Big East Games That Will Be The Talk of The Town

Big East football will not be hiding from anyone in the fall.

There are HUGE games on HUGE national stages and they're bound to be the talk of the town, if not the talk of the nation.

Let's not beat around the bush, here they are:

UConn at Michigan (Sept. 4): While some teams prefer to open against some 1-AA pansies, the Huskies are not one of them. Randy Edsall and the gang will jump right into the Big Ten fire when they travel to Ann Arbor to take on the Victors Valiant—Michigan.

This is a huge opportunity for UConn and risky business for the Wolverines. No doubt Rich Rodriguez needs to watch some game film of last year's Notre Dame-Connecticut game. If his team doesn't perform and somehow UConn pulls the upset, RR could be on the immediate hotseat, as if he already isn't.

South Florida at Florida (Sept. 11): Skip Holtz gets a first hand look at the Temple of Doom that is called The Swamp in Gainesville. Unless icebergs float into Tampa Bay, USF should come in 1-0 with an opening victory over 1-AA Stony Brook.

But now we're talking about an entirely different level of college football. Sure Tim Tebow's gone, but there is a wealth of talent wandering the practice fields at Florida.

Yes, it's pure opportunity for Holtz and the Bulls, and don't look for a memorable moment like the one that occurred in Tallahassee last season.

Florida is the 600-pound beast that rules the state.

Syracuse at Washington (Sept. 11): Talk about one heck of a road trip! The Orange will travel to the other side of the country to take on a team that's supposed to be a contender for the Pac-10 title.

Syracuse is rebuilding and hopefully the Orange can keep this game from being a lopsided blowout.

Miami at Pittsburgh (Sept. 23): A great weeknight game for national telecast on ESPN. You have the Power-I Panthers matching up with the speed and athleticism of the Hurricanes.

This should be a great game and great matchup with a LOT of talent on display, including a numbers of players who will make it at the next level.

Huge stage to make a case for Dion Lewis' potential Heisman run.

Oklahoma at Cincinnati (Sept. 25): Boomer! Sooner! Boomer! Sooner! No, Billy Sims probably won't be in the stands at Cincinnati, but what a huge showcase game for the Big East.

This will give everyone an early idea of Cincinnati's talent level and how much the Bearcats will or won't miss Brian Kelly.

West Virginia at LSU (Sept. 25): How huge is this for the Big East? The Mountaineers go right into the Tigers' Den to show us if they can compete with an SEC power.

West Virginia is in the preseason discussion for the Big East title. Hopefully they can go to Baton Rouge and hang tough with the Tigers. LSU's defense will no doubt look forward to the challenge of playing against speed demon Noel Devine.

Can't wait for this one.

North Carolina at Rutgers (Sept. 25): Obviously, you can see that this is a grand Saturday for the Big East. This game will give Rutgers the opportunity to compete against one of the stronger teams in the ACC.

The Butch Davis-Greg Schiano coaching matchup is intriguing.

Look for this one to be a hard-hitting dogfight.

Pittsburgh at Notre Dame (Oct. 9): Wow! Great matchup from last season when the Panthers took down the Irish. A return Wannstedt-Kelly coaching contest. This has all the makings of a great contest.

Another national stage for Dion Lewis, as this will be shown to the entire country on the Notre Dame Broadcasting Network, also known as NBC.

How's that for a fall menu?

Win or lose, the Big East will go against some high profile national teams.

Mark your calendars.