Jeff Hafley’s Boston College football team ends the month of September with a 4-0 record. After an exhilirating 41-34 OT victory over the SEC’s Missouri Tigers, where two of the Eagles main contributors were redshirt senior backup quarterback Dennis Grosel and true freshman backup kicker Connor Lytton, it’s safe to state that Hafley is in the process of creating a football program at Boston College.
Developing a football program and creating a culture that allows student-athletes to thrive is a difficult feat. Being on campus for Saturday’s game, it was obvious not only that Hafley’s players have bought in but so have students, alums, and Boston College football fans. Before the game, on a beautiful day in Chestnut Hill, there was a distinct buzz in the air. It was a mixture of hope, excitement, a return from the new normal to the familiar rhythms of a college football game day, and the belief that Jeff Hafley’s Boston College football squad had the wherewithal to beat an SEC opponent with a backup qb.
Let me repeat that point: With Dennis Grosel replacing the injured Phil Jurkovec, the expectation around the program was that Hafley’s team had the talent, coaching acumen, and confidence to beat a visiting SEC football program – the Missouri Tigers. This wasn’t a, “Well, if everything goes right B.C. can beat Missouri.” This was a true belief that B.C. could beat Missouri.
That feeling – and that energy – had been missing from Alumni Stadium for far too long.
During the Steve Addazio era, some students went four years without experiencing that feeling. But belief and hope are alive on The Heights. And it’s a kick in the face to the college football zeitgeist that fervently believed that Boston College should hold on to Steve Addazio and be satisfied with an uninspiring and mediocre football program.
The feeling that preceded and followed Saturday’s win is a testament to the culture Hafley is constructing at Boston College. As the coach would say, “Get In.”
Weekend Observations
The young gun American golfers kicked some serious European ass at the Ryder Cup in Wisconsin. There is nothing more enjoyable than American supremacy. I sound like an Imperialist twat? Again, I make no apologies for American dominance in golf. (Could we do something about the state of American men’s tennis?)
The (0-3) New York Giants simply do not have enough talent to win in the NFL, which has been the case for the last ten years. The Giants have a losing culture and John Mara needs to take a hard look in the mirror at himself and what he needs to do to make his franchise relevant in the NFL. His father, Wellington Mara, went through the same crucible in the 1970s with his hapless version of Big Blue.
The Yankees sweep the Red Sox and move one game ahead of their rivals for an AL Wild Card playoff berth. The Yankees’ Giancarlo Stanton lived up to the hype and the size of his mega-contract with a display of megatron offensive force at Fenway Park. Battling two botched pop-ups and a roster incapable of playing solid defense, the Bronx Bombers bashed their way to a late September sweep of Liverpool Football Club’s sister squad, the Boston Red Sox.
After being inundated by Team TB12 trashing Bill Belichick all week, it was nice to see the Los Angeles Rams kick the crap out of Tom Brady’s Buccaneers.
Apparently the Karma Police weren’t completely on the side of Bill Belichick because the Saints traveled to Gillette Stadium and opened a can of whoop ass on the Patriots. Mac Jones now knows what it feels like to be the starting quarterback at Vanderbilt.
The St. Louis Cardinals have embraced John Calipari’s trademarked phrase “Refuse To Lose”, and have won 16-straight games. This is the longest winning streak in the National League since the New York Giants won 16-consecutive games in 1951. That Giants team only had Willie Mays, Bobby Thomson and Monte Irvin on it. Monte Irvin led the Giants to the pennant by putting up these numbers: .312 BA, 24 Home Runs, a league-leading 121 Runs Batted In.
Reminiscent of SkyLab hurtling its way downwards to Mother Earth to face its fiery ruin, the 2021 flawed and offensively impotent New York Mets have given new meaning to the word: frustrating. Incapable of producing runs, hitting with runners in scoring position, refusing to implement any type of running game not named Javy Baez, and having a roster comprised of players either having career worst years or who are simply overrated, the Mets have treated the second half of the season as if they’re tanking for a high draft pick. These are the anti-Cardinals.
toughdsheridan 
Good writing old friend! What’s happening? Would like to see you again. We’re living in the Portland Maine area now and loving life. Let me know.
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Gerry, you are living in the mecca of beer and good food. I went up to Portland for Memorial Day – loved the freezing rain. But the beer and food were off the hook. Goodfire’s Prime IPA was so good that my girlfriend would have sat for another hour in the rain. Next time I am heading to Portland, let’s get together.
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