One day until graduation

First, if you’ve missed any of the countdown, here’s a look at each day in the countdown:

No. 10- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/10-days-until-graduation.html

No. 9- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/nine-days-until-graduation.html

No. 8- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/eight-days-until-graduation.html

No. 7- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/one-week-until-graduation.html

No. 6- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/six-days-until-graduation.html

No. 5- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/five-days-until-graduation.html

No. 4- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/four-days-until-graduation.html

No. 3- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/three-days-until-graduation.html

No. 2- http://adamniemeyer.blogspot.com/2011/06/two-days-until-graduation.html

Moment 1: “The Game” (Dec. 5, 2009)

It was cold and somewhat snowy when I opened the shades in the Pittsburgh hotel room I was sharing with fellow video team member J.P. Hummer. My dad had just texted me to say that he and my mom were up and headed to breakfast on a chilly morning.

I’d hoped for the best, but I knew it was going to be a tough battle. We were on the brink of a perfect season and a shot at the BCS National Title game. These were unforeseen and nearly unbelievable times in the Cincinnati football program. And I was in the center of it all.

We packed the meeting rooms up, and headed down to the buses to put away our things. In just hours, the ball would be kicked, and the 60-minute journey to perfection would be right in front of our very eyes.

Setting everything up at Heinz Field was just like normal: I headed to my endzone area, two guys headed to the TV truck, and John Sells, video coordinator, headed to his spot in the sideline video booth. Minutes later we all hooked up in the Heinz Field pressbox for breakfast.

WPTS Sport Director Jake Meyer, a good friend of mine, met me there. The previous night Jake and I hung out and watched the MAC title game, featuring a highly-touted Central Michigan squad, led by quarterback Dan LeFevour and head coach Butch Jones. The Chips defeated Ohio University, and little did any of us know the significance of that game at the time.

Jake and I made our way to the radio booth where I met his co-anchor for the day, Dan, who I’d talked to on the radio earlier that week when I was a live guest on Jake’s weekly sportscast on WPTS radio in Pittsburgh.

For three years I called into the radio show, live from practice. Dan and Jake asked me what it would take for UC to defeat the Panthers. When I got into the radio booth that morning to chat with the guys, Dan said, “The first one to 45 wins this game.”

Funny how things work out some times.

I headed down to the field to join my actual co-workers with about 45 minutes until kickoff. ‘If this is the biggest game I’m ever a part of,’ I thought, ‘I might as well go down on the field and soak in some of the atmospohere.’

I talked to some local news folks on the field, including WCPO sports anchor Dennis Janson, who was about to go live for a one-hour special preceding the game on ABC. DJ was one of the nicest guys I had the opportunity to work with at Channel 9, so I stopped by and said hello.

Oh, and then there was a game to be played. I found my way back up to my film booth, which was somewhat heated, but since we had the front windows open it wasn’t the warmest place in the world. However, I felt bad for the folks sitting out in front of us.

And I felt bad for my mom and dad, who, for some reason, got stuck in the very top row of Heinz Field. I thought my dad was kidding when he sent me a text that said, “Look out to your left. We’re in the top row of seats.”

Holy cow, they were. (“It was colder than hell,” my mom will still tell you)

When the game kicked off it was business as usual. Start recording, watch the play, stop recording. Repeat. It’s what I had done all season, nothing new.

Except the fact that what we hadn’t done all season was get beat, like a drum. We were tied after one quarter at 7-7, but in the second the Pitt Panthers decided that the Bearcats of Cincinnati didn’t deserve the perfect season we had our sights on. The rattled off three touchdowns and a field goal, and led 31-10 with 1:26 showing on the clock in the second quarter.

Brian Kelly, who had his sights on a job in South Bend, was suddenly looking like a normal human being, not the super coach that every national media outlet had made him out to be.

After the touchdown that put Pitt up 31-10 I received a text from John Sells, my boss. While I forget exactly what it said, the message basically said, “This one is over. We’re going to Charlotte, bye bye BK.”

I wanted to respond, but I just couldn’t think of anything to say.

And I didn’t have to say much, because seconds later the play on the field said it all.

Mardy Gilyard stood on the UC goal line with a perfect season in his hands. He received the kickoff, and the rest, as they say, is history. The play that saved the perfect season took all of 16 seconds. Gilyard covered 99 yards and sprinted into the endzone away from me for a Bearcat touchdown.

“Why are you so negative?” I immediately responded to Sells.

From there, the momentum shifted. But it wasn’t the final time momentum would shift in the game.

With 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter an almost perfect Jake Rogers missed a PAT attempt to bring UC within seven. The Cats trailed Pitt 38-30. (Highlights from ESPN.com can be seen here: http://espn.go.com/ncf/recap?gameId=293390221)

With less than six minutes left the Bearcats had the ball on the one yard line. Zach Collaros, who had played masterfully in replacement of Pike when Pike re-injured his left arm earlier in the year, came in to run the UC offense on the goal line. He handed the ball on a read option to Isaiah Pead for six. We trailed by two.

And who stepped up on the two-point conversion? None other than Mardy Gilyard.

Pike flipped the ball to Gilyard for two points, and the score was tied with 5:46 left in the game.

Pitt’s Dion Lewis punched the ball in from five yards with 1:33 left on the clock, leading my counterpart at Pitt to look at me and say, “Damn, bro, this is crazy! I think we left you with too much time though.” There was too much time for Pike and Gilyard to tie the game and send it into overtime.

Enter Andrew Janocko, Pitt’s third string back-up quarterback, and PAT holder. Janocko bobbled the snap and Dan Hutchins couldn’t put the PAT through the uprights. Pitt still led 44-38, but they needed to keep UC out of the endzone if they wanted to keep their hopes of securing the Big East title alive.

But with 33 seconds left on the clock Pike stood behind center Chris Jurek with four wide outs to his left and Armon Binns to his right. Binns, a junior from Pasadena, Calif., was only looking at one cover corner on his side of the field.

I don’t normally do this, but I glanced away from my camera for a split second and looked down at the field. ‘Oh…my…God. He’s singled covered!’ I thought. ‘Throw it to Binns Tony, throw it to Binns. This is a touchdown.’

Pike got the snap and lofted the ball for the right corner of the endzone. It fell into the arms of Binns in stride. The crowd in front of me—mainly Cincinnati fans—was pumped.

Pike celebrates (Cincinnati Enquirer photo)

Jake Rogers came on and nailed the PAT, leaving my counterpart from Pitt to once again utter, “Damn bro. This has been one of the craziest games I’ve ever seen.”

I couldn’t agree more.

When Pitt got the ball back with 33 seconds remaining in the game, they had to throw the ball. Bill Stull was pinned on his own 18-yard line, and Bob Diaco, whose defense had been torched all day on the ground, sent out the best pass coverage guys he could get on the field.

Stull’s first pass dropped incomplete. His second fell to the turf, also incomplete. On third down he turned to Jonathan Baldwin, who had been a stud for the Panthers all season; that pass also went incomplete. With just ten seconds remaining, Stull dropped back with the game on the line.

The Cincinnati Bearcats celebrate after defeating Pitt in 2009 (Cincinnati Enquirer photo)

He was sacked by Alex Daniels to end the game. Someone in front of me popped a cork on a champagne bottle. The party was on.

I leaned out of the video booth and waved at my mom and dad. I got the thumbs up from my dad. We had done it, so long as Tony Pike didn’t give the next snap to Pitt and let them run it into the endzone.

Brian Kelly sent the offense out onto the field and Pike took a knee. The clock said 0:00, UC-45 Pitt-44. For the second straight year I was headed to a BCS bowl game as the Big East champion.

Kelly and Jeff Quinn share a hug after beating Pittsburgh. (Cincinnati Enquirer photo)

“Good luck wherever you end up,” said my counterpart from Pitt. “And represent [the Big East] well.”

“Same to you guys,” I said as we left the video booth.

I walked down a few steps and my mom and dad were waiting. I think my mom hit me numerous times saying, “I drove all this way and you guys almost lost!”

Almost.

I said goodbye to them and headed down the elevator toward the locker room to set my stuff in the equipment truck. The first person who greeted me was co-worker Joe Stanek.

The Big East champs hold their title in the locker room (from the Twitter account of Tom Gelehrter aka Tommy G)

He picked me up and gave me a huge hug. “Can you believe we did it!” he said, as excited as I was that we were a part of something so very special.

I’m not sure what my response was, but I know it’s almost unbelievable still. We were a part of one of the best college football teams in America that season.

And that, is the best moment I’ve ever been a part of in the past four years at UC.

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Disagreements? Comments? Concerns? Questions? Leave a comment below, and as always thanks for reading.

Check back tomorrow on graduation day for a special post. This has been a fun countdown to produce and organize. You’ve seen the good and the bad, the happy and the sad moments that I’ve lived through the past four years. These posts are only a small look into what I’ve experienced in the past four years, but it’s been a blast. I can’t wait to put some more memories in as I go through grad school. One more game like this one wouldn’t be too bad.

Have a good Friday.

Opinions on Wannstedt's resignation at Pitt

With the surprise announcement that Dave Wannstedt would be stepping down as Pittsburgh Panthers head coach yesterday, I began to think. Is college football turning into a “What have you done for me lately?” world?

In some ways, it already is. In fact, in the NFL, coaches are being fired one year after getting deep in the playoffs (see Minnesota Vikings and former head man Brad Childress). Insanity? I think so.

The biggest problem with all this is the quick, sudden turnover. If athletic departments sign coaches to five year contracts but realize three years in they aren’t getting anywhere, they’re left with huge buyouts and contract obligations to head coaches (who have smart lawyers). Likewise, when coaches decide to leave programs for better jobs (see Brian Kelly) money that changes hands from one school to the next gets very messy.

How many head coaches is Notre Dame currently paying? Three or four? All I know is, the way it’s heading, one-year head coaching contracts might not be too far away.

Wannstedt’s case is particularly stunning to me. The man known to some as “The ‘Stache” just completed a 7-5 season where the Panthers shared the Big East title with West Virginia and UConn. In 2007, Wannstedt was a hero in the city of Pittsburgh—the prodigal son who returned to coach his alma mater, knocking rival West Virginia out of the national title game by defeating the Mountaineers in Morgantown.

Ironically enough, the last Big east co-champion team to lose their head coach was that 2007 West Virginia team. In a messy divorce, Rich Rodriguez left his hometown team and headed to the greener pastures of Michigan, a place where he now sits in hot water after not exactly meeting expectations.

Wannstedt had “the team” this season, picked by sportswriters and experts to win the league title, but the Panthers disappointing showing left many fans unhappy. Cincinnati was picked to finish second, and ended at 4-8, but no one in the Queen City (except for maybe some of the most fanatical followers of the Bearcats) is calling for head coach Butch Jones to resign. Why is that?

Wannstedt fell victim to the “what have you done for me now” theory. Pitt fans are growing restless and want to see a winner. I just hope they don’t bring in a new head coach that fails worse than Wannstedt. Because then, no one will be happy, everyone will be angry, and a new head coach might be brought in, just because Wannstedt’s replacement couldn’t get it done. Now.

Thoughts or opinions? Leave ‘em in the comments section. Have a good one.

Big East football schedules: Week 6-“Opening Week”

Week six is the beginning of the Big East title chase as four Big East schools begin their quest to knock off the Cincinnati Bearcats and become Big East champions.

But it’s also the first Big East test for the two-time defending Big East coach of the year—Notre Dame’s Brian Kelly, who welcomes to South Bend the last Big East team he faced, Pittsburgh. I know Jake is itching to talk about his two favorite teams, so here’s the schedule.

Week 6 Big East Schedule
Fri Oct 8-Rutgers vs Connecticut
Sat., Oct 9-USF vs Syracuse
Oct 9-Louisville vs Memphis
Oct 9-Cincinnati vs Miami (OH)
Oct 9-Pittsburgh at Notre Dame
Oct 9-West Virginia vs UNLV

AN: I can already hear the call, “Live from Notre Dame Stadium, fulfilling a lifelong dream, this is WPTS Sports Director Jake Meyer.” Does that sound accurate to you?

JM: Yeah, that’s about right. I’m really looking forward to calling this game and can’t wait for Saturday. This is a very interesting matchup of two of the biggest underachievers in college football so far this year. The Panthers have won the last two meetings between these teams, including a four-overtime win at Notre Dame Stadium in 2008. Pitt’s struggles have been much documented in this forum, and they will face another tough test this week.

Meanwhile, Notre Dame has is still a work in progress. There’s some serious growing pains going on in South Bend as QB Dayne Crist’s play has been inconsistent so far as he learns Brian Kelly’s offense. However, Crist is a very capable passer and has some tremendous targets to throw to in wideouts Michael Floyd, Theo Riddick and T.J. Jones as well as maybe the best tight end in the country in Elder alumnus Kyle Rudolph.

Pitt’s defense is facing its fifth straight opponent who runs some variation on the spread offense and Pitt has struggled to stop the short passing of these teams. The onus in this game will be on Pitt’s secondary, namely cornerback Antwaun Reed and Ricky Gary, with the latter struggling mightily at times. One interesting position of note is the weakside linebacker position, where strong safety Dom DeCicco will get the start for the second straight week.

DeCicco’s presence should provide a boost to a linebacker corps that has struggled in coverage against spread teams and has trouble running with the wide receivers they are often forced to cover. Pitt’s run defense has been solid, but their ineffective pass defense makes it hard for the defense to get off the field. Look for Pitt to try to pressure Crist with Jabaal Sheard into making poor throws.

Defensively, Notre Dame has improved over last season and is a better unit than they are given credit for. The Fighting Irish held a lackluster Boston College offense to 13 points last week, six of which came after the Irish turned it over deep in their own territory. ND’s defense is led by sophomore inside linebacker Manti Te’o, who recorded 21 tackles in a loss to Stanford two weeks ago. Pitt may struggle to run the ball against the Irish defense, despite the presence of your favorite coordinator Bob Diaco and his 3-4 scheme. If Pitt can’t run the ball, Pitt will not win this game. Tino Sunseri has struggled mightily at times, but has also shown flashes of potential. However, at this point, he is not ready to carry the offensive load for Pitt, especially given the shaky pass protection Pitt’s offensive line has provided him.

Since I’m calling the game, I won’t make a prediction on the winner (you know, that whole journalistic integrity thing), but I will give two key matchups. First, it’s Dayne Crist versus the Pitt secondary. Can Pitt cover well enough to break up ND’s passing game? Second, it’s Dion Lewis, who returns after missing last week with an injury, and Ray Graham, who rushed for 277 yards in Lewis’ place last week. Pitt has to get those two guys going early.

Adam, how do you think your Bearcats will fare in the Battle for the Victory Bell?

AN: All in all, it was a little rough for UC last year in Oxford, but there were two shining stars in the Battle for the Victory Bell in ’09. Armon Binns had a coming out party, leading UC with five catches for 83 yards and one score, and Jacob Ramsey became only the second player to rush for over 100 yards in the Brian Kelly era. Ramsey rushed for 103 and three scores on the day, and became the first Bearcat since Butler Benton rushed for 100 plus against SEMO in 2007.

The Battle for the Victory Bell is UC’s first rivalry game of the year, and Butch Jones has made it a point that one of the program’s goals is to, “Beat our rivals.” I have a feeling that only Miami grad Ben Roethlisberger could help the Redhawks in this matchup, and even then it’d be tough for UC to lose.

However, Miami played it close with Florida in week one, and although they got demolished by Gary Pinkel’s Mizzou Tigers two weeks back, they could be a dangerous team. Just not as dangerous because UC will be able to use a loud and raucous crowd to gang up on Miami.

Which game other than the Pitt/ND game do you have circled on your calendar Jake?

JM: Well, it’s not a great schedule in the Big East this week, but the best game on the slat is that Rutgers-UConn game. UConn had very high preseason expectations which have been dampened somewhat after an opening week loss at Michigan. Meanwhile, Rutgers is struggling despite its powder puff schedule, losing at home last week to Tulane. Ouch. Both teams need a win to open conference play. I think UConn wins.

AN: At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’m definitely going to tune in to the Panthers and Fighting Irish. As intriguing as Rutgers and UConn could be on a Friday evening, nothing will be better than seeing Dion Lewis make Bob Diaco look silly again. On national TV, too.

Pitt’s power rushing attack made the 3-4 scheme Diaco uses look like Swiss cheese at Heinz Field in early December last year, as we all can attest to. As long as the grass isn’t too high (and with Kelly calling the shots with an uptempo offense, I doubt it will be) at Notre Dame stadium, Lewis and Ray Graham should have a field day. Even though Pitt has struggled this year, and Notre Dame’s defense has looked OK, I’m standing by that statement.

I liked Brian Kelly, but watching the Panthers run rampant on the Fighting Irish in 2010 will be a highlight worth replaying over and over and over again. Hopefully that will happen.

Week 5 in the Big East: Tune Up Week

Only five Big East teams are in action on week five of the college season, and the two-time defending champs have the week off. So this will be light on the UC coverage, but my thoughts on this week are definitely satiated with some UC flavor.

Week five features a bye on the schedule for Syracuse as well as Cincinnati and West Virginia. Here’s a peek at week five for the Big East member schools

Week 5 Big East Schedule
Sat Oct 2-Rutgers vs Tulane
Oct 2-USF vs Florida Atlantic
Oct 2-Louisville at Arkansas State
Oct 2-Connectict vs Vanderbilt
Oct 2-Pittsburgh vs Florida International
**Oct 2-Buffalo at Bowling Green (MAC)**

AN: This week, Jake has to take an approved break to work on school projects, so I get to talk about Pitt and one more game, all by my lonesome.

But, before we get to head coach Mario Cristobal and his Florida International Panthers (and sophomore linebacker Larvez “Pooh Bear” Mars) into Heinz Field for a little gridiron matchup, ESPN.com Big East blogger Brian Bennett leaves us with this comment.

“You can’t call Week 5 “Showdown Saturday” or “Monster Saturday” or anything like that in the Big East,” he wrote. “It’s more like, “Tune-Up Saturday”

So, conventional wisdom tells me Pitt should roll, as well as Rutgers, USF and Louisville. But conventional wisdom has been wrong this year for fans of the Big East. Two-time defending Big East champ Cincinnati is 1-3, Pittsburgh looked bad last week on national TV against Miami, and Rutgers has had a stagnant offense this season.

Dave Wannstedt told the media yesterday in Pittsburgh that shuffling the offensive line came after some big time meetings with his players. “We’ve had some serious heart-to-heart conversations with some players. Let’s watch the tape: who is producing? Who is getting the job done when the lights come on? That’s the point that we’re at right now with everyone. We have to be very honest about it and play the best players that will give us the chance to win at this point.”

I have a feeling that the FIU game will give Wannstedt and the Panthers to get their feet under them and let their “new look” O-line get some time to jell on the field.

As I mentioned in our last preview, Buffalo actually might as well be a Big East team. Look at the coaching staff former UC offensive coordinator, and now Buffalo Head Coach, Jeff Quinn has put together in upstate N.Y.—his offensive coordinator is former UC quarterbacks coach Greg Forest, and his defensive coordinator is William Inge, former UC linebackers coach.

Former graduate assistants Marty Spieler and Mike Daniels now coach tight ends and running backs respectively. Adam Shorter, who was a GA under Quinn in 2007 and also played for UC, is coaching the o-line, and Ernest Jones, who once coached the running backs at UC, is coaching defensive backs.

Got all that?

Well, even if you don’t just keep in mind that Buffalo’s coaching staff is full of former UC assistants. With the UC bye week, I was hoping to have the time to travel to Bowling Green, Ohio to watch the Bulls take on the Falcons. Unfortunately, with a Saturday morning practice, it seems that I won’t be able to get to see the Bulls in person.

That doesn’t change the fact that I’m certainly a Buffalo Bulls fan this season, and as long as Quinn and Forest, et al, are running the show in Buffalo.

And, I picked that game because, with no offense to any of the Big East teams, this week is rather bland on scheduling. But, as Bennett said, the Big East needs a tune up, and what better way to tune up than with some bland opponents.

I hope you enjoy the fifth week of college football, and keep your eyes and ears pinned here for the week six preview coming up in the next seven days. Thanks for reading.

Big East football schedules: Week 4- “Showtime”

Maybe it really is all about “The U”…




The final weekend in September is the premier weekend for college football for the Big East. This week presents the conference with a chance to prove itself against the biggest guns of college football, and once again prove that the Big East is definitely worthy of its automatic BCS bowl bid.

The Big East’s best teams play marquee opponents from the ACC, SEC and Big 12 in four matchups during the final weekend of the season’s opening month. Without further delay, here’s a peek at “Showtime Week.” Note that Louisville has the weekend off.

Week 4 Big East Schedule
Thurs., Sept 23- Pittsburgh vs Miami (FL)
Sat., Sept 25-Connecticut vs Buffalo
Sept 25-Cincinnati vs Oklahoma
Sept 25-USF vs Western Kentucky
Sept 25-Rutgers vs North Carolina
Sept 25-West Virginia at LSU
Sept 25-Syracuse vs Colgate

AN: Jake, the Panthers start with the most recent Big East conference team to play for a national title, “The U”, Miami of Florida, in primetime on Thursday night.

JM: Miami leads the all-time series between these two former Big East foes 21-9-1, with the last meeting a Hurricanes victory in 2003. The last time Pitt beat Miami was in 1997, when Miami was reeling from NCAA sanctions received for the program’s conduct during the Dennis Erickson era.

While this Miami team is not as talented nor as intimidating, they are still a good football team, and were the preseason favorite to win the ACC and considered a dark horse national title contender. Miami is in the heart of a tough non-conference schedule, highlighted by its last game in Columbus against Ohio State. But the Hurricanes lost that game and now sit at 1-1 and are looking to bounce back.

Meanwhile, Pitt finds itself in a similar situation. High preseason expectations had Pitt fans thinking Big East title or maybe even a national title shot. While the Big East title is still very much in reach, that long-shot national championship dream is gone following an opening night, overtime loss. The Panthers’ record now sits at 1-1 as well following a week two win over FCS New Hampshire.

Needless to say, this is a huge game for both teams as each tries to get its season back on track. A win for either team would go a long way toward building momentum heading into the conference slate. This should be a very hard-fought and entertaining football game.

Another big opportunity for the Big East to net a marquee win takes place two days later down the Ohio River in Cincinnati.

AN: Bob Stoops brings his Sooners to Cincinnati, and all I can hear is, “Oklahoma, where the wind comes sweepin’ down the plain.” This is a return game for the 2008 trip that saw Oklahoma lay a 52-26 whipping on the Cincinnati Bearcats in Norman. Thankfully Sam Bradford and Jermaine Gresham have left the Sooner squad, but Landry Jones and DeMarco Murray are still around wearing the crimson and cream.

It’s practically impossible to pick against the Sooners, and through one half in Norman two seasons ago the Bearcats hung with Oklahoma. But in the end, Oklahoma is Oklahoma and they’re pretty darn good. It’ll take a nearly perfect game from the UC Bearcats to defeat one of the nation’s premier programs. And even then, the chances of winning aren’t horribly high.

Ah, "Ginormatron", what a sight. That thing is big folks...real big

That being said, this Oklahoma team has struggled at home against Air Force and Utah State. So if the “right” Oklahoma team shows up, UC could keep it close for a little while. Even though everyone chalks this game up as a loss, the “any given Saturday” rule says Butch Jones could get his biggest win this weekend by defeating the Sooners.

Jake, the ACC isn’t done with the Big East after your Thursday night game. Rutgers invites North Carolina to Piscataway, and West Virginia travels to Baton Rouge to play the LSU Tigers in “Death Valley.” So, which game is more intriguing to you? The ACC/Big East battle or the chance to prove the Big East is a big boy against an SEC power?

JM: I’m really looking forward to that West Virginia matchup. As the only undefeated team in the Big East to have beaten another BCS conference team (last week’s win vs. Maryland), West Virginia has to be considered the favorite to win the Big East. While West Virginia will not be favored to win, they do have the talent to pull off the upset—a win the Big East desperately needed.

This is also a big game for LSU, which had a sub-par year last season and head coach Les Miles may be on the hot seat if he can’t return the “Bayou Bengals” to the top-10. I like LSU in this one, but WVU will give them a game.

AN: Six weeks ago we could have argued that the Rutgers/North Carolina tilt would have been interesting on paper, but thanks to the NCAA, that game might not be as exciting. It’s tough to disagree with the West Virginia/LSU matchup though, and I agree with you Jake, the Big East needs this win.

West Virginia beat Georgia in the 2006 Sugar Bowl, and not to brag or anything, but Butch Jones was coaching for the Mountaineers in that game. Maybe West Virginia will come out in “Death Valley” and play like they did last week in the first half against Maryland. That’d make it a fun game, and a competitive game if you ask me.

Also of note, former UC offensive line coach Jeff Quinn, who is now head man in Buffalo, leads the Bulls into the place where Quinn last lost a regular season game—Hartford, Connecticut to play the UConn Huskies. Quinn and numerous other former UC assistant coaches will be the focus of our next Big East weekly schedule preview.

Beautiful Hartford, Connecticut

Week four has the potential to be a big week for the Big East, but it also has the potential to be embarrassing for a league that needs to still prove itself to the outside world.

Check back for week five of the Big East schedule preview a little later next week. Thanks for reading as always.

Big East football schedules: Opening Week

In 2009 the Big East football schedule opened with what many considered to be a bang of a game between Rutgers and Cincinnati in Piscataway. That was until Brian Kelly unleashed offensive weapons Tony Pike, Mardy Gilyard, Isaiah Pead and even sprinkled in some wildcat with Travis Kelce to turn what was supposed to be a bang into a dud of a game by halftime.

Isaiah Pead's sick juke-stop against Rutgers all but put the game away before halftime in last season's Big East opener on Labor Day (Getty Images)

The Bearcats pulled out to a 30-7 lead by the halftime gun and eventually put up two more touchdowns and a field goal in a 47-15 rout of the Scarlet Knights.

The Cincinnati Bearcats took the lead in the Big East and never looked back from there en route to its second straight title and a berth in the Sugar Bowl. And while Brian Kelly has since moved on, his predecessor, Butch Jones (who also followed up Kelly at Central Michigan in 2007) will look to get the Bearcats off to another hot start this year, but on the left coast this time.

Joining me, your effervescent blog host, in looking at the 2010 Big East schedules in week by week increments is the Sports Director for WPTS Radio in Pittsburgh, and a great friend of mine, Jake Meyer. He joined in the 2009 Big East schedule previews last March, and I’m happy to have him back.

Jake: Thanks Adam, glad to be back talking about college football, and in particular our home conference, the Big East. Last year was an exciting season that, as predicted here, came down to the final week of the season as our two schools matched up in what was without a doubt the game of the season in the Big East.

AN: And the best part about doing this schedule analysis now, rather than in March, as we did in 2009, is that we’ve had some time to see spring practices and hear about many teams on each schedule. Last year we were pretty accurate in saying that Pitt and Cincinnati would duke it out for the Big East title. How accurate will we be this year?

This was the scene in the UC locker room after the Pitt game (Courtesy of Tom Gelehrter, TwitPic.com)

Well, here’s the week one schedule for each Big East team. We’ll take a special look at Pittsburgh and Cincinnati along with one particular game that piques our interest each week.

Week 1 Big East Schedule
Thurs., Sept 2- Rutgers vs Norfolk State
Sept 2-Pittsburgh at Utah
Sat., Sept 4-USF vs Stony Brook
Sept 4-Louisville vs Kentucky
Sept 4-Connecticut at Michigan
Sept 4-West Virginia vs Coastal Carolina
Sept 4-Syracuse at Akron
Sept. 4-Cincinnati at Fresno State

AN: Jake, let’s start with the game second from the top. It’s your Pitt Panthers traveling out west to the newest Pac 10 (Or is it called the Pac 12 now?) member Utah—who is still playing in the Mountain West for one last year.

JM: This is a very difficult opening-game test for the Panthers, as Utah is coming off another very successful season, going 10-3 last season. Meanwhile, Pitt has some serious holes to fill on both sides of the ball, beginning at quarterback where redshirt-sophmore Tino Sunseri is expected to take the reins. Sunseri saw limited playing time last year, but will be starting his first game at Utah.

Playing in front of Sunseri is an offensive line that will have to replace the center and both guards. Coming out of Spring camp, Dave Wannstedt was very non-committal about who the starters would be. Right now the favorites to win those jobs would be Chris Jacobson at left guard, Greg Gaskins at right guard and former walk-on Alex Karabin, with Jacobson being the only one with any starting experience (2010 Meineke Car Bowl vs. North Carolina).

On the defensive side of the ball, Pitt loses both cornerbacks and middle linebacker Adam Gunn from last season, but the replacements appear to be ready to step in following Spring practice.

It’s rare to see a BCS conference team open the season on the road, especially when that opponent, at least for one more season, is a non-BCS team. Pitt will have to plug those holes and be fully prepared to play this game or they will be starting the season 0-1.

Now let’s take a look at the Cincinnati Bearcats, who will head to Fresno to play Pat Hill’s Fresno State Bulldogs.

AN: Last season Fresno State came into Nippert Stadium, and although Brian Kelly wasn’t too fond of playing out in Fresno, he said he would gladly do so because the game was scheduled before he became head coach of the Bearcats. Therefore it was scheduled before Butch Jones settled into his office (then moved down the hall into a larger one) in Corryville.

This year the Bulldogs won’t have Ryan Mathews to lead their rushing attack. In ’09 Mathews made Bob Diaco’s 3-4 defense look silly, rushing for 145 yards on 38 touches. The Bulldogs totaled 290 yards but fell just short, losing 28-20. Instead, Robbie Rouse and Michael Harris will take the ball.

Every fan and family member I see asks me, “So, how’s the team? Is the offense going to be ok?” Of course the offense will be the focal point this year, but Tim Banks’s defense will be tested in week one out in Fresno. If the Bearcat defense, making the switch back to a 4-3 base defense, can hold their own against the Fresno State run, the ‘Cats should, should be all right.

But, I wouldn’t be honest if I told you I wasn’t a little skittish heading into this game. To open on the road is a challenge, especially with a brand new coaching staff and new offensive and defensive schemes. However, if anyone has shown they can take what Brian Kelly has built and continue his success, it’s Butch Jones.

Butch Jones has been a one man ball of energy since showing up in Corryville preaching his family attitude. So far, players have bought in. Can Jones win a game on the field?

I have a feeling this game will be tight, but it’ll be the talent of the Big East, along with the playmakers on the UC offense (and UC could arguably have one of the best offenses in all the land this year) that will pull the ‘Cats ahead in the end.

So there’s a look at the two-time defending Big East champions and the guys who are probably going to be favored to knock UC off the throne. Jake, which week one game interests you the most beyond the two matchups we’ve just profiled?

JM: Well, I’ll be very interested to see what happens when UConn heads to the Big House in Ann Arbor to take on Michigan. Michigan’s struggles under former West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez have been well documented and this is a pivotal year for him and his team. UConn has experience knocking off struggling all-time top-10 teams on the road, having last year beaten Notre Dame in South Bend. A win could set up a very nice season for UConn, and could hasten Rodriguez’s exit. I would have to favor Michigan in this game, but I’m not really sure how that team is going to play this year and UConn is more than capable of pulling off the upset. Adam, what game are you looking forward to in week one?

AN: Obviously the eyes of all media types will be on Butch Jones, who follows Brian Kelly, again, but what about Charlie Strong, who had the opportunity to whoop up on the Bearcats as Florida’s defensive coordinator in the Sugar Bowl? And I feel Strong’s debut will be anticipated a whole heck of a lot more than South Florida’s new head man Skip Holtz, especially since Strong has brought in a decent recruiting class and is playing a decent opponent in Kentucky. Strong and the Cardinals may not necessarily win, but a solid showing against the Wildcats will certainly put Strong and the Cards on the right path to rebuilding, and Louisville hopes Strong can take them there.

Kelly takes the reins of the Fighting Irish on Saturday against Purdue (Cincinnati Enquirer)

JM: It’s interesting that out of the three new coaches in the Big East this year, the one who has had the most positive impact so far is Charlie Strong. He’s brought in a solid recruiting class and may finally get Louisville back to respectability. I don’t know if that is a testament to Strong and his ability, the strength of the Louisville program name to recruits or simply a major indictment against the job Steve Kragthorpe did there. The other new coaches in the Big East, Jones and Holtz, have yet to distinguish themselves from their successful predecessors.

AN: That’s all for week one of the Big East schedules. Only hours until the pigskin starts in the college ranks, and I, along with Jake, can’t wait to bring you more about the Big East as the weeks go on.

Thanks for reading folks.

Expansion? Who cares?

All the rage in college football these days is talk of Big Ten expansion. In fact, without it, I’m relatively sure ESPN would be looking for actual stories to cover right now in college football. Instead, everyone is talking expansion, and the probable demise of the Big East conference.

I’m not having any of it. And neither is Pittsburgh head coach Dave Wannstedt.

He met last week with in-state comrade Joe Paterno to discuss Pennsylvania high schools adapting a new practice policy and announcing that the two schools would be hosting high school coaches for clinics.

According to the AP report, “Wannstedt declined comment when asked afterward of rumors that Pitt is a possible Big Ten target. Wannstedt said he has had ‘zero’ discussions about the issue and that any talks would be taken up by school administrators.”

This weekend Tom Luicci, of the New Jersey Star-Ledger wrote an in-depth piece about Rutgers joining the Big Ten. Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano took the same route as Wannstedt. “I hear the talk just like you do,” Schiano told Luicci. “But I don’t know anything more. A lot of powerful people are making statements that would lead you to believe maybe. I don’t know.”

On ESPN’s “College Football Live” on Friday afternoon analysts debated hypothetical expansion situations. Four teams from the Big East—Connecticut, Rutgers, West Virginia and South Florida—were wrapped up into a larger Atlantic Coast Conference. Two, Pittsburgh and Syracuse, left for the expanded Big Ten. Cincinnati and Louisville were the only two Big East teams to not make a new “super conference” according to the show.

Pat Forde, ESPN.com analyst spoke via phone on the show and noted that Cincinnati and Louisville own three of the past five Big East BCS bow berths, and felt it a little odd that the two schools would be left out of expansion of any kind. Boise State was another perennial contender that would be left out of a “super conference”.

Why should Big East schools want to stay in the eight-team league? Easy, just ask Notre Dame head man Brian Kelly, who, numerous times during his three-year tenure at Cincinnati, noted that the Big East was the easiest conference to win. In order to win and go to a BCS bowl, he’d note, all you had to do was win seven games, and there was no conference title game.

So, why should schools from the Big East want to jump ship to go to a conference where they’d have to play seven games and a conference title game? Money, money, money.

Big Ten teams earned an enormous sum of $22 million per team last season. The Big East earned $33 million by itself, and $20 million of that came from basketball deals. So, for Rutgers, Pittsburgh and other schools named in the hypothetical Big East expansion talk, money literally does talk.

Who will bite? Who will remain in the Big East? Will the Big East fold? Where will UC end up? Where will West Virginia go?

Want my thoughts? Who cares? A poll on UC’s student-run newspaper, The News Record, wanted to know where UC would end up after the Big Ten raided the Big East and the Big East ceased to exist? Four options: the ACC, a redesigned Big East/Other, the Big Ten or Conference USA.

Forty percent of those who voted (59 students) say Conference USA. Thirty percent said a redesigned Big East or other, and 27% said the ACC. Apparently the sky is falling down in Bearcat land.

Just don’t tell Athletic Director Mike Thomas that. “It’s difficult to speculate on what will happen,” he told the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bill Koch a few weeks ago. A lot of “experts” think college football is headed to four 16-team “superconferences” to decide the national title. Thomas thinks UC would be one of those 64 teams.

If you came here looking for my opinion, well, you already got it: Who cares? When a co-worker of mine came into the office and said, “Bring back Rick Minter, we’re going to be in Conference USA,” I was shocked. I asked, “What the heck are you talking about?” He responded, “The Big Ten is going to raid the Big East and we’re done.”

Well, glad to know people who work on BCS level football teams are thinking the same thing. Hey, call me back when things actually happen. Maybe then we’ll do some talking. Until then, let’s sit back and talk about football—not hypotheticals.
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Sooner or later I’ll begin looking at the Big East football schedules. This year I have decided to offer last year’s guest blogger, and WPTS Sports Director, Jake Meyer another shot at looking at Big East football. We’ll be looking at each team here shortly. When I have the dates, you’ll know. Thanks for reading.