ESPN College Football

I hope everybody's enjoying this historic day. It may be the offseason, but keep your emails coming. The mailbag is awfully light this week. One other note: You may have noticed the absence of lunchtime links today. The daily staple will become a semi-regular feature now until spring practice begins. There just aren't a lot of stories being written out there about Big East football during this slow period.

Mike from Parts Unknown writes: On your blog regarding the Big East and the Senior Bowl, you have Connor Barwin typed down as a TE. Is that the position he is down there for and will play next Saturday? Thanks.

Brian Bennett: Barwin is listed at tight end but will also practice and play as a defensive end. Pretty interesting stuff, and I've been told he'll be the first two-way player in the game in several years. Barwin may be a little small to be an NFL defensive end, but he's athletic and driven enough to get a serious look somewhere.

Ethan from Scarsdale, N.Y., writes: Brian, as of now how would you rate the recruiting classes of the Big East teams? Taking into account the teams that got the most talent or the teams that filled their biggest needs for the next season.

Brian Bennett: Make sure to stay tuned this week, as I'll be breaking down the recruiting needs of each team. And by Friday, I'll try to come up with some rankings. So I don't want to steal my own thunder there. But it's safe to say that Rutgers, West Virginia and South Florida have been compiling the best classes so far.

Jim from Highland Park, N.J., writes: Thanks for keeping my interest with Big East talk in the offseason. Can you break down team-by-team the returning starters and potential fill-ins and spring position battles for the 2009 season. Love to hear your thoughts ...

Brian Bennett: Rest assured that we'll be doing that as spring practice approaches. It's still a bit early to get into that kind of detail, however. It looks like the first Big East team to start spring ball will be South Florida, which opens on March 9.

Nate from Cincinnati writes: Hey, Brian, wanted to make sure my boys get all the press they can get. With your updates about recruiting you left out the Bearcats' signing of Reuben Johnson. He was actually in last year's class but didn't have the grades yet to play; he got his grades up and is already enrolled in classes at UC. He joins standout CB Chris Williams with this year's class, needed to replace Brandon Underwood, DeAngelo Smith and Mike Mickens.

Brian Bennett: Duly noted. Thanks.

Rob T. from Elizabeth, N.J., writes: Do you think Mike Teel is an NFL prospect, or will there be too many talented QBs in this year's class? Do his INTs hurt his case?

Brian Bennett: Too many talented QBs? Hardly. This is a really weak class for NFL-caliber quarterbacks. That said, I think Teel is a borderline prospect at best, from everything I hear. He will get a chance to prove himself in the Texas vs. The Nation all-star game later this month. At this point, though, I see him as either an undrafted free agent or late-round guy.