Another week of college football and another rivalry weekend for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish who host the 4-5 Boston College Eagles this weekend. This will be the 29th all-time meeting between these two schools but the Irish have won the last 10 matchups and are looking to extend that win streak to 11. This is a rivalry that has been dominated by the Irish in recent years, but some fans know what it's like to lose to the Eagles the week after downing the No. 1 team in the country from the state of Florida. This week, Notre Dame looks to avoid the daunted let-down game and handle business inside of Notre Dame Stadium.   

Location: Notre Dame Stadium (Notre Dame, Ind.)
Date: Saturday - November 14
Time: 3:30 PM ET
TV: NBC/Peacock
Line: Notre Dame -30.5; O/U 52.5

Let's kick off our preview of this matchup with an overview look at the Boston College Eagles

Overall Record: 28-30 (5th season)
Record at Boston College: 13-21 (3rd season)

It's been an interesting three seasons for head coach Bill O'Brien in Chestnut Hill. The former NFL coaching vet has an combined record of 13-21 at the helm, but it didn't appear to begin that way in 2024. During his first season, O'Brien and the Eagles surpassed expectations and went 7-6 and played Nebraska in the Pinstripe Bowl. The roster returning in 2025 looked promising, but Boston College limped their way to a 2-10 season making the outlook of their 2026 season rather bleak. 

Shockingly, the Eagles were 2-2 through their first four games and picked up two big wins against Pitt and Georgia Tech in the middle of October. Unfortunately, back to back losses to Duke and Florida State have brought them back down to earth. But this is a much grittier Boston College team than what I had given them credit for in the preseason. This is a team that the Irish can't afford to overlook with a smattering of transfer portal players leading the charge. I believe O'Brien has bought himself another year at the helm with their 4-5 start to the 2026 season. 

Offensive Coordinator: Bill O'Brien
Defensive Coordinator: Ted Roof (1st season)

Rushing: QB Mason McKenzie - 145 att., 676 yards, 4.7 YPC, 5 TD; RB Bo MacCormick III - 74 att., 373 yards, 5.0 YPC, 5 TD; RB Evan Dickens - 65 att., 293 yards, 4.5 YPC, 4 TD; RB Mekhi Dodd - 16 att., 87 yards, 5.4 YPC; RB Nolan Ray - 7 att., 42 yards, 6.0 YPC

Passing: QB Mason McKenzie - 131-229, 57.2%, 1,616 yards, 7.1 YPA, 10 TD, 8 INT, 124.3 Rating; QB Femi Babolola - 3-5, 60%, 49 yards, 9.8 YPA, 142.3 Rating

Receiving: WR Javarius Green - 31 rec., 322 yards, 10.4 YPC, 2 TD; WR Johnathan Montague Jr. - 15 rec., 241 yards, 16.1 YPC, 2 TD; WR Landon Wright - 9 rec., 209 yards, 23.2 YPC, 1 TD; WR Dawson Pough - 13 rec., 204 yards, 15.7 YPC, 1 TD; RB Evan Dickens - 12 rec., 114 yards, 9.5 YPC, 1 TD; WR Jaedn Skeete - 11 rec., 107 yards, 9.7 YPC; RB Bo MacCormick III - 10 rec., 74 yards, 7.4 YPC, TE Kaelan Chudzinski - 4 rec., 54 yards, 13.5 YPC

Tackles: LB Anthony Palano - 76; NB KP Price - 66; S Marcus Upton - 59; S Carter Davis - 45; CB Charlie Comella - 40; DE E'Lla Boykin - 29; LB Bodie Kahoun - 26; DE Demetrius Ballard - 24; CB Max Tucker - 22; LB Kemori Dixon - 21; DE Onye Nwosisi - 20

Tackles For Loss: LB Anthony Palano - 7.5; DE Demetrius Ballard - 7.0; DE E'Lla Boykin - 7.0; DE Onye Nwosisi - 4.0; DE Favor Bate - 3.5; DT Cameron McGee - 3.0; LB Kemori Dixon - 3.0; DT Micah Amedee - 3.0; CB Charlie Comella - 3.0  

Interceptions: CB Charlie Comella - 4; NB KP Price - 3; S Carter Davis - 2; LB Anthony Palano - 2; S Marcus Upton - 1

Boston College has been an interesting team to follow this season. They started off the year going 2-2 with wins over Rutgers and Maine. But a season opening loss to Cincinnati on the road and back to back losses to Virginia Tech and SMU on the road left us wondering the future for O'Brien in Chestnut Hill. The team rallied and beat Pitt and Georgia Tech in back to back weeks coming out of the bye. After mounting a two-game win streak, they dropped back to back games against Duke on the road and Florida State at home.  

Quarterback Mason McKenzie has been a dual-threat, playmaking signal caller for the Eagles offense and with tight end Kaelan Chudzinski back in the line up, their offense might continue putting up points down the stretch with games against Notre Dame, Syracuse and Miami in the near future. Their defense has been a bright spot with first-year defensive coordinator Ted Roof who has generated a very disruptive defense. If they can keep this roster and staff together heading into 2027 and finish this year off with a 6-6 record, they might built some momentum going into next season. 

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