UNDAUNTED COURAGE: THE SEMI-FICTICIOUS EPIC THAT IS PETER LALICH'S LIFE

Peter Lalich is a man among men. A mountain bear of a man with a football as a chew toy and a neolithic stone arm from outer space. But no, Lalich wasn't just born into greatness. He had to hit the baptismal fire of life head on in a crazy windmill fashion that only he could pull off with awkward smoothness. Perhaps you have already seen his AMAZING WIKIPEDIA ENTRY. If you haven't seen it, this is unacceptable. Fortunately, I'm here to not only provide you with a link to the article but to also to fill in the gaps that were left out. This is the amazing (semi) true story of one Master Peter Lalich navigated by yours truly with the assistance of a few facebook pictures (thank you public domain laws!)...

Peter Lalich: Harder than galvanized steel... forged in Springfield, Virginia

Young Peter was born on May 18th, 1988 to... uh... Peter Lalich who then subsequently... uh, named his son... Peter... after "Pistol" Pete Maravich. Ipso facto, Peter Lalich is a reincarnation of Pete Maravich but with a penchant for football, not basketball. He then grew up and did some rather insignificant stuff until the day he picked up his first football and threw it into the next neighborhood. Unfortunately for Peter, athleticism can't buy you friends at such an early age and he remained in a secluded sect of youngsters that is usually dominated by tall, goofy kids that nervously interact as little as possible with peers. Life was hard for Peter in Pop Warner, little did he know that life was only about the get much harder.

Lalich, like his hero Jack Lambert, was accustomed to losing teeth in his early football years due to his vicious and often raucous style of play.

The mental toughness that would later show in his UVA years was constructed in searing heat as well as hurricane type storms under thundering skies while practicing and learning from Coach van Gouda at Springfield Middle School. Most of his toughness, as one might assume occurred on the field, actually came from what happened between bells during school. Teenage years can be harsh on a youth, but due to Peter being the "tall, ugly, goofy kid," puberty took it's toll twice as hard on him. At lunch he was relegated to sitting by himself or sitting with the kids that were a hodgepodgery of cracking voices, pimples, and dorkishness. Lalich decided to walk the lonely road... furthering his journey down a war beaten path.

Next came high school. Still no friends. Still no girls. Still a big ug. Peter experimented with Puka shell necklaces, neon green hat/pink shirt combos, feuax burberry sweaters pulled low, and taking pictures with his arms crossed and his greasy bangs pulled into his face. It can't really be explained in mere words. Thus, the photo journal:





It kinda makes me miss high school myself. Things changed however. Peter got a letter telling him he's got a full ride to UVA. Given natural high school social dictation, within minutes he's got everything he could ever want. Parties, chicks, etc. It doesn't matter that he's one ugly mother now. All of that goes away when ya sign with the Wahoos. Especially when you're buried on the depth chart. That's where the real action is. Simply put, Peter Lalich is the fucking man. He's the Bomb.com. Seriously.

In fact, you should friend him on facebook, immediately. The reasoning behind this is the fact that he gives almost daily inspiration in his status updates ranging from statements like "Peter... snow so white, only thing missin is 7 dwarfs" and "Peter... str8 like arm hair." I teared up when I read " Peter... I just do my pete and everytime i speak my sentences are complete LOLOLOLOL."

More so, Peter Lalich knows people. Want tickets to that Skid Row concert minutes before the show? No worries, Peter already has someone stuffing your tickets AND backstage passes in Will Call as we speak. He's got you front and back. You wanna roll with Peter to lunch? Sure thing. He'll just pick up his Kia Sorrento that the dealership lends him and be on his way over. Onward to lunch as you're further impressed that EVERYONE KNOWS PETER. Even the people at Moe's shout to him as he enters! Peter Lalich is a Campus Legend. In fact, he coined the phrase and sent it along to the NCAA football game developers, via e-mail... on his Blackberry. Stunningly, he's so amazing that he even lists Rivals.com as his personal website on facebook!

What's that? You want some beer? Oh he's got you covered man. He's got a fake that can get him in anywhere in town. No problem. Most of the times he just skips the line and goes right in without waiting or getting carded! You know why? Cause he's on the fucking football team... that's why. Just let him go in this seedy gas station and get it for you... He'll be back in two seconds with a case of warm Natty Ice that we can shotgun. *fast forward* See dude, here you go. I told you. Peter is the man. He can... dude, you've got a cop behind you and he's pulling you over. Shit. Dude, our parents are gonna be so pissed. Turns out Peter isn't the man. He's just some strange looking dude who gets drunk, shows up to your party uninvited, gropes the girls at your party, drinks your beer and eats all of your food in the fridge, passes out in a puddle of his own vomit in your front yard, and hopefully... maybe one day he might be lucky enough to have a bad acid trip and go nuts in the middle of your neighborhood street. Ah, the life of a struggling back up quarterback. This is where it begins, Peter. Please stay the course because personally, I enjoy a long drawn out downfall.

KNOH YA FRIGGIN EEYGALS, BABY!

Due to my searing hatred for Boston College fans, I let Chili carry the workload for the "Know Your" segment with Eagle in Atlanta. For the record, I don't hate Bostonians, I just hate the residents of Chestnut Hill. I went up to the game last year expecting a friendly environment akin to ours. Not at all. We had to walk through the on campus dorm section to get the the stadium and were heckled and had things thrown at us. Imagine a UGA/Miami hybrid. Yeah, that bad. Here's our responses on his site.

A rough depiction of how Boston College's season is turning out.

1. How do we take BC's recent 2 game slide? Is this a minor setback or a Bowdenesque collapse? BC was probably overrated at #2 and surely underrated at #18, what ranking do you give them?

In my opinion it is too early to tell. Jagodzinski is in his first year and this is his first setback of any kind as a head coach. If he rights the ship and wins the division, then it is minor. If BC loses out...then it is a different story.
As for the ranking -- in my blogpoll ballot I slotted BC at 16 this week. Given the team's accomplishments, I think that's about right.

2. How do you think BC will attempt to exploit Clemson's defense? What's their gameplan versus our offense?

BC will throw because at this point in the season the offense is pretty one-dimensional. What has worked best, and what I expect to see more of, is a lot of delay routes over the middle to Tight Ends and RBs. BC was running the screen very well early in the season but as struggled lately. Teams have done a great job sniffing it out. It will be interesting to see if Steve Logan keeps going back to it.
On the defensive side, I think you'll see the same approach BC has used the past two years against Clemson -- try to shut down the run and prevent the big plays. It worked well in 2005, not so much in 2006 (Spiller's 80-yarder scant in Chestnut Hill was one of the best I've seen). Our pass rush has been pathetic, so expect Harper to have plenty of time to throw.

3. Your current head coach is a student of O-line guru Alex Gibbs, how much has his tutelage trickled down to your offensive schemes? Do you think the loss of O'Brien has adversely affected BC?

Jags did put in the Gibbs zone blocking scheme. The unit has had some growing pains getting used to it. In part because it is new and also due to injuries and some guys who were recruited for another system. It has trickled down to the offense. Unfortunately the results are the same -- BC didn't run the ball effectively last year and isn't running very well this year.
I don't think O'Brien's departure has adversely affected BC. It was time for him to go. After ten years, I think he wanted something new, the AD wanted something new and many fans wanted something new. It is still very early in the Jags' era and I have no idea how it will end (I think it will be a good time to be a BC fan) but I can say this with confidence -- BC would not have started 8-0 under O'Brien.

4. Is Ryan your Heisman pick? If not, then to whom should it go?

Who knows? Having a player in the Heisman talk is very eye opening. You realize how silly and subjective this whole thing is. I guess it is Dixon, but what if Oregon loses again? All I know is that Ryan has carried BC for two and a half years and will be a first round pick. I am not losing sleep over who gets the trophy.

5. What's your prediction for the game?

I always pick BC to win. I don't feel that great this week but still won't go against the Eagles. I think it is close and the BC defense finally gets back on track. BC 28, Clemson 20.

KNOW YOUR DEMON DEACONS

This week we bring you a "Know Your..." segment straight from the research triangle via our well versed friend over at the Wake Forest blog Old Gold & Blog, a clever play on Wake's color scheme "Old Gold & Black." Enjoy. Check out our answers on their site here.

Yoink.

Does Riley Skinner have enough talent to pull his team through if they falter on him? Differently phrased, how much of a bad ass is Skinner? He's a bit undersized, but he's shown sparks.

The thing that impresses me most about Skinner is the way he leads the team. If you look at his numbers, the only impressive one is his completion percentage (73.2%); his yards (1412) aren’t that impressive, he’s thrown more interceptions (10) than touchdowns (7), and in most categories isn’t particularly dominant. The thing that makes him a “bad ass” is the way he always maintains control of the offense. He makes good reads, shows poise at all times, throws mostly smart passes, and just finds a way to get the job done. Although we missed the field goal to beat UVa last week, it was Skinner’s two fourth down conversions that put us in position to win the game.

Is the Wake Forest defense as bad as advertised? They are ninth in total defense in the ACC, what’s the deal?

I hadn’t realized our defense was ranked that low, and frankly I’m surprised to hear it. Our run stopping has been very impressive this year, keeping 6 of our 9 opponents to less than 100 yards rushing. Our secondary has played very inconsistently this season, and not just from game to game, but even from play to play. Last week they allowed an unguarded UVa receiver to catch a pass and score a 39 yard touchdown without being touched 10 seconds from the end of the first half. Lapses like that are what kill our defense. The combination of a solid passing attack and a tendency to put points on the board makes Clemson’s offense very scary this week.

Do you have any key injuries? Who will you be missing if anyone?

No injuries of note this week. Fullback Rich Belton will likely still be out this week, however we haven’t seemed to miss him much. Although he will play, defensive end Matt Robinson has a history of injuries and has already been hurt a couple of times this year. If he gets hurt again, our lack of depth at DE becomes a factor.

How good is Josh Adams? Does he tend to be more of a North/South runner or more of a sideline-to-sideline back?

For a redshirt-freshman, Josh Adams is one heck of a running back. He didn’t start getting the large majority of the carries until our fourth game against Maryland, and still has 651 yards and 6 touchdowns. He also averages an impressive 4.8ypc.

Although Adams has the ability to run both north/south and east/west, I find him most impressive when he finds a hole between the tackles and takes off. His 83 yard touchdown run against Florida State was one of the most explosive runs I’ve ever seen out of a Wake running back. He’s going to be a special player for the next several years.

Now that Wake Forest has discovered football, what are some other sudden discoveries shocking the Winston Salem world?

Winston-Salem tends to lack in the excitement department. Nonetheless, it’s always entertaining to see how long it takes the incoming freshman to recognize the phallic nature of our largest building (seriously).

Yeah, I'd say that's a bit dickish.

KNOW YOUR NERDS... *AHEM*... YELLOW JACKETS

"OM NOM NOM NOM!"

Continuing on our segment, we bring you the Budwieser song singin', currie eatin', bumble bee havin' engineers from Ramblin' Racket. Check out our answers here.

1) After trolling message boards last year, GT fans seemed to be largely convinced they'd beat us easily. Acknowledging that the teams are in different situations this year, how does the average Tech fan feel about the matchup on the 29th?

I've heard from two camps: One is despondent following the loss at UVa and is like "Dude we're f'ed. We're not beating another decent team." The other thinks the Jackets will come out really fired up following the Virginia game, pissed off that they lost a totally winnable game, and stick it to the Tigers like whoa. Personally, I kind of expect this game to be a lot like the GT/Clemson games of the late 90's; a relative shootout that ends wicked (Did he just go South Boston on us?) close. Probably by won/lost three points.


2) The loss of Reggie Ball? Addition by subtraction? How is the team affected by having a more stable QB running the show?

A friend of mine said something I never expected to hear: he missed Reggie. I was like WTF, but he made a valid point. Taylor doesn't tend to make a play when things break down. For all his volatility, Reggie Ball had a talent for making plays when things didn't go as planned. Another positive of Reggie was his vocal leadership. Taylor doesn't seem to be that to the same level, but Tashard Choice has picked up that role very well.

Taylor Bennett has not dazzled this year after the Gator Bowl, but has played solid, mistake-free ball. He's throwing over .500 (barely; .504), but very importantly he hasn't thrown any "real" INTs. (There was one against Virginia, in which Taylor slapped down a tipped ball, which is what he was supposed to do, but it ricocheted off of a lineman's helmet and was grabbed by a Cavalier player and run in for a score.) So overall, I don't know if Taylor Bennet puts Tech in a better position to win ballgames than Reggie Ball did, but he's predictable and doesn't make bonehead plays. He's kind of our Will Proctor.


3) We know the starting oline and dline are very good, but how deep is each unit? And yeah, we just asked "How deep is each unit"

Oh so deep, as all the ladies will tell you. (All twelve ladies, knowing GT. ZING on us!) On offensive line, eight of our top ten players from 2006 return. On defensive line, seven of the top eight come back. Michael Johnson is a defensive end who didn't start last year, yet nearly all the students know his name because he's such a badass. (He also has like the longest neck I've ever seen on a football player. Seriously, if you're watching GT and like "who's that dude with the huge neck?" I've got five bucks that says it's #93.)


4) You had a good linebacking corps last year, how are they doing this year?

The only linebacker not returning is KaMichael Hall, who led the team in tackles last year. Philip Wheeler still looks like the Predator, with his dreads and visor, and still likes to break Notre Dame quarterbacks. Overall, I don't particularly like the performance of the linebackers so far. There's been a lot of weak arm-tackling from both LBs and DBs the past couple weeks, and our zone blitzes have a lot of holes that a talented QB ( i.e. Matt Ryan) can use to make GT look silly. I know that the linebacking corps is talented, and I believe they've just been underperforming. It will be bad news for Cullen Harper if their blitz starts clicking effectively this weekend.


5) What seems to be Tarshard's weakness? Stengths? What does he bring to the table? Can he change a game?

Based on the BC and Virginia games, it seems Tashard may be injury-prone. (He injured a hammie against BC and saw limited play up in Charlottesville.) Other than that, weaknesses may include a tendency not to make the moves necessary to break past those last one or two guys to get to the open field. This is something Choice worked on a lot during the offseason, though, and he's already broken several long runs this season, which was not his specialty in 2006.

As mentioned earlier, Deuce (as they call him) has taken on a very vocal leadership role, which the offense needed. His main strength, though, comes in his ability and willingness to run the ball all... day... long. Tashard will take as many snaps as the coaches allow, trying to wear down the D-line and set up the pass. Choice doesn't come in and change a game the way big-time "playmaking" backs might, but by letting defenses know we're never afraid to run Choice opens up the whole offensive gameplan.


6) You guys need more hot women at GT. We need more Varsity grub. What is the exchange rate in fried peach pies for one hot co-ed? Onion rings? What other abundant GT commodity would you trade for our women.

As all of you taters know, the exchange rate from hotties to head of cattle in South Carolina is three hotties to one heifer or two hotties to one steer. In Atlanta, though, we value chicks more than bovines, so taking interstate exchange rates into account, two full Varsity catering vans (including chili dogs, onion rings, peach pies, and Coke) are equivalent to one hot college co-ed.

Other abundant GT resources include "dot com machines" (computers) on which Clemson kids can play the Internet and lose at Number Munchers again. Also we've got pollution from off of the interstate and hobos on North Ave. Those last two come totally free!

KNOW YOUR WOLFPACK... ERR... WOLVES?

I figured I'd stretch out my success from my "Know Your Noles" bit to some other popular match ups this season... if you can call that a success (Hey, we won didn't we?). This week: the Textile Bowl. We hooked up with NC State's very own Section Six to give you regular Joes some insight on the Wolfpack. I won't lie to you, I didn't know that much about NC State this year. Check out our article on their site. That can be found here.

1) Whats more potent, your run game or your passing game... What makes it dangerous?

I wish I knew how to properly answer this question.

Statistically speaking, it's the passing game, but "potent" and "dangerous" are so not the right words to use here. The ground game has been completely useless against I-A opponents this season, though I feel a little better about what BC did to us after watching them shut down Tashard Choice. It's becoming more evident that they're very good up front. But we also couldn't get anything going against UCF, a team that had one of the worst defenses in the nation last year.

Without question, the offensive line is the weakest part of the entire team, and that's a big limiter despite the talent in the backfield.

Harrison Beck has been incredibly error-prone throwing the ball, but at least when he's under center I feel like the offense actually has a pulse, which is a refreshing departure from years past. When he plays patiently, he's very good, as he showed in the second half against UCF. Problem is, patience goes against his nature; he has a Rex Grossman-like "fuck it, I'm going deep" attitude and he'll force it at times (like, say, five times).

2)Year in and year out, your defense is stacked with future NFL bound players. Are you guys maintaining the status quo of producing Latimer-esque meatballs (think of the movie The Program)?

Beyond DeMario Pressley, who clearly has a future in the NFL (and is, naturally, injured at the moment), it's difficult to say. Most of the rest of the defensive regulars haven't got the established track record necessary to make an assessment.

3) Tom O'Brien is the new head coach of your team. What has he changed offensively that you like? Defensively?

The biggest thing he's done offensively is simplify. Marc Trestman's West Coast-y offense got off to a nice start in 2005, but we never seemed to run it smoothly, and we certainly didn't run it effectively. Dana Bible's offense, just as it was at Boston College, is far more traditional, and it isn't nearly as nuanced as the previous scheme--which is a good thing. The talk during the preseason was that we were going to lean more heavily on the running game than we had in 2006; circumstances, alas, haven't made that feasible. In addition to the ineffective run blocking we've gotten, we've fallen behind big in a couple of games and haven't had the opportunity to run as much as we'd like.

An offensive change that hasn't gone so well: shifting from a zone to man blocking scheme.

On the defensive side, the big change is a shift from Amato's attacking, whirling dervish press-man coverage defense to a more bend-don't-break zone coverage style. This is a welcome change, because while I'm all for an aggressive defense, I felt we played way too much man coverage under Amato. And so far, the returns are pretty good--Matt Ryan had his worst performance of the season against us, and the secondary is in general getting more hands on the ball. That hasn't translated into interceptions just yet, but in terms of limiting the opponent's passing game, the transition is going well.

Eventually, I think defensive coordinator Mike Archer would like to switch to the 3-4; we are not in a position to do that yet.

4) What's your biggest strengths offensively? Defensively?

The offensive strengths lie at the skill positions; even without Toney Baker, the backfield is excellent. You'll see Andre Brown, mostly, but there's also the speedy Jamelle Eugene. Receivers Darrell Blackman and John Dunlap, if not the stars we hoped they'd become, are reliable targets.

The defensive strength, maybe by default, would be the secondary. We're allowing more than 200 rushing yards a game, and the front seven has been banged up, so it's hard to point to anything there. The pass defense, meanwhile, has been stout (if not, BC game excepted, tested much to date).

5) Who stinks it up in the offensive huddle? Defensive huddle? (Really cutting edge questions, I know.)

There are five large fellows in the offensive huddle who aren't carrying their weight. Falling down on the job, you might say. Grounding the offense to a halt. Leaving us at a loss. Okay, I'll stop.

I'm not going to single anyone out defensively, because the only thing that's stunk has been our effort (which was corrected after week one). We haven't effectively pressured opposing quarterbacks, nor have we stopped the run, but that's on the unit as a whole.

6) Pissing in the stands? Throwing away liquor bottles in the toilets? Where do you guys drop rope?

Have you seen us play the last few years? We crap on the field.

Actual photograph inside the restroom at an NC State game... I shit you not. (I had to, sorry.)