College Football Rankings: Power Ranking the Big East
Half of the Big East began conference play last week, while the rest of the conference jumps into Big East play this week.
The struggles of the Big East have been well documented. Now there are only two questions to be answered.
Will West Virginia prove to be the dominant team in the conference, and will the Big East be competitive at all?
With that in mind, let's dive into this week's Power Rankings.
1. West Virginia (4-1, 0-0)
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West Virginia finds itself ranked again, coming in at No. 25. While I've openly criticized the Mountaineers' non-conference wins, there is little doubt that WVU should be at the top of the Power Rankings.
Now, quarterback Geno Smith has his feet under him and should be ready to carry West Virginia through the Big East grind.
Noel Devine's injury should be worth keeping an eye on, but the Mountaineers have more talent than the rest of the league.
This should be their conference to lose.
Up Next: vs. South Florida
2. Syracuse (4-1, 1-0)
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If West Virginia is ranked, Syracuse fans think they should be ranked as well. While they may have a small beef, the Big East doesn't deserve two ranked teams at the moment.
That doesn't take anything away from the nice start to the season for the Orange though.
A win against South Florida opened Big East play with a win, and there should be no reason why the Orange don't get to a bowl this season.
The Orange have a lot going for them at the moment. With Ryan Nassib playing well at quarterback and Delone Carter running the ball well, Syracuse should be able to move the ball on most Big East teams.
Up Next: vs. Pitt
3. Rutgers (3-2, 1-0)
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Rutgers climbs all the way up to the third spot this week, mostly due to the fact that no one else deserves to be here. After high expectations coming in, maybe the Scarlet Knights have turned things around.
Most people looked for quarterback Tom Savage to have a brilliant sophomore season, but after the amazing game that true freshman Chas Dodd had last week against UConn, he was named the starter this week.
Dodd could be just what the Scarlet Knights need to get hot and challenge in the conference. While UConn is a huge disappointment, it's still a better win than anyone else has to date.
Up Next: vs. Army
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4. Louisville (3-2, 0-0)
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Louisville moves up a bit, not only by default, but because both of their losses weren't real bad losses. I didn't give the Cardinals much of a chance coming into the season, but Charlie Strong's team competes for 60 minutes and likely can pull off an upset or two in Big East play.
A pair of seven-point losses to a couple of good teams in Oregon St. and Kentucky could be much worse. A couple bounces go their way in those games and we could be looking at a 4-1 Louisville team.
Either way, the Cardinals have looked much better then the other teams on the list.
Next Up: vs. Cincinnati
5. Cincinnati (2-3, 0-0)
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The Bearcats jump to No. 5 after a 45-3 beating of Miami (OH). Not that that means anything, but it looked like quarterback Zach Collaros and company finally got going offensively in a game.
All three of their losses have come to quality football teams, so if they get things on track offensively, the Bearcats still have a chance at a third consecutive Big East crown.
The defense will be tested this week against a very balanced Louisville offense.
Next Up: at Louisville
6. Pittsburgh (2-3, 0-0)
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Pitt has been a huge disappointment. The main reason they aren't further down the list is they had a monster non-conference schedule.
The Panthers have a ton of problems though, which range from horrible coaching decisions to inconsistent quarterback play and everything in between.
Pitt still has time to get things together and make a run at the Big East title, but that has to start with a win this week.
Next Up: at Syracuse
7. Connecticut (3-3, 0-1)
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Cody Endres and UConn's mini hot streak ended Friday night in a disappointing loss to Rutgers.
UConn's offense is still the best in the conference, but the defense, which was supposed to be so good, really isn't.
I wanted to keep UConn closer to the top, but losses to Temple and Rutgers had to drop them way down.
Next Up: BYE
8. South Florida (3-2, 0-1)
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The Bulls make the drop to the bottom of the rankings. They haven't beaten anyone and haven't looked good in their losses either.
Nothing they've done to this point has been impressive at all.
It's a transition in Skip Holtz's first season as head coach, but B.J. Daniels and company can get things on track with a big win this week against WVU, who they always play tough.
Next Up: at West Virginia
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