The Bearcats took very nicely to Brian Kelly’s wide-open offensive system. The 10-3 record was its best since 1951, and there is a new enthusiasm in the Queens city. The challenge in Year 2 for Kelly is to deal with the loss of Ben Mauk, however with 13 returning starters, sights are set high.

Randy Edsell has been the decade-long architect of the UConn program. His hardnosed style took the Huskies to the Big East co-championship and a Meineke Car Care Bowl bid. With 17 starters returning, 2008 could be another stellar year in Storrs.

It was tough sledding for Steve Kragthorpe in his first year at Louisville. He inherited the BE Champs and went 6-6, missing a bowl game. He will now have to cope with serious offensive losses and he is hoping his new coaching staff will help craft a new look.

One of the coaching ‘lightning rods' is Dave Wannstedt. Seems he gets more criticism than anyone else, and whether it is warranted at Pitt is a matter for debate. To be fair, he inherited a fair program from Walt Harris, it's year four of his regime and time to see the talent translate to wins.

Greg Schiano has succeeded in making Rutgers into a viable national program with 3 bowls and a 26-12 mark the last 3 years. Rutgers is now expects to be bowl contender every year. The challenge will be to replace Ray Rice, and a bevy of starters that led to the ascension of the Scarlet Knights.

The Bulls have been rewarded with their patience in Jim Leavitt, consecutive 9-4 seasons and 3 straight bowl games. They've beaten WVU in back-to-back and reached a #2 national ranking. Aggressive on D, hard-hitting on offense, USF is primed to make a run at another bowl game and the Big East crown.

It was supposed to be better than this, Syracuse fans were disgruntled with Paul Pasqualoni, and were happy to get Greg Robinson.The move has been a nightmare, the new offense didn't produce and the defense, which was his strength, has been bad. It is do-or-die time for the coach.

Bill Stewart inherits a West Virginia team that in the last 3 years has accomplished the following: a 33-5 record, 2 BCS bowl wins and 2 Big East titles. He is the man that the players wanted and his job will be to keep the Mountaineer machine rolling and he's got the pieces in place to do it.