1983 Boston College Eagles football team

1983 Boston College Eagles football
1983 Boston College Eagles football
Eastern champion
Liberty Bowl, L 18–19 vs. Notre Dame
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 20
AP	No. 19
Record	9–3
Head coach	Jack Bicknell (3rd season);
Defensive coordinator	Seymour "Red" Kelin (3rd season)
Captains	Bob Biestek; Brian Brennan; Steve DeOssie;
Home stadium	Alumni Stadium ; Sullivan Stadium
	Seasons ← 1982 1984 →

The 1983 Boston College Eagles football team represented Boston College as an independent during the 1983 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Eagles were led by third-year head coach Jack Bicknell, and played their home games at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts and Sullivan Stadium (later known as Foxboro Stadium) in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Junior quarterback Doug Flutie threw for over 2,700 yards and finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting, leading Boston College to their first ranked finish in 41 years. They met their rivals, Notre Dame, in the 1983 Liberty Bowl.

1983 Major eastern college football independents records
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
Penn State	4	–	1	–	1	8	–	4	–	1
No. 16 West Virginia	4	–	2	–	0	9	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Pittsburgh	2	–	1	–	1	8	–	3	–	1
No. 19 Boston College $	3	–	2	–	0	9	–	3	–	0
Syracuse	3	–	3	–	0	6	–	5	–	0
Temple	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	7	–	0
Rutgers	0	–	5	–	0	3	–	8	–	0

$ – Lambert Trophy Winner Rankings from AP Poll

1983 NCAA Division I-A independents football records
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 1 Miami (FL)		–		–		11	–	1	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–		9	–	2	–	0
No. 19 Boston College		–		–		9	–	3	–	0
No. 16 West Virginia		–		–		9	–	3	–	0
No. 20 East Carolina		–		–		8	–	3	–	0
No. 18 Pittsburgh		–		–		8	–	3	–	1
Florida State		–		–		8	–	4	–	0
Penn State		–		–		8	–	4	–	1
Southern Miss		–		–		7	–	4	–	0
Memphis State		–		–		6	–	4	–	1
Notre Dame		–		–		7	–	5	–	0
Syracuse		–		–		6	–	5	–	0
South Carolina		–		–		5	–	6	–	0
Cincinnati			–			4	–	6	–	1
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–		4	–	6	–	0
Temple		–		–		4	–	7	–	0
Tulane		–		–		4	–	7	–	0
Louisville		–		–		3	–	8	–	0
Navy		–		–		3	–	8	–	0
Rutgers		–		–		3	–	8	–	0
Army		–		–		2	–	9	–	0

Rankings from AP Poll

Boston College finished the season ranked No. 19 in the final AP Poll, and captured the Lambert-Meadowlands Trophy (emblematic of the 'Eastern championship' in Division I FBS).

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	Morgan State		Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA		W 45–12	31,300
September 10	Clemson		Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA (rivalry)		W 31–16	32,000–32,500	^[1]^[2]
September 17	at Rutgers		Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ		W 42–22	23,561
September 24	No. 12 West Virginia	No. 19	Alumni Stadium Chestnut Hill, MA	ABC	L 17–27	32,000	^[3]
October 1	at Temple		Franklin Field Philadelphia, PA		W 18–15	7,033
October 8	at Yale		Yale Bowl New Haven, CT		W 42–7	31,108	^[4]
October 29	Penn State	No. 19	Sullivan Stadium Foxborough, MA	ABC	W 27–17	56,605
November 5	at Army	No. 16	Michie Stadium West Point, NY		W 34–14	40,749
November 12	at Syracuse	No. 13	Carrier Dome Syracuse, NY		L 10–21	41,225
November 19	vs. Holy Cross	No. 18	Sullivan Stadium Foxborough, MA (rivalry)	ABC	W 47–7	38,512	^[5]
November 25	No. 13 Alabama	No. 15	Sullivan Stadium Foxborough, MA	CBS	W 20–13	58,047	^[6]
December 29	vs. Notre Dame	No. 13	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN (Liberty Bowl, Holy War)		L 18–19	47,071
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[7]

Roster

1983 Boston College Eagles football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`13`	Brian Brennan	Sr
RB	`32`	Jim Browne	Jr
QB	`22`	Doug Flutie	Jr
OL	`79`	Mark MacDonald	Jr
WR	`20`	Gerard Phelan	Jr
RB	`23`	Troy Stradford	Fr
WR	`3`	Chris Tripucka	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
NG	`68`	Mike Ruth	So
LB	`81`	Andy Hemmer	So
DB	`17`	Tony Thurman	Jr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class

Head coach

Jack Bicknell

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Tom Coughlin – Quarterbacks

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Game summaries

No. 12 West Virginia

No. 13 Alabama

Vs. Notre Dame (Liberty Bowl)

References

^ "Stradford carries BC past Clemson". The Hartford Courant. September 11, 1983. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1984". Clemson University. 1984. p. 0. Retrieved November 10, 2023.
^ "W. Va. Mountaineers blitz Boston College". The Daily Advertiser. September 25, 1983. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Thomsen, Ian (October 9, 1983). "BC Scores Early and Often". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 51 – via Newspapers.com.
^ May, Peter (November 20, 1983). "BC Pounds Holy Cross, Expects New Bowl Foe". The Hartford Courant. Hartford, Conn. pp. D12, D16 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Turnovers turn back Tide; BC finishes with 9–2 record". The Boston Globe. November 26, 1983. Retrieved February 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "1983 Boston College Eagles Schedule & Results". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2017.

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[1] "Stradford carries BC past Clemson". The Hartford Courant. September 11, 1983. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1984". Clemson University. 1984. p. 0. Retrieved November 10, 2023.

[3] "W. Va. Mountaineers blitz Boston College". The Daily Advertiser. September 25, 1983. Retrieved January 29, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.

[4] Thomsen, Ian (October 9, 1983). "BC Scores Early and Often". Boston Sunday Globe. Boston, Mass. p. 51 – via Newspapers.com.

[5] May, Peter (November 20, 1983). "BC Pounds Holy Cross, Expects New Bowl Foe". The Hartford Courant. Hartford, Conn. pp. D12, D16 – via Newspapers.com.

[6] "Turnovers turn back Tide; BC finishes with 9–2 record". The Boston Globe. November 26, 1983. Retrieved February 19, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.

[7] "1983 Boston College Eagles Schedule & Results". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved May 12, 2017.

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