Guess who's back?

ME!

and Mike McLaughlin, who you guys are probably more interested in.

However before we dive into this week lets do a quick recap of everything that I wasn't able to cover.

Defense:
The Good: How we can lose 3 NFL top 2 round picks (Herzlich included), miss McLaughlin and have injuries on nearly every front and still be this good? It's absolutely ridiculous, kudos to Spaz and McGovern as well as Jagz for some of the recruits(Luuuke)

The Bad: Wheres the pressure? There has been like two sacks total. I guess we are missing Brace and Raji cause it seems like O-lines have been able to handle Scafe and Giles/Ramsey pretty handily allowing a lot of double teams on Albright. Also of concern is the boundary corner, particularly exposed during WF game where Rollins and Fletcher were both beat an uncomfortable number of times for big plays. (though they are now on opposite sides of the field)

Offense:
The o-line stepped it up against a pretty good WF front 7 after a disaster against Clemson. I was a Tuggle supporter because Shinskie doesn't seem to be able to audible and shift protections or even recognize plays (which trickled down into the run game) but he definitely has the better arm. From what I see right now Shinskie is the better player (did a great job against WF, not so much with his arm because they were feeding him plays and he still made some iffy throws) but with recognizing what the defense was showing him. I really feel like hes Chris Crane 2.0 minus the mobility. He bullets every pass with barely any touch, but considering hes only a freshman we could have a distinct QB controversey when Chase shows up. The TEs look good the WRs seem versatile though Gunnells been a little bit too quiet for my liking. I think Larmond's success might be limiting his looks. Jarvis has been looking better after I heard he had been dropping a lot of balls in practice. Haden is starting to really show his ability as a change of pace when defenses stop Harris, they should be a great combo in the future though I don't think either will stick out too much in the future.

And now to Mac
He's back and looking solid and this weekend expect to see him a lot more as Luke shifts to WLB. I think this speaks as much about Luke, Mac and Will Thompson in the fact that McGovern wants to see all three get time in the future (assuming Thompson comes back). Luke's going to be something great in the future. Although on another note I'm wondering where Darius Bagan has disappeared to again...

Thoughts on the Clemson Game/Rivalry:

The first post from my Ghost writer:

Since joining the ACC, Boston College has had one definitive rival, Virginia Tech. It is a general consensus among students and fans, and the VaTech game is certainly one of the most anticipated games of the year. But, the ACC move has also kindled another, although quieter, rival in Clemson.

Some of the more recent memorable Boston College games have come from sparring with Clemson. In 2006, the over-time win (BC 34, Clemson 33); 2007 saw Matt Ryan engineer yet another season saving comeback drive to put the Eagles ahead in the Atlantic Division standings and secured a spot for our team in the ACCCG (BC 20, Clemson 17); last year’s 2008 heart breaker (BC 21, Clemson 27) where Crane and company could not finish the job. Every time we play Clemson, the game seems to summarize/suggest what our season has been/will be.

Perhaps this is why I am highly anticipating this week’s game. Clemson will be our first competition of note, and begins our road to the ACC Championship. How we match up against this Clemson team may not be indicative of how we stack up against teams like VaTech, Notre Dame, and FSU (though after this past, I am skeptical of stating that FSU is a dominant team), but it will be a good gauge for the ACC in general. Like BC, Clemson entered this season with a first year head coach (though Swinney has the advantage over Spaz, coming in with a half season of experience) and a freshman quarterback. There were not as many questions surrounding the state of their program as ours, but the transitions still threw the program into a state of flux. But Clemson, especially after the Georgia Tech, is certainly not looking like the bottom of the ACC barrel. I think that how BC approaches this game and handles themselves on the field will be a strong indicator as to what we can expect from our guys for the rest of the season.

I am not going to break down Clemson’s team (I suggest looking at CBNB for that), but BC matches up well this year against the Tigers; both teams share similar talent and skill on both sides of the ball. It is going to be a good game for the rivalry, and quite possibly could determine the Atlantic winner.

Notes on the BC/Clemson Rivalry
- The Eagles lead the Tigers 4-1 all time. The most recent match up saw the Tigers taking home the O’Rourke/McFadden Trophy. It was Dabo Swinney’s first win as a head coach.
- Clemson University is public university with an approx. undergraduate population of about 18,500. In contrast, Boston College is a private Catholic university with a population of about 8,500.
- Death Valley is considered one of the most intimidating venues (and largest) in college football, yet Clemson fans are considered the class of the ACC, and for good reason. They host highly hospitable tailgates, inviting even opposing fans by for food and beverage, and as Herzlich has undergone his treatments, they have offered remarkable and touching support. On the other hand, while Alumni Stadium is fierce in its own right, BC fans are known to be the most hostile in the ACC (I blame the frigid cold as opposed to the Southern gentle winters).

Apologies

I'm currently in the midst of bombing the LSATs, applying to Law School, managing two jobs, taking care of some personal matters and writing a thesis on top of the normal senior course load so my ability to post has been cut in half. A friend of mine has offered to fill in on some of the missed time so keep an eye out for period updates but they probably won't be from me for quite some time. I'll make sure there's some way of telling the difference. Until then here's my short take on the season so far.

Northeastern game: good
Kent State game: better

My opinion of the team: better than my pessimistic little brain thought but I still have questions about our pass rush, our secondary, and surprisingly a new question about our o-line

Good question to have: If Mac comes back were does Kuechly go? the kids a beast.

Jags fired

On a day where head coaches are working on paring their rosters the Tampa Bay organization decided to pare their coaching staff, namely Jeff Jagodzinski, no word on Steve Logan. Check your major news outlets for more coverage

Tuggle Starts and Students Move-in

Today is move-in day on Chestnut Hill which means footballs right on it's heels. I would love to steal atleagle's season prediction plan and call it my own, but credit is due that this was all his work. Before we start though Tuggle has been tabbed for the starting role Saturday, though expect to see a fair amount of Shinskie and maybe Marscovetra as long as Spaz and co. don't mind burning a redshirt year.

and on to my take on the Season

Atl's Worst: 5-7 W/ wins against Northeastern, Kent State, NCState, CMU and UVA
I don't like to be negative but this is a little positive (pun intended) for a worst case scenario. I'll give us the nod against the 2-win FCS program as well as UMD but the Kent State game isn't as much of a lock as I'd like (nor is the UVA game). I think NCState will have a better year than expected and CMU has a sweet dual threat QB that could give us some fits.

My worst: 2-10

My best is 13-0 w/ an ACCCG win over Ga Tech to be honest, we could be great, no one really knows at this point. On a more realistic note my best case scenario calls for a loss to FSU, as much as I hate them their defense is designed to stop a pro-style offense and the away team always wins this series. The ND and Va Tech games will be tough but rivalry games like those always seem to bring out the best in BC.

My best: 11-1 w/ an At-Large BCS bid

What I really think will happen:
Northeastern: Basically a 5th scrimmage 1-0

Kent State: Better than expected but still a blowout 2-0

Clemson:A very tough game but Clemson has a weak o-line and our D-line could really harass them and prevent them from getting the ball to their stud skill position players. On defense their strength is mostly along the line which matches up well with our phenom o-line. It could go either way but I think this is the 1st loss of the season. 2-1

Wake Forest: Wake is really strong at some positions, and just as weak as we are at others. Look to these matchups to be the key difference as BC takes a tough home loss during parents weekend. 2-2

FSU: We don't match up well and the away team always wins. 2-3

VaTech: Young team against a top 10 team in Blacksburg. 2-4

NCState: Tough tough tough game. It will be a nail biter even if Russel Wilson is hurt look to Harris and Haden, if they play well we get another win but I predict a win @ home to prevent a probable 6-game skid. 3-4

Notre Dame: Unless they come out really flat after their first loss of the season against a very good USC I don't see us continuing our dominance. 3-5

CMU: Spaz preps for Lefevour (or however you spell it) and BC handily winds. 4-5

UVA: BC gets on a roll and takes our next win 5-5

UNC: A very talented team this year, they take it 5-6

UMD: A battle of the dregs of the ACC where the Atlantic proves itself superior 6-6