Almost four years ago, I took to this space to plead with Boston College to use the opportunity created by the departure of Brad Bates as Athletic Director to make an impact hiring as Head Coach of the Men's Basketball program.
Martin Jarmond, the AD that replaced Bates (and has since moved on to become the AD at UCLA, replaced by Pat Kraft), did not listen then but here's hoping the Athletics Administration on Chestnut Hill are listening now.
When I wrote my plea to Boston College four years ago, Jim Christian was three years on the job. At that time, his record was 29-67 (6-48 in the ACC). Jarmond decided to stick with Christian, which was a mistake. Christian ends his time at Boston College with a record of 78-132 (26-94 in the ACC) and recorded his only winning season was in 2017-18, when the Eagles finished 19-16 and lost in the first round of the NIT.
This is not meant to be an attack of Jim Christian. At Kent State and Ohio, he proved to be a very good mid-major head coach and if given the opportunity to return to that level I am sure he would be successful.
The real problem at Boston College is that they need to develop an identity while at the same time developing connections to the talent pipelines of New England high schools and AAU programs that are preparing players for successful college and professional careers.
When it comes to identity, Boston College has always been confused athletically. For as long as I can remember, they have tried to be a player at the national level in football and basketball, but have failed to reach their desired level of success.
One of the reasons is who they choose to lead their teams. BC has had their fair share of good coaches, but they usually fail to give those coaches the resources they need to succeed. Brian Hamilton of The Athletic reports (subscription required) that in 2018, BC reported $6.8-million in Men's Basketball expenses while Duke spent $22.1-million. If you want success, especially in the ACC, you have to spend. Looking at the same Department of Education data used by Hamilton, Boston College is also outspent considerably by the likes of Notre Dame ($8.3M in expenses), Virginia ($13.4M), and Syracuse ($14.8M).
Boston College has to make a decision. Are they comfortable in the basement of the ACC? Or do they want to build a contender?
If they choose to be a contender, they need to put money into the program. Upgrades to Conte Forum (which would also benefit the Women's Basketball program as well as BC's national powerhouse Men's and Women's Hockey programs) is a good start. Investing in a legitimate practice facility on campus would be another big step.
They also need to invest in their coaching staff. They need to be willing to pay a premium price for a head coach and a top notch staff. They need to be patient, as this is a major rebuild. Boston College has not played in the NCAA Tournament since 2009. This is not going to happen overnight.
BC also needs to know that despite this investment, if the next coach achieves the success that they'll be paying for, they're likely to be looking for a new coach again in five years. Boston College can be a very good job, but in a city that pays little attention to college athletics it will never be the type of job where a top young coach wants to spend his entire career.
There is nothing wrong with that. Xavier University has built a consistent winner over the last few decades under Pete Gillen, Skip Prosser, Thad Matta, Sean Miller, and Chris Mack. All five of those coaches had good runs at Xavier and made deep runs in the NCAA Tournament. All five of those coaches moved on to bigger jobs. Xavier seems to be good with that and their continued success seems to be proof that it's ok to be a stepping-stone job.
Boston College seems to be on that path right now with their football team. They opened the $52-million Fish Field House, a state-of-the-art practice and training facility in 2018. They hired Jeff Hafley away from Ohio State after the 2019 season. Hafley is young and energetic and seems to have Boston College on the right course to compete in the ACC and earn bids to lucrative bowl games.
Of course, if Hafley really gets it going at BC, he's likely to be romanced by the likes of a Penn State or a USC to have access to their unlimited financial resources with the allure of a national championship to seal the deal.
It's time for the decision makers at BC to make the same investments in the Men's Basketball program. As highly as I regard coaches like Tommy Amaker of Harvard or Bill Coen of Northeastern, I believe the time is right for Boston College to go after a highly regarded young assistant coach from the ACC - such as Jason Williford of Virginia, Charlton Young of Florida State, or Jon Scheyer of Duke - and give them the resources and time commitments needed to turn the program around.
Once the right coach is in place, that coach needs to assemble a meeting of the top prep and AAU programs from the fertile New England region. Four years ago, I thought BC needed to call on Leo Papile of the legendary BABC AAU program. While Papile would still be my first call, the leaders of the top prep school programs (such as Jason Smith of Brewster Academy, Lamar Reddicks of Milton Academy, and Michael Hart of St. Andrew's) and the other top AAU programs (like Mike Crotty of Middlesex Magic) should also be included on what should be a Day One assignment.
The talent is there to build a legitimate contender in the ACC that can consistently win in the NCAA Tournament. Keeping players like Cormac Ryan (Milton Academy and Middlesex Magic product now at Notre Dame), Brycen Goodine (St. Andrew's and BABC product now at Providence), and Cole Swider (St. Andrew's and BABC product now at Villanova) from leaving the region and staying home to play at BC will not be easy but if the new coach makes it a priority to build the necessary relationships with the local coaches it can be a reality.
Boston College, the ball is in your court. This is a major hire and there is no margin for error. Open the vaults, invest in the facilities and coaching staff, and make the necessary efforts to court the favor of the high school and AAU coaches in the area.
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