Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Boston College Eagles season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
– Boston College Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 7-5 overall, 4-4 in ACC
Head Coach: Steve Addazio, 7th year, 38-38
– CFN Preview 2019: All The Team Previews
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE BOSTON COLLEGE OFFENSE
– Can the offense that died down the stretch and struggled with the explosive plays start to do more on a consistent basis? It was the program’s best scoring season since 2007, but it was front-loaded with blowout wins early on. Now it’s up to new offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian to crank up the attack a bit more considering – with this defense – around 30 points a game should get the job done.
– The passing game has to improve. Anthony Brown has to be far more accurate after completing just 55% of his passes, and he has to stay in one piece, but he’s careful with the ball and can move enough to take off a bit more. The backup situation isn’t bad with EJ Perry seeing time last year, stepping in against Clemson when Brown went down.
– The O line loses Chris Lindstrom and two other starters after and okay year from the front five, but nothing dominant. Junior Ben Petrula can play anywhere on the line, and senior John Phillips should rise up into more of a factor at one guard spot, but this will be a work in progress, especially at the tackles.
– AJ Dillon could use a little more help. The workhorse back is one of the nation’s most effective power runners with over 2,600 yards and 24 touchdowns in his two years, but he’s not alone. 6-1, 245-pound battering ram David Bailey ran for 253 yards in his short stint, and junior Travis Levy can be used more as a receiver as well as a quick option.
– The O line will be the biggest early concern, but it’ll be fine with a little time. The receiving corps will be the second problem after losing three of the top four targets. Leading receiver Kobay White is back after catching 33 passes for 526 yards and three scores, and now someone else has to step up and produce. No other wideout made more than 20 catches, and TE Tommy Sweeney is done after coming up with 32 grabs.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE BOSTON COLLEGE DEFENSE
– There was talent on the BC D, and it did an okay job overall, but it was a far cry from a few years ago, when it was a brick wall. Just four starters are back from the ACC’s 11th-best defense, and now linebacking coach extraordinaire Bill Sheridan will take over the defensive coordinator duties. Job One will be to figure out the line.
– The Eagles lose Zach Allen and Wyatt Ray off the ends, and won’t have Ray Smith around on the inside. The line was strong, but it should’ve been a whole lot better considering all the experience and star power, and now it has to start rebuilding around 285-pound senior Tanner Karafa at one tackle. He can get into the backfield, but he’ll need a whole lot of help even though no other returning lineman registered a sack.
Junior Brandon Barlow has a little time logged in on one end, and sophomore Marques Valdez and redshirt freshman Joey Luchetti have to combine to star on the other side. Overall, it’s a very young line that’s going to need a whole lot oof time.
– Leading tackler Connor Strachan is done from the linebacking corps, but the Eagles are okay with Isaiah McDuffie back after coming up with 85 stops on one side, and Max Richardson coming up with 76 tackles on the other. These two can get into the backfield, and 240-pound junior John Lamot is a bigger option than Strachan in the middle.
– Interception machine Hamp Cheevers and his seven picks left early, and Taj-Amir Torris is done after coming up with three. Brandon Sebastian is a good-sized corner, and it would be nice if redshirt freshman Tate Haynes is ready at the other spot. It’ll take a rotation of safeties to replace Will Harris and Lukas Denis – senior Mehdi El Attrach and junior Mike Palmer have a little time logged in.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP BOSTON COLLEGE PLAYERS
Best Boston College Offensive Player
RB AJ Dillon, Jr.
The 6-0, 250-pounder isn’t going to blow away too many people with his speed, but he’ll rumble over everyone, he’ll tough it out even though he’s the only aspect of the offense that works at times, and he’ll find a way to roll past the 1,000-yard mark again as long as he’s healthy.
He couldn’t stay in one piece last year – missing two games in the middle of the season – and he still ran for 1,108 yards and ten scores, coming off a 1,589-yard, 14 touchdown season. With 527 carries in his first two seasons, he needs a rotation of other backs to help him out.
2. QB Anthony Brown, Jr.
3. WR Kobay White, Jr.
4. OT Ben Petrula, Jr.
5. OG John Phillips, Sr.
Best Boston College Defensive Player
LB Isaiah McDuffie, Jr.
The 6-2, 225-pounder started out as a decent special teamer, and then got his shot in the linebacking corps last year. Working on the outside, he came up with 85 tackles, with good range and a nice burst to the ball in the open field. With his quickness, he came up with 3.5 sacks and 5.5 tackles for loss – he can grow into more of a pass rusher.
2. LB Max Richardson, Jr.
3. CB Brandon Sebastian, Soph.
4. DT Tanner Karafa, Sr.
5. LB John Lamot, Jr.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Boston College Offense
Keep the chains moving. If you’re Boston College and you have a back as tough as AJ Dillon – who can pound away and create easy third down chances – there’s no excuse to be miserable at moving the chains. But the Eagles converted a pathetic 34% of their chances and only got past the 40% mark three times.
BC was awful in time of possession, the defense was taxed at times, and the team wasn’t able to control games. More on why in a moment.
Biggest Key To The Boston College Defense
Find pass rushers. Wyatt Ray led the the team with nine sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss. Now he’s a Cleveland Brown. Zach Allen came up with 6.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. Now he’s an Arizona Cardinal.
DT Tanner Karafa was able to generate four sacks, but no other returning defensive lineman registered a sack.
It’s Boston College and there will always be good pass rushers, but the pressure is now on Marcus Valdez, Brandon Barlow and Drew McQuarrie to all turn into terrors behind the line.
Key Player To A Successful Season
QB Anthony Brown, Jr.
The Eagles need help on both lines, and they could use some more firepower at receiver. But for BC to take another step forward, it needs a bigger year out of its quarterback.
Brown can move a bit, and he’s a good gamer, but he was just okay after the first few games of last season and was way too inaccurate.
For a team that needs to convert on third downs and could use more offensive consistency, hovering around the 50% completion mark isn’t okay. Over the last eight games, Brown completed 56% of his throws or fewer six times.
Key Game To The Boston College Season
Virginia Tech, Aug. 31
The Hokies are coming off a disappointing season and looking to get out to a hot start. For Boston College, with a brutal second half of the season, it can’t afford to give away any home games. The Eagles on last year in Blacksburg, but lost the previous three games in the series. To go totally cliché, this is the tone-setter.
– Boston College Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Boston College Fun Stats
– Time of Possession: Opponents 32:10 – Boston College 27:50
– Interception Return Yards: Boston College 337 (18 picks) – Opponents 6 (9 picks)
– Fumbles: Boston College 15 (lost 10) – Opponents 10 (lost 8)
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. BOSTON COLLEGE WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
There are a whole lot of concerns for a team that started out well last year, couldn’t pull up out of the nosedive after the nationally pumped up November game against Clemson, and finished with a three-game losing streak and the indignity of seeing its bowl game stopped and then cancelled.
The offensive line needs a whole lot of patching. The defensive line has to find new pass rushers, the secondary could use some tweaking, the receiving corps could use a boost, and the passing game as a whole needs to be stronger.
And really, BC? What was with getting the kicks blocked?
But it’s Boston College, the master of the seven-win season – hitting the mark five times in the last six years.
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 6
It’s all about the first six weeks, because the last six are going to be brutal.
The good: the Eagles start out with four home games in the first five, with the one road date at Rutgers. Win the Scarlet Knights, Richmond, Kansas, and Louisville before mid-October, there has to be at least a 5-1 start because of what comes next.
The bad: NC State is the second-to-last home game, and it’s on October 19th. After that, four of the last five games are on the road, going to Clemson, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Pitt.
The Eagles will pull off a nice win or two when no one is expecting it, but it’ll be a fight to get to six wins, and it’ll win the bowl game to get to seven.
Again.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Recruiting Class Analysis | Schedule Analysis
