While the beginning of August usually means vacation time for most New Englanders, it marks the beginning of preseason practices for the Boston College Eagles football squad. 2009 was a solid year for the Maroon and Gold, going 8-5 and making an appearance in the Emerald Bowl against USC. As head coach Frank Spaziani heads into his second year with the program, the Eagles have a good chance to lock up the ACC Atlantic division.

Boston College’s biggest question mark heading into this season is All-American linebacker Mark Herzlich. Herzlich was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma in early 2009 and stayed sidelined for the entire season. He is now cancer-free and determined to make a comeback in 2010, but after a year without football, it is uncertain how he will respond. Considering he just beat cancer; you can assume he is going to approach his final season with BC with the same tenacity. If Herzlich can return to his sophomore year form, coupled with fellow All-American Luke Kuechly, the Eagles could have a very dangerous linebacking core. However, he’s already facing one setback with a stress fracture in his foot, but says he’ll be ready for the September 4th opener.

On the offensive end, Boston College needs starting sophomore quarterback Dave Shinskie to expand upon his promising freshman year campaign. The biggest hiccup in Shinksie’s stats from 2009 was his paltry TD-INT ratio; he threw 15 scores but was picked off 14 times. If BC wants to do well against the fast, defensively apt ACC, they need to limit their turnovers.

The rest of BC’s offense is anchored around junior Montel Harris. Harris had a great year in 2009, rushing for 1457 yards (good for second in the ACC behind Heisman finalist and first-round pick CJ Spiller).  The Eagles are still looking for someone to step up at the wide receiver position, which is arguably their biggest hindrance. Of their entire receiving core, only two are upperclassmen. Look for junior Colin Larmond to pick up the slack. He was second in BC receivers in 2009.

The potential is there for this young BC squad. If the Maroon and Gold can gel with Coach Spaziani in their second year with him, as well as groom their young talent, this can mean a promising year for the Eagles, who have not locked up the ACC Atlantic crown since 2004. They kick off the 2010 season at home on September 4th against Weber State.