Lousville Cardinals Picked to Win BIG EAST Crown

By Mike Medina  |   Tuesday, July 19, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

College Football
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article!

Newport, R.I. - Louisville, which begins its first season of BIG EAST competition in 2005, has been picked to win the league's football title in a preseason poll of media representatives who cover the league teams on a regular basis.

Louisville received 23 of a possible 24 first-place votes. The Cardinals are coming off an 11-1 season which included a 44-40 victory over Boise State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. The U of L's final rankings of sixth in the Associated Press poll and seventh in the ESPN/USA Today poll were the highest in school history. This season, the Cardinals, under coach Bobby Petrino, return 14 starters.

Pittsburgh was picked for second place and received the only other first-place vote. The Panthers, under new head coach Dave Wannstedt, welcome back 16 starters, including nine on offense. Last year, the Panthers were part of a four-way tie for the conference crown and were the BIG EAST's BCS representative in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Pitt finished 8-4 overall and 4-2 in league play.

West Virginia, the only team to earn a share of the BIG EAST title in each of the last two seasons, was tabbed for third place. Under coach Rich Rodriguez, the Mountaineers also finished 8-4 overall and 4-2 in the BIG EAST. WVU has appeared in bowl games in eight of the last 11 seasons.

Syracuse was projected for fourth place. The Orange will be led by new head coach Greg Robinson. SU returns nine defensive starters led by defensive end James Wyche and safety Anthony Smith. Offensively, the Orange averaged 36.8 points over the final four games of the regular season.

Connecticut, which will be competing in its second season of BIG EAST football, was picked fifth. The Huskies are led by coach Randy Edsall who directed the Huskies to an 8-4 record last year, which included the school's first bowl appearance and victory, a 39-10 triumph over Toledo in the Motor City Bowl. It was only UConn's third season of Division I competition.

BIG EAST PRESEASON MEDIA POLL (first-place votes in parentheses)

Rk. Team (First Place Votes), Pts.
1. Louisville (23), 190
2. Pittsburgh (1), 164
3. West Virginia, 145
4. Syracuse, 114
5. Connecticut, 80
6. Rutgers, 72
7. USF, 59
8. Cincinnati, 40
Got something to say?

Sign Up and be the first to comment on this article! (0)

About Mike Medina

...Sorry, Mike Medina's bio is currently not available. Please check back soon!
read more
Article Tools Share!   |  RSS  |  Bleacher Report About Bleacher Report