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Time to wrap up our look back on the preseason Best Case/Worst Case scenarios for each team and how those stacked up to reality. Last but not least: West Virginia.

Best Case in a nutshell: A 12-0 regular season, BCS title and Heisman Trophy win for Noel Devine.

Worst Case in a nutshell: A 6-6 record and a trip to the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl.

Reality: The Mountaineers went 9-3 in the regular season and lost to NC State in the Champs Sports Bowl.

Analysis: West Virginia finished just about right in the middle of the Best and Worst Case outlooks, but it's hard not to think that the Mountaineers blew a chance of reaching the high end of that potential. Their three regular-season losses were all winnable -- including the one at LSU -- but they hurt themselves in each one with turnover and offensive ineptitude. Their defense played at a championship level the entire season. That's why, despite a nine-win season and a share of the Big East title, the school did what teams often do after a worst case-type season: it made significant coaching changes.

We're getting close to the end now of the Best Case/Worst Case rewind series. Let's see how Syracuse's preseason outlook jibed with its postseason reality:

Best Case in a nutshell: An 8-4 record capped by a trip to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.

Worst Case in a nutshell: A 3-9 thud with only one Big East victory.

Reality: Syracuse went 7-5 in the regular season and then beat Kansas State in the Pinstripe Bowl.

Analysis: All things considered, the 2010 Orange season must be remembered in a Best Case sort of way. The team doubled its win total from the previous year and made its first bowl game since 2004. Though my Best Case win total looks pretty accurate, even I didn't think Syracuse would start 6-2 or win all four of its Big East road games. (Nor did I think it would lose all of its Big East home games). The best news about this Best Case is that the Orange are no longer a punching bag or a laughingstock in the league, thanks to Doug Marrone.

Time to roll on with a look back on each team's preseason Best Case/Worst Case scenarios and how those stacked up with reality. Today: South Florida.

Best Case in a nutshell: A 10-2 season, followed by an Orange Bowl win.

Worst Case in a nutshell: A 5-7 record marred by passing game problems.

Reality: The Bulls finished 8-5 with a win over Clemson in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Analysis: It sure looked like USF was headed toward the Worst Case projection the first half of the year, as B.J. Daniels struggled and the offense lacked playmakers in the passing game. The Bulls were 3-3 and 0-2 in the Big East after an Oct. 14 loss at West Virginia. But then they responded with three straight close wins and were playing about as well as any team in the league down the stretch. Given the team's youth and the coaching transition to Skip Holtz, an eight-win season -- including a victory over Miami -- was pretty close to a Best Case scenario.

We've been going in alphabetical order for our look back on the Best Case/Worst Case scenarios for each team. That would put Pittsburgh up next, but since the Panthers have a game still to play (not to mention the fact that they've been living out their own worst-case coaching search scenarios), we'll skip Pitt for now and move along to Rutgers (just like Frank Cignetti and Jeff Hafley did):

Best Case in a nutshell: 10-2 and a berth in the Discover Orange Bowl.

Worst Case in a nutshell: A 5-7 record with only one league victory.

Reality: The Scarlet Knights finished 4-8, losing their final five games after the devastating injury to Eric LeGrand.

Analysis: Like Cincinnati, Rutgers managed to do even worse than the Worst Case scenario. Even in my worst outlook, I didn't see the Scarlet Knights losing to Tulane at home. But other than that, they hit all the low points. The offensive line was terrible, the defense collapsed down the stretch and the LeGrand injury took its toll on everyone. Greg Schiano has already begun to shake up his coaching staff, and Rutgers fans can only hope that leads to better things in 2011.

Time to keep going in our rewind of the preseason Best Case/Worst Case scenarios for every Big East team. Up now: Louisville

Best Case in a nutshell: 8-5 with a win over Kentucky in the opener and again in the BBVA Compass Bowl.

Worst Case in a nutshell: 3-9 with just one Big East victory

Reality: Louisville finished 7-6, winning the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl over Southern Mississippi. Charlie Strong was named co-Big East coach of the year.

Analysis: The Cardinals weren't far off from my best-case outlook. In fact, had they managed to beat Kentucky, or hold on in overtime against South Florida, they would have matched the record. Just as the best case stated, they lost to Cincinnati but beat Connecticut and Syracuse. Strong got Louisville as close to reaching its full potential as you could ask from any first-year coach. That's why he won the Big East award.

We continue to look back at our preseason best- and worst-case scenarios for each team and see where reality ended up. Let's review Connecticut:

Best case in a nutshell: The Huskies go 11-1 and then win the Discover Orange Bowl.

Worst case in a nutshell: UConn goes 5-7.

Reality: Connecticut went 8-5, won a share of the Big East title and claimed the BCS bid before losing to Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.

Analysis: What a weird year. In many ways, the Huskies followed my worst-case scenario. In that one, I said the team would lose to Michigan and Temple, go through quarterback problems and then lose coach Randy Edsall to another school. But it also fulfilled two key points of the best-case scenario, making a BCS bowl and beating West Virginia. There was little way to predict an 8-5 BCS season that ended with a coaching change. UConn experienced the best and worst in 2010.

As we wind down the final bowl games and put a final bow on 2010 season, it's time to take a look back at my preseason Best Case/Worst Case scenarios for each team and find out where the reality was. We'll do this in alphabetical order, so first up is Cincinnati.

Best case in a nutshell: The Bearcats don't miss much of a beat under Butch Jones, going 11-1 and winning the Fiesta Bowl over Ohio State.

Worst case in a nutshell: The coaching transition, schedule and lack of defense are too much to overcome as Cincinnati finishes 5-7, including losses to Fresno State, NC State and Oklahoma.

Reality: Cincinnati finished 4-8 and won just two Big East games.

Analysis: The Bearcats managed to do worse than even my worst-case scenario. In fact, had I not predicted them to beat Syracuse, my worst-case scenario would have been eerily close to coming true. It was about as bad a season as Cincinnati could have had in Jones's first season.

It's time to look back on my Best Case/Worst Case scenarios from the preseason for each team. Since Rutgers is playing in two days, let's start with the Scarlet Knights.

Original post is here.

Best case in a nutshell: 12-1 and a Big East title.

Worst case in a nutshell: 6-6 and no bowl.

Reality: 8-4 and St. Petersburg Bowl.

That's just crazy talk: "Senior Dom Natale wins the starting quarterback job and benefits from having all day to throw behind the league's best offensive line. The running game, led by Joe Martinek and Jourdan Brooks, combine to form a solid 1-2 punch and Tim Brown paces a better-than-expected receiving group. Freshman Tom Savage starts coming in for a few series at quarterback, giving the offense a Chris Leak-Tim Tebow vibe."

Not too far off: "Playing the defending conference champs in the opener without an established quarterback or proven receivers turns out to be a disaster, as Cincinnati spoils the christening of the expanded stadium. Natale struggles to make plays ... Martinek and Brooks remind nobody of Ray Rice, and the offense stalls all season."

What really happened: The offensive line was a disappointment. Greg Schiano had to go to freshman Savage early and patch together the offense with a lot of Wildcat formations. The defense got better as the season went along. Rutgers won all the games it was supposed to win except Syracuse but didn't really pull off any upsets. That's why the Scarlet Knights finished much closer to the worst case scenario than my highly optimistic best case version.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

The Best Case/Worst Case series turns its eyes to Connecticut. Remember that the truth lies somewhere in the middle.


Best case


All hail the hurry-up Huskies.

The switch to a no-huddle offense is a smashing success, allowing Zach Frazer to show off why Notre Dame wanted him out of high school. Freshman receiver Dwayne Difton is a star out of the gate, and the other wideouts prove they can catch the ball as long as they're involved in the game plan. The running game barely misses a beat despite losing Donald Brown, thanks to the 1-2 combo of Jordan Todman and Andre Dixon. The offense averages 28 points per game.

That's more than enough for UConn's solid defense to give the team a chance to win every game. And it looks like that might happen as the Huskies start 4-0, knocking off North Carolina at home and winning at Baylor to crack the Top 25.

After that, the Huskies lose at Pittsburgh in overtime. They handily beat Louisville at home and then score one of the biggest wins in school history, finally taking down West Virginia in Morgantown.

A home win over Rutgers leaves UConn at 7-1. Another bump comes with a loss at Cincinnati, but that defeat is quickly forgotten when the Huskies go in to South Bend and beat Notre Dame on national TV. They wrap the season by beating Syracuse and South Florida for a 10-2 record and win the tiebreaker over West Virginia for the Big East's BCS bid.

Jim Calhoun and Geno Auriemma have nothing on Randy Edsall as he leads his team to the Orange Bowl against surprise ACC champion Boston College. Naturally, Connecticut has the entire Big East in its corner as it trounces the Eagles.


Worst case

Hail no.

Changing the program's conservative offense to a no-huddle goes about as well as Nebraska's first year in the spread. Frazer, who can be erratic with the ball, is hit or miss and struggles with interceptions. He and Cody Endres are locked in a quarterback controversy all year. The same receivers who were brutal last year haven't suddenly morphed into Jerry Rice, and Difton is too young to be a savior. The running game can't replace Brown's 2,000 yards. The offense averages 18 points a game.

The defense, while solid, misses pass-rushers Cody Brown and Julius Williams, and still lacks the speed of some of UConn's better opponents.

The Huskies narrowly escape an upset at Ohio in the opener and then are blow out at home by North Carolina as Bruce Carter blocks seven punts. Robert Griffin exposes the lack of speed on defense by running wild in Baylor's victory over UConn.

In Big East play, the team's only victories come over Louisville and Syracuse at home. The Notre Dame game is a rout, as a national TV audience scoffs at the contrast in tradition between the two programs.

Frustrated after his team's 4-7 finish, Edsall announces he'll scrap the no-huddle and run the wishbone in 2010.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

The Best Case/Worst Case series turns now to Pittsburgh. Remember that the truth lies somewhere in the middle.


Best case

Add the Panthers to the pantheon of Pittsburgh champions, along with the Steelers and Penguins.

Pitt's plethora of talent blossoms together and results in the finest season for the program since the days of Dan Marino. Freshman backs Dion Lewis and Ray Graham play like the second comings of Tony Dorsett and LeSean McCoy. The dynamic running game opens things up for the passing game, and Bill Stull, Tino Sunseri and Pat Bostick all contribute to victories during the year. They all enjoy throwing repeated touchdowns to Jonathan Baldwin, who starts catching the ball one-handed on purpose midseason just to give himself a challenge.

The defense is as strong and fearsome as anything Dave Wannstedt assembled with the Dallas Cowboys, and the Panthers roll through the early part of their schedule by blowing out Youngstown State, Buffalo and Navy. An easy win at NC State garners national attention, and Pitt has no trouble with either Louisville or Connecticut to start Big East play.

At 6-0, the first stumbling block comes in a familiar place: old nemesis Rutgers. But from there, it's relatively smooth sailing, including a thrashing of Notre Dame at home, a third straight win over West Virginia and revenge on Cincinnati for last year's loss.

The 11-1 Panthers go to the Fiesta Bowl to face Big Ten runner up Penn State. Wannstedt outcoaches Joe Paterno, who begs Pitt for a chance to play again down the road. Forget it, Wanny says.

The team returns to yet another victory parade in the city, and in honor of the marvelous season, Primanti Brothers declares, "Free sandwiches for all!"



Worst case

Thank goodness for the Steelers and Penguins, so Pitt fans have something to distract them.

The offense, never all that pretty in its best days under Wannstedt, regresses with the loss of McCoy. Stull struggles early, and Sunseri and Bostick show why Wannstedt stuck with Stull for so long. Unable to keep defenses honest against the pass, and with two freshmen backs who miss assignments and fumble the ball, points are harder to come by than winning seasons for the Pirates.

The defense, wrecked by injuries up front, really misses Scott McKillop, and the secondary gets picked on too much.

The team's trend of early-season clunkers continues with an upset in Week 2 at Buffalo, and a loss at NC State in Week 4 leaves Pitt at 2-2. The team and fan base are split over who should play quarterback. Pitt beats Louisville and UConn, but loses at Rutgers and can't stop South Florida at home. After getting a breather against Syracuse, the season ends with three straight losses to Notre Dame, West Virginia and Cincinnati.

A 5-7 record leaves fans grumbling again about Wannstedt. West Virginia wins the Big East and the Sugar Bowl, while Penn State captures the BCS title. Baldwin is so upset over his quarterbacks' inability to get him the ball that he transfers to an FBS program so he can catch passes for a year before going to the NFL.

Primanti Brothers is bought by a health nut who makes all the sandwiches lo-cal vegan, accompanied by a chilled cucumber broth.

em>Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

Syracuse fans probably think they've already seen the worst-case scenario unfold over the last four years. But what about this season? Here are the extreme possibilities on either side:

Best case:

Greg Paulus is The Natural. Shaking off four years of rust, Paulus plays like the Gatorade national high school player of the year he once was as the Orange offense finally generates some excitement again in the Carrier Dome. Receiver Mike Williams is better than he was the last time anyone saw him two years ago, and running backs Delone Carter, Antwon Bailey and Averin Collier give Syracuse an explosive 1-2-3 punch.

The Orange open by shocking Minnesota at home, and though they get shellacked at Penn State, they come back to upset Northwestern the following week. After rolling over Maine for a 3-1 start, Syracuse comes back to earth a little bit by losing to South Florida and West Virginia at home. A win over Akron precedes two more conference losses, to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.

But a late-season renaissance brings a third straight victory over Louisville and a year-ending upset of UConn and alumnus Randy Edsall, who turned down the Syracuse job in the offseason. A 6-6 record leaves the Orange bowl eligible, and the International Bowl snaps them up to capitalize on the Paulus craze.

The Paulus experiment is so successful that Jim Boeheim allows all of his players to go out for football the following spring.

Pumped up by being named Big East coach of the year (and by about 10 Red Bulls), Doug Marrone gets the No. 44 tattooed on his forehead.

Worst case:

Paulus is pretty good. As a basketball player. As a quarterback with no college experience, he is completely lost, and opponents can't wait to throw all sorts of blitzes at him. Bruised and battered, he doesn't make it through the first three games, all losses.

The lack of depth on the roster -- 18 scholarship players have left the program since Marrone took over -- begins to exact a heavy toll as injuries mount. The defense lacks answers at defensive end, linebacker and defensive back and is as porous as it was in the lowest point of the Robinson era.

The offensive line continues to struggle in the spring, and there's nobody at receiver to take pressure off Williams. Syracuse wins two games -- against Maine and Akron -- while watching Rutgers win the Big East and excite New York City.

Meanwhile, Michigan leads the Big Ten in points allowed, and Wolverines fans shower praise on their new defensive coordinator, Greg Robinson.

The NCAA grants Eric Devendorf an extra year of college eligibility, and Marrone immediately names him the starting quarterback for 2010.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

As we rapidly approach another season, it's time once again to have some fun and look at the best and worst possible scenarios for each Big East team. Remember that these are the most extreme options on both sides.

Since we usually go in alphabetical order and make fans of West Virginia, Syracuse and South Florida wait several days for their schools to appear, we'll do this in reverse alphabetical order this time. That means the Mountaineers are up first:

Best case:

Pat Who? Quarterback Jarrett Brown makes people forget about his legendary predecessor by slinging the ball all over the field like West Virginia hasn't seen since Marc Bulger. The offense regains its dynamic edge behind Brown's big arm and Noel Devine rushing for more than 1,700 yards. Jock Sanders and Tavon Austin give defenders nightmares, too, and Wes Lyons becomes a dangerous red zone threat with his 6-foot-8 frame.

The defense is the best in the Big East, led by league defensive player of the year Reed Williams. Tevita Finau shows up and surprises everyone by living up to his hype.

Early in the season, West Virginia exacts revenge on East Carolina and Colorado and notches another SEC scalp by winning at Auburn. The Mountaineers creep into the top 10 as they head to South Florida on Oct. 30 with a 7-0 record. They lose that game in a frenzied atmosphere but rebound to run the table the rest of the way and claim the Big East's BCS bid yet again.

Pitt finishes 5-7 and is spanked in the Backyard Brawl. Michigan goes 3-9 again and Rich Rodriguez is walking the unemployment line, begging Bill Stewart to take him back as an assistant. Stewart shreds his job application.

In the Orange Bowl, West Virginia pounds ACC champion Virginia Tech into submission, capping a top 5 season. With Devine announcing his intention to return to school and young players like Austin and Geno Smith establishing themselves, the Mountaineers start thinking national title in 2010.

Worst case:

Pat White, a nation turns its lonely eyes to you. West Virginia's newfangled offensive line isn't able to protect Brown and he gets hurt early and often. Inexperienced backups Smith and Coley White are thrown into the fire but are not ready, and Bradley Starks shows why he's a receiver. Defenses no longer have to respect the pass and load up against Devine and the running game, which still can't convert short-yardage downs. With a suspect kicking game as well, nearly every week is a struggle to score points.

Finau shows up in October, and it turns out he's been sticking pins in little Mountaineer voodoo dolls. Williams' shoulders fall apart again. Other key contributors on defense keep getting hurt (damn that doll!), wrecking the team's depth.

East Carolina comes to Morgantown in Week 2 and pulls off a second straight win in the series, knocking out Brown in the process. Winning on the road at Auburn is too much to ask of the young quarterbacks, and things go downhill even further when Colorado wins at Milan Puskar Stadium. With West Virginia spiraling to a 1-3 record, there's panic in the streets of Morgantown, Huntington, Charleston, Parkersburg and everywhere in between.

Brown comes back and rights the ship a bit, but the Mountaineers still lose at South Florida, at Cincinnati, at Rutgers and most painfully, again to Pittsburgh in the Brawl for the third straight year.

An unthinkable 5-7 record leaves West Virginia out of a bowl spot for the first time since 2001. There are calls for Stewart's head, but Ed Pastilong stands by his man. Meanwhile, Pitt wins the Big East and a BCS game, while Rodriguez leads Michigan back to prominence while earning Big Ten coach of the year honors.

Just when things can't seem to get any worse, Congress passes a federal law outlawing muskets.