Boston College spring practice is in full swing under the bubble of Alumni Stadium. Steve Addazio and his crew of old and new coaches are checking out the players, and evaluating the roster from top to bottom. The biggest position of interest is of course quarterback, but there are multiple other positions of note as well. Eagle Action reporter Eric Hoffses was on hand to witness the practice and speak with the coaches. Some of what he reported is below:
Quarterback
It appears that the race will be between the three quarterbacks this spring, with the slight lead going to Darius Wade. New comer Elijiah Robinson appears to be more of the Tyler Murphy ilk, while Troy Flutie is in the mix. I still believe given what Addazio has said in the past that this is Wade's job to lose.
Offensive Line
Another position to watch, BC only returns one starter from last season in Harris Williams (who is only participating in light drills this spring) According to Hoffses, BC is rolling out a starting group of LT Dave Bowen, LG Jon Baker, C Frank Taylor, RG Jim Cashman, and RT Jim Hendren. Have to imagine looking at this group that Williams will slide in at RG when healthy, and Cashman may or may not be moved to LG, or used in some of BC's jumbo sets.
The last interesting note here is that tight end Joel Rich will be moved to center this spring.
Wide Receiver
Gabe McClary, who turned a lot of heads last year during summer practice, is moving to the largely decimated secondary. Bobby Swigert and Harrison Jackson both are wearing medical red jerseys and participating in light drills but it appears neither will be participating this spring. Addazio rightfully sounds like he is playing a very cautious pace with Swigert, who is recovering from a whopping 11 knee surgeries. Thadd Smith made some big plays during practice as well. Addazio has spoken highly of him in the past, and loves his speed, so he might be a name we watch for moving forward.
Defense
Mehdi Abdesmad is wearing a medical jersey and practicing lightly. If he can get healthy he will be a huge boost to a defensive front that is bringing back a lot of talent from last year, including Malachi Moore, Kevin Kavalec, and Truman Gutapfel. Mike Strizak is moving from linebacker to defensive end, a move that makes a lot of sense given the young talent BC has at linebacker. Christian Lezzer is going to move from linebacker to safety, again a move that isn't that shocking given his profile as kind of a tweener.
Coaching
Boston College will apparently be bringing two familiar names in as graduate assistant coaches. Sean Duggan and Chase Rettig are reportedly coming back to the Heights as GA's.