BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Put that comeback at the top of Matt Ryan's Heisman resume.
Ryan threw a 24-yard touchdown pass on the run and across the field to Andre Callender with 11 seconds left, and No. 2 Boston College remained undefeated Thursday night with an improbable 14-10 victory over No. 8 Virginia Tech.
Ryan sealed his status as a serious Heisman Trophy contender with two touchdown passes in the final 2:11 after doing little for the first 55 minutes against the Hokies' swarming defense.
"Well, you know there's still time left on the clock," Ryan said. "You know you still have a shot and you still got a chance. We've been in this situation so many times through the course of the year in practice, and we've prepared ourselves really well."
Boston College (4-0 ACC) improved to 8-0 for the first time since 1942 and validated itself as a national title contender.
Ryan finished 25-for-52 for 285 yards with two interceptions, but the final numbers hardly told the story.
"I told our guys at halftime, don't you dare look up until the end of the game and we'll go on to win this thing," said Boston College coach Jeff Jagodzinski.
With the Hokies (6-2, 3-1) leading 10-0 late in the fourth quarter and the Eagles backed up against their own goal line, Ryan finally found a rhythm. He led a 91-yard scoring drive, capped by a 16-yard TD pass to Rich Gunnell with 2:11 left.
"We started making plays," Jagodzinski said.
After BC recovered an onside kick, Ryan went back to work. Three times he scrambled away from pressure and completed passes. On the last play, Ryan slipped away from the rush, slid to the left and spotted Callender drifting back into the end zone away from the defense. Ryan let loose, Callender cradled in the winning score and BC narrowly avoided becoming the fourth second-ranked team to lose in the last four weeks.
Sean Glennon, making his first start for the Hokies since being benched after a 48-7 loss to LSU early in the second week of the season, played steady on a soggy night at Lane Stadium. He was 15-for-25 for 149 yards, with an 8-yard touchdown pass to Eddie Royal in the second quarter and a 41-yard hookup with Royal in the third that set up Jud Dunlevy's 44-yard field goal, which made it 10-0.
Glennon was better than Ryan for most of the game, and it looked as though Virginia Tech would get a second chance to sneak into the national title race after D.J. Parker picked off Ryan's pass in Eagles territory late in the fourth quarter.
The Hokies couldn't convert the interception into points, and Ryan went 9-for-15 on the final two drives.
For most of the night it looked as if all of BC's high hopes -- a national title, a Heisman Trophy for its quarterback -- would be washed away on a windy and rainy night.
The first half was played in a steady, soaking rain, and neither team could get much going. The Hokies and Eagles combined for seven fumbles, though only one turnover.
Boston College 0 0 0 14 -- 14
Virginia Tech 0 7 3 0 -- 10
VT--Royal 8 pass from Glennon (Dunlevy kick)
VT--FG Dunlevy 44
BC--Gunnell 16 pass from Ryan (Aponavicius kick)
BC--Callender 24 pass from Ryan (Aponavicius kick), :11.
A--66,233.
Bc Va Tech
First downs 19 15
Rushes-yards 18-32 41-116
Passing 285 149
Comp-Att-Int 25-53-2 15-25-0
Return yards 7 27
Punts-Avg. 9-45.6 9-37.3
Fumbles-Lost 3-0 5-2
Penalties-Yards 9-83 5-44
Time of possession 28:11 31:49
Individual Statistics
RUSHING--Boston College, Callender 7-29, Whitworth 7-25, Ryan 4-(minus 22). Virginia Tech, Ore 20-97, Glennon 14-23, Weatherford 1-3, K.Lewis 2-2, J.Morgan 2-1, Royal 1-0, Team 1-(minus 10).
PASSING--Boston College, Ryan 25-52-2-285, Flutie 0-1-0-0. Virginia Tech, Glennon 15-25-0-149.
RECEIVING--Boston College, Robinson 5-86, Callender 5-38, Challenger 4-60, Purvis 4-40, Gunnell 3-34, Loyte 2-8, Jarvis 1-14, Megwa 1-5. Virginia Tech, Royal 4-77, Boone 3-30, Harper 3-17, Hyman 2-17, Wheeler 1-5, Weatherford 1-3, J.Morgan 1-0.
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