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2007 Big East Football Preview
Quarterbacks will tell the story in 2007
by
Raphielle Johnson
2006 was a banner year for the often criticized Big
East Conference. League members went 32-8 during the regular season against
non-conference foes, the championship race went down to the final game of the
season (triple overtime, no less), and all five teams that played in a bowl won.
How do you follow that type of year up? You welcome back four Heisman
contenders, and two of your headline coaches turn down offers from Alabama and
Miami respectively to remain at their current institutions. So, how will this
league wind up when it’s all said and done? Check out who returns quarterbacks
from last season and that should be a pretty good indicator.
Louisville and West Virginia return two of the
nation’s best in Brian Brohm and Pat White, Rutgers welcomes back Mike Teel, and
South Florida has Matt Grothe returning for his sophomore campaign. These four,
thanks to their talent and back-loaded conference schedules that could make this
title hunt the most exciting in college football, stand the best chance of
representing the Big East in the BCS. Looking at the other four members, you can
see the division in quarterback play.
While Dustin Grutza played well at times last
season, and Ben Mauk transfers in from Wake Forest, Cincinnati will be learning
a new spread attack in the first full season for head coach Brian Kelly (he
coached them to an International Bowl victory). Pittsburgh was counting on
incoming freshman Pat Bostick to push junior Bill Stull for the starting job
there, but his taking a leave of absence to deal with some personal issues set
him back in the competition. While Bostick still has a chance to win the job,
look for Stull to take the reigns in the opener.
At Connecticut, junior college transfer Tyler
Lorenzen beat out Dennis Brown for the starting nod, but the quarterback
position at UConn has left something to be desired since Dan Orlovsky moved onto
the NFL a few years ago. Andrew Robinson will be a much better fit for the West
Coast offense installed at Syracuse than Perry Patterson, but he still lacks the
experience to help the Orange make major moves in the standings. So while many
talented and quick players return on both sides of the ball in the Big East, it
is the quarterback position that will decide who rises and who falls in 2007.
Big East Players of the Year: QB Brian Brohm
(Louisville) and DT Eric Foster (Rutgers)
Best Kicker & Punter: K Jeremy Ito (Rutgers)
and P Justin Teachey (South Florida)
Special Teams Player of the Year: Darius
Reynaud (West Virginia)
Best Running Backs: Steve Slaton (West
Virginia) and Ray Rice (Rutgers)
Best NFL Draft Prospect: Brohm
Coach of the Year: Steve Kragthorpe
(Louisville)
How they’ll finish
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West Virginia (11-2, 5-2; returning starters- 15: 8 offensive, 7 defensive)
It’s a tough world when some people think of an
11-win year as a disappointment, but for some who pegged the Mountaineers as a
team with a shot at a national title that was the classification. But that’s an
unfair assessment, especially when you consider the fact that many underrated
this conference in 2006. As we learned, there’s no shame in losing at Louisville
and home against South Florida. But with the Heisman contender duo of QB Pat
White and RB Steve Slaton, this could be the year for West Virginia. Also
joining the backfield ranks is freshman sensation Noel Devine, who could end up
supplying a change in style similar to the one supplied to Clemson by C.J.
Spiller last season. Darius Reynaud leads a wide receiver group that will need
some of the other options to step up in increased roles this year. And while the
line returns three starters, they must replace All-American center Dan Mozes
along with longtime line coach Rick Trickett, who’s now at Florida State.
The defense has some solid performers returning at
all three levels, but the one to watch will be the secondary. Despite having
playmakers such as safety Eric Wicks in the backfield, the Mountaineers were 109th
against the pass in 2006. Corners Larry Williams and Vaughn Rivers are just two
of the guys who will have to step up in order for this number to improve. Pat
McAfee returns to handle the kicking chores, and the schedule sees a visit from
Louisville offset by trips to Rutgers and South Florida. With a manageable
non-conference schedule, these three games could be the difference between a
simple BCS game and playing in New Orleans on January 7th.
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Louisville (12-1, 6-1; returning starters-11: 7 offensive, 4 defensive)
While the head coach changes, don’t expect any dip
in the rate of success for the Louisville Cardinals in 2007. QB Brian Brohm
returns for his senior season, and in wide receivers Mario Urrutia and
Harry
Douglas the Cards have two of the best in the country at their position. Gary Barnidge looks to be the Big East’s best tight end, and a few talented options
return at running back, including Anthony Allen and George Stripling. Special
teams should be a strong point as well, with kicker Art Carmody coming off of a
season that garnered him the Groza Award in 2006. The dangerous JaJuan Spillman
returns as well, giving Louisville an electrifying option in the return game.
The defense may have to replace seven starters, but
that doesn’t mean there’s a lack of talent. Only five seniors are part of the
projected two-deep, led by linebacker Malik Jackson. Sophomore Peanut Whitehead
will look to increase his numbers with more playing time at defensive end, and
Miami transfer Willie Williams will look to make an impact as well. The
secondary will need the most work however, with safety Latarrius Thomas the lone
returning starter on a unit that was 80th against the pass in 2006.
And speaking of back-loaded schedules how about this one: @ West Virginia, @
South Florida, and Rutgers to close out the year. Barring an upset loss in any
of their other four Big East contests, Louisville will control their own destiny
when it comes to winning the conference.
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Rutgers (2006: 11-2, 5-2; returning starters-13: 7 offensive, 6 defensive)
2006 was a magical year in the history of Rutgers
Football, a long catalog of seasons mired in either mediocrity or just downright
poor football. You can forget all that now, especially with Greg Schiano turning
down Miami in order to keep “chopping away” in Piscataway. Coach Schiano, who
won numerous national coach of the year awards in 2006, welcomes back seven
starters to his offense including Heisman candidate Ray Rice. Rice, who ran for
1,794 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2006, will have to adjust to life without Brian
Leonard. In fact, the entire team will need to adjust as Leonard was one of
their leaders, a selfless worker who never failed to put “team” ahead of “me”.
Mike Teel returns for his second full year as the
starter, and how much he and his young (but talented) receivers improve the pass
offense (96th in the nation last year) will be the difference as
teams load the box to deal with Rice. Kenny Britt, Tiquan Underwood and Tim
Brown are just three of the options at Teel’s disposal on the outside, although
tight end Clark Harris has moved on to the NFL. And for all the talk of incoming
freshman tackle Anthony Davis turning down Ohio State to stay home; don’t forget
that the Scarlet Knights return three NFL-caliber linemen in Mike Fladell,
Jeremy Zuttah and Pedro Sosa. K Jeremy Ito returns for his senior year as well,
but Rutgers will need to find a replacement for departed punter Joe Radigan.
Defensive tackle Eric Foster, who arguably is the
heart and soul of the team along with the defense, returns alongside end Jamaal
Westerman and tackle Peter Tverdov. Two All-America caliber safeties are back as
well in the form of Ron Girault and Courtney Greene, which should help Rutgers
in approaching their pass defense numbers of 2006 (ranked 6th in the
nation). The question is this: who can step up to help out Brandon Renkart at
linebacker? Renkart, an amazing story given the fact that he’s gone from walk-on
to team captain during his time at Rutgers, is an outstanding player but he
can’t do it all by himself. Renkart and Kevin Malast looked to be the leaders
for the outside jobs, and then middle linebacker Blair Bines broke his jaw.
Does this move Renkart inside, or does Coach Schiano
look further down the line? We’ll have to wait and see. In terms of the
schedule, Navy and Maryland shape up to be competent opponents outside of the
league, but both games are at home. USF and West Virginia also visit, but a trip
to Louisville looms at the end of the year. Given the fact that their last trip
to the Derby City went so poorly (a 56-5 beating in 2005), there should be no
problem with motivation regardless of the stakes.
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South Florida (2006: 9-4, 4-3; returning starters- 16: 8 offensive, 8
defensive)
Heading into only their eleventh year of existence
as a football program, who could have ever imagined that South Florida’s name
would be tossed around as a possible BCS darkhorse? Well, that’s happened so
much this off-season that it’s most likely time to take that label off of Jim
Leavitt’s Bulls. Matt Grothe returns at quarterback, looking to improve on the
63.7% completion rate and 24 total touchdowns that won him Big East Rookie of
the Year honors. Grothe was the leading rusher for the Bulls in 2006, which
means that backs such as Ben Williams and newcomers Aston Samuels and Mike Ford
need to step up so he doesn’t take as many hits. All five starters are back on
the offensive line, and there’s a lot of speed on the outside despite the
graduation of Ean Randolph.
As for the defense, this unit will be fast and won’t
lack for playmakers, especially at cornerback. Trae Williams and Mike Jenkins
stand to be one of the nation’s best tandems, and there’s also experience as the
safety position. Three starters return to a deep defensive line, but the
question is who steps into the void left by Stephen Nicholas at linebacker. Ben
Moffitt, one of the best in the Big East, is back, but he’ll be flanked by two
new starters. Justin Teachey and Delbert Alvarado look to have a solid hold on
the kicking and punting duties, and there are a few options to replace the
production of Ean Randolph in the return game. Within the Big East, the Bulls
get both West Virginia and Louisville at home, while an early season trip to
Auburn gives the Bulls a national stage on which to show just how far their
program has come.
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Cincinnati (2006: 8-5, 4-3; returning starters- 16: 8 offensive, 8
defensive)
The Brian Kelly era began with a win over Western
Michigan in the International Bowl. But now that he’s had an entire spring and
fall camp to implement his system, expect to see more balls flying through the
air at Nippert Stadium. After three years of a ground-based system under Mark
Dantonio, the “Cat Attack” takes over. While many expected Wake Forest transfer
Ben Mauk to take the reigns of the offense, incumbent Dustin Grutza won the
quarterback job. Expect Grutza to be more efficient this season, but if not Mauk
can step right in because of his experience in the spread system.
The Bearcats have three options at running back, but
Butler Benton and Bradley Glatthaar have moved ahead of Greg Moore because
they’re better fits for the offense than the powerful Moore. But don’t expect
him to fall by the wayside, either, as Moore can be a contributor to this unit.
Cincinnati has some options at wide receiver, but they need to find a game
breaker, most likely Derrick Stewart or Jared Martin. Normally, losing a tight
end like Brent Celek would be a huge loss, but the tight end doesn’t see a lot
of action in the “Cat Attack”, so that minimizes the loss some. The question for
the offense will be how the line adjusts to the new offense, given the fact that
most of them are more suited to the straight-ahead style of the last system.
The defense should be stout once again, led by
linebackers Corey Smith and Ryan Manalac, and safety Haruki Nakamura. All-Big
East tackle Terrill Byrd will anchor a line that has some depth as well. Special
teams should perform well, but the Bearcats will need to improve their turnover
margin (ranked 90th in 2006) if they want to entertain any thoughts
of contending in the Big East this year. With home games against West Virginia
and Louisville, Cincinnati could end up being a spoiler in the title race.
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Pittsburgh (2006: 6-6, 2-5; returning starters- 14: 7 offensive, 7
defensive)
When it rains it pours…or so it seems in Pittsburgh
these days. Just when freshman quarterback Pat Bostick returns to the team
during fall camp, big play wide receiver Derek Kinder tears his ACL. He’ll be
out for the season, leaving the receiving duties up to Oderick Turner and Marcel
Pestano. And while no one seems ready to state that Bill Stull will be the
starting quarterback, you have to wonder if the time missed from camp can be
made up by Bostick. In the backfield, the Panthers’ top three leading rushers
from 2006 return, but they only combined to make Pitt the 78th best
rushing offense in the country. This could open the door for highly touted
recruits LeSean McCoy and Shariff Harris. McCoy drew raves from recruiting gurus
throughout his scholastic career. The offensive line returns four starters from
last season, so that should help improve that ranking as well.
All four starters return to the defensive line,
which could be a mixed blessing when you consider the fact that this defense
ranked 107th against the run in 2006. Joe Clermond, Rashaad Duncan
and Gus Mustakas are just three of the players to be counted on up front. All
three linebackers are gone, along with a first round pick in corner Darrelle
Revis. Scott McKillop and Adam Gunn are just two of the many who will get a shot
to replace the departed at linebacker (including H.B. Blades and Clint Session).
Aaron Berry looks to be the heir apparent to Revis, sliding into the corner
opposite senior Kennard Cox. Conor Lee returns to handle the placekicking duties
with Purdue transfer Dave Brytus taking over for All-Big East punter Adam
Graessle. With the quality of his three recruiting classes and average results,
patience with head coach Dave Wannstedt may begin to wear thin if the Panthers
don’t return to a bowl in 2007.
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Connecticut (2006: 4-8, 1-7; returning starters- 14: 8 offensive, 6
defensive)
If you wanted to describe Connecticut’s offensive
production at the quarterback position in 2006 as “below average”, you’d be
kind. Tyler Lorenzen has been selected as the starter this year, but hopefully
for Husky fans there won’t be another round of musical chairs at the position
this year. Fans have learned the hard way the past couple of years that it takes
a lot more than one bowl season to build a program. Inconsistent quarterback
play along with some off-field issues has seemed to stunt the growth of
Connecticut Football, but there are some positives going into 2007.
Donald Brown, who led the team in rushing last
season despite limited action early in the year, returns on the heels of 896
yards and seven touchdowns. Lou Allen also stands to get some carries, but look
to Brown to be the go-to guy for Randy Edsall. Youth carries the day on the
outside, with sophomores Terrence Jeffers and Brad Kanuch looking to be the
starters at this point. Also at Lorenzen’s disposal are senior Larry Taylor
(he’ll also have a role in the return game) and former quarterback D.J.
Hernandez, who has more than enough athleticism to pull off the position switch.
An offensive line that was porous at times last year returns one starter (tackle
Mike Hicks), but many of the returnees saw action last season, so they are
tested.
The front seven will have plenty of athleticism this
year, led by tackle Dan Davis and linebackers Danny Lansanah, Ryan Henegan and
Scott Lutrus. But this group will have to improve against the run, with the
Huskies finishing 105th in that category, including a poor effort in
which Navy gained 464 yards on the ground. Corners Tyvon Branch and Darius
Butler form one of the better duos in the league, but the lack of experience at
safety is a concern. After leaving the team due to academic issues, Dahna
Deleston returns at safety, which should help out with that problem. UConn will
also need more consistency from their kicking game. Desi Cullen will handle the
punting duties, while the hope is that freshman Dave Teggart wins the kicking
job. While this is a young team, a manageable non-conference schedule could have
the Huskies thinking bowl game. But it all hinges on the quarterback position.
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Syracuse (2006: 4-8, 1-6; returning starters- 11: 6 offensive, 5 defensive)
After upping their win total from one to four last
season, Greg Robinson’s Orange look to continue the progress this season.
Unfortunately for them, they’ll have to do it without running back Delone
Carter, lost for the year with a dislocated hip. But in Curtis Brinkley Syracuse
has a capable runner who ran for nearly 600 yards in 2006. Andrew Robinson gives
the Orange a quarterback with the proper skill set for a West Coast system,
meaning that the passing offense shouldn’t be ranked 103rd again this
year. Taj Smith, Mike Williams and Rice Moss return at receiver, giving the
youngster some quality options to get the ball to. Three starters return on an
offensive line that gave up 45 sacks in 2006.
When your offense is ranked 110th in the
nation, it does you no good to have a defense that’s ranked 107th. At
least the two units were consistent. But all jokes aside, the line and secondary
should be up to the challenge in 2007. End Jameel McCline and tackle Tony
Jenkins return up front, while safeties Dowayne Davis and Joe Fields are also
back. It helps that all four are seniors as well. The linebackers lack
experience, with the anticipated starters this year totaling twenty tackles in
2006, so look for freshmen such as Chad Battles and Jermaine Pierce to get long
looks.
On special teams, solid kicker Patrick Shadle
returns, but Kyle Muir will have a tough time replacing All-American punter
Brendan Carney. With a tough non-conference schedule (including Washington, Iowa
and Illinois), improvement may have to be judged in ways other than simply the
won-lost record.
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