CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Boston College will try to open the season 3-0 for the second straight year when it hosts Kansas in a non-conference affair Friday night. After getting past Virginia Tech in their season and ACC opener, the Eagles were untested in a 45-13 dismantling of Richmond on Saturday.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, ACC Network. LINE: Boston College -21.5
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Junior AJ Dillon ran for 86 yards and two touchdowns as part of a 346-yard effort on the ground for Boston College, which also forced a pair of turnovers and is tied for first among FBS teams with a plus-6 turnover margin. "We have a huge focus on getting the ball out and creating turnovers and I told you before, we are big into the daily double," coach Steve Addazio told reporters Monday. "The daily double is you want to win the explosive battle and you want to win the turnover battle." Nearly at the other end of that category are the Jayhawks, who have five more giveaways than takeaways thus far after coughing it up twice and finishing with just 280 total yards in a 12-7 home loss to Coastal Carolina on Saturday. "I'm not happy," first-year coach Les Miles told reporters after the game. "This is not how I saw it going. This is not how our team saw it going. Our guys played with their hearts on their sleeves and did everything they could possibly do to win this game."
ABOUT KANSAS (1-1)
Sophomore running back Pooka Williams Jr. was one of the few bright spots on last year's 3-9 team with 1,125 yards and seven TDs on the ground, and he was a welcome sight Saturday after missing the opener due to a suspension. Williams had 99 yards on 22 carries versus Coastal Carolina, although he was upstaged a bit by senior Khalil Herbert, who amassed 82 yards on just eight carries, including a 41-yard TD less than four minutes into the game for the Jayhawks' only score. Senior Carter Stanley threw for just 107 yards with a pair of interceptions after a solid opener in a win over Indiana State.
ABOUT BOSTON COLLEGE (2-0)
Dillon had zero receptions during his monster freshman campaign and only eight as a sophomore, but he is becoming more of a factor in the passing game and had a career-high 54 receiving yards against Richmond. "Honestly, he's been working at it every single day," quarterback Anthony Brown told reporters after the win. "When I say every day, I actually mean every day. So I feel his confidence is just through the roof. He feels like he can catch anything." Brown has five TD passes with zero interceptions through the first two games.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Eagles WR Zay Flowers has 117 yards and a TD on the ground and 91 yards with one score through the air.
2. WR Andrew Parchment leads the Jayhawks with 11 catches and 135 receiving yards.
3. This will be the first meeting between the programs.
PREDICTION: Boston College 37, Kansas 17