BC Interruption

Another Boston College Eagle Will Etch Name On Lord Stanley's Cup

2012-05-26T03:29:36Z

This has been assured for a few days now, but the New Jersey Devils just made the names official. With New Jersey's 3-2 overtime victory over the New York Rangers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, another former Boston College Eagle will have his name etched on Lord Stanley's Cup.

Congrats to the Los Angeles Kings Rob Scuderi and the New Jersey Devils Stephen Gionta and Peter Harrold on reaching the Stanley Cup Finals.

Should the Kings win, Scuderi would Bill Guerin (1995, 2009), Doug Brown (1997, 1998), Kevin Stevens (1991, 1992) and Joe Mullen (1989, 1991, 1992) as the only former Eagles to win the Stanley Cup more than once. Gionta and Harrold would become the 10th and 11th Boston College hockey alum to have their name etched on the cup.

The Giontas, Brian and Stephen, would also become the first pair of BC brothers to win a Stanley Cup. And with the same franchise, no less.

The complete list of former Eagles who have hoisted Lord Stanley's Cup.

1989: Joe Mullen, Calgary Flames
1991: Joe Mullen, Pittsburgh Penguins
1991: Kevin Stevens, Pittsburgh Penguins
1992: Joe Mullen, Pittsburgh Penguins
1992: Kevin Stevens, Pittsburgh Penguins
1994: Brian Leetch, New York Rangers
1995: Bill Guerin, New Jersey Devils
1997: Doug Brown, Detroit Red Wings
1998: Doug Brown, Detroit Red Wings
2003: Brian Gionta, New Jersey Devils
2007: Ryan Shannon, Anaheim Ducks
2009: Rob Scuderi, Pittsburgh Penguins
2009: Brooks Orpik, Pittsburgh Penguins
2009: Bill Guerin, Pittsburgh Penguins

Go Eagles!

Poll

Who wins the 2012 Stanley Cup?

The ACC's Response To The Big 12-SEC Champions Bowl

2012-05-25T14:30:03Z

On Wednesday, the AJC's Ken Sugiura sat down with Georgia Tech Athletics Director Dan Radakovich, hitting on topics ranging from the college football playoff format, rumors and speculation swirling around ACC schools possibly jumping to the Big 12 and possible ACC expansion. Of note was Radokovich's comment about the ACC's possible response to the new Big 12-SEC bowl alliance.

"Regarding a possible bowl alliance for the ACC champion, Radakovich said that will be a topic of discussion for a conference call of league athletic directors this week. He said that league associate commissioner Michael Kelly has been working on "trying to set something up similar to what you had seen announced last Friday with the Southeastern Conference and the Big 12."

The conference will likely find out you can't put the genie back in the bottle. Good luck trying to fix the public perception that the ACC got squeezed out of a four-team playoff with the Rose Bowl and Rose Bowl lite serving as de facto National semifinals with this announcement.

The reality, however, is that the ACC is exactly where it was before the Big 12-SEC bowl arrangement was ever announced. Still the fifth best college football conference. Still not playing either a Big 12 or SEC team in the Orange Bowl. Not counting last year's matchup between a future Big 12 member (West Virginia) and another future Big 12 member? (Clemson), the ACC has faced either an SEC or a Big 12 program in the Orange Bowl all of one time over the last 10 games. Will we miss that epic 2007 Orange Bowl matchup between Kansas and Virginia Tech? No, no we will not.

Still, it will be interesting to see what the conference comes up with here as a counter to the Rose Bowl and Champions Bowl -- that's not, say, the Little Kids Table Champions Bowl pitting the ACC champ up against the Big East champ.

And while I wouldn't expect an announcement to be made until next month's announcement as to the finalized college football playoff structure, here's some thoughts on possible matchups and destinations. [Assumes certain bowl cities -- Los Angeles, Dallas, New Orleans -- and opponents -- Pac-12, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC champs, and probably the SEC #2 and Big 12 #12 -- are already off the board.]

Opponents:

1. Highest ranked non-playoff, non-Rose Bowl, non-Champions Bowl, non-ACC team. That's a mouthful and much less effective than saying you are creating a bowl game pitting conference champions. But if some ranking system remains in the four-team playoff world, there are far less attractive options than taking the highest ranked program

a) not playing in the four-team playoff
b) not in the Rose Bowl
c) not in the Champions Bowl
d) not from the ACC

For sake of argument, let's say the four-team playoff includes the three highest ranked conference champs and an at-large. The ACC's top tier bowl would then be free to select the highest ranked non-playoff, non-Rose Bowl (jr.) program. Here's how the last seven Orange Bowls of the post-expansion ACC would have played out:

2011: Clemson vs. Boise State (was West Virginia)
2010: Virginia Tech vs. Ohio State (was Stanford)
2009: Georgia Tech vs. Boise State (was Iowa)
2008: Virginia Tech vs. Utah (was Cincinnati)
2007: Boston College (was Virginia Tech) vs. Kansas (still Kansas)
2006: Wake Forest vs. Louisville (still Louisville)
2005: Florida State vs. Notre Dame (was Penn State)

The ACC's champion bowl gets objectively better in four of those seven years, with the added bonus of BC heading to the ACC's champion bowl in 2007 after Virginia Tech was placed into the four-team playoff. Again, messy, but effective.

2. Notre Dame. A Catch-22 to be sure. Much has been written about the ACC being the fifth wheel after the Champions Bowl was announced, but until Notre Dame trades in football independence for all-sports conference membership, they are a viable college football postseason dancing partner for the ACC. The catch is that the ACC has made it no secret they want the Irish as an all-sports member. Hell, every conference hasn't made that a secret. If the ACC inks a bowl agreement with Notre Dame to send the conference champ up against a Notre Dame team that, say, wins at least nine games, you've just given the Irish a soft landing spot for years in which they don't make a four-team playoff (like, every year).

3. The top ranked non-playoff, non-Champions Bowl SEC team. In the short term, the only conference that will enjoy a symmetry with a 14-team ACC is the SEC. So what if they send two teams to the four-team playoff and a third to the Cotton Bowl v2.0. There will still be no shortage of strong bowl draws in the SEC, especially with Missouri and Texas A&M joining the fold this season.

4. The Big East. But only if we exhaust options one, two and three. At best you draw Boise State or Louisville. At worst, Memphis. Drops mike. Walks away.

Cities:

1. Anywhere NOT Miami. The Orange Bowl has lust much of its luster over the years due to weak ACC champs and a propensity to draw the short end of the BCS stick with the Big East champ more times than seems fair. It's time for the conference to make a clean break with the city of Miami and whatever they are calling Joe Robbie Stadium these days. Besides, so long as Miami is still a member of the ACC, the conference is already relevant in southern Florida.

2. Atlanta. Where the conference can make in-roads is if they take over control of the city of Atlanta for its own Champions bowl. Though Georgia Tech is located in Atlanta, it's still very much in the heart of SEC territory. The SEC title game is played there as is the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Classic and Peach Bowl, both of which feature an SEC program more often than not (read: all the time).

3. New York. With the conference's northward expansion, there's no reason why the ACC Champions bowl shouldn't be played at the Giants and Jets new home in the Meadowlands. If the NFL is willing to award New Jersey a Super Bowl that's played in February, there's no reason why you can't have a bowl game at MetLife Stadium on New Year's Day.

Date:

1. New Year's Day.
2. New Year's Day.
3. New Year's Day.

This is non-negotiable. ACC Champions Bowl at 1, Rose Bowl at 4, Cotton Bowl v2.0 at 7.

Conference Realignment Hypothetical: ACC Doomsday Scenario

2012-05-25T12:00:59Z

Brian: Jason Kirk over at SBNation.com took a look at the best and worst case scenarios for each conference as the conference realignment train keeps chugging along at full speed. The ACC's best case scenario includes adding Notre Dame and Rutgers while not losing anyone to go to 16 teams.

The worst case scenario isn't actually specified. Kirk simply leaves a note that says "Just a bunch of, like, Sun Belt teams and FCS call-ups. I mean, I don't think it will get that bad, but the ACC's problem is that it has a bunch of programs that look very enticing to other leagues without being elite enough to tie themselves into a union built to last for good."

But let's say that the ACC does lose Florida State, Clemson and Georgia Tech to the Big 12, while Notre Dame parks its non-revenue sports in the Big 12 before joining as an all-sports member starting in 2016. The SEC next poaches Virginia Tech and N.C. State.

That leaves Boston College, Duke, Maryland, Miami, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia and Wake Forest left to divide up the $120 million dollars in exit fees they'll collect from our former conference mates.

So what does the ACC do? Add a single team to get back to 10? Add three to get back to 12, two divisions and a really 'meh' football Championship Game played in North Carolina until the end of time? Your thoughts?

Jeff: With the situation exactly how you spelled it out, you add three more teams and keep the conference championship game. You can still easily pull from the Big East if you have those nine teams as the base of the conference and you increase the exit fee to three times what it is now to make new members think that the conference will be stable going forward.

The problem is though, that several members, including Boston College, will take some phone calls from the B1G to see if there is any interest there first. If the ACC has any fewer than nine teams left when this is all finished, the ACC essentially becomes the old Big East. Not the worst thing ever, but it is not what BC had planned for when originally joining the conference.

I would not be at all surprised if things get smoothed over and Florida State and the rest all stay in the ACC. But let's say we lose more than two members. I am certain that we will keep a conference championship game and the conference will likely pick up more northern teams.

There's South Florida who might be interested, but then you come north to the old Big East members of Rutgers and UConn as the likely first teams to get an invite to the ACC. The second tier of likely invitees would be Louisville, Navy, Central Florida and Cincinnati. Either way the ACC is looking at adding three of the Big East's stronger members to get back to 12 programs.

The conference would still have a conference championship game and would be clearly the fifth strongest conference in the land. It would be several rungs of the ladder below the PAC 12, Big 12, Big Ten and SEC but also several rungs above the Big East and everyone else. Right now the conference sits in the exact same position but has slight hope of someday moving up to the big boys level by adding Notre Dame. Once this all plays out however, Notre Dame will be in a conference -- most likely the Big Ten -- and that possibility no longer exists. The ACC will be stuck in fifth place for a long, long time.

Brian: So you're taking South Florida to replace Florida State and Rutgers and UConn? I'd imagine the conference would then either realign into North-South or backfill Rutgers, UConn and USF into the existing Atlantic and Coastal Divisions.

North: Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Syracuse
South: Duke, Miami, North Carolina, South Florida, Virginia, Wake Forest

Atlantic: Boston College, Connecticut, Maryland, South Florida, Syracuse, Wake Forest
Coastal: Duke, Miami, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Virginia

Twelve and a conference championship would be OK, but I'd also push for expansion back to 10 teams. Why not just go the full hog and commit to being the best academic, basketball and Olympic Sports conference in the country? As such, I would also consider adding -- I can't believe I'm saying this -- UConn to get back to 10 teams. This would allow programs to play a full round-robin in basketball (18 games) and play every other program in football (9 games).

Louisville would also be a decent add (academic limitations notwithstanding) as would Notre Dame, but if the Irish haven't joined a conference now, I doubt they'd join forces with a conference that just lost three historically strong college football programs.

Three Future Boston College Eagles Drafted In 2012 USHL Draft

2012-05-25T00:42:54Z

On Tuesday, the United States Hockey League (USHL) conducted its 2012 USHL Entry Draft, with three future Boston College Eagles landing roster sports in the junior hockey league.

Two future Eagles, both from Noble & Greenough School in Dedham, were selected in the top 10 of this year's draft. Adam Gilmour was selected with the second overall pick by the Muskegon Lumberjack, while his linemate, right winger Chris Calnan, went with the No. 10 pick to the Waterloo Blackhawks. Both GIlmour and Calnan are slated to join the Eagles for the 2013-14 season.

BC-bound Noah Hanifin, a 6-foot-3, 185 pound defenseman from Norwood, went to Dubuque at No. 131 in the ninth round. Hanifin is currently projected to join the Eagles for the 2015-16 season.

A total of five future Eagles played in the USHL this past season. Teddy Doherty and Michael Matheson played for the Dubuque Fighting Saints, Matthew Gaudreau for the Omaha Lancers, Sam Piazza for the Sioux City Musketeers and Austin Cangelosi for the Youngstown Phantoms. In addition, a total of four future skaters -- Steven Santini, Scott Savage, Brendan Silk and Frankie Vatrano -- all suited up for the US National Team Development Program in 2011-12.

Go Eagles!

Here Are Some College Conferences As Liquor Brands

2012-05-24T23:51:24Z

Here Are Some College Conferences As Liquor Brands

With all the exciting rumors and deck chair shuffling amongst the college conferences, it's hard not to need a drink. That's why we brought on guest blogger Colin Vance, who decided to share with us each of the college conferences as different liquor brands.

College Football Playoff Format: The 'Plus One' Back From The Dead

2012-05-24T16:00:28Z

Last weekend's announcement that the SEC and Big 12 would send their conference champions to Rose Bowl Jr. has revived the possibility of a "plus-one" title game after the bowls. Wait, what?

"I'd say before Friday that idea of a plus-one didn't have much traction, but I think the announcement on Friday's a game-changer," [Pac-12 Commissioner Larry] Scott said. "We're pretty far down the path on four-team playoff options, but given the very positive reaction to what the SEC and Big 12 have done, it's possible that (a plus-one) could get some traction."

I'm incredibly mixed on this college football latest development.

On the one hand, a "plus-one" -- a euphemism for the current BCS system, the only difference being the BCS National Championship Game participants are determined after, not before, the bowl games -- would presumably give more opportunities to a program NOT from the Pac-12, Big 12, Big Ten or SEC to earn a spot in the "playoff." A 13-0 or 12-1 ACC program that convincingly wins its bowl game could have a shot at this "plus-one." A greater shot than a format where a four-team playoff takes the top four teams, to be sure, and possibly even the four-team conference champion ONLY format.

So you can guess which format ACC Commissioner John Swofford prefers:

"At this point in the process, the discussion and momentum seems to surround a four-team, three-game approach," Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner John Swofford said in a statement. "As we continue to focus on finding an option that leads to a consensus among the group, we'll have to see if that involves the consideration of other models, including the simplified plus-one."

On the other hand, we seem to be going backwards here. No one likes the current BCS system and a "plus-one" preserves the worst parts of the BCS (computer rankings, reliance on human polls, just two teams) AND the worst part of the current bowl system (the bowls themselves, the selection process, the quasi-illegal ticket guarantees).

At this point, ACC fans should probably be pushing for a four-team playoff in hopes that the sports power brokers realize how much money they are leaving at the table by not being a bit more inclusive with, say, inviting eight teams. But the "plus-one" back from the dead is still an intriguing development, especially if the preferred four-team playoff format doesn't require four conference champions (it won't with Notre Dame having a seat at the table).

So which college football playoff format do you prefer? The four-team playoff? The "plus-one"? Something cool I don't even know about?

Clearing Up Any College Football Logo Confusion

2012-05-24T14:30:17Z

The Wall Street Journal's Jared Diamond recently noted that several media outlets have had a hard time figuring out which teams are playing in the NBA and NHL playoffs. Last month, a Florida TV station botched the Florida Panthers' logo, instead showing the logo of the nearby Florida International Golden Panthers.

Just last week, NBC Los Angeles aired a segment entitled "Playoff Payoff" to profile the profile runs of the city's three pro teams -- the Los Angeles Lakers, the Los Angeles Clippers and the L.A. Kings. However, the station inexplicably slapped a Sacramento Kings logo on the screen instead of the Los Angeles Kings logo. It's not like the L.A. Kings are four games away from their first Stanley Cup in franchise history or anything.

To ensure something like this never happens, here's a logo guide for Boston College football's 2012 opponents. You know, for when the Boston media starts paying attention to Eagles football again. Like, this September.

Click to embiggen.

Boston College Daily Links: The Realignment Talk Never Ends

2012-05-24T12:01:13Z

Big 12 realignment, playoff plans lead college football Mailbag (SI.com)
Ultimately, FSU should make its decision based on whether the financial gain and increasingly stable leadership of the once-dysfunctional Big 12 outweighs the clunkiness and added expense of sending its basketball team to Stillwater, Okla., on a Monday night. Perhaps the school will decide it's no longer possible in today's climate to be a true national football power in a basketball-centric league. Whatever the case, it should not base the move on access to the national title game. If anything, the 'Noles have a better chance of getting to the playoff from the ACC than they would competing against Texas and Oklahoma every year.

ACC's Swofford Would Be Shocked & Disappointed if FSU, Clemson, & Miami Are Talking to Big 12 (Outkick The Coverage)
Swofford replied: "Yes, it would (surprise him.) I base that on talking to their presidents and their AD’s who have told me that there have been absolutely no contact or conversation with the Big 12. The Big 12 commissioner told me the same thing yesterday. So, yes I find those comments, (chuckling) just one more rumor."

Florida State was supposed to save ACC, but instead it's killing it (CBSSports.com)
One, Florida State football will remain in relative mediocrity. The Seminoles are slowly coming back under Jimbo Fisher, but here's the reality: If you can't dominate in the ACC -- not one team finished last season in the Top 20 -- you can't dominate in the Big 12. Texas, Oklahoma, now Oklahoma State, even Texas Christian ... where does FSU fit in there? Not at the top, I can tell you that. Not an FSU program that has lost eight games in the last two years, including at Wake Forest and at home to Virginia, both last season.

Focusing on Blame Won’t Solve Florida State’s Money Trouble (Chuck Oliver.Net)
More money doesn’t solve problems. Look at the long list of lottery winners or professional athletes who came into piles of cash only to find themselves bankrupt a few short years later. Money can provide opportunities, but its power is neutered without leadership to cast a vision for how to use it and management to properly apply and guard its use.

Texas AD not for expanding, but admits courting Notre Dame (CBSSports.com)
"We could expand to some number," Dodds said. "You name the number -- 12, 14, 16. We could expand but the question is 'do we need to expand?' In my mind, 10 is perfect because you play everybody in football and there is a double-round-robin in basketball. When we get into whatever system we get in for a championship, I think those coaches that play in a conference championship are going to say 'What in the world are we doing?' "

Notre Dame Fighting Irish committed to Big East for Olympic sports, Jack Swarbrick says (ESPN)
"As long as we have an appropriate home for our other sports, that's really important to us. It's not just that the Big East has been such a great home for us in basketball, it's been a platform for us to win national championships in women's soccer. We're headed to the lacrosse final four this weekend. Many of our programs hvae enjoyed their best years ever in the Olympic sports. It's been a pretty good platform."