Boston College Football 2026 Fall Training Camp Notebook: Day Six

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — For the first time in August, the media got to see Boston College football's players in full pads on the main practice fields outside of Fish Field House.

The skies were sunny and the air was less humid than last week, which certainly helped with energy levels.

After practice, special teams coordinator Matt Thurin, defensive back Syair Torrence, and center Michael Crounse spoke with the media. Head coach Bill O’Brien additionally chimed in regarding an injury that occurred during practice.

Here is a closer look at what went on during the session.

It’s a beautiful morning in Chestnut Hill.

I’m here for practice #6 of @BCFootball fall training camp.

Special teams coach Matt Thurin, DB Syair Torrence, and C Michael Crounse will be speaking with us later.

Practice notes, quotes, etc. to follow @BostonCollegeSI. pic.twitter.com/d7EeL5LFoL
— Graham Dietz (@graham_dietz) August 12, 2026

Practice Notes:

- Starting things off with the deeply unfortunate part of practice, a play occurred early in the morning that saw wide receiver Jaedn Skeete and defensive back Max Tucker go up for a jump ball in the corner of the endzone.

Skeete came down with the ball, but Tucker landed in an awkward position, which prompted trainers to rush over and treat him before an ambulance arrived and took him away.

O’Brien addressed the freak incident after practice, saying the ambulance was more of a “precautionary measure” and that he believes Tucker likely sustained a concussion and nothing more.

“We really believe that he's gonna be okay,” O’Brien said. “We'll update that later on. Probably more like a concussion, which, obviously, is serious, but I really don't think it's anything more than that. But again, we'll update that when we get confirmation on what that is.”

O’Brien asked defensive backs Carter Davis and KP Price, who are two of Tucker’s closest friends, if they wanted to continue practice, and they did inside of Fish Field House after some prayer with the rest of the team on the field outside.

Slowly but surely, life came back to the players as practice went on, but there was definitely a brief adjustment period after seeing their teammate go down in such a frightening way.

“I mean, we just play for each other,” defensive back Syair Torrence said. “Like every time we step on the field, we all play for each other. No matter who's down, who's up, we just always go and play for each other with a brother next to us.”

- The progression of Mason McKenzie’s ability to run O’Brien’s offense from the first day of camp to this last day is palpable.

McKenzie continued to look more composed as a passer, which has remained at the center of attention ever since he joined the program, and it came in the form of passes to all levels of the field, including some impressive runs.

His best throw of the day happened in the final 20-minute team period, when he completed a 45-yard bomb to Reed Swanson along the sideline with Torrence in coverage.

Torrence was right on the back of Swanson, but the ball was placed right into the receiver’s arms with exquisite touch, disabling Torrence’s ability to put a hand on the ball.

Some other notable plays that McKenzie executed consisted of a short pass over the middle in double coverage to Javarius Green for a touchdown, a touchdown run, a deep pass to VJ Wilkins which came right off of the receiver’s hands that would have been a gain of 20+ yards, and several connections with tight end Zeke Moore after going through his reads and choosing to make the check-down.

"He's a great kid,” Crounse said of McKenzie. “Like I said earlier, a great leader. We're on the same page, so it's going well. Trying to get in the right direction for sure. ... His running ability is huge. He can make you right sometimes if for some reason you don't have good protection."

- Something else that Crounse spoke to after practice was the Eagles’ new-look defense under first-year defensive coordinator Ted Roof, particularly the D-line and linebackers.

“I’m not going to talk too much schematically, but they’re a really aggressive group,” Crounse said. “Really tough, physical, downhill. That’s a really good group on defense, the linebackers and D-line, and then obviously the defensive backfield.”

While BC’s secondary consists mainly of returners, there are a number of fresh faces in the trenches and at the second level that will be difference-making contributors this year, and Crounse has been able to identify some just from the first week of practices.

“I think Chris Marable [Jr.’s] been doing really well, KJ [Sampson], Micah Amedee, the defensive ends like Kris Jones and some of those guys,” Crounse said. “Then the linebackers are doing awesome. [Anthony] Palano and Bodie [Kahoun], so yeah, those guys are playing really well.”

Palano made one of the biggest plays of the day when he forced a fumble against running back Evan Dickens, who was told to run a lap around the field afterward. Price was also there to slow the runner down and put pressure on his momentum, which made it easier for Palano to punch the ball out.

Defensive lineman Israel Oladipupo and Chuck Nnaeto combined for another big play which saw Oladipupo batting a ball up into the air right on the line of scrimmage and Nnaeto intercepting it on the ground. Grayson Wilson made the pass attempt.

Onye Nwosisi stuffed multiple runs up front, while Makai Byerson sacked freshman quarterback Femi Babalola. Kahoun collided with running back Nolan Ray to limit a run to just a yard or so, and transfer defensive tackle Christian Hudson stopped Ray at the goal line.

“It’s definitely new, different than we had last year,” Torrence said of the defense. “Definitely just more versatile, just doing a lot of stuff, showing a lot of stuff, not just standing in one package.”

Torrence remarked that while the defense is made up of quite a few transfers mixed in with returners, its chemistry has come together naturally, which he didn’t initially expect to happen.

- In terms of how the quarterback room will shape up behind McKenzie, the opportunities appear to be split between Wilson and Babalola for the time being. Babalola’s growth over the past week is visible, and his teammates gravitate towards him, which is uncommon for a first-year player.

- When it comes to goal-line opportunities, Ray has seen the most carries out of the running backs. He is seemingly the “heavy-package” guy.

- Thurin spoke on the camaraderie of the special-teams unit and how “tight-knit” the group is.

“When asked about kicker Luca Lombardo, a 2025 Lou Groza Award semifinalist who made 16-of-17 field goals and all 35 extra-point attempts as a redshirt junior last year, he said "every year is a new year, so we have to go out and prove it."

Tale of the Tape:

QB1 Mason McKenzie slinging the rock -

Some @MckenzieQb1 throws from earlier: pic.twitter.com/Wf8zMYwMxa
— Graham Dietz (@graham_dietz) August 12, 2026

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