Bapst or O’Neill? Hillside or Eagle’s Nest? Football or hockey? When we ask students’ preferences at BC, we tend to focus on the main options. We’re not asking Bapst, O’Neill, or the Social Work Library in the basement of McGuinn. And we’re certainly not asking Hillside, Eagles, or the Bean Counter. But through the work of a new group on campus, we will soon be asking football, hockey, or basketball.
Watch out, Superfans. A new group of sports enthusiasts has entered the stadium. Donahue’s Disciples is a student group supporting the men’s basketball team and, of course, their coach, Steve Donahue. The group started last year and has been growing as this year’s season is beginning. “We’ve definitely had a strong basketball tradition, especially in the last decade,” said Disciple Drew McKay, A&S ’14. “But with a new coach we saw an opportunity to rejuvenate the fan base.”
That process of restoring and organizing a student section and getting the student body more involved has included hosting events and raising awareness, often through social media. Before the first home game, the Disciples hosted a block party, handing out chant sheets and information on the opposing team’s players. “We wanted to get into the other team’s heads,” McKay explained. Donahue’s Disciples also have a Twitter account (@BookofDonahue) and a Facebook page. With 490 followers and 270 fans, their message is certainly spreading.
While this began as a grassroots, student-led movement, the benefits to the Athletic Department did not go unnoticed. “At the beginning of October, we met with the Donahue ad people on staff,” said McKay, in order to discuss how the two groups could work together. “We’re working with marketing to try to get more students involved and to get more people attending the games,” he said.
So far, the movement has been a success. Though it is difficult to judge based on one home game, the Disciples were told, “it was the best student section at a nonconference home game. [This] meant a lot to us,” shared McKay.
While basketball’s fan base is not quite at the level of other sports, Donahue’s Disciples are working towards this goal. During the weekend that many Eagles drove to Notre Dame to watch the football game, 40 students rented a bus through Donahue’s Disciples and went to see the basketball game against Holy Cross. Despite wins and losses, Boston College students are becoming increasingly invested in the men’s basketball team, and basketball is no longer that third sport we have. Through the work of Donahue and his Disciples, BC will soon be not only a football and hockey school, but a basketball school, too.
For information on this year’s basketball season, check out our ’11-’12 Preview!
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