I like what the Big East has been doing since they were “robbed” of all their football powers by the ACC. To me, this is a very exciting conference. There are some good offenses and good defenses. As far as I can tell, I don’t see a clear-cut dominant team in the conference. I love that fact. The level of competition is very respectable across the board.
This is the fifth installment of my grades for out-of-conference (OOC) schedules. Links to the other four are here: ACC, Big XII, Big 10(+1), PAC-10, SEC. There are eight teams in the Big East and they all play each other every year. That leaves five open dates for OOC games. Right off the bat, I am going to cut them a little slack because they have to schedule an extra game. The criteria I am basing my grades upon are as follows: FCS teams (Div=1AA), BCS conference teams, current successes of scheduled teams, and the recent success of the Big East team.
West Virginia – Villanova, East Carolina, Colorado, Marshall, Auburn. This is a very good schedule. With the exception of Villanova, all of these teams are pretty good. Going to Colorado is never taken lightly. The ball bounces really funny in Boulder. You are taking your fate in your own hands when you go out there. The Auburn game is late in the season and will be a marquee match-up. I don’t think there are but a handful of teams that would be so bold as to have both these teams on the OOC schedule. The ECU game is on the road. What I have noticed about ECU is that when they have a national audience, they give as good a fight as anyone. The Marshall game is a bit of a rivalry game and those are always scary. Grade: A+ (I’m going to ignore the Villanova game)
Connecticut – Hofstra, Temple, Virginia, Baylor, North Carolina. I really like this schedule for UCONN. Sure Hofstra is a stinker, but the rest is very respectable. They have a tune-up game with Temple. In years past, this may have been a hard fought game, but unless Temple has vastly improved from last year, this is a tune-up for UCONN. The rest are all BCS conference teams. The Virginia game will be tough for UCONN, but they have a probable win with Baylor. By far, going to North Carolina will be the toughest OOC test for the Huskies. They have the chance to play the spoiler to a Tar Heel team that many think will have a break-out year. For UCONN, this is a very respectable schedule. Grade: A (I’m going to ignore the Hofstra game)
Cincinnati – Eastern Kentucky, Oklahoma, Miami (OH), Akron, Marshall. Cincy has the honor of scheduling a BCS giant in Oklahoma. There is no team in the land that would schedule Oklahoma in Norman and think that they have a better than 50% chance in winning. In years past, Cincy may have had less than a 5% chance in winning. Recently, Cincys stock has been rising. They have a quality team that has handled some decent teams recently. I am giving the Bearcats a chance, not a big one, but they do have a chance to be in a position to win that game late. Cincy had no problem at all with Marshall or Miami (OH) last year, so there is no reason to think differently this year. The Akron game is a tune-up. Grade: A (I’m ignoring the Eastern Kentucky game)
Syracuse – Northwestern, Akron, Penn State, Northeastern, Notre Dame. Syracuse has not been the same since McNabb. So, they get a little slack on the OOC schedule. They don’t really need any though. Penn State is a monster who will be dining on Orange dudes that day. Northwestern is another BCS conference team. I like that game as well as the Akron game. It really is too bad that Notre Dame is doing so badly. It is not the fault of the teams that have them scheduled, and usually the Domers will be pretty good. I didn’t even know Northeastern had a football team. Grade: B+
Rutgers – Fresno State, North Carolina, Navy, Morgan State, Army. Ok, I give them credit for the North Carolina and Fresno State games. Those are two quality OOC games. If you listen to the pundits, they will tell you the both those teams are ready to explode. As for the rest of the schedule, you can’t get on Rutgers too much because they always play Army and Navy. It’s a rivalry thing. I can’t be too harsh on those. So, that leaves Morgan State. I’m not paying any attention to that one. Grade: B
South Florida – Tennessee-Martin, Central Florida, Kansas, Florida International, North Carolina State. South Florida is not going to sneak up on anyone this year. The biggest test on the OOC schedule is going to be Kansas. Was KU a one year wonder? This game will probably tell us volumes on each of these two teams. NC State is a good scheduled game for the Bulls. CFU and FIU are a couple in-state rivalries. (if that is even possible with such a young team.) CFU may put up a fight, but FIU is bad. I’m ignoring the TN-Martin game. Grade: B-
Pittsburgh – Bowling Green, Buffalo, Iowa, Navy, Notre Dame. There is one redeeming quality from this OOC schedule…All FBS (Div-1) teams. This is the only team in the Big East that has done this. For that, I cannot fail them. The FBS teams that are scheduled are the bottom of the barrel. Iowa and Notre Dame are the toughest teams on the schedule. Navy and Bowling Green have a small chance in beating Pittsburgh this year. That leaves Buffalo. With the way Pittsburgh has played recently, except for the WVU game last year, I am going to give them a break. Grade C+
Louisville – Kentucky, Tennessee Tech, Kansas State, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State. How disappointing was Louisville last year? Very. My first thought of this schedule was that it was very disappointing from Louisville. Then, I remembered that Louisville was just as disappointing. According to my grading criteria, I must take that into account. The Kentucky game is an in-state rivalry. That may be a good game if Kentucky can keep up the level of play from last year. The Kansas State game may be a good test for this Louisville team. KSU has a ton of JUCO transfers coming in. By the time the Wildcats play Louisville, those JUCOs should have their feet under them. Memphis is a decent team and will certainly put up a fight. Who can forget that Louisville/Middle Tennessee State game from last year? What a defensive coordinator’s nightmare. Should get good. Grade: C
Well, well, well. Isn’t that interesting? Ohio State and LSU playing for the national championship has to be a dream match-up for the fat-cats in the smoke-filled rooms. It couldn’t have worked out better, right? My hat is off to the fat-cats. You really have to admire their resolve and unflappability in stressful situations.The people in the smoke-filled rooms must have been feeling somewhat nervous with the potential match-up between Missouri and West Virginia. I don’t believe it would have been anything close to a ratings bonanza. I would venture to guess it would have been a little tougher to get the millions of dollars, the fat-cats are used to, for the advertising spots because of the smaller followings of these two teams.
I am a firm believer that what frightens these puppet-masters is the threat of losing money. Therefore, they will support and guide events towards the most lucrative outcomes. Ohio State and LSU will certainly have many, many people watching. It will be a great game. I will be watching. But what does it prove? It proves nothing. It does not provide us, the fans, with a true champion. It is because this will be a great game that there will be no change in the current bowl system.
My problem with the way things are run in Division-1 football is why these guys, fat-cats, are so frightened of trying anything new. Wouldn’t a playoff strengthen the ratings for some of the smaller market teams?
If West Virginia had made it through a 3 rounds of playoffs, wouldn’t they create a bigger following? Wouldn’t the ratings shoot through the roof? If Hawaii was able to knock off a team like Oklahoma in the first week of a playoff, then wouldn’t it be safe to assume that the next week there would be even more people watching Hawaii’s game? I am not looking forward to the Hawaii/Georgia match-up, but if Hawaii would have had to get through a few playoff games, then I would probably be very excited for the game.
If you are going be greedy, then be as greedy as you can. Sure, the old way has made many a cat fat, but this new way could send profits through the roof. The shortsightedness of the cats in the smoke-filled rooms is frustrating.
Much to the chagrin of the officiating crew from the Pitt/WVU game, West Virgina blew any chance of any change coming soon. Missouri had to do their part, but it was a much tougher hill to climb for the Tigers. Without the pocketbooks of the fat-cats being affected, it will be impossible for there to be change in Division-1 football. As long as the status quo is not affected, then the puppet-masters are happy. I guarantee Ohio State and LSU makes the puppet-masters happy.
The most anticipated game for the Big 12 North will be played 11/24 in Arrowhead Stadium against the Missouri Tigers and the Kansas Jayhawks. If both teams can refrain from losing a game until then, then the ramifications of that game could be enormous.
Let us travel for a bit to the land of what ifs. What if a 11-0 KU team beats a 10-1 Mizzou. Does KU finally jump in front of the rest of the one-loss teams? I say no. What if KU pulls out a victory against Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game? Will that be enough to catapult KU past any one-loss teams in front of the Jayhawks? I would certainly hope so. KU would have 2 top ten victories in as many weeks. Do I think this will happen? No. I have my doubts that KU will make it past Oklahoma State much less Missouri and Oklahoma.
What if Mizzou beats the Jayhawks and Oklahoma? With one loss, will that be enough to propel the Tigers to the front of the one-loss line? If the rankings stay as they are now, I would certainly hope that 2 wins against 2 top ten teams would count for something. I would give more credit to this "what if" prediction because Missouri is playing well on both sides of the ball. We know they have one of the best QBs in Chase Daniel, but they are now playing good defense to boot.
I think Oklahoma needs help in order to get to the National Championship Game. They would only have one win over a top 10 team. That would put them in the same boat as LSU, Oregon, Boston College, Arizona St, and West Virginia. That is big pack of one-loss teams. OU would stand out a bit because of the extra game for the Big 12 Championship. LSU would not be playing a team as highly ranked as KU or Mizzou in the SEC Championship. LSU should be rooting for Georgia right about now, but that is another blog for another person to write.
Who is the biggest fan of KU right now? I would say Mizzou is pulling for the Jayhawks to win this week against Oklahoma State and Iowa State next week. If Mizzou beats an undefeated KU and comes through on another shot at Oklahoma, then they have to be a lock for the National Championship Game. Right?
Friends Forever (or at least until 11/24)
I have given my opinion on the current state of affairs in the Big 12 North. For the record, I would like to say that the North has surpassed any expectations I had before the start of the season, but it does not seem to be deserving of two top ten teams.
All right, everyone has made it through the first 3 weeks of games this year. We are now starting to see some strengths and weaknesses come into the light. It is early yet, but with a couple games under the belts of this years' teams, we can start to classify some teams with potential and some without.
With that being said, I am still full of questions. I am like that annoying guy that sits in the front of the class and keeps everyone late because there is no end to the stupid questions spewing from his mouth.
Texas A&M/Miami - Which one of these two teams is further up the road to regain the winning traditions their fans are used to seeing? Will that once vaunted aTm defense be able to stop the underachieving Miami offense? Can the Miami offense execute? How many Hurricanes does it take to bring down big Javorskie Lane? Probably too many. If it were in College Station, I would like the Aggies. Flip a coin. Heads=aTm Tails=Miami.
North Carolina/South Florida - How long can the Bulls keep it going? Can the Tarheels leave Florida with a 2-2 record? Will the week off for the Bulls keep them from a let-down game? How much talent do they have in South Florida? I like the Bulls to edge-out the Tarheels in this one.
East Carolina/West Virginia - Can the ECU defense come up with an answer to the mighty Mountaineer offense? Is the heat that West Virgina been taking over not dominating others well founded? WV should win this one 9 times out of 9, but I have a feeling that it will be closer than the 25 points the experts in Vegas believe it to be.
Wyoming/Ohio - Which 2-1 team will prevail? Don't you have to like match-ups like this one? Both are teams that are playing for nothing more than the chance to go to a bowl game at the end of the season. No day one NFL draft picks. No chance at a BCS. Possibly a chance to play for their respective conference championships. I know I am in the minority, but I love games like these.
Penn State/Michigan - How many home games can a team start with? Can Joe Pa get that big, stinky, flea-infested, mangy #### off his back? Will this Michigan team rise to the challenge this week? How can Michigan lose 3 home games in the same week? Stay tuned. Joey P. should come out ahead, but anything is possible in college football.
Texas Tech/Oklahoma State - What is up with Okie State? If the strongest part of OSU's team is the offense, how can they even stand a chance in this one? How many pass plays will be in this one? Which of these two teams have to battle it out with the Aggies for third place in the conference's Southern division? Oklahoma State should be better than they are right now. I have faith that this OSU squad will put it together at some time during the year, just not this week. I have to give the nod to the Leach's pass-happy bunch from Lubbock.
Kentucky/Arkansas - Can the Wildcats keep the magic while on the road? Can Arkansas play to the expectations of their fans? Will that Razorback defense be too much for Kentucky's QB Woodson? Will Kentucky survive to be in the polls next week? How bad will that heartbreaking loss to the Tide affect the Hogs' season? My pea-sized brain says Arkansas, but my heart is with the Cats on this one.
New Mexico State/Auburn - How bad is Auburn? I ask this question every week and every week the answer is really, really bad. Will Hal Mumme's offense steal the show? I would hope that Auburn wouldn't lose this one, especially at home. But, NMSU did beat UTEP and played the Lobos tough. The Lobos did just beat the Arizona Wildcats, and Hal Mumme used to coach the Wildcats of Kentucky. Coincidence? I think not. Upset city, baby! (That is why I am the Village ####.)
Georgia/Alabama - After the huge win against Arkansas, how will the Tide fair against a seemingly good Georgia team? Can Saban rally the boys to defend his home turf against the Bulldogs? Just how good are these boys from Georgia? Will the loss to SC kill the spirit of the Dawgs? This is a good interdivisional match-up from the SEC. I like Georgia to show Alabama what a let-down game feels like.
Iowa/Wisconsin - How bad is Iowa? How good is Wisconsin? I don't think you can gauge how good/bad Iowa is when they play Iowa State. So, the Hawkeyes lost in Ames to a seriously inferior team. The Badgers have not really dominated the way they were expected. I think it is another good match-up. Wisconcin should win but the Hawkeyes make it an exciting game for sure.
And Finally!!!
South Carolina/LSU - How good is this batch of boys the old ball coach has playing for him? How can LSU not win? Will the stout defense slow down the LSU offense? Has LSU shown what they can really do? I am afraid for South Carolina that LSU hasn't even begun. I am not that stupid to count Spurrier out. I am sure that he has something up his mighty sleeve that will give LSU fits for a while, but Pelini has too much for the Gamecock offense. 16.5 points? I like LSU until they show some kind of weakness. So far, I haven't seen any.
I like the match-ups and the years of bad-blood between rivals in college football. I enjoy a good game no matter the national implications. Give me a 3OT game between a couple of Sun Belt teams over a 40 point blowout between a couple top 25 teams anytime. I consider myself to be a fan of the game. I will be as respectful to visitors on my blog as they are to me. Go Huskers! Go Navy! Go Jags! Go Cubbies!
This is the fifth installment of my grades for out-of-conference (OOC) schedules. Links to the other four are here: 
West Virginia – Villanova, East Carolina, Colorado, Marshall, Auburn. This is a very good schedule. With the exception of Villanova, all of these teams are pretty good. Going to Colorado is never taken lightly. The ball bounces really funny in Boulder. You are taking your fate in your own hands when you go out there. The Auburn game is late in the season and will be a marquee match-up. I don’t think there are but a handful of teams that would be so bold as to have both these teams on the OOC schedule. The ECU game is on the road. What I have noticed about ECU is that when they have a national audience, they give as good a fight as anyone. The Marshall game is a bit of a rivalry game and those are always scary. Grade: A+ (I’m going to ignore the Villanova game)
Connecticut – Hofstra, Temple, Virginia, Baylor, North Carolina. I really like this schedule for UCONN. Sure Hofstra is a stinker, but the rest is very respectable. They have a tune-up game with Temple. In years past, this may have been a hard fought game, but unless Temple has vastly improved from last year, this is a tune-up for UCONN. The rest are all BCS conference teams. The Virginia game will be tough for UCONN, but they have a probable win with Baylor. By far, going to North Carolina will be the toughest OOC test for the Huskies. They have the chance to play the spoiler to a Tar Heel team that many think will have a break-out year. For UCONN, this is a very respectable schedule. Grade: A (I’m going to ignore the Hofstra game)
Cincinnati – Eastern Kentucky, Oklahoma, Miami (OH), Akron, Marshall. Cincy has the honor of scheduling a BCS giant in Oklahoma. There is no team in the land that would schedule Oklahoma in Norman and think that they have a better than 50% chance in winning. In years past, Cincy may have had less than a 5% chance in winning. Recently, Cincys stock has been rising. They have a quality team that has handled some decent teams recently. I am giving the Bearcats a chance, not a big one, but they do have a chance to be in a position to win that game late. Cincy had no problem at all with Marshall or Miami (OH) last year, so there is no reason to think differently this year. The Akron game is a tune-up. Grade: A (I’m ignoring the Eastern Kentucky game)
Syracuse – Northwestern, Akron, Penn State, Northeastern, Notre Dame. Syracuse has not been the same since McNabb. So, they get a little slack on the OOC schedule. They don’t really need any though. Penn State is a monster who will be dining on Orange dudes that day. Northwestern is another BCS conference team. I like that game as well as the Akron game. It really is too bad that Notre Dame is doing so badly. It is not the fault of the teams that have them scheduled, and usually the Domers will be pretty good. I didn’t even know Northeastern had a football team. Grade: B+
Rutgers – Fresno State, North Carolina, Navy, Morgan State, Army. Ok, I give them credit for the North Carolina and Fresno State games. Those are two quality OOC games. If you listen to the pundits, they will tell you the both those teams are ready to explode. As for the rest of the schedule, you can’t get on Rutgers too much because they always play Army and Navy. It’s a rivalry thing. I can’t be too harsh on those. So, that leaves Morgan State. I’m not paying any attention to that one. Grade: B
South Florida – Tennessee-Martin, Central Florida, Kansas, Florida International, North Carolina State. South Florida is not going to sneak up on anyone this year. The biggest test on the OOC schedule is going to be Kansas. Was KU a one year wonder? This game will probably tell us volumes on each of these two teams. NC State is a good scheduled game for the Bulls. CFU and FIU are a couple in-state rivalries. (if that is even possible with such a young team.) CFU may put up a fight, but FIU is bad. I’m ignoring the TN-Martin game. Grade: B-
Louisville – Kentucky, Tennessee Tech, Kansas State, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State. How disappointing was Louisville last year? Very. My first thought of this schedule was that it was very disappointing from Louisville. Then, I remembered that Louisville was just as disappointing. According to my grading criteria, I must take that into account. The Kentucky game is an in-state rivalry. That may be a good game if Kentucky can keep up the level of play from last year. The Kansas State game may be a good test for this Louisville team. KSU has a ton of JUCO transfers coming in. By the time the Wildcats play Louisville, those JUCOs should have their feet under them. Memphis is a decent team and will certainly put up a fight. Who can forget that Louisville/Middle Tennessee State game from last year? What a defensive coordinator’s nightmare. Should get good. Grade: C 
The people in the smoke-filled rooms must have been feeling somewhat nervous with the potential match-up between Missouri and West Virginia. I don’t believe it would have been anything close to a ratings bonanza. I would venture to guess it would have been a little tougher to get the millions of dollars, the fat-cats are used to, for the advertising spots because of the smaller followings of these two teams. 
I am a firm believer that what frightens these puppet-masters is the threat of losing money. Therefore, they will support and guide events towards the most lucrative outcomes. Ohio State and LSU will certainly have many, many people watching. It will be a great game. I will be watching. But what does it prove? It proves nothing. It does not provide us, the fans, with a true champion. It is because this will be a great game that there will be no change in the current bowl system. 
My problem with the way things are run in Division-1 football is why these guys, fat-cats, are so frightened of trying anything new. Wouldn’t a playoff strengthen the ratings for some of the smaller market teams? 
If West Virginia had made it through a 3 rounds of playoffs, wouldn’t they create a bigger following? Wouldn’t the ratings shoot through the roof? If Hawaii was able to knock off a team like Oklahoma in the first week of a playoff, then wouldn’t it be safe to assume that the next week there would be even more people watching Hawaii’s game? I am not looking forward to the Hawaii/Georgia match-up, but if Hawaii would have had to get through a few playoff games, then I would probably be very excited for the game. 
If you are going be greedy, then be as greedy as you can. Sure, the old way has made many a cat fat, but this new way could send profits through the roof. The shortsightedness of the cats in the smoke-filled rooms is frustrating.
Let us travel for a bit to the land of what ifs. What if a 11-0 KU team beats a 10-1 Mizzou. Does KU finally jump in front of the rest of the one-loss teams? I say no. What if KU pulls out a victory against Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game? Will that be enough to catapult KU past any one-loss teams in front of the Jayhawks? I would certainly hope so. KU would have 2 top ten victories in as many weeks. Do I think this will happen? No. I have my doubts that KU will make it past Oklahoma State much less Missouri and Oklahoma. 
What if Mizzou beats the Jayhawks and Oklahoma? With one loss, will that be enough to propel the Tigers to the front of the one-loss line? If the rankings stay as they are now, I would certainly hope that 2 wins against 2 top ten teams would count for something. I would give more credit to this "what if" prediction because Missouri is playing well on both sides of the ball. We know they have one of the best QBs in Chase Daniel, but they are now playing good defense to boot.
I think Oklahoma needs help in order to get to the National Championship Game. They would only have one win over a top 10 team. That would put them in the same boat as LSU, Oregon, Boston College, Arizona St, and West Virginia. That is big pack of one-loss teams. OU would stand out a bit because of the extra game for the Big 12 Championship. LSU would not be playing a team as highly ranked as KU or Mizzou in the SEC Championship. LSU should be rooting for Georgia right about now, but that is another blog for another person to write.
