BOULDER, Colo. -- The current Coach Mac let Colorados original Coach Mac do the inspiring at practice.He sure did, too.Longtime Buffaloes coach Bill McCartney showed up Tuesday and delivered a motivational speech that had coach Mike MacIntyre almost wishing it were game day. Thats how fired up his 12th-ranked Buffaloes were after an appearance by the coach who led Colorado to its only national title following the 1990 season.Who better to stop by before the biggest game in years for Colorado (8-2, 6-1 Pac-12) -- a showdown with No. 20 Washington State (8-2, 7-0) on Saturday at Folsom Field.I just had him say something to the team, and of course he did an awesome job, MacIntyre said. Hes been in this situation before, so the players were all locked in on what he had to say.McCartney, who was recently diagnosed with late-onset dementia , tends to drop by practice about once a month. But this particular trip had even more meaning because his grandson, Colorado outside linebacker Derek McCartney, was honored Tuesday as a member of the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, which recognizes athletes for making a positive impact on the community. Derek McCartney is an advocate for the organ transplant community after losing someone close to him who was on the waiting list.Derek McCartney is out for the season after tearing his ACL on Sept. 17 at Michigan .Dereks a special kid, genuinely humble, extremely talented, Bill McCartney said. Hes everything youre looking for as a coach. Hell turn this (setback) into something good by getting stronger as hes waiting to come back.Over the summer, McCartneys family announced he had dementia and Alzheimers. They went public just to alert everyone in the area who runs into the outgoing coach that if he appeared disconnected or unknowing, not to take it personally.Asked Tuesday about his health, McCartney said hes feeling good and quickly pointed out that while hes 76, his mother lived to be 103.Youre supposed to play your best football in the fourth quarter, so I have to have my `A game, McCartney said, laughing.At 93-55-5 , McCartney is the winningest coach in Colorado history and was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2013.And theres no bigger fan of the black and gold than McCartney, who has box seats for every home game. He firmly believes in the current Coach Mac, too.A really quality leader, McCartney said. This is a time we live in where kids dont believe everybody that talks to them. But they believe him. They trust him. They dont think hes deceiving them for his own benefit. They think hes in it for them. When you get kids like that, that believes in the coach like that, all bets are off.In McCartneys opinion, thats why the Buffaloes are in the midst of their best season in ages. Theyre already heading to their first bowl game since 2007.But plenty more awaits. They can earn a place in the Pac-12 championship game as the South Division representative by beating Washington State this weekend and Utah on Nov. 26.This squad reminds McCartney of his talented teams because of their willingness to be coached.Coach Mac is a guy I look up, a man that I admire and get advice from, MacIntyre said. I listen to every word he says. Its an honor and privilege to coach at the university he was at. Its an honor and a privilege to have his namesake -- Coach Mac and Coach Mac. Thats a special thing for me.---Follow AP Sports Writer Pat Graham on Twitter: http://twitter.com/pgraham34Patriots Jerseys 2019 . "We have always prided ourselves on the way we play defence. 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NEW YORK -- Villanova has a new name this season: defending national champion Villanova.Six months ago, the Wildcats won the NCAA championship in a thrilling finish, beating North Carolina 77-74. Its been a whirlwind since.This was all firsts for us, Villanova coach Jay Wright said Tuesday. It was our first time to the White House and to be honored at Philadelphia City. We came back from our trip to Spain -- where nobody knew us -- we didnt even get our bags before people were asking for pictures.Once we start playing everything will be back to usual. Still, we dont know what it will be like to walk into visiting arenas as the national champions.The Wildcats were the overwhelming choice of the Big East coaches as the preseason No. 1. Xavier, which finished in last seasons final Top Ten , was second followed by Creighton, Georgetown, defending Big East Tournament champion Seton Hall, Butler, Marquette, St. Johns, Providence and DePaul.Villanova lost starters Ryan Arcidiacono and Daniel Ochefu and it wont be their points, rebounds or assists that will be hard to replace.Arch and Daniel were natural leaders. They were seniors. They played a lot of basketball and knew how to lead, Wright said. It will be tough to replace them, but well enjoy the journey.Wright has Big East preseason player of the year Josh Hart and Kris Jenkins, who hit the 3 at the buzzer for the national title, among the returnees.Roles change every year, so Josh and I will try to take over the leadership role, Jenkins said. Well put last year behind us. At least well try to.Jenkins was asked how often he watches the tape of his title-winning jumper.I havent watched it in a while, he said. Ill save something like that for when Im done playing.Xavier has three starters back and the Musketeers are a trendy natioonal pick for a Final Four berth.ddddddddddddWe have a good experienced group. I think Im excited to coach them, coach Chris Mack said. Last year, there was a lot of teaching, a lot of learning. Youre always learning, but the experience level they bring back gives you great comfort as a coach because theyve been there before. Theyve been in those big games. Theyre not afraid of the big moment.Preseason first-teamers Trevon Bluiett and Edmond Sumner return for the Musketeers.To me Edmond was one of the top point guards in a tremendous point-guard league a year ago, Mack said. Edmond has that maturity about him. Hes going to have another really good year for us.Georgetown forward Isaac Copeland was honest in the reason why he thinks the Hoyas will have a better season than last year, when they finished 15-18 overall and eighth in the 10-team league.Mainly conditioning, Copeland said when asked what the Hoyas did this offseason. There were times last year when we were out of shape, just straight up out of shape. I think this year we run a lot more so we can push the ball more and play at a much faster pace.Seton Hall beat Villanova in last seasons Big East Tournament championship game and then had to watch the Wildcats win it all.I watched it. It was killing me to watch it, Pirates junior Khadeen Carrington said. Im happy that they won. It shows how deep the league is, how good the league is.I think we gave them that fuel to go win that. I think Jay Wright said something like that, we gave them that fuel to go out and win six games.The preseason all-conference team is Jenkins, Bluiett, Sumner, Kelan Marton, Butler and Maurice Watson Jr. of Creighton. ' ' '