Even the Book of Job Has A Happy Ending: A BC-Clemson Preview

timstwrt: so i read this totally informative, mildly insane examination of clemson's defense yesterday at shakin the southland
available here: http://www.shakinthesouthland.com/2012/9/27/3414426/what-is-wrong-with-the-clemson-defense
and i thought, "well, our QB seems very good...maybe we have a chance"

percDM: i also read that post after you shared it
but i still think our chances are very slim

timstwrt: sometimes i think that people talk about the A gap and sliding the linebackers because they actually don't know what they're talking about this. that article was like the exact opposite of that.
i also saw that sammy watkins has the flu or something and won't play, and thought "if their defense sucks and they can't make big plays...."

percDM: oh yeah, i think that guy knows his stuff
i still don't think it matters
he says they have bad technique on the defensive line despite quality talent
i think that could describe our o-line

timstwrt: right, so, push there
also, ramsey and edebali, two of the best players on a not-good defense are doubtful
so i guess clemson'll just run for a trillion yards

percDM: yeah, i don't think our defense has much of a chance to stop them
let me say though, there are some positives
1. clemson could have a hangover game coming of the fsu loss
2. we had a bye week to prepare

timstwrt: 3. all of the things i just said?

percDM: 3. watkins is out
4. swigert could be back
look, i like rettig, i think he is a good qb
but just because clemson's defense has problems doesn't mean we will put up points
we thought we'd put up points on northwestern

timstwrt: you also think that mindy kaling is the next lucille ball, so your opinions on things are on temporary probation

percDM: i think mindy kaling is better than lena dunham
i'm right in the maroonedgold wheelhouse for opinions mattering

timstwrt: i think that there are a lot of positive factors pointed in our direction....and one factor pointing theirs: they're a lot better at football
some might argue that that's the biggest factor in evaluating a football game

percDM: those people are hacks looking for the easiest answer

timstwrt: i'd argue for grit/leadership

percDM: there you go, what about chemistry?

timstwrt: do the clemson players look like winners?
i have no idea, but i bet not

percDM: no, bc, there is a team with grit
from our linebackers to our receivers, grit is our best quality
tackling and catching are a little bit down the list

timstwrt: but if we just grit the shit out this clemson team, they'll tackle themselves
i think that's how it works, scientifically
they won't get to touch their stupid rock, so that's another factor in our favor

percDM: i'm not a scientist, but it sounds right
so, in real life, how does bc pull off the upset?

timstwrt: i'm referring to real life ways that BC pulls the upset. if clemson is overwhelmed by BC's grit, is despondent over not being able to touch their rock, and tackles themselves on 40% of offensive snaps, the eagles will prevail
otherwise, not so much
feels like 34-16

percDM: earlier this week, i was thinking of a 34-20 clemson victory
now, with watkins out, 31-20 feels more right
but, i do see a way to an upset
and that's playing offense like a MAC team
i'd like to see some trick plays in this game
i know bc has never run a trick play under spaz (not sure if that is true)
but this is the time for it. overmatched and coming out of a bye week

timstwrt: i think there's about as good a chance of that as there is of clemson tackling themselves 40% of the time

PercDM: well, then i guess we can bend but not break on defense and hope the clemson kicker misses the flight
i wonder if clemson fans will travel to boston for this game
they have in the past, but we're not quite the exciting match-up we used to be

timstwrt: i think they travel everywhere
that's their thing
our thing is being apathetic and unimaginative in our offensive schemes

percDM: at least for gene's last game, he'll enjoying seeing the clemson fans in their seats 10 minutes before the game starts
in time for the national anthem, of course

timstwrt: farewell, gene....you left this program in much better shape than you found it.
oops, that was from my "farewell to gene defilippo, 2008" notes
farewell, gene....we had some good times that i barely remember now.

percDM: i wonder how the acknowledgment of his retirement will be received by the fans at the game
probably with apathy

timstwrt: ha, "fans"
i think the empty silver bleachers will salute him warmly

percDM: i feel bad
not for him
but for our revenue sports programs

timstwrt: i feel worse for us, because we're people and we're using up precious time on earth following them.
if a man's worth is measured in number of times he's watched a halfback dive on third and long, then we are wealthy indeed

percDM: now i'm not even looking forward to the weekend
thanks

timstwrt: remember: they might tackle themselves

percDM: and if they do, then watching this game won't feel like a chore

timstwrt: WE ARE! BC! WE ARE! BC!

Northwestern Recap: Bland on the Run (/Stopped For A Gain of 1)

percDM: northwestern just breezed into the red zone and kicked another field goal.

timstwrt: this is a real test for my "indifference towards the head coach" campaign

percDM: i don't like where you are going with this, because i've already copied "i've resolved this season to not comment on the head coach" from the blog, so i'd be ready to drop it on you

timstwrt: although, if your team allows 100 offensive plays and 560 yeards by the other team, yet you still manage to have the ball only down 2 with five minutes left....perhaps that's perversely an amazing feat of coaching?
  best coach ever!

percDM: haha

timstwrt: the rope-a-dope almost worked

percDM: the defensive approach was...interesting
  it was an extreme bend but don't break
  and we got dominated in yardage, but we only gave up 22 points

timstwrt: my ability to break down the defensive schemes is hampered by: a) our vantage point from the southwest corner of the end zone and b) the fact that i didn't rewatch the game on television because i'm not a masochist
  i actually thought we adjusted
  and then tackled poorly
we were getting underneath on the bubble screens and then just not hitting guys

percDM: i didn't feel like i saw much in the way of adjustments, although you are right about the bubble screens late in the game
  mainly, i remember huge cushions, all day long
  and northwestern dinked and dunked all day long

timstwrt: i guess the essential question of how this game should be viewed is:
are our players not very good, and the coaches are trying to compensate, or is the coaching so conservative that it is hindering the ability of the players?

percDM: i actually think it is the latter, but it is even more than the conservative scheming/game management
  it seems like the coaches can't coach the fundamentals

timstwrt: no matter the answer, it's on spaziani, which is why the new wave of #firespaz isn't interesting to me. he's not good at running a football program. we know this. he'll be gone as soon as the new AD unpacks his boxes.

percDM: that's all intellectually true

timstwrt: i mean, you can say that about the fundamentals, but how much coaching goes into "hold onto the ball, deuce?"
  the late hits are another thing, i guess

percDM: yeah, a fumble here and a fumble there aren't on the coach
  but, bc has fumbled a ton this year
  the tackling is poor
  there were mental breakdowns like the late hits
  and then there was the 25 rushing yards on 21 attempts
  how does a school that was known as o-line u become a program that can't pick up even an average of 2 yards per run

timstwrt: it's embarrassing
  it was just such a strange game
  on the one hand, we should've lost by 30
  on the other, we had the ball down 2 with a few minutes left
  and, of course, nothing i've read about the game has discussed the touchback that wasn't on that late punt that left us at the 1
  which seems like a pretty pivotal play

percDM: that touchback that wasn't was a huge play
  one of the key plays of the game, for sure
  and i don't know why it wasn't reviewed
  we were in that end zone, and had a pretty good vantage point, and it definitely looked like a touchback

timstwrt: goddamn replacement refs (every level of football has replacement refs, right?)

percDM: but of course, the finch fumble was the biggest play
  especially since it was followed by a huge drive by northwestern

timstwrt: i think it was a big play, and deuce, if you're one of our 40 readers, you need to hold on to the ball.  but northwestern was never really in danger.  if we had gone ahead that early, i'm certain that NU would've found the end zone
 the way we were playing, the only way we sneak out of there with a win is to score on that last drive, where we got screwed on the non-touchback

percDM: yeah, we needed that drive
  and of course, after that 3 and out, northwestern finally got in the end zone
  i believe that by then, our defense was exhausted
  the bend but don't break strategy will do that to you when you don't really hold on to the ball

timstwrt: this looks like 4-8 to me
  army, maryland, nc state
  not sure who else we can beat....that wake forest game will be a real battle of titans

percDM: yeah, i think army and maryland gets us to 3 wins
  and we win 2 of these three games: wake, nc st, and notre dame
  notre dame, just because
  so, 5-7
  i think that since chase can make plays, we can be dangerous on offense
  and if swigert comes back soon, we have a solid receiving corps
  with amidon and coleman
  although, throwing to anyone else seems almost criminal since they have about a 1 in 3 chance of catching the ball
  and the spaz conservative defensive gameplan can frustrate some teams and coaches (i think brian kelly especially)
  but, 5-7 still means a total house cleaning, which the program needs. and i hate to use this term, because it is usually just cliched bullshit, but the program needs to regain some kind of identity

timstwrt: house cleaning and identity creation...sounds like you're doing some management consulting

percDM: that's just because this kind of disarray is what consultants thrive on

timstwrt: i don't know if they need an identity so much as some line coaches

percDM: you think line coaches is the issue?
  just get a little better at the line of scrimmage and this is an 8-4 team?

timstwrt: actually, i know you're being glib, but yes.  not a very good 8-4 team, but an 8-4 team nonetheless.  if the offensive and defensive lines were 20% better on saturday, we win that game
  i think the difference between winning ugly and losing ugly is there.  and probably will be there in enough games to get a bunch of wins.
  there are three games on our schedule that probably aren't winnable.

percDM: vatech, fsu, and clemson

timstwrt: but other than those, we're not going up against leviathans
  the lines have been the biggest problem area during the malaise of the last year and a half
  and if they were a little better, spaz could play spaz ball and be adequate
  so it's probably better that they're not, because it means that he won't be able to hang on very long
  scratch what i said....keep doing what you do, offensive and defensive linemen!

percDM: so, what do we have to look forward to for the rest of the year? the continued improvement of rettig?
  anything else?

timstwrt: i just sat here for thirty seconds genuinely pondering your queston.
  and drew a blank
  i'm looking forward to going to the army game....west point is supposed to be quite an experience
  but we'll probably lose 2-0

percDM:   haha
  it's never been this bleak
 or i guess, this bland

timstwrt: just wait, it'll get blander
  there's your 2012 motto
  not bland enough for you?  we'll hit you with 35 rushes for 32 yards, and 12 punts.  boston college football: we'll bland the fuck out of you.

percDM: this is from last year, early october:
percDM
i can't wait
this season is soul crushing
and its not just the play on the field
its gene and spaz and everything around this football program right now
timstwrt
and that, my friends, is where this post ends, not with a bang but a crushed soul
our purgatory is turning into a hell

timstwrt: like groundhog day, without a hilarious beaver-driving scene.

BC - Northwestern Preview: Defense Come Home

timstwrt: so i was trying to find out if colter was playing earlier and, feeling lazy, just typed "colter" into google
  came up with john colter, a member of the lewis and clark expedition
  and, according to wikipedia, the "first mountain man"
i don't know who the current mountain men are
  but then i decided to google "rettig," to do a head-to head search comparison
  for him, it's the kid from lassie
so, by that metric, we're probably going to get killed
  long story long, i still don't know if colter's playing
  or playing QB, i guess

percDM: wow, that is a lot of information
 current mountain men are clearly west virginians
  mountain men have a long and storied history of lighting their furniture on fire

timstwrt: well, at least they're holding up their end of a dignified legacy....that guy also "discovered" yellowstone
do you know where on the field kain colter will be playing tomorrow?

percDM: according to wikipedia "Mountain men were ethnically, socially, and religiously diverse, fitting no ready stereotype."
  so, not west virginians
 i have no idea
  but either way, the northwestern offense will look the same
  they somehow manage to just plug in quarterbacks and the offense keeps working at the same level

timstwrt: i watched the last ten minutes of northwestern-syracuse waiting for coverage to switch over to the BC-miami game, so i'm confident in saying that the final score will be 77-70

percDM: yeah, i also expect a high scoring game
  over the past few years, northwestern has shown they can score on anybody
  and stop almost nobody

timstwrt: but, also, miami getting defenestrated last weekend killed my "we might be ok at football" buzz

percDM: yeah, although i really do think we were caught off guard by that incredibly fast freshman running back

timstwrt: i'm told northwestern's defense played well against vanderbilt.  although, if northwestern plays vanderbilt in football, does it make a sound?

percDM: it doesn't, but both northwestern and vandy are better than their traditions and fan bases
i'm worried about the game
  like you said, the miami game, while exciting at times, does not inspire confidence

timstwrt: i'm so used to us being terrible at this point that i was a little surprised to see that we're only getting 4 points
  and, despite saying that, i fully expect us to win and will be crushed when we don't
  fandom's complicated

percDM: complicated and universal
  i feel the same way

timstwrt: also complicated:  the ways that BC can be bad at football.  rettig's good, the defense sucks?  topsy-turvy.

percDM: rettig looked really good
  and i liked the offense during the miami game
  it was more wide-open, and they took some more chances

timstwrt: the pick he threw right to the linebacker on the slant wasn't great
  (i guess we're just forgetting the maine game happened)

percDM: i'm fine with interceptions if we are throwing that much
the maine game can't tell you anything
  except all of our running backs like to fumble
looking at the offense, the passing game has looked good

timstwrt: yeah, but i already knew that from the miami fumbling

percDM: but the running game looked weak against miami
 i think that finch has to be the primary back because he is actually a threat to break a play
  williams is powerful, but he doesn't even try to pick a hole

timstwrt: deuce is #1 on the depth chart, right?
  what i don't know about football i make up for in knowing nicknames

percDM: yeah, and kimble is second
  kimble is a nice receiving threat, but hasn't proven much as a runner

timstwrt: that williams million-yard game in the carrier dome seems a lifetime ago

percDM:  yeah, that game made it seem like we'd get through the harris injury without too much of a drop-off
  obviously, everything worked out just fine there

timstwrt: for everyone involved!
  poor montel
  i've resolved this season to not comment on the head coach
  i don' t believe he'll be the coach any longer than the end of the season no matter what happens
  so it's worthless

percDM: that sentiment is fine for now
  and i didn't think that coaching was the cause of our loss to miami

timstwrt: no...you can't coach up turnovers
there's no "hold on to the ball, tahj" scheme adjustment

percDM: but coaching will matter in this game though
  because we know we aren't going to shut down northwestern
  so, we need to score, which might mean taking some chances
  and not always settling for field goals

timstwrt: the defense has shown us almost nothing, and i'm not sure they can get much better
  certainly not by tomorrow

percDM: no, and again, it's hard to fix tackling when it becomes a problem
  yelling wrap him up can only go so far

timstwrt: here's the optimistic perspective on that and the fumbling.  the overall sloppiness of the miami game
 it was the first game

percDM: and don't forget amidon and spiffy dropping passes

timstwrt: normally you make those mistakes against maine and not a conference opponent (great scheduling, soon-to-be-departed AD!)

percDM: ha
 yeah, i buy into the first game thing a little

timstwrt: spiffy seems like maybe he just drops passes?  he feels like that kind of receiver to me.

percDM: could be
  he also isn't a returner

timstwrt: not so far

percDM: but he's not a bad receiver, just has some issues with drops

timstwrt: there's a reason he went to BC
  besides kuechly, we don't really get perfect football players
  all that said
  who do you like?

percDM: clearly, i'm biased, i like bc
  i think it'll be a close game

timstwrt: will they win because we'll be in attendance?
  "don't let us down in front of those assholes" - spaz

percDM: i can't think of any more concrete reason to claim they're going to win
we're the underdogs, but only by 4, and they're at home
  obviously the linemakers aren't overwhelmed by northwestern either
 i was just about to say something ridiculous about turnovers, but stopped myself at the last second
  despite our lack of quality game management over the past four years, i think we'll pull it out late
  what do you think?

timstwrt: score?

percDM: BC 34-28, and i yell at spaz for kicking at least one of the field goals

timstwrt: i feel similarly...lassies 38- mountain men 34

percDM: i think we need this win to end the season bowl eligible
  before the season started, we we re talking
  and i ranked the games by bc's chance of winning
1. Maine
2. Maryland
3. Army
4. Wake Forest
5. NC St
6. Miami
7. Northwestern
8. Georgia Tech
9. Notre Dame
10. Clemson
11. Florida St
12. Virginia Tech
you said you'd flip nc state and wake, as well as fsu and vatech

timstwrt: i recall

percDM: after losing to miami, i don't see much of a chance of us getting to bowl eligibility without this victory

timstwrt: does maine even count towards eligibility?

percDM: yeah, 1 fcs team counts

timstwrt: what a joke

percDM: if you play 2 like the fightin TOBs did a few years ago, only one counts

timstwrt: that's right
  speaking of people soon to be looking for work....

percDM: maybe we'll see spaz, tob, and jags all hanging out in the stands for a bc game next year

timstwrt: by the end of 2012, tom o'brien, gene defilippo, frank spaziani, AND jim calhoun may all be unemployed!  who says we're not better off than we were four years ago?

Notre Dame to the ACCish: Wild, Baseless Speculation is Our Lifeblood

percDM:  ND to ACC in all sports but football

will play 5 games against ACC teams in football

timstwrt:  indeed

percDM:  big move for acc, more bad news for big east

timstwrt:  it seems i'm about three minutes ahead of everyone on this
since i just had four chat boxes pop up saying the same thing
holy shit, ACC is also jacking exit fees to $50m

percDM:  makes sense

timstwrt:  also, bad for purdue

percDM:  no its not
i don't think

timstwrt:  five ACC games, and ND leak says the only protected rivals are stanford, USC, navy

percDM:  nd will play 5 acc teams, 3 big ten teams, 2 pac-12 teams, navy, an d one other game

percDM:  this is also great for uconn
in that uconn will never be in the acc

timstwrt:  i don't think it'll be three big ten teams, but i've re-evaluated and think they'll keep michigan and purdue

percDM:  i do think michigan and purdue are bigger rivals for nd than michigan st
but, i'm not sure why they wouldn't keep three bigten teams, they've played those three teams forever

timstwrt:  i don't think they want to have 11 committed games every year.  if they did, they would just join a football conference

percDM:  they have 9 right now
10 if you include bc in that

timstwrt:  have you switched over to making my argument for me?
9 and 10 are fewer than 11, right?

percDM:  but those are conference levels of commtment
i'm not sure what nd loses by have 11 committed games
they could still schedule one big 12 or sec school
or more likely, tulsa
or some crappy school

timstwrt:  they lose the option of scheduling one crappy school and one marquee school

percDM:  i honestly think they'll get their yearly crap from the acc
5 games is a lot

timstwrt:  i guess they might rotate through the whole ACC
which wouldn't be great for us

percDM:  they might, but i don't think they will
they've traditionally played bc and pitt
maybe they'll lock in those
and rotate the other 3 games
they've got some history with miami and syracuse
somewhat of a history with georgia tech too

percDM:  will it also cost nd $50 million to leave the conference?

timstwrt:  yes

percDM:  also, i just looked at nd's schedule this year
they're playing bc, miami, pitt, and wake forest
that's already four acc teams
that 50 million is a big number
because that means if nd's football independence becomes threatened by the huge conference money, they'll join the acc
and not the big ten

timstwrt: so, does it make sense to grab georgetown and have a 16 team basketball league?

percDM:  yeah, i think its georgetown
i guess it could be villanova, although they are trying to build a football program, so they're probably out of the running
percDM:  from the blog on sept 20 of last year: i see the best scenario as nd and georgetown joining as non-football playing schools
we are very close

timstwrt:  i'm sure you would have dug that up if it had been something i said

percDM:  haha
of course
you were pushing for georgetown and villanova
which was a fine scenario

timstwrt:  i was pushing for anything that blocked uconn
this works

percDM:  and maybe better
i just saw eagle in atlanta said this meant the acc would probably add uconn or rutgers
and i completely disagree
i think georgetown remains the most likely option

timstwrt:  rutgers or uconn makes no sense

percDM:  but providence would be a giant fuck you to the big east
p.s. i don't want it to be providence

timstwrt:  let's walk through this
say you add uconn
you have unbalanced football divisons?
or notre dame plays all five of their games within one division?

percDM:  can you make that work with the 5 nd games?

timstwrt:  still doesn't work
because there'd be someone not playing an ostensible "divisional" opponent

percDM:  right

timstwrt:  and all of this doesn't acknowledge the fact that there's a much easier option out there, and they're playing basketball in our nation's capital

percDM:  who else is an option besides georgetown
st. john's?

timstwrt:  with notre dame's quasi-affiliation and $50m exit fees, football is protected
may as well reassert basketball's dominance and call it a day
i guess st. john's or providence
in that order

percDM:  is there any reason georgetown wouldn't want to leave the big east?

timstwrt:  history

percDM:  yeah, but with syracuse in the acc, isn't that a lot of the history?
and add nd, pitt, and bc

timstwrt:  you asked if there was a reason.  i didn't say it was a good one.

percDM:  yeah, that was unfair
i wanted you to be my straw man

timstwrt:  there's not a compelling reason that i see, no
although, travel considerations might be a bigger factor when you don't have the football cash cow

percDM:  but the new big east is going to have huge travel issues
even in non-football

timstwrt:  yeah, i'm going more "straw grabber" than "straw man"
i don't know why they wouldn't

percDM:  i think this is great for the acc
and good for bc
although i am a little worried about losing the yearly series with nd
which, i guess, could happen

timstwrt:  and awful for the university of connecticut!

percDM:  that's the cherry on top