Boston College Athletics
"Hafley Ball" Yielding Fourth Quarter Dividends For BC
October 07, 2020 | Football, #ForBoston Files
Games are won in the fourth quarter, and the Eagles haven't allowed a touchdown through three games.
At its heart, Boston College's hire of football head coach Jeff Hafley was designed to inject new energy into the Eagles' heart and spirit. The 2019 season was relatively unkind in the team's finish, and a new mind and new perspective revealed a new opportunity to reimagine the team's success.
Hafley offered that new vision with his NFL pedigree and success as the Ohio State defensive coordinator, and he built a staff that shared that inspiration for innovation. Now three games into the season, the Eagles are 2-1, but the new-look offense is starting to gel and the defense, long a tentpole of BC's success, is regaining its status as a top-flight, feared unit in college football..
"It comes down to fundamentals and technique," Hafley said of the team's jump. "People might watch us and say that we're not doing a whole lot of things schematically. We believe on defense that you win by playing with great fundamentals and technique, whether it's your eyes, your feet, your hands, getting off blocks, tackling. A lot of times, you get so consumed with drawing up these crazy blitzes and great schemes, but it call comes down to 'can you do the little things right?'"
Hafley's success from his previous stop at Ohio State is, by now, well-documented. The Buckeyes ranked 50th in scoring defense in 2018 but improved to fourth in the nation last season, and a unit with 400 yards allowed per game slashed its number down by well over 100 yards. Teams averaged just under yards per play less last season than they did before Hafley's arrival. The 71st-ranked defense in 2018 ultimately ranked No. 1 in total defense in 2019.
BC hoped for that level of success in Chestnut Hill, and after three games, the modest returns are an affirmation of Hafley's brand of football. Opponents are averaging a full 100 yards less per game and are gaining one yard less per play. The 125th total defense in college football is down to 25th, and the 101st scoring defense is down to 13th.
"This year, we've been in good battles," linebacker Max Richardson said. "We've shown flashes of good defense but we're trying to improve. Getting pressure on the quarterback helped us a lot. We're doing different things to disrupt timing of plays. There's been a lot of chaos that we're creating on defense, and that's helping us defend (against) offenses."
Richardson has 29 tackles, one less than fellow linebacker Isaiah McDuffie, and the two are clear leaders within the team's new scheme. They provide a heartbeat for the team, a sensor of sorts for the rest of the players, with McDuffie as the primary beneficiary of overall success with 21 solo tackles, three sacks and an interception. Their performance leads the defensive table, but they've enabled success in both the front and back ends by pushing different tactics in both the secondary and the front. There's a free-roaming style built on complexity and communication, and it's adapted itself as games progress.
"I think Coach Hafley has done a good job of instilling a 'finish strong' mentality in us," Richardson said. "We have not started out the hottest (in games), but we've regrouped and finished strong in these first weeks. Coach Hafley, (defensive coordinator) Coach (Tem) Lukabu, Coach (Sean) Duggan in the linebacker unit, we've taken great pride in finishing drills and finishing reps. When we want to compete in the fourth quarter, we're ready to do so."
"Our players, how hard they play, they never stop," Hafley said. "They feed off of each other and go even harder in the fourth quarter. That says a lot about the football team and our coaching staff. I think we do a good job of looking at teams and how they attack us. We've done a good job of staying ahead and feeling teams out. Our defensive staff has done a really good job of that."
At the end of last Saturday's game, North Carolina intercepted a pass and returned it 99 yards for a two-point conversion, and it became the first points scored against BC in the fourth quarter of a game this season. Prior to that, the Eagles held a 19-0 scoring advantage as part of a larger 62-26 output in the second, third, and fourth quarters, a stark contrast against the 27-10 scoring deficit in the first quarter of the first three games, two touchdowns of which came against the Tar Heels.
It's a far cry from the context provided by Pittsburgh, BC's opponent this week. Over four quarters this year, the Panthers are outscoring opponents, 128-60, but a 55-0 win over Austin Peay boosted those totals with 42 first-half points and 13 points in the fourth quarters. Without those numbers, Pitt's output falls dramatically to a 24-20 first quarter advantage and deficits in both the second and fourth quarters. This past weekend,Â
The Panthers are outscoring teams by a wide, 128-60 margin but beat Austin Peay, 55-0, in their first game of the season. They scored 42 points before halftime and added 13 points in the fourth quarter, numbers that dramatically decreased values as an exception to entering this weekend's game at BC.
Pitt outscored its opponents, for example, 48-20 in the first quarter and 41-24 in the second quarter this season, but removing the Austin Peay result drove the numbers down to a one-score difference in both periods. The Panthers still outscore opponents in the first by a touchdown, but they actually trail opponents in the second quarter, 24-20. In the fourth quarter, removing the points from the win over the Governors reveals solely the 13-9 result from last Saturday against NC State, which was won by the Wolfpack.
Those are still good defensive numbers, though, and Pitt entered last week ranked before the loss drove it out of the national polls. Quarterback Kenny Pickett is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in football, and the Panthers are a traditional, bruising team. Their offensive coordinator, Mark Whipple, is still a household name in football and a local legend to New England natives with long memories of his success at Brown and UMass, and the offensive line is as experienced as any on the BC schedule. That's a challenge, but it's one the Eagles hope and expect to be up to once Saturday rolls around.
"You can give our defensive staff a lot of credit," Hafley said, "but we roll a lot of guys. (Defensive line coach Vince Oghobaase) has hockey substitution lines going in, and (defensive backs coach) Aazaar (Abdul-Rahim) is putting different defensive backs (into different coverages). We try to be ready to roll in the fourth because we believe games are going to be won in the fourth quarter.
"You've got to play the game fast," he said, "especially now because of COVID (and its restrictions on offseason practice). We didn't have spring, we didn't have all this time, so we can't do too much right now, we've just got to get better. I credit the players for doing that and the coaching staff. They've done a really nice job."
Boston College and Pittsburgh will kick off at 4 p.m. on Saturday from Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The game can be seen on ACC Network and online at WatchESPN.com for viewers with access through their cable providers. Radio broadcast of the game can also be heard via the BC Learfield IMG Sports Network, locally in Boston at WEEI 93.7 FM.
Hafley offered that new vision with his NFL pedigree and success as the Ohio State defensive coordinator, and he built a staff that shared that inspiration for innovation. Now three games into the season, the Eagles are 2-1, but the new-look offense is starting to gel and the defense, long a tentpole of BC's success, is regaining its status as a top-flight, feared unit in college football..
"It comes down to fundamentals and technique," Hafley said of the team's jump. "People might watch us and say that we're not doing a whole lot of things schematically. We believe on defense that you win by playing with great fundamentals and technique, whether it's your eyes, your feet, your hands, getting off blocks, tackling. A lot of times, you get so consumed with drawing up these crazy blitzes and great schemes, but it call comes down to 'can you do the little things right?'"
Hafley's success from his previous stop at Ohio State is, by now, well-documented. The Buckeyes ranked 50th in scoring defense in 2018 but improved to fourth in the nation last season, and a unit with 400 yards allowed per game slashed its number down by well over 100 yards. Teams averaged just under yards per play less last season than they did before Hafley's arrival. The 71st-ranked defense in 2018 ultimately ranked No. 1 in total defense in 2019.
BC hoped for that level of success in Chestnut Hill, and after three games, the modest returns are an affirmation of Hafley's brand of football. Opponents are averaging a full 100 yards less per game and are gaining one yard less per play. The 125th total defense in college football is down to 25th, and the 101st scoring defense is down to 13th.
"This year, we've been in good battles," linebacker Max Richardson said. "We've shown flashes of good defense but we're trying to improve. Getting pressure on the quarterback helped us a lot. We're doing different things to disrupt timing of plays. There's been a lot of chaos that we're creating on defense, and that's helping us defend (against) offenses."
Richardson has 29 tackles, one less than fellow linebacker Isaiah McDuffie, and the two are clear leaders within the team's new scheme. They provide a heartbeat for the team, a sensor of sorts for the rest of the players, with McDuffie as the primary beneficiary of overall success with 21 solo tackles, three sacks and an interception. Their performance leads the defensive table, but they've enabled success in both the front and back ends by pushing different tactics in both the secondary and the front. There's a free-roaming style built on complexity and communication, and it's adapted itself as games progress.
"I think Coach Hafley has done a good job of instilling a 'finish strong' mentality in us," Richardson said. "We have not started out the hottest (in games), but we've regrouped and finished strong in these first weeks. Coach Hafley, (defensive coordinator) Coach (Tem) Lukabu, Coach (Sean) Duggan in the linebacker unit, we've taken great pride in finishing drills and finishing reps. When we want to compete in the fourth quarter, we're ready to do so."
"Our players, how hard they play, they never stop," Hafley said. "They feed off of each other and go even harder in the fourth quarter. That says a lot about the football team and our coaching staff. I think we do a good job of looking at teams and how they attack us. We've done a good job of staying ahead and feeling teams out. Our defensive staff has done a really good job of that."
At the end of last Saturday's game, North Carolina intercepted a pass and returned it 99 yards for a two-point conversion, and it became the first points scored against BC in the fourth quarter of a game this season. Prior to that, the Eagles held a 19-0 scoring advantage as part of a larger 62-26 output in the second, third, and fourth quarters, a stark contrast against the 27-10 scoring deficit in the first quarter of the first three games, two touchdowns of which came against the Tar Heels.
It's a far cry from the context provided by Pittsburgh, BC's opponent this week. Over four quarters this year, the Panthers are outscoring opponents, 128-60, but a 55-0 win over Austin Peay boosted those totals with 42 first-half points and 13 points in the fourth quarters. Without those numbers, Pitt's output falls dramatically to a 24-20 first quarter advantage and deficits in both the second and fourth quarters. This past weekend,Â
The Panthers are outscoring teams by a wide, 128-60 margin but beat Austin Peay, 55-0, in their first game of the season. They scored 42 points before halftime and added 13 points in the fourth quarter, numbers that dramatically decreased values as an exception to entering this weekend's game at BC.
Pitt outscored its opponents, for example, 48-20 in the first quarter and 41-24 in the second quarter this season, but removing the Austin Peay result drove the numbers down to a one-score difference in both periods. The Panthers still outscore opponents in the first by a touchdown, but they actually trail opponents in the second quarter, 24-20. In the fourth quarter, removing the points from the win over the Governors reveals solely the 13-9 result from last Saturday against NC State, which was won by the Wolfpack.
Those are still good defensive numbers, though, and Pitt entered last week ranked before the loss drove it out of the national polls. Quarterback Kenny Pickett is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in football, and the Panthers are a traditional, bruising team. Their offensive coordinator, Mark Whipple, is still a household name in football and a local legend to New England natives with long memories of his success at Brown and UMass, and the offensive line is as experienced as any on the BC schedule. That's a challenge, but it's one the Eagles hope and expect to be up to once Saturday rolls around.
"You can give our defensive staff a lot of credit," Hafley said, "but we roll a lot of guys. (Defensive line coach Vince Oghobaase) has hockey substitution lines going in, and (defensive backs coach) Aazaar (Abdul-Rahim) is putting different defensive backs (into different coverages). We try to be ready to roll in the fourth because we believe games are going to be won in the fourth quarter.
"You've got to play the game fast," he said, "especially now because of COVID (and its restrictions on offseason practice). We didn't have spring, we didn't have all this time, so we can't do too much right now, we've just got to get better. I credit the players for doing that and the coaching staff. They've done a really nice job."
Boston College and Pittsburgh will kick off at 4 p.m. on Saturday from Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The game can be seen on ACC Network and online at WatchESPN.com for viewers with access through their cable providers. Radio broadcast of the game can also be heard via the BC Learfield IMG Sports Network, locally in Boston at WEEI 93.7 FM.
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