Boston College Eagles – November 19th, 2011 3:00 CT, NBC at Notre Dame Stadium
Head Coach – Frank Spaziani
Career Record – 19-18
- 1-0 in one season at Boston College (2006) coached bowl game only
- 18-18 in three seasons at Boston College (2009 – 2011)
2010 Season (7-6)
| Opponent | W/L | BC | OPP |
| Weber State | W | 38 | 20 |
| Kent State | W | 26 | 13 |
| Virginia Tech | L | 0 | 19 |
| Notre Dame | L | 13 | 31 |
| at North Carolina State | L | 17 | 44 |
| at Florida State | L | 9 | 24 |
| Maryland | L | 21 | 24 |
| Clemson | W | 16 | 10 |
| at Wake Forest | W | 23 | 13 |
| at Duke | W | 21 | 16 |
| Virginia | W | 17 | 13 |
| at Syracuse | W | 16 | 7 |
| KRAFT FIGHT HUNGER BOWL | |||
| Nevada | L | 13 | 20 |
SERIES FACTS
The Fighting Irish lead the series 11-9.
STRENGTHS
- The will to be known as the Catholic school that plays football – Ever since dashing the national title hopes of the Irish back in 1993, the Boston College Eagles have enjoyed success against Notre Dame. At one point they defeated the Irish six consecutive games. They have won 7 of the last 10 versus the Fighting Irish.
- Road Weary but Road Tested – The Eagles have played in two very hostile environments this year so far – at Clemson and at Virginia Tech. They were hammered in both of those games. In order to win this game though, they are going to have to perform much better than previously.
- Momentum – Boston College won last week against the North Carolina State Wolfpack. This might spark the Eagles to bigger and better things in South Bend. A win against the Irish would salvage this season somewhat for the Boston College Eagles.
WEAKNESSES
- Anemic Passing Attack – The Eagles are ranked 105th nationally passing for only 164.2 yards per game. Sophomore quarterback Chase Rettig has completed 139 passes out of 262 attempts. He has thrown 9 td passes, 9 interceptions, and gained 1,588 yards through the air.
- Woeful Scoring Average Offensively – Boston College is ranked 114th nationally with an average of 18 points per game. You simply don’t win many football games doing that. In the ten games they have played, they have had five games where they scored 14 points are less.
- Inadequate Rushing attack – B.C. is averaging 133.8 yards per game on the ground. Their leading rushers are Rolandan Finch with 577 yards on 129 rushing attempts, and Andre Williams has rushed for 466 yards on 108 carries. All three weaknesses must improve.
GAME ANALYSIS
Notre Dame will win this game by a wide margin of points. I think Boston College head coach Frank Spaziani is on the hottest of hot seats. A win against N.D. would certainly help his position. As anemic as his offense is though, I just don’t see any offensive explosions. The Eagles might give the Irish a game for a quarter, but that will be it. Spaziani is 19-18 as the Boston College coach. How much longer will the B.C. faithful put up with a .500 coach? The offense has been so bad that there is no way that they will be able to right the ship overnight. Another bad loss occurs.
The Fighting Irish will not be looking ahead to Stanford. This is a big game against the B.C. Eagles. Irish head coach Brian Kelly will not allow the team to become complacent this weekend. However, that being said, this team killed itself this year with the turnovers in the three losses. The Irish should have beaten both South Florida and Michigan. The Southern California game was very winnable as well. A win this weekend and an upset versus Stanford could boost the Fighting Irish into a decent bowl game. I look for the Irish to do just that.
PREDICTION
On Senior Day for the Fighting Irish players against the Boston College Eagles, I look for Brian Kelly’s team to roll big in this seasons home finale. Look for Michael Floyd to go out on a big note. The same for Jonas Gray in the rushing attack.
NOTRE DAME 38
BOSTON COLLEGE 18
About MadIrish
