And going into yesterday afternoon’s meeting with Central Michigan at Alumni Stadium, coach Frank Spaziani’s team thought that keeping its home record unblemished against the Chippewas wouldn’t be as easy as it was in nonconference home routs of Northeastern and Kent State.

The Chippewas arrived with more wins than the Eagles, a marquee quarterback in fifth-year senior Dan LeFevour, and a desire to continue their best start in 30 seasons. They left with a severe pounding, as the Eagles made it clear the Chippewas (7-2) were not quite ready for the jump in class.

For a half, it was very much a battle, as the Eagles managed only a 7-3 lead at the break. After that, however, it was all BC, much to the delight of the announced crowd of 34,128, as the Eagles rolled to a 31-10 victory.

In the battle of quarterbacks, BC’s Dave Shinskie, starting only his sixth career game, was more than a match for LeFevour, who came into the game with more than 10,000 passing and 2,500 rushing yards for his career.

LeFevour had completed nearly 70 percent of his passes this season for 1,696 yards and 16 TDs, as well as rushing for 522 yards and another nine scores. Yesterday, he was 20 of 34 for 152 yards, no touchdowns, and one interception, and was on the bench with a migraine headache by the start of the fourth quarter as coach Butch Jones saved his starter for the Chippewas’ Mid-American Conference game against Toledo Nov. 11.

In another step forward in what Spaziani has described all season as a work in progress, Shinskie ran the Eagles’ offense with the efficiency of a veteran, completing 18 of 28 passes for 262 yards and a touchdown.

Throw in another solid performance by sophomore running back Montel Harris (27 carries, 136 yards, 2 TDs) and you had a formula for success that helped the Eagles break loose from a 7-3 halftime lead and roll into their bye with a 6-3 record, which made them bowl-eligible for the 11th consecutive season.

“I just looked at the offensive line and Montel and said we had to make some plays,’’ said Rich Gunnell, who again made more than his share as the Eagles turned a 3-0 deficit into a 7-3 lead with an 11-play, 80-yard march, capped by Harris’s 3-yard TD run.

For Harris, it was a key moment, as he tried to shed the negative vibes from last week’s 20-16 loss to Notre Dame, in which he lost two fumbles, including one at the Irish 1-yard line.

“I was thinking about that game all week,’’ said Harris. “I kept thinking about the fumbles until today. I felt the game was in my hands and I lost it. I just wanted to prove that I could hold on to the ball and perform.’’

Which he did consistently as the Eagles came up with three quick touchdowns in the third quarter, which gave them a 24-3 lead and control going into the final 15 minutes.

“It was fun to get that nasty taste out of my mouth,’’ said Harris.

The bitter taste of the Notre Dame game and the turmoil created last week by the decisions of backup quarterback Justin Tuggle and Josh Haden, Harris’s primary backup, to transfer were diminished by the victory, which sends the Eagles into their bye feeling good about themselves.

“It was just a matter of putting things together and making it happen,’’ said Shinskie, describing the Eagles’ first TD drive, as well as what the Eagles needed to do to regain their confidence.

Spaziani can now also catch his breath, for a few days at least. “We are very happy to limp into the break and regroup,’’ he said. “For our guys to come back and play that kind of game is a testament to their character, and hopefully we can build on it and go forward.’’

Mark Blaudschun can be reached at blaudschun@globe.com.