While college football fans on the West Coast might be accustomed to waking up at the ripe hour of 9:00 a.m.. on a Saturday morning and having the slate of college football games already blaring on their television sets, supporters of the game on the East Coast will be subjected to a rather unusual feeling on September 3. The inaugural Saturday of the 2016 college football season will begin rather promptly, as the Boston College Eagles will challenge ACC rival Georgia Tech in Dublin, Ireland, with the scheduled kickoff being three hours prior to noontime in the Eastern Time Zone.
While the Eagles have yet to play a game overseas prior to this contest, performing at this unconventional hour may actually be a catalyst in lighting a fire under their underwhelming flame that essentially burned out over the course of last season. Despite staking the claim to the most dominant defensive front in the nation, allowing an NCAA-low 254.0 yards per game, Boston College limped to a 3-9 record on the heels of a historically poor offensive attack.
Jon Hilliman looks to carry Eagles in return from season-ending injury
Now, with graduate transfer quarterback Patrick Towles at the helm and redshirt sophomore running back Jon Hilliman returning following an injury-shortened 2015 season, the Eagles are prepared to resurrect their ability to place points on the board. Due to the formidable nature of the Yellow Jackets' 35th-ranked pass defense last season, expect Boston College to attempt to set the tone early with their running game.
Hilliman, who rushed for 860 yards in his freshman season of 2014, will likely see the majority of the carries on first and second down. Head coach Steve Addazio will look to assimilate him back within the flow of the first-team offense with a plethora of opportunities over Boston College's first few possessions. If the bruising back can infiltrate the Yellow Jackets' defensive front with measurable success, expect this feed into a multitude of play-action chances for the towering 6'5", 253-pound Towles.
The Kentucky transfer possesses a remarkably strong arm, and can take the top off of the defense if wideouts Jeff Smith or Charlie Callinan are able to get loose against single coverage. Also, expect the Eagles to utilize speedy running back Myles Willis on passing downs. Willis is a threat to break off for a big gain whenever the team places the ball within his possession, so look for him to receive some chances to showcase his abilities.
Boston College faced with Yellow Jackets read-option attack
On the defensive side of the ball, Boston College will be tasked with handling Georgia Tech's patented read option-centric offensive approach. The Eagles were the sole team in the country to allow less than 1,000 rushing yards last season, displaying their potency in stopping an offense predicated on running the ball. If a team struggles to spread a defense out with their passing game, they will in turn face a tumultuous task in moving the ball against the stout Boston College front, which does not bode well for the Yellow Jackets.
Senior quarterback Justin Thomas completed just 41.7 percent of his throws last season for a limited 7.47 yards per pass attempt, exemplifying the team's reliance on moving the chains via the run game. If the Eagles linebacking corps can prevent threatening Georgia Tech running back Marcus Marshall (7.6 yards per carry last season with 158 yards and two scores against the Pittsburgh Panthers) from busting past the first line of defense, expect his contest to be a low-scoring one.
Prediction: Boston College 17, Georgia Tech 13
In a matchup of two tremendously suffocating defenses, whoever takes better control of the ball will prevail. Expect the Eagles defense to force Thomas into multiple mistakes on the Irish afternoon, utilizing a resurgent running game to control the time of possession and keep the Yellow Jackets defense at bay.
If Hilliman can garner at least 80 yards rushing and Towles can prevent himself from turning the ball over, the Boston College defense should be enough to bring the all-important season-opening victory back to Boston.