(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
Boston College Run Offense vs. Notre Dame Run Defense
The Boston College offense is heavily run-oriented this year, averaging nearly 37 carries per game to 25 pass attempts. The workhorse of the Eagles run game is No. 2 Montel Harris . Harris is averaging 21 carries and 108 yards per game. He's also averaging 5.6 yards per carry and has 10 touchdowns on the season.
Harris is spelled by No. 29 Rolandan Finch and the diminuitive No. 1 Josh Haden . Haden is averaging eight carries and 30 yards per game, while Finch is averaging five carries and 22 yards per.
BC's starting quarterback, No. 15 Dave Schinskie , is not a threat with his legs. However, his backups No. 7 Justin Tuggle and No. 16 Mike Marscovetra are, so look for them to be sprinkled into the game against the Irish. Outside of Tuggle, Marscovetra, and the running backs, no Eagle has recorded a carry. But that doesn't mean BC won't pull out all the stops for this game.
Notre Dame's run defense plays right into Boston College's strengths. An inexperienced front seven for the Irish has given up 136.5 yards per game on the ground this year. All five of Notre Dame's starting defensive backs (counting nickel Sergio Brown ) are among the top nine in tackles for the Irish. Kyle McCarthy leads the team with 54 tackles, 18 more than his nearest competition (fellow safety Harrison Smith ), and 20 more than any member of the front seven (linebacker Brian Smith ).
The Irish have been getting into the backfield, registering 40 tackles for loss in six games, but at this point most Irish fans would settle for more tackles within three yards of the line of scrimmage.
Notre Dame Run Offense vs. Boston College Run Defense
The Irish ground game has vastly improve this year, thanks largely to the hard, downhill running of Armando Allen and Robert Hughes . Allen is averaging 16 carries and 83 yards per game, while Hughes is adding six carries for 29 yards. Both are right around 5.0 yards per carry.
Not to be outdone, Golden Tate is averaging two carries and 16 yards per game, for 7.0 yards per carry. Jonas Gray , Theo Riddick , Dayne Crist , James Aldridge , and LepreCat-QB-of-the-week John Goodman have also made positive contributions to the Irish running game.
Boston College is giving up 117 yards per game on the ground. That's not a good number, but certainly not a bad one either. Freshman linebacker No. 40 Luke Kuechly leads BC with 69 tackles, more than double anyone else on the team. So look for the Irish to run their base counter plays quite a bit to keep this freshman off balance (and to simply keep him away from the play). Kuechly is also second on the team with six tackles for loss. The Eagles are averaging seven TFL per game, so they like to spend time in opponents' backfields.
Boston College Pass Offense vs. Notre Dame Pass Defense
BC's primary quarterback is Dave Schinskie. As a freshman, he's lucky to be able to rely on a solid running game to relieve pressure. As a passer, Schinskie is completing 53.9 percent of his attempts. In an average game, Schinskie will connect on nine of 16 passes for 116 yards. In seven games, Schinskie has nine touchdowns against four interceptions.
Justin Tuggle has struggled as a passer, completing only 13 of his 37 pass attempts with three interceptions to counter four touchdowns. Mike Marscovetra has been slightly more successful in limited action, completing 13 of 20 attempts for two touchdowns and no interceptions.
BC's primary target in the passing game is senior wideout No. 18 Rich Gunnell . Gunnell is averaging three catches and 37 yards per game. If stats are any indicator, No. 10 Colin Lamond is the deep threat to Gunnell's possesion receiver. Lamond is averaging just over two catches per game, but for 53 yards per contest. Lamond also leads the team with four touchdowns. Tight end No. 81 Chris Pantale is averaging close to two catches per game, and he's joined by a slew of players averaging around one catch per game.
It will be interesting to see how the Irish pass defense—surrendering 283 yards per game—will play Boston College and their young quarterbacks. BC runs a base two WR/one RB/one TE offense with either a fullback or a second tight end. They have a variety of players who have caught passes this year, but in essence only two or three primary receivers. With the extra blockers the Eagles keeps in for the run game, it may be most beneficial for the Irish to blanket BC's top two receivers, try their best to get a pass rush with the front four, and accept whatever short checkdowns Schinskie et al. choose to take.
Notre Dame Pass Offense vs. Boston College Pass Defense
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