Tyler Murphy Talks BC's Win Over USC On Sports Final
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Boston College Eagles were supposed to be running into a powerhouse in USC Saturday night at Alumni Stadium, but instead they ran all over the Trojans to earn an impressive upset victory.
Boston College rushed for 452 yards and five touchdowns en route to their 37-31 win over the ninth-ranked Trojans, an emotional victory for the players and their fans alike.
BC players wore red bandanna-themed attire throughout the contest in honor of Welles Crowther, a Boston College alum who died while heroically helping others during the September 11 attacks in New York. Crowther's family was at the game, and given a game ball by head coach Steve Addazio following the victory.
The other game ball went to quarterback Tyler Murphy, who was just 5-for-13 for 54 yards through the air, but rushed for 191 yards -- including a 66-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter to put the game away.
Murphy was a guest on WBZ-TV's Sports Final on Sunday night to discuss the big win, but more importantly, the special moment that took place in the locker room after the game.
"It was a very special moment," Murphy told WBZ-TV's Steve Burton. "Guys were very excited. We worked hard all week and to have the parents of Welles Crowther there to talk to us and give us some wise words – just talk about the man he was and the character he had. It was great and it kind of summed up the moment of the night for us."
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As for the win itself, it wasn't as easy as the box score makes it look. The Trojans weathered the BC storm early to take a 17-13 lead in the second quarter, and after being down 30-17 midway through the fourth quarter, cut BC's lead to just six points with 4:32 left.
"Coach [Addazio] is always talking about how there will always be ups and downs in the game and we have to stick together as a team and give 100 percent effort each play. We promised that to one another and held each other accountable all week at practice," said Murphy, a grad student at Boston College who earned a bachelor's degree at Florida. "No matter what the score is, we have to play our best. We were able to make some plays and fight our way back to take the lead and hang on to it and come out victorious.
"After they beat Stanford we knew we'd have to be our best if we wanted a chance to win," he said. "We knew it would be a challenge, but it was an opportunity where we could have fun and prove to the country what BC is all about."
But with that slim lead, Murphy did what he does best and used his legs to secure the win for the Eagles.
"It was a read-zone play," he said of his 66-yard touchdown run. "I was reading the end and the end crashed on the running back. I pulled it and the guys got a little too wide to try and contain, so I was able to cut up. The guys made some good blocks and I saw open grass. I just wanted to get into the end zone and help this team win. I was running as fast as I could. When I scored you could really feel we were getting closer to victory.
"It was a great team win and very big for our program."
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The 2-1 Eagles next host the Maine Black Bears Saturday afternoon at Alumni.
Catch Sports Final and Sports Final OT every Sunday night on WBZ-TV at 11:35pm!
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