Boston College’s third week of fall camp is shaping up with a few clear risers and a couple of spots that still need work before the Eagles head to Cincinnati in 20 days.
The most encouraging buzz right now is around the defense, which has been a step ahead of the offense through the first two weeks. Bill O’Brien said after Saturday’s first scrimmage inside Alumni Stadium that he saw both positives and negatives, and he’s still waiting for the passing game to really hit its stride. Even so, there are some individual performances that have stood out.
At linebacker, transfer addition Bodie Kahoun has been one of the camp’s biggest bright spots. The Eagles brought him in through the portal this offseason, and he may have had the best camp of anyone in that room. That group also includes Washington State transfer Anthony Palano, who joined quarterback Mason McKenzie and safety KP Price at 2026 ACC Kickoff as the three players O’Brien viewed as most representative of the program.
Kahoun backed up the buzz in Saturday’s scrimmage, flashing with solo tackles, tackles for loss, and a sharp ability to read where the ball was going. That kind of instinct matters at linebacker, and he’s shown it consistently. He’s also become a positive force around the team, always carrying that wide smile and bringing energy no matter the moment.
That matters for a linebacker group that badly needs a jump from last season, when injuries made an already shaky unit even harder to stabilize. O’Brien said the group has made real progress.
“I think they’re fast,” O’Brien said of the linebacker group as a whole. “They’re tough.
They’re good leaders, Bodie, Palano, Zacari Thomas. I think Kemori Dixon’s improved, Griffin Collins, playing more in space now has helped him a lot.
So I think there’s definitely improvement there, and I’m really excited about that. Health is a key.
Still not the deepest unit, but really excited about how they play.”
Another defender turning heads is Amedee, whose rise on the defensive line has come out of nowhere. The Xaverian Brothers product from Brockton, Mass., is only a true sophomore with one career start, but he’s been the name people keep coming back to at camp. He’s been living in the backfield, slipping past blockers with a kind of quick, controlled movement that makes it look effortless.
BC did plenty of work on the defensive line through the portal, adding KJ Sampson from Florida State, Christian Hudson from Colorado, and Demetrius Ballard from Buffalo. But Amedee may end up being the key piece on that front if this momentum carries into the season.
Special teams has not always been a source of optimism for BC fans, but the punting operation has shown real progress, and Quin is right in the middle of it. Whether it’s added strength in the weight room or growth in his technique, the Irishman out of Galway has looked like a different player lately.
When he hits a punt cleanly, the ball comes off his foot with serious spin, hang time, and distance. The consistency still has to hold up once the games start, but the signs have been encouraging.
“It’s one of the strongest rooms on the team,” O’Brien said. “So I really have high hopes for that room. They’re going to help us win games.”
There are other names worth keeping an eye on too, including RB Nolan Ray, DBs Carter Davis and Marcus Upton, and TE Brady Clough. O’Brien also addressed Maryland transfer Nolan Ray after he broke loose for a 65-yard rushing touchdown, the biggest play of the morning.
Not everything has been trending up, though. The center depth behind starter Michael Crounse is a real concern, and reserve snaps have become a problem. Johnson and Williams have both struggled there, and O’Brien and first-year offensive line coach Kurt Anderson may need to look at other options if the issue doesn’t clean itself up quickly.
That’s especially troubling because the offensive line is already one of the biggest questions on the roster, with pass protection still a work in progress. But the snapping mistakes go beyond that. At this level, the ball has to get to the quarterback cleanly and on time, every time, and BC has seen too many errors over the last two weeks.
Kicker Liam Lombardo is another situation worth monitoring, even if it’s mostly precautionary. He remains a proven weapon - he made 16 of 17 field goals last season and was perfect on PATs - but the consistency on field goals hasn’t fully been there yet in camp. With only one or two live reps a practice, the pressure on those kicks is real, and that will be something to watch as camp closes in on the opener.
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Evan Dickens Gives Boston College A True Offensive Centerpiece
Boston College has spent the summer looking for more certainty on offense, and Evan Dickens is starting to look like the kind of player who can supply it. The former Liberty running back landed on the Doak Walker Award 2026 Preseason Watch List, a nod that reflects the impact he brought with him after transferring in and the kind of workload-he can handle at a position where consistency matters as much as burst.
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