Edit. Front Pag'd.

The soccer equivalent of trying to lob the keeper from 60 yards out.

This is not the usual BC story, this is something you'd expect from say, UConn. We have all made poor judgements in the past, some of them alcohol played a major part in, but for the most part the consequences were at worst a walk of shame or repeated trips to Lower for some Powerade. This was not the case for Charlie Davies who on October 12, 2009, broke curfew for the US Men's National Team for a night out.....but it didn't stop there. He attended a private event at a DC Area night club, and then got into a car with a person who was intoxicated.  From there we are all aware of the tragic events that took place. 

Charlie Davies has had a difficult road back, and the BC community can take great pride in seeing Davies playing in the MLS, after suffering such horrific injuries.  Let's not forget that everyone loves a comeback story, and we shouldn't downplay the hard work and determination that Davies put in to get back to this point.  Full disclosure, I'm a big Charlie Davies fan, and although my national ties are to England, I'd have been happy to purchase a Davies' US National Shirt.   While comebacks are great, there were some poor decisions he made to get to this place.  1. Breaking Curfew 2. Going to a club during training/international matches 3. Getting into a car with an intoxicated driver.

This isn't an advertisement deterring drunk driving, but we all have heard horror stories about what can happen. Here is a perfect example of drinking and driving and the "it can happen to anyone", even to superstar athletes.  Fast forward 2 years, Charlie Davies just filed a $ 20 M lawsuit against the DC Area club and Red Bull who was sponsoring the bar event, on the basis of overserving a visibly intoxicated person, who happened to be his driver.  Now I won't try to be BCI's Roger Cossack, but let's be honest, how much you consume is on you, no matter what the District's act says. Yes there were damages, but causation is where the line gets blurry.  A quick law lesson, anyone can sue anyone, but that doesn't mean a court will hear the case. 

This lawsuit is the fourth mistake in a chain of events that can't be undone.  Is this a statement Charlie is trying to make against bars and overserving? A quick conversation with the great mambino, also brought up this question, is this Charlie Davies' backup plan, realizing soccer won't take him very far- time to try playing the lottery?

Charlie Davies, your decisions led to your situation, don't try to pawn it off on other people.  Learn from your mistake and let it be.  Let people remember you for learning from your mistake, owning it, and then making the best of a bad situation.    

[Ed. note -- Edited, Front Page'd]

ESPN's Doug Gottlieb has his take on early entries. Here's Gottlieb as BC's Reggie Jackson.

"What more could they possibly want to see from me? Everyone knows I can score and this year I got to run a team. Look at my stats versus Kemba Walker and imagine if we played faster at BC. I think I might stay in this thing after all."

Former Boston College standout and current US National Player, Alejandro Bedroya has earned a tryout with Birmingham in the English Premier League.  

[Ed. note -- Edited, front page'd]

Entering our third year of the Spaz reign, for the first time in a long time, I am not sure what to expect. I'll start with this. I have forever been the Spaz apologist -- simply in love with his defenses -- but for the first time on Sunday night, I really doubted Spaz as a head coach. There were numerous decisions and actions that I just couldn't find any rationale behind.

Here are just a sampling of Spaz's WTF moments on Sunday:

- The halftime interview, one word "Anemic." Now Spaz's assessment, while accurate, was ridiculous. Let's just be glad none of the players got to see or hear this going into the second half. I think this could have been handled better, but Spaz has never sugar-coated things, for better or worse.

- Clock management. We were never "out" of this game and we wasted two timeouts in the second half. How can a head coach waste timeouts in a one possession game? Down 20-10, in field goal range on 4th and 7 with just under four minutes left, we waste one not to set up a for sure first down play and go for six, but to kick an expected field goal. Was the field goal kicking unit not ready? With two timeouts we could have technically got the ball back even after the Rettig interception.

- Offensive playcalling in the fourth quarter. Tranquill, assist to Spaz. Let's forget the rest of the game for a second, and see how we approached the fourth quarter down 10 points. Now I'm not an X's and O's guy, but there are a few things that stood out. Predictable and lopsided play calling -- run, run, run, pass, pass, pass -- and all but abandoned the run in the fourth quarter. If it was Rettig making the wrong decisions, use a timeout to calm the kid down and tell him not to feel like he had to throw a touchdown or throw for a 30-yard gain every time. When we rolled Rettig out, it was fairly successful, why not go with what works, why not design some qb runs? Keeping drives alive was our main problem, but it seemed we were going for the homerun too often, which just wastes downs. BC can win without a prolific offense, they just need to manage the game and the clock. It's Spaz's responsibility to manage Tranquil, and he either didn't see anything wrong (problem), or doesn't manage his personnel well (problem). If we had gotten blown out, I wouldn't have been as harsh on the playcalling, but we had more than a chance to win this game.

Continue reading this post »

[Ed. note -- Bumped]

While most of the attention this winter goes to the defending National Champion men's hockey and upstart men's basketball program under new coach Steven Donahue, the Lady Eagles are currently the only undefeated team on campus, and are quietly working their way into a National Ranking.

In her third season at BC, Coach Sylvia Crawley has got the team off to a fast start with solid play from their Senior front line, Carolyn Swords and Stefanie Murphy.  Over the Thanksgiving holiday, the Eagles came home from the Bahamas with the Junkanoo Jam Championship with wins over Seton Hall and Sacred Heart.    

As it currently stands, the Eagles are one of only three undefeated teams in the ACC, with perennial powerhouses Duke and UNC keeping them company atop the standings. League play starts January 9 at home against UNC, be sure to get out and support the Lady Eagles who are blowing out opponents by an average of 25 points per game.     

BC turned to an unexpected starter in Danny Rubin, as he poured in 14 points and grabbed 6 rebounds to help BC break open a close game and win comfortably.  BC's big two -- Reggie Jackson and Joe Trapani -- shot poorly for the second game in a row, but were still able to contribute with Reggie registering 10 assists and Trapani contributing from the line. The Eagles had 4 players in double digits, with Corey Raji leading the way off the bench with 15 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, and a solid contribution by an effiecient Biko Paris who chipped in with 11 points. BC improved on their relatively poor 3 point shooting with a 34% conversion rate, but registered 29 3-point attempts, showing that BC will not be shy chucking it up from beyond the arc this season.

The Eagles got a much needed win heading into the holiday weekend. Coach Donahue seemed to have made some minor adjustments and forced Holy Cross into 11 turnovers, incorporating varieties of defensive pressure, praying on the weakness of the Crusaders' guards. Holy Cross stuck with the Eagles in the first half, but with 16 minutes left in the second half, BC took the lead and never looked back.  

This win pushes the Eagles to 2-1 on the season, heading into the Old Spice Classic which tips off this Thanksgiving Thursday.    

[Ed. note -- Front Page'd]

When BC first announced the move to Under Armour, my first thought was "good for football, bad for basketball." I hadn't seen a good basketball jersey on any Under Armour-outfitted basketball team and was not impressed with their line of basketball sneakers (which currently consists of one). Now the time has finally come where we will know what our new look team under Coach Donahue will be donning.

Now I have yet to get my hands on an actual jersey, so this review is all based on Dime Magazine's interview with Under Armour. We all know jerseys always look better when you are racking up W's.

Jersey Cut: A-

This is in line with the new jersey that basketball mogul Nike has produced in the recent past. A fairly cut trim, similar to base layers BC used to wear under our old jerseys. Might leave some our heavier guys feeling self conscious, but nothing like HD TV and tight jerseys to get our guys into shape. I'm not a huge fan of the tighter fitting jerseys, but it seems that for performance, this is the way to go.

Lettering and Numbers: B+

Under Armour couldn't get away from the italics, but put a nice spin on the numbers by adding some detail within. What Under Armour tried to do was tie in our school history with the jersey. As a fairly conservative Jesuit institution, the best they could do was a stained glass effect within the numbers.  I like the idea, and it looks fine, but it's kind of disappointing that's the best they could do. Does anyone else think this looks similar to the numbers on the Virginia Tech football Pro-Combat jerseys? 

Details: A

Disclaimer: I'm a sucker for slogans and little details. The "Ever to Excel" on the inside collar, while not visible, still is pretty cool. I appreciated that on the US World Cup Jerseys and appreciate it here. On the neck line, there's a "For Boston" emblem, which is a nice little touch, but don't know if that should be replaced with a BC logo. As the jerseys are now, there are no BC logos on the jersey.  Also the design of the For Boston emblem need to be improved. Maybe theheights has some ideas? 

Shorts: B-

The cut of the shorts looks great, and is an improvement over years past. The details down are a great way to incorporate our colors and break them up, but i think Under Armour overused the stained glass effect. On the white shorts, it looks like lightning, and throws off the whole look.  I also like that the Under Armour logo doesn't seem to be on our shorts, but with that we also seem to be missing the writing on the behind. (again our info is limited to the pics provided by Dime Magazine).

Overall, this year's jersey is quite an improvement over anything Reebok ever provided BC. Hats off to the Under Armour design team, and hopefully this will give us the added confidence to squeak out a few more wins this season. 

[Ed. note -- Bumped]

We'll get our first look at the new look BC basketball team under Coach Donahue this Saturday at the Power Gym in Conte Forum. Seating will be on a first come-first serve basis, so Superfans get there early (fans must have a ticket to the BC-Maryland game and students can get in with a student ID). Sacrifice some tailgating time to support the undefeated 2010-11 Boston College Eagles.

Doors open at 11 am. 

Will questions be answered at this scrimmage? Probably not. But maybe we'll get an idea of what expectations should be for this upcoming season.

[Ed. note -- Bumped.]

While everyone is caught up in the Boston College quarterback battle and the looming rivalry game with Notre Dame, let's not forget a program that has steadily improved and now looks down on every prorgram in the nation. The Boston College women's soccer team is now ranked #1 in both the Top Drawer Soccer and Soccer America polls. (BC is ranked No. 2 in the NSCAA poll. Haters.)

Congrats to the Coach Allison Kulik and the rest of the Eagles as they look to continue their 10 game unbeaten streak against Virginia this Sunday.

[Ed. note - Bumped.]

The Boston College Athletic Department announced today that Ice Jam 2010 will be held on October 26th at 8pm in Conte Forum.

This is a great way to introduce the men's/women's basketball and hockey teams to the student body and local fans. Can we fill Conte for this event?  Let's hope the combination of hockey and basketball fans will make this a hot ticket. We would struggle to fill Conte for Midnight Madness, but could really generate some big numbers with the reigning national champs being the headliner. Let's also not forget about the high expectation for Coach Crawley and the BC women's basketball team, after some key wins last season.   

 Let's hope this turns out to be a successful event, and a tradition for years to come.

[Ed. note -- edited and bumped from FanPosts]

New coach, same old Florida State? Or is this a sign that first year coach Jimbo Fisher has a lower tolerance policy than his predecesor? 

Florida State's Jarmon Fortson has been dismissed from the team after reportedly failing a drug test.

"Fortson, a junior from Hurtsboro, Ala., was the Seminoles' third-leading receiver last season, finishing with 45 catches for 610 yards with four touchdowns. He was expected to be one of quarterback Christian Ponder's biggest weapons this coming season."

Looks like we don't have to wait for the season to begin for Florida State to be affected by its bad character issues.

Continue reading this post »

Ed note: Promoting story to the front page.

I just “cheered” for Lindsey (BC '04) who is riding for Andy in I RIDE FOR LIVESTRONG, a virtual version of the Tour of California. The Tour is the biggest cycling event in the United States, and Lance Armstrong and Team RadioShack will be riding in it this week. They’re raising awareness about the fight against cancer by dedicating their ride to some amazing cancer heroes and giving other people the chance to do the same.

As many of you may know, we lost a BC Alum last August after a 2+ year battle with melanoma.  Andy was a frequent contributor to BCI, in addition to a proud BC Alum and avid sports fan. Now I’m trying to help Lindsey get as many cheers as possible today so they can win the virtual race. If Lindsey gets enough cheers by May 23, Lance Armstrong will dedicate a ride to Andy in the Tour de France! Can you check out Andy’s story and add your cheer to help out? It only took me a few seconds.

Every single story and rider strengthens the cause and helps to make our voices heard. And now, more than ever, we need to talk about the global cancer crisis - if something doesn’t change, one in two people will be fighting cancer by 2030.

Please support Lindsey in her ride for Andy. With enough support we hope to have Andy's name on Lance's bike in the Tour de France.

And remember you can recast your vote everyday starting at 9am.

GO EAGLES and Let's Beat Cancer.

What can I say here? Justin Tuggle leaving doesn't hurt the program, well, unless (Uncle) Dave Shinskie throws out his arm. That's right, he's throwing heat on every pass no matter if its a quick slant, a 5 yard out, or in the flat (oh wait he can't make that throw or chooses not to). In all seriousness, with Chase Rettig coming in, and New Jersey Mike around, Tuggle wasn't going to see the field for the offense ever again.

The main focus here should be on losing Josh Haden, a prized recruit when he came in, but a kid plagued with injuries and playing in the shadow of the freshman phenom Montel harris last year.  Harris exceeded expectations last year and I believe the coaching staff this year are wearing their Ninja colored glasses.  Haden is a different player from Harris, and you can see that with his ability to get decent runs with limited touches. I thought (when healthy) he was a great complement to harris. This year i think Harris has been run into the ground, especially when he has proven to be completely ineffective. Our 3 losses to Clemson, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame, Harris had 13, 43, and 38 yards respectively. 

There were plenty of things we could have done different here, but we chose to stick with Harris even with him being struggling against top talent. In fact, Harris has yet to put together back to back games of 80+ yards this season. Now whether Haden could have solved the BC running problem in some circumstances that's a question we'll never know. (I am starting to doubt whether all his injuries kept him out of the lineup or was it the coaching staff).  

Harris was always going to carry the load, as he should, but our dedication to get him 20+ carries and limit the carries of Haden/Finch may prove to be the downfall of our team in the future. IF Harris goes down injured, we are left with Finch (promising) and the man made of glass, Jeff Smith. I'm not optimistic. I hate to see Haden go, and I guarantee a big time team will scoop him up shortly.