DHL Dan LXXIII

Shank cranks out another picked-up pieces column, about two weeks after his last picked-up pieces column. It's probably the calm before the next Patriots storm:

■ Put me down as a Holy Cross alum who is a tad nervous about the resumption of the Boston College-Holy Cross football “rivalry.’’ The Jesuit schools played one another on the gridiron 91 times between 1896-1986 before the series was mercifully put to bed. The aggregate score of the last five meetings: BC 221, HC 60. Average score: 44-12.

The disparity is worse now. BC plays FBS football in the highly competitive Atlantic Coast Conference. The Eagles this year will play (among others) Clemson, Louisville, Virginia Tech, and Miami. Holy Cross is a member of the Patriot League and plays FCS football. The Crusaders this year will play (among others) Georgetown, Fordham, Lehigh, and Lafayette.

Stolen from the Globe comments section: "Are you saying that Holy Cross is now a Tomato Can?" Heh heh heh!