Cincinnati Bearcats (10-3, 4-3 in 2007, 3rd place in Big East)

Ever since they joined the Big East in 2005, the Bearcats have been a team on the rise. They took another step towards the top of the conference last year, notching their first ten win season since 1951. The task will be tougher this year, as they only return 12 starters from that 10-win team, and just got the bad news that QB Ben Mauk was denied an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA for a medical redshirt.

2007 Highlight: The unranked Bearcats were out seeking respect when the #13 Connecticut Huskies came to town on November 10th. The defense held UConn to just 204 total yards, while Mauk accounted for all four touchdowns to give Cincy a resounding 27-3 victory. The next week, the Bearcats cracked the Top-25 in the AP poll (21st), the USA Today poll (25th), and the BCS rankings (23rd).

2007 Lowlight: Having already beaten South Florida and UConn, Cincinnati headed into their game against #6 West Virginia with a birth in the BCS a distinct possibility with a victory. Unfortunately, the rushing attack for the Mountaineers was just too much, as Pat White and Steve Slaton each rushed for over 100 yards against the Bearcats a worn out ‘D’. Mauk led the troops back from a 28-10 hole early in the 4th quarter, but simply ran out of time to pull off the upset. Cincinnati lost 28-23, and turned its attention to a less-illustrious bowl birth.

Offensive Outlook: Sophomore QB Demetrius Jones will fill Mauk’s shoes. He’ll need all the help he can get from an experienced offensive line that returns three starters. Marcus Barnett could have a huge second year at wide receiver for the Bearcats after posting 862 yards and 13 touchdowns in his freshman season. Cincy will likely end up with a running back by committee situation, but look for freshman Isaiah Pead to have a productive year.

Defensive Outlook: The defense is loaded with juniors and seniors, but not of a ton of experience. DT Terrill Byrd will need to be a force in the middle of the defensive line to give his talented secondary some help. Both CBs DeAngelo Smith and Mike Mickens could be All-Big East performers in ’08.

2008 Preview: The road schedule is a nightmare for Cincinnati this season. Road trips to MAC opponents Akron and Marshall shouldn’t be a big deal, but games at Oklahoma, UConn, West Virginia, Louisville, and Hawaii are no walks in the park. The target game for the Bearcats is October 30th when South Florida comes to town in a game that will be televised nationally on ESPN.

2008 will be a success if… Jones picks up where Mauk left off with the offense. He needs to protect the football to cover a questionable defense, but if the Bearcats can come anywhere near last year’s average of 36.3 PPG, the team will be in contention for a BCS bid.

Optimism is high in Cincinnati, but the schedule will prove too difficult to send the Bearcats to a prolific bowl game this winter.

Prediction: 8-5, 3rd place in Big East

Connecticut Huskies (9-4, 5-2 in 2007, 2nd place in Big East)

Many people thought that HC Randy Edsall and the Huskies were frauds in 2007 when they were ranked in the Top-15 in the country. When push came to shove, UConn wasn’t quite ready to play with the big boys in the Big East. However, a favorable schedule and 17 returning starters should be more than enough to send the Huskies bowling yet again in ’08.

2007 Highlight: For a team coming from Tampa Bay, Florida, the #10 South Florida Bulls had to feel out of their element when they traveled to East Hartford to take on the Huskies. The blustery weather conditions gave UConn the perfect homefield advantage, and a strong defensive effort highlighted by a first half shut-out gave the home team a 22-15 upset victory. RB Andre Dixon had his best game of the season, running for 167 yards on 32 carries.

2007 Lowlight: The equation was frighteningly simple for Connecticut: Win in Morgantown and you go to your first ever BCS game. The good news was that the Huskies jumped out of the blocks to an early 7-0 lead against #3 West Virginia. The bad news was that the defense hadn’t been exposed to high doses of Pat White quite yet. White paced the Mountaineers offense with 293 total yards and three touchdowns. His 186 yards might’ve led the team, but five different players rushed for at least 50 yards. In all, the 517 rushing yards racked up by the Mounties ultimately led to the 66-21 annihilation they handed the hapless Huskies.

Offensive Outlook: There aren’t many glaring weaknesses for this unit, which returns nine starters from their team that averaged 26.5 PPG a year ago. Tyler Lorenzen, younger brother of NFL QB Jared Lorenzen, will be back under center for his senior season. His best friends will be RBs Andre Dixon and Donald Brown, who combined for almost 1,700 yards and 11 TDs last year. Former QB DJ Hernandez has been converted to a receiver, and should have a productive senior season in the slot.

Defensive Outlook: If you take out that West Virginia game, the Huskies defense did quite well in 2007 allowing just 13.9 PPG; eight starters return from that unit. A name to watch this year on the D-Line is redshirt freshman Jarrell Miller, who should find plenty of one-on-one opportunities with a senior-laden defensive line surrounding him. The sophomore linebacking duo of Scott Lutrus and Lawrence Wilson are both rising stars in this conference and will be the cornerstone of Edsall’s defense for years to come.

2008 Preview: With the unbalanced Big East schedule, the Huskies are subject to four Big East road games in ’08. A three-game road trip in the middle of the season to Louisville, North Carolina, and Rutgers could prove disastrous. Everyone in Connecticut has its eyes locked onto their November 1st rematch with West Virginia.

2008 will be a success if… the Huskies can keep up their defensive intensity. Defense was what won this team games early in the season, and was what cost them games towards the end of it. The offense should be good enough to win plenty of games, but the defense absolutely must be towards the top of the Big East if Edsall expects his Huskies to take the next step towards becoming a contender for a BCS birth.

The Huskies were a nice story in 2007, but bad losses down the stretch leaves cause for concern for the upcoming season. UConn will go bowling, but Huskies fans shouldn’t expect a much better bowl bid than their Meineke Bowl spot a year ago.

Prediction: 7-5, 5th place in Big East

Louisville Cardinals (6-6, 3-4 in 2007, 5th place in Big East)

Things just seemed to fall apart at Louisville at a rapid clip in 2007. Former HC Bobby Petrino bolted for the NFL, and incoming HC Steve Kragthorpe had no success building on an offense that was supposed to be amongst the best in the nation. Departed QB Brian Brohm was supposed to be on the Heisman watch list at the start of the season, but fizzled throughout his senior campaign. A 6-6 season without a bowl game was unacceptable in 2007, but it could become a regularity unless the Cardinals have a dramatic turnaround in ’08.

2007 Highlight: With nothing to play for but the pride of finishing .500 on the season, Louisville headed into its final game against Rutgers full of spirit. They found themselves down by 18 points on three different occasions, but tied the game up with back-to-back touchdown drives in the 4th quarter. Art Carmody booted a 33-yard field goal with just 0:20 remaining to clinch the game up for the Cardinals. In Brohm’s final game as a college QB, he went just 12/22 for 237 yards, but did lead the final three scoring drives to propel the team to victory.

2007 Lowlight: In a year of bizarre upsets in college football, Louisville became the largest favorite in college football history to lose a game outright in September. The Cardinals were 37.5-point favorites against the lowly 0-3 Syracuse Orange. Brohm threw for 555 yards, but the defense surrendered 465 yards, including touchdowns of 42, 60, 79, and 93 yards. Despite a late Louisville touchdown flurry, Syracuse hung on to pull the major upset off by a 38-35 final count. If there’s a bright spot for the Cardinals, USC took their record for the biggest favorite to lose outright later in the season when they lost to Stanford as 40.5-point chalks.

Offensive Outlook: Here’s a suggestion for Kragthorpe in camp this summer: invest in name tags. The offense only returns four starters, only one of which is a skill position player. RB Brock Bolen will probably be run into the ground in 2008 behind an offensive line that returns three starters. Senior QB Hunter Cantwell did a lot of watching behind Brohm in his career, but will finally get his chance to shine.

Defensive Outlook: Name tags are necessary here too, as the Cardinals need to break in six new starters on the defensive side of the ball. The defensive line returns three from last year including DTs Adrian Grady and Earl Heyman who are two of the best in the conference. Highly touted sophomore safety Latarrius Thomas will need to play a big role in the secondary. Perhaps it’s a good thing that only half of this unit returns from last year, as the defense gave up a lofty 31.4 PPG in ‘07.

2008 Preview: Eight home games litter the Cardinals schedule, including four straight at Papa John’s Stadium to open up the season. The annual opener against Kentucky is always heated, especially since the Wildcats won the rivalry game in 2007. If it’s another “blue state” affair in ’08, Kragthorpe could be looking for a new job in a hurry. There are only three conference road games on the slate this year, and all three are winnable games (Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers).

2008 will be a success if… the Cardinals reach a bowl game. If not, expect sweeping changes for a program that was on the verge of a National Championship just two short seasons ago.

It’s going to be a long road once again for Louisville, but just on accident, eight home games and a relatively easy road schedule should be converted into a bowl game. However, don’t expect the Cardinals to be competing for the conference crown any time in the near future.

Prediction: 6-6, 7th place in Big East

Pittsburgh Panthers (5-7, 3-4 in 2007, 7th place in Big East)

It’s likely bowl game or bust for HC Dave Wannstedt and the Pitt Panthers in 2008. Fifteen starters return from last year’s squad, and expectations are understandably high for the former Miami Dolphins head coach to bring Pitt to an upper tier bowl game. The BCS is probably out of reach this year, but if the Panthers aren’t playing a game on December 31st or January 1st this season, expect Wannstedt to be out of a job.

2007 Highlight: The 28.5-point underdog Panthers marched into Morgantown attempting to derail the national championship hopes of their rivals, the #2 West Virginia Mountaineers, in the 2008 edition of the “Backyard Brawl”. Though WVU had already wrapped up the Big East crown and a BCS birth, all they had to do was knock off Pitt to lock up their spot in the BCS title game. The stingy Panthers wouldn’t go down without a fight, holding the Mountaineers explosive offense to just one touchdown for the game. The Pitt offense was horrendous, only notching 225 yards, but the 13 points they put on the board was enough to spring the massive upset. WVU’s national title hopes were dashed in HC Rich Rodriguez’s last game by the count of 13-9.

2007 Lowlight: The worst performance of the 2007 season came when Pitt made a trip to Charlottesville to take on the Virginia Cavaliers. RB LeSean McCoy had a respectable game, rushing for 86 yards on 19 carries, but the team found themselves in a 30-0 hole in the 2nd quarter that was simply too deep to dig out of. Pitt trimmed the lead to 30-14 in the 4th quarter, but 14 unanswered points by the Cavs put the game away and made the final score 44-14.

Offensive Outlook: All eyes will be on McCoy after putting up 1,328 yards and 14 TDs on the ground in his freshman season. If he stays healthy, there is no doubt that McCoy will be an All-Big East performer, but he has the potential to put up numbers worthy of the Heisman Trophy if Pitt plays well. Three quarterbacks return with experience, but none of them lit the scoreboard up for the Panthers in ’07. Expect a young offensive line to get a boost blocking for the elusive McCoy all season.

Defensive Outlook: Sophomore DE Greg Romeus had a solid freshman season, recording four sacks and seven and a half tackles for loss in ’07. He’ll anchor a line with two other returning starters. With their linebacking corps intact from a year ago; the biggest question will be the secondary where both safety spots must be replaced.

2008 Preview: There’s no excuse for the Panthers to start anything but 3-0 with home games against Bowling Green, Buffalo, and Iowa, but the schedule gets much more difficult after that. They play six of their final nine games on the road, and close the season with games at Cincy and Connecticut, with the “Backyard Brawl” sandwiched in between. You’d like to think that the Panthers can pull off at least two road wins on this schedule somewhere to find themselves in a desirable bowl game, but the schedule is brutal.

2008 will be a success if… McCoy thrusts himself into the Heisman discussion early in the season. There’s almost no way that the sophomore will pull off the same feat that Tim Tebow accomplished a year ago, but McCoy really could see the ball enough to pull off a 1,700 yard season with 20 touchdowns.

Though McCoy is an invaluable asset for Coach Wannstedt that will single-handedly win some games, the Panthers should do no better than a distant third in a difficult Big East. The biggest question will be whether it’s enough for Wannstedt to return to the team in ‘09.

Prediction: 8-4, 4th place in Big East

Rutgers Scarlet Knights (8-5, 3-4 in 2007, 6th place in Big East)

Let’s take a moment to recognize the great accomplishments of Scarlet Knights HC Greg Schiano. Four years ago, Rutgers was a mess, posting a 4-7 record. They suffered the embarrassment of losing to I-AA New Hampshire during that season. Now they’ve been to three straight bowl games, and flirted with the idea of winning a national championship in 2006. This won’t be a team contending for a BCS bid any time in the near future, but putting this Rutgers program on the map is commendable.

2007 Highlight: Piscataway, New Jersey was in a frenzy during Rutgers’ nationally televised game against the #2 South Florida Bulls. Schiano pulled out all of the stops, including a fake punt, a fake field goal, a flea flicker, and several double reverses to surprise the Bulls. It felt like every button he pushed worked. Mr. Reliable, Ray Rice toted the rock 39 times for 181 yards to preserve the 30-27 upset of the #2 team in the nation.

2007 Lowlight: After three blowout victories to start the season against lesser foes, the #10 Scarlet Knights look poised at another serious run towards a BCS bid. For the first time since 2005, Rutgers came out completely flat in their game against the Maryland Terrapins, and never really woke up. Rutgers never led by more than three points, and trailed by ten halfway through the 4th quarter. QB Mike Teel brought the Knights back within a field goal, but the Terps sealed the upset with a TD of their own on the ensuing drive. The 34-24 defeat grounded Rutgers, and started a stretch of very erratic and inconsistent play.

Offensive Outlook: It’s all going to be about Teel and the passing game in ’08 if the Scarlet Knights are to be a success story. He’ll have all of his favorite targets back from 2007, most notably Tiquan Underwood and Kenny Britt, both of which recorded over 1,000 receiving yards a year ago. Replacing Rice won’t be easy, but that’s the daunting task that sophomore RB Mason Robinson faces. The little playing time that Robinson saw in his freshman year was encouraging, as he averaged 5.6 YPC.

Defensive Outlook: Eight starters return to the defense that held teams to 22.5 PPG a year ago. Consistency will be the key for this unit, as they had very successful games where the defense was spotless, and others where they couldn’t stop eleven turtles from running all over them. The defensive line rotation is chalk full of seniors, and they’ll be expected to help out a group of very talented youngsters around the rest of the defense. LB Manny Abreu should jump right into the starting lineup as a freshman, while sophomore SS Joe Lefeged could get his first bit of significant playing time in ’08. FS Courtney Greene is an NFL prospect, and should find his way onto the All-Big East team this season.

2008 Preview: On paper, this team looks promising, but the schedule is brutal. Short of home dates with Morgan State and Army, this slate is loaded with potential hazards. Fresno State, North Carolina, and Navy are no pushovers, and they arguably have the hardest schedule in the Big East, having to travel to West Virginia, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, and South Florida.

2008 will be a success if… Britt and Underwood both have tremendous seasons. Without Rice to lean on for 30 touches a game, Teel must use his best two weapons early and often if the Scarlet Knights are going to consistently put points on the board.

No one wants to see Schiano’s Scarlet Knights on their docket, but the brutal schedule is just going to be too much for Rutgers to be a dominant team in the Big East.

Prediction: 7-5, 6th place in Big East

South Florida Bulls (9-4, 4-3 in 2007, 4th place in Big East)

The meteoric rise of the South Florida Bulls has been nothing short of tremendous. HC Jim Leavitt has brought this team from not even having a football program a decade ago all the way up to the #2 team in the land at one point last season. Nearly all of the starters from last year’s team return in 2008, which should once again make South Florida a legitimate contender for the Big East crown and their first BCS bowl bid.

2007 Highlight: There are plenty of big games to point at in 2007 for the Bulls, but the victory that arguably put the program on the map for good came in Auburn in the second week of the season. USF stood toe-to-toe with the SEC powerhouse in spite of four missed field goals by K Delbert Alvarado. When push came to shove, Alvarado connected on two 4th quarter field goals, including the 19-yarder that sent the game into overtime. The upset-minded Bulls had their chance for victory after Auburn had to settle for a field goal on their possession in the extra frame, and QB Matt Grothe capitalized, saving his only touchdown pass of the game for the most crucial of times. Grothe hooked up with Jessie Hester on the 14-yard touchdown pass that gave the Bulls a 26-23 upset at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

2007 Lowlight: The 2007 Sun Bowl was a disaster for Leavitt and the Bulls on just about every front. Though USF led Oregon 18-14 at halftime, the Dennis Dixon-less Ducks went on a whopping 35-0 run to start the 2nd half and dismantle the Bulls. Jonathan Stewart ran roughshod on the USF defense, recording 253 rushing yards on the day. South Florida threw four interceptions, and lost their second ever bowl game by the score of 56-21.

Offensive Outlook: Last season, the USF offense rolled up 34.7 PPG. Ten of the eleven starters from that team return, most notably Grothe. It will be his third year as the leader of the offense, and could garner Heisman attention if the Bulls perform well. All of the skill position players are back as well, including WR’s Carlton Mitchell, Taurus Johnson, and the aforementioned Hester. Watch for RB Mike Ford to crack the 1,000 yard barrier on the ground after recording 645 yards in his freshman season.

Defensive Outlook: Seven starters return from 2007. Expect junior DE George Selvie to continue to unleash fury on opposing QBs. Selvie will almost certainly be a first round draft pick when he turns pro, and is a force that requires a double-team on every single passing down for the opposition to have a chance of succeeding. After both starting CBs left for the NFL, the secondary could be a bit of a question for the Bulls, but is really the only glaring potential chink in the armor.

2008 Outlook: There is a very real chance that the December 6th meeting in Morgantown between USF and West Virginia could be for both the Big East crown and a spot in the BCS title game. The Bulls need to be careful, as in-state rival UCF will be gunning for them after the Bulls blew the Knights out by 52 points last year. If they can survive the trip to Orlando and a visit from Kansas, it should be clear sailing for the Bulls until the end of October when they hit the road in conference play. October 30th in Cincinnati is probably the biggest obstacle before the game against West Virginia.

2008 will be a success if… their superstars continue to shine. Names like Grothe, Ford, and Selvie became household names in the college football world last season, and they’ll each need to step up their game another level if the Bulls are to challenge for a national championship.

The Bulls have an incredible chance to be something really special in 2008, but that trip into Morgantown will likely blow up any hope of playing for the national championship. Don’t be surprised if USF still gets their first BCS bowl bid anyway as an at-large from a very difficult conference.

Prediction: 10-2, 2nd place in Big East

Syracuse Orange (2-10, 1-6 in 2007, 8th place in Big East)

Alumni like Dwight Freeney, Marvin Harrison, and Donovan McNabb must have sleepless nights wondering about their beloved Orange. Syracuse has only won seven games since 2004, and has basically turned into the Duke of the Big East. HC Greg Robinson hasn’t had much to work with in years past, but he does have some pieces that could help jumpstart the return of the program to respectability this season.

2007 Highlight: After being outscored 118-32 in their first three games of the season, it’s no wonder the Orange were 37.5-point underdogs going into Papa John’s Stadium to take on #18 Louisville. All of a sudden, the offense had an explosion, going off for 38 points on the Cardinals en route to the 38-35 victory, the largest pointspread upset in college football history at the time. QB Andrew Robinson threw for a career-high 423 yards in the stunner, 173 of which went to WR Taj Smith.

2007 Lowlight: Two weeks before putting forth their best effort of the season, the Orange clearly put up their worst. The ‘Cuse offense only put up 103 yards and recorded just five first downs in their 35-0 shellacking at the hands of the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Offensive Outlook: Robinson is set to begin his third year as the QB for the Orange, and his expectations are going to be higher than ever to try to salvage a program in shambles. The running game was pathetic in 2007, only averaging 2.0 YPC and 753 total yards. That should improve this year with the emergence of true freshman RB Averin Collier. The offensive line rotation will be incredibly young, as three sophomores and two freshman expect to split time with two seniors. Seven starters return, but expect to see plenty of different faces all over the field when the Orange are on offense.

Defensive Outlook: Though seven starters also return on the defensive side of the ball, don’t expect to see much improvement from a stop unit that allowed nine different opponents to score at least 30 points in 2007. LB Jake Flaherty is probably the best of the bunch, and the defensive line shows some promise with three returners. The guys to watch for the future of this defense are sophomore LBs Parker Cantey and Mike Mele.

2008 Outlook: There’s only one word to describe the outlook for the Orange in ’08: Grim. One would like to think that games against Akron and Northeastern are winnable, but nothing is for certain when you’re Syracuse. Inevitably, they’ll win a game or two in the Carrier Dome because of the homefield advantage, but wins will be few and far between at best.

2008 will be a success if… both Robinson and Collier suddenly become superstars. In the likely event that doesn’t happen, it will be another long football season in upstate New York.

About the only promising thing about the upcoming football season in Syracuse is that basketball season isn’t too far behind.

Prediction: 3-9, 8th place in Big East

West Virginia Mountaineers (11-2, 5-2 in 2007, 1st place in Big East)

My how quickly things fell apart in Morgantown at the end of 2007! After suffering a shocking home defeat in the final game of the regular season to their archrivals that cost them a spot in the BCS title game, HC Rich Rodriguez resigned to take the job at Michigan. Now Bill Stewart takes over the reigns, and looks to lead his explosive offense back into the championship conversations.

2007 Highlight: Even though missing out on the BCS title game was a disappointment, the Mountaineers still won the Big East and got a pretty good consolation prize getting to play in the Fiesta Bowl against Oklahoma. The future was on display that night, as Stewart was coaching under the interim tag, and the country got its first real look at freshman standout RB Noel Devine. Devine ran for 108 yards on the OU defense, and Pat White directed the Mountaineers to a statement 48-28 victory against the Big XII champs.

2007 Lowlight: December 1st, 2007 might be the darkest day in WVU football history. The Mountaineers were four touchdown favorites against the Pitt Panthers at home in the “Backyard Brawl” with a national championship birth on the line. The defense played stellar football, holding Pitt to just 13 points. Unfortunately, it was one of just two games all season in which the offense just got no traction whatsoever. West Virginia only scored one touchdown, and was knocked out of the title chase with the 13-9 loss.

Offensive Outlook: Even though RB Steve Slaton left school early and is now a Houston Texan, many were under the belief that Devine was taking his starting spot whether he returned to WVU or not. The sophomore is the real deal with ridiculous game-breaking ability. Senior QB Pat White and Devine together should easily be the most explosive QB/RB duo in the nation, and both could be up for Heisman considerations in ’08. All five starters on the offensive line are back, but losing FB Owen Schmitt could be a significant loss. If you thought the 297 YPG WVU averaged last year on the ground was impressive, wait til you see what’s coming with Devine and White this year.

Defensive Outlook: What really set the 2007 Mountaineers apart from the WVU teams that came up short before them was the play of the defense. Yes, the offense put up some obscene numbers at times, but their job was made easier by a defense which held six different opponents to 14 points or less. Only five starters return from last year’s team, but several members of last year’s defensive rotation will be plugged into starting roles for an easy transition. Rover Charles Pugh is the most important cog in the 3-3-5 look that WVU will throw at its opponents, and he must have a big year for the unit to be successful.

2008 Preview: The theme for 2008 for the Mountaineers has to be “unfinished business.” They really were one of the best teams in the nation last year, and to push over the top in ’08 after having the fallout with Coach Rodriguez would be extra sweet. Their schedule sets up perfectly for a run to the BCS title game. WVU should coast to 6-0 before Auburn comes to town on October 23rd. Road games at Connecticut, Louisville, and Pittsburgh could prove difficult, but if they survive those games, the Mountaineers could be on a crash course with South Florida for a spot in the national title game on December 6th.

2008 will be a success if… White and Devine stay healthy. WVU makes no secret about their offensive plans. They’re going to run around you when they can, and bowl you over if you get in their way. They can score a touchdown from anywhere on the field. Their two losses were both games in which White missed time. If they keep him and Devine upright all season, WVU will be playing for all the marbles in January.

With White on the way out the door after this season, the time is now for West Virginia to run the table and march towards a national championship. We think they’ll slip up once somewhere along the way, but as long as it isn’t to USF in December, a national championship appearance is a distinct possibility.

Prediction: 11-1, 1st place in Big East