Game Predictions - Virginia

Game Predictions – Virginia

For every Football, Hockey, Basketball, and Baseball game this year, the board members of WZBC Sports will be offering their picks on whether the Eagles will win or lose. Here are our picks for Virginia.

TJ HartnettThe Eagles fly south to Charlottesville to take on the Cavaliers of UVA after a HUGE confidence booster of a win at Louisville last weekend. Originally viewed as a favorable game for BC at the beginning of the season, UVA has quietly climbed to a 5-1 record under Bronco Mendenhall. Granted, UVA has barely played anyone. With a premier win over Boise State on the road, if UVA’s offense comes to play, BC may be in trouble. With a banged up QB in Anthony Brown, the Eagles will have to rely on the run game with phenom AJ Dillon and the short passing options with big targets like Tommy Sweeney. If the Eagles can put up more than 21 points, I see them coming away with this one. After seeing the Louisville win in person, I’m suddenyl believing in this squad again. Cannot express how important this game is to build momentum. Eagles spoil homecoming for the Hoos. BC 24 – UVA 21

Quinn KellyThis is perhaps the biggest game for the Eagles in the last 3 years. Coming off a big upset win at Louisville last week, the heat under Addazio’s seat was only moderatley reduced. A loss against a largeley unproven UVA squad would set the Egales right back to where they were, with no building done to sustain the offense. A win, though, and BC sets themsleves up to have a win-and-in game for a bowl in the last week against Cuse. As much as it pains me, it feels as though the former is more like than the latter. Take solace in the fact , though, that this will be the first game without HB1A and HB1B – AJ Dillon is your feature back and the Dillon era truly begins tomorrow! UVA 28 – BC 20

Steve McAlee: We here at WZBC Sports unamimously and unsurprisingly got last week’s prediction very wrong, and we were glad to see a glimpse of what BC’s philosphy looks like when it really works. I’ve been calling for more AJ Dillon, and wow does he look special. Virginia has been a nice story, but they really haven’t played any of the best ACC teams yet. That being said, beating them on the road when they’re riding high is not an easy task. It’s compounded by an injured Anthony Brown. I’m not yet ready to say what we saw vs. Louisville is who BC really is – they have much more to prove before I buy in on keeping Steve Addazio around. Virginia 31 – BC 20

Landon Komishane: The records in this game are very deceiving as BC has had a significantly tougher schedule than UVA. The scoring outburst from BC was something we hadn’t seen in a long time. AJ Dillon figures to be the featured back from now. UVA’s defense will definitely be focused on him, so that could potentially open up the passing game for Anthony Brown if he is playing. Ultimately, this game will show whether the Louisville game was a fluke or not, but BC hasn’t shown the offensive consistency that would give me the confidence to pick them. Virginia 21, BC 17

Kyle Maslan: Addazio and Co. are trying to keep the momentum going after a massive upset win at Louisville a week ago. The offense looked “beautiful” to reference Daz believing the team would come together soon. While UVA has a much better record than the Eagles do they have played an extraordinarily week schedule for and ACC team. BC comes into Charlottesville more battle tested than the Cavaliers are. Look for AJ Dillon to keep the offense rolling. BC 24 – UVA 17

Al Preziosi: After an impressive upset victory over Louisville, the Eagles will head to Virginia to play what should be another competitive game. UVA only has one loss, but their schedule has not been very tough. Look for the Eagles to keep the momentum going and steal a close game on the road. BC 20 – UVA 17

Sam ParsonsRaise your hand if you thought BC would beat Louisville last week (now put your hand down, liar). The Eagles now look to parlay their newfound momentum into another road win against the Virginia Cavaliers. UVA’s 5-1 record is a bit deceiving, as they have yet to beat a quality opponent. Is BC a quality opponent? Even after a road win vs Louisville, it’s tough to say that. Furthermore, it will be very difficult for AJ Dillon to replicate the success he had last week, and the passing game has yet to show legitimate life for the Eagles. And UVA’s senior QB Kurt Benkert has had a very solid season thus far. I think this game will be very close, but the Cavaliers will prevail at home. UVA 24, BC 21

Matt SottileThe Eagles proved all of us wrong last week, and boy did it feel good. BC enters Charlottesville with a massive chip on their shoulder and momentum from last week’s breakout performance from AJ Dillon and an ACC win on the road. Virginia is coming off a 2-10 season, and their only ACC contests have come acros Duke and lowly UNC, yet they sit at 5-1, led by their standout QB Kurt Benkert and an exceptional defense. Benkert is not an exceptionally mobile quarterback, and if Zach Allen and Harold Landry can get to him in the pocket, it could spell big things for BC. This is a massive game for the Eagles, and a win would catapult them to 4-4 on the season and 2-3 in ACC play with the Red Bandana game looming ahead next Friday at Alumni against FSU. I think BC can carry the momentum from last Saturday and continue to be a physical, ground and pound team, and steal another ACC win on the road. BC 23, UVA 21

Andrew Linnehan: Virginia sits at 5-1 on the season but don’t boast any wins of real significance. BC on the other hand is coming off their most impressive conference win in years. The 45 point effort was due to the immaculate effort by freshman (!) running back AJ Dillon. Dillon had been used sparingly up until last game where he had been sharing the bulk of the carries with John Hilliman. If Addazio was as impressed with Dillon as the BC fans were, then we can expect another game where he’s approaching 30 carries. As we know, Steve loves to pound the football and if Dillon runs like he did against Louisville, there wouldn’t be much objection to Addazio’s philosophy for once. With that being said, asking for another road victory against a strong pass offense like Virginia might be asking too much of Boston College. Cavaliers outlast the Eagles 28-14