September 29, 2018
Alumni Stadium (Capacity: 44,500)
Chestnut Hill, MA
Boston College Eagles vs Temple Owls
Final Score: 45 – 35
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The second part of our Boston football trip was a bit of a misnomer as the school we went to see doesn’t play in the city, despite its name. Chestnut Hill was our destination and this suburban village in Eastern Massachusetts sits right between the cities of Boston and Newton. The upclass area is mostly associated with Boston College, a private Jesuit school of 14,000 students. BC is a highly-rated school that comes with a beautiful campus, much nicer than what I saw at Harvard the day before. The Eagles football team left the Big East in 2005 to join the ACC as part of the unnatural fit to grow that conference in large markets outside the Mid-Atlantic. They’ve earned one conference title during their ACC years, with the best stretch of football coming between 2004 and 2008 (when Matt Ryan was there). Since then, it’s been mostly pedestrian seasons with 7-6 being a high-water mark. Alumni Stadium is Boston College’s home field and it was built in 1957 with many renovations done thereafter.
Prestige Ranking: 3 out of 5
Location
Depending on your mode of transportation, it’s about 25-45 minutes to reach most of Boston’s attractions and the route we choose for this Noon kickoff made it infeasible to make a visit. We did get to campus early though because it is striking. The distinctive gothic design was one of the first campus’ built in that fashion and our own walking tour brought us to the beautiful Gasson Hall and Bapst Library. Both are in Middle Campus, uphill and relatively close to the stadium. Outside of BC, you can drive in either direction on Beacon Street to find some dining or drinking establishments.
Location Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Getting here takes some work, as everything does in the area. On-campus parking is only for season-ticket holders, so single-game attendees need to use one of three satellite lots and then take a shuttle bus over. It’s annoying to add a healthy amount of time by doing that to your arrival, but at least the Founders Park Garage they use right off of I-95 in Needham is easy to get to, well organized and doesn’t have traffic. Not sure if that option is always available though. Leaving didn’t take much extra time considering shuttle buses were lined up and it would have taken the same amount of time to fight traffic in a car near campus. Another way to arrive is via Boston’s subway (The T), as there is a street-level station on a section of the Green Line that is a 5-minute walk to the stadium. One issue is that this is the end of the line, so doing a park-and-ride is not viable as it makes the trip cumbersome.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Exterior
There are so many things going on with this hilly, tight space that it is hard to see the forest through the trees. Attached to Alumni Stadium is Conte Forum (arena), a parking deck and the Yawkey Center (football building). Only the last one is integrated well into the edifice and that comprises of a brown brick with a beige trim. Each corner has a nice entryway with “Alumni Stadium” ingrained just above the entrance. Also note, the stadium does not follow campus architecture.
Exterior Ranking: 5 out of 10
Concourse
For a stadium of 44,500, it is impressive to see it served by three concourses, albeit partially disjointed. The lower one has the most BC decoration, but is also the most crowded since it is at ground, entrance-level. The middle concourse features more space and since it runs along the top of the lower bowl, there are outdoor connecting walkways in the corners. Finally, each upper deck has their own separated, limited concourse, which is nice that you don’t have to go further downstairs to use the bathroom or get a quick snack or drink. Most walls are cream and maroon colored. Things along the Conte Forum side get a little funky, but it’s cool that you can go into the arena and use that space too (they even have some food stands open). Bathrooms didn’t get too crowded at halftime, but food carts did as it was a good 10-15 minutes to get served.
Concourse Ranking: 4 out of 5
Food
Most popular was the Meatball Obsession stand and The Broaster Express, a combination cup of chicken tenders and potato wedges that were decent. Fans could get a taste of New England with a Lobster Roll or Clam Chowder, available at two stands. There also were some grab-and-go sandwiches to go along with the other typical stadium items. Despite the on-campus setting, wine and beer were available, though the latter is just in the form of Budweiser or Bud Light. I’d rather not.
Food Ranking: 6 out of 8
Interior
Alumni Stadium features a complete lower section of seating in the shape of an octagon-like letter O. Each of the four sides have a standalone upper-deck. Seats are pretty much all metal bleachers, the exception coming in the central part of the sidelines, where maroon cushions lie on the seat. I thought sightlines were pretty good in the upper-deck, where the steepness of the row led to a great visual. Plus, I couldn’t find any seats where a railing got in the way. Down below, the pitch was a lot poorer as we moved down here to get a sample and saw some heads in the way. In between each deck are sections of luxury suites, while at the top of the west stands is the press box. A view to this side is also the most appealing thanks to the school logos on the façade and the pointy spires from Gasson Hall off in the distance. Open corners were also nicely presented with team displays on brick walls.
Interior Ranking: 8.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
Each end zone features a video board that is of high quality and located between the seating decks. The size is decent and the display is impressive. I just wish they didn’t stick ads on the sides most of the time. Game info is harder to find as a dot matrix board contains that limited information to the right on the façade.
Scoreboard Ranking: 3 out of 4
Displays
Gate D is the best place to enter as that is where you can find the Doug Flutie statue, enshrined in his famous throwing motion during the Hail Mary in 1984. Also nearby is an informative stadium marker and the entrance to the BC locker room. As players walk out, they touch the Eagle statue that is on display. Keep walking this area for the lower concourse as that is the location of hanging pennants that outline both team and player accomplishments. Inside, I love the classy banners put up in each corner of the stadium as All-Americans earn that privilege. Twelve players have their jersey honored, while two of them have their number retired (Doug Flutie and Mike Ruth). Boston College also has a football museum inside the Yawkey Center, but it is closed on game-days. What’s the point?! Why have a museum that is not open when most want to see it?
Displays Ranking: 4.5 out of 6
Cost
Ticket price varies by quality of opponent: FCS games are $20 – $40, Mid-Tier teams cost $30 – $55 and a Top 10 opponent (Clemson) runs $65 to $90. These prices do not include the ridiculous $10 order charge tacked on. Within the ACC, ticket cost isn’t too bad as only the Clemson game ran comparatively above normal. For most games, you should have no trouble at all getting a seat for less than face value on the secondary market. If you want to tailgate, get ready to drop $40 for a satellite lot, otherwise you can go to one of the other free shuttle lots. Concessions were on the higher end with a Hot Dog going for $4.50 and $3.50 for a water. There were some crazy priced items: $6.50 for a tiny round pizza! $8 for two meatballs!
Cost Ranking: 6 out of 8
Atmosphere
The event begins with a modest amount of subdued tailgating along Campanella Way. This is near a “Fanfest” that is equally modest. The Fanfest is geared somewhat to kids, but more towards alumni with their own blocked-off section. Inside, the crowd was slow to arrive for the Noon start and they weren’t all that into the game. For example, standing for a third down on defense was practically non-existent. Fans did manage to get on their feet for a 54-yard TD run and make a fair amount of noise. I did enjoy their post score celebration: “Ring that bell”. To mimic the campus bells that frequently play from Gasson Hall, the team rings a bell placed near the band on the field. Speaking of the band, they were entertaining, but hearing the same single theme on defense in the second half was monotonous. Students were good for maybe a quarter and then at least half of them failed to return after halftime. Before their majority exit, their sing-a-long to The Killers’ “Mr Brightside” was a surprisingly fun moment.
Atmosphere Ranking: 8 out of 14
Fan Support
Given the general apathy seen by fans, it’s not surprising to see BC in the bottom third of the ACC attendance standings. I know this was a non-conference game, but the stands at barely 50% capacity for a 3-1 Eagles team on a gorgeous Saturday is telling. With the Red Sox and Patriots ongoing, it’s difficult for BC to push into the conversation of this Pro sports city.
Fan Support Ranking: 4.5 out of 8
Other Stuff
I’m not advocating the removal of jobs, but the amount of staff at the LAZ Parking shuttle lot was comical. We couldn’t help but laugh at the dozen employees directing us up a business park garage on a Saturday…..I may be getting old, but turn the music down! The speakers were way too loud and it was uncomfortable to sit near one…..At the top of the East stands were the flags of each 2018 opponent. Great touch……Boston College has made 26 bowl appearances…..BC has a rivalry with Notre Dame. They call it the Holy War as these are the only two Catholic schools in FBS…..You’re likely to see plenty of “Superfan” shirts in the crowd and this gold apparel trend started in the 1990s thanks to Jeff Bridge and Chris Millette.
Game
BC’s no-huddle offense helped lead to a high-scoring affair that featured 80 points and nearly 900 yards. However, a ridiculous amount of replay reviews combined with 21 penalties made the game unbearably four hours long. It was an interesting first half as Temple followed a touchdown by forcing a fumble on the ensuing kickoff and returning that back for six. The Eagles found their stride with a big second quarter led by RB A.J. Dillon as he helped give them a 31-21 lead. The 10-point lead held up the rest of the way and Dillon finished 161 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
