Boston College Eagles seek to get back on track against Temple
Humbled by a road loss at Purdue, the Boston College Eagles return to Chestnut Hill to play host to the Temple Owls.
The 2018 season so far has seen the Boston College Eagles face off against unfamiliar foes. Outside of the Wake Forest game, the Eagles faced two teams they hadn’t seen in ages (UMass, and Holy Cross) and a Big team they’d never faced (Purdue).
This week’s game does not stray far from the above trend.
The Temple Owls (2-2, 1-0) come to town, squaring off against the Boston College Eagles (3-1, 1-0) for the first time since 2004. Boston College has won the last five meetings and is 28-7 against the Owls, in addition to two ties.
More from Chowder and Champions
- 3 Midseason Chaim Bloom Decisions That Have Killed the 2023 Red Sox
- 10 Patriots Who Will Be Cut by Tuesday’s Roster Deadline
- MLB Screws Red Sox Fans With Broadcast for Mookie Betts Return
- 3 Most Underpaid Celtics Heading Into the 2023 Season
- Red Sox Continue Rollercoaster Season With Massive Win
This game will also mark the first time Boston College head coach Steve Addazio will coach against his former team.
Addazio coached at Temple for two seasons, in 2011 and 2012, finishing with a record of 13-11 before coming to Boston College.
The Eagles hope to bounce back from a tough road loss in which very little seemed to go right. Struggles on offense plus a defense that — despite a pretty solid effort — failed to get off the field at key times made for a disappointing day.
Temple is coming off back-to-back victories. The Owls have a win in their only other road game of the season, a 35-14 victory at Maryland.
Opening American Athletic Conference play last week, Temple defeated Tulsa 31-17.
Time, location, where to watch
Location: Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, MA
Time: Noon EST
TV: ESPNU
Boston College Eagles
The main point of focus: get the offense back on track and use residual anger from the Purdue loss in a constructive manner.
This could mean getting back to the creative play calling that was present in the first three games. Or it could mean feeding the ball to AJ Dillon.
Dillon has rushed for 493 yards and four touchdowns in 2018, averaging 6.3 yards per carry.
Having one of the top backs in the country makes it easy to get into a “run, run, pass” play calling routine. Except if teams are gearing up for that, the passing game needs to step up.
Anthony Brown seemed ready for that through three games, throwing for nine touchdowns and zero interceptions. Game four was a disaster as Brown threw four interceptions against Purdue.
Being down in the game, Brown may have been trying too hard to make things happen. Temple has been opportunistic on defense, collecting seven interceptions, so Brown might be tested again this week.
The Boston College defense is averaging four sacks per game and the defensive line has been a huge factor. Wyatt Ray (5.5 sacks) and Zach Allen (1.5 sacks) have formed quite the tandem, not only in getting to the quarterback but helping stuff the run.
Allen’s numbers are down from last season, but he’s getting a lot of attention from opponents. Ray has stepped up due to this, perhaps giving opponents reason to re-think strategy.
The play up front, plus linebacker Connor Strachan (31 tackles), has helped Boston College hold opponents to an average of 3.6 yards per carry.
Temple Owls
The run defense of Boston College will be tested on Saturday as the Owls are a run-oriented offense, led by Ryquell Armstead.
Armstead has collected three straight 100-yard games and is averaging 4.7 yards per carry. After a 14-carry, 31-yard performance against Buffalo to start the season, Armstead has run for 333 yards on 5.2 yards per carry.
The quarterback situation for Temple has stabilized in recent weeks, with Anthony Russo leading the Owls to both of their victories. The stats aren’t pretty (24-49 for 364 yards and 3 int) and Boston College’s experienced secondary should be able to contain Russo.
The defense of Temple allows only 21.5 points per game, has 15 sacks and boasts a defensive front just as talented as Boston College’s. Graduate student Michael Dogbe has 3.5 sacks and redshirt sophomore Quincy Roche has 15 tackles and 3 sacks.
Junior linebacker Shaun Bradley leads the team with 29 tackles.
Prediction
Was last week just a challenging loss for Boston College or an aberration of things to come?
dark. Next. Boston College Eagles: Experienced core to anchor defense in 2018
I’m going with the former and think that Boston College does what’s needed to get back into the win column. Look for a little bit more of ball control on offense, opening things up in the passing game, and the defense bottling up Temple’s Armstead. Boston College 28 Temple 14.