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Is there such a thing as a Big East coach being hated because he wins too much?

The answer is clearly no when you look at the current group of head coaches. Three of them have never coached in a Big East game. Three are going into their third seasons in the league and are barely above .500. Paul Pasqualoni has a bushel-full of victories, but nearly all of them came at Syracuse two decades ago.

So let us take a dip back into history to find an answer. Here are the all-time winningest coaches in Big East history, by overall percentage. I am using this statistic because many of the biggest winners do not stick around the Big East for long.

• Larry Coker, Miami: 35-3 (.921)
• Dennis Erickson, Miami: 42-6 (.875)
• Brian Kelly, Cincinnati: 34-6 (.850)
• Bobby Petrino, Louisville: 21-4 (.840)
• Butch Davis, Miami: 51-20 (.718)
• Bill Stewart, West Virginia: 28-12 (.700)
• Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia: 60-26 (.698)
• Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech: 108-48-1 (.691)

The conclusion is an easy one: Much more than one hated coach, Miami was a hated team because of all the wins it racked up while playing in the Big East from 1991-2003. That includes two national championships and seven Big East titles, more than any other school. Coker was never vilified or hated. The man is impossibly nice.

Davis' image took much more of a hit at North Carolina because he left the place in scandal, with two major investigations hanging over the program. While at Miami, he was lauded as the man who saved the program from NCAA sanctions. It is hard to hate a coach who won 10 games only once in his career.

Erickson simply took over for Jimmy Johnson and continued what was started.

But the assignment is to find a coach hated for winning. Let's look at some of the other names on the list. Kelly and Petrino were hated much more for the ways they left their programs. Kelly only coached three years in the Big East; Petrino only two in the Big East. I can't imagine their short stays struck fear into the hearts of opponents, despite all the victories.

So let's turn the focus to Rodriguez. He, more than any of the aforementioned coaches, probably fits the bill. In his final three seasons in Morgantown, Rodriguez won two league championships and had three 11-win seasons. His team went undefeated in league play in 2005, one of only two teams to accomplish the feat in the past seven years. He won with swagger and style, and some of the best athletes in Big East history.

But I used the word probably. Because as great as Rodriguez was, his on-field coaching career in the Big East will be defined by what he didn't do in 2007. West Virginia was ranked No. 2 in the country going into the regular-season finale against Pitt in the always-heated Backyard Brawl. Win, and the Mountaineers would be playing for the school's first national title. Pitt was already out of the bowl picture, entering the game at 4-7. West Virginia was a 28 1/2-point favorite.

Slam dunk, right? Well, you guys know what happened. Pitt pulled one of the biggest upsets in the series, and Rodriguez went packing to Michigan. The loss will always follow Rodriguez, despite all of his wins in the league. On the day he needed a win most of all, he failed. But that loss did not make him a villain in Morgantown. Leaving did.

That is why it is hard to anoint any Big East coach as somebody hated for winning.

Current Big East coaches' career records in the league:

• Paul Pasqualoni, Syracuse and UConn: 112-63-1
• Doug Marrone, Syracuse: 17-20
• Butch Jones, Cincinnati: 14-11
• Charlie Strong, Louisville: 14-12
• Skip Holtz, USF: 13-12
• Steve Addazio, Temple: 0-0
• Paul Chryst, Pitt: 0-0
• Kyle Flood, Rutgers: 0-0

Syracuse is not at the Big East spring meetings, but I did have a chance to catch up with coach Doug Marrone at the ACC meetings on Amelia Island. One quick note before I get to the Q&A. I asked Marrone for an injury update, and he said he would provide one as fall practice gets closer. So still no answers on when many of his key players will be back. Stay tuned.

We have heard a lot this spring about Ashton Broyld. Describe what makes him so special.

Doug Marrone: He’s an outstanding athlete. In my time there, I haven’t had many players who have possessed that type of talent level. From that standpoint he’s going through his first spring. So we are looking to find ways to get him involved because he’s someone that can make plays and has that ability. We have to do a very good job of finding ways of making sure how we insert him into our offense moving forward. But it’s a good problem, not a bad problem.

He was listed as a running back on the depth chart. Will he stay there or be used in a variety of ways like receiver and quarterback?

DM: We’re open to all those plans, so again a lot of it is based on the type of productivity we can get from him in what areas or what positions or where it may be on the offense and how we progress him and how much he can or cannot handle. It’s a matter of what the other people are able to do at the positions around him to put him where it’s best needed for us to score more points.

One of the problems that has plagued you guys has been inconsistency on offense. How will you be better this season?

DM: We changed a lot of things offensively in what we’re doing and the reason why we’ve done that is to be able to create that type of consistency. When you look at it, we did a very good job in just one area of third down; we led the Big East in third-down conversions. Well why was that successful? Those are the questions we asked ourselves, and then trying to take that philosophy and putting it into what we do offensively to have that type of consistency. We’ve gone forward in looking to make some changes, to become a better football team and that’s what we did this spring.

What was the biggest thing you learned about the way last season went?

DM: I think obviously we’re all disappointed, being in a good position, at 5-2 and not being able to turn that around and creating more wins always leaves a bad taste not only for coaches and fans and administrators but players and everyone involved in the program. For us, it was to go ahead, create a level of expectations for us so we can remain and do a better job during the year. A lot about character is how you respond to that. We have to do a better job, starting with me. Responding to that adversity and being able to move forward.

Ryan Nassib took some steps forward last year. What does he need to do to become an elite quarterback?

DM: I just think we need him to do what we plan on him doing. We don’t need him to go the extra mile and push so hard on himself. He’s a very competitive person. We have to make sure we have the right people in place around him for us to be successful. You look at all the offenses, whether it’s the NFL or college football. There are other people around making plays. For us to succeed offensively, we have to make more plays. We’ve generated more yardage but not at a rate we would probably like to but we haven’t generated more yards per play and that’s what’s keeping us back. We’re hoping with some of the changes we’ve made that we’re able to open it up and do some things where we have from a percentage standpoint the ability to make bigger plays per play. We have to make more plays, whether that’s at the quarterback position, running back position, tight end, receiver. We have to generate more plays.

Time for my long-awaited post-spring power rankings. I made only a few changes from the pre-spring rankings. Here goes ...

1. Louisville: Quarterback Teddy Bridgewater looked better than ever this spring, giving me renewed confidence the Cardinals are going to be the preseason favorite in the league. The secondary should be exceptionally strong, and the offensive line should be better. Questions remain at running back and with depth in the front seven. But of all the teams in the league, I think the Cardinals have the most stability headed into the season. Plus, it hugely helps to have Charlie Strong entering Year 3.

2. USF: Big jump for the Bulls. I know I said I refused to buy into USF until the Bulls actually do something. But what they have returning is hard to ignore. Generally speaking, teams with 18 returning starters -- many of them seniors -- do really well. So do teams with veteran starting quarterbacks. While USF still has some major question marks on paper -- can B.J. Daniels develop, what happens at running back, where is the depth at linebacker -- the Bulls look like they have a shot.

3. Rutgers: At one time, I had Rutgers as my preseason favorite. But I am a little nervous about the situation at quarterback. I thought there would be a resolution this spring, but neither Chas Dodd nor Gary Nova did much to impress. Mohamed Sanu is gone, there are more shifts on the offensive line, and the running game has to prove something. I think the defense will be the best in the Big East. The offense is scaring me right now, which is why I moved the Scarlet Knights down.

4. Cincinnati: The Bearcats do return talent, and players who saw some significant action last season. But they also lose 21 seniors, including Big East Offensive Player of the Year Isaiah Pead and Big East Co-Defensive Player of the Year Derek Wolfe. I don't have any doubts that the Bearcats will have a good season. I just don't know if they will win another championship.

5. Pitt: If there is any team with "ifs" all over the roster, it is the Panthers. They have a new head coach. They are returning Tino Sunseri at quarterback. Nobody knows how Ray Graham is going to do after major knee surgery. The offensive line has to be better. There is not much depth on the defensive line. If all of these come together, the Panthers could be really good. If they don't, they could be really bad.

6. UConn: The Huskies will be good on defense. But what about quarterback? I feel like a broken record saying the same thing over again. Quarterback uncertainty always makes me hesitant to rank a team in the top half of the league. I was hesitant last year, and I am hesitant again this year.

7. Syracuse: I have said this before, but it bears repeating: I think Syracuse is the hardest team to gauge in the Big East. The Orange have to be more consistent on offense. They have to find a running game to help ease some of the burden off quarterback Ryan Nassib. Does Ashton Broyld give them enough to get them more explosive plays? The defense still has depth concerns in the front seven.

8. Temple: I worry about how the Owls will make the transition to the Big East in Year 1. I think Temple has a good team, but the Owls also lost a lot of their best players and have depth concerns on the offensive and defensive lines. That is enough to worry any coach in Year 1 in a major conference.

Before he became one of the most successful wide receivers in NFL history, Art Monk was a collegiate running back.

Monk, who was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame on Tuesday, looked like he might follow in the footsteps of great Syracuse running backs like Jim Brown and Ernie Davis. He rushed for more than 560 yards as a sophomore and a junior.

But Monk eventually proved even more valuable as a receiver, where he became an All-American as a senior in 1979. He set the school record for receptions in a game with 14 against Navy in 1977. He finished his career with 102 catches for 1,644 yards, plus 1,140 rushing yards. Monk ranks seventh on the Syracuse all-time list for career receptions and eighth in receiving yards.

Monk, of course, made an even bigger mark in the pros. A first-round pick in the 1980 NFL draft, he spent the bulk of his career with the Washington Redskins, where he won two Super Bowl rings.

The three-time Pro Bowler became the NFL’s all-time leader in receptions with 820 in 1992 and was the first wide receiver in the NFL to eclipse 900 career catches. He also set an NFL record with a streak of 183 games with a reception.

Monk was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008. Now, he becomes Syracuse's 18th player or coach to be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

Another suit has been filed against the embattled Big East.

This time, Pitt has filed a complaint in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, saying the Big East has waived its right to enforce the required 27-month waiting period. Therefore, the Panthers should be allowed to join the ACC without further penalty in time for the 2013-14 season.

Previously, former commissioner John Marinatto and Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson seemed hopeful the two sides could reach a resolution about allowing the Panthers to leave a year earlier than July 1, 2014. But it appears there was growing frustration from Pitt. Here is more from the AP story:

Marinatto and Pitt athletic director Steve Pederson met recently to discuss the matter. School officials said subsequent attempts by the school to begin more detailed talks were unsuccessful, leading them to believe they would not occur.

Big East spokesman John Paquette called the legal maneuver "disappointing" and said the conference had reached out to Pitt.

Pitt spokesman E.J. Borghetti said the goal is to get a resolution through private negotiations but extensively laid out its argument in court papers.

Pitt also is concerned about the change in leadership at the Big East. Regardless of commissioner, it is the university presidents in the Big East that would have been charged with making a decision about Pitt and Syracuse, which is also leaving for the ACC.

Syracuse athletic director Daryl Gross told the Syracuse Post-Standard the school was still negotiating with the Big East about withdrawing in time for the 2013-14 season, but was keeping all its options open.

Andrea Adelson picks three games to watch in the Big East this season.

With the season coming into view, let's take a look at what we learned in the Big East this spring.

1. Running backs have to prove themselves. Isaiah Pead is gone. Antwon Bailey is gone. Ray Graham is coming off a serious knee injury. There are some major question marks at virtually every Big East school at this position headed into the fall. Chief among them -- how does Graham do a year removed from ACL surgery? How do Cincinnati, Syracuse and Louisville spread the ball to their various running backs? How does Temple replace the production of Bernard Pierce? Does Savon Huggins improve on his injury-shortened freshman season at Rutgers? How is Lindsey Lamar used in the backfield at USF? Can Lyle McCombs repeat as a 1,000-yard rusher for UConn?

2. Next sack leader? The Big East generally has some of the top leaders in sacks in the country. Last year, it was Trevardo Williams and Aaron Donald who emerged to finish in the Top 10. The year before, it was first-year Big East player Bruce Irvin. So who is the next Big East player to lead the charge? USF defensive end Ryne Giddins, Cincinnati defensive end Walter Stewart and UConn tackle Ryan Wirth all had terrific springs so keep those names in mind as the season begins.

3. Earth to offense. We had an inkling that the Big East defenses would be way ahead of the offenses this spring, and that all came to fruition once the spring games were played. Defenses essentially dominated at nearly every school. Syracuse did not score a point on offense; UConn had two total offensive touchdowns; USF quarterback B.J. Daniels went 9-of-26 for 88 yards in the Bulls' spring game; Chris Coyer and his receivers struggled in the Temple spring game; and the Pitt passing game was just so-so in its final scrimmage. While it is true defenses are usually ahead of the offenses in the early going of practices, it is obvious most every offensive unit needs to get much better this offseason.

4. Bridgewater: Rising star. It was apparent that Louisville had a special player in Teddy Bridgewater last season. But worries about a potential "sophomore slump" have been temporarily put to rest after the spring he had. Bridgewater was stellar in the spring game, going 19-of-21 for 257 yards and three touchdowns. Afterward, offensive coordinator Shawn Watson said that Bridgewater completed about 70 percent of his passes in the spring. "I know he's been lights out," Watson said. "He's really played very well. I challenged him with the things he needed to get better with and use all the tools he has available to him. As a young player, he didn't quite get it. Now he's getting it. You're seeing a lot more completions now. He's worked hard. He's doing a lot of good things with his eyes and playing well."

5. Athletes (almost) everywhere. One trend to watch is the conversion of quarterbacks to running backs/receivers. Cincinnati moved Jordan Luallen to receiver, and he is expected to see time as a Wildcat quarterback as well. Ashton Broyld has been moved to running back, though he also played receiver in the spring game. Louisville converted quarterback Dominique Brown to running back last fall, and he is in contention to win the starting job. Temple running back Jalen Fitzpatrick was recruited as a quarterback out of high school. Those four players have the potential to be huge assets to their team. There were a few other notable position switches as well -- Lindsey Lamar is now at running back at USF; and Jeremy Deering is now a receiver at Rutgers.

ESPN and the ACC have agreed to extend their rights deal through the 2026-27 school year, as the network will televise more conference sports across all platforms.

The part of the deal that is of particular interest to readers of this space: 14 more football games will be added once Syracuse and Pitt join the ACC, including three Friday night contests (one of which, hosted by Boston College and Syracuse, will be played the day after Thanksgiving).

"We are proud that ESPN has invested so deeply in the ACC both from a resource and exposure standpoint," ACC commissioner John Swofford said. "As we look to the future, this relationship will be tremendous for our schools, fans, coaches and student-athletes."

More details on the deal can be found here.

Anybody who has watched the Big East in recent years realizes this a much more defensive league, than offensive league.

Last season, seven of the eight teams ranked in the top half of the nation in total defense. The "worst" defense, Syracuse, ranked No. 64 -- just outside the top half. In 2010, six of eight teams ranked in the top half of the nation in the same category. The "worst" two defenses -- Cincinnati and Rutgers -- were ranked No. 61 and 63, respectively. In 2009, the worst defense, Cincinnati, ranked No. 67 in the nation.

I went back and looked at recent draft history to see how this translated to the next level.

Sure enough, defensive players were selected more than offensive players, and in higher rounds to boot.

In the past two drafts, 21 of the 34 players selected came from the defense. In the recently concluded NFL draft, eight of the 12 Big East players came from the defense. More pronounced, five of the seven players drafted in the first three rounds were defensive, and all played defensive line (Bruce Irvin, Chandler Jones, Derek Wolfe, Kendall Reyes and John Hughes).

Going back to the 2010 draft, 12 of the 16 players taken in the first three rounds were on defense.

We can continue looking a bit deeper to see defensive line has been an incredible strength, not just in the draft this year. In the past four drafts, the Big East has had at least one defensive lineman drafted in the first three rounds. Last year, two of the first four Big East picks were linemen. In 2010, Jason Pierre-Paul of USF went in the first round.

Coaches like Charlie Strong, Greg Schiano, Randy Edsall, Dave Wannstedt, Paul Pasqualoni and Jim Leavitt all have had a hand in the transformation, given their defensive backgrounds.

So will the trend hold for the 2013 draft?

In the super early mock drafts for next season, there are no Big East players listed in the first round. But CBS Sports already has a listing of the top draft prospects, by position. Eleven defensive players are listed among the Top 25 players at their respective positions, compared to five on offense.

However, there are more offensive players ranked among the Top 5 at their positions. Justin Pugh of Syracuse is listed as the No. 4 offensive tackle; Ray Graham of Pitt is listed as the No. 5 running back; and Ryan Griffin of UConn is listed as the No. 5 tight end.

The top-ranked defensive player is Khaseem Greene, at No. 6 among outside linebackers. Sio Moore of UConn also makes that list, at No. 9.

There is obviously an entire season of football to be played, and all these projections will change. But the way the Big East's defensive players have emerged is a trend worth noting.

The best Big East rivalry may never be played again, now that expansion has changed the face of college football.

Pitt and West Virginia had made a living hating each other, a bitter rivalry that really transcended the Big East and became one of the most heated in the entire country. Think of rivalry games, and think of the Backyard Brawl.

No future meetings between the two schools have been scheduled, with West Virginia beginning play in the Big 12 in 2012 and Pitt on its way out to the ACC. So what does that leave the Big East in terms of true league rivalries?

The longest running one remaining is Pitt-Syracuse. The two schools first met in 1916 and have played 67 times, including every year since 1955. But alas, those two schools are on their way out of the Big East.

So turn your attention to Cincinnati-Louisville. These two schools first played in 1922 and have met 52 times, with the rivalry starting back up in 1996 after a three-year hiatus. Cincinnati leads the series 30-21-1 and has won the last four.

But that could very well change in 2012.

While there may not be much national cache to the rivalry game between the two programs, all the ingredients are there for the intensity to ratchet up another notch between the two.

• The game already has a nifty trophy. The "Keg of Nails" has been handed out to the winner of this game since 1929, when fraternity chapters on both campuses decided the victorious players were tough as nails. The trophy is a replica of a keg that was used to ship nails and features the logos of both schools and the scores of every game. This rivalry is not merely contained to the Big East, either. The two were also Missouri Valley and Conference USA rivals.
• They are virtually neighbors. In the newly far-flung Big East, that counts for something. The two schools are a mere 106 miles away from each other.
• The two programs are on the rise, with coaches on the rise. Both Louisville coach Charlie Strong and Cincinnati coach Butch Jones head into their third seasons as Big East champions, and it seems pretty clear that neither one is going to stop at one, either. Louisville is expected to contend for the Big East championship this season; Cincinnati may have lost a bunch of starters but there is plenty of talent on the roster. Both coaches have become "hot" names in coaching circles because of their successes, and both have pledged their commitment to their respective programs. You can definitely see this game having pivotal implications in the race for the conference championship in the years to come.

While it is true that both schools have other rivals (Louisville has Kentucky; Cincinnati has Miami (Ohio) and Pitt), nobody says rivalries have to be exclusive. Michigan has Michigan State and Ohio State; Florida has Tennessee, Florida State and Georgia; Florida State has Florida and Miami; Oklahoma has Texas and Oklahoma State; Texas has Oklahoma and Texas A&M.

In the cases of all those rivalries, the greater the stakes, the greater the intensity, the greater the scrutiny. Florida State-Miami has lost a bit of its luster, compared to the 1980s and 1990s. If Cincinnati and Louisville are competing for Big East and national championships every year, the game will grow in national stature.

Here are a few other potential rivalry games in the new Big East:

USF vs. UCF: The War on I-4 has been played four times, with USF winning all meetings. Bulls fans will say this is not a rivalry because they have dominated the series, last played in 2008. There is no question the hatred is there, one of the key components to any good rivalry. USF fans look down at UCF as being a whiny little brother; UCF fans think USF fans are entitled for no apparent reason. Let the rivalry resume!

Temple vs. Rutgers: Having the schools in close proximity to one another certainly helps, along with the natural rivalry between New Jersey and Philadelphia. Rutgers fans will tell you a rivalry can't exist until Temple is on the same playing level. But Temple fans will tell you the Owls are already there, with three straight winning seasons. Watch out for some major recruiting clashes between the two as well.

Navy vs. SMU: There already is a trophy for the winner in this game. It is named after Frank Gansz, who played at Navy and later served on the coaching staffs at SMU and Navy. The trophy was established in 2009, and Navy has won it three times. The two are set to become conference rivals in 2015.

Two players who arrived at their respective teams as quarterbacks are set to make a bigger impact this season at a different position.

It is time to get to know Syracuse athlete Ashton Broyld and Cincinnati athlete Jordan Luallen. Both players spent the spring making the move to a more hybrid Wildcat/receiver/running back post.

The goal is clear. Both players are too good to keep tied to the bench behind somebody else. Their athleticism must be used for big plays.

"He’s a big, strong, fast, physical athlete," Syracuse coach Doug Marrone said of Broyld after the spring game. "We’re very fortunate to have him. I think he is going to be a great asset to us offensively. We just have to keep bringing him along, because he’s someone who can make a lot of plays."

"He’s one of the best athletes we have on our football team," Cincinnati coach Butch Jones said of Luallen earlier this spring. "We’ve got to find a way to get him on the football field."

Luallen has actual game experience, having played last season when quarterback Zach Collaros got hurt. Jones decided he would play both Munchie Legaux and Luallen at quarterback. Both can run with the football, but Luallen's knack for making big plays was clear. He rarely threw the ball, but had 135 yards on 22 carries. He should have had two touchdowns on runs that ended at the 1 against Syracuse, but alas the turf monster struck. That is probably how most Big East fans remember him.

But Cincinnati coaches just remember his ability to make plays. That led to the decision to move him to receiver, where he is listed right behind Anthony McClung on the second team. Cincinnati struggled at receiver last season, and the Bearcats could no doubt use some big-play ability at the position, particularly because depth remains a concern.

But Luallen won't be limited to just receiver. Watch for him to still be able to run a few plays out of the Wildcat to keep teams off balance, at least. Particularly because the offense is going to have a new look with Isaiah Pead and Collaros gone.

As for Broyld, he arrived as an early enrollee this spring after spending last year at Milford Academy. Though Syracuse closed practices, much has been made about the role Broyld could have in the offense because of his versatility.

Broyld is listed as the No. 3 running back on the post-spring depth chart, but he played receiver and running back in the spring game.

He had some of the only offensive highlights in that game, as the offense fizzled for the most part. He could also be used as a Wildcat quarterback, in addition to his other roles. Syracuse has lacked a big-time playmaker the last several seasons. In fact, the offense has been somewhat predictable. Broyld gives the Orange something they have lacked for quite some time. Syracuse receivers averaged 10.5 yards per catch last season -- second-worst in the Big East behind Pitt (10.4).

That is just a little glimpse of their potential. Now we wait and see what these "slash" players can do.

Tale of the tape

Ashton Broyld, Syracuse

Height: 6-4

Weight: 229

Stats: Threw for 427 yards on 31-of-56 passing and six touchdowns, and ran for 259 yards on 39 carries and six touchdowns in 2011 at Milford Academy. ... Was the 2010 New York State Class AA Player of the Year after leading Rush-Henrietta High to the Class AA State Championship and a 13-0 record. Passed for 1,961 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushed for 1,540 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Jordan Luallen, Cincinnati

Height: 6-3

Weight: 215

Stats: Went 2-for-4 for 10 yards, and rushed for 135 yards on 22 carries last season in a backup role with the Bearcats. He was forced to sit out 2010 after transferring in from Georgia Tech, where he redshirted as a true freshman in 2009. ... Rated the No. 22 quarterback recruit out of high school. Also won a state championship in 2008, Went 46-for-85 for 941 yards, two interceptions, and 14 touchdowns and rushed for 622 yards on 84 carries in the Wing-T offense as a senior.

You saw him beat up on Big East quarterbacks the last two years, so you know what West Virginia defensive end Bruce Irvin can do when he is playing at his best.

And yet, Irvin turned out to be the biggest draft-day surprise Thursday, when Seattle took him with the No. 15 overall pick, eliciting a chorus of "Who?" among the uninitiated. Most experts had pegged another Big East player -- Syracuse defensive end Chandler Jones -- to go to the Seahawks.

Jones did eventually go in the first round, at No. 21 to the New England Patriots. They were the only two players with Big East ties selected on the first day of the draft, which turns out to be more than most everybody expected. A few months ago, most wondered whether the Big East would even have one player taken in the first round.

A few months ago, most had Irvin pegged as a second or third-round pick. Scratch that. A mere 24 hours ago, most had Irvin pegged as a second or third-round pick. His measurables are undeniable. He can run like a cheetah, as he proved at the NFL combine with his blazing 4.41 in the 40-yard dash. He can take down quarterbacks like a possessed man-child, as evidence by his 23 sacks in two years with the Mountaineers.

The Seahawks called him the best pure pass-rusher available in the draft, which is why they made him the first defensive end selected Thursday night. So why all the shock? The doubters? The haters?

For one, Irvin is a raw talent, having only played two years on the highest level in college football. He played in a defensive formation that nobody uses in the NFL. He struggled on non-passing downs, so much so that West Virginia took him out of the starting lineup after five games so he could return to his duties as a pass-rush specialist.

Listen to him when he says, "I've heard I'm a one-trick pony. But the crazy thing is I got 23 sacks in two years and I've never been coached. If I get a little coaching, just imagine what I can do."

He has a background that no doubt scared some teams off, when in fact, they probably should have taken a much harder look to see how the adversity he overcame built his character and gave him an unparalleled work ethic. Irvin could very well be homeless in Atlanta today, had he not accepted help and made the conscious decision to change his life. There are many others who have failed given the same opportunities.

Granted, Irvin did not help his situation when he was arrested last month and charged with destruction of property and disorderly conduct. Those charges have since been dropped. Was it a reminder to some teams to throw up a red flag?

That hardly matters now. Seattle coach Pete Carroll is fully aware of what Irvin has gone through, having recruited him out of Mt. San Antonio Junior College while still coaching USC. Most of all, he is fully aware of the incredible potential Irvin has to fill a need that the Seahawks sorely need.

Coaches often say players succeed or fail in the NFL based on the organization that drafts them, and whether or not they have NFL coaches who believe in them. Drafting Irvin so high is a huge risk. But every team takes a risk of some kind in the NFL draft, so that should not make this pick any more shocking than Miami drafting a quarterback who went 7-6 last year at perennial underachiever Texas A&M.

Drafting is all about projecting, same as in recruiting. There is no complete player in the draft. Every pick is a guess. Seattle is guessing Irvin will be worth the risk.

The spotlight is firmly on Irvin and the Seahawks now. He has the potential to be great. Now in addition to learning a new system and accepting the coaching, he will have to deal with expectations that come with being a first-round pick. Folks will want him to live up to some preconceived notion of what first-round picks should do. If Irvin is as ferocious rushing the passer in the NFL as he was in college, I believe he will not only meet those expectations.

He will exceed them.

Chandler Jones made the decision to leave Syracuse after the NFL draft advisory board told him he would be a third-round pick.

Four months later, third round seems way too low. Jones has seen his stock rise perhaps more than any other prospect, with ESPN expert Mel Kiper pegging Jones to go No. 12 overall to the Seattle Seahawks as the NFL draft begins tonight.

So how has Jones balanced preparations for the next level, along with growing expectations among many that he has found a place in the first round?

"My mom always gets mad at me when I say this, but I'm going into the draft with the impression that I'm going in the third round," Jones said in a recent phone interview. "Whenever I do get picked, it's going to be shocking to me. I just want to play football again and be an impact player, but as far as going in the first round it would be a dream come true."

Jones is well aware of the way his stock has risen. He believes there are two factors that have helped him. First, he had a terrific performance at the combine, where he ranked in the Top 10 among defensive linemen in the vertical jump (35 inches) and broad jump (10 feet).

Then came his interviews.

"I stay humble through it all, but I feel like what raised my stock was the way I interviewed," he said. "I met with 14 different teams, talked to the head coach, general managers, talked to coordinators and position coaches. I felt like I carried myself very well. I came to every single interview like it was a job interview. I sat down with a coach, told him what I know, and all the coaches were impressed with how much I know, and were very intrigued with me. We watched film, and I explained what went on. They were impressed with my football knowledge."

None of that should come as a surprise. Jones has a gregarious personality, enough to leave a big impression about his character. He also has an older brother, Arthur, who plays for the Baltimore Ravens and has been a mentor in the sport. Another brother, Jon "Bones" Jones, is the UFC light heavyweight champion -- adding to the family's sporting bloodlines.

Jones played defensive end at Syracuse, but he may play more as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme in the NFL, depending on where he gets drafted.

"Teams love that I'm versatile," Jones said. "Throughout my college career, I played nose tackle, I played defensive tackle and I played defensive end. With the body frame I have, 6-5, 265 pounds, I can play the 5 technique or stay where I am and play outside linebacker. I have not played in a 3-4 scheme, but there were different looks at Syracuse University where we would shift into a 3-4, and I felt comfortable. I can come off the edge real fast, so I do not think it would be too foreign. Dropping into coverage is something I will have to get used to, and it's a challenge I'm ready to tackle."

Jones also has bulked up in the time he left Syracuse, putting on 13 pounds during his time at API Performance in Pensacola, Fla. That obviously helps as well. Jones will watch the draft from the media room at the new home his brother, Jon, bought in Ithaca, N.Y.

But, it hardly matters when his name will be called.

West Virginia athletic director Oliver Luck has been outspoken in his reasons why West Virginia had to get out of the Big East.

He expounded on his comments in a detailed interview with Big 12 blogger David Ubben, shedding more light on the state of the league during expansion mania last fall.

Perhaps most striking was the utter lack of foresight in the league after Pitt, Syracuse and TCU all decided to leave:

"I think it was pretty obvious that the league was going to struggle. We hadn’t added a new member since 2005. Sitting in these AD meetings, there was no expansion committee to speak of," Luck said. "You’re down to five members with no clear-cut expansion candidates, with no activity, so at that point, I think people -- and not just me -- realized that we needed to look around and make sure first and foremost that we were going to be in a conference that maintained high standards and high-quality opponents."

No expansion committee to speak of? That just points to the mismanagement of the entire operation -- especially since the Big East was supposed to be considering future expansion options after adding TCU in 2010. Complaints about the way the league has handled expansion are nothing new, and Luck obviously has his own agenda. He called the Big East a sinking ship in a previous interview.

But he was still a member of the Big East after the raid of last fall, and was obviously involved in meetings to figure out what to do. I think it is safe to say that every athletic director with a football team in the league was frustrated with the way the league handled the losses of three key teams. Everybody certainly put calls out to try and get out.

As Ubben writes:

The Big 12 needed a 10th member, both to fill its schedule and television contract.

West Virginia looked around and saw Rutgers as the only original member of the Big East when the Mountaineers joined in 1991.

"We didn’t really leave the Big East. It left us," Luck said. "We had joined a conference that had certain schools like Virginia Tech, and now we were finding ourselves with only one original member.

"The conference had fundamentally changed."

Whether you like or dislike Luck, it is hard to argue with his final point. The league has fundamentally changed. Is it on the outside looking in now that it is mostly comprised of schools that came from non-automatic qualifying conferences? That is up for debate. But I do think his insider's view on the Big East in the aftermath of realignment is worth noting.

It's a rite of spring every year -- newcomers begin to emerge to make a name for themselves for the upcoming season. They could be freshmen. They could be transfers. They could be former junior college standouts. They could be a backup finally getting his chance to shine. So who are some of the top newcomers to watch in the Big East for 2012? Here are just a few.

Ashton Broyld, QB, Syracuse. The Orange have been hush-hush about their practices this spring. Coach Doug Marrone has alluded to changing up some of what the team is doing on offense, defense and special teams. That might mean getting a potential playmaker like Broyld more involved at quarterback. Nobody is suggesting that Ryan Nassib is losing his job. But if Broyld is as athletic as we have been led to believe, Syracuse is going to have to find a way to get him the football.

Chris Coyer, QB, Temple. Big East fans are going to want to familiarize themselves with Temple in a hurry, and the first person they are going to need to pay attention to is Coyer. When he was a high school recruit, he was described as having Tim Tebow-like qualities. Indeed, Coyer is a dual-threat quarterback -- he was third on the team last season with 562 yards rushing and threw for 463 yards in eight appearances. He also happens to be left-handed with a bit of size to him (6-foot-3, 230 pounds). Coyer made big-time strides in the bowl game last season; how does he carry that into 2012?

Rushel Shell, RB, Pitt. Shell is not even on campus yet, but he is the most highly-touted recruit in the class of 2012 heading to the Big East. Expectations are for him to compete immediately, even with Ray Graham returning from a torn ACL and Isaac Bennett having an outstanding spring camp. Coach Paul Chryst is not shy about giving a variety of his running backs the ball, and the Panthers are going to be a much more run-heavy team moving forward. Should Shell prove his worth, there will be opportunities for him in this offense.

Want more? Here are a few transfers to watch as well.