Addazio optimistic Dillon can go
Eagles will need RB with No. 2 Clemson in town Saturday
Boston College coach Steve Addazio sounded cautiously optimistic that dynamic tailback AJ Dillon will be available Saturday night when No. 2 Clemson visits Alumni Stadium for an ACC Atlantic Division showdown.
Dillon rushed for 96 yards and a touchdown before reaggravating an ankle injury on a play out of bounds in the third quarter of the Eagles’ 31-21 win at Virginia Tech last Saturday.
BC NOTEBOOK
“I saw him bouncing around with a good smile on his face,” Addazio said yesterday during his weekly press briefing at Conte Forum. “He’s dinged up and it is what it is, that’s not going to significantly change one way or the other.
“The question becomes how well he can handle that. But I would assume with these kinds of injuries you are not going to feel exactly the way you should feel until you get to a bowl game in a few weeks.”
Dillon first suffered the injury in the second half of BC’s win over Temple on Sept. 28 and missed consecutive starts against North Carolina State and Louisville.
Dillon, the ACC preseason Player of the Year, returned to form with 149 yards and a touchdown in the Eagles’ home win over Miami on Oct. 26.
“I think this is ongoing and I think a fair question would be does he feel good enough at game time to play on it?” Addazio said.
NAtIONAL ExPOSuRE
BC (7-2, 4-1) jumped from No. 22 to No. 17 in the Associate Press Top 25 thanks to the win in Blacksburg, Va.
The Eagles’ improved status and the presence of unbeaten Clemson (9-0, 6-0) were enough to lure ESPN’s “College GameDay” to The Heights for a live broadcast Saturday (9 a.m. to noon). The show is hosted by Rece Davis alongside regulars Lee Corso, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, David Pollack and Maria Taylor.
“It will bring a tremendous focus to our campus, to Boston College and to our program,” Addazio said. “That’s always a great honor and a great opportunity and I expect the atmosphere here will be exceptional.”
GameDay’s visit could be a good omen despite BC being pegged a huge underdog. The last time the show visited Chestnut Hill was on Oct. 3, 2009, when the Eagles beat Florida State, 28-21.
LAwRENCE tOuGH tESt
In six previous contests against Clemson, Addazio has game planned against quarterbacks Tajh Boyd, Deshaun Watson and Kelly Bryant, all dual threat quarterbacks.
Freshman starter Trevor Lawrence could be the most effective passer Addazio has seen in the Clemson pipeline. Since taking the job from Bryant, Lawrence has completed 123-of-188 passes with a league best 18 touchdowns and the top pass efficiency ranting (163.0).
“This guy is going to be a first-round draft pick,” Addazio said. “This guy is certainly an elite guy by their standards.”