BC-UMass, Recruiting Update

Hockey Eagles head to Amherst tonight to take on UMass to take on the Minutemen, with the rematch tomorrow night at Conte. The teams are coming in seemingly headed in different directions, with BC coming off a key 1-0 win at Agganis Arena with the Minutemen trying to rebound from a bad 3-0 loss at Merrimack. UMass always will get up to play the Eagles but BC should take the sweep in this one. Look for Brian Boyle and Brett Motherwell to step it up and take charge of their leadership roles on this team this weekend; I'm looking for a couple of big games from both guys. Prediction: BC 3, UMass 1 (Friday); BC 5, UMass 0 (Saturday)

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The one downside to TOB's departure from the Heights is the effect it will have on this year's recruiting class. I'll try to keep track on this blog of our 2007 recruits and their reactions to the coaching change. As of what I've heard so far:

-OG Arthur Ray Jr. has de-committed from BC and is shopping around. He seemed to be wavering from his commitment recently even before TOB's departure. I think it is unlikely that he will return to BC; most likely he will end up at a lower-to-mid-level Big Ten program such as Illinois or Michigan State

-K Billy Bennett and WR Corey Gatewood have both strongly re-affirmed their commitments to BC and publically urged other recruits to come for the school, not the former coaching staff. We cannot thank either of these guys enough for their efforts

-BC's 2 most recent commits, TE Lars Anderson and DE Jeff Rieskamp are both taking a "wait and see" attitude. Both indicate that they will still likely come to BC but will explore other options as well. Anderson in particular is a risk, as NC State was one of the finalists for his services before his initial commitment to BC. My gut tells me that BC will hang on to both guys, but it isn't a sure thing

-CB Michael Peterson has said that BC is still the most likely candidate for his services, but that he will consider offers from South Florida, Vanderbilt, and a potential offer from Georgia Tech. Depending on who the new head coach is, BC should be able to beat out the Bulls and Commodores, but a GT offer could become a problem unless BC first hires a new coach and secures a re-commitment

-LB Will Thompson has been in contact with other schools and will take a visit to UConn, but seems to still strongly favor BC. He also made a point of saying that he will not follow TOB to NC State. My read is that he still wants to come to BC but is keeping his options open in case BC goes in a direction he doesn't like with the coaching hire. The fact that his only scheduled visit to UConn is interesting, as Huskies coach Randy Edsall has been rumored by some to be among BC's top choices; look for Edsall to try to make a personal connection with Thompson during that visit, rather than neccesarily trying to sell him on UConn as a school

-RB Devon Ramsay is now listed as a "soft verbal" on Rivals. I don't think this is much to be worried about; I think he, Thompson, and Peterson will all quickly re-affirm their commitments to BC as long as the new coach isn't someone like Bob Davie

-WR Dominic Magazu has had no public change in his status, but my feeling is that he is as good as gone. He is from Charlotte and his dad, Panthers tight ends coach Dave, is a former TOB assistant. Look for him to follow TOB to Raleigh