2013 AdvoCare V100 Bowl: Boston College Offense

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In several previous seasons prior to this one, Boston College’s offense was offensive, and not in the nice, redundant way.

Game in and game out, the Eagles would struggle to move the football and get any points at all, crashing to near the bottom of the nation.

In 2013, with many of the same faces, the Eagles may not be the hottest offensive team in the nation, but they certainly have one of its best players. When Andre Williams and Boston College take the field for the AdvoCare V100 Bowl, they figure to feature the same gameplan with which they have run all along.

Without question, the face of Boston College football in 2013 has been Williams, who has so far compiled the following resume as an Eagle:

• 2013 Heisman Trophy finalist
• 2013 Doak Walker Award winner
• 2013 consensus All-American
• 2,102 rushing yards this season; BC and ACC records
• 3,664 career rushing yards; BC 3rd all-time
• BC and ACC-record 339 yards in single game
• Five 200+ yard games this season
• Longest rush in BC history (99 yards) in 2012

A lot of it has been Williams, but the offensive line in front of him has been just as good. During the Spaziani era, Boston College went from “O-Line U” to “No-Line U,” with diminishing returns seemingly every year. The pass protection was virtually non-existent and the run game ground to a halt. Now, with the turnaround led by new position coach Justin Frye, Boston College has been able to generate opportunity for Williams, who has taken full advantage. New face Matt Patchan is one of many who have been critical to the Eagles’ success.

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The Eagles have a distinct identity as a power-run team. Boston College previously had no identity as the gameplan was so predictable and ineffective that it would be charitable to call it an offense at all. It is this adoption of a new identity that has put all the heat on the running game, including the offensive line, Williams, and Myles Willis, while taking it away from guys like Chase Rettig and Alex Amidon.

Rettig still throws the football, of course, but with about half the number of attempts that he had in 2012 through the same number of games. When he does throw, there is a high probability that Amidon will be the one catching it. Amidon can still end his Boston College career with two 1,000-yard seasons back-to-back, and he is already the program’s all-time leader in receiving yards. The Rettig-to-Amidon combination –basically the only quarterback-receiver combination Boston College has had for the last two years — has been productive for the Eagles even when the offense at large has not, but this year, they have been a side story compared to Williams.

The net result of all of this has been Boston College moving up to the #69 scoring offense in the nation with approximately 28.4 points per game; a sizable jump from 111th last season when they did not even put up twenty per contest. Given how strong the run game has been this season, it would take a strong opposing effort on defense to slow the Eagles down. In their last game, when Syracuse did halt the rushing attack, Chase Rettig was able to take the team on his back. It’s a nice insurance policy if he could do that again, but the Eagles will hope that Williams will be himself and that his last game in maroon and gold will be a big one against Arizona.