Four Downs: Florida State

In sports, history has a way of weaving itself into the present and future. The current chapter is almost always written in context of the past because people always draw off what they know. In the Atlantic Coast Conference, that requires a special chapter dedicated entirely to Florida State.

Since 2009, every Boston College football team threw everything it could at Florida State. BC hung 34 points on the Seminoles in 2013 and handed an eventual national champion its toughest game of the season. The 2014 game went down to the last drive and required the heroics only delivered by a Heisman Trophy winner. BC even hung tough in 2015 after losing its starting quarterback mid-game.

But it never won.

Until now.

The Eagles dominated from pillar to post on Friday night, destroying Florida State with a 35-3 victory. It shattered FSU's seven-game winning streak as BC held an ACC opponent without a touchdown since Wake Forest in 2015. It drew the Eagles within a game of bowl eligibility and tier placement within the Atlantic Division, and it rained storm clouds of doubt on FSU's 35-year bowl streak.

"The stadium was electric tonight," head coach Steve Addazio said. "The fans were unbelievable and the support that they gave for this game and for our program means a lot to our team."

It's virtually impossible to unpack Friday night's immediate impact, but it unquestionably upended and rattled the ACC's power structure. The loss dropped FSU to 2-5 on the season, seriously jeopardizing the longest bowl streak in the nation with games remaining against Syracuse, Clemson and Florida. It highlights how hard it is to win in the ACC and reinforces just how razor thin the margin for error is becoming.

"We played a really fine football program," Addazio said. "(This is) the team that won the National Championship not that long ago. Our kids played with tremendous passion and energy, and this game meant a lot to our program for a whole lot of reasons."

Consider a strictly numerical stance to Friday's game. BC scored 35-plus points for the first time in the ACC era and for the first time since 2002. It has its first three-game winning streak since 2013 and are one win away from clinching a bowl game for the fourth time in Steve Addazio's five years.

It was the first time a Jimbo Fisher-coached FSU team failed to score 10 points, and it was the first time the Seminoles scored less than 10 since a 17-7 loss to South Florida in 2009. It was the first time FSU failed to score a touchdown since a Sept. 20, 2008 loss to Wake Forest.

Jeff Smith's pass to Kobay White broke a string of 218-plus minutes where FSU led BC, dating back to 2013. It was Steve Addazio's first win over the 'Noles.

The Eagles are right back in the thick of the Atlantic Division. Clemson and NC State unquestionably lead, but BC controls its own destiny to finish as high as third place in a division featuring a cast of tough opponents. The Eagles banked wins over Louisville and Florida State and will play Syracuse at the end of the year. Though the focus remains on the immediate future heading into a bye week, it's hard not to get excited about the possibilities on the table.

"It's definitely awesome seeing when the students get involved and really are excited for us," senior linebacker Ty Schwab said. "Sometimes things aren't going the way everybody wants it to go, and you've got to stay steady with the ball. Even the fans need to do that. So them seeing us win these last three ACC games and come home to beat FSU, they were excited and we were excited. It's awesome to see that from our schools. It was an awesome atmosphere to play in."

As mentioned above, there's plenty to unpack. Let's try and do some of that:

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First Down: Full tilt, full time

There was a moment in the second quarter where ESPN perfectly illustrated how dominant BC played. Four minutes remained, and BC had second down on the FSU 30-yard line. The Worldwide Leader flashed a graphic at that point that told a stark contrast.

Florida State: 23 total plays. Boston College: 20 plays in Florida State territory.

"Right from the start, we came out firing," Steve Addazio said. "We were going to empty the drawer, so to speak, and we went after them in all three phases. I thought we played a really good first half. After we scored and got up significantly, we tried to run that thing down. We rushed for over 200-something yards. Anthony (Brown) played really well, especially when he had to make some great plays in the first half. AJ (Dillon), Jon (Hilliman) and the line played well. I thought we made some really great catches."

BC scored first on a 34-yard wide receiver option pass from Jeff Smith. Kobay White made an acrobatic catch in the back of the end zone to somehow stay inbounds, putting a statement touchdown on the board almost immediately.

"We started off strong and just attacked it," redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Brown said. "The trick play, the reverse to Jeff, it was huge. Trick plays are trick plays. Everybody has them. It's just when you run them when they're effective, and you've got to keep going."

It was a callback to the Virginia Tech game where the Eagles used gadget plays late in their attempt to mount a comeback. After that game, I noted its success and filed it away, saying the Eagles would need to execute those plays earlier in a game to be successful. At the risk of puffing my chest too much, Friday proved that prophetic.

The Eagles opened the playbook with different formations and looks. They ran passing plays out of jet sweep play action, then incorporated a double play action move to the running back. Chris Lindstrom lined up in the H-back position to block, and Dillon finished with 149 yards and a touchdown. When Brown aggravated his shoulder injury again, Darius Wade entered the game and run a QB sneak for his first career rushing touchdown.

It harkened back to the season-long quest for next-level execution. BC struggled with the concept earlier in the season, but it found its groove in the Louisville game and, to a lesser degree, the Virginia Tech game. Since those moments, it's been a team cohesively bonding to execute and continue finding the next thing to hit.

"As a team, we've kind of really started to count on one another," Dillon said. "That trust has grown. I know everybody talks about family, but I genuinely feel that. As a freshman, coming here, this is my first year. I genuinely feel the family connection. I feel like the last couple weeks it's really starting to click. The chemistry's really building, and everybody's pushing each other to get better."

*****
Second Down: Paint by numbers

AJ Dillon is fast becoming Boston College's new workhorse running back, a budding star capturing the hearts of the Eagles' reinvigorated fan base. On Friday, he gained 100 yards for the second time in three games and ground FSU's defense into submission. His 39-yard carry was a true explosive play, and it helped set up a BC touchdown in the first half.

But after Central Michigan, he only had 333 yards in six games, an average of 55.5 yards per game. Then came the Louisville game and the breakout performance that's bled into Virginia and, now, Florida State.

"I would say we're having more productivity," Steve Addazio said. "We're making some of the plays early in the season we weren't able to make. I think AJ is certainly becoming more and more comfortable. He is a young back just learning the nuances of the different styles of run game - gap scheme, zone schemes. There's a lot to that. He runs very, very hard."

A large chunk of success ties back to the offensive line. Ben Petrula accepted the role of lynchpin for the unit after Jon Baker's injury, and he's helped develop the Eagles back into "O-Line U." Everyone is playing better because, more importantly, everyone is playing together as a cohesive unit.

"I'm happy with the fact that the coaches are trusting me in these situations," Dillon said. "Once again, I can't really do anything by myself. Football is not a game where you can play by yourself. So those guys up front, that offensive line has just been making holes for me, and we've been doing great things with the offense. It's a really great opportunity to be around a bunch of great guys."

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Third Down: Where do you think you're going?

Dillon went head-to-head on Friday with another true freshman running back, Cam Akers. Akers is a five-star prospect and the best running back recruit in the nation by nearly every scouting bureau. 247sports went so far as to rank him as the third best overall prospect in its Composite Rankings, and he made an immediate impact by becoming one of the feature backs in the Seminole lineup.

He became the full-fledged feature back when Jacques Patrick suffered a season-ending injury, so it was easy that Jimbo Fisher would give him the ball early and often. But the defense stymied any and all attempts to get him going. He finished with 2.3 yards per carry and only 42 yards on 18 rushes while Dillon gashed FSU for 149 yards on 33 carries - or a 4.5 yard average.

"On film, we saw he constantly tries to get outside," senior linebacker Ty Schwab said. "He's a fast, athletic kid. So they constantly wanted him to get outside. Last year, we had a problem with setting the edge. We were letting them get outside. We made a huge emphasis this week in practice. We practiced hard and got it done in practice. Practice how you play, and we got it done in the game."

That it was done without Harold Landry is an even bigger credit to the coaching staff. Landry missed Friday with an ankle injury, a huge blow considering his status as one of the biggest defensive line threats in the nation. BC's missing so many different parts to injury that it simply doesn't have any depth left - yet it still managed to shut down the best-rated recruit in the nation.

"Those guys took every snap," Steve Addazio said. "Wyatt (Ray), Zach (Allen), Ray Smith and Noa Merritt - they're doing a phenomenal job. We took one of the best players in the conference and he didn't play today. But we're going to get him healthy and get him feeling good again. That by itself will be a huge deal for us."

Shutting down Akers put more pressure on freshman quarterback Jason Blackman, which in turn produced lower numbers in the passing game. Blackman has skill but is still very raw, and the Eagles capitalized, holding the freshman to 11-for-26 passing for only 102 yards. They pressured the backfield and banged the quarterback up a little bit, and they fulfilled their ball-hawking promise by using yet another interception to set up a touchdown.

"I think we were able to create turnovers and we're not turning the ball over," Addazio said. "That's a huge thing. We're playing well on defense, and our special teams continue to grow. We're winning the turnover battle, and that's a big battle. That's a good thing."

*****
Fourth Down: Go crazy folks.

The lasting shot from Friday night will be a delirious crowd singing and celebrating BC's biggest home win in recent memory. It was the celebration of the preseason potential, and it brought full circle what Addazio said when he talked about BC's playmakers.

"I think it was great to be able to have the student body and the fans be able to be a part of this win," Steve Addazio said. "I think that makes college football special. You're on a college campus, and it just makes it kind of special and it's exciting. That's really a good thing. That's something, for sure, that is very, very meaningful to the team."

Alumni Stadium positively rocked from start to finish, putting Boston College's football culture on display before a national television audience. The atmosphere created pressure, and the lasting shots on ESPN after the game told the story of a crowd and team mutually embracing one another.

When BC left for Louisville, I talked about how road games can be great opportunities. Teams bond, away from any and all distractions. The players and coaches perform self-discovery and reflection inside hotel rooms in a controlled environment before playing in a hostile environment. It galvanizes a team into being more "together."

The only thing better is an electric home environment. When a road team struggles, a home crowd can electrify and cause the bad result to snowball. It happened last year at Lane Stadium when BC lost to Virginia Tech. On Friday, it happened to Florida State in Boston. There was an explosive play igniting the crowd, and it snowballed from there.

"I talked to Jon Hilliman, and I was just asking him about the USC game and what it felt like," AJ Dillon said. "He told me it's one of those things that you're never going to forget. He told me we had a chance to do that (on Friday). That was on my mind all night. I was just thinking about how cool that would be."

Friday is a statement win and a hallmark victory for the program and its fan base. It sends a message that Boston College can rock and roll both on the field and in the stands. NC State arrives on campus in two weeks in a game that could decide the Atlantic Division championship. It very well could have national championship implications within the College Football Playoff.

Translation: expect Alumni Stadium to rock and roll once more.

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Point After: We will always remember

Perhaps the most important part of Friday night came from the memories. The Red Bandanna Game is a celebration of what makes Boston College great because it's a celebration of service. Honoring Welles Crowther is the overarching message, but the Eagles rolled out the proverbial red carpet for more icons who represent what makes this school what it is.

Seeing Mark Herzlich and Pete Frates will always be emotional for me. Herzlich's fight with cancer will always resonate, especially during October, because my mother fought and defeated breast cancer on multiple occasions. Seeing him on the field will always flood the same emotions from when he ran out on the field against Weber State. That's something that never changes even as he transformed from cancer survivor to Super Bowl Champion.

It's a similar feeling for Pete Frates. I remember Pete from his days at St. John's Prep and his senior year state tournament game against Peabody High School - still the best high school baseball game I've ever seen. I watched Pete grow as a Boston College baseball player, and his fight against ALS is something that impacted me for the better. I'm forever grateful because his attachment to Boston College baseball made me realize the character of the program and its commitment to fight for and with him.

It all fell under the overarching message of Welles Crowther. I watched the ESPN interview with Jefferson and Alison, and I noted Mack Brown's reaction on Twitter. The Eddie Burns-narrated featurette on Welles is one of ESPN's finest works, and it will resonate with me for years and years.

The Red Bandanna Game encompasses all of that. It reminds us all of a greater purpose, and it creates a feeling of unity. The win was for more than just Boston College. It allowed Steve Addazio to hand a game ball to the Crowther family before players adorned in red bandanna gear. It allowed for us to remember ongoing fights to support veterans and to defeat both cancer and ALS. It resonates and will continue resonate within the school's mission, which is simply for men and women in service to one another.

Players Mentioned

Jon Baker

Anthony Brown

AJ Dillon

Jon Hilliman

Harold Landry

Chris Lindstrom

Noa Merritt

Ben Petrula

Ty Schwab

Jeff Smith

Ray Smith

Darius Wade

Kobay White

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