CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — It turns out Virginia Tech can start fast, play well on the road and beat a team with a winning record.
The Hokies ended their road woes emphatically on Saturday, crushing Boston College 48-22 at Alumni Stadium to get within a win of bowl eligibility with two games left to play.
It’s the most points Virginia Tech (5-5, 4-2 ACC) has scored in the Brent Pry era, and it came from all comers.
Quarterback Kyron Drones threw for 219 yards and two touchdowns and ran for a career-high 135 yards in three quarters. Bhayshul Tuten ran for three touchdowns, the first Hokies tailback to do so since Jalen Holston last year at Liberty. Tech finished with 600 yards, its most since 2018, with a balanced attack that featured a season-high 363 rushing yards, the most since 2009 vs. Marshall.
Defensively, the Hokies corralled quarterback Thomas Castellanos, who ran for just 46 yards, his second-fewest this season, and threw two early interceptions to Dorian Strong that Tech converted into 10 points.
The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for Boston College (6-4, 3-3 ACC).
The Hokies got off to a great start for a change when Strong jumped a pass from Castellanos on the game’s first snap for an interception that set up a 27-yard field goal by John Love to make it 3-0 just over two minutes in.
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The Eagles answered right back, with Castellanos twice scrambling for first downs before running back Alex Broome ripped off a 36-yard run up the gut to the Tech 4. Broome punched it in on the next play for a touchdown, giving BC a 7-3 lead.
It didn’t last. Strong picked off Castellanos again on the BC’s next drive, becoming the first Hokies player with two interceptions in a game since Caleb Farley and Jermaine Waller both did it against Miami in 2019.
Tech again took advantage. Tight end Dae’Quan Wright had a one-handed snag for a 25-yard gain to open the drive. The Hokies ran it 10 straight times after that, punching it into the end zone on a 7-yard run by Tuten to take back the lead at 10-7.
The Hokies surprised BC with an onside kick, with Kyle Lowe lightly tapping the ball and Jaylen Jones falling on it after it went 10 yards. Tech capitalized, with Drones hitting Stephen Gosnell for his first career touchdown on a 22-yard connection that made it 17-7.
A 69-yard run by Drones on the Hokies’ next drive set up a 5-yard swing pass to Jaylin Lane for a 5-yard touchdown and a 24-7 lead.
Tech made it 31-7 going into halftime after Da’Quan Felton hauled in a deep ball that ended up going 70 yards. Tuten scored on a 4-yard run to give the Hokies their most first-half points since the NC State game in 2020.
Brent Pry’s group opened the second half with a 10-play, 76-yard drive that ended with Tuten’s third rushing touchdown of the day.
Boston College scored on a 8-yard touchdown pass from Castellanos to Jaedn Skeete with 2:52 left in the third quarter, pulling within 38-15 with a successful two-point conversion.
Tech answered when Malachi Thomas broke free up the middle for a 35-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth, which made it a 30-point lead. Love’s career-long 46-yard field goal extended it to 48-15.
The Hokies muffed a punt that led to a 1-yard touchdown run by BC’s Xavier Coleman to make it 48-22 with less than five minutes to play, the final score for either side. Tech returns home to host NC State on Saturday, Nov. 18, for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff on the ACC Network.
Box Score: Virginia Tech 48, Boston College 22
