BC doesn’t give a hoot
Eagles hold off Owls despite Dillon injury
Boston College outslugged Temple, 45-35, in a physically grinding nonconference altercation before 40,111 yesterday at Alumni Stadium.
The Eagles improved to
4-1 and will resume ACC play on Satur- day at North Carolina State. The Owls fell to 2-3.
The victory came at a huge cost. Tailback AJ Dillon rolled his left ankle on a sweep with 13:38 to play in the third. Dillon, who was selected the ACC preseason Player of the Year, exited yesterday with 161 yards on 28 carries and two touchdowns.
Wide receiver Jeff Smith, who caught and threw a touchdown pass, retreated to the sideline in the second half with an upper-body injury.
“We just kept battling and guys stepped up and made plays,” said BC coach Steve Addazio. “I thought our team was strong with strong resolve and with Temple I knew this was going to be a tough game.
“I can’t question the toughness of this football team.”
Defensive end Zach Allen and back-up tailback Ben Glines made plays in the fourth quarter that sealed the win. Allen, a preseason All-ACC selection, finished with two sacks to push his career total to 15.5, tying him for ninth on BC’s all-time list. Allen sacked Temple quarterback Anthony Russo on the Owls 38 with 6:30 to play, which effectively extinguished the last hopes for Temple.
“We knew they were passing the ball, you could tell by their set and we had a great rush all the way around,” said Allen.
Glines replaced Dillon and put the game away with a 1-yard plunge on fourth-and-goal with 3:11 to play. Glines, a converted receiver, rushed for 120 yards on 20 carries and, more importantly, moved the chains to help eat the clock in the fourth quarter.
“I pride myself being a gritty type player and I’ll do the dirty work and whatever I can to win games,” said Glines.
Temple outgained BC in total yards (452-423) and passing yards (261-148), while winning the first down battle, 28-24.
Addazio said the Eagles need to clear up some “inconsistencies” in practice as they prepare for their next game.
The most glaring issue on defense has been the inability to get off the field on third down. Purdue converted on 8-of-17 third downs, which ultimately was the difference in the lone BC loss. The Owls converted 10-of-22 third-down attempts and that resulted in long, sustained scoring drives in the second half.
“We have to get off the field and we all know that,” said Addazio. “We have great pass rushers but we had some unbelievable balls thrown on us.”
BC went ahead 38-21 on a gadget play with 9:22 to play in the third. Smith, who started four games at quarterback as a true freshman, ran a reverse option and threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to quarterback Anthony Brown.
Temple cut the lead to 38-28 with 6:31 to play in the third. On fourth-and-5 from the 31, Russo completed a 30-yard pass to Isaiah Wright. Tailback Ryquell Armstead (172 yards) then scored on a 1-yard sweep.
Temple cut the lead to 38-35 with a magnificently orchestrated 14play, 83-yard drive with 9:02 remaining. Armstead completed the trip with a 1-yard sweep for his fourth rushing TD of the game.
BC notes
Safety Lukas Denis, a preseason All-America, was tossed from the game for targeting Temple’s Wright early in the second quarter.
Temple tight end Chris Myarick got run for targeting BC corner Taj-Amir Torres following an interception.
Owls safety Jyquis Thomas got the hook for targeting wide receiver Michael Walker following a 3-yard gain in the third quarter.