ESPN College Football

Earlier today, the Scouts Inc. guys took a look back at their 2006 prospect ratings to determine where they were off and where they hit the mark. I'm a sucker for this kind of stuff, as you may recall, so I thought this was a perfect excuse to do the same for the 2006 Big East recruiting classes.

Biggest busts

Andrey Baskin, WR, Syracuse: Baskin was the fourth-highest rated recruit to sign with a Big East school. But he failed to qualify and never made it to campus.

DeAntwan "Peanut" Whitehead, DE, Louisville: A major coup when the Cardinals landed him out of Alabama, Whitehead hurt his neck as a sophomore and never played again.

John Maddox, WR, West Virginia: A 6-foot-3 athlete who looked like a future contributor if not star, Maddox quit the team after a season.

Aundre Henderson, DT, Louisville: Henderson was a hometown star with a ton of ability. Unfortunately, he never really liked football and quit the sport.

Jamie Nixon, CB, Connecticut: Maybe this is why Randy Edsall doesn't like highly-rated recruits too much. Nixon was ranked as the 18th best cornerback in '06 but never panned out.

Hasn't met expectations ... yet

Brandon Heath, S/LB, Louisville: Heath was the highest-ranked player to sign with a Big East team in '06, checking in at No. 58 in the ESPNU 150. He hasn't lived up to that billing, thanks in large part to injuries. He moved to linebacker this past season and was productive. He has another year of eligibility.

Met expectations

Nate Byham, TE, Pittsburgh: Byham was No. 68 in the ESPNU 150 rankings and justified it as an All-Big East performer.

Dorin Dickerson, TE, Pittsburgh: Dickerson would have been labeled a bust this time a year ago, but the Panthers finally figured out what to do with him as a senior. He's a legitimate pro prospect now.

Jason Pinkston, OL, Pittsburgh: The Panthers' batting average was surprisingly high in 2006, as several signees became major contributors.

Tim Brown, WR, Rutgers: Ranked as one of the Scarlet Knights' top recruits in '06, Brown had a terrific career in Piscataway.

Chris Neild, DL, West Virginia: Neild was ranked among the top tight ends out of high school but made the successful transition to All-Big East nose guard.

Exceeded expectations

Kenny Britt, WR, Rutgers: Rated just a "40" prospect, which is as low as the grading scale goes, Britt was a first-round pick last year after a record-breaking three-year career.

Nate Allen, S, South Florida: The scouts had him listed as the No. 152 quarterback in the class. He should be one of the first safeties picked in the NFL Draft.

Scott Lutrus, Robert McClain, Lindsey Witten, Lawrence Wilson, Zach Hurd, Connecticut: All were unheralded. All turned into top-notch Big East players. Should we even be surprised at that anymore when it comes to the Huskies?

Greg Romeus, DE, Pitt: Another "40" rated player, he was Big East co-defensive player of the year this past season.

Aaron Webster, S, Cincinnati: After attracting little notice out of high school, Webster developed into a starter and key member of a two-time Big East championship defense.

I've found it unusual this week to be writing about Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College while putting together all-decade lists for the Big East. It feels like forever ago that those teams were part of the league, and I know a lot of Big East fans would rather never hear those names again.

So I thought it would be fun to come up with a different sort of all-decade team, one that incorporates only the current teams and the current league format. In other words, only players from 2005 on. So call this the All-Half-Decade Team.

Offense

QB: Pat White, West Virginia

RB: Ray Rice, Rutgers

RB: Steve Slaton, West Virginia

WR: Kenny Britt, Rutgers

WR: Mardy Gilyard, Cincinnati

WR: Harry Douglas, Louisville

OT: Ryan Stanchek, West Virginia

OT: Jeremy Zuttah, Rutgers

C: Eric Wood, Louisville

OG: Trevor Canfield, Cincinnati

OG: Donald Thomas, Connecticut

Defense

DE: Elvis Dumervil, Louisville

DL: Eric Foster, Rutgers

DL: Amobi Okoye, Louisville

DE: George Selvie, South Florida

LB: Scott McKillop, Pittsburgh

LB: H.B. Blades, Pittsburgh

LB: Tyrone McKenzie, South Florida

CB: Darrelle Revis, Pittsburgh

CB: Mike Mickens, Cincinnati

S: Eric Wicks, West Virginia

S: Courtney Greene, Rutgers

Specialists

K: Art Carmody, Louisville

P: Kevin Huber, Cincinnati

• Lots of UConn recruiting talk in Desmond Conner's Hartford Courant blog today.

• Skip Holtz's former players speak very highly of him, Greg Auman writes in the St. Petersburg Times.

• The Tampa Tribune's Scott Carter details how the Holtz hiring went down.

• Keith Sargeant has a Q&A with Kenny Britt in the Home News Tribune.

• This is a couple of days old, but one writer suggests UConn for the next Big Ten team.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

Twenty-seven Big East products had their name called over the weekend in the NFL draft. Three league schools had their best drafts ever.

Cincinnati had six players taken, the most of any Big East team and the most in program history. The previous school record had been five, which happened in 1998, 1960 and 1947. The Bearcats were one of only nine schools to have six or more players drafted this year.

Connecticut had never had a player taken in the first two rounds of the draft before Saturday. Four Huskies went in the first two rounds this year, including the school's first-ever first-rounder, running back Donald Brown.

Rutgers had a record-setting five players drafted, including the Scarlet Knights' first-ever first-rounder, wide receiver Kenny Britt. The most Rutgers had ever previously had drafted in one year was three, in 2007.

Here's a rundown of all the league draft picks and some commentary:

Cincinnati

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Connor Barwin, DE, 2, Houston Texans

• DeAngelo Smith, DB, 5, Dallas Cowboys

• Brandon Underwood, DB, 6, Green Bay Packers

• Mike Mickens, DB, 7, Dallas Cowboys

• Trevor Canfield, OG, 7, Arizona Cardinals

Thoughts: Kind of surprising that Mickens went after Underwood and Smith, when he was generally regarded as the best pro prospect of the three for most of his career. The fifth round is lofty territory for a punter, but Huber is that good.

Connecticut

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Donald Brown, RB, 1, Indianapolis Colts

• Darius Butler, DB, 2, New England Patriots

• Will Beatty, OT, 2, New York Giants

• Cody Brown, OLB, 2, Arizona Cardinals

Thoughts: We thought UConn would have a huge day, and the Huskies sure did.

Louisville

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Eric Wood, C/OG, 1, Buffalo Bills

• George Bussey, OT, 5, New England Patriots

Thoughts: Bussey didn't get much pre-draft buzz, but the Patriots must have liked the former walk-on who became a three-year starter and All-Big East performer. Wood will play guard for the Bills.

Pittsburgh

Player, Position, Round, Team

• LeSean McCoy, RB, 2, Philadelphia Eagles

• Scott McKillop, LB, 5, San Francisco 49ers

• LaRod Stephens-Howling, RB, 7, Arizona Cardinals

• Derek Kinder, WR, 7, Chicago Bears

Thoughts: OK, Pitt fans. How do you feel about McCoy going to Philly? Will you still root for him? Getting McKillop in the fifth round seems like a steal.

Rutgers

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Kenny Britt, WR, 1, Tennessee Titans

• Mike Teel, QB, 6, Seattle Seahawks

• Jason McCourty, DB, 6, Tennessee Titans

• Courtney Greene, DB, 7, Seattle Seahawks

• Tiquan Underwood, WR, 7, Jacksonville Jaguars

Thoughts: I didn't think Teel would get drafted, but good for him. The Titans and Seahawks must have liked Greg Schiano's program.

South Florida

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Tyrone McKenzie, OLB, 3, New England Patriots

Thoughts: Despite all that Florida talent, the Bulls had the smallest draft class in the Big East.

Syracuse

• Ryan Durand, OG, 7, Tennessee Titans

Thoughts: Durand was another guy who wasn't on many mock draft boards. There were some good fullbacks in the Big East, including Pitt's Conredge Collins and Louisville's Brock Bolen. But Fiammetta was the only one drafted.

West Virginia

Player, Position, Round, Team

• Pat White, QB/WR, 2, Miami Dolphins

• Ellis Lankster, CB, 7, Buffalo
Bills

• Pat McAfee, K, 7, Indianapolis

Thoughts: Can't wait to see how the Dolphins, who showed a lot of creativity on offense last year, use White.

Prominent players who went undrafted:

• Hunter Cantwell, Louisville

• Greg Isdaner and Mortty Ivy, West Virginia

• Jamaal Westerman, Rutgers

• C.J. Davis, Pittsburgh

• Julius Williams, UConn

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

• Bill Stewart has left no doubt that West Virginia is Jarrett Brown's team, Mike Casazza writes in the Charleston Daily Mail.

• UConn will probably split carries in the backfield, but Jordan Todman is the Huskies' most electrifying runner, John F. Silver writes in the Journal-Inquirer.

• The Star-Ledger's Tom Luicci doesn't understand why former Rutgers star receiver Kenny Britt is being labeled as a possible problem child as the NFL draft approaches.

• The Cincinnati Enquirer's Paul Daugherty says he has never seen anything like the way Connor Barwin has willed himself into becoming a top-flight NFL prospect.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

More than 40 scouts from 27 NFL teams came to Piscataway Monday to watch Rutgers players on the Scarlet Knights' pro day.

Eleven players from last year's team and six former Scarlet Knights from past seasons participated in the series of workouts.

The biggest names of course, were Kenny Britt, Courtney Greene and Tiquan Underwood, who each performed only certain events since they had already been through the combine in February.

The top 40-yard dash of the day came from cornerback Jason McCourty, who ran a 4.32. Underwood was right behind with a 4.34, while Britt finished at 4.40. Linebacker Kevin Malast showed good speed with a 4.60 and defensive lineman Jamaal Westerman posted a 4.78.

The full results can be found here.

Rutgers returns to spring practice on Tuesday after taking a week off for spring break.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

The NFL combine is over for several position players. The NFL released its list of top performers in seven different workout categories from the weekend.

Here are the top Big East workout warriors from the combine so far (not every player or position groups participated in every event):

40-Yard Dash:

• Pat White was the fastest quarterback at 4.55 seconds.

• Donald Brown was the fifth-fastest running back at 4.51 seconds.

• Tiquan Underwood ranked sixth among receivers at 4.41 seconds.

• Will Beatty was fourth among offensive linemen at 5.12 seconds.

• Connor Barwin was the second-fastest defensive lineman at 4.56 seconds. Cody Brown was the seventh-fastest at 4.84 seconds.

Bench Press:

• Tony Fiammetta was first among running backs with 30 reps at 225 pounds.

• Kenny Britt ranked second among receivers at 23 reps. Taurus Johnson was sixth with 18 reps.

• Eric Wood tied for 10th among offensive linemen with 30 reps.

• Adrian Grady tied for seventh among defensive linemen with 31 reps.

• Scott McKillop and Tyrone McKenzie tied for fifth among linebackers with 27 reps each.

Vertical Jump:

• White led all quarterbacks with a 35-inch vertical jump.

• Donald Brown led all running backs at 41.5 inches.

• Underwood was second among receivers with a 41.5 inch leap. Britt was 10th at 37 inches.

• Beatty was fifth among offensive linemen at 33.5 inches, while Wood tied for ninth at 30.5.

• Barwin led all defensive linemen at 40.5 inches, while Cody Brown was sixth at 36.5.

Broad Jump:

• White was second among quarterbacks at nine feet, nine inches.

• Donald Brown ranked second among running backs at 10 feet, five inches.

• Underwood was second among receivers at 10 feet, nine inches, while Britt was eighth at 10 feet, four inches.

• Beatty was ninth among offensive linemen at eight feet, 11 inches.

Three-cone Drill:

• White was sixth among quarterbacks at 7.06 seconds.

• Donald Brown's 6.93 seconds tied for eighth among running backs.

• Underwood led all receivers at 6.62 seconds.

• Wood was eighth and Beatty 10th among offensive linemen at 7.56 and 7.62 seconds, respectively.

20-Yard Shuttle:

• White was sixth among quarterbacks at 4.42 seconds.

• Donald Brown was the second-fastest running back at 4.10 seconds.

• Underwood was the third-quickest wideout at 4.11 seconds.

• Wood ranked fourth in the offensive linemen group at 4.51 seconds

60-Yard Shuttle:

• Donald Brown led all running backs at 11.30 seconds.

Thoughts:

• Donald Brown did not get enough credit nationally for his superior athleticism. He had to have helped his stock with some great Combine performances across the board.

• LeSean McCoy did not go through drills because he had the flu. Too bad. I would love to see his numbers in comparison to Brown.

• Barwin and Cody Brown showed off their athleticism, but it's likely that neither will be a true defensive linemen in the NFL. They could move to linebacker or, in Barwin's case, play some tight end.

• No surprise that White was the swiftest quarterback, but his 4.55 time in the 40 wasn't eye-popping. Still, I've always thought that White was faster than most people in actual game conditions, if that makes sense. He's got a burst and an instinct for avoiding people that's hard to measure. He's planning on doing some receiving drills at West Virginia's pro day.

• Beatty, who flew way under the national radar, showed some good agility at the combine. He could be a first-day pick.

• Britt reportedly ran a 4.52, which was slow among a fast group of wideouts. But with the strength he showed in the bench press, along with his size and leaping ability, Britt is definitely fast enough to be considered a big-time NFL prospect. His Rutgers teammate, Underwood, displayed great speed but reportedly only managed seven reps on the 225-pound bench press.

• I guess it measures overall athleticism, but how much jumping do offensive linemen really have to do in a game?

• The Big East must have some talent, huh?

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

The NFL combine officially begins Wednesday, as players check in for the event in Indianapolis. They'll do interviews and psychological testing through Friday before workouts start on Saturday.

This is the most important job interview ever for the 25 Big East players who were invited to the combine.

The workouts will once again be televised on the NFL Network. Here's a schedule of which position groups go when and which former Big East players will be going through the paces:

Saturday

• Offensive linemen, specialists, tight ends
• Big East participants: Will Beatty, UConn; Eric Wood, Louisville; C.J. Davis, Pitt; Greg Isdaner, West Virginia; Kevin Huber and Trevor Canfield, Cincinnati.

Sunday

• Quarterbacks, wide receivers, running backs
• Big East participants: Pat White, West Virginia; LeSean McCoy, Pitt; Donald Brown, UConn; Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood, Rutgers; Hunter Cantwell, Louisville; Taurus Johnson, South Florida; Tony Fiammetta, Syracuse.

Monday

• Defensive linemen, linebackers
• Big East participants: Scott McKillop, Pitt; Connor Barwin*, Cincinnati; Cody Brown, UConn; Tyrone McKenzie, South Florida; Adrian Grady, Louisville; Mortty Ivy, West Virginia.

Tuesday

• Defensive backs
• Big East participants: Darius Butler, UConn; Mike Mickens, Brandon Underwood and DeAngelo Smith, Cincinnati; Courtney Greene, Rutgers.

* Barwin is also expected to work out at tight end

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

This is going to be a stellar class for Rutgers, but the Scarlet Knights missed out on one of their top targets.

Justin Brown, a 6-foot-3 receiver from Delaware, has chosen Penn State in a tight recruiting battle. Brown would have been a great fit for the Scarlet Knights, who are looking to replace both Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood. But Joe Paterno foiled those plans.

On the plus side, Rutgers landed tight end Malcolm Bush from Hackensack, N.J. Bush was also considering fellow Big East schools Syracuse, Pitt and UConn. Bush had decommitted from the Scarlet Knights in the fall but now is back in the fold.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

Want to know why Cincinnati won the Big East? Take a look at the NFL Combine invitation list.

Six Bearcats have been invited to the prestigious pre-draft event, most of any league team. In all, 25 Big East players will be auditioning for NFL teams in Indianapolis from Feb. 18-24. Here's the list of players going from the conference:

Cincinnati:

Connor Barwin, DE/TE

Trevor Canfield, OG

Kevin Huber, P

Mike Mickens, CB

DeAngelo Smith, CB

Brandon Underwood, FS

Connecticut:

Will Beatty, OT

Cody Brown, DE

Donald Brown, RB

Darius Butler, CB

Louisville:

Hunter Cantwell, QB

Eric Wood, C

Adrian Grady, DL

Pittsburgh:

C.J. Davis, OL

LeSean McCoy, RB

Scott McKillop, LB

Rutgers:

Kenny Britt, WR

Courtney Greene, SS

Tiquan Underwood, WR

South Florida:

Taurus Johnson, WR

Tyrone McKenzie, LB

Syracuse:

Tony Fiammetta, FB

West Virginia:

Greg Isdaner, OL

Pat White, QB

Mortty Ivy, LB

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

My Pac-10 counterpart Ted Miller did this earlier in the week, and I'm blatantly stealing the idea. Want to know how accurate recruiting rankings are? Let's take a look at this year's All-Big East team and see how each player was rated by the two major star-system recruiting services (where the two differ, I note the high and low end):

OFFENSE

QB Pat White (two to three stars)

RB Donald Brown (two to three stars)

RB LeSean McCoy (four to five stars)

WR Mardy Gilyard (two stars)

WR Kenny Britt (three to four stars)

TE Nate Byham (four to five stars)

OT Will Beatty (one to two stars)

OT Ryan Stanchek (two stars)

OG George Bussey (zero to one star)

OG C.J. Davis (two stars)

C Eric Wood (two stars)

DEFENSE

DL Connor Barwin (two stars)

DL Cody Brown (two stars)

DL George Selvie (one to two stars)

DL Arthur Jones (three to two stars)

LB Scott McKillop (three stars)

LB Tyrone McKenzie (two to three stars)

LB Mortty Ivy (two stars)

CB Mike Mickens (two stars)

CB Darius Butler (one to two stars)

S Brandon Underwood (three stars)

S Courtney Greene (one to two stars)

Thoughts:

Big East teams don't get a lot of "five-star" guys, but plenty of four-star players make their way into the league. I find it very interesting that the only two players on this list to reach that level were McCoy -- a no-brainer -- and Byham, who had a solid but hardly spectacular year in a league without many productive tight ends.

Offensive linemen are probably the hardest guys to evaluate, and whoever was evaluating the Big East prospects proved that. Not one of the All-Big East first team offensive linemen earned more than two stars, and the former walk-on Bussey and left tackle Beatty were rated the same as your average throw-in prospect. This isn't a bad crop, either; Wood, Beatty and Stanchek should all get drafted, with Davis and Bussey having a shot, too.

And, yes -- someone really watched Selvie and Butler play and rated them as one-star prospects. That really happened. To be fair, Selvie played center in high school and his best quality -- desire -- is hard to measure. But we're talking about a two-time All-American. And Butler's athleticism is hard to deny.

I get that White was hard to judge as a quarterback, and that a lot of teams were recruiting him as a receiver or just an all-around athlete. But for him to garner only two or three stars is absurd. Here are some of the players who were ranked as the top dual-threat quarterbacks in 2004: Robbie Reid, Kirby Freeman, Nick Patton, Larry Lerlegan and D.T McDowell. Would you trade any of them for Pat White? Heck, would you trade all of them for Pat White?

There are always going to be can't-miss prospects, and there are going to be players who improve greatly through sheer hard work and maturation. Recruiting rankings can be a useful guide and fun to look at, but if you think they predict which players will turn out to be the best in their leagues, think again. Keep this list in mind come next Wednesday, and remember to curb your enthusiasm.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

As I've said before, I'm not a huge fan of recruiting news, and I certainly don't follow it year-round like some obsessed fans.

But one of the things I do like about it is the down-to-the-wire suspense of some key recruiting battles. When schools get all the way to signing day and still don't know where one of their top targets is going, well, count me in.

As far as the Big East is concerned, one of late recruiting skirmishes I'll be watching is the fight over Delaware receiver Justin Brown. He's one of the better uncommitted prospects still out there -- ESPN's Scouts Inc. ranks him as the 22nd-best receiver in the country -- and Brown has narrowed his choices to Rutgers and Penn State.

Here is part of the Scouts Inc. evaluation of the 6-foot-3, 209-pound Brown:

"Brown is a big physical receiver that possesses very good straight-line speed and excellent hands. He tears up the competition he is facing and at times can be a dominant player. ... Overall, the thing about Brown that is so impressive is his ability to catch anything thrown his way. His size allows for him to create mismatches, especially in the red [zone] area, and he is very competitive."

Does this description remind anyone else of Kenny Britt?

Brown took his visit to Rutgers in early December and went to State College earlier this month. Penn State is widely believed to be the frontrunner, but Brown has said he may not announce a decision until signing day.

What's most interesting about this to me is what it says about Rutgers. For years, Penn State has ruled Delaware (and many other parts of the East Coast). But as the Scarlet Knights have improved, they've been able to beat out the Nittany Lions for players in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and now Delaware.

Greg Schiano already has three commitments from Delaware players in this year's class, including twins Jamil and Jamal Merrell. His recruiting director, Joe Susan, is a University of Delaware graduate. If Schiano can beat out Joe Paterno for a player both coaches really want, that would speak volumes about how far Rutgers' program has progressed.

What other recruiting battles are you watching in this final dash to signing day?

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

The upcoming Rutgers signing class has probably generated more buzz than any recruiting group in school history.

The Scarlet Knights were ranked in the Top 10 nationally at one point this summer before a flurry of decommitments knocked their status down a bit. But Greg Schiano and his staff have withstood those setbacks and picked up some more hyped prospects.

What are the program's biggest needs? The first priority is to find an heir to quarterback Mike Teel, and highly-touted incoming freshman Tom Savage accomplishes that goal in this class. The Scarlet Knights also lost two of the best receivers in school history in Kenny Britt and Tiquan Underwood. Though they have some promising youngsters waiting in the wings in Keith Stroud and Marcus Cooper, more depth is needed at the position.

Rutgers has a young offensive line, so that area is not a major priority in recruiting this year. The defensive line needs some restocking with the departures of Jamaal Westerman and Pete Tverdov, but it has solid, young contributors. The unit could use some more size on the interior, which is where 330-pound tackle prospect Antwan Lowery fits in.

The defensive backfield probably poses the most pressing need, with the loss of seniors Courtney Greene and Jason McCourty and a lack of experience behind them.

Overall, the Scarlet Knights ended 2008 on a seven-game winning streak with a relatively young core. If they fill the few key gaps on the roster and add depth in this class, they should be able to contend for the Big East title the next couple of years.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

If you've been watching the NFL playoffs, then you know that Larry Fitzgerald is the breakout star of the postseason thus far. Lots of analysts are now saying that the fifth-year Arizona Cardinals wideout has sprung to the head of the class among pro receivers.

	AP
	Larry Fitzgerald won the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award and the Biletnikoff Award in '03.

None of this comes as a surprise to Pittsburgh Panthers fans, who watched Fitzgerald dominate in college during his two seasons on campus.

So the question I bring to you here today is this: Is Fitzgerald the best receiver in Big East history?

We had some fun during the season with the discussion about whether Pat White was the league's greatest player ever. It's easier to have these debates in the Big East, since the conference has been around for fewer than 20 years.

The case against Fitzgerald would be that he only played 26 games as a collegian. But there's never been a better receiving season in the league than what he produced in 2003, when he caught 92 passes for a ridiculous 1,672 yards and 22 touchdowns.

His 34 career touchdowns are still the league record despite his short career. He also finished second in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 2003 (behind Oklahoma's system-quarterback Jason White -- any chance we could get a recount?) and won the Walter Camp Award as the nation's best player.

Put it this way: Kenny Britt just compiled the second-highest season total for receiving yards in Big East history -- and he was 301 yards short of Fitzgerald's 2003 mark. Britt is the league's career leader in receiving yards, but his 17 touchdowns are half of Fitzgerald's total in one more season.

Other top candidates for the honor would include Antonio Bryant, Fitzgerald's predecessor as Pitt's No. 1 wideout; Miami's Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Santana Moss; Louisville's Harry Douglas; Syracuse's Marvin Harrison; and West Virginia's Chris Henry.

I think it's a slam dunk to put Fitzgerald No. 1. If I had to rank the top six, it would look something like this (remember, we're talking college years only):

1. Fitzgerald
2. Bryant
3. Britt
4. Harrison
5. Moss
6. Douglas

(Whew, that was more difficult than I thought. It's hard to imagine that I left Johnson and Wayne off there. Has any other league produced more top-flight receivers than the Big East in recent years?)

Anyway, that's my take. Do you agree that Fitzgerald is the best Big East receiver ever? If not, for whom would you vote? Hit me up with your thoughts and we'll hash it out before next week's Super Bowl.

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

Donald Brown, Connecticut: The Big East offensive player of the year ended his college days in style, rushing for a career-high 261 yards and eclipsing 2,000 yards for the season in UConn's 38-20 International Bowl win over Buffalo.

Pat White, West Virginia: White added one final indelible moment to his incredible career by throwing for a career-best 332 yards and completing 26 of 32 passes with three touchdowns to lead the Mountaineers to a 31-30 Meineke Car Care Bowl win over North Carolina. He also rushed for 55 yards.

Mike Teel, Rutgers: The senior finished with yet another 300-yard passing day, completing 22 of 37 passes for 319 yards and two scores as Rutgers beat NC State, 29-23, in the Papajohns.com Bowl.

Matt Grothe, South Florida: In his best performance in several weeks, the junior quarterback went 17-for-24 for 236 yards and threw three touchdowns and no interceptions in the 41-14 magicJack St. Petersburg Bowl rout of Memphis. Grothe played less than three quarters in that game as well.

Pat Lazear, West Virginia: Buried on the bench earlier in the year, the sophomore linebacker came up with the biggest defensive play in the Meineke game, intercepting North Carolina quarterback T.J. Yates with less than two minutes left.

Kenny Britt, Rutgers: The junior receiver piled up 119 receiving yards on just six catches, including a 42-yard score, in the win over NC State. Britt finished as the Big East's career leader in receiving yards before declaring for the NFL draft.

Mardy Gilyard, Cincinnati: In an otherwise dreary offensive effort by his team, Gilyard had seven catches for 158 yards in the Bearcats' 20-7 loss to Virginia Tech at the FedEx Orange Bowl.

Robert McClain, Connecticut: The safety came up with several big hits and made Buffalo receivers gun shy as the Huskies limited the Bulls' high-flying passing attack to just 213 yards.