Quotables and Notables: Louisville Game
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)Publisher
Boston College’s offense, which combined for just 24 points in its first two ACC games and ranked in the bottom third of the FBS in practically every major statistical category, finally clicked this past Saturday against Louisville.
The Eagles exploded for 34 points and 449 total yards while registering their longest pass and run plays of the season.
Although BC was imperfect on the other side of the ball, its defense rose to the occasion when necessary, helping the Eagles enter the win column in conference play and heat up Louisville head coach Scott Satterfield’s already-uncomfortably hot seat.
QUOTABLES
BC wide receiver Zay Flowers dazzled in the Eagles’ victory. Putting up a stat line reminiscent of his breakout 2020 campaign, the senior caught five passes for 151 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He also wisely tucked an intended double pass for a gain of 22 yards that saw him reverse field and nearly score. His first touchdown reception was arguably the best grab of his career. Flowers split double coverage and leapt for a 57-yard score. Third-year Eagles head coach Jeff Hafley was in disbelief.“I don't even know if I've seen one like that ever,” Hafley said. “That was ridiculous. I had to look up on the screen to see how he caught it. ... He's gotta be one of the best players in college football.”
BC quarterback Phil Jurkovec believes it’s the best catch Flowers has made since the two have been playing together. He also said it’s the “most proud” he’s been to have the speedy wideout as his teammate.
“Zay just went up, and he wanted it more,” Jurkovec said. “He just grabbed it right off that guy.”
Jurkovec had a roller coaster performance against the Cardinals. He was mostly good, but there were two head scratching plays that soured his eighth career 300-yard passing game just a bit. Jurkovec threw both an illegal forward pass and a backward pass fumble—the latter of which was probably the worst play of the former Notre Dame transfer’s five-year career.
Trying to avoid a sack, Jurkovec threw the ball away. He was attempting to get it to running back Pat Garwo III, but his pass was way off the mark and, instead, hurled far behind the line of scrimmage. It rolled and rolled. Garwo circled it like a shark rather than hopping on it, and Louisville defensive end YaYa Diaby recovered the fumble. Jurkovec joked that “the analytical mind is not on right there.” To bounce back, Jurkovec said he turned to the serenity prayer, which he picked up at Notre Dame and recited in his postgame press conference Saturday. Then he offered his takeaway from that disastrous play and turnover that set the stage for a Cardinals touchdown.
“You can't change certain things, but there are things you can change,” Jurkovec said. “For the rest of the year, I hope we can just focus on things we can change and leave the rest to God.”
Graduate cornerback Elijah Jones had an up-and-down day, as the veteran was dinged with two pass interference penalties and even committed an offside infraction. That said, he also logged a game-changing pass break-up on 4th-and-4 that directly preceded the Eagles’ go-ahead scoring drive in the final frame. Jones, however, points to a different play, one he didn’t make. The Harlem, New York, native emphasized how significant defensive tackle Chibueze Onwuka’s extra point block was Saturday.
"If we don't block that, we might be going to overtime,” Jones said. “That was really big. And I came up to him after the game, and I was like, ‘Bruh, you may not realize it, but you won the game.’”
Jones wasn’t the only Eagle with some dirty laundry against Louisville. BC finished with 13 accepted penalties for 80 penalty yards. To put that into perspective, the Eagles came into last weekend with 16 infractions. Total. They were the least penalized team in the ACC. Hafley said he was bothered by the foolish penalties, however, he understands the defensive pass interference and defensive holding calls will happen if you’re playing aggressive like BC was Saturday. Linebacker Vinny DePalma discussed staying focused amid penalty setbacks or sudden changes that come with offensive turnovers (the Eagles had three of those versus Louisville).
“Sometimes everyone gets in the defensive huddle, and we take a deep breath. Doesn't matter where the ball is, doesn't matter what the score is, you just gotta show up and do your job on this snap,” DePalma said.
BC knew it had to block out the noise last week following its embarrassing defeat at Florida State, which capped a miserable 1-3 start to the season. But Hafley made it clear just how appreciative he was of the support he and his team received on their “Eagle Walk” Saturday morning before the Parents Weekend game that delivered a crowd of 38,517.
“People were here, they were cheering,” Hafley said. “They were supportive. And I know it hasn't looked pretty. And I know people want to win more. But they were there. They were cheering for our guys, for me, for our team.”
Hafley said it was an emotional win for him, his staff and his players. The Eagles have been through the wringer this fall. Injuries have mounted, especially on the offensive line. Left guard Finn Dirstine (upper-body) became the third BC Week 1 starter up front to miss time this year Saturday. BC’s starting guards against Louisville—Jackson Ness and Dwayne Allick—were both playing defensive line early last season. Nevertheless, the Eagles’ O-Line played its best game of 2022, and BC looked more like the team most expected this year.
“This wasn't the best win we've ever had here,” Hafley said. “It's just stuff we had to overcome to get it. Throughout the week, injuries, throughout the game. And then to finish like that. That's a special moment for those guys.”
NOTABLES
— Jurkovec was 18-of-21 for 304 passing yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Two of his incompletions, including the interception, were the byproduct of drops. Plus, Jurkovec added a 33-yard scramble on what ended up being BC’s game-winning drive.— Flowers now leads the ACC with 481 receiving yards, at least 115 more receiving yards than every other player in the conference. His 6.8 receptions per game are also tops in the ACC, and his five touchdown catches are tied for first in the league. With Saturday’s performance, Flowers moved into second place all-time in BC history (ahead of Rich Gunnell) with 2,460 receiving yards.
— Jackson Ness, who started in Dirstine’s place at left guard, registered the best Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade (77.0) on the team. He allowed only one pressure in 57 snaps, per PFF.
— DePalma piled up 11 total tackles for the second game in a row. Through five outings, DePalma is sixth in the ACC with 43 total tackles. Keep in mind, his career high is 54 total tackles, which he recorded in 2021.
— Wide receiver Jaelen Gill entered last week with 10 targets on the year. He was targeted four times against Louisville. Each time, he came down with a catch. Gill piled up 97 receiving yards in the process, averaging 24.3 yards per grab.
— Louisville quarterback Malik Cunningham accounted for four total touchdowns, including three on the ground. BC did hold Cunningham to just 238 total yards of offense, although the elusive dual threat missed most of the fourth quarter with injury.
— Cardinals linebacker Monty Montgomery had himself a day. He logged six solo tackles, three TFLs, two sacks, an interception and two forced fumbles.
— True freshman Liam Connor handled kickoffs and booted four touchbacks. Danny Longman, who had been BC’s kickoff specialist since 2018, had a mere two touchbacks in 17 kicks through the first four weeks of the season. Longman is still the Eagles’ punter.
— Sophomore place kicker Connor Lytton had a brutal start to 2022. He was 2-of-5 after four weeks. Against Louisville, though, Lytton drilled both of his attempts: first a 37-yarder and then a game-winning, 26-yard chip shot.
— Running back Alex Broome continued to make his case for more carries. The true freshman ran for 78 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. He broke a pair of arm tackles en route to a 40-yard score in the second quarter. Broome has three runs of 15-plus yards (one fewer than Garwo), and his breakaway percentage of 62.9% is seventh among ACC running backs, per PFF.
