2010 RECORD: 7-6 (4-4), 4th Atlantic ACC2010 BOWL GAME: Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, Lost to Nevada 20-13
2010 Schedule/Results
Weber State, W 38-20
Kent State, W 26-13
Virginia Tech, L 19-0
Notre Dame, L 31-13
@ NC State, L 44-17
@ Florida State, L 24-19
Maryland, L 24-21
Clemson, W 16-10
@ Wake Forest, W 23-13
@ Duke, W 21-16
Virginia, W 17-13
@ Syracuse, W 16-7
Nevada, L 20-13
OFFENSE
308.6 yards per game
Something that BC is not used to happened in a big way in 2010. The QB position was a disaster. The school that produced Matt Hasselback, Matt Ryan, and Doug Flutie produced a big pile of crap this season, and it nearly derailed everything. Freshman Chase Rettig ended up holding the reins for 9 games, but he tossed only 6 TD passes in those 9 games, and he was picked once for every game that he started. Dave Shinskie was the returning starter, but he played like he had both feet tied together, and had one arm ripped off. Mark Mascrovetra was no better than the other two in limited play. The good/bad news is that all three return in 2011. Even worse is the news that the Eagles recruited just one QB, and that was 3 star Christian Suntrup.
Montel Harris still found a way to do his thing at RB. The biggest talent that the Eagles have on offense was infazed by the lack of a passing attack, as he rushed for 1252 yards and 8 scores. He probably would have been much better than that had there been any threat of a decent passing game, but he was impressive anyway. The good news is that Harris will return in 2011 to carry the load once again. Both of Harris' primary backups are back as well, as both were freshmen in 2010. They are Andre Williams and Sterlin Phifer, and both look promising. Due to the depth at the RB position, Frank Spaziani did not recruit any new backs for 2011.
When your QB play is bad, your receivers suffer, and that is exactly what happened in 2010. Only two recievers had over 30 catches, and neither one of them busted 40. Freshman Bobby Swigert led the team with 39 catches for 504 yards and 4 scores, while TE Chris Pantale had 31 catches for 338 yards, but only 1 TD. Alex Amidon is back next season as the second WR, but he only had 16 catches in that role this season. All of the primary players who grabbed minutes this season will be back. Curt Evans will be the lone WR joining BC from the recruiting class, and they will also add TE Brian Miller, who as a 4 star should build on the BC tradition of having excellent TEs.
While the Eagles were young at just about every other position on offense, they were old on the line. All world OT Anthony Costanzo, OG Nathan Richman, and C Mark Apinney all graduated after the season. To rub salt into those wounds, Richman was also the primary backup center. John Wetzel and and Seth Betancourt will battle to replace Costanzo at Tackle, while Emmett Cleary and Ian White will battle for the open Guard spot. 6 linemen were signed in this recruiting class, but none are above a 3 star. No early standouts.
DEFESNE
310.0 yards per game allowed, including just 80.2 yards rushing allowed per game.
The Boston College Eagles are bought and sold on defense. It is the gravy of what this team does under Frank Spaziani. That means that the talent on this side of the ball completely outshines the offense.
DT Kaleb Ramsey led the line in tackles in 2010 with 39 on the season, but DE Max Holloway was a beast in the backfield with 14 TFLs on the year. Alex Albright also was busy with 9 TFLs. DT Domik Scafe also had 9 TFLs. Holloway led the team with 4 sacks. Brad Newman had 3 sacks, but is the lone D lineman who is moving on. Everyone else returns and there is significant depth, as Dan Williams is the only reserve who is gone. 4 players will be added to the line through recruiting, 3 DE's and DT Max Ricci, who stands in at 6-4 and 345 lbs. He could be the sleeper of the D Line class as he only rates at 2 stars.
There was an incredible story this season, as Mark Hrzlich returned to play after defeating cancer. Not only did he return, but he showed why he was one of the bets LBs in the nation before his illness. He recorded 50 solo tackles, and 65 overall, and you know that he was never 100%. What made things even better is that Luke Kuelchy was named as our All-Bilo LB of the Year after recording 183 tackles on the season. Kuelchy is just a sophomore, but is the best LB in the country. He also recorded 10.5 TFLs on the season, broke up 3 passes and forced 2 fumbles. The Eagles also have another young force in freshman Kevin Pierre-Louis. KPL had 93 tackles in his first season with the Eagles. Steele Divito and Will Thompson are the top two reserves, and both return next season to battle for Hrzlich's job after he has moved on. The Eagles picked up another impressive haul of LBs through the recruiting process, with 4 star Steven Daniels looking to be the next big thing.
CB Donnie Fletcher led the Eagles DBs in tackles with 56 in 2010, and he also led all DBs with 5 picks on the season. He will return to man his CB slot in 2011. Saftey Jim Noel will also return after a 4 pick, 36 tackle season. DeLeone Gause is the lone departure heading into 2011, meaning that there will be solid depth in the secondary. The Eagles recruited 5 new DBs for 2011, including star in the making Albert Louis-Jean.
SPECIAL TEAMS
Nate Freese was very impressive as a freshman, having made 22 of 25 FG attempts. He is damn near automatic already, and he has 3 seasons left to develop. It goes without saying that the Eagles are all set here.
Ryan Quigly was solid at punter, averaging 41.54 yards per punt on the season, and he will be back in 2011 to handle the job as a senior.
Montel Harris should returns as the primary punt returner, with Bobby Swigert backing him up, while Swigert and Andre Williams look to handle kick returns.
FINAL NOTES
Frank Spaziani performed a miracle in getting the Eagles to a bowl in 2010. A 5 game losing streak had dropped the Eagles to 2-5 and they looked lost. Things turned on a dime after that and BC headed into the Bowl on a 5 game winning streak. Spaziani is an underrated coach who is a BC guy to the core. The return of Hrzlich was an incredible story, and his mentorship of Kuelchy has been a story for the ages. I find myself routing for this team to turn a corner, but they have to get the offense straightened out, and they have to do it soon. The defense and special teams are all set.
2011 NON-CONFERENCE OPPONENTS
9/3 Northwestern, 9/10 @ Central Florida, 10/1 UMass, 11/19 @ Notre Dame
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