ESPN College Football

Cincinnati will play Louisville in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium on Friday night. The links lead off with them:

• This game has the makings of a shootout. The Louisville game is special for Cincinnati's Ben Guidugli. A scouting report for the game.
• Robert Sands and a trick play led West Virginia past South Florida. Noel Devine has gone missing.
• The South Florida offense continues to struggle.

• Syracuse's ability to press with its corners has led to great defensive improvement.

• Dave Wannstedt thinks the Big East is up for grabs.

• Can Joe Martinek get well against Army?

Cincinnati linebacker JK Schaffer is looking on the bright side of his team's 1-2 start.

"Our team is not used to losing, but we are a team used to having a chip on our shoulder," Schaffer said. "This is making that even stronger now.

"We've always been the underdog, and now we're a huge underdog. I think that always gives teams motivation."

It's hard to play the underdog card when you go 12-0 or 11-2, as the Bearcats did in the past two seasons. But now that role really fits the team as it prepares to welcome No. 8 Oklahoma into Paul Brown Stadium on Saturday (ESPN2, 6 p.m. ET).

Cincinnati has lost its two games against unranked FBS opponents -- Fresno State and NC State -- by a combined 25 points. Once a dominating offense, the Bearcats rank seventh in the Big East in scoring and total offense and last in rushing. The defense allowed 58 points in those two losses to FBS teams and now must deal with an explosive Sooners attack.

What once looked like the first possible statement game of the Butch Jones era now appears to be a heavy mismatch. Jones spent the past several days making sure the players were still on board with him. He met with several individually to make sure they weren't hanging their heads.

"They're not used to losing, I'm not used to losing and my coaching staff is not used to losing," he said. "This is where your will is tested, your belief system. Our team has been unwavering."

Jones said the team's biggest problems are what he calls "drive-killers." Things like dropped passes, botched quarterback exchanges, turnovers and penalties. On defense, tackling has been an issue.

"We're not searching for excuses or alibis but for reasons," he said. "There are individuals on this team going through emotions they haven't experienced in a number of years. We have to take great strides, but they are all things we can control."

A lack of depth that was exacerbated by injuries and other preseason problems has left the Bearcats vulnerable. Jones said nose tackle Derek Wolfe, for instance, played over 80 snaps at NC State. The team will be without standout tight end Ben Guidugli this week because of injury.

Jones, though, says he remains upbeat about this season. He likens this to his first year at Central Michigan in 2007. The Chippewas started out 1-3, including a 30-point loss at home to North Dakota State. But then they rebounded to win seven of their final nine regular-season games to claim the MAC championship.

"I've had about 30 kids from CMU call me and say, 'Remember that turning point, coach?'" Jones said.

That turning point might not come this week against a powerful opponent. But Cincinnati is embracing its underdog status against Oklahoma.

"We really want to get out there and prove people wrong," Schaffer said. "To the people who've lost hope and think we're not going to do anything this year, we want to show them we're still around and have a lot of football left to play."

Well, it's pretty obvious that this isn't the same Cincinnati we remember from the past couple of years.

Gone is the aura of invincibility. Gone is the high-powered offense. Gone, at least so far, are any meaningful wins.

As bad as the Bearcats played at Fresno State in the opener, they were even worse Thursday night at NC State, losing 30-19 in a listless effort. It took two fourth-quarter scores to make the score look respectable after the Wolfpack built a commanding 30-7 lead.

Where oh where has the offense gone? Take away the fourth quarter against NC State and the 28-point third quarter against Indiana State, and Cincinnati has scored just four touchdowns in its other 10 quarters this season.

Of course, it's hard to score when your quarterback has no time. Bearcats offensive guard Alex Hoffman boasted earlier this week that Zach Collaros "wouldn't get touched" in Raleigh. Instead, he got sacked five times. The pressure kept Collaros from taking many shots downfield, and the offense rarely got anything going. Add the fact that Isaiah Pead didn't play with a knee injury, tight end Ben Guidugli left before halftime with an ankle injury and, of course, Vidal Hazelton is out for the season, and this suddenly looks like a below-average attack.

The Bearcats must play Oklahoma this week, and no one in their right mind would pick them to win based on how they've played so far. That means they could easily be 1-3 after four games under Butch Jones. That still doesn't rule out a run in the Big East, which looks as wide open as ever. But Cincinnati isn't going to contend unless it can raise its overall level of play in a hurry.

Jones was dealt a tough hand, having to follow Brian Kelly, opening with a brutal schedule and beset by injuries. But he could be facing questions from a spoiled fan base about why things have gone wrong so fast.

It's more bad news for the Big East , too. The league still hasn't beaten a BCS opponent. Even the struggling ACC now has notched a win against the Big East.

The Big East doesn't come up with an official preseason all-conference team. But I do.

Here are my picks for the league's best this year.

Offense

QB: Zach Collaros, Cincinnati

RB: Dion Lewis, Pittsburgh

RB: Noel Devine, West Virginia

WR: Jon Baldwin, Pittsburgh

WR: Armon Binns, Cincinnati

WR: Mohamed Sanu, Rutgers

TE: Ben Guidugli, Cincinnati

OT: Jason Pinkston, Pittsburgh

OG: Zach Hurd, Connecticut

C: Moe Petrus, Connecticut

OG: Alex Hoffman, Cincinnati

OT: Don Barclay, West Virginia

Defense

DE: Greg Romeus, Pittsburgh

DT: Chris Neild, West Virginia

DT: Derek Wolfe, Cincinnati

DE: Jonathan Freeny, Rutgers

LB: Lawrence Wilson, Connecticut

LB: Derrell Smith, Syracuse

LB: J.T. Thomas, West Virginia

CB: Brandon Hogan, West Virginia

CB: David Rowe, Rutgers

S: Robert Sands, West Virginia

S: Joe Lefeged, Rutgers

Specialists

K: Tyler Bitancurt, West Virginia

P: Rob Long, Syracuse

Return specialist: Tavon Austin, West Virginia

Thoughts: Toughest calls were at second offensive tackle, second defensive end, linebacker, cornerback and second safety. Linebacker in particularly was a stacked position. I seriously considered Scott Lutrus, Doug Hogue, Dan Mason, JK Schaffer and Walter Stewart. You could almost put all those names in a hat and pick any three and be OK. There really aren't any proven star cornerbacks in this league; Hogan should be that guy but has been inconsistent, while Rowe is coming on. I debated Lefeged and Dom DeCicco at safety next to Sands. Freeny got the call at defensive end for his sack potential, but I was tempted to go with a wild card like Bruce Irvin, while Julian Miller and Jabaal Sheard got serious consideration.

• While freshman quarterback Jeremy Johnson ponders a transfer, West Virginia welcomed massive tackle Quinton Spain to the team.
• Camp Holtz is definitely a change from what South Florida's players were used to in the preseason. Pretty sure Jim Leavitt wasn't organizing hula hoop contests and egg tosses.
• Some of Louisville's players look the part but haven't delivered on their potential. Charlie Strong wants to change that.
• Rutgers' Joe Martinek, who's been battling a hamstring injury, is motivated to hold onto his starting running back job.
• Cincinnati tight end Ben Guidugli wants to go back to a BCS game -- and play Notre Dame and former coach Brian Kelly.
• Syracuse will rely on young untested players to man left tackle.
• Former UConn receiver Mike Lang is embracing his switch to safety. And why not? He's starting right now.
• Pittsburgh cornerback K'Waun Williams was an unheralded recruit, but the true freshman is pushing for playing time on a veteran team.

Tight ends in the Big East are relatively anonymous. But four players from the league have been nominated to the preseason watch list for the John Mackey Award, presented to the best tight end in the country.

The honorees are Louisville's Cameron Graham, Rutgers' D.C. Jefferson, Cincinnati's Ben Guidugli and Connecticut's Ryan Griffin.

Of the four, Jefferson has the most raw ability, but he's still learning the position. Guidugli, a senior, is the most accomplished of the group. I think Griffin could have a breakout year, and Graham was solid in 2009 and just needs to be a little more consistent to be a major weapon for the Cardinals.

You could also throw in West Virginia's Tyler Urban, who has drawn high praise from his coaches even though the Mountaineers traditionally haven't used the tight end very much. Pittsburgh had the two best tight ends in the league last season in Dorin Dickerson and Nate Byham, and will try to use Mike Cruz with a similar level of success.

Cincinnati's vaunted receiving corps just lost one potential key piece for 2010.

Kenbrell Thompkins, a junior college transfer and former Tennessee signee, had his request to be immediately eligible denied by the national letter of intent appeals committee. Tennessee refused to release Thompkins from his letter of intent after Lane Kiffin left the Volunteers to coach USC.

The appeals committee did grant Thompkins some relief, allowing him to sit out this year as a transfer and have two years of eligibility remaining. The standard penalty for breaking a letter of intent is one year's loss of eligibility.

We could talk about how unfair it is that a coach can recruit a player, then leave for another school, and the player isn't then free to transfer to another school. But that's another topic, and the system is so ludicrously tilted against athletes I'm not sure there's even any debate.

Either way, Cincinnati is still set at its starting wideout spots with Armon Binns, D.J. Woods and Vidal Hazelton. But Butch Jones is concerned with the depth behind the starters, since his high-tempo offense requires a lot from its receivers. Marcus Barnett and perhaps incoming freshman Dyjuan Lewis will have to step up, because Thompkins had been impressive in the spring and was in line for a lot of playing time.

In other Bearcats news, tight end Travis Kelce has been suspended for the season for a violation of team rules. Kelce was behind both Ben Guidugli and Adrien Robinson on the depth chart. He's best known for running in a touchdown against Rutgers out of the Wildcat formation in last year's season opener.

Cincinnati

Schedule: Practice starts at 3:05 p.m. Monday. Team heads to Camp Higher Ground in Indiana after Thursday's practice.

What’s new: Butch Jones takes over for three-time Big East coach of the year Brian Kelly. The Bearcats will switch back to a 4-3 defensive alignment after a season in the 3-4.

Key battle: Cornerback. The Bearcats have a lot of competition for time in the secondary. Camerron Cheatham grabbed one of the starting cornerback jobs in the spring, but could be challenged by Reuben Johnson and Chris Williams in fall camp.

New on the scene: Vidal Hazelton is eligible after transferring from USC last summer. The wideout is expected to have a huge impact. Evan Davis replaces Chris Jurek at center.

Breaking out: Isaiah Pead averaged a whopping 6.7 yards per carry last season, but only had 121 rushing attempts. Now that he's the unquestioned starter, he should have a chance to put up really big numbers.

Don’t forget about: Ben Guidugli. Tight ends sometimes get lost in the spread offense, but the senior Guidugli is a real weapon in the passing game.

All eyes on: The defense. Again. The starters are fine, but there's precious little depth. And questions remain after the way the defense faltered down the stretch last season.

Quoting:"Right now, we're not defending anything. We're not defending a championship; we're pursuing a championship. Everyone's working to beat us." -- Butch Jones

Pittsburgh's Dion Lewis and Jason Pinkston have been named first-team preseason All-Americans by Sporting News.

Lewis led the Big East in rushing as a freshman, winning the league's offensive player of the year award. He shares the first-team backfield with Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram of Alabama. Left tackle Pinkston, a senior, helped paved the way for Lewis' success.

Cincinnati tight end Ben Guidugli and Pitt defensive lineman Greg Romeus earned second-team honors. Connecticut guard Zach Hurd and linebacker Lawrence Wilson made the third team, along with Pitt receiver Jonathan Baldwin.

I'm surprised Noel Devine wasn't named among the top six running backs. Sporting News picked four Panthers players on its three All-America teams. Obviously, the publication expects big things from Pitt this year.

Tight ends are an odd duck. They're not quite receivers, not quite offensive linemen, though they do a little of both jobs. So I thought I'd break them out into their own category as the final group for our post-spring Big East position rankings:

1. Cincinnati: It's unclear how new coach Butch Jones will use tight ends in his offense, but he's got great options there. Ben Guidugli is an all-conference performer, while Adrien Robinson is a physically imposing player at 6-foot-4, 244 pounds. Don't forget Travis Kelce, either. They just add to the seemingly never-ending offensive stockpile the Bearcats have.

2. Rutgers: D.C. Jefferson caught only five balls last year, but remember he made a late switch to tight end before the season began. A terrific 6-foot-6 athlete, this could be a breakout year for him. Paul Carrezola turned some heads this spring as well.

3. West Virginia: Tyler Urban and Will Johnson are two talented and experienced tight ends who could start for many teams. They'll help in the running game. The question is whether the Mountaineers will use the tight end more in the passing game as often promised.

4. Connecticut: Ryan Griffin quietly developed into a valuable target in 2009 and could be counted on even more this year as a receiver. John Delahunt got some valuable experience as well in '09 and should contribute.

5. Pittsburgh: What a change from the past year, when the Panthers had the top two tight ends in the league in Dorin Dickerson and Nate Byham. Now it's time for Mike Cruz to emerge as the next playmaker at the position. Virginia transfer Andrew Devlin and Brock DeCicco will also look to crack the lineup.

6. Louisville: Cameron Graham has shown flashes of his ability and had a nice spring. The senior should turn into a more consistent presence, especially in the Florida-esque offense. Pete Nochta needs to live up to his potential.

7. Syracuse: Losing Mike Owen leaves this group as a big unknown. Senior Nick Provo, who finished the spring as a starter, hasn't posted many stats in his career. Hofstra transfer Jose Cruz is a big target.

8. South Florida: The Bulls didn't use tight ends much in the spread offense. They could see a resurgence under Skip Holtz. Current starter Jeff Hawkins has only played in one career game.

2009 overall record: 12-1

2009 conference record: 7-0, first in Big East

Returning starters

Offense: 8. Defense: 6. Punter/kicker: 1

Top returners


WR Armon Binns, QB Zach Collaros, RB Isaiah Pead, TE Ben Guidugli, DT Derek Wolfe, LB JK Schaffer, WR D.J. Woods, LB Walter Stewart

Key losses


QB Tony Pike, WR Mardy Gilyard, OT Jeff Linkenbach, S Aaron Webster, DE Alex Daniels, DE Ricardo Mathews, LB Andre Revels

2009 statistical leaders (* returners)

Rushing: Isaiah Pead* (806 yards)
Passing: Tony Pike (2,520 yards)
Receiving: Mardy Gilyard (1,191 yards)
Tackles: Andre Revels (108)
Sacks: Alex Daniels (8.5)
Interceptions: Aaron Webster (4)

Spring answers


1. Loaded with skill: New coach Butch Jones said running back Isaiah Pead was a model of consistency, and speedster Darrin Williams had a standout spring to give the Bearcats another weapon in the backfield. Receiver is stacked with Armon Binns, D.J. Woods, USC transfer Vidal Hazelton and junior-college import Kenbrell Thompkins. Ben Guidugli leads a talented tight end group. Everywhere you look, Cincinnati is loaded at the skill spots.

2. Center of attention: Evan Davis was a bit of a question mark coming into the spring while trying to replace Chris Jurek at center. Davis performed well enough to erase those questions. Cincinnati offensive line as a whole got banged up a bit, but the same five who were starting before spring were there atop the post-spring depth chart.

3. Zach is back: Jones waited until after the spring game to name Zach Collaros his starting quarterback, though there was little suspense about that formality. Still, Collaros had to prove he could master a new offense and go through his progressions instead of just taking off and running. Jones liked Collaros' development throughout the spring, and now the quarterback will try to build on his breakthrough 2009 campaign.

Fall questions


1. Defensive depth: Once again, the Bearcats face questions about their defense after losing five high-level starters. The first string is solid, but the defense needs more depth, especially up front on the defensive line as it transitions back to the 4-3. Derek Wolfe is an anchor in the middle; Cincinnati needs more guys like him.

2. Secondary competition: Jones mixed and matched his corners and safeties this spring, and he said the competition will be fierce as the team heads into fall. Expect a real fight at cornerback, where Dominique Battle and Camerron Cheatham try to hold onto their pre-spring starting status.

3. Can the magic continue? Cincinnati's players appeared to embrace Jones and his staff's new way of doing things. Yet there's no denying that Jones faces a tough task in following three-time Big East coach of the year Brian Kelly. The Bearcats have a tough schedule, playing at Fresno State, at NC State and against Oklahoma in the first four weeks, and they'll have a huge target on their backs in the Big East after winning the league two straight years. Can Jones keep the good times rolling, and will the players stay hungry for more success?

Catching up with the latest batch of preseason honorees from the Big East ...

Four Big East players were named to the Lombardi Award 2010 watch list last week. The award goes to the top down lineman, tight end or linebacker. The nominees from the league include Pitt's Jason Pinkston and Greg Romeus, UConn's Lawrence Wilson and West Virginia's J.T. Thomas.

Nationalchamps.net also released its preseason All-America teams late last week, and several Big East players made appearances.

Pinkston and Wilson made the first team, along with Pitt running back Dion Lewis. Pittsburgh's Jonathan Baldwin and Romeus were chosen for the second team along with West Virginia safety Robert Sands. The third team features West Virginia's Noel Devine and Brandon Hogan.

Those who received honorable mention notice for the award were Cincinnati's Armon Binns, Ben Guidugli and Alex Hoffman, Connecticut's Greg Lloyd and Zach Hurd, Pitt's Dom DeCicco, Syracuse's Rob Long and West Virginia's Tyler Bitancurt and J.T. Thomas.

We're just a day away from national signing day. (Sometimes I inadvertently transpose the first g and n in the word signing while typing that; wouldn't it be cool if there were a national singing day?). Anyway, there will be lots to talk about the next couple of days in the recruiting world. For now, let's address some other issues in the ol' mailbag:

Adam B. from Pittsburgh writes: I have been hearing fairly persistent rumors over the past four to five days that it is a done deal that Pitt will be going to the Big Ten. Have you heard this as well? How likely is this move? I would just like to have some light shed on this.

Brian Bennett: Adam is just one of about, oh, 300 people to ask me this question since Sunday. I can answer this one really quickly: the rumors have no merit. None. Somehow this thing got started on message boards and on the series of tubes and took off, but no one could claim a source and the timing never made any sense at all.

I've talked to people at Pitt, and my colleague Adam Rittenberg has spoken to Big Ten officials, and everybody says there have been no contact whatsoever between the two parties. Look, it's possible that Pittsburgh could eventually be invited to join the Big Ten. But that day is several months away at the earliest and is no guarantee. For now, there's simply nothing there.

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Andrew from California writes: In your questions with Big East head honcho John Marinatto you mentioned Villanova for possible expansion. My question is how come no one considers Georgetown for expansion? Philly already has Temple and the Eagles to compete for ticket sales, and Villanova only has about 9,000 students and very little money in the bank. Georgetown is bigger, has a lot more money and D.C. is a big tourist draw to help bring people in. They could easily bring their on-campus field to 35,000 seats with the available space and use RFK stadium for big games.

Brian Bennett: Sounds good on paper, but in reality Georgetown's program is really struggling at the FCS level. The Hoyas went 0-11 this past season and are just 5-38 since 2006. And my understanding is the school has had issues with its on-campus stadium. Georgetown just isn't in a position to move up to the FBS and compete anytime soon. Right now it needs to focus on trying to win at the lower level. Villanova, meanwhile is the reigning FCS champion.

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Brett from Austin, Texas, writes: I'm disappointed that you didn't ask Marinatto tougher questions regarding the possibility of the Big 10 possibly taking a Big East team. This is a serious crossroads for the Big East and you let him off the hook by alllowing him to deflect just about every question you question. The commissioner came off as out of touch with what is really going on in college football and I'm afraid that might be bad news for those us that are fans of Big East football.

Brian Bennett: Well, Brett, the bottom line is that right now this is a Big Ten issue more than a Big East one, so what's the commissioner supposed to say? At the end of the day, if the Big Ten offers a Big East school a chance to make a whole lot more money, there's not much the Big East can do to match the financial incentives, other than -- as Marinatto pointed out -- make the league as strong as possible right now. I assure you Marinatto is not out of touch; in fact, he's very plugged in, and many people credit him for being one of the strongest reasons the Big East survived after 2004. But it's clear that his style is not to talk much about these issues publicly, unlike some other leagues.

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Ken from Philly writes: Hey, BB, how can you have George Selvie and Jabaal Sheard ahead of Lindsey Witten [in your postseason Top 30 list]? Yes alot of his sacks came against lesser competition, but USF and Pitt had there share of cupcakes (especially USF). And Selvie and Sheard played opposite two players who will be in your top 10 whereas Witten played opposite true freshman all year.

Brian Bennett: It's close -- I had Witten 29th, Sheard 28th and Selvie at No. 26. The reason I ranked Witten behind those guys is because I felt like he disappeared during the middle of the year. And it seemed like he even worked his way into Randy Edsall's doghouse after a hot start. I felt like Selvie and Sheard, on the other hand, brought it every game even if their stats maybe aren't as good. And I thought Witten was a little weaker against the run, particularly compared to Sheard. Again, though, we're almost splitting hairs here.

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Dave from Charlotte, N.C., writes: The Big East has two big things going for it: 1) the perceived greatness of the basketball conference; and 2) the actual computer-ranking "goodness" of the football conference (at least for the past few years). Given that, in your opinion, is there any chance at all that the Big East could expand by raiding other BCS conferences? Maryland, Georgia Tech, and Penn State come to mind. I know it's a long shot, but it doesn't seem that crazy when you add it up. Of course, the major stumbling block in this is that the Big East management seems to act reactively instead of proactively.

Brian Bennett: For all the expansion talk about schools like Villanova and Central Florida, the best thing the Big East could do is grab an established program that's already in a BCS league. It's not going to be anyone from the Big Ten because that league makes too much money and going to the Big East would be a step down.

So the only real option on that front would be the ACC, which hasn't exactly tore it up in football since expanding to 12 teams. Maryland and Boston College would make the most sense, especially if they get fed up with what is perceived at times to be a bias toward the Carolina schools. I have no idea if either would be interested in bolting or what it would take, but those seem to make the likeliest targets if the Big East chose to go that way.

I think the Big East learned some painful but valuable lessons from the last raid and I believe the conference will be more prepared this time around. But the next year or so will present a major challenge that requires bold thinking and leadership.

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Jim from Fort Mitchell, Ky., writes: Cincinnati wins two Big East titles and has Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard being drafted and you focus on Pitt?

Brian Bennett: Since that's all you wrote, I don't really know what you're referring to, Jim. But given the timing of your e-mail, I'm going to assume you're talking about my post that looked back on the 2006 recruiting classes. And clearly, Pitt had a great haul that year with players like Nate Byham, Jason Pinkston, Dorin Dickerson and Greg Romeus. Neither Gilyard nor Pike were in the '06 class; they were both fifth-year seniors from the class of '05. While Cincinnati certainly had key contributors from its '06 class, notably Aaron Webster, Ben Guidugli and Ricardo Matthews, by my count more than half that class never did much. The players who formed the nucleus of the two-time Big East champs mostly hailed from other classes.

NEW ORLEANS -- Cincinnati's only chance in this game is probably to score a lot of points.

But after two possessions, the Bearcats' high-powered offense has been shut out. They've had some success with short passes over the middle, but the running game has been non-existent (and harmful, since it's led to two holding plays), and Florida's secondary is covering the deep ball well.

Interim coach Jeff Quinn emptied the playbook with a throwback pass from Isaiah Pead to Tony Pike, who then tried to hit Ben Guidugli on a deep pass. But Gators star corner Joe Haden recovered to knock it away. Pike also had Armon Binns open, but he's probably not used to seeing corners recover as quickly as Haden did.

PITTSBURGH -- Cincinnati doesn't need much extra motivation today, not with a 12-0 record, Big East championship and possible BCS title game appearance on the line.

But to hear tight end Ben Guidugli talk this week, it sounds like the Bearcats have a little something else driving them against Pitt today. The Panthers, and not the defending champion Bearcats, were picked to win the league in the preseason.

"Pitt gets a lot of hype every year, I feel like," Guidugli said. "A lot of people always pick them to win the conference. They're never going to pick us. It's always going to be Pitt or West Virginia.

"We just like to prove we've got players on this team, too, whether they've got all the higher-ranked recruits or whatever. We just want to go play."

That's one thing to remember about this Cincinnati team. Yes, the players have had several distractions this week, including the Brian Kelly/Notre Dame rumors. But this is also a team full of hungry players, many of whom weren't heavily recruited and many who've waited until their senior year to get significant playing time. They still play with a chip on their shoulders.

Saw a lot of Bearcats fans in and around town last night and this morning. Pitt fans are fired up, too, though. The tailgating was in full force by 9 a.m., even with the cold temperatures, and the students were lined up to rush into their seats as soon as possible.

Less than an hour away from kickoff now.