It looks like Boston College will be getting its true freshman gunslinger back.
According to a report from the Associated Press, Chase Rettig is on track to be Boston College's starting quarterback on Saturday when the Eagles take on No. 16 Florida State in Tallahassee (12 p.m. ET, ESPN).
The report said that Rettig said on Wednesday that he is ready to play after taking the necessary snaps at practice on Tuesday.
More importantly, Rettig says his ankle is feeling good.
Rettig made his debut earlier this season after being named the starter against Notre Dame in Week 3. After completing 5 of 10 passes for 72 yards and a touchdown, Rettig sprained his left ankle and would not return.
He was listed day-to-day with the injury and was held out of last Saturday's game against North Carolina State.
Former starter Dave Shinskie started in Rettig's place, finishing the day 8 for 25 with 91 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the Eagles' 44-17 loss.
While Rettig hasn't officially been named the starter, it's safe to assume that, if fully healthy, he will be under center come Saturday.
Yet if Rettig is held out again, the Eagles are faced with limited options.
Shinskie has been ruled out of Saturday's game with a concussion and fellow sophomore quarterback Mike Marscovetra (34-of-58, 369 yards, 2 TD, 4 INT) has not impressed head coach Frank Spaziani enough to win the starting role.
In addition, Spaziani moved freshman quarterback Josh Bordner from the scout team to No. 3 on the depth chart.
Uncertainty at the quarterback position is a situation that has become all too familiar for Spaziani this season.
"Yeah, you put it mildly, it hasn't helped us," Spaziani said during his weekly teleconference when asked how having to juggle quarterbacks has affected the team. "You know, when you have an unsettled QB situation, everything is unsettled."
That being said, Spaziani is hopeful that Rettig will be on field come Saturday.
"It looks to be that Chase (Rettig) was able to practice (Tuesday)," Spaziani said. "Hopefully that will be where we are going forward. So he will be out there today; and we'll figure where we're going with backups after that, after the week."
Regardless of who the starting quarterback is, they will have some very talented wide outs to work with on game day.
"They certainly have potential," Spaziani said. "You know, they have the qualities we're looking for and hopefully they can build on it and go forward. But they're playing out of necessity."
Spaziani is of course talking about freshman receivers Jonathan Coleman and Bobby Swigert.
Swigert (14 catches, 232 yards, 2 TD) and Coleman (9 catches, 185 yards) got their careers off to fast starts and have proven to be very capable.
That realization comes as a welcome surprise for the Eagles, who were dealt a big blow before the season began when junior receiver Colin Larmond Jr. was sidelined for the season with a knee injury.
Larmond was slated to be the team's number one receiver and has amassed impressive career numbers in two seasons at Boston College (34 catches, 692 yards, 6 TD).
While there's no doubt that Larmond would have made the Eagles' better in 2010, Swigert and Coleman have been able to pick up the slack.
As far as Boston College's running attack is concerned, the Eagles have had a down year. Part of that can be attributed to the inconsistency at quarterback.
"It is a combination of things," Spaziani said about his team's rushing struggles. "You know, it certainly starts at the quarterback position."
When a team like Boston College has such a talented running back in junior Montel Harris an unproductive quarterback, the opposition simply stacks up the run defense.
Another major factor in the running game is the play of the offensive line, which has been mediocre at best this season.
"We had a big change in the offensive line," said Spaziani. "We lost the NFL center. We took our guard and made him a center and we replaced him. So we had two key components."
All things considered, Spaziani isn't putting all the blame in once place.
"I'm not making any excuses," he said. "I'm just giving you the facts. We have had guys in and out injury-wise. They miss practice and it just seems like every day you are playing with a different guy next to you. So it is a combination of things, none of which just is all the offensive line."
In the end, Spaziani knows that, regardless of the many issues plaguing the Eagles, his team has to be prepared for a date with the Seminoles.
"Well, we've got an interdivisional game against a very good Florida State football team that has been putting it all together here," Spaziani said. "So we've got our work cut out for us."