AP News, September 22nd, 2007
Matt Ryan threw for 356 yards and accounted for four touchdowns before leaving the game midway through the fourth quarter and leading No. 14 Boston College to a 37-17 victory over Army on Saturday.
Ryan moved into third place on BC's career passing list behind Doug Flutie and Glenn Foley with 6,147 yards. The senior quarterback finished 35-for-51 with three touchdown passes and a TD run, and connected with Kevin Challenger nine times for 104 yards before being replaced by Chris Crane for garbage time.
Ryan also threw two interceptions, one of them caught by Brian Chmura and returned 11 yards for a touchdown that made it 29-17 with 9:22 left in the game. But on the second play of the ensuing possession, Andre Callender went through the line and down the left sideline for a 66-yard touchdown.
BC (4-0) hasn't opened the season with four wins since 1999 and hasn't started 5-0 since 1954, when it played its home games at Fenway Park. The Eagles play Massachusetts next week and Bowling Green after that.
Army (1-3) had some success on special teams, with a fake field goal that set up its first touchdown, but didn't do much offensively. The Black Knights managed seven first downs to 34 for Boston College and they were outgained 573-259 from scrimmage.
Ryan hit Brandon Robinson with 7-yard touchdown pass with 13:16 left in the game to make it 29-10. Corey Anderson ran back the kickoff to the BC 21 before he was tripped up on the right sideline by DeJuan Tribble.
On a fourth-and-1 from the 2, Wes McMahand was stopped within an inch or two of the first down _ so close the referee had to crouch to eyeball the measurement. But on BC's second play after taking over on downs, Chmura picked Ryan off and ran it in to make it 29-17.
Callender scored to make it 35-17, then Ryan hit Callender on the 2-point conversion to give the Eagles a 37-17 lead.
Army's first touchdown came after converting a fake field goal on a fourth-and-5 from the BC 31. Holder Andrew Reinhart shuffle-passed to Mike Evans, who went around the right side for 24 yards; on the next play, McMahand scored from the 7 to make it 16-7.
The Black Knights went into the end zone on a 16-yard pass to Jeremy Trimble early in the third quarter, but it was called back for holding. They settled for a 26-yard field goal _ the first Owen Tolson's career _ that made it 16-10.
BC took a 23-10 lead with 4:09 left in the second when Ryan completed six straight passes _ and ran once _ in seven-play, 67-yard drive capped off when Ryan Purvis caught an 8-yard TD pass.
