It's a task head coach Jason Weaver has dealt with before.

In his second season as the man in charge of the Salisbury boys basketball program, Weaver was forced to replace his entire starting lineup from the previous year, which included five seniors.

That was in 2010, but the same challenge is in front of Weaver this year as his team gears up for another successful run in the Colonial League. Unlike that 2010 team that also saw a handful of seniors that came off the bench, there is one difference heading into this year. The Falcons do return three juniors from last year's squad that saw significant varsity time.

"Having some guys come in that have played at the varsity level, and I think having them play over the summer in different camps and stuff, these guys are ahead of where I would have been five or six years ago," Weaver said. "I think we're ahead of the game at this point."

That group of seniors that graduated a year ago included three Colonial League all-stars-forward Justin Aungst (first-team), guard Eddie Sanchez (second-team) and forward Austin Uhl (honorable mention). Those three combined to average 37.3 points per game, led by Aungst's 14 per contest. Sanchez (13 points per game) was second on the team in scoring, followed by Uhl's average of 10.3.

With those three graduated, along with senior starters Brad Vangeli and Naveed Hadian, there's a need to fill in both the leadership roles and scoring departments.

"Justin was a kind of guy that just his presence was leadership," Weaver said. "It wasn't always verbal leadership, and that's something that I've been stressing with these guys. It doesn't have to be cheering and rah-rah kind of stuff. It can just be how you present yourself every day at practice, and how you present yourself on the court."

This year's Falcon team includes five seniors in guard Brendan Reichenbach, guard Dasheen Reid and forward Bryce Fairclough. All three played significant varsity minutes in 2014, and Reichenbach saw a number of starts early in the season.

Those three upperclassmen will not only have to carry the scoring load after combining for just eight points per game last year, but they'll also have to provide a sense of direction for the remaining Falcons.

"I think as a team we have five combined varsity starts from our guys coming back," Weaver said. "There's a difference starting versus coming off the bench. We're getting there. It's sort of a work in progress, but I'm really happy with where we're at."

Derek Brown and Charley Rogers are the other two seniors who will be asked to help guide this team.

Replacing Aungst and Uhl, one of the best frontcourt tandems in the league, is going to be a difficult task for the Falcons. It won't happen overnight, but Weaver is looking at a number of players, such as junior Tevon Weber and sophomore Jaxson Costello, to take over those roles in the post.

"Those are two guys that have some size for us with rebounding and blocking shots," Weaver said. "They can be effective scoring inside."

Juniors Dylan Belletiere and Chad Cooperman figure to hold prominent roles in the Falcons' guard rotation, along with senior Christian Tiao.

Newcomers Blake Jones (a sophomore guard that played on the freshmen team at Parkland) and Ryan Slutsky (a sophomore forward that went to Emmaus) have impressed Weaver in their transition to the program.

The Falcons are a team that wants to excel with their athleticism, using their strengths to both press opposing teams and benefit in the fast break game.

"This is a team that we're thinking maybe we can press a little bit and attack a little bit more than we did in the past," Weaver said. "I think maybe this is a team that is able to do a little bit more defensively because of our athleticism that will make up for some of our shortcomings in the half court, and we can pressure teams a little bit more. We still want to play up-tempo."

The Falcons finished with a 12-4 record in the Colonial League last year, including a 48-42 loss to Catasauqua in the league tournament semifinal round. Their run in the District 11 Class AAA tournament came to an end against Bethlehem Catholic in the quarterfinals.

A trip to Blue Mountain on Friday night kicks off the Falcons' season.