Boston College Syracuse Preview

Boston College looks to get back above .500 and keep its bowl chance alive against Syracuse on Saturday.  The Orange comes in after a big upset win over Virginia Tech, but with a record of 3-4.  The Eagles are favored by 4.5 points. 

What to Watch When BC has the Ball:  The BC offense has been absolutely terrible this season against ACC opponents.  They have only scored 24 points in 3 games, and have not scored over 20 in an ACC game since playing Syracuse in 2014.  That’s a span of 10 games, equal to their ACC losing streak.  In order to win on Saturday, BC will need to change that.  Syracuse is a weak defensive squad, and they have given up 62 to Louisville, 45 to South Florida, and 50 Notre Dame.  It will be seen if holding Virginia Tech to 17 last week is a sign of improvement, or an outlier.  Where BC needs to attack Syracuse is through the running game.  In every game so far, Syracuse has given up over 100 yards on the ground.  BC needs to finally get Jon Hilliman and Davon Jones going.  Hilliman has struggled averaging only 3.4 yards per carry on the season, which gets knocked down to 2.7 without the 73 yard run against Georgia Tech.  This may not be all Hilliman’s fault, as Football Outsider’s grades BC’s offensive line 124^th out of 128 division 1 teams.  The line has struggled all year, but should be able to provide enough push against a weak Syracuse defensive line.  In the air, BC needs to see more production out of their receivers.  The Eagles have the highest drop percentage in the country, and need to help out Towles every chance they get.  Michael Walker has been very quiet since the Wagner game, and needs to get back on track.  Look to see BC throw more screens, and run end arounds to help get him and Smith the ball in space.  BC does not need to light up the scoreboard, but they need to capitalize with touchdowns instead of field goals in the red zone, and avoid putting pressure on their own defense.

What to Watch When Syracuse has the Ball: It starts and ends with Eric Dungey for Syracuse.  He is a don it all dual-threat quarterback, who controls the Orange’s up-tempo offense.  Last week against Virginia Tech, he has over 300 yards passing and over 100 yards rushing.  If that happens again this weekend, Syracuse will win easily.  However, outside of last weekend, he has not rushed for more than 50 yards in a game, and only rushed for more than 25 yards once.  While he can be contained on the ground, he has been very efficient through the air with a 62% completion percentage, and 12 touchdowns to 5 interceptions.  The key for the Eagles will be to force Syracuse to use long drives to beat them.  The Orange have no running game to speak of outside of Dungey, and use big plays through the air to ignite their offense.  This means that BC must clean up their defensive breakdowns that they have suffered all season.  Safety John Johnson must play his best game of the season, and to make sure he does not get beat deep.  Where BC should have a huge advantage is with their front seven.  Harold Landry should have a field day knowing that Syrause will drop back to pass 40 to 50 times, and are not a threat to run the ball.  Look for the Orange to be held to less than 50 yards rushing, as the BC dline should control the line of scrimmage.

Overall: BC lost 49-0 to a Virginia Tech team that Syracuse beat by 2 touchdowns last weekend.  However, this is that same Syracuse team that lost to Wake Forest by 19 and USF by 25.  It will be interesting to see which Syracuse team shows up.  For Boston College, it will be about how they start the game.  If BC gets behind, the ACC losing streak may get into their heads, and they could lose confidence in the coaching staff and quit.  BC is not a team built to play from behind, and their offense struggles when they are forced to through.  However, if BC can take an early lead, they will be able use a potentially dominate defense to sit on the lead and win.  The Eagles are the more talented team, and Syracuse has shown that outside of last week, they are a bad football team.  Look for BC to struggle on offense early but use big plays to score, and for the defense to shut down Syracuse in an ugly win.

Prediction: Boston College: 20 Syracuse 9