Notre Dame Football: Ranking each 2019 opponent by toughness

9. Boston College Eagles (Nov. 23 — Notre Dame, Ind.)

Many expect Boston College to surprise some people in 2019, but those surprises likely won’t come this late in the season against Notre Dame football. This late in the season, you usually get the best from each team. Add in the home-field advantage, and Boston College will likely be too far behind the eight ball. Barring some injury, this should be a win for the Fighting Irish.

If Boston College manages to win this game, it will likely be on the shoulders of their running back AJ Dillon. He had over 1,100 rushing yards and 11 total touchdowns in his sophomore season, and he appears to be trending up for his junior year. The Eagles will be run-centric, which might work well against Notre Dame. When in doubt, give the ball to your best player.

Another thing that could hypothetically be in Boston College’s favor is the fact that this game is so late in the year. The majority of Notre Dame’s toughest games will be behind them. If they manage to still be undefeated this late in the year, the pressure will be on them.

Notre Dame will simply be the better team in this game. However, the better team doesn’t always win in college football. Out of the worst teams on Notre Dame’s schedule, this one is has a better chance to be a potential upset.