Excitement Builds As BC Retains Focus

On December 6, 2008, the No. 18 Boston College Eagles played Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship Game for the second consecutive season. Like the year before, it was a rematch of a regular season meeting won by BC, which dispatched the Hokies by five around the mid-year point. Unfortunately for the Eagles, it also ended like the year before with a win for the Coastal Division champion.

The loss dropped the Eagles out of the national poll, and a 16-14 loss to Vanderbilt in the Music City Bowl ensured they wouldn't return at season's end. One year removed from a Top 10 ranking to finish added to the disappointment, but nobody could know that the Eagles wouldn't return to the national rankings for almost a decade.

The drought ended this week, though, when both the Amway Coaches Poll and Associated Press Poll inserted Boston College into their respective Top 25 on Sunday. The Eagles will enter this week's game at Purdue ranked No. 25 and No. 23, respectively.

"To be in the Top 25 means you're bringing attention nationwide to your school and to your team," running back AJ Dillon said. "It's good for the program but it's even bigger for the university. We talk about representing ourselves, and having the opportunity to be among the nation's best is to shine light on everybody else (at BC)."

Being ranked is something that historically suited the program. BC has 70 wins as a ranked team and enters this week with a lifetime winning percentage around .720. Since joining the ACC in 2005, BC is 12-2 as a team ranked 20-25 nationally and is undefeated at home in those circumstances.

"I think that in the five years that I've been here, this group has been the best team that I've played on," linebacker Connor Strachan said. "I've played against Heisman Trophy winners and national championship teams, and it's not just talent. It's the way this team works together. The chance to be here for a fifth year has been a blessing in disguise, and it's awesome to see the mindset that everyone has."

National rankings are a statement of a program's current success. They retain importance because they measure a team's trend based on its most recent performance. Becoming a ranked team is a sign that more experts are becoming believers in a team's potential. This past Sunday showed how voting coaches and media members are believing the preseason prognostications about BC as a team to watch. More importantly, it showed a belief in the prognostications becoming reality.

A national ranking is only as good, however, as a team's most recent performance, and a team can fall out of the polls as fast as it joins them. Three teams ranked in preseason polls are already out of the Top 25. Florida State, Texas and Southern California are all already eliminated from both polls, and Boise State dropped out of the Associated Press poll this week. In addition, South Carolina and Florida joined both polls in week one only to lose their respective second game.

Arizona State beat a ranked Michigan State team two weeks ago to join both polls, but the Sun Devils lost to San Diego State on Saturday and dropped out just as fast this week. It puts a premium on preparation, and it requires a singular focus to get ready for only what's in front, not what could exist in the future.

"It beats the alternative (of not being ranked)," head coach Steve Addazio said. "It's great for your fan base. It recognizes the fact that you've made improvements. It recognizes the fact that you're moving in the right direction. But really what I want to recognize is a chance to be 4-0 (after the Purdue game) on Saturday afternoon, or that doesn't mean anything. I've been around long enough to know and see it all,"

"We were really happy, and it was a great team win (on Thursday)," Dillon said. "We celebrated on the plane, but the next day, we were ready to rock and roll. We had our day off, and it was great to see that we were in the polls. But now we're back in here at practice."

The Eagles understand how being ranked in week four is nice but isn't the final goal. They're undefeated, and that achievement should be celebrated. Winning earns rewards, but winning only happens because a team achieved its singular goal to become "1-0 for the week." Earning the national recognition now is great for recognition of the team's current accomplishment, but it would mean little at the end of the season if everyone loses sight of the bigger picture.

"Not to be cliche-ish, but it's the fourth game of the season (this week)," Addazio said. "(Being ranked) doesn't really mean a whole lot to me (now). I think those are things that you like to see at the end of the year, then reflect back on it. Right now the challenge is that we have to find a way to be '1-0' after Saturday afternoon."

"This isn't where we want to be," quarterback Anthony Brown said. "We're still pushing to make history at this school. That starts with preparing for Purdue and executing enough to get to 4-0. We're going into a very hostile environment to play a team that's been unfortunate in its first three games. They're going to give us their all, and we have to be ready to be where we want to be."

The Eagles will play Purdue in the first-ever meeting on Saturday at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana. The game is scheduled for a 12 p.m. kickoff and can be seen on ESPN2. Coverage of the game is also available on the Boston College IMG Sports Network beginning at 11:30 a.m. The game can be heard on satellite radio on Sirius channel 976, XM channel 382 and Internet channel 958 or be streamed via the TuneIn app.

Players Mentioned

Anthony Brown

AJ Dillon

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