Dungey throws for 3 TDs; Syracuse tops BC
BOSTON — Syracuse quarterback Eric Dungey hesitated a bit before finally admitting that being in a first-quarter melee got him a little more excited.
Dungey threw three touchdown passes, Ervin Phillips had a pair of scores and Syracuse beat Boston College 28-20 on Saturday, sending the Eagles to their 12th straight Atlantic Coast Conference loss.
Dungey went 32 for 38 for 434 yards. He also ran 17 times for 54 yards for the Orange (4-4, 2-2 ACC).
“I’m always anxious to get the ball back, but I guess a little bit,” he said.
Phillips could see the excitement in his quarterback.
“He was definitely fired up,” he said. “I think he composed himself well though.”
In the opening quarter, a brief fight broke out on the Syracuse sideline between Dungey and a couple of Boston College players after an interception by BC’s William Harris.
Dungey threw Harris to the ground and pushed BC linebacker Matt Milano
into an equipment container near the stands after he stepped over the QB.
Players from both teams — with a few from BC running across the field — got involved in the shoving. A Syracuse staff member threw Harris to the ground before the officials and coaches got things under control.
“I was trying to finish the tackle. I get tackled all the time,” Dungey said. “Some guy’s standing over me talking smack. I just tried to get him off of me. One thing led to another.”
Harris wouldn’t comment on the member of Syracuse’s staff — wearing an orange hat — who threw him down.
Last week, Dungey became the first player in school history to throw for over 300 yards and rush for over 100 in an upset victory over then-No. 17 Virginia Tech.
“I told (Dungey) that his job is to get the guy down, not hit him like a middle linebacker,” Syracuse coach Dino Babers said. “He needs to preserve himself. Did a great job of stopping the touchdown. After that he needs to protect himself.”
Patrick Towles went 4 of 14 for 45 yards for Boston College (3-4, 0-4) but did run 75 yards for a touchdown. He was taken out of the game early in the fourth quarter and appeared to be favoring his right leg with a hamstring injury.
“We were better today,” BC coach Steve Addazio said. “The consistency in our throw game was just not there.”
Back-up Darius Wade drove the Eagles deep into Syracuse territory, but was sacked and then threw incomplete on fourth-and-14 with just under 2 minutes left.
The Orange went 86 yards for a score to make it 21-10 after an interception by linebacker Parris Bennett inside their own 5.
Receiver Steve Ishmael made an 11-yard TD catch along the side of the end zone, making a leaping grab and getting one foot to touch before he was knocked out of bounds.
One play later, Towles broke around left end and went down the sideline for his score on the final play of the third quarter. Mike Knoll’s second field goal — a 39-yarder — cut it to 21-20. Dungey’s third TD toss — a 68-yarder to Amba Etta-Tawo — made it 28-20. Boston College’s Myles Willis had an 89-yard kickoff return for a TD.
Honored
At halftime, Boston College retired former linebacker Luke Kuechly’s jersey, hanging it alongside retired No. 22 — worn by Heisman Trophy winner Doug Flutie.
After leading the nation in tackles for two straight seasons, Kuechly left as the most decorated player in BC history, collecting the Nagurski, Butkus and Lombardi awards.