Three Teams Still Unbeaten
Three of the nation’s 11 unbeaten teams reside in the BIG EAST. Cincinnati and Connecticut are 5-0, while USF is 4-0. USF, coming off a 21-13 victory over West Virginia last Friday, moved up to No. 6 in the Associated Press poll, easily the highest ranking in school history. Cincinnati moved up to No. 20 in AP after winning at San Diego State 52-23. Connecticut is receiving votes in the poll after its 44-10 victory over Akron. In the BIG EAST preseason media poll, USF, Cincinnati and Connecticut were picked fourth, fifth and seventh.
The USF-West Virginia Game Was A Record Breaker
When West Virginia visited USF last Friday for a BIG EAST showdown on ESPN2, the audiences in the stands and in front of television sets broke records. In Raymond James Stadium, the Bulls enjoyed their first sellout crowd – 67,012. The game also was the highest rated Friday night college football game in ESPN and ESPN2 history. In addition, the rating of 2.72 made it the second-most viewed regular-season college football game on any night on ESPN2. The telecast was seen in an average of over 1.8 million homes.
Two More BIG EAST Battles This Saturday
Three of the four teams playing league games Saturday are nationally ranked. At 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2, No. 20 Cincinnati plays at No. 21 Rutgers in the BIG EAST opener for both squads. Last year, Rutgers started 9-0 before losing to the Bearcats 30-11. In the ESPN Regional/BIG EAST Game of the Week at noon, West Virginia visits Syracuse. The Mountaineers, who are ranked 13th by AP, will try to bounce back from last week’s loss at USF. They will face a Syracuse team that is already 1-0 in league play after winning at Louisville two weeks ago.
Lighting Up The Scoreboard
Four BIG EAST teams – Cincinnati, Louisville, Rutgers and West Virginia – are averaging more than 40 points per game and are ranked in the top 14 nationally in scoring offense. Cincinnati is sixth, averaging 46.4 points per game followed by Louisville (45.8-7th), Rutgers (40.5-13th) and West Virginia (40.4-14th).
Pink Whistles
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. For the month of October, BIG EAST officials will be using pink whistles in recognition of the cause.
Courtesy: Associated Press
