2014 Boston College Football Defense: Stats and Grades
By Joe Micik
Sep 20, 2014; Boston, MA, USA; Boston College defensive lineman Brian Mihalik (99) tries to shed the block of Maine running back Nigel Beckford (40) during the second half at Alumni Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports
2014 Boston College Football Defense: Defensive Line
Considering that the defensive line lost a big producer in DE Mehdi Abdesmad due to injury during the season, and also lost several players who ended up in the NFL, like Kasim Edebali and Kaleb Ramsey, they did fine for themselves. <p>Were the sack numbers as flashy as last year? No. Boston College’s pass rush, which experienced a major renaissance in 2013, was good but not great in 2014. The Eagles still made use of the large number of blitzes, though the unit was thinner in terms of depth than in 2013.</p> <p>Some Eagles, like Brian Mihalik and Kevin Kavalec, had breakout season with 4.5 sacks and 3.5 sacks, respectively.</p> <p>What was truly impressive, and a large part of the reason why they got an A-, was the run defense. Boston College finished with the second-best in the nation; only the Eagles and Michigan State allowed less than 100 yards on the ground this season. They were truly exceptional, and while that is an achievement shared with the rest of the front seven, the defensive line deserves a sizable portion of the credit.</p>. DE/DT. Boston College Eagles. DEFENSIVE LINE . A-
2014 Boston College Football Defense: DL Stats
Boston College’s run defense allowed 94.46 yards per game, second-best in FBS behind Michigan State. The 14 rushing touchdowns they allowed was in the top 20 nationally. Finally, the Eagles gave up an average rush of 3.08 yards, which was 6th-best at this level of college football.
Boston College allowed just 43 rushes of ten or more yards, which was the fifth-fewest allowed by any team this season. The Eagles were one of 21 teams to not allow a rush of at least 50 yards, and only allowed one run in the 40s. The longest rush of the season against Boston College was 43 yards.
The Eagle defensive line helped generate 2.46 sacks per game; this is tied for 38th this season. They also helped get 6.85 tackles for a loss per game; tied for 25th overall.