Boston College erupts after halftime, runs past Georgia Tech 49-27

ATLANTA, GA. – Boston College spent the first half getting in its own way. It spent the second running through Georgia Tech.

The Eagles overcame nine first-half penalties, a missed field goal, two missed extra points and a 28-yard punt before producing their best offensive performance of the season in a 49-27 victory Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium.

Boston College scored 37 points after halftime, rushed for 399 yards and finished with exactly 500 yards of offense. Mason McKenzie ran for 170 yards and two touchdowns, while Bo MacCormack III added 155 yards and three scores.

The victory improved BC to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the ACC. After losing its first two conference games, Boston College has defeated Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech in consecutive weeks and is now two wins from bowl eligibility.

For nearly the entire first half, however, the Eagles appeared determined to make the afternoon as difficult as possible.

Georgia Tech marched 79 yards on the opening possession and scored on Alberto Mendoza’s four-yard touchdown pass to Kevin Roche Jr. The Yellow Jackets extended their lead to 10-0 with a 32-yard Aidan Birr field goal on their next drive.

Flags overwhelmed the opening quarter. BC repeatedly gave Georgia Tech extra yards and additional opportunities, while penalties disrupted its own offensive rhythm.

The special teams were even more concerning.

Luca Lombardo missed a 48-yard field goal on BC’s opening possession. Jonathan Hewitt missed the extra point after McKenzie found Nedrick Boldin Jr. for a 25-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. When MacCormack scored from seven yards out on the Eagles’ next possession, Lombardo also missed the extra point.

Bryce LaFollette later produced a 28-yard punt that gave Georgia Tech possession at midfield.

“We gotta kick the ball better. That’s one thing we have to improve,” O’Brien said.

Despite everything BC had done wrong, the Eagles entered halftime trailing only 13-12.

That was possible because McKenzie never allowed the early mistakes to change how he played.

The difference between this performance and his previous road tests at Cincinnati and SMU was clear. McKenzie remained composed in the pocket, continued looking downfield when early connections were missed and trusted his legs when Georgia Tech opened running lanes.

He completed only 9 of 17 passes for 101 yards, but he threw a touchdown without an interception and consistently made the correct decision in BC’s option game.

His confidence was evident before the offense fully took control.

Facing third-and-8 from his own 3-yard line late in the second quarter, McKenzie stood in the pocket and found Javarius Green for 30 yards. The drive did not produce points, but the throw prevented Georgia Tech from receiving the ball with excellent field position and reflected a quarterback who was no longer overwhelmed by the moment.

After halftime, that confidence spread across the entire offense.

BC opened the third quarter with a five-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. McKenzie broke free for 40 yards along the Georgia Tech sideline, then added an eight-yard run that placed the ball at the 2. MacCormack finished the drive with his second touchdown and gave the Eagles their first lasting lead at 18-13.

Charlie Comella intercepted Mendoza on Georgia Tech’s next possession and returned the ball 23 yards to the Yellow Jackets’ 39. Five plays later, McKenzie scored on a six-yard run.

The Eagles had turned a one-point halftime deficit into a 25-13 lead in fewer than eight minutes.

“We had no penalties in the second half, and that’s really who we are,” O’Brien said. “The team you saw in the second half, to me, is like, that’s our football team.”

BC’s transformation was not the result of a complicated adjustment. Its offensive line took control of the line of scrimmage, and O’Brien continued calling the plays Georgia Tech could not stop.

The Eagles scored on each of their first five offensive possessions of the second half.

Lombardo completed an 11-play, 75-yard drive with a 23-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter. Georgia Tech answered immediately when Justice Haynes scored on a 15-yard run, cutting the lead to 28-20.

BC responded with another 75-yard touchdown drive.

McKenzie converted third-and-2 with a 27-yard run, then kept the ball again for a 15-yard touchdown. The drive restored the two-score lead and delivered the answer BC needed each time Georgia Tech threatened to make the game competitive.

“It goes back to those five guys up front,” McKenzie said. “They were just moving guys all day, especially in that second half. And we just kept calling the same couple plays over and over again in different ways. And it kept working. So, like they say, if it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”

Comella removed any remaining doubt on Georgia Tech’s next possession.

The defensive back intercepted Mendoza for the second time and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown, extending BC’s lead to 42-20. Comella finished with five solo tackles, two interceptions and the first defensive touchdown of the afternoon.

Georgia Tech scored once more when backup quarterback Grady Adamson connected with Dalen Penson for a 30-yard touchdown, but the Eagles answered again.

MacCormack carried the ball four times on the ensuing possession and completed his three-touchdown afternoon with a 19-yard run. His final score gave BC 49 points and ended any possibility of a Georgia Tech comeback.

“When they’re moving people downfield and opening up holes, it’s easy for us to do our job in the backfield,” MacCormack said.

O’Brien offered a more direct assessment of his running back.

“Bo is one of the toughest competitors that I’ve been around,” O’Brien said.

McKenzie and MacCormack combined for 325 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Nolan Ray added 36 yards on three carries, while Mekhi Dodd rushed five times for 33 yards.

Altogether, BC averaged 8.5 yards across 47 rushing attempts.

The dominance on the ground opened every part of O’Brien’s offense. Georgia Tech could not consistently defend MacCormack between the tackles while also accounting for McKenzie on the perimeter. Once the Yellow Jackets began hesitating, the Eagles controlled the game.

This was the first time all season that BC’s offense fully resembled what O’Brien envisioned when he made McKenzie his starting quarterback.

The offensive line created movement. The running backs finished carries. McKenzie punished the defense for collapsing inside. Receivers and tight ends blocked on the perimeter even when the passing game was not producing significant numbers.

BC’s defense also made the plays required to turn control into separation. The Eagles intercepted Mendoza twice, recorded three sacks and held Georgia Tech to 101 rushing yards.

The first half cannot be ignored. Nine penalties for 91 yards would have been fatal against a stronger opponent, and the special-teams failures remain an immediate concern. BC missed three kicks and briefly appeared unable to trust any part of its field-goal operation.

What followed matters just as much.

The Eagles committed no penalties after halftime. They scored on five consecutive offensive possessions. When Georgia Tech reached the end zone, BC answered. When the offense built a lead, Comella turned it into a rout.

This was Boston College’s best win of the season.

It was the Eagles’ first road victory, their second consecutive conference win and the most convincing evidence yet that this reconstructed roster is beginning to become a team.

“We recruited good guys, guys that aren’t gonna fold when things get hard,” McKenzie said. “And that’s kind of what we’ve showed the past two weeks.”

BC will remain on the road next Saturday when it faces Duke at noon on The CW. The Eagles will enter Durham seeking their third consecutive ACC victory and a fifth win that would move them within one of bowl eligibility.

O’Brien was not interested in treating two victories as an accomplishment large enough to admire for long.

“Last year was last year. This is a new year. We gotta keep it going,” O’Brien said. “That’s the key.”

Boston College is just two wins short of a bowl.

After what happened in the second half at Bobby Dodd Stadium, that possibility no longer feels theoretical.

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Mac Hutchinson, a columnist in Boston, is the Director of Digital Media for Eagles Daily, co-host of Eagles Weekly Podcast, and the founder of @BCFootballFans. He