ESPN College Football

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

West Virginia


View class here.

Signees: 19

Heavy on: Defensive backs (five) and receivers (four).

Geographic trend: Six of the 19 signees are from Virginia, Maryland or Washington, D.C.

Headliners: WR Ivan McCartney (ESPNU 150), QB Barry Brunetti (four stars).

Sleeper: Qudral Forte was a late addition to the class, a 6-foot-1 speedster whom Bill Stewart says is talented enough to play quarterback.

Best potential for immediate impact: Junior college defensive end Bruce Irvin will get a chance to play right away. Prep school product Deon Long may be advanced enough to contribute at receiver.

Needs met: The Mountaineers needed more playmakers at wideout with the graduation of Wes Lyons and Alric Arnett. They needed quarterback depth behind Geno Smith and signed two star high schoolers in Brunetti and Jeremy Johnson. They also added reinforcements at defensive line and linebacker.

Analysis: West Virginia had the makings of a stellar class before some decommittments happened late in the process. But Stewart & Co. rebounded late with some nice additions, especially McCartney. Like most Mountaineers classes, this one has a lot of speed and not just pint-sized guys like Noel Devine and Jock Sanders. With a boatload of starters returning, this class should augment the current team and give it a chance to compete for the Big East title.

What Stewart said: "I thought we did very well. Tall, fast and athletic. I like the speed first. ... The quarterbacks are going to play. The receivers are going to play. I would imagine the linebackers are going to play. They all have a chance, they really do. ... [Brunetti and Johnson are] both Elite 11 types of players and they also know we have an Elite 11 quarterback waiting here. When you can find three guys that want to compete for one job, those are three pretty special guys. Hopefully they all stay, but we only have one football. That will be great competition."

Scouts Inc. grade: B-minus

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

Syracuse

View class here.

Signees: 31

Heavy on: Linebackers (six), receivers (five)

Geographic trend: New York, Pennsylvania and Florida are heavily represented.

Headliners: QB Jonny Miller (three stars); CB Jeremi Wilkes (three stars).

Sleeper: Take your pick: 16 players earned only two stars or lower.

Best potential for immediate impact: Don't be surprised if Miller makes a serious run for the starting quarterback job as a true freshman.

Needs met: Syracuse needed bodies to fill out the roster and got that with a huge class, seven of whom enrolled in January and will count against last year's class. The Orange also needed playmakers at wideout and more linebackers, and those positions made up a large chunk of this otherwise balanced and diverse group.

Analysis: There aren't a lot of showstopper names in this bunch, but second-year coach Doug Marrone is still working to get Syracuse back in the forefront of recruits' minds. What he has done is get the program back to its traditional recruiting roots in New York, Florida and elsewhere. And he's now got a lot of players to work with, unlike his first season. It's up to Marrone to develop these guys and prove the recruiting rankings wrong.

What Marrone said: “The one thing that I can say about this class as a general topic is that everyone in this class can run. Everyone who is involved with football knows that you have to bring players in who can run. That's an important part of what we're doing here to develop our football team. ... We're starting with players who already have a good frame on them who will keep developing and maturing their body. ... Linebacker, wide receiver, offensive line, defensive line, defensive back -- they are areas that we're looking to fulfill. The only area that our numbers are not ideal would be at the corner position."

Scouts Inc. grade: C-minus

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

South Florida


View class here.

Signees: 19

Heavy on: Offensive line (four).

Geographic trend: As usual for the Bulls, the class is full of Floridians -- 13, to be exact

Headliners: DT Todd Chandler (ESPN 150), CB Terrence Mitchell (ESPNU 150)

Sleeper: Offensive tackle Quinterrius Eatmon is massive (6-foot-5, 320 pounds), and the Alabama product could be a load on the line if he can improve his quickness and footwork.

Best potential for immediate impact: Look for Mitchell to see the field right away, while Jamius Gunsby could be the backup quarterback off the bat.

Needs met: The Bulls filled needs at running back and on the defensive line. New coach Skip Holtz said he wanted big bodies on the O-line, and guys like Eatmon and Jake Kaufman (6-8, 320) fill that desire.

Analysis: Holtz may have had the most difficult assignment of any Big East coach on the recruiting trail. He wasn't hired until mid-January and had to hold together a class in the midst of controversy over Jim Leavitt's firing. His biggest accomplishments were holding on to Chandler as other schools made late runs, and switching Mitchell from Florida State to the Bulls. He kept most of the previous commitments together in what was a rather small class to begin with.

What Holtz said: "What made this one so hard was that it was 'Fire, ready, aim.' We didn't have a lot of opportunities to really sit down and decide where we wanted to target our aim. We had to really hit the ground with our feet running. ... You get two weeks, so you really get two contacts. Some of these young men have been recruited for a year and a half through camp, evaluation, one contact for the recruiting process. What we said is, 'We are going to make them all say no. They are not going to eat us. The worst thing they can say is that they aren't interested. ... We just said that we were going to knock on every door, and at least have them hear what we have to say."

Scouts Inc. grade: C-plus

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

Rutgers

View class here.

Signees: 25

Heavy on: Offensive line (five) and receivers (four).

Geographic trend: The Scarlet Knights inked nine players from Florida, and not just their traditional areas in South Florida and Tampa Bay. They landed players from Jacksonville and one from Daytona Beach.

Headliners: WR Jeremy Deering (four stars), DB Rashad Knight (four stars)

Sleeper: Cornerback Gareef Glashen, who decommitted from Syracuse in the last week.

Best potential for immediate impact: Knight and safety Lorenzo Waters could work themselves into certain pass coverage packages early on. Also watch Deering and 6-foot-6 Brandon Coleman, both of whom could compete for time at wideout.

Needs met: Rutgers needed to find some playmakers to complement Tom Savage and Mohamed Sanu. They may have accomplished that with guys like Deering and Coleman, along with running backs Casey Turner and Jawan Jamison.

Analysis: This was a so-so class until a really strong final week saw the additions of players like Deering and Knight. Without getting a ton of top talent out of New Jersey, Schiano was able to assemble a solid group that fills a lot of needs for a team that should be able to compete for the Big East title in two-to-three years.

What Schiano said: "What we have are a lot of fast guys who are very talented and very athletic, and we've got to figure out to get the ball in their hands. ... This was the most exciting close to recruiting that I've had here at Rutgers, and quite frankly we needed to do it. In the end, with the ones we were going after, we got just about all of them. ... The fact that we have a quarterback [Tom Savage] in our program that has proven he has potential to be great, that helped a lot [in recruiting receivers]."

Scouts Inc. grade: C-plus

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

Pittsburgh

View class here.

Signees: 24

Heavy on: Defensive backs (six)

Geographic trend: Pitt has, surprisingly, no players from Florida. But the Panthers landed four from Ohio after getting none from that state last year. And it opened up a route to powerhouse DeMatha Catholic in Maryland, with two prospects from there signing on.

Headliners: QB Anthony Gonzalez (four stars), DT Aaron Donald (four stars), DE T.J. Clemmings (three stars).

Sleeper: QB Mark Myers is only rated a two-star prospect by Scouts Inc. But he's tall (6-foot-4), played for a top program in Cleveland's St. Ignatius High School and is a pro-style passer who could fit Dave Wannstedt's system well.

Best potential for immediate impact: Cornerback Saheed Imoru is a junior college transfer who enrolled early and may earn an immediate starting job.

Needs met: Pitt had a pressing need at cornerback, and the numbers tell you that Wannstedt aggressively attacked it. The Panthers also had to restock the defensive line, and Clemmings and Donald should help in that regard.

Analysis: This is as strong a class as there is in the Big East, full of potential impact players who also fit into Wannstedt's style of play. The fact that Pitt was able to wrap up this class extremely early and hold off late challengers is even more impressive. Wannstedt is turning Pitt into a program that just keeps churning out talent.

What Wannstedt said: "I think it's our deepest class. ... The key for us is to make sure we continue to uncover the Dion Lewises, the Andrew Taglianettis, the Greg Romeuses and the Mike Shanahans. ... Nine of our players played on state championship teams last year ..."

Scouts Inc. grade: B-minus.

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

Louisville

View class here.

Signees: 20

Heavy on: Receivers (six).

Geographic trend: New coach Charlie Strong used his Florida connections to land seven prospects from the Sunshine State.

Headliners: DE B.J. Butler (four stars), LB Deon Rogers (four stars), WR Michaelee Harris (four stars)

Sleeper: Lacy Coleman, a rangy (6-foot-4, 220-pound) defensive end from Georgia.

Best potential for immediate impact: Lots of players will likely get a chance to see the field early because of the Cardinals' talent shortage. Keep an eye on athlete Marcus Smith, who could be a playmaker at a number of spots.

Needs met: More than anything, Louisville needed to rack up some high-level players and big bodies in the trenches. It looks like mission accomplished.

Analysis: Strong did as well as he could have been possibly expected to do with only two months to work on this class. Given Louisville's poor on-field performance the past three years, the fact that Strong was able to get players to decommit from bigger schools (like Butler from Georgia's fold) and sign on was very impressive.

What Strong said: "We want to get back on top of the Big East. With the players, the staff and the recruits that we have assembled here, we feel that we can make that run ... Our main needs were to get some linemen, and then we just went from there. ... With the time that we had as a coaching staff and with the guys that we were able to go get I would probably rank ou staff with a 'B.'"

Scouts Inc. grade: B-minus

Analyzing the 2010 Big East signing classes ...

Connecticut

View class here.

Signees: 20

Heavy on: Defensive backs (five).

Geographic trend: UConn isn't just recruiting the Northeast and Florida anymore; the Huskies have signees from Georgia, Illinois, Ohio and Maryland.

Headliners: Linebacker Yawin Smallwood (three stars); tackle Greg McKee (three stars).

Sleeper: Most UConn recruits can be considered sleepers on a national level, but look out for defensive end Reuben Frank.

Best potential for immediate impact: Defensive backs Gilbert Stlouis (yes, he spells it that way) and Andrew Opoku enrolled in January and could find time at an area of need.

Needs met: No doubt the Huskies needed reinforcements in the secondary, and they got them. Linebacker was also a need going forward with a veteran group at that position, and some promising ones are on board.

Analysis: UConn's recruiting is on an uptick, even if it still doesn't impress many recruiting analysts. Randy Edsall and his staff do a meticulous job of scouting for players who fit their system and style and then molding them into good players. This class brings balance to the roster, and many of them will likely be redshirted and developed into better performers than those who are ranked ahead of them at this time.

What Edsall said: "This is probably the most athletic class we've been able to put together when you take a look at not only what these young men have done on the football field but what they've done in other sports. A lot of them are two- and even three-sport athletes in this class, which I really like. ... [With the defensive backfield], we were looking for guys who had the ability to cover, who had speed, athleticism and had some height to them. I think we'll have guys who have some of the coverage skills of guys we had here previously, but they'll be able to come up and stop the run, too. ... We were able to fulfill our needs and get kids we feel will do well."

Scouts Inc. grade: D-plus

Throughout the day, I'll have a review of each Big East's teams 2010 signing class. We're going in alphabetical order, so stay patient and your team will roll around.

Cincinnati

View class here.

Signees: 22

Heavy on: Defensive backs (five).

Geographic trend: Fifteen of the 22 are from Ohio.

Headliners: WR Dyjuan Lewis (four stars), QB Munchie Legaux (three stars)

Sleeper: Montrel Robinson, a tight end in high school who should play slot receiver.

Best potential for immediate impact: Lewis could step in and contribute on offense, while John Lloyd could be the team's punter right away.

Needs met: The Bearcats needed some quarterbacks, with their top two both in the junior class, and they signed two. They stocked the defensive backfield position while picking up three receivers and four defensive linemen to shore up those areas.

Analysis: Given the fact that Butch Jones took over in December and had to try and keep together a class that was mostly assembled in the summer, this is a decent class. There were quite a few defections, as expected, but Jones also added a few players late like Legaux and receiver Anthony McClung. This program has been built on under-the-radar Ohio recruits.
What Jones said: "We were forced to build relationships in a very short period of time, and I think we were able to do that ... I think it was an extremely unusual year in terms of all the decommits ... (Finding quarterbacks) was big in the recruiting process as a point of emphasis, and I think we addressed that need. ... Don't get caught up in any of the ratings. The last time I looked, we've been to an Orange Bowl and a Sugar bowl with classes that were rated from the middle to the bottom of the Big East."

Scouts Inc. grade: C