BC Roundup: White Out Indefinitely, Other Team Notes
Andy Backstrom
Staff Writer
Boston College wide receiver Kobay White was in the transfer portal for all of 18 days back in January. He withdrew his name and remained in Chestnut Hill with “unfinished business.”
One year removed from leading the team with 29 receptions, the veteran deep threat was expected to thrive in offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr.’s scheme. That was, until White missed time in training camp with a knee injury.
What first appeared to be a speed bump now might have season-ending implications. First-year head coach Jeff Hafley told reporters on Tuesday that, at this moment, he’s “unsure” if White will be able to return this season.
Hafley said that he’ll have more details on the wide receiver’s injury later this week. White had returned to practice in early September, but he was unavailable for the Eagles’ season opener at Duke. After the game, Hafley explained that the staff found out earlier that week that there was a chance White wouldn’t be able to go for Saturday’s matchup in Durham. He said that they had White in for a second opinion and were waiting for more information.
Flash forward to Tuesday, and it’s not looking great for the graduate wideout, who ranks 19th all-time in program history with 1,409 career receiving yards.
It’s important to note, however, that even if White misses 2020, he could play next season. After all, as Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic reported on Aug. 21, the NCAA Board of Directors granted a blanket waiver for fall sports athletes because of COVID-19. What it boils down to is that, regardless if a student-athlete plays in their respective fall sports’ 2020-21 season, they’ll preserve their year of eligibility.
For now, CJ Lewis will continue to fill White’s shoes at the X wide receiver position. True freshman Taji Johnson, who turned some heads in camp, will back up Lewis on the outside.
Here are a few other significant notes from Tuesday:
Kyiev Bennermon on the move: Redshirt sophomore Kyiev Bennermon is no longer on the Eagles’ 2020 roster. The defensive tackle has reportedly entered the transfer portal. Bennermon beat out TJ Rayam for the starting nod at nose tackle ahead of BC’s 2019 season opener against Virginia Tech. The 6-foot-3, 300-pound DT kicked off his college career by piling up five tackles against the Hokies. It was the only game he started all season, though.
Bennermon appeared in nine contests last year and totaled 11 tackles, including 2.5 TFLs. He didn’t make the two-deep leading up to this season’s opener. Instead, the nose tackle position was headed by Buffalo transfer Chibueze Onwuka, followed by Rayam and Ryan Betro. And the defensive tackle slot was taken over by Cal transfer Luc Bequette and, in rotational capacity, true freshman Cam Horsley.
Hafley knows there’s room for improvement: During Sunday’s presser, Hafley said that the best time to coach a team hard is after a win. He emphasized on Tuesday that his declaration wasn’t just “coach speak.”
“At the end of the day, we have to win and however you win, you win,” Hafley said. “But when you sit back, and you watch the tape, and you’re really honest with yourself, you’ve got to look at the little things, and sometimes that’s more important than the result.”
Although pleased with the decisive victory and grateful for the subsequent praise, Hafley was very critical of his head coaching debut. The 41-year-old former Ohio State co-DC said that he felt like he rushed the team out of the locker room during pregame. Hafley realized that he was anxious and wanted to get his players out on the field, but he said that he left too much time before kickoff. He wasn’t satisfied with his in-game management, either.
“There were some things I missed, some routes I missed,” Hafley said. “I told the team today, I was kind of wrapped up in my first time being a head coach and trying to manage the game and being on the offensive headset. When I got back, and I watched the tape, I was disappointed in myself.”
BC is 1-0, in the receiving votes section of the AP Poll, and one of the more intriguing teams in the ACC, but Hafley is still laser focused on improvement from within and the game at hand—a Saturday evening bout with a high-scoring Texas State team that Hafley feels could easily be undefeated.
“I don’t even know who we’re playing two weeks from now, and I’m not worried about it,” he said. “We have so much work to do to get better.”
Andy Backstrom
Staff Writer
Boston College wide receiver Kobay White was in the transfer portal for all of 18 days back in January. He withdrew his name and remained in Chestnut Hill with “unfinished business.”
One year removed from leading the team with 29 receptions, the veteran deep threat was expected to thrive in offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr.’s scheme. That was, until White missed time in training camp with a knee injury.
What first appeared to be a speed bump now might have season-ending implications. First-year head coach Jeff Hafley told reporters on Tuesday that, at this moment, he’s “unsure” if White will be able to return this season.
Hafley said that he’ll have more details on the wide receiver’s injury later this week. White had returned to practice in early September, but he was unavailable for the Eagles’ season opener at Duke. After the game, Hafley explained that the staff found out earlier that week that there was a chance White wouldn’t be able to go for Saturday’s matchup in Durham. He said that they had White in for a second opinion and were waiting for more information.
Flash forward to Tuesday, and it’s not looking great for the graduate wideout, who ranks 19th all-time in program history with 1,409 career receiving yards.
It’s important to note, however, that even if White misses 2020, he could play next season. After all, as Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic reported on Aug. 21, the NCAA Board of Directors granted a blanket waiver for fall sports athletes because of COVID-19. What it boils down to is that, regardless if a student-athlete plays in their respective fall sports’ 2020-21 season, they’ll preserve their year of eligibility.
For now, CJ Lewis will continue to fill White’s shoes at the X wide receiver position. True freshman Taji Johnson, who turned some heads in camp, will back up Lewis on the outside.
Here are a few other significant notes from Tuesday:
Kyiev Bennermon on the move: Redshirt sophomore Kyiev Bennermon is no longer on the Eagles’ 2020 roster. The defensive tackle has reportedly entered the transfer portal. Bennermon beat out TJ Rayam for the starting nod at nose tackle ahead of BC’s 2019 season opener against Virginia Tech. The 6-foot-3, 300-pound DT kicked off his college career by piling up five tackles against the Hokies. It was the only game he started all season, though.
Bennermon appeared in nine contests last year and totaled 11 tackles, including 2.5 TFLs. He didn’t make the two-deep leading up to this season’s opener. Instead, the nose tackle position was headed by Buffalo transfer Chibueze Onwuka, followed by Rayam and Ryan Betro. And the defensive tackle slot was taken over by Cal transfer Luc Bequette and, in rotational capacity, true freshman Cam Horsley.
Hafley knows there’s room for improvement: During Sunday’s presser, Hafley said that the best time to coach a team hard is after a win. He emphasized on Tuesday that his declaration wasn’t just “coach speak.”
“At the end of the day, we have to win and however you win, you win,” Hafley said. “But when you sit back, and you watch the tape, and you’re really honest with yourself, you’ve got to look at the little things, and sometimes that’s more important than the result.”
Although pleased with the decisive victory and grateful for the subsequent praise, Hafley was very critical of his head coaching debut. The 41-year-old former Ohio State co-DC said that he felt like he rushed the team out of the locker room during pregame. Hafley realized that he was anxious and wanted to get his players out on the field, but he said that he left too much time before kickoff. He wasn’t satisfied with his in-game management, either.
“There were some things I missed, some routes I missed,” Hafley said. “I told the team today, I was kind of wrapped up in my first time being a head coach and trying to manage the game and being on the offensive headset. When I got back, and I watched the tape, I was disappointed in myself.”
BC is 1-0, in the receiving votes section of the AP Poll, and one of the more intriguing teams in the ACC, but Hafley is still laser focused on improvement from within and the game at hand—a Saturday evening bout with a high-scoring Texas State team that Hafley feels could easily be undefeated.
“I don’t even know who we’re playing two weeks from now, and I’m not worried about it,” he said. “We have so much work to do to get better.”
