ATLANTA (AP) — Quarterback Mason McKenzie ran for 170 yards and a pair of touchdowns, bruising Bo MacCormack III had 155 rushing yards and three TDs, and Boston College bounced back from an early 10-point deficit to pound out a 49-27 victory over Georgia Tech on Saturday.
The Eagles (4-3, 2-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) had 399 yards on the ground and 500 overall, brushing off the loss of running back Evan Dickens to a knee injury last week and a dismal kicking game that missed a field goal and two extra points. McKenzie also threw for a touchdown.
Charlie Comella had a pair of second-half interceptions off Alberto Mendoza, returning the second 55 yards for a touchdown that blew the game open.
“We just kept calling the same couple of plays over and over,” McKenzie said. “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”
Georgia Tech (2-5, 1-3 ACC) heard plenty of boos from its homecoming crowd as Boston College seized control with touchdowns on its first two possessions of the second half.
MacCormack put the Eagles ahead to stay with a 2 yard touchdown run less than 3 minutes into the second half. The big play was McKenzie’s 40-yard run in front of the Yellow Jackets sideline after he totally faked out the defense with play action up the middle.
Comella then came up with the first turnover of the game. Mendoza threw behind his receiver, the ball deflecting into the arms of the BC cornerback for a 23-yard return that led to McKenzie running it in from the 6.
Mendoza was 17-of-24 for 186 yards before getting pulled in the closing minutes.
Georgia Tech raced to a 10-0 lead on its first two possessions. Mendoza completed a 43-yard pass and pulled off a 27-yard run to set up a 4-yard scoring toss to Kevin Roche Jr.
The Yellow Jackets were up 13-12 at halftime after Aidan Birr’s second field goal, a 20-yarder with 11 seconds remaining.
But the Eagles dominated the rest of the way.
MacCormack steps up
With Dickens reportedly out for the season after being hurt in the closing minutes of a win over Pittsburgh, MacCormack filled in with a flourish.
The sophomore had more rushing yards against the Yellow Jackets than he had in his previous 13 career games with the Eagles.
“Evan is the man. He would’ve had a great day today, too,” MacCormack said. “We just knew we had to come out and run the ball the way we know how to run the ball.”
Georgia Tech’s quarterback situation
With Mendoza on the bench, sophomore Grady Adamson came in during garbage time and completed 7-of-9 passes for 73 yards and a touchdown.
Key wouldn’t say if Adamson will take over as the starter for the younger brother of 2025 Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza.
“I’m not going to talk about change,” the coach said. “What we’re doing is not working. Not just at that (quarterback) position, but across the board.”
The takeaway
Boston College: The Eagles have already doubled their win total from a year ago, when they struggled to a 2-10 mark. They are just two victories away from ensuring bowl eligibility. For the second week in a row, BC overcame a double-digit deficit in the early going, having fallen behind Pittsburgh 12-0 a week ago before rallying for a 27-21 victory. “It’s not the spot we want to be in necessarily,” McKenzie said. “But there was no reason to get upset or go against each other. We knew we could turn this thing around.”
Georgia Tech: After an 8-0 start to the 2025 season, the Yellow Jackets have lost nine of their last 12 games.
Up next
Boston College: The Eagles travel to Duke (5-2, 2-2) next Saturday.
Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets hit the road against Pittsburgh (5-3, 2-3) next Saturday night.