Live Chat With Gene DeFilippo

 Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo

LIVE CHAT WITH GENE DeFILIPPO

Do you have a question about BC Athletics? Go straight to the top! Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo will conduct a live chat on Tuesday, July 29 beginning at 4 p.m. Submit your questions now and then log into www.bceagles.com on July 29 for the live chat.

Moderator: Hello, everyone. Welcome to today's live chat with Boston College Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo. Please stand by. The question and answer session will begin momentarily.

Andrew (Buffalo): What is the Athletic Department or the University doing about tailgating? I believe its current state is what is preventing the fanbase from growing into the community.

Gene DeFilippo: Boston College is required to apply to the city of Boston to obtain an entertainment license to play our football games. The license the city grants us stipulates that we may open the gates to our parking lots two hours prior to a noon game and three hours prior to a game that starts at 1:00 or later. The additional hour was granted to us last year, and it was very successful. I am thrilled that the city will give us that same three-hour period for most our home games.

Chris (Boston): Gene, It appears that once the new Master Plan is approved and construction begins, many of the Lower Campus non-garage tailgating spots (Shea, More Hall, Edmonds, etc) are going to be at least temporarily eliminated. Can you comment on this and also if there is a plan to replace these 'green' spots.

Gene DeFilippo: There's no question, we will lose some parking on the lower campus, but at this time, we are unsure as to when and how many spaces we might lose. There are plans to add to the parking deck in order to offset those lost spaces.

James (Alabama): What plans are in place to solve the problem of "no-shows" at BC games, most notably men's basketball and men's ice hockey?

Gene DeFilippo: We have several members of our staff working hard at selling group tickets and also in dealing with the problem of no-shows at our athletics contests. It's a difficult problem to deal with, but we will continue to work hard to provide the best possible atmosphere for our players and our fans.

R. Westerfield (New York): Texas recently announced that they will retire the jerseys of Vince Young and Kevin Durant during each team's upcoming season. Why doesn't BC retire the jerseys of players like Matt Ryan, Derrick Knight, and Craig Smith shortly after they graduate? This would allow students to appreciate the players they followed while at school, rather than google-ing "Uka Agbai" after a half time ceremony in 2015.

Gene DeFilippo: We began retiring jerseys and numbers in 1998, and we will continue to honor the greatest of the great here at Boston College.

Gene DeFilippo: I think it's fair to say that Matt Ryan's jersey will be retired sometime in the very near future.

JD BOSTON: Is thier anything being done to market the basketball team bettere than in the past and to also improve the atmosphere at the games. MAybe follwoing the Celtics concept of marketing to a younger group might be useful.

Gene DeFilippo: We at Boston College certainly know how to create a wonderful atmosphere at our home basketball games. Our recent home games vs. North Carolina and Duke are proof that we can do it. It's up to ALL of us - alumni, students, fans and friends of the university - to get together and create that atmosphere at each and every game.

Lou (Beverly Hills): I know football practices do not start until Aug. 4th. Please share with us what informal workouts have been going on over this Summer?

Gene DeFilippo: Most of our football team is in summer school this second semester. A typical schedule would consist of classes in the morning, weight lifting and running in the afternoon, followed by dinner and studying in the evening. The players also occasionally get together to have informal sessions where they throw the football, but no coaches are allowed to be working with the players - only strength coaches.

Joey (Brookline): Gene, Congrats on another great athletic and academic year. My question is regarding the donor-based seating plan in place at BC. I completely appreciate the need for donor based seating and know that is has been successful at BC. However, have you ever thought of instituting a points based system for seating that awards points for attending the school, years of season tickets, membership in BC clubs, etc. and combines these with donations which would be assigned points as well? I feel a system such as this would reward the loyal fans, but still allow donors with big pocket books to get the seats they want. Thanks very much, Joey

Gene DeFilippo: Many schools have implemented a point system, and there are positives and negatives associated with such a system. Our records do not go back far enough to allow us to implement a point system here at Boston College.

Bob (Stamford, CT): Is there consideration being given to hold a Matt Ryan Day at Alumni Stadium this season? Will his jersey/number be retired? As an alumni and season ticket holder for over fifteen years, I would support such a day wholeheartedly because his contributions to the program were extraordinary. He represents the best of Boston College athletics. His performance on the field was sensational and his interviews made me proud that he was a student at my alma mater. He always seemed to emphasize the importance of his teammates' contributions. He understood that he was not the sole reason that team won 11 games last season.

Gene DeFilippo: Matt Ryan is working hard to become the Falcons' starting quarterback. At some point in the near future, we will certainly bring Matt back to campus and honor him for his performance, leadership and for all that he did for BC.

Andrew, Cincinnati, OH: I've heard BC is building a statue of Doug Flutie outside Alumni Stadium. What can you tell us about that project and any plans to do anything else, such as naming the field, Flutie Field at Alumni Stadium? Similar to Coach K Court down at Duke? Thanks and keep up the hard work. It's great to win and have our students continue to graduate.

Gene DeFilippo: Sometime this fall, we will dedicate a life-size statue of Doug Flutie just outside of Gate D at Alumni Stadium. This is a fitting honor for Doug, as he won the Heisman Trophy and has been seen for nearly 30 years as one of the faces of BC football.

John - Falmouth: What is the likelihood of seeking a modest expansion of Alumni Stadium (e.g., filling in existing gaps in the corners? Have we considered building a shared baseball facility with the city such as down in Cleveland Circle where there is an existing park which would also spark greater community interest in the club and defray some of the expense?

Gene DeFilippo: When we sell out Alumni Stadium on a consistent basis, then we might look at expansion, but that has not been the case in the past several years, so our thinking is that Alumni Stadium will remain as is for the forseeable future.

Xavier (New Canaan, CT): Gene, Congratulations on another outstanding sports season last year. Imaging National Championships in Men's Ice Hockey, and Men's and Women's Sailing, as well as a terrific football season! Good going!! I was disappointed that we/they dropped the scheduled game with Army. Is there any chance of resuming that rivalry? We have a hard time seeing the Eagles in major sports down in metropolital NY NJ CT these days. How about a home and home with Navy or Air Force? That would at least be more competitive than some of the current non-conference football offerings.

Gene DeFilippo: Boston College did not drop the game with Army. It was Army that asked out of the game. We, too, are disappointed that we will not be making the trip to West Point this fall. The Army team is on our schedule in future years, and we certainly hope to play those games both in Alumni Stadium and on the campus at West Point.

David Pesapane: One of my biggest complaints about BC and the Big East was the refusal of the Big East to develop league rivalries that would play every year as the last game of the season. Does the ACC have any plans to let BC develop a rivalry with another ACC team, i.e. Mryland, NC State, by allowing them to play each other the last game of the season every year. I can see a Maryland rivalry spilling over into all sports.

Gene DeFilippo: Neither the Big East nor the ACC are responsible for creating rivalries. Rivalries occur when teams play every year and both teams win enough to make it a real rivalry. I can see Boston College developing a rivalry with Wake Forest, Maryland, NC State, Florida State or Clemson, and we certainly have a rivalry with Virginia Tech. Those are the teams we play every year. Syracuse comes onto the schedule in 2010, and we will play them each year on the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

Rockville, Maryland: Tell us about the future football schedule with Notre Dame

Gene DeFilippo: We have three football games remaining with Notre Dame. This season's game is in Chestnut Hill. In 2009, we will be playing at South Bend, and in 2010, back here at BC. Notre Dame does not wish to continue this rivalry after the 2010 season.

Joe (Shelton, Ct): Gene: Appears BC is having significant difficulty recruiting basketball talent at the center positon. Coach Skinner is clearly one of the best coaches in the game, BC has had an outstanding run under his direction, the facilities appear to be competitive with the ACC and the academic reputation of BC continues to excel. What seems to be the problem?

Gene DeFilippo: I agree with you that Al Skinner is one of the best coaches in the country. There are very few quality centers coming out of high school each year. Most all of the schools are after those same few, and they are very difficult to sign. We've had some pretty good big men around here - Craig Smith, Uka Agbai and Sean Williams, among others. I'm certain we'll recruit more in the future.

Frank Norwood: I recently received my men's basketball season ticket application. Including DBS , the total cost is $3,167. If I don't renew by August 15th I will be reassigned to a non-donor area. I am being asked to spend alot of money yet I don't know the schedule ( teams and dates ). I don't even know how many home games there are. Why can't you announce the schedule before asking for payment ? It certainly would be nice to know what I am paying for. I guess it's the almighty dollar first and the fans a distant second.

Gene DeFilippo: We are unable to announce the basketball schedule because we don't have one at this time. We expect the ACC to send us our basketball schedule sometime in the next two weeks. Like you, we would love to get the schedule sooner, but all the other teams in our league face the same dilemma.

Steve Duffy (Las Vegas): Love following the BC athletic events with our local alums here. BC is the only ACC member which plays varsity hockey (I've followed the men's team to 3 Frozen 4's so far, and will make D.C., when they make it again) so I'm curious if that's the only varsity sport we play without other ACC teams. I ask because I have a 14-year-old daughter whose Nevada Desert Mermaids team just grabbed the gold at the Age Group National Championships. Since BC already has swimming teams, is it possible a synchro team could be considered for adoption in the future. Thanks for your consideration of the question. Go Eagles!

Gene DeFilippo: We do not compete in the ACC in the sports of men's and women's ice hockey, men's and women's sailing, skiing, and fencing. All of our other sports programs compete in the ACC.

Matt (WI): Gene, BC Athletics lost one of its biggest promoters a few weeks back with the tragic passing of the amazing Tim Russert. Do you have any memories/stories that you can share about his love of BC athletics or your interactions with him? He'll be missed at basketball game!

Gene DeFilippo: All of us at Boston College lost a wonderful friend with the passing of Tim Russert. Tim loved BC and its athletics program, and he took losing as hard as anyone. He was a wonderful person, father, friend and fan.

Juan (Saugus): What are the chances of scheduling an out of conference game next season or the season after against a good BCS team? Besides USC, which is in 6 years.

Gene DeFilippo: We have Notre Dame on our schedule for the next two years. With eight tough ACC games and Notre Dame, we don't need any more teams from the BCS leagues. Look at the schedules of others in the ACC, the Big East, or the SEC, and you will see similar names to some of the schools we play out of conference.

Patrick Kelley - Los Angeles: How can BC sustain being so far from all our Conference competitors for much longer? Fuel cost are high and It's a major burden for the fans. It's obvious we play all our non-conference games with weak Div. II New England teams. We need to start playing are ex-rivals in the Big East!

Gene DeFilippo: Had we remained in the Big East, we would have had to travel to Milwaukee, Chicago, Cincinnati, Louisville, South Bend and Tampa. Those are certainly not bus trips. Yes, we have to travel in the ACC, but it has certainly worked out well for us, and the venues where we get to compete are second to none.

Bill (Boston): I realize when the ACC does its television deals with ESPN that they(ESPN)have the right to show games on any channel, i.e. ESPNU. For many of us,Comcast is our only option for various reasons. Do the universities have any pull or make their concerns known in this dispute with Comcast ?

Gene DeFilippo: The ACC television rights belong to ABC/ESPN, as well as the Raycom ACC game of the week. Other stations are not allowed to televise the games without permission from these entities.

Tom Mahoney (Malden): Mr. D This is my 2nd try (could not get all my frustration in 750 characters) To the point, I am a BC grad???74. Loyal, supportive and frustrated. BC is making a lot of enemies of former fans (they come looking for me). I will be giving up my season tix next year. (cannot justify expense ???I so look forward to the URI game) Most of fellow season ticket holders in my area have been replaced by online one game fans. Is this the plan? I know the party line, no need to repeat it. Good luck. I still love BC but you people make it so hard. BC shows no loyalty to longtime supporters and expects it in return. BC should try to be the best BC it can be and not try to be something it is not

Gene DeFilippo: Alumni Stadium seats 44,500 fans, and there is truly not a bad seat in the stadium. When it was refurbished in 1994, the BC administration did a wonderful job in making sure the fans were very close to the field. We have a small number of donor-based seating in the seats closer to mid-field, but there are thousands of other good seats that do not require a donation in addition to the price of the ticket.

Kevin (Needham): how do you see recruiting in the future. Do you think both basketball and football recruiting will go up?

Gene DeFilippo: Now that we are in the ACC, and that we have had an opportunity to improve our facilities, our recruiting should get better and better. High school players want a great education and wish to play athletics at the highest level. We here at Boston College can accommodate them on both fronts.

Chris (Boston): Gene, can you expand on exactly how you feel the 10 year master plan will benefit the athletic department beyond the obvious upgrades to the baseball and softball facilities? What do you see as the biggest challenge to the athletic department going forward?

Gene DeFilippo: The biggest challenge going forward is to provide the right balance between academics and athletics. Many BC supporters would like for us to be Harvard Monday through Friday and Alabama on Saturday afternoon. This is a difficult task, but we will never sacrifice our values or academics in exchange for a few more wins.

Brian (San Jose, CA): What is your goal for expanding the brand of Boston College Athletics across the country and how far along do you feel you are at present?

Gene DeFilippo: The task of an athletics department is to provide name recognition and exposure for the institution. In our case, the ACC television package has allowed us to be seen in all areas of the country. We will continue to market ourselves, but the best branding takes place by playing on television in front of large sections of the country.

Billy (Darien, CT): Gene are there plans to get air conditioning for Conte? It is a complete embarrassment that our team won the National Championship and yet they have had games canceled the past 3 years as a result of fog.

Gene DeFilippo: It is a shame that Conte Forum was not air conditioned when it was built in 1989. It would have been much more effective and much less expensive to have done it at that time. Our plans call for us to air condition Conte Forum during the summer of 2010. It is a huge, huge cost, but is certainly necessary for our teams and for use of Conte by the University community.

Gene DeFilippo: Thanks for joining our chat today. We will conduct another one in the near future. We look forward to seeing you this fall and winter. Go Eagles!

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