Jeff Hafley Talks About Military Bowl Cancellation on Packer and Durham Show

The head coach speaks about the bowl game and the decision that went behind cancelling it.

On Tuesday, Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley spoke with Packer and Durham on the ACC Network. This was his first public comments since the cancellation of the Military Bowl, and he spoke at length about multiple topics related to the decision. Here are some of the takeaways from his appearance. 

1. His roster, and staff were hit by the virus hard. Hafley talked about the decision to cancel the game."It just got to the point where one position group was totally decimated. And the numbers were too high." And there were just a ton of unavailable players. It’s hard." He went on to mention that it also hit his support staff and coaches.

2. BC just got home on Monday night.  Because of flying regulations, Hafley and the BC staff struggled to get the sick players/staff home. According to the head coach they had to take two planes home to get back to Boston College, and that they didn't arrive until late on Monday night. He has since sent his staff home to recharge and get ready for winter workouts. 

3.  He felt badly for everyone involved.  This was not an easy situation for anyone involved, and Hafley pointed out the seniors who did not get a chance to wear the uniform one last time. "From the bands to the cheer teams to the alumni to the fans to the people who drove all this way to all the ECU fans, and their alumni and their players and even to the people who put on the bowl." 

4. Boston College took precautions. Hafley talked about the importance of testing, and that was something other teams may not do as much, but it will all be important here. He also got into the level of carefulness the Eagles took before the Military Bowl. "We took our finals, we stuck together. No one left. No one visited their families," he expressed.  "We got on a plane. We had masks, we had masks in meetings and literally we made it right up until Christmas."

5. On the reaction of the fans/players/coaches angry at Boston College. On social media there has been a backlash at the Eagles, mostly stemming from the ECU community. Ranging from fans, podcasters, and even players, they have shot at BC claiming that the game should have happened. Hafley addressed this. "Some people might be angry with us, and some people might be upset with me," he said.  "Our number one job is the safety of our team. And that’s how it’s gonna be at Boston College. And we did things the right way. And, at the end of the day, that’s how we’re gonna do it here."

Bonus: If Hafley were to have walk up music, he would pick Born to Run or No Surrender by Bruce Springsteen. Fitting for someone from New Jersey.

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