It is that time of the year again, football season. The teams have been on campus for a couple of weeks now and are preparing for the 2017 season.
It all kicks off on August 31st when Bentley travels to West Chester and St. Anselm plays at Wagner.

Here is my pick for #9 in the league in 2017:

Merrimack College Warriors (3-8, 2-7 NE-10)

Coach: Dan Curran, 5th year (20-23)

Opening Game: September 2nd @ Bryant

2017 Schedule

2016 Stats

2017 Roster

Game to Watch: September 16th vs. Bentley

This is the home opener for Merrimack after two tough road opponents. Plus it is their top rival in the league and the home crowd will be loud. The young Warriors have a tough stretch in the opening half of the season with three of the first four games on the road.

Player to Watch: Brian Carroll, DB

The senior has been an anchor for the Warrior defense over the past several years. He was credited with 67 tackles in 2016 to go along with two picks. He will be called upon again to be a leader on the defense and be the last line of defense in the passing game.

Unit to Watch: Quarterback

The Merrimack offense has always been fun and exciting to watch but they have struggled the past couple of years. It is because the quarterback position has seen its ups and down since the graduation of Joe Clancy. They are not used to having offensive stats like 18.5 points per game and 317 yards per game in 2016. If they can stay healthy and find a quarterback who limits mistakes and gets the ball into the hands of the talented receivers, they will be on the positive side of the final score often this season.

Outlook:

Fifth year head coach Dan Curran has seen the good and bad of the Merrimack program over the past several years. He is looking for his team to have a better year than they did last year. Injuries and bad luck doomed the team from the beginning and hope that 2017 sees better results.