Why Boston College is the most important team in the ACC

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Why Boston College is the most important team in the ACC

The College Football Playoff picture is starting to take shape, and, while the ACC appears to have a spot locked up, it’s not as much of a guarantee as it seems.

The undefeated Clemson Tigers have steamrolled competition thus far and have an easy path to a 12-0 regular season and a conference championship.

CLEMSON. #ALLIN🐅
FSU. #DoSomething 🍢

3⃣-3⃣ over the last 6⃣.
Plenty on the line.

📽️FULL PREVIEW 👇
(@ClemsonFB , @FSUFootball , @_Dirtie12 , @CoachTaggart) pic.twitter.com/ia9G3zwbds

— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) October 24, 2018

The Tigers would likely be joined by a Big 10 team and an SEC team; Notre Dame would round out the group of four if the Irish stay undefeated. Washington State, Oklahoma, and a second Big 10/SEC remain in the mix as well.

Miami and Virginia Tech were supposed to challenge out of the Coastal, but Tech fell to Old Dominion, and Miami can’t decide on a starting quarterback.

As they fell, NC State and Syracuse emerged as legitimate threats, but Clemson has defeated both of them; they snuck by Syracuse without Trevor Lawrence and thrashed NC State 41-7.

Forgotten in all the early-season chaos is Boston College – the single most important team in the ACC.

The Eagles garnered considerable hype entering the season after A.J. Dillon’s breakout in the second half of last season. The high hopes of a 7-0 start entering the Miami game proved to be wishful thinking, as BC entered the Friday night contest at 5-2.

Despite the two losses before the Red Bandana game, there are reasons for optimism during the final stretch of the season. BC’s loss to Purdue keeps looking better, especially after the Boilermakers defeated Ohio State. It could also be argued that BC beats NC State in Raleigh with a healthy Dillon.

Borrowing a term from the Red Sox, given that it’s World Series time, the final stretch sets up well for BC to “Do Damage.” The Eagles draw Miami, Virginia Tech, and Clemson in the final month and a half of the season. A 5-0 finish by BC, however unlikely this may be, is about the only scenario that would make the ACC race interesting.

Honestly, I don’t know how the tie-breaker would shake out, but BC, NC State, and Clemson would each have one conference loss. NC State beat BC, Clemson beat NC State, and, in the hypothetical situation, BC would beat Clemson. Maybe that’s enough to knock the Tigers out of the ACC title game. An 11-1 Tigers team that didn’t win the ACC would make for an interesting decision for the selection committee.

Say LSU goes on a run, ND wins out, and Michigan wins the Big 10. Alabama and Clemson could be vying for the final spot, and Clemson may suddenly be on the outside looking in. Could the ACC miss the College Football Playoffs all together? BC could throw a wrench in the current pecking order.

Now for a little aside on why BC can beat Clemson. If the Tigers are going to get upset, BC is the team to do it. Dillon will be the toughest test the Clemson defensive line faces all season, and BC’s defense is starting to click at the right time.

Good to see THIS guy back on the field for @BCFootball

AJ Dillon goes for 1⃣4⃣9⃣ in big win Friday night!#WeAreBC 🦅 #DecideToFly (@ajdillon7) pic.twitter.com/TXlxYLIBDB

— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) October 27, 2018

Wyatt Ray and Zach Allen are beasts on the edge and may be able to force Lawrence to make mistakes. The secondary has been a question mark for the Eagles, but they certainly have the talent, with Will Harris and Lukas Denis roving over the middle of the field, to turn things around by November 10th.

Now I’m not saying any of this will happen; for all I know, BC will have lost to Miami by the time of publication and the ACC Atlantic will be all but locked up. But I have faith in the Eagles at home on Red Bandana night against a shaky Miami quarterback. By the time you are reading this, BC should be 6-2.

Again, none of this may happen, but it does present a pleasant little thought experiment that shows that BC is the only team that can make the ACC interesting. Here’s to hoping the Eagles play spoiler and give Clemson a challenge in a few weeks.

(Update: BC defeated Miami Friday night to move to 6-2. The dream of a 5-0 finish is still achievable.)