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BC football fulfills dream of boy with DMD

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. (WHDH) -- Meet Boston College football's newest recruit: Five-year-old JB Harvey takes the field at alumni stadium.

Football is JB's favorite sport and this may be the only chance he has to play. The five-year-old has been diagnosed with muscular dystrophy, a muscle disease.

"Children usually lose the ability to walk around age 8 or 10 and then they start having cardiac and respiratory problems that eventually take their life," explains JB's mother, Elizabeth Harvey.

He was matched with BC through Team Impact, a new organization that pairs children with life-threatening illnesses with collegiate teams.

"It's been great for our players. It's been great for our coaches and everybody in our organization," said Frank Spaziani, Eagle's head coach.

"Any time he comes around everyone has a smile on their face. He has a smile on his face," said senior quarterback, Dave Shinskie.

JB is a member of the team he has his own locker and gear. He practices alongside the team once a week and interacts with the players.

"He hangs out with them even when they're not on the practice field or on the game field," said JB's mother.

When number 12 comes out of the tunnel, it helps a struggling Eagles team maintain perspective.

"It humbles you to know that kids like JB might not ever get the day to step on the field or put a pad on," said Shinskie.

Right now, though, there's no slowing him down.

"He is doing a lot more than any other five-year-old is doing. He is having a great time," said Elizabeth Harvey.

Since JB's second birthday, his family raised more than $500,000 for research.

To learn more about the cause, log on to JB's website: JB's Keys - http://www.JBskeys.org .