Football set for Big East title fight

It's all come down to this, and it's arguably the biggest game in head coach Tom O'Brien's tenure.

Like most of the preseason predictions, the Big East has come down to this Saturday's meeting between Boston College and West Virginia in Morgantown, W.Va. The winner will have a stranglehold on the race for the Big East title and the BCS bowl bid, and the loser will be left hoping Notre Dame doesn't grab the Big East's spot in the Gator Bowl.

"It's the one we had circled out. We don't want to overlook any games, but everybody knew that this would probably be the deciding game," said redshirt freshman cornerback DeJuan Tribble, who made his first career start last week against Rutgers.

Getting to this point hasn't been pretty for the Eagles. BC stands at 6-2, ranked 21st in both polls but has won ugly games against Ball State, Massachusetts, and Rutgers. The two losses, at Wake Forest and Pittsburgh, were games the Eagles gave away with mistakes and missed opportunities. But how the Eagles got here doesn't matter. All that matters is that they're here with their destiny in their own hands.

"We're in a really good position," said senior quarterback Paul Peterson. "We obviously lost those two games that hurt us, but to be able to lose those two games and still be in the position that we're in is awesome. I don't think anyone's taking that for granted. Everyone wants to accomplish the team goals that we've set."

Lately, Morgantown, West Virginia's home, has been a house of horrors for BC. The Eagles have not won there since Jack Bicknell was still coach in 1990, and BC will look to break a streak of six-straight losses at West Virginia. With BC headed to the ACC, the fans in Morgantown won't be any easier on the Eagles this time.

"Morgantown's been a place that's been difficult for us to play and difficult for us to win," said senior tight end David Kashetta. "They've had some really good teams when we've been there and they've took it to us a little bit."

West Virginia is BC's toughest opponent so far this year. The Mountaineers are 8-1, undefeated in conference play, and ranked 13th in the AP Poll and 10th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Their only misstep was a 19-13 loss at Virginia Tech, and West Virginia has blown by opponents with an average of 34.8 points and 418.1 yards-per-game.

The match-up between the Eagle rush defense and the Mountaineer rush offense is the most intriguing. West Virginia is currently ranked fourth in the nation with 258.9 rushing yards per game. The Mountaineers can attack from many angles. Running backs Kay-Jay Harris and Jason Colson have combined for 1,349 yards on the ground, Harris (708 yards, nine rushing touchdowns) who has battled injuries, will be healthy for the game.

"He's 6'1", 245 lbs. and he runs like he's 220 [lbs.]. He's a really good back and you've got to hit him," said senior defensive tackle Tim Bulman. "When you're coming to tackle him, you better bring your feet or else you're going to be on the sidelines not knowing what state you're in."

Quarterback Rasheed Marshall adds another dimension to the West Virginia running attack. He's used his legs for 586 yards and three touchdowns. The defense never knows when he will take off and gain big yards. This is something that has plagued BC this year and in the past. Both losses this season came against mobile quarterbacks, Cory Randolph of Wake Forest and Tyler Palko of Pittsburgh, who could break the pocket and turn broken plays into big plays.

"He can run and he can pass," said Bulman. "It's got to help a team when you can have a quarterback who can run just as good as your running back and averages over four yards a carry. He's definitely going to be on the [defensive] line's mind to contain, and just make him stay in the pocket and do what a quarterback does."

BC knows it will have to stop the run this weekend, and few teams come in better prepared to do so. The Eagles lead the Big East in total defense, giving up 295.4 yards-per-game, including only 96.8 rushing yards-per-game. The defense has been near-dominant at times and will need to be on top of its game this week.

"It's going to be tough for us, but I think we'll be all right. We've been doing pretty well against the run so far this year so hopefully we can keep that up," said junior linebacker Ray Henderson.

Unlike in years past, the opportunity is here for the Eagles to win the conference. If they take care of their business on the field in the next three weeks, they will win the first Big East Championship in program history.

Junior offensive tackle Jeremy Trueblood said, "As a football player you've got to understand when your opportunity to seize the moment is, and that's this week for us."