For the Big East to remain relavent, the two most important things for them are to have big time coaches and top level recruits. Since it's "re-branding", the conference has lost Brad Stevens and Buzz Williams. Xavier coach Chris Mack nearly bolted his alma mater and the momentum Steve Lavin was building at St. John's has seemingly stopped. JT III and Georgetown have been spinning their wheels, losing in to double digit seeds in their last 4 NCAA Tournament appearances.
You would think the the naysayers were right. The conference just can't compete with football schools. Well, let's take a look at that.
Coming into this season, most services and publications that track such things, had 4 of the 10 Big East schools in the 25 classes for 2014-15. Those schools were Georgetown, Seton Hall, Xavier & Providence.
The one thing lacking from those classes was a bona fide lottery pick type player. Isaiah Whitehead certainly has the chance to become that player. The conference loaded up on players that will be top college players but may not excel or play at the next level.
The same thing will not be said about this year's crop of Big East incoming freshmen. A few weeks back, Villanova landed a committment from top-3 PG, Jalen Brunson who chose the Wildcats over Illinois. And today, Marquette landed in-state big man Henry Ellenson who some would argue is the best prospect the state has ever produced. As of today, Ellenson is projected by top scouting services as a lottery pick as soon as 2016. Marquette adds Ellenson to top-100 recruits, PG Nick Noskowiak and SG Haanif Cheatham from Florida.
St. John's is in the mix for a few top-10 recruits this year as well but seem like long shots at this point.
Whether people want to admit it or not, recruiting is the life blood of any program and by extension, any conference. Getting top players matter. Having top coaches help. Will Wojo be that guy? He's off to a great start. JTIII and Jay Wright have done great work recently. Ed Cooley has been fantastic at Providence.
It may not show again in 2014-15, but the Big East is about to show it can thrive, much less just survive.
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