“We’ll be back. [Boston College] will be back.”
That’s what BC football head coach Bill O’Brien said following the Eagles’ season-finale loss to Nebraska in the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl. BC scored two points in the first half but managed to tack on 13 in the final quarter to make it a respectable five-point loss.
So when O’Brien said “We’ll be back,” what does he mean exactly?
Back to a loss in the Pinstripe Bowl? Back to a 7–6 final record, and a 4–4 mark in the ACC? Back to the very mediocre consistency that has defined how the Eagles play football for the last decade or so?
Obviously not, because O’Brien’s direction is more clear than that, and he preaches it every time at the podium. He also could have accomplished a feat not done since 2009—finish with eight or more wins in a season—in just his first year on the Heights.
But he didn’t. That will almost always raise an eyebrow from BC’s fanbase, which has been subjected to watching a dozen seasons without something to be truly excited about. So what’s different about this time?
The truth is, predictions are meaningless in college football. You can’t predict how a team will do until it takes the field on the first Saturday of the college football season because of the irregularity of the business in this day and age. But there are factors you can measure leading up to that week to make a guess.
That includes recruiting, which players you pick up in the transfer portal, and how much of your team you retain from the previous season. Now that the season is over, that is where O’Brien and his staff are chiefly focused.
“I really enjoy the job, and I think there’s a lot of good players in that locker room coming back for 2025,” O’Brien said. “I’m looking forward to taking a couple weeks off, be back January 13 to start school, and we’ll get going on 2025.”
Looking back on this season, and looking ahead, here are some final thoughts heading into BC’s next campaign:
The State of the Quarterback Room
If there is one big question mark going into next season, it is the Eagles’ quarterback room.
While there has been uncertainty and changeover in the past few seasons—BC has made numerous signal caller changes in the past four seasons due to injury, bad performance, or other issues—there has usually been an obvious starter going into the year. That could not be further from the truth in 2025.
There are three main options: Grayson James, Dylan Lonergan, and Shaker Reisig.
One has already started under center for O’Brien and has shown fine effort and the quality of being a starter if called upon—James. One is a former four-star recruit who sat behind Jalen Milroe at Alabama and was recruited by O’Brien back when he was the offensive coordinator in Tuscaloosa—Lonergan. The final one is a product of O’Brien’s first year of recruitment in Chestnut Hill, and who the coaching staff is incredibly high on—Reisig.
There is no telling at this point in time who will be the starter next fall, but one thing is certain. They will have to earn it, and there will be competition. There might even be sudden changes throughout the season, changes that could have an impact on certain players in the locker room or fans with an attachment to one over another. But that’s the nature of O’Brien’s coaching philosophy.
That became clear when former BC quarterback Thomas Castellanos decided to step away from the team after O’Brien benched him in the middle of the season for James. Instead of battling for his position back and sticking with the team, an unhappy marriage became a divorce. Castellanos entered the transfer portal, and it only took a matter of weeks for him to end up at a different ACC team, Florida State.
Castellanos’ season statistics were actually better and more consistent than his first year at the helm, but his play style did not fit O’Brien’s approach. The player who emerges as the starter next season will need to be consistent, smart in the pocket, elusive against the pass rush, and able to command a locker room no matter what the circumstances are.
James has shown he can do so, which is why he committed to staying with the team. It is technically his job to lose as of right now. Nevertheless, when a former NFL-experienced head coach goes to a college football program, especially one who has worked with Tom Brady, there will be players of higher caliber wanting in.
That’s what brought in Lonergan and Reisig, though nothing stacks up more importantly to O’Brien than leadership and character. That is what to look out for in spring ball and as the start of next season approaches.
Offensive Line Repairment
Two seasons ago, after losing a handful of senior and graduate offensive linemen to professional football opportunities and other circumstances, BC found itself dead in the trenches.
In their 2022 campaign, in which the Eagles went 3–9, the offense went the first eight games with a different starting offensive line combination, and injuries or lack of experience plagued the team. BC ranked last in rushing statistics in the entire country.
The Eagles are in a similar position this offseason.
First-Team All-ACC selections Ozzy Trapilo (tackle) and Drew Kendall (center), both Norwell, Mass., natives, have announced their intention to enter the 2025 NFL Draft.
Graduate offensive guard Jack Conley will likely follow a similar ordeal, which leaves redshirt-junior offensive guard Logan Taylor the only true, every-game starter left. That is a massive hole to fill.
Back in 2023, the upgraded offensive line, led by Christian Mahogany, proved to be a catalyst for the Eagles’ run game, which finished atop the ACC and top-15 nationally. This year, thanks to veteran presence, the Eagles improved throughout the season, maintaining a decently productive ground game with four capable running backs.
Next year, however, two of those ball carriers—Kye Robichaux and Treshaun Ward—will be gone as well.
O’Brien has pledged to build around some in-house players, including Kevin Cline, Eryx Daugherty, Ryan Mickow, and Dwayne Allick, all of whom he believes will be important pieces. Jude Bowry, Otto Hess, and Jack Funke will be members of the next cast up front as well, with Bowry holding the most prior experience of the group.
That still leaves doubt about how much a near-completely new offensive line can handle when next season rolls around, and that must be monitored next fall.
Who Will Replace Donovan?
There are very few players in BC program history who dominated defensively like Ezeiruaku did.
Ezeiruaku became the 14th player in BC history to earn Consensus All-American honors, and the first player to do so since 2013. He won the ACC Defensive Player of the Year award with his conference-leading 16.5 sacks (1.375 per game) and didn’t miss a beat all season, playing nearly every snap.
His style of play is smooth but vicious, and he is a stand-up person, joking with reporters at times and showing off his vibrant persona with fans and through NIL assignments. He is everything BC is about, and replacing him will be no small task.
One player comes to mind in light of this situation, and a year ago, you might have thought he would join the portal, ready to make another program home: Quintayvious Hutchins.
Hutchins’ back half of the 2024 season (3.5 sacks, one interception, one forced fumble, and 14 solo tackles in just five starts) surprised every BC football fan and definitely shocked the media cast for the team, including myself.
Hutchins switched positions under former BC head coach Jeff Hafley before transitioning back to defensive end as a redshirt junior this season. Next year sets him up with an opportunity to make even louder noise, along with a name for himself among the ACC ranks, or even nationally.
Daveon Crouch, Carter Davis, Max Tucker, Ashton McShane, Owen Stoudmire, and George Rooks are big returning pieces on the defense as well and names to keep an eye on.
Extra Notes
– Lewis Bond announced that he will return to BC next season and has the chance to cement himself as one of the best wide receivers in BC history statistically.
Bond is an extremely reliable wideout who plays out of the slot or on the outside and ranked first in receptions (67), receiving yards (689), and average receiving yards per game (53).
He is a dynamic, fluid route runner with reliable hands, and has a deep love for the school.
– O’Brien’s 2026 recruiting class is ranked 21st in the country, according to 247Sports, sitting between Florida and Miami.
Other notable ACC teams in the top-25 are Florida State (9), Clemson (12), and Syracuse (17).
– O’Brien is not the only former New England Patriots coach coaching in the ACC now.
Bill Belichick’s recent hire by North Carolina gives the two Bills a chance to square off as former NFL coaches.
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