A year ago, the reconfigured Big East was so worried about its reputation as a football conference that its institutional TV spots ended with the tagline "With a BCS bid to the winner!" as if the conference felt the need to remind viewers of its relevance.
What a difference a year makes. Tonight, the league's top two teams face off with much more at stake, playing not only for the conference's automatic BCS berth, but also for a potential spot in the national championship game. USC's loss to Oregon State last weekend made the latter storyline possible, as it greatly lessened the chance that an undefeated Big East team would be left out of the title game.
NO.3 WEST VIRGINIA (7-0,2?0 BIG EAST) AT NO. 5 LOUISVILLE (7-0, 2-0 BIG EAST)
(Tonight, 7:30 p.m., ESPN)
The Big East was thought to be all but finished as a power conference after losing Boston College, Miami, and Virginia Tech to the ACC. There was genuine debate as to whether the league deserved to keep its BCS bid, an argument that was settled by West Virginia when it beat Georgia as a heavy underdog in the Sugar Bowl last season.
Ten months after that game, three of the nation's six remaining unbeaten teams reside in the conference. Better yet, tonight's tilt in Louisville is the first meeting between any of the three, setting up a series of late-season showcase games.
Rutgers, whose 8?0 record is a much bigger surprise than the success of the other two, faces the Cardinals in another nationally televised game next Thursday and plays the Mountaineers on December 2.
But the importance of those games won't be determined until tonight's contest, which will stand as the most significant game of the season until Ohio State plays Michigan in two weeks.
West Virginia, whose 14-game wining streak is second-best behind Ohio State's 16 straight, has kept up the momentum from the Sugar Bowl. It has the nation's leading rushing offense at 319 yards a game and hasn't beaten anyone by fewer than 17 points.The rushing attack is led by a pair of sophomores, quarterback Pat White and tailback Steve Slaton. White excels in coach Rich Rodriguez's version of the spread option, operating out of the shotgun and frequently darting through creases created by the Mountaineers' quick, mobile offensive line. Slaton has outstanding speed, and is a threat to break a long run any time he gets through the line of scrimmage unscathed.
White runs first and passes second, so Louisville should pack the line with as many as eight defenders to clog up cut-back lanes and force him into passing downs. White's accuracy isn't great, but he can be dangerous with his arm. He's just a lot more dangerous throwing when he wants to as opposed to when the defense knows he has to.
The Cardinals also have an explosive offense, but it's a unit that has struggled of late. Louisville began the year with two legitimate Heisman Trophy contenders in its backfield, but tailback Michael Bush was lost for the season early on, and quarterback Brian Brohm followed him to the sidelines shortly thereafter.
Brohm returned from a hand injury two weeks ago, but hasn't looked nearly as comfortable as before he was hurt, and he'll have to play better than he did in closer-than-expected wins over Cincinnati and Syracuse. A big problem in those games was turnovers, as the Cardinals committed three in each contest; A similar performance against West Virginia will mean a loss.
Having to gut out those two games could play in Louisville's favor, as West Virginia has trailed for less than two minutes, total, all season, and one wonders what they might do in a close game. Still, that advantage is probably neutralized by the fact that the Mountaineers overcame a 17-point deficit to beat Louisville in a triple-overtime classic last season.
West Virginia is probably the better all around team and has a better chance of playing in the BCS title game, but it's doubtful Big East officials are playing favorites. They'll be too happy enjoying their conference's time in the spotlight.
Wodraska: West Virginia, Louisville bring respect to Big East
Big East showdown
By Lya Wodraska
Tribune Columnist
Article Last Updated:11/02/2006 01:33:41 AM MST
On the Big East teleconference this week, Rutgers coach Greg Schiano brushed off the importance of the next two weeks for the Big East by calling all the talk of the BCS and bowls "neat stuff."
You're a little wrong, coach - you can call it neat if you're in one of the power football conferences, but as far as the Big East's reputation is concerned, what happens in the next two weekends is huge stuff for your grouping of schools.
Look at it this way, at least we're all talking about Big East football. That hasn't really happened since, oh, say, Nov. 4, 2000. That day was the last time the conference had two teams ranked in the top five play each other, with No. 3 Miami defeating No. 2 Virginia Tech 41-21.
Since then, both teams bolted for the ACC, the conference that, strangely enough, seems to be mimicking the Big East in quality this year by giving us a bunch of pseudo-contenders. Now, there isn't an ACC team in the top 15, but there are three Big East teams. College football is odd, huh?
"All the talk of the demise of the Big East should be gone by now," West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez said Monday.
Tonight, of course, is the game that everyone pegged way back in August as the conference's defining contest, as West Virginia and Louisville face off in a battle that figures heavily into the national championship drama. What we all didn't expect was Rutgers would be undefeated and ranked at this point too, waiting for its first real chance to impress the nation when it plays Louisville next Thursday.
West Virginia is ranked No. 3 in the BCS poll, Louisville is fifth and Rutgers is 12th. Even if the Scarlet Knights do what few think they can and finish undefeated, there are too many one-loss teams ahead of them for them to play for a national title, so let's do what we've done for so many years and forget they have a football team.
Put simply, tonight's nationally televised game is all about the Mountaineers and their bid for a spot in the championship game. West Virginia is ahead of Florida by just .0071 in the BCS standings, about a bump on the pigskin's difference.
Already there are rumblings that a one-loss team might be more deserving of a spot in the national championship game than the Big East winner.
Asked about that scenario on Monday, neither Rodriguez nor Louisville coach Bob Petrino thumped their chests in defense of their conference, with both believing it will all work out in the end as it should.
But the fact is, voters are well aware of the teams' weak schedules (Louisville's is rated No. 77 and West Virginia's is No. 99), so the winner of tonight's game has to separate itself from the rest of the league to stand a chance of fending off a one-loss team to earn a ticket to Glendale.
There wasn't much separation last year, when the Mountaineers upset then-No. 19 Louisville 46-44 in a game that needed three overtimes to be decided.
Running back Steve Slaton set a school record in that game, scoring six touchdowns and rushing 31 times for 188 yards.
Slaton has earned a bit of Heisman talk, ranking fourth in the country averaging 151.3 yards this year in an offense that averages 40.9 points. Only Hawaii scores more often, averaging 45.4 points.
Louisville has had a more treacherous season, with Heisman candidate Michael Bush suffering a broken leg in the first game, and quarterback Brian Brohm missing two games with an injured finger.
The injury demolished Brohm's own Heisman hopes, but the Cardinals are very much in the race for the Big East title and maybe a spot in the national championship game.
Who knows how it will all pan out. But this we do know: The loser of tonight's game will no longer have a reason to wonder how hot the sun is in Arizona in January.
"It is like our own reality show," Rodriguez said, alluding to the elimination process this game brings. "I just hope they don't throw me off the island."
November 2, 2006
By DESMOND CONNER, Courant Staff Writer
LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm's walk off Mountaineer Field last season felt like an eternity following a 46-44 triple-overtime loss to West Virginia.
"It definitely hurt coming off the field having to walk all the way back to the locker room and their crowd cheering like that," Brohm said during a conference call this week. "That's really what stayed in my mind, that walk back, and just seeing how crazy their fans were going and how excited they were to win."
West Virginia ended up winning the Big East title and got the conference's BCS berth, defeating Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. Brohm was named Big East offensive player of the year, but the memory of that walk has been difficult to shake.
Still, when the cameras light up for tonight's matchup of the No. 3 Mountaineers and the fifth-ranked Cardinals, Brohm is going to have to put it behind him.
West Virginia has never beaten a top-five team on the road. Louisville hasn't beaten a top-five team in four years under coach Bobby Petrino.
Though both teams still must play unbeaten Rutgers, the conference champ will probably be determined tonight; the winner at least has a decided edge. The big prize, though, could be a shot at the national championship.
With West Virginia and Louisville both 7-0 and 2-0 in the Big East, and ranked third and fifth in the BCS, the winner would be in position for a title shot. No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Michigan meet in Columbus Nov. 18 in what also will be an elimination game.
The Cardinals are a 11/2-point favorites tonight at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, where they have won 15 straight.
"Our guys understand this is going to be a tough environment with a very talented football team," said West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez, whose team has won 14 in a row overall. "We're going to have to play well to have a chance."
Louisville did that for much of the game last year, but not in the last half of the fourth quarter. They built a 17-0 lead at halftime and led 24-7 in the third, but West Virginia scored 17 unanswered points in the fourth.
The Mountaineers pulled to 24-14 with 8:16 left on one of five rushing touchdowns by Steve Slaton, who also caught a TD pass.
West Virginia then attempted an onside kick. Louisville receiver Jimmy Riley tried to catch the ball, was hit by a West Virginia player and the Mountaineers recovered.
Officials threw a flag against West Virginia for interfering with Riley but picked it up. The Mountaineers were granted possession at their 48-yard line. They drove downfield, got a field goal and later a Slaton 1-yard touchdown. Big East refs later admitted to making a mistake.
Still, the Cardinals had a chance to send the game into a fourth OT. They pulled to 46-44 and were set up for a two-point conversion, using a pass play they had been working on all week featuring five receivers. Instead, Brohm had to run.
"They covered it up," he said. "I tried to get in there and they came up and stuffed me at the 1-yard line."
Louisville needs Brohm to be on top of his game. In his two outings since returning from surgery on his throwing hand for an injury sustained Sept. 16 against Miami, he hasn't been consistently Brohm-like.
He threw for 324 yards against Cincinnati, a game the Cardinals had to hold on to win, and 203 against Syracuse.
Rodriguez is expecting to see Brohm, a junior, at his best tonight.
"He can make all the throws," Rodriguez said. "But his intelligence ... the fact he reads defenses so well that he can find a hole in a defense and if you're not in the right spot and don't break on the ball correctly, he'll just tear you up."
Brohm, who has completed 83 of 136 passes for 1,239 yards and four TDs, with three interceptions, has to face the Mountaineers' odd-stacked defense that is confusing by nature. Last season he picked it apart for 31/2 quarters, completing 25 of his first 34 passes.
"You definitely have to change a little bit how you read a few plays here and there because they do have such a unique defense," Brohm said.
Thursday, November 02, 2006BUD POLIQUIN POST-STANDARD COLUMNIST
Oh, it was getting a bit uncomfortable there for a while throughout the football length and football breadth of the Big East Conference.
Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College, having seceded from the league, had listened to the wooers and had signed on with the ACC. The Big East responded to that unseemly raid by becoming a raider, itself, and imported Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida. And then, most of those folks who hadn't gasped, sighed.
Initially, it looked like the Cubs had traded Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio all over again. Buzzards flew overhead. Memories of New Coke - i.e., mixing Cincy and USF with Rutgers and Connecticut - were rekindled, inspiring folks to reach as never before for the Maalox.
And, sure, everybody learned why that chicken had crossed the road. To get away, of course, from the Big East . . . just like those Hurricanes and Gobblers and Eagles.
Well, look at this, will you? Look at what's about to take place tonight in Louisville where few of that river town's citizens are talking about horses or Rick Pitino and where tickets for a football game (of all things) are going for $1,000 apiece. Look at the Big East Conference, which is suddenly the chin-strapped version of the American League Central.
It's No. 3 West Virginia vs. ONCE-
No. 5 Louisville, before the eyes of the college football nation . . . and while it's not Ohio State against Michigan or Auburn against Florida or USC against California, it's closer to any of that than anybody would have dared imagine back in the dark days of, oh, 2004 when the Big East was as unsightly as the kitchen sink after Sunday dinner.
Amazing, huh? The Big East . . . suddenly a sexy confederation with members ranked higher than the likes of Notre Dame, Tennessee and LSU? Next, we'll be asked to believe that Halloween has come and gone, and that Rutgers is a top-15 outfit without a loss on its schedule.
"The more you win, the more is at stake," West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez told reporters earlier this week as he gazed ahead to his trip to Louisville. "Being undefeated, it just raises the stakes even higher."
The Mountaineers are 7-0. The Cardinals are 7-0. Whichever bunch wins this evening will remain a viable candidate to play, likely, either the Buckeyes or the Wolverines in the BCS Championship Game in suburban Phoenix in two months. Whichever club loses, meanwhile, drifts out of title sight and out of title mind.
Thus, we have ourselves a sporting spectacle. Right here in the Big East. Right there on ESPN. And given the fact that last October in Morgantown these two teams combined for 90 points in triple-overtime, the mind becomes a carousel.
"If it's a high-scoring game, it's certainly not going to bode well for us," Rodriguez announced. "They're built more for throwing the ball, with (Brian) Brohm and the skill guys at wide receiver, than we are. If we're giving up a lot of points and letting them go up and down the field, it's going to be tough, particularly in that environment."
"We've got to make the plays early in the game," declared Louisville coach Bobby Petrino. "We have to have more focus. Our biggest challenge is to get off to a fast start. It's important for us to get some points on the board early."
So, which sidehas the advantage in this scrum that will attract more than 750 members of the media, or more than twice the amount that usually descends upon Papa John's Cardinal Stadium?
Well, West Virginia's offense, led by Pat White and Steve Slaton, is averaging 319 yards rushing and 41 points per game . . . but the Mountaineers will be on the road and playing before a "Black Out Thursday" gathering that will be garbed, for the most part, in the darkest of garments. Meanwhile, Louisville's more balanced offense is cranking out nearly 500 yards and 39 points a game . . . but the Cardinals have wheezed a bit since Brohm returned to the lineup two games ago after having suffered a thumb injury back in September.
This one, therefore, is a tough pick. And although the Syracuse University Orange attempted to soften both sides up, losing by cumulative score of 69-30 to West Virginia and Louisville over an eight-day span last month, it proved to be an inconsequential shedder of light. Anybody who thinks much was learned as a result of SU's wobbly stands against these two will next be asked to tell one Olsen twin from the other.
Whatever, we havebig doings in the Big East, and who saw that coming? At least, so soon? Importantly, though, what will it all mean in the here and now? In this 2006 campaign? In this BCS season that is taking serious form?
Would an unbeaten Big East outfit - West Virginia, Louisville, or God help us . . . Rutgers - be chosen to play for the college crown in January over a one-loss club from among the so-called elite? And should it? Should the Mountaineers or Cardinals or, yikes, the Scarlet Knights be waved in ahead of the Buckeyes or Wolverines or Longhorns or Tigers or Gators or Volunteers or Trojans or Fighting Irish or Golden Bears or Razorbacks? And if not, why not?
Those are dandy questions, and they'll be asked with louder and louder voices after this evening's affair along the banks of the Ohio River where the Brock-for-Broglio trade will not be recalled, where buzzards will not fly, where New Coke will not be served.
Why'd the chicken cross the road? To get a better look, of course, at the Big East Conference . . . which is about to bask.
Bud Poliquin's column, and his "To The Point" observations, appear regularly in The Post-Standard and his blog is freshly written every weekday at syracuse.com. He can be heard on Sports Radio 620 WHEN (AM 620) Mondays through Thursdays between 3-5 p.m. Telephone: 315-470-2213; e-mail: bpoliquin@syracuse.com.
