Football at Fenway coming in 2015

(Photo courtesy of College Candy)
Ben Whitehead
Contributing Writer

Fenway Sports Group, ownership group of the Boston Red Sox, announced today in conjunction with the University of Notre Dame that the Fighting Irish football team will host its annual Shamrock Series in 2015 at Fenway Park in Boston.

The Irish will play Boston College and renew the “Holy War” rivalry held between the two Catholic institutions. The date of the game is set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, November 21, 2015.

Fenway Sports Group and Notre Dame had been in discussions about hosting a football game at the baseball park for a few years. Reports were that Notre Dame and UConn would play a game at Fenway in 2014, but they were quickly shot down.

Now, those talks become a realization and a football game will be played at Fenway for the first time since 1968, when the Patriots played their last home game at Fenway on December 1.

Notre Dame is semi-joining the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) and will play games against opponents from the conference beginning in 2014. Boston College joined the ACC in 2005.

The Irish and Eagles have met 22 previous times on the gridiron dating to 1975 with Notre Dame holding a 13-9 advantage. The two teams played every year from 1992-2002. Notre Dame has won four in a row in the series with its most recent win in 2012, a 21-6 defeat of the Eagles at BC. Prior to that streak, Boston College had won six in a row from 2001-2008.

The new Yankee Stadium has hosted the New Era Pinstripe Bowl each December since 2010 and has hosted other college football games over the last few seasons. Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla. – home of the Tampa Bay Rays – has hosted the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl since 2008, so this isn’t the first venture into the college football world for the AL East.

Fenway Park has hosted events such as concerts, soccer matches, and hockey matches – including the NHL Winter Classic in 2010 and the Frozen Fenway series. In January, the Frozen Fenway series continues featuring Notre Dame and Boston College squaring off on the ice at 7:30 p.m. January 4.

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