Thomas Castellanos' 2 fourth-quarter TDs lift BC over No. 17 SMU in Fenway Bowl

Updated Dec. 28, 2023 4:11 p.m. ET

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BOSTON (AP) — Thomas Castellanos stood in front of the Red Sox bullpen on his go-ahead touchdown and thought about acting like he was hitting a homer out of Fenway Park for a moment.

On his second score, he knocked out SMU instead.

Castellanos had two fourth-quarter touchdown runs and Boston College beat No. 17 SMU 23-14 on Thursday in the Fenway Bowl at the home of the Boston Red Sox, snapping the Mustangs’ nine-game winning streak.

Castellanos rushed for 156 yards and completed 11-of-18 passes for 102 yards. Ky Robichaux also had a scoring run for the Eagles (7-6), who have a main campus that’s located about 4 miles west of Fenway.

“It was pretty emotional for these guys when you got to take one final knee,” BC coach Jeff Hafley said. “It was special. … For all the ups and downs we had during the season to finish like this.”

Kevin Jennings went 24 of 48 for 191 yards and a TD for SMU (11-3), which finished with its most victories since the 1982 squad also got 11.

“The accomplishments of this team this year are not diminished,” SMU coach Rhett Lashlee said. “It’s a really good football team. We didn’t play very well today.”

With the Mustangs moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference next season in a sweeping list of realignments that have overtaken college football, it was a matchup of two teams that’ll see each other again next season in Dallas during league play.

Castellanos’ 15-yard keeper up the middle moved BC ahead 17-14 early in the fourth. He stopped and posed briefly in the back of the end zone directly in front of Boston’s bullpen, where Hall of Famer David Ortiz belted many of his 541 career home runs.

“I was about to do it,” Castellanos said, smiling, and holding a silver bat as the game’s offensive MVP. “I didn’t want to get a penalty. I was about to but then I just walked away.”

On his second score, he broke around the right side and dove inside the pylon for a 14-yard score.

SMU had taken a 14-10 lead when Jennings hit Jaylan Knighton with a 6-yard scoring toss with eight seconds left in the first half, scoring just in front of the visitors’ dugout.

Trailing 3-0 early in the second quarter, the Mustangs took the lead on LJ Johnson Jr.’s 1-yard run just a few feet from where home plate was covered.

But the Eagles answered right back, scoring on Robichaux’s 6-yard burst into the end zone just in front of the bullpens.

Playing in a steady rain that would usually have a tarp on Fenway’s infield during baseball games, the Eagles grabbed a 3-0 lead on Liam Connor’s 45-yard field goal.

Due to tight foul territory, both sidelines were in the outfield in front of the fabled Green Monster that was draped with banners of the Fenway Bowl logo and advertisements. The manually operated scoreboard had the line score of the game broken by quarters.

The opening kickoff came just after 11 a.m., just like annual Patriots’ Day Red Sox games on the third Monday in April.

THE TAKEAWAY

SMU: Jennings filled in nicely after starting QB Preston Stone was lost when he broke his leg in their regular-season finale against Navy. … The Mustangs leave the American Athletic Conference with 12 titles.

“He did a really nice job throwing the football with the weather, scrambling, keeping plays alive and some big-time throws with some big runs,” Lashlee said. “I thought it was a really gutty performance.”

Boston College: The play of Castellanos saved what could have been a terrible season for the Eagles. The sophomore transfer from Central Florida was inserted early in the first game and finished the season as the sixth ACC QB since 1996 (joining Lamar Jackson, who did it twice) to throw for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000.

“I’m pretty proud,” he said. “I just can’t wait ’til next year. You guys will see.”

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AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football

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