Written by Brett Korpi
On a wet day in Dublin, Ireland a college football game was decided by different the styles of the coaches.
With 2:53 remaining in the third quarter and the game tied at 7, Boston College head coach Steve Addazzio had a decision to make on fourth and one from the Yellow Jackets 18-yard line. He could try to keep momentum on the Eagles side and attempt to pick up the first down. Or he could send his kicker, who saw his 43-yard attempt early in the first half get blocked, back out on to the rain soaked field and attempt the conventional three points. He chose the latter, and watched dejected as the 35-yard try sailed wide.
On the contrary, Georgia Tech (1-0,1-0 ACC) was staring at a fourth and 19 from their own 32 with 2:30 left in the game. Paul Johnson, who is notoriously aggressive, made the decision to go for the first down and keep the ball out of BC’s hands. He saw his quarterback throw a 22 yard pass to running back Qua Searcy. The Yellow Jackets would eventually score on true freshman Dedrick Mills four-yard run to win the game.
Addazzio addressed his play call and the kicking game after at his post-game press conference,
“Our percentage of kicking field goals this training camp was really high. Yeah, I'm concerned: we didn't make two field goals out here. But it's not what I saw (in camp).”
He went on to add, “I had a tough decision to make on that field and I decided to kick that field goal from the 18 because it was the right thing to do. It didn't end up being the right decision. It was 4th-and-1. I said I have to find out what's going on here. We have to do the right thing. If I had another 4th-and-1, I would've went for it.”
In the first half BC’s offensive woes from last year seemed to continue. Graduate transfer Patrick Towles (11/16 176yds 2TO) threw an interception on the very first drive, and would fumble later, both happening in GT territory. That would turn into a normal thing in the first half as Addazio watched Towles lead the Eagles to the Yellow Jacket side of the field only for the drives to stall out.
But, then the second half came and on the first play from the line of scrimmage, the redshirt sophomore Jon Hillman broke a a career long 73-yard run for a touchdown which would tie the game at seven.
"It's an inside zone play. We caught them in some outside pressure. We split it inside, which we thought we had an opportunity to do. Not only is (Jon Hilliman) a big back but he has real speed for a big guy, and he showed some real speed for a big guy on that play. He outran some pretty fast DB's.” Addazzio praised.
Following the score, Towles seemed to get into a groove connecting often with wide receivers, Charlie Callinan (4 rec, 94 yds.) and sophomore Mike Walker.
The defense, despite letting up touchdowns on Tech’s first and final drives, did everything they could to keep the Jackets off the board. They shut down the option with 9 tackles for loss. They were led by Junior backer Connor Strachan who had 8 tackles, 4 for loss, and seemed to be all over the field and in on every play.
Addazzio mentioned his linebacker’s play, “I knew Connor Strachan is one hell of a player. He's physical and he's tough and he can run. There were times where he ate that grass up pretty quick. I felt he did a great job.”
Fellow backer Senior Matt Milano, 6 Tackles and 1 sack, helped Strachan contain the Jackets. Defensive captains Truman Gutapfel, and John John also made plenty of big plays. They teamed up on one as Johnson the safety delivered a crushing blow to Tech’s Mills that saw the ball pop out and lineman Gutapfel was there to grab it.
Boston College plays in-state rival UMass next Saturday in the “Battle of the Bay State.”
With 2:53 remaining in the third quarter and the game tied at 7, Boston College head coach Steve Addazzio had a decision to make on fourth and one from the Yellow Jackets 18-yard line. He could try to keep momentum on the Eagles side and attempt to pick up the first down. Or he could send his kicker, who saw his 43-yard attempt early in the first half get blocked, back out on to the rain soaked field and attempt the conventional three points. He chose the latter, and watched dejected as the 35-yard try sailed wide.
On the contrary, Georgia Tech (1-0,1-0 ACC) was staring at a fourth and 19 from their own 32 with 2:30 left in the game. Paul Johnson, who is notoriously aggressive, made the decision to go for the first down and keep the ball out of BC’s hands. He saw his quarterback throw a 22 yard pass to running back Qua Searcy. The Yellow Jackets would eventually score on true freshman Dedrick Mills four-yard run to win the game.
Addazzio addressed his play call and the kicking game after at his post-game press conference,
“Our percentage of kicking field goals this training camp was really high. Yeah, I'm concerned: we didn't make two field goals out here. But it's not what I saw (in camp).”
He went on to add, “I had a tough decision to make on that field and I decided to kick that field goal from the 18 because it was the right thing to do. It didn't end up being the right decision. It was 4th-and-1. I said I have to find out what's going on here. We have to do the right thing. If I had another 4th-and-1, I would've went for it.”
In the first half BC’s offensive woes from last year seemed to continue. Graduate transfer Patrick Towles (11/16 176yds 2TO) threw an interception on the very first drive, and would fumble later, both happening in GT territory. That would turn into a normal thing in the first half as Addazio watched Towles lead the Eagles to the Yellow Jacket side of the field only for the drives to stall out.
But, then the second half came and on the first play from the line of scrimmage, the redshirt sophomore Jon Hillman broke a a career long 73-yard run for a touchdown which would tie the game at seven.
"It's an inside zone play. We caught them in some outside pressure. We split it inside, which we thought we had an opportunity to do. Not only is (Jon Hilliman) a big back but he has real speed for a big guy, and he showed some real speed for a big guy on that play. He outran some pretty fast DB's.” Addazzio praised.
Following the score, Towles seemed to get into a groove connecting often with wide receivers, Charlie Callinan (4 rec, 94 yds.) and sophomore Mike Walker.
The defense, despite letting up touchdowns on Tech’s first and final drives, did everything they could to keep the Jackets off the board. They shut down the option with 9 tackles for loss. They were led by Junior backer Connor Strachan who had 8 tackles, 4 for loss, and seemed to be all over the field and in on every play.
Addazzio mentioned his linebacker’s play, “I knew Connor Strachan is one hell of a player. He's physical and he's tough and he can run. There were times where he ate that grass up pretty quick. I felt he did a great job.”
Fellow backer Senior Matt Milano, 6 Tackles and 1 sack, helped Strachan contain the Jackets. Defensive captains Truman Gutapfel, and John John also made plenty of big plays. They teamed up on one as Johnson the safety delivered a crushing blow to Tech’s Mills that saw the ball pop out and lineman Gutapfel was there to grab it.
Boston College plays in-state rival UMass next Saturday in the “Battle of the Bay State.”