Boston College vs. Louisville: Final Thoughts And Predictions

Last week the Boston College Eagles, sans AJ Dillon lost a close/but really shouldn’t have been close game to the NC State Wolfpack 28-23. In the Eagles offense looked rudderless and lost, and the defense was porous, but in the second half the play book opened and they held NC State to 7 points. NC State is undefeated and we saw why (though the turnovers were a head scratcher), this week we have the other end of the spectrum, the Louisville Cardinals. A team that by all accounts has quit on defense, and is a complete mess on offense. Last week against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, the Cards allowed 66 points, along with 542 yards on the ground. Calls for Bobby Petrino’s head are growing louder in Louisvillle, and they have players saying whatever they want to the media. They are a team that looks ripe for the Eagles to pick off. BC goes into this game 13.5 point favorites, but could the Eagles get caught looking ahead? Let’s take a look.

Keys To Victory

1. Keep The Offense Open For Four Quarters: One of the hardest things to watch with a Steve Addazio team is the inconsistency on offense. For one half last week we watched a team that looked eerily similar to the awful 2015 offense, but in the second half, he opened up the playbook and let Anthony Brown take some chances. Why can’t they do that for a whole game?
2. Run It Down Their Throats: That being said, Louisville seems like a defeated team already, and a good physical punch in the mouth could get them to roll over pretty quickly. If it isn’t AJ Dillon, let a big physical back like Davon Jones (if healthy) or David Bailey run for some hard yards. Then use Ben Glines to spring the long run, something we saw a bit of last week.
3. Get Off The Field On Third Down: This was a big key last week, and it turned into a huge factor in BC’s loss, as they couldn’t stop NC State on third down. If the corners can’t stop the wide outs, that is obviously a problem, so Daz will need to be creative and mix in some pressure schemes, get Zach Allen and Wyatt Ray after the quarterback. Their pressure, when it’s clicking can cover a lot of deficiencies on defense.
4. Prevent The Big Play: I have no problem with a bend and don’t break defense, however I don’t think that was what BC was last week. Turnovers are somewhat caused by luck, but if BC can force Louisville to march down the field, I think they can make a play. They certainly haven’t been consistent in terms of stopping defenders, but they have playmakers on defense, and if Louisville is forced to 4-5 yards a play, I believe the odds of getting a turnover on a drive drastically increases.
5. Continued Improved Special Teams Play: Last week Colton Lichtenberg returned, and it was like all of the special teams woes vanished. He hit all his XP’s, a field goal, and the defense forced two blocks. Would love to see BC’s special teams continue to be a position of strength, heck I would kill for them to just be serviceable and not a liability week in and week out.

Beer of the Week:

Golden City IPA: Down The Road Brewery. Another great local Massachusetts brewery that seemingly has hit the scene hard in 2018. Can find a lot of their beers at packies in Massachusetts, and they have a series of IPAs that are definitely worth a spin. I picked the Golden City IPA because it is definitely the tastiest of their collection.

Absolutely Necessary Rap Song Of The Week

Mos Def: Mathematics. One of the most underrated lyricists of all time, Mos is someone to check out if you like complex word schemes over hot beats. It’s going to be simple mathematics on Saturday if BC does what it needs to do against Louisville.

AJ’s Power of Positivity Thought Of The Week:

I seriously have watched this GIF over a 100 times and it doesn’t get old. Now just remember this, that Louisville defense quit on Petrino last year, this defense is even worse. Even without AJ Dillon BC should get some primo points against this hapless squad. Maybe a big play by Tommy Sweeney, a bonkers interception by Lukas Denis. There are options here. GET READY.

Also...the uniforms are going to be as the kids say hella tight

Pregame Food Of The Week-

Donuts: Now you could go to Dunkin Donuts and get their garbage pail variety, or you could stop at a real bakery and get some of that Don Perignon sweets. There are a ton of bakeries in Boston that have great donuts, I loved getting them from Kanes in East Boston (but I think they are gone now).

Staff Predictions (COACH! got a point, predicting a close NC State win).

Prediction Poll: What do you think will happen?

WHAT ARE YOU PREDICTING?? LEAVE YOUR PREDICTIONS IN THE COMMENTS BELOW

Superfan Thermometer: 3/10.

Louisville looks like a complete trainwreck, why does this still make me nervous? This is the feelings I’ve learned to accept under the current Steve Addazio reign at Boston College. No win is a gimme, no game ever easy. Let’s just hope that this will be one of those games where they get the home cooking going early, get the crowd into it, and pull a game off like they did against the Florida State Seminoles last year. S

Plugs: Make sure to follow all of us on Twitter. The main site account is @BCInterruption, AJ Black is @BCHysteria, Eric Hoffses is @EJHoffses, Rich Rapp is @RichRapp, Patrick is @choppintoppin, and Grant is at @Salzano14. Follow us on Facebook for updates, and our new Instagram account is definitely a must follow as well.

Podcast: Due to scheduling conflicts Eric and AJ were unable to put together a podcast this week. Hopefully we will get one up before tomorrow.

GO EAGLES!