Boston College had Florida State on the ropes for long stretches Saturday afternoon at Alumni Stadium, but the Eagles couldn’t close the deal and fell 31-24 in a game that swung hard in the second half.
The loss leaves BC at 4-4 and still chasing bowl eligibility, while the Seminoles arrived in Chestnut Hill carrying a three-game losing streak and the aftermath of Mike Norvell’s firing after the Clemson loss. For a while, it looked like the Eagles might take full advantage.
BC opened with a sharp, run-heavy march that leaned on Mason McKenzie’s legs and quick decisions. He mixed in a pair of clutch third-down completions, and Bo MacCormack finished the drive with a touchdown to make it 7-0.
Florida State’s first response was a three-and-out, and Charlie Comella’s 21-yard punt return gave the Eagles another short field. That possession ended with Luca Lombardo drilling a 48-yard field goal off the crossbar in the rain, pushing the lead to 10-0 late in the first quarter.
Florida State finally got moving after another BC punt, sparked by a 40-yard punt return from Jasen Lopez and a big gain from Quintrevion Wisner. Ashton Daniels finished that drive himself to cut the margin to 10-7.
Boston College answered with one of its better offensive stretches of the day, as McKenzie kept finding openings in Florida State’s coverage. Even after the Eagles were hit with two holding penalties on the same series and faced 2nd & 30, McKenzie hit Kaelan Chudzinski for 26 yards to keep things alive.
That sequence set up a screen to Nedrick Boldin Jr., who turned it into a 29-yard touchdown and a 17-7 BC lead.
Florida State’s offense then found its rhythm. Daniels connected with Micah Danzy three straight times against soft man coverage, and Amari Thomas finished the drive with a 20-yard rushing touchdown to pull the Seminoles within 17-14.
After BC punted again, Florida State marched all the way to the 1-yard line and surprised the Eagles with a fake field goal. Gabe Panikowski bounced to the right side and scored, giving FSU a 21-17 lead with less than a minute left in the half.
The Seminoles carried that momentum into the break after McKenzie threw an interception on a deep ball, erasing what had been a strong start for BC. Florida State’s first road lead in three years was in hand.
Boston College got the second half’s first possession, but the game turned again when McKenzie took a hit to the head on a rush and went to the sideline. Grayson Wilson came in and was intercepted a few plays later, only for Marcus Upton to answer with a pick of his own on a deflection and hand the ball back to BC at midfield.
McKenzie returned, MacCormack ripped off a 24-yard run, and the Eagles used a pair of trick plays to reclaim control. The second one was the wildest: McKenzie took the snap, the offensive line shifted left, and he flipped the ball to Javarius Green for a touchdown and a 24-21 lead.
That edge didn’t last long. Lopez hauled in a 30-yard catch to get Florida State back into scoring range, and while BC’s defense stiffened near the goal line, the Seminoles settled for a tying field goal. Panikowski made it 24-24 with 13 minutes left.
From there, Florida State started squeezing the game. BC moved the chains but couldn’t finish, and the Seminoles ate up clock on their next possession before Daniels found Lopez for an 11-yard conversion after a BC timeout. Amari Thomas then punched in the go-ahead touchdown to put Florida State up 31-24.
Boston College still had time, and McKenzie used his legs to spark one last push. A pass interference call moved the Eagles into Florida State territory, but the offense drifted too far toward the pass and the drive stalled.
On 4th & 15, Dawson Pough couldn’t hang on to the ball, and BC turned it over on downs. Florida State then picked up a first down and ran out the clock.
The Eagles now need to win two of their final three games against Notre Dame, Syracuse, and Miami to become bowl eligible. They’ll head to Notre Dame next, with kickoff set for 3:30PM on Saturday.
In Other News...
Boston College Let This One Slip Despite A Huge Night In Net
Boston College had plenty to feel good about in net, but not enough on the scoreboard in a 2-1 Hockey East loss to No. 13 UConn. Grace Bickett scored for the Eagles, while Addison Stewart and Caileigh Tiller answered for the Huskies in a tight game that stayed within reach throughout.
Avah Sedore was the biggest reason Boston College had a chance late, turning aside 48 shots to keep the Eagles alive against one of the leagues ranked teams. Even with that kind of performance in goal, Boston College could not find the extra push it needed to come away with points in a series game that slipped away in the final stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Boston College Just Let A Winnable Game Put Bowl Hopes In Danger
Boston College had a chance to bank a much-needed win and instead walked away with its bowl path suddenly looking a lot tighter. Florida State, playing under interim coach Rick Stockstill after the firing of Mike Norvell, rallied from early deficits and beat the Eagles 31-24 in a game that felt there for the taking at several points. Mason McKenzie threw two touchdowns for BC, but the Eagles could not make the early edge hold.
Now sitting at 4-5, Boston College needs two more wins just to become bowl eligible, and the margin for error has all but disappeared. The loss stings not only because it came against a Florida State team in transition, but because BC let a winnable game slip away at a time when every conference result carries extra weight in the chase to extend the season. [Read more 🡒]
FSU Finally Showed Fight But One Bigger Question Just Started
Florida State finally looked like a team with some fight under interim coach Rick Stockstill, and Boston College was right there in the middle of it for most of the afternoon. The Eagles traded punches with the Seminoles in a game that featured a trick-play touchdown pass for BC and a fake field goal touchdown run for Florida State, the kind of back-and-forth sequence that kept the result in doubt deep into the fourth quarter.
For Boston College, the frustration is less about the effort than the ending, because the Eagles had chances to make this one matter more. Instead, Florida State found enough late to survive and give Stockstill his first win since Mike Norvell was fired, leaving BC with another reminder that close games can still turn on a single drive, a single call, or one missed stop when the pressure peaks. [Read more 🡒]