15 BC Players Miss Practice With Flu Leading Up to Regular Season Finale
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)Publisher
Boston College got through practically the entire 2020 season without a single positive COVID-19 case. This year, though, the Eagles are dealing with a flu outbreak.
Second-year head coach Jeff Hafley told reporters Wednesday that 15 players missed practice with the flu. All symptomatic players were tested for COVID-19 but none came back positive.
Hafley didn’t specify who exactly was out, however, he said that the non-COVID-19 illness has spread across various position groups on offense, defense and special teams.
“I know they wanted to practice, but the flu is real,” Hafley said. “And, physically, they were unable to.
“Hopefully with some rest and medication, they’ll feel better and be able to play. And hopefully it will not continue to spread to other players.”
The flu has been a headache for some Power Five programs in the Northeast lately. Penn State, for instance, was missing more than 20 players last week against Rutgers, which was also hit hard by the bug.
BC required all players and staff to be vaccinated for COVID-19 ahead of the 2021 season. Last year, the Eagles helped set the standard for COVID-19 prevention in college football. The team went more than 8,000 COVID-19 tests without a positive and didn’t have a practice or a game canceled.
“I think COVID kind of helped me, ’cause we dealt with a bunch of this last year going into COVID,” Hafley said Wednesday. “We talk to the trainer every morning and brought the news up. And kind of just had to meet with the team, make sure everybody’s being safe and smart.”
He continued: “There’s certain things you can’t control. I’ve learned that as a head coach. And this is one of them. So we gotta make sure we’ve got enough guys at certain positions to be able to play in the game.”
Hafley said that the outbreak changed the way BC went about practice Wednesday. It’s the latest obstacle in a topsy turvy season that has already seen the Eagles battle another bug. Injuries have spread, with place kicker Aaron Boumerhi, defensive tackle Chibueze Onwuka, strong safety Jahmin Muse, free safety Jason Maitre, wide receiver CJ Lewis, cornerback Shawn Asbury II all suffer season-ending injuries, not to mention wide receiver Kobay White and free safety Deon Jones who have been out practically the whole year, too.
And then there’s quarterback Phil Jurkovec, who missed six games with a season-threatening fracture to his throwing hand, as well as linebacker Isaiah Graham-Mobley (stinger) and Brandon Sebastian (knee), both of whom were sidelined for three games.
BC came into this year ranked 43rd nationally in returning production, bringing back 81% of its 2020 output. The problem has been keeping those guys healthy.
The Eagles need all the help they can get against No. 21 Wake Forest Saturday. Hafley knows that.
“I’m hoping,” he said. “Man, I’m hoping they can go.”
