Who is the Best QB in the Big East?

Is B.J. Daniels is the best quarterback in the Big East?

The Big East has been a wide open and competitive league and in 2012, it should be the same.  It will be up to the quarterbacks of each respective team to lead them to the conference title, but who can do it?  Which quarterback is the best signal caller in the land?  While we want to put Daniels at the top, there are some great arms in the league that will challenge him for that title.

Starting in Cincinnati, the Bearcats are looking to replace Zach Collaros who missed a lot of time last year due to injury. Junior Munchie Legaux (6-4 203-pounds) took over and did a solid job in relief, showing his speed as a duel-threat quarterback.  He completed 55 passes out of 116 attempts for 749 yards (47% completion percentage) including 5 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.  Legaux also carried the ball 41 times for 241 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season.  The sample size for Legaux was relatively small, but he did show speed and got better with more snaps.  Coming out of their spring, senior Brendan Kay (6-4 229-pounds) emerged as the number two option, pushing Legaux for the starting position (Jordan Luallen also on the roster), but it would be safe to say Legaux is the starter.  How good can he be in a full season?  Without DJ Woods and Isaiah Pead, he could have a tough start to the season as the new weapons emerge on offense.

Next we look at the new team entering this season, Temple.  The Owls looked at multiple quarterbacks last season and relied on the running game more to get the majority of their scoring. Coming out of the spring, junior Chris Coyer (6-3 214-pounds) emerged as the starter.  Coyer also showed his skill with his arm and legs in the MAC conference.  He completed 30 of 50 passes for 463 yards including 6 touchdowns (no interceptions).  He carried the ball for 69 times for 608 yards and 3 touchdowns. There are two things to note about Coyer.  One, he was splitting time last year with Chester Stewart (wouldn't expect Clinton Granger to get the starting job) and he was facing the MAC conference, not the same level of speed as the Big East.  With all that under consideration, Coyer should have a strong season, but Temple has questions at running back and wide receiver, so he could struggle a bit and will probably not be at the top of the conference.

Next is Louisville's young stud quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater (6-3 208-pounds).  The former 5-star recruit eventually won the job over for Coach Charlie Strong and won't be giving it up anytime soon.  Bridgewater completed 191 passes out of 296 attempts (64%) for 2129 yards, including 14 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.  He carried the ball 89 times for 265 yards and 4 touchdowns.  Bridgewater is a very tall, lanky, and athletic quarterback that matured during the course of last season.  He got better at reading defenses and protecting the ball later in the season.  He is a very fast player, but prefers to throw, but is always a threat to run (nightmare for defenses).  Bridgewater nearly led the Cardinals to a BCS bowl game last season and many believe this is the season he becomes even better and a more complete passer.  He has the talent and coaching staff surround him, which could make him the best quarterback in the conference.

Next, for UCONN, senior Johnny McEntee (6-3 218-pounds) returns as the top passer of the Huskies.  McEntee completed 172 passes out of 335 attempts (51%) for 2110 yards including 12 touchdowns and 8 interceptions.  He carried the ball 55 times, but lost 148 yards (not a running threat).  The Huskies are not known for their high flying passing game and rely on strong rushing game, so look for that same formula again in 2012, which will take pressure off of McEntee.  The Huskies still had a solid season and his numbers were not that bad, but they were not among the best in the league and unless the Huskies have a stable of elite wide receivers that we have no seen before, don't look for him to break too many records this season.

Next is Syracuse's senior Ryan Nassib (6-2 229-pounds). Similar to UCONN, the Orange rely on the power of the offensive line and running game for set up their offense.  Nassib, however, had bigger numbers and has proven over the seasons he can get the job done.  He completed 259 passes out of 415 attempts last season (62%) for 2685 yards including 22 touchdowns.  Nassib is also has some wheels.  He carried the ball 65 times for 194 yards and 2 touchdowns.  There is not a lot of mention of Nassib when it comes to the top quarterbacks in the conference. He has a solid arm and can move around, but has not been able to take his game to the next level and with a few of the offensive weapons around him gone from last year, he may not be the best quarterback in the Big East. 

At Pitt, senior Tino Sunseri (6-2 215) returns after a disappointing 2011 campaign.  He completed 247 passes out of 385 attempts (64.2%) for 2612 yards including 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions in Todd Graham's "high octane" offense, but he never looked very comfortable in the pocket and committed a lot turnovers.  He did carry the ball 154 times for 510 yards and 4 touchdowns, but he is not a natural running threat like Daniels or Bridgewater are.  Suneri has a new coach this season which means he will be moving more to a traditional pro-style offense (not as much shot-gun formations) so he will have to make another change in his final season that could lower his numbers this year.

Rutgers continues to look for its quarterback to lead the team for a full season.  Two quarterbacks battled this spring and will continue to battle into the fall for the starting job, junior Chas Dodd and sophomore Gary Nova.  Dodd (6-0 200-pounds) played in 8 games last season, completing 139 passes out of 245 attempts (56.7%) for 1574 yards including 10 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 27 times for 46 yards but is not a running threat (those attempts were probably scrambling for his life).  Dodd took over for the later part of the season after Nova (6-2 230-pounds) struggled at times.  He completed 116 passes out of 227 attempts (51%) for 1553 yards including 11 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.  He carried the ball 23 times for 33 yards as well.  Both quarterbacks were listed as co-starters coming out of the spring, showing how open the battle really is for the Knights.  Mix in that top receiver Sanu left for the NFL, the Knights will struggle a bit in the passing game.

Finally, we talk about our senior, B.J. Daniels (6-0 217-pounds). The dual-threat quarterback has had a lot of big moments for the Bulls during his time in Tampa and now sits in 8th place in total yardage in Big East history (some guy named Grothe holds the record right now).  Last season, Daniels completed 215 passes out of 365 attempts (58.9%) for 2585 yards including 13 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.  He carried the ball 132 times for 769 yards and 6 touchdowns.  Despite missing one game to injury, Daniels had a career season, eliminating the interceptions and continuing to use his legs to run around defenses. 

So with all the arms in the conference, who is the best one? There are question marks with each signal caller, but when it comes down to it, Daniels has to be the best at this moment. Yes, Bridgewater is talented and even Legaux could surprise some people, but over the years, Daniels has consistently put up numbers and now finds himself in the Big East record books.  He has probably the most talented offensive weapons around him since he came to USF, has been in the same offense 2 full seasons (entering 3rd), and has the skill set to get the job done. 

So who do you think the best QB in the conference is?  Is Daniels the best or is Bridgewater going to eclipse him this season?  Can Legaux or Nassib have break out seasons and take that mark?  Share your thoughts!