On the passing of Tip O'Neill, one of the great Speakers of the House, Rep Romano Louis Mazzoli, Kentucky, after some initial praise of O'Neill's character and abilities said:
"And then once, Mr Speaker, I was at Notre Dame, my alma mater, for - believe it or not - a Boston College game, one of the many times when the Irish beat the Eagles. They did not do it in 1993, when it cost the Irish the national championship. But I remember vividly coming out of Notre Dame Stadium at twilight at the end of an autumn afternoon. The Irish were behind but came back at half and beat the Eagles in a very tight game. When I came back, I could see this big, long limousine pulling up with big dark windows like you see in Beverly Hills or New York City and zoom, down go those windows, and out comes you see one Irish face and one Italian face. And it was Tip O'Neill and Sid Conte. And, of course, we all remember our late departed friend from another part of Massachusetts, Sid Conte. And we were talking and having so much fun, and I could see how much Tip enjoyed life. Even though the Eagles lost, Tip was having a great time." and added, "And it was really wonderful seeing those two fellows who were such great friends, different sides of the political spectrum, different sides of the aisle, different parts of Massachusetts, different vintage, different nationalities, but they had a commonality about them."
Source p. 48
O'Neill graduated from BC in 1936. Mazzoli graduated from Notre Dame in 1954. O'Neill received the Laetare Medal in 1980.