BC’s Addazio looks to promising future
NEW YORK — Boston College football coach Steve Addazio was looking ahead to spring football following a hard winter game on a summer ball field.
The Eagles made too many “uncharacteristic” mistakes in their 27-20 loss to Iowa in the eighth annual New Era Pinstripe Bowl game on Wednesday night at frigid Yankee Stadium.
BC racked up 383 yards of total offense on 70 plays, with 175 rushing yards, and converted 8-of-17 third downs. The BC defense allowed 200 yards of offense, limited the Hawkeyes to 54 snaps and got off the field on 9-of-11 third down situations.
But two interceptions, 171 kickoff return yards, long fields and bad penalties washed out all of the Eagles production on both sides of the ball.
“Obviously out there in these kinds of conditions it becomes a real back-andforth game,” said Addazio. “You are looking for your plays if you can get them, and though we had a fair amount of offense based on the weather conditions that we had.”
BC finished the season 7-6 with its third bowl loss in four tries on Addazio’s watch. Addazio has won seven games in four of his five seasons, but again failed to get an eighth victory that is the benchmark of relevancy in an FBS Power-5 conference.
But unlike the end of past winning campaigns, Addazio believes his nucleus of undergraduates and the return of several key injured players will make for easier sledding in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2018.
“We have got a talented football team with a bright future, and we have some really good team speed and some playmakers,” said Addazio. “I think as we move forward with the young playmakers that we have and the speed we have on our team and the explosiveness, I really like where we are headed and where would like to be.”
The speed and explosiveness Addazio will count on next season begins with freshman tailback AJ Dillon, a first-team conference all-star and ACC Rookie of the Year. He started 12 regular season games and rushed for 1,432 yards, the second most by a freshman in ACC history, along with 13 touchdowns.
“We are dealing with a high character great kid that totally understands and is not an ego guy,” said Addazio of Dillon, who ran for 157 yards and a touchdown on 32 carries in the Pinstripe Bowl. “I feel good about our future and I feel good about how AJ will handle the accolades and the attention.
“Our place is about the team, the team, the team, and that is not going to change. We’ve got a lot of guys that can make some plays.”
BC can expect better things from redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Brown, who suffered a season ending knee injury against North Carolina State on Nov. 11. Back-up Darius Wade started the last three games of the season.
All five starters on the offensive line return, including All-ACC second team tackle/guard Chris Lindstrom and freshman All-American center Ben Petrula.
The line’s depth will be bolstered by the return of center Jon Baker, who suffered a torn ACL in the season opener, and 2016 starting guard Elijah Johnson, who was injured in spring ball last March and was a medical redshirt.