Boston College Athletics
Boston College
Pittsburgh
Eagles Lose Heartbreaker In OT
October 26, 2002 | Football
Oct 26, 2002
By ALAN ROBINSON
AP Sports Writer
PITTSBURGH - David Abdul kicked a 42-yard field goal in overtime after tying it with a 30-yarder with five seconds left in regulation as Pittsburgh defeated Boston College 19-16 Saturday.
Boston College (4-3, 0-3 in Big East) had a chance to tie or win the game in overtime, but the Eagles gained only four yards on three plays, and Sandro Sciortino's 39-yard field-goal attempt was wide left. Sciortino hit from 39, 42 and 24 yards earlier.
Pitt improved to 6-2 for the first time since 1983, despite wasting a 10-point lead and being unable to move the ball in the second half until its last-minute field-goal drive.
Pitt is 3-0 and Boston College is 0-3 in the Big East, the first time that has happened for either in conference play.
Pittsburgh led 13-3 in the first half, but the Panthers were shut out in the second half until Abdul nudged his 30-yarder through to tie it. Abdul's four field goals tied a Pitt record previously set by Carson Long in 1975 and matched by Nick Lotz last year.
Pitt didn't move inside the Boston College 35 in the second half until the field-goal drive, in which Rod Rutherford hit Lamar Slade for 27 yards and Larry Fitzgerald for 13 yards. Rutherford then scrambled 12 yards go get the ball to the B.C. 13.
Boston College had gone ahead 16-13 on Brian St. Pierre's 15-yard TD pass to Sean Ryan midway through the fourth quarter, one play after Derrick Knight's 44-yard run. Knight finished with 136 yards on 27 carries. Until then, the Eagles had repeatedly moved the ball between the 20s, only to stall.
The overtime loss - Boston College's second in three OT games - proved a difficult start to a tough three-game road trip. The Eagles, whose earlier Big East losses were to No. 1 Miami and No. 3 Virginia Tech, play next week at No. 6 Notre Dame, then play at West Virginia.
The Eagles beat Pitt 45-7 last season and were 4-1 against Pittsburgh under coach Tom O'Brien before losing. Pitt is now 3-2 in overtime games.
Boston College got to 13-9 on two field goals by Sciortino. The Eagles settled for the 24-yarder early in the fourth quarter when the Eagles lost four yards on three plays after getting a first-and-goal at the Pitt 3.
But the Panthers' offense stalled again and was forced to punt. St. Pierre then found Keith Hemmings for completions of 11 and 10 yards, before Knight's 44-yard run got the Eagles to the Pitt 15.
Rutherford repeatedly hurt Boston College with his running and throwing in the first half, scrambling for 29 yards to the Eagles 7, just ahead of his scoring pass to Fitzgerald.
But Rutherford never got anything going in the second half, until the final drive, finishing 20-of-38 for 201 yards and running for a team-high 73 yards. St. Pierre was 18-of-34 for 179 yards.
