Ted Roof Explains the 'Number One Thing' BC Football's Defense Must Improve for Red Bandanna Game

126 yards after missed tackles.

That was the amount that Boston College football surrendered to Cincinnati in its season opener on Saturday, according to BC defensive coordinator Ted Roof.

The Eagles fared much better through the air, limiting quarterback JC French IV to 85 yards and a touchdown on 11-of-15 passing. But it didn’t exactly matter because of how often the Bearcats were able to break free of initial contact, particularly in the run game, and extend plays for much larger gains.

It wasn’t just one player, either, that tantalized BC’s run defense.

It was virtually the Bearcats’ entire backfield, as Gi’bran Payne totaled 108 yards on 14 attempts, good for an average of 7.7 yards per carry, while French added 52 yards on 10 attempts (5.2 YPC), and Cole Tabb and Zion Johnson contributed an additional 68 yards combined on 12 attempts (5.7 YPC).

On Friday, the Eagles will face a running back who led the Big 10 in rushing yards (1,241) and touchdowns (13) a season ago in Rutgers’ Antwan Raymond, and Roof was pretty straightforward about where the focus needs to be defensively as the Eagles prep for game day.

“I got to do a better job of coaching [tackling], to run through contact and rap and squeeze and all the fundamental parts of it,” said Roof. “We got to fix that Friday night before anything else. But part of that is getting more guys to disengage their blocks, part of it is tackling technique. So there's a lot of things that go into it, because we're playing a great back this week.”

DC Ted Roof's main takeaway from the Cincinnati tape:

"Missed tackles. We got to do a better job. I got to do a better job of coaching that, to run through contact and rap and squeeze and the fundamental parts of it. ... There were 126 yards after missed tackles." pic.twitter.com/AKWg07a3VL
— Graham Dietz (@graham_dietz) September 9, 2026

Regardless of position, if a player can't tackle, that player is lacking the most essential quality of a defensive football player, according to Roof.

“That’s number one, the number one skill of a defensive football player at the top of the list,” Roof said. “Because formationally, they can make anybody or everybody tackle, so that’s the first thing you’ve got to be able to do as a defensive football player, is tackle. … And there’s a lot of things that go into tackling, so we’ve tried to improve, and we’ll see where we’re at.”

Another aspect that might have played into BC's missed tackles in the loss was inexperience on the defensive side — which Roof is not trying to use as an excuse, to be clear.

“In one defensive staff meeting, I said, ‘Okay, if you started over six games in an FBS program, stand up,’” Roof said. “And four guys stood up, so that meant there were about 40 guys still sitting down. … There’s a lot that goes with it when you’re not used to being a guy that has to carry the load, the responsibility that comes with it, the accountability that comes with it, but also the privilege that comes with it. And so there’s something that some guys do better in their first [games] than other guys.”

The most productive tackler on the team against Rutgers was middle linebacker Anthony Palano, who registered 13 total (6 solo) with one tackle for loss. Safety KP Price was second with 10 total (6 solo).

Palano and Price, in fact, two of the four players with more than six FBS starts under their belts prior to this season, so there is some legitimate backing to the inexperience factor.

Now, it comes down to whether Roof can solve it or not.

“This is the second week, and it’s been my experience over my career that usually teams make the biggest jump between week one and week two,” Roof said. “So it’s a great test for us, and a home game, the Red Bandanna game, and it’s a privilege for all of us to be able to play in this game.”

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