The Boston College football team opened its 2026 season in Cincinnati and left with a 34-15 loss to the Bearcats on Saturday afternoon.
Boston College got production from Mason McKenzie, who threw for 223 yards and a touchdown while also running for 78 yards. Evan Dickens added 47 rushing yards and a touchdown, and also caught one pass for 27 yards.
Johnathan Montague Jr. finished with two catches for 55 yards and a score. On defense, Anthony Palano piled up 13 tackles, while KP Price also reached double figures with 10.
Cincinnati set the tone right away, taking the opening drive and turning it into points on a 54-yard field goal from Stephen Rusnak for a 3-0 lead. The Bearcats kept building from there in the second quarter, when JC French IV hit JV Gibson for a four-yard touchdown to make it 10-0.
BC had its best sequence of the first half in the final two minutes before the break. McKenzie found Javarius Green for a 20-yard gain on the second play of the day, the longest throw of his afternoon, and later escaped on 3rd and 15 for a 15-yard scramble to move the chains. The Eagles pushed the ball to the Cincinnati 25-yard line, but the drive ended without points.
The Bearcats pulled away in the third quarter with a pair of four-yard rushing touchdowns to stretch the margin to 24-0.
Boston College finally broke through late in the third when Dickens finished a drive with a four-yard touchdown run to cut it to 24-8. The scoring march featured a 27-yard catch by Dickens out of the backfield, an illegal substitution penalty against Cincinnati, and back-to-back three-yard runs before he scored from four yards out.
After Cincinnati answered to go up 34-8, McKenzie connected with Montague Jr. on a 23-yard touchdown over the middle with just over a minute left, giving the Eagles their second touchdown of the game.
In Other News...
Boston College Already Faces A Familiar Problem Fans Feared
Boston Colleges season opener in the Fenway Bowl rematch with Cincinnati turned into a familiar frustration, the kind that leaves a coach shaking his head and fans wondering how much of the early damage was self-inflicted. The Eagles fell 34-15 after a sloppy afternoon that featured turnovers, penalties and defensive breakdowns, while Cincinnati quarterback JC French IV kept finding the end zone and making Boston College pay for each mistake.
Bill OBrien and several players were quick to acknowledge the issues afterward, and the tone was less about excuses than urgency. The Eagles know the margin for error is thin when the operation gets messy, and the first game offered a blunt reminder that cleaner execution has to come quickly if this season is going to avoid the same problems that have haunted the program before. [Read more 🡒]
Boston College's Same Costly Problems Just Ruined Mason McKenzie's Debut
Boston College opened the season with a 34-15 loss to Cincinnati, and for a while the focus was on Mason McKenzies first FBS start and what it might mean for the offense moving forward. The transfer quarterback gave the Eagles a noticeable spark in his debut, but the bigger storyline from the opener was all too familiar: penalties, uneven special teams, and a handful of wasted chances that kept the game from ever feeling under control.
Cincinnati kept finding ways to turn those mistakes into momentum, leaning on key plays and a steady rushing attack to pull away. The Eagles also had a couple of moments that could have changed the feel of the first half, but those opportunities slipped by, leaving Boston College with the same frustrating questions it brought into the fall. [Read more 🡒]
Boston College Volleyball Suddenly Looks More Dangerous Than Fans Expected
Boston College volleyball came away from the Boston College Invitational with a result that should make the rest of the schedule pay a little closer attention. The Eagles got past New Hampshire in four sets, and the win carried some real weight because it marked their first victory over the Wildcats since 2015, a useful sign that this group may be starting to turn close matches into something more tangible.
Sam Hoppes powered the attack with 17 kills and five blocks, while Reese Dunkle and Audrey Ross added 11 kills and 10 kills, respectively, to keep the pressure on throughout the match. The challenge now gets a little sharper with Vanderbilt up next on Sept. 9, and if Boston College can keep getting that kind of balanced production, the early-season outlook starts to look a lot more interesting. [Read more 🡒]