Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 7, 2026 41 GAME PREVIEW: BOSTON COLLEGE BY JACK SOBLE BOSTON COLLEGE RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE Boston College's run game is quarterback-driven to an extent that you don't often see with a non- option team. Senior quarterback Mason McKenzie led the Eagles with 614 rushing yards on 119 carries through Week 8, 321 yards and 54 attempts more than Boston College's leading running back, senior Evan Dickens. We should note, however, that 41 of those attempts for McKenzie were scrambles. That number led the entire country, entering the final week of October. Notre Dame's game plan against BYU signal-caller Bear Bachmeier incorrectly marked him as a major scramble threat (he had 7 scramble attempts en- tering Oct. 17), but McKenzie is someone the Irish should scheme to contain. He's the primary reason the Eagles' run game is firmly middle of the pack, sitting at 47th nationally with 4.75 yards per carry. As for the rest of the backfield, Dickens is out for the season with a knee injury. In his absence, Bos- ton College turned to sophomore Bo MacCormack III. He rushed 20 times for 155 yards and 3 touch- downs in the Eagles' 49-27 win over Georgia Tech, in which they totaled 399 yards on the ground. The zone read, as you might expect, is central to what BC does. With an average run-blocking offensive line, the run threat that McKenzie pro- vides is critical for creating space. The Eagles will often pull a tight end around to lead the way for McKenzie when he keeps it, which means if your backside edge rusher crashes, the defense can be left badly exposed. If Notre Dame's defensive ends stay home, how- ever, the talent in its front seven should outmuscle Boston College's blockers and bottle up the shifty backfield duo. The Irish entered Week 9 tied for third nationally in opponent yards per carry at 2.39. Advantage: Notre Dame BOSTON COLLEGE PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE According to Pro Football Focus, McKenzie is the Power Four quarterback pressured most of- ten with 96 pressured drop-backs through seven games. Part of that is his play style; McKenzie holds the ball for an average of 3.07 seconds, the eighth-longest average in the Power Four. Still, the Eagles' offensive line has not protected him well enough to feel good about their chances against Notre Dame. BC's pass catchers haven't caught passes at a high enough rate, with 10.1 percent of McKenzie's passes being dropped, which ranked fifth among qualified Power Four quarterbacks. The loss of Reed Harris, who transferred to Ari- zona State and has 800 yards and 8 touchdowns already this season, hurts. So does losing Kaelan Chudzinski, the tight end on Blue & Gold Illus- trated's preseason All-Opponent Team, to a torn Achilles in July. Chudzinski caught 24 passes for 313 yards as a true freshman in 2025, and he was expected to break out. In their place, junior wide receiver Javarius Green, a transfer from North Carolina, led the Eagles with 26 receptions for 286 yards through Week 8. BC's tight end production is on par with Notre Dame's, which is to say, minimal. As for McKenzie himself, he's had some produc- tive games after transferring from Saginaw Valley State (most notably, 295 yards on 28 attempts in a win over Pitt Oct. 17). However, avoiding negative plays has not been his strength. Through seven games, he's thrown 7 interceptions and taken 17 sacks. McKenzie can throw a pretty ball when the con- ditions are right. But when they're not, his first instinct is to scramble. McKenzie will drop his eyes and look to run at the first sign of pressure, or when his first read is not open. It's important that the Irish contain him when he does, but they can't lose sight of disrupting him in the pocket, either. Fifth-year right tackle Kristian Phillips has al- lowed a whopping 22 pressures this season, and sophomore center DJ Williams has allowed 13. This is a game in which senior defensive end Bou- bacar Traore and junior nose tackle Francis Brewu should feast. Advantage: Notre Dame NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. BOSTON COLLEGE RUN DEFENSE Boston College allows 4.04 yards per carry, which is tied for 72nd nationally. Much of its run- stuffing efforts stem from junior linebacker An- thony Palano, who leads the Eagles with 60 tackles and 7.5 tackles for loss. His 26 run stops (tackles against the run that result in a failure for the of- fense) rank third in the Power Four, behind only Indiana's Isaiah Jones and Wisconsin's Mason Posa. For reference, the next-most run stops on the team come from senior safety KP Price, who has On PaPer Senior quarterback Mason McKenzie led Boston College with 614 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns on 119 carries through seven games. PHOTO COURTESY BOSTON COLLEGE