Big East: Big week for all but Rutgers, WVU

Six of the eight league teams proved victorious. Louisville and Connecticut took off where South Florida left off last week by downing Big 12 teams. And Pittsburgh notched a significant victory for embattled coach Dave Wannstedt by nudging previously undefeated Big Ten opponent Iowa.

The only downers for Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese and crew were two more losses by a pair of the league’s most successful programs in recent years. West Virginia, reigning Fiesta Bowl champion and conference preseason favorite, dropped to 1-2 after falling to Colorado on the road in overtime. Meanwhile, Rutgers’ collapse continued via a 23-21 loss at Navy. In both Morgantown and Piscataway, the natives are getting restless.

The pressure, though, has been relieved – at least temporarily – for Wannstedt. Tailback LeSean McCoy gave the Panthers a go-ahead touchdown from 27 yards out and his defensive teammates held off Iowa for the final 11 minutes in the 21-20 heart-stopper at Heinz Field.

"This was a good team win," Wannstedt said. "Nothing will give us momentum better than a nice win like today."

Ditto for Louisville, which lost in the season opener to rival Kentucky, but then drubbed Tennessee Tech and, on Wednesday, downed Kansas State by 38-29. U of L quarterback Hunter Cantwell, back Victor Anderson and receiver Doug Beaumont all shined offensively.

Pitt’s preseason high expectations were doused in the opener when Bowling Green visited the Steel City and laid a 27-17 setback on the hosts. Since then, though, they’ve beaten Buffalo and Iowa.

Connecticut, meanwhile, is 4-0 as it attempts to prove last season’s co-Big East title wasn’t a fluke. Running back Donald Brown has been terrific so far, racking up 716 yards and 10 touchdowns. UConn has now won 10 straight games at Rentschler Field.

"When we went down to Philadelphia [to play Temple], the intensity was very high," said Huskies coach Randy Edsall. "Against Virginia, against [Baylor]... They’re ready to go play our conference schedule."

That schedule begins this week for four Big East teams. Connecticut will visit Louisville on Friday for an ESPN2 affair that is now a big league game. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, will look to move to 3-1 by visiting Syracuse, a 30-21 winner over Northeastern, on Saturday.

Scoreboard:

Louisville 38, Kansas State 29
Colorado 17, West Virginia 14 OT
Connecticut 31, Baylor 28
Pittsburgh 21, Iowa 20
Navy 23, Rutgers 21
South Florida 17, Florida International 9
Cincinnati 45, Miami, Ohio, 20

Team of the Week: Pittsburgh

One could make a compelling argument for Louisville, but the win over Kansas State wasn’t as impressive as Pitt’s over Iowa and coach Kirk Ferentz, who played high school ball in the Steel City. The Panthers posted their first victory against a Big Ten opponent since a 12-0 decision over Penn State in 2000. And they did so before a crowd of 50,321 at Heinz Field.

Disappointment of the Week: West Virginia coach Bill Stewart

The fans in the Mountain State are livid after Stewart, a former assistant who took over for new Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez, looked dazed and confused at the end of the Mountaineers’ loss to Colorado. With WVU driving, Stewart allowed valuable seconds to tick off the game clock before calling timeout at the end of regulation to call a Hail Mary pass. With almost the entire WVU offense back, the Mountaineers have scored 17 points in their last two games, losses to East Carolina and the Buffs.

Player of the Week: Tony Pike, QB, Cincinnati

Considering his lack of game experience and UC’s quarterback problems, Pike’s first college start was impressive. With Ben Mauk gone and Dustin Grutza injured, Pike, 6-foot-6, completed 20-of-24 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns without an interception in his team’s 45-20 win over Miami, Ohio.

Freshman of the Week: Victor Anderson, RB, Louisville

There was zero competition for this award. In fact, Anderson very easily could have been named the Big East’s player of the week. He was terrific in the Cards’ 38-29 win over Kansas State, rushing for 176 yards on 18 carries, his second straight game with more than 100 yards. The redshirt freshman scored three touchdowns within his first 12 rushes.

A sip of success

No, Northeastern isn’t one of college football’s big boys. And, yes, Syracuse did just get by the FCS team by nine points. But after losing three games by a combined 127-51 points, the Orange will take what it can get. SU fans weren’t especially impressed, but at least Greg Robinson did chalk up his eighth victory in his three-plus years as the Orange coach, albeit against 31 losses. The running back tandem of Curtis Brinkley (145 yards and a touchdown) and Doug Hogue (100 yards and a score) performed well.

Missing RichRod?

After a bitter divorce from Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia is struggling to the point where some Mountaineer fans are missing the Michigan Man. WVU, now 1-2, improved both offensively and defensively from the East Carolina loss to the defeat to Colorado. Tailback Noel Devine had 133 yards on 26 carries and quarterback Pat White rushed for 148 and two scores. But coach Bill Stewart’s clock management at the end of regulation received a hearty round of criticism. And that criticism became deafening when the coach said afterward that he "absolutely wouldn’t change a thing."

Ugliness – and slug-iness

With an 0-3 record, Rutgers is struggling after becoming one of college football’s darlings just a couple of seasons ago. RU coach Greg Schiano, once a shining star who turned down Miami, Fla., and Michigan, is the target of some barbs in Piscataway. But quarterback Mike Teel is so frustrated that during the Scarlet Knights’ loss to Navy, he took a swipe at reserve safety Glen Lee, who had tried to offer words of encouragement. Schiano called it a "family matter." Teel, who has been booed this season at Rutgers Stadium, apologized for "losing my cool with Glen."

The win that – sort of – wasn’t

South Florida traveled to Miami in hopes of breezing past Florida International, even though the Golden Panthers were celebrating the first game in new FIU Stadium. The Bulls were four-touchdown favorites. But USF, the highest ranked Big East team, struggled offensively in a 17-9 win. "We played about as bad as we could play," said South Florida coach Jim Leavitt. Also, Bulls’ linebacker Brouce Mompremier was momentarily knocked unconscious and was airlifted to a Miami hospital.

Turning the corner

Louisville’s program finally may be rebounding from Bobby Petrino’s departure. Coach Steve Kragthorpe’s Cardinals outrushed K-State 303 yards to 30 and received a nice game from quarterback Hunter Cantwell (274 yards). Also, the Cards won without two injured starting linemen in senior left tackle George Bussey and sophomore left guard Mark Wetterer. Bussey had started 28 straight games.

Ringing the bell

Cincinnati’s 45-20 victory over Miami, Ohio, gives the Bearcats a three-game winning streak in the Battle for the Victory Bell. Miami still holds a 59-47-7 lead, but it seems UC has raised its level, posting the first three-game streak in the series since 1989. Cincy coach Brian Kelly won his 150th game.