NoleGameday Staff Score Predictions: Florida State Seminoles At Boston College Eagles
The Florida State Seminoles are looking like a team that you don't want to mess with early in the 2023 season. The Seminoles have dominated the LSU Tigers and Southern Miss Golden Eagles to begin the year. The opening slate has been a success for the program but the action will continue to ramp up with ACC play kicking off this weekend in Chestnut Hill.
READ MORE: Kickoff Time, TV Channel Announced For Florida State's Crucial Road Game Against Clemson
The Seminoles are massive favorites over the Boston College Eagles but there are a couple of factors playing against them. Saturday afternoon will mark Florida State's first true game of the season plus there's a potential of inclement weather that could turn this into a slugfest as Hurricane Lee closes in on the northeast.
FSU is hoping to push its winning streak dating back to last season to nine against Boston College. The Seminoles are also 6-0 in the month of September since 2022.
Our staff provides their analysis and predictions as the Seminoles gear up for their conference opener against the Eagles.
Dustin Lewis (@DustinLewisNG)
Florida State did what it was supposed to do when the team blew the doors off Southern Miss last week in Tallahassee. 102 different players ended up entering the game for the Seminoles, a record for Mike Norvell since he became a head coach in 2016.
That allowed FSU to get out the starters early into the second half, meaning the team should be rested and ready to go despite hitting the road for the first time this season. This will be a good warmup for the Seminoles ahead of their tilt with Clemson in Death Valley.
Boston College is holding its annual 'Red Bandanna' game against Florida State which means there should be some energy inside Alumni Stadium. With that being said, it's hard to see the Eagles keeping up with the amount of talent and depth across the Seminoles' roster.
Weather could make this game more interesting than it should be but right now the latest projections have the wind between 20-30 mile-per-hour gusts. Boston College hasn't allowed a point in the opening quarter through two games. I think that's about as long as the Eagles keep it close.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 41, Eagles 7
Logan Robinson (@LogansTwitty)
Florida State is headed into this game 2-0, putting some serious points on the scoreboard. I think that’s going to continue on Saturday.
Look for the tight end room to have a big day and the running game to be established early. I think Destyn Hill or Hykeem Williams score their first collegiate touchdown as well.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 51, Boston College 13
Austin Veazey (@EasyVeazeyNG)
This is likely going to be a rainy, sloppy game due to the weather, so not expecting BC to get anything going through the air. Definitely think FSU will try to get to some play-action to have some resemblance of a passing game going in these conditions, but even if they can’t, they’re more talented at every single level on both sides of the ball and should run away with this game.
Boston College lost to Northern Illinois and should’ve lost to Holy Cross. The only thing keeping this from getting out of hand is the weather
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 45, Eagles 10
Dillon Riera (@13d_riera)
Rain or shine, Florida State is headed to Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill on Saturday, and they're looking to carry some momentum from last week's high-scoring affair into their ACC opener. On the other sideline, the Boston College Eagles are desperately trying to find some sort of groove following a crushing defeat against Northern Illinois in Week 1 and a narrow victory over Holy Cross. Tack on the effects of a nearby hurricane and the magic of a "Red Bandanna" game, and the potential for things to get weird is very high. It is college football, after all. On paper, however, this one is pretty cut and dry.
At the time of writing this article, the line is at (-27.5) in favor of FSU with the over/under set at 48.5. The experts expect a lopsided affair, and it's not hard to see why. Florida State has averaged 55.5 points per game; 66 over Southern Mississippi and 45 over then-fifth-ranked LSU. The high-flying Seminole offense is averaging 524.0 yards of total offense through two weeks with 303.5 of that coming through the air. Meanwhile, the Boston College Eagles have struggled to surpass 30 points in each of their games. Not to mention, both games have been decided by exactly three points. Struggling against Holy Cross and Northern Illinois doesn't exactly bode well for the Eagles with a battle-tested No. 3 ranked team coming to town.
ESPN's FPI gives Florida State a 96.7% chance of victory, and I'm inclined to agree. Boston College just won't be able to trade blows with FSU for long. The sheer amount of talent on the Seminole roster is just too big a hurdle for the Eagles to overcome, and Mike Norvell's team will inevitably find guys capable of taking over on both sides of the ball. Much like Keon Coleman last week, it'll be Florida State hurdling this week's matchup against BC, avoiding the "trap game" concerns, and moving forward toward a high-profile matchup against the Clemson Tigers.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 38, Eagles 13
Tommy Mire (@TommyM3III)
The Seminoles kick off ACC play against Boston College, who are breaking in a new quarterback in Thomas Castellanos and are 1-1 on the year. It is, however, BC’s “Red Bandanna” game so I expect them to give it their all, but there is just too much of a talent gap.
There is an X-factor here that could favor either team in Hurricane Lee, which is fast approaching and is expected to affect the game. Both teams could rely on a run-heavy attack due to the wind, but even in that scenario, you have to look at the trenches, and BC just doesn’t have the personnel up front.
I expect FSU to strike first on the ground and win by at least 14, but it could very well turn into another blowout. The ‘Noles are 26-point favorites and should cover.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 44, Eagles 17
Kade Kimble (@kadekimble)
Florida State is going to be able to handily take another game. After two weeks of play, the Seminoles should be able to tie together any loose ends in their game.
This will allow them to jump on Boston College as the better team and smoothly sail their way through another dominating victory.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 49, Eagles 17
Robert Malcom (@kwrobertm)
The 'Noles are on a roll and the Eagles lost their home opener to Northern Illinois and had an extremely close game against Holy Cross, which was also a home game.
I think the Florida State defense will simply be too much for Boston College to get their run game going, and despite the bad weather that is predicted for the game, I cannot see FSU putting less than five touchdowns on the board given the past two weeks they have had.
2023 Season Prediction Record: 2-0
Seminoles 38, Eagles 3
CONSENSUS: Florida State (7-0)
READ MORE: Mike Norvell Provides Injury Updates On Multiple Florida State Starters
Stick with NoleGameday for more coverage of Florida State football throughout the 2023 season.
