Boston College spills No. 13 West Virginia

The Eagles remained in the hunt for their first Big East title.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -- Defense has been Boston College's strength this season. When that didn't work on Saturday, a superb performance on special teams kept the Eagles in the hunt for their first Big East championship.
Paul Peterson threw two first-half touchdown passes and No. 21 Boston College returned two punts for scores to beat No. 13 West Virginia 36-17 Saturday.
Boston College (7-2, 3-1 Big East) can earn a share of the conference title by beating Temple and Syracuse in its final season before moving to the Atlantic Coast Conference next year.
"It is a huge leap for our program and school," said Boston College coach Tom O'Brien, whose team hadn't won in Morgantown since 1990.
Blow chance
The Mountaineers (8-2, 4-1) squandered a chance to clinch their first BCS bid and a tie for a second straight conference title. West Virginia lost in November for the first time under fourth-year coach Rich Rodriguez. It also had 10-game conference and home winning streaks broken.
"We had destiny in our hands today. That's what is disappointing," Rodriguez said. "We didn't play like a good team. It will probably make us sick to watch the film."
It was supposed to be a battle between West Virginia's potent rushing attack and the Big East's top defense. Though West Virginia out-gained Boston College 452-243, the contest was decided on special teams.
DeJuan Tribble returned a first-quarter punt 41 yards for a score and Will Blackmon went 71 yards for a TD with a punt return in the fourth quarter. They were the first punt returns for scores by the Eagles in two years.
"That was the defining factor," O'Brien said. "The two punt returns were huge. We broke some tackles and after that they were not going to catch us."
Eagles freshman Ryan Ohliger kicked field goals of 44, 47 and 36 yards.
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