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JEFF GOODMAN’S BIG EAST RUNDOWN

The nbeblogger gives his feedback on the notes for each Big East school

Check out Jeff Goodman’s College Hoop Blog: Good ‘n Plenty, at FoxSports.com, for excellent coverage of college basketball. Here is the direct link to his post, which included an update on the America East conference’s decision about same-day travel for games within 200 miles, a decision not popular with coaches and certainly will not be for players. It is a cost-cutting move…

Anyway, here is Goodman’s Big East rundown where he goes over the comings and goings of staff, transfers and pre-conference schedule notes. He invites readers to e-mail him at jngoodman@aol.com with any additions or corrections…

Also, a programming reminder, please check back, beginning later tonight, for live blog-style updates throughout the weekend from the Rumble in the Bronx. Jeff Borzello will be there all weekend and Matt Whitfield will be there tomorrow along with our friends from RecruitRecon.com.

Cincinnati – Mick Cronin hired George Jackson from Bowling Green, moved Chris Goggin to director of operations and Chris Shumate to player development. The Bearcats will be in the Maui Invitational. Alvin Mitchell transferred out to Mountain State.

NBE says – Important season ahead for Mick Cronin’s program. With the return of Deonta Vaughn and Yancy Gates with the top half of last year’s conference finishers suffering heavy losses, the time to begin to compete for a spot in the upper-third of the conference is now!

Connecticut – The Huskies will host a pod for the Preseason NIT in which Hofstra, Yale and Colgate are expected to go to Storrs. UConn will also play Kentucky at Madison Square Garden on Dec. 9 in the SEC/Big East Challenge. Scottie Haralson left and will transfer to Tulsa.

NBE says - Still waiting on a final decision from Ater Majok if he will stay in the NBA draft, where he is unlikely to be selected and head for other professional opportunities, or return to school to be eligible mid-season. It will be somewhat of a re-tooling year for the Huskies, who are also waiting to see the stance the NCAA takes with a forthcoming investigation into the recruitment of Nate Miles and the relationship of Josh Nochimson with Majok and Miles. Still, re-tooling with Kemba Walker, Jerome Dyson and Stanley Robinson with McDonald’s All-American Alex Oriakhi coming in is not too bad of a predicament.

DePaul – The entire staff turned over. Gary DeCesare, Scott Wainright and Ramon Williams have been replaced by Tracy Webster, Billy Garrett and David Booth. The Blue Demons will play in the Paradise Jam and also face Mississippi State in the Big East/SEC Challenge on Dec. 10 in Tampa and play at Vanderbilt on Dec. 5.

NBE Says - The staff changes will help Chicago-area recruiting, but the questions around how much longer can Jerry Wainwright hold onto a job after an 0-16 conference mark with a team returning likely to finish at the bottom again. Transfer (Ohio State) Eric Wallace is eligible, Mac Koshwal is likely to return to school, but the loss of Dar Tucker and lack of impact recruit doesn’t signal a better season ahead.

Georgetown – Georgetown will play at home against Duke and also face Butler in the Jimmy V Classic in December. The Hoyas also lost Omar Wattad – who transferred to Chattanooga.

NBE Says - Hoyas are hoping for better chemistry with DaJuan Summers departing and Greg Monroe foregoing NBA riches for a sophomore season. Still, lack of depth will haunt the team similar to last season. They must hope Julian Vaughn and/or Henry Sims learn to bang down below…or, it will be another tough season.

Louisville –Rick Pitino has hired his good friend, Holy Cross head coach Ralph Willard, to take his son Richard’s spot on the staff. The Cardinals will play Arkansas in a double-header on Nov. 17 in St. Louis. Key non-conference games include at UNLV and potentially Oklahoma State in Oklahoma City. The Cardinals have added Manhattan’s Chris Smith as a walk-on.

NBE Says - Chris Smith as a walk-on? Interesting, although he still will have to sit out. Losing T-Will and Clark to the professional ranks is a tough blow, as usual, talented group led by Samardo Samuels. Peyton Siva will hopefully steady the point guard position with a senior Edgar Sosa. Will Pitino handle the distractions? Might be the reason why Willard was enticed to come help his friend, he might be very involved with the team this season…

Marquette – Dale Layer left to become the head coach at Liberty. The Golden Eagles will play in the Old Spice tournament and also have non-conference games at Wisconsin and at home against N.C. State. Pat Hazel has left and transferred to Boston University.

NBE Says - Big test ahead for Buzz Williams. Players like him and he recruits as hard as anyone…now, he doesn’t have Jerel McNeal, Wes Mathews or Dominic James to lean on and a very inexperienced group returns to head into the Big East.

Notre Dame – The Irish will play in the Chicago Invitational along with Iowa State, Northwestern and St. Louis. Mike Brey’s team will also face UCLA at home on Dec. 19.

NBE Says - Eligible transfers Justin Martin (Purdue) and Ben Hansbrough (Mississippi State) take some of the sting of losing Kyle McAlarney and Ryan Ayers. Tory Jackson returns and this could be a very solid team with Luke Harangody. If the 2007-2008 Big East Player of the Year does not return…well, another tough season could loom

Pittsburgh – The Panthers will play in the CBE and host a pod with Eastern Kentucky and Farleigh Dickinson. Jamie Dixon’s team will also play at the Jimmy V Classic in Madison Square Garden in December.

NBE Says - Pitt was a legit Final Four contender last year and had trouble finding pre-conference opponents. Now, they lose Levance Fields, Sam Young, Tyrell Biggs and DeJuan Blair and they are in the CBE and Jimmy V, go figure! Pitt gets it done year in and year out, some way. That is likely to continue if they can sort out the point guard position as Brad Wanamaker and Gilbert Brown take their turn with McDonald’s All-American Dante Taylor possibly making the biggest freshman impact in the conference.

Providence – The Friars host the World Vision tournament from Nov. 13-15 with Mercer, Bryant and Bucknell. Keno Davis’ team will play Boston College at home on Nov. 28. Antonio Kellogg left and transferred to Ohio University.

NBE Says - Keno Davis took over the good (veteran returning team) and the bad (not much else) with PC last year. Sharaud Curry is back for a 5th year, but it is going to take a little while for the Friars to find their footing again in the Big East.

Rutgers – The Scarlet Knights will play at the nearby Legends Classic. Fred Hill’s team recently came back from the Canary Islands. Rutgers also lost Earl Pettis, who transferred to La Salle.

NBE Says - The expected moving up in the standings with the talent infusion of Mike Rosario and Greg Echenique never materialized as point guard play and an apparent lack of chemistry plagued the Scarlet Knights. Not a good sign in your third year of a head coaching tenure. As of June 12th the point guard position is STILL a BIG uncertainty going into next season. If that question remains, moving out of the bottom four in the Big East will still be a tall order, again.

South Florida – The Bulls lost assistants Dan Hipsher (Alabama) and Byron Samuels. Towson’s Eric Skeeters is expected to take one spot. South Florida will play in the Charleston Classic and will also face Virginia at home. Gaby Belardo (Canisius) and Eladio Espinosa (Marshall) left while Kansas State’s Ron Anderson transferred into the program.

NBE Says – Also becoming eligible mid-season as a transfer is Anthony Crater (Ohio State) who should team with chris Howard to man the point position. Dominique Jones will score from the wing and Augustus Gilchrist should be much improved with a full year. If Jarrid Famous surprises and lives up to the hype of his recruitment, the Bulls could gradually move up the standings, but the depth of Big East talent is not quite there.

St. John’s – The Red Storm will play in the Philly Classic and also travel to Cancun for Labor Day in a trip that was postponed due to the weather a year ago. Norm Roberts’ team will play Georgia on Dec. 9 at Madison Square Garden in the SEC/Big East Challenge. Phil Wait and TyShwan Edmondson, are both leaving the program.

NBE Says - Anthony Mason Jr returns from an injury that kept him out of virtually the entire 2008-2009 season. If Mason can get back up to speed and match well with DJ Kennedy on the wing and Justin Burrell progresses and is injury free, SJU has a deep pool of potential contrbutors with Paris Horne and incoming recruit Omari Lawrence to put together a team on the right side of the middle of the pack. However, getting over that hump after many poor seasons is often easier said than done…

Syracuse – The Orange will host a pod of Albany and Robert Morris in the Coaches vs. Cancer. Syracuse will play Florida on Dec. 10 in Tampa.

NBE Says – After back to back NIT appearances and two early NCAA exits, the Orange finally got into the second week of the Big Dance again and hoped to have a top 10 team returning for 2008-2009. However, Jonny Flynn, Paul Harris and Eric Devendorf all left to pursue professional opportunities leaving SU scrambling in the backcourt. Iowa State transfer Wesley Johnson will have a big season, Arinze Onuaku and Rick Jackson will form a tough duo in the paint, but much of the success will be pinned on freshman point guard Brandon Triche. That is a lot of pressure for the local prospect, however, the Orange will likely be a little better than many anticipate…

Villanova – The Wildcats lost Pat Chambers (head coach at BU) and replaced him with Chris Walker. ‘Nova will play in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off and also against Maryland in the BB&T Classic.

NBE Says - The prohibitive favorite in the Big East with Scottie Reynolds returning and Jay Wright assembling a top-five recruiting class centered around big man Mouphtau Yarou and Dominic Cheek. The losses of Dante Cunningham, Dwayne Anderson and Shane Clark might sting more than most expect, but Corey Fisher looks like he is ready to blossom and they add Duke transfer Taylor King to the mix with Corey Stokes as a dangerous perimeter sniper pair that when the guards break down the defense they can bomb away to make up for the inexperienced front line.

West Virginia – The Mountaineers will play in the 76 Classic in Anaheim and also have non-conference games at Purdue and at home against Ohio State and Ole Miss. Junior big man Dee Proby is leaving the program.

NBE Says - After ‘Nova, the Mountaineers are your next favorite with Devin Ebanks and Da’Sean Butler leading the way for Bob Huggins. Their roster still needs some sorting out as they are over the limit and Joe Mazzulla’s status is uncertain, leaving point guard very thin behind ‘Truck’ Bryant.

Seton Hall – Well, for one, Jeff Goodman completely forgot about the Pirates! So, fans can e-mail him!! I am sure he would love to hear, again, from the Pirate fans. Anyway, administrative assistant Rod Rhodes has left for a position on the staff of Texas-Pan American. Brandon Walters and Mike Davis have also left the program this summer.

NBE Says - The Pirates seem to be the team that people are saying will boom or bust in Bobby Gonzalez’s fourth season. They will add talented, but enigmatic, transfers Herb Pope (New Mexico State) and Keon Lawrence (Missouri) to start the season and Jeff Robinson (Memphis) is likely to become eligible in December. Each transfer has had past ‘issues’ and will try to fit in with a team that had defined roles with an undermanned, but high scoring club previously, always a tricky compromise when unabashed green lights are turned to yellow in many instances.

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