BYU (1-1, 0-0) at No. 23 BOSTON COLLEGE (2-0, 0-0)
Today, 10 a.m.
Alumni Stadium
TV: ESPN2 Radio: 1160AM, 102.7FM
Last week: BYU beat Tulsa, 49-24, in Provo. Boston College beat No. 18 Clemson, 34-33 (2OT), in Boston.
Last meeting: Boston College defeated BYU in Provo in the 2005 opener 20-3.
Trend to watch: The Cougars have not defeated a ranked team in a dozen tries.
Players to watch: BC kick returner Jeff Smith, a true freshman, leads the nation in kickoff yardage. He had 213 yards in kickoffs last week against Clemson. BYU quarterback John Beck will surpass Kevin Feterick in career passing yards with 40 yards against the Eagles. Curtis Brown needs five yards rushing to pass John Ogden at the No. 6 spot on the Cougar career rushing list.
BYU will win if ... The Cougars can run for 150 yards, avoid drive-killing penalties and sustain its high percentage blue zone scoring while stopping BC's run attack and bringing heat to QB Matt Ryan.
Boston College will win if ... Boston College forces turnovers from BYU's offense, stops Fui Vakapuna and Brown from getting big plays and establishes its ball-control offense.
Extra points: The Cougars are outgaining BC 390 to 365 yards per game but are scoring one point less than the Eagles (32 to 32). BYU's defense is allowing just 278 yards while BC is giving up 428 per game. Boston College has not been shut out since Oct. 8, 1998. Both BYU QB John Beck and former coach LaVell Edwards are decendents of Matthias Farnsworth and his relatives have scheduled a reunion on Sunday in Groton, Mass. Farnsworth was one of the earliest immigrants to America, arriving from Lancashire, England, eventually arriving in Groton about 1664. Matthias' descendents were among the earliest members of LDS Church, and were among the original settlers of Utah. One of Matthias' descendents, Philo T. Farnsworth, invented the television.