LYNN — The Boston College football team hopes to end its season on a winning note Thursday afternoon (3) when the Eagles square off against No. 23 Cincinnati in the Birmingham Bowl at Alabama’s Legion Field.
On the same field, 35 years ago, Lynn’s Tony Thurman, the city’s only consensus All-America, anchored Boston College’s defense with three interceptions — a program record for a single game that he achieved twice, and shares with 14 other Eagles — in a 38-31 win over then No. 9-ranked Alabama.
“My mother (Marion Jean Thurman) was from there so she came down with family members, which was a good thing for them to come watch the game,” said Thurman, a defensive back. “It was a high-scoring game. It was a great atmosphere, that’s for sure. On one of those interceptions, I wasn’t even supposed to be there. I took off in the wrong direction but it worked out anyway. Don
Shula’s son, Mike Shula, was Alabama’s quarterback.”
Thurman, a 1980 Classical graduate who led the Rams to a 31-13 win over Scituate in the Eastern Mass. Division 2 Super Bowl in 1979, was two games into his senior season. The win catapulted Boston College into the No. 10 spot in the AP Poll. Two weeks later, the Eagles rose to No. 4 after wins over North Carolina (52-20) and Temple (24-10).
The ‘84 Eagles were a well-balanced unit on both sides of the ball. Thurman, along with fellow Lynn native and linebacker Peter Holey from English, helped build a hard-nosed, athletic defense.
Boston College was carried by quarterback Doug Flutie, who went on to win The Heisman Trophy later that year.
“It was always fun to watch Doug in action, that was for sure,” Thurman said. “We had (running back) Troy Stradford back there and (receiver) Gerard Phelan. It was always exciting. Doug was always moving around, throwing lasers back there. Usually I sat down when the offense was back there but in a good game like the one at Alabama I always wanted to see what the offense was doing.”
(In a touch of irony, Thurman was named a Boston Globe high school All-Scholastic quarterback and Flutie was named an All-Scholastic defensive back in 1979.)
Boston College finished the season 10-2 after a 45-28 win over Houston in the Cotton Bowl.
“It was a memorable season,” Thurman said. “There was a lot of excitement in (Alumni Stadium). We had a lot of close games. Doug was in pursuit of the Heisman. There was a lot of buzz wherever we went. We finished fifth in the rankings back then in both the AP and UPI. The Cotton Bowl against Houston finished off a great year.
“I had an interception in that game too. It was great being around those guys and enjoying things, going out on a winning note as a senior.”
Thurman set program records that still stand for single-season interceptions (12 in 1984) and career interceptions (25). He recorded three interceptions in one game twice (a 35-10 win over Holy Cross in 1982 in addition to the win over Alabama).
A consensus All-America in 1984, Thurman was inducted into the Boston College Varsity Club Athletic Hall of Fame (1992) and was named an ACC Legend (2010). His image hangs in an end zone at Alumni Stadium, one of only a handful of players so honored.
“The records are nice to have but records are meant to be broken,” Thurman said. “I’m quite sure someone’s going to break them at some point. I’ve had them for a while. Some young, aggressive kid that’s not afraid to make a mistake will get it some day. You can’t be afraid to get knocked down and get back up. That was something that I had back then.”
Thurman, 57, recently retired after 28 years with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. He resides in Lynn and enjoys playing golf at Gannon during his spare time. On occasion, Thurman finds himself at Chestnut Hill for team gatherings and enjoys his trips down memory lane.
“I have a few buddies from back then,” Thurman said. “We had a team reunion for the Florida State game. With wives, kids and jobs, we try our best to stay in touch. When you see them it’s just like yesterday with a lot of those guys. You picked up where you left off. There’s no strain in the conversation. A lot of us have gone our separate ways but when we get together it’s like 1984 all over again.”