Boston College Looking Awesomely Bad
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by MegECass110
I feel like I want to puke.
My Eagles of Boston College looked liked Beagles against Notre Dame today. This rivalry has lost its luster since BC toppled the top-ranked Fighting Irish in 1993 and prevented them from playing the national championship (I was 6 years old, and this was my first exposure to how incredible sports can be). It still means the world to me. If BC went 11-1 and lost this game, I'd be pissed.
Lee Corso called it a trap game and said BC had the most to prove of any team in the country today. I knew they could lose, with ND coming off their first win of the year and BC looking so-so against the likes of UMass and Army. I still believe that the Eagles have no business being ranked in the top 10; if they played USC, Oklahoma or Florida, they'd get hammered. BC is world-renowned for losing the big games or trap games; NC State and Miami last year cost them a spot in the ACC Championship. Even the hockey team is disgustingly unclutch; I can't even count the number of times they've lost the national championship game in the past 5 years.
So I came into this game a little nervous, but very excited. I got back from work at 3. I pulled on a sweatshirt, got on my bed and enveloped myself in the covers for the NEXT FOUR HOURS and proceeded to convulse with frustration and anxiety at least 6 times. For the following reasons...
1) 15 penalties, 131 yards. Most of which were deserved and results of utter stupidity. Gosder Cherilus (4 holding calls), I'm putting you on notice.
2) Three dropped interceptions.
3) 1 missed extra point, 1 blocked field goal, and going for it on 4th-and-9 inside the Notre Dame 30. You have to trust your kicker. Coach Jags obviously doesn't.
4) A pick-6 that cut BC's lead from 20 to 6 points.
5) Never putting the game away when they had the chance, until then final minute.
As always, I'm a glass-half-full kinda gal. They won the game 27-14, and they are now 7-0. Matt Ryan was solid again (with the exception of the pick-6), making great, sometimes ungodly, throws to 8 different receivers. Andre Callender ran it in twice and caught another touchdown. The D was their saving grace; physical play from the corners and safeties, consistent blitzing ND had trouble picking up. And any time you win in South Bend, I don't care if Notre Dame is 0-11, it's a big win. The atmosphere is unlike anything I've ever been a part of. They won ugly, and an ugly win can be one of many things:
1) a wake-up call
2) a sign that the other team blows
3) a sign of resiliency
4) proof that your team is a team of destiny
And, it's now official, the Matt Ryan Heisman Bandwagon-Trolley is leaving the BC stop in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts as we speak, and all are welcome to hop on at any point. Let's think for a second. Colt Brennan basically threw himself out of the race last night with 4 picks. Andre Woodson may have gotten himself back in it with Kentucky's 43-37 win over LSU, which could have hurt fellow candidate Glenn Dorsey also. Darren McFadden isn't wowing anyone yet. John David Booty is hurt and the 4-pick loss to Stanford will hurt also. I still think Tim Tebow's got a shot, despite having two losses. If Michigan keeps on rolling through the Big Ten, Mike Hart has to be thrown in there. On the undefeated teams, we now have Ryan and DeSean Jackson as legit contenders. Anybody else sticking out right now? Didn't think so.
But most importantly, the team that got me excited about sports, introduced me to football, made me giddy for five or six Saturday mornings every fall since I was 8, gave me one of the greatest days of my life in South Bend, and has allowed me to take solace in a 1-6 Syracuse team, is having its best start ever. In my preseason prediction, I had them going 10-2, starting 7-0 and losing at Virginia Tech in two weeks and the season finale against Miami. One thing's for sure: If they play like they did tonight against the Hokies, they'll lose.
But, as the not-as-great-as-we-thought-he-was Herman Edwards once said, "You play to win the games." BC won, and that's all I can ask for. Now if only the Sox can pull out Game 2...
