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✦ ON PAPER BY DAN MURPHY tel Harris, from the team this spring, and the Eagles are still searching for a replacement. Junior Andre Williams averages 66.6 yards per game, but he is questionable this week because of an abdominal injury. The rest of his team averaged only 7.8 yards per game, which puts the Eagles rushing offense at 118th out of 120 Football Bowl Subdivi‑ sion teams nationally. Boston College had only five rushing touchdowns in its BC RUNNING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME RUN DEFENSE Boston College dismissed its all‑time leading rusher, Mon‑ first nine games. That doesn't bode well against an Irish defense that allowed its first running score of the year Oct. 27 against Oklahoma. Notre Dame gave up another touchdown, and 172 yards, to Ray Graham last week. The Irish aren't likely to see an‑ other back as talented as Graham until the season finale in Los Angeles. Advantage: Notre Dame at quarterback. His stats are more impressive than one would expect for a team that just won its first game against a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent in late October. He averages 284.6 yards per game. Rettig's favorite target is junior Alex Amidon, who passed BC PASSING GAME VS. NOTRE DAME PASS DEFENSE Junior Chase Rettig has 31 career starts for the Eagles defensive coordinator Bob Diaco has drawn up a bend‑ don't‑break scheme that has made his defense the 11th most efficient in the country against the pass. Cornerbacks Bennett Jackson and KeiVarae Russell have 44 and 43 tack‑ les, respectively. The first‑year starters have done a good job of limiting yards after the catch. Advantage: Notre Dame the 1,000‑yard mark on the season last week. He has 1,073 receiving yards on 67 catches. Notre Dame lacks a complete lockdown cornerback, but five games. The Irish are 25‑1 when they top 200 yards in the past decade. Senior Theo Riddick leads the team with 610 yards. He established himself as the tough back Notre Dame needed in short‑yardage situations. Senior Cierre Wood has only 85 carries compared to Riddick's 136, but he averaged 6.5 yards per touch in the first two months of the season. Boston College has one of the poorest rushing defenses in the country. Without All‑America linebacker Luke Keuchly NOTRE DAME RUNNING GAME VS. BC RUN DEFENSE Notre Dame ran for more than 200 yards in four of its last manning the middle of the defense, the Eagles give up an average of 235.0 yards on the ground per game. Three of their starting defensive linemen are underclassmen and all but 291‑pound redshirt sophomore tackle Dominic Appiah are undersized. Advantage: Notre Dame to pass only when needed this season, with sophomore Everett Golson throwing for 1,372 yards in his first eight college starts. Golson has done his best work on the road this season, including big games against Michigan State and Oklahoma. Junior wide receiver TJ Jones leads the team with 31 NOTRE DAME PASSING GAME VS. BC PASS DEFENSE Head coach Brian Kelly and his offense have been happy catches for 383 yards and three touchdowns. Senior tight end Tyler Eifert and Riddick allow Notre Dame's passing game to attack multiple parts of the field. They have 28 and 25 receptions, respectively. Boston College was torched two weeks ago by Clemson Sophomore Spiffy Evans has returned seven punts for 221 yards (31.6 yards per attempt), including an 82-yard touchdown runback against Maine, in Boston College's first nine games. wide receiver Sammy Watkins for 200 yards, but otherwise has held its own in the passing game for much of the year. Three of the team's defensive backs have multiple inter‑ ceptions. Fifth‑year senior middle linebacker Nick Clancy, Keuchly's replacement, has broken up a noteworthy eight passes this season. Advantage: Notre Dame return game. Sophomore Spiffy Evans picked up 221 yards on his seven punt returns this year, with 82 of them coming on a touchdown against Maine. He is one of three return‑ ers that give Boston College the best punt return average (25.0 yards a runback) in the country. Redshirt junior Nate Freese is 12 of 14 on field goal at‑ three longer than that, but he is 17 of 23 in his first year kicking field goals. Brindza has been able to make the ones that count most. He hit an important kick late in a win over Oklahoma, a game winner against Purdue, an overtime kick against Pittsburgh and a game‑tying attempt against Stanford. Advantage: Boston College COACHING Any heat on the head coaching seat at Notre Dame has been iced by a strong start from Kelly and his staff, espe‑ ✦ PAGE 5 SPECIAL TEAMS The Eagles best chance for a big play is probably in the PHOTO BY BOSTON COLLEGE cially his group of Iowa imports (Diaco, safeties coach Bob Elliott and cornerbacks coach Kerry Cooks) who are jelling well on defense. Eagles head coach Frank Spaziani had a lot of success as a defensive coordinator earlier in his career, but he has not been able to convert that to the head job. With a new athletic director in office in Chestnut Hill, Spaziani's days appear to be numbered in Boston. Advantage: Notre Dame tempts, but he has missed his only two tries from 40 yards or longer. Notre Dame sophomore kicker Kyle Brindza has made ing wins over then‑No. 10 Michigan State and then‑No. 8 Oklahoma than it has in big games at home this season. Alumni Stadium and its 44,500‑seat capacity will be far less intimidating than either of those venues. The Eagles enter this game without bowl hopes and likely INTANGIBLES Notre Dame looked more comfortable on the road dur‑ with a lame duck coaching staff. But Boston College has spoiled promising Notre Dame seasons in the past. They are playing with nothing to lose and will give the Irish their best shot. Advantage: Notre Dame PREDICTIONS Lou Somogyi: Notre Dame 35, Boston College 6 Jason Sapp: Notre Dame 49, Boston College 6 Wes Morgan: Notre Dame 50, Boston College 10 Dan Murphy: Notre Dame 44, Boston College 13