Will BC Basketball Win More Games than BC Football?

BC lost a closely fought game to Penn State last night 62-54. And the ACC finished the BigTen/ACC Challenge 4-8. BC basketball is now 2-5 with losses against Holy Cross, UMass, St. Louis, and New Mexico. They needed overtime to beat UC-Davis, and their other win was a 3 point squeaker over UNH.

It's a rebuilding year for BC basketball, as second year coach Steve Donahue tries to resurrect a program that was left in a shambles by a lack of recruiting by Al Skinner.

BC football, meanwhile, went 4-8. They even lost to Duke. The one bright spot was junior linebacker Luke Kuechly. He was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, and is projected to be the top LB in the Draft, should he decide to leave early. He recorded an astonishing 191 tackles this season.

Not to diminish Kuechly's accomplishment, but BC's offense was hardly ever on the field. Kuechly also played punt coverage, and BC punted a lot. In other words, he had more opportunities for tackles than most players.

BC's offense was without Montel Harris for most of the season. But even with him, they would have struggled to score. And if you're an offensive high school recruit, why would you want to play at BC?

This is a tough time to be a BC fan. Unless you like hockey. And this is the time that you'll see many BC fans find other things to do. At last night's basketball game, the student sections were almost empty. BC fans follow their team when it's trendy. Then forget them when it isn't. I guess that's the case with most sports teams, but the effect is even more dramatic at BC.

One Good Thing About Valentine

There's one good thing I read about Bobby Valentine yesterday. According to ESPN's Buster Olney, some Red Sox players have "grumbled" about the hiring of Bobby Valentine. They don't like it.

And that's good.

I don't want the clubhouse malcontents to be happy. So while I don't think Valentine is a long-term solution, and don't like how Ben Cherington is a puppet GM. But anyone who displeases the chicken eating, beer guzzling, complaint happy Red Sox can't be all that bad.

Bruins' November Reign

The Bruins ended November with a 6-3 victory in Toronto. It was the first time since 1969 that the Bruins went a full month without a regulation loss. And they did so because their entire roster contributed from top to bottom. Last night the Krejci line exploded. Lucic scored twice, Krejci added a goal and two assists.

This streak has seen everyone step forward and contribute in some way. Sometimes with big goals, sometimes with the little things, but it's all added up to a 12-0-1 month of November.

The Bruins entered November in dire straits. They were wallowing. They weren't skating. It seemed like only Seguin, Thomas, and Rask were showing up to play. And now they leave November atop the Northeast Division, only a point behind Pittsburgh for the best record in the NHL, and tied with Detroit for the most wins (15).

One word I'd use to describe this Bruins team is "resiliency." They don't quit, they don't stop, they're relentless. And in this streak, that resiliency has shown. The 6-0 cruise control wins against the Islanders are nice, but the 1-0 grinders against Montreal, and the comeback wins against Buffalo and Toronto, those victories show this team's character. This team occasionally falls down, but they don't stay down.

They're actually -1 in the first period this year. And are the best team in the NHL in the second and third periods (+32). This is a team of Rocky Balboas.



The Cup isn't won in November. But if the Bruins had continued their October horror show into November, they may have lost it. They turned things around, they're back on track, now let's sit back and enjoy the Champions once again playing like champs.

Photo Credit:
AP Photo