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Bulls must maneuver through Big East powerhouses

The Associated Press

USF's defense must cope with Pittsburgh freshman running back Dion Lewis who ranks third nationally with 918 yards.

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By JOEY JOHNSTON | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 22, 2009

For everyone who believes Big East Conference football is inferior, for all the pundits who constantly challenge the league's automatic bid into the BCS bowl rotation, Coach Jim Leavitt has one question.

"What in the world are they talking about?'' he said. "The Big East is very powerful. I've been saying that for a long time. I've been bellowing it.''

And now, Leavitt's University of South Florida Bulls will get to experience it first-hand.

Seeking to distance themselves from the Oct. 15 home loss against No. 5-ranked Cincinnati, the Bulls (5-1, 1-1) face the No. 20 Pittsburgh Panthers (6-1, 3-0) on Saturday afternoon at Heinz Field. For the first time in program history, USF has back-to-back games against nationally ranked Big East opponents.

And that's not all.

After Saturday's game, the Bulls have a short week to prepare for No. 22 West Virginia next Friday night at Raymond James Stadium.

"We've got to move on,'' USF redshirt freshman quarterback B.J. Daniels said. "We're in a challenging stretch right now. We've got to correct our mistakes, learn from them, and start a winning streak.''

USF's defense, which surrendered 401 total yards against Cincinnati, must cope with freshman running back Dion Lewis (third nationally with 918 yards), senior quarterback Bill Stull (seventh nationally in pass efficiency) and an arsenal of tall, physical receivers.

Meanwhile, Pittsburgh's defense, led by defensive end Greg Romeus, has produced 29 sacks in seven games. The Panthers have recruited well, beefing up its talent base, "increasing its eye candy'' in the words of ESPN analyst Craig James.

"Pittsburgh is every bit as good as what we saw in Cincinnati,'' Leavitt said. "Everybody knows this, but you can't sit on a loss, just like you can't sit on a win. You've got to move forward. It isn't easy all the time. But you better do it if you want to have any chance at success.

"Have we done that (moved on)? I believe we have. Hopefully, we can play better than we did (against Cincinnati). We've got to do that if we want to win.''

Cincinnati.

Pittsburgh.

West Virginia.

Three nationally ranked Big East opponents in the space of 15 days.

"We don't have time to do anything other than try to get better and get ready for the next one,'' USF defensive coordinator Joe Tresey said. "We're very much alive in this (Big East title) race. But all we focus on is Pitt. You have to do that in this league. It's tough. And it's balanced.''

When the preseason Big East polls were released, the league had no ranked teams – not one.

Now it has three in the top 25 – with USF on the cusp – and Cincinnati barging into the national-championship picture.

That's much to the chagrin of some observers, who claim Cincinnati doesn't deserve a shot at the national title.

"I think that's ridiculous,'' Pittsburgh coach Dave Wannstedt said. "If Cincinnati goes undefeated, they'll be playing for the national championship and deservedly so.

"It's obviously great exposure for the conference (having three ranked teams). When all is said and done, you'd like to see three or four Big East teams in the rankings, as many as we can get, and you'd like to see someone playing for the national championship.''

USF finds itself in the middle of this Big East football renaissance. It must fight through this thicket in order to maintain its own lofty goals.

"The thing we're telling B.J. (Daniels) is simply this, 'Play the next play,' '' Bulls offensive coordinator Mike Canales said. "The Cincinnati game is over. Can't do anything about it. But there are plenty of challenges ahead.''

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