Redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Brown, who had found a way to bring stability to a Boston College offense that had struggled for years, was out for the season. So was senior center Jon Baker, who had been a linchpin on the offensive line since he was a freshman. So was senior linebacker Connor Strachan, an anchor on a defense who had been among the best in the country the past two years.
So was sophomore linebacker Max Richardson, part of a young core committed to reshaping the way people looked at the Eagles program. So was cornerback Kamrin Moore, a senior captain who kept the defense glued together on the field and the locker room glued together off it.
And All-America defensive end Harold Landry, who returned for his senior season with the hope of both leading Boston College back to a bowl game while proving to NFL scouts that he was a first-round talent, was out for the third straight game because of injury.
Still, BC found a way.
The Eagles (6-5) steamrolled UConn, 39-16, on Saturday night at Fenway Park, weathering the storm of injuries that’s plagued them this season and securing a bowl berth.
A team that seemed dead in the water a month ago at 2-4 will make its fourth bowl appearance in five seasons.
Steve Addazio, the target of intense scrutiny much of the past three seasons, became the first coach in BC history to lead the team to four bowls in his first five seasons.
With Brown out, the Eagles fed the Huskies a heavy dosage of freshman running back AJ Dillon. A week after setting BC’s freshman rushing record, Dillon piled up 200 yards on 20 carries, including a 53-yard, second-quarter rumble where he dragged four Huskies across the goal line and a 20-yard dash in the third quarter where he shrugged off one tackler in the open field then plowed through three more to find the end zone again.
Veteran quarterback Darius Wade provided the Eagles with the steady play they were looking for in his first start since 2015. He completed just 7 of 15 passes for 55 yards, but was turnover-free.
In the second quarter, with the Eagles down, 3-0, Wade used his feet to swing the momentum BC’s way. After five Dillon carries got the Eagles down to the goal line, Wade had to make a play on third and goal from the 2.
Everyone in the ballpark expected another Dillon run coming, so the Eagles went to play-action.
As soon as Wade looked up, he had two defenders in his face. Flushed from the pocket, he rolled right, turned on the jets to flee would-be tacklers, and flung a pass on a zipline to Chris Garrison in the end zone to put the Eagles up, 7-3.
From there, BC never let its foot off the gas. After UConn piled up 172 yards of total offense in the first quarter, they were held to 240 the rest of the way.
The Eagles came up with three interceptions, including a 65-yard pick-6 in the third quarter by junior cornerback Taj-Amir Torres that made it 27-3 and all but took the air out of the Huskies sideline.
