2016 Quick Lane Bowl preview: Maryland Terrapins, Boston College Eagles renew rivalry

Maryland and Boston College will rekindle their former conference rivalry in the Quick Lane Bowl on Dec. 26 at Ford Field in Detroit.

The game also reunites the head coaches for both teams. The Terrapins' D.J. Durkin and the Eagles' Steve Addazio were on the same staff at Florida in 2010.

"Our families are friends," Addazio said. "Listen, D.J. was one of my favorite guys to ever work with. He's intense. He's a heck of a football coach. I think the world of him."

The Eagles (6-6) won their final two games to earn a bowl bid after going 3-9 in 2015. Durkin was able to weather numerous injuries in his first year at Maryland (6-6) and earn a win over Rutgers in the regular season finale to earn a trip to the postseason.

A win would go a long way for both teams in setting a positive tone

heading into the new year.

"The biggest thing when you're coming in, trying to establish, the word 'culture' is used a lot," Durkin said. "There's a lot that goes into that, but it was very important, I think just trying to establish it with our guys of how we do things, the type of mindset, how we practice, how we train, how we play. I'm very pleased with the amount of buy-in we had from our seniors and our team and this is a great reward for them."

Maryland, which moved to the Big Ten in 2014, is just 3-8 all-time against Boston College, including nine games when they were both members of the ACC.

The key for Maryland is protecting quarterback Perry Hills, who has dealt with injuries throughout the season. Hills has thrown for 1,235 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions in 10 games. He has also run for 326 yards with four scores.

"We think he's been a really good player for us this year when he's been healthy," Durkin said about Hills. "We've had some ups and downs based on his health. He was back for us the last game of the year. He's back healthy now."

Maryland sophomore running back Ty Johnson, the team's leading rusher with 845 yards, has also been a force this season. Johnson is averaging 8.9 yards per carry, which is on pace to be the best average in 63 years and second-most in Maryland history.

Overall, Maryland's rushing offense averaged 205.5 yards, ranking third in the Big Ten.

The Eagles will counter with a tough defense led by defensive end Harold Landry, who tied for first in the ACC with 15 sacks. Boston College allowed 311 yards per game -- eighth best in the nation.

Playing stout defense will be key because the Eagles' offense has scored just 19 points per game.

"Our program is built on playing defense, running the football, scoring in the red zone, you know, don't turn the ball over, time of possession," Addazio said. "I mean, these guys, they're a high-flying, fast-tempo, you know, I'm just hoping they don't score 9,000 points. That wouldn't be good for the old BC Eagles."