Skip to main content
Join Now
Team Avatar
Boston College

Greg McElroy assesses Bill O'Brien after one year at Boston College

FaceProfileby:Thomas Goldkamp•02/05/25
NCAA Football: Boston College at Florida State
Boston College Eagles quarterback Thomas Castellanos (1) speaks with head coach Bill O'Brien before the game against the Florida State Seminoles at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-USA TODAY Sports

With the 2024 season now in the books, ESPN analyst Greg McElroy is taking a look back and evaluating the first-year head coaches. On tap today is Boston College‘s Bill O’Brien.

McElroy gave the first-year Eagles coaches one of the better grades.

“Bill O’Brien’s Year 1 grade is an A-,” McElroy said on the Always College Football podcast. “I think he did a great job stepping in for kind of a somewhat difficult situation, upgrading their talent, stabilizing the situation and pulling off some big wins in a little bit of a roller-coaster type season.”

As for the hire itself, McElroy seemed to be a big fan of the fit with Bill O’Brien for the Boston College program.

“He’d been a head coach in college football, had been a head coach in the NFL, had worked for Nick Saban,” McElroy said. “He checked a lot of boxes. For Boston College this was a slam dunk and it was a no-brainer. And it was pretty impressive, I think, in Year 1 to see what they were already able to go and get.”

So what did happen in the first year for Bill O’Brien?

Well, the team started off 4-1, bringing a lot of excitement to the program. It would prove difficult to sustain, at least in the short term.

“It got off to a pretty good start. You get a win against Florida State, you get a win against Michigan State,” McElroy said. “You do lose to Missouri there in the first five games of the year, but you’re in a pretty good spot. Then things kind of come unraveled a little bit. They lose three in a row.”

Bill O’Brien and Boston College were forced into making a move.

“They ultimately have to make a decision to go from Thomas Castellanos to Grayson James (at quarterback), which I don’t think was a super popular decision at the time but one that Bill O’Brien stood by,” McElroy said. “And it was a difficult decision to make, but it appears based on how things went down the stretch, it appears it was the right decision by Bill O’Brien.

“James led Boston College to wins over Syracuse, North Carolina and Pitt down the stretch to cap off what was a pretty good first season there for BC.”

All in all, a pretty good first year for Bill O’Brien and Boston College.

McElroy signed off the Always College Football podcast praising the new Eagles coach.

“Look, Bill O’Brien knows what he’s doing,” McElroy said. “He’s run a team in the past, he’s been around for a while, he understands the college level, he understands the professional level, he also understands the quarterback position.”