I don't know - maybe it's just me. But when I saw this article on ESPN.com (must be an insider to view), I got a little crazy.
Supposedly, ESPN The Magazine polled 135 college football players on various topics. Out of that, a certain number of Big East players (unidentified) was asked their thoughts on things like best player and best coach. Then came the kicker - What team will win the conference?
Just over 55% of the players voted for Pitt. Now based on what I can determine and the percentages allocated for each team, I'm guessing that the Big East had nine total voting representatives (5/9 comes out to the 55.6% that is shown for Pitt, for example).
Is it a surprise that Pitt is considered the favorite in the conference? Not really. What I did find shocking was that unless the numbers of representatives from each team was uneven, there were players not voting for their own team. Going into camp with the season not even begun, how can you not vote for your team? I don't care if you're on Syracuse or Louisville - as a coach, do you really want your players thinking that way?
Further, UCONN, who has been touted by some as having one of the better teams in the conference didn't receive a single vote. So assuming they had a representative in the poll (and one can only assume they did), whoever it was didn't even vote for the school.
It reminded me of a story back in college when I went to Pitt. In my freshman year, I met a kid who was a walk-on through a mutual friend and had lunch with him once. He practically went out of his way to tell me (the very first time I met him, no less) how they had no shot against schools like Notre Dame and the like. Granted, the kid may never have seen the field - heck, I don't even remember his name. But even though he was only a walk-on, it showed in his attitude.
Granted, this was a confidential poll, I'm sure. But STILL. This isn't the middle of the season we're talking about here - it's preseason. If you don't have faith in your team now, there's no way you can win a conference.