CHESTNUT HILL, Mass, – Missouri quarterback Connor Bazelak engineered a dramatic last-ditch drive to set up a game-tying 56-yard field goal by Harrison Mevis that forced overtime. But after Boston College had taken the OT lead on a 10-yard pass from Dennis Grosel to Zay Flowers, Bazelak’s first pass of the extra time was intercepted at the goal line by Brandon Sebastian allowing the Eagles to come away with a 41-34 victory.
The pass was intended for Keke Chism who was Missouri’s leading receiver with seven catches for 67 yards. Bazelak completed 30-of-41 passes for 303 yards and one touchdown.
Boston College went to 4-0 for the first time since 2007. Missouri dropped to 2-2. The Tigers are 11-6 all-time in overtime games, with their last OT victory coming 51-48 at Tennessee in 2012.
A see-saw game was tied 17-17 at halftime, and both teams had 219 total yards in the first half. The Eagles took charge in the third quarter, running off 29 plays for 135 yards to Missouri’s four plays and 17 yards, and moved to a 27-17 lead. BC took the second half kickoff and marched 75 yards down the field and got a three-yard TD run by Patrick Garwo to take its first lead of the game, 24-17. Garwo was the Eagles’ leading rusher with 175 yards on 25 carries.
On Missouri’s second play after the score, Bazelak’s pass to Barrett Banister was intercepted by Josh DeBerry and Boston College turned that mistake into a 31-yard FG by Connor Lytton to increase its lead to 27-17.
The Tigers, though, grabbed the momentum back in the fourth quarter. They responded with a 75-yard drive that ended with a one-yard touchdown run by Michael Cox. The key play on the drive came in a third-and-nine situation when Bazelak and Tauskie Dove combined for a 40-yard pass and run down to the BC 22-yard line.
The defense stiffened and forced a three-and-out and a BC punt. Bazelak then took Mizzou back down the field on a 57-yard drive, converting two big third downs along the way, and Tyler Badie ran the final eight yards for a touchdown that put the Tigers back ahead, 31-27. Badie finished the game with 18 carries for 72 yards and two scores and caught five passes for 34 yards.
Boston College came back with a methodical drive. The Eagles took 5:53 off the clock and marched 60 yards down the field and scored on a five-yard Travis Levy run with just 25 seconds remaining to take a 34-31 lead.
That’s when Bazelak worked some magic. From the Mizzou 25, he completed three passes good for 36 yards. The last completion was for a big five yards to Banister to set up Mevis for his FG attempt with three seconds to play. The 56-yard boot was just long enough and snuck inside the right upright. He also kicked a 28-yard FG in the second quarter and has now made 13 in a row.
Mizzou returns home on Oct 2 to face the Tennessee Volunteers in a SEC East Division showdown on Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo. Game time is set for 11 a.m. CT on SEC Network.
