After ‘Lost Season,’ Jurkovec Excited for BC’s New Offense
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)Publisher
When Phil Jurkovec transferred to Boston College in January 2020, it wasn’t out of the realm of possibility that the former Notre Dame quarterback would have to sit out a season.
After all, he needed an immediate-eligibility waiver from the NCAA. That seemingly arbitrary process dragged out until August. But, upon approval, Jurkovec finally got his shot at the collegiate level. He ran with the opportunity, starring in 2020.
The “lost season” came a year later when Jurkovec suffered a season-threatening fracture to his throwing hand Week 2 at UMass that cost him six games.
“Last year was a lost season,” the redshirt senior quarterback said after Tuesday’s spring practice. “That’s how I look at it. I came back for the last few games, but I really wasn’t 100%.
“Just looking forward to this year and getting back to finding success again.”
That success started with Jurkovec throwing for 300 or more yards in four of his first five games in an Eagles uniform. He finished the year with a 17:5 touchdown-to-interception ratio and 2,558 yards through the air in 10 starts during the COVID-19 affected season.
Jurkovec was a magician when plays broke down, leading the FBS in passing yards under pressure, according to Pro Football Focus. He was a two-point conversion away from forcing overtime against then-No. 12 North Carolina, and he helped the Eagles stake themselves to an 18-point, first-half lead at then-No. 1 Clemson.
But durability was a concern. He banged up his shoulder in Death Valley and suffered a non-contact knee injury against Louisville, sidelining him for the regular season finale at Virginia. An even fluke-ier injury derailed his 2021 campaign.
Jurkovec fell on his throwing hand during the first quarter of a gimme game at UMass. The devastating injury came on the heels of a 300-yard passing day against Colgate in the season opener. Jurkovec was expected to miss the rest of the year.
But he rehabbed hard and surprised the ACC with a return for BC’s annual Red Bandana Game, rescuing the Eagles’ season. Jurkovec snapped BC’s four-game losing streak—during which it averaged a putrid 10 points per game in conference play—and made the Eagles bowl eligible for the sixth season in a row.
After that, though, Jurkovec’s limited grip strength and bruised body caught up to him. Jurkovec completed a combined 13-of-35 passes against Florida State and Wake Forest and threw a total of three picks in those outings, back-to-back losses.
Jurkovec is trying to put 2021 in the rear view mirror. And, if anything, use it as fuel.
“I think it motivates him,” third-year head coach Jeff Hafley said. “To get another fresh start and be healthy, I think he should be excited, motivated and look forward to it.”
Even with his injury and an up-and-down end to the season, Jurkovec could have left for the NFL Draft, given this year’s relatively weak quarterback class. That said, the Pittsburgh native decided to stick around for one more year on the Heights.
“I knew I would have a chance to go this past year,” Jurkovec said. “But I wanted to come back, get another year under my belt playing. Just getting the experience and getting better.”
He also gets to throw to star wideout Zay Flowers for another season. Jurkovec was in Flowers’ ear about a joint return for 2022, and it played a role in the dynamic playmaker running it back in Alumni Stadium for one last go at an Atlantic Division title.
Flowers believes he and Jurkovec could be the best duo in the ACC, if not the country.
“We got to prove it to ourselves, though,” Jurkovec said. “That’s really what I care about. … I don’t know if we’ve had our connection where want it to be yet in the past two years. So we’re just working right now and trying to build that connection with this new offense with the new routes.”
Jurkovec is working with first-year offensive coordinator John McNulty, a longtime NFL assistant who was most recently Notre Dame’s tight ends coach. Hafley said he’s sat in on the quarterback room and noted that it “seems to be going really well” with McNulty and Jurkovec.
Jurkovec mentioned that McNulty’s scheme—which is expected to a blend of NFL/college offense that includes a variety of personnel packages and zone-read concepts, in addition to featuring running backs on the perimeter—is a “little different style” but that the team is excited about it and, so far, “it’s all been good.”
Like last year, eyes will be on Jurkovec to perform this season. He’s BC’s top pro quarterback prospect since Matt Ryan. But Hafley pointed out that his signal caller has already been through an offseason cluttered with expectation and preseason recognition.
Jurkovec is accepting of the buzz that comes his way. Right now, though, he’s focused on BC.
“I think he’s just hungry,” tight end Joey Luchetti said. “Last year, he had to sit out for six games. Just him having to watch us play without him out there, I think made him realize how much he means to the offense and how much he means to the team.”
