Live Chat with Gene DeFilippo

Get the latest scoop on Boston College Athletics straight from the top. Submit your questions now, then log on to www.bceagles.com at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, June 8 for a live chat with Athletics Director Gene DeFilippo.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Thank you for joining us for today's chat . I will now take your questions.

Mike (New York): How do you plan on bringing the BC baseball program up to par with the rest of the ACC? Is there truth to a new stadium in the works on the new land that was purchased? BC has established itself as a premier northeastern baseball program but now its time to step up and do what it take to compete nationally.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Since 1997, we have continually made improvements to our baseball program. We hired a full-time head coach, a full-time assistant coach, we now offer the NCAA limit of 11.7 athletic scholarships for baseball. And in the very near future, we hope to have a new baseball field our team can call home. We will always be disadvantaged by weather, but there's nothing we can do about that.

Jim (Stamford): Has you considered increasing the seating capacity at alumni or is that still being blocked by the city of newton? With the challening acc schedule there is no reason we can't fill 70,000 seats 6 games a year (unless we keep scheduling maine and buffalo). This would pay for itself over time and might help lure my prominent recruits to the heights.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We have no plans at this time to increase the seating capacity at Alumni Stadium. Last season was really the first season we were able to sell all tickets on a season basis. Our preference would be to keep the tickets in demand. At this point, I do not see expansion in our future.

Ralph (New York): Why is our nonconference football schedule so weak this year? We should not be playing patsies like Maine and Buffalo. Even Central Michigan and BYU are not exactly great programs. We must have one of the worst nonconference schedules of any ACC team.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We will continue to play one nationally ranked program each year in our out-of-conference schedule. With eight difficult ACC games, nine tough games is on par with most all teams in our conference and in the country. In addition, in order to make budget, we would like to have seven home games each year; therefore, the two-for-one games (two home, one away) with MAC schools and other opponents are important to us. Future non-conference games include Notre Dame in '07, '08, '09 and '10, we have talked with (but do not have signed contracts) Auburn and Alabama, and we are hoping to sign a long-term agreement to play Syracuse beginning in 2012 or 2013.

Rockville, MD: When will men's lacrosse become a varsity sport again? Now that we are in the ACC this would be a tremendous addition to the BC sports program. Virgina Tech has had a strong club program and FSU is ready to go also. Now is the time to bring it back.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: I don't anticipate men's lacrosse becoming a varsity sport any time in the near future. Of the 12 institutions in the ACC, only four compete in men's varsity lacrosse. Not one of those institutions plays men's and women's ice hockey.

Frank [Camden, ME.]: Will the Army game be played in Dublin next year?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: No. We were unable to work out the game in Ireland, so we will play Army in Alumni Stadium and at Army.

James E Ready(Biddeford,Me): Will the blackout be lifted for Mens' basketball on NESN in Maine for the 2006-2007 season?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We continue to do everything possible to lift the blackout in both Maine and Vermont. I hope the ACC will be able to work out something with ESPN that would allow this to happen.

Christopher (Pentagon City, VA): A Texas newspaper recently reported that BC turned down repeated requests for a football home-and-home and the Longhorns had to turn to UCLA as a second choice? Is this true?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We did turn down an opportunity to schedule Texas in the future because the dates just did not work. We are continuing to have conversations with Alabama, Auburn and other top-ranked teams.

Erin (Massapequa, NY): Are there going to be any football travel packages like there were last year? We're interested in going to Central Michigan this year. We went to BYU last year, it was great!

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Our Alumni Association is putting together some football travel packages for this year, as well as for the future. I suggest you contact the Alumni office for more information.

Roger (Waltham): How do you feel about a fellow ACC school poaching your baseball coach?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: I feel very badly that we lost Peter Hughes, as he has done a phenomenal job for us as our baseball coach. If Peter feels that it is best for he and his family to leave, I support him in that decision. The fact that it was an ACC school really does not concern me, since nine years ago I came to Boston College from Villanova.

Betty - Grenwich: Obviously winding up in Boise last year after an 8-3 season was a huge disappointment. Schools we beat on the field (Clemson, NCSU) and had worse records were rewarded with better bowls. In the future what is being done to protect schools from getting passed over by the bowls?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: It was certainly disappointing for us not to be selected earlier during the bowl process. The ACC has addressed this situation on a continual basis since last January. At football media day in late July, the ACC will unveil a new bowl policy that will be much more favorable to Boston College and other institutions. I think you will be very excited when you learn about the new policy.

Adam (New Canaan): Will BC ever play Fairfield U again in hoops?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Yes, we plan to play Fairfield again this year, and we're trying to schedule Northeastern as well. Both Ed Cooley and Bill Coen will make return trips to Conte Forum.

George (Newton): Gene- With the advent of donor-based seating what is the option for season ticket holders who do not make gifts? Is there an alternative for those individuals?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Beginning this winter, the prime seats in the lower level in Conte Forum will require a donation as well as the price of the tickets. This is something that most every major program in the country has instituted. We are as many as 20-25 years behind many programs who have implemented donor seating. In NO way are we throwing people out of Conte Forum. People who are unable or unwilling to make the donation will be moved to another section of the arena and will be required only to pay the price of the tickets.

Lou Milkowski (Beverly Hills, CA): As an alumni from the '60's who found wrestling (I know, that unknown, unloved sport) for 4 years at the Heights a most rewarding experience, is there any hope of bringing it back as a regular sport now that we are in the ACC?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: There are no plans at this time to bring back wrestling. We currently offer 31 sports, most in the ACC and approximately 10 more than the average number of sports offered at the other ACC institutions.

Ted, Brighton: What will the process be for students who want to get season tickets for men's basketball next year?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We are in the process of conferring with representatives of UGBC as well as the Heights and other groups. We will have a very fair and sound system to distribute student basketball tickets. This has been one of our top priorities during the off-season.

Joe (Worcester): It seems the last few years our seeding by the NCAA Basketball Selection Comittee has been lower than many of the so called experts predicted. The last 2 years we got 4 seeds when many experts thought we deserved a 3. One of the explanations for the lower seed is our poor out of conference strength of schedule. What steps is BC taking to beef up the OOC?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: I have always thought that we play a very competitive schedule. This year's basketball schedule will include 16 ACC games, as well as games vs. Kansas, Michigan State, Providence, UMass, and several others.

Frank (Brockton): I really enjoyed the weekly BC show on NESN this year. Will that show be renewed for the upcoming year?

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Yes, we anticipate a similar but improved version of Inside BC Athletics to be shown again this year.

Eaglefan (Boston):: How do the BC facilities compare with those of the rest of the ACC? How has the Yawkey Center aided recruiting? Keep up the great work!

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: We continue to work on our facilities each year. After this summer, I would way most of our facilities compare with those of the rest of the ACC institutions. We definitely need a baseball field and a softball field, and I hope we will be able to build those sooner rather than later. The Yawkey Center is truly a state-of-the-art facility and one of the very best football buildings in the nation. It has been a tremendous help to us in recruiting and has benefitted many sports other than football, as we spent several million dollars this summer and last summer to improve locker rooms, meeting rooms, offices, weight rooms, training rooms and all areas to benefit many of our teams.

BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo: Thank you very much for joining us for today's online chat. We'll take your questions again sometime in August. Check online for the date. Have a great summer.

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