Will Blackmon To Be Inducted Into BC Varsity Club Athletic Hall of Fame
Boston College Press Release
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Nine individuals have been selected to the Boston College Varsity Club Athletic Hall of Fame for the fall of 2021. In the first induction cycle in two years, BC is adding eight former athletes, including one from the veteran’s era, and one administrator.
The athletes inducted are Will Blackmon ’06 (football), Mallory Champa ’09 ’10 (women’s track & field), Laura Georges ’07 (women’s soccer), Tim Hasselbeck ’00 (football), Patrick Mahoney ’25 (men’s track & field), Brooks Orpik ’02 (men’s ice hockey), Kevin Stevens ’87 (men’s ice hockey) and Carolyn Swords ’11 (women’s basketball). The Varsity Club Hall of Fame committee also elected longtime BC athletics administrator Donna Bennett.
The committee also recognizes Tracey Harney Blaisdell as recipient of the Rev. William J. Donlon Special Achievement Award. The award is given to an individual, who has demonstrated extraordinary dedication and performed exceptional service to Boston College athletics, either on or off the fields of. It is bestowed to an individual deemed worthy by the BCVC Board and the Presidents’ Council.
The 2021 Varsity Club Hall of Fame ceremony is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 19 ahead of the Eagles’ Saturday football game against Florida State. Complete details and ticket information will be made available at a later date.
Inductee Biographies
Will Blackmon ’06, Football – A dynamic player in all three facets on the football field for Tom O’Brien’s squad from 2002-2005, Will Blackmon was a three-time all-conference performer as a cornerback, kick returner and wide receiver. In his time with the Eagles, BC compiled 35-15 record with four bowl game appearances. Searching for another offensive weapon to receive targets from first-time starting quarterback Matt Ryan, Blackmon took on wide receiver snaps for the first time at the collegiate level as a senior for the 2005 season. He caught 51 passes for 763 yards and four touchdowns. He finished his career first all-time in kickoff returns (110) and kickoff return yardage (2,700) in BC history. Blackmon was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in 2006 to launch a 12-year NFL career that included a Super Bowl XLVI championship with the New York Giants.
Mallory Champa ’09 ’10, Women’s Track & Field/Cross-Country – One of the most decorated distance runners in BC track & field and cross-country history, Mallory Champa was one of the first great Eagles athletes of the ACC era. She was an ACC Champion in the 2010 indoor 3000m race. Champa was a three-time member of the All-ACC Cross-Country Team; earning All-America honors as a sophomore in 2006. She competed in the NCAA National Cross-Country Championship in all four, leading the Eagles team in 2006, 2007 and 2008. Champa peaked with a third-place finish in NCAA Cross Country Regional competition in 2008. She was also a three-time All-Northeast region honoree.
Laura Georges ’07, Women’s Soccer – An elite center back on the Heights, Laura Georges carried that talent beyond BC to a 12-year professional soccer career in Europe. As a member of the Boston College women’s soccer team, she was a two-time NSCAA All-American in her three-year career. Georges was a semifinalist for the Herman Trophy and earned ACC Defender of the Year in 2006. In a career that spanned 158 games, she anchored a BC back line that was ranked ninth nationally and first in the ACC for shutout percentage in 2005 as she helped guide the Eagles to three NCAA tournaments in her career, including two round of 16 appearances. Prior to arriving on the Heights, Georges made her national team debut with France in 2001 and was a member of France’s 2003 World Cup team. She racked up 188 caps in his international career. Professionally, she split her career between Olympique Lyon and Paris Saint-Germain.
Tim Hasselbeck ’00, Football – An ultimate competitor and one of the most highly-recruited quarterbacks in New England, Tim Hasselbeck spent two seasons under center as the Boston College starter in 1999 and 2000. Hasselbeck was battle-tested through his first two seasons with the Eagles, facing tough competition within his position group, before winning the starting job as a junior. In his first season at the helm of the offense, Hasselbeck led BC to eight wins, a bowl appearance and a 31-29 upset at No. 25 Notre Dame. As a team captain in 2000, he guided the Eagles to a seven-win season, including the Aloha Bowl, and was named the team’s Scanlan Award winner. Hasselbeck ranks 10th all-time in passing (3,980) and ninth in touchdowns (29) in BC history. Despite being an undrafted free agent, he went on to have an eight-year NFL career.
Patrick Mahoney ’25, Men’s Track & Field – During an era when track & field reigned supreme, Boston College was at the top of the sport. Patrick Mahoney and his teammates won the two-mile relay at the historic Penn Relay Carnival in 1924. In the process, the Eagle quartet set the then world-record at 7 minutes, 47 and 3/5 seconds with Mahoney running the second leg in front of 40,000 spectators. The Eagles defeated the previous record holders Penn State along with Georgetown and England’s Cambridge University. Mahoney and the Eagles also claimed a 1924 NEICAA Championship that spring.
Brooks Orpik ’02, Men’s Ice Hockey – Brooks Orpik left his mark on the Boston College men’s ice hockey team and in the NHL as a shutdown defenseman. He was an integral part of the Eagles’ 2001 National Championship team and also helped lead BC to a pair of Hockey East playoff titles in 1999 and 2001. Orpik played in 119 games across three seasons for the Eagles and amassed 39 career assists. He was drafted after his sophomore season as the 18th overall pick in 2000 and signed a year later; embarking on a 17-year NHL career. Orpik won a pair of Stanley Cup titles; first with Pittsburgh in 2009 and later with Washington in 2018. In international competition, Orpik competed for the United States in the 2010 and 2014 Olympics; earning a silver medal in 2010.
Kevin Stevens ’87, Men’s Ice Hockey – A local product born in Brockton and raised in Pembroke, Kevin Stevens made an immediate impact on the Boston College men’s ice hockey team; racking up 20 points in his freshman campaign. In a four-year career that spanned from 1983-1987, he totaled 170 points on 71 goals and 99 assists in 158 games. Stevens, a 1987 All-American and two-time captain, led the Eagles in scoring with 35 goals in his senior season. The Eagles made four NCAA Tournament appearances in his career and a Frozen Four in 1985. Stevens finished his career ranked seventh in points and ninth in assists. As a professional, he played 14 seasons in the NHL, including nine seasons with in Pittsburgh, where he won back-to-back Stanley Cup titles in 1991 and 1992.
Carolyn Swords ’11, Women’s Basketball – The Boston College women’s basketball record book is filled with Carolyn Swords’ name atop many of the program’s greatest single-season and career accomplishments. The program’s second all-time leading scorer at 2,029 points recently wrapped up a nine-year WNBA career and seven-year professional career abroad in Europe and Australia. Swords claimed All-American Honorable Mention, All-ACC First Team and earned the ACC Postgraduate Scholarship as a senior in 2011. She also received All-ACC Second Team, Honorable Mention and Rookie Team honors in her career. Swords is BC’s all-time leader in rebounds (1,159), blocks (178) and games (133) and is the only member of the 2000-point, 1000-rebound club. She owns the top three single-season rebound performances all-time at BC with a record 316 in 2009 and top four single-season field goal percentages with a record 71.4% in 2011; leading the NCAA each year from 2009-11. A two-time captain, Swords capped her BC career as the 2011 Eagle of the Year.
Donna Bennett, Administration – In a career that touched five decades in the Boston College athletics department, Donna Bennet provided guidance, encouragement, mentorship, empathy and so much more as an athletic trainer to hundreds of BC student-athletes. As an athletic trainer, her duties stretched far beyond her sports medicine responsibilities. As Title IX’s progress began to take shape on campuses across the country, the opportunities for female athletes continued to grow and Bennett took on added support roles in travel, expenses and conditioning. Bennett directly impacted the lives and career of BC student-athletes across women’s basketball, lacrosse, soccer and field hockey with her main focus as each team’s athletic trainer, but most notably as an advocate for each of the young women and their team’s equal place in the Boston College athletics landscape.
Rev. William J. Donlon Special Achievement Award
Tracey Harney Blaisdell – A standout defender and goalie in the early years of the BC women’s lacrosse team, Harney Blaisdell helped blaze the trail for the team’s transition from club to varsity status. She was a part of the first women’s program at Boston College to be invited to a national tournament as the lacrosse team was seeded third at the USWLA Nationals. Following her playing career, Harney Blaisdell became involved in the Varsity Club, helping launch the President’s Council and later serving as the board’s president.
2021 Varsity Club Hall of Fame Inductees
Will Blackmon ’06, Football
Mallory Champa ’09 ’10, Women’s Track & Field
Laura Georges ’07, Women’s Soccer
Tim Hasselbeck ’00, Football
Patrick Mahoney ’25, Men’s Track & Field
Brooks Orpik ’02, Men’s Ice Hockey
Kevin Stevens ’87, Men’s Ice Hockey
Carolyn Swords ’11, Women’s Basketball
Donna Bennett, Administration
Rev. William J. Donlon Special Achievement Award
Tracey Harney Blaisdell 82
