Boston College Football: It's Game Week

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Summer camp is now officially over and it’s time for the Boston College Eagles to begin getting ready for their season opener on Labor Day night on the road against the Florida State Seminoles. By all accounts, summer camp went well for the Eagles. Head coach Bill O’Brien and his staff were able to fine-tune their offense and defense philosophy to have the team ready for the start of the new year. Maybe the best news out of camp is the team suffered no major setbacks and should be a full strength come Monday night.

On opening night, Boston College will face a team that already has a game under their belt. Last Saturday, the Seminoles (0-1,0-1) went to Ireland to begin their season. The 24-21 stunning loss to Georgia Tech serves as a reminder of what can happen in this league. It wasn’t just the last-second field goal by the Yellow Jackets. It was the way GT controlled the line of scrimmage against a defense and a team that was a 10-point favorite. Georgia Tech ran the ball for 190 yards for an average of 5.3 yards a carry. The Yellow Jacket offense maintained the football for the last 6:33 of the game to set up the game-winning field goal. The Seminoles had only one scoring drive in the second half which was the one that tied the game a little more than halfway through the fourth quarter. For the game, FSU had four scoring drives. Each team had the ball seven times in the game. In the end, it was GT’s last two drives that made the difference. First, an 11-play 89-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown. Then the 12-play 49-yard drive that resulted in the game-ending field goal. The Seminoles’ defense could not get off the field when they needed to, and it cost them dearly.

This will be the 22nd time the two schools have met. FSU holds a 16-5 record over the Eagles. In conference play, the Seminoles are 14-4, and at home, they are 7-2. Florida State has won the last five meetings. It stands to reason that FSU will be favorite again come Monday night. So how does BC pull off a win on the road in Tallahassee? It may be the same way Georgia Tech was able to move the ball on the ground. A season ago, the Eagles ran for 2,844 yards for an average of 4.7 yards a try. They scored 25 touchdowns on the ground last year. Moving the sticks on the ground and keeping the clock moving might sound like a solid way to leave Florida with a win. In 2023, BC held the ball for almost three minutes more than their opponents (31:08 to 28:32). They converted on third down at a 41.3% rate (79-191) These will also be things to look for on Monday night.

On defense, the Eagles allowed 385 yards a game, and 49 touchdowns, 35 of them in the red zone. They only sacked the quarterback 16 times all year. They will face a QB in DJ Uiagalelei who they have seen before during his days at Clemson. Last Saturday, he was 19-of-27 for 193 yards. Most of his completions and yardage came off a short passing game. Getting to the QB and making his life uncomfortable would be a big plus for the Eagles. One advantage that Florida State should have is in the kicking game. FSU place kicker Ryan Fitzgerald made two long FGs last weekend. A 52-yarder and a 59-yarder in the first half. The 59-yard FG was a career-long and the second-longest in school history.

The Seminoles should show up for their home opener in a bad mood based on what happened last Saturday. Boston College needs to be ready for that and find a way to stay in the game early. If they can do that and give themselves a chance in the fourth quarter, just like Georgia Tech did, the result just might be the same as the one the Yellow Jackets left Ireland with.