The 2009-2010 Big Least

After an epic 2008-2009 season that saw UConn, Louisville and Pitt earn No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament and UConn and Villanova make the Final Four, the Big East may take a step back this basketball season. Not that a step back by the Big East is enough to make it a non-factor in college hoops this year, but it is enough to allow the Big 12 and possibly the Big 10 to step into the spotlight as the best two conferences this year.

Last October, it was hard to figure out a better group of teams than North Carolina, Pitt, Louisville and UConn. Sure, teams like Michigan State, Texas, Oklahoma and Duke looked tough, but it was obvious which teams were above the rest of the pack. The season played out as expected, with the four of the preseason top five getting No. 1 seeds and three of the preseason top six making the Final Four.

It was the same in the Big East conference standings, where everyone knew the top three, and the rest had to fight for scraps. But I'm not quite sure that'll happen this year. With only paper versions of teams formed so far, it's clear who the teams with the most potential are: UConn, Villanova, West Virginia and Georgetown. The "rest of the pack," as if these teams aren't heavyweights of their own, includes Syracuse, Louisville, Pitt and Notre Dame. And four teams have a wild-card look to them: Cincinnati, Seton Hall, Providence and Marquette.

But still, nothing is set in stone like it was last year.

First of all, I don't see a top seed out of that group. Not because UConn, Nova or even West Virginia aren't good enough to play their way into a No. 1, but because the pecking order ahead of those three is pretty significant. There's no doubt in my mind that Kansas and Michigan State can be penciled in now for a No. 1 seed. Kentucky, North Carolina, Purdue and Texas will battle it out for the other two slots.

We're essentially left hoping that a weakened ACC bloodies UNC, Kentucky isn't all its cracked up to be, Purdue struggles with injuries again and Texas's young talent doesn't pan out. But all of those things are less likely to happen than (a) UConn not quite finding its groove with Jeff Adrien, AJ Price and Hasheem Thabeet out of the picture, (b) Villanova relying too much on young big men to pick up the slack left by Dante Cunningham and (c) West Virginia not having enough help for its stars to eclipse any of the aforementioned teams.

Of course, on the flip side, it seems like Stanley Robinson, Jerome Dyson and Kemba Walker are primed to break out of the shadows of UConn's Big Three. Villanova is extremely high on Mouphtaou Yarou and Jay Wright has more quality guards and wing players than ever. West Virginia's duo of Da'Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks are top-tier guys, and if a healthy and non-fighting-cops Joe Mazzulla returns to form, he could be one of the top guards in the conference.

With all of this said, let's break down the whole conference, shall we? Even if these teams aren't significant members of the top five, there are still a few that can really do some damage in March.

I've listed the teams in order of how I think they'll finish ...

1. Villanova -- I'm willing to buy into the Villanova staff's love of Yarou enough to say the Wildcats will be the best team in the league this year. Scottie Reynolds has ball-handling and distributing talent around him so he can revert to what he really is -- an undersized 2. This team will have some serious mojo after its Final Four run, and with a roster that's about 37 deep, Jay Wright's team is the one to beat in the Big East.

2. UConn -- I've always thought Stanley Robinson can be a big star. Not just in college hoops, but in the pros, too. Dude's got great size and athleticism for a 3, and at 6-9, he is a matchup problem every time he's on the court. I'd like to see Kemba Walker learn how to use his speed and explosiveness a little better this season. If he can harness his boltiness like Ty Lawson did for UNC, Walker can be one of the best lead guards in the game.

3. West Virginia -- Like I said above, if Mazzulla returns to form, WVU is gonna be tough to beat. But I don't like the roster much after the first three I mentioned.

4. Louisville -- I will probably catch some heat for this but I have this unshakeable feeling that Rick Pitino and his team, despite all the distractions, can still be counted on for 12 conference wins and a fourth-place finish. I think Peyton Siva will be a star. And I like that Siva gets to work with the Edgar Sosa, Jerry Smith and Preston Knowles backcourt. That's a lot of experience. And above all else, Louisville's style will always be a handful for teams of comparable or lesser talent, and everyone below the Cards on this list fits into those two categories.

5. Georgetown -- I've said it for a few years now: Georgetown's playing style prohibits its extraordinarily talented lineup from flourishing. I wish JT3 would open up his offense and run. I'm just not sold on the Hoyas yet. I need to see them do everything that they didn't do last year (post-UConn of course) before I put 'em any higher.

6. Syracuse -- This team is quietly talented enough to sneak into the top four of the conference. Andy Rautins might be the best shooter in the league. We'll see who emerges as a leader, but I like the talent that Jim Boeheim has put together.

7. Pitt -- I don't really think Pitt will be very good this year. Not 30-5 good. Not No. 1-in-the-country good. But you knew that already. This team doesn't have the toughest makeup. Who knows what they'll get from Dante Taylor up front. The reports I read from Pittsburgh's summer league implied that he needed a lot of work despite a ton of raw talent. Jermaine Dixon isn't a go-to guy on offense and he's not a leader, but they're asking him to be both. Gilbert Brown is probably the most frustrating 6-foot-6 wing in hoops, and he won't even play until January. Those are the three best players on Pitt's roster. Nonetheless, I do love Ashton Gibbs and his development. There are a few blue-collar, younger guys who can contribute enough to keep the Panthers tournament-worthy, but nothing more than that.

8. Notre Dame -- It's hard to pick the Irish any higher than this after their 2008-2009 debacle. Looking at the preseason top 25 from last year, where ND was a consensus No. 9, it's amazing how colossally this team sucked. They couldn't defend a broom dribbling a basketball. But the positive from last season is that it's over, and Luke Harangody is back for one more season with Mike Brey and friends. Harangody is always a triple-double threat (you know, double digits in points, rebounds and complaints to the refs). Can Tory Jackson be the leader Brey needs him to be? Who will be the third cog in the offense -- Tyrone Nash maybe?

9. Cincinnati -- This is a team that could surpass both Pitt and Notre Dame and end up in the NCAAs. There's enough talent to finally help Deonta Vaughn, who seems like he's been in the Big East forever. We'll see how the Lance Stephenson Project works out. If Lance lives up to the on-the-court hype and avoids the off-the-court issues, he could be a major stud, but you knew that already.

10. Providence -- I'd like to see the Friars do a few things this year that they didn't do last year. You know, like not give up 80 points a game and absolutely fall apart at critical points. Seriously, how many times did the following happen last year: Opponent scores six unanswered points, PC's guards freak out and either (a) hurl up a 40-footer or (b) turn the ball over on 10 consecutive possessions. Poof, PC's down 10 and has no shot at coming back. I want to see them NOT do that before I put them any higher.

11. Seton Hall -- Not buying the hype. It's Seton Hall.

12. Marquette -- Buzz Williams coaching "his guys" sounds a lot like Buzz Williams coaching his team to a 12th-place finish. Lazar Heyward or no Lazar Heyward.

13. St. John's

14. Rutgers

15. South Florida

16. DePaul

What's Better: the ACC or Big East?

The Sporting News's Mike DeCourcy actually tried to settle the ongoing debate once and for all with this, a piece describing the obvious reasons why the ACC is sooo much better than the Big East. Now, other people are chiming in.

So, DeCourcy breaks it down for us -- the ACC has more wins against other power conferences, a better overall win percentage, nine wins against the Big East, more star power (don't know how you could ever gauge that) and just two teams near the .500 mark.

DeCourcy then gives us the Big East side -- fewer wins against other power conferences, a lower win percentage, six wins against the ACC, less star power and four teams in the .500 range or below.

Well, you know I disagree with all that baloney.

First of all, the ACC only has three legitimate Final Four contenders (Duke, UNC and Wake Forest) and a pretender in orange (Clemson). By my count, that's 25 percent of the conference that is actually good, and 8 percent of that is going to lose in the first round to a 13 seed -- looking at you, Clemson. That is, if Clemson doesn't go 7-9 in the conference like we're all expecting.

After that, there's no one good in the ACC. Florida State? Bubble team. Maryland? Garbage. Virginia Tech? Enjoy the NIT, guys. Boston College? 0-1 against Harvard. Miami? Only one good win. NC State, Virginia and Georgia Tech? Putrid.

That's four bids in a 12-team conference. So, 33 percent of the conference is good. And you want to tell me the "whole league is tough," Coach K? Are you serious? I'm sure Syracuse would love to play the only good teams in its conference four times and spread those games out over the next two months. Instead, the Orange played at Georgetown, hosted Notre Dame, went to Pittsburgh, return home for Louisville, go to bubble team Providence, then play West Virginia, at Villanova, at UConn, Georgetown, then Villanova again.

And that's without cushy officiating and fouls called whenever Coach K would like.

Don't get me wrong. I think the ACC is probably the second-best conference around. But I don't think it's even close when these two leagues are compared.

The Big East has six Final Four contenders. Seriously. Count 'em: UConn, Pitt, Louisville, Syracuse, Notre Dame and Marquette. That's without mentioning Georgetown, another team fully capable of surprising some higher seeds and making a run. So, that's 37 percent of the league, with the chance to go to 44 percent, that is a legitimate Final Four contender.

I think nine or 10 Big East teams will have arguments to get into the Tournament. I'm including West Virginia and Villanova as eight and nine, and thinking Cincinnati, Providence or Seton Hall could help their own causes, but will all end up in the NIT, like Virginia Tech, Boston College, Maryland and possibly Florida State. By my count, that's 50 to 56 percent of the league. In a 12-team league, that's six or seven Tournament teams. Right now, the ACC only has five (assuming Miami makes the Tournament as an 8-11 seed).

And all this garbage about the ACC being 9-6 against the Big East -- there's only two remotely good games on that list: Duke-Georgetown at Cameron Arena, UNC-Notre Dame in Hawaii and UConn-Miami in the Virgin Islands.

So, Duke, which lost to Michigan (which just lost by 15 to Penn State. Penn State!!!), beat the sixth- or seventh-best team in the Big East at home. UNC, which lost to Boston College (which lost by 12 to Harvard. Harvard!!!), beat Notre Dame, probably the fourth- or fifth-best team in the Big East in November. And UConn, which lost to a Sweet 16 team Georgetown, beat Miami by 13 at a neutral site.

Wow, that's conclusive.

Oh, and the star power argument? Are you serious?

Here are the ACC stars: Tyler Hansbrough, Coach K, Roy Williams, Gerald Henderson, Jack McClinton, Kyle Singler, Jeff Teague, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington, KC Rivers and ... anyone else? Not really.

Here are the Big East stars: Jim Calhoun, Rick Pitino, Jim Boeheim, Hasheem Thabeet, Luke Harangody, DeJuan Blair, Sam Young, Terrence Williams, Samardo Samuels, Earl Clark, AJ Price, Jeff Adrien, Jerome Dyson, Levance Fields, Scottie Reynolds, DaJuan Summers, Kyle McAlarney, Dominic James, Jerel McNeal, Wesley Matthews, Jonny Flynn, Eric Devendorf, Paul Harris, Bob Huggins, Jamie Dixon, Jay Wright ... God, this list is long.

All I'm saying is there isn't enough fair evidence to prove one way or another. You can clearly make good arguments on both sides. And it's all purely subjective. DeCourcy got to pick and choose pre-2009 stuff that will iron itself out in the NCAA Tournament.

Let's wait until March, when we can fully expect to see Duke, UNC and Wake Forest make it to the second weekend (unfortunately, Clemson will have already lost to Siena and Miami will have lost to a Big East team), where they'll have to play UConn, Pitt, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Georgetown, Syracuse and probably either West Virginia or Villanova.

Let's see how the ACC does then. In the meantime, why can't we just relax and enjoy both conferences for what they are?

(After all, one is a no-defense, run-and-gun league with ticky-tack fouls, primadona players and one good game every few weeks or so; the other is a physically demanding, rigorous conference with the most athletic and rugged players in the nation, a flair for the dramatic and great games almost every night. But I digress.)

Back on Track

Pitt lost a lot on Saturday: an undefeated record and a No. 1 ranking. But the Panthers didn't lose their confidence.

Back in the comforts of their own stadium, the Panthers handed Syracuse its second conference loss with a dominant second half. The two clubs, both of which you should expect to see for the second weekend in March, were closely matched for the first half, but Pitt pulled away after the break thanks to Sam Young's 19 second-half points.

I'm starting to detect a trend in the Big East: There isn't a clear-and-away favorite. And there won't be. Pitt emerged early after Georgetown went on the road and beat UConn. But then Pitt went on the road and lost to a very good Louisville. Then, Notre Dame goes and loses to St. John's on the road and after a few weeks of conference play, the Irish are 3-3. Heck, Louisville (4-0) and Marquette (5-0) are on top of the league. And I can't see Marquette, with its glaring weaknesses down low, or Louisville, with its rollercoaster inconsistency, staying .

(It's the same with the ACC, where Wake Forest, Duke and UNC are all pretty much equal. You could say the advantage in the early-going is Wake's because the Deacs are No. 1 and they beat UNC, but they haven't played Duke yet. And it's only January.)

So, we get Villanova at UConn on Wednesday. We've got WVU at Georgetown on Thursday. Oh, and then Saturday, UConn travels to South Bend for a tangle with the Irish.

What a conference.

Pitt football is playing in the Sun Bowl right now. Pitt basketball is playing Rutgers in the Big East opener for both teams.

Just put it directly into my veins.

Monday's Must-See Matchup

If you hadn't already heard, there's kind of a big game tonight. No. 12 Georgetown at No. 2 UConn tips off tonight at 7 p.m. The game will be on ESPN. What a way to start the Big East season, with a contest showcasing two of the top five teams in the conference.

This is a tone-setting game for the conference slate, too, because both of these teams figure to be in the top five of the league, with UConn favored to win the conference. Pitt, Notre Dame, Louisville and Syracuse will be praying for a Georgetown win -- any help in derailing UConn's title run will be appreciated by the other contenders. And if Georgetown wins, the best conference in America has a new frontrunner.

Key Matchups
Everyone talks about Hasheem Thabeet. He's probably the most intriguing newcomer to the nation's elite playerdom. At 7-3, dude swats shots. Pure and simple. Thabeet will even give a Tony Parker floater its sending orders. You're about to see more of Thabeet than you have so far this year.

But a big-time showdown with freshman sensation Greg Monroe will definitely set this party off right, as Jamie Foxx would say. Monroe is a 6-11 big fella with a little mobility. He'll have to aim high off the glass tonight, and not just because of Thabeet's reach, but also because of the ability of UConn's Jeff Adrien and Stanley Robinson to come off their man and swat shots.

Which leads us to another big matchup at the 4 spot between Adrien and Georgetown's best player, DaJuan Summers. Summers is supposed to be "the next Jeff Green," but he hasn't always been the same kind of player. He has the size and skill of Green, and he can operate on the perimeter like his power-forward predecessor, but he doesn't quite have the same ability to pass the ball. Still, Summers has put together a great start to the season, averaging 15 points a game. He'll need to lure Adrien away from the basket and help Monroe with Thabeet on defense.

Why I like UConn
The Huskies gutted out a win in Seattle against Gonzaga last week. And Hartford is not an easy place to play. Trust me -- I saw Pitt blow a game-long lead against UConn as the crowd got into it. UConn is just so rugged, and Georgetown has always had trouble against teams that push it around a little bit.

Georgetown is a good club. I think the Hoyas were underrated coming into the season. But winning at UConn in December in the first Big East game of the year is a tall order. I like UConn in a good, physical game.

Don't Get Ahead Yourself, SEC

OK, No. 16 Tennessee beat No. 24 Marquette -- in Tennessee -- and Vanderbilt crunched South Florida. Big deal. Why don't you pick on someone your own size?

So the SEC's best team beat the Big East's eighth-best club. And a 4 seed in last year's Tournament beat the worst team in Big East history. Congratulations.

And on Thursday, we get Ole Miss at Louisville and Mississippi State at Cincinnati. Wow. Thrilling showdowns in the Big East/SEC Challenge.

Why can't we have UConn-Tennessee, Pitt-Florida, Louisville-LSU and Notre Dame-Kentucky? It's not a challenge if we don't get to see the top teams play. Big Ten/ACC brought us Duke vs. Purdue and UNC vs. Michigan State.

And second of all, why can't it be the Big East/[Insert halfway decent conference here] Challenge? Maybe the A-10 would be a better opponent ...

Nonetheless, there are still some good hoops games tonight:

-- Texas Tech goes to UTEP for an in-state showdown. The Red Raiders are 7-2 with Pat Knight at the helm, and can score in bunches. UTEP is working hard to be a major challenger to Memphis's dominance of Conference USA. Beating a decent Texas Tech team will help UTEP's resume in March, too.

-- Siena at No. 3 Pitt would be a bigger game if Siena had held up its end of the bargain. You know, the whole "being good" thing. Remember when I mentioned Vanderbilt as a 4 seed in last year's Tournament? Well, Siena beat Vandy by 21 in the first round. And the Saints returned all five starters from that lineup. But now they're 5-3 and shooting 29 percent from 3 as a team. Not quite the same. This one's on ESPN 2 at 9:30.

-- Saint Mary's at Oregon should provide some quality entertainment. The Gaels are quietly one of the best teams on the West Coast and Oregon is desperately trying to find its stride.

The Beast Rears Its Ugly Head

The Big East is responsible for eight teams in both the AP and Coaches polls today. Only one other Big East team received any votes -- West Virginia got one AP vote.

So, how hard will it be for the teams that line up behind the Big 8?

Well, last year, the first year the conference went to 18-game schedule, 9-9 was the worst record that a Tournament team had in the Big East. This year, 8-10 might be acceptable, given the challenging nature of conference play.

This year, the five teams destined for Nos. 9 through 13 in the Big East are all doing reasonably well:

-- Seton Hall is 8-1, with wins against USC and Virginia Tech. Those should hold a lot of weight if the Pirates don't lose any bad games before conference play, which would leave them at 11-1 before Big East games start. SHU should finish at least 7-11 in conference, so stealing one or two games against the top 8 would go a long way. Eighteen wins might not be good enough unless SHU gets a good win against a top-15 team.

-- St. John's is also 8-1, albeit against a cupcake schedule. But still, hosting Miami (FL) and Duke at MSG gives the Red Storm two more opportunities to snag a marquee nonconference win. I just don't see St. John's getting more than seven conference wins, and without the marquee wins like Seton Hall, that's not good enough.

-- West Virginia is 7-2, with losses to Davidson (in New York) and Kentucky. Good wins came at Ole Miss and in Las Vegas against Iowa. Games against Miami (OH) and Ohio State (on the road) give the 'Eers a chance to get two more good nonconference wins. My initial count says WVU goes just 6-12 in the Big East, but knowing its track record at home, I'm willing to adjust to 8-10 or even 9-9. If WVU does that, and wins the rest of its nonconference sked aside from the one at Ohio State, it will finish 19-12. That's good enough, I'd say.

-- Cincinnati is 6-2, with losses against Florida State in Las Vegas and at home against No. 7 Xavier. Two nice wins against UNLV and UAB will help Mick Cronin's squad if its on the bubble in March. A matchup with Mississippi State this week and Memphis in two weeks gives the Bearcats two chances to grab another quality win. I only see Cincy getting 7 wins, which is too few, but a stolen win to get to 8 conference wins, plus a 10-3 nonconference record means 18 wins is possible.

-- Providence was the chic pick to steal one of the top 8 spots in the Big East this year, but the Friars struggled immediately, losing their first game to Northeastern ... at home. Now, PC is quietly 6-3, with a good win against Rhode Island. PC still plays at Boston College, but other than that, there really aren't any other spots for good nonconference wins. This enigmatic bunch looks primed for about a 6-12 or 7-11 finish in the Big East. Steal a win or two, and the Friars could have 17 or 18 wins to their ledger, which still might not be enough.

So, what do these teams do?
Well, that's easy to answer: win. Beating a ranked team or two on your home floor helps. Beating one on the road helps even more. Making sure you win games you should win and beating teams in similar situations as you (these five teams play each other plenty of times) can help overcome the ridiculously tough conference slate.

If I had to pick right now, I'd say Seton Hall and West Virginia are the two teams best positioned to sneak into the Tournament. Marquette and Villanova have some vulnerabilities that leave me thinking those two could struggle, potentially leaving space for one of these next-tier teams to sneak into the Big East's top 8. Keep an eye on Syracuse, too. It'll be interesting to see how the Orange deal with Eric Devendorf's almost certain season-long suspension.

Do any of these teams have the talent to match up with the Big 8? Out of this bunch, I'd say WVU and Providence do; the rest don't. But WVU has had injury issues, and Providence goes cold, can't play defense and is about as predictable as an M. Night Shyamalan movie.

Swallowed by the Beast

Jonny Flynn and the Syracuse Orange upset No. 17 Florida last night, 89-83. Wow. The second-best SEC team against the seventh-best Big East team. Keep watching Big East teams for more signs of dominance the rest of the year.

Or I could just give you some now ...

No. 2 UConn 76, No. 25 Wisconsin 57

No. 8 Notre Dame 88, Indiana 50

Oh, and Cincinnati and St. John's won, too, but those are just icing on the cake. Plus, who's really counting anyway?

Let's play good loss/bad loss
-- There is never really such a thing as a "good loss," but there are losses that, if close and against a good team, mean a little bit more than a bad loss to a bad team or a blowout loss to anybody. Yesterday provided a full plate of games to pick from:

Terrible loss: Jacksonville State 75, UMass 74. If UMass was hoping to surprise people in the A-10 and make a run as an at-large team, starting 1-3 and losing to Jacksonville State at home usually won't help.

Disappointing but not terrible loss: Syracuse 89, No. 17 Florida 83 (see above)

Tough home loss: UNLV 80, UTEP 67. UNLV is good, but UTEP had a chance to get a quality home win and build up its resume leading into C-USA play. If the Miners want to challenge Memphis for the conference title and stake a claim as a second or third bid out of the C-USA, a win in a game like this always helps.

Bad loss against a good team: Kansas 73, Washington 54. If Washington (or Worshington if your Bob Knight) wants to find its way out of basketball purgatory, it needs to come closer to good teams and win a few of them. More importantly, if Lorenzo Romar wants to keep his job after this season, the Huskies need to do better against quality teams. First step, don't shoot so many 3s if you aren't making them. Just a suggestion.

Awful loss: Yale 53, Oregon State 52. Craig Robinson is off to a very rough 0-3 start. Losing to Howard is tough. Losing to Yale is probably worse.

Embarrassing blowout: Oregon 82, Alabama 59. Not only is Alabama 1-2, with this blowout loss at home and a loss to Mercer ... at home ... but the Crimson Tide suddenly look like one of the worst teams in the SEC, which is terrible because some floated the idea of them being an at-large bid or a bubble team come March. At this point, they might still be a reach bubble team ... for the NIT.

The Jam Really Is Paradise

No. 2 UConn takes on No. 25 Wisconsin tonight in the Paradise Jam title game. UConn thumped Miami despite Jack McClinton's 27 points, while Wisconsin stifled San Diego.

It will be a matchup of gritty defenses, one (UConn) predicated on rebounding and thunderously blocking shots, the other on hand-in-your-jersey man-to-man and closed-off cutting lanes.

I suspect UConn will win this game, but I'll be interested to see how the Huskies handle the Badgers' jarring defense. Wisconsin will provide UConn with a nice preview of what's to come in Big East hoops. A lot of teams in the Big East, especially Pitt and Georgetown, play physical, grueling man-to-man. That's not to say the Huskies don't pack a punch of their own -- they brutalize even the toughest teams with their own tempo and toughness -- but a game against Wisconsin, one of the toughest defensive teams in the nation, will be a nice way to prepare for the rigorous 18-game conference schedule.

The difference lies in the offense: UConn has multiple weapons who can score from all over the place; Wisconsin doesn't. With enough creativity and innovation, UConn will get points, even if its ugly.

Elsewhere
-- I highly recommend this Dana O'Neil story on recruiting. It's a wide-ranging topic that I'd like to analyze and write a lot about when I have more time.

Big East Whiteout

The Big East has three teams in the top five of the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll. Pitt leapfrogged Duke and landed at No. 4, behind the usual suspects North Carolina, Connecticut and Louisville.

Xavier is the only new team in the Top 25. USC dropped out.

River City Rivalry ... means something?!?!

If you asked me in 2006 if Pitt vs. Cincinnati could decide which Big East team goes to a BCS bowl, I probably would've had a crazier smile than Ted Nugent after killing a buck. Seriously? Pitt vs. Cincinnati? The made-up River City Rivalry?

This is about the time of year when Pitt football is in the midst of a multiple-game losing streak that costs it bowl eligibility. This is right about when Cincinnati hits the 4-5 mark with stunning indifference. This is juuust around the time that West Virginia and Louisville should be 8-1 and angling for a BCS bid.

Not this year.

On Nov. 22, Pitt and Cincinnati meet on ESPN 2 for, as my dad would say, a "donnybrook of epic proportions." Somewhere, Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese is muttering, "Dear God ..."

Just a couple thoughts on a Tuesday:

Journalists dress like those involved with the topic they cover. Think about it.

A sports journalist (writers, radio guys, behind-the-scenes TV guys) dresses like a fat slob, with an alarming lack of fashion sense, mostly because they are usually fat slobs. Makes sense right? They dress like sports fans.

Of course, the exception to this rule is the empty-suit TV guys, who know about as much about sports as your dirty socks. They usually have a few suits in their rotation, plus a heavy bag of makeup and mirrors. Look harder, TV guy, maybe you'll finally figure out how to fill that empty space in your head where your brain used to be.

Other news
-- Chipotle. Is. Delicious.

-- While I think ending homelessness and poverty will be two of the greatest challenges of my generation, I do have one comment for panhandlers: Shaking a cup filled with change at me will not make me want to give you money. Period. A simple "God Bless You" would be nice. Or a song. Or even a high five. Shaking the cup just doesn't do it for me.

-- I know what you're thinking. It's either (a) I can't believe this guy just linked me to the Chipotle Web site, (b) Isn't this a sports blog? (c) Why am I still reading this? or (d) Wasn't I on Facebook?

-- There's a sleepover at SportsWorks in Pittsburgh. You're invited. Now in theory, having a sleepover with a big-time university's cheerleaders and its mascot would probably be pretty sweet. A couple brews. Maybe a DJ. You know, liven up the event and make things happen. Unfortunately, these are Pitt cheerleaders. Tough luck guys ...

-- Know who I'm sick of? Michael Phelps. He makes me wallow. Nobody likes wallowing.

-- All. Senior. Citizens. Should. Have. Life Alert.

-- Yes, I did just link you to a page on which former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop is featured prominently. Seriously, look at that facial hair. Would you really ever want that guy operating on your kids (he was a pediatric surgeon)?

-- It's never too early for hoops. Especially Big East hoops.

-- Parting thought: Byron Leftwich should start over Ben Roethlisberger. There. I said it.











... Gotcha!