Maybe I underestimated these Blue Devils.

Or maybe I overestimated those Boilermakers.

Purdue, after all, was one of the biggest surprises last season, contending with Wisconsin and Michigan State for the Big Ten title the whole way before the Badgers claimed the crown.

But in a matter of five days, Matt Painter’s team has been exposed on both ends of the floor by what appears to be two better teams — at least at this point in time.

Oklahoma, for one, could very well win the Big 12 championship this season with Blake Griffin standing as a favorite to capture Player of the Year honors, though last year’s honoree Tyler Hansbrough won’t make it easy for him. Therefore, it should be no surprise that the Sooners were able to pull out an overtime victory against Purdue last Friday in the NIT Season Tip-Off final at Madison Square Garden.

And secondly, Duke, which went into Mackey Arena Tuesday night and dominated the Boilermakers from start to finish for a 76-60 victory, for that matter, may be no joke either.

Sure, things could change over the course of the season, but for now, Duke has done everything it has been asked to do in the first three weeks of the season, staring at an 8-0 record with another road test Saturday in Ann Arbor against an improving Michigan squad.

So if nothing else, Mike Krzyzewski certainly has to be proud of his kids for what they’ve accomplished to this point.

Because it’s well known that the Blue Devils don’t play too many true non-conference road games, and for that reason alone, Tuesday night’s game in West Lafayette, Ind., was a rare and rather unusual occurrence that just so happened to be set up by the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

With that in mind, Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer showed a national television audience that these Blue Devils may not be as soft as some might have expected after last year’s second-round loss in the NCAA tournament and 2007’s first-round exit against VCU.

"For us, we knew coming on the road, it's huge to get off to huge starts, and that's something we were really focused on," said Scheyer, who scored 20 points while connecting on 3-of-6 from three-point land.

The Blue Devils never trailed. And to be quite honest, it never was really close. Duke beat the Boilermakers in every facet of the game.

Maybe it just wasn’t Purdue’s night.

Or maybe Duke really is that good.

Of course, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Purdue is a good team, but thinking that Duke could actually win the ACC championship over North Carolina would be plain stupid, if not nearly insane.

Coach K’s team should finish second in the ACC, and with the Tar Heels built the way they are this year, that’s still a rather impressive accomplishment should the Blue Devils actually do so.

But if K really believes that Purdue will be a national title contender like he said in the post-game press conference ("We think at the end of the season, Purdue will be one of those teams that has a chance.”), then there’s no doubt that this win will be one of those that the NCAA tournament committee would eye closely.

You never know, though.

Krzyzewski just might be overestimating the Boilermakers like I did, and yet, maybe we’re also overestimating these Blue Devils.

Because it's seeming more and more like this college basketball season, unlike others, is one where anyone — except for maybe the Tar Heels — can lose on any given night against almost any team in America.

Yes, the parity is that strong this season, and it continues to get stronger and stronger year after year.

You don’t have to look much further than at a team like Duke, which hasn’t held the No. 1 ranking in almost three years and hasn’t been past the Sweet 16 in the past four seasons.

Yet if the Blue Devils keep this up and Coach K’s words about Purdue happen to come true, that streak just may end this March.

If you ask me, it's really a shame that we won't be seeing Kenny George take the floor with his size-26 sneakers this season.

No, we won't be seeing George the Giant dominate Big South competition after guiding UNC Asheville to a school-record 23 wins and a postseason berth in the NIT.

And before you start saying "so what?" about reaching the NIT, let's not forget that some quality teams (cough, cough, Syracuse) have been left playing in that tournament the past two years after missing out on the one that really counts (a.k.a. the Big Dance).

But the fact that George won't be playing this year is an early disappointment for the upcoming college basketball season. 

The senior, after all, was one of the many great storylines that surfaced last season, capturing national attention back in January from his showdown with North Carolina forward Tyler Hansbrough at the Dean Dome.

I mean, if you were 7-foot-7 and could dunk standing flat-footed, you'd probably get noticed by one of us sportswriting types, too.

Now, though, George is sitting in an Iowa hospital after undergoing surgery to amputate part of his right foot, realizing that he'll probably never play basketball again.

"This is a terrible setback for Kenny George that he's not going to be able to play basketball this year," UNC Asheville coach Eddie Biedenbach said. "He's worked so hard from the time he was in high school and earlier to get to the point to do what he did last year."

George, however, has had his fair share of health problems, including two major knee injuries, and that's probably to be expected when you stand seven feet, seven inches above the ground and weigh a hefty 360 pounds.

Yet what will be even harder for George to come to terms with is that his basketball career is suddenly over and his team, picked to finish ninth in the Big South after reaching the conference championship game last season, is in a rebuilding year with its starting backcourt now gone.

"There's more to Kenny George than basketball," Biedenbach added. "The students at this school think the world of Kenny George outside of basketball. We're looking forward to him coming back second semester — that's what he wants to do — and complete his degree. At that point, we'd still like him to be a part of our basketball program and part of this school."

With that said, the Bulldogs will miss his presence on the court no doubt, especially in going up against North Carolina and Tennessee on the road in a matter of three days this fall (Nov. 30 and Dec. 3).

But maybe there's still a glimmer of hope for George's teammates this season without his 12.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.3 blocks from 2007-08.

Do I dare bring up Gardner-Webb?

Roy Williams thought he was lucky this offseason in getting all five of North Carolina's starters to return to school.

Then he found out this week that maybe no one can be that lucky.

On Wednesday, Williams was hit with the news that senior guard/forward Marcus Ginyard, a defensive stopper in the starting five for the Tar Heels last season, will miss eight weeks after having surgery to repair a stress fracture in his left foot.

"You hate this for Marcus because he has worked so hard to get ready for his senior season, but he decided it was better to have the surgery now and be ready sometime in December than risk a more substantial injury that would knock him out of action later in the season," Williams said in a statement. "We will miss his play on both ends of the floor as well as his leadership with the young players."

While Ginyard isn't known much for his offense (just 6.9 points in addition to 4.5 rebounds last season) — and the Tar Heels don't need his offense with three-time All-American Tyler Hansbrough, point man Ty Lawson, sharpshooter Wayne Ellington and sixth-man Danny Green all returning — he did play four positions, including backup point guard after Lawson sprained his ankle. The Tar Heels' other backup point guard, Bobby Frasor, had already ended his season at that point with a torn ACL.

Still, things can't be that bad when you bring back a player like Hansbrough, who averaged over a double-double (22.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game) last season on his way to winning Naismith Player of the Year honors.

And with Lawson, Ellington, Green, Deon Thompson and a dynamic freshman class on board as well, it's a lock that the Tar Heels will sit atop the preseason polls when they're finally released in early November.

But before we even play a single game this season, let's not hand the national championship trophy to Williams & Co.

The Tar Heels, after all, were expected to win it all last year.

That didn't happen.

In fact, most of us in the media, including myself, thought that UNC and UCLA were the two teams with the best shot to cut down the nets in San Antonio last April.

Yet when it came time for them to rise to the occasion, both failed to reach Monday night's national championship game, stumbling in the national semifinals a couple days earlier.

Instead, we saw a thrilling title game — one that we will be seeing highlights of for years to come — between an extremely athletic and talented Memphis team and a veteran Kansas squad destined to bring a national championship to Lawrence for the first time in 20 years.

This season, though, things are looking quite a bit different for the Jayhawks.

With the departure of Brandon Rush, Darrell Arthur, Mario Chalmers (and his miracle three-point shot), Darnell Jackson, Russell Robinson and Rodrick Stewart, the Jayhawks have just two playmakers returning — sophomore center Cole Aldrich and diminutive point Sherron Collins — leaving Bill Self with his work cut out for him after a hefty contract extention ($30 million over 10 years to be exact) this offseason.

Speaking of offseason contracts, it took Florida coach Billy Donovan long enough to sign off on his own extension which he agreed to in June 2007 after changing his mind about the Orlando Magic head coaching position.

Donovan, who won back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007, will be rewarded handsomely at $19.5 million over six years.

That's just before the incentives kick in, too.

If the Gators happen to win another national championship, Donovan will earn another $250,000.

And if Florida just reaches the NCAA Tournament, which it failed to do last year, Donovan will rake in an extra $25,000.

A top-10 finish in the AP poll, meanwhile, will bring in $50,000, along with winning the National Coach of the Year award.

But those kind of payouts are just icing on the cake for Donovan, who's already stamped his name on a basketball program that was outshined for many years by Florida's football program.

Now, with another five years in writing and a nice sum of cash to supplement it, Donovan might just be hanging around in Gainesville longer than what we might have originally expected when he took over the Gators 12 years ago.

Nearly three weeks have passed in the college football season (and yes, I’ve been slacking considerably with my entries lately), but if you had any doubts about how good East Carolina could be this year, you might want to start reconsidering Skip Holtz's team now.

Conference USA hasn't been known much for its football prowess since Louisville and Cincinnati bounced and moved over to the Big East in 2005, yet the Pirates might just have the right combination of talent and experience this season to win over a few BCS voters when December rolls around.

ECU, after all, has its toughest games behind them and a 2-0 record to show for it — along with a No. 14 ranking in this week’s AP poll.

It just goes to show you what two good weeks of football can do for you.

In the first week, it was a punt block with two minutes remaining that led to a go-ahead touchdown and a 27-22 upset over then-No. 17 Virginia Tech in Charlotte, N.C.

Then last Saturday, the Pirates treated their fans to an absolute beat down of West Virginia, a team ranked No. 8 at the time that had its BCS national championship hopes spoiled at home in the final week of the season last year by arch-rival Pittsburgh. 

It was one of the main reasons why Pat White didn’t test the NFL draft waters last spring and decided to return to school in hopes of contending for another national title with his teammates.

But that dream has nearly all been lost in a 24-3 embarrassment at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

“There are some things that need to be ironed out and there will be things that are ironed out,” West Virginia coach Bill Stewart said after watching ECU fans storm the field in celebration of its first win over a top 10 team since 1999, when Steve Logan manned the sidelines for the Pirates.

“We will work hard and learn from this game. We need to get better defensively and work on our receivers. It is a long season and the naysayers cannot end our players’ season after two games.”

Yeah, I'm sorry to inform you Bill, but I happen to be one of those naysayers.

I mean, come on, are you serious?

ECU has a better chance at reaching the BCS national championship game than your team does after the a-whooping that they got handed.

Depending on who wins Saturday’s mini national championship game between No. 1 USC and No. 5 Ohio State at the L.A. Coliseum — and my bet’s on the Trojans after that annihilation of Virginia Aug. 30 in Charlottesville — the Mountaineers would have to hope that Georgia, Florida, Missouri, LSU, Oklahoma and USC all lose at least once (maybe even twice for the SEC champ) before getting any reconsideration for this year’s title game.

And at this point in the season, all six of those teams are far and above better than the Mountaineers.

In addition, their quarterbacks are also proving to be superior.

White, a senior and preseason Heisman Trophy candidate, couldn’t throw the ball a lick against the Pirates’ defense, and it showed in the box score with just 72 yards in the air in comparison to 179 on the ground.

"I told them it wasn't going to take an out-of-body experience to beat West Virginia," Holtz, the third-year coach, said.

It certainly didn't even with East Carolina throwing for 243 yards in the air (386 in total compared to WVU's 251) and recording eight more first downs than the Mountaineers, but afterward, it was more of an out-of-mind experience for ECU fans and the rest of the nation.

“I don’t think you can put it into words,” Holtz further added about the win. “I am so proud of these players the way they have come out and competed the last few weeks. We played two elite programs and I am just proud of the way our team has grown. They are playing with desire, passion and togetherness. It is so fun right now to stand on that sideline and watch our defense play as good as it is. Every facet of our team from the offense to special teams was fantastic tonight. The players really believe in themselves right now.”

And for some fans, who were accosted and then beaten excessively by police officers — it was later confirmed by several local Charlotte TV stations that ESPN viewers could in fact see a Lenoir County deputy punching a fan with a closed fist as other students and fans rushed the field in celebration of the win — it was an ugly finish to a memorable moment in ECU football history.

Fortunately, the now No. 14-ranked Pirates won’t have to worry about any similar incidents this weekend, as they head to the Big Easy for their first Conference USA game against a Tulane team that lost last week, 20-6, to Alabama in its season opener.

The Green Waves, with all due respect, don’t stand much of a chance if the Pirates play like they did in their first two contests, but Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Tulane most likely won’t be the only wins Holtz’s team will be seizing this year.

Because with a winnable schedule the rest of the way, including non-conference games at N.C. State and Virginia and an innocuous C-USA slate (and Tulsa, the one league threat, not on it unless the two meet on Dec. 6 in the conference championship game), ECU may have finally found that silver slipper as the next BCS Cinderella playing in early January.