BigEastSportsBlog.com

What a difference a year of college can make. Devin and Jason McCourty came to Rutgers at the same time, Jason – younger by 27 minutes – the more highly touted recruit, Devin the one with only one Division I-A offer. Devin redshirted that first year, Jason played and last year, as a fourth-year senior, he was drafted in the sixth round by the Titans.

This year, as a fifth-year senior, Devin had one of the most decorated years of any Rutgers athlete. He was a captain (like his brother before him), he was an all-league corner (like his brother before him), he was a frighteningly fast receiver (again, like his brother) and now there’s chatter he could work his way into the first round.

Rutgers CB Devin McCourty (5-11, 186)

Teams threw away from McCourty and he still had 10 pass break-ups and 80 tackles. Oh, and he notched his sixth blocked kick this year. His sixth.

McCourty learned in watching his twin Jason go through the process a year ago that special teams versatility could be as much a ticket to the NFL as corner play. And so, he rarely took a play off (he notched 111 at UConn, a game where he returned a kickoff for a score), he was Rutgers’ gunner on punts too and NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock said he’s “been a very pleasant surprise.”

He mixed it up with some of the country’s best receivers down in Mobile this week, the experts at Draftinsiders.net wrote that he “physically beat down Mardy Gilyard on a number of instances,” and CBSSports.com’s Rob Rang said he “has the agility and straight-line speed for man coverage. He breaks on the ball quickly and has the active hands to rip away passes at the last moment.”

Mayock called him “a very quick, tough kid” and said as of now, he seems McCourty as a solid second round pick. And perhaps rising.

Can George Selvie show he’s more than a stat freak?

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: Read the rest of this entry »

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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)

Rutgers recruiting coordinator Joe Susan left for Bucknell’s head job today. Greg Schiano’s not worried about that affecting recruiting and he’s not quite sure he’ll even have a coach serving as recruiting coordinator going forward. Read on…

Greg Schiano didn’t want to underrate Joe Susan. But after 10 years, he sure wasn’t going to cop to any unease either. Even if he is losing his recruiting coordinator just one week before Signing Day.

“It will have no impact,” Schiano confidently said Wednesday, just hours after Susan accepted the head coaching position at Bucknell.

Susan’s departure ends a nine-season run alongside Schiano at Rutgers. He was one of only three remaining staffers from the start of Schiano’s reclamation project – strength coach Jay Butler and head trainer Dave McCune being the other two – and he was one of only three current Schiano assistants who grew up in New Jersey.

“Certainly Joe’s an integral part, just as all our coaches are, in recruiting,” Schiano said. “It is late in recruiting. But the guys that Joe is directly recruiting we’ve had great relationships with, they’re strong and they (chose) Rutgers. Joe just happened to recruit them. I don’t think it’s a big issue.”

The bigger issue may be replacing Susan. Read the rest of this entry »

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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)

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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)

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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 real pre-draft jockeying began this week, with practice for the first of three college all-star games. The East West Shrine game kicks things off tomorrow at 3 p.m. at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando.

The Shrine Game is the oldest of the games (it has 62 NFL Hall of Famers – and Tom Brady and Brett Favre – as alumnus) and has coaching staffs the NFL helps put together. This year, the West coach is 21-year vet Marty Schottenheimer, who in 2004 was the NFL’s Coach of the Year. The seven Big East players in the game, meanwhile, have been put through their paces by Romeo Crennel, a five-time Super Bowl winner as an assistant coach.

NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock was kind enough to go over those seven prospects with me earlier. So, without further ado, here’s a look at the Big East players, what folks are saying about them down in Orlando and what their NFL prospects look like right now.

Connecticut Running Back Andre Dixon (6-0, 200)

Reports out of Orlando have identified a decent buzz about Dixon. CBS Sports’ Chad Reuter wrote that his quick feet have made him one of the week’s risers and the experts at DraftGuys.com highlighted his efforts in each of their daily practice reports. Mayock said that will all be very important as right now, “there are a bunch of running backs that kind of fit into the same mold as him. He has average speed and there’s nothing that really screams about him. It’s hard to distinguish yourself when you’re in that category.”

Dixon does have a strong first step, he runs with good pad level and his footwork has absolutely improved. He knows where and how to cut and his production this year (1,093 yards, 14 touchdowns) was irrefutable.

Projection right now: Fifth Round  Read the rest of this entry »

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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)