Breaking down the independents' story lines.

Connecticut Huskies
With its Big East entry coming in 2005, Connecticut, which was 2-9 last season, needs to keep improving, but it could make progress this fall. The Huskies return 10 starters on defense, and eight on offense, including quarterback Dan Orlovsky, and are closing in on filling their 85-scholarship allotment after having 73 last season. The running game once again is suspect, but Orlovsky, a dropback passer, has his three favorite targets -- receiver Cliff Hill and backs Jason Ridley and Wes Timko -- back to try and move the ball through the air.

Navy Midshipmen
Paul Johnson, who directed a successful option attack as a Navy assistant in the mid-'90s before going on to be head coach of a Division I-AA powerhouse at Georgia Southern, inherits a leaky ship in his first year as the Midshipmen's head coach. Navy, which was 0-10 last season and 1-10 in 2000, will return up to eight starters on defense. If Johnson can coax more out of an offense that averaged only 18.3 points, the Middies should have a chance to snap their 10-game losing streak?and win more than that.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Tyrone Willingham begins his Notre Dame tenure with more questions than answers. That's typical for new coaches. What's not typical is the attention the Irish receive, win or lose. Mix in all the off-the-field incidents that have tarnished the Golden Dome lately, and the Irish snipers will be lying in wait.

Notre Dame was 5-6 last season, and while it could improve on that, it also could wind up right about there again. Off-the-field turmoil, including the George O'Leary hiring/firing and an ugly rape case, undoubtedly has left the ND community longing for some entertaining football, but unexpected personnel losses combined with the usual rebuilding that comes with a new coach leave the Irish vulnerable.

Carlyle Holiday, who had some flashy moments last fall, has emerged as the quarterback with Matt LoVecchio's transfer to Indiana. But Holiday will have a heavier burden due to the academic problems that have sidelined Julius Jones, who led the team in rushing the last two years.

Only two or three opponents look out of reach for these transitional Irish.

On the other hand, only three or four opponents look like locks in the event that Notre Dame has difficulty getting its act together. Judging by what Willingham accomplished at Stanford, Notre Dame will be back eventually. This year, though, looks messy.

South Florida Bulls
South Florida has the talent, and the schedule, to approach last season's 8-3 mark in its final tuneup before it joins Conference USA next season. Junior quarterback Marquel Blackwell, who threw for 20 touchdowns and ran for nine, again will be at the helm of a spread offense that helped the Bulls shock Pitt 35-26 last season. Trips to Arkansas, Oklahoma and East Carolina won't be easy, but South Florida returns six of its front seven on a defense that helped it outscore its opponents by 14.2 points a game.

Troy State Trojans
Troy State, coming off a 7-4 record, including a win at Mississippi State, in its first season in Division I-A, faces another road-heavy schedule that's filled with difficult challenges. Among the seven road games are trips to Nebraska, Iowa State and Arkansas as the Trojans use their guarantees to finance upgrades in facilities and their stadium. Complicating matters is the loss of four-year starter Brock Nutter at quarterback. Sophomore Hansell Bearden and junior college transfer Matt Ray will compete for the job. Troy State also has lost three of its top four tacklers.

Utah State Aggies
Utah State, still shopping for a conference, will go back to work after a 4-7 season last fall in which it needed to outscore opponents to be successful. Kevin Curtis, who led the nation with 100 receptions last fall and averged 15.3 yards a catch, again will team with quarterback Jose Fuentes for the Aggies, who return six offensive starters, but only four from their porous defense, which allowed 38.2 points a game. The schedule provides hope that Utah State can avoid its fifth straight losing season.

Herb Gould covers college football for the Chicago Tribune.