Boston College Eagles (1933)

Our latest random team takes us waaaay back to the Depression years with a Boston College team that was hardly depressing. 

The Team: The Eagles went 8-1 in '33, but don't look for them in any national title discussions. Most of the wins were against small Jesuit schools such as Saint Anselm, Loyola (Md.), Georgetown, Villanova and Holy Cross. The other victories were against Centre (a short-term power in the 1920s out of Kentucky), Boston University and Western Maryland (which was rebranded McDaniel College in 2002 and plays a Division III schedule).

Maybe the foes weren't so great, but the nicknames were. Centre was known as the "Praying Colonels" (just plain Colonels today) and Western Maryland/McDaniel goes by the "Green Terror."

The lone loss was 32-6 to Fordham at the Polo Grounds in BC's only road game; Vince Lombardi was a Rams freshman.

BC punts away during its only loss of the season, 
to Fordham at the Polo Grounds.

The Players: It appears the Eagles' big star was Flavio Tosi, whom the Sub Turri yearbook claimed was the best end in the East; according his BC Hall of Fame profile, he registered TEN sacks in a season-ending 13-9 win over Holy Cross. After the season, he signed with the Boston Redskins, becoming the first Eagle to play in the NFL.

Star end Flavio Tosi, wearing the older BC uniform.
Check out the socks!

Among the other stars:

* Quarterback Johnny Frietas, who also was a pretty fair punter and kicker, with a 40-yard drop-kick field goal (!) in a season-opening win over St. Anselm. 

* Paul Flaherty also played some QB and his passing led BC to a 25-0 win over BU. 

The caption says it all. The official on the left appears
to be wearing pants about six sizes too large.

* Bobby Ott and Johnny Dougan handled the running chores, and Ott also was a standout linebacker. 

* Frank Maloney, the captain, was described the the Sub Turri as "our greatest defensive bulwark, his blocking ability and inspiring leadership paved the way for a successful season."

Tosi and Frietas are in BC's Varsity Club Hall of Fame.

The Coach: Joe McKenney also is a BC Hall of Famer. As a player, he quarterbacked the Eagles to an undefeated season in 1926 and also was a track and baseball standout. As coach, he led BC to a 44-18-3 mark from 1928-34. McKenney later served as the director of physical education for the Boston school system and was a linesman for college football, the NFL and AFL. And on top of all that, he led the fundraising drive for the construction of Alumni Stadium in 1957.

This cartoon from the Sub Turri touts Joe McKenney while 
he discusses his team's accomplishments.

The Uniforms: Keeping in mind that there may be mistakes in the above graphic thanks to dark, murky photos, it appears BC wore two different jerseys in '33 with maroon helmets and gold/tan pants. According to Reid Oslin's excellent Boston College Football Vault, the Eagles debuted maroon jerseys with gold stripes in '32. Against Fordham (which also wore maroon), BC sported gold jerseys with maroon shoulder panels and numbers on the back, but not the front. By '34, numbers were added to the front of the gold shirts and the maroons followed suit in '35.

The Fallout: BC fell to 5-4 in '34 in McKenney's last season. Two different coaches guided the Eagles in '35 before personal favorite Gloomy Gil Dobie arrived in '36.