Most Duke fans will notice Boston College’s arrival to the ACC on the basketball court, but the Eagles should make an impact on the gridiron as well.
The Eagles tied for the Big East regular season title last year and defeated North Carolina 37-24 in the Continental Tire Bowl to finish No. 21 in the final AP Poll.
With a quarterback controversy opening the 2004 season, the Eagles decided to redshirt Quinton Porter and start then-senior Paul Peterson. Porter, now in his fifth year at Boston College, started 10 games in 2003 before an injury. The senior is one of 33 preseason candidates for the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award.
“We had a decision to make one year ago, and I think it was best to redshirt one of our quarterbacks,” head coach Tom O’Brien said. “I think [Porter] has much more confidence in his abilities now. He understands what it takes. That comes from being on the field of competition.”
Boston College opens its inaugural ACC campaign ranked No. 22 in the AP, behind three fellow ACC teams—Virginia Tech, Miami and Florida State.
The Eagle offense should be solid behind Porter and a talented trio of sophomore backs. L.V. Whitworth, Andre Callender and A.J. Brooks accounted for 10 of the Eagles’ 12 rushing touchdowns in 2004, and Whitworth and Callender each had over 600 rushing yards. Callender and Brooks were both hampered by injury early in the preseason, but the pair combined for 26 carries in the team’s most recent scrimmage, and all indications are that the three backs will be ready to go for opening kickoff. Whitworth is currently listed as the starting running back for opening night against Brigham Young.
Even with a potentially strong offense, the Eagles could struggle in the ACC. Closing out last season, Boston College allowed 43 points in its final regular season game against Syracuse.
Senior defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka projects to be the Eagles biggest defense threat after notching 11.5 sacks and 67 tackles in his junior year. The 2004 Big East Defensive Player of the Year and 2005 ACC Preseason Player of the Year will have to fight double-teams all season in an effort to strengthen a defense that allowed 309 rushing yards in the loss to the Orange.
“You’ll hope that [Kiwanuka] will take it to the next level. He has trained very hard from the moment he got here back in January, knowing that this was a big year for him,” O’Brien said. “Another year of maturity for someone like him is invaluable. That’s one thing that he’ll have going in his favor.”
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