Last one of the year.
Eight wins for the first time since Randy Moss was still a Patriot would be quite a big stepping stone for the program into 2025. While Al Michaels tried to give us his best John Tamasse impression and sabotage the biggest game of the year with a bombshell a couple days before, this should be a real good ballgame.
Here are the three biggest things I think BC needs to do or have happen in order to win and finally end that 15-year drought...
1. Protect the football
Forecast is raw, wet and therefore probably sluggish on a grass field. Turnover battle will obviously be critical, but even more so if conditions are bad. It seems like most of the terrible stuff will be gone before the game, but with a young defense (especially in the back end) and Nebraska having some legitimate wide receivers, you can't give them extra possessions. We've seen how good BC can be when they take care of the ball and play straight up, but if they're chasing the Cornhuskers because of a few sloppy fumbles or picks, it could be an ugly afternoon.
2. Give us all the running backs
Kye, Turbo, Datrell, someone I didn't even know who was on the roster. I don't care who it is, but this should be a heavy, heavy run game for BC. Nebraska's offense only averages 23.8 points per game, so if you can not only kill clock but also put 7's up, it might be tough for Nebraska to hang around. This should be a Kye breakout game of sorts. Not that we don't know what he's capable of, but I'm talking like 150+ yards on 25 carries with 2 touchdowns type of day. If not him, then that type of stat line combined for a couple guys. Let Grayson cook off play action, but BC should be pounding it down Nebraska's throat for 2-3 hours.
3. Grayson's just gotta win the duel
With Ozzy being out and Dylan Raiola posing problems on the other side - especially with his legs - Grayson may need to put the team on his shoulders late. Now, the running game obviously makes his life easier, but if this one turns into a shootout and Grayson doesn't get a ton of protection, he might have to show that underrated mobility and make some throws on the run. This won't be the ultimate determining factor as to whether or not he's QB1 next year (I think it's his job to lose over Lonergan), but a stellar perfomrance that ends with win No. 8 could go a long way in cementing his place with this team for 2025.
Bonus Key: Pass rush without Ezeiruaku - Obviously it's a massive loss and BC has struggled at times with mobile QB's, so it's on guys like Q Hutchins and Neto Okpala to create some havoc up front. It'll be very interesting to see which young guys get a shot to go get the QB too. I'm expecting a breakout showing from Josiah Griffin and maybe a couple others.
Prediction: BC 34, Nebraska 28 (OT) - Ending off on a high note, James leads a game winning drive to open OT and then the defense gets a stop. I refuse to keep saying a game will come down to special teams because if it finally happens in THIS game and things go poorly I'll be so pissed. Anyway, I think it's sluggish for a while, sort of a feel-out game early on. Things pick up in the second quarter, we have some more lulls in the third and then a frantic finish sets up OT. Looking forward to seeing a bunch of you down there tomorrow! I'll be hitting the road from Waltham around 5:30 AM.
