ESPN College Football

Here are your links for today:

West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck needs to put his thinking cap on.

Players are doing their best to ignore the off-field drama at West Virginia. Watch video of some players doing interviews for the first time since the spring game.

If nothing else, Bill Stewart's final year at West Virginia will be weird.

Luck makes it onto the CBSSports.com top 100 list of influential folks in college football, ranking No. 20.

Former Syracuse players Delone Carter and Doug Hogue sit and wait for the NFL lockout to end.

A little late with this one but still a good link. CBS lists UConn DE/DT Kendall Reyes and Cincinnati RB Isaiah Pead as two seniors NFL scouts will be watching in 2011.

• 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.

• Syracuse linebackers Doug Hogue and Derrell Smith have more to do after their NFL combine showings. Greg Paulus is now an assistant basketball coach at Navy. Former AD Jake Crouthamel answered some football history questions.

• Dana Holgorsen wants to make a long-term impact on West Virginia. A Mountaineers support staff member got a head-coaching gig.

• Skip Holtz is looking forward to putting his spring pieces together.

• A star recruit's high school is glad he chose Rutgers.

On Monday, I looked at the results posted by Big East offensive linemen, running backs, receivers, tight ends and preliminary numbers for the linebackers. Let's check in now on some more updates by top performers for the defensive guys from the league (performance ranks are listed by position).

Defensive line

Pittsburgh's Jabaal Sheard had the fifth-fastest 40-yard dash time at 4.69 seconds. He was 12th in the broad jump.

Linebackers

Scott Lutrus put up strong numbers, finishing first in vertical leap (38 inches) second in the 60-yard shuttle, third in the three-cone drill, fourth in the 20-yard shuttle, tied for fifth in the broad jump and tied for seventh in the 40 at 4.68 seconds. Here's what our Scouts Inc. team wrote about Lutrus's performance:

"Lutrus (6-2½, 241) far exceeded expectations based on what we've seen on film. ... We now have to go back to the tape to see if we missed something during our initial evaluation and figure why his explosiveness and lateral quickness are so much better at this point."

Syracuse's Doug Hogue was fifth in the 40 at 4.63 seconds. He tied for fifth in the broad jump, tied for sixth in vertical leap and was 12th in the three-cone drill.

West Virginia's J.T. Thomas tied for seventh in the 40, tied for 10th in the 20-yard shuttle, and tied for 13th in the 60-yard drill.

Connecticut's Greg Lloyd tied for 14th in the three-cone drill.

UConn's Lawrence Wilson tied for 13th in both the vertical leap and 40-yard dash. Would you have guessed Lutrus would beat teammate Wilson in the 40?

Safeties

West Virginia's Robert Sands showed off his array of skills. He tied for second with a 35-inch vertical leap and had the best broad jump at 10 feet, four inches. His 40 time of 4.57 seconds was third.

Cornerbacks

Rutgers' Joe Lefeged, a safety in college who was listed with the cornerbacks at the combine, tied for the fifth-best 40 time at 4.43 seconds. He also tied for 11th in the vertical leap and 14th in the broad jump.

West Virginia's Brandon Hogan tied for 10th on the bench press with 19 reps at 225 pounds.

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

I'm borrowing an idea from Big 12 blogger David Ubben and taking a look at the top individual performances by a Big East player in 2010.

Ubben's list was restricted to offensive players in conference games, and only players whose team won the game were eligible. I'm going to be a lot more inclusive than that. But I will give extra weight to performances in victories and in games against league competition or other high-caliber opponents. Sorry, but no stat-stuffing feats against FCS opponents were considered.

Here, then, is my Top 10:

1. Jordan Todman versus Pittsburgh: Todman -- with a heaping dose of help from his offensive line -- was simply unstoppable against Pitt's defense, running for 222 yards on 37 carries in a key win that changed the conference race. He was so good that Randy Edsall felt confident going for it on fourth-and-short from deep in his own territory late in the game, and of course Todman picked up that first down.

2. Isaiah Pead versus Rutgers: Granted, the Scarlet Knights' defense was a shell of its former self by this point. Still, Pead racked up a whopping five total touchdowns, most by a Big East player in a league game in 2010. He had 213 rushing yards and four scores on 31 rushing attempts and added a touchdown reception. Rutgers had no answer.

3. Sio Moore versus West Virginia: The Connecticut linebacker, often overshadowed by Lawrence Wilson and Scott Lutrus at his own position, was a one-man wrecking crew in the win that changed the Huskies' season. He collected 17 tackles, forced two fumbles and recovered two of them in the hard-fought upset.

4. Dion Lewis versus Cincinnati: The Bearcats had seen this show before. For the second straight year, Lewis was a load that the Cincinnati defense couldn't stop. He carried 42 times for 261 yards and four touchdowns in the snow at Nippert Stadium for what turned out to be his final regular-season college game.

5. Geno Smith versus Marshall: Down 21-6 in the fourth quarter, West Virginia looked like it would suffer its first loss to its in-state opponent. But Smith came to the rescue. He calmly led two scoring drives in the final minutes and delivered perfect strikes for the tying touchdown and two-point conversion plays attempt near the end of regulation. He finished 32-of-45 for 316 yards, and that's even more impressive when you consider it was just his second career start.

6. Bilal Powell versus Cincinnati: Our first performance on the list that came in a losing effort. It wasn't Powell's fault. The Louisville senior rushed for 209 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries and had perhaps the highlight of the season with his bruising, 85-yard scoring run. Powell also rushed for 204 yards on just 18 carries the week before, but it came against a truly terrible Memphis defense (not that Cincinnati's was all that much better).

7. Delone Carter versus Kansas State: Carter had a strong year but lacked a lot of explosive plays. That changed in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl against Kansas State's admittedly shaky defense. Carter crushed the Wildcats for 198 yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries as the Orange held on for the postseason win.

8. Mark Harrison versus Cincinnati: There were a lot of great performances against the Cincinnati defense, but Harrison's was truly breathtaking -- and record-breaking. The Rutgers wideout had 10 catches for 240 yards and four touchdowns against the helpless Bearcats secondary.

9. Ray Graham versus Florida International: Not an elite opponent by any means, but what Graham did was still mighty impressive. Subbing for an injured Lewis, Graham nearly broke the Pitt single-game rushing record with 277 yards and three touchdowns on 29 carries.

10. Joe Lefeged versus Florida International: FIU appears again as a victim here in a ridiculous performance by the Rutgers safety. He had an interception, forced two fumbles and blocked a pair of punts to almost single-handedly ensure his team's narrow victory.

Honorable mention: Zach Collaros versus South Florida and Rutgers; B.J. Daniels versus Cincinnati and Clemson; Pead versus Oklahoma; Todman versus Cincinnati; Armon Binns versus Louisville; Chas Dodd versus Connecticut; Dave Teggart versus South Florida; Doug Hogue versus West Virginia; Marcus Sales versus Kansas State.

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 East-West Shrine Game is on tap for Saturday, but the most important work for scouts came in the week leading up to the contest. Our ESPN experts were in Orlando to watch the players during practice and offered their thoughts on who stood out the most .

Todd McShay listed Connecticut fullback Anthony Sherman and South Florida defensive tackle Terrell McClain among his top performers.

On Sherman: "He's undersized (5-11, 240 pounds) and fullbacks border on extinct in the NFL, but I was impressed with Sherman. He's competed all week. He's tough and has some power at the point of attack. He also has good hands. He caught the ball smoothly and got up the field. It's a pretty good fullback class and right now he's No. 6 in the class. He's a longshot to get drafted yet he's done nothing but help himself this week"

On McClain: "He is strong at the point of attack and just doesn't give ground. He controls blockers with his hands. He has violent hands to get off blocks and he has a power rush."

McShay also talks about McClain in this video.

Syracuse's Delone Carter got some positive reviews earlier in the week for his strong running style, though there were questions about his hands in the passing game. Teammate and linebacker Doug Hogue was not practicing late in the week, and no reason was given for his absence.

Also scheduled to compete in the game from the Big East are Syracuse center Ryan Bartholomew, UConn's Scott Lutrus and Greg Lloyd and Cincinnati's Armon Binns.

Here is the list of players from the Big East who will be participating in the East-West Shrine Game, a showcase for seniors and NFL hopefuls:

• Anthony Sherman, FB, Connecticut

• Armon Binns, WR, Cincinnati

• Delone Carter, RB, Syracuse

• Doug Hogue, LB, Syracuse

• Greg Lloyd, LB, Connecticut

• Lawrence Wilson, LB, Connecticut

• Ryan Bartholomew, OL, Syracuse

• Scott Lutrus, LB, Connecticut

• Terrell McClain, DT, South Florida

• Zach Hurd, OL, Connecticut

The 86th annual game will be held Jan. 22 in Orlando.

Syracuse is bowling again. The Orange are back in the postseason for the first time since 2004, and they celebrate by ringing in the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl in their home state. Here's a quick preview:

WHO TO WATCH: Syracuse running back Delone Carter. The Orange offense really struggled down the stretch of the regular season, and Carter remains its one true, dependable force. The muscular, 215-pound senior isn't a big-play threat most of the time, but he can wear down defenses with his straight-ahead, physical style. He went over 1,000 yards this year for the second straight season, and Syracuse must establish the ground game with him and Antwon Bailey to set up play-action. And in cold, potentially snowy conditions, the running game becomes even more vital.

WHAT TO WATCH: The Syracuse defense vs. Kansas State's run game. There's little secret to what the Wildcats like to do: Get the ball in the hands of playmaking tailback Daniel Thomas as much as possible. They're not a big passing team, so Thomas gets the bulk of the work and will take snaps out of the Wildcat formation. The Orange defense was this team's strength all season. The suspension of tackle Andrew Lewis could hurt, but Chandler Jones, Bud Tribbey and Mikhail Marinovich are stout up front, while linebackers Doug Hogue and Derrell Smith are among the best in the Big East. The Orange will need safety help in the box as well.

WHY TO WATCH: To see Syracuse return to the postseason. To see postseason football being played for the first time in new Yankee Stadium. To see an old-school, grind-it-out physical game in cold weather, the way football was meant to be played. To see an up-and-coming coach (Syracuse's Doug Marrone) against a living legend (K-State's Bill Snyder).

PREDICTION: Syracuse should have a home-field feel in the Bronx, and I think the Orange defense can do a good job slowing down Thomas. Still, Kansas State has the ability to make big plays, while Syracuse has only lurched forward in small chunks and will be missing an underrated field-position weapon in punter Rob Long. The Orange keep it close, but fall 17-14.

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?

Kansas State Wildcats (7-5) vs. Syracuse Orange (7-5)

Dec. 30, 3:20 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Kansas State take by Big 12 blogger David Ubben: Take me at my word, I'll spare you any sort of Apple humor for the duration of this game's coverage. That said, the two Manhattans will be linked when Kansas State heads to the Pinstripe Bowl, even though Yankee Stadium is in the Bronx.

Daniel Thomas carried the Wildcats to an early 4-0 start, but Kansas State struggled to a 1-4 finish in conference play before finishing the season with a win over North Texas to finish 7-5. Thomas, a senior, will get a chance to prove his worth to NFL scouts with a big game against Syracuse, and he'll be coming off a 269-yard performance in the win over North Texas.

Kansas State found a new offense late in the season when it leaned on quarterback Collin Klein, who played receiver last season. Carson Coffman still sees plenty of time, but the Wildcats offense, even if it's one-dimensional with Klein, can be dangerous. In a 39-14 win over Texas earlier this year, the Wildcats needed just four pass attempts to jump out to a 39-0 lead. They ran for 261 yards in that game, and Klein and Thomas both topped 100 yards.

If Syracuse doesn't see enough Cats on Broadway, its front seven will have its hands full with these 'Cats.

No promises on other New York/baseball humor.

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Syracuse take by Big East blogger Brian Bennett: Syracuse won't even be leaving its own state for its bowl game, but there was a time not long ago when the postseason seemed far, far away.

Second-year coach Doug Marrone has engineered a remarkable turnaround, leading the Orange to their first bowl game since 2004. They actually were still in position to win the Big East title in their final conference game, but losing three of the past four to end the year took a little cheer out of the banner year.

Defense powered the improvement, as coordinator Scott Shafer's heavy blitz schemes caused problems for Big East teams all year. Led by tackling-machine linebackers Derrell Smith and Doug Hogue, Syracuse ranked sixth in the FBS in total defense.

This is an offensively-challenged team that sputtered to the finish line, scoring just 26 points in its final three games combined. That could spell trouble against a Kansas State team that averaged 33.5 points per game this season. The Orange are in no way built for a Big 12-style shootout.

But they should have a heavily pro-Syracuse crowd at Yankee Stadium. And after such a long absence from the postseason, the Orange are just happy to be bowling anywhere.

1. Battle for first place: The three-team jostling match for the Big East's BCS bid could be down to two, or possibly just one team by Saturday. Pittsburgh can clinch the title with a win over West Virginia and a Connecticut loss to Cincinnati. West Virginia could force a first-place tie by beating Pitt, and UConn hopes for a Pittsburgh loss since it holds the tiebreakers over the Panthers and Mountaineers. This thing could be decided this weekend or set us up for an exciting finish next week.

2. Desperate measures: The margin of error is gone for three Big East teams. Louisville, Cincinnati and Rutgers each have six losses and must win this weekend in order to preserve bowl hopes. Louisville and Rutgers play in a postseason elimination game, while the Bearcats hope to get back to any bowl after winning the past two conference titles.

3. Brawl, y'all: The Backyard Brawl is always worth watching, especially with the stakes raised this year. And it should be a brawl. West Virginia's defense is allowing just 12.9 points per game, while Pitt has held opponents to under 16 points in conference play. A lot will ride on the shoulders of sophomore quarterbacks Tino Sunseri and Geno Smith, who could be making the first of three starts against one another. Can either offensive line handle the pressure from the opposing defense? Can either team mount a successful running game? This one might come down to one or two big plays, and both teams have the playmakers to spring one.

4. Pitt receivers vs. West Virginia's secondary: The Panthers and Mountaineers are the two most-talented teams in the league, which leads to some outstanding individual matchups. There's the head-to-head rushing battle between Noel Devine and Dion Lewis, Bruce Irvin versus Jason Pinkston on third down, Tino/Geno, etc. But the one I'm most looking forward to seeing is the Panthers wideouts going against the Mountaineers defensive backs. Jon Baldwin had eight catches for 127 yards last year, but West Virginia's Robert Sands had a key interception in the fourth quarter. Baldwin will likely get matched up against the Big East's best cornerback, Brandon Hogan, while league interceptions leader Keith Tandy will take on Mike Shanahan. Pitt has the tallest receivers in the league, but the 6-foot-5 Sands can give them trouble. Should be fun to watch all day.

5. Heinz special: In a game expected to be close and defensive-minded, special teams could make the difference. Watch what Pitt does if it stalls outside the West Virginia red zone. Panthers kicker Dan Hutchins has been money from inside the 40 but is just 1-for-5 from 40 yards and out, including last week's miss at South Florida that could have sealed the game. Pitt has struggled with special-teams plays in big games (see: Cincinnati 2009, UConn 2010). West Virginia won last year's game on a Tyler Bitancurt field goal. And remember the Heinz Field turf will be chewed up, which could affect footing on kicks.

6. Revved-up Bearcats: An arena football game broke out at Nippert Stadium last week as Cincinnati put up 69 points and 661 yards against Rutgers. The Bearcats got back to balance, as the previously missing running game exploded behind Isaiah Pead's 213-yard effort. And they had only one turnover. The performance was no surprise to Connecticut, which saw Cincinnati put up 711 total yards in last year's 47-45 win over the Huskies. But this year's Bearcats have been far more inconsistent. Did they finally find a groove, or was last week's outburst a product of Rutgers' implosion? West Virginia and Pitt will be hoping for the former.

7. UConn pass attack: The book on beating UConn has been to load up against the run and make quarterback Zach Frazer make plays. The Huskies, after all, have the Big East's worst passing offense. But Cincinnati can't stop anybody through the air; receivers often roam wild in the Bearcats' secondary. The last four Big East opponents have scored at least 31 points against Cincinnati, so Connecticut should have plenty of opportunities to connect on big strikes.

8. A little respect: The Big East went just 2-11 against BCS conference opponents this season, with the wins coming over Maryland (West Virginia) and Vanderbilt (UConn). This week brings a final chance to salvage a little nonconference respect before bowl season, and the opportunities involve the BCS league with which the Big East is most closely aligned: the ACC. In fact, both games (South Florida at Miami and Boston College at Syracuse) feature former Big East teams. The Bulls will be playing for more than league pride; they're looking to score another victory over one of the Big Three in their own state. The Orange, meanwhile, are trying to put a positive cap on a breakthrough season, and to finally give their home fans something to cheer about.

9. Points at a premium? Syracuse has mostly won games in spite of its offense, and the same can be said for Boston College. The Eagles rank just 106th nationally in scoring and will be without star tailback Montel Harris this week. The Orange, meanwhile, are 94th in the country in points scored. Neither Syracuse quarterback Ryan Nassib nor BC counterpart Chase Rettig will blow you away with stats. This could be a big-time defensive battle featuring some outstanding linebackers: Luke Kuechly and Mark Herzlich for the Eagles, and Derrell Smith and Doug Hogue for the Orange. And speaking of tough sledding for the offense, how is South Florida going to move the ball on a fast, aggressive defense that turned Pitt into mush earlier this season?

10. Louisville's pressure vs. Rutgers' offense: Just about every week, we wonder how Rutgers' offensive line is going to hold up against an opposing defense. It's clear by now what the answer is: not well. The Scarlet Knights have another major challenge Friday against a Cardinals defense that is second in the league in sacks and has been playing great overall for the past month or so. Both teams really need this game (see No. 2) and Louisville would like nothing more than to clinch bowl eligibility in the same place it was humiliated at the end of the 2008 season.