Examining the Eagles: Football Edition Part 3
by Quinn Kelly
Part Three: The Picks
To preface once again the final chapter of the first Examining the Eagles, I am a big optimist when it comes to BC’s football team, at least as far as the casual onlooker would see it. I tend to believe that I’m a realist in the eyes of those who really know the team, however. If you’ve taken anything from the first two parts of this series, you probably gathered that I believe this defense is among the best in the country and the offense is still going to have some problems, but will score enough to let the defense carry them to a bowl game. With that said, let’s dive in and see exactly how they’re going to get there.
Game 1: vs Georgia Tech (in Ireland)
Make no mistake, this is the single most important game on the schedule for the Eagles. While the Clemson and FSU games are huge for the program, there is no more pressure filled game than the opener. The schedule going forward from this game is set up for them to go at least 3-1, so it is vitally important that they can get a win to start and go into the Clemson game with a lopsided record. I think the Eagles will rise to the occasion and go out and get the win in what promises to be a very friendly crowd at Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Eagles get the monkey of the ACC win off their back early and win a low scoring affair to get the season off to a hot start.
Final: BC 20-13, 1-0 (1-0)
Game 2: at UMass Amherst (Gillette Stadium)
Eagles come into this game riding high and ready to write another chapter in what has been a one-sided saga known as the “Battle of the Bay State.” UMass and BC have met 25 times in a rivalry that started with an 18-0 Eagles win way back in 1899. Since then, the Eagles have won 19 times to carry a 20-5 record into this week 2 matchup. UMass hasn’t gotten the better of the match-up since 1978, falling the past 8 times they’ve met with BC. This trend will remain intact when the dust settles on September 10th. UMass is a program on the rise and are poised to go bowling within the next four years. Unfortunately for the Minutemen, it just won’t be this year. BC outclasses UMass in this one, grinding through an early battle due to an Ireland hangover to pull away late.
Final: BC 34-10, 2-0 (1-0)
Game 3: at Virginia Tech
No matter how good or bad the Hokies are in any given year, Blacksburg remains one of the toughest places to get a win on the road. Over the last 10 years VTech is 50-16 at home and 46-9 against unranked opponents. As a program, they have stumbled a bit over the past few years, but they still remain 20-7 against unranked opponents in the past 5 seasons. The Hokies will be coming off a primetime game at Tennessee the previous Saturday night. So, either they will be coming off a huge win against the Vols or a deflating loss to a stronger opponent under the bright lights. You can infer their reaction to that as going either way for either result, but I believe it will be a motivated team redeeming a tough loss. Eagles can’t get it done here as the offense is stifled and Justin Fuentes gets his first win at VTech vs an FBS opponent here.
Final: VTech 14-10, 2-1 (1-1)
Game 4: vs Wagner
What’s harder, getting up for a 9 AM tailgate or getting up for a cream puff opponent? With an FCS opponent coming in hot off a 1-10 season last year, you can pretty safely bet this one’s gonna be a noon kickoff. Get ready for an early wake up and an early departure after a first half drubbing of the Seahawks. I look forward to a little hair-of-the-dog action with everyone for the game. Let’s just hope the Eags win some games and the dog doesn’t go bald like last year. Boy, does bad football make for a sleepless fall.
Final: BC 56-3, 3-1 (1-1)
Game 5: vs Buffalo
Hope you’re enjoying the start to your home football season folks. The Wagner/Buffalo back to back is what puts asses in the seats, for sure. Listen, I’ve been extremely critical of our football scheduling on WZBC programming, and believe me, I will continue to be going forward. I don’t hate the Wagner game, everyone has an FCS game. Usually those who do are higher end teams and they play a high-end FCS team, but hey, squares are rectangles too, right? What irks me is the Wagner game in combination with UMass/Buffalo/UConn. Whatever, rant over. Tossed it in there because you can crumple up the season and throw it in the trash if we lose to Buffalo. Just hope those new uniforms Buffalo got look good with turf stains all over them.
Final: BC 35-7, 4-1 (1-1)
Game 6: vs Clemson (Friday night)
The Virginia Tech loss will feel like a hiccup amidst four opening wins. A close game will keep us invested and from being too disappointed given what lies ahead in Wagner and Buffalo. Clemson will not feel the same way. I had the pleasure of going down to the OG Death Valley last year to watch the game from the stands with a buddy. There was nothing better than hearing over 100,000 people go silent after we scored a touchdown off a pick to open the game a week removed from laying a goose egg against Wake. That was an unreal moment…and the end of the fun for BC that day. The eventual national champions would take control and win 34-17. This year, I really wouldn’t expect any of such moments. I see this game going similarly to last year’s FSU game. The defense will keep it close but the offense will be ineffective against a high quality defense. Expect a little bit better offense, though, from the Tigers.
Final: Clemson 21-3, 4-2 (1-2)
Game 7: vs Syracuse
This is a game I can see going either way for the Eagles. Syracuse isn’t the better team, it just feels like one of those games BC could inexplicably drop. But, I’ll take the positive outlook on this one since I didn’t give the boys a shot against Clemson. The offense is pretty dismal for Syracuse, so combine that with our great defense and it shouldn’t require too much of the offense to win this game. You won’t see a high scoring win for the Eagles in conference this year, but that doesn’t mean everything will feel like we’re squeaking by. Eagles get the dub and even up their ACC record.
Final: BC 21-7, 5-2 (2-2)
Game 8: at NC State
Another game that the Eagles could easily drop against the Wolfpack. Two reasons they won’t for me. One, they took a pretty fluky loss at home against NC State last year in that they were lit up through the air by Jacoby Brissett. Brissett showed off his monster arm and hit a few long balls that really deflated the defense. NC State came out and just threw deep on us all day, and the few that Brissett connected on were enough to end the game. But Brissett is gone now, playing back-up to the GOAT and Jimmy G in New England and while it’s unclear who will be playing QB for the Pack that late in the season, neither of the two possibilities are deep threats, with Jalan McClendon being a dual threat, short pass guy and Boise State grad transfer Ryan Finley being best suited in an offense that throws a lot of screens. The second reason is that this season is all about redemption for the returnees, and they’re going to want to go down to North Carolina and take one back from the Pack. At 5-2 going into this game, the Eagles are rolling too much to drop this game.
Final: BC 17-14, 6-2 (3-2)
Game 9: vs Louisville
That roll I just mentioned? Yeah, it comes to a halt here. Louisville is the popular sleeper pick to make a run at Clemson and FSU for the top spot in the ACC. I don’t think it happens, but that doesn’t mean that Louisville isn’t a really good football team. The one thing the Eagles will have to try to do here is get good pressure on Lamar Jackson. Jackson has some serious talent, but the one thing that people knock him for is his propensity to make mistakes and then compound them. If the Eagles can get 2-3 picks off him they’ll have a good shot in this ball game. I don’t think that happens, though. Louisville gets a pretty safe win here and the Eagles lose a tough one in front of the home crowd.
Final: Louisville 24-7, 6-3 (3-3)
Game 10: at Florida State (Friday night)
With the FSU game starts the first and only losing streak of the season. A Friday night game down in Talla-nasty does not bode well for the Eagles. While they played the Noles well two years ago on the road, falling short due to some terrible kicking, the Eagles won’t find the same would-be magic this year. Dalvin Cook will be embroiled in a race for the Heisman and this game will just be far too important for FSU if they want to dethrone Clemson. This is the one game that I could see the Eagles really getting their doors blown off, though recent history with the Seminoles would suggest it won’t happen. I’ll settle in the middle somewhere with a comfortable but not showy win for FSU.
Final: FSU 31-13, 6-4 (3-4)
Game 11: vs UConn
With the FCS opponent on the schedule, the Eagles will need 7 wins to go bowling (6 wins must come against FBS opponents). The last thing the Eagles will want to do is leave their fate in the results of a game against Wake on the road. They will recognize the importance of locking things up with time to spare and will get the job done against the Huskies. It’s really just not an acceptable game to lose at home and the team will want to redeem themselves from last season with a bowl-clinching victory in front of a home crowd that I pray to God will get behind the team and be better fans by that point in the season. This one goes down as an emotional slugfest that sets the tone for a future renewed rivalry with the Huskies.
Final: BC 16-13, 7-4 (3-4)
Game 12: at Wake Forest
I think that the clinching of the bowl game ahead of this game actually makes the Eagles more likely to win this game. Pressure is off for the Eagles and they are only thinking about avenging the most embarrassing loss of last year’s season and handing the Demon Deacons a big loss. Look for Scott Loeffler to open up the playbook offensively and let Towles sling the ball around the yard. There’ll be a few picks, but the defense will play with intensity and bail us out. The offense will just come back and take advantage of an already eliminated Wake Forest team. At the end of the day, BC picks up a big win, caps off an 8-win season in convincing fashion, and rides the wave into a bowl game.
Final: BC 35-7, 8-4 (4-4)
There you have it folks, 8-4. Is that unrealistic? Maybe, but certainly not out of the question. Is this one of if not the most optimistic outlooks on the BC football season you’re going to see? Definitely. I went in with the record of 7-5 in my head, but I went game by game and came out one win higher. I wouldn’t put money on 8 wins, but I certainly wouldn’t back off the claim that all 8 of the games I picked us in are extremely winnable. Sure, there are games we could unexpectedly drop. Top candidate for that for me is UConn. It’s tough because this feels like a typical BC team in that they could drop a should-win game easily, but they feel atypical in that it doesn’t seem they have the make-up to win one they’re not supposed to in big upset fashion. Doesn’t matter, they’ll grind out 8 wins within narrow odds. I’ve seen a couple sites putting us as low as 3 wins and I’m sorry, but if you think that this team can’t get 4 wins with UMass, Wagner, Buffalo, and UConn on the schedule then you’ve probably been sharing a gas mask with Laremy Tunsil. I would argue that to make the prediction that we are going to go 0-9 in the ACC again is far bolder than to put us at 8 wins. That tells me that a bunch of analysts don’t believe that a group of D-1 athletes aren’t pissed off enough about the absolute lashing they got by the media this year to go out and get 1 damn game. That’s foolish, because this team is amped up, and you can feel their quiet confidence exuding from Alumni, holding their heads up in the face of a country and a campus that don’t believe they can make a bowl. The Eagles are going bowling this year, and it’s not because of any stat (aside from that number 1 defense) that you can measure. This team is going places because, as a wise man once told me, you can’t measure heart.