Iowa vs. Boston College, Pinstripe Bowl: Prediction, pick, line, odds, live stream
Everything you need to know to pick the Pinstripe Bowl and watch it online Wednesday
By
Tom Fornelli
•
2 min read
If you're like me, you'll be a little surprised to learn that this year's meeting between Iowa and Boston College in the Pinstripe Bowl is the first time these two schools have ever met in a football game. Not that you'd expect two non-rivals from different conferences to have a ton of history, but you would think that two Power Five schools met somewhere along the way. But no, not here. What we're getting in the 2017 Pinstripe Bowl is something the world has never seen before. Surely you don't want to miss out on this piece of history.
Viewing information
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 27 | Time: 5:15 p.m. ET
Location: Yankee Stadium -- New York, New York
TV: ESPN | Live stream: Watch ESPN, Watch ESPN apps
Storylines
Iowa: The story of Iowa's 2017 season is a strange one. The Hawkeyes had a profound impact on the national title picture, as their 55-24 win over Ohio State is one of the most important -- and most baffling -- games of the season. It is the reason why Ohio State was passed over for the playoff. As remarkable a victory as that was for the Hawkeyes, this is still a 7-5 team that lost at home to Purdue a couple of weeks after that Ohio State win. It's an offense that looks terrific in games against Iowa State, Penn State, Ohio State and Nebraska but can't get out of its way while playing Wisconsin, Michigan State, Northwestern and Purdue. It's that inconsistency that has been the identity of this team in 2017, and it's hard to know which team shows up to New York for this final game.
Boston College: It feels like Boston College has played two different seasons in 2017. It's a young team that had freshmen at key positions as Anthony Brown took over at quarterback, and A.J. Dillon won the starting job at running back. As you'd expect with youth, the Eagles stumbled out of the starting blocks, opening the season 2-4 with losses to Wake Forest, Notre Dame, Clemson and Virginia Tech. Then this team found its groove, finishing the year with five wins in its last six games -- beating both Louisville and Florida State -- as Brown and Dillon found their footing. Unfortunately, Brown was lost to a season-ending injury and missed the final two games of the season, though BC won both contests. Now the Eagles look to carry that momentum into Yankee Stadium.
Prediction
These teams are just so similar that it's hard to find an edge. In the end, however, I'm going with Iowa for a few simple reasons. The first is that while similar offensively, Iowa has been slightly better on defense. The second -- and largest factor -- is that Boston College doesn't have Brown, and I think the Hawkeyes will be able to slow down Dillon enough to keep the Eagles offense in check. Pick: Iowa -3.5
So what side do you need to be all over in the Pinstripe Bowl? Visit SportsLine now to get a strong pick for Boston College vs. Iowa from insider Emory Hunt, who's on a 14-5 run in college football against the spread picks.
