A foolish man once said, “things can’t possibly get any worse.” Boston College baseball knows better.

With a 3-2 defeat on Sunday afternoon, the Eagles were swept by the #19 North Carolina State Wolfpack in their three-game series in Chestnut Hill. The bad news is that BC continues its historic decline in dramatic fashion, falling to 6-29 (0-17).

Even if BC goes 13-5 in their remaining eighteen games, they will set a program record for most losses in a single season. The reverse of those numbers is far more likely, with even fewer than five wins probable over that stretch.

In fairness to the Eagles — who if they haven’t broken an ACC record for consecutive losses, they have certainly embarrassed themselves all the same — their losses to the Wolfpack over the weekend were competitive games. Sunday’s defeat was no different.

The sad news for the Eagles is that they finally got a strong pitching performance, but even when they do get them on occasion, the offense is still so tragically inept that they can’t win, anyway. Andrew Chin went seven innings in the hard-luck loss on Sunday, giving up two runs and two hits. NC State only managed three hits in the entire game, but BC got just four themselves, putting a mere seven men on base from start to finish. Chin was also harmed by three more Eagle errors in the field, bringing the team’s total up to 59 for the season.

Many games over the first 35 they’ve played, however, were not close. Still, there is no trophy for dropping one-run games and not getting the big hit — or any hits — when you need one.

Boston College baseball as a whole has regressed tremendously over the last few years, and by the end of the spring, we may learn if athletic director Brad Bates is interested in changing the course of non-revenue sports that are failing, or if he is content to let them work out their own issues.

This season for Boston College has been a disaster in all senses of the word, and the nightmare continues on Tuesday as the Rhode Island Rams visit the Eagles.

The Eagles are 6-26 (0-14) on the season, having lost each ACC game in which they’ve played. For some perspective, BC is eight losses away from setting a program record for losses — and there are twenty games left to go. It’s not out of reason that the Eagles can surge beyond the indignities of those bad seasons past and lose 40 games this time around, which would rank them somewhere in the sub-basement stratum of worst-ever ACC teams.

In order to get on track to avoiding such a depressing fate, Boston College baseball has to find a way against the North Carolina State Wolfpack, a team that has looked quite good for the most part this season. The Pack are #19 in the nation, having put together a 25-10 (8-7) record. One would think that at their current pace, NC State will find their way into the NCAA Tournament late this spring.

It has been hard enough for the Eagles to beat any team, let alone one of the better ones in the ACC. For a look at the ugly statistical disparity between these two clubs, feast your eyes on this, and then wash them out with soap:

If we’re being honest with ourselves, for Boston College to win one game of the three would constitute a big upset.

Friday’s game at Shea Field begins at 2:30pm, Saturday’s contest starts at 1:30, and Sunday’s series finale will begin at noon.

Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

Wednesday night brought more road disappointment for the visiting Boston College Eagles. The North Carolina State Wolfpack defeated the Eagles, 82-64, in their ACC conference game in Raleigh. With the loss, BC falls to 12-16 (4-11) on the season and has now lost seven away games in a row.

The story for the Eagles was quite familiar, at least in ACC play. Boston College was entirely ineffective on offense for approximately the first twelve minutes of game time at NC State, falling behind 22-6 with close to eight minutes to go in the first half. About the only positive for BC came towards the end of the first, when the Eagles rolled off an 11-0 run and were able to eventually close to within three points.

Another familiar story, however, was NC State forward Scott Wood’s systematic destruction of BC basketball. Near the expiration of time before the half, Wood made a tough three-pointer to push the Wolfpack lead back up to six; Wood ended up scoring 17 points in what may be his final game against the maroon and gold team he has dominated over the years.

Give BC credit for not having folded down 16 points in the first half, but the problem was that they eventually did fold in the second. Certainly, there were some questionable calls by the officials, but in all honesty, the Eagles were going to lose this game badly regardless of some of the ticky-tack nonsense. North Carolina State came out and did what they had to do, but aside from about ten minutes of inspired play, BC put forth a poor effort.

Calling it a poor effort is just and accurate, but that is the sort of thing to which Eagles fans are accustomed on the road this season. We are getting to the stage now where the “young and inexperienced” classification of the BC basketball team does not carry much weight anymore. As it stands, they have played almost two full seasons. Most teams are good for a stinker here and there, and there is no shame in losing to NC State, but this was another highly inconsistent, flat, and disappointing effort by the Eagles. The offense was extremely streaky, with BC either being very hot or comatose, and the defense was ineffective all night. In short, NC State completely outplayed the Eagles, and it’s days like these where we might not be so sure what the future might bring.

Unless the Eagles win their last three plus at least two games in the ACC Tournament, which almost certainly is not going to happen, they’re sure to have a losing record once again this year. BC will look to get back on track on Sunday afternoon at Conte Forum against the Virginia Cavaliers.

Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston College Eagles basketball team has made a recent habit of playing well in home games, and have actually won three of their last four. Away from the calm of Conte Forum, however, it has been a much different story for the second-year rebuilding team that has struggled to find its way in the dwindling 2012-13 season. BC has not won an away game since their ACC road opener at Virginia Tech in early January. The Eagles have lost six road contests in a row, most recently having gotten blasted by Duke, and will now slide across Tobacco Road to face the NC State Wolfpack to attempt to avoid their seventh.

Only 2-7 on the road for the season, Boston College basketball has rarely been able to replicate their stronger efforts away from Chestnut Hill. One of those came in their first ACC game of the season against this very same Wolfpack team: BC was highly competitive but could not cap off a comeback in the final moments, falling 78-73. This time, their work will be cut out for them as they will have to beat a solid foe in their own building.

The Eagles’ last outing was anything but good. Duke is a tough enough team to beat as it is — though, you guessed it, Boston College played a very close game against them at Conte Forum — but BC got off to a disastrous start and never recovered. With the way they’ve conducted their business on the road this season, it has almost become the expectation that the Eagles will not be nearly as competitive in these sorts of games.

Boston College’s road finale will come on March 5 at Clemson, a venue at which the Eagles have never won and have rarely played well. It is entirely possible that the Eagles will take their long road losing streak into next season if they aren’t successful against the Wolfpack tonight, even in spite of the fact that BC dropped Clemson up in Boston. As for NC State’s venue, it’s been a long time since BC’s last win there: that took place on January 6, 2007.

At this stage of the season, as Boston College basketball continues playing out the string, the details of the matchup are of little consequence. The Eagles are eventually going to have to win road games with some consistency if they intend to be a future tournament team, but it would not appear that this year will yield any results on that end. A win tonight would be a nice confidence boost, which is about all BC can hope for at this stage.

Tipoff is at 8pm; broadcast will be on local television and ESPN3.

Much like last year, the Eagles played a ranked team in their ACC opener, and lost.

On Saturday evening at Conte Forum, the #23 North Carolina State Wolfpack defeated the Boston College Eagles, 78-73. The loss drops BC to 8-6 (0-1) on the season and snaps BC’s five-game winning streak.

Boston College started the game well, led initially by Joe Rahon, then helped out by some good ball movement and the presence of Ryan Anderson underneath the basket. The Eagles ran out to a 22-15 lead late in the first half, after which both teams experienced lengthy scoring droughts, both on the floor and at the free throw line. NC State broke theirs first, going on a strong run and eventually surpassing BC before halftime. The Wolfpack carried a slight 29-28 lead into the half. Both teams were a combined 13-26 (50%) from the stripe in the first; Boston College did not score a field goal for almost the final nine minutes of the half.

In the second, NC State opened on a quick run and put the Eagles in a bad position, but they recovered. Boston College punched back and eventually regained the lead from the Wolfpack, despite more spotty free throw shooting. The two teams would trade blows for most of the rest of the way but in the end, it was the ranked team that came away with a hard-fought victory.

The Eagles played for lengthy stretches with some confidence, and did a decent job on defense for the most part. NC State led the nation in field goal percentage coming into the game, and they made more than their fair share of baskets, but free throw shooting was an issue for the Wolfpack (and the Eagles as well).

Speaking of NC State, for almost the entirety of the first half, they looked flat. One cannot say that they “took the Eagles lightly,” because who are we on the outside to make such a broad determination, but their effort early on was sloppy and disjointed. It got better as the game progressed.

For Boston College, there were certain good elements of this game that, if replicated, can help them going forward. Save for the scoring drought at the end of the first half and the overall bad free throw shooting, BC put forth a representative effort against a ranked team. It does not matter that the Wolfpack weren’t firing on all cylinders; BC may have been outmatched, but they gave it a meaningful try.

The Eagles return to action on Wednesday evening in Blacksburg as they face a struggling Virginia Tech club.

Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports

The last time the Boston College Eagles men’s basketball team played a game against a conference foe, it was the North Carolina State Wolfpack in the 2012 ACC Tournament. Scott Wood was making shots from the parking lot against a young, tired, and ineffective Eagle perimeter defense and two opposing players had double-digit rebounding totals as BC’s season was washed away. In the first conference contest of 2013, it is these same two teams meeting, but are they the same as before?

Boston College faced the Wolfpack three times in the 9-22 rebuilding season and lost all of them. Of course, that NC State team would get onto the bubble, get hot, and make it to the Sweet 16 before starting this season ranked in the Top 10. Now, they’re merely #23, but there is no question that BC’s opponents on Saturday are a very good team.

NC State is an athletic bunch with great shooters. Scott Wood is shooting a very respectable 43.4% from beyond the arc and CJ Leslie is one player that everyone is going to watch. He scored in double-figures against the Eagles all three times last year and there’s little that might prevent him from doing so again, that is to say unless BC has made the strides it thinks it has.

Last year’s Eagles did not even make it to ten wins, falling flat throughout much of ACC play and giving away several games that they could have or should have won. One of those was the home game against the Wolfpack in which BC and NC State were tied late in the contest. That team could not close out and fight back, but lately, the Eagles have shown something a bit closer to perseverance than in their collective freshman year. Some new talent has helped, as has a greater consistency in play (even if it’s only a recent development against low-major teams).

Boston College goes into this game on a five-game win streak, the longest that the nucleus of this team has experienced yet. NC State is hotter, now having won seven games in a row to get to 11-2. The Eagles barely experienced any win streaks at all last season, and very few games in which they played well. Now, they have a bit more reliability as they approach the conference season, while NC State is still its very good self. They have not changed very much since the last time BC saw them, but BC has grown, even if only slightly.

This will be a difficult game for the Eagles to win, as NC State’s talent and hot shooting are hard for plenty of teams to handle. If there are some saving graces, it’s that BC is 7-2 at home already (the Eagles won only eight home games all last season) and that the closest contest BC gave NC State last year was at Conte Forum. It probably would not be reasonable to expect that Boston College will win this time, but there should be an expectation that they’ll at least keep the game close and compete. There’s no shame in losing to a ranked team, especially when the core of yours is still learning, but BC historically plays decently against the Wolfpack at home.

If BC wants to put a real shock into the college basketball world, starting off ACC play with a home win would be a good way to do it.

It’s finally over.

The 2012 Boston College Eagles football season, the worst the program has had in over 30 years, came to a close on Saturday evening. The hosting North Carolina State Wolfpack defeated the Eagles, 27-10. BC ends their campaign at 2-10, the first ten-loss season since 1978.

The Eagles’ starting quarterback, Chase Rettig, had a very difficult afternoon. The pass-blocking for him was terrible, but he made some bad plays in his own right. While taking a pounding from NC State’s front seven, he logged a poor outing, and one he will hope to erase from memory when the spring game is played in 2013. All told, Rettig went 16-for-45 with 119 yards and three interceptions, one of which was a pick-six.

About the only bright spot for Boston College’s offense was Rolandan Finch, as “Deuce” had 143 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown. It’s a shame he didn’t play for half the season, because BC could have used the help weeks ago.

The BC defense played a much better game than they have been playing in recent weeks and months, holding the Wolfpack down on third downs for much of the afternoon. NC State converted some in the second half to get back to 8-for-20, but compared to what BC has been doing lately, that is respectable. Some players having decent afternoons included Kasim Edebali and Nick Clancy, the latter of whom played his final game on Saturday.

This contest was ugly and uninteresting for the duration, which is perfectly apropos considering that this was likely Frank Spaziani’s final game as Boston College head coach. After a 2-10 season and 6-18 since 2011, the odds of his dismissal within the next 72 hours are extremely high. For now, Boston College fans will wait for the word to come down from athletic director Brad Bates, and then for the white smoke to come from Yawkey to announce a new coach. Major changes are coming soon.

To close, Soaring to Glory would like to thank our seniors. They had a rough four years in terms of the state of the program, but they are fine representatives of Boston College and deserve to be wished well in their future endeavors.

Michael Ivins-US PRESSWIRE

Only one more football pick this year, which might not be a bad thing depending on your attitude about this season. I’ve gone 9-2 picking BC’s games in 2012, with the only two misses being Miami and Army. At least I can still attain that highly elusive 10-2 season that some fans expect out of the football team every year.

Stay tuned for the exciting conclusion of the 2012 sea…oh, who the hell are we kidding.

How Boston College Will Win
Boston College will win if they care and NC State doesn’t. Aside from that, BC will have to finally do something against the Wolfpack defense, which they didn’t last year and haven’t done lately against anyone, while their own defense somehow holds together. The Eagle defense is really the key here, but will they be able to put aside 11 games of problems for one final push? Time will tell.

How NC State Will Win
NC State will win if their offense against BC looks anything like their offense against Clemson. The Eagles have made marginal improvements on offense but if the Wolfpack and Mike Glennon start hurling touchdown passes, BC probably won’t be able to keep up. They will take it if they get a good enough defensive performance and they’re not wholly incompetent on the offensive side of the ball. As I’ve said before, teams do not have to play their best to beat BC anymore. NC State probably just needs to be adequate.

Bottom Line
In an ironic twist, Frank Spaziani faces Tom O’Brien in his last game as Boston College coach. It could be his Super Bowl and maybe the team gets an emotional boost, but if they really wanted to save Spaz’s job, they should have started a long time ago. Our soon-to-be-former coach suffers one last ignominious defeat and becomes the first coach since 1978 – a year in which his coaching philosophy might have been successful – to lose ten games.

Boston College at NC State: Pick
Score estimate: NC State 27, Boston College 20

Additional Information
• Boston College won the last meeting, 14-10, in 2011
• NC State won the last meeting in Raleigh, 44-17, in 2010

Michael Ivins-US PRESSWIRE

Sure, we could ask five big questions this week, but it’s Thanksgiving, and nobody is going to read this, anyway. Besides, an extremely forgettable season will be over in two days and we’ll be focusing our efforts on clean-up and recovery. Matchups and the like don’t really matter anymore, especially because the fates of both teams have already been decided, and likewise the fates of both coaches are clear (well, one clearer than the other).

While your mom, dad, grandmother, or perhaps you prepare the Thanksgiving meal, ponder this one question of relevance:

1. Where will the Boston College football program be at this point next season?

This, I think, is far more important than trying to figure out if BC or NC State has the edge on Saturday. All that really matters now is next year and the years that will come after it. When 2013’s season comes to a close with a new head coach, will we be able to say that this program made real progress?

If the answer is yes, even if BC doesn’t have a winning season, then we are heading in the right direction. If the answer is no, it is probably because Frank Spaziani is still here, though there could be other explanations for it.

As Boston College heads to Raleigh to end its season, we’re taking stock of something very grim that needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. By this point in 2013, it is my hope that the foundation will be put in place for a return to respectability. It will require much hard work, but it can be done. With any luck, by the next time BC runs into NC State, whenever that is, we’ll all feel much better about this program’s direction.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Michael Ivins-US PRESSWIRE

As we’re only days away from the merciful end of the 2012 Boston College Eagles football season, we’ll only get to see this defense in action one more time. That’s a good thing, the way things are going.

A final statistical analysis will follow in the week after Thanksgiving (when this site isn’t gloating over a likely coaching change, that is), but it shall suffice to say that the Eagles defense is nowhere near what it used to be. At this point, there are no small sample sizes or outliers, only a season that is 11/12ths over. With almost all of the precincts reporting, the results are not good for this team.

Boston College is 106th out of 124 teams in total defense, allowing 463.73 yards per game. They are 81st in scoring defense, allowing just a shade under 30 points per game. What is perhaps most damning is their run defense, ranked 114th at 221.64 yards per game. It is so because they were #1 in said category just two years ago. Part of the mess BC is in now is due to the defense: the offense has been terrible for years, but when the defense caught up to them, there was no way the Eagles would win more than a couple games.

Meanwhile, NC State has a mediocre offense that has had some individual bright spots. They total an average of 425 yards per game and score about 28.5, both of which are near the middle of the national rankings these days. The Wolfpack doesn’t have much of a run game, which will be music to BC’s ears, but they do have a somewhat efficient passing game under Mike Glennon. That’s how NC State does most of its damage, though Glennon also has one of the highest interceptions total in the country at 14.

The secondary has struggled at times this season for the Eagles, which may pose an issue if Glennon gets hot, but where the Eagles have truly failed is in their defensive line play. The line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball has been BC’s undoing this year, but the defensive line has perhaps been the bigger culprit. Boston College is dead last in the country in sacks and is second to last behind Central Michigan in tackles for a loss. They have had extreme difficulty stopping the run and they don’t get to the quarterback. There is no quick fix for this, either.

Glennon can probably expect to stand upright for most of the game on Saturday, and if NC State wants to start pounding the rock, this would be the week to try it. If it matters at this point, NC State likely has an advantage here because BC’s defense, despite having some individual talent, is very bad as a unit this year.