BOSTON — The mighty 23rd-ranked Boston College Eagles celebrated long and hard after their second straight double-overtime win in two weeks, a 30-23 decision over BYU on Saturday in Alumni Stadium.
They had to — they'd just dodged an upset bullet the size of a railroad car aimed right at their gut — for the second weekend in a row.
The Eagles defeated BYU on a tipped pass from John Beck in the second overtime, a pass that was intercepted by free safety Jamie Silva. It was a play that had to be reviewed by officials in the video box — overturning a decision on the field that the ball was an incomplete pass.
It all came down to that, a play under review that was reversed, although the Cougars missed three field goals and had another attempt end with the holder fumbling the ball in the first overtime, a replay seen at Arizona in the Cougar opener.
"I thought I had it," Silva said of the game-ending interception. "I was hoping that one of the cameras would show that I got my hand underneath the ball. I tried to appeal to the referees and then they went to the replay tape. Fortunately, they saw that I did have an arm under the ball."
At least Silva got a review. An earlier BYU interception that got stripped in the end zone never got that far.
The Cougars outgained B.C. 547 to 471 yards, had 22 first downs to 20, had the edge in time of possession 32:15 to 27:45, forced four Boston College fumbles, retrieved two of them and picked off two passes from Eagles' quarterback Matt Ryan, his first and second of the season. Still, the Eagles overcame all because the Cougars could not close the door, hold on to a lead or score in two overtimes.
But a crucial play in the game took place in the first half and it was not reviewed by officials, nor did BYU's sidelines request such an official rewind.
The play took place late in the second quarter with BYU up 13-6 on the Eagles. From BYU's 17, Ryan threw a pass intended for Brandon Robinson in the end zone, and it sailed over his head into the hands of BYU cornerback Ben Criddle. It appeared Criddle caught the ball and then came down with both feet in the end zone to where the receiver then stripped the ball.
There was no review from the press box, and BYU did not request one on the sidelines. BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said he did not think a review was necessary from where he saw the play.
On the next Boston College play, Ryan threw a 17-yard touchdown strike to Tony Gonzalez and with 3:22 to play, BYU was up 13-12.
"I thought I had the ball and then I felt he stripped it out of my hands," Criddle said. "I don't know exactly what happened, if I had an interception or not until I see the film. I don't know why it wasn't reviewed or if it should have been. I just should have done my part and made the play."
Ryan, who had thrown 105 passes before being intercepted by Cougar safety Quinn Gooch in the first half, did get his longest career pass against the Cougars, a 79-yarder to Robinson. It was the longest pass play at Boston College in seven years.
In a showdown between Ryan and BYU's John Beck, the edge was nearly a standoff. Although Beck had more yards passing (436), completed more passes (38) and had more attempts (59), he had only one touchdown. Ryan completed 29 of 48 for 356 yards and two touchdowns. Both quarterbacks were intercepted two times, their first and second of their seasons.
E-mail: dharmon@desnews.com