Despite entering the season with a brand new head coach and a starting quarterback quandary, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights football program received a preseason vote of confidence Tuesday, as it was picked to finish in third place in the eight-team Big East Conference, which was leaked by CBSSports.com's Brent McMurphy before the league's announcement at its media day in Newport, RI.
The Scarlet Knights, who finished last season with a 9-4 overall record and a Pinstripe Bowl victory, earned 144 points in the poll despite not earning one first place vote. Rutgers finished behind first-place Louisville Cardinals (24 first-place votes) and second-place South Florida Bulls (four first-place votes).
Meanwhile, the Syracuse Orange will enter their season as underdogs as they are projected to finish in seventh, just ahead of league newcomer the Temple Owls.
Here's the complete poll:
- Louisville
- USF
- Rutgers
- Cincinnati Bearcats
- Pittsburgh Panthers
- Connecticut Huskies
- Syracuse
- Temple
For more on the Big East football media day, check back to this SB Nation New York StoryStream. Meanwhile, for everything on the Big East Conference visit the the SB Nation blog Big East Coast Bias.