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BC head coach calls MPC Bowl a ‘trap game’
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Boston College head coach Tom O’Brien hasn’t been to three states in the union. Idaho is one of them. Before Monday, he didn’t even know exactly where Boise was.
Now O’Brien and his team will get a good week or so in town later this month as they play Boise State in the MPC Computers Bowl on Dec. 28 in Bronco Stadium.
The Eagles even have a little of that “chip on their shoulders” mentality that Boise State has had over the last few years. Boston College is in the first year in the Atlantic Coast Conference after coming over from the Big East. As the lone team in the Northeast in a conference dominated by schools in the Carolinas, Georgia and Florida, O’Brien and his team feel a bit left out.
“Being the new guy on the block. I guess this is the way it is being a northern team in a southern conference. There’s nothing we can do as a football team. What we control is our destiny on the football field,” O’Brien said.
He also knows playing Boise State on the home field of the Broncos is not going to be an easy task.
“It has all the markings of a trap game. You go to a bowl game that is hosted by a school that’s on their turf where they don’t lose football games. Obviously it’s a tremendous challenge for our football team,” O’Brien said.
But the Broncos are not taking the 19th ranked Eagles lightly either.
“This is a high caliber team and we all know that. But we aren’t going to geek out because they are Boston College. We are going to play them as competitive as we can,” two-time All-WAC offensive tackle Daryn Colledge said.
This will be the second time in a row that two teams in the top-30 will match up in the MPC Computers Bowl. Boston College is ranked No. 19 in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches Polls. Boise State is ranked 27th and 28th.
“I think it’s great for the bowl game. It lends credibility for the bowl game and hopefully it will be a great match-up and it will show well for Boise State,” Boise State head coach Dan Hawkins said. “Any time you can get a well respected opponent in here, it’s great for your program and your community.”
Hawkins also sees it as another opportunity for the Broncos to play a BCS conference team on national television.
“When you get to this part of the season, you want to play against the best and have your best opportunity to show what you are about. It will be a great test for us,” Hawkins said.
The Eagles finished tied for first in the Atlantic division of the ACC with Florida State. The Seminoles beat the Eagles on Sept. 17. Florida State went on to beat Virginia Tech in the ACC Championship game, and will now face No. 3 Penn State in the FedEx Orange Bowl.
O’Brien felt as if his team was overlooked from regional bowl games closer to home because of the stigma of Boston College fans not traveling well, and the draw for Clemson (third in the Atlantic Division) to play in the Champs Sports Bowl and NC State (fourth in the Atlantic Division) getting the invite to the Meineke Car Care Bowl because the those team have more of a fan base near the other two bowl games. Plus, Boston College beat both teams during the regular season.
“We got passed over a few times before somebody invited us to a bowl game,” O’Brien said.
Boston College has been out West once already this season. The Eagles defeated BYU 20-3 to open the season on Sept. 3.
For the Broncos, they have been designated as the road team for the bowl game, and will wear the white uniforms.
“The whites are fine with me, obviously the field most likely will be covered in snow anyways, so we will do our normal peek-a-boo game with the colors,” Colledge said jokingly. “But if we have to go out in whites, that’s fine. I don’t mind it. I think I look better in the whites. Personally I think it’s a slimming color for me.” The game will also put the Broncos 31-game home winning streak on the line.
Trevor Horn
Sports Editor
