Boston College looks to break its longest losing streak in a decade when it welcomes UConn to Chestnut Hill, Mass., for a Saturday renewal of their longtime New England rivalry.
The Eagles (1-5, 0-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) fell 41-10 to Clemson last Saturday, extending their losing streak to five for the first time since an eight-game skid to finish 2015. But coach Bill O’Brien is still positive about the program’s direction halfway through his second season.
“It takes a long time to develop a program. … It doesn’t happen in (19 games),” he said. “The sky is falling to everyone outside of this program, but not to anyone inside the program. … We’re going to go out and play our (butts) off on Saturday against a very good UConn team, very well coached. That’s what we believe.”
Numerous injuries have forced O’Brien to field a younger lineup, including several freshmen or redshirt freshmen on the defensive depth chart. The Eagles did improve on that side in the second half against Clemson, intercepting two passes while allowing only a late touchdown.
Plus, with Alabama transfer quarterback Dylan Lonergan having gone three full games without a touchdown pass, freshman Shaker Reisig played the entire fourth quarter against Clemson.
“You’re going to go through the lumps a little bit of playing those guys, but they’re very good football players, and we’re excited about them,” O’Brien said.
The defense is led by junior KP Price, the reigning ACC Defensive Back of the Week who had a career-high 14 total tackles and an interception against Clemson.
Carrying a three-game win streak, UConn (4-2) looks to benefit from a recent bye week and post its most complete effort of the season under another ex-NFL coach in Jim Mora.
“We’ve made constant improvement every week in one area or another. We just have to continue to work to put it together on a Saturday,” Mora said.
A 51-10 win over FIU on Oct. 4 sure looked complete. The Huskies recorded three interceptions, two fumble recoveries and five sacks on defense while quarterback Joe Fagnano threw for 355 yards and four touchdowns, including two to leading receiver Skyler Bell.
Cam Edwards rushed for his seventh touchdown of the season. His 106.2 yards per game are the ninth-most in the country and include three 100-yard efforts.
“He’s a tough dude,” Mora said. “He really cares, he works hard at it, and he’s dependable. Even when he gets beat up, there’s no quit in him. … He’s kind of the identity of our team: that toughness, that blue-collar attitude.”
UConn’s only all-time win over Boston College came in 2022, which was Mora’s first season. The teams last met in 2023, a 21-14 home win for the Eagles.
