Eagles Injury Updates Ahead of FSU Game
Andy Backstrom (@andybackstrom)
Publisher
Phil Jurkovec is back, and Boston College is winning again. But the Eagles are still dealing with a host of injuries. Second-year head coach Jeff Hafley offered some positive news on that front Tuesday.
He said that cornerback Brandon Sebastian and linebacker Isaiah Graham-Mobley, both of whom have missed the last three games, practiced Tuesday. Hafley noted that he’s “hopeful” they’ll be able to go for Saturday’s game against Florida State.
Sebastian is dealing with a knee injury, while Graham-Mobley is battling an upper-body injury. Sebastian is a fourth-year starting cornerback and leads the Eagles with three interceptions. He has allowed 16 receptions on 29 targets this season, according to Pro Football Focus. Graham-Mobley, who suffered season-ending injuries his last two seasons at Temple, is still third on the team in total tackles. He has 46, including 30 solos, in seven games played.
“It was good to see IGM running around today,” Hafley said Tuesday. “And it was good to see Sebastian running around today. I mean we’ve missed those guys. We’ve had some serious injuries on defense.”
Strong safety Jahmin Muse is out for the year with a neck injury. Jason Maitre is out for the year with a shoulder injury. Free safety Deon Jones is likely out for the year with a back injury. True freshman cornerback, and backup nickel, Shawn Asbury II is out for the year with a broken arm. Defensive tackle Chibueze Onwuka has missed the whole season with an Achilles tear that he sustained in fall camp.
“We’ve played without a lot of starters,” Hafley said. “At the end of that game last week, I mean we had like four or five really young guys in there in crucial situations, which is good. It’s really good for them and the future, too, but I hope we get those guys back.”
Asbury’s absence was felt this past weekend when starting nickelback Josh DeBerry walked off with trainers in the second half. DeBerry didn’t return, and true freshman CJ Burton had to play inside. Burton, a former four-star recruit, had never played nickel in a game before.
He held his own, allowing just 7.3 yards per reception, per PFF, and making three total tackles. He might have to do the same this weekend against the Seminoles.
Despite his early exit, DeBerry finished as the game’s leading tackler. He had 10 total, including five solos. Following a stellar sophomore season at corner, during which he received All-ACC honorable mention honors, DeBerry has thrived at nickel. He currently is first on the team with 49 total tackles, in addition to logging two picks and two passes defended.
Hafley said that DeBerry is day-to-day, as is defensive end Shitta Sillah, who appeared to go down with a lower-body injury while rushing Georgia Tech quarterback Jordan Yates on a 4th-and-18 in the first half of last Saturday’s game.
“He was close to going back in,” Hafley said of Sillah. “He wanted to go back in, and they put a brace on it. So we’ll see where he’s at, but I’m hopeful for those guys this week. We’ll see how it progresses.”
Sillah is tops on the team with 11 quarterback hurries, according to PFF. And, by PFF’s standards, he’s BC’s third-best run defender. Sixth year Brandon Barlow—tied with DeBerry for the Eagles’ best run defense grade (88.4)—has been getting more run at defensive end than Sillah this season, though.
Hafley explained that, in his two years as head coach, he’s learned that if players can’t practice on Tuesday and Wednesday, it’s extremely difficult for them to play well on Saturdays. Reps during the week matter more in college than they do in the NFL, he said.
But Hafley said that it’s possible some guys who are out right now could make returns for the postseason. After all, Jurkovec worked his way back to the field much quicker than anyone expected.
“If they’re capable of coming back, and it won’t affect their eligibility just to play in one game, then I think it’s definitely [reasonable] to do that. If they can get practice, if they can get better and get a chance to go play and enjoy a bowl game with their teammates, I think that’s awesome.”
