Jurkovec set to face former team
BC hosts No. 2 Irish Saturday
Boston College quarterback Phil Jurkovec considered changing his position to hold onto his dream of playing for Notre Dame.
Jurkovec was a prized recruit and record-breaking passer out of Pine-Richland High School in Western Pennsylvania when he accepted Fighting Irish coach Brian Kelly’s scholarship offer.
“Notre Dame was my dream school growing up,” said Jurkovec. “There is a lot of great things about Notre Dame with the school, how much they win, the culture of it and the players and there are a lot of good people there.”
Jurkovec’s career never gained traction in South Bend, Ind., where he became a depth-chart casualty with no chance of seeing the field. Jurkovec grew disillusioned in the back-up role while the coaching staff channeled its national championship agenda around quarterback Ian Book.
“Football was really changing for me and I was debating about switching positions because I don’t think I could have gone another year just sitting on the bench,” said Jurkovec. “I had to go play somewhere and I was really down.
“It’s really tough not being able to play and not being able to showcase what you can do and it grew frustrating. I wanted to get on the field wherever I could.
“I was basically on the brink of not playing quarterback. At that point I was talking to my family and they are like ‘you have to go somewhere where you can play.’”
Jurkovec didn’t change his position — he switched schools instead. Following the 2019 season, Jurkovec entered the NCAA transfer portal where he was immediately courted by BC firstyear head coach Jeff Hafley. In a narrative that has come full circle in a short time, Jurkovec will make his ninth start when the Eagles (5-3, 4-3) host No. 2 Notre Dame at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Alumni Stadium.
Jurkovec has maintained contact with many of his former teammates, especially the players from his class. But Jurkovec said he shuttered all means of communication in preparation for Notre Dame.
“We’ve been talking throughout the year, especially the guys in my class, we are still pretty tight,” said Jurkovec. “This week we haven’t talked too much and I know they want to beat me badly and the same goes with me.
“We are not friends out in the field but I’ve got good relationships with lot of those guys.”
Jurkovec had not played in a meaningful game since high school before coming to BC, but he utilized his downtime at Notre Dame by absorbing the ways and means of FBS football.
What Jurkovec lacked in experience he made up for in football intelligence. Jurkovec was able to catch on at BC despite a complete overhaul of the coaching staff and the loss of spring football and parts of training camp due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I learned a lot just being there because it’s a team that has won a lot of games and they have been in primetime games,” said Jurkovec. “I didn’t play in those games but I got to see how they prepared with a lot of NFL (bound) players.
“Just practicing with them and being around them helped a lot for sure.”
Jurkovec’s transfer to BC proved mutually beneficial in the season opener, a 26-6 victory at Duke on Sept. 19. Jurkovec completed 17-of-23 passes for 300 yards and two touchdowns while establishing a working relationship with wide receiver Zay Flowers and tight end Hunter Long.
Jurkovec’s 2,083 passing yards over his first eight games are the most in program history. Jurkovec is currently fifth in the ACC with 260.4 passing yards per game and 15 touchdowns.
“Throughout this whole season I feel like I keep getting better week by week,” said Jurkovec. “It’s had its ups and downs but it’s a joy just playing and going out there and playing and competing.
“It’s a big switch-around for me and I feel like I’m in the right place for sure. I’m having fun with it and look forward to keep getting better.”
Kelly knows the type of quarterback best qualified to execute his offense, so it’s not like he bet on the wrong horse when he chose Book over Jurkovec.
Book is a talented dualthreat quarterback and proven winner, traits he explicitly showcased in the Fighting Irish’s 47-40 double-overtime home win against No. 1 Clemson last Saturday.
“I thought he played his best game that I’d seen against Clemson,” said Hafley. “What I see is a really athletic guy, he’s got a live body that’s twitched up.
“To me after watching the Clemson game, he moves better that I thought and not to take anything away because I thought he was fast, quick and athletic. He knows how to set people up and he’s faster than I thought, but at the same time he knows how to play the position.”