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“In my mind, I’ll play again in 2010,’’ Herzlich said recently at BC before an evening class in the Literature of Adventure. “Everything has gone so well so far, and I keep praying for it every day.’’

He has reason to believe: An MRI last month showed that his early rounds of chemotherapy had all but obliterated a tumor in his left thigh the size of a beehive. All that remains is a spot in the bone, the source of the tumor, which he will attack the next four months with chemo, radiation, and surgery.

He said he is prepared for the possibility his comeback bid could fail. But he recently told BC defensive coordinator Bill McGovern’s wife, Colleen, not to worry, that he will return to the field in 2010. He sees himself charging out of the tunnel into BC’s Alumni Stadium in an Eagles uniform, his hair and beard grown back, his cheeks painted black, waving his gold and maroon helmet above his head, healthy and proud.

“Whether it happens or not,’’ Herzlich said, “no one can ever take that image away from me.’’

Boston College linebacker Mark Herzlich, who was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer this spring, is returning to classes this week and hopes to play for the Eagles again next season.

Herzlich, the 2008 ACC Defensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the Butkus Award as college football's top linebacker, will finish his radiation therapy this week. The 21-year-old still faces five rounds of chemotherapy, but his doctors are encouraged by the early results of his treatment for Ewing's sarcoma.

Herzlich said doctors have told him they'll have to see how his left leg responds to radiation before they can discuss his football future. Other than losing his hair, Herzlich said the treatment really hasn't affected him physically.

The 6-foot-4, 238-pound native of Wayne, Pa., hasn't lost much weight and continues to lift weights and keep himself in shape.

"It's been all right," Herzlich said. "The weeks that I had radiation and chemo on the same day were tough. The chemo makes you tired. My hair is gone, but other than that I've stayed the same.

BOSTON -- Boston College linebacker Mark Herzlich is back on the practice field for the first time since leaving the team to undergo cancer treatment.

Herzlich led part of the captain's practice on Thursday in the bubble-covered field at Alumni Stadium.

The BC linebacker was the Atlantic Coast Conference defensive player of the year in 2008. He was diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of cancer, the next spring.

He missed all of last season