2018
Boston College
Football
Betting Preview
Boston College had a chance to put a bow on the 2017 season with a bowl win, but after falling to Iowa, it left the Eagles wanting more with another 7-6 season. Of course, that was still an impressive record considering that includedwins over both Louisville and Florida State. With enough starters back on both sides of the ball, they’ll try and reach that total again, but because of Schedule it won’t be easy. The Eagles weren’t getting much love in the spring and only had better odds than Syracuse out of the Atlantic division to win the National Championship (+50000 at 5Dimes Sportsbook).
BC’s success will depend on offense after this group turned things around in the second part of last year, most notably in those two big wins. The problem for the Eagles is that they’ll be depending on quarterback Anthony Brown, who tore his ACL and won’t be ready to return until just before the season starts. That’s a hard thing to bet on, but it’s worth noting he’s not that amazing of a quarterback having completed 51.9% of his passes for 11 TDs and 9 INTs. Sophomore EJ Perry is expected to start if Brown isn’t ready to go and his issue is lack of experience. That may not be a major deal because the Eagles have a lot of pieces returning around quarterback including all five starters on the line. Throw in running back AJ Dillon (1,432 yards, 13 TDs) and that’s all the offense needs, especially if those guys improve at all. No one truly stood out in the passing Game last year, but a lot of those guys return with tight end Tommy Sweeney (375 yards, 3 TDs) expected to have a bigger role.
Defense is where some problems may come up for BC after allowing a solid 22.5 points per Game. The group lost players up front and in the back to the NFL and those guys have to be replaced. But the Eagles usually win through defense so they aren’t expected to take a major fall. Zach Allen is still there on the end with Ray Smith in the middle and those guys should hold the front down. Linebacker dealt with numerous injuries last year, but that also means a lot of younger guys got experience with John LAmot at the top of that list. The return of inside linebacker Connor Strachan may be the bigger news after he missed most of 2017 due to injury. A couple corners are gone, but the secondary shouldn’t drop off with senior safeties LUkas Denis and Will Harris still around.
It’ll be important for Boston College to win the Games it’s favored in, especially early. That means the three home Games in September and hope for an upset at either Wake or Purdue. The problem is that there isn’t another favorable Game on the Schedule outside of Syracuse in the finale. The Eagles have to travel to NC State, Virginia Tech and Florida State, but also host Louisville, Miami and Clemson. This team could be better than a year ago, but the Schedule could be problematic for Steve Addazio. Similar to last season, the Eagles should grab an upset or two and that will be enough for six wins. However, getting more than that will require three upsets, which is a tough bet. If quarterback is figured out early, that would be huge for the offense and as long as the defense doesn’t slip, the Eagles should at least contend against most on the Schedule outside of maybe Clemson. Winning those Games they contend in is another question.
2018 Boston College Eagles Football Schedule
Sept. 1 vs. UMass
Sept. 8 vs. Holy Cross
Sept. 13 at Wake Forest
Sept. 22 at Purdue
Sept. 29 vs. Temple
Oct. 6 at NC State
Oct. 13 vs. Louisville
Oct. 26 vs. Miami
Nov. 3 at Virginia Tech
Nov. 10 vs. Clemson
Nov. 17 at Florida State
Nov. 24 vs. Syracuse