Tucky describes process of choosing BC
Justin Rowland
EagleAction.com Recruiting Analyst
Boston College was Ethan Tucky's first Power Five offer, but he didn't start leaning towards the Eagles until much more recently. It was a great awakening of sorts.
Tucky's commitment to BC on Sunday, which he announced via Twitter, meant the Eagles have their first four-star prospect in the Class of 2016. Although EagleAction.com had first reported that BC was very likely on Tucky's short list - very short list, to be precise - there wasn't a lot of smoke indicating Tucky would choose BC until the day before his choice.
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound outside linebacker from Delaware (Ohio) Hayes visited BC for the very first time last Monday for half the day, and then on Tuesday for about eight hours. Al Washington had been recruiting Tucky for a very long time.
"It's funny because when Coach Washington was in high school my head coach now coached him there," Tucky said. "So it's a small world when it comes down to it. That didn't have much to do with (his choice) but it was more of a coincidence."
Washington had been recruiting Tucky since early in his sophomore year. BC was Tucky's first Power Five offer. Toledo and Eastern Michigan were among the other schools to offer him very early.
"For about two years, or a year and a half, I wouldn't say I was sleeping on (BC) but I didn't realize how valuable that program was. I guess you could say I was young and naïve to a point," Tucky said.
Tucky sounds anything but young and naïve when he talks about his decision, his future and what motivated him to handle recruiting the way he did. For example, he wanted to commit now, early in the summer, so the other schools recruiting him would have just about a full eight months to shift their focus to other players so they wouldn't be put in a bind. That's very rare.
So why did Tucky choose BC?
"I think the biggest factor for BC was the academics. The academics and the spiritual side of it," Tucky said. "Academically it's one of the best schools in the country and when it comes to the field I want to study there's a wide variety. They have a good variety of psychology fields so education-wise it was a nice plus.
"Spiritually, it's one of the two Catholic FBS schools and the only Jesuit one. That's a factor, too. That's a huge part of my life - my spiritual life and Catholic roots. That's very big to me. The fact that it's just one of two (Catholic schools) stood out to me. Every school is going to have some kind of religious affiliation or religious group for athletes, but the foundation of BC is service to others. It's based on religion and not many schools can say that, so I guess in comparing schools to BC in that regard, BC had an advantage.
"Then the athletic side. Coach (Steve) Addazio's an outstanding head coach and there's no doubt in my mind BC can win the ACC the next few years. There's not a single doubt. With the people they recruit and the way the program's moving that's clear to me," he added.
There's another reason BC was appealing. Tucky's a linebacker and BC has done pretty well with linebackers; especially linebackers from Ohio.
"I'm actually a huge Luke Kuechley fan," Tucky said. "A friend of mine is a huge Panthers fan and he's started to get me hooked. I'm a Browns fan but Luke Kuechley really stands out to me. Every team he's played for. He's led his team in tackles for like the last six years. He led the NFL (in tackles) so that just shows how good the coaching is at BC. Also, for the past four years here they've had linebackers go (to the NFL). The Buccaneers' guy was the most recent one. The tradition they're making made me want to be a part of that."
Tucky said he actually called the coaches on Saturday to make sure everything was a clear and a full go for his commitment. He wanted to get back home before he announced his decision since he was in Boston last week. He laughed and acknowledged that if fans followed his Twitter account closely, as some obviously did, they could have probably guessed that BC was the choice based on the list of who he follows.
But it wasn't an easy choice.
"BC has been at the top for a while. I've been deciding here between Kentucky, Wisconsin, Boston College and even Iowa," Tucky said. "It was really difficult to do. There are so many details with each school.
"The fan base at Kentucky was outstanding. At Wisconsin, again, their fan base and the way they play in the Big Ten and they're always at the top of their division," Tucky continued. "And the coaches at Iowa are phenomenal. You compare the details and it's so hard to pick out one school. To be, BC just that had fit. It was something BC had. It was the right fit for me. I went to BC this week and I enjoyed the things I saw there. There was no need to wait. I got on campus and just being there I knew it was the place for me. It has everything I want."
Justin Rowland
EagleAction.com Recruiting Analyst
Boston College was Ethan Tucky's first Power Five offer, but he didn't start leaning towards the Eagles until much more recently. It was a great awakening of sorts.
Tucky's commitment to BC on Sunday, which he announced via Twitter, meant the Eagles have their first four-star prospect in the Class of 2016. Although EagleAction.com had first reported that BC was very likely on Tucky's short list - very short list, to be precise - there wasn't a lot of smoke indicating Tucky would choose BC until the day before his choice.
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound outside linebacker from Delaware (Ohio) Hayes visited BC for the very first time last Monday for half the day, and then on Tuesday for about eight hours. Al Washington had been recruiting Tucky for a very long time.
"It's funny because when Coach Washington was in high school my head coach now coached him there," Tucky said. "So it's a small world when it comes down to it. That didn't have much to do with (his choice) but it was more of a coincidence."
Washington had been recruiting Tucky since early in his sophomore year. BC was Tucky's first Power Five offer. Toledo and Eastern Michigan were among the other schools to offer him very early.
"For about two years, or a year and a half, I wouldn't say I was sleeping on (BC) but I didn't realize how valuable that program was. I guess you could say I was young and naïve to a point," Tucky said.
Tucky sounds anything but young and naïve when he talks about his decision, his future and what motivated him to handle recruiting the way he did. For example, he wanted to commit now, early in the summer, so the other schools recruiting him would have just about a full eight months to shift their focus to other players so they wouldn't be put in a bind. That's very rare.
So why did Tucky choose BC?
"I think the biggest factor for BC was the academics. The academics and the spiritual side of it," Tucky said. "Academically it's one of the best schools in the country and when it comes to the field I want to study there's a wide variety. They have a good variety of psychology fields so education-wise it was a nice plus.
"Spiritually, it's one of the two Catholic FBS schools and the only Jesuit one. That's a factor, too. That's a huge part of my life - my spiritual life and Catholic roots. That's very big to me. The fact that it's just one of two (Catholic schools) stood out to me. Every school is going to have some kind of religious affiliation or religious group for athletes, but the foundation of BC is service to others. It's based on religion and not many schools can say that, so I guess in comparing schools to BC in that regard, BC had an advantage.
"Then the athletic side. Coach (Steve) Addazio's an outstanding head coach and there's no doubt in my mind BC can win the ACC the next few years. There's not a single doubt. With the people they recruit and the way the program's moving that's clear to me," he added.
There's another reason BC was appealing. Tucky's a linebacker and BC has done pretty well with linebackers; especially linebackers from Ohio.
"I'm actually a huge Luke Kuechley fan," Tucky said. "A friend of mine is a huge Panthers fan and he's started to get me hooked. I'm a Browns fan but Luke Kuechley really stands out to me. Every team he's played for. He's led his team in tackles for like the last six years. He led the NFL (in tackles) so that just shows how good the coaching is at BC. Also, for the past four years here they've had linebackers go (to the NFL). The Buccaneers' guy was the most recent one. The tradition they're making made me want to be a part of that."
Tucky said he actually called the coaches on Saturday to make sure everything was a clear and a full go for his commitment. He wanted to get back home before he announced his decision since he was in Boston last week. He laughed and acknowledged that if fans followed his Twitter account closely, as some obviously did, they could have probably guessed that BC was the choice based on the list of who he follows.
But it wasn't an easy choice.
"BC has been at the top for a while. I've been deciding here between Kentucky, Wisconsin, Boston College and even Iowa," Tucky said. "It was really difficult to do. There are so many details with each school.
"The fan base at Kentucky was outstanding. At Wisconsin, again, their fan base and the way they play in the Big Ten and they're always at the top of their division," Tucky continued. "And the coaches at Iowa are phenomenal. You compare the details and it's so hard to pick out one school. To be, BC just that had fit. It was something BC had. It was the right fit for me. I went to BC this week and I enjoyed the things I saw there. There was no need to wait. I got on campus and just being there I knew it was the place for me. It has everything I want."
