Boston College found its footing at exactly the right time Saturday afternoon, shaking off an early punch from Pittsburgh and turning Chestnut Hill into a comeback stage. The Eagles scored the final 27 points they needed to beat the Panthers 27-21, picking up their first ACC victory of the season and their third win overall.
The result moved Boston College to 3-3 and 1-2 in league play, while Pitt dropped to 5-2 and 2-2 in the ACC.
Mason McKenzie delivered the kind of performance that changes a game’s rhythm. He finished with a career-high 295 passing yards and two touchdowns, and one of those throws set up one of the day’s biggest plays.
Landon Wright was everywhere when BC needed a spark, piling up a career-best 122 receiving yards on just two catches, both going for more than 50 yards. Javarius Green also kept making himself available, catching five passes for the second straight game and scoring the first touchdown of his career in the second quarter.
Boston College also got major work on the other side of the ball. Carter Davis finished with 11 tackles and KP Price added 10, while Price’s interception marked the third of his career-high season total. Charlie Comella picked off his second pass of the year, and Marcelous Townsend came up with his first career fumble recovery.
Pitt came out flying. Corey Dailey hit Cataurus Hicks for a 75-yard touchdown on the opening snap from scrimmage, instantly putting the Eagles on their heels. The Panthers extended that start with a safety and a field goal to build a 12-0 cushion before BC finally answered.
That response came on a long, controlled drive: 14 plays, 75 yards, and a one-yard scoring run by Bo MacCormack III. Boston College mixed in four plays of at least 10 yards on the march, including three completions from McKenzie and a 17-yard run by MacCormack to get within 12-7.
The Eagles then seized the lead before halftime, and they did it off a turnover. Price’s interception gave BC the ball at its own 46-yard line, and the offense wasted no time turning that short field into points. McKenzie found Green in the end zone to cap a drive that took under two minutes and gave the Eagles a 14-12 advantage.
Boston College wasted even less time after the break. The Eagles needed only two plays and 75 yards to score again, with McKenzie uncorking a 69-yard touchdown pass to Wright, the longest throw of the redshirt sophomore’s career.
Pitt kept hanging around with consecutive field goals, trimming the margin to 21-18. But BC answered with another 75-yard drive, this one in five plays, and Wright again did the heavy lifting with a 53-yard catch before Evan Dickens finished it off with a rushing touchdown to make it 27-18.
The Panthers made one more push, getting their fourth field goal of the game to pull within 27-21 with a little more than eight minutes left. Boston College’s defense closed the door from there. Comella intercepted Dailey with just under two minutes remaining, and the Eagles ran out the final 1:34 to secure the win.
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Boston College heads into its ACC matchup with Pitt looking for its first conference win after back-to-back losses, and the Eagles will at least have a healthier look for the visit from the Panthers. Linebacker Bodie Kahoun and offensive lineman Michael Crounse are both back in the mix after dealing with injuries, giving the Eagles a little more stability on both sides of the ball as they try to reset in a tough spot.
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Boston College Needed This Ugly ACC Wake-Up Win
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Mason McKenzie, Bo MacCormack and Landon Wright were part of the response as Boston College kept chipping back into the game and eventually took control, even after some frustrating moments near the goal line. The defense also delivered the kind of timely takeaways that turn an ugly conference game into a needed win, and the result gives BC a little momentum heading into whatever comes next. [Read more 🡒]
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