Texas State vs. Boston College: Odds, Preview & Prediction

Location: Alumni Stadium, Chestnut Hill, MA

Kickoff: Saturday, September 26th 5:00 p.m. CST

TV: ESPN3

Radio: San Marcos: AM 1300, 930 AM, 89.9 FM. Boston: WWEI FM, WEEI-FM 93.7

Series Record: First Meeting

Betting Line: BC -18, O/U: 60

As the college football season is played by ear, we come to a matchup that was made on the fly.

Texas State had two cancellations on their schedule (Ohio & New Mexico State) and in need of another opponent, they got a call from Boston College.

Both schools and programs are the opposite of each other in many ways.

Texas State

Tyler Vitt was given the keys to the offense for the second week in a row and the quarterback turned out a win last Saturday against ULM. Week one starter Brady McBride has been out the last two weeks due to COVID-19 protocol but Bobcat head coach Jake Spavital has left the named starter up in the air.

Depending on the outcome of the game we could see any one of the two, depending on the early portion of the game.

Jeremiah Haydel has turned every game into his own highlight reel garnering attention from former Dallas Cowboy Dez Bryant and Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard. If he can get a couple of big plays Saturday, Boston College will have their hands full. Give him 18 inches of daylight. That’s all he needs (R.I.P. Gale Sayers).

Oklahoma State transfer running back Jahmyl Jeter was given a hardship waiver by the NCAA, which means he can suit up against the Eagles. Along with fellow backs Calvin Hill and Brock Sturges, the Bobcats now have a Cerberus-type rushing attack that would give any defense in the country fits worse than Angelica from Rugrats.

Defensively, the Bobcats succeeded thanks to key stops and turnovers. The BC offensive line has reshuffled significantly and if Texas State can penetrate the backfield, this bunch can cause problems for the QB and running backs like they did against SMU, UTSA and ULM.

Boston College

Despite a slow start against Duke last week, the offense came alive in the second half knocking off the Blue Devils, 26-6.

Quarterback Phil Jurkovec had a solid debut for Boston College going 17/23 for 300 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception.

The former Notre Dame backup got comfortable as the game went on and proved that the BC offense can be potent. If he heats up against a sometimes-porous Texas State secondary, (who has allowed over 900 yards and a 70% completion in three games) the Eagles could be rolling early and often.

Wideout Zay Flowers is Boston College’s main weapon. The sophomore proceeded to pretend the Duke secondary was the bonus car in Street Fighter II and proceeded to smash the Blue Devils for 162 yards and a score.

BC’s defense forced five turnovers last Saturday and had a stellar red zone defense. Despite allowing 351 yards of offense, the defense didn’t give way to more than six points. The Eagles played only two linebackers most of the night while playing more secondary players. They may do the same to Texas State, daring the velocity-deficient Vitt or the wild card McBride to throw on a stacked-and-ready defense.

Prediction

Boston College has a high powered offense and a defense capable of hanging with the best of the ACC I feel like the Eagles media and bookies in Vegas are horribly underwriting the Bobcats. A ground game can control the contest and the ever improving/learning offensive line can open more lanes than a Houston highway for the Hill/Sturges/Jeter/Vitt running attack.

This will be a test for Boston College and an even bigger test for Texas State. But in a year full of the little guy taking down big programs left and right, give me the upset. Texas State 32, Boston College 28.

Fun Facts

• While Texas State has never played an opponent from Massachusetts, Boston College is 9-8 versus teams from Texas.
• Both teams use maroon and gold with BC using PMS 202 and metallic PMS 874 and Texas State using PMS 1817 and metallic PMS 872.