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5 potential candidates to replace Steve Addazio at Boston College

By Brad Berreman

SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Steve Addazio of the Boston College Eagles reacts in the second quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on November 23, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
SOUTH BEND, IN - NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Steve Addazio of the Boston College Eagles reacts in the second quarter against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on November 23, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Boston College football Steve Addazio
SOUTH BEND, IN – NOVEMBER 23: Head coach Steve Addazio of the Boston College Eagles reacts during a game against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Notre Dame Stadium on November 23, 2019 in South Bend, Indiana. Notre Dame defeated Boston College 40-7. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Steve Addazio is out after seven seasons and here are five candidates to be the next football coach at Boston College.

With a win over Pitt last Saturday, the Boston College Eagles clinched bowl eligibility with a 6-6 record. That has been par for the course over seven seasons under Steve Addazio, with six or seven wins six times now. But as first reported by Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports, Boston College parted ways with Adazzio on Sunday. Wide receivers coach Rich Gunnell will be the interim head coach for an upcoming bowl game.

Addazio had a perfectly average 44-44 record (22-34 in ACC play) during his time at Chesnut Hill. He was a long-time assistant under Urban Meyer at Florida, before becoming head coach at Temple for two seasons (2011-2012, 13-11 record) and landing at BC.

Addazio had seemingly entered the mix for the opening at Rutgers, but they finally landed a reunion with Greg Schiano there. He should find a job somewhere for next year, most likely as an assistant somewhere.

The Boston College job is interesting in some respects, in a fairy weak ACC that feels easy to make hay in this side of Clemson. But as Thamel cited the location and academic standards of the school are a challenge, to go with a coaching staff salary pool that is among the lowest in college football and a broader resource infrastructure that is considered to be behind the times.

Boston College athletic director Martin Jarmond has a challenge ahead of him in a search for a new football coach. But there is also a wide pool of possible candidates to consider or outright pursue, and here are five candidates to replace Addazio.

5. Lance Leipold, Buffalo head coach

Leipold led the Bulls to the first 10-win season in program history in 2018. A repeat was going to be difficult this year (if not impossible), with a quarterback (Tyree Jackson) and wide receiver (Anthony Johnson) who both landed in the NFL as UDFAs leaving, a couple notable, unexpected transfers exiting (wide receiver K.J. Osborn, tight end Tyler Mabry) and nine defensive starters gone.

After a 2-4 start, Buffalo won five of its last six regular-season games to finish 7-5 and earn bowl eligibility. Since they went 2-10 in Leipold’s second season (2016), the Bulls have won at least six games in three straight seasons with a 23-15 overall record over that span and an appearance in the MAC title game last year.

Leipold came to Buffalo from Wisconsin-Whitewater (Division III), where he went 109-6 and won six national titles in eight seasons. Could he be successful in a step up from the Group of 5 to a Power 5 conference? Boston College should have an interest in finding out.

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