The Boston College secondary will have the Ivy scent when the Eagles open the season against Northern Illinois on Saturday (noon) at Alumni Stadium.
Two transfer portal refugees from the Ivy League, strong safety John Pupel (Dartmouth) and cornerback Alex Washington (Harvard), are listed on the two-deep and expected to start against the Huskies.
Pupel was a three-year letterman with the Big Green and recorded 133 career tackles despite missing the 2020 season due to the pandemic. Pupel was a graduate transfer to BC in 2022, but was injured and appeared in only four games with limited special teams’ duties. Pupel brought an urgency to training camp and won a starting position.
“He was the biggest surprise of camp,” said BC coach Jeff Hafley. “He was hurt last year, he had some issues and had to really get some good work done and the first time I saw him healthy was this spring.
“We liked what we saw on tape when we got him from Dartmouth. He’s smart, tough, he tackles and, in the spring, he jumped out at me. He just took the job and was constantly ascending with leadership, tackling, and lining guys up.”
Washington played in 27 games at Harvard and was a 2022 Phil Steele second team FCS All-American and first team All-Ivy League selection. He recorded 57 tackles with six interceptions.
“The Ivy league is good football and there are players in the Ivy League that get drafted and play in the NFL,” said Hafley. “There have been Ivy League guys that have transferred and done really well in FBS.”
The BC secondary will be tested by NIU quarterback Rocky Lombardi, a Michigan State transfer who played in four games in 2022 before suffering a season-ending injury. In his combined time at MSU and NIU, Lombardi has completed 409 passes for 5,144 yards and 31 touchdowns.
“I think Rocky Lombardi is a really good player,” said Hafley. “He was a Power 5 prospect coming out of high school and went to Michigan State and played at Michigan State.
“He has a really big arm and can make all the throws down the field. He has played in some really big games.”
