From the Rutgers Rival Board, they were discussing important weeks for the BE. Below is a post from a UConn fan, who I think has nailed the most important weekend for the NBE:

Quote:NelsonMuntz
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Post #2527 A bigger weekend for the conference is Reply

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September 17

Western Carolina @ Cincinnati
Rutgers @ Buffalo
UConn @ Georgia Tech
Oregon State @ Louisville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska
UCF @ USF
Virginia @ Syracuse
WVU @ Maryland

On 9/17, Uconn, SU, and WVU will all be significant underdogs, and Pitt will be a slight favorite, if that game isn't a pick'em.

Posted on 5/1 12:05 AM | IP: Logged

So, in this most important week of the NBE, which games do you think we win? which games do we lose?

Cheers,
Neil

omnicarrier Wrote:From the Rutgers Rival Board, they were discussing important weeks for the BE. Below is a post from a UConn fan, who I think has nailed the most important weekend for the NBE:

Quote:NelsonMuntz
user profile
The-Boneyard.com
Post #2527 A bigger weekend for the conference is Reply

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
September 17

Western Carolina @ Cincinnati
Rutgers @ Buffalo
UConn @ Georgia Tech
Oregon State @ Louisville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska
UCF @ USF
Virginia @ Syracuse
WVU @ Maryland

On 9/17, Uconn, SU, and WVU will all be significant underdogs, and Pitt will be a slight favorite, if that game isn't a pick'em.

Posted on 5/1 12:05 AM | IP: Logged

So, in this most important week of the NBE, which games do you think we win? which games do we lose?

Cheers,
Neil

If only UC and Rutgers could pull through...

Western Carolina @ Cincinnati
Rutgers @ Buffalo
UConn @ Georgia Tech
Oregon State @ Louisville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska
UCF @ USF
Virginia @ Syracuse
WVU @ Maryland


hmmm.. interesting. without looking at the entire schedule, I would certainly say this is an important week.

But I don't think Pitt will be a slight favorite at Nebraska at all.... they will be at least a touchdown underdog. And SU will not be a "significant" underdog at home against UVA. Perhaps 5 or 6 points, depending on how they open the season.

I see 4 gimme wins: Rutgers, UL, Cincy and USF.

If we can get a split on the other four, we will have a GREAT week. But we must win at least one of the other four. Losing all 4 would be disasterous for the BE.

wvucrazed Wrote:Losing all 4 would be disasterous for the BE.

If UC and Rutgers lose it will be disastrous to their programs and their seasons.

Western Carolina @ Cincinnati.................UCinn better win
Rutgers @ Buffalo ....................................Rutgers (why are they visiting Buffalo?)
UConn @ Georgia Tech.............................GA Tech will win BIG!
Oregon State @ Louisville.........................L'ville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska.............................Nebraska
UCF @ USF................................................USF
Virginia @ Syracuse...................................UVA
WVU @ Maryland.......................................Maryland

JMHO.....

Ty-Bull Wrote:Western Carolina @ Cincinnati.................UCinn better win
Rutgers @ Buffalo ....................................Rutgers (why are they visiting Buffalo?)
UConn @ Georgia Tech.............................GA Tech will win BIG!
Oregon State @ Louisville.........................L'ville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska.............................Nebraska
UCF @ USF................................................USF
Virginia @ Syracuse...................................UVA
WVU @ Maryland.......................................Maryland

JMHO.....

Buffalo is Div 1A that is why....

Quote:Ty-Bull Posted on May 3 2005, 10:34 AM
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Western Carolina @ Cincinnati.................UCinn better win
Rutgers @ Buffalo ....................................Rutgers (why are they visiting Buffalo?)
UConn @ Georgia Tech.............................GA Tech will win BIG!
Oregon State @ Louisville.........................L'ville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska.............................Nebraska
UCF @ USF................................................USF
Virginia @ Syracuse...................................UVA
WVU @ Maryland.......................................Maryland

JMHO.....

And if proven to be prophetic...the media will once again be out for BE blood :bang:

It's why this is an important week where we need to win two (UConn, Pitt, SU, and WVU) of the four big games to keep the hounds at bay.

Cheers,
Neil

We really need to have tempered expectations when it comes to this yrs football season....the conference as a whole is very young and really doesn't have any depth...in terms of talent for next yr this is how a see things breaking down

Above average BCS schools
Louisville
Pitt

average BCS school
Syracuse-- how quick will they adjust to the west coast offense?
West Virginia-- O and D lines should be solid....who will play QB?

below average BCS school
Rutgers-- has players coming back...but should have made it to a bowl last yr considering its schedule/talent..will this yr be differernt?
USF-- also has some players returning but also to a team that struggles at times last yr... Will they finally find a Qb?
Uconn-- loss of Orslosky will hurt...in my view overall team speed must improve...especially on defense
UC-- lost almost every major contributor from last yr...hope UC fans don't bail on this young team too soon


-- As for the week in question I would expect UL to beat Oregon St, Pitt and nebraska is probably a toss up....WVU can beat Maryland if the QB situation for the Mountaineers stablelizes and SU can certainly play with UVA if the new Orange offensive scheme develops a rhythm early in the season... I would expect Uconn to be totally overmatched by Georgia Tech


Jackson

Quote:Jackson1011 Posted on May 3 2005, 02:52 PM
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We really need to have tempered expectations when it comes to this yrs football season....the conference as a whole is very young and really doesn't have any depth...in terms of talent for next yr this is how a see things breaking down

Above average BCS schools
Louisville
Pitt

average BCS school
Syracuse-- how quick will they adjust to the west coast offense?
West Virginia-- O and D lines should be solid....who will play QB?

below average BCS school
Rutgers-- has players coming back...but should have made it to a bowl last yr considering its schedule/talent..will this yr be differernt?
USF-- also has some players returning but also to a team that struggles at times last yr... Will they finally find a Qb?
Uconn-- loss of Orslosky will hurt...in my view overall team speed must improve...especially on defense
UC-- lost almost every major contributor from last yr...hope UC fans don't bail on this young team too soon


-- As for the week in question I would expect UL to beat Oregon St, Pitt and nebraska is probably a toss up....WVU can beat Maryland if the QB situation for the Mountaineers stablelizes and SU can certainly play with UVA if the new Orange offensive scheme develops a rhythm early in the season... I would expect Uconn to be totally overmatched by Georgia Tech

Agree with everything you said. And I simply don't see the Huskies having much of a chance against GT. We played Va well for 3 quarters at their place and we played FSU great for the entire game at our place, so it will be up to SU to step-it-up for the BE and at least get this win for the conference.

Then if we could get either WVU or Pitt to win their game, the NBE will be able to keep the hounds at bay for a while.

Still, as you point out, my expectations are not great, and I know that the BE could easily lose all four of the pivotal games (UL should be favored to beat Oregon State). Which means the chorus of boos from the media will be heard all season long, if we do indeed lose all 4.

Cheers,
Neil

Jackson1011 Wrote:hope UC fans don't bail on this young team too soon

True UC football fans will understand.

For the casual UC fan unfortunately it does not take much for them to bail on the team.

I think the goal for UC is to be at .500 or better when starting Big East play, and preferably be at .500 or better when UofL and WVU come to town.

If the season is over by this point attendance will not be very good. That is just the way UC 'fans' are.

I'm a Big East Homer, I say we win them all....Go Big East.

the more i look at louisville's schedule the more i keep thinking they have a very good shot at running the table, so long as brohm/bush stays healthy. the louisville game is a must win for the big east, we lose that game and expect espn to have a field day (rightfully so). pitt/nebraska would be the second most important game, palko would have to step it up big for a win in hostile territory. the rest of the games would be a bonus if we win. va lost a lot last year so they may be vulnerable in the carrier dome, west va lost a lot as well but it is a rivalry game and they do have jason gwaltney so anything can happen, uconn looks like a long shot to win, but if they play ga tech tough, that would be enough for me.

There is no question that the OOC slate this year is more important for the health of the conference and the programs therein than the conference race itself. If we win our BCS OOC match-ups then its smooth sailing and the conference race can be fun. If only one or two teams perform well OOC and obtain a nice ranking heading into conference play only to stumble against a conference mate that laid an egg OOC then the proverbial chickens will come home to roost and you can expect a massive drop in the polls and the media to turn up the heat on the Big East.

God forbid UC with their youth or Rutgers who’ve shown themselves completely capable drop a game to a Buffalo or Western Carolina. A couple of ugly losses combined with merely mediocre BCS OOC play would be a disaster for the league. IMO this would be the worst case scenario.

Jackson1011 Wrote:USF-- also has some players returning but also to a team that struggles at times last yr... Will they finally find a Qb?
                                                         

i know this is off topic but i just wanted to respond about our qb situation. the front runner after spring practice seems to be courtney denson a transfer from auburn he was a super prep high school all american out of miami and originally committed to va tech until they picked up marcus vick and he transferred when aubrurn tried to shift him to def back. he's got a weak arm, but its accurate, looking at film he's definitely one of the fastest and most athletic players on the team. so far the coaches have been raving about his intelligence and leadership but he's inexperienced so it's no telling how he'll do next year in the big east. i would've loved to have seen him in the spring game but he was out with an ankle injury.

backing him up will probably be two true freshman, matt grothe who was runner up to antone smith in florida's mr. football after leading his team to two consecutive state championship games. the other qb is carlton hill who was a 4 star qb, who we had to beat out miami for, but many seem to think he's more suited for wide receiver or a possible michael bush slash role. all three qb's are fast athletic qb's which suit our spread offense. the incumbent julmiste, i doubt will see the field next year.

with such a huge question at qb it's hard to predict how we'll do next year, if we stayed in cusa we probably would have been a lock for at least a bowl game, but being in the big east i'm not sure how we'll do, could be anywhere from 7-4 to 4-7.

This week shouldn't be seen as a make or break kinda thing for the league...like I said before there are a lot of really young teams around the BE that are going to need time to get there feet wet....I would expect the 2006 version of BE football to be much better from top to bottom

-- Also...there are other non conference games that are more favorable to our side....I think Pitt has a much better chance to beat Notre Dame at home then playing Nebraska on the road...also....and this may sound crazy to some folks...but I think West Virginia may have a better chance of beating Virginia Tech at home (especially if the game is at night) with the crowd behind them then playing Maryland on the road where WVU has not faired well under RichRod

Quote:Rutgers who’ve shown themselves completely capable drop a game to a Buffalo or Western Carolina

-- On paper that would never happen...but if games where on paper Rutgers won't have lost to New Hamshire last yr...this kind of stuff drives Rutgers fans crazy and is one of the reason why BE football fans are so skeptical when they hear this is the yr for Rutgers turns it around....I remember when a lot of fans thought Terry Shea was the answer at Rutgers :rolleyes:

-- For this league to have any depth at all it needs RU and USF (two of the lower teams with the most experance) need to be decent...I think both have the talent to do so but its just a matter of putting it all together


Jackson

I agree, the youth part of UC is going to be a concern in game like this. But UC is bringing in some serious talent and Coach Dantonio is a heck of a coach. If our offensive line can stay solid UC should be fine.

wvucrazed Wrote:Western Carolina @ Cincinnati
Rutgers @ Buffalo
UConn @ Georgia Tech
Oregon State @ Louisville
Pittsburgh @ Nebraska
UCF @ USF
Virginia @ Syracuse
WVU @ Maryland


But I don't think Pitt will be a slight favorite at Nebraska at all.... they will be at least a touchdown underdog. And SU will not be a "significant" underdog at home against UVA. Perhaps 5 or 6 points, depending on how they open the season.

I see 4 gimme wins: Rutgers, UL, Cincy and USF.

If we can get a split on the other four, we will have a GREAT week. But we must win at least one of the other four. Losing all 4 would be disasterous for the BE.

As for the "gimme" games: I know UofL will have many more horses next year over UC, Rutgers, and USF but also Oregon St is miles ahead of UCF, Western Carolina, or Buffalo. They are no USC but they went 7-5 and crushed Notre Dame in the Insight Bowl. I'm not real sure about who they return and I do expect a UofL win at home over them but it could very well be a good game at least for a lot of the game. Truth be told, its reall too early to tell.

I also think Pitt will be the underdog at Neb. Depending on their prior game or two I think WVU would be a not that big of an underdog against the Terps. SU will be better than last year and UVA isn't going to be better (unless they surprise me) so it should be a much better game than last year. UConn winning @ GT in the first month with a new QB would be a significant upset.

Also, as others have mentioned, we cannot lose games to crap teams. No excuse for losses to UK, FAU, Western Carolina, Buffalo (x2), UCF, Army, Liberty, Ohio, Youngstown St, Villanova, EMU, etc. Also, it would help a ton if we got wins like Rutgers over Illinois.

Too bad UC is the one playing Penn St because no slam Bearcats but you probably will be at the bottom or near it this year...and I think the top 4-5 clubs in the BE could all knock off PSU unless they greatly improve. Everyone knows they are down but winning in the Valley is still big time, but alas, I don't see UC able to pull it off this year.

Good Lord if UC should lose that game........

Wouldn't want to be the team after, for some reason UC is unstoppable after a terrible loss