FanNation

Matty Heisman? Try Matty 'Franchise'

Did you hear that sound last night?  The sound of the hush that came over Lane Stadium when Ryan threw across his body and let loose a football 30 yards into the back of an Endzone over two defenders?  I heard it.  And above that, I heard Arthur Blank, Steve Bisciotti, Virginia Halas McCaskey, Malcolm Glazer, and Wayne Huizenga falling all over each other to get out their checkbooks.  Couldn't you hear that too?  Funny.  It's like that Manning Sprint Commercial. That is, you know, if you happen to like 6'5" quarterbacks with laser-rocket arms.  And most importantly, Ryan is a model citizen, intelligent, and clutch.

Ryan for Heisman?  Maybe.  How about Matt Ryan Top Draft Pick?  Now that is a serious possibility.

I know, I know.  What about Darren McFadden?  What about Glenn Dorsey?  Or Jake Long?  Hey.  All those guys are still in the discussion!  But what do they all have in common?  They are all the top players at their respective positions.  NFL teams draft according to needs.  What if the NFL team that has the top pick needs a QB?  Do you really think they'll draft Darren McFadden, or Glenn Dorsey? Last night, Matt Ryan clearly elevated himself to the top QB coming off the board in the next draft.  Brian Brohm is an excellent QB.  Andre Woodson has willed one of the most historically worst programss in college football history on his shoulders.  They are excellent choices as well, and all of them should be off the board by the middle of the 2nd round.

But what Ryan brings, is intangibles.  He has something that those other QBs do not have:  a 23-4 record all-time at BC as a starter.  Brian Brohm has seen 4 losses this SEASON.  

Is Ryan the Heisman front-runner?  I don't know.  Personally I think Tebow is pretty good, Hart is eponymous with his value to Michigan, McFadden is a monster, Dixon is what WVU fans thought Pat White would be, and Dorsey is unblockable.  Ryan will probably get a trip to NYC for the presentation, but we all know he'll be there in April, sitting with a smile, a cell phone, and in a suit.  Unlike Brady Quinn, Matt Ryan will not be ushered into a private green room.  He won't be sitting there with a goofy smile on his face, waiting to be picked.

Something is happening here at Boston College this season.  Much like it was at Ohio State in 2002, this team is winning despite all the questions, hatred, jealousy, and overt fear from the SEC crowd.  I expect anti-BC sentiment to reach a fever pitch in the near future.  With every win, I see fans doubting. Why?  For no other reason than that the front of the jersey says 'Boston College' and not 'Texas' or 'Florida State' or 'Miami.'  Let them hate on.  Really.  Here's an interesting fact:  Margin of victory was eliminated from the BCS formula, so the Eagles actually got more points for beating VaTech in Lane by four points than LSU did by more than 40 at home, since road victories DO count.

As a BC fan and alumni, I can only enjoy the ride. 

Those Aren't Echoes, Just Voices in Your Head.

I know, I've come out of my shell to post more than once this week.  It almost seems surreal.  The only thing that could possibly get me out here to express the voice of  'Everyman' would be something that was so ridiculous that I would have no choice but to use this medium of free expression to express my displeasure.

Or in this case:  Disbelief.

I was sent a link to a few 'letters to the editor' in the ND Student Paper.  While I'm normally not one to peruse the homerism rampant in student papers (The Heights included) I could find no better way to fully express the viewpoint shared by most ND students and Alumni regarding Boston College.

First Article.

A Great Flop, and a Better Turn.

I know most of us have dabbled in poker in the past couple of years given it's popularity.  Regardless of which you prefer with all it's numerous incarnations, have you ever just had this starting hand, that at the moment wasn't worth anything, but you knew.  Just deep down you had this gut feeling that you were going to catch what you needed to make the nuts?  The next two cards falling were going to make your hand and you knew it.  Forget the odds, forget the percentages, and even forget just what the other people had in the hole.  You knew that if you caught the cards you needed, nothing could beat you.

Welcome to Boston College football 2007.

I realize I've been remiss in posting, and for that I apologize.  There is something very special brewing in Chestnut Hill, and you can smell it on the wind.  So far, the recipe has been absolutely perfect.  Toss in one experienced team, a top NFL-prospect quarterback and Heisman Candidate, a dash of a stout and opportunistic defense, a winnable schedule, and with just a pinch of some monumentous and unforseen upsets (thank YOU Stanford, Appalachian State, Auburn, South Florida, and Colorado) and that smell you have on the wind is a very tasty treat indeed.

I won't say it, for like a pitcher going for a no-hitter, the very utterance of the words in a sequence could jinx the whole thing.  You let it sit on the side and for the life of you, you talk about the friggen weather.  Or what the kids are doing in school.  

But what we have here, gentlemen, ladies, fans and, of course, detractors.... is an opportunity.  An opportunity that has not reared itself at Boston College since Frank Leahy left for Notre Dame.  It is a gift.  A gift of the football gods at this halfway point in the season, and we mere mortals do not know if this gift is a harbinger of things to come, or perhaps a vicious tease.

The albatross is flying with the ship.  The question is, do we shoot it down or let it be?  For the first time since I can remember, the fate of Boston College football at the mid-point of the season rests entirely.... in the hands of Boston College.

Perish the thought.  Are you perishing it?  Marvelous.  Roll it around on your tongue, but dare not speak its name.  For the cruel mistress has already shown her head this season.  At the Big House.  At Papa John's.  Taking a vacation in Tampa, visited the Hollywood Hills, took in a game at the Swamp, and she decided to pay Dan Hawkins a visit since he called her down a little while ago.  So let us do what BC has done for years and years.  Let us remain as under-the-radar as much as we can.

For if Fate is poetic, and has a sense of humor and irony:  Notre Dame will ruin the Eagles' season this Saturday.  What?  BLASPHEMOUS.  How could the Irish POSSIBLY ruin this BC team?  Look at them, they are mere 'echoes' of their former selves.  Their record is worse than ALL OTHER I-A INDEPENDANTS!  They were stomped at home by a Yellow Jacket team that was in turn stomped by a BC team in ATLANTA!

And yet, what did that BC team of '93 have to possibly challenge that ND team? that BC team had lost to a 2-9 NORTHWESTERN!  And yet, they ruined Notre Dame's season.  In '02 'Return to Glory' year, Willingham's Irish was undefeated, and BC was an underachieving 4-3.  14-7 to start the 'Willingham Slide' that has improved Washington greatly.

You can point to numerous examples in this series regarding who should have, and who didn't win.  Notre Dame won over the Flutie teams in the 80s, when they had absolutely no business to be able to do that.  This series (though soon to be stopped by the Irish, for inexplicable reasons which nobody is too sure of, but that's okay, BC found a more competitive replacement in USC) has produced some classics, great games, and results that make no sense.

I'll stick with the party line.  Why shouldn't BC roll this game?  Matt Ryan is the QB that Irish fans hope that Clausen will one day ascend to.  The Irish lines are a mess, their running game is non-existant and facing a top-3 rush defense unit... but sometimes the party line doesn't make sense.

Four-in-a-row.  Remember that.  the Boston College class of 2005 did not lose to Notre Dame once in their time at Chestnut Hill.  Is that a trend that can last forever? Maybe.  Lord knows most men have lost their hair since the last time BC took down Miami.  But I would expect the Irish might have a surprise or two in store for the Eagles during the game, who could be looking at that October 25th game in Lane Stadium.  For as everyone knows, that game against Virginia Tech will announce to the nation if Boston College is a legitimate.... (DON'T SAY IT!) or simply another pretender in a season gone the way of the upset.

I don't see Boston College losing to Notre Dame.  But I bet that Trojan Fans didn't see USC losing to Stanford.

So here it is Eagle Fans.  We nailed the flop, and caught the turn... but will the river give us the nuts?  Or will it be a blank?  And how much are you willing to bet on it?