ray Marten had two catches, including a difference-making touchdown.
"I believe that all of our receivers have connections with our quarterbacks," White said. "We worked all summer with everyone. (Anthony) has trust in every single receiver. All of us can make plays. We demonstrated that (on Friday)."
The next step is to do it for a full 60 minutes. Five out of their seven second half drives ended in punts, and three went for three-and-outs. It caused BC to lose the time of possession battle in the third quarter as NIU gained momentum.
"We had a few three and outs in the third period," Addazio said. "We had an eight-play drive and stalled. We had another 10-play drive and stalled. In the fourth quarter, we stalled a little bit. We'll continue to get better and better in the throw game. There's a lot of first time guys that are talented guys."
****
Third Down: Lukas Denis
Last year, Lukas Denis had the interception to seal bowl eligibility. He opened up this season without missing a beat. He registered four tackles, an interception and two pass breakups, one of which is a reason BC walked out of DeKalb with a victory.
At the end of the third quarter, NIU trailed 20-17 and drove inside the BC 10-yard line. After Ryan Graham completed a four-yard pass down to the BC four, he threw a third down pass to Christian Blake that Denis read perfectly. He nearly got the interception, which would've unquestionably resulted in a 99-yard run back. Instead, it forced NIU to kick a field goal, which tied the game at 20-20.
On the next NIU drive, the Huskies had fourth-and-one on the BC 35-yard line. Graham handed off to Chad Beebe, who went left and tried to cut to the first down line. But Denis cut off the angle and helped Connor Strachan finish off the play in the backfield, forcing a turnover on downs.
One drive after that, Denis helped Gabriel McClary with deep coverage. He ball-hawked the play, leapt and came down with the Eagles' first interception of the season.
"Every day in practice, Coach (Anthony) Campanile makes sure we get it right," Denis said. "He tells me what to read and what not to read. I knew (NIU) was going to look me off, so I just ran to the ball."
That's three big plays on three consecutive drives in the fourth quarter.
****
Fourth Down: NIU
This game was unquestionably going to be tough. Northern Illinois is a proud team with a proud tradition. Coming off of a 5-7 season, in the season opener at home, they weren't a token team by any stretch. There's no consolation in defeat sometimes, but they can walk off their field knowing they took steps to move back to a winning season.
"There's no doubt in my mind that NIU will have a great season," Addazio said. "They're a tough, physical team. They made some nice plays. Their quarterback did some really good things. For all the money on 4th-and-8, he's getting whacked and throws a hand grenade up there and completes it. I think that's a good football team. They competed really hard."
NIU made this game a tough, physical affair. They endured their struggles, but they worked through it and made adjustments. In the third quarter, they went on a long, 75-yard drive then immediately got the ball back. It forced BC's defense back on the field and landed momentum squarely in the home team's corner.
"We gave up a 75-yard drive and then went three and out," Addazio said. "I was hoping we would pin them in their zone, get the ball with good field position, go on another eight or nine play drive. To their credit, they went on a 75-yard drive and kept their defense off the field."
"It was a tough nosed game right down to the end," Kobay White said. "They punched us. We punched back. And in the end, we pulled (momentum) back."
****
The Point After: Wake Forest
BC heads back to Chestnut Hill this week for both their ACC and home opener against Wake Forest. The Demon Deacons romped Presbyterian in their opener, 51-7, behind breakout performances on both sides of the ball. Kickoff is slated for 1 PM and can be seen on ACC Network Extra.
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Players Mentioned
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