Boston College vs. Louisville: Eagles Open As A 2.5-Point Home Underdog

ACC newcomers Louisville (6-3, 4-3 ACC) will travel to the Heights this Saturday to take on the Boston College Eagles (6-3, 3-2 ACC) in a matchup of two of the top defenses in the nation (statistically, anyway). Early lines suggest a tightly contested contest under the Alumni Stadium lights (7:15 p.m., ESPN2).

According to the Wynn Las Vegas, the Eagles open as a 2.5-point home underdog for this weekend's matchup.

Louisville enters the game with a 6-3 record, coming off a 42-31 loss to Florida State last Thursday night. The Cardinals first season in the conference has strangely mirrored Boston College's to date. Both put a scare into Clemson but came up just short in the final minute. Both are 1-1 against the Coastal Division, and both took care of business against the bottom half of the Atlantic Division, albeit in somewhat uninspiring fashion.

Boston College is riding high, currently riding its second winning streak of the season (and first against FBS opponents). Having punched its bowl eligibility ticket this past weekend with a 33-31 victory over Virginia Tech, the Eagles will be looking to improve on their eventual bowl destination with three more games left in the season -- two games against teams in the top half of the Atlantic Division.

Perhaps it's how BC has be playing of late. Perhaps it's the home field advantage wrapped up in a November Alumni Stadium night atmosphere. Probably a little of both, but a surprising amount of respect given to the Eagles with this early line. In other words, if you got Boston College +15 vs. Louisville before the season began, congratulations.

Let's hope the team comes out firing on all cylinders and extends their current winning streak to three this Saturday night.

Other week 11 lines of note ... it's the week of the ACC road favorite:

-- Clemson is a 20-point road favorite at Wake Forest
-- Georgia Tech is a 5.5-point road favorite at N.C. State
-- Duke is a 3.5-point road favorite at Syracuse
-- Florida State is a 19.5-point home favorite against Virginia