Wake Forest at Boston College: BC Offense vs. WF Defense

Boston College Offense vs. Wake Forest Defense: Unit Matchups

• Boston College offensive line vs. Wake Forest defensive line. Wake Forest runs a base 3-4 defense and all three of their defensive linemen are seniors. All of them were very close to being equal in terms of production last season, with DE Zach Thompson leading this bunch with 52 tackles and four sacks. DT Nikita Whitlock, however, is a preseason All-ACC player. This group outmatched their Presbyterian counterparts on Saturday as expected.

Boston College’s offensive line had a few breaches against Villanova but played well enough to win. The Eagles have a size advantage over the Wake Forest defensive line, which ranges from 250 to 275 pounds.

In their 2012 meeting, Wake Forest held BC to only 12 rushing yards and sacked Chase Rettig three times.

• Boston College rush offense vs. Wake Forest rush defense. Last year, it was ugly for the Eagles as previously described, though BC passed instead of ran at almost a 5:2 ratio. The Eagles didn’t quickly abandon the run in the 2012 meeting: they didn’t even start with it as they came out firing all the way. BC had statistically one of the worst rushing offenses in the country last year and Wake’s run defense was in the middle of FBS. The Eagles are going to run the ball against Wake Forest this time, as is Steve Addazio’s wont, but will need to mix in different looks and play action to be successful. The Deacs’ run defense is not the best they will see in the ACC and BC has a size advantage up front; Wake Forest does have senior leadership in both the defensive line and linebacking corps.

• Boston College pass offense vs. Wake Forest pass defense. Boston College had 369 passing yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions against Wake last season. They held Rettig to a low passer rating and sacked him several times. Wake Forest was barely challenged by Presbyterian last week, while Boston College had a reasonable time moving the ball through the air against Villanova. The Eagles boast one of the better wide receivers in the ACC with Alex Amidon, but also got fullback Bobby Wolford heavily involved in the passing game.

Wake Forest has a starting secondary of mostly upperclassmen, though their depth is quite young. In terms of passing, the Eagles will almost certainly give a few more looks offensively to the Deacs than they did against Villanova, and definitely more than they did last season.

Boston College Offense vs. Wake Forest Defense: Evaluation

The Eagles should be able to move the football a little better than they did against Villanova, because of the likelihood that they’ll vary their gameplan a bit more, and probably also better than they did against Wake Forest last year. Boston College still has a very good combination in Rettig-to-Amidon and appear to have a serviceable running back tandem with Andre Williams and Dave Dudeck. Wake Forest, on the other hand, has six senior starters here and a preseason all-ACC player. Both sides have playmakers and there is not one specific determining rationale for putting one ahead of the other. Wake Forest’s defense had a good day against the Eagles last year, but the Eagles are probably going to be a little more diverse offensively this year and Chase Rettig continues to look composed. Toss-up.