Quote:Monday, January 4, 2010
Bowl season review

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By Brian Bennett
ESPN.com

Like we did for every week of the regular season, it's time to hit the rewind button and look back on the Big East postseason:

Team of the postseason: Connecticut. The Huskies took out an SEC opponent (South Carolina) in impressive fashion and finished the year with four straight wins. There was no better story in college football this season.

Best game: Pitt's 19-17 win over had all the requisite drama and a game-winning field goal in the final minute. Hard to believe, but it was the only Big East bowl game decided by fewer than 12 points.

Biggest play: Connecticut receiver Kashif Moore's one-handed, 37-yard touchdown grab from Zach Frazer in the first quarter against South Carolina. It was spectacular and set the tone for the Huskies' win.


Best call: Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt's two fourth-down decisions on the winning drive at the Meineke Car Care Bowl. First, he decided to go for it on fourth-and-one from his own 30 with half a quarter left instead of punting and playing defense. Bill Stull converted the quarterback sneak. Then on fourth-and-two from the North Carolina 30 with 1:56 left, Wannstedt sent out the field goal unit but hoped to draw the Tar Heels offsides. That's exactly what happened, and both plays helped Pitt string together an incredible 18-play, 79-yard, 8:47 drive to win the game.

Big Man on Campus (Offense): Dion Lewis. How appropriate that the league's offensive MVP and freshman of the year also wins postseason Big Man on Campus honors. He deserves it after his 159 yards rushing on 28 carries and a touchdown against North Carolina.

Big Man on Campus (Defense): The UConn front seven. Can't single out just one guy in a dominating effort by the Huskies up front. South Carolina was shut out until scoring a touchdown with 3:24 left. The defensive line, led by tackle Kendall Reyes, looked fast and determined and was every bit as good as what the Gamecocks saw in the SEC. The linebackers, particularly Scott Lutrus and Lawrence Wilson, made plays all over the field. And almost all of them return in '10.

Big Man on Campus (Special teams): Pitt's Dan Hutchins missed a field goal early but rebounded to hit four of them, including the 33-yard game-winner with 52 seconds left.

Worst hangover: Cincinnati, and not just because the Bearcats and their fans spent a week roaming the French Quarter. The biggest game in school history turned into possibly the biggest mismatch in a BCS game, as Florida staked a 37-3 lead and rolled to a 51-24 victory at the Allstate Sugar Bowl. It will probably be a long time before we see those Cincinnati white helmets again. And it may be a while before a Big East team silences a skeptical public about its national title credentials.

Best timing: Rutgers senior linebacker Damaso Munoz had been kidded by his teammates for being one of the few Scarlet Knights' defenders who had never scored a touchdown. So with 2:18 left against Central Florida, Munoz corralled an onside kick and ran it back 35 yards to paydirt. He dived into the end zone and spiked the ball to cap his career.

Best off-the-field game: The backflip contest between South Florida defenders Jason Pierre-Paul and Kion Wilson before the International Bowl. Pierre-Paul won easily with a dazzling array of flips, and that athleticism is why NFL scouts drool over the still-raw defensive end. You can watch the whole thing here.

Strangest moment: At the end of three quarters, West Virginia tailback Noel Devine had rushed for 168 yards on 16 carries, including a 70-yard gain. And those numbers wouldn't change. Despite closing the gap on Florida State to 23-21 on the first play of the fourth quarter, the Mountaineers never again gave the ball to their best offensive weapon. It's as if West Virginia coaches thought Devine had already opted to leave for the NFL before the fourth quarter began.

(01-05-2010 01:48 PM)SF Husky Wrote:  Team of the postseason: Connecticut. The Huskies took out an SEC opponent (South Carolina) in impressive fashion and finished the year with four straight wins. There was no better story in college football this season.