Boston College cracks AP Top 25, first time since 2018

On Sunday afternoon, the Associated Press released their weekly College Football Top 25 rankings based on AP voters from around the country.

Coming in at #24 in the country was Boston College (2-0), their first appearance in the rankings since November of 2018.

This ranking is also the earliest BC has appeared in the AP Top 25 since 2005, when the Eagles were ranked #22 in the preseason poll coming off their fifth consecutive bowl win. That bowl-win streak made it to eight straight wins from 2000 to 2007.

Only two games into Bill O’Brien’s first season as head coach at Chestnut Hill, and BC is back in the national college football conversation.

But it’s not just the name value of having O’Brien on-board that’s garnering the Eagles this attention.

Week 1 saw BC head to Tallahassee, where the Eagles shocked #10 Florida State with a 28-13 win . It was their first win over FSU since 2017.

O’Brien’s team followed up this historic win with a dominant performance in Week 2 for their home opener, as BC plastered Duquesne 56-0 . It was FBS over FCS, but it was FBS over FCS the way FBS over FCS is supposed to look - something the Eagles haven’t done in recent years under their former head coach Jeff Hafley.

Statistically, BC ranks seventh in the nation in rushing defense, ninth in rushing offense, 10th in scoring defense, and 23rd in scoring offense.

And maybe most impressively, BC ranks first in the nation in team passing efficiency, which highlights how crisp things have operated with junior quarterback Thomas Castellanos under center.

Castellanos has thrown for 340 yards and 6 touchdowns, to go along with a completion percentage of 73.1%. He also has a rushing touchdown and is averaging over 5 yards a carry.

The Eagles take their shiny new ranking into Columbia, MO in Week 3 for arguably their toughest game of the season against #6 Mizzou.

The Tigers are also 2-0, and are coming off a 2023 season in which they beat Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl Classic.

#24 vs. #6 is one of only two ranked-vs-ranked games in Week 3. The other comes on Friday night as #20 Arizona heads to #14 Kansas State.

So the case can be made that on Saturday, BC will be playing in the nation’s biggest game.

It’s an early kick for that one - 12:45 p.m. ET (11:45 a.m. in Missouri) on WEEI and the SEC Network.