Holy War (Boston College vs. Notre Dame)

Boston College vs. Notre Dame

Teams	Boston College Eagles Boston College Eagles football The Boston College Eagles football team is the collegiate football program of Boston College. The team is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, a Division I Bowl Subdivision league governed by the NCAA. Within the ACC, the Eagles are one of six teams in the Atlantic Division... Notre Dame Fighting Irish Notre Dame Fighting Irish football Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...
Originated	1975
Series	Notre Dame leads 12-9
Longest Streak	Boston College, 6 (2001-2008)
Trophy	Ireland Trophy, Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl The Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl is an award given to the winner of the University of Notre Dame-Boston College football game. It is awarded by the Notre Dame Club of Boston. In addition to this trophy, the winner is also awarded the Ireland Trophy by each school's respective student government....

The Holy War is an American college football

College football

College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...

rivalry

College rivalry

Pairs of schools, colleges and universities, especially when they are close to each other either geographically or in their areas of specialization, often establish a college rivalry with each other over the years. This rivalry can extend to both academics and athletics, the latter being typically...

between the Boston College Eagles football

Boston College Eagles football

The Boston College Eagles football team is the collegiate football program of Boston College. The team is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, a Division I Bowl Subdivision league governed by the NCAA. Within the ACC, the Eagles are one of six teams in the Atlantic Division...

team of Boston College

Boston College

Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...

and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football

Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team is the football team of the University of Notre Dame. The team is currently coached by Brian Kelly.Notre Dame competes as an Independent at the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision level, and is a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series coalition. It is an...

team of the University of Notre Dame

University of Notre Dame

The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...

. The series derives its name from the fact that the Eagles and the Fighting Irish represent the only two Roman Catholic universities in the United States which still compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association

National Collegiate Athletic Association

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...

(NCAA), the highest level of competition in American college football.

Series history

Although football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

at both universities

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...

dates to the 19th century, the series itself is relatively young. Boston College and Notre Dame first met on the gridiron

Gridiron football

Gridiron football , sometimes known as North American football, is an umbrella term for related codes of football primarily played in the United States and Canada. The predominant forms of gridiron football are American football and Canadian football...

on September 15, 1975, in a game held at Foxboro Stadium

Foxboro Stadium

Foxboro Stadium was an outdoor stadium, located in Foxborough, Massachusetts...

in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. Since then, the two schools have met a total of 20 times, including a match-up in the 1983 Liberty Bowl

Liberty Bowl

The Liberty Bowl is an annual U.S. American college football bowl game played in December of each year from 1959 to 2007 and in January in 2009 and 2010. The Liberty Bowl was sponsored by AXA Financial and was known as the AXA Liberty Bowl from 1997 to 2003...

in Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....

. An annual series was held from 1992–2004 and after a two-season hiatus the rivalry has resumed for the 2007-2012 seasons and it will continue for the 2015-2016 and 2018-2019 seasons. Notre Dame leads the overall series 12-9.

The future of the series had been in question for several years after Boston College left the Big East for the ACC and the Big East asked Notre Dame to add at least three Big East schools each year to its football schedule, but on June, 8, 2010, it was announced that the series would continue.

While the "Holy War" moniker dates to the first contest between the two schools in 1975 and has become popularized in the sports media, the rivalry has also acquired a number of other nicknames over the years. These include the "Vatican

Vatican City

Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...

Bowl", the "Frank Leahy

Frank Leahy

Francis William Leahy was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive...

Memorial Bowl", and the "Jesuit Invitational". Former Secretary of State

United States Secretary of State

The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...

Condoleezza Rice

Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...

, a Notre Dame alumna, referenced the rivalry using the "Holy War" moniker during a 2006 commencement address at BC's Alumni Stadium

Alumni Stadium

Alumni Stadium is a football stadium located on the campus of Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, approximately sixmiles west of downtown Boston. The stadium lies within the city limits of Boston, although its postal address is Chestnut Hill. It is the home of the Boston College Eagles...

Game results

Notre Dame victories are colored ██ blue. Boston College victories are colored ██ maroon. Ties and scheduled future games are white.

Date	Site	Away team		Home team		Series	Notes
September 15, 1975	Foxboro Stadium	Notre Dame	17	Boston College	3	ND 1-0
December 29, 1983	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium	Notre Dame	19	(13) Boston College	18	ND 2-0	1983 Liberty Bowl
November 7, 1987	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	25	(9) Notre Dame	32	ND 3-0
November 7, 1992	Notre Dame Stadium	(9) Boston College	7	(8) Notre Dame	54	ND 4-0	Largest victory margin of series. The movie Rudy was filmed during halftime
November 20, 1993	Notre Dame Stadium	(17) Boston College	41	(1) Notre Dame	39	ND 4-1	Eagles' first win of the series
October 8, 1994	Alumni Stadium	(8) Notre Dame	11	Boston College	30	ND 4-2
October 28, 1995	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	10	(12) Notre Dame	20	ND 5-2
November 9, 1996	Alumni Stadium	(17) Notre Dame	48	Boston College	21	ND 6-2
October 25, 1997	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	20	Notre Dame	52	ND 7-2
November 7, 1998	Alumni Stadium	(13) Notre Dame	31	Boston College	26	ND 8-2
November 20, 1999	Notre Dame Stadium	(25) Boston College	31	Notre Dame	29	ND 8-3	This loss solidified Irish absence from a bowl game
November 11, 2000	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	16	(11) Notre Dame	28	ND 9-3
October 27, 2001	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame	17	Boston College	21	ND 9-4
November 2, 2002	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	14	(4) Notre Dame	7	ND 9-5	Irish coach Willingham's first loss of the season
October 25, 2003	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame	25	Boston College	27	ND 9-6
October 23, 2004	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	24	(24) Notre Dame	23	ND 9-7
October 13, 2007	Notre Dame Stadium	(4) Boston College	27	Notre Dame	14	ND 9-8
November 8, 2008	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame	0	Boston College	17	Tied 9-9	Only shutout of the series
October 24, 2009	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	16	Notre Dame	20	ND 10-9	ND's win ends six-game winless streak in the series.
October 2, 2010	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame	31	Boston College	13	ND 11-9
November 19, 2011	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College	14	(24) Notre Dame	16	ND 12-9
November 10, 2012	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame		Boston College
2015 †	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame		Boston College
2016 †	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College		Notre Dame
2018 †	Notre Dame Stadium	Boston College		Notre Dame
2019 †	Alumni Stadium	Notre Dame		Boston College

† = Tentative

Notable moments

Since their first meeting in 1975, the Fighting Irish and the Eagles have generated some memorable moments in only 32 years. The teams played each season from 1992 until 2004. Over the course of 18 games, here are some of the more memorable ones:

1983 Liberty Bowl - Notre Dame 19, Boston College 18: Meeting at the 1983 Liberty Bowl

Liberty Bowl

in Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee

Notre Dame and the Eagles engaged in a tight and taut contest — a harbinger of things to come. Despite Doug Flutie

Doug Flutie

Douglas Richard "Doug" Flutie is a former American and Canadian football quarterback. Flutie played college football at Boston College, and played professionally in the National Football League, Canadian Football League, and United States Football League...

throwing for 287 yards and three touchdowns, BC found itself on the short-end of a 19-18 loss. The Eagles were down 19-12 at halftime and, after a Flutie TD pass to Scott Gieselman in the third quarter and a missed extra-point, BC had an opportunity to win late in the game. On fourth down with 1:08 remaining, a Flutie pass fell incomplete for a Fighting Irish win.

1992 - Notre Dame 54, Boston College 7: In the first game of the revived series, a highly ranked BC team entered the game with high expectations and the goal of reaching a major bowl game. The Fighting Irish ended this hope with a crushing 54-7 victory, still the largest in the series. The game was punctuated—and the rivalry fueled -- by a successful fake punt called by Notre Dame head coach Lou Holtz

Lou Holtz

Louis Leo "Lou" Holtz is a retired American football coach, and active sportscaster, author, and motivational speaker in the United States...

, late in the game with his team already ahead by several touchdowns. Also, the crowd scenes from the final game of the 1993 film Rudy
Rudy (film)
Rudy is a 1993 American sports film directed by David Anspaugh. It is an account of the life of Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger, who harbored dreams of playing football at the University of Notre Dame despite significant obstacles...

were shot during halftime of this game.

1993 - Boston College 41, Notre Dame 39: The Eagles knocked off the No. 1 Fighting Irish in 1993 at Notre Dame on a last second, 41-yard David Gordon field goal — crushing any hopes of a Notre Dame national championship. Boston College held a 38-17 lead with 11:13 left in the game, but the Fighting Irish fought back. The Stadium rocked as the Fighting Irish completed a 22-point comeback. But in the end, Gordon kicked a field goal for the winning score. It was BC's first-ever win over the Fighting Irish. For their effort, the Eagles made the November 29, 1993, Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...

cover.

1998 - Notre Dame 31, Boston College 26: Although the Eagles stood at 3-5 coming in, the Eagles came close to beating then-No. 13 ranked Notre Dame. Down 31-20 with 9:23 left in the game, Eagles senior quarterback Scott Mutryn

Scott Mutryn

Scott Mutryn is a former professional quarterback for the New England Patriots and the Amsterdam Admirals. He threw one touchdown pass in a Patriots practice and was then cut....

threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Anthony DiCosmo. After a failed two-point conversion

Two-point conversion

In American and Canadian football, a two-point conversion is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point convert immediately after it scores a touchdown...

, the BC defense prevented a Notre Dame score. The Eagle offense then marched all the way to the Fighting Irish 4-yard line with only seconds remaining on the clock. Running back Mike Cloud

Mike Cloud

Michael Alexander "Mike" Cloud is a former American football running back in the National Football League . He has played for the Kansas City Chiefs, the New England Patriots, and the New York Giants.-Early life:...

was stuffed at the line of scrimmage on the first three downs, and on fourth down Notre Dame safety Deke Cooper

Deke Cooper

Deke Cooper is an American football safety who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2000...

tackled Cloud in the backfield to save a 31-26 victory for the Fighting Irish.

1999 - Boston College 31, Notre Dame 29: The Fighting Irish came into the game in a must-win situation in order to avoid its first bowl-ineligible season since 1986, while the Eagles entered on a three-game winning streak and had its best mark after 9 games since the 1993 campaign. The Eagles came out firing and withstood an early pair of touchdowns by Tony Fisher and Julius Jones, countering with touchdown passes by Tim Hasselbeck

Tim Hasselbeck

Timothy Thomas "Tim" Hasselbeck is an American ESPN analyst and former professional American football quarterback for the New York Giants, Washington Redskins, Philadelphia Eagles, and Buffalo Bills....

as the game was tied at 17 at the break. Hasselbeck would put the Eagles ahead for good with a 1 yard sneak in the third quarter and another touchdown toss early in the fourth. But the Fighting Irish showed no quit with their season on the line, as Jarious Jackson

Jarious Jackson

Jarious K. Jackson is an American and Canadian football quarterback who is currently playing for the BC Lions of the Canadian Football League.-High school:...

hit Fisher for a nine-yard score. However, a missed extra-point by Jim Sanson proved to be crucial. After Jones' 67-yard punt return for a score, the Fighting Irish were forced to go for the two-point conversation—and failed. The Fighting Irish would get the ball back once more with 2:18 left on the clock, but on the second play of the drive, Jackson's pass was intercepted by Pedro Cirino, sealing the 31-29 victory and assuring the Fighting Irish of staying home for the holidays.

2002 - Boston College 14, Notre Dame 7: BC went to Notre Dame Stadium

Notre Dame Stadium

Notre Dame Stadium is the home football stadium for the University of Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. The stadium is located on the campus of the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States, just north of the city of South Bend....

to face No. 4-ranked Notre Dame, who were clad in their green jerseys for the first time in three years and for the first time at home in 17 seasons, and the team from Chestnut Hill

Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts

Chestnut Hill is a wealthy New England village located six miles west of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Like all Massachusetts villages, Chestnut Hill is not an incorporated municipal entity, but unlike most of them, it encompasses parts of three separate municipalities, each of...

brought back some ghosts of 1993 to Notre Dame. Notre Dame fumbled eight times and back-up quarterback Pat Dillingham threw two interceptions. BC walked out with a 14-7 win, its first over a top-5 team since beating the No. 1 Fighting Irish in 1993 on the very same field.
2003 - Boston College 27, Notre Dame 25: Notre Dame and BC staged another dramatic battle in 2003. As usual, the game came down to the final seconds. With the Eagles holding a 24-6 lead, the Fighting Irish fought back in desperate need of a win to maintain some chance of a bowl bid. Notre Dame's Nate Schiccatano blocked a BC punt late in the game and Carlos Campbell ran it 25 yards for a touchdown with 3:34 left and a 25-24 Fighting Irish lead. On the ensuing Boston College possession, the Eagles marched down to the Fighting Irish 8-yard line where kicker Sandro Sciortino booted in a chip shot with 38 seconds remaining and a 27-25 BC win.

2004 - Boston College 24, Notre Dame 23: Trailing 20-7 at halftime, Boston College mounted a comeback led by quarterback Paul Peterson

Paul Peterson (American football)

Paul Peterson is a former quarterback for the Boston College Eagles. He was the first Boston College quarterback to start his career 6-0, and compiled a 12-2 record for his career at Boston College, including 2 bowl victories in the Continental Tire Bowl and the Diamond Walnut San Francisco Bowl...

, who threw for 383 yards on the day. With 54 seconds left, Peterson hit Tony Gonzalez for a touchdown and a 24-23 win. A missed extra-point by ND kicker D. J. Fitzpatrick

D. J. Fitzpatrick

Daniel Joseph "D. J." Fitzpatrick is an American football punter and placekicker who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Notre Dame. Fitzpatrick has also been a member of the Buffalo Bills.D.J...

in the first half would account for the difference in the game. It was Notre Dame's fourth straight loss to BC and its fifth in the previous six meetings.

2008 - Boston College 17, Notre Dame 0: In 2008 the Fighting Irish made their first trip to Boston in 5 years where The Eagles recorded their first shutout in the series' history. The Eagles 17-0 win was BC's 6th straight against Notre Dame and tied the series record at 9 wins apiece. Fighting Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen

Jimmy Clausen

James Richard "Jimmy" Clausen is an American football quarterback for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Panthers in the second round of the 2010 NFL Draft. He played college football at Notre Dame.-High school career:Clausen had an outstanding prep career...

, threw 4 interceptions, including two to safety Paul Anderson (one of which was returned 76 yards for the Eagles' first touchdown of the day). Chris Crane added a TD pass to wideout Ifeanyi Momah to secure a victory. Notre Dame struggled on offense, failing to advance the ball past BC's 22 yard line at any point. Fighting Irish coach Charlie Weis

Charlie Weis

Charles Joseph "Charlie" Weis is an American football coach. He currently serves as offensive coordinator for the Florida Gators. For five years, from December 2004 through 2009, he was the head football coach at the University of Notre Dame...

was excoriated after the game by the Notre Dame faithful for what was perceived as poor gameplanning as well as inability to get his team fired up for the crucial game; ESPN

ESPN

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....

sideline reporter Holly Rowe

Holly Rowe

Holly Rowe is a sports telecaster currently working for the sports television network, ESPN. Rowe is best known as a sideline reporter for college football games which are telecast on ESPN.- History with ESPN :...

even commented at one point that BC fans sitting behind the Notre Dame bench were mocking their team's opponents for showing a lack of heart.

2009 - Notre Dame 20, Boston College 16: Notre Dame notched its first victory against BC since 2000, in a close game that had 5 lead changes. Jimmy Clausen threw for two touch touchdowns to Golden Tate, the second putting the Fighting Irish ahead for good. Notre Dame intercepted Boston College quarterback Dave Shinskie, with the final interception coming from linebacker Brian Smith with 98 seconds left in the game.

Trophies

The Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl

Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl

The Frank Leahy Memorial Bowl is an award given to the winner of the University of Notre Dame-Boston College football game. It is awarded by the Notre Dame Club of Boston. In addition to this trophy, the winner is also awarded the Ireland Trophy by each school's respective student government....

is a trophy, in the form of a large cut-crystal

Crystal

A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. The scientific study of crystals and crystal formation is known as crystallography...

bowl, given to the winner of the Boston College-Notre Dame football game. It is named after the legendary Frank Leahy

Frank Leahy

Francis William Leahy was an American football player, coach, college athletics administrator, and professional sports executive...

, who was the head coach at both schools. The award is presented to the winning team at the conclusion of the game by members of the Notre Dame Club of Boston.

The Ireland Trophy, created by the Notre Dame student government in 1994, is presented annually "as a token of goodwill, camaraderie and friendly rivalry" to the winner of the game.

Future had been in question

On November 2, 2005, Notre Dame announced that because it had agreed to a request from the Big East to play teams from that conference each season, it would suspend the Boston College series following the 2010 season. Big East Commissioner Mike Tranghese said the conference made the request after Boston College, Miami

University of Miami

The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...

, and Virginia Tech

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, popularly known as Virginia Tech , is a public land-grant university with the main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia with other research and educational centers throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States, and internationally.Founded in...

withdrew from the Big East to join the Atlantic Coast Conference

Atlantic Coast Conference

The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...

. However, on February 6, 2007, BC Director of Athletics Gene DeFilippo stated “The Notre Dame contract calls for two games at Notre Dame, in 2007 and 2009, and two games in Boston, in 2008 and 2010. We have been in discussions with Notre Dame concerning additional games and I am very hopeful that we will be able to announce something in the near future.” ESPN commentators during the 2008 game suggested that the two universities were trying to find a way to renew the rivalry after 2010.

On June 8, 2010, the Boston Herald quoted Boston College Athletic Director Gene DeFilippo stating "“Jack Swarbrick and I agreed that since Boston College and Notre Dame are the only Catholic institutions that play Division 1-A football, we should continue to play each other over a period of years."

Boston College is scheduled to host the Fighting Irish at Alumni Stadium in 2012, 2015 and 2019.

The Eagles will travel to Notre Dame, Indiana, to play Notre Dame in 2011, 2016 and 2018.

Series history

Game results

Notable moments

Trophies

Future had been in question

See also