Five To Ponder: Pittsburgh

They're gonna be pretty thin and it's gonna be hard to replace them just because they don't have the bodies. Those are the two biggest ones.

They were two good, reliable players who had been around for a while.

Pitt has running backs, but they're gonna have to look at him to contribute and play. They're gonna rely on him because he's gonna be a good back for them.

At some of the other positions, their two young defensive linemen,

As far as newcomers, they have a couple of transfers who are eligible this year for the first time. I'd look at those three guys,

They're going back to a pro-style offense, something that all except one class on this team were committed to play in. It's more of what

People want a pro-style offense, run the ball to set up play-action and play good defense. That's what

They have

Then you mention Shell, the big recruit coming in. This spring was important for Bennett to stake his claim because Graham wasn't available and still hurt and Shell arrived this summer.

This was Bennett's big opportunity and he really took advantage of it. He did a good job and really stepped up. He opened some eyes and said, 'Don't forget about me.'

The biggest benefit is it should allow them to take their time with Graham. They can be slow and let him fully recover before they rush him back in.

They have two I-AA teams due to some scheduling snafoos, the Big East is the Big East. Syracuse and Connecticut shouldn't be teams that scare you. Temple shouldn't scare you and then Cincinnati lost their quarterback. South Florida, who knows about that team. Louisville should be good but they have a true freshman turning into a sophomore at quarterback and who knows if he takes a step forward. It's the same thing at Rutgers.

The Big East should be wide open and Pitt should compete, should win eight or nine games int he regular season just because of their strength of schedule. Despite all the instability, the chaos here over the last two years and it's been chaotic.

Given their schedule, everything about what they face this year and the talent they return, they should win eight or nine games and be in the mix for the Big East title.