Boston College vs. Georgia Tech Betting Odds & Pick: Back Jurkovec and Eagles Offense at Home (Saturday, Oct. 24)

Boston College vs. Georgia Tech Odds

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Both these teams took a beating last weekend by the two best teams in the ACC. Georgia Tech was embarrassed at home by Clemson 73-7, as Trevor Lawrence only needed one half to drop five passing touchdowns on the Yellow Jackets defense. They'll have to pick up the pieces and try and find some semblance of an offense or defense against an upstart Boston College squad.

Boston College got a taste of humble pie in Blacksburg last Saturday against the Hokies, losing 40-14. The Eagles offense turned the ball over five times, but almost out-gained Virginia Tech in the game.

This is a much improved (and likely underrated) Boston College squad that should rebound against a reeling Georgia Tech team on Saturday.

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Offense

The Yellow Jackets offense took a major step backwards on Saturday as they only mustered seven points and 204 yards against Clemson. However, despite Saturday's showing, things are starting to trend in the right direction behind freshman dual-threat quarterback Jeff Sims.

Sims has improved the Yellow Jackets' passing attack in 2020, throwing for 7.8 yards per attempt. He just has a lot of issues taking care of the ball. He's thrown nine interceptions and lost three fumbles through his first five starts. That could be a major issue against Boston College's defense that ranks 13th in Havoc this season.

Even though they've transitioned away from the triple option, the Yellow Jackets have run the ball pretty effectively at 4.6 yards per carry. However, much of that was due to facing some of the worst run defenses in the country, before the game against Clemson last weekend.

Defense

The Yellow Jackets returned 94% of their production from last season. However, that continuity hasn't translated to better success. The Yellow Jackets are allowing 5.9 yards per play this season, which is very similar to their 2019 numbers.

The Yellow Jacket defense has been decent against the run so far, allowing 4.3 yards per carry. The real issues lie in their secondary.

Georgia Tech is allowing a whopping 8.0 yards per pass attempt so far this season. Before the Clemson game, the Yellow Jackets defense hadn't played a quarterback even close to as talented as Trevor Lawrence and it showed.

Now they are going face Phil Jurkovec, who has been on fire for Boston College this year. I think the struggles we saw against Clemson are going to carry over into Saturday.

Boston College Eagles

Offense

The days of Boston College's ground and pound attack are long gone. The Eagles brought four of their five starters back on the offensive line, but have ran the ball for only 2.1 yards per attempt this season.

Instead the Eagles are now finding success with Notre Dame transfer Phil Jurkovec entering the program. Jurkovec was the fourth-ranked dual-threat quarterback coming out of high school in 2018 and was perhaps the most successful Pennsylvania high school quarterback of all time.

So far in 2020, he's thrown for 7.5 yards per attempt and has developed a nice connection with tight end Hunter Long, who has already caught 35 passes for 416 yards and three touchdowns.

The Yellow Jackets have allowed a passing touchdown to tight ends the last two weeks, so I expect Long to be Jurkovec's No. 1 target on Saturday.

Defense

The Eagles' defense got a big boost when fifth-year linebacker Max Richardson decided to stay for his final season. With new head coach Jeff Hafley coming from one of the best defensive programs in the country in Ohio State, it's paramount to have a senior leader on defense in a time of transition. So far, that has paid dividends; the Eagles have allowed only 5.4 yards per play.

Boston College's defense was horrific against the pass last year, ranking 125th in defensive passing success. However, the Eagles return their entire linebacking corps and secondary and have improved to only allowing 6.6 yards per pass attempt in 2020.

With experience on the back end, they should find a way to hold a turnover prone Jeffery Sims in check on Saturday.

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Betting Analysis & Pick

Georgia Tech is as low as they've ever been after getting 73 points put on them by Clemson. Having to travel to Chestnut Hill is not going to be an easy task for the Yellow Jackets, as Boston College looks much improved with Jurkovec under center. With how bad the Yellow Jackets' secondary looked against Clemson, I think the Eagles will be able to move the ball with ease through the air.

I have Boston College projected as a -9.78 favorite in this game, so there is plenty of value on the Eagles at -3.5 at home.

Pick: Boston College -3.5. Play up to -6.5.

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