Four years ago the Big East was thought to be left for dead after Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College announced their departure to join the ACC. Despite the controversy, the league has thrived, winning three straight BCS bowl games.
Two of those victories were shocking wins by West Virginia. In 2005, the Mountaineers stunned the Georgia Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl (remember because of Hurricane Katrina the game was moved from its usual home of New Orleans to the Bulldogs backyard of Atlanta), and last year amid the controversy of departing coach Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia routed Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Although, the Mountaineers are favored to win again this year, its Big East foes are catching up with them.
Everyone knows about Pat White- one of the most prolific quarterbacks in Big East history (he averaged 6.8 yards per carry last season, and will likely become the NCAA’s career rushing leader for quarterbacks by the time this season is done). Alongside him in West Virginia’s backfield is the ultra-dynamic Noel Devine, who in limited touches last season justified his high school hype by averaging 8.6 yards behind starter Steve Slaton.
If the Mountaineers do falter, it won’t be because they didn’t score enough points, but because they gave up too many- one of the country’s top defenses last year returns only four starters.
Waiting in the wings is South Florida. The Bulls reached number two in last season’s polls before losing three straight games and ending the year with an embarrassing Sun Bowl loss to Oregon. Matt Grothe leads the offense, and much like Pat White is a quarterback who’s on the field output far outweighs his God-given talent. The inconsistent Mike Hall will get carries as the primary running back, and the offensive line returns four starters. However, it is the defense that should bring the Bulls into elite status this season- and keep them there.
The headliner of the group is All-American defensive end George Selvie, who led the nation last year with 31.5 tackles for loss as well as tallying 14.5 sacks. But don’t count out the rest of the defense, which returns six other starters including both safeties and a speedy front seven. The Bulls are a legitimate top-15 team- expect them to beat Kansas at home, and the conference schedule plays out nicely to make a run at a Big East championship. South Florida beat West Virginia in Morgantown two years ago, and will have to do so again this year to claim the conference crown. The primary difference is that this year’s match-up will be played December 6th. Like so many other schools from Florida, the Bulls have a history of going cold when the temperatures dip below freezing.
Some believe Pittsburgh to be a contender- and although they return arguably the conference’s best running back in LeSean “Shady,” McCoy and a host of other offensive weapons, I don’t see them winning a conference championship. This is a team coming off three straight .500 or worse seasons, and Dave Wannstedt has still yet to prove he can win consistently, despite brining in the Big East’s most talented recruiting classes year after year.
Connecticut is a team that no one is really talking about, especially considering they return 16 starters off a team which shared last season’s Big East championship. However, this years schedule is significantly tougher with West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati coming to town, and road games at South Florida, Rutgers and Louisville. This is also a team that relies heavily on controlling the clock with a run-based offense. Should they fall behind early, it will be hard for them to score points in bunches. While I do think they’ll be better than the sixth place finish that the media predicted, winning nine games as they did last year is very unlikely.
By Aaron Torres
Big East Fans Staff Writer
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