BC, USC close to renewing football ties


First comes a resumption of a lively -- and competitive -- series with Notre Dame, and next, apparently, a two-game series against another marquee program, Southern Cal.

Welcome to the new world of Boston College football.

According to sources at USC and BC, the Eagles are close to signing on for a two-year series with the Trojans beginning in 2011.

"Nothing is official yet," said a USC official yesterday, "but we're hopeful it can get done."

For BC, which resumes its series with Notre Dame this year (Oct. 13, at South Bend, Ind.), playing USC would represent another step by athletic director Gene DeFilippo in upgrading the Eagles' schedule and a chance to enhance their national reputation.

The Eagles play Notre Dame -- which they have beaten in the last four meetings -- each year through 2010. If the USC series is finalized, they will pick up with what has been an almost nonexistent rivalry. The schools have played only twice -- in 1987 and 1988 -- both USC victories.

Adding USC, which again has become a national championship-caliber program under former Patriots coach Pete Carroll, would enhance a nonconference schedule that has been criticized by some for being loaded with low-profile opponents. BC beat Buffalo, Maine, and Central Michigan last season and will face Massachusetts, Army, and Bowling Green this year.

DeFilippo has to be careful, of course, in not overscheduling to the point where the value of having marquee opponents is mitigated by losses in those games.

The Eagles have played in bowl games each year since 1999 and have won the last seven. But none of those postseason appearances have been in BCS games, and their nonconference schedule over that period has been a mixture of Mid-American Conference and Division 1-AA teams, with a yearly dose of a high-profile opponent such as Notre Dame or Penn State.

If the USC deal is completed, the Eagles will have what most athletic directors and coaches strive for: A nonconference slate of teams you should beat mixed with teams you hope you can beat to give the program a boost toward the next level.

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