Nice win just fuels 'if only' laments
You could almost hear the sighs as you stepped on the Boston College campus last night. Sighs of resignation as, once again, Eagles fans engaged in the game of ''if only."
If you are a BC fan, you know the game by now. Last year, everyone played it after the Eagles had a Bowl Championship Series bid and sole possession of the Big East championship in their grasp entering the regular-season finale at home against Syracuse.
Beat the Orangemen and the Eagles were headed to the Fiesta Bowl, a fitting Big East last hurrah that James Michael Curley would have appreciated.
Final score: Syracuse 43, Boston College 17.
Instead of Phoenix and New Year's Day, the Eagles headed to Charlotte and a Dec. 30 Continental Tire Bowl game against North Carolina.
Last week, the Eagles faced North Carolina in Chapel Hill in an Atlantic Coast Conference game that had huge significance. Beat North Carolina and the Eagles would still have a chance to get to the ACC title game in Jacksonville Dec. 3.
Sure, the Eagles needed some help, having lost to Florida State Sept. 17 and trailing the Seminoles by a game in the Atlantic Division. BC needed to beat a North Carolina team that does not qualify as great.
Final score: North Carolina 16, Boston College 14.
That result clinched the ACC Atlantic Division for Florida State, which promptly lost to N.C. State, 20-15, last week and to Clemson, 35-14, yesterday.
If BC had beaten Carolina and won its last two games, it would be playing in Jacksonville.
And what happened last night only increased the frustration as the Eagles pulled out a 30-10 victory over the
What did it mean? Not a whole lot. The Eagles' choices for postseason play seem fairly defined. Orlando in the Champs Sports Bowl Dec. 27 against a Big 12 team, probably Missouri. The worst case scenario would be a visit to Boise for a game against a team like Fresno State in the MPC Computers Bowl. The long-shot hope, a Dec. 30 meeting in the Peach Bowl in Atlanta against an SEC team such as South Carolina or Florida, but that would require a continued meltdown by Florida State. Even that might not be enough since the Peach Bowl will make its decision based not on record, but the number of fans coming to the stadium, which FSU figures to win every time.
The Eagles grabbed the victory last night and squeezed it. ''We had to get a win," said new starting quarterback Matt Ryan.
''What a difference a week makes," said offensive coordinator Dana Bible, who watched the Eagles rebound from a 10-0 deficit.
''Go figure," said defensive coordinator Frank Spaziani.
The Eagles still have a chance to make good things happen -- tying for first place in the Atlantic Division, for one.
''Going 8-3 and tying for first that would be quite a year," said athletic director Gene DeFilippo.
All true from the Eagle perspective.
All of that raises a larger question: Where does BC rank in the potent ACC?
The ''if only" scenario again.
But BC needs to kick it up a notch in big games. Last night's effort was decent, but it was a week late.
Eagles coach Tom O'Brien says he can't worry about the larger picture. That will take care of itself. ''It all adds up to a victory," said O'Brien, who says he won't allow himself to play the ''if only" game. ''We still have a chance to do something really good. We just have to do it again next week."
The Eagles might do that. Then again they might fall flat against Maryland as they did against North Carolina.
Which is why it is all so frustrating. The Eagles will head to their sixth straight bowl game next month. It is a mark of distinction they should view with pride. But there comes a time when you need to raise the bar, putting yourself above the Insight, Motor City, and Continental Tire bowls the Eagles have been feeding on for the last several years.
O'Brien and the Eagles knew what was at stake last night against North Carolina State. They needed to stop the slide at two-consecutive losses. O'Brien did his best to stir the pot by switching Ryan to starting quarterback, which provided a big spark. And the defense, led by defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka, harassed the Wolfpack all night.
Ryan did his part by connecting with Will Blackmon on several pass-and-run combinations that energized the Alumni Stadium crowd. .
It was a good ending to a day which could have been so much better.
