Tough luck, RU

I agree. It's like ending a baseball game with a home run hitting contest.

Yeah, hockey and soccer have shootouts, but even then, the shootouts are a last resort.

 

But has ESPN confirmed this?

And Jimmy Olson, don't forget Bill Snyder at Kansas State.

 

Schiano, Petrino, Rodriguez and Leavitt are four very solid coaches. I hesitate to include Wandstadt in the list because I think his alma mater will burn him out.

If Dave can turn Pitt around, there's a good chance you'll have five perennial Top 25 programs in an eight-team conference in the next couple years.

The Big East was wise in selecting their expansion teams. South Florida has been an up-and-coming football school for years. The Bulls young QB has a lot of promise. White and Slaton are just sophomores. Brohm and Bush may come back for one more year, and even if they don't Louisville still has more depth than any other Big East team. Rutgers returns Teel and Wise.

It should be fun to watch the Big East over the next couple years, especially if the current coaches stay.

 

I doubt that Petrino will stay. My money says he's gone before signing day.

 

Petrino's only going if the pros come calling. He could have gone to the Raiders this past offseason for way more money.

His current 10-year contract plays him about $2.5 million a year. Any place he goes to now, he'll likely have to rebuild, which he didn't have to do at Louisville. Plus, while the pressure and expectations are growing at Louisville, it still pales in comparison to say Alabama.

 

Didn't Pitt fall apart this year? how much trouble is Wannstadt in?

(No, I do not pay any attention at all to college football. What do you want from me? The closest D-I program is Rutgers. You wouldn't have paid attention either!)

 

It's Pitt, does anyone really care? I loved Pitt growing up. Now? Eh.

 

Except that Miami and Florida State are in football hotbeds where it is very easy to recruit the kind of talent needed to maintain the level Rutgers finally reached this year.

And don't forget that Miami is going to throw a whole lot of cash at Schiano. Will Rutgers be able to match that amount?

I would not be surprised one bit if Schiano cashes in his chips and gets out of Dodge.

 

I think Pitt had some character issues. The Panthers were the Michigan State of the Big East and coincidentally, they lost to the Spartans this year. There was one play in the game against South Florida where a Pitt player scored a TD and gave an obscene gesture to some USF fans. That caused a penalty -- costly since Pitt was planning to go for two to get within one score.

Pitt loses a couple really strong players H.B. Blades and Tyler Palko, but I've heard that Pitt is bringing in some quality recruits. We'll see if that's really the case.

 

One of these day Pitt will stop jacking around and actually get serious about it's football program. I might be dead when it happens, but it'll happen.

Pitt did have some character issues as it seemed to be Harris' leftover slaps versus the new kids Wannstedt has brought in. And part of me couldnt be happier than Palko is leaving. Great competitor, but he's got an attitude problem. ESPN cameras caught him screaming "Shut the fuck up" at Cavanaugh on the sidelines during the Louisville game.

 

Also, don't forget that Maryland had a season like this (and in their case actually made the Orange Bowl) a few years ago. The Terps haven't come close to that level, let alone exceed it, since.

Simply put, top college football talent won't come to the Northeast in very large quantities. And without that, you can't sustain the level of success that Rutgers and Wake Forest had this year long term. Even Penn State doesn't make big-time bowl games every year anymore.

 

Are you overlooking the talent in New Jersey?

It too is a hotbed.

Schiano already recruits in Florida and will now have more clout due to all the notoriety he received this year. He'll get bigger names out of Florida, and he'll be able to get them to go to RU.

Oz, good call on Snyder.