Week Five Big East Power Rankings: If Teams Were TV Shows

Have you ever heard about a TV show, thought to yourself, “sounds like the dumbest show ever,” and never considered watching it?

All of us know, there are the shows you always watch because they wear the “you-approved” tag and you know they will deliver each time.

And then there are the shows you just started watching and haven’t completely enthralled you, but you give them some time to develop.

There are the shows you try, realize they suck, and never go back to watch.

And then there are the shows that you simply know from the start are awful and have a snowflake’s chance in hell of making it to your DVR.

But going back to those shows I mentioned first (the “dumbest ones”), there might be a time when you accidentally flip it on and end up liking it.

Who’da thunk it?

Well, the point is that in time, things change. I didn’t think I could enjoy a show like Top Chef (actually not just about dudes cooking stuff), but now I really do.

I also didn’t think a Grothe-less South Florida could upset No. 18 Florida State in Tallahassee, but they really did.

College Football is a crazy sport: Nothing can be taken for granted because everything can change in an instant.

Just ask Michigan after they played Appalachian State in 2007—I bet anyone who told a Michigan fan their team was going to lose might have said, “that sounds like the dumbest prediction ever.”

After five weeks of football, the way Big East teams look isn’t necessarily how they will look five weeks from now.

There are some early favorites and there are some wild cards, but until all is said and done, each team deserves some more air time.

In any case, here’s the picture if you’re just tuning in now:

1. Cincinnati

No argument here. The Bearcats are the clear-cut team to beat in the conference and are looking like locks to wind up back in the BCS.

Currently the only Big East team ranked nationally, the No. 10 Cincinnati Bearcats steamrolled Rutgers and convincingly defeated Oregon State—both away from the Bearcats’ home turf.

Tony Pike and Mardy Gilyard have forged one of the best passing combinations in the country and the Bearcats young defense has met each challenge.

Next week’s matchup at South Florida might be their toughest test yet, but if Cincy can come back to Ohio as victors, the Bearcats will continue to build their case for the BCS.

Comparable TV Show: The Office (It doesn’t get much better than The Office for consistency and everyone knows it. It might take Michael Scott’s firing to bring the show down).

2. South Florida

No Matt Grothe? No problem!

B.J. Daniels is living up to the hype as a touted recruit and has stormed onto the scene with authority. He might even be more dangerous than Grothe ever was.

The Bulls have disappointed after solid starts over the past few years, but this year may be different.

Beating Bobby Bowden’s eighteenth-ranked Seminoles was a monumental win for USF’s program and season and could have given the Bulls the confidence they need to make noise in the Big East this year.

Hosting the top ten-ranked Bearcats next week will be as big a test as they come, but it won’t get any easier after that. (@Pitt, WVU, @Rutgers)

Comparable TV Show: Community (New on the scene and has shown some promise, but it's not quite there yet. I need to see more from Joel McHale before vaulting them up to a series recording on my DVR).

3. West Virginia

Beating Colorado on Thursday night was nice and all, but it wasn’t pretty.

Turnovers, turnovers, turnovers might be the plight of the Mountaineers in 2009, as they have committed ten over the past two games.

The talent and explosiveness of Noel Devine, Jarrett Brown, and Jock Sanders will make WVU a threat against any Big East opponent, but the entire Mountaineer team might not be able to put it together for a title run.

Comparable TV show: SNL (For some reason you always expect it to be great, but many times it just disappoints. But when a good host is on, or when a new Digital Short is made, the show could be legendary).

4. Pittsburgh

Had they only taken care of N.C. State they might have been number three in these rankings, but the Panthers lost another second half lead under “Pornstache” Wannstedt.

Dion Lewis is a force to be reckoned with so far, gaining 580 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground this year; and the duo of Jonathan Baldwin and Dorin Dickerson have amassed 632 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.

So far so good for the Panthers, but they have difficult road tests at Rutgers and at West Virginia to come, in addition to a showdown with conference favorite Cincinnati in the final week of the season.

Comparable TV Show: Seinfeld (When you’re feeling lazy, you can usually find it on somewhere. Solid show, but it’s been in syndication for years, so you know the ending to every episode).

5. Connecticut

Coach Randy Edsall always fields a competitive team, but it’s never all that flashy.

This year, the Huskies are no different.

They lost to an overrated North Carolina team at home and are looking at a very difficult road schedule in the upcoming months (@ Pitt, @ WVU, @ Cincy, @ Notre Dame).

Comparable TV Show: Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson before Conan took over the Tonight Show (Maybe his material is solid, and I’ve never really watched, but how could he stack up to the competition?)

6. Rutgers

Baby steps, I suppose.

Even in their three victories, the Scarlet Knights haven’t exactly looked convincing in any phase other than defense.

After their Week One surrender to Cincinnati, Rutgers has a long way to go to redeem itself as real players in the Big East.

The Scarlet Knights play a favorable home schedule versus Big East opponents, hosting Pitt, USF, and WVU, but Rutgers will have to play above and beyond the level at which they have thus far to have a chance against these conference foes.

If rookie quarterback Tom Savage cannot recover from his concussion, the Scarlet Knights may find themselves in the basement of the Big East come December.

However, if history has taught us anything about Rutgers, it’s that they play best when the odds are against them.

And although the defense and offensive line were supposed to be strengths of this Rutgers team, they have yet to arrive on the playing field.

If those units can appear in October and stay a while, Rutgers will have a much better shot at moving up in the league.

Comparable TV Show: Lost (When it’s good; it’s good. But when it’s bad; it’s horrible. Hard to tell what you are going to get each episode and the fans often have a love/hate relationship, but the potential for greatness is definitely there).

7. Syracuse

Yes, the Orange have already lost three games, but one of them was to then-ranked No. 7 Penn State and the other was against USF, who might be challenging for the Big East title this year.

So far point guard-turned quarterback Greg Paulus has probably exceeded all expectations, but he has hardly been a savior.

I’m not writing off the Orange, but their inexperience at quarterback coupled with a new coach at the helm might inhibit Syracuse’s chances of fighting off the rest of the conference.

Comparable TV Show: Growing Pains (No real analogy here other than the perfect name of the show!)

8. Louisville

Victor Anderson is a good running back. That’s about it.

Comparable TV Show: Tyra (Who cares?)