CHESTNUT HILL, Ma. — The Golden Eagles scored twice in the fourth quarter to take down The Hokies 31-21 in ACC play. Despite the loss, Virginia Tech Head Coach Justin Berlander was happy with his team’s first half performance.

“We did a good job in the first half, we were up 14-0 for a lot of the second quarter. We did a great job of holding the ball and keeping the clock on our side.”

Coach Berlander adjusted his dirty ball cap as he answered questions in the post game press conference. He spoke specifically about his defensive unit when asked what his team could do better after giving up 21 second-half points.

“I think it needs to see improvement, but this game there were just some mental lapses that led to the defense giving up big plays, and that’s just not a recipe for success.”

The Hokies prepare to face North Carolina next week and the Virginia Tech head coach didn’t seem too concerned when asked about the schedule.

“There are no easy games of course, but it’s no secret that our next opponent, North Carolina, isn’t exactly on the same level as Boston College, so i’m hoping we can have a strong showing there and be well prepared for our tougher opponents in the following weeks.”

Boston College Head Coach Niko Thormund was pleased with the offensive performance in today’s game. He adjusted his visor and grinned when questioned about the scoring production.

“We had a great balance between our run game and passing attack that kept the defense off balance and allowed us to break open some big plays. Just checked the log and our shortest touchdown came on a 41 yd run.”

Coach Thormund was excited about the win and hopes to build on this momentum as the conference schedule becomes more grueling.

“I hope it instills a lot of confidence in the guys. After the disappointing final 6 weeks of last season there were some major concerns coming into the season. But after solid wins over a great undefeated VT team and last season’s playoff qualifier Louisville, I believe it shows we can go toe-to-toe with any team, and that’s important especially in the ACC where each week brings the potential for an upset.”

A reporter in the back asked if Thormund had heard anything about Virginia Tech’s star linebacker being benched in the second half due to a run-in with the coaching staff at halftime. Niko denied knowing anything about it but admitted that if the rumor was true it definitely made a difference in the game.

“It was a huge momentum shifter [sic]. Holes started opening up, gaps began appearing in coverage, and our guys keyed in on that and started taking advantage.”

Boston College faces Tulsa in a mid-season non-conference game next week and looks to climb in the rankings.