Bowl picture clears up
Eagles likely bound for Yankee Stadium
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Boston College enhanced its bowl prospects with yesterday’s convincing 42-14 victory over Syracuse before 30,202 in the Carrier Dome.
The two games in play for Boston College are the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium on Thursday, Dec. 27, and the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, on Dec. 28.
BC finished the season 7-5 by winning five of its last six games.
The current leader for the Eagles’ landing spot is the Pinstripe Bowl against a Big Ten opponent because of Louisville’s 44-17 drubbing over Kentucky. Yesterday’s win likely puts the Cardinals and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson in the Sun Bowl.
“Now we are official (and) I think we are a very attractive, hot football team right now,” said BC coach Steve Addazio, who will be in his fourth bowl in five years.
“We are playing at a high level and we have some stars and I’m hoping that we have a great opportunity. But wherever we go will be great.”
The destinations of the ACC’s top dogs, Coastal Division winner Miami and Atlantic Division winner and defending national champion Clemson, will be settled in the conference title game. The ACC champion will likely make the College Football Playoff with the loser likely heading to the Orange Bowl.
If Florida State wins Saturday’s makeup game with Louisiana-Monroe, the Seminoles look good for the TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla.
Wake Forest will likely draw the Belk Bowl in Charlotte, N.C., while Virginia Tech could end up in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Fla. Virginia is a natural for the Military Bowl in Annapolis.
That could put North Carolina State in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., and Duke in the Quick Lane Bowl at Ford Field in Detroit.
Denis denies
Safety and ballhawk Lukas Denis of Everett intercepted Syracuse redshirt freshman Rex Culpepper with 3:27 to play in the second quarter and returned it 46 yards to the Orange 38. Denis’ seventh pick of the season lifted BC’s total to an ACC-leading 18 on the campaign.
That wasn’t the secondary’s only forced turnover. The Eagles went ahead 28-7 on a brilliant collaboration by cornerback Hamp Cheevers and safety Will Harris. Cheevers broke up Culpepper’s lateral to Nykeim Johnson on the Syracuse 30. Harris picked up the ball and dashed through a crowd for the fumble recovery touchdown.
“We know the scheme they like to run, a vertical pass game, so all week we were practicing lining up in the right depth and getting to the right spot,” said Denis.
Call him Ishmael
Syracuse senior wide receiver Steve Ishmael caught 11 passes for a career-high 187 yards from Culpepper, who made his first career start in place of Eric Dungey. Ishmael also set the school’s single-season record with 105 receptions, breaking the old mark of 94 set last year by Amba Etta-Tawo. Ishmael closed out his career as the Orange’s leader in receiving yards with 2,891, eclipsing the old mark of 2,728 by Marvin Harrison.