Play BC’s first string for more than a quarter or two and they may put up career games, even against an accomplished ACC foe.

It’s not all Dillon on the ground. QB Anthony Brown threw for 304 yards and 5 touchdowns. BC photo

In the 41-34 victory over Wake Forest (2-1) yesterday, AJ Dillon continued to have great rushing stats, but it was quarterback Anthony Brown and wide receiver Jeff Smith who set personal career records. Dillon ran 33 times for 185 yards, including all 52 yards on 3 carries in the Eagles’ first series, ending in a 45-yard run for BC’s first touchdown. Brown became the first Eagle quarterback to throw for 5 touchdowns since Matt Ryan in 2007, also against Wake Forest. Smith caught 6 passes for 145 and 2 touchdowns, and also ran 3 times for 42 yards.

The game was played before 25,309 fans in the late afternoon, kickoff at 5:30 pm local time. The start of the game had been moved up 2 hours in recognition of the potential impact of Hurricane Florence, then making landfall on the North Carolina coast, about 200 miles away. The time change gave the Eagles a little leeway in being able to fly back to Boston that evening.

What I think are Wake ROTC students seem displeased at Ben Glines’s TD reception. BC photo

While the game was close on the scoreboard and most of the stat sheet, Wake Forest was pretty much gifted 2 touchdowns on special teams foulups. Late in the first quarter, Wake got the ball on BC’s 13 when Mike Walker fumbled a punt (his first fumble in 2 years). Three plays later, Wake scored the tying touchdown. Early in the second quarter, BC punter Grant Carlson mishandled the snap and his attempt to get off a kick was blocked. The ball bounced back into BC’s endzone, where it was recovered by Wake for a touchdown.

Overall, Wake Forest ran an incredible 105 plays to BC’s 69, making 27 first downs to BC’s 19, and was successful on 6 of 7 fourth-down conversions. Yardage was closer, as the Eagles gained 524 yards total offense and the Deacons gained 512 yards.

BC’s Brown threw for 304 yards, mostly on big plays. The Eagles never got into the red zone (inside the 20) in the game; they scored all their points on touchdowns and from outside the 20. The shortest touchdown play for BC was 27 yards.

Offensive players weren’t the only record-setters. Senior defensive end Wyatt Ray set a BC record with 4 sacks, and grad student linebacker Connor Strachan had a personal-best 13 tackles.

Here are video highlights.

The Eagles open the season 3-0, also for the first time since 2007. They get a bit of a break with this weekend off before heading out to Lafayette, Ind., to play Purdue of the Big 10. The Boilermakers are 0-2, having lost to Northwestern and Eastern Michigan. They play Missouri tomorrow.

Gamewatch is early. Striders serves breakfast, to much acclaim.