Boston College’s stars may have kept to the sidelines for most of the afternoon, but that didn’t deter any of the excitement surrounding the Eagles at the annual Jay McGillis Memorial Spring Game on Saturday.
Hundreds of children crowded the gates of Alumni Stadium with Game of Thrones-inspired BC posters in hand, wrestling for control of whatever sharpies were in supply. “It’s fun,” Anthony Brown smiled, “I used to be one of these kids. One of these kids one day will probably be one of us signing another football.”
Playing with new scoring rules that awarded points for tackles for loss and first downs among other achievements, the offense beat the defense 71-55.
The sunny scene ended on a somewhat sour note as Tito Pasqualoni -- the son of former defensive line coach Paul Pasqualoni -- was carted off the field with what appeared to be a serious leg injury. The collision occurred despite the Spring Game’s new thud contact rule that banned live tackling.
“I hate to see anyone get hurt, especially at the very end of the Spring Game with maybe four or five plays left,” head coach Steve Addazio said. “It’s just gut-wrenching.”
The O-line will be okay
Despite graduating three starters, the offensive line dominated the line of scrimmage on Saturday. Ben Petrula is returning to his high school position of left tackle and shouldn’t miss a beat replacing Aaron Monteiro. After beefing up from 245 to 290 pounds, Alec Lindstrom is looking more like his brother in place of Jon Baker at center.
Redshirt seniors John Phillips and Anthony Palazzolo have earned rave reviews from Addazio and add veteran leadership to the group. And Elijah Johnson could still be the gem of the bunch following a freshman campaign in which he made 10 starts but missed the next two seasons recovering from a knee injury.
“They’ve done a great job all spring,” Addazio said. “We’re not going to a step back at all on our offensive line. We’ve operated this spring at that position as good as we’ve ever operated.”
Both the first- and second-string offensive lines protected their quarterbacks and opened up running lanes for David Bailey (12 rushes, 91 yards, 1 TD) and Javian Dayne (21 rushes, 102 yards). The pass rush looked nearly non-existent in the first quarter thanks to the cohesiveness of the o-line, which featured Tyler Vrabel starting at right tackle with his dad, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, in attendance.
The D-line, on the other hand…
To be fair, defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan wasn’t emphasizing pressure in a spring scrimmage. But the loss of Zach Allen, Wyatt Ray, and Ray Smith could be felt much more than their three NFL-hopeful counterparts in the defensive backfield. BC’s defense barely penetrated the line of scrimmage in a Spring Game that has been largely controlled by edge rushers for the past two years.
“I think the obvious thing that we have to accelerate is the defensive front,” Addazio said. “Our depth, we lost a couple of impact players there. We got a bunch of guys working hard, and we need to make some ground up there.”
The Eagles still have Tanner Karafa on the interior. He’s joined by returning backups TJ Rayam and Jaleel Berry, who recorded a sack on Saturday. Early enrollee Izaiah Henderson, a 6-foot-5, 290-pounder from New Jersey’s Mater Dei Prep, earned a lot of reps and figures to complete for immediate playing time as well.
“He’s gonna be a real talent,” Addazio said of Henderson. “He has started to come on at the end of the spring, you can tell he’s figuring it out. He’ll be playing this year. And we need him. We got a lot of young guys on that side of the ball.”
On the edge, there are questions about whether returning backups like Brandon Barlow, Marcus Valdez, and Isaiah Miranda can fill in as ACC-caliber ends next season. The good news is that some depth is starting to develop behind them, highlighted by redshirt freshman Joey Luchetti’s three-sack performance in the Spring Game. If younger edge rushers like Luchetti step up and Bryce Morais can shake the injury bug, BC may just have enough weapons to sustain pressure up front.
David Bailey’s diet is paying off
Rather than risk an injury in a meaningless scrimmage, A.J. Dillon dressed but relaxed on the sidelines, in charge of lightening the mood along with giving feedback to his younger teammates.
“He’s a jokester,” Anthony Brown said. “He’s the court jester. He warmed up to cheer us on the sideline and be the Kevin Hart today.”
Dillon’s role of star running back instead went to Bailey, the 6-foot sophomore whose offseason training showed on the field.
“Coach Scott [McLafferty] came in and got me powerful and working on my speed all Spring Ball,” Bailey said. “I’ve been getting my speed up, I lost a little weight coming into this year. Right now, I’m 240, and last season, I was 250. So I dropped 10 pounds. I’ve been eating right this season.”
“He dropped 10 pounds of bad weight and put it all in muscle,” Brown said. “And as you can see, he’s moving a lot faster, making quicker cuts, and that also is probably just him playing more and more.”
On one run in the first half, Bailey cut to the left side and dashed 28 yards to the end zone for the offense’s second score of the afternoon. Dillon seemed more excited than anyone.
“Me and A.J., that’s like my big brother, so after every little thing, we’re always joking around,” Bailey said. “After every carry, he was just telling me, ‘Good job,’ critiquing my runs, what I should do. He’s just like a big brother to all of us.”
Who is Brown’s backup?
Interestingly, redshirt sophomore Matt McDonald was the first quarterback to take over the offense after Brown’s first series. McDonald finished 5-of-9 passing for 58 yards and rushed four times for 15 yards. He also threw an interception that was picked off by Mike Palmer and returned 36 yards. Local standout E.J. Perry, who was the first off the sidelines for Brown last season, struggled to find a rhythm and completed just 4-of-13 passes for 49 yards.
The star of the afternoon was Matt Valecce, a 6-foot-5 signal caller who stood tall in a mostly clean pocket on his way to 9-of-11 passing for 78 yards.
“Matt Valecce got a chance to get a whole bunch more work today than he had been able to get all spring, so it’s nice to see that,” Addazio said.
It’s worth noting that Valecce probably had more of his reps against the second-team defense. But nonetheless, while there’s still hope for Perry, both McDonald and Valecce appear more comfortable in the pocket at the moment behind Brown.
Special teams replacements
Michael Walker’s absence could be felt more than BC fans are prepared for next season. The bulk of it could be in the return game, where Walker totaled over 3,000 yards return yards last year. Unless, that is, Kobay White and Travis Levy can provide explosive returns and set the Eagles’ offense up with good field position like last year. Both took reps on Saturday but never attempted return, securing each fair catch.
Redshirt junior Grant Carlson had some nice boots in the punting game, pinning the offense at its own 7-yard line from around midfield. The rest of the kicking game, however, is looking like a usual suspect for trouble. Replacing graduating senior Colton Lichtenberg, John Tessitore took the field with the PAT unit after the first touchdown and missed the extra point. Sophomore Danny Longman converted the next point after attempt, though he later missed a monster 50+ yard attempt well short of the uprights.
It seems like Longman should be the clear choice for No. 1 kicker on the depth charts come fall, but adding a graduate transfer could also be a solution to this perennial problem.
Hundreds of children crowded the gates of Alumni Stadium with Game of Thrones-inspired BC posters in hand, wrestling for control of whatever sharpies were in supply. “It’s fun,” Anthony Brown smiled, “I used to be one of these kids. One of these kids one day will probably be one of us signing another football.”
Playing with new scoring rules that awarded points for tackles for loss and first downs among other achievements, the offense beat the defense 71-55.
The sunny scene ended on a somewhat sour note as Tito Pasqualoni -- the son of former defensive line coach Paul Pasqualoni -- was carted off the field with what appeared to be a serious leg injury. The collision occurred despite the Spring Game’s new thud contact rule that banned live tackling.
“I hate to see anyone get hurt, especially at the very end of the Spring Game with maybe four or five plays left,” head coach Steve Addazio said. “It’s just gut-wrenching.”
The O-line will be okay
Despite graduating three starters, the offensive line dominated the line of scrimmage on Saturday. Ben Petrula is returning to his high school position of left tackle and shouldn’t miss a beat replacing Aaron Monteiro. After beefing up from 245 to 290 pounds, Alec Lindstrom is looking more like his brother in place of Jon Baker at center.
Redshirt seniors John Phillips and Anthony Palazzolo have earned rave reviews from Addazio and add veteran leadership to the group. And Elijah Johnson could still be the gem of the bunch following a freshman campaign in which he made 10 starts but missed the next two seasons recovering from a knee injury.
“They’ve done a great job all spring,” Addazio said. “We’re not going to a step back at all on our offensive line. We’ve operated this spring at that position as good as we’ve ever operated.”
Both the first- and second-string offensive lines protected their quarterbacks and opened up running lanes for David Bailey (12 rushes, 91 yards, 1 TD) and Javian Dayne (21 rushes, 102 yards). The pass rush looked nearly non-existent in the first quarter thanks to the cohesiveness of the o-line, which featured Tyler Vrabel starting at right tackle with his dad, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel, in attendance.
The D-line, on the other hand…
To be fair, defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan wasn’t emphasizing pressure in a spring scrimmage. But the loss of Zach Allen, Wyatt Ray, and Ray Smith could be felt much more than their three NFL-hopeful counterparts in the defensive backfield. BC’s defense barely penetrated the line of scrimmage in a Spring Game that has been largely controlled by edge rushers for the past two years.
“I think the obvious thing that we have to accelerate is the defensive front,” Addazio said. “Our depth, we lost a couple of impact players there. We got a bunch of guys working hard, and we need to make some ground up there.”
The Eagles still have Tanner Karafa on the interior. He’s joined by returning backups TJ Rayam and Jaleel Berry, who recorded a sack on Saturday. Early enrollee Izaiah Henderson, a 6-foot-5, 290-pounder from New Jersey’s Mater Dei Prep, earned a lot of reps and figures to complete for immediate playing time as well.
“He’s gonna be a real talent,” Addazio said of Henderson. “He has started to come on at the end of the spring, you can tell he’s figuring it out. He’ll be playing this year. And we need him. We got a lot of young guys on that side of the ball.”
On the edge, there are questions about whether returning backups like Brandon Barlow, Marcus Valdez, and Isaiah Miranda can fill in as ACC-caliber ends next season. The good news is that some depth is starting to develop behind them, highlighted by redshirt freshman Joey Luchetti’s three-sack performance in the Spring Game. If younger edge rushers like Luchetti step up and Bryce Morais can shake the injury bug, BC may just have enough weapons to sustain pressure up front.
David Bailey’s diet is paying off
Rather than risk an injury in a meaningless scrimmage, A.J. Dillon dressed but relaxed on the sidelines, in charge of lightening the mood along with giving feedback to his younger teammates.
“He’s a jokester,” Anthony Brown said. “He’s the court jester. He warmed up to cheer us on the sideline and be the Kevin Hart today.”
Dillon’s role of star running back instead went to Bailey, the 6-foot sophomore whose offseason training showed on the field.
“Coach Scott [McLafferty] came in and got me powerful and working on my speed all Spring Ball,” Bailey said. “I’ve been getting my speed up, I lost a little weight coming into this year. Right now, I’m 240, and last season, I was 250. So I dropped 10 pounds. I’ve been eating right this season.”
“He dropped 10 pounds of bad weight and put it all in muscle,” Brown said. “And as you can see, he’s moving a lot faster, making quicker cuts, and that also is probably just him playing more and more.”
On one run in the first half, Bailey cut to the left side and dashed 28 yards to the end zone for the offense’s second score of the afternoon. Dillon seemed more excited than anyone.
“Me and A.J., that’s like my big brother, so after every little thing, we’re always joking around,” Bailey said. “After every carry, he was just telling me, ‘Good job,’ critiquing my runs, what I should do. He’s just like a big brother to all of us.”
Who is Brown’s backup?
Interestingly, redshirt sophomore Matt McDonald was the first quarterback to take over the offense after Brown’s first series. McDonald finished 5-of-9 passing for 58 yards and rushed four times for 15 yards. He also threw an interception that was picked off by Mike Palmer and returned 36 yards. Local standout E.J. Perry, who was the first off the sidelines for Brown last season, struggled to find a rhythm and completed just 4-of-13 passes for 49 yards.
The star of the afternoon was Matt Valecce, a 6-foot-5 signal caller who stood tall in a mostly clean pocket on his way to 9-of-11 passing for 78 yards.
“Matt Valecce got a chance to get a whole bunch more work today than he had been able to get all spring, so it’s nice to see that,” Addazio said.
It’s worth noting that Valecce probably had more of his reps against the second-team defense. But nonetheless, while there’s still hope for Perry, both McDonald and Valecce appear more comfortable in the pocket at the moment behind Brown.
Special teams replacements
Michael Walker’s absence could be felt more than BC fans are prepared for next season. The bulk of it could be in the return game, where Walker totaled over 3,000 yards return yards last year. Unless, that is, Kobay White and Travis Levy can provide explosive returns and set the Eagles’ offense up with good field position like last year. Both took reps on Saturday but never attempted return, securing each fair catch.
Redshirt junior Grant Carlson had some nice boots in the punting game, pinning the offense at its own 7-yard line from around midfield. The rest of the kicking game, however, is looking like a usual suspect for trouble. Replacing graduating senior Colton Lichtenberg, John Tessitore took the field with the PAT unit after the first touchdown and missed the extra point. Sophomore Danny Longman converted the next point after attempt, though he later missed a monster 50+ yard attempt well short of the uprights.
It seems like Longman should be the clear choice for No. 1 kicker on the depth charts come fall, but adding a graduate transfer could also be a solution to this perennial problem.
