2008 Boston College Football


July 18, 2008 | Posted By Larry Cook

Jeff Jagodzinski inherited a load of talent last season in his first year as Golden Eagle’s head coach.  He led Boston College to an 11-3 record after beating Michigan State in the Champs Sports Bowl.  Boston College flirted with the No. 1 ranking in the country after winning their first eight games last season, but don’t expect the Golden Eagles to accomplish the same feat with a much tougher early schedule this year.  Let’s see what the team at Info Plays expects from these guys with our 2008 Boston College Golden Eagles football predictions .

Offense:

Life without Matt Ryan will automatically make things tougher in the ACC.  On come Chris Crane, a fifth-year senior who has thrown 32 career passes.  He lacks the arm strength and accuracy of Ryan, but Jagodzinski has added more rollouts into his offense in the spring and Crane will be better suited to attack defenses that way.  Crane was pushed by redshirt freshman Dominique Davis in the spring, who offers even more mobility to the team, but lacks the passing skills  Junior college transfer Codi Boek and redshirt freshman Chris Johnson are also in the mix at quarterback.  If only Boston College’s backfield inexperience rested solely at quarterback.

The Eagles have had plenty of quality running backs as of late, but they lose seniors Andre Callender, L.V. Whitworth and A.J. Brooks.  Josh Haden will likely take over the starting job as a true freshman after enrolling early.  He’s not big at 5-8, but he can cut past defenders just fine.  Dan Mulrooney is a converted safety who will be given the backup job for now until other freshmen arrive.  Running back Jeff Smith could make a surprising comeback from concussion problems last year that were expected to end his career.  Anthony Castonzo was a standout right tackle as a freshman last season on the offensive line.  He has shifted to the left side in the spring.  Boston College has formidable targets at receiver, including Brandon Robinson and his 56 catches for 793 yards and five scores from a year ago.  Tight end Ryan Purvis is just another NFL-caliber player at this position for the Eagles.

Defense:

Boston College has a front seven on defense that should be among the class of the ACC, despite the dismissal of end Brady Smith to legal issues.  Alex Albright had 8.5 sacks last season despite missing the final three games.  All-ACC-caliber tackle Ron Brace is a 325-pound machine in the middle.  B.J. Raji has bulked up even bigger than Brace and needs take care of last season’s academic issues.

Brian Toal is a star linebacker who sat out last season because of a shoulder injury.  He declared himself 100 percent in the spring and will reek havoc on opposing offenses in his return this season.  Mark Herzlich is the returning starter in the group, making 97 tackles at strong side linebacker last year.  The secondary has some questions after the loss of safety Jamie Silva and corner DeJuan Tribble.  Sophomore DeLeon Gause has big-time potential at one cornerback spot.

Boston College Golden Eagles Predictions at Info Plays:  5th in the ACC Atlantic Division

The always-solid Boston College Eagles have big possibilities in the backfield, but it’s inevitable that they’ll drop off production at this position with the loss of three proven seniors.  The defensive front seven will keep the Eagles competitive, but it will be hard to run back to the top of the Atlantic Division as they did a year ago.  The program will have to settle for a lower-level bowl berth in Jeff Jagodzinski’s second season.

ACC Wins Expected in ‘08:  GEORGIA TECH, at NC State, MARYLAND

Potential Scares/Losses:  VIRGINIA TECH , at North Carolina, CLEMSON , at Florida State , at Wake Forest

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