Not the full schedule, but at least the non-con has been finalized. Good sign for Pitt to actually have the schedule out in early August. It means they weren’t scrambling to find a couple more games like they have the past few years.

2009-10 PITT MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

(as of August 6, 2009; schedule subject to change)

Date Opponent (TV) Location Time

O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic (Pittsburgh, Pa.)

O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic Semifinals and Finals (Kansas City, Mo.)

Jimmy V. Classic (New York, N.Y.)

Note the exhibition game for Pitt against D-II Coker College Cobras from Hartsville, SC. The Cobras’ Head Coach Dan Schmotzer was an assistant at TCU when Coach Dixon was a player. so that might explain this exhibition rather than some other more local D-II team.

Fan Fest is October 3. That does not interfere with a football game as Pitt plays at Louisville on Friday night, October 2.

The lack of “star power” in the conference is noticeable this year. Hard to argue when the top players are George Selvie, Matt Grothe, Mardy Gilyard, Nate Byham and Greg Romeus. Fine players, but not the ones that get much national buzz. When Greg Paulus is the most well-known player…

The Big East prepped for that. They even had a talking points memo for the coaches — as WVU’s Bill Stewart revealed when he pulled it out to talk from it.

When talking about the league this year, West Virginia Coach Bill Stewart pulled out a piece of paper with “talking points” provided by the league.

Among those Stewart and other coaches repeated throughout the day were the league’s victories in three of its past four B.C.S. bowl games, its 12-4 record in bowl games the past three seasons, and its having more players drafted per team than any other league. (The Big East had 27 players drafted, which comes out to 3.4 players per team.)

Way to prepare Stewart. Everyone has the talking points, but it’s bad form to not even bother to memorize and try to paraphrase.

Seeing Pitt picked first in the preseason media poll was also a big topic. Mainly, in the way that it reflects how unsure everyone is as to who will emerge from the conference this year.

The difficulty in predicting the league was seen in the preseason media poll.

Two dozen media members from around the league voted and didn’t find much to agree on at the top.

Pittsburgh and Cincinnati each received eight first-place votes, but Pitt got the nod based on points. Cincinnati was picked for third behind West Virginia, which received five first-place votes.

South Florida was picked fourth with three first-place votes. It was followed by Rutgers, UConn, Louisville and Syracuse.

The point totals highlight the assumed dichotomy between the top and bottom of the league. Just 35 points separated Pitt from Rutgers, but 48 points separated Rutgers from UConn.

“We don’t have one dominant team,” Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt said. “We beat each other up.”

The Pitt players take some small pride in the pick was there along with awareness as to the downside.

“We’ve worked hard to get back to where Pitt has been in the past,” junior defensive lineman Greg Romeus said. “At the same time, we have a bull’s-eye on our back, so we have to go out and prove it.”

Yeah. Pitt’s going to be a target. And the poll will mean little after the season gets underway.

“Whatever the polls say at the end of the season is really what matters,” Pitt senior offensive lineman John Malecki said. “The Big East is wide open right now. There’s a lot of talent, a lot of good teams and it’s going to take a push to win it all.”

Always trust the cliches. Greg Romeus also admits that even among the players, the Wannstache can be a source of great amusement.

‘Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt has one of the most recognizable mustaches in all of college sports. It appears thinned out on one side and never is neatly trimmed.

Just the mention of it provoked laughter from junior defensive end Greg Romeus. But asked if the players joke with Wannstedt about it, he said, “Not to his face.”

A decent breakdown of the teams in the conference, lightly touching on the pros and cons of each team’s chances.