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History of the matchup: Rutgers football vs Boston College

Kyle Fisher
·6 min read

Well, it is official. The start to the college football season is upon us. Rutgers has their first game on the road this year, and it is not a cookie-cutter matchup like they may have had in years past.

First up this season for the Scarlet Knights: a date at Alumni Stadium in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts against the Boston College Eagles. Saturday’s opponent is not just an average opponent, they are a solid Power Five program from the ACC. The Eagles finished last season at 6-6 and were bowl eligible outright. Their scheduled bowl game was cancelled, but they were named to the game unlike the Scarlet Knights. Boston College is also further along in its rebuild than Rutgers is currently in their third season under head coach Greg Schiano.

When trying to predict games, regardless of whether it’s college or the pros, none is a tougher prediction than the season opener. You can only learn so much from the spring game and training camps. Especially in college where the turnover is so large year-to-year due to graduation or transfers – fans of the sport will look anywhere to try to find a way to determine how their team will fare in Week 1. One of the places you can look is history.

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The history on the gridiron between Rutgers and Boston College dates all the way back to 1919 when the former governor of New Jersey, Woodrow Wilson, was in the oval office. Rutgers started off strong with a 13-7 road victory. The programs would not meet on the field again until 1956 where Boston College got revenge in a big way, winning in New Jersey 32-0.

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There was another small gap – 25 years to be exact – until the Eagles and Scarlet Knights would matchup again. The schools would meet again in 1981 and play each other in non-conference games for 11 straight years. In 1991, both programs joined the Big East conference for it’s first season foraying into football. They would play each other another 14 straight seasons for a total of 25 consecutive years where the teams played each other. When conferences realigned in 2005, the schools snapped their streak and would not see action against one another until 2019, prior to Schiano’s return to the program. That is the most recent matchup in the history between the schools.

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Boston College has dominated the all-time series as they are currently 20-6-1 against Rutgers throughout history. The Scarlet Knights best winning streak was four games from 1986-1989. The Eagles have outdone that streak twice:  winning six in a row in 1956 and and the 1981-1985, and are currently on a dominant 11 game heater dating back to 1995.

Let’s take a look at the history between the two programs, from most recent to that first matchup over a century ago.

9.21.2019 - @ Rutgers

© Peter Ackerman, Asbury Park Press

Winner: Boston College

Score: 30-16

11.6.2004 - @ Boston College

(AP Photo/Lisa Poole)

Winner: Boston College

Score: 21-10

11.15.2003 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 35-25

11.30.2002 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 35-25

11.17.2001 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 38-7

10.28.2000 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 42-13

9.25.1999 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 27-7

9.12.1998 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 41-14

9.20.1997 - @ Rutgers

Mandatory Credit: Al Bello /Allsport

Winner: Boston College

Score: 35-21

10.19.1996 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 37-13

11.24.1995 - @ Rutgers

(AP Photo/Daniel Hulshizer)

Winner: Boston College

Score: 41-38

10.22.1994 - @ Rutgers

Winner: N/A (TIE)

Score: 7-7

10.9.1993 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 31-21

9.5.1992 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 37-20

8.31.1991 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 20-13

10.6.1990 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 19-14

9.16.1989 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 9-7

10.15.1988 - @ Boston College

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 17-6

10.17.1987 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 38-24

9.6.1986 - @ Boston College

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 11-9

10.5.1985 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 20-10

10.27.1984 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 35-23

9.17.1983 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 42-22

10.16.1982 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 14-13

11.21.1981 - @ Boston College

Winner: Boston College

Score: 27-21

10.20.1956 - @ Rutgers

Winner: Boston College

Score: 32-0

11.8.1919 - @ Boston College

Winner: Rutgers

Score: 13-7

Story originally appeared on Rutgers Wire