Boston College Eagles: 3 standouts from blowout victory over UMass

The Boston College Eagles started the 2018 season in style with a resounding victory over the UMass Minutemen in Alumni Stadium on Saturday.

There are times when game predictions can turn out okay. In this case, a prediction of the Boston College Eagles defeating the UMass Minutemen turned out to be true.

It was how Boston College arrived at the final score that turned out to be way off base.

An expected game of grind-it-out on the ground plus a defense-controlled effort was partially true, except the Eagles’ offense kept finding the end zone. Boston College raced out to a 48-7 halftime lead, sat their starters the rest of the way and finished with a 55-21 victory on Saturday.

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Boston College (1-0) racked up 622 total yards, balanced by both the passing and running games.

Sophomore AJ Dillion played one half of football, carrying the ball 20 times for 98 yards. Dillon led the way as the Eagles had 302 rushing yards. He even made his first career reception in the first quarter, a touchdown catch that went for 15 yards.

The defense did their part as well, outside of two garbage time touchdowns, holding the Minutemen (1-1) in check most of the day. UMass managed only 66 rushing yards and were only 3-12 on 3rd-down conversions. Boston College also forced three turnovers, including a 59-yard pick six by Lukas Denis to end the first half.

All in all, it was a good start to 2018 for Boston College. Here are three standouts from the game.

The return of Anthony Brown

Quarterback Anthony Brown was making his first start since a knee injury ended his 2017 campaign prematurely.

Brown did not disappoint.

The redshirt-sophomore threw for four touchdowns, all in the first half, and finished 15-21 for 279 yards. He did not throw a pick, had the deep ball working and even ran the ball once, going for eight yards.

EJ Parry even saw action behind center, going 3-4 for 30 yards.

In one half of play, Brown had one of the finest performances of his career. If he continues down this path it will help alleviate some of the focus that’s going to be placed on Dillon and the running game.

Receivers shine

11 different players caught passes in the victory. And this list doesn’t even include standout tight end Tommy Sweeney.

A tight end did have a big day, though, as junior Ray Marten hauled in three passes for 69 yards and one touchdown.

Doing Marten one touchdown better was sophomore receiver Kobay White. Already a reliable target as a freshman, White started off his 2018 season with three catches for 86 yards and two touchdowns.

Senior Jeff Smith also contributed three catches totaling 39 yards. Smith was also involved in the running game, carrying four times for 35 yards.

The offensive line

The unsung heroes of Boston College Eagles football were at it again on Saturday.

A great amount of experience showed during the game on Saturday, keeping Brown relatively clean while also paving the way for 302 rushing yards. Sophomore Travis Levy spelled Dillon in the first half and found more carries in the second, finishing with 10 totes for 40 yards. And linebacker Davon Jones spent time on offense as well, carrying six times for 39 yards and two first-half touchdowns.

This core group of lineman helped Boston College rush for 220.4 yards per game in 2017, all while allowing only 15 sacks. If game one of 2018 is any indication, they are going to be just as good and valuable in 2018.

Next. Boston College Eagles: Experience core to anchor defense in 2018. dark

There were expectations UMass was on the rise and Boston College might be ripe for the upset. Instead, head coach Steve Addazio had the Eagles prepared and focused and the team responded in kind.

Buckle up, Boston College fans. 2018 might find the Eagles soaring to new heights.

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