Since ESPN has the Backyard Brawl as its ESPN2 prime time game; and it will play a huge part in determining the Big East champ — and the accompanying BCS bid — it only makes sense that ESPN.com start running some stories.

One is just part of the predicted trend of stories on security and safety. Nothing that hasn’t already been reported. Skip this one.

There is of course the game preview with some basic statistical comparisons (I’ll try and do some actual analysis tomorrow).

The ESPN lead story on the Backyard Brawl is more about WVU coming back from a 1-4 start and now in contention than about the game and history.

This one in SI.com is about the possible good for the Big East to have Pitt or WVU win the Big East rather than Miami or VT. This is news because?

Finally, a column from the Tribune-Review about Pitt actually looking like it could possibly become a strong, stable football program again.

Still haven’t gotten around to talking about the future Big East composition. Really, there’s no rush since it’s a couple years away. Of course, I then read crap like this to bug me.

The Irish have made serious overtures about joining the ACC, two officials within the conference with knowledge of the moves told USA Today in Thursday’s editions.

Notre Dame is a member of the Big East in most sports, including basketball — but the football team has been independent for more than a century. A move to the ACC would certainly change all that.

One of the officials told the newspaper that Notre Dame also contacted the Big Ten.
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Meanwhile, the Big Ten has taken a different approach during the expansion issue during the past year. The Big Ten doesn’t feel the same pressure that the ACC does to go to 12 schools and have a football championship game. But a Big Ten chancellor told ESPN.com last month that there is a standing offer for Notre Dame if the Irish want to join the conference. He said that the Big Ten wouldn’t need to go through the process of visiting Notre Dame or putting it to a vote. But, as Heisler said, Notre Dame hasn’t officially asked the Big Ten to join.

The fact there are no clear, flat out denials from the Irish make me a little more nervous. I still, stand by my early statements that Notre Dame is not joining a conference that would end its football independence — except maybe the Big 11, but I doubt even that at this time — Lee also agrees.

I assume Boston College can’t be disinvited, but a venal, vindictive side of me would find some satisfaction in seeing BC finding itself out of both the ACC and Big East.

This may be paranoid ravings — go figure — but could ND be doing this to keep the Big 11 from formally considering expansion until after the new BCS agreement is made? This would leave ND with more options if it should find the next BCS arrangement not in ND’s financial/national championship interests to stay independent. I believe the Big 11 is slowly moving towards making a decision in the next couple years, and ND may be trying to stay ahead of the wave.

I don’t know. Probably should just ignore it.

At the end of August (barely 3 weeks into this blog’s brief life) I published the following:

The 2003-2004 season could be a big year for Pitt sports. Not just as far as what they can accomplish on the field and the court. I’m thinking about their place in the local Pittsburgh sports scene. Locally, no one has given much ink or airwave time to Pitt outside of complaints of how they don’t measure up to teams of yesteryear. It didn’t matter because there was always a pro team to hold the interest at any time. But look at things right now.
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The Steelers. Ah, the Steelers. The lifeblood of all Pittburghers (Pittsburghians?). Aside from the fact that they are playing in a weak division, there is hope but a lot more questions about the team. The defense. The running game. Special teams. Lots of questions.

Meanwhile at Pitt. There are potential top 10 teams in football and basketball. Definitely top 20. There should be a lot of excitement and expectations for both teams. Everyone loves a winner, and bandwagon jumpers should be lining up around the ‘Burgh.

If. If, Pitt can meet those expectations. Then this could help reshape the dynamic in the area.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Bob Smizik, today.

Now what we have is a case of history reversing itself. The Pitt program, in the middle of a crush of crucial games, is picking exactly the right time to reassert itself. The Steelers are not very good, are not likely going to the playoffs and are turning off some of their fans.

Pitt will never catch the Steelers in the hearts and minds of Pittsburgh-area football fans. But they’re gaining a bit of ground.
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It’s never easy for a college program to succeed in a town dominated by professional teams, particularly one so close to the hearts of the fans as the Steelers. But there’s room for both to be successful.

Shrewd marketing and a winning team have put Pitt in position to find that success. Maintaining it won’t be easy, but it can be done.

This is in the context of reasserting that Pitt was right to move off-campus for football games. Still, why does he get paid to re-write what I’ve written for free?

It’s Thursday, and still no trash between the rivals. This is starting to get dull. In fact, the WVU team is saying it won’t do any trash-talking during the game.

Adam “Pac Man” Jones swears he can do it. Rich Rodriguez isn’t so sure.

The topic of conversation is, well, conversation. More specifically, it is the trash-talking version of conversation.

Rodriguez, West Virginia’s football coach, doesn’t want to hear it. And Jones, his sophomore cornerback and the reigning WVU master of the art, says that’s fine by him.

“I’m going to keep my mouth shut this game,” Jones said, referring to Saturday night’s sold-out Backyard Brawl against Pitt at Mountaineer Field. “I can contain myself.”

It’s not that Rodriguez doesn’t believe that, but, just as a precaution, he gathered his team for its Monday meeting this week and, well, stressed it.

Is Rodriguez trying to suck the life out of this game? I’m starting to think so.

When Rich Rodriguez played football at West Virginia, he doesn’t remember too much about the Pitt games. He recalls quarterback Jeff Hostetler scoring a touchdown to defeat Pitt.

“The game I remember the most was when we defeated Penn State, 17-14, during the 1984 season,” Rodriguez said. “I still have that one on tape.”

We are getting some game analysis, though. The piece also gets a little into the WVU defensive scheme. The 3-5-3:

So, what exactly is the 3-5-3? It’s a rarely seen base defense that essentially uses three down linemen, five linebackers and three defensive backs. Most teams use such a scheme for their “prevent” defense, but the Mountaineers use it on a full-time basis.

“They make it tough on a quarterback because they take him out of his rhythm,” Pitt coach Walt Harris said. “They have five guys underneath and three deep and it can really throw you out of whack. And, they have so many variations, and they can do so many things that they trick you a lot of times.”

The 3-5-3 was effective enough to hold the Panthers to two touchdowns and a field goal in a 24-17 loss last season at Heinz Field. The Mountaineers forced four turnovers out of that alignment, including a pair of interceptions.

On the Pitt defensive side, there is a piece on Pitt and its dealings with the @#%^!* spread offense. The title of the article is “Panthers no longer spooked by spread.” Well they may not, but the fans sure as hell are. The piece is short on details but long on player and coaches confidence that “this time for sure” that Pitt will contain it.

I’m not so sure. Rodriguez went through a year of hell installing the spread. WVU went something like 3-8 his first year, because it takes a year for players to learn and understand it — something Walt Harris didn’t grasp back in 2001. Now that it is installed, though, it is scary how effective it can be. Especially against a team like Pitt — that tends to overpursue. Of course the main concern for Pitt will be stopping the WVU running game with Quincy Wilson.

The WVU players seem to be looking forward to the game, even if most of them (at least the ones quoted) were unfamiliar with the history.

There are a couple player puff pieces focusing on WVU WR, Chris Henry. Both the Pittsburgh and WV profiles mention his aspirations to rival Pitt’s Larry Fitzgerald. Also one piece on the return from his concussion, and trying to get enough tickets for family — WVU QB, Rasheed Marshall.

Finally, the Dominion Post continues its running top fives with the top 5 upsets. For good or ill, Pitt won 4 of the 5 listed.

Our resident uniform fashion expert should be all over this. ESPN Page 2’s worst uniform bracket.