The Tailgate: SMU

The defining moment of Mason McKenzie's tenure at Saginaw Valley State occurred during a thrilling upset in the annual rivalry game against Grand Valley State. Playing under an autumn chill, the quarterback displayed dynamic playmaking ability from the opening kickoff, and he combined pinpoint short passing with scrambles out of the pocket to convert drives and push the Cardinals to a 20-19 win over a nationally-ranked team.

The decisive sequence occurred when he pulled the ball and took off for an explosive 41-yard touchdown run that evaded would-be tacklers for a sprint to the end zone. The four-play, 56-yard drive effectively sunk the Lakers at a time when SVSU absolutely needed a tough and hard-nosed play, and it capped a day that included 224 total yards evenly split between 130 passing yards and 94 rushing yards.

"I'm just proud of our guys for coming back after I made mistakes," said McKenzie after the game. "We had a couple of other guys make mistakes, but at the end of the day, we came back and made plays, so I'm just really proud of a group for [it] responded to that type of stuff."

Overcoming obstacles and in-game miscues is a requirement for any team that's seeking the next step in its development, so the first four games of the 2026 Boston College season serve a ringing endorsement of McKenzie's intelligence and ability to digest an offense. At 2-2, BC is far from a perfect team, but the improvements that haven't necessarily shown up on the statistical sheet now face their next challenge in a trip to Texas to play a nationally-ranked SMU team.

"It's going to be a great atmosphere," said head coach Bill O'Brien. "They have a hell of a program. It'll be a great crowd. They've done a good job there. They have a good football team, and it'll be a great test."

BC dialed back its playbook during last week's game against Virginia Tech because the driving rain and gusty winds called for a more stripped-down performance, but the Eagles still heavily featured their quarterback as the centerpiece against a physical defense. The grouping of designed keepers and scrambles got under the Hokies for 138 yards and two touchdowns while traditional running backs were bottled to 13 yards on 11 attempts.

Even within that scheme, McKenzie's ability to shine illustrated and outlined a quarterback who understood how to execute a game plan. Heading into this week against SMU, a very different look at the opposite side of the ball potentially allows for a more explosive and detailed scheme.

Either way, there's a feeling that things - while still needing to improve - are on the right track.

"He can run," said O'Brien, "and he's a threat to run. The passing, the routes, the protection - all of that has to continue to improve. And like I've said, we're working really hard to get that better."

On with the preview of a key mid-season matchup against the Mustangs:

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Weekly Storylines (Luke Combs Edition)

I've had a largemouth bass bust my line,
A couple beautiful girls tell me goodbye.
Trucks break down, dogs run off.
Politicians lie, been fired by the boss.
-Beer Never Broke My Heart

The core identity of SMU's 4-2-5 base defensive scheme revolves around an aggressive and vertical gap penetration that's paired with significant run stoppage. Defensive tackles spike through the interior holes by disrupting blocking angles before the running backs can actually get through their paths, and the effectiveness of that front four allows two linebackers to play off-ball and free-flowing towards the perimeter in both run and pass coverage.

Through the early stretch of the 2026 season, that front seven is responsible for one of the highest defensive sack rates in the nation, but a bit of a step backwards in the rush defense allowed Louisville to rush for 265 yards and four touchdowns. Prior to that, Florida State grabbed 199 yards and two scores on 45 carries in a run-heavy offense, so breaking interior gap coverage is a major focus area for Saturday's game against a BC team that's been increasingly leaning towards its run offense.

"It's all about preparation," said running back Evan Dickens. "Just looking at the film, practicing, getting those mental reps in, that's when you really slow the game down and have a good feel of what the defense is doing and what pressures they can bring, what fronts they like to do. You can recognize it once you break the huddle, and you know what your job is exactly…It's one play at a time or one drive at a time, and that's how I calm myself down."

My big brother rode an Indian Scout.
It was black like his jacket.
American Spirit hanging out of his mouth,
Just like our daddy.
He kick started that bike one night and broke mama's heart,
Pointed that headlight west
Out where the wild things are.
-Where the Wild Things Are

SMU's secondary and overhang defenders are a different type of challenge because the Mustangs prioritize splash and explosive plays over the more conservative bend-don't-break coverage schemes. They utilize the front seven as a mask for a blitz-heavy scheme that relies on aggressive cornerbacks and safeties that play over the top and force quarterbacks into rushed decisions. More specifically, a fifth defensive back, a commonality in the modern era defense that combats formations with more wide receivers or a pass-catching tight end, operates closer to a rover position at the nickel.

Through the first four games of the season, that's been effective for a completion rate that's south of 60 percent and was limited to less than six yards per pass. Heavy hitters produced a fumble opportunity or two against nearly every opponent, and the ability to get to the backfield while producing physical coverage downfield aided four quarterback hurries against FSU and UC Davis with five broken-up passes against Missouri State.

"We have to complete passes," said O'Brien. "We have to get open. We have to keep working together to get it better and keep working hard to try and improve it."

They got Whiskey River on the jukebox,
A honky tonk sawdust dance floor.
A neon, five o'clock, broke clock,
And plenty d–n many when you want one more.
And those broke heart fool on an old bar stool
Drinking beer almost as cold as you.
-Cold as You

Unsurprisingly, Louisville's ability to run the ball produced the only game where a quarterback wasn't under intense pressure, so the ability to remain in a run-heavy scheme can produce a greater step forward for a more explosive and quick-striking offense than BC illustrated in last week's soggy loss to Virginia Tech. To be fair, the Mustangs are one of the best third down teams in the country, but relying heavily on defensive backs and hybrid nickelback-safety players to combat the passing game with blitz-heavy schemes means fast passes and protections can break the dam against the aggressiveness.

"The line has to protect, the backs have to protect," said O'Brien. "Sometimes they free release. They quarterback has to read it correctly. The routes have to be precise. When you're in pro football, you have a one-receiver, a two-receiver, and the three is usually the slot. The four is a guy that can do everything. In college football, we have six or seven guys that can all play. Some guys are slots, some guys are outside guys, but they're all good players. So you're not going to see one guy with 80 catches or 90 catches, so we have to understand that everybody has to improve in the passing game, not just the receivers and the quarterback."

More on this is worth discussing during the conversation around later-down efficiency numbers, but McKenzie has been a significant upgrade over last year's early down numbers. He hasn't thrown an interception on second down, for example, where the 2025 Eagles threw eight picks on second down over the course of last season. His completion percentage hasn't dipped or spiked comparatively to last year's rate that hovered around 65 percent, but he's taking care of the ball better and setting up more third down opportunities by playing mistake-free football, which is why the conversation eventually shifts to his need to improve on the team's third down conversion rate.

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Question Box

Can BC create the explosive play against the aggressive SMU defense?

It's an obvious question after outlining the Mustang defense, but SMU struggled to contain downfield pass concepts in the Louisville loss. A team that's very good at producing takeaway moments and sacks leaked opportunities to the Cardinals after previously allowing potential big plays to Florida State, so hitting for chunk yardage in early game situations can force Kevin Jennings to play from behind against a team that's learned how to control time of possession against opponents.

Do muggy and wet conditions impact the natural grass playing surface?

Playing on Gerald J. Ford Stadium's natural grass surface is going to reduce traction and cushioning after this week's heavy rains saturated Texas and the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In those situations, cleats more easily slip and lose footing at the line of scrimmage and during sharp cuts, so the pace of the game potentially slows faster offenses while enhancing the physicality of a defense's attack.

SMU is the second natural grass surface on BC's schedule and the first since the Eagles traveled to Cincinnati to play at Nippert Stadium, so recalling conditions from that first game along with a simulation in practice - and the fact that they just played in suboptimal conditions against Virginia Tech - are all helpful tools for the trip to Texas.

Who's up for Texas BBQ?

My father-in-law once attempted to explain how North Carolina and St. Louis-style BBQ has its own superiority, and I shut it down by telling him that Texas is still the home of the world's best beef. Nothing beats a slow-cooked brisket seasoned with a dry rub and smoked over local wood, and the sweet sauce slathered on the meat during dinner, combined with a mac-and-cheese, cornbread and some collard greens, is what I'm requesting when it's time for a milestone birthday.

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Meteorology 101

The Dallas area is looking at a cool and unsettled weekend after dealing with nasty rains throughout much of the week. With respect to the BC game, Saturday should be mostly cloudy with showers and high temperatures reaching towards 80 degrees before conditions start to clear in the late afternoon and evening.

Those of us who remember the 2018 First Responder Bowl will shudder at the possibility of poor weather in Texas, especially if thunderstorms arrive, but Thursday called for multiple inches of rain with Friday adding another half-inch of precipitation during muggy and humid conditions.

Drawing from last week, the winds won't impact the game as much, so compare the weather to the Sunday of the nor'easter after we received multiple inches of flash food watches.

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X Factor of the Week

Everything must be made as simple as possible. But not simpler. -Albert Einstein

Boston College's well-documented struggles on third down situations are a central narrative through the Eagles' first four games. Converting just 14-of-50 third downs, they actually went down in their percentages after going 2-for-13 during last week's game against Virginia Tech, but the numbers don't rightly tell the story of a simpler path forward and the potential line towards better improvements.

Last week, for example, took place in a monsoon that limited nearly half of BC's 13 third-down attempts to distances of 10-or-more yards, and the 10 situations of six-plus yards required Mason McKenzie to throw nine pass attempts in windy and wet situations unconducive to completing passes. Six of these throws, therefore, were incomplete, but he only took two sacks against a defense willing to pin its ears back against obvious passing downs in situations where the Eagles couldn't go downfield.

Both of BC's touchdown drives were directly established by the only two third-and-short situations that Virginia Tech surrendered, and the numbers point to a much higher effectiveness rate when the Eagles face yardages lower than six yards and can incorporate a running game that's averaging seven yards on 3rd down, 4-6 To Go situations and 5.18 yards per rush on 3rd down, 1-3 To Gos.

"We're working hard to really try and improve," said O'Brien. "Whether it's schematically or techniques or maybe different players, we're all in it together. We have to be better. We've done some good things, and I hesitate to say [something that sounds like an excuse], but there was a driving rainstorm with 40 mile-per-hour gusty winds. That was a difficult game to throw the ball, and we tried to do what we could to throw the ball when the wind was at our back. I wouldn't judge the offense on that game, but we know that we have to be better."

It feels obvious and simple to point to the offense with an explanation that shorter yardages increase the likelihood of an effective running game and more elaborate offensive scheme, but taking care of the football and chopping yardage off of the early down situations is a key to BC's success. SMU allows explosive plays, but the most successful part of the Eagles comes when they're moving the chains. Third down therefore isn't as ineffective as the number implies, especially since last week's game was in a nor'easter, so it'll be key to watch how it steps forward during the trip to Texas.

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Around College Football

No. 8 Florida jumped 13 spots in the national polls after thumping Ole Miss last week, so the SEC roundtable continued to churn out top-10 teams despite losing LSU in the Associated Press poll. Led by No. 1 Texas and No. 2 Georgia, the league continues to dominate the headlines with a number of undefeated teams, including No. 16 Mississippi State, which moved up eight spots in this week's edition.

A growing number of one-loss teams is starting to spread the rest of the league through the rest of the nation, though. No. 9 LSU, for example, dropped one spot after beating No. 23 Texas A&M by 29 points, and the Aggies fell out of the poll entirely. A middle-ranked Missouri team, meanwhile, dropped six spots to No. 25 after losing to Mississippi State, which gained eight spots as an undefeated, 4-0 team.

The Big Ten, meanwhile, lost Penn State and Michigan after their respective losses, and Southern California dropped six spots after losing to Oregon, which gained five spots and rose to No. 15. At the top of the polls, a one-loss Ohio State team jumped over the unbeaten defending champions from Indiana, though the Coaches Poll remained steadfast in keeping the Hoosiers over the Buckeyes.

In the ACC, undefeated Miami improved two spots to No. 4 after its 52-3 win over Central Michigan, and the Hurricanes gained a first place vote despite sitting behind No. 3 Notre Dame.

All of this is creating an interesting cross-section in college football, and the margins for error are slimming for a Saturday that's kicking off with No. 3 Notre Dame's trip to North Carolina and No. 7 Alabama's trip to No. 16 Mississippi State. Further down, SMU's game against BC is on the outer fringe of teams seeking to jump into the October race for the College Football Playoff, and No. 20 Houston likewise draws Central Florida while No. 10 BYU is at TCU.

Elsewhere around the power conferences, Virginia Tech hosts Pittsburgh on Friday night in the ACC before Saturday offers up a full slate of games, including Stanford and Wake Forest in the early window. Syracuse is at UConn in a renewal of their old Big East rivalry, and Cal heads to UNLV while late-day league play features Louisville-NC State, Virginia-FSU and MIami's primetime trip to Clemson.

In the Big 12, West Virginia and Iowa State are each seeking their first league win against one another while sneaky big games come up in the late hour with Baylor's trip to Arizona State and unbeaten Cincinnati's trip to Arizona, which is 3-1 but suffered its only loss in conference play.

In the Big Ten, Penn State heads to Northwestern on Friday night with Michigan traveling to Minnesota and Michigan State heading to Wisconsin on Saturday afternoon. Ohio State and Iowa feature two games between ranked opponents capable of impacting the CFP race, and Washington heads to USC for primetime.

And in the SEC, Tennessee hosts Auburn while Kentucky heads to South Carolina, and Arkansas is at Texas A&M in a must-win game for both teams.

Around the rest of the nation, the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy series gets underway with Navy's trip to Air Force at noon, and UMass hosts Eastern Michigan after starting its season with a perfect 4-0 record. Brown plays Rhode Island in the Governor's Cup matchup in the Ocean State, and Colgate visits Harvard in a critically important game for both teams.

In the lower divisions, a key matchup between Merchant Marine and MIT is scheduled for Steinbrenner Field in Cambridge while undefeated Salve Regina hosts a 3-1 Springfield team, and UMass-Dartmouth heads to Buzzards Bay to play Mass Maritime.

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Dan's Non-Sports Observation of the Week

My hometown has a couple of quirky laws about its on-street parking rules. Certain streets don't permit parking on the street, which makes sense when they're main throughways, but the majority of residential neighborhoods require cars to face the appropriate direction while parking on the side of the street corresponding to an even-numbered or odd-numbered year. It's a simple rule, but it's led to several folks getting on-street parking tickets, including yours truly, who grew up in a city where parking on both sides of every road was encouraged until wintertime restrictions went into effect.

The rain was pretty bad last week, so I parked on the street because I didn't want to play musical cars in my odd-shaped driveway that prevents either of our two cars from swinging around the other person. The next morning, we went out in my wife's car before coming home and staying put for the rest of our NFL Sunday.

When I woke up on Monday, the rearview mirror cap on the passenger side of my car was completely gone. The wiring to the mirror was exposed, and I still have no idea how it happened. My wife didn't hit anything, and neither of us noticed the missing mirror casing when we went out on Sunday. I surely didn't hit anything on Saturday, but Monday morning gave us a missing chunk of my car.

It's not a huge deal, but it left me wondering if there's some mystery thief with nothing but passenger-side rearview mirror caps. Are they in their basement? Are they in their car? Do they swap out the caps at will? Was it the work of my trash barrel?

All of this indicates that we might need to cut back our Netflix mystery documentaries, and I definitely have way too much time on my hands.

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Pregame Quote and Final Thought

If you're gonna play in Texas, you better have a fiddle in the band.
-Alabama

A win over SMU requires BC to operate with a synergy that occasionally slipped out of sync during its first four games, but improved conditions after the Virginia Tech game leaves the Eagles with a golden opportunity to attack the Mustangs at a time when both teams are jockeying for position in the ACC standings.

Boston College and Southern Methodist University kick off on Saturday at 12 p.m., from Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Television coverage is available on The CW with Thom Brennaman handling play-by-play duties, former Penn State linebacker Jason Cabinda serving as color analyst, and Wes Bryant on the sidelines.

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Evan Dickens

Mason McKenzie

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