CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2023 Boston College

7–⁠6 (3–⁠5 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Jeff Hafley.

Schedule and results

Boston College in 2023, game by game: lost vs. Northern Illinois 24–27; won vs. Holy Cross 31–28; lost vs. No. 3 Florida State 29–31; lost at Louisville 28–56; won vs. Virginia 27–24; won at Army 27–24; won at Georgia Tech 38–23; won vs. UConn 21–14; won at Syracuse 17–10; lost vs. Virginia Tech 22–48; lost at Pittsburgh 16–24; lost vs. Miami 20–45; won vs. No. 17 SMU 23–14+15−28Lost 24–27 vs. Northern Illinois-3Northern Illino…Won 31–28 vs. Holy Cross+3Holy CrossLost 29–31 vs. No. 3 Florida State-2No. 3 Florida StateLost 28–56 at Louisville-28LouisvilleWon 27–24 vs. Virginia+3VirginiaWon 27–24 at Army+3ArmyWon 38–23 at Georgia Tech+15Georgia TechWon 21–14 vs. UConn+7UConnWon 17–10 at Syracuse+7SyracuseLost 22–48 vs. Virginia Tech-26Virginia TechLost 16–24 at Pittsburgh-8PittsburghLost 20–45 vs. Miami-25MiamiWon 23–14 vs. No. 17 SMU+9No. 17 SMU
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2vsNorthern IllinoisL 24–⁠2761%
Sep 9vsHoly CrossW 31–⁠2848%
Sep 16vs3Florida StateL 29–⁠3126%
Sep 23atLouisvilleL 28–⁠5617%
Sep 30vsVirginiaW 27–⁠2458%
Oct 7atArmyW 27–⁠2427%
Oct 21atGeorgia TechW 38–⁠2337%
Oct 28vsUConnW 21–⁠1472%
Nov 3atSyracuseW 17–⁠1041%
Nov 11vsVirginia TechL 22–⁠4860%
Nov 16atPittsburghL 16–⁠2442%
Nov 24vsMiamiL 20–⁠4547%
Dec 28Bowls & playoffvs17SMUFenway BowlW 23–⁠1416%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat SMU 23–⁠14 in the Fenway Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 9th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 82nd-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 116 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
3–⁠5 tied for 9th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
323–⁠368
Coach
Jeff Hafley
Elo
1452 +41 this season
SP+ rating
-5.9 No. 83 of 133; offense No. 86, defense No. 77, special teams No. 82
SRS
−3.5 No. 80 of 133 in FBS
Returning
39% of last season’s EPA, No. 95 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 61 roster talent No. 55 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Steve Shimko
Defensive coordinators
Aazaar Abdul-Rahim and Sean Duggan
Offense
Multiple pro-style
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense57th of 133
  • Defense101st of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted59th of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted110th of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1241%1.3157th of 133
Defense0.1842%1.32101st of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.12 off
0.17 def		41% off
42% def		—59th off
110th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.9own 2914% allowed
Defense4.4own 3013% caused

CORE rating -0.0, 63rd of 133 (offense 4.9, defense 4.9).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsThomas Castellanos QB2,270 yds
Passing touchdownsThomas Castellanos QB15 TD
Rushing yardsThomas Castellanos QB1,113 yds
Rushing touchdownsThomas Castellanos QB13 TD
Receiving yardsLewis Bond WR646 yds
Receiving touchdownsLewis Bond WR7 TD
TacklesVinny DePalma LB92 tkl
SacksNeto Okpala DE2 sacks
InterceptionsElijah Jones DB5 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Jaedn Skeete WR★★★No. 593
Datrell Jones RB★★★No. 611
Shawn Battle CB★★★No. 668
Nate Johnson III ATH★★★No. 673
Reed Harris ATH★★★No. 694

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.871
Running backs13.00.880
Receivers23.00.878
Offensive line23.00.848
Defensive line23.00.849
Linebackers13.00.848
Defensive backs53.00.858
Athletes and specialists33.00.868
Whole class173.00.861

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Drafted in 2024

The 2024 draft
Rd 3Elijah Jones CBArizona Cardinals
Rd 6Christian Mahogany OGDetroit Lions

Roster 118

The 2023 roster

118 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 9

The 2023 portal
Alex Washington CB★★★from Harvard
Ryan O’Keefe WR★★★from UCF
Victor Nelson S★★★from LIU Post
Kye Robichaux RB★★★from Western Kentucky
Kyle Hergel OL★★★from Texas State
Logan Taylor OT★★★from Virginia
George Rooks DL★★★from Michigan
Khari Johnson CB★★★from Arkansas
Thomas Castellanos QB★★★from UCF

Transfers out 11

Josh DeBerry CB★★★★to Texas A&M
Finn Dirstine OL★★★to Texas A&M
Jason Maitre S★★★to Wisconsin
Phil Jurkovec QB★★★to Pittsburgh
Jaelen Gill WR★★★★★to Fresno State
Kevin Pyne OT★★★★to Rhode Island
Izaiah Henderson DL★★★no new school on file
Kivon Wright DL★★★to Boise State
Peter Delaportas QB★★★returned to Boston College
Shawn Battle CB★★★no new school on file
Christian Curatolo OT★★no new school on file

2023 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Florida State8–⁠013–⁠16
Louisville7–⁠110–⁠419
NC State6–⁠29–⁠421
Georgia Tech5–⁠37–⁠6
Virginia Tech5–⁠37–⁠6
Clemson4–⁠49–⁠420
North Carolina4–⁠48–⁠5
Duke4–⁠48–⁠5
Miami3–⁠57–⁠6
Boston College3–⁠57–⁠6
Syracuse2–⁠66–⁠7
Pittsburgh2–⁠63–⁠9
Virginia2–⁠63–⁠9
Wake Forest1–⁠74–⁠8

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.