WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Boston College and Wake Forest will try to squeeze in an intriguing ACC opener amid the onset of Hurricane Florence when they meet in North Carolina on Thursday night. The storm, a Category 4 hurricane as the week begins, is expected to start impacting the Winston-Salem area as early as Thursday morning, prompting the teams to move the kickoff up two hours to 5:30 p.m. ET.
TV: 5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. LINE: Boston College -5
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"Wake Forest University and the Atlantic Coast Conference office continue to monitor the progress of all weather-related issues as they pertain to athletic events this week," the school said in a statement. "Our top priority is the safety and well being of our student-athletes, coaches, fans and the lives of those in the path of this storm." Both teams will be trying to stay perfect on the young season, and the Eagles are vying for their first 3-0 start since 2007 after routing Massachusetts and Holy Cross by a combined score of 117-35. Star running back AJ Dillon has picked up where he left off from a stellar freshman campaign, rushing for 247 yards and three touchdowns on just 26 carries through the first two games. The Demon Deacons, who won 34-10 at Boston College last year in the conference opener for both teams, rolled past Towson 51-20 last week and is aiming for its third straight 3-0 start.
ABOUT BOSTON COLLEGE (2-0)
Preparing a football team for a long trip into the path of a hurricane and a Thursday night game can make for a different week, but coach Steve Addazio is doing his best to keep his Eagles focused on football. "All these things are in discussion at this point,” Addazio said at his weekly press conference while discussing the storm threat. "I'm not exactly privy to the details, but in my mind, I'm going to play a game on Thursday and prepared for anything that may come our way." The rout of Holy Cross last week allowed Addazio to rest many of his starters (Dillon's 149 yards came in less than a quarter), with quarterback Anthony Brown completing his only two passes before giving way to backups.
ABOUT WAKE FOREST (2-0)
Wide receiver Greg Dortch was the team's leading receiver as a freshman last year despite playing in just eight games, and he has lit up opponents early in his sophomore campaign, first hauling in 12 catches for 149 yards in a win at Tulane and then scoring three times - twice on punt returns - last week. "I may be biased, I think he's the most exciting player in college football," fellow wide receiver Alex Bachman told reporters. "Every time he touches the ball there's a chance something spectacular is going to happen." The 5-9, 170-pound Dortch has 981 all-purpose yards over his last four games dating back to last season.
EXTRA POINTS
1. Demon Deacons freshman QB Sam Hartman has 620 passing yards, four TDs and three interceptions through the first two games.
2. The Eagles produced 598 total yards in the win over Massachusetts and 610 against Holy Cross. Those are the top two total yardage outputs for the team under Addazio.
3. Boston College has won four of its last five games at Wake Forest.
PREDICTION: Boston College 31, Wake Forest 28