Big East
Many football experts look at the Big East with derision. It is a heck of a basketball conference, but when it comes to football many people think that it doesn’t deserve its automatic BCS status. Louisville and West Virginia are good teams. Rutgers and South Florida are emerging powers, but the conference is dragged down by its bottom. Syracuse is flat out awful. The Orange seem to be openly courting Big Ten membership by playing three Big Ten teams in 2009 after playing two each of the last three years. As a whole, the conference has not faired well in non-conference games, but their have been some highlights.
West Virginia easily handled a heavily favored Georgia in the 2006 Sugar Bowl. That win was especially good, as it came in the Bulldogs’ back yard of Atlanta. Cincinnati was a surprise conference winner a year ago and played in its first BCS bowl in school history. They even made some waves against in state power Ohio State by declaring themselves “Ohio’s BCS University” in pre-Orange Bowl promotional materials. In anything, the members of the Big East are not afraid to step up and challenge those that are the bluebloods of college football.
Louisville has been a colossal disappointment the past two seasons. In 2006 it looked like the Cardinals were a growing juggernaut. They were a threat to win the national title that year, and ended up winning the Orange Bowl over Wake Forest. Since then, they have lost twice to in state rival Kentucky, twice to basement dweller Syracuse, and stumbled to just one conference win in 2008. It is a good thing the basketball and baseball programs have done well, because football is faltering. The vast fields of Big East champion T-shirts in the Louisville Cardinal store seem like a distant memory at the moment.
Pittsburgh misses the days of its in state rivalry with Penn State. The Panthers are getting better and have been competitive in the Big East lately. By law of transitive property, they beat Penn State last season. The Panthers beat Iowa early in the year, who later beat Penn State. That is not going to be enough to keep Dave Wannstedt employed in western Pennsylvania much longer. People want more than fond memories of Larry Fitzgerald’s days on campus. The fans want championship gear in the Pittsburgh Panther store, and many question if Wannstedt is the man to deliver it.
A decade ago the South Florida program didn’t exist. Since then, the Bulls have risen to great heights in college football. At one point during the 2007 season they were ranked second in the country. A fertile recruiting ground in Florida also allows them to bring in talent that has helped to quickly grow the program. This is a team on the rise. They want to challenge in state powers Miami, Florida, and Florida State. They want more than Big East supremacy too. They want to bring some national championship gear to the South Florida Bull store.
The best thing that has happened to Syracuse football in recent years was the release of “The Express”. That was a movie about Syracuse alum Ernie Davis’ life and how he won the Heisman trophy in up state New York. The Orange have seen little football glory since. Their former quarterback in Donovan McNabb is unappreciated in his city. The biggest win was last year’s shocking win over Notre Dame in South Bend. That, at least, made Irish-haters smile nationwide. Other than that, there is very little to sell football-wise in the Syracuse Orange store.
West Virginia has probably been the most consistent football program lately in the Big East. The Mountaineers have been on the cusp of the national title game, but rival Pittsburgh has ruined their season each of the past two years. In 2008, the Panthers cost them the Big East crown. In 2007, the Panthers had a shocking upset that prevent West Virginia from playing for the national title. That has added quite a bit of spice to the Backyard Brawl. In BCS bowls, the Mountaineers have been very successful though. The West Virginia Mountaineer store is stocked with plenty of gear remembering their 2006 triumph over Georgia and 2008 Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma.
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