ESPN College Football

Over the next couple of days, I'll be asking you to give your opinion on a variety of burning questions in the Big East.

You'll get a chance to vote in a poll right here and let your voice be heard. We'll tally up the results and react to your decision once the vote it over.

To start off, I want your opinion on who will be the hardest players to replace in the Big East this season. I highlighted many of the candidates in my spring shoes to fill series. Here's a quick look at what I feel like are the top five nominees:

• Jordan Todman, RB, Connecticut: Todman ranked second nationally in rushing last year and was the Big East Offensive Player of the Year in 2010.
• Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville: Not many Big East backs have Powell's combination of strength, speed, vision and fearlessness.
• Chris Neild, DT, West Virginia: A bull in the middle of the Mountaineers' defensive line, Neild often occupied two blockers at a time.
• Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh: Sheard used his nonstop motor to fight off double-teams and pressure quarterbacks on his way to winning defensive player of the year honors in 2010.
• Armon Binns, WR, Cincinnati: Led all Big East receivers in catches, yards and touchdowns last year and provided a great red zone target.

So there are your nominees. Now it's time to cast your vote.

• A North Carolina receiver is transferring back home to Pitt and hopes to become immediately eligible.
• South Florida has become an NFL draft factory for defensive backs.
• Chris Neild talks about the long wait for his name to be called in the NFL draft.
• A lack of NFL success by previous UConn players might have hurt this year's Huskies draftees.
• Doug Marrone and the Syracuse football team won some awards at the school's version of the Oscars -- or its own Dundies, if you will. The Orange may not yet be out of the mix for a big-time Rochester recruit.

Adam Rittenberg did this over at the Big Ten blog, and I thought it was an idea worth stealing.

We know the Big East isn't going to dominate the first couple of rounds of the NFL draft, but there are several good players from the league who can help teams. I'm no Mel Kiper Jr. -- one look at my hairdo tells you that -- and I realize the NFL is in many ways a different game than the college level.

Still, I've watched Big East players up close for the past few years and can tell when somebody can play. Here's one guy from each Big East team that I think could be a bargain in the NFL draft as a mid-round selection or even a free-agent pickup:

Cincinnati

Jason Kelce, C, 6-2, 280

Why him: Kelce arrived at Cincinnati as a walk-on linebacker, then started for two years at left guard before taking over the center duties as a senior. That tells you he's a hard worker willing to do whatever it takes to help a team and get on the field, and he was a part of two Big East championship teams. If nothing else, he could add depth to an offensive line with his versatility.

Connecticut

Scott Lutrus, LB, 6-2, 241

Why him: Lutrus is a student of the game and a better athlete than he gets credit for, as evidenced by his strong NFL combine numbers. He's got pretty good size, too, and is a solid tackler. There is some health risk here because he had shoulder/stinger problems his last two seasons at UConn. But as a late pick or free-agent signee, he is worth a gamble.

Louisville

Cameron Graham, TE, 6-3, 244

Why him: Graham might not stand out in any one area. He's not a speed merchant nor a physically imposing player. But he gets the most out of his ability and developed into a really reliable pass-catcher for Louisville as a senior. He could make a solid No. 2 or No. 3 tight end for some team in the right system.

Pittsburgh

Jason Pinkston, OT, 6-3, 317

Why him: Pinkston was a three-year starter for the Panthers and as steady a player as there was in the Big East. He earned all-league honors his last two seasons and performed well against some of the best pass-rushers the conference had to offer. He might not be big or athletic enough to play left tackle at the next level as he did in college, but he'll find a home somewhere on an NFL line.

Rutgers

Joe Lefeged, S, 5-11, 210

Why him: This isn't the strongest Scarlet Knights draft class of recent years, and Lefeged is likely the only Rutgers player who will get drafted. He tailed off after a hot start last season, but seemed to be affected by the Eric LeGrand injury as much as any of his teammates. What I like about Lefeged is that he's also a really good and very willing special-teams performer, so an NFL team will get that extra value from him.

South Florida

Mistral Raymond, DB, 6-1, 191

Why him: Is Raymond talented enough to play in the NFL? I don't know. I do know that he's a hard worker who rose from walk-on to team leader for the Bulls, and he's lanky and versatile enough to play either corner or safety. He'll probably be an undrafted free agent, but he's a guy I would want on my practice squad at the very least.

Syracuse

Rob Long, P, 6-2, 190

Why him: Anyone strong-willed enough to battle through a brain tumor with the positive attitude Long maintained is someone I'd want on my side. And don't forget he was one of the league's best punters throughout his career and also handled kickoffs and holding duties. Not many punters get drafted, but I'd offer him a contract if I were a GM looking to upgrade my special teams.

West Virginia

Chris Neild, DT, 6-1, 319

Why him: Mountaineers fans don't need to be reminded why Neild is such a valuable player. Let's hope that an NFL team sees it. In the right system, Neild would be an excellent contributor.

• An injury forced Tyler Rader to change positions, and that ended up being a blessing for him and the Mountaineers. Where will former West Virginia nose tackle Chris Neild end up in the NFL?

• Doug Hogue and some other former Syracuse stars are waiting to find out where they're going in the draft.

• Jason Kelce and Armon Binns are the most likely Cincinnati Bearcats to hear their names called this weekend.

• Louisville has some new uniforms for 2011.

• Eric LeGrand will be part of the broadcast team for Rutgers' spring game.

Scouts Inc. has come up with comprehensive draft boards for every position as we draw ever closer to the 2011 NFL draft (and, hopefully, a 2011 NFL season).

Let's start on the offensive side of the ball and take a look at where some Big East hopefuls are ranked. First, the skill positions:

• Jonathan Baldwin, WR, Pittsburgh: second round

• Jordan Todman, RB, Connecticut: third round

• Dion Lewis, RB, Pittsburgh: fourth round

• Delone Carter, RB, Syracuse: fourth round

• Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville: fifth round

• Anthony Sherman, FB, Connecticut: fifth round

• Noel Devine, RB, West Virginia: sixth round

• Henry Hynoski, FB, Pittsburgh: seventh round

• Armon Binns, WR, Cincinnati: seventh round

Now, the offensive linemen/tight ends:

• Jason Pinkston, OT, Pittsbugh: fifth round

• Cameron Graham, TE, Louisville: sixth round

• Zach Hurd, OG, Connecticut: sixth round

• Ryan Bartholomew, C, Syracuse: seventh round

• Jason Kelce, C, Cincinnati: seventh round

Now let's move to the defensive side and see where Scouts Inc. rates some Big East defenders:

• Terrell McClain, DT, South Florida: second round

• Jabaal Sheard, DE/LB, Pittsburgh: second round

• Johnny Patrick, CB, Louisville: third round

• Greg Romeus, DE, Pittsburgh: fourth round

• Brandon Hogan, CB, West Virginia: fourth round

• Robert Sands, S, West Virginia: fourth round

• Lawrence Wilson, LB, Connecticut: fifth round

• Scott Lutrus, LB, Connecticut: fifth round

• Joe Lefeged, S, Rutgers: sixth round

• Chris Neild, DT, West Virginia: sixth round

• Derrell Smith, LB, Syracuse: sixth round

• J.T. Thomas, LB, West Virginia: sixth round

• Doug Hogue, LB, Syracuse: sixth round

• Greg Lloyd, LB, Connecticut: seventh round

These projections aren't gospel by any means, but they should give you a pretty good idea of how Big East hopefuls are being viewed right now.

We're now into the single digits in our countdown of the Top 25 players from the 2010 Big East season, based on last year's performance and impact ...

No. 9

Chris Neild, DT, West Virginia, Sr.

Preseason rank: 17

2010 numbers: Had 35 tackles, including four for loss.

Making the case for Neild: Much like the previous entrant on this list, Terrell McClain, Neild's impact can't really be judged by stats. Like McClain, he did the dirty work up front, clogging the middle and occupying blockers to make the rest of the defense look good.

Neild's responsibilities are even larger in West Virginia's three-man front, and the 6-foot-2, 301-pounder played the best football of his career as a senior. He was a big reason why the Mountaineers allowed fewer than 87 rushing yards per game, second best in the country. On a defense full of standouts, Neild was in my mind the most valuable one.

That's why he was an easy pick as a first-team All-Big East performer and one of the 10 best Big East players in 2010.

Previously

No. 25: Zach Hurd, OG, Connecticut
No. 24: Dave Teggart, K, Connecticut
No. 23: Derrell Smith, LB, Syracuse
No. 22: J.T. Thomas, LB, West Virginia
No. 21: Johnny Patrick, CB, Louisville
No. 20: Dion Lewis, RB, Pittsburgh
No. 19: Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia
No. 18: Isaiah Pead, RB, Cincinnati
No. 17: Kendall Reyes, DL, Connecticut
No. 16: Jason Pinkston, OT, Pittsburgh
No. 15: Jon Baldwin, WR, Pittsburgh
No. 14: Robert Sands, S, West Virginia
No. 13: Brandon Lindsey, DE, Pittsburgh
No. 12: Doug Hogue, LB, Syracuse
No. 11: Brandon Hogan, CB, West Virginia
No. 10: Terrell McClain, DT, South Florida

The NFL combine kicked into full swing over the weekend in Indianapolis, and several Big East players already turned in their audition.

There's a lot more testing to be done, with defensive linemen and linebackers getting center stage on Monday. But many results are already in, and here's a look at how Big East players have fared so far. All results are based upon performance by position unless otherwise noted:

Running back


Connecticut's Jordan Todman was third among running backs (and sixth overall so far) in the 40-yard dash with a time of 4.40 seconds. He was third with a 38-inch vertical, third in the 60-yard shuttle, eighth in the 20-yard shuttle and sixth in bench press with 25 repetitions.

Huskies fullback Anthony Sherman topped running backs at 32 repetitions on the 225-pound bench press.

Syracuse's Delone Carter was third in the 20-yard shuttle (and ninth overall so far), 14th in the 40-yard dash at 4.5 seconds, 10th in the three-cone drill, sixth in broad jump, seventh in vertical leap at 37 inches and fourth on the bench press.

Pittsburgh's Dion Lewis was 13th with a 4.57 time in the 40, fourth in the 60-yard shuttle, eighth in the 20-yard shuttle and three-cone drills, and 14th in vertical leap at 34.5 inches. Lewis, by the way, measured in at 5-foot-7 and 193 pounds.

West Virginia's Noel Devine was seventh in the bench press.

Wide receivers


Pitt's Jon Baldwin topped all receivers (and is second overall so far) with a 42-inch vertical leap. He was fifth in broad jump, 12th in the 40-yard dash at 4.5 seconds and fourth in bench press with 20 reps.

West Virginia's Jock Sanders tied for sixth in bench press and was 10th in the 20-yard shuttle.

Offensive linemen

Syracuse's Ryan Bartholomew topped offensive linemen with 34 reps in the bench press. He was second in the 40-yard dash at 4.97 seconds and ninth in the 20-yard shuttle.

Cincinnati's Jason Kelce was first among offensive linemen with a 4.93 40-yard time and also came in first in the three-cone and 20-yard shuttle drills. He tied for eighth in vertical leap and was third in broad jump.

Defensive linemen

West Virginia's Chris Neild tied for 10th with 30 reps on the bench press.

South Florida's Terrell McClain tied for 14th on the bench with 29 reps.

Tight end

Louisville's Cameron Graham was 11th in bench, 12th in vertical leap, 12th in the 3-cone and 12th in the 20-yard shuttle.

Linebackers

Connecticut's Lawrence Wilson tied for seventh on the bench press with 24 reps.

West Virginia's J.T. Thomas did 23 reps, which tied for ninth.

UConn's Greg Lloyd tied for 13th with 22 reps.

The NFL combine officially began on Wednesday, as players arrived in Indianapolis and started interviews with team officials.

There are more interviews Thursday, along with measurements and medical examinations. Workouts start on Friday, and here is the schedule for position groups:

Friday: Specialists
Saturday: Offensive linemen, tight ends
Sunday: Quarterbacks, wide receivers, running backs
Monday: Defensive linemen, linebackers
Tuesday: Defensive backs

It will be fun to follow the Big East players as they strut their stuff for scouts. Who will be the top player drafted from the league? My money is still on Pittsburgh receiver Jon Baldwin, whom I expect to put up dazzling numbers in his combine workouts.

Here again is the full list of Big East players scheduled to participate in Indianapolis:

Cincinnati (3)

Armon Binns, WR

Jason Kelce, OL

Jake Rogers, K

Connecticut (6)


Zach Hurd, OL

Anthony Sherman, FB

Jordan Todman, RB

Lawrence Wilson, LB

Greg Lloyd, LB

Scott Lutrus, LB

Louisville (3)


Cameron Graham, TE

Johnny Patrick, CB

Bilal Powell, RB

Pittsburgh (6)

Jon Baldwin, WR

Henry Hynoski, FB

Dion Lewis, RB

Jason Pinkston, OL

Greg Romeus, DE

Jabaal Sheard, DE

Rutgers (1)


Joe Lefeged, S

South Florida (1)

Terrell McClain, DT

Syracuse (4)

Ryan Bartholomew, OL

Doug Hogue, LB

Delone Carter, RB

Derrell Smith, LB

West Virginia (6)

Noel Devine, RB

Brandon Hogan, CB

Chris Neild, DT

Jock Sanders, WR

Robert Sands, S

J.T. Thomas, LB

The official invitation list to the NFL combine is out, and 30 Big East players will be showing off their skills at the premiere pre-draft event.

The following league players are scheduled to participate in the set of drills before scouts from Feb. 23 to March 1 in Indianapolis:

Jon Baldwin, WR, Pittsburgh

Ryan Bartholomew, OL, Syracuse

Armon Binns, WR, Cincinnati

Delone Carter, RB, Syracuse

Noel Devine, RB, West Virginia

Cameron Graham, TE, Louisville

Brandon Hogan, CB, West Virginia

Doug Hogue, LB, Syracuse

Zach Hurd, OL, Connecticut

Henry Hynoski, FB, Pittsburgh

Jason Kelce, OL, Cincinnati

Joe Lefeged, S, Rutgers

Dion Lewis, RB, Pittsburgh

Greg Lloyd, LB, Connecticut

Scott Lutrus, LB, Connecticut

Terrell McClain, DT, South Florida

Chris Neild, DT, West Virginia

Johnny Patrick, CB, Louisville

Jason Pinkston, OL, Pittsburgh

Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville

Greg Romeus, DE, Pittsburgh

Jake Rogers, K, Cincinnati

Jock Sanders, WR, West Virginia

Robert Sands, S, West Virginia

Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh

Anthony Sherman, FB, Connecticut

Derrell Smith, LB, Syracuse

J.T. Thomas, LB, West Virginia

Jordan Todman, RB, Connecticut

Lawrence Wilson, LB, Connecticut

National signing day is Wednesday, and every fan base will be excited about the guys their schools bring in.

But how much do star rankings and hype really correlate to future success? One way to find out is by working backwards. Let's take a look at this year's official All-Big East team and see where each player was ranked as a recruit coming into his program.

All information is based on ESPN.com's recruiting rankings.

Offense

QB: Zach Collaros, Cincinnati: Unranked as a recruit.

RB: Jordan Todman, Connecticut: Two-star recruit, ranked No. 118 among running backs in the Class of 2008.

RB: Bilal Powell, Louisville: Unranked as a recruit.

WR: Armon Binns, Cincinnati: Unranked as a recruit.

WR: Jon Baldwin, Pittsburgh: Four-star prospect, ESPNU150 performer, No. 8 among wide receivers in the Class of 2008.

OT: Mike Ryan, Connecticut: Unranked as a recruit.

OT: Jason Pinkston, Pittsburgh: Four-star prospect and No. 13 defensive tackle in the Class of '06.

OG: Zach Hurd, Connecticut: Unranked as a recruit.

OG: Mark Wetterer, Louisville: Two-star prospect and No. 70 offensive tackle in Class of '07.

C: Sampson Genus, South Florida: Three-star prospect and No. 12 center in the Class of '07.

TE: Cameron Graham, Louisville: Junior college transfer.

Defense

DL: Kendall Reyes, Connecticut: Unranked as a recruit.

DL: Jabaal Sheard, Pittsburgh: Two-star prospect and No. 83 defensive end in the Class of '07.

DL: Terrell McClain, South Florida: Three-star prospect and No. 29 defensive tackle in Class of '07.

DL: Chris Neild, West Virginia: Three-star prospect and No. 17 tight end in Class of '06.

LB: Lawrence Wilson, Connecticut: Unranked as a recruit.

LB: Doug Hogue, Syracuse: Three-star prospect and No. 84 running back in Class of '07.

LB: J.T. Thomas, West Virginia: Unranked as a recruit.

CB: Johnny Patrick, Louisville: Unranked as a recruit.

CB: Keith Tandy, West Virginia: One-star prospect and No. 207 quarterback in Class of '07.

S: Dom DeCicco, Pittsburgh: Two-star prospect and No. 126 wide receiver in Class of '07.

S: Robert Sands, West Virginia: Unranked as a recruit.

As you can see, it was almost as likely that a player without any stars attached to his name would develop into an All-Big East performer as those more highly regarded. There were some on-the-mark evaluations, such as Baldwin and McClain, Pinkston and Genus. And there were guys who flew way under the radar, like Binns and Powell, Ryan and Wilson.

It still, like always, comes down to proper evaluation by a staff, then to player development and an individual's own desire to be great. Something to keep in mind on signing day.

The Big East player who probably helped himself the most last week at the Senior Bowl was Louisville running back Bilal Powell.

Powell drew positive reviews all week for his running style and vision during practice, and he led all rushers in Saturday's game with 51 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. He may have worked himself up into being one of the top running backs taken.

Another star tailback from the league didn't have as good of a week. Noel Devine measured only 5-foot-7 and 160 pounds, and while he had a touchdown for the victorious South team, he finished with just eight yards on seven carries. He did have a 12-yard catch, though.

Former West Virginia teammate Jock Sanders had a catch for seven yards.

Connecticut's Lawrence Wilson collected six tackles for the North team, while Rutgers safety Joe Lefeged made four stops and returned a kickoff 25 yards. (But analyst Todd McShay said Lefeged was among those who didn't improve his draft stock last week). West Virginia nose tackle Chris Neild was credited with two tackles.

Other than Powell, none of the Big East players really attracted much of a buzz during the Senior Bowl festivities. Right now, McShay isn't projecting a single Big East player in the first round of the draft.

The Big East won't have a heavy presence at next week's Under Armour Senior Bowl, but some of the top seniors from the league in 2010 will be participating.

The game announced the invitees from the league Thursday afternoon, adding six alongside the previously announced inclusion of Noel Devine. Here is the list of invitees:

Connecticut: Lawrence Wilson, LB

Louisville: Johnny Patrick, DB; Bilal Powell, RB

Pittsburgh: Jason Pinkston, OL

Rutgers: Joe Lefeged, DB

West Virginia: Noel Devine, RB; Chris Neild, DL

Also, Rutgers announced on Thursday that defensive end Jonathan Freeny and linebacker Antonio Lowery will play in the inaugural Eastham Energy College All-Star Game this Sunday. West Virginia safety Sidney Glover, South Florida receiver Dontavia Bogan and center Sampson Genus, and Louisville defensive end Rodney Gnat are also listed on the rosters for that game. It will be held at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Ariz.

The Associated Press All-America teams are out, and the Big East has just one representative.

Connecticut running back Jordan Todman was named to the second team. Todman finished second nationally in rushing yards per game. Oregon's LaMichael James and Oklahoma State's Kendall Hunter were the first-team running backs.

The Big East didn't produce a ton of All-America candidates this year, but some other guys who could have been considered included Pittsburgh defensive end Jabaal Sheard, West Virginia nose tackle Chris Neild, Connecticut linebacker Lawrence Wilson and Cincinnati wide receiver Armon Binns.

But at least Todman got recognized for his outstanding season.

I'm borrowing a page from the playbook of SEC blogger Chris Low and taking a moment to honor the Big East's top seniors in the 2010 season.

The league was full of young players, particularly at quarterback. But each team also was blessed with excellent seniors who provided leadership on and off the field. Today I recognize one outstanding elder statesman from each team:

Lawrence Wilson, LB, Connecticut: A rock on defense for the Huskies as a four-year starter, Wilson covers a ton of ground with his speed and instincts for the game. He led the league in tackles for a second straight year. And when his team needed a big play in the season finale against South Florida with the BCS bid on the line, he came up with a 55-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Armon Binns, WR, Cincinnati: Senior leadership was an issue for the Bearcats all season during a disappointing 4-8 campaign. But Binns was always reliable and became unstoppable as the year went on. He led the Big East in every major receiving category, finishing 14th nationally with 1,101 receiving yards.

Bilal Powell, RB, Louisville: Head coach Charlie Strong placed a lot on Powell's shoulders in the preseason, calling the quiet tailback the face of the program. Powell responded with, by far, the best season of his career, rushing for 1,330 yards and 10 touchdowns. He doesn't say a lot, but he leads by example. And he runs as if each cent of his scholarship check depends on it.

Jabaal Sheard, DE, Pittsburgh: When Sheard was arrested after a fight this preseason, Pitt coaches were quick to say the incident was way out of character for a guy who saved a woman from a burning house in high school. He showed his real character this season, picking up the slack for injured teammate Greg Romeus and turning into the most feared pass-rusher in the Big East while winning the league's defensive player of the year award. Sheard was also a leader in the locker room, calling guys out for their effort when the team struggled early this season.

Alex Silvestro, DE, Rutgers: Silvestro came to Rutgers weighing only about 220 pounds, but stepped in at defensive tackle when the Scarlet Knights needed help at the position. He moved between that and defensive end in his career and always contributed. The three-year starter led the team with 14.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks this year, earning defensive MVP honors for the Scarlet Knights.

Mistral Raymond, CB, South Florida: Raymond walked onto the team two years ago and quickly became one of the most respected members of the Bulls. His lanky frame allowed him to play corner or safety, depending on the team's needs, and he was the best defensive back South Florida had this season. He was one of the many seniors who stepped up and helped the Bulls turn their season around after a 0-2 start in Big East play.

Derrell Smith, LB, Syracuse: Smith moved all around in his Orange career, from running back to defensive end to outside linebacker and finally to middle linebacker. He took each move in stride and wound up as a three-year starter and cornerstone for the program's revival. He's shooting for his fourth straight all-Big East academic team honor as well.

Chris Neild, DT, West Virginia: The Mountaineers were loaded with valuable seniors -- Noel Devine, Jock Sanders, J.T. Thomas, Anthony Leonard and on and on and on. Few did so much important work with so little glory than Neild, whose job is to plug up the middle of the 3-3-5 defense by crashing into two offensive linemen on every play. Neild finished with only 31 tackles, but his stats don't begin to measure his true worth to one of the nation's top defenses.

Earlier today, I presented you with my picks for the All-Big East team, which you can find here. Not long after, the official league awards and first and second teams came out, which you can find here.

The Big East official teams are voted on by the league's eight head coaches, who know a heck of a lot more about football than me. But that doesn't mean they always make the right choices. Let's take a look at each position and go over some of the reasoning behind the picks, starting with what seems to me like the most egregious error.

Quarterback

The league coaches chose Cincinnati's Zach Collaros as the unanimous pick, which is just shocking to me. Don't get me wrong, Collaros is a fantastic player who can put up crazy numbers. But I don't see how Collaros was chosen over West Virginia's Geno Smith. Smith led the Big East in passing efficiency and had a 23-6 touchdown to interception ratio. He had one bad game against Syracuse and was terrific just about every other game. Collaros threw 26 touchdowns but with a whopping 14 interceptions. His completion percentage was 58.7 compared to Smith's to 65.8.

In conference play, Collaros had 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Smith had 11 touchdowns and four interceptions in league play, not to mention that the Mountaineers were co-champions while Cincinnati finished 4-8.

The coaches, frankly, blew this one.

Running back

Jordan Todman and Bilal Powell were the easy calls here. What's amazing is that neither Noel Devine nor Dion Lewis made the first or second team. No one saw that coming before the year.

Wide receiver and tight end

Armon Binns and Jon Baldwin were the obvious calls at receiver. Louisville's Cameron Graham was the most productive tight end in the league.

Offensive line

Here's where the coaches' expertise should come into play. It's really hard just watching from TV or even from a press box to tell who's playing well on the interior of an offensive line, especially if you don't know what the blocking assignments are supposed to be. I made sure to get some input from coaches on this one and was pleased to see my choices of Sampson Genus at center and Zach Hurd and Mark Wetterer at guard were echoed by the coaches. We also agreed on Jason Pinkston at tackle, though the coaches had UConn's Mike Ryan at the other tackle, while I had Louisville's Byron Stingily. Both are fine choices, since Louisville and UConn had the best offensive lines in the league.

Defensive line

Very little question here with Jabaal Sheard, Terrell McClain and Chris Neild up front. The second defensive end spot was a tricky one for me. The coaches chose Kendall Reyes, who had an excellent year. I picked West Virginia's Julian Miller, who was a beast in conference play and part of the Mountaineers' unbelievable defense. When in doubt at one of these defensive positions, I went with a West Virgina player. I also strongly considered Chandler Jones, Brandon Lindsey and Jesse Joseph for that spot.

Linebacker

Linebacker is one of the deepest positions in the Big East this year. Lawrence Wilson was a definite, and the coaches and I agreed on J.T. Thomas. They chose Doug Hogue while I went with his Syracuse teammate, Derrell Smith. Can't argue too much either way and I would have put all four of them on there if there were enough spots.

Defensive back

Here's another place where I sharply disagree with the coaches' pick. They had West Virginia's Keith Tandy and not Brandon Hogan. I'm not sure even Tandy would agree with that. Tandy had the better interception and tackle numbers, but as he told me in a late-season interview, most of that was because teams wouldn't throw Hogan's way. The coaches I talked to all said Hogan was easily the best cornerback in the Big East. I had him and Johnny Patrick, who was also an official pick, though I heard some support for and strongly considered South Florida's Mistral Raymond.

At safety, Robert Sands was a no-brainer. The other safety spot was my most difficult choice on the entire list. Safety was not a strong position for the Big East this year. The coaches picked Dom DeCicco, who had a solid year. But I felt like he played some his best while working at linebacker for Pitt this year. I went instead with West Virginia's Sidney Glover, a rock-solid senior who fit my "when in doubt pick a Mountaineer" strategy. I liked Rutgers' Joe Lefeged earlier in the year but thought he faded along with his whole team. One coach who played Rutgers late in the season said they picked on Lefeged in the passing game.

So there you have it. How do you feel about the all-conference picks? Do you think, like I do, that Smith and Hogan were the biggest snubs?