After back-to-back ACC loses in the past two weeks, the Pack is looking to rebound this week as it travels to Boston College to take on the Eagles. Boston College, which is 4-2 (2-2 ACC), looks to continue its dominance over the Pack in recent years, winning four of the last six games the teams have played, including last year’s win 38-31 State loss.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Russell Wilson said Boston College will be yet another challenging roadblock in the way of State’s first ACC win.
“They are a real fundamental team and a hard hitting team; they are always in their spots at the right time,” Wilson said. “It should be an exciting game. I am excited to go up there and play them.”
A major key to the Pack winning the game this week will be the improvement of the secondary, which has been the Achilles’ heel of the Pack the past two weeks, with State giving up an average of 410 passing yards per game. With the problems the Pack secondary is experiencing, it expects nothing less than a continued attack through the air, until it shows it can stop the pass on a consistent basis.
“We can expect them at attack where we have been struggling at the past couple weeks and that is in the secondary,” senior Clem Johnson said. “That is where we are going to be focused on this week, trying to get better.”
There is hope for the secondary this week, with the return of freshman corner Rashard Smith to the starting lineup. With his return the secondary is finally all in tack and is lined up the way coach Tom O’Brien and the coaches want it to be.
“We finally have the secondary aligned the way we want to,” O’Brien said. “We will see if we are better and if they are not, we certainly are going to have to recruit guys.”
There are a lot of side stories taking place this weekend, including O’Brien’s second trip back to Boston College since he left the school he had coached at for ten years. O’Brien will also be facing a former friend and colleague in first year Boston College head coach Frank Spaziani. Spaziani and O’Brien coached together for 26 years and this will mark the first time in their friendship that they are coaching against each other.
“It was probably one of those dumb things we did in 1975 and I said, ‘If I ever get a head job I’ll hire[Spaziani]’,” O’Brien said. “I just held to what I said. I wanted him on my staff. I know he is a good coach and I know he is a great guy and a good friend. I brought him to Boston College.”
Though the game may have certain sentimental factors outside of football, O’Brien quickly acknowledges he is going up there for one single reason, and that is to win a football game.
“I just want to win a football game,” O’Brien said. “I told the players it is a business trip. I am not going up there for a social.”
After two back-to-back losses, the Pack has put itself into a corner and has made this game almost a must-win game. The team currently sits in second to last place in the Atlantic Division and must win four of the next six games to become bowl eligible.
“Every week is the same for him and the rest of our team,” Wilson said. “I know going up against Boston College is definitely important for us. It is a division game, it’s important for them too. With our record right now, we’ve got to win this game. The way we look at it, every game counts and every game matters.”
Even though the team feels as though this game is a must-win, Wilson stresses that the team needs to stay calm and confident in themselves and the system and not try to press or do too much at one time.
“You can say our backs are against the wall, but at the same time you cannot press and get stressed out about it or get worried about it,” Wilson said. “You just have to believe in the system, the coaching staff and the players you got and whoever is besides you, in front of you, behind you, whatever. You just have to believe in them and know that they are going to make the play at the right time.”