BC football notebook: The Path, Andre Hines Jr., Syracuse win
It was an eventful night for Boston College football Friday, picking up a dramatic win over Syracuse to continue the path.
There was a report from a small BC Twitter account that Pat Garwo was out for the. year -- Jeff Hafley confirmed postgame that Ryan O'Keefe, Garwo, and tight end George Takacs were all out for the year.
"We have a lot of guys down right now. We haven't talked about it much to the media. Different guys have stepped up ... But we don't say anything, we just keep playing," Hafley said after the win Friday.
Down went Kye Robichaux on top of Alex Broome's injury, and in came Andre Hines Jr. -- the Eagles' scout team running back who hadn't played a down in his three years at Boston College -- with the clock needing to be iced at the end of the game.
"Andre Hines could've went to the portal. He comes to work every day and he's our scout team running back. And what does he do? He comes through at the end of the game, runs through 'em, and seals the win," said Hafley.
Hines took five carries for 32 yards to seal the win in his first collegiate action.
"And I gave him the game ball there, he had tears in his eyes, guys picked him up and it's a moment he'll never forget," added Hafley. "That's college football. That's why you stick it out. That's why you don't leave so you'll have moments like this."
The Path
What was once a program in an embarrassing state has turned into a program that couldn't be making any more noise.
"We were 1-3, and people wanted to say everything they could. Everything," Hafley said. "And we didn't listen. That 1-3 has turned into 6-3. And it's from nothing from hard work and guys that love each other and continue to work -- and now we're bowl eligible ... And we also know that The Path is there to do a lot more."
With Virginia Tech losing to Lousiville, that seemingly made The Path a lot harder. But, it's still there and it's still alive. Beacon Street Ball on Twitter provided insight into this, but basically, here's what needs to happen for BC to reach the ACC championship game:
- BC winning out (VT-Pitt-Miami)
- UNC winning out (Duke-Clemson-NC State)
- Miami beating Louisville (11/18)
- Duke losing one more (which would happen with UNC winning out)
Alternate but less likely path is Lousiville losing out their ACC slate against UVA and Miami, but that's very unlikely. Even them just losing to Miami will be a challenge of its own, never mind a very weak Virginia team.
As Beacon Street Ball points out regarding the likely path, if this were to happen, this would make BC, UNC, and Louisville all 6-2, eliminating the head-to-head of BC-Louisville due to UNC being in the picture. This would take the tiebreaker to the common opponents record (UVA, GT, Pitt, Miami) -- BC is 4-0 against those teams if they win out, and UNC has lost to Pitt and GT while Louisville has lost to Pitt and Miami if they beat them.
"I don't know about the ACC championship just yet but if we keep doing what we're doing, there is a path," Hafley said with a smirk on his face. "The Path is there, and we're gonna attack it. So, our players have filled me in a little bit ... The fact that The Path is still alive in November, I can't wait to get back and play at home.
Players have embraced The Path, too. It's all over players' social media accounts and it's commonly referenced.
“Like I said, BC football is back, Boston is back. The Path," Thomas Castellanos said postgame.
McGown touchdown
The linebacker Owen McGown had a critical touchdown that put BC up 10-7. It was his first collegiate reception, and it was a two-yard passing score that ended up being critical in a one-score final.
"We put Owen in sort of a fullback role, he was a tailback in high school -- again, trying to find roles for guys because of the injuries and because of the depth," Hafley said. "You could see how excited the guys got for him which was another pretty cool moment when a guy like that makes a play. It's just fun to watch our team celebrate and get excited on plays like that.
Quotables
* Hafley on Robichaux, who was knocked out of the game on a big hit: "Yeah, he's hurting right now. I didn't see a replay. I saw he caught the ball, turned, and it looked like he got popped in the head pretty good ... Hopefully we'll get him back. You wanna talk about a tough kid? I mean, 23 carries for 77 yards, taking some shots, and I got a ton of respect for that guy -- he's a heck of a football player."
* Hafley on Sam Candotti's fake punt: "Yeah, it wasn't called by me it was called by our special teams guys who do a great job."
" A funny Hafley quote: "I said to my mom, I said you gotta stay up late, because we win every game in the fourth. She said, 'Can't you just make this easy?' I said 'no, just tune in for the fourth quarter. We find a way and they don't quit. '"
* Hafley on five in a row: "I don't care who you play, where you play, to find a way to win five weeks in a row, it just tells you a lot about these guys and about this staff. It's hard.
* Castellanos on finishing The Path: "Confidence is sky-high. It's been a while since we won five games in a row. ... We believe we can do it. Today wasn't pretty but a win is a win."