Eagles complete first scrimmage

It's always tough to judge the result of intra-squad scrimmages. If the starting QB throws 5 TD passes, is it because he and his receivers are studs or is it because the secondary blows??

That said, there are a few things we can take from the reports of the Eagles' first scrimmage (and if anyone reading this was actually there, I invite you to please leave your thoughts in the comments section).

First, this team needs to get AJ Brooks the ball. Yes, his tendency to fumble is worrying and I think it's the main thing that seperates him from being a feature back at this point in time, but nonetheless the dude simply makes things happen. Callender and Whitworth are both solid backs, and I think Whitworth will continue to be the team's #1 back this season, but neither one has the game-changing ability that Brooks, who racked up 49 yards and 2 TDs on 14 carries yesterday, has. The guy is a home-run hitter.

Ohliger went 3-5 on FGs, the longest coming from 43 yards, with one of the misses coming on a Jolonn Dunbar block. I'd like to know what distance the other miss came from.

Jamie Silva picked up right where he left off last season, leading the defense with 7 tackles. With 8 defensive linemen out due to injuries (word is that B.J. Raji will be back in time for the opener) and NCAA restrictions, it's safe to say that the secondary and linebackers likely had a lot of work to do--and it seems like they were able to get the job done, holding the offense to 3 TDs. The stats on backup LBs Robert Francois (6 TKLs, 2 TFLs) and Mike McLaughlin (INT) reinforce the belief that that should be the team's deepest position this year.

All that said, however, TOB's tone in post-scrimmage interviews was worrying but sadly, not unexpected:

And while the Eagles did catch a break with the nice weather, it was of little use to the team, because, as O'Brien noted, "You don't have a lot of guys out there practicing."

"After 10 of these [opening scrimmages], I think we've had better and we've certainly have had worse," said O'Brien, entering his 10th season at The Heights. "It's a starting point and we have a long way to go and we understand that."

Sounds like a man who already has his WTF Loss Excuse planned out--but let's hope I'm wrong.

Coverage of the scrimmage from folks who actually saw it:

Globe
Herald
Pravda

As for TOB, word is that he will soon be getting the Ron Zook treatment from some disgruntled BC faithful. Stay tuned. Until then, we encourage all BC faithful to take part in the first-ever Andy French Cup, courtesy of the folks at The House Rock Built.

Oh yeah, the bowl/ACC predictions. I'll get 'em up, hold your damn horses.