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BIG EAST MONDAY MORNING QB: LOOKING BACK AT WEEK #13

by MICHAEL PINA

Thanksgiving is officially behind us and Bowl Season is rapidly approaching. The Big East still has a national title contender that seems to dominate its opponents no matter who’s at quarterback and thanks to Notre Dame’s loss at Stanford on Saturday, the Gator Bowl will officially include a Big East team.

The Big East now has six bowl eligible teams (sorry Syracuse and Louisville) and has shaped itself into an extremely underrated, competitive football conference. Given that a few schools were forced to start young, unproven quarterbacks like Tom Savage, B.J. Daniels and Zach Collaros, the conference faired surprisingly well and should only progress over the next few years.

More heralded seasons by youngsters like Dion Lewis only reinforce the notion that the Big East isn’t standing pat, but rising up quicker than ever before.

Rutgers (8-3, 3-3) vs. Louisville (4-8, 1-6) (34-14 Rutgers win)

A team that normally hangs their hat on defense busted out this week with an explosive rendition of the wildcat offense. Freshman running back Mohamed Sanu ran for 148 yards out of the formation while finding the end zone twice. After an ugly opening week loss against Cincinnati that really exposed their youth and inexperience, the Scarlet Knights have rebounded greatly and put together a rather impressive season that holds a bright future.

On the other hand we have Louisville. Back to back losing seasons led to the firing of head coach Steve Kragthorpe who had two more years left on his contract. With literally no progress in his first three seasons at the helm, a firing was looking inevitable.

#5 Cincinnati (11-0, 6-0) vs. Illinois (3-8, 2-6) (49-36 Cincinnati win)

In his return to a starting role for the first time since Oct. 15, Tony Pike looked better than ever, throwing for a school-record six touchdowns including one flick of the wrist across his body that had to be seen to be believed. Bad news for Pittsburgh.

Pike looks firmly in control headed into next week’s showdown against the Panthers which could vault Cincinnati into a possible national championship or at the very least a major bowl game.

The Bearcats looked one dimensional on Friday, but it’s probably the best one dimensional performance a football team can have. Head coach Brian Kelly chose to hand the ball off just four times in the game’s first three quarters but with the success they had through the air who can blame him.

While it’s certainly a debatable subject as to whether or not Cincinnati’s spread can overcome the same scheme instilled in Gainesville or outsmart the likes of a stout Alabama defense, at #5 in the nation and four undefeated teams in front of them, it doesn’t look too likely that a no loss season will guarantee the opportunity to play for the title.

#9 Pittsburgh (9-2, 5-1) vs. West Virginia (8-3, 4-2) (19-16 WV win)

Touted as the Backyard Brawl, this annual match up almost always plays like a close, tough battle no matter what the rankings say. Friday’s night’s showdown proved no different.

A back and forth tussle that saw a 16-16 tie with 45 seconds to play and a fourth and one for West Virginia, fullback Ryan Clarke converted on the game’s most climactic moment. Three plays later a 43-yard field goal by redshirt freshman Tyler Bitancurt sealed the deal.

With a game against Cincinnati next week, Pittsburgh now finds itself in a sticky situation in that they were once locks for second, and possibly even first place in the Big East, but now could finish as low as third if West Virginia can defeat Rutgers while they fall to the Bearcats.

West Virginia on the flipside is looking good at 8-3 and bowl eligible.

The conference’s two best running backs, Noel Devine and Dion Lewis did not disappoint, running for 134 and 155 yards respectively.

Connecticut (6-5, 2-4) vs. Syracuse (4-8, 1-6) (56-31 Connecticut win)

Undoubtedly the best 6-5 team in the country, Connecticut didn’t let this easy victory slip through their hands like so many this season. The Huskies amassed 204 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground for a season high 56 points in the rout.

Connecticut now finds themselves bowl eligible and is most likely headed for the St. Petersburg Bowl which would pit them against a Conference USA opponent.

Syracuse has now totaled four wins, which is a one game improvement over last season, and the program looks to be headed in the right direction. The Orange played hard in this contest and the final score wasn’t that accurate an indicator of how close things were as the Huskies scored two touchdowns in the final minute of action.

South Florida (7-4, 3-3) vs. #17 Miami (9-3, 5-3) (31-10 South Florida loss)

Earlier this season a dominating 17-7 win against then #18 ranked Florida State signaled a breakthrough performance against inner state big three rivals, but this past weekend South Florida fell back to earth after a 31-10 beat down at the hands of #17 Miami.

The Bulls defense gave up 401 total yards and looked overmatched all day long. A loss this ugly is a little alarming for South Florida as they probably headed into it expecting a more competitive performance.

Big East Top Performers

Connecticut Linebacker Lawrence Wilson: Granted he was lined up against a depleted Louisville offense, the Big East’s leading tackler added 17 more including a sack.

West Virginia Kicker Tyler Bitancurt: He was the difference maker in a game that saw just two touchdowns scored, kicking the winning 43-yarder as time expired as well as three more.

Quote of the Week

“They weren’t that much better than us. It’s just we didn’t execute.”
-South Florida defensive lineman Jason Pierre-Paul on his team’s lackluster performance against Miami.