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FACTS & STATS: Site: Alumni Stadium (44,500) -- Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Television: ABC. Home Record: Florida St. 1-2, Boston College 3-0. Away Record: Florida St. 1-0, Boston College 0-1. Neutral Record: Florida St. 0-0, Boston College 0-0. Conference Record: Florida St. 0-1, Boston College 1-1. Series Record: Florida State leads, 4-3.

GAME NOTES: A key ACC Atlantic Division battle takes place in Chestnut Hill this weekend, as the Boston College Eagles welcome the Florida State Seminoles to Alumni Stadium.

These two teams figure to be in the mix for the division title when all is said and done, although the Seminoles have shown themselves to be a tad inconsistent in the early stages of the season. After invading Provo a couple of weeks ago and whipping nationally-ranked BYU (54-28), FSU returned to Tallahassee last week, only to come out sluggish in a 17-7 loss to USF. With a season-opening loss to rival Miami, the Seminoles find themselves in an early hole in the conference standings.

Boston College has won three of its first four games and enters this tilt following a huge 27-24 overtime win against Wake Forest. The win evened BC's conference mark at 1-1 following an embarrassing 25-7 rout at the hands Clemson two weeks ago.

The Seminoles hold a narrow 4-3 edge in the series with Boston College. The visiting team has won all four matchups since the Eagles joined the ACC.

Although the Seminoles couldn't do much against the Bulls last week, this remains an offense that has the ability to move up and down the field. It all starts with junior signal-caller Christian Ponder, who is completing over 66 percent of his passes on the year. Ponder currently leads the ACC with 1,082 passing yards over the first four games. He also has four TD passes and just one interception on the year. Wideout Bert Reed has been one of Ponder's primary targets downfield, with 17 receptions, for 211 yards. Reed is coming off a huge performance against USF, hauling in nine passes, for 114 yards (both career-highs). Richard Goodman has also been active, with 17 catches, for 227 yards. The ground game is spearheaded by sophomore tailback Ty Jones, who is averaging 5.0 yards per carry. Jones has rushed for 228 yards in the first four games, with four TDs.

Defensively, the Seminoles have struggled at times, including some huge lapses against the Bulls last week. The team really struggled against the run (153 yards) and was gashed a couple of times by long pass plays, including a 73- yard TD strike by the Bulls in the second quarter. On the season, the numbers show the team's vulnerability to the pass, giving up a generous 295.2 yards per game. This is a big play unit though, with FSU recording 10 takeaways (seven INTs) and 11 sacks in the first four outings. Junior LB Kendall Smith is the team's top tackler at 27 stops. However, the heart-and-soul of the defense is standout senior LB Dekoda Watson (24 tackles), who leads the team in both TFLs (5.5) and sacks (4.5).

BC almost let one slip away last weekend, as Wake Forest scored two TDs with less than four minutes to play in regulation, only to fumble in the overtime period, allowing the Eagles to claim victory. True freshman QB Dave Shinskie made the most of his first collegiate start, completing 18-of-29 passes, for 228 yards and three TDs. With Shinskie's impressive performance, he may have edged past redshirt freshman Justin Tuggle for the QB job. If a consistent passing game can materialize for BC, this offense could become one of the more balanced units in the league. The ground game is solid with tailback Montel Harris (67.5 ypg, three TDs) leading the charge. The receiving corps is a bit underrated, led by veteran Rich Gunnell (11 receptions, for 165 yards, two TDs), who is the ACC's active leader in career receptions (132), receiving yards (1,744) and TDs (13).

Although there were some questions on the defensive side of the ball when the season began, the BC stop unit has played well for the most part. The pass defense has been particularly stout, yielding just 156.0 yards per game. True freshman LB Luke Kuechly has been impressive and currently leads the team in tackles (33). Defensive end Alex Albright (17 tackles, 5.5 TFLs) is the top performer along the defensive front, while DBs Marcellus Bowman (19 tackles) and Roderick Rollins (15 tackles, one INT) have been active in the secondary. The one area that BC needs to improve in is getting more pressure on opposing QBs (just three sacks), especially with the way Ponder is throwing the football this year.

The Seminoles have been tough to figure out this year, but the team should be ready for this one. That being said, the Eagles have looked good on defense this year and should make enough plays on that side of the football to earn the victory.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Boston College 24, Florida State 20