Maybe not intentionally, but there is the Big East football special on ESPNU tonight at 8pm. Most of the ESPN.com attention today, though, is on the basketball side.

It started with ESPN announcing College GameDay Saturday night sites this season. The good news, Pitt plays on one of those games. The bad news is it will be at Villanova in the Pavilion.

Feb. 12: Pittsburgh at Villanova (from the Pavilion), 9 p.m. ET: In Wednesday’s Big East Shootaround, Jay Bilas pegged these two as the top teams in the Big East. Watching this Pennsylvania pair try to separate themselves from the chasing pack — which should include Syracuse, West Virginia and Georgetown — should be about as exciting as you’d imagine.

It is also the only College GameDay Big East appearance (2 each for the SEC, Big 12/10 and Big 10/11/12; 1 for the ACC and 0 for the Pac-10/12). It’s the first appearance for College GameDay at Villanova. That ‘Nova was willing to sacrifice the extra revenue to play in their true home court, would have made this a tough enough game. College GameDay excitement will only make it harder.

As that blurb indicated, the “summer shootaround” moved to the Big East and which team did Jay Bilas peg for #1 in the conference?

1. Pittsburgh: Jamie Dixon has a great program. Not good, but great. Every time you think the Panthers will take a step back, they find a way to win and wow you with high-level consistency and fight. With a young and inexperienced team last year, Pitt seemed to will itself to 25 wins and the best scoring defense in the league. This season, Ashton Gibbs returns with the confidence of a star; Gilbert Brown should have his best year, and was very good on a tour of Ireland; Brad Wannamaker brings toughness and leadership; Gary McGhee brings strength and finishing ability; and Dante Taylor will be far better and more productive. Pitt should have the best team in the Big East when it is all said and done.

Ashton Gibbs was on the list of 10 key players and J.J. Moore for the list of incoming freshmen to watch.

In a companion piece, their resident college basketball blogger Eamonn Brennan looked at the best case/worst case for each team. (He also learned that trying to do this sort of thing for a 16 team conference is draining.)

Best case: The supposedly rebuilding Panthers were a surprise in 2009-10, finishing in a second-place conference tie despite losing a trio of stars from 2008-09’s Elite Eight team. That won’t be the case this year: Pittsburgh returns four starters — breakout guard Ashton Gibbs, backcourt mate Brad Wannamaker and solid forwards Gilbert Brown and Gary McGhee — to a team that should compete for the Big East’s top spot yet again.

Worst case: It’s hard to imagine an experienced and proven Jamie Dixon-coached team taking much of a step back in the coming year. Instead, the danger for the Panthers is that last year’s impressive finish is this team’s peak. No one would scoff at another second-place Big East finish, but Dixon will be looking for this group to make a leap, and while that outcome remains a likelihood, it’s not a stretch of the imagination to think this particular group of Panthers has already topped out.

And the summer of high expectations for Pitt sports continues.

Paul Zeise makes some nice points that the Utah game is not the be-all, end-all game for Pitt. Winning or losing it does not make the season. Even replete with good examples from last year. It’s rational, reasonable and defensible.

It is a non-conference game. Even if Pitt loses, they can still make (and even win) a BCS bowl simply by winning the Big East. Just as Oregon and Ohio State lost their high profile early season non-cons and still went to the Rose Bowl.

You could make a good argument that what everyone ultimately uses to judge the success of the season would be how the team did in the bowl game. Cinci went 12-0 last year, were possibly a few seconds away from the BCS Championship game if Texas QB Colt McCoy’s pass hung a little longer, and lost their head coach before they went to the Sugar Bowl. That didn’t matter, getting pounded by Florida is all people think about with that Cinci team.

There are three major non-con games for Pitt: at Utah, Miami and at Notre Dame. If Pitt were to go 2-1 in those games, I think most Pitt fans would generally prefer the two wins came against Miami and Notre Dame. It isn’t that Utah isn’t as good or as important, it is that there is more history with the other teams and an impulse to want to see Pitt win those other games more.

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I’m  still working out the full details, but I’m coming to NYC for Fashion Day to witness the unveiling of Nike’s new Pro Combat Uniforms for Pitt and those other nine programs on Wednesday, September 1.

Now I’m coming in the day before and with only a couple days before the season opener, it seems only proper to get together with fellow Pitt fans Tuesday night. It seems about time to put some faces to the names of the people who help motivate me to keep this stuff going. Anyone up for it?

Like I said, the details are still being finalized. I know that the hotel where I am supposed to be staying is around Spring and Varick. At the very least recommendations and suggestions on a good place to drink around there would be appreciated.

I’ve barely been home today and yet the tabs seem to have multiplied.

Okay, first off a hat tip to Corey for noting that ESPN.com updated their profile on Malcolm Gilbert. The ESPN.com profile (Insider subs) moved Gilbert up to the #12 center and increased his grade to “94.” Here’s some of the updated profile, and I repeat, that this is almost a blueprint for a Coach Dixon Center project.

Gilbert is a well built center and one of the best interior defenders in the country. He has a great build with a good height, a sturdy frame, wide shoulders, and a long and cut upper body. He is an excellent shot blocker both on and off the ball. …  Gilbert’s defense is far ahead of his offense. He is a bit robotic with his back to the basket as the game can move a little too fast for him at times and in need of a go-to move that he can quickly execute. With a motor that is less than consistent, Gilbert is a good, not great, finisher at the rim.

Gilbert has confidence in his offense, but also admits he needs to improve it.

“Most definitely,” he said. “I have a great touch on my jump shot. I can step out and hit that 10-footer and 15-footer. I’m getting progressively better on the offensive end as far as scoring around the basket. I do think I’ll get progressively better on the offensive end.”

So, it’s in progress.

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