Cincinnati is ranked 10th in this week’s AP poll, which is good news for the Big East. The question is: where can the Bearcats go from here?
Cincinnati is 4-0 and has beaten Oregon State and Fresno State. These are two decent teams, but neither of them is great. Beating them only proves that Cincinnati is a good team, not a great one. The problem is that there is no great team on Cincinnati’s schedule. Even if they end the season undefeated, it’s difficult to imagine them being worthy of playing for the national championship. Did someone say playoffs?
Fresno State: 20, [No. 14] Cincinnati (4-0, 1-0 Big East): 28
Yes, Cincinnati won another game against a solid competitor. However, two main flaws have shown up for the Bearcats. One issue is there fast-paced offense. While Cincinnati will continue to put up points, there speedy offense does not poses the ball for very long. In their past two games, the Bearcats have lost the time of possession battle by a combined 39 minutes. This week Fresno State had a 4-1 time of possession advantage. This is a fact of life when running a fast-paced, passing offense, and something that Cincinnati will need to deal with all season long.
The second problem is that their undersized defense has trouble stopping power rushing attacks. Last week, they did a great job of containing Oregon State’s shifty Jacquizz Rodgers. This week was a different story, as Fresno State’s bruising rushing attack managed to gain 290 yards.
Cincinnati utilizes an up-tempo offense and their defense has trouble stopping the run. Why is this important? Because most Big East teams play tough defense and feature a power rushing game.
Rutgers (3-1, 0-1 Big East): 34, Maryland: 13
A terrible Maryland team entered the game at 1-2, with an overtime win against James Madison and a home loss to Middle Tennessee State. Rutgers should have dominated this game, and they did. With that said, Rutgers is not a great team, and this is a victory for the Big East over the ACC.
South Florida (4-0): 17, [No. 18] Florida State: 7
The college football landscape in Florida is dominated by the big three: Florida, Florida State, and Miami. South Florida has been trying to make a name for themselves, but they needed to beat one of these teams before their home state took them seriously. For the Bulls, their chance is now. This weekend they beat Florida State. Later in the year they will face Miami. Next year they will play Florida for the first time. Even though these are non-conference games, they are extremely important for respect, and recruiting, in the ultra competitive Florida football circuit.
South Florida entered this game a man down. For the first time in four years, Matt Grothe did not start at quarterback for the Bulls. He is out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. Grothe led South Florida in rushing and passing each of the three previous seasons. Without him, not much was expected from their offense.
But respect has a funny way of driving people. South Florida’s redshirt freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels deserves a ton of credit for coming up huge in his first career start, but the real MVP of this one was South Florida’s defense. The Bulls completely eliminated Florida State’s running game, holding the Seminoles to 19 yards rushing and recovering four fumbles. After four games, South Florida ranks second in the country in scoring defense, allowing a mere 6.8 points per game.
In two weeks, the Bulls will face Cincinnati. Then we will find out who is for real.
Pittsburgh (3-1): 31, North Carolina State: 38
Pitt entered the game hoping to prove they were one of the two best teams in the Big East. Instead, they lost to an average NC State team. This is a bad loss for the Big East. Pitt’s offense has turned a corner this season. Unfortunately, the defense has not kept pace. The Panthers now need to regroup as they enter conference play.
Rhode Island: 10, Connecticut (3-1): 52
UConn rolled in this one, but why do they even play Rhode Island? On the plus side, the Huskies defense has looked very good this season. The offense is still questionable.
Maine: 24, Syracuse (2-2): 41
Forget the fact that the victories came against Northwestern and Maine – those are just details – and focus on the fact that Syracuse is on a winning streak! Two consecutive wins may not sound like much, but this is the Orange’s first winning streak since 2006.
Louisville (1-2): 14, Utah: 30
No surprise here. Louisville was no match for a very good Utah team.
What We Learned:
1. Cincinnati has quickly put the Big East back in the Top Ten.
2. Pittsburgh has major defensive issues.
3. UConn appears to have the defense Pitt was supposed to have.
Big East Respect Barometer:
In the preseason, the Big East did not have a single ranked team. Four weeks later, Cincinnati cracks the Top Ten. For the Big East, you can’t ask for much more than that.
Pitt’s loss to NC State was bad for the conference, but it was easily overshadowed by South Florida’s road upset of Florida State. Looking ahead, the biggest concern for the Big East is that Cincinnati appears to hold the fate of the entire conference in their hands. In order to gain respect, the Big East must have a top team. With South Florida unlikely to make a season-long run, it appears Cincinnati is the only team capable of winning enough games (and getting enough votes) to garner a high ranking.
