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It was all treats for Boston College Saturday, as the Eagles (6-3) dispatched Central Michigan (7-2), 31-10. The Eagles were able to completely shut down the Chippewas and gain bowl eligibility a week after a devastating loss to Notre Dame.
The game certainly didn't start off pretty for either team. The Eagles had possession of the ball for only 4:21 in the first quarter, amassing only 39 yards on 11 plays. Central Michigan, on the other hand, drove for 105 yards on 27 plays, but was held scoreless by the Eagle defense.
The majority of the second quarter was similar to the first: a-back and-forth affair with neither team able to finish drives. The Chippewas drew first blood, as Andrew Aguila connected on a 34-yard field goal with 6:09 to play in the quarter.
BC responded quickly, as Dave Shinskie connected with Rich Gunnell over the middle for 29 yards, setting up the Eagles at the Central Michigan 12. Two plays later, Montel Harris punched his way into the end zone from three yards out to give BC a 7-3 lead going into halftime.
The Eagles picked up right where they left off in the second half. After overthrowing a wide open Colin Larmond, Jr. in the middle of the field, BC ran the same play, but this time with a different result: Shinskie connected with Gunnell for a 41-yard touchdown just three minutes into the quarter, putting BC up 14-3.
After a three-and-out by Central Michigan, the BC offense stayed hot. A 36-yard reception by Harris gave the Eagles a first-and-10 situation at the Chippewas' 14-yard-line. This time it took four plays, but Harris once again forced his way into the end zone from three yards out, putting the Eagles up 21-3.
The ensuing extra point was incredibly significant for Steve Aponavicius, as the point after put the kicker on top of the all-time scoring list for BC, with a total of 263 career points.
"It's awesome," Aponavicius said following the game. "It was something I knew I had a chance at going into the year, and it was really special. I'm happy I was able to do it. I knew that was the one, and I was just mad that the one before that got blown and hit the upright. I was just trying to kick it right down the middle. My goal was just to make it look good."
Aponavicius increased his career points lead the very next time the Eagles got the ball, kicking an 18-yard field goal with 1:44 left in the third quarter.
After some back-and-forth action in the fourth quarter with neither team able to find the end zone, true freshman Luke Kuechly sealed the game with five minutes to play, snagging a leaping interception off of Central Michigan quarterback Ryan Radcliff, then returning the ball 28 yards for the touchdown, pushing the Eagles lead up to 31-3.
"It (felt) pretty neat," Kuechly said of the interception return for the score. "It was the first time that I had ever done it, so it was pretty cool. I didn't have too many interceptions in high school."
The Chippewas would get the final score of the game, as Radcliff was able score on an 11-yard quarterback draw with 35 seconds left in the game for a final score of 31-10.
Gunnell followed a career day last Saturday in South Bend with another impressive performance, pulling in eight balls for 134 yards and a touchdown. Shinskie put together a solid day in the air, going 18 of 28 for 262 yards and a touchdown. Harris had another big day on the ground, bouncing back from a disappointing performance last week, ending the day with 136 yards and two touchdowns on the ground with another 37 yards receiving.
"I kept thinking about the [Notre Dame] game all week," Harris said. "I kept thinking about the fumbles up until today. It's hard to sleep, and you don't want to worry about it too much, but I did. I felt the game was in my hands and I lost it. I just wanted to prove that I could hold onto the ball and perform."
Despite the win, head coach Frank Spaziani still feels that the team can and should perform better. "People ask me, 'are you happy at 6-3?' Well. no," Spaziani said. "We think we should be 9-0. That's how we play. We practice, that's our goal, to win one game at a time every week. We're just not satisfied, and we can't be. You can never be."
For a team still hungry to end up in ACC championship game in Tampa, the only thing standing in their way is three conference games following this week's bye. Winning those games coupled with a Clemson loss would send the Eagles back in the title game for the third straight year.
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