Big East Sports Blog

The Big East Conference’s first bowl game will pit Rutgers against an athletic Central Florida squad.  Conference runner-up Pitt will face Butch Davis’ North Carolina Tar Heels on December 26th.  Legendary Head Coach Bobby Bowden, in his last game, will face his old squad as West Virginia battles Bowden’s Seminoles on January 1st in the Gator Bowl.  The conference’s only BCS game features Cincinnati vs. Florida.  The Bearcats will not have Brian Kelly on the sidelines as they battle Tim Tebow and the Gators on January 1st in the Sugar Bowl.  South Florida faces Northern Illinois and South Carolina faces UCONN on January 2nd to wrap up the bowl schedule for the Big East in 2009-2010.

The Cincinnati Bearcat defense looked bad once again but their offense was superb.  Tony Pike returned to the field in impressive fashion throwing six touchdowns. The #5 Bearcats will have their toughest test of the season as they travel to Pittsburgh for the Big East Championship.  The Panthers had nothing to gain or lose in the back yard brawl against West Virginia.  Their lack of focus was on full display as the Mountaineers held on for a 19-16 victory.  The loss dropped Pitt down six spots to #15 which truly means nothing as a victory over Cincinnati will send Pitt to a BCS game.  West Virginia climbed back into the Top 25 rankings at #23 with the win over Pitt as WVU shirts & apparel continue to fly off the shelves along with the new WVU Snuggies.

The Cincinnati Bearcats remained at #5 on their bye week.  They will face an athletic Illinois team on November 27th on national television.  The Pitt Panthers also stayed put on their bye week.  The #9 Panthers will face arch rival West Virginia on the 27th.  The Panthers and Bearcats will square off on December 5th in Heinz Field. The latest bowl predictions have Pitt playing in the Sugar Bowl against Florida with Cincinnati facing Virginia Tech in the Gator Bowl on January 1st.

The Cincinnati Bearcats survived again last week, escaping with a 24-21 victory over West Virginia.  The victory held the Bearcats at #5.  Cincinnati will have a week off before hosting Illinois on November 27th.  The Pitt Panthers defeated Notre Dame in thrilling fashion 27-22 in front of a national primetime crowd.  The win moved Pitt up 3 slots to # 9.  The Panthers will have a week off before hosting West Virginia in the back yard brawl on the 27th. Meanwhile, fans can celebrate Pitt’s 2009 success with Pitt Panthers Snuggie blankets which make great holiday gifts.

The Cincinnati Bearcats, behind QB Zach Collaros’ record day, escaped with a 47-45 victory in primtetime against UConn.  Although the Bearcats got the victory, it wasn’t impressive which left the Cats at #5 despite the Iowa loss.  UC will have a tough test on November 13th when they host #25 West Virginia.  The Pitt Panthers moved up 1 slot to #12 in the college football rankings with a dominating performance against Syracuse.  QB Bill Stull and the Panthers host Notre Dame on a Saturday night national game November 14th.  South Florida moved up one slot to #24 while on their bye week.  They will have a tough test when they resume action at Rutgers on November 12th in front of a national ESPN audience.  West Virginia entered the rankings at #25 with a lackluster 17-9 victory over Louisville.  Their toughest test awaits when they travel to Cincinnati with the winner likely representing the Big East in a BCS Bowl game.

The Cincinnati Bearcats moved up 3 spots to #5 in the BCS Top 25 rankings after lambasting Syracuse 28-7.  Backup QB Zach Collaros has been very productive in his stint as Tony Pike continues to recover from an arm injury.  The Bearcats may have Pike back when they face Connecticut in front of a national audience on November 7th.  The Pitt Panthers moved from #15 to #13 while on their bye week.  QB Bill Stull will return to action on November 7th when Pitt hosts Syracuse.  South Florida entered the rankings at #25 after an impressive victory over West Virginia.  The Bulls will have their bye week before returning to action on November 12th against Rutgers.

When Rutgers crushed Louisville to completed the regular season for both teams they not only eliminated Louisville from bowl eligibility, but they also pivoted themselves into a stronger bowl game. As a result, Rutgers will indeed play in the PapaJohns.com Bowl as I previous predicted and will face NC State of the ACC on December 29th. Big East Champion Cincinnati gets the headline bowl as they face the ACC Champion Virginia Tech Hokies in the Orange Bowl.

The remainder of the bowl games & match-ups include South Florida vs Memphis in the St. Petersburg Bowl, West Virginia faces North Carolina in the Meineke Car Care Bowl, Pitt faces Oregon State in the Sun Bowl and Connecticut faces Mid-American Conference Shampion Buffalo in the International Bowl.