MVN - Most Valuable Network

Champs Sports Bowl Boston College Eagles (10-3) vs. Michigan State Spartans (7-5)

The Eagles conclude their 2007 season down in Orlando in the Champs Sports Bowl. Apparently finishing second in the ACC warrants a December bowl against the eighth place team in the Big Ten. Such is the insanity and absurdity of the great bowl system, which makes the regular season meaningful. The Eagles cannot do anything to change where they are. All they can control is what takes place on the field in this game.

This game should be a cakewalk. BC matches up favorably with all of its counterpart’s strengths. Offensively the Spartans rely heavily on the run. Their offensive philosophy is to establish the rushing game utilizing Javon Ringer and Jehuu Caulcrick to set up the pass. The only time the Spartans faced a run defense this good was against Ohio State, which shut State down. Brian Hoyer, Michigan State’s quarterback, is a lot like Cullen Harper of Clemson. His passer efficiency is very high, but that is the result of making almost exclusively safe throws. He typically has not been asked to win games. BC forced Harper to do more than move the chains to win the game by shutting down James Davis and C.J. Spiller. They should be able to do the same against a lesser rushing attack. Michigan State will have a tough time scoring. They will be able to move the ball, but it will be tough for them to put together the lengthy, mistake-free drives needed to put points on the board.

Michigan State saw its fierce pass rush take a major hit before the game as Jonal Saint-Dic was among a quartet of suspended Spartans. Saint-Dic had 10 sacks on the year. State still will feature Ervin Baldwin, who has 7.5 sacks, but Steve Logan can now focus his blocking schemes solely on Baldwin. Saint-Dic’s presence helped open things up for him. State will blitz a lot, but Matt Ryan is unlikely to be fazed. He will be able to find open receivers all day long.

Motivation is a key aspect in any bowl game. Some teams do not show up for bowls in which they do not wish to be part. This will not be the case with the Eagles. This senior class has talked about making history all year long. They want to get to 11 wins and are desperate to not end BC’s bowl winning streak. They want to go out on a positive note and have a chip on their shoulders. They want to prove that they belonged in a better game. Michigan State’s players are all in their first bowl game. Just making it to this game made their season.

It is tough to envision BC losing this football game. They have the edge in practically every tangible and intangible area. Matt Ryan and company should help Jeff Jagodzinski’s first year on a high note. The Eagles will control this throughout.

Boston College 31

Michigan State 13 

BC to Open in Cleveland

An announcement came earlier this week that BC’s 2008 football opener has been moved from the campus of Kent State to Cleveland Browns Stadium. This might seem like a good deal for the Eagles, but it is really no blessing. There are a pair of significant issues for the football program.

1. This will move the game from Thursday to Saturday. A Thursday game would have been on the season’s opening night. It probably would have been a nationally televised contest. Now the contest will become an afterthought on the first football Saturday of 2008. Even though the game is heading to a bigger stadium in a big city, the move limits BC’s exposure. Ohio is one of the biggest recruiting pipelines for the Eagles. They will now lose a chance to take full advantage of this game.

2. There is no way that Kent State has enough fans to fill up an NFL stadium. There will be plenty of empty seats. That will only add to the perception that BC fans do not travel. Ignore how few fan bases would actually travel out to Cleveland to watch their respective teams play Kent State.  There is a wide-spread negative attitude on the college football landscape regarding BC and travel, and this will only reinforce it.

Eagles Honored

This is a bit late, but a pair of BC players received honors this week. Jamie Silva was named First Team All-American in football, and Corey Raji was the ACC Freshman of the Week in basketball. Although they play different sports, the duo is quite similar. Neither the senior, Silva, nor the freshman, Raji, was highly recruited. They did not have the physical size or the athleticism for which top programs look. These honors show that dedication and heart can make up for what is lacking in natural talent. Congratulations to both Jamie and Corey.

Massachusetts 83 Boston College 80: Commonwealth Cup Returns to Amherst

BC fell to 7-2 last night on the hardwood at Conte Forum. UMass beat the Eagles by an 83-80 score to end Boston College’s 8 year stranglehold on the Commonwealth Cup. The Eagles have now won every game except the pair against New England rivals, Massachusetts and Providence. This game exposed the youth of Al Skinner’s squad. Coming off an impressive win against Maryland, the Eagles played down to the level of their competition.

This mix of man and zone that BC runs helped cost them this game as UMass went on a 22-7 run in the second half to put the game away. This amoeba defense leads to constant switching, which creates mismatches. It kept Tyrelle Blair on the perimeter, which killed the Eagles and UMass got numerous buckets from close range.

BC also did not get enough easy baskets off the Minutemen press. When the Eagles had their two best ballhandlers, Tyrese Rice and Biko Paris, on the floor at the same time, the team should have looked to push the ball and get easy baskets. BC was too content to break the press and set up in the halfcourt. The Eagles are not at their best running up and down the floor, but the best way to get a team to stop pressuring is to burn them.

Al Skinner did a good job in this contest. In the early going, UMass was getting all of the calls. Al took a technical foul to get into the heads of the officials, and the game was evenly called from that point. Some might criticize Skinner for not using his timeouts as the Minutemen were making a run, but that is part of the coach’s philosophy. He is not opposed to losing a battle in order to eventually win the war. Al wants his team to learn how to handle adversity. That means figuring out how to stop runs on its own. Riding out runs without stopping play will make the Eagles tougher later in the year. It will help them deal with tough situations in February and March when everything is going the other team’s way, and they do not have a timeout late in a game.

Beyond that, there is really not much to say. This is a young team that took a game for granted. The Eagles looked sloppy and lackadaisical. After a big win, this team expected UMass to roll over. BC never quit, even when things looked bleak. This team trailed by 6 in the final minute and still had a chance to tie with under 20 seconds to go. This mettle is a good thing. These young players just need to learn that they need to bring a consistent effort for 40 minutes every night.

Boston College 81 Maryland 78: Eagles Soar in ACC Opener

The Eagles moved to 7-1 with an 81- 78 win at Maryland in the ACC opener on Sunday night. By doing so, this team sent a message to the rest of the league. Pundits may not have regarded BC highly in the preseason, but that is typically when Al Skinner teams are most dangerous. The Eagles might not take as much of a step back as many expected after losing Jared Dudley and Sean Marshall.

Tyrelle Blair had a monster game. He had a double-double with 10 points and 11 blocks. Blair is transforming into a high quality center. BC is not a very good defensive team. An elite shot blocker in the middle can help a team escape damage from coverage breakdowns.  It is one thing to play like this against the likes of St. Louis. It is another to do so in ACC play. Tyrelle is also contributing on the offensive end. He had 4 field goals. Blair is never going to carry the load in the low post. All he has to do is score enough to keep opposing defenses honest. His ability to score from the post as well as step back and hit the occasional jumper forces other teams to keep an eye on him, which takes the focus off other lead players.

Corey Raji had 17 points in 18 minutes. He shot 6 of 7 from the field and played high quality defense. Raji’s development continues to impress. He is quickly becoming the second option behind Tyrese Rice. Al Skinner needs to start giving him more minutes. Tyler Roche starting at small forward is fine. Raji changes the complexion of the game and gives the team a huge lift when he comes off the bench. Raji is a superior player. He should get starter minutes in a reserve role. The distribution of playing time should not be equal between the players. Roche has been better than expected this season, but he is still limited. He will be a liability if his minutes are not relatively limited in ACC play.

The big question entering this game was how Shamari Spears would hold up. His lack of size became an issue on both sides of the floor last year in ACC play. He acquitted himself nicely against Maryland. Spears had trouble from the field, shooing only 2 of 7. This is no warning sign because of the aggression he showed. Sharmari got to the line 10 times. This kind of assertiveness was not present last year in league play. He was tentative because of his smallness and a back injury that hampered him. Spears maintained a healthy aggression. He did not back away and was unafraid to bang down low. Shamari finished with 5 rebounds. With the emergence of Raji, Spears might not have to carry as big of a load as was originally thought. He may only need to be a role player turning in the kind of performance he did against Maryland for this team to exceed expectations.

John Oates deserves credit. The big man finally played within himself. He did not force crazy jumpers that took the offense out of its flow. Oates shot only once from the field. What he did was battle down low to pick up 6 rebounds and 1 block while using 3 fouls in 15 minutes. Too often in the past, Oates has seen himself as a star perimeter player. The Eagles really need him to give them minutes as an interior presence inside. It is unclear whether this was an aberration or whether something finally clicked for John. Either way, this is the first time in a while he has given this team reason to hope he might be an effective contributor.

This was a complete team effort. Everybody helped out on the boards. Among the eight Eagles who saw time, Only Tyler Roche had less than 3 rebounds. If the Eagles play like this, they will be very tough to beat. It is tough to win in the ACC when the opposition limits second chances. It is good to see BC establish this kind of physical identity.

Perimeter defense was once again an issue. This game went from a laugher to a nail-biter as Maryland hit 5 three pointers in the final 90 seconds. Unfortunately, there might not be a way to fix this. The Eagles constantly break down on the perimeter. This cost them a game they were on the verge of winning against Providence this year. As the players change, the problem remains. It does not seem like Al Skinner knows how to fix it. Fans will just have to take this bad with the good which Skinner brings to the table.

Maryland might not compete for an ACC title, but this was still an impressive win. Few expected BC to leave College Park with a victory. There are no easy road games in the ACC. The fact that this young team was not overwhelmed by playing in front of such a hostile crowd in incredibly encouraging. This is the kind of win the Selection Committee will remember when March comes. This team is well on its way to a surprisingly successful 2007-2008 campaign.