Boston College Eagles football poised for a magical season

Palpable excitement is in the air of Chestnut Hill as the Boston College Eagles football team inches closer to kicking off the 2021 season.

Keeping this team a secret may be hard to do if expectations continue to swell, especially if positive follow suit.

Following up a 6-5 (5-5) record in 2020, head coach Jeff Hafley will open up his second season with plenty of returning talent. And it’s a team that hung tough last year, with four of those five losses coming at the hands of ranked opponents.

The next step? Turning those losses into wins, and battling for an ACC crown.

One of those losses included a nail biter in which Boston College took the top-ranked Clemson Tigers to the brink of defeat. A close 34-28 loss was heartbreaking, but proved what the Eagles are capable of doing.

Especially with a record-setting offense that could be even better in 2021.

Boston College Eagles on offense

Given the run-heavy offense of previous seasons, it was refreshing to see a pass-happy attack from Boston College. (Not that the play of AJ Dillon wasn’t joyful and impactful.)

There’s no reason to believe that — with a full season and more time with the playbook — that 2021 won’t be any different for quarterback Phil Jurkovec and the offense.

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Jurovec sprinted right out of the gate in his debut season with the Eagles. He passed for 300 or more yards in four of the first five games. He cooled off somewhat while Boston College struggled with the run game. Injuries eventually took their toll, too, for Jurkovec as he battled but ultimately missed the final game.

Still, he managed to throw for 2558 yards while completing 61 percent of his passes. Jurkovec tossed a touchdown pass in all but one game, finishing with 17 against only 5 interceptions.

Building rapport with a receiving corps is always a must for a quarterback and Jurkovec will have three of his top targets back for 2021. The top of the list is the electric Zay Flowers, who had 56 receptions for 892 yards and 9 touchdowns last season.

Joining him will be Jaelen Gill and CJ Lewis. All three averaged at least 15 yards per catch last season. Add Jehlani Galloway and the return of Kobay White to the mix and Boston College could have one of the best wide receive corps in the nation.

There is a need to replace the reliant at Hunter Long at tight end. And establishing a decent running game that never found much daylight in 2020 is a must.

Helping that will be an offensive line that is talented, experienced, and hungry to live up to expectations.

Let’s hope the defense can do the same.

Boston College Eagles on defense

A philosophy of “bend-but-don’t-break” seemed to be at the core of coordinator Tem Lukabu’s defense last year. While it served Boston College well, there were gaps and big plays that gobbled the team up.

The second season under Lukabu should provide better results.

A deep, experienced secondary comprised of upperclassmen and graduate students will lead the way. They weren’t quite the ball-hawking team they were two seasons ago, but this group is tight. Last year saw a lot of moving pieces in the unit due to injuries so it will be fun to watch this team gel this season.

Getting pressure up front will go a long way in the defense’s success. Run defense was stout at times but overall the defense allowed nearly 417 yards and 28.3 points per game.

The bigger question on defense will be replacing Max Richardson and Isaiah McDuffie at linebacker. These two were the leading tacklers and combined for 206 tackles, 14. 5 tackles for loss, and 6.5 sacks last season.

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Projections, preseason nods, and expectations are all part of the process. The real work begins in fall camp. And on September 4 against Colgate, the action between the chalk will kickoff a season of something good. A return to glory, and getting to at least the eight-win mark for the first time since 2009, starts then.

Time to soar.

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