Game Observations: Boston College 26 Duke 6 (Offense)
Boston College won their season opener with a convincing 26-6 victory against Duke on Saturday at Wallace Wade Stadium.
Here is my instant analysis of the performance by the Boston College offense:
* It may sound like hyperbole, but Zay Flowers has all the potential to become one of the most explosive wide receivers in Boston College history. His footwork and agility were on display on two of his catches, and on the long touchdown grab he was all alone. Clearly he is going to be a focal point of the offense this year.
* There were moments where the run offense was a bit worrisome. David Bailey started off strong running outside, but the team seemingly abandoned that on subsequent drives. Duke's defensive line was tough all game. But the worries went away on the final eight minute drive that saw a heavy dosage of Patrick Garwo.
* Speaking of worrisome, the offense was all out of sorts heading into halftime. They had the ball deep in Duke territory twice after turnovers and couldn't punch it home. Want to assume it was just rust, because they looked like a completely different team in the second half in this respect.
* Phil Jurkovec said it himself after the game, he was jittery to start the game and it showed. He was too quick to tuck it and try to run and it made him ineffective. His interception was a pass he should have never thrown, and I'm sure he knows that. After halftime he said he gave himself more time in the pocket which allowed him to make better reads and handle the pressure. The second half of the game was possibly one of the best halves out of a BC quarterback we have seen in a while. He just seemed poised, and made one play after another, throwing for 300 yards in his first start.
* The designed runs with Jurkovec, especially in the second half really showed what he can do if you get him some space. He has the size to lower his shoulder and get a few extra yards.
* The offensive line really started to gel by the second half. They were getting beat up at points in the first half, which may be the rust everyone was talking about, but they kicked it up and were a big reason the offense started clicking. They dominated on that eight minute drive.
* Thought the pair of swing passes to the running backs (Bailey and Travis Levy) were very effective.
* Hunter Long in this new offense is going to be special. The catch he made with a Blue Devil defender draped all over him showed what he is capable of. 7 catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. That is the elite ACC tight end that many have projected.
* In terms of scheme, Frank Cignetti's gameplan should be what Boston College goes for every year. BC is not a spread team, at least not this year, and thankfully the days of running Steve Addazio's ground and pound offense is long gone. Cignetti's game plan is the perfect blend, reminding me a bit of what Green Bay runs in the NFL. This has the potential to be very effective with the weapons that they have.
* The blend of going behind center and using shotgun worked really well in the second half. At times I wished BC used more shotgun looks because it gave Jurkovec a few extra seconds to make a read or decide to tuck and run it. Felt like many of his best passes came from the shotgun formation, but I'd need to rewatch to verify.
* Jaelen Gill was mostly quiet in this game, but would have had a touchdown if there wasn't a personal foul called on Alec Lindstrom. He will get involved, you can see that they are going to try and get him the ball more.