Boston College twice offered SMU another set of downs on the long possession that restored the Mustangs’ lead. Kevin Jennings made the help count, finishing with a 4-yard touchdown run in Saturday’s 25-16 victory at Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas.
SMU’s second-quarter possession covered 83 yards, but Boston College supplied a conspicuous portion of the pavement. A holding penalty on an incomplete pass moved the Mustangs from the BC 36 to the BC 26. SMU then lost 2 yards, gained 4 on a short completion and failed to convert third-and-8.
On fourth down, Boston College was flagged for pass interference, moving the ball to the 9-yard line and granting SMU a fresh set of downs.
That sequence was useful assistance, especially for an offense that finished with 218 total yards. It was not a touchdown by itself. After an incompletion and a 5-yard Kendrick Raphael run, Jennings kept the ball for 4 yards and restored SMU’s lead at 13-10. Boston College extended the possession; Jennings finished it.
The opening touchdown drive showed both sides of the argument more honestly. SMU went 75 yards in eight plays, with Raphael scoring from 2 yards, but the Mustangs received two Boston College penalties totaling 20 yards. A 15-yard unnecessary-roughness call followed a completion on the opening series, and a 5-yard offside penalty came before Derrick McFall broke a third-and-6 for 23 yards.
SMU made plays, certainly. Its offense also had a helpful escort through the first quarter.
Boston College committed 11 penalties for 95 yards, compared with SMU’s seven for 74. That imbalance mattered because the Mustangs’ ordinary production was modest: Jennings completed 20 of 30 passes for 160 yards, while Raphael ran 15 times for 45 yards. SMU did not turn the game into a statistical avalanche.
It turned several favorable situations into points, which is a skill, though hardly an offensive identity anyone should print on a T-shirt.
SMU’s defense supplied an opening of its own in the third quarter. A 12-yard third-quarter sack by Marques White dislodged the ball from Mason McKenzie. From the recovery spot at Boston College’s 47, Aakil Washington covered 34 yards before being stopped at the 13. Pittman’s 14-yard touchdown reception came on the ensuing possession’s third snap. White’s pressure and Washington’s recovery created that scoring opportunity directly.
Boston College still had opportunities. After SMU’s touchdown, the Eagles took over at their own 25 and eventually turned the possession over on downs at their own 44. SMU then managed to make favorable territory look like a personal insult: three holding penalties, a 9-yard sack and a 2-yard rushing loss sent the Mustangs backward 40 yards, from the BC 44 to the SMU 16.
One flag erased a run, another erased a 22-yard completion, and the third accompanied an incompletion. The possession ended with SMU facing fourth-and-50 and punting.
