Boston College isn’t staying in its backyard, after all.

Instead of playing in the Fenway Bowl, the Eagles (6-6, 2-6 ACC) will be heading to Annapolis, Maryland to participate in the Military Bowl against East Carolina of the American Athletic Conference.

It’s scheduled for a 2:30 p.m. kickoff at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium on Dec. 27 and will be broadcast on ESPN.

“The Military Bowl is a terrific way for our team to cap off the season, and it’s always a first-class experience provided by Steve Beck and his staff,” BC Athletic Director Pat Kraft wrote in a BCEagles.com statement. “It will be a great homecoming for our players from the DMV, and it is home to so many of our BC alums.”

A total of 13 Eagles on the 2021 roster are from Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C., and associate head coach/defensive backs coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim is a D.C. native.

BC hasn’t played East Carolina before. The Pirates (7-5, 5-3 AAC) are having their best season since 2014, the last time they were ranked in the AP Poll.

Three of ECU’s five losses were decided by a touchdown or less. The others were to Sun Belt runner-up Appalachian State and College Football Playoff-bound Cincinnati.

This will be BC’s 29th all-time bowl appearance. The Eagles have a 14-13 bowl record but have only won one (2016 Quick Lane Bowl vs. Maryland) since 2007.

Last year, BC was bowl eligible yet opted out because of the rigor and restrictions of the COVID-19-affected season. Two years before that, BC briefly took part in the First Responder Bowl before it was canceled because of inclement weather.

With a victory over ECU, the Eagles will finish with seven wins for the fourth time in the last six years.