2012 Big East Schedule: Highlights and Analysis

With barely over five months until kickoff, the Big East released its 2012 football schedule on Tuesday afternoon, as adjustments to non-conference schedules were finally completed after the league went from eight members to seven and then back to eight with the addition of Temple.

There are no instances of repeat trips to the same school two years in a row, as Temple simply assumed West Virginia’s old schedule rotation now that the Mountaineers have left for the Big 12.

Here are some highlights of the release:

General Notes

-Cincinnati, Louisville, Temple, and USF will play four conference home games. Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Syracuse will play only three conference home games.

-The first conference game will take place on Sept. 6, when Pittsburgh travels to defending co-champion Cincinnati for a Thursday Night ESPN telecast. It will be the season opener for the Bearcats.

-Temple’s first Big East conference game since they left the league in 2004 will be Oct. 6 when they host USF at Lincoln Financial Field. Louisville is the last team to begin conference play when they travel to Pittsburgh on Oct. 13.

-Two teams, Cincinnati and Syracuse, will face marquee opponents in neutral site games. The Bearcats meet Virginia Tech at FedEx Field in Landover, Md. on Sept. 29, and Syracuse battles USC on Sept. 8 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

-The league’s two new head coaches, Pittsburgh’s Paul Chryst and Rutgers’ Kyle Flood, will make their debuts on Sept. 1. The Panthers host Youngstown State, while the Scarlet Knights travel to Tulane.

-The division will again have a presence on the ESPN Thursday and Friday night packages, including the final Thursday of the season, featuring Louisville at Rutgers.

-The only weekend in which all teams play conference games is Nov. 23-24, with USF at Cincinnati (Friday), Syracuse at Temple (Friday), Connecticut and Louisville, and Rutgers at Pittsburgh.

-The regular season concludes with two games on Championship Saturday: Cincinnati at Connecticut and Pittsburgh at USF.

-Syracuse is the only Big East school to face more than two non-conference opponents from BCS leagues. They’ll play Northwestern (Sept. 1), USC (Sept. 8), Minnesota (Sept. 22), and Missouri (Nov. 17). Only the Northwestern games comes at the Carrier Dome.

-Four teams face multiple Big East opponents in non-conference play: Army (Rutgers, Temple), Buffalo (Connecticut, Pittsburgh), Maryland (Connecticut, Temple), and Virginia Tech (Cincinnati, Pittsburgh).

-Louisville is the only Big East team to play three consecutive road games: at FIU (Sept. 22), at Southern Miss (Sept. 29) and at Pittsburgh (Oct. 13).

Top 10 Conference Games to Watch

1. Louisville at Rutgers, Nov. 29 (Thursday)

2. Cincinnati at Louisville, Oct. 26 (Friday)

3. Rutgers at South Florida, Sept. 13 or 15

4. Louisville at Pittsburgh, Oct. 13

5. Rutgers at Pittsburgh, Nov. 24

6. Pittsburgh at Cincinnati, Sept. 6 (Thursday)

7. South Florida at Louisville, Oct. 20

8. Pittsburgh at South Florida, Dec. 1

9. USF at Temple, Oct. 6

10. Louisville at Syracuse, Nov. 10

Top 10 Non-Conference Games to Watch

1. Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh, Sept. 15 

2. Rutgers at Arkansas, Sept. 22

3. Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati (Landover, Md.), Sept. 29

4. Pittsburgh at Notre Dame, Nov. 3

5. USC vs. Syracuse (East Rutherford, N.J.), Sept. 8

6. Florida State at USF, Sept. 29

7. North Carolina at Louisville, Sept. 15

8. USF at Miami (FL), Nov. 17

9. Syracuse at Missouri, Nov. 17

10. Temple at Penn State, Sept. 15

Toughest Three-Game Stretches

Cincinnati: at Temple (Nov. 10), Rutgers (Nov. 17), USF (Nov. 23)

Connecticut: Pittsburgh (Nov. 9), at Louisville (Nov. 24), Cincinnati (Dec. 1)

Louisville: at Pittsburgh (Oct. 13), USF (Oct. 20), Cincinnati (Oct. 26)

Pittsburgh: at Notre Dame (Nov. 3), at Connecticut (Nov. 9), Rutgers (Nov. 24)

Rutgers: at USF (Sept. 13 or 15), at Arkansas (Sept. 22), Connecticut (Oct. 6)

Syracuse: at Cincinnati (Nov. 3), Louisville (Nov. 10), at Missouri (Nov. 17)

Temple: Rutgers (Oct. 20), at Pittsburgh (Oct. 27), at Louisville (Nov. 3)

USF: Florida State (Sept. 29), at Temple (Oct. 6), at Louisville (Oct. 20)