BC’s Jeff Smith, who scored the offense’s only TD, couldn’t find much room on this play during last night’s scrimmage.
(Jim Davis/Globe Staff)
BC notebook
Eagles not set to take off
Offense is still seeking answers
BC’s Jeff Smith, who scored the offense’s only TD, couldn’t find much room on this play during last night’s scrimmage.
(Jim Davis/Globe Staff)
It is all a matter of perspective. Boston College football coach Frank Spaziani said he saw progress in the second scrimmage of training camp last night.
“There was improvement,’’ said Spaziani, after watching a 100-plus-play workout in which the offense did not score a touchdown until the final series. “We’re inching along, but we have to improve by a foot.
“There was some improvement, but it didn’t show as much as you would like to see.’’
The main issue on offense remains at quarterback, where David Shinskie is running the first team and Michael Marscovetra the second team.
Neither was able to get the ball into the end zone until that last series, directed by Marscovetra, ended with a 3-yard run by Jeff Smith. Fumbles, sacks, dropped passes were all on the play chart.
Clearly, the defense is ahead of the offense, and with 2 1/2 weeks remaining until the season opener Sept. 5 against Northeastern, the offense needs to take a quantum leap forward very quickly.
The Eagles did manage field goals by Ryan Quigley and Steve Aponavicius before Marscovetra, the 18-year-old true freshman contending with Shinskie, the 25-year-old true freshman, engineered the TD drive.
And that, folks, was it in terms of offensive highlights.
Marscovetra was responsible for another touchdown, though, as freshman linebacker Andre Lawrence picked off his pass and returned it for a score.
“The quarterback situation is murky at best,’’ said Spaziani, who will give the Eagles today off before they begin preparing for their next scrimmage Sunday.
Spaziani said the quarterback call may come down to a hunch rather than anything tangible on the field.
“We’ve got an idea,’’ he said. “And we’ll have to make a decision.’’
The numbers for the quarterbacks last night:
Shinskie - 9 of 16, 124 yards, 1 interception.
Marscovetra - 6 of 11, 43 yards, 1 interception.
Codi Boek - 1 of 8, 5 yards.
Justin Tuggle - 3 of 7, 33 yards.
Talking tackles
There were some positive notes in the scrimmage, especially on defense. Spaziani offered praise for freshman linebacker Luke Kuechly, who led the team with seven tackles. Lawrence also had an outstanding evening, returning the interception for a touchdown and running down freshman running back Rolandan Finch, who led rushers with 48 yards on 12 carries.No lid on bowls
Too early for some bowl talk? Apparently not, as conferences and bowls are firming up deals for the next four-year cycle of games beginning at the end of the 2010 regular season. The Atlantic Coast Conference is right in the middle, of course. Currently, the ACC has deals with eight bowl games beyond the Bowl Championship Series.1. BCS
2. Chick-Fil-A
3. Gator
4. Champs Sports
5. Music City
6. Emerald
7. Meineke Car Care
8. Eagle Bank
9. GMAC
That’s nine slots for 12 teams, which means that if you go 6-6, you probably get a bowl slot. Should a 6-6 season get such a reward? In the past decade, BC hasn’t had to deal with that issue. The Eagles are working on a school-record 10-year streak of bowl appearances. Whether it reaches 11 is very iffy right now, but with nine slots available for ACC teams, a 6-6 record will probably get it done. If the ACC closes a deal with the Sun Bowl - and it is close to being done - it would have 10 slots. The carrot the ACC is using is telling the Sun Bowl that the loser of the ACC championship game could go to El Paso.
Mark Blaudschun can be reached at blaudschun@globe.com. 
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
