No.2 Boston College Escapes Va. Tech 14-10

Oct 26, 05:00 AM

Current Headlines: By Skip Wood

BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski smiled, shook his head and took a moment to marvel about the near absurdity of the improbable comeback he had just witnessed.

"Probably the best win I've ever been around," he said about 15 minutes after Boston College somehow maintained its unblemished record and national title hopes with a 14-10 win against Virginia Tech by scoring two touchdowns in the final two minutes Thursday night.

And as for the game's hero, Heisman Trophy contender Matt Ryan? Jagodzinski smiled again. Rather, he beamed. "Matt Ryan made a big-time statement tonight," he said. "That's the best quarterback in the country right now."

Ryan was harassed and hurried for the better part of four quarters but saved his best for last. There was the 16-yard scoring pass to wide receiver Rich Gunnell that capped a 92-yard drive that gave the Eagles life. Then -- after BC recovered an onside kick -- there was the 24-yard game-winner to tailback Andre Callender with 11 seconds left.

Lane Stadium, a cauldron of noise throughout a cold, rainy evening, suddenly went mute.

"This is a tough one to handle," said Hokies coach Frank Beamer, whose team fell to 6-2 overall and 3-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. "Coming back from this one is going to be tough, but I fully expect us to (do that)."

BC moved to 8-0 and 4-0 in the ACC largely because of the late-game exploits of Ryan, who was held to 54 passing yards in the first half but ended up 25-for-52 for 285 yards despite being sacked three times and throwing two interceptions.

"I'm so happy with how the guys kept battling and kept grinding," he said. "The defense is what kept us in the game the entire game."

Oddly enough, the Hokies are now 13-3 in these Thursday-night affairs, each loss at the hands of Boston College.

A 44-yard field goal by Jud Dunlevy pushed the Hokies ahead 10-0 with 5:33 left in the third quarter. About 15 minutes later, Ryan finally went to work. (c) Copyright 2005 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.