Boston College Basketball: Why Chad Venning is the most important team transfer for 2024-25

Basketball at Boston College has not been a prosperous happening for many years. The Eagles’ last trip to the NCAA Tournament came way back in 2009 and you have to go back a couple more years to find their most recent Tourney win. Once something of a prominent program in the 2000’s, the Eagles have struggled with mediocrity in the ACC, though last year’s 20-win campaign included their first win in an NIT game in over a decade.

Unfortunately, there will be little semblance of last year’s team moving forward, as a great number of players graduated or transferred from that roster. Leading scorer and rebounder Quinten Post is gone, and the 7-footer will be sorely missed. Complicating matters even more are that the other three double-digit scorers all opted to transfer, namely Claudell Harris, Devin McGlockton, and Jaeden Zackery. Boston College is fortunate enough to bring back freshman Donald Hand Jr. but there’s not a ton of returning talent around him.

A slew of new freshman bolster this roster, while Earl Grant and his staff also added a few names from the Transfer Portal. Former Clemson guard Joshua Beadle is a nice depth move, but there was certainly a Big 3 of names landed by the Eagles. One of those players is Roger McFarlane, a senior shooting guard who was very productive at Southeastern Louisiana. The next is Dion Brown, who as a sophomore at UMBC became one of the top scorers in the America East.

It’s the third name that should catch the most attention, as the Eagles landed former St. Bonaventure forward Chad Venning as well. A 6’10 forward from Brooklyn, Venning is fresh off a strong senior season where he averaged 13.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, helping the Bonnies to a 20-win season. Venning played well in a much stronger league, earning Second Team All-A-10 honors for his work as a senior.

He joins Boston College for his final season of eligibility after two years of prominence in the A-10. Venning adds size to a lineup raided in the offseason and could very well be the top scorer and rebounder for the Eagles next season. Even if Brown or another new faces outscores him, Venning’s importance lies in that size. He takes up one of those spots in the frontcourt, while young and inexperienced talent will likely fill out the rest of that depth chart.

This might not be shaping up to be a breakout season for the Eagles, but they did land some legitimate talent. The lack of reliability behind Venning will spell trouble, though he’s a very solid interior player on both sides of the ball. A successful transition to the ACC will be important for him and the other transfers, though Venning’s jump should be the easiest. Brown and McFarlane both put up sensational offensive numbers, but can they do that in the ACC after excelling in much easier leagues?

Nobody will expect much from these Eagles as the ACC swells up to 18 members though we’re not writing them off completely. We’re not saying to expect Boston College in the ACC races, but there’s potential in this new talent. Does Venning have what it takes to succeed as a big man in the ACC? Is there enough talent here on this new-look roster to win games in this league?