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The Daily Tar Heel

Turnover battle to be key in ACC matchup

headtohead

Game and Time: Boston College at North Carolina. Kickoff is at noon Saturday.

Site: Kenan Stadium.

TV/Radio: TV coverage will be on Raycom. Radio coverage will be provided by WCHL 1360 AM WRDU 106.1 FM.

Records: Boston College is 5-1 and North Carolina is 5-2.

The Key Matchup: Boston College's passing game against North Carolina's defense.

This game will come down to one simple contest: the turnover battle. Whoever wins it will be in fine condition to win this game.

It is awfully hard to stop the Eagles and force them to punt because they can move the ball.

As a team they average 5.2 yards per play over the season.

Their primary running back freshman Montel Harris has been a revelation averaging 74.8 yards per game.

The weakest link on the offense is Chris Crane the starting quarterback. Virginia Tech had the chance to bury the Eagles early last week in Chestnut Hill as Crane put three balls in the hands of defenders but they could not hold onto them.

Aside from one 428-yard outing against NC State Boston College's passing game is averaging 146 yards per game or 107 yards per game less than the rushing game over the same period.

If this Boston College team does not turn the ball over they have a great chance to win.

North Carolina should be an interesting foil for the Eagles as the Tar Heels have been the most prolific thiefs of airborne balls in the country so far. The game hinges on their ability to turn over Crane and stop the Eagles rushing attack.

On the other side of the ball the Tar Heels had some success running the ball early against Virginia and their attack may hinge on sustaining that success.

Cam Sexton is looking to rebound from a bad performance in which he threw two interceptions. This week his ability to take pressure off the running game by throwing down the field and avoiding the drive-killing turnover could very well decide the effectiveness of the UNC attack.

Look for UNC to bounce back from its very poor performance against Virginia and get back on the winning track by executing more crisply on both sides of the ball.

The Bottom Line: North Carolina 27 Boston College 20.

—Compiled by Louie Horvath


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