Looking at Potential BC Offensive Line Coach Candidates
With Matt Applebaum off to join the Miami Dolphins, Boston College is now looking for a new offensive line coach. Applebaum helped install a new offensive system under Frank Cignetti the last two seasons, converting BC from a Gap-Power running team to a Zone pass-heavy team. The results were mixed; players like Zion Johnson and Christian Mahogany took significant steps forward, while Tyler Vrabel and Ben Petrula struggled at times. Mahogany is the lone returning starter, and most of the new projected starters will be new to the lineup. Therefore, whoever replaces Applebaum will be working with a nearly clean slate.
In terms of predicting precisely who will replace Applebaum, Jeff Hafley certainly has a type when looking for former assistants. He is fiercely loyal to people he worked with in the past, especially those who mentored him. He also values NFL experience exceptionally highly. Similar to when I was looking for an offensive coordinator, I went back through Hafley’s coaching history to find some prospective connections. I also looked into the new offensive coordinator’s (John McNulty) background, along with Rob Chudzinki’s. Unfortunately, many of the offensive line coaches during their respective tenures elsewhere are working in the NFL as offensive line coaches or even offensive coordinators. Nevertheless, I found several prospective names to become Boston College’s next offensive line coach.
Greg Studrawa
Hiring Greg Studrawa would be a massive coup for the Eagles. He was let go by Ohio State at the end of this season but is still one of the premier names among offensive line coaches. Studrawa spent the last six seasons with the Buckeyes and helped craft one of the best, most consistent position groups in all of college football. He was also the offensive line coach for LSU from 2007 through 2013 and helped the Tigers reach two BCS National Championship games.
With such an impressive resume, one might wonder why Studrawa is available for hire, especially since Ohio State seemingly let him go. I think Ryan Day wanted to hire more of his own guys instead of Urban Meyer’s. Studrawa was replaced by Justin Frye, another former Boston College connection. Furthermore, Hafley only worked with Studrawa for one season and on different sides of the ball. He also has never coached in the NFL before, which might disqualify him for Hafley.
Regardless, I think hiring Studrawa would be a tremendous hire for Boston College. He’s an Ohio native, a fertile recruiting ground for Boston College in the past. He also helped put multiple players into the NFL during his tenures at LSU and Ohio State: Thayer Munford, Nicholas Petit-Frere (will be drafted this year), Josh Meyers, Wyatt Davis, Jonah Jackson, Michael Jordan, Isaiah Prince, Billy Price, Jamarco Jones, Pat Elflein, Trai Turner, Joseph Barksdale, and Herman Johnson. BC has obviously been no slouch in getting linemen to the pros, so adding Studrawa to the coaching staff would be a major boon.
Jeff Quinn
Jeff Quinn is another coach that was recently let go by a premier program. For the last four seasons, Quinn was Notre Dame’s offensive line coach and was on the staff for the previous three years. He replaced the legendary Harry Hiestand when the Chicago Bears hired him in 2018. After a brief retirement, Hiestand returned to the Irish this offseason, earning Quinn his walking papers. Quinn worked with Brian Kelly at Grand Valley State, Central Michigan, and Cincinnati before earning the head coaching job at Buffalo.
Like Studrawa, Quinn has no NFL experience on his resume. He’s also on the older side (turns 60 in September), so he might decide to hang up his whistle. Furthermore, this hire would be more about Quinn’s connection to John McNulty, the new offensive coordinator. They only worked together for the previous two seasons, so their relationship might not be as strong. But Quinn has worked under Hiestand for many years and has helped put plenty of linemen into the NFL as well.
Frank Giufre
I fully understand that hiring a UConn castoff does not look great on paper. But Frank Giufre has many qualities Jeff Hafley looks for in his assistants. Giufre spent the last five seasons as the Huskies’ offensive line coach, adding offensive coordinator duties in the final three. Naturally, these were not the most prolific seasons, but I would argue there were extenuating circumstances. Giufre has never worked with Hafley, but he spent multiple seasons with Rob Chudzinski’s with the Indianapolis Colts in the mid-2010s. As previously mentioned, NFL experience is essential to Hafley.
Furthermore, Giufre is a Northeast guy; he is from upstate New York and played at Syracuse before coaching at Sacred Heart and Maine. Giufre might be a bit of an outside-the-box hire, and I imagine many fans won’t be happy with it. But I think Giufre could be a valuable member of this staff.
Pat Flaherty
Pat Flaherty has been coaching since the 1970s and could bring some great experience to BC’s relatively young coaching staff. He has not spent an entire season as an actual coach since 2018, but he was an NFL offensive line coach for more than a decade. Flaherty coached the New York Giants’ offensive line from 2004 through 2015. After that, he bounced around a few teams, which was where he worked with Jeff Hafley in San Francisco in 2016. Once again, that was only for one year, but there aren’t many more available coaches out there with more experience.
There are some concerns with Flaherty, however. As previously mentioned, he has only been an analyst for the last few seasons, returning to the New York Giants and working at Penn State. Flaherty is another older coach, so he might be enjoying this late stage in his career where he doesn’t have to be a full-time coach. He also hasn’t coached in college (aside from the PSU analyst job) since 1999, so he might be a little out of practice in the recruiting process. Finally, he might not be the biggest fan of Boston College, given that Brian Flores fired him from the Dolphins’ offensive line coach job after only four days in training camp in 2019. Given these listed factors, Flaherty earning the job would be a bit of a surprise to me.
AJ Blazek, OL Coach, Vanderbilt
AJ Blazek would be another connection from John McNulty and would bring a pretty different profile as a coach. Blazek has spent most of his career in the Midwest, working at Iowa, Fort Hays State, Western Illinois, and even North Dakota State. But in the late-2010s, he worked with McNulty at Rutgers for three seasons. He signed on with Vanderbilt in 2021, so he may not be looking to make a move, especially to a lower-tier conference, even if it is to a better football school. Blazek also doesn’t have any NFL experience or a direct connection to Hafley, so he’s undoubtedly a dark-horse candidate, at least.
Peter Rossomando
The final candidate on this list is another John McNulty connection but with more Northeast ties. Rossomando was actually the offensive line coach at Vanderbilt before Blazek took over. He coached the offensive line at Charlotte in 2021, so the BC job would be an improvement. He worked with McNulty at Rutgers in 2019, so the connection is that strong. But Rossomondo has exceptionally strong Northeast roots. He’s from Staten Island and played football at Boston University. He coached at several FCS programs to begin his career, including Northeastern, before being the head coach at New Haven and Central Connecticut. Given these connections to the Northeast and New England, Rossomando would also be a big help in recruiting the local area.