MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- Had things gone a little differently the night of Jan. 2, Skip Holtz could have been West Virginia's football coach as soon as Jan. 3. WVU had plans to speak with the East Carolina coach following the game -- up until Bill Stewart was freed of the interim label a few hours after the 48-28 Fiesta Bowl victory.

"I think the morning after the bowl game they were done with it," Holtz said. "That selection committee was done with its issues. And I think they made a great hire with Bill Stewart. I'm excited for him. I know he's a West Virginia man through and through. He's been there a long time. It's in his blood. He's very loyal to the program and he's built a great rapport with the players. I could see that as the game went on. They made the right hire and I'm very excited for them."

Holtz, who is 21-17 and in his fourth season with the Pirates, agreed to a contract extension late last month through the 2013 season. ECU has improved from 5-6 his first season to 7-6 and 8-5 the past two seasons and the first back-to-back bowl appearances since 1999-2000.

A year ago the Pirates beat North Carolina for the first time in 32 years and then the reigning Fiesta Bowl champion Boise State in the Hawaii Bowl. They beat Virginia Tech last week for the first victory against a ranked team since beating No. 22 TCU in 2002.

"Three years ago we'd won three games in two years and now we're lining up and trying to compete against some of the best teams in the country," Holtz said. "It's a tall challenge not only to play the schedule we're used to playing, but to rise up and get over the hump and get used to playing at another level."

The Pirates are 2-3 against ranked teams under Holtz, losing 17-7 to Virginia Tech last year, 27-10 to WVU in 2006 and 48-7 against WVU last season.

"That," Stewart said, "was an aberration."

ECU plays four BCS teams next season -- UNC, N.C. State, Virginia Tech and WVU -- and then swaps WVU for Navy to begin a three-year series. UNC is on the schedule through 2011 and N.C. State and Virginia Tech are signed through 2013. A two-year deal with South Carolina starts in 2011.

"The job has changed here," Holtz said. "I know the schedule has changed and we've dropped teams and picked up some others, but I think that's the approach of (athletic director) Terry Holland to the bowl game structure. With the BCS structure the way it is, it's made it difficult for East Carolina or any other school, whether it's Conference USA, the MAC, the WAC and others, to play the BCS leagues. Our attitude is if they won't let us play the game at the end of the year, let's play it during the year."

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HURRICANE EARL was heading inland Sept. 3, 1998, when Ohio University was opening the season at N.C. State. WVU's offensive coordinator, Jeff Mullen, was OU's tight ends and offensive line coach during the 34-31 loss.

"We were a pretty big run team so it didn't affect us that much," he said.

About the worst conditions he could remember was when he was Wake Forest's quarterbacks coach and playing in a downpour at Boston College in 2005.

"It was Matt Ryan's coming out party," Mullen said. "It was raining sideways and Brian St. Pierre had thrown five picks. We were up nine points with three minutes to go and it was raining real bad. Then Ryan comes in and leads them back."

Ryan erased a 30-21 deficit by completing 7-of-9 passes for 134 yards and two touchdowns. He went on to be the third overall pick in April's draft.

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FORMER WVU running back Steve Slaton will make his NFL regular-season debut Sunday when the Houston Texans play at the Pittsburgh Steelers. Slaton, a third-round pick in April's draft, not only made the team, but made a great enough impression to earn immediate and perhaps significant playing time.

Slaton, receiver Darius Reynaud and defensive lineman Johnny Dingle all left WVU a year early, but only Slaton made a team.

"He surprised the rest of the world, all the doubters and bad-mouthers," quarterback Pat White said. "He didn't surprise me."

White and Slaton were roommates for two years and almost inseparable the three years they were teammates. Their allegiance has boundaries, though.

"I might leave Steve a few voicemails, a few text messages, but it might not be what he wants to hear," White said. "He knows I'm a Steelers fan."

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THE UNIVERSITY of Connecticut announced a two-game series with the University of Tennessee Thursday. The Huskies play host to the Volunteers at Rentschler Field in 2015 and travel to Neyland Stadium in 2016. UConn also plays host to North Carolina next season, Vanderbilt in 2010, Iowa State in 2011, N.C. State in 2012 and Maryland in 2013.