JOEDY McCREARY
AP Sports Writer
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (AP) — Jon Hilliman rushed for 101 yards and two touchdowns, and Boston College held on to beat Wake Forest 23-17 on Saturday.
Tyler Murphy finished 11 of 15 for 165 yards with a 37-yard touchdown pass to Shakim Phillips while Hilliman had touchdown runs of 1 and 33 yards for the Eagles (5-3, 1-2 Atlantic Coast Conference).
They nearly blew a 23-3 lead in the fourth quarter and didn’t completely put the pesky Demon Deacons away until Justin Simmons’ late interception.
John Wolford was 22 of 30 for 242 yards for Wake Forest (2-6, 0-3), and receiver E.J. Scott and Isaiah Robinson had short touchdown runs about 1½ minutes apart in the fourth before the Demon Deacons got the ball back with 2½ minutes left in a one-possession game.
Simmons sealed it by picking off Wolford’s sideline pass with 2:06 left.
A Wake Forest offense that in the first half didn’t advance further than its own 37 and managed just 6 total yards sure made things interesting in the second.
Trailing by 20, Wake Forest came to life with a 15-play, fourth-quarter drive that ended with Scott’s 3-yard touchdown run with 8:03 remaining.
When Myles Willis fumbled the ensuing kickoff, Brad Watson recovered at the BC 15. After Wolford hit Jared Crump for 14 yards on third-and-10, Robinson powered in through the left side to pull the Demon Deacons within six with 6:26 remaining.
Wake Forest forced a punt and took over at its own 20 with 2:31 to play. Wolford hit Scott over the middle for 27 yards one play before Simmons picked off his sideline throw for Jared Crump.
Murphy, a transfer from Florida who leads the team in both rushing and passing, appeared to put this one out of reach early in the fourth quarter.
After the defense stopped Wake Forest on a fourth-and-3 at the BC 19, Murphy led the Eagles downfield in a hurry.
He hit a wide-open David Dudeck for 41 yards one play before Phillips got behind the defense for an easy score that made it a 20-point game with 13:46 left. Tyler Harris blocked the extra point for Wake Forest.
Nobody thought a tight finish was possible in this one, after BC appeared to have taken firm control early. The Eagles scored on their first two possessions, and at one point in the second quarter outgained the Demon Deacons 139 to minus-1.
Hilliman had the highlight of the day on the final play of the first quarter, breaking a run through the left side before cutting back and hurdling a Wake Forest defender on his way to the end zone to make it 10-0. His short touchdown run with 1:15 left in the half gave BC a 17-0 lead.
___
Follow Joedy McCreary on Twitter at http://twitter.com/joedyap
Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
