NCAA Football FanHouse http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com NCAA Football FanHouse http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/media/feedlogo.gif NCAA Football FanHouse http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Big East Commish: Old Bowl System Preferable to Playoffhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/04/big-east-commish-doesnt-expect-bcs-to-last-past-2013/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/04/big-east-commish-doesnt-expect-bcs-to-last-past-2013/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/04/big-east-commish-doesnt-expect-bcs-to-last-past-2013/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

John MarrinattoTAMPA, Fla. -- The demand for a college football playoff could break up the BCS after the 2013 season, but instead of adding a playoff, the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) would likely just revert back to the old bowl system, Big East commissioner John Marinatto told FanHouse.

"It [the BCS] is such an entity where there's so many diverse things that come together that make it work," Marinatto said. "I don't know if all that will continue to go on the way it is. If they're pressured to create a playoff, they would simply go back to what the system used to be like and have it as an at-large, free-for-all where people can go [to whichever bowl] they want.

"I don't think the pressure would cause people to create a playoff. I think it would cause them to go back to where we used to be [before the BCS]."

Marinatto also told FanHouse that the Big East has "no intention" of adding a ninth-football member. However, if the Big East was approached by another school that would "add value," the conference would be receptive to adding another member even it grew the basketball league to 17 teams. Marinatto stressed it would not "raid" another league to add a ninth-football member.

Also in Marinatto's interview with FanHouse, he said the BCS wants the coaches to make their ballots public after next season. He said he's optimistic they will and the coaches' poll will remain a part of the BCS formula. Marinatto also said it's possible a one-loss team could get selected over undefeated Cincinnati for a spot in the BCS title game and why the Big East's Yankee Bowl will be a success -- no matter how cold the weather might be in New York in late December/early January.

When will you add a ninth football member?
There is no intention of adding a ninth member at this point. There hasn't even been a discussion.

Do you want a ninth football member?
I understand the reasons why people feel like we could or should have a ninth member and it's primarily for scheduling. Again, we've had this discussion in the room the last five years since we expanded to 16 [schools]. It always comes down to: we'll take a ninth member if that member brings value to the membership.

Even if that means increasing the basketball membership to 17 schools?
Even if that means going to 17. We're structured in such a way that we've provided for that in our bylaws. If a ninth member of value became available tomorrow, we'd expand and go to 17.
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Would you pursue a ninth football member?
Will we raid someone to do it? No. It's not our intention to raid someone to accomplish what we want to accomplish. If under the right set of circumstances ... where someone might be disenfranchised and look for a new home. And if that school brought value, then we would be amenable. The world could change. The costs of travel could become such that an Eastern school that's now in a non-Eastern quote-unquote conference might want to look [and think] 'it makes more sense to be in the Big East.' There could be a shifting around. In that scenario, we would go to 17.

But we're not going to go out there and try and raid someone. That's not our intention.

Do you believe the BCS will continue to exist after the 2013 season?
The contract with ESPN is through [the end of the 2013 season]. There's so much resistance, or seemingly vocal resistance [to the BCS]. It's such an entity where there's so many diverse things that come together that make it work. I don't know if all that will continue to go on the way it is.

If they're pressured to create a playoff, they would simply go back to what the system used to be like and have it as an at-large, free-for-all where people can go to [to whichever bowl] they want. I don't think the pressure would cause people to create a playoff. I think it would cause them to go back to where we used to be.

We like the current system for a lot of reasons. It brings (the) regular season value because of the number of bowls that are available that provide so many students with the experience of being to a bowl game and that's a valuable thing.

The theory is if a playoff is created, the most you could do would be an eight-team playoff and those eight teams are going to be the ones that get to experience a post-season bowl. Whereas today you have probably 68 schools that get that experience, half of them walking away feeling good and winning. From a student-athlete's standpoint, we think the current structure allows for a better overall experience for more student-athletes. And that's really what, in the world of football, it's about: going to a bowl and experiencing that post-season experience.

In the Bowl Subdivision, people really cherish the post-season experiences. Whether it's the Rose Bowl or one of the lower level bowls, to get to a bowl is considered a positive experience. People around our table don't want to lose that.

Is there any scenario in which a one-loss team could be selected over a 12-0 Cincinnati team to play in the BCS title game?
I don't know until it unfolds. There are inherent flaws in the BCS system, it's not perfect. Injustice is possible. It's an attempt simply to get the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country identified to play each other. Over the years there have been injustices and we know it's not a perfect system. To answer your question, it could happen. It would be hard to see how it could happen, but again, the system is not perfect.

Should the coaches' ballots remain public and if they are not public, would the coaches' poll no longer be a part of the BCS formula?
Yes, transparency is important in a lot of things, but particularly in this at this point. We've talked about this around the room. We think chances are better that it [the coaches' poll] becomes transparent [than dropping the coaches poll from the BCS formula]. I think they understand at some level that it's important. Transparency is important for credibility. Hopefully that will happen; we'll see.

There clearly is a desire on the part of the commissioners around the country to have it transparent. We all feel that's important for a number of reasons, including credibility. I understand the logic of not publishing [the ballots] because of the pressure within certain conferences to help their own schools and a lot of other reasons, friendships and what not. But the reasons for making it transparent are more compelling than the reasons for keeping it secret.

The final [ballot] is the most important one. I would prefer that [all ballots through the season were public] but I don't know if that's a deal-breaker. The most important one is the final one.

Temple was kicked out of the Big East after the 2001-02 school year ...
My understanding, the group [Big East] created standards that they wanted everyone to adhere to and Temple wasn't able to meet the standards. [Marinatto was not with the Big East when the decision was made]

Could the same thing happen to another Big East school for not being competitive enough?
We have standards. In 2000, we created a strategic plan. Within our strategic plan were three elements.

One of the elements is referred to as the program standards for all of our team sports, a minimum number of scholarships you must commit; you also have to meet a certain percentage of the commitment for coaches and a facilities requirement.

When we expanded in 2003, we re-wrote the constitution and bylaws and created the contracts with the five new schools [Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette, South Florida]; an exhibit to the agreement was the strategic plan. We told everyone these are the standards we created, you have to adhere to these if you want to join and make the commitment that you're going to commit to the standards, so it's built into the contracts. It's an overall commitment to excellence. They are not competitive standards.

How close was the league to restructuring the men's basketball tournament and eliminating byes for the top eight seeds?
The way it happened, at our summer meetings, several of our coaches raised the concept of changing the format of the tournament. What I said to them was we've really not talked about this. When we expanded the tournament to 16 [teams], the current structure was the only one they could accept and go to 16 because it protected the best teams.

At the meeting this year, there was a reversal of opinion [because] on the women's side, three of the top four seeds lost, and on the men's side, two of the top four lost [their opening game]. I said to them this is all new.

I had [men's basketball associate commissioner] Danny Gavitt do an analysis. Does it require more class days, etc. Basically it was a neutral effect on all of those things. We could have changed the format. Several of the coaches in the room who were advocating for it, upon reflection, weren't as excited about doing it any longer. I've said we've only done it [this way] for one year, let's just table the idea for a year and if we feel that way next year we can revisit it. For the time being let's keep it the way it is.

I decided to keep it the way it was for another year at which point and time, we'll reevaluate to whether we want to make a change.

Are you in favor of all 16 teams playing in the Big East Tournament or would you rather it be limited to only the top 12 teams?
A year ago, I would have said no [to all 16]. But it seemed to work from a crowd standpoint. We had such good crowds last year. Now ESPN is televising the first day [the first-round wasn't televised last year]. We've got ESPN2 for the first session, ESPNU for the second session. We were afraid we would devalue our tournament by going to 16 and diluting it. That didn't happen last year, so let's see again what happens this year.

The BCS is considering hiring a full-time BCS coordinator. Is former Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese the obvious choice?
We've been talking about [having a coordinator] for a while. People [BCS league commissioners] who are sitting in the chair as the [BCS] coordinator often times feel conflicted wearing two hats because they have a built-in conflict of interest.

We've been talking about how we could potentially eliminate that perception because that person acts as the coordinator and also acts as the spokesperson. Within their own conference when you're the [BCS] coordinator, your own people [from your conference], you're not representing because you're representing the whole group.

We haven't resolved the fact we want to hire an executive director. We're talking about the idea. We haven't identified names. We haven't determined titles. We're not sure what the best scenario is to follow primarily to avoid that perceived conflict of interest.

You took over for Tranghese on July 1 as Big East commissioner. How have your first 100 days gone so far?
In so many ways I feel like we've accomplished so much. We got the Champs Bowl deal done. We got the Yankee [Bowl] deal done. We extended the [Madison Square] Garden contract [to host the Big East Tournament through 2016]. We hired a woman [associate commissioner Danielle Donehew] to take over for [associate commissioner] Donna DeMarco.

On the women's basketball side, we created the SWA [senior woman administrator] initiative for sportsmanship and ethical conduct. There are so many things we've gotten done in a short time, but there are so many things we need to start to deal with. The biggest of the logistical things is simply trying to relocate our office [Brown University bought the building the league's office is located in]. It sounds like a simple thing, but it's so all-consuming. Our intention is to stay in Providence.

The Big East added a bowl game to be played in Yankee Stadium starting next season. How can a bowl game played potentially in sub-freezing weather be a success?
We have three objectives [for our bowl games]: opponent, destination and geography.

Geography we address by being in New York because it's the center of where we are. Destination? New York City, Christmas, holidays. Opponent? Big 12. We have our three criteria met. If [Yankee Stadium] had a cover on the stadium it would be perfect, but it didn't. We had talked about doing this eight years ago. We had announced if the [New York] Jets built a new stadium with a roof we would create the Big Apple Bowl and we would host it. That would be perfect for us. The idea of being able to play this game in New York City on New Year's Day is what where shooting for.

When you go to Times Square and see the ball come down, it was just so appealing. I think that people would want to experience that. When you've watch it on TV since you were a kid, when Guy Lombardo would welcome in the New Year, then Dick Clark and so you grew up watching it. If your team is in New York City playing in Yankee Stadium on New Year's Day, wouldn't you want to go see New York lit up for the holidays and the ball coming down in Times Square?

I think we offset the weather with all those other things. And then as Randy Levine, president of the Yankees, keeps telling me: We're the New York Yankees, don't worry about the weather. The proposed dates are Dec. 29, 30, 31 or Jan. 1, but we're shooting for Jan. 1. That's ideal, you get there for the 31st to watch the ball and next day have the game. A day start would be ideal. The Yankees are in conversations with different networks to televise it, but haven't finalized what they want to do with it.

Big East Commish: Old Bowl System Preferable to Playoff originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>John MarinattoBrett McMurphyWed, 04 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST Blanket Coverage: For Pete's Sakehttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/03/blanket-coverage-for-petes-sake/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/03/blanket-coverage-for-petes-sake/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/03/blanket-coverage-for-petes-sake/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Pete CarrollHalloween in Eugene began with Oregon coach Chip Kelly disguised as the Duck mascot and ended with USC masquerading as Cal. Pete Carroll's Trojans are not exactly immune from defeat in the Beaver State (0-4 since 2006) but they never lose to a fellow highly ranked Pac-10 foe and they most certainly never get waxed.

That's Jeff Tedford's domain.

Hands continue to wring in the Southland -- the Orange County Register declared that "USC's complete dominance of the league, a dominance unmatched in conference history, is over" -- but I believe that Pete Carroll, much like Michael Myers, will haunt the Pac-10 for many Halloweens to come.

Also, I'd like to suggest a more salient reason for Troy's desultory play of late, one that has nothing to do with the freshman QB, the eight defensive starters lost, or the two new coordinators: jet lag (and that's not a Mark Sanchez reference).

This Saturday, the Trojans will fly to Phoenix to face Arizona State in neighboring Tempe, which will mark their sixth flight of the season. No school among the top dozen in the BCS rankings (USC is No. 12) will play six of its first nine games away from home. And only Boise State, primarily because the Broncos visited Hawaii on October 24, has accrued more frequent-flier mileage.

The Trojans are lax because of LAX. They've covered more miles than Les Miles. They've made two across-three-time-zones treks already (Ohio State and Notre Dame), which equals the total of the other 11 top-12 schools combined (Cincinnati at Oregon State and Boise State at Ohio State).

Below is a table ranking the top 12 in terms of mileage covered, with their actual BCS rankings in parentheses. Distances were rounded off to the nearest hundred miles:

1) Boise State (7)......................................13,400 miles

2) USC (12).............................................11,700

3) Cincinnati (5).........................................9,200

4) TCU (6)................................................8,200

5) LSU (5)................................................5,600

6) Texas (2)..............................................4,900

7) Florida (1).............................................3,800

8 (Tie) Iowa..............................................2,800

Georgia Tech....................................2,800

10) Oregon...............................................2,700

11) Alabama............................................1,800

12) Penn State.........................................1,300

Granted, it's not as if the Trojans were traveling by sleeper car back to South Bend. On the other hand, I'm beginning to wonder if safety Taylor Mays begins pep talks with, "This is your captain speaking."

Maybe Carroll's greatest nemesis may not be the swiftly surging Ducks. Maybe it's his athletic director.

THE ZACH ATTACK
He has only been the starter for 2½ games, but Cincinnati quarterback Zach Collaros has been outstanding in leading the No. 5 Bearcats to victories against South Florida, Louisville and Syracuse. Since taking over for injured starter Tony Pike, Collaros has completed 75 percent of his passes (47-of-63) for 749 yards and nine touchdown passes versus just one interception. That's the same TD-to-INT ratio that Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame, second in the nation in passing efficiency, has.

Asked when Pike, who himself is currently seventh in the nation in passing efficiency, would play again on Monday, Bearcat coach Brian Kelly offered, "It's hard to say."

STEIN SHINES
Louisville, led by 5-8 walk-on quarterback Will Stein, beat Arkansas State, 21-13. Stein had last seen game action at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium as a local high school senior when he led Trinity to a defeat of St. Xavier in front of 37, 550 fans. Saturday's attendance at the same venue was 21,497.


TRUE BROMANCE
I cannot decide whether Riley Cooper is the Jordan Shipley of the SEC or whether Shipley is the Cooper of the Big 12. Cooper is the Gator wideout with the Head & Shoulders mane who is not only Tim Tebow's primary target, he's also his roommate.

Shipley is the childhood best friend and roommate of Texas quarterback Colt McCoy. He is also the Longhorn quarterback's favorite target. All four are straight out of "Friday Night Lights" (it's Jason Street and Tim Riggins come to life). Should Florida and Texas meet in Pasadena for the BCS championship, it'll be a question of whether Brent Musberger utters the term "bromance" during the broadcast or if he'll just refer to them as "pardners."

HMMMMMMM
Ohio State beat New Mexico State 45-0. The spread in Vegas was 44. If only everyone worked as diligently as oddsmakers.

TEMPLE IN NEED OF WORSHIPPERS?
Congrats to Temple for beating Navy. In earning their sixth straight victory, the Owls also became bowl-eligible for the first time since 1979. And so it would seem that their next home game would be an ideally opportune time for the fans in Philadelphia, and not just the Cos, to show their pride.

There's just one small problem. Temple's next home game, versus Miami of Ohio at Lincoln Financial Field, is Thursday night. That also happens to be the scheduled date for Game 7 of the World Series between the Phillies and the New York Yankees ... if necessary.

Blanket Coverage: For Pete's Sake originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>John WaltersTue, 03 Nov 2009 12:33:00 EST Rewind: Big East Primed for Big Finishhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/02/big-east-rewind-two-be-determined/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/02/big-east-rewind-two-be-determined/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/11/02/big-east-rewind-two-be-determined/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

And then there were two.

Cincinnati and Pittsburgh are now the lone undefeated teams in Big East play after last weekend's action.

The No. 4 ranked Bearcats and No. 14 Panthers continue on a collision course for the de facto Big East championship game on Dec. 5 in Pittsburgh. By the way, whatever Nick Carparelli, the Big East's senior associate commissioner for football, is making, he deserves a raise.

Carparelli is in charge of the league's schedule and his philosophy is having the league's top games played later in the year. That's easier said than done, but the Big East could have a pair of Top 10 teams playing for the league title if the Bearcats and Panthers don't stumble.

Stumble is exactly what West Virginia did -- again -- at South Florida. Playing in Tampa, Fla., on a Friday night for the second time in three years, the Mountaineers' league title hopes took a big hit with the 30-19 loss to the Bulls, who had lost their previous two games to Cincinnati and Pittsburgh by a combined margin of 75-31.

At just past the halfway mark in league play, five of the league's eight teams already have two league losses.

Some things we may have actually figured out in the past week

1. They are so ready for basketball to start in Louisville and Syracuse.

Last week's home football games at Louisville and Syracuse drew ridiculously small crowds. Louisville's game against Arkansas State drew a Papa John's Cardinal Stadium crowd of 21,497, the smallest in the stadium's 11-year history. The low attendance was probably a combination of UL fans being fed up with Steve Kragthorpe and the caliber of opponent. However, a top-flight opponent didn't help Syracuse. Only 33,082 showed at the Carrier Dome to see the Orange battle No. 5 Cincinnati. Even with free tickets provided to SU students and $10 tickets available in the upper level, it was smaller than any home crowd during Greg Robinson's past four seasons. Apparently the honeymoon is already over for first-year SU coach Doug Marrone, whose job didn't get any easier when WR Mike Williams quit on Monday.

2. Tim Brown never felt better - or worse - about a victory.

Tim Brown, Rutgers wide receiver, grew up in Miami two houses from UConn's Jasper Howard. Saturday was UConn's first home game since Howard was murdered. Brown had considered flying to Miami for the funeral last Monday, but ended up watching it on the internet. Before the game, he walked onto the field, knelt on one knee, said a short prayer and raised six fingers to the heavens -- for Howard, who wore No. 6. More than three hours later, Brown was racing into the end zone with the winning 81-yard TD catch with 22 seconds remaining. After crossing the goal line, Brown held up six fingers. "I played for him," said Brown, who cried after the game. "I dedicate this win to him and my teammates, for helping me keep my head up and keep me strong."

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3. South Florida has gotten into West Virginia's head.

USF's victory last week against West Virginia was only the third in five all-time meetings between the schools. But has a 3-2 advantage ever appeared so dominating? West Virginia has been favored in all five meetings, but has only won one comfortably. Since winning the first meeting, 28-13 in 2005, West Virginia has been lucky it hasn't lost four in a row to the Bulls. In 2006 USF won at WVU 24-19 as a 21-point underdog; in 2007 USF won 21-13 as a 7-point underdog when WVU was ranked No. 5 and last year USF nearly won again (and probably should have if not for some critical turnovers) in Morgantown in Pat White's final home game, losing 13-7. In last week's 30-19 victory by USF, the Bulls put the clamps on RB Noel Devine the same way they've shut down RB Steve Slaton and White in past seasons.

Re-Tweeting Week 9

Ranking the league from top to bottom and summarizing each team, in 140 characters or less.

1. Cincinnati: Bearcats are nation's only team that has not lost a fumble this season. Did I just jinx a no-hitter?
2. Pitt: After Syracuse this week, Pitt hits a tough closing stretch vs. Notre Dame, West Virginia & Cincinnati, who are combined 20-4
3. USF: Bulls among eight teams with two victories this year against ranked opponents. They'll get a shot for a third vs. Miami on Nov. 28
4. West Virginia: Only Syracuse has allowed more yards passing than Mountaineers. Any chance Noel Devine can also play cornerback?
5. Rutgers: Scarlet Knights rank fourth nationally having forced 25 turnovers in eight games
6. UConn: Déjà vu again. Huskies suffer 28-24 loss for second consecutive week when defense gives up a late big play in crushing loss to RU
7. Syracuse: Will the Orange be looking past Pittsburgh this week to their Nov. 14 Battle of the Basement at Louisville?
8. Louisville: Cards' 21-13 win vs. Arkansas State was UL's first in 13 games under Steve Kragthorpe when scoring less than 24 points

Follow Brett McMurphy on Twitter at twitter.com/BrettmcmurphY

Rewind: Big East Primed for Big Finish originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyMon, 02 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST Big East Rewind: No Longer the Pittshttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/26/big-east-rewind-no-longer-the-pitts/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/26/big-east-rewind-no-longer-the-pitts/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/26/big-east-rewind-no-longer-the-pitts/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Pitt PanthersJust three weeks ago, we called Pittsburgh the Pitts-ophrenic Panthers after their up-and-down performances earlier this season against Buffalo, N.C. State, Louisville and UConn.

Uh, is it too late to take that all back?

As impressive as Cincinnati has been all season, Pittsburgh might be playing the best overall of any Big East team. The offense is balanced and the defense gets more dominating each week. Saturday, the Panthers (7-1, 4-0 Big East) scorched South Florida 41-14.

Since allowing 505 yards at N.C. State, the Panthers have improved their defensive numbers in each of the past four games. Pitt allowed 305 yards to Louisville on Oct. 2, 303 to UConn on Oct. 10, 286 to Rutgers on Oct. 16 and 212 to USF on Saturday.

Led by DE Greg Romeus, the defense just continues to get stronger and stronger. The offense also is doing its part. QB Bill Stull ranks third nationally in passing efficiency and RB Dion Lewis is the nation's fourth-leading rusher. Against USF, Pitt never had to punt.

The Panthers are off this week before closing the season against Syracuse (Nov. 7), Notre Dame (Nov. 140, at West Virginia (Nov. 27) and Cincinnati (Dec. 5).

Some things we may have actually figured out in the past week

1. Sorry Brian Kelly, Randy Edsall is the Big East coach of the year

Yes, we already anointed Cincinnati's Brian Kelly as the league's coach of the year in this column a couple of weeks ago, but Randy Edsall deserves the honor as much, if not more. What Edsall did the past week in an incredibly difficult situation was inspiring to say the least. The class, dignity and professionalism that Edsall displayed in dealing with the tragic death of Jasper Howard situation was extraordinary. Perhaps other coaches would have done as admirably, but I doubt it. Then Edsall somehow managed to take the Huskies into Morgantown and nearly pulled off the upset. UConn outgained WVU 501-387 -- the first team to gain 500 yards on WVU this season -- but couldn't overcome four turnovers and a late Noel Devine TD in the 28-24 loss.

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2. Rece Davis is a genius

While showing highlights of Pittsburgh's 41-14 rout of South Florida, ESPN's Rece Davis remarked the following about the Bulls: "Once again just as the leaves drop, South Florida falls off the face of the Earth." Yes, as the calendar nears Halloween, USF's season turns into all tricks -- no treats. In 2007, USF started 6-0, only to finish 3-4. Last year, USF started 5-0, only to finish 3-5. After this year's 5-0 start, the Bulls are 0-2 and could very well be sitting at 5-4 after hosting West Virginia Friday and traveling to Rutgers Nov. 12. After that 5-0 start, the Bulls have been outgained in each of their Big East games against Syracuse, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh.

3. The end is near for Steve Kragthorpe at UL

When Steve Kragthorpe was hired at Louisville in 2007, it was generally regarded as a solid hire. Kragthorpe came to UL from Tulsa where he led the Golden Hurricane, 2-21 the two seasons before he took over, to bowl trips in three of his four seasons. At Louisville, though, it just hasn't worked out. In 2007, gut-wrenching, close losses to Kentucky, Syracuse and UConn kept the Cards from a bowl berth. Last year, the Cards looked to have turned the corner after upsetting No. 14 USF to get to 5-2. However, they promptly ended the year on a five-game losing streak. This year has been more of the same: a 2-5 start with their only wins against Indiana State and Southern Miss (on a last-second field goal). UL will not play in a bowl game for a third consecutive season for the first time since Ron Cooper was coach from 1995-97. That will leave AD Tom Jurich with no other choice than to replace Kragthorpe.

Re-Tweeting Week 8

Ranking the league from top to bottom and summarizing each team, in 140 characters or less.

1. Cincinnati: Off to their best start since 1954, the Bearcats have committed a national-low four turnovers
2. Pittsburgh: In only loss at NC State, Panthers allowed 505 yards. In last two wins vs. Rutgers and USF, allowed only 498 combined
3. West Virginia: Last time WVU visited USF was also a Friday night in 2007 and No. 5 Mountaineers were upset. Does history repeat?
4. UConn: Huskies' three on-the-field losses have been by two, three and four points. RIP Jasper Howard
5. Rutgers: Since allowing 47 points in opener to Cincinnati, Rutgers is allowing only 10.5 points per game in past six games
6. South Florida: TGFS -- Thank God For Syracuse. Since joining Big East in 2005, USF is 5-0 vs. the 'Cuse, 10-16 against rest of Big East
7. Syracuse: After defeating Akron, Syracuse returns to Big East play vs. Cincinnati. Since 2005, SU is 3-27 against the Big East
8. Louisville: When scoring less than 24 points under Steve Kragthorpe, the Cardinals are 0-12

Follow Brett McMurphy on Twitter at twitter.com/BrettmcmurphY

Big East Rewind: No Longer the Pitts originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>brian kellyjasper howardnoel devinerandy edsallsteve kragthorpeBrett McMurphyMon, 26 Oct 2009 15:33:00 EST Bearcat Football Now King of Queen Cityhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/24/bearcat-football-now-king-of-queen-city/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/24/bearcat-football-now-king-of-queen-city/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/24/bearcat-football-now-king-of-queen-city/#commentsFiled under: ,

CINCINNATI -- A few days ago, a former long-time resident of the Queen City was asked if he ever could have imagined that the University of Cincinnati's football team would overshadow the Bearcats' tradition-rich basketball program.

Without hesitation, Bob Huggins replied: "Not in my lifetime."

These are strange days indeed in Cincinnati, where the football team -- not the basketball program -- is a legitimate national title contender.

On Saturday, coach Brian Kelly's big, bad Bearcats kept steamrolling through the Big East with a 41-10 seal-clubbing of Louisville in the battle for the Keg of Nails.

It was Cincinnati's first home win against Louisville since 1997. Back then, Cincinnati fans would have been giddy with a 31-point rout of their rivals located just down I-71.

Saturday, on the Bearcats sideline there were some former UC players, who were actually upset that fifth-ranked Cincinnati (7-0, 3-0 Big East) didn't run it up even more on the Cards (2-5, 0-3). It seems they're still seeking payback for a 70-7 loss to Louisville in 2004.
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Even though that loss was only five years ago, it seems like it was 55 years ago -- which, ironically, is the last time Cincinnati started 7-0 -- in 1954 under a pretty decent coach by the name of Sid Gillman.

Oh by the way, the Bearcats have a pretty decent coach these days, as well.

Shortly after the 2006 regular season ended, former Cincinnati coach Mark Dantonio bolted for Michigan State. Left behind, said Cincinnati senior wide receiver Mardy Gilyard, was a team that was "bummed and heartbroken."

Five weeks after Dantonio left, Kelly guided those bummed and heartbroken Bearcats to a victory against Western Michigan in the International Bowl. Kelly's heroes haven't let up ever since.

Under Kelly, the Bearcats are 29-6.

In his three years, Kelly has lost as many games as starting quarterbacks that he's had to use. Some schools may have the same starting quarterback for two or three years. These days, Kelly is lucky to have the same starter for two or three weeks.

Despite suffering more injuries at the quarterback position than any school in the country, Kelly continues to plug another one in and mashes even harder on the pedal. The Bearcats have totally bought into and embraced Kelly's "next man in" motto.

"When we first came in, we weren't really competing [against Louisville] and it was a landslide," Cincinnati senior linebacker Andre Revels said.

With senior Tony Pike sidelined with a left arm injury, it was Zach Collaros' turn to make his first start Saturday. Collaros is the sixth different starting quarterback Kelly has used at Cincinnati.

Despite having "some butterflies" before kickoff, the redshirt sophomore was 15-of-17 for 253 yards and three touchdowns. He finished with 305 yards total offense. Imagine how well he might have done if he wasn't nervous?

"Really, [Friday night] and [Saturday morning] was when I was most nervous," Collaros said. "When I got on the field, it was like playing football again."

Winning as a starting quarterback is old hat for Collaros, who was 30-0 as the starting quarterback and won two state titles at Steubenville (Ohio) High School. He said the last time he lost as a starting quarterback was seven years ago as a freshman.

Gilyard, who rolled up 225 all-purpose yards and tied a school-record with his 22nd career touchdown reception, said the Bearcats aren't concerned who plays quarterback.

"It don't matter who is under center with our offense, Coach Kelly can be under there," Gilyard said. "We're not worried who's under the center."

What matters, though, according to Gilyard is "Who's running the show? Coach Kelly's running the show."

The Greatest Show in the Big East mesmerized the once-proud Cardinals. On Cincinnati's first two TD drives, nine plays were 10 yards or longer and the Bearcats didn't have to punt until seven minutes remained in the contest.

The Bearcats, who entered the game 11th nationally in total offense (457 yards per game) and fourth in scoring offense (41 points per game), had 422 yards and 41 points -- by the end of the third quarter.

Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe -- who is five games from becoming former Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe -- had a perfectly good explanation.



"To be honest with you, I was hoping Tony would play today because I knew they would be one-dimensional and I knew that they would throw it," Kragthorpe said. "I really felt that if Tony played, even if he hadn't been hurt, it would've been a lot better matchup for us. They're a little more one-dimensional with Tony in there."

Still, whether it's Collaros or Pike or Pike or Collaros, it doesn't matter to the Bearcats.

"We just flip flop so many quarterbacks that we used all of them on the depth chart," Gilyard said. "No worry about it."

When Saturday's victory, played before a record Nippert Stadium crowd of 35,099, finally ended, Cincinnati's players grabbed the Keg of Nails. It's a barrel trophy that says "Rival Battle for the Nail Keg." It was initiated by fraternity chapters from both campuses back in 1929 signifying that the winning players were "tough as nails."

Cincinnati's players grabbed the barrel and high tailed it to the southeast corner of the stadium where the Bearcats' band jubilantly played on.

Gilyard bounced around autograph seekers on the sidelines before grabbing a homemade sign from a fan and presenting it to Kelly. The sign read: "Happy B-Day Brian Kelly."

Sunday, Kelly will enjoy a very happy 47th birthday. Indeed, these are happy days in Cincinnati.

Bearcat Football Now King of Queen City originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Sat, 24 Oct 2009 22:16:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>brian kellymardy gilyardzach colllarosBrett McMurphySat, 24 Oct 2009 22:16:00 EST Gruden Quiet on Louisville Speculationhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/15/gruden-quiet-on-louisville-speculation/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/15/gruden-quiet-on-louisville-speculation/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/15/gruden-quiet-on-louisville-speculation/#commentsFiled under: ,

Jon GrudenTAMPA, Fla. -- ESPN announcer and former Tampa Bay Bucs coach Jon Gruden, who was attending Thursday night's Cincinnati-South Florida game, declined comment about media reports linking him to college and NFL coaching positions.

"I'm just here to support the Bulls," Gruden told FanHouse.

Gruden has been identified as the top choice at Louisville if current coach Steve Kragthorpe is fired after the season, the NFL Network reported.

Gruden's brother, Jay, played quarterback for the Cardinals from 1985 to 1988.

Last week, Louisville Sports Buzz also reported Kragthorpe would be fired or notified he wasn't returning after UL's game with Southern Miss on Oct. 10. However, UL senior associate athletic director Kenny Klein told FanHouse that report was "absolutely not true."

Monday, Kragthorpe was asked about his job status and the various reports speculating about his future.

"You're talking to me, so I'm still employed," Kragthorpe said. "I don't put thought into that. That's the way things [in the media] are today."

Gruden also has been speculated as a candidate as the next coach with the Washington Redskins. The Washington Examiner reported Gruden "might be the best fit" for the Redskins.

Gruden was 100-85 in 11 seasons with the Oakland Raiders and Tampa Bay. He led the Buccaneers to the Super Bowl XXXVII title, defeating the Raiders. He was fired in January. He is currently an analyst on ESPN's Monday Night Football.

Gruden Quiet on Louisville Speculation originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:36:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>jon grudenBrett McMurphyThu, 15 Oct 2009 22:36:00 EST Louisville Official Calls Kragthorpe Report 'Absolutely Not True'http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/08/louisville-official-says-kragthorpe-report-completely-wrong-inf/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/08/louisville-official-says-kragthorpe-report-completely-wrong-inf/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/08/louisville-official-says-kragthorpe-report-completely-wrong-inf/#commentsFiled under:

Steve KragthorpeA report that Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe has been informed he will not return next season is "absolutely not true," Louisville senior associate athletic director Kenny Klein told FanHouse.

The report, from Louisville Sports Buzz, indicated "sources very close to the situation" said "a meeting took place between the respective camps" of athletic director Tom Jurich and Kragthorpe on Monday, where Jurich reportedly gave Kragthorpe "the option to resign before or following Saturday's game with Southern Miss or ride out the season (as) basically a lame-duck."

Klein said the report, which indicated an announcement would be made no later than next Monday, is "completely wrong information."

"Tom Jurich and Coach Kragthorpe didn't even speak on Monday in person or by phone," Klein said.

The Cardinals are 1-3 this season, including 0-1 in the Big East. Kragthorpe is 12-16 in his third season at Louisville since replacing Bobby Petrino. The Cardinals were 6-6 in 2007 and 5-7 in 2008.

The report also indicated that former Tampa Bay Bucs coach Jon Gruden is atop most Louisville fans' wish lists to replace Kragthorpe.

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Louisville Official Calls Kragthorpe Report 'Absolutely Not True' originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:13:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>steve kragthorpeBrett McMurphyThu, 08 Oct 2009 15:13:00 EST Notebook: QB Injuries Ravage Big Easthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/07/notebook-qb-injuries-ravage-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/07/notebook-qb-injuries-ravage-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/07/notebook-qb-injuries-ravage-big-east/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Adam FromanOn Monday, Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe was asked who would be the Cardinals' starting quarterback Saturday against Southern Miss.

"I don't want Southern Miss to know who the quarterback is," Kragthorpe said. "You guys will find out when they walk out on game day."

Forget the Abbott and Costello routine "Who's on first?", "Who's starting at quarterback?" has become the all-too-common theme in the first month of the Big East.

Last year, the league was stockpiled with clear-cut starting quarterbacks at West Virginia (Pat White), South Florida (Matt Grothe), Rutgers (Mike Teel), Pittsburgh (Bill Stull), Louisville (Hunter Cantwell) and Syracuse (Cameron Dantley). At Cincinnati and UConn, Tony Pike and Tyler Lorenzen ended up getting the majority of the starts, but the Bearcats and Huskies each used three different starting quarterbacks last season.

This year because of injuries, determining a starting quarterback at several league schools has been more like musical chairs.

Last season in the Big East, 12 players started at least two games at quarterback. This year, the league already has had 11 players start at least two games at quarterback -- and if Adam Froman starts for Louisville Saturday, he will be the 12th league QB with at least two starts this season.

Injuries have had a great impact on the position throughout the league and the No. 1 example is at South Florida where QB Matt Grothe was lost for the season with a torn ACL. In a cruel irony, Grothe's injury occurred a week after he passed White as the league's all-time leader in total offense.

Overall, the league's list of wounded QBs who have missed a start because of an injury could fill a MASH unit: USF's Grothe (knee), UConn's Zach Frazer (knee), Louisville's Justin Burke (bruised sternum) and Rutgers' Tom Savage (concussion).

Rutgers' coach Greg Schiano, who has had Savage and Domenic Natale split four starts this season, was asked about Savage's availability for Saturday's game with Texas Southern. Schiano's answer summed up how most of the coaches in the league are feeling about their own situations.

"We hope to have him back," Schiano said.

Buckeye State Bragging Rights

Forget health care, the big debate in Ohio these days is who has the better football team? Cincinnati or Ohio State.

The Buckeyes have the storied tradition, the only two-time Heisman winner, the dotting of the I, the most BCS title game losses, etc. Cincinnati has -- uh -- the better chili.

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This year, though, the Bearcats also might be better on the field. At least in the eyes of the Associated Press voters.

The Bearcats are No. 8 in this week's AP poll, one slot ahead of No. 9 Ohio State. It's the first time since 1951 that the Bearcats are ranked higher than Ohio State. Ohio State won the last meeting 37-7 in 2006, but unless they meet in a bowl game, they won't play again until 2012.

"By that time hopefully we've continued to accelerate our program where Ohio State has something to gain by playing us," Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly said. "In years past, this [which is the best team] wasn't really a conversation because Cincinnati wasn't the kind of program that would merit that kind of conversation."

While the AP voters gave Cincinnati the slight edge, it's not even close according to one member of the Kelly household.

Kenzel Kelly, Brian's 8-year old son, recently pitted Cincinnati against Ohio State on his PlayStation. The final score was Cincinnati 91, Ohio State 0 - and it wasn't even that close.

"I promptly took him to McDonald's," Brian Kelly said.

Big Four Billboard Boasting

Near downtown in Tampa, Fla., USF's marketing department put on a USF-sponsored billboard: "Big 4: Welcome to the Club Bulls Fans." It's in reference to USF's win at Florida State two weeks ago and the Bulls' quest to make the state's Big Three of Florida, Florida State and Miami a Big Four.

The billboard has the No. 3 crossed out and includes team logos of UF, FSU, UM and USF.

USF coach Jim Leavitt, who called the win at FSU the "biggest in school history, no question," was not thrilled about the new billboard.

"I had nothing to do with it, I don't know how it got up and I don't know who put it up," Leavitt told the Tampa Tribune. "We have not won national championships and we have not won conference championships. What gives us the right to sit there all of a sudden like we've won all these championships and done all this stuff? That's not me. That's never been me.

"I don't want people to sit there and think I think we're all that -- because we're not. We're a program that's trying to get competitive. We're a program trying to build."

The Bulls, who are 1-0 against FSU, 0-1 against Miami and have never played Florida, get their next crack at a Big Three/Big Four program Nov. 28 when they host Miami.

Around the League

Last season, UConn's Donald Brown led the nation in rushing with 2,083 yards. This season, the Huskies are ahead of Brown's pace -- albeit it's the combined numbers of Andre Dixon and Jordan Todman. Dixon and Todman are combining for 191 yards per game, compared to Brown's 160-yard per game average last season. "Andre is more of a slasher, while Jordan is a little bit shiftier," UConn coach Randy Edsall said about his dynamic duo. ... Pitt QB Bill Stull has gone from being booed by the home fans in the season opener to No. 5 nationally in passing efficiency. The difference? "This may be too simple, but the No. 1 thing is he's not throwing interceptions," Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. ... Louisville has held second-half leads in two of its three losses this season, but has been outscored 41-24 in the fourth quarter this season. Pitt outscored UL 28-0 in the second half of Friday's 35-10 win. "The first three series of the second half were catastrophic," Kragthorpe said. ... How hard has it been for USF to replace kicker Maikon Bonani, who suffered a back injury this summer falling from a Busch Gardens skyride? Delbert Alvardo and Eric Schwartz have combined to miss six of nine field goals - with five of the six misses from 40 yards or closer.

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Middle Tennessee State quarterback Dwight Dasher (9) avoids the tackle of Troy's Bear Woods (48) in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
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    NEW YORK - OCTOBER 06: Matt Moore, a former college football player at Texas Christian attends The 24th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner benefiting The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis (national fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis) at The Waldorf=Astoria on October 6, 2009 in New York, New York. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for The Miami Project) *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore

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    NEW YORK - OCTOBER 06: Matt Moore, a former college football player at Texas Christian attends The 24th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner benefiting The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis (national fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis) at The Waldorf=Astoria on October 6, 2009 in New York, New York. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for The Miami Project) *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore

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    NEW YORK - OCTOBER 6: Matt Moore, a former college football player at Texas Christian University, attends The 24th Annual Great Sports Legends Dinner benefiting The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis (national fundraising arm of The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis) at The Waldorf-Astoria on October 6, 2009 in New York, New York. (Photo by Brian Bedder/Getty Images for The Miami Project) *** Local Caption *** Matt Moore

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    Middle Tennessee State quarterback Dwight Dasher (9) avoids the tackle of Troy's Bear Woods (48) in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Troy receiver Chip Reeves (8) celebrates with teammate Sergio Perez, rear, after scoring on a 52-yard pass reception in the first half of an NCAA college football game against Middle Tennessee in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Troy linebacker Boris Lee (2) breaks up a pass intended for Middle Tennessee State receiver Malcolm Beyah (4) in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. At left is Troy defender Tebiarus Gill. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Troy running back Shawn Southward (20) reacts after scoring in the first quarter during an NCAA college football game against Middle Tennessee State in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. Middle Tennessee States's Emmanuel Perez (91) and Jeremy Kellem (20) walk away. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Troy receiver Chip Reeves (8) is pursued by Middle Tennessee State's Marcus Udell (3) on a 52-yard touchdown reception in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Middle Tennessee State wide receiver Desmond Gee runs for a first down as Troy's Tebiarus Gill (10), Bryan Willis (26) and Boris Lee (2) defend in the first half of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Troy running back Shawn Southward (20) dives to the end zone as Middle Tennessee State safety Jeremy Kellem (20) tries to make the stop in the first quarter of an NCAA college football game in Troy, Ala., Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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Notebook: QB Injuries Ravage Big East originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 07 Oct 2009 11:02:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyWed, 07 Oct 2009 11:02:00 EST Rewind: Fab Four Emerge in Big Easthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/05/rewind-fab-four-emerge-in-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/05/rewind-fab-four-emerge-in-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/10/05/rewind-fab-four-emerge-in-big-east/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,


The past week was fairly routine and predictable for the Big East: Cincinnati, South Florida, West Virginia and Pittsburgh all won fairly easy as they were expected against lesser competition.

The season isn't even to the halfway mark -- heck not every team has even started Big East play yet -- but that quartet has emerged as the Big East's Fab Four.

Entering the season, the consensus of all the preseason magazines and .com's was that any one of five teams would win the league. Those four plus Rutgers were considered good enough to win the league in a race that would be too close to call.

The Scarlet Knights lost to a Cincinnati buzzsaw in their season opener, but have allowed only 35 points in winning three consecutive games against subpar competition since, so they might be better than they showed in Week 1.

Whether Rutgers or, maybe even Connecticut, deserves to be included in the upper half of the league should be known fairly soon. In the next two weeks, UConn visits Pitt Saturday and the following week Rutgers hosts the Panthers.

Some things we may have actually figured out in the past week

1. I guess Cincinnati really doesn't need the ball that much.

In its past two games combined, Cincinnati's offense has had the football for only 35 minutes and 27 seconds or about the same amount that some teams have in one game. Yet, the Bearcats are doing plenty with their limited opportunities. In the two wins against Fresno State and Miami, Ohio, Cincinnati has scored nine offensive touchdowns in 35:27, or an average of one touchdown every 3 minutes and 56 seconds it has the ball. You want efficiency? Check this out: the Bearcats' nine TD drives the past two games averaged to a remarkable 1:54, a virtual two-minute drill. Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly isn't worried about the time of possession disparity or slowing down the Bearcats' scoring drives by saying "I'd rather score quickly."

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2. West Virginia's worst enemy is ... West Virginia.

OK, maybe this was obvious after the six turnover night at Auburn, or the four turnovers against East Carolina, or ... West Virginia is averaging 465 yards a game -- and nearly as many turnovers a game. The Mountaineers have lost 14 turnovers in the past three games. But they aren't biased toward a particular turnover. Against East Carolina, the Mountaineers lost three fumbles. At Auburn, they had five interceptions. In Thursday's win against Colorado, they lost four fumbles. "We're sloppy," WVU coach Bill Stewart said. WVU's offensive numbers -- second in the Big East, 13th nationally -- would be even more impressive if the Mountaineers could ever hold onto the dang football. In WVU's three games against FBS teams, the Mountaineers have more turnovers (14) than punts (10). Beware the Mountaineers if they can ever stop giving the football away.

3. USF is really, really good -- or maybe just taking advantage of an easy schedule.

For the third time in as many seasons, South Florida is back in the national rankings. Despite losing senior QB Matt Grothe to a season-ending knee injury in their third game, the Bulls (5-0) are No. 23 in this week's AP Top 25. Off this week, they might sneak into the top 20 this weekend if enough ranked teams lose. The Bulls' most impressive win so far was clearly at Florida State, but the Seminoles are struggling big-time this season. Also, two of USF's wins were against FCS teams (Wofford and Charleston Southern) and a third victory was against Western Kentucky, possibly the nation's worst FBS team. All of their first five opponents currently have losing records and are a combined 7-17. It won't take long to find out if the Bulls are legit contenders or pretenders. USF's next four opponents (Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Rutgers) has a combined record of 15-3.

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In this Saturday Oct. 3, 2009 photo, Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden is shown walking the sideline during the second half against Boston College of an NCAA college football game at Alumni Stadium in Boston. Boston College won 28-21. The chairman of the Florida State University trustees wants Bobby Bowden to retire at the end of this season. Jim Smith said Monday, oct. 5, 2009, the arrangement with Bowden as head coach and his successor, Jimbo Fisher, as offensive coordinator isn't working. (AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper)
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    In this photo taken Sept. 12, 2009, Illinois' QB Eddie McGee (10) heads down field against Illinois State during the second half of the NCAA college football game at the University of Illinois in Champaign, Ill. Illinois will start backup quarterback Eddie McGee on Saturday against Michigan State instead of Juice Williams. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

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    In this photo taken Oct. 3, 2009, Illinois' quarterback Juice Williams (7) scrambles out of the pocket against Penn State during the first half of the NCAA college football game in Champaign, Ill. Illinois will start backup quarterback Eddie McGee on Saturday against Michigan State instead of Juice Williams. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)

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    In this Saturday Oct. 3, 2009 photo, Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden is shown walking the sideline during the second half against Boston College of an NCAA college football game at Alumni Stadium in Boston. Boston College won 28-21. The chairman of the Florida State University trustees wants Bobby Bowden to retire at the end of this season. Jim Smith said Monday, oct. 5, 2009, the arrangement with Bowden as head coach and his successor, Jimbo Fisher, as offensive coordinator isn't working. (AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper)

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    In this photo made Oct. 3, 2009, Florida State offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher makes a call during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Boston College at Alumni Stadium in Boston. Boston College won 28-21. The chairman of the Florida State University trustees wants Bobby Bowden to retire at the end of this season. Jim Smith said Monday, Oct. 5, 2009, the arrangement with Bowden as head coach and his successor, Jimbo Fisher, as offensive coordinator isn't working. (AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper)

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    Washington State running back Logwone Mitz, top, attempts to leap in for a touchdown but is stopped short by the Oregon defensive during the second half of their NCAA college football game in Eugene, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009. Oregon beat Washington 52-6.

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    In this Oct. 3, 2009 photograph, Mississippi State linebacker K.J. Wright (34) attempts to block a first half pass by Georgia Tech quarterback Josh Nesbitt (9) during their NCAA college football game in Starkville, Miss. Josh Nesbitt is making it tough on defensive coordinators. The Georgia Tech quarterback did a little bit of everything the last two weeks, baffling defenses in wins over Mississippi State and North Carolina. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

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    Stanford running back Toby Gerhart (7) scores a touchdown past UCLA cornerback Alterraun Verner (1) in the first quarter of their NCAA football game in Stanford, Calif., Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

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    Houston quarterback Case Keenum and UTEP defender Aaron King chase a fumble during the fourth quarter of their NCAA college football game Saturday Oct. 3, 2009 in El Paso, Texas. Keenum was unable to recover the ball and it was instead picked up by UTEP's Roddray Walker and run 70 yards for a touchdown. (AP Photo/Victor Calzada)

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    Houston's Brandon Brinkley agonized after UTEP's Donald Buckram scored his fourth touchdown of the evening during the fourth quarter of their NCAA college football game Saturday Oct. 3, 2009 in El Paso, Texas. UTEP linemen celebrated with Buckram in the background. (AP Photo/Victor Calzada)

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    UTEP defender Roddray Walker sprints 70 yards for touchdown after recovering a Houston fumble during the fourth quarter of their NCAA college football game Saturday Oct. 3, 2009 in El Paso, Texas. (AP Photo/Victor Calzada)

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Re-Tweeting Week 5

Ranking the league from top to bottom and summarizing each team, in 140 characters or less.

1. Cincinnati: Start the hype: No. 8 Bearcats visit No. 23 USF Oct. 15 in nationally televised contest of league's only unbeatens

2. USF: Behind new defensive coordinator Joe Tresey, Bulls are third nationally forcing 16 turnovers

3. WVU: Just call RB Noel Devine "The Human First Down." Against Colorado, he had career-high 220 yards on 22 carries

4. Pitt: Bill Stull, former whipping boy of Pitt fans, is now fifth in nation in passing efficiency (11 TDs, one interception)

5. UConn: Huskies best chance for upset at Pittsburgh Saturday will be taking advantage of league's second-worst rush defense

6. Rutgers: Another FCS cupcake (Texas Southern) Saturday moves Rutgers to 4-1 before hosting Pitt on Oct. 16

7. Syracuse: Is turnover-machine hyphenated or two words? Greg Paulus' five interceptions part of SU's seven TOs in USF loss

8. Louisville: Flag day coming Saturday when nation's No. 6 (So. Miss) & No. 8 (UL) most penalized teams meet

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Rewind: Fab Four Emerge in Big East originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 05 Oct 2009 17:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyMon, 05 Oct 2009 17:00:00 EST Big East Notebook: Where QB Stands for Quality Basketballhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/24/big-east-notebook-where-qb-stands-for-quality-basketball/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/24/big-east-notebook-where-qb-stands-for-quality-basketball/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/24/big-east-notebook-where-qb-stands-for-quality-basketball/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Greg PaulusBig East coaches continually are trying to fight the perception that their league is much more than a basketball league.

"I guess everyone thinks we're a basketball league," West Virginia coach Bill Stewart said. "They're full of baloney."

Perhaps, Stewart and his fellow football coaches should stop trying to fight that image.

Especially since nearly half of the league's eight football teams feature starting quarterbacks that also played college basketball.

The best known is former Duke point guard Greg Paulus, now starting for Syracuse. Also, West Virginia senior quarterback Jarrett Brown played in 13 games two seasons ago for the Mountaineers' basketball team.

And then USF freshman QB B.J. Daniels, who will make his first start Saturday at Florida State, played in 16 games for the Bulls' basketball team last season.

Paulus said before the season his experience at Duke would help him at Syracuse.

"Having the experience and the opportunity to play for Coach K and Duke, it prepared me for everything," Paulus said.

"Playing in a lot of big games and playing in that type of atmosphere has allowed me to learn from that culture, to build on some of the things I had in high school and I'm trying to bring some of that here to Syracuse."

Paulus threw for a career-high 346 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's win against Northwestern.

Stewart said Brown benefited greatly from his time spent on the Mountaineers' basketball team.

"You know what helped him the most?" Stewart said. "When he went over to old Bobby Huggins and played basketball that really helped Jarrett mentally and got him in better shape. I think that helped him a lot. It made him tough."

When being recruited out of Tallahassee's Lincoln High School, Daniels told schools he wanted to play football and basketball. If he wouldn't be allowed to play both sports, he wasn't interested.

USF and Memphis were the schools that would allow him to play both and he chose the Bulls.

Daniels said even though he is now the starting quarterback, taking over for the injured Matt Grothe, he doesn't plan on giving up basketball just yet.

"He's a phenomenal athlete, a highly competitive kid," USF basketball coach Stan Heath said. "It's a big challenge for him (making his start at FSU). I think getting on the hardwood in front of a crowd last year, might help him understanding that experience.

"It is a rarity (to play football and basketball); you rarely see it. Both sports are so demanding. If you're not spending year round on basketball, you're not going to be at the same level as other guys. The same thing with football. To see a guy able to do both of those at this level is phenomenal, a Charlie Ward type guy."

Don't Blame This Guy
Following Louisville's 31-27 loss at Kentucky Saturday, Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe was, well, let's just say pretty fired up.

When a reporter asked Kragthorpe what he said to Trent Guy, whose fumbled punt return set up UK's winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter, he issued a warning to the media.

"I told Trent I'm going to kick his ass if he feels bad and I mean it," Kragthorpe said. " ... There was not only one play you can point to and say that was the determining factor.

"I'll just tell everybody right now that if you get on Trent Guy, don't ever come around me. Don't ever come around me if you say anything ... about Trent Guy. I'm going to read everything. I'm going to watch every TV station tonight. Don't say a word about Trent Guy because that guy's a stud and I got his back. ... I'm just telling you, don't do it."

Also during his postgame press conference, in which he repeatedly used the word "ass," he said: "Excuse my language. That's Biblical, though. 'Ass' is in the Bible."

On Monday, Kragthorpe apologized for his contentious press conference.

Apology, Part 2
Kragthorpe wasn't the only one in the Big East issuing an apology after last week's games.

Pittsburgh athletic director Steve Pederson apologized after the public address system at Heinz Field began playing music as soon as Pitt's game with Navy ended.

Usually that's not a problem, except the Navy players were singing their alma mater. This practice is usually met with silence by opposing teams out of respect for the Navy student-athletes and future members of the armed forces.

In 2003 when USF played at Army for the first time, USF senior J.R. Reed told all of his USF's teammates and coaches at the end of the game to stand and honor the traditional singing of Army's alma mater.

"Coach (Jim Leavitt) looked confused at first, so I told him we needed to stand here and pay respect to them," Reed said.

Several fans of the Naval Academy along with servicemen and women attending the Navy-Pitt game were upset that the music drowned out Navy's alma mater, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported.

Pederson said it was an honest mistake and the music began in anticipation of a post-game fireworks show.

"It has come to our attention that a miscommunication at the end of Saturday's game led to some confusion during the singing of Navy's alma mater," Pederson wrote in an E-mail to the Post-Gazette. "We have the utmost respect for this honored tradition and sincerely apologize for any impressions to the contrary."

By the Numbers
UConn RBs Andre Dixon (149 yards) and Jordan Todman (103 yards) each surpassed 100 yards rushing in the win at Baylor. It's the second time in three games that both players have topped the century mark in the same game. ... A week after Mike Williams' streak of 11 consecutive games with at least one touchdown catch ended, the Syracuse wide receiver set a career high with 11 receptions for 209 yards and two TDs in the win against Northwestern. ... West Virginia WR Jock Sanders ranks third nationally, averaging 9.67 receptions per game, while Pitt RB Dion Lewis (132.7 yards per game) ranks sixth in rushing. ... USF's visit to Florida State Saturday will be the first meeting between the Bulls and Seminoles. It will be the 32nd opponent that FSU coach Bobby Bowden has faced. Bowden has a 30-1 record against schools he's facing for the first time.

Big East Notebook: Where QB Stands for Quality Basketball originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:46:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyThu, 24 Sep 2009 12:46:00 EST Good Weekend for Big East, Despite Grothe's Injuryhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/21/good-weekend-for-big-east-despite-grothe-injury/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/21/good-weekend-for-big-east-despite-grothe-injury/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/21/good-weekend-for-big-east-despite-grothe-injury/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Brian KellyIt was a good week for the Big East, but it was oh-so-close to being a great week for the league. If not for a fumbled punt return by Louisville's Trent Guy and a turnover-fest by West Virginia on a rainy night in Auburn, Ala., the Big East would be have been a perfect 8-0 last week in non-conference action.

The league went 6-2, including a 3-2 mark against BCS opponents and upsets by UConn at Baylor and Syracuse against Northwestern.

For as well as the league did, though, there was a touch of melancholy with the news that USF QB Matt Grothe, the league's all-time leader in total offense, suffered a torn ACL Saturday against Charleston Southern, ending his USF career.

The Cincinnati Bearcats - one team that's all too aware of having to replace quarterbacks - posted the most impressive win of the week, knocking off Oregon State in Corvallis. It ended a 26-game winning streak by the Beavers against non-conference teams at home.

Some things we may have actually figured out in the past week

1. No matter how good your starting QB might be, you better have a quality backup.

Besides the devastating news about Grothe's season-ending torn ACL, a couple of other league teams had some anxious moments with their quarterbacks. Rutgers' Tom Savage was knocked down against Florida International and was motionless on the turf for about 45 seconds. Savage appears he'll be OK. Also, West Virginia's Jarrett Brown left late in Saturday's loss at Auburn with what appeared to be an injury to his left (non-throwing) shoulder. Savage and Brown should return this week. Grothe, however, doesn't have that luxury.

2. The bottom of the Big East isn't as bad as I thought.

To UConn coach Randy Edsall: I apologize. I thought you guys would tank it, stink up the joint at Baylor. Yet, without three offensive starters, the Huskies pulled off the upset. And kudos to Syracuse. Even though I predicted a Syracuse upset against Northwestern, that doesn't diminish the job the Orange did in outlasting the Wildcats. Even though Syracuse blew a 17-0 first quarter lead. And poor Louisville. The Cardinals had the game won at Kentucky, but a fumbled punt return proved to be the difference.

3. And the top of the Big East is better than most people think.

Winning at Oregon State is no easy task -- just ask USC. The Bearcats keep chugging along and continue to climb in the polls. It's only a matter of weeks, I guess, before we start seeing the "does an undefeated Cincinnati deserve a spot in the BCS title game?" storylines. Pittsburgh also keeps winning, but victories against Youngstown State, Buffalo and Navy doesn't exactly qualify the Panthers as world beaters just yet. West Virginia's offense has proven it can run up and down the field, but if the Mountaineers don't get a handle on the ball or improve their turnover margin, it's not going to matter.

4. The preseason is over for USF.

The Bulls played nearly as many preseason games as NFL teams opening against Wofford, Western Kentucky and Charleston Southern. This week, the Bulls will finally find out what kind of team they have when they visit Florida State.

Re-Tweeting Week 3

Ranking the league from top to bottom and summarizing each team, in 140 characters or less.

1. Cincinnati: We've already touted that Bearcats are best team in city. Heck, they might be best team in state of Ohio, including OSU.

2. Pitt: Say it ain't so: Pittsburgh's home fans are actually cheering for QB Bill Stull. What's next? Philly fans cut Santa Claus some slack?

3. WVU: Mountaineers still drying out from Saturday's sloshing at Auburn. WVU off this week before hosting Colorado next Thursday.

4. USF: I might rank the Bulls higher if they had played anybody so far. QB B.J. Daniels makes his homecoming to Tallahassee Saturday.

5. UConn: Baylor won't ever be confused with Texas, or Texas Tech, or you get the point, but UConn got an impressive win on the Big 12 road.

6. Syracuse: What an impact former Duke point guard Greg Paulus has had at quarterback. Two of SU's first three games decided on last second treys.

7. Rutgers: If Scarlet Knights win at Maryland Saturday, they have an open date and Texas Southern on tap before Pitt comes to town Oct. 16.

8. Louisville: Muhammad Ali attended UL's loss at Kentucky, but Cards never could deliver the knock out. UL may get KO'd at Utah this week.

You can follow Brett McMurphy on Twitter at twitter.com/Brettmcmurphy

Good Weekend for Big East, Despite Grothe's Injury originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 21 Sep 2009 16:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyMon, 21 Sep 2009 16:35:00 EST Big East Picks: Is Bluegrass Victory Finally in the Cards?http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/18/big-east-picks-is-bluegrass-victory-finally-in-the-cards/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/18/big-east-picks-is-bluegrass-victory-finally-in-the-cards/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/18/big-east-picks-is-bluegrass-victory-finally-in-the-cards/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Steve KragthorpeWhen Louisville visits Kentucky Saturday, Lexington police officials said they will increase security around Commonwealth Stadium with an additional three dozen officers. But enough about the added protection they're providing to make sure basketball coaches John Calipari and Rick Pitino get to their seats safely.

This game is for the Governor's Cup. The trophy weighs 110 pounds or approximately the same weight of the monkey resting squarely on Steve Kragthorpe's back as he tries to avoid becoming the first Cardinals coach to lose three consecutive games to Kentucky.

While Kragthorpe has not enjoyed the success most expected when he took over in 2007, he has maintained his sense of humor. At this week's press conference, he joked that the reason for Louisville's very vanilla offense in its lackluster season opener was because the Cards weren't showing their cards and only used two percent of the playbook.

"We got a little Wishbone package," Kragthorpe said. "I just got off the phone with Barry Switzer."

Switzer may have called, but he was trying to see if Kragthorpe could put him in touch with Pitino. Switzer wanted to make dinner reservations for two at Porcini's restaurant in Louisville, known for its final Northern Italian cuisine -- among other things.

This game should be a blowout: Kentucky enters on a 15-game winning streak in non-conference games, while UL enters with a shaky offense, a coach whose seat is getting hotter and a quarterback making only his second career start.

Then again, crazier things have happened in rivalry games. Call me crazy. Running back Victor Anderson leads the two-TD underdog Cards to the upset.

Cincinnati at Oregon State: Bearcats coach Brian Kelly joked that a few of his players probably couldn't find Oregon on a map. The Bearcats, though, have had no trouble finding the end zone, averaging 58.5 points this season. True, the season is only two games old, but Oregon State has the nation's 26th-worst pass defense. That's not good, especially going against UC QB Tony Pike. The game is rated even, but the Bearcats are too strong offensively and continue their climb up the national rankings.

West Virginia at Auburn: After every Auburn home victory, the locals "roll" Toomer's Corner, at the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Avenue. The oak trees -- and anything else that doesn't move -- are engulfed with toilet paper. West Virginia fans prefer burning couches after games. If the two fan bases aren't careful, the whole city might go up in flames Saturday night. Auburn will be on fire to get revenge from last year's loss at WVU and easily covers the 7-1/2 points.

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UConn at Baylor: The Huskies are without their starting quarterback and may be without their best defensive player. Plus they have to travel to Waco, Texas -- have you ever been to Waco? -- and are coming off last week's fluky two-point loss to North Carolina. Baylor and athletic QB Robert Griffin easily hurdle the Huskies and the 10-point spread.

Northwestern at Syracuse: The Orange has lost the past two weeks to Big Ten opponents and faces another Big Ten club this weekend. If Syracuse doesn't win here, the Orange could become the first team in NCAA history to finish dead last in two conferences in the same season. That ain't gonna happen. The 3-point home underdogs pull off the small shocker as QB Greg Paulus looks frantically for nets to cut down after the upset.

Florida International at Rutgers: FIU actually was scheduled to play USF this week, but in January the Golden Panthers paid $200,000 to buy out of the game. FIU then signed a home-and-home deal with Rutgers. So instead of losing big at USF Saturday, FIU will lose big at RU. But hey, at least FIU gets a home game with Rutgers in 2010 out of the deal. Led by freshman QB Tom Savage, the Scarlet Knights cover the 14.

Navy at Pittsburgh: Little known fact about the Panthers. Since the Big East was formed in 1991, the Panthers have never gone undefeated in non-conference play. Some how, some way, some where Pitt always stumbles. Not this week. Pitt survives, but Navy's option attack keeps it within seven.

Charleston Southern at USF (no line): Less said the ... USF 52-6.


The not-as-gory-as-last week details:

Last week: 7-0 straight up; 2-3 against the spread

Season: 13-1 straight up; 2-6 against the spread

Each week FanHouse Big East writer Brett McMurphy will preview the Big East and make his weekly predictions.

Big East Picks: Is Bluegrass Victory Finally in the Cards? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>steve kragthorpeBrett McMurphyFri, 18 Sep 2009 12:00:00 EST Big East Set for Major Proving Groundhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/17/big-east-set-for-major-proving-ground/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/17/big-east-set-for-major-proving-ground/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/17/big-east-set-for-major-proving-ground/#commentsFiled under: , , , , ,

Tony PikeWest Virginia coach Bill Stewart, whose club visits Auburn this weekend, said he's never been to historic Jordan-Hare Stadium.

UConn will be making its first visit to Waco, Texas, in what will be longest road trip in school history when the Huskies play Baylor.

And then there's the Cincinnati Bearcats, who head to the Left Coast to visit Oregon State. Earlier this week, Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly joked that a couple of his players "would have a hard time finding Oregon on the map."

Big East teams might be unfamiliar with where they're headed this week, but they should have a better idea where they're located on the national landscape after this weekend's games.

Of the Big East's eight non-conference games, five are against BCS conference schools. The Big East is playing every BCS league Saturday, except for the ACC.

There are five games -- Louisville also visits Kentucky and Syracuse hosts Northwestern -- and five major opportunities for the Big East.

"Every time you play outside the league is important," Rutgers coach Greg Schiano said. "Can one game make or break you? No. But every time you go outside the conference it's important."

Perception is reality and so far the perception is that the Big East isn't so big -- or bad.

"It seems like we never do enough," Stewart said.

Since the league added Cincinnati, Louisville and USF in 2005, the Big East is 30-35 against the other BCS leagues during the regular season, including a 0-3 start this season. In that same time span, the Big East is 7-7 in bowl games against BCS teams, although the Big East champions are 3-1 in its BCS bowls.

Since 2005, the league's most successful team against BCS competition in the regular season has been Louisville, which is 8-2. In fact, Louisville, West Virginia and USF are a combined 18-6 against BCS opponents since 2005 -- accounting for 60 percent of the league's BCS regular season victories.

Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt said the league's performance in non-conference games this week can help the Big East's reputation.

"They are (important), no question about that," Wannstedt said. "So is it there? Yes. Is it real? Yes. Is it a focal point? I would say no."

Making this week even tougher for the Big East is that four of the five teams are playing on the road and four of the five are underdogs. Only Cincinnati, which is listed even at Oregon State, isn't an underdog, but they're headed to Corvallis, where the Beavers have won 26 consecutive non-conference home games.

After this weekend, the Big East has more BCS tests in the next two weeks, including Pittsburgh at N.C. State, Rutgers at Maryland, USF at Florida State and Colorado at West Virginia.

Big East commissioner John Marinatto told the Birmingham News that these next few weeks are important.

"Every single game is important in some way or some form," Marinatto said. "You try not to put too much weight in any specific game, but obviously the way we perform out of conference is critical and we take it seriously."

The question is: how seriously will the nation take the Big East after the next couple of weeks?

Big East Set for Major Proving Ground originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>bill stewartdave wannstedtgreg schianoBrett McMurphyThu, 17 Sep 2009 02:45:00 EST Big East Picks: Can Punters Get PTSD?http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/11/big-east-picks-can-punters-get-ptsd/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/11/big-east-picks-can-punters-get-ptsd/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/11/big-east-picks-can-punters-get-ptsd/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Desi Cullen, Bruce CullenEach week FanHouse Big East writer Brett McMurphy will preview the Big East and make his weekly predictions.

Excuse Connecticut senior punter Desi Cullen if he's having trouble sleeping this week and having flashbacks to last year's nightmare game with North Carolina.

Last year against the Tar Heels, Cullen had three punts blocked -- all in the second quarter, all by UNC's Bruce Carter -- as the Tar Heels routed the Huskies.

UNC visits UConn Saturday and bad news for the Huskies and Cullen, Carter is back for another run at Cullen.

And according to Carter's bio on UNC's official Web site, his New Year's resolution "was to work twice as hard as he did in 2008." Good grief, has anyone ever blocked six punts in one game?

To Cullen's credit, he has maintained his sense of humor. On Tuesday when meeting with Connecticut reporters, he happened to be the last UConn player to show.

Cullen came from his psychology class, he told the Hartford Courant. "Which is good for this week," he said.

Cullen probably wanted to visit a psychiatrist after last year's game.

Then, a few weeks before playing in last year's International Bowl, Cullen underwent an emergency appendectomy, the Courant reported. That pain probably wasn't anything like what Cullen experienced last year against UNC.

Cullen, though, persevered and ended up finishing second in the league with a 39.5 average.

Saturday's game marks the first time the Tar Heels have visited UConn since 2005. That year, UNC pulled out a seven-point win (77-70) and went on to win the national championship. What? OK, so that was in men's basketball, but history repeats itself Saturday: UNC leaves UConn with another seven-point win, covering the 4½ points.

USF at Western Kentucky: Speaking of national championships, with little fanfare last week, USF captured its first national title in the program's 13-year history by winning the Fulmer Cup. The coveted title, as determined by EveryDayShouldBeSaturday.com, awards points to football programs based on their players' alleged violations with law enforcement. USF's newly crowned 2009 Fulmer Cup champions visit Western Kentucky Saturday. Last week, Fulmer's old school, Tennessee, could have been charged for assault after pistol-whipping the Hilltoppers, 63-7. The Bulls, who likely will be suffering from a Fulmer Cup title hangover, get the easy victory, but the Hilltoppers manage to stay within the 24½ -point spread.

Syracuse at Penn State: Syracuse QB Greg Paulus played admirably last week in his first competitive football game in five years. But it wasn't quite enough in the overtime loss to Minnesota. At Duke, Paulus played in his share of tough road environments, but how will playing North Carolina at the Dean Dome compare to his first football road start before 105,000 fans in Happy Valley? After a strong first half last week, Paulus was 0-for-5 on third down passes in the second half and overtime. This will be a new experience for him and beating Penn State would be a unique experience for SU coach Doug Marrone. From 1983-85 when Marrone played at SU, the Orange went 0-3 against Penn State, losing all three meetings by a combined 33 points. Coming off an OT loss, Syracuse will be fortunate to stay that close to the Nittany Lions. Penn State covers the 28½ points.

East Carolina at West Virginia: WVU coach Bill Stewart called last year's 24-3 loss to East Carolina a "thrashing." I'm not sure if he was referring to the game or the reaction from WVU's Board of Governor members and donors when Stewart's six-year contract was announced days after the defeat. The following game, WVU went to Colorado and lost with ESPN's Erin Andrews remarking the Mountaineers' sideline was "mass confusion." By the way, how is that search for weapons of mass confusion coming? Confusion reigns as the TD favorite Mountaineers escape on a Tyler Bitancurt field goal.

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Pittsburgh at Buffalo: The Bulls are coming off a road win at UTEP. Ah, El Paso. True story: at the 2007 Sun Bowl, a friend and I walked across the border into Juarez. The first words we heard upon stepping onto Mexican soil were "Amigos, you want to see Donkey show?" We declined. Saturday will be the "Dion Lewis Show" as Pitt's freshman RB goes for his second consecutive 100-yard game. With a dominating defense, Pitt covers the 13½ points.

Howard at Rutgers (no line): The National Football Foundation recently reported that 17 colleges, including Vermont's Castleton State College, the University of Incarnate Word in Texas and South Dakota's Presentation College, are starting up football programs in the next five years. Interestingly, Rutgers already has scheduled a game with each new program through 2026. Rutgers 38-6.

Southeast Missouri State at Cincinnati (no line): Like last week's laugher at Rutgers, Cincinnati QB Tony Pike will finish this game watching from the sidelines. Cincinnati 41-17.

The gory details

Last week and season: 6-1 straight up; 0-3 against the spread (Unlike the ACC, at least my losses involved strictly FBS teams)

Big East Picks: Can Punters Get PTSD? originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyFri, 11 Sep 2009 13:00:00 EST Big East Rewind: For Next 25 Days, Cincinnati Is Clear Beast of Easthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/07/big-east-rewind-for-next-25-days-cincinnati-is-clear-beast-of/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/07/big-east-rewind-for-next-25-days-cincinnati-is-clear-beast-of/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/07/big-east-rewind-for-next-25-days-cincinnati-is-clear-beast-of/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

Tony Pike Charlie NoonanFor at least the next 25 days, Cincinnati is the Beast of the East. Everyone in the Big East is now officially chasing the Bearcats following Monday's 47-15 seal clubbing of Rutgers.

The Bearcats and Scarlet Knights opened the Big East season Monday and now there is a 25-day break until the next conference game is played.

The way the Bearcats looked Monday, they may not only stay on top of the Big East standings for 25 days, but for the entire season. The Bearcats made a strong statement in defending last year's Big East title.
More Coverage: Bearcats Roll Over Rutgers


The Bearcats' win was so impressive, I think Cincinnati will emerge in the Top 25 on Tuesday (I know they'll be on my Associated Press Top 25 ballot -- I'll post it here on FanHouse on Tuesday).

Cincinnati's victory capped a decent -- if not predictable -- week for the league. The Big East went 5-1 in non-conference play, but its degree of difficulty wasn't that tough. UConn used its running game to get past Ohio 23-16, while Syracuse lost to Minnesota in Greg Paulus' debut on -- ironically -- a 3-pointer at the buzzer in overtime.

The bad news for the Big East last week is the Mountain West now has even more ammunition in its "we're better than the Big East" campaign/crusade after BYU's upset of Oklahoma.

The good news, however, for the Big East is the ACC cannot use that argument. The ACC now ranks as the nation's eighth- or ninth-best league sandwiched somewhere between the MAC and the Sun Belt after Duke and Virginia each suffered embarrassing losses to Division I-AA/Colonial Athletic Association members Richmond and William & Mary.

By the way, Richmond and William & Mary will meet on Nov. 21 for what could determine the Colonial and ACC championships.

And, be sure and get your tickets early, the Titanic Duke-Virginia contest will be played -- and I can't make this stuff up -- on Halloween.

The Big East also was spooked in the early going against I-AA clubs, but West Virginia, USF and Louisville managed to pull away in the second half. Only Pittsburgh, against Youngstown State, never appeared in danger of an upset.

There were certainly some anxious moments. West Virginia only led Liberty by 10 points until late in the third quarter; Louisville only led Indiana State by 10 until six minutes left in the third quarter and USF was tied with Wofford in the final minute of the second quarter until bad snaps on a pair of Wofford punts literally gave USF nine points for a 16-7 halftime lead.

Some things we may have actually figured out in the past week

1. Losing a star running back to the NFL might not matter that much to Pittsburgh or UConn: Pittsburgh true freshman Dion Lewis, replacing LeSean McCoy, rushed for 129 yards on 20 carries and scored three touchdowns, while UConn got 257 yards rushing from Jordan Todman (157) and Andre Dixon (100) in the Huskies' first game without Donald Brown. These obviously were games Pitt and UConn were supposed to win, but still an impressive performance by the trio.

2. One way or another USF wide receiver Carlton Mitchell might be the next Chad Ochocinco: Mitchell not only led the Bulls in receptions (six) against Wofford Saturday, but also in Tweets from the locker room. Less than an hour before USF's kickoff, Mitchell Tweeted "Lil weather delay sittin n the locker room still... so ready man I need 2 get out there. I understand the man upstairs run the show tho" Then about 15 minutes before kickoff, Mitchell Tweeted "ight not game time enough said!... Blessed" Mitchell was one of at least three USF players who Tweeted Saturday during team meetings, the pre-game meal, the bus ride from USF's campus to Raymond James Stadium or in the locker room. USF coach Jim Leavitt said he was not aware his players had Tweeted until reading it in Sunday's Tampa Tribune. He said it was "disappointing," but did not specify if any of the players would be disciplined.

3. Better days are ahead for Syracuse: The first play of Greg Paulus' college football career sailed over his head. The final pass of his first game was intercepted in the end zone. In between those two plays, Paulus proved he can do enough of the right things to give Syracuse a chance for improvement this season (it can't get any worse, right?) The results may not show anytime soon. The Orange appears locked into a 0-3 start (at Penn State this week, home vs. Northwestern on Sept. 19) before hosting Division I-AA Maine.

4. Who needs defense: The common theme for those who didn't pick Cincinnati to defend its title (yes, I'm guilty as charged) was having to replace 10 defensive starters. As long as the Bearcats can roll up (almost) half a hundred each week, they won't need much defense. Rutgers obviously has some offensive shortcomings, but the Bearcats clearly established themselves as the league's team to beat.

Re-Tweeting Week 1
Ranking the league from top to bottom and summarizing each team, in 140 characters or less.

1. Cincinnati: First impression: the Bearcats are Big East's best -- and even best football team in the Queen City (sorry NFL's Bungles)

2. Pitt: Oh No! Mr. Bill. Pitt fans boo its own QB Bill Stull -- No. 2 in Big East in pass efficiency

3. WVU: How often does this happen? A Big East team seeking revenge on a C-USA team after East Carolina's 24-3 thumping of WVU in 2008

4. USF: Jim Leavitt ranked his club 18th in preseason coaches' poll. How low will they go on his ballot this week?

5. UConn: No huddle offense? No problem. Jordan Todman + Andre Dixon > Donald Brown? At least for Week 1

6. Rutgers: Is Cincinnati really that good or -- gulp -- is it possible we're really this bad?

7. Syracuse: Unlike hoops, former PG Greg Paulus finds out in football that one turnover in OT is one too many

8. Louisville: At least Cards were balanced in opening win vs. Indiana State: 128 penalty yards, defense allowed 101 yards

You can follow Brett McMurphy on Twitter at twitter.com/BrettmcmurphY

Big East Rewind: For Next 25 Days, Cincinnati Is Clear Beast of East originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 07 Sep 2009 22:24:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>andre dixonAndreDixonbill stullBillStullcarlton mitchellCarltonMitchelldion lewisDionLewisgreg paulusGregPaulusjim leavittJimLeavittjordan todmanJordanTodmanBrett McMurphyMon, 07 Sep 2009 22:24:00 EST Big East Picks: A Not-So-Golden Debut for Marrone, Syracusehttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/03/big-east-picks-a-not-so-golden-debut-for-marrone-syracuse/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/03/big-east-picks-a-not-so-golden-debut-for-marrone-syracuse/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/03/big-east-picks-a-not-so-golden-debut-for-marrone-syracuse/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , ,

On Monday's Big East media conference call, Syracuse coach Doug Marrone was being asked his first question when the reporter's question was drowned out by a loud siren in the background.

Marrone remarked it sounded like a fire truck. Let's hope it wasn't an omen for the 2009 season -- an ambulance's siren -- because Syracuse's past four seasons were DOA.

Under former Coach Greg Robinson, the Orange was 3-25 in Big East games - but, hey, they batted .500 against Notre Dame, going 1-1.

Looking to turn its program around, Syracuse turned to its past. Marrone was a three-year starting offensive lineman for SU from 1983-85.

He most recently spent the past four seasons in the NFL. Last year, Marrone was New Orleans' offensive coordinator. But now Marrone goes from the Saints to the Aints where his alma mater has not posted a winning record since 2001.

Marrone named former Duke point guard Greg Paulus, who hasn't played competitive football in five years since he was in high school, as SU's starting quarterback.

Paulus hasn't played competitive football in five years? Well, he should fit right in: neither has Syracuse.

Saturday Syracuse opens the Marrone era by hosting Minnesota in the Carrier Dome. The Golden Gophers, who return 18 starters, are a 6½-point favorite. It's a new season and a chance for a fresh start at Syracuse, but 2009 will begin with a familiar feeling for 'Cuse fans: with a loss.

Minnesota covers the 6½-point spread.

UConn at Ohio: With RB Donald Brown carrying the offense, the Huskies had virtually no passing game last season, ranking as the nation's 11th-worst passing offense. This year, they're going with a no-huddle attack. Maybe not having to face each other in the huddle after every incompletion will make for better team camaraderie?

UConn has won 13 consecutive games against MAC teams, including last year's 12-9 overtime win at Temple (on penalty kicks, I believe). The last time Ohio hosted a Big East team, the Bobcats upset Pittsburgh in 2005.

On a side note, I'm just curious, but is Ohio considered "The Ohio University?" Anyway, the Bobcats won't pull off another home upset against the Big East, but will come close, very close.

The Huskies win, but fail to cover the 3½ points.

Liberty at West Virginia (no line): The first APW game (after Pat White) for the Mountaineers. The Flames have won back-to-back Big South titles. In honor of Liberty's nickname, West Virginia will torch a couple of extra couches along with former coach Rich Rodriguez's 2001-2007 practice schedules. West Virginia romps - and if you really need a score -- how about 45-7?

Youngstown State at Pittsburgh (no line): The Youngstown State Penguins (one of the top college nicknames) visit Pittsburgh. So who will the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins root for in this? Pittsburgh or the Penguins? Who knows, but Pitt fans are rooting that 2009 doesn't start like 2008 when the Panthers lost at home to Bowling Green. These schools are located 70 miles apart, which means one thing: Youngstown State employees will be putting in for $77 in mileage (if they get the IRS' 55 cents a mile) on Monday. If the Panthers lose this one, they should be required to walk to Youngstown and back. Pitt 28-7.
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Wofford at USF (no line): Another Big East vs. Division I-AA (I refuse to use the politically correct FCS school terminology) matchup. The Terriers run something on offense called the "Wingbone." Not sure exactly what a wingbone is, but I had a dozen of them with medium sauce and curly fries the other day at Hooters. The only suspense in this one should be waiting for USF QB Matt Grothe to reach 288 yards of total offense to pass Pat White as the Big East's career leader. USF 31-14.

Indiana State at Louisville (no line): Indiana State lost its opener last week to Quincy 26-20. Quincy is an NAIA school named after the old TV series Quincy M.E. (sounds good to me, anyway). UL coach Steve Kragthorpe is on the hottest seat in the Big East, but Jack Klugman could start at quarterback for the Cards and they would seal club the Sycamores. Louisville 63-6.

Cincinnati at Rutgers (Monday): The Scarlet Knights ended last season by winning the Papajohns.com Bowl. This year they are planning for bigger things - the newly named Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, perhaps?

Nope, Rutgers has its sights on a Big East title. But to do so, Rutgers must stop a three-game losing streak to Cincinnati. The last two losses were only by a combined eight points. The Scarlet Knights should feature the league's top offensive line, but who will be named the starting quarterback between Dom Natale, Jabu Lovelace or Tom Savage remains a mystery that not even Quincy M.E. could solve before kickoff.

The defending league champion Bearcats feature 10 new defensive starters and a new defensive coordinator. Cincinnati is switching to a 3-4 alignment on defense this season, while Rutgers' defense will face Cincy QB Tony Pike for the first time (he did not play in last year's 13-10 victory).

Rutgers started 2008 as one of the worst teams in the country, but finished 2008 on a seven-game winning streak and as one of the nation's hottest teams. Rutgers stays hot and wins with a superior defense before a newly expanded, raucous Rutgers Stadium crowd. Rutgers covers the 5½-points.

Each week Brett McMurphy will preview the Big East and make his weekly predictions straight up and against the spread.

Big East Picks: A Not-So-Golden Debut for Marrone, Syracuse originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:37:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyThu, 03 Sep 2009 21:37:00 EST Big East Coaches Say Absence From Top 25 Is Only Temporaryhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/02/big-east-coaches-say-absence-from-top-25-is-only-temporary/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/02/big-east-coaches-say-absence-from-top-25-is-only-temporary/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/02/big-east-coaches-say-absence-from-top-25-is-only-temporary/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

CincinnatiThere they are -- what are considered the 25 best teams in college football. From No. 1 Florida down to No. 25 Kansas. The best of the best, at least in the minds of the 60 voters in the Associated Press' preseason poll.

In all, there are five teams each from the Big 12 and SEC, four from the ACC, three each from the Pac-10, Big Ten and, yes, even the Mountain West. Also ranked in the Top 25 is a WAC team and Notre Dame.

Basically every conference in America is represented except for a few of the so-called mid-majors (Conference USA, the Mid-American, Sun Belt). And one other league is notably absent: the Big East. The same Big East that automatically receives a BCS bowl bid as one of the "Big Six" BCS leagues.

"I can guarantee at the end of the year there will be a Big East team ranked in the Top 25," Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly said.

When the Big East was blanked in this year's AP preseason poll, it marked only the third time since the football league began in 1991 that the Big East did not have a team in the AP rankings. And unless the winner of Monday's Cincinnati at Rutgers nationally televised contest emerges with a dominating victory, the Big East's Top 25 exclusion may stretch a couple more weeks.

That's because among the teams receiving votes in the AP Poll (No. 28 Pittsburgh, No. 30 Rutgers, No. 32 West Virginia, No. 33 Cincinnati and No. 45 USF), there aren't many marquee non-conference opponents on their schedules in the opening month that could propel them into the Top 25. The exceptions would be on Sept. 19 when Cincinnati visits Oregon State and West Virginia visits Auburn; and Sept. 26 when Pitt visits N.C. State and USF visits Florida State.

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Kelly, whose club has finished each of the past two seasons ranked No. 17, said he wasn't shocked by the Big East's snub because the polls are "based on name recognition and what you've done in the past" - i.e. a popularity/beauty contest.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and a lot of folks don't necessarily think the eight-team Big East is that attractive.

"A lot of it has to do with perception and traditions of programs," Kelly said "We're establishing our program. It's not like we can harken back to our national championship days. A lot of it is, there are new teams that are really blazing a trail for their own kind of identity, so we're still a work in progress on that part of it."

West Virginia coach Bill Stewart has been very vocal about the strength of the Big East. "I have pounded the table," he said.

Stewart then rattled off the league's record in BCS bowl games (3-1 in last four), record in bowl games (12-4 in last 16) and record in non-conference games (winning 75 percent of the time).

"I can't tell you why we get hammered," Stewart said. "I guess everyone thinks we're a basketball league. They're full of baloney."

One stat Stewart conveniently forgot was the league's 6-14 record in non-conference games against AP ranked opponents since Cincinnati, Louisville and USF joined the Big East in 2005. However, toss out the Big East's 1-7 record in 2005 and the league is a much-more respectable 5-7 vs. AP ranked teams in the past three years.

Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt, whose club was the media's preseason pick to win the league, and USF coach Jim Leavitt said they are not really concerned with the preseason rankings.

"I would," Wannstedt said, "be concerned if it was the end of the season, maybe."

UConn's Randy Edsall had a similar viewpoint.

"I think the Big East will show its merit at the end of the season, when it really matters," he said.

Despite the Big East missing from the preseason AP and USA Today/coaches' polls, Kelly said the league has earned the respect of some other individuals who are known to have a pretty good eye at judging the talent of college football teams.

"NFL scouts know they'd better come in and watch Big East teams because we've got a lot of good NFL players," said Kelly, who had six players selected in the 2009 NFL Draft. "So if we have the respect of NFL teams out there and we've got the respect of other teams and other conferences we play against, then to me, at the end of the day, that's probably more important than what other people think about us."

Big East Coaches Say Absence From Top 25 Is Only Temporary originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:31:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Brett McMurphyWed, 02 Sep 2009 15:31:00 EST Big East Notebook: Stewart Won't Talk About Rodriguez Controversyhttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/01/big-east-notebook-stewart-wont-talk-about-rodriguez-controvers/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/01/big-east-notebook-stewart-wont-talk-about-rodriguez-controvers/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/09/01/big-east-notebook-stewart-wont-talk-about-rodriguez-controvers/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

Bill StewartWhile most of the college football world is talking about the allegations against Michigan's program and coach Rich Rodriguez for violating NCAA rules governing practice time, West Virginia coach Bill Stewart does not want in on the discussion.

Stewart, a former Rodriguez assistant at West Virginia who succeeded Rodriguez when he left in 2007, was asked on Monday's Big East conference call about Rodriguez.

But before the question had been completed, Stewart interrupted with "next question." The reporter, from AnnArbor.com, asked Stewart if he was serious.

"I'm here to talk about West Virginia football," Stewart said.

The Detroit Free-Press reported the allegations against Rodriguez at Michigan, but West Virginia school officials said Monday there were no "complaints" about Rodriguez breaking NCAA rules while he was with the Mountaineers from 2001-07.

"Based upon our looking back over the weekend, we don't feel we have any concerns," WVU assistant athletic director for communications Michael Fragale told the Charleston Daily Mail. "We have checked it out and there has been nothing flagged and nothing out of the ordinary.

"There were no student-athlete complaints during the time (Rodriguez) was here."

Also, former players that spoke to The Daily Mail anonymously reiterated the athletic department's findings.

"Compliance was always around," one player told the newspaper. "You couldn't do it even if you wanted to. There wasn't any rule-breaking going on because you couldn't do any of that with compliance around like they were."

Sign (Early) on the Dotted Line

Even though a proposal by the American Football Coaches Association was denied by the conference commissioners for an early signing period in football, the Big East remains in favor of one, Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt said.

"I would like to see it," Wannstedt said. "We make a commitment to these kids when they verbal. If they verbal, I think it should be a two-way street. I think the early signing date would help from the commitments you have."

Wannstedt said the Big East, as a conference, favors the early signing period. However, don't include University of South Florida coach Jim Leavitt in that group.

"Against early signing," Leavitt recently tweeted. "If there is a change of coaches what would you tell your son. Still go that school? Don't rush things. Of course the schools up north want early signing because of the recruiting weekends in the winter. They have prospects in early."

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Wannstedt said he averages losing and gaining only about one recruit each per year that de-commits from Pitt or had committed to another school and changed his mind to Pittsburgh.

"You see it [players de-committing from schools] more down in the south, from a lot of the Florida schools," Wannstedt said. "From what I read, the Southeastern Conference has a lot more of that stuff than in the Northeast."

One Big East assistant was asked about the challenges of holding onto an early Florida high school commitment. "It's like the Wild, Wild West recruiting in Florida."

Pitt Sees Red With Bostick Again

Maybe this is finally the year Pittsburgh junior QB Pat Bostick will actually be redshirted. Wannstedt told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that he would try to redshirt Bostick this season.

Redshirt freshman Tino Sunseri will be the back-up to starter Bill Stull.

"Bill Stull is the starter, Tino Sunseri will be the No. 2," Wannstedt said. "I told Tino Sunseri, the wish list is to get him playing time. We want to get him in as many games as we can. We'll take it one week at a time. We would like to redshirt Pat if we could. He is all for that."

Bostick was slated to be redshirted as a freshman, but ended up starting Pitt's final eight games. Last season, coaches wanted him to redshirt, but he those plans ended midway through the year when he was put in during mop-up duty against Navy. He later got one start, leading the Panthers to a four overtime victory at Notre Dame.

The Panthers, picked by the media as the preseason favorites to win the league, open against Youngstown State Saturday.

USF Honoring Dorsey

Ever since USF freshman RB Keeley Dorsey died on Jan. 17, 2007 at the age of 19 after collapsing while weightlifting, no USF player has worn No. 10.

That will change Saturday.

This would have been Dorsey's senior year so the Bulls are honoring Dorsey this season with one player each week wearing Dorsey's No. 10 jersey. Senior DT Aaron Harris will wear No. 10 for Saturday's season opener with Wofford.

"I wanted to be the first one," Harris said. "It will be emotional for everyone. It will give me more motivation. When I think of him, I remember his smile. Everybody remembers his smile."

Officially, Keeley's death was ruled natural causes. Hillsborough County associate medical examiner Laura Hair said it was "sudden cardiac death of undetermined etiology" and there was a possibility he had an undiagnosed genetic heart disorder called Long QT Syndrome.

Tammie Dorsey, Keeley's mother, said this summer she wasn't sure how she would react seeing a USF senior wearing her son's No. 10 and she continues to cope.

"Does it get easier? It gets a little easier, but that doesn't mean it gets easy," Tammie Dorsey told The Tampa Tribune. "It gets to the point where you can get up and you can function a little bit. You don't cry as much. You still think about him. You try to remember as much as you can."

Around the League

Defending champion Cincinnati opens league play at Rutgers Monday. The winner will remain in sole possession of first place in the league and the loser will be stuck in the league basement until the next conference game is played Oct. 2 when Pitt visits Louisville. ... The Doug Marrone/Greg Paulus era begins Saturday when Syracuse hosts Minnesota. "I try to be organized as possible, in school, trying to learn the offense and getting to know the guys," said Paulus, the former Duke basketball star who joined the Orange a few weeks ago. "It has been neat." ... Leavitt's ballot in the USA Today coaches' poll was released last week following an open records request by SI.com, but Leavitt said he will probably continue to make his ballot public. Only three schools provided their ballots to SI.com. "I probably will keep it public," Leavitt said. "I don't see any reason not too." Leavitt voted USF at No. 18 and had five of USF's 10 Division I-A opponents (Florida State, Miami, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and Rutgers) in his Top 25 ballot, while only FSU was ranked in the coaches' poll. ... UConn coach Randy Edsall said he declined to vote in the coaches' poll this season. "It's hard to rank (all) those teams when you never see them," Edsall said. ... Justin Burke has been named Louisville's starting QB in Saturday's opener against Indiana State. This will be the first career start for Burke, a junior transfer from N.C. State.

Big East Notebook: Stewart Won't Talk About Rodriguez Controversy originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:40:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>bill stewartkeeley dorseyBrett McMurphyTue, 01 Sep 2009 21:40:00 EST Looking for Beast of Big Easthttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/10/looking-for-beast-of-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/10/looking-for-beast-of-big-east/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/10/looking-for-beast-of-big-east/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , , , , ,

Alternative post headline: Your Guess is as Good as Mine.

In the preseason media poll, Pitt was picked to win the conference followed by West Virginia, Cincinnati, South Florida and then Rutgers. The top four teams all received first place votes. The point difference between Pitt and No. 5 Rutgers was only 34, while the gap between Rutgers and the No. 6 team, UConn, was 48. In other words, everyone is guessing, and everyone is unsure.

Just checking the multitude of preview guides only emphasizes the confusion. The various mags have picked four different teams to finish first in the Big East. In other words, the Big East is looking a lot like the ACC of the last few years. No dominant team. Plenty of parity and coaches getting defensive about it.
[West Virginia] Coach [Bill] Stewart on the league outlook: "I don't call it parity, I call it competitive."
And somewhere in Raleigh, North Carolina, Tom O'Brien nods his head in approval.

The only things that seem certain are that Louisville and Syracuse will battle for the basement, while UConn tries to rebuild and find a passing game not seen since the legendary Dan Orlovsky led the Huskies back in 2004.

Part of the reason for the jumble of picks at the top is that each team seems so fatally flawed at key spots that it is easier to see them failing than succeeding.

Pittsburgh
Pros: Dominating defense that starts with a strong defensive line, led by one of the best tandems of defensive ends in Greg Romeus and Jabaal Sheard. The offense has one of the best young receivers in the conference in Jonathan Baldwin along with the conference's best tight end in Nate Byham. The receiving corps is surprisingly deep. The offensive line only lost one starter from last year.

Cons: The quarterback situation is a glaring, neon question mark. Bill Stull is still the likely starter and he was horrible down the stretch, leading to his benching in an unwatchable 3-0 loss to Oregon State in the Sun Bowl. Leading tackler Scott McKillop, along with the rest of the starting linebackers all graduated, leaving much inexperience behind. The entire backfield has to be replaced with fullback Conredge Collins, back-up LaRod Stephens-Howling and star tailback LeSean McCoy departed. Pitt also has to replace their punter and kicker.

Scheduling: Slightly rough. Road games could be a challenge. The non-conference game at North Carolina State looms large since Pitt is only 1-4 against BCS teams away from Heinz Field under Dave Wannstedt. They also have to play at Rutgers, who Wannstedt has yet to beat, and at West Virginia.

West Virginia
Pros: Noel Devine is still in the backfield and is always a threat to break off a long run everytime he touches the ball. Senior Jarrett Brown is now the QB. He has experience, good mobility and a strong arm to get the ball to an underrated (and under-utilized) receiving corps. The defense has made strides and returns seven starters.

Cons: Pat White is gone. There is no getting around the loss of the best and winningest player in Mountaineer history. Oh, and so is virtually the entire offensive line, making it a very shaky thing for a new quarterback and giving Devine any space to run. Kicker Pat McAfee is gone as well.

Scheduling: Challenging. While they do have 1-AA Liberty on the schedule as well as Marshall, they host East Carolina and Colorado. Plus a trip to Auburn. Their conference road schedule will make it harder for them to win the conference since they have to go to South Florida, Cinci and Rutgers this year.

Rutgers
Pros: The entire offensive line is back, and quite good. They will allow whoever is in the backfield time to throw, and open holes for the running game. The defense, especially at linebacker looks imposing. There is solid depth at running back as long as Kordell Young makes it all the way back from his knee injury

Cons: Young missed four games last year to injury, and then got hurt in spring practice. Counting on him for any length of time might be a mistake. The most glaring issue is the entire passing game. Quarterback Mike Teel, wide receivers Kenny Britt, Tiquan Underwood, and tight end Kevin Brock are all gone. That's the starting quarterback for the last three years and three of the top four receivers on the team in 2008. The candidates to replace Teel are true freshman Tom Savage and a slew of back-ups. The kicking game still remains a question mark.

Scheduling: Set up perfectly. The Scarlet Knights have the weakest non-conference schedule in the Big East. Howard and Texas Southern (both FCS), FIU and at Army. Their only challenging non-con game is at Maryland. As for the conference schedule, they get the other four contending teams -- Cincinnati, Pitt, WVU and USF -- in Piscataway. Phil Steele rates their schedule at 106th out of 120. No BCS team even comes close to playing this light a schedule.

South Florida
Pros: Matt Grothe is a playmaker on offense. He has been the team's leading rusher and passer. He is surprisingly accurate with a 63 percent completion rate. Most of their receivers are back and the running back depth has improved. The defensive line, led by George Selvie at one end, is right there with Pitt in the debate for best D-line in the conference. They may have the most overall talent in the conference.

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Auburn offensive lineman Jorell Bostrom (76) stretches during their NCAA college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)
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    Auburn running back John Douglas, foreground, works on a catching drill with teammate Robert Cooper (16) during their NCAA college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. Gabe McKenzie, left, looks on. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn quarterback Chris Todd throws during the Tigers' NCAA college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn offensive lineman Jorell Bostrom (76) stretches during their NCAA college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn quarterback Chris Todd throws during their NCAA college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn coach Gene Chizik yells instructions to his team during their college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn quarterbacks Chris Todd (12), Kodi Burns (18) and Neil Caudle (19) lead the offense onto the field during their football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Auburn coach Gene Chizik, center, watches his team during their college football practice on the campus of Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009. Defensive lineman Nick Fairley (90) looks on. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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    Tennessee freshman wide receivers Nu'Keese Richardson (7) and Marsalis Teague (10) sing for the camera at Tennessee's football Media Day Sunday, Aug. 9 2009 in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

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    Tennessee running back David Oku smiles as he is asked questions during an interview at Tennessee's football Media Day, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

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    Tennessee defensive back Janzen Jackson speaks to reporters during an interview at Tennessee's football Media Day, Sunday, Aug. 9, 2009, in Knoxville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Wade Payne)

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Cons: Coaching turnover this past year saw the losses of the defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator, plus a couple others for good measure. There's also the issue of whether USF can win road games when the weather turns cold, as the Bulls are 1-3 when the temperature at kickoff is under 40 degrees, and 2-5 under 50 degrees. As for personnel, the Bulls have only one starter back on the offensive line, so that will determine how much USF runs and how much Grothe just has to run for his life. Grothe is much less effective when he feels that he has to be the entire offense.

Scheduling: Decent. Their non-con is weighed down by having two FCS games, but also includes playing at Florida State and hosting Miami. They get Cincinnati and West Virginia at home, but have to go to Pitt and Rutgers. The Rutgers game is a Thursday night affair in November, so unless it is unseasonably warm you can expect that ESPN will trot out the temperature and issue of a warm weather team playing in the cold. Double the number of mentions that night for their season finale at UConn in December.

Cincinnati
Pros: Tony Pike returns as the starting QB. The first time in a few years where the Bearcats have a returning starting QB. Almost the entire offense comes back including the best WR in the Big East, Mardy Gilyard. Head coach Brian Kelly gets as much out of the talent at hand as anyone in the conference.

Cons: As nice as it is to get virtually the entire offense back, it is the complete opposite on the defensive side. A very underrated defense lost ten of the eleven starters, including DE Connor Barwin and All-American CB Mike Mickens. Just for good measure, there is a new defensive coordinator for the Bearcats.

Scheduling: Moderate. They have games in the non-con at Oregon State and hosting Illinois and Fresno State. Winning the Big East will be tough with road games at Rutgers to start the season, at USF and at Pitt to end the season. Only WVU comes to Nippert Stadium this year.

Looking for Beast of Big East originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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]]>Greg RomeusJabaal SheardJarrett BrownKordell YoungMardy GilyardNate ByhamTom SavageTony PikeChas RichMon, 10 Aug 2009 10:00:00 EST Kragthorpe Shuffles Cards After Louisville's Late-Season Collapsehttp://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/06/kragthorpe-shuffles-cards-after-louisvilles-collapse-last-seaso/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/06/kragthorpe-shuffles-cards-after-louisvilles-collapse-last-seaso/http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2009/08/06/kragthorpe-shuffles-cards-after-louisvilles-collapse-last-seaso/#commentsFiled under: ,

Steve KragthorpeThe Big East Conference may not have a team ranked in the top 25 when the national polls are released later this month. If the results of the conference's annual preseason media poll are any indication, you might have a better chance to identity the winner with a flip of the coin. Pittsburgh emerged as the favorite from a tight field that saw four different teams earn multiple first-place votes.

If there is a team that best reflects the conference's struggle to find its identity, it could be Louisville. The Cardinals were one victory away of becoming bowl eligible last season, but they closed with five consecutive losses, punctuated by a 49-point stinker to Rutgers in the season finale.

Despite the mess, Louisville is optimistic that this season will be different. It probably needs to be for head coach Steve Kragthorpe.

Kragthorpe, whose team opens preseason practice Thursday, is looking to navigate Louisville back into bowl contention after winning just 11 games and failing to make the postseason in his two years at the helm.

Fans will point out that while former head coach Bobby Petrino may need advice on exit strategies -- he abruptly left both Louisville and the Atlanta Falcons and has since landed at Arkansas -- he led the Cardinals to 41 wins and four consecutive bowl games during a tenure that was part of the best stretch of play in the program's history.

To put it further in historical perspective, if Louisville fails to win five games this year, it will be the first time the program's wins total has declined for three consecutive seasons since 1973-75.

While fans may moan that Louisville Athletic Director Tom Jurich has consistently stood by Kragthorpe, the head coach believes the Cardinals can recapture the program's high level of play. And that journey begins in preseason practice.

"Everybody knows we have to go out there every day and we have to be at our very, very best and we have to compete every day," said Kragthorpe, who was tabbed an up-and-coming star after he led Tulsa to three consecutive eight-win seasons in four years prior to replacing Petrino.

In response to the Cardinals' collapse, Kragthorpe fired offensive coordinator Jeff Brohm, among others, and has taken over the offense and will call the plays this year. And Kragthorpe's first priority is to find a starting quarterback.

Junior college transfer Adam Froman and Justin Burke, who transferred from North Carolina State, emerged as the top two candidates during spring drills. Redshirt freshman Zack Stoudt and walk-on Will Stein are also trying to make their case for the job.

"Obviously, we want to see a guy step up and be the leader of our football team, not just the leader of the offense, because I think that's one of the things the quarterback position entails," Kragthorpe said.

"[Our offense] will be a little dependent upon who the quarterback is and obviously we want to the put the ball in the guy's hand to make plays and we are going to try to determine that as quickly as we possibly can throughout the course of training camp.

"We have a base way of doing things, our installation in terms of our schemes and how we are going to do things. But we are going to tailor the offense every week and customize the offense every week to the guys that are making plays and stepping up, and finding ways to create matchups for those guys to get the ball in space and make plays."

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Florida quarterback Tim tebow (15) and coach Urban Meyer, left, talk during the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)
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    Florida quarterback Tim tebow (15) and coach Urban Meyer, left, talk during the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida cornerbacks Markihe Anderson (14) and Joe Haden (5) run a pattern during the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009. Anderson deflected the ball intended for Haden during the pre-sunrise practice. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida Sssistant Defensive Coordinator Chuck Heater, right, works with safety Dorian Munroe (20), before sunrise, as the team goes through its first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida wide receiver Riley Cooper talks with reporters at the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday Aug. 6, 2009. Cooper, who has agreed to play baseball for the Texas Rangers, is returning for his senior season. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida quarterback Tim Tebow rubs his newly grown beard after completing the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida cornerback Janoris Jenkins pulls in a pass during Florida's first workout, Thursday Aug. 6, 2009, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida cornerback Janoris Jenkins pulls in a pass during Florida's first workout, Thursday Aug. 6, 2009, in Gainesville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida cornerback Deonte Thompson (6) does a spin and is helped by cornerback Markihe Anderson (14) after catching a pass during the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug., 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Florida quarterback Tim Tebow laughs when questioned by the media about his beard following the teams first practice in Gainesville, Fla., Thursday, Aug., 6, 2009, (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

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    Auburn coach Gene Chizik watches during their NCAA college football practice at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2009. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

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Sophomore running back Victor Anderson certainly fits that bill.

Anderson was the Big East Rookie of the Year last season and the first Louisville rusher since 2005 to gain more than 1,000 yards. He rushed for more than 100 yards in five games, including a career-high 176-yard, three touchdown performance against Kansas State, and finished with 1,047 yards and eight touchdowns. The Cardinals also return their two leading receivers and four players with starting experience on the line.

Offensively, the Cardinals must take better care of the football this season. They were 0-7 last year in games where they committed the same amount or more turnovers than their opponent. On the flip side, Louisville was 5-0 when it had less turnovers than its opponent.

The defense also will have new leadership under Brent Guy. The former Utah State head coach was hired to replace Ron English, who left to become the head coach at Eastern Michigan.

While the Cardinals finished seventh in the conference in total defense (368.8 yards per game), Guy has installed a new scheme that he hopes will allow the team to play faster. The strength of the defense should be at linebacker, headed by returning leading tackler Jon Dempsey.

Louisville also doesn't expect to catch any breaks with its schedule. The Cardinals play five road games during an eight game stretch. However, an early road showdown that could help swing momentum in Louisville's favor is at in-state rival Kentucky Sept. 19.

While the Cardinals weren't shown much love during the league's media day last week -- for the second straight year, Louisville was picked to finish next to last in the conference's preseason media poll -- Kragthorpe pointed to league parity. In 2007, for instance, Connecticut was picked seventh yet earned a share of the conference title with West Virginia. Last year, Cincinnati was selected fifth and won the league.

"It's where you finish; it's not where you start," Kragthorpe said. "Every year somebody is going to jump up and be the team to beat. Every year this league has seemingly gone down to the last weekend of the year to see who is going to be the champion."

Senior receiver Scott Long says the Cardinals don't need to look to preseason polls for motivation.

"This team is self-motivated," he said. "We didn't live up to our standard last year, and that motivates us enough. We don't need a preseason poll to light the fire under us."

Kragthorpe Shuffles Cards After Louisville's Late-Season Collapse originally appeared on NCAA Football FanHouse on Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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