QB Grayson James awaits snap from center Drew Kendall in yesterday’s BC-North Carolina game.

Boston College dominated on both sides of the ball yesterday, defeating North Carolina 41-21. The Eagles nearly doubled the Tarheels in total offense, 420 yards to 212, had seven sacks and three pass interceptions, and held the ball for 15 minutes longer.

The win makes BC eligible for play in a post-season bowl game for the eighth time in the last nine seasons and their five wins at home so far this season are the most since 2018. The Eagles conclude their regular season Saturday, September 30, at home against Pitt.

BC opened the game aggressively, with two successive 13-play drives that ended in a 49-yard field goal by Liam Connor and a three-yard touchdown run by QB Grayson James. After holding UNC on downs at the BC 41, the Eagles took only three plays to score again, with backup freshman QB Johnathon Montague running 24 yards for the touchdown.

On September 23, 1984, Doug Flutie threw the iconic Hail Mary pass to defeat Miami. Forty years later to the day, many players and others connected to that play gathered at Alumni Stadium to commemorate it. Here, Doug Flutie and Jack Bicknell Jr., who was the BC center, flank Reid Oslin ’68, my classmate and friend, and BC Sports Information Director at the time.

UNC, receiving the kickoff down 17-0, took a bit of the bloom off the rose with a 95-yard
return for a touchdown.

Following two exchanges of possession, Grad LB Joe Marinaro, intercepted a Tarheel pass and brought it to the UNC 32. Three plays later, James threw a four-yard touchdown pass to WR Reed Harris and a 24-7 BC lead at halftime.

Connor added a 27-yard field goal in the quiet third period. On the opening play of the fourth quarter, UNC recovered a BC fumble at the 50. Six plays later, with UNC on the BC 32, DB Ryan Turner intercepted the Tarheel pass attempt on the BC 22 and ran it back 78 yards for an Eagle touchdown and 34-7 lead.

After three plays gained zero yards, the Tarheels punted back to the Eagles, who proceeded on a nine-play, 5:48-long drive, their final touchdown of the game on an eight-yard Robichaux run, and a 41-7 lead with fewer than six minutes left in the game.

Facing a BC defense very likely staffed by backup players, UNC then had its only significant drive of the day, moving 75 yards in 12 plays for a touchdown.

On BC’s subsequent possession, the Eagles faced fourth-and-two on their 33. In what some considered a questionable decision, Coach Bill O’Brien chose to go for it rather than punt. James muffed the snap and his run was short by a yard. The Tarheels took over at the BC 34 with 25 seconds left in the game.

And in what some also considered a questionable decision, UNC Coach Mack Brown chose not to call for the QB to take a knee to end the game. In two plays, the Tarheels scored a meaningless touchdown to make the final score, 41-21.

Overall, BC gained 228 net yards rushing, compared to 36 for UNC. Robichaux gained 93 yards on 23 carries and scored a touchdown. RB Jordan McDonald added 52 yards on ten carries.

James was 18 of 27 for 192 yards and one touchdown, with no interceptions. WR Lew Bond had nine receptions for 81 yards, while Harris and TE Jeremiah Franklin each had three receptions.

“It hasn’t been perfect, don’t get me wrong, but these kids have really worked hard for us,” O’Brien said. “I’m very happy for them. It’s very well earned.”

Highlights (8:58)

BC improves to 6-5 (3-4). Their next and final regular season opponent is Pitt, at Alumni Stadium, Saturday, September 30 at noon PT.

Running back Kye Robichaux (5) is taken down by a herd of Mustangs yesterday in Dallas. Photo by Vladimir Cherry

Following a fourth-quarter drive yesterday that brought the Eagles within three of ACC leader SMU, 31-28, BC forced the Mustangs to punt and had the ball on their 20 with 3:59 remaining in the game. They moved the ball to their 32 and faced third-and-nine.

Quarterback Grayson James, who had been named starter by Coach Bill O’Brien, replacing Thomas Castellanos, was then sacked by SMU for a nine-yard loss. Another sack on fourth down for a 10-yard loss gave the ball back to the Mustangs on the BC 13 with 1:11 to go.

Perhaps still miffed by their unexpected loss to BC in the 2023 Fenway Bowl, SMU eschewed the polite method of running out the clock with kneel-downs. On fourth-and-two at the BC five, the Mustangs threw a pass and tacked on a touchdown to make the final score, 38-28.

At 8-1 and 5-0 in the ACC prior to the game, SMU was a two-touchdown-plus favorite over BC and started the game looking like it. The Mustangs went out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter, running 23 plays for 148 yards, while the Eagles could mount only 11 plays for 31 yards.

BC got back on track in the second quarter, however, running 25 plays for 153 yards and scoring two touchdowns. They had possession for more than 10 minutes of the quarter. SMU was more efficient, gaining 133 yards on only 13 plays, and adding 10 points to their score. The first half ended with SMU up, 20-14.

Receiving the second half kickoff, the Eagles went on an eight-play, 83-yard drive, ending with a 20-yard run for a touchdown by QB James to take the lead 21-20. The Mustangs came right back with a quick-striking drive of six plays in less than two minutes, ending with a 38-yard touchdown pass and two-point conversion to take a seven-point lead, 28-21.

BC gave SMU the ball back quickly, punting after only three plays and the Mustangs took 10 plays to set up a 38-yard field goal and 31-21 lead. After punts by both teams to open the final quarter, the Eagles began a 74-yard drive in which they had only one third down. The drive culminated in six consecutive rushing plays, five of them by RB Kye Robichaux, to cover the final 34 yards and a touchdown by Robichaux to make the score 31-28.

Cue the disappointing conclusion.

BC ran a total of 75 plays in the game, with 23 first downs, gaining 417 yards, 180 of them on the ground. They allowed SMU 438 yards on 65 plays.

“I don’t really think we stopped them at all,” coach O’Brien said. “They probably stopped themselves. I felt like we needed 40 points to win the game. I was right about that.”

James was 18-of-32 passing for 237 yards, one touchdown, one interception. The new quarterback situation is not temporary, at least as it regards the season starter Castellanos. He has entered the transfer portal, so James is the intended starting quarterback for the remainder of the season.

Robichaux was leading rusher for the Eagles, gaining 90 yards on 21 carries and scoring two touchdowns. Junior Jordan McDonald added 63 yards on 11 carries. Three wide receivers led the team in pass receptions, each with four catches. Redshirt freshman Reed Harris led with 78 yards, followed by junior Jeremiah Franklin with 42 yards and grad student Kamari Morales with 34 yards and one touchdown reception.

Highlights (14:40)

The Eagles have a 5-5 record, 2-4 in conference play. Their final two games on the regular schedule are at home. They play North Carolina on Saturday, November 23. Start time is 9 am PT.