Old rivals square off at Yankee Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as the Boston College Eagles take on the Penn State Nittany Lions in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.
Boston College logged a 7-5 record this season, the second under head coach Steve Addazio, and the team went an even 4-4 in Atlantic Coast Conference play to finish fourth in the Atlantic Division. The Eagles, took down another long-time rival in Syracuse in their regular-season finale, 28-7, to stop a two-game losing streak and bring a little bit of momentum into this matchup.
BC is appearing in its 24th bowl game (13-10), and this is the second straight year in which the Eagles have participated in the postseason following a three-year drought. Addazio, who led Boston College to a 7-6 record in 2013, was recently given a contract extension through the 2020 season.
"We are honored to be headed to New York City to play Penn State in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. This is the perfect bowl destination for us as so many of our players, their families, our alumni and fans are from the New York metropolitan area," said Brad Bates, Boston College Director of Athletics. "Penn State has one of the greatest traditions in college football and there is quite a history between our two programs. New York is within driving distance of our students and supporters, so we expect a great crowd of fans cheering on the Eagles. This is a wonderful reward for our student-athletes and we could not be more excited."
The fact that Penn State is even in a bowl game this year is a major accomplishment, as the NCAA decided earlier in the season to lift its postseason ban on the school after lauding the Nittany Lions for their compliance to penalties imposed as a result of the Jerry Sandusky sex abuse scandal.
The 2014 campaign, the first under head coach James Franklin, started off positively enough as the team won its first four games. However, Penn State was brought back to reality as it promptly lost four in a row before stopping the bleeding with a 13-7 win at Indiana. That was followed by a 30-13 triumph over Temple, which ironically enough was coached by Addazio prior to him taking the BC job, but that was followed by consecutive defeats against Illinois and Michigan State to close things out.
Still, at 6-6 (2-6 Big Ten), the Lions were offered the opportunity to play in the postseason for the 45th time (ninth-most in the FBS), winning 24 of them (fourth-best). Penn State, which last appeared in the 2012 TicketCity Bowl (a 30-14 loss to Houston) and is making its first trip to New York City since 1947, had all wins from 1998-2011 vacated by the NCAA.
"We are very excited and appreciative to be going to New York City to play in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl," Franklin said. "Penn State has a long and storied bowl history and we look forward to another opportunity to keep our family together. I am so happy for our players, especially the seniors, for this chance to play together one more time. The thing that makes Penn State special is the people, and we can't wait to see our alumni and fans storming New York and filling Yankee Stadium on December 27."
The series between these two northeastern schools dates back to 1949, and features 23 meetings. Penn State won 19 of the first 20, but Boston College has won the last three, the most recent of which taking place on the Eagles' home field on Sept. 11, 2004 (21-7).
This game features one of the nation's top rushing teams (BC, 215.8 ypg) against the No. 1 rushing defense (PSU, 84.8 ypg).
The tandem of QB Tyler Murphy and RB Jon Hilliman spearhead the Boston College attack, with the former not only throwing for more than 1,500 and 11 TDs, but also leading the rushing effort with 1,079 yards and 10 scores. Hilliman has churned out 712 yards and found the end zone 12 times for a team that puts up 25.9 ppg behind a typical output of 383.8 ypg. No pass catcher has more than the 26 grabs for 342 yards and three TDs belonging to Josh Bordner.
The Boston College defense has had its ups and downs this season, but the unit's overall yield of 20.5 points and 313.5 yards per game is certainly respectable. The Eagles gave up at least 30 points three times, but held several opponents in check, including defending national champion Florida State in the penultimate game of the regular season, as the Seminoles managed just 20 points in a three-point victory.
Like Penn State, BC has also stood strong against the run, permitting 95.5 ypg and only 3.1 ypc. Its effort against the pass hasn't been terrible, with foes generating 218 ypg that way, and the Eagles have logged 31 sacks while coming up with a dozen takeaways. Justin Simmons leads the club with 70 tackles and two INTs, and while no player had more than four sacks, Josh Keys was credited with 11.5 of the team's 84 stops behind the line of scrimmage.
Despite throwing for a Penn State sophomore record 2,606 yards, QB Christian Hackenberg had a down year with only eight touchdowns and 15 interceptions. Despite his signal caller's relative ineffectiveness, DaeSean Hamilton had a tremendous rookie campaign in reeling in 75 balls for 848 yards. He did only have one TD catch though. Eugene Lewis tallied 48 receptions for 669 yards and a score, while Jesse James found the end three times on his 35 grabs.
Sophomore Akeel Lynch ran for 603 yards and four TDs, but really came on in the last three games, logging more than half of those yards (318) with three scores. Bill Belton scored six rushing TDs in amassing 518 yards for the Lions.
Penn State put up just 19.8 ppg during the regular season, but allowed only 17.7 ppg. As mentioned, the team's stance against the run is the primary reason it was even competitive most times out, although the effort against the pass was certainly nothing to complain about as foes generated just 185 ypg and only eight TDs through the air.
Senior Mike Hull logged a Big Ten-best 134 tackles this year, and he is just four shy of cracking the top-5 in school history for a single season. Nyeem Wartman was the closest player to Hull, but he is well off the pace set by the All-American linebacker, having logged 64 stops. Anthony Zettel and Deion Barnes have combined for 14 of the team's 30 sacks, while Zettel and Adrian Amos each have three picks.
[SportsNetwork.com]
