Brian Kelly is well versed in the debate about the college football national championship picture.
 
He knows that the Big East doesn’t get much respect on a national level.
 
And he understands that prognosticators are hoping for a BCS title game that matches an unbeaten Texas team with an undefeated Southeastern Conference champion, either Florida or Alabama.
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***Undefeated Big East powers Cincinnati and South Florida are preparing for an Oct. 15 battle on ESPN. Read about it here.***
Greg Schiano says he’s “hoping” that true freshman QB Tom Savage will start Saturday against Texas Southern in the Homecoming game.
“I hope he does. He has been practicing for two days now. I guess the [...]

Rutgers coach Greg Schiano isn’t shocked that South Florida went into Tallahassee and beat No. 18 Florida State Saturday in the first meeting between the schools.
“It doesn’t surprise me at all,” Schiano said Sunday.
“I think the Big East Conference is beyond having to prove themselves, yet it continues to be in the [...]

The Knicks will head into training camp next week with two fan favorites officially locked up for the year.
A day after Nate Robinson reportedly agreed to a one-year deal — which was above his qualifying offer — the Knicks and forward David Lee came to terms on a one-year deal for $7 [...]

Dave Wannstedt wasn’t quite sure what he would get out of freshman linebacker Dan Mason in last Saturday’s game against Navy.
Freshmen are typically unpredictable. On and off the football field, who knows what they are capable of?
“You just don’t know with freshmen,” Wannstedt said on Monday in a conference call. “You see talent and you [...]

The Big East is still searching for respect.
The league won six of eight non-conference games this past weekend, yet No. 14 Cincinnati is the only Big East football team ranked in The Associated Press Top 25.
Cincinnati and Connecticut both scored impressive road wins, and Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida and Syracuse were all victorious at home.
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Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson says the school’s first priority would be to join the Southeastern Conference — not the Big East.
“Quite honestly, the truth of the matter is the lifelong dream of Memphis is to get in the SEC,” Johnson said Thursday in a phone interview. “We’re surrounded by SEC country. When Arkansas got [...]

Memphis wants to join the Big East Conference and has hired former Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese to help accomplish that goal.
Yet, Tranghese says he cannot single-handedly get Memphis into the Big East or any other Bowl Championship Series conference.
“I’ve been hired to help them evaluate their athletic program, not to get them in a [...]

The Big East football coaches conference was today and here are some highlights.
South Florida QB Matt Grothe threw for 208 yards and two TDs, becoming the Big East’s all-time leader in total offense to help South Florida down Western Kentucky 35-13 Saturday.
The senior QB added 53 yards rushing to boost his career total yardage to [...]

The Big East announced its weekly football award winners for this week.

BIG EAST OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Jarrett Brown • Sr. • QB • West Virginia • West Palm Beach, Fla.
Brown had 407 yards of total offense to key West Virginia’s 35-20 win against East Carolina. He completed 24 of [...]