• Newport, we have a frontrunner. You know, more or less. The burning question around the Big East all offseason has been, who's the favorite? The preseason magazines have uncharacteristically split their votes among four different teams, and cast the top five in practically random order. The whole upper half of the league is a pick 'em, and it was the assembled Big East media's turn to make its pick Tuesday at the conference's media day: Pittsburgh! Come on down! You're the 2009 Big East Favorite!

But not by much: The ballots also split first place votes among four different teams, one of which (defending champ Cincinnati, which came in third) earned as many nods at No. 1 as Pitt. Out of 864 total points in the poll, No. 5 Rutgers was only 35 points out of the top spot, but 52 points ahead of No. 6 Connecticut. So, you know, it's still a pick 'em.

Neither the media nor the coaches selected a preseason All-Big East team, which is just as well: With Pat White, LeSean McCoy and Donald Brown moving on to the NFL, the most visible player in the conference is ... Greg Paulus? Noel Devine, Matt Grothe and George Selvie may have issues with that, but there wasn't much being written about any of them when Syracuse's new third-string QB was grabbing every other headline in April and May.

• General Neyland nods approvingly. The pictures have been out there, but AOL Fanhouse's Clay Travis dug up the video of Tennessee's shirtless photo shoot with an orange lamborghini Tuesday, and it ... well, the fact of its existence is comment enough:

Odds the car was eventually destroyed by a shirtless Ed Orgeron in a motivational rage? At least 3:2, right?

• Coach February yields to Coach November. Texas has a Senate seat opening up this fall, and the Austin American-Statesman has a long list of sports candidates who could fill Kay Bailey Hutchison's high heels on Capitol Hill. Most of them -- Mike Leach, Bob Knight -- are tongue in cheek, but one of the Statesman's suggestion is inevitable: Mack Brown. As I noted on Tuesday, all head coaches are first and foremost politicians -- their primary duties include raising money and ingratiating themselves to a broad constituency -- and none of them can slap backs and close deals in his territory with the alarming efficiency of Mack. He already owns Texas in recruiting and public opinion and has the richest athletic program in America humming along without a hint of turmoil; if the Longhorns start 8-0 and beat Oklahoma, he won't even have to mount a campaign. Just flash "Write-in Mack" on the Godzillatron in the week leading up to election day, and watch the votes roll in.

Quickly ... The Gator Bowl, possibly splitting ways with the Big East, is interested in picking up a tie-in with the SEC from 2010-13. But the Capital One Bowl has first dibs. ... Receiver Riley Cooper is choosing another year at Florida over baseball, adding one more bullet to the TebowGun. ... Ole Miss commit Demarco Cox, one of the top-rated offensive tackles in the class of 2010, will likely focus on basketball instead of football for the Rebels. ... Safety Jimmaul Simmons, who played in 11 games as a true freshman, has apparently left N.C. State and withdrawn from school. ... Hey Aaron Corp, no pressure or anything, kid. ... Star-crossed Minnesota linebacker Sam Maresh will be on the field for the start of the Gophers' spring drills? ... Not sure why, but Florida State is shooting for a "white out" against South Florida on Sept. 26. ... Joe Paterno continues to vouch for Bobby Bowden. ... Alabama players report today for Thursday's opening practice. ... Auburn is finally off the intramural fields. ... Oklahoma and Army are planning way ahead for a home-and-home. ... And knock on wood, but after years of piling up minor offenses, somehow Georgia players have managed to go an entire offseason without a single arrest, no small feat against the cuff-happy Athens police. Maybe that's one of the reasons we'll get to see the real Georgia this year, as opposed to last year's impostors.