2025 Boston College Eagles Position Preview: Defensive Line

It is no surprise that the Boston College Eagles’ football program lost the majority of its firepower on the defensive line going into the 2025 season.

Former BC defensive end Donovan Ezeiruaku, the reigning Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year and second-round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys, played like a one-man wrecking machine in 2024 and led the nation in regular-season sacks with 16.5.

At 2025 ACC Football Kickoff, Bill O’Brien said that Ezeiruaku arguably won the Eagles a few games last year single-handedly.

Former BC defensive tackle Cam Horsley is another massive loss on the defensive interior.

The 6-foot-4, 306-pound tackle signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Tennessee Titans after the conclusion of the 2025 NFL Draft, which Horsley was expected to be selected in, after earning All-ACC Third-Team honors in 2024 with 42 tackles, seven tackles for loss, three quarterback hurries and three pass break-ups.

Horsley was a plug in the middle of the trenches who filled up the gaps—proven by his 18.5 TFLs in the five years he spent in Chestnut Hill, Mass.—which allowed Ezeiruaku to explode off the edge with much greater ease.

While the Eagles lose both Ezeiruaku and Horsley, they are retaining a dynamic edge rusher in Quintayvious Hutchins, who impressed the entire conference in his final six regular-season games in 2024 after transitioning back to defensive end from tight end a year prior to his redshirt junior campaign.

BC ranked tenth in sacks in 2024 (31) and fourth in forced fumbles (13), as well as sixth in fumbles recovered (8), but could see a decrease in those numbers in 2025 with the lack of NFL-bound talent. Only time will tell how much of a force Hutchins can become in likely his final season on the Heights, including who will rise up from the depth chart to take over defensive tackle duties.

Projected Starting Lineup:

1. Quintayvious Hutchins

2. Owen Stoudmire

3. Edwin Kolenge

4. Kwan Williams

Other defensive linemen: Sedarius McConnell, Clive Wilson, Josiah Griffin, Bryce Lewis, Favor Bate, Sterling Sanders, Chris Marable Jr., E’Lla Boykin, Micah Amedee, Ty Clemons, Makai Byerson, Onye Nwosisi, Jayzen Flint, Chuck Nnaeto, Israel Oladipupo, Mike Bumpus, Jayden Fry.

2025 Boston College Defensive Linemen

Quintayvious Hutchins - Redshirt Senior, 6-3, 246 lbs.

Hutchins exploded onto the college football season in the latter half of 2024. He played in all 13 games, starting seven on the opposite defensive end side from Ezeiruaku, and totaled 31 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble and eight quarterback hurries.

Owen Stoudmire - Redshirt Senior, 6-1, 284 lbs.

The Creston, Ohio native started twice at defensive tackle and saw game action on 13 occasions last year. He registered 30 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, 2.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries.

Edwin Kolenge - Redshirt Junior, 6-3, 259 lbs.

The Montreal, Quebec native and Loomis Chaffee product appeared in nine games on defense and special teams last year, making one tackle, and played in all 13 games at defensive end and on special teams as a redshirt freshman in 2023, racking up 12 tackles with two TFLs and a sack.

Kwan Williams - Senior, 6-2, 310 lbs.

A Baltimore, Md. native, Williams played in all 13 games last season with two starts as a third interior lineman, totaling seven tackles. He also made a start in the 2025 Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl against Nebraska at Yankee Stadium.

Sedarius McConnell - Redshirt Senior, 6-3, 282 lbs.

A Westlake High School product, McConnell played in 12 games in 2024 and made 14 tackles. He recorded a season-high four tackles, all solos, against Duquesne to help BC advance to 2-0 on the season in the program’s 2024 home opener.

Ty Clemons - Redshirt Senior, 6-3, 273 lbs.

After missing the 2023 season due to injury, Clemons played in seven games in 2024, totaling four tackles and contributing an interception against Pittsburgh on Nov. 30 which he took back to the house for a 55-yard touchdown return.

Clive Wilson - Redshirt Junior, 6-4, 263 lbs.

Wilson missed all of 2024 due to injury but played in 10 games as a redshirt freshman in 2023, mostly on special teams. The Brooklyn, N.Y. native is a true defensive end and will help take the load off of Hutchins’ shoulders as an expected full-time presence in 2025.

Josiah Griffin - Redshirt Sophomore, 6-4, 254 lbs.

Griffin attended Springfield Central in Springfield, Mass. before coming to BC and was a two-time State Champion in high school. As a redshirt freshman, Griffin played in 12 games, primarily on special teams, and totaled two tackles along with a fumble recovery in the Pinstripe Bowl.

Bryce Lewis - Freshman, 6-6, 215 lbs.

Lewis committed to the BC football program during the summer and comes in as a top-65 recruit in the nation, per On3. Lewis played a bit of tight end and defensive back at Blessed Trinity Catholic, registering more than 17 receptions and 220 yards in each of his last two high school seasons along with registering 13 TFLs.

Favor Bate - Sophomore, 6-1, 250 lbs.

Bate spent his first collegiate football season at Merrimack before transferring to BC. Bate was a three-star rated transfer by both 247Sports and On3 after appearing in nine games for the Warriors in which he posted 10 tackles, including three TFLs and 2.5 sacks.

Sterling Sanders - Freshman, 6-3, 303 lbs.

Sanders is entering his first year on the Heights as a four-star recruit by 247Sports from Blythewood, S.C. and a top-30 overall recruit in the state. In 2024, he manufactured 40 tackles, 17 TFLs, 5.5 sacks and 23 quarterback pressures.

Chris Marable Jr. - Redshirt Sophomore, 6-3, 305 lbs.

Marable Jr. spent his first two seasons in college at a different school from the ACC, Wake Forest, after seeing just five games of action in 2024 and recording a single tackle against Ole Miss and Clemson.

E’Llia Boykin - Sophomore, 6-3, 233 lbs.

Just a tad undersized for his position, the Barton College transfer joined the BC football program during the summer after totaling 55 tackles, 3.5 TFLs, two pass breakups, one sack and an interception for the Bulldogs at the NCAA Division II level.

Micah Amedee - Freshman, 6-4, 280 lbs.

Amedee comes out of Brockton, Mass. and played for Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood. He arrives in Chestnut Hill as a top-five recruit in the state at his position (247Sports and On3) and top-100 nationally, per 247Sports.

Makai Byerson - Sophomore, 6-4, 275 lbs.

Byerson transferred to BC from West Virginia during the summer and redshirted the 2024 season, seeing action against Albany in September and registering a tackle.

Onye Nwosisi - Senior, 6-4, 255 lbs.

A transfer out of Valparaiso University in Indiana, Nwosisi also transferred to the Eagles’ football program over the offseason after playing in nine games as a junior in 2024. He collected 39 tackles, five TFLs, 2.5 sacks and a forced fumble at the NCAA FCS Division I level last season.

Jayzen Flint - Redshirt Freshman, 6-3, 241 lbs.

From Philadelphia, Pa., Flint was a three-star prospect out of West Catholic Prep and named to the 2023 East Small School Team by the PSFCA. Flint played in three games in 2024 and maintained a redshirt. He contributed two tackles in the Pinstripe Bowl.

Chuck Nnaeto - Senior, 6-0, 324 lbs.

From the Delbarton School and a transfer out of Elon, where he played the last three years, Nnaeto joined the BC football program after totaling 17 tackles, two TFLs and a forced fumble in 2024.

Israel Oladipupo - Freshman, 6-3, 227 lbs.

Oladipupo arrives in Chestnut Hill as a top-30 recruit from the state of Indiana by 247Sports and On3 after totaling over 130 tackles with 12 quarterback hurries and 14.5 TFLs over his final two seasons at Noblesville High School.

Mike Bumpus - Graduate Student, 6-3, 270 lbs.

Previously at Brown University, where he spent the last four years, Bumpus’ latest campaign involved recording 24 tackles—eight solo—one TFL, two PBUs and three quarterback hits.

Jayden Fry - Freshman, 6-2, 224 lbs.

Out of Raleigh, N.C., Fry rounds out the incoming 2025 freshman defensive line class as a top-30 overall recruit in the state of North Carolina by 247Sports. Over his final two seasons at Rolesville High School, Fry logged 93 tackles, 16.5 TFLs, 10 sacks and 33 quarterback hurries, including two fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. BC flipped Fry from South Florida, where he was originally committed.

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