CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When Paul Peterson broke his hand, it probably cost Boston College a spot in the Bowl Championship Series. When the quarterback broke his leg, the Eagles refused to let it ruin their consolation game.
Kicker Ryan Ohliger ran 21 yards for a touchdown on a fake field goal one play after Peterson was taken off the field on a stretcher, and the 25th-ranked Eagles beat North Carolina 37-24 in the Continental Tire Bowl on Thursday.
The Eagles (9-3) never wanted to be in this game, only needing a victory over Syracuse in the regular-season finale to secure their first outright Big East championship and earn a BCS berth. But Peterson missed that game with a broken hand, and Syracuse beat Boston College to send them to Charlotte.
The win over North Carolina (6-6) erased some of the sting, but the Eagles found themselves ahead just 27-24 in the fourth quarter.
Then Peterson was injured as he tried to run outside for a first down on third-and-1 and was brought down awkwardly on his left leg by Tommy Davis. As trainers removed Peterson's shoe and cut away his socks while awaiting a stretcher, Boston College coach Tom O'Brien pulled the Eagles together at midfield.
They sent the field goal unit onto the field. But instead of attempting the kick, Ohliger took a handoff from holder Matt Ryan and raced into the end zone for a 34-24 lead with 10:32 to play.
Peterson clapped and pumped his fists in the air as he was being wheeled toward the stadium tunnel on a stretcher. X-rays showed a broken left tibia, and team officials said he would need surgery.
Before leaving, the quarterback went 24-of-33 for 236 yards and two touchdowns, helping Boston College win a bowl game for the fifth straight season.
But he wasn't able to return to the field to accept the game's MVP award. Instead, his wife went out to collect the trophy.
The Eagles gave the Big East its first win in the 3-year-old bowl game. It was BC's final game in the league — it joins the Atlantic Coast Conference next season.
Virginia represented the ACC in the first two Tire Bowls, so the inclusion of North Carolina was a welcome change of scenery. Tar Heel fans snapped up over 65,000 tickets, washing out the scattering of Boston College supporters in a sea of light blue.
They had plenty to cheer about early as North Carolina seized the momentum after a series of Boston College miscues.
Peterson fumbled the snap on a third-down play, and North Carolina's Tommy Richardson recovered at the Boston College 23. Darian Durant completed a 16-yard pass to Jesse Holley on third-and-9, then threw a 5-yard TD pass to Wallace Wright, who caught it high in the air and made sure one foot landed inbounds as he fell out of the corner of the end zone. That tied the game at 14 with 7:12 left in the second quarter.
The Eagles marched right back down the field, only to come up short when Jonas Seawright blocked Ohliger's field goal attempt.
North Carolina took advantage of the miss with a five-play scoring drive, capping it on Durant's 51-yard pass to Derrele Mitchell to take a 21-14 lead with 1:44 left in the half.
But in a game severely lacking in defense, the Eagles quickly bounced back and used a 32-yard pass by Peterson to get first-and-goal at the 1. Two plays later, Peterson found David Kashetta in the end zone to tie the game right before halftime.
The Tar Heels went back on top on Connor Barth's 27-yard field goal, but Boston College responded with Andre Callender's 1-yard TD run.