Bill O'Brien shares how NFL experience helps him as a college coach

Bill O’Brien has had quite the football journey spanning over multiple levels. Between the NFL and different levels of college, O’Brien has been around the block. His latest stop is at Boston College, where he takes over as the head coach after being an assistant for quite some time.

At ACC Media Days, somebody asked O’Brien how his NFL past helps him in college. He pointed toward working with so many great coaches and players — both in the NFL and in college — is why the success has followed him.

“I’ve been fortunate,” O’Brien said. “I’ve had the opportunity to work with a number of great coaches. Everybody obviously talks about Bill Belichick and Nick Saban, two of the greatest of all time to ever do it. But I also worked for George O’Leary at Georgia Tech. Ralph Freidgen when I was at the University of Maryland. I’ve been fortunate to work with a lot of great players, some of the best players to ever play the game. I’ve learned a lot from them.”

Now, the goal for O’Brien is to take all the wisdom and apply it to the Golden Eagles. A program looking for a little bit of a spark entering a new era for ACC, O’Brien might be the most decorated head coach they have had in a while.

Having the experience is one thing, getting it to translate is another.

“What I try to do with these guys here at Boston College, I’ve already learned a lot from the guys sitting in front of you,” O’Brien said. “I try to impart some of my experiences, my wisdom, I’ve been doing this for 32 years, on these guys. Hopefully, that’s a role I can play on this team that can help this team get better every day because I’ve had a lot of great experiences, I’ve learned a lot.

“We’re doing it in our way at Boston College, but a lot of that has to do with what we learned over the course of time, my staff and myself. These guys are doing a great job of trying to do what we’re asking them to do.”

Boston College will open its 2024 season with a big opportunity, heading down to Tallahassee to face Florida State. It’s the rare Monday night college football game, with the entire country watching. O’Brien can make a massive statement early by taking down one of the ACC’s favorites.