Boston College had another chance to grab an ACC win. And once again, the Eagles walked away empty.
Seven days after a seven-point loss at home to Virginia Tech, BC dropped a 25-16 decision at No. 21 SMU on Saturday, even while limiting the Mustangs to 218 yards of total offense. The number on the stat sheet that mattered more was the one beside Boston College’s miscues: bad execution, costly penalties and a few crushing decisions helped sink the Eagles to 2-3 overall and 0-2 in league play.
Mason McKenzie did just about everything he could to keep BC in it. He finished 20-of-31 for 208 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, while also leading the team on the ground with 74 rushing yards, including a 40-yard second-half run.
He accounted for 52 of Boston College’s 65 offensive plays, or 80 percent. That workload was heavy for a quarterback who isn’t shy about contact but, as the game showed again, takes too many hits.
Rain in Dallas didn’t help either, with several of McKenzie’s throws hitting the turf after being dropped.
The Eagles also missed a huge chance late. Down nine in the fourth quarter and facing 4th-and-1 deep in SMU territory, BC couldn’t cash in when Cameron Kossmann failed to secure a soft toss in the right flat. With a catch, he would have walked into the end zone.
Penalties kept piling up too. BC was flagged 11 times, its highest total of the season and up from eight last week.
The most damaging came on Demetrius Ballard’s roughing-the-passer call at the BC 35 after SMU’s Kevin Jennings had thrown incompletion on 3rd and 16. Ballard’s hand caught Jennings in the helmet, the play was wiped out, and one snap later Jennings found Derrick McFall for a touchdown that pushed the Mustangs ahead 25-10 with less than five minutes left.
That kind of discipline problem has been a long-running issue. Boston College has been charged with at least 79 penalties in each of the last five full seasons, an average of 6.5 per game, and Saturday was another reminder that the Eagles can’t afford that kind of self-inflicted damage.
BC did make things interesting in the final minutes. With 2:06 left, McKenzie hit tight end Danny Edgehille on the left side of the end zone to trim the deficit to 25-16.
But instead of kicking the extra point to cut it to eight, head coach Bill O’Brien went for two. McKenzie’s pass sailed over his receiver, leaving Boston College still down nine and needing two scores with too little time left.
SMU recovered the ensuing onside kick and finished off the win.
The loss dropped BC to 12-30 in ACC play since the start of 2021.
The Eagles are off next Saturday and return to action Oct. 17 against Pitt at Alumni Stadium. Pitt beat BC 44-7 last season in Pittsburgh, and even with Panthers quarterback Mason Heintschel out for the year with a torn ACL, Boston College has plenty to clean up before that one.
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