Gilyard’s one of the draft’s great stories, a player who’s gone from high school marijuana troubles to flunking out at Cincinnati to becoming one of the league’s best leaders. He’s been wildly productive on the field too (2,467 yards and 22 touchdowns in the last two years) and he’s a proven dynamo as a return man, which is always an added value come draft time. He has undeniably quick hands and feet, and in a phone conversation before practice started this week NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock said, “He sure is fun to watch on tape.”

In person in Mobile, Gilyard’s been just as fun – and occasionally not. After running a lot of slants, bubble screens and crosses in college, he’s shown he can run solid NFL routes and ESPN analyst Todd McShay wrote that he “got off the line better than any other wideout” during press coverage drills early in the week. But he’s also dropped a lot of balls and Wes Bunting of the National Football Post echoed many voices who’ve worried over Gilyard’s – as Bunting called it – “frail” frame.

“He lacks the physicality needed to consistently fight his way through physical corners, (he) hasn’t looked real explosive out of his breaks and (he) has had a tough time separating vs. man,” Bunting wrote.

Mayock had Gilyard pegged as an early second round pick. He may have some work to do come combine time to prove that’s where he stays.

Cincinnati QB Tony Pike (6-6, 212)

            While not quite drawing the same curiosity level as Tim Tebow, Pike certainly was one of the quarterbacks scouts were anxious to see this week. He closed his Cincinnati career by throwing for a touchdown in 17 straight games and amassing 5,018 yards and 49 touchdowns. His completion percentage (61.7) is the highest in school history, he’s shown  excellent touch on short passes and he came to Mobile with a reputation for accuracy and getting rid of the ball on time.

            He also came in with a reputation for scrawniness. And the Senior Bowl weigh-in – where he measured just 212 pounds – didn’t help his cause. Pike’s reportedly made an excellent interview subject and done his best to assuage fears about his injuries (he missed four games and has a metal plate in his left arm) this past week. McShay wrote that he was “very efficient” during seven-on-seven drills and commended him for having the best arm among the North quarterbacks.

            Pike will still have to prove he can make the transition from a spread offense to more pro-style ones and Mayock said right now, he’s likely a third round pick. At the same time, Mayock warned that it’s early yet for assessing quarterbacks. He remembers his fellow “experts” pegging Phillip Rivers as a third round pick just around this time too back in 2004.

            “He’s interesting because he’s a big kid, accurate and has an above-average arm,” Mayock said. “But is he going to put weight on?”

Will Mardy Gilyard prove scrawny legs and toughness are not mutually exclusive?

Has Devin McCourty made first round noise, is Jarrett Brown really turning the talk from Tim Tebow and did Mike Windt really sing Cincinnati’s fight song before Tuesday’s practice – while sprinting?

The last one gets a yes. But outside the Bearcats’ long snapper, the Big East’s Senior Bowl invitees are still in the process of answering all sorts of questions. They’ve been in Mobile all week, interviewing with NFL coaches and general managers, practicing for scouts and personnel directors, and hoping to send their draft stock skyward.

Eleven Big East players were invited down to college football’s premier all-star game. Syracuse defensive tackle Arthur Jones, after undergoing knee surgery in the fall, decided not to attend. Windt hasn’t net much of a scouting report – at least for his on the field attributes. Here’s a look at how everyone else rates before Saturday’s 4 p.m. kickoff at Ladd-Peebles Stadium:

Pittsburgh TE/WR Dorin Dickerson (6-1, 222)

With 529 yards and 10 touchdowns, Dickerson was an All-American at tight end. After a weigh-in that showed he’s two inches shorter than the Pitt media guide said, he practiced at wideout this week. The experts at NFLDraftScout.com said he lacked the speed to make the switch; ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay said the switch sent his draft stock up.

“It was a somewhat risky move going to the outside, because instead of looking like the most athletic tight end, he could have turned into the slowest wide receiver,” McShay wrote. “But the versatility he showed this week has improved his stock.”

Dickerson has very good hands and an ability to get vertical. The more he works at wideout these next few weeks, the better he’ll be served. Of course, Mike Mayock thinks he’s actually an H-back.

“He’s intriguing,” the NFL Network draft analyst said. “He can contribute in a few ways. He’s most likely a third or fourth round guy.”

Distractions apparently boost memory… Did JD Salinger actually define adolescence? … Sure the economy’s growing, but that doesn’t mean much without jobs… Bill Gates rocks…

A BYU commit is visiting Cincinnati this weekend. (Deseret News)

UConn beat writer Desmond Conner answers questions every single day; here’s today’s version. (Hartford Courant)

Louisville got itself another wideout. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

The Bears called, but Pitt offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti’s staying put. (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Some nice words about former Rutgers assistant and new Bucknell head coach Joe Susan. (The Daily Item)

A Piscataway resident is not so sure about Rutgers using its football stadium for more than football. (Home News Tribune)

A Q&A with Rutgers corner Devin McCourty from down at the Senior Bowl. (Scout.com)

Miami and Rutgers wanted him. He liked South Florida. Then the Bulls’ administration fired Jim Leavitt and Matt Canales and now Ace Sanders, one of the country’s top wideouts, is going to South Carolina. (GoGamecocks.com)

Someone thinks Skip Holtz has the pedigree to take USF where Jim Leavitt couldn’t. (xtrapointfootball.com)

Barry Switzer, Bob Knight and Isiah Thomas all got second chances. Why shouldn’t Jim Leavitt? (St. Petersburg Times)

A one-time FSU tackle committed to USF and then the new coaches came in and never called him. He’s not coming to USF anymore. (St. Petersburg Times)

Holtz did call on someone else. And that means USF should get a quarterback this weekend. (St. Petersburg Times)

Syracuse picks up a defensive back from Florida. (Syracuse Post-Standard)

West Virginia’s considering putting luxury suites where Milan Puskar Stadium’s press box is. (Times West Virginian)

The Mountaineers took time out to visit – and raise money for – the Boys and Girls Club in Parkersburg. (News and Sentinel)

Down at the Senior Bowl, Jarrett Brown will play behind Tim Tebow. But when has being a back-up ever riled him up? (Charleston Daily Mail)

Heading into next Wednesday, a look at the some of the busts – and bests – from 2006′s Day of Hype, aka Signing Day. (ESPN.com)

The power of staying after a goal: she finally got her degree, three weeks after her 100th birthday – and a day before she died… Toyota’s extending its recalls so check your cars… About time she leaves him…

First a coach UC wanted to keep left. Now a coach UC wanted gone is suing the school. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Guess how many coaches in the FBS have been at their schools longer than Randy Edsall’s been at UConn. (ESPN.com)

Addressing UConn’s schedule. (Hartford Courant)

Jon Fabris re-thought leaving home and so Louisville replaces him with Miami recruiting coordinator Clint Hurtt. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

Pitt’s offensive coordinator may be interviewing with the NFL Bears. (Eye of a Panther)

Assessing a handful of candidates to replace Rutgers recruiting coordinator Joe Susan. (Bleed Scarlet)

George Selvie’s impressing at the Senior Bowl. (St. Petersburg Times)

Syracuse is pulling its new running backs coach from the state of Florida. (Syracuse Post-Standard)

Arthur Jones is skipping the Senior Bowl. I hope he’s okay. (News10Now.com)

West Virginia’s new QB could draw the hype. (Dr. Saturday)

Good news: Big East attendance shot up. Bad News: It still didn’t put a single school in the top 30 nationally. (ESPN.com)

Another survivor was pulled from the rubble in Haiti yesterday, two weeks after the Earthquake… That Tim Tebow spot for Focus on the Family that’s going to air during the Super Bowl cost a pretty penny… The good, the bad and the ugly on the Apple tablet…

The QB who committed to Cincinnati last spring is visiting Notre Dame this weekend; his high school coach said it’s not a case of Brian Kelly stealing recruits. (South Bend Tribune)

Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard are impressing scouts at the Senior Bowl. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

Two Bearcats are on the Texas vs. Nation all-star game. (News Record)

Is UConn up for a jumpr in ticket sales? Where does Randy Edsall rank among college coaches? The answers and many more in this mailbag. (Hartford Courant)

Ohio’s Division II Player of the Year, who committed to Cincinnati, is visiting Louisville. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

Jim Caldwell readies Peyton Manning and Reggie Wayne this week. Twenty-five years ago, it was the Louisville defensive backs. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

Pitt strength and conditioning coach Buddy Morris could be headed to the Redskins. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Pitt’s top incoming recruit tore the meniscus in his right knee while playing basketball. (Pitt Blather)

You want an inside look at Rutgers’ Junior Day? Hurry up and click on this before the link gets taken down. (Bleed Scarlet)

Devin McCourty could be making a push fo the first round. (Bleacher Report)

A thorough update on Rutgers’ recruiting. (Bleed Scarlet)

That helicopter Greg Schiano uses still impresses. (Press of Atlantic City)

The list of coaches who applied for USF’s top job is pretty impressive – and vast. (Tampa Tribune)

Checking in with the USF assistants Skip Holtz didn’t keep. (Tampa Tribune)

Jim Leavitt’s at the Senior Bowl, job hunting. (St. Petersburg Times)

West Virginia students make knucklehead fans. (The Smoking Musket)

Yet another person thinks Jarrett Brown is the most gifted QB at the Senior Bowl. Over Tim Tebow. (National Football Post)

Do you have a better facility with recruiting rules than Lane Kiffin? Take this test and see… It’s not only Big East schools thinking about the Big Ten’s expansion plans… The best values in public colleges – guess who’s the best in the Big East?

Cincinnati loses one commit, gains another. (Cincinnati Enquirer)

The QB commit Butch Jones snagged at Central Michigan has changed his commitment – to Jones’ new school. (WZZM13.com)

Cincy’s Mardy Gilyard makes Rutgers’ Devin McCourty look not-so-hot on one drill at the Senior Bowl. (RealGMFootball.com)

Someone else is wildly impressed with McCourty. (Scout.com)

A UConn beat writer apologizes for reporting a coach was leaving and answers a bunch of other reader questions. (Hartford Courant)

A former UConn assistant takes his memories of Jasper Howard to his new gig at Georgia. (Ledger-Enquirer)

At one time, this would be The Game of Big East women’s play: the best UConn blogger gathers all the links on today’s Rutgers-UConn tip up in Hartford. (Sox & Dawgs)

Louisville picked up its fifth offensive lineman Monday. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

A Long Island linebacker’s switched his commitment from Syracuse to Rutgers. (Star-Ledger)

One of the best Rutgers bloggers has pulled up a slew of links on Scarlet Knights past and present. (Bleed Scarlet)

Breaking down new NJ governor Chris Christie’s plans re: Rutgers. (Bleed Scarlet)

USF has a Pro Bowler too. (GoUSFBulls.com)

Meanwhile a current USF DT was arrested for driving without a proper license. (St. Petersburg Times)

The salaries of Skip Holtz’s assistants are out. They’re higher than Jim Leavitt’s assistants’ salaries were. (St. Petersburg Times)

The new “Orange Shoppe”  -with its vintage memorabilia – opens at the Carrier Dome this weekend. (SUathletics.com)

The day news breaks that WVU QB Geno Smith broke his foot, QB commit Barry Brunetti reaffirmed his allegedly wavering commitment to WVU. (Charleston Daily Mail)

The most impressive QB at yesterday’s first Senior Bowl practice wasn’t Tim Tebow; it was WVU’s Jarrett Brown. (CBSSports.com)

I really wanted to see Brett Favre in the Super Bowl, but after that boneheaded across-the-body-into-traffic throw to lose the game, maybe I really don’t need to see him again… Lebanon is saying this is not suspected terrorism. Like that matters when there are 90 deaths… So much for the land of the free: Americans seeking asylum as political refugees peaked in Pres. Bush’s final year in office… Put those hankies away, Brangelina is not over…

Andre Dixon and Lindsey Witten did UConn proud at the East West Shrine game. (Sox & Dawgs)

UConn’s building itself a Florida pipeline. Funny little aside about how Bob Stoops and Greg Schiano’s VIP creds rate next to Urban Meyer’s. (Hartford Courant)

Charlie Strong’s staff is looking at other QBs, but one who committed to Steve Kragthorpe is staying committed. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

Pitt had alums on three of the four teams playing yesterday. They’ll have them on both teams at the Super Bowl in two weeks. (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Was Pitt alum Clint Session talking smack about one-time Pitt teammate Darrelle Revis? (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Devin McCourty took home more hardware from Rutgers’ year-end banquet than any other Scarlet Knight ever has. (ScarletKnights.com)

Rutgers tailback Jourdan Brooks is transferring… (Bleed Scarlet)

…to Morgan State. (Scarlet Scuttlebutt)

Rutgers product Kevin Haslam really shined during Shrine Game Week. (SI.com)

Star South Carolina running back Mustafa Greene is torn between Rutgers and N.C. State: “Rutgers has said he would come in and start.” (The State)

West Virginia’s heir apparent at QB broke his foot. Again. (Charleston Gazette)

The Mountaineers’ top QB recruit, meanwhile, could be headed to Louisville instead. (The Commercial Appeal)

USF’s Kion Wilson made the official Shrine Game hometown paper’s game story. (Orlando Sentinel)

The newest Senator uses his victory speech to try to get a date for his basketball-playing daughter; she laughs it off… This telethon features some heavy hitters… The end of Wall Street as we know it…

Brian Kelly got the kid to commit to UC last summer. Will he now get him to commit to Notre Dame? (Cincinnati Enquirer)

The Bearcats will have three Senior Bowl participants this year. (GoBearcats.com)

Charlie Strong’s making believers out of high school kids. (The L Yes! Report)

Is Strong the best hire of the off-season? (Dr. Saturday)

If Rutgers fires Fred Hill, the coach with nine Big East wins – in four years – will walk away a very rich man. A fascinating look at his contract and what Rutgers could be on the hook for. (Scarlet Scuttlebutt) 

The Jim Leavitt-Joel Miller story is not going away. Still. (Tampa Tribune)

Meanwhile, USF could be losing a DT commit. (Tampa Tribune)

Is West Virginia a football school or basketball school? (Times West Virginian)

Breaking down all the recruiting in the league thus far. (ESPN.com)

Get ready for even more unabated vitriol during campaigns… Who wouldn’t want $45 million to go away?… Shocker here. The bigger shocker is that Elizabeth is STILL with him… Cindy and Meghan oppose John, very publicly…

Recruiting expert Tom Lemming’s take on who’s piling up the best prospects. (Hartford Courant)

Charlie Strong’s building a pipeline from the Sunshine State up to Louisville. (ESPN.com)

Five breakout players from this past season; two did their arriving in the Big East. (Dr. Saturday)

The league’s “most bankable winner.” (Dr. Saturday)

Pitt needs a linebackers coach. (MLive.com)

Kenny Britt was back at Rutgers yesterday. (Scarlet Scuttlebutt)

Kenny, meanwhile, just posted bail for a childhood friend accused of… murder. (Hudson Reporter)

Are Tim Brown and Devin McCourty being disrespected? (Daily Targum)

Wow. South Florida actually targeted another Big East coach early in its hiring process. (Tampa Tribune)

Could Jason Pierre-Paul be going to Tim Tebow’s home town? (Tampa Tribune)

Skip Holtz’s former players say his current ones are lucky. (St. Petersburg Times)

Jarrett Brown’s in the Senior Bowl. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

A look at the Big East’s top coaches of the past decade. One guess at who’s on top. (ESPN.com)

This poor country can’t catch a break… Far as I can tell, this Globe columnist is comparing electing Scott Brown to a drunken hook-up… Good thing the White House isn’t ever going on the market. I hope…

Three of the 21 coaching changes in the FBS thus far this season have been in the Big East. Mark those three an A+, A- and A-. (SI.com)

Cincinnati’s three Senior Bowl participants. (The News Record)

As good as Cincinnati’s been, Butch Jones could make them better. (The Bleacher Report)

Pulling out Todd McShay’s thoughts on UConn DE Lindssey Witten. (Sox & Dawgs)

UConn has its January enrollees on campus. And a very likely desire to join the Big Ten. (Hartford Courant)

Get well soon, Coach Calhoun. (ZagsBlog.com)

Charlie Strong picked up an 11th commitment, bringing Louisville’s total to 26. (Louisville Courier-Journal)

It’s not too soon to express pleasure at the job Strong’s doing. (The L! Yes Report)

A thorough run-down of the season of every Scarlet Knight in the NFL. Except for the three still playing. (Bleed Scarlet)

Checking in on Rutgers’ commits. (Bleed Scarlet)

Rivals’ Rutgers beat writer Bobby Deren could have himself a bestseller. (Daily Targum)

Sabbath Joseph used to joke about Haitian players taking over South Florida. Time like this, there’s only comfort in their shared bloodlines. (SNY.tv)

It’s not only the football players: hoops star Melissa Dalembert can’t raise money like her brother Sam, but she’s asked all her teammates to weed clothes for donating out of their closets. (St. Petersburg Times)

Meet the Bulls’ new assistants. (GoUSFBulls.com)

A USF executive athletic director went ahead and said it: a lot of agents lie when they “leak” that their clients are coaching candidates. (St. Petersburg Times)

Syracuse will get tailback Delone Carter back next year. In a shocker, Mike Williams won’t be back. (Syracuse Post-Standard)

Is Marshall-West Virginia really that big? (Times West Virginian)

Doc Holliday’s family will still wear West Virginia gear. (Charleston Daily Mail)