DUBLIN -- Dedrick Mills knew he just had to "finish the play" when given a chance to atone for a fumble in his first college game.
He made up for the mistake by also finishing Georgia Tech's comeback victory.
Mills' 4-yard touchdown run with 35 seconds remaining capped a drive that included two big completions from Justin Thomas and lifted Georgia Tech to a 17-14 victory over Boston College on Saturday.
Mills, a freshman from Ware County High School in Waycross, Ga., said he had to regroup after fumbling in the third quarter.
"I kind of got down, but Justin kept coming back up to me and saying, 'Hey man, you've got to forget that last play,' " Mills said. "... I got my chance again. I just had to finish the play."
Thomas threw two key completions on the go-ahead drive. The senior passed to Qua Searcy for 22 yards on a fourth-and-19 play and found Ricky Jeune for 26 yards on third down.
"It felt like a movie," Thomas said. "We stuck together. We kept our heads up high, and we found a way to do it."
The Yellow Jackets' only touchdowns came on their first and last drives of the game. Backup quarterback Matthew Jordan's 3-yard scoring run capped the opening drive. Boston College held Georgia Tech's Spread-option attack to 240 yards, including 121 yards rushing.
In other games involving ACC teams, Virginia Tech quarterback Jerod Evans threw for 221 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Hokies to a 36-13 season-opening victory over visiting Liberty. ... James Conner caught one touchdown and ran for another to lead host Pittsburgh to a 28-7 victory over Villanova. ... Kyle Lauletta threw for 337 yards and three touchdowns and visiting Richmond manhandled Virginia 37-20. ... Brad Kaaya threw for four touchdowns on his 21st birthday, Miami scored a school-record 42 points in the third quarter in an easy 70-3 victory over visiting Florida A&M. ... Daniel Jones threw for two touchdowns and ran for another as host Duke routed North Carolina Central 49-6
CONFERENCE USA
SMU decks North Texas
DENTON, Texas -- Courtland Sutton only made four catches but three went for touchdowns in SMU's 34-21 victory over North Texas in a season opener Saturday.
Sutton finished with 162 yards receiving, including an 88-yarder from Ben Hicks for the fifth-longest touchdown pass in Mustangs history. Sutton's other two TD receptions were thrown by Matt Davis. Xavier Jones added 115 yards and a score on 11 carries as the Mustangs rolled up 572 yards offense.
In other Conference USA games, Brent Stockstill passed for 329 yards and a career-high tying five touchdowns -- all in the first half -- and Middle Tennessee cruised to a 55-0 victory over visiting Alabama A&M. ... Jason Driskel passed for two touchdowns and rushed for another, and Florida Atlantic scored 17 consecutive points in the second half to beat visiting Southern Illinois 38-30. Gregory Howell Jr. rushed for two TDs and 128 yards for Florida Atlantic.
Sports on 09/04/2016