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Reflecting on Florida State: What Did Hafley Say During His Sunday Presser?

Photo: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports
Photo: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports

Nightmare. Disaster. Whatever you want to call it, Boston College's 44-14 loss at Florida State Saturday night was hard to watch.

As was the case in the Eagles' ACC opener at Virginia Tech, BC's offense looked defunct much of the primetime matchup.

On the other side of the ball, where the Eagles were sound in 2021 and decent to start this season, everything caved. BC allowed FSU quarterback Jordan Travis to throw for more than 300 yards, and the Seminoles' collection of backs spearheaded a rushing attack that totaled 180 yards on the ground.

Perhaps worst of all, though, the Eagles missed 17 tackles in Tallahassee, according to Pro Football Focus.

"That was probably the most disappointing thing that I saw," third-year head coach Jeff Hafley told reporters Sunday. "We've been a pretty darn good tackling team since I've been here. We didn't tackle well at all."

Also on Hafley's to-do list is figuring out why the Eagles can't start fast this season. He tried to crack that mystery last week during practice. But he knows he has to go back to the drawing board.

BC has been outscored by its first two ACC opponents, 48-3, in the first half. FSU outgained the Eagles in total yards of offense, 327-64, in the first two quarters this weekend. Seminoles running back Trey Benson had reservations for six on the opening kickoff, and, for the second straight road game, BC quarterback Phil Jurkovec threw an interception on the Eagles' first possession. FSU turned that takeaway into another touchdown en route to a 21-point first quarter.

"We did a lot of things in practice all week to try to generate that, to start fast," Hafley said. "The first five minutes of the first half, and the first five minutes of the second half are always the most crucial part of the game.

"I need to change it up and do something different because it clearly didn't work."

When asked about positives he could take away from the blowout defeat, Hafley mentioned that he was happy with the way some of his younger players performed in the fourth quarter. He said that backup quarterback Emmett Morehead, who was 3-of-6 for 35 yards and his first-career touchdown, was "probably the most comfortable I’ve seen him look."

Hafley also shouted out the play of offensive linemen Jude Bowry, a true freshman, and Otto Hess, a redshirt freshman. He noted how "violent" redshirt freshman back Xavier Coleman ran on his five carries for 44 yards, albeit against an FSU defense that loosened up in garbage time. Joe Griffin was another name Hafley said—Griffin, a true freshman wide receiver, caught Morehead's touchdown pass, recording his first score in an Eagles uniform, too.

"I was pleased, the way those guys came in and finished the game," Hafley said. "If there’s a positive spot, I would say there was some encouragement there at the end.”

Hafley emphasized that he is well aware of the reality of BC's 1-3 start.

"I'm not sitting here and pretending everything's good," he said.

He explained that he's been on teams, both at the college and NFL levels, where there's been division amid turmoil. Where it's become coaches versus players or offense versus defense. That's not happening with this Eagles squad, Hafley maintained.

"We need the leadership," Hafley said. "That starts with me and works down to the staff, then the players. They’ve been great. They were really good in the team meeting. I anticipate them going out and having a great day on Tuesday.

"I’m very grateful for those guys and the leadership that they provide. It’s one of the great things about BC. You have great kids that don’t make excuses, that take ownership and accountability, look at themselves first."

What the Eagles do in the next two weeks will likely determine whether this was just an abysmal start to the season or a microcosm of an overwhelmingly disappointing 2022 campaign.

"We have to start faster, we have to take care of the football and we have to tackle better," Hafley said. "If you do those things, you’re going to be in games in the fourth quarter. We failed to do that [at FSU].

"Those are the things I’m going to work really hard on."

Other tid-bits...

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1. When asked about Morehead's preparation during the week, Hafley said that the redshirt freshman backup is always mixed in with the ones and the twos.

Hafley on Morehead: “He has to be ready to go every week. Last year, he probably didn’t have the knowledge and the experience. He really only got to play one year of high school football because COVID took his second year away. With limited time last year, he’s still a guy that really has not had a whole lot of reps. We’re trying to do everything we can to gain him that experience in practice."

2. Hafley was asked about wide receiver Jaelen Gill, who has been targeted only 10 times this season, according to PFF. Gill, a redshirt senior, has just seven catches for 108 yards through four weeks.

Hafley on Gill: “He’s battling a little bit of a small injury that he’s really pushing through, and I have a ton of respect for him on that. He’s playing through some pain right now, which a lot of people don’t know, but he’s pushing through it. You might be able to see it at times. You can’t always predict where the ball’s going to go on every single route. I think we all understand that. I have a ton of respect for Jaelen. I think he’s a really good football player. I think he’s a great competitor. I think he shows up on game day. If you watch him do the little things when the ball’s not in his hands, I think you’d respect him even more. The guy blocks, and he busts his butt on every single play, he runs his routes as hard as he can. Hopefully the ball will start to go his way, and we can be creative also as coaches to try to get him the ball more. I love that guy, and I love the way he works."

3. Hafley said that there was a point last season where BC almost gave Danny Longman the punting keys (Grant Carlson was the Eagles' longtime starter at the position). Hafley explained that Longman, who has been BC's kickoff specialist since 2018, has always had the leg. It was a matter of consistency for the now-graduate student. Once Longman got that down, he won the job in camp. He's currently ninth in the ACC with a 42.5 yard punt average. Longman has five punts of 50-plus yards, though, and no one in the league has a longer punt than his 76-yard boot at Virginia Tech.

4. Before Saturday's game, ESPN's Pete Thamel broke the news that BC senior defensive end Shitta Sillah is out for the year with a shoulder injury that requires surgery. He played only one game in 2022 (the opener against Rutgers) and missed the final two games of 2021 with an upper-body injury that also called for an operation.

Hafley on Sillah: "One, I care about Shitta as a person. That’s two years where he’s going to miss a lot of football. Unfortunately, he has to have surgery again, which will knock him out for the season. I think he’s one of our best defensive players. He’s one of our best defensive linemen. He creates pass rush. He’s really good in the run game. He’s a phenomenal human, so as a team, we’ll miss him. I certainly feel for him, for a guy who worked so hard back from a rehab, to play really well in the first game and then to have to go through it again. ... I feel for him. We miss him. I’m going to do everything I can to get him ready for next year."

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