Boston College 48, Army 27: Andre Williams Dominates as Eagles Roll

Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

Boston College Eagles senior running back Andre Williams had one of the best individual rushing performances in Eagles history as his team defeated the Army Black Knights, 48-27, in Chestnut Hill on their Homecoming Saturday afternoon.

Williams tied Montel Harris’s single-game record of five rushing touchdowns and fell one yard short of tying Harris’s rushing record with 263 total yards.

With the win, the Eagles improve to 3-2 (1-1) on the season, exceeding their 2012 win total with over half the season remaining.

Early on, it became apparent that the offenses were going to dictate the pace of the game. Army scored a field goal on their opening possession, and on the following drive, Boston College’s Alex Amidon stayed on his feet and turned a short gain into a 68-yard burst. With Dave Dudeck tallying the first Boston College score of the afternoon, the Eagles would go on to score touchdowns on their first four possessions.

Army stunned the Eagles with a flea-flicker on their second drive to retake the lead at 10-7, but Boston College’s offense, led by a mammoth performance from Andre Williams, continued overwhelming the undersized Army defensive front. The Eagles would go on to add a field goal at the half to take a 31-20 lead into the break.

Save for one defensive breakdown which led to an 80-yard Army touchdown early in the half, the Eagles defense held stronger after halftime. Boston College outscored Army 17-7 in the second half, en route to 523 total yards of offense for the day. Army finished with 427.

The Eagles defense has many things which still need to be fixed, and there were times they handled the option very poorly, but Boston College’s talent superiority eventually won. That was always the case when the Eagle offense was on the field, as Army looked simply unable to stop whatever plays Boston College ran. 48 points in just 25:21 time of possession helps tell the story of how quickly and often the Eagles were able to strike.

The breakdowns on the flea-flicker and the 80-yard Army run will be frequent sources of angst for the defense in their film sessions this week. So will the penalties, of which Boston College took several of the procedural variety. Neither team turned the ball over in this high-scoring contest.

Next week, the Eagles travel to South Carolina for a top-five battle against the Clemson Tigers.