Boston College football offensive coordinator John McNulty will leave BC after spending one season with the Eagles, a source confirmed to The Heights Wednesday night.
BC hired McNulty on Jan. 31, 2022. He replaced former BC offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti Jr., who became the new offensive coordinator at Pittsburgh 18 days earlier. Before coming to the Heights, McNulty served as Notre Dame’s tight ends coach from 2020–21.
After ranking dead last in the nation in rushing yards per game with 63.2, 123rd in scoring offense with 17.8 points per game, and 52nd in passing yards per game with 247.1, the Eagles finished 3–9 in 2022. BC will search for a new offensive coordinator for the third time in four years.
McNulty arrived in Chestnut Hill just as four of BC’s starting offensive linemen—Zion Johnson, Ben Petrula, Alec Lindstrom, and Tyler Vrabel—left BC to play professional football. The Los Angeles Chargers selected Johnson with the 17th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Furthermore, before the 2022 football season even began, the Eagles’ only returning starter—Christian Mahogany, a 3-star recruit out of high school and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr.’s No. 2 guard prospect for the 2023 NFL Draft—tore his ACL while working out at home in New Jersey and missed the entire 2022 football season.
On Sept. 17, 2022, BC announced hours before the Eagles hosted Maine that right tackle Kevin Cline suffered a similar fate and would miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL.
Offensive line play hindered BC’s offense all season. The O-line allowed 46 total sacks for an average of 3.83 sacks per game, good for 129th in the FBS.
Spearheaded by redshirt sophomore Ozzy Trapilo, the offensive line changed its combination eight times. A number of injuries plagued the Eagles, leading to disarray and a lack of production on the ground.
In McNulty’s sole year on the Heights, starting quarterback Phil Jurkovec sustained injuries in Week Nine against Connecticut that forced him to sit out for the remainder of the season. Backup quarterback Emmett Morehead replaced Jurkovec against UConn and started BC’s final four games.
Before his injuries, Jurkovec registered 1,711 yards, 11 passing touchdowns, and eight interceptions on a 59.5 percent completion rate. He transferred to Pitt after the conclusion of the 2022 season.
McNulty held positions at Rutgers for two stints—from 2004–08 and 2018–19—before joining Notre Dame’s staff in 2020. In addition to his career at the collegiate level, McNulty worked in the NFL for 15 years, which included roles with the Jaguars, Cowboys, Cardinals, Buccaneers, Titans, and Chargers. He also has six years of experience as a quarterbacks coach.
McNulty and head coach Jeff Hafley worked alongside each other on the 2013 Buccaneers coaching staff, and McNulty beat out multiple in-house candidates for the offensive coordinator position in 2022.
