SJS College Football Extravaganza
Preseason 2000

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Big East Forecast

	2000 SJS Forecast				1999 Summary
		Overall	Conf.	Rank		Overall	Conf.
Miami Hurricanes	1	9-2	7-0	10	2	8-4	6-1
Boston College Eagles	2	9-2	6-1	21	3	8-3	4-3
Virginia Tech Hokies	3	10-2	5-2	13	1	11-0	7-0
Pittsburgh Panthers	4	7-4	4-3	44	7	5-6	2-5
Syracuse Orangemen	5	6-5	3-4	48	4	6-5	3-4
Rutgers Scarlet Knights	6	4-7	2-5	71	8	1-10	1-6
West Virgininia Mountaineers	7	2-9	1-6	89	5	4-7	3-4
Temple Owls	8	3-8	0-7	79	6	2-9	2-5

Big East Skinny   Big East Breakdown     Conference Champion: Miami Biggest upset: Boston College over Virginia Tech Offensive Player of the Year:      Michael Vick, Virginia Tech Defensive Player of the Year:      Ramon Walker, Pittsburgh Best Coach: Frank Beamer, Virginia Tech Best Game: Virginia Tech vs. Miami   Surprise, surprise, the Big East is suddenly a factor on the national scale. Last season, Virginia Tech found itself in the national championship picture, and may again have something to say about it with Michael Vick back at quarterback. Unfortunately for the Hokies, several of their other key players, Shyrone Stith, John Engelberger, Corey Moore, and Ike Charlton, are now in the NFL. The Hokies do have an interior defensive lineman named Dan Wilkinson, but he ain't that Dan Wilkinson. The Hokies will still be better than most teams on their schedule, and Michael Vick can almost carry the team on his back, but the liklihood is that the Hokies won't be able to hang with Miami and may even suffer a surprising upset somewhere along the way (Boston College?). As for Miami, this is the year optimistic Hurricane fans have been pointing to as their return to greatness. Part of that optimism may have been on Kenny Kelly being a seasoned quarterback in 2000, but he has departed to play pro baseball and the job has fallen to Ken Dorsey. Fortunately, Dorsey played well in 1999, and if he struggles despite having Santana Moss, the conference's best receiver, he will have a loaded backfield to hand the ball off to-- James Jackson, Najeh Davenport, Clinton Portis, and Jarrett Payton. That's as much talent as Jimmy Johnson ever had in the backfield when he fancied Quarterback U as a running school. Defense is loaded too (Miami players make up half of most preseason all-Big East defenses), and the schedule, while not easy, is more playable than the one in 1999. Florida State visits as does Virginia Tech; potential road game losses loom at Washington and at Syracuse (though the latter prospect is less scary than in past seasons). A conference championship and BCS bowl is a high probability, a national championship game, while low probability, is not out of the question. The rest of the Big East is weak enough that a third team could bubble up with a good record. That team might just be Boston College, who have a gutty gamer in Tim Hasselbeck at quarterback. Hasselbeck will not have to carry the entire load, with Cedric Washington and William Green in the backfield. The defense will be adequate, with the defensive line most in need of improvement. The Eagles could really build up momentum with a backloaded schedule: the end September hosting Virginia Tech, but if they get through that game, October is eminently winnable (Syracuse at home and Pittsburgh on the road to go with UConn and Rutgers at home). The Eagles could easily be 8-1 before having to go on the road against Notre Dame (they've pulled off that miracle before) and Miami (now that would be a miracle). Another surprise could be Pittsburgh, who will dramatically improve from last year's 2-5 Big East mark. The Panthers actually have some players on the defensive side of the ball, including a solid linebacking corps and an outstanding safety in Ramon Walker. On offense, Pittsburgh plays wide-open, led by senior John Turman at quarterback and Antonio Bryant at wideout. The offensive tackles may be a concern; Pittsburgh should hold their own except against teams with a strong pass rush (e.g., Miami). Syracuse went 7-5 last season and should do about as well in 2000. The Troy Nunes-Madei Williams controversy may continue, but both quarterbacks could struggle behind an inexperienced offensive. Dee Brown is back at running back, and Maurice Jackson (one of the fastest players in the country) should get a chance to catch more balls this season. The defense will be fairly strong with seven returning starters.