Following the announcement that Steve Addazio is no longer with the Boston College football program, former players and staffers have taken to social media to share their thoughts on him.

ANTI-DAZ

Obviously football teams are huge and these opinions likely don’t represent the opinions of everyone that has ever played for Addazio, but there are some pretty harsh stories being shared. Important to note is that among the players speaking out are guys who were successful at BC under Addazio, despite not being recruited by him.

Immediately following the announcement, Andre Williams, who played for Addazio in 2013 and was a 2013 Heisman finalist, tweeted this:

Yo! Can I just tell y'all how happy I am for BC football right now?! — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

Williams followed up that tweet with a thread detailing how he was snubbed by Addazio after coming back to BC to be honored:

I spent 4 seasons at BC under 2 head coaches and multiple assistant coaches and staff. I played with great players and great coaches and I don't think Addazio was one of them. I think one of the greatest mistakes made upstairs was letting Ryan Day slip away from the HC position. — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

That being said, here is a personal story, this one is fresh and was still sour in my mouth up until I got the news that BC did what they needed to do. — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

I bet you couldn't put a # on the amount of times my name left the guys mouth to recruit but I come around and you can't look me in the eye and shake my hand. Ok. It didn't surprise me or anyone else either because we have seen too much. — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

Williams also dropped this tweeted during a debate with fellow program alum, Matt Patchan (whose tweets are included farther below):

But I was tactful about what I said Matt. I could have said more. I didn't mention about a certain TE screwing the power play every time he stepped on the field or any of the other nonsense going on. — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

That's where you are wrong Matt because when I did run into the coaches office I got bucked at and cussed out. Trust me man, our interactions with the guy were different. This isn't even the place lol sorry you feel the way you do but I have a different perspective. — Andre Williams (@drewill44) December 2, 2019

Josh Keyes, who played for Addazio in 2012 and 2013 and went on to play in the NFL, reacted to the news by tweeting the following:

Steve Addazio is gone!!! YES!!! Does this mean I’m no longer banned from BC football games...? #steveaddazio — Josh Keyes (@Josh__Keyes) December 1, 2019

Keyes later posted his full story:

THE FULL STORY.

WHY I WAS BANNED BY STEVE ADDAZIO pic.twitter.com/Y9VJzR2fSt — Josh Keyes (@Josh__Keyes) December 2, 2019

Former Boston College SID Chris Cameron reacted to Andre William’s story (and also liked a lot of anti- Addazio tweets):

I could tell you stories for days; or just retweet this. https://t.co/4iR05tdPVK — Chris Cameron (@ChrisMCameron) December 2, 2019

Cameron also backed up former Heights writer Michael Sullivan’s story of being called out by Addazio for being critical after BC losses:

True story. Morning after that debacle of an embarrassing loss, I was ordered to track you down. Your column was the take-away from that game? — Chris Cameron (@ChrisMCameron) December 2, 2019

A former Boston College employee also reached out to BC Interruption under the condition of anonymity to share two stories: that Addazio was known to have thrown chairs at meetings (which has been corroborated by a second anonymous source) and that Addazio attended at least one fundraising event for another program (in this case men’s basketball) and ended up convincing donors to give money to football instead, damaging his relationship with other members of BC athletics.

????

Lukas Denis, who played for BC from 2015-2018 tweeted the following, which seems like it is probably anti-Daz but could go either way? Or could just be a huge coincidence?

Everything comes full circle, don’t forget that. — Lukas Denis (@_LukasDenis7) December 2, 2019

And Anthony Brown, who has been at BC since 2016 and has struggled with injuries, went with a single emoji:

Ifeanyi Momah, who left BC just before Addazio joined the staff, didn’t comment on the former head coach but did add support for Rich Gunnell:

Keep the interim .... — Ifeanyi Momah (@e_Momah) December 1, 2019

PRO-DAZ

Former Boston College football player Matt Patchan, who played for Addazio in 2013 as a transfer, took to Twitter to share his positive feelings about the former coach:

world of social media, endless fake and bs communication... Addazio was old school and always gave you the truth. You got what you earned from him and he went to bat for his players 100% of the time. This is a man of character. We should all strive to be more like Daz! What a — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Professionally. Coach Addazio thank you for everything you did for my family and I. You made good men great and great men better. Your players and coaches all have tremendous respect for you. BC just lost one of the greatest men in college football today. — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

You have to realize this coach found a way to make it to bowl games and found a way to continue to rebuild after losing tremendous coaches like @CoachJFrye @ryandaytime @FBCoachDBrown BC has become a pipeline for coaches to learn from him and move on. What if he had the money to — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Right reasons. He made tremendous impact in young men’s lives. While NEVER sacrificing his values. He would’ve continued to see this program grow the right way and now BC lost the best in the game. — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Coaching at a high level! Recruit and coaching at a high level is tough when you can’t keep the good ones because they leave for more lucrative opportunities. It all comes back to money — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Program you lay a foundation and then you build upwards. It’s embarrassing to think we preach these life lessons everyday when we are in the game but if it doesn’t happen in the timeframe that fits social media then everyone jumps on the Fake BS train. Sure he could’ve maybe made — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Shined a light on where the real issues were. The ACC is a tough ass conference. Coach Daz didn’t have the resources needed to build fast enough without sacrificing his character or the character of young, impressionable men — Matt Patchan (@Matt_Patchan) December 2, 2019

Myles Willis, who played for Addazio from 2013-2016, tagged onto Patchan’s comments with more support for Daz:

Coach put the program in a position to shine on the national stage, showcasing the many reasons why Boston College is a special and unique place. Also filled the locker room and coaching staff with good men who quickly became my best friends and mentors. https://t.co/GroRPH0t7F — Myles Willis #23 (@MylesAhead_23) December 2, 2019

Boston College football alumnus Will Blackmon, who played at BC long before Addazio took over coaching duties, engaged with lots of retweets and likes about the coaching change, but he also wrote his own positive statement:

I have nothing negative to say about Coach Daz.

I've know Daz since I was 15 when he recruited me to go to Notre Dame.

I respect how he created a culture at BC, kept us competitive, & produced NFL Talent.

At the end of the day, business is business.



Thank you Coach Daz — Will Blackmon (@WillBlackmon) December 2, 2019

Sean Sylvia, who played for Addazio in 2013 and 2014, supported Blackmon’s statement:

We will be updating this post as more players speak up, regardless of whether they are anti-Daz or pro-Daz.