[Ed. note -- Edited, Front Page'd]

I have predicted for a while now, that Boston College will go at least 8-4 this year and people think I am drinking the Kool-Aid. The only thing that I believe could derail my prediction is injuries and BC has had a couple major injuries thus far. With news of Chris Pantale and Al Louis-Jean getting injured was a bit of a heartbreak but if everyone else can stay healthy I certainly am not going to write them off just yet.

BC has a lot of good veterans like Kevin Pierre-Louis, Tahj Kimble, Jim Noel, Emmett Cleary, John Wetzel, Bobby Swigert, Kaleb Ramsey, Colin Larmond, Jr., Sean Sylvia and Chase Rettig to help keep this team focused.

Also, I expect a really good season from former Andover High School standout Brian Miller who is too big for defensive backs to cover and extremely too athletic for linebackers to cover. Another player that I believe will have a huge impact is sophomore DE Brian Mihalik he is 6-foot-8 285 and displayed last year that he can get to the quarterback. Another Massachusetts player that should have an impact in the defensive backfield is Manuel Asprilla who played valuable minutes as a true freshman. Sean Duggan is another sophomore that is expected to contribute on the field and provide leadership on and off the field. As a true freshman Sean Duggan showed us glimpses of how good he can be. He needs to be able to clog the middle but also use his athleticism to roam free and make the impact plays that he is capable of making. Most importantly Chase Rettig needs to live up to the expectations that were placed on him when he came to BC from San Clemente High School in California.

Offensive Coordinator/QB Coach Doug Martin's track record speaks for itself and he has led explosive offenses with a lot less talent then he has at BC. Former Kent State QB and Current Cleveland Brown wide receiver had his best 2 years as a quarterback nearly doubling his passing yards and touchdowns under Coach Martin. Julian Edelman stepped right in after Cribbs and was equally successful. After Edelman, Spencer Keith stepped in as a freshman and threw for over 2,000 yards and had 11 touchdowns in only 10 games. His numbers were almost the same as a sophomore under Coach Martin but in 2011 without Coach Martin, Keith Spencer's numbers dropped drastically; passing for only 1,682 yards and only 8 touchdowns. Then last year at New Mexico State Doug Martin's offense produced the 25th best passing attack in the country while having to use 3 different quarterbacks that totaled 3,550 yards and 24 touchdowns to only 14 interceptions. N.M.S.U. plays in the WAC -- one might argue -- but they did play Georgia, BYU, Minnesota and Ohio among other teams in non-conference play.

Lastly, Coach Al Washington should be a very welcomed addition to this BC staff as Assistant Special Teams / Assistant Defensive Line coach. He is a former BC defensive lineman who brought great energy along with great talent to the position as a player and he will expect that same mindset from these current players and should coach up a defensive line that has great potential.