Ryan is Flutie-esque in comeback victory at Va. Tech
BLACKSBURG, Va. -- Matt Ryan is the prototypical pro-style quarterback. He's 6-foot-5, 220 pounds. He has the strength and leadership qualities the pros seek.
|
|
| Matt Ryan helps his case to win the Heisman Trophy. (Getty Images) |
After being hounded most of the night by an experienced and speedy defense of No. 8 Virginia Tech, Ryan simply willed the second-ranked Eagles to a 14-10 victory.
The BC rally won't knock the Red Sox off the front page of Boston-area newspapers, obviously, but it had Disney-style dimensions.
Consider this Doug Flutie-esque scenario:
Unbeaten Boston College trailed the eighth-ranked Hokies 10-0 late in the fourth quarter, and the sellout crowd of 66,000 was at a frenzy pitch.
Enter the Heisman favorite.
Ryan pieced together a nine-play, 91-yard drive culminating in a 16-yard scoring pass to Rich Gunnell with 2:11 remaining.
After the Eagles recovered the ensuing onside kick at their own 34-yard line, Ryan went back to work with a series of well-placed throws.
An apparent 14-yard touchdown pass was wiped out by a holding penalty, but Ryan then silenced the fans with a remarkable 24-scoring pass to tailback Andre Callender with 11 seconds left. That capped a seven-play, 66-yard march for Ryan, who completed 9-of-15 passes for 157 yards on the final two drives.
Just moments earlier, Thursday's storyline was far different for Ryan. He had been sacked three times, and seven of his passes had been deflected.
The frustration level seemed to peak at the 6:01 mark of the final quarter when free safety D.J. Parker intercepted Ryan's pass on a disguised coverage by the Hokies.
"You think back several times during the game where you have an opportunity to go ahead and win it," Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer said. "We just didn't quite get it done.
