Duke Football dropped their season opener to Notre Dame, but the Blue Devils look to bounce back with a win over the Boston College Eagles on Saturday.
The Duke Blue Devils are one game in and are already fighting to get back to .500. Granted, their season-opening loss was to ACC newcomer Notre Dame, but nonetheless it was not the start Duke was looking to have to kickoff 2020. Despite losing, there were some things the Blue Devils were able to take from this game.
First, the Blue Devils did not go down without a fight, entering the fourth quarter trailing by just four points. Secondly, Clemson-transfer quarterback, Chase Brice, performed well against the Irish defense, throwing for 259 yards and rushing for a touchdown. Brice finally has his time to prove himself, and so far, he has made the most of this opportunity. Lastly, their defense forced one turnover and was quick to the backfield, picking up three sacks and five tackles for loss.
Duke takes on ACC foe Boston College on Saturday, in what will be the Eagles’ first game of the season. Boston College is coming off it’s fourth losing season in nine years, and has not won more than seven games since the 2009 season. The Eagles enter 2020 with a new head coach, Jeff Hafley, who was recently a co-defensive coordinator for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Despite the departure of A.J. Dillion to the NFL, the Boston College run game should not miss a beat with an experienced offensive line and David Bailey, a junior running back coming off a strong season that saw him rush for over 800 yards and seven scores in a backup role.
While one is kicking off a new era, and another is looking to bounce back, both teams are searching for win number one. Can the Blue Devils make the next step or are the Eagles ready for the challenge?
Here’s how to watch and bet on the Boston College vs Duke game
Date: Saturday, Sept. 19
Start Time: 12:00 p.m. ET
Location: Durham, North Carolina
Stadium: Wallace Wade Stadium
TV Info: ESPN3
Odds: Duke -6, O/U 50.5
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Prediction: This is going to be a very balanced game. Duke’s defense will be stingy but their run game needs to step up from a pathetic performance from a week ago. On the other side, the Eagles’ run game will control the tempo of the game for Boston College. But the ultimate factor that will decide the winner will be the quarterbacks. Notre Dame transfer, Phil Jurkovec, will be QB1 for the Eagles and is ready for a fresh start. However, the combination of a new quarterback with a new coach and offensive system, I have to side with Brice and the Blue Devils. Brice has another good performance and finds the endzone for the first time through the air this season. Duke bounces back with a much-needed win.
Score: Duke 24, Boston College 17
For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.