Conference Rankings

6. Big East

You dont know how close I was to putting the Mountain West in this slot. As I started this blog I thought Mt. West would be 6, as I went to bed last night I was thinking Mt. West wold be 6, as I took a lunch break just now, I thought Mt. West 6. What made me ultimately change my mind was the depth of the conference. Mt. West is a little better at the top, but the Big East is deeper. Its not that far apart though. Lets focus just now on the Big East. The conference loses its premiere player (pat white), and as with the ACC, the conference is wide open. Lets take a closer look at some teams.

Syracuse doesnt figure to be one of the teams that will compete for the Big East title. The Doug Marrone era starts in upstate New York, and he doesnt inherit much. The Orange have won 10 games the past 4 years. Fun fact: the Orange play in the Carrier Dome, named after the worlds leading air conditioning supplier. Ironically, the Dome is not air conditioned. At the time of this post, the status of Greg Paulus is unknown, but even if he plays, dont expect Syracuse to be good. There are only 2 areas where the orange didnt finish in the bottom 20 last year in: rushing offense (55), and pass defense (83)......I guess they can build off that. On a serious note though, expect Syracuse to be a team the Big10 considers adding. Look at their schedule: Minnesota, @Penn State, Northwestern to start the season.....they play 3 big 10 teams and 7 big east teams! Is there something Big10 Commissioner Jim Delaney and others know that we dont? The main reason this WONT happen is that the BigEast would lose Syracuse for basketball, and lose its rivalry with Georgetown, LVille, UConn, etc. They would make the most sense for football though as they are regarded well enough academically, and would bring a New York fan base to the conference. The only other team that makes more sense is Notre Dame, which will never happen, as I can explain in another post.

The only other team to have fallen as far as Wake Forest has might be their opponent in the Orange Bowl that year, Louisville. Bobby Petrino leaving might have had something to do with it, losing a lot of talent might have more to do with it. Louisville actually started 5-2 including a win over South Florida, and then they got into the "meat"of the schedule and finished 0-5, including an embarassing 63-14 loss to Rutgers the final week. Steve Kragthorpe did the only thing a head coach could do.....name himself offensive coordinator. Step 1 would be, beat Syracuse, something they havent done since 2006. Kragthorpe should know to hand the ball off to RB Victor Anderson, the 2008 Big East Rookie of the Year. The offensive line must be rebuilt. LB Jon Dempsey can be a good one, but only if he gets help from his defensive line, which returns 0 starters. They face a pretty tough schedule, traveling to Kentucky and Utah.

If this isnt the year for South Florida, it probably never will be. This team soared to the #2 ranking just two short years ago, suffered through defeat the rest of the year, and battled dissapointment last year again. The team started 5-0, beating Kansas and NC State, before finishing 3-5 and going 2-5 in the Big East. Ouch. QB Matt Grothe is talented, but sometimes seem to be trying to do too much, as evident by his 18-14 TD-Int ratio. He must fight this urge this year, asthe offense may be lacking. The defense on the other hand was pretty good last year, and returns All American George Selvie. The team ranked 24th in scoring defense, and 10th in total yards. Can anyone explain how a team with those defensive numbers went 2-5 in the Big East? I didnt think so. The secondary is strong with Nate Allen and Jerome Murphy. They scheduled in-state soon to be rivals FSU and Miami this year, which should make for some good games.

Pittsburgh was one win away from the Orange Bowl last year. They lost to Bowling Green, beat Iowa, beat Notre Dame in 4 OTs, beat their rival West Virginia in the backyard brawl for the 2nd straight year, and then got shut out in the Sun Bowl. That is a roller coaster ride. The team lost LeSean McCoy to the NFL. Other than that, they can have a good offense. They have a young hearalded RB in Dion Lewis, an experienced QB Bill Stull, and a talented offensive line. The defense is highlighted by DE Greg Romeus. Most of the secondary returns, led by CB Aaron Berry. The September 26th game @ NC State should be a good one. Wannstedt might have a team that gets them back in the BCS for the first time since 2004-05.

UConn is a team that flashed into the college football scene quickly and wants tobe a consistent contender year in year out. They may be the antithesis of Louisville, in that they have risen faster than anyone. They started 5-0 last year, then lost to UNC, a heartbreaker to Rutgers, and a close game to S. Florida. They beat a tough Buffalo program in the International Bowl. They lose thebest player they ever had though in Donald Brown. They have a new coordinator though,and will be running a spread hurry=up offense. The QB figures to be former Notre Dame QB Zach Frazer. The strength of the teamlast year wason defense though; finishing 6th in the nation in total yards. Unfortunately, tey lost CB Darius Butler and DE Cody Brown. All of their linebackers return, and the unit shouldnt drop off that much. A tough schedule awaits; UNC visits, and they travel to Baylor and Notre Dame. UConn should find themselves in the postseason again.

Rutgers is the opposite of South Florida and uConn in that they started 1-5,and finished 7-0. Can that momentum continue into 2009? If so, theyll find themselves in the BCS. The star of the offense is Tackle Anthony Davis. In addition to he, the entire offensive line returns. This should allow the Scarlet Knights to be able to run the ball, and improve ontheir 80th ranked rushing game from2008. The team was 18th in passing, but gone is WR Kenny Britt. Expect a transition to running the ball. LB Ryan D'Imperio leads the defense, one that features plenty of depth in the line. The secondary is concerning, but perhaps itwill go untested in a league doesnt have a lot of vertical threats. Their non-conference schedule is a joke; Howard, Fla Intl, @Maryland, Texas Southern, @Army. Beyond that, they play other BIgEast contenders Cinci, WV and Pitt at home. In fact, the opening Monday, Sept. 7 can determine the Big East champion, as Cinci travels to Piscataway. If Rutgers pulls the upset, theyll be in the drivers seat to make the BCS.

West Virginia begins life after Pat White. They have a bigger,stronger QB now in Jarrett Brown, but he obviously has big shoes to fill. He is expected to run, perhaps not as much as White, and throw, better than White could. RB Noel Devine has the potential tobreak any game open. They have the potential to have a nice 1-2 punch in the backfielf. The Offensive Line must be rebuilt; they lose 4 starters. If they dont fill those holes, it doesnt matter who is in the backfield; they wont be able to run as effectively as weve seen in years past. The defense was better last year, finishing 11th nationally in points allowed. Can we chalk this up to now 2nd year coach Bill Stewart and defensive coordinator Jeff Castell. LB Reed Williams, MVP of the Fiesta Bowl 2 years ago vs Oklahoma, returns this year after being injured. The defensive line could be one of the strengths, led by DT Scooter Berry. East Carolina visits Morgantown this year, a team WVU lost to onthe road last year, and WVU must travel to Auburn, and then receives a visit from Colorado. They must travel to South Florida, Cinci and Rutgers. The offensive line is the main concern; if they gel quickly, theres no reason WVU cant return back to the BCS.

Cincinnati stepped up big in Brian Kelly's 2nd year. Their only losses were to Oklahoma, UConn and Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. The offense should remain potent. QB Tony Pike returns. 3 starters return on the line. Speedster WR Mardy Gilyard returns. They even feature a 1-2 punch in RB John Goebel and RB Jacob Ramsey. Last year though, the defense was the strength. They only return 1 starter. Allegedly,they are switching from a 4-3 to 3-4 defense to cover the spread more effectively under new coordinator Bob Diaco. Amazingly, despite losing 90% of their defense,they remain the favorites in the Big East according to many experts.


Final Predictions: (The league is wide open again. If im doing my memory any justice, the league has produced 4 different champions the last 5 years; Cinci in 08, WVU in 07, LVille in 06, WVU in 05, and Pitt in 04. Could this be the year another team emerges and finds itself in the BCS? Sure, why not):

1. Rutgers
2. Cincinnati
3. West Virginia
4. Pitt
5. UConn
6. S. Florida
7. Louisville
8. Syracuse