Philadelphia, PA (My Sportsbook) - CINCINNATI: Chazz Anderson was outstanding for the Bearcats in Friday's 33-10 romp over Marshall, as he threw a pair of touchdown passes and ran for a third score. Anderson hit 16-of-26 pass attempts for 158 yards and one interception, while Dominick Goodman had six catches for 51 yards and a pair of touchdowns. John Goebel ran for a touchdown among his 56 yards for Cincinnati (4-1), which suffered its only loss of the season to current No. 1 Oklahoma. Cincinnati will return to action on Saturday against Rutgers, and the Bearcats will have the support of the home crowd in that tilt.
CONNECTICUT: The Huskies were expected to put up a fight against North Carolina this past weekend, but the Tar Heels cruised to a 38-12 victory. UConn had three punts blocked in the second quarter alone, the third of which was returned for a touchdown. Sophomore quarterback Zach Frazer made his first collegiate start for Connecticut and tossed three interceptions. One of the only bright spots for the Huskies was that junior tailback Donald Brown ran for 161 yards and broke the 1,000-yard barrier in the process. UConn is now 5-1 and needs just one more victory to become bowl eligible. Up next for the Huskies is an October 18th clash with Rutgers.
LOUISVILLE: There is no doubt that the Cardinals are still reeling from a heartbreaking 26-21 loss to UConn two weeks ago. The loss was particularly hard to swallow considering that Louisville lost on an interception return for a touchdown late in the final quarter. Quarterback Hunter Cantwell, who threw a pair of costly interceptions in the clash, completed 17-of-29 passes for 247 yards and a score. Bilal Powell ran 11 times for 112 yards and scored a touchdown, while Victor Anderson ran for 100 yards and a score on 19 carries while catching an 18-yard touchdown pass as well. The next game for Louisville will take place this Friday against Memphis.
PITTSBURGH: The Panthers are flying high after a 26-10 victory over nationally-ranked South Florida on the road last Thursday. A major key to the victory for Pitt was the running of LeSean McCoy, who exploded for 142 yards and two touchdowns. McCoy, a sophomore, scored the go-ahead touchdown with under five minutes remaining. Since losing the season opener to Bowling Green, the Panthers have posted four consecutive victories and are 2-0 in Big East play. Bill Stull completed 16-of-27 passes for 228 yards with a score in the triumph. The Panthers are idle this weekend, returning to action against Navy on October 18th.
RUTGERS: Who would have thought that the Scarlet Knights would be 1-4 after the first five games of this season? Not many, but that is indeed the case. On Saturday, Rutgers dropped a 24-17 decision to West Virginia on the road in the Big East opener for both squads. Mike Teel threw for 170 yards and one touchdown for the Scarlet Knights, but the quarterback completed just 14-of-32 passes in the loss. Kenny Britt did most of the damage for Rutgers, as the wideout grabbed 12 passes for 151 yards. The Scarlet Knights will take on the Cincinnati Bearcats this coming weekend.
SOUTH FLORIDA: In front of the shocked home crowd, the Bulls fell to Pittsburgh last Thursday by a 26-10 final. Matt Grothe connected on 11-of-21 passes for 129 yards with a TD and was picked off once. He also ran for a score, but the Bulls faltered defensively late in the game. Mike Ford had 14 rushes for 73 yards, and while South Florida still owns an impressive 5-1 record, the club is 0-1 in Big East play. The Bulls will be idle until October 18th when they host a poor Syracuse squad, so the sting from the Pittsburgh loss will hang around for a while.
SYRACUSE: The Orange were idle last weekend, which may have been a good thing considering the team's play so far this season. In the most recent outing two weeks ago, Syracuse dropped a 34-24 decision to Pittsburgh in front of the home crowd at the Carrier Dome. Curtis Brinkley ran for 119 yards, while Cameron Dantley threw for 137 yards and two TDs. The Orange are now 1-4 overall, and the team's only victory came over an FCS opponent. Things have gotten so bad for Syracuse that the athletic department's most notable alum, Jim Brown, spoke out about the football team's lack of competitiveness. The Orange will be back in action this Saturday, as they travel to Morgantown to play West Virginia.
WEST VIRGINIA: Pat White threw for 137 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Mountaineers to a hard-fought 24-17 victory over Rutgers this past weekend. The versatile quarterback also ran for 59 yards, while tailback Noel Devine was limited to 55 yards on 19 carries. WVU opened the game with 10 unanswered points but could never seem to pull away from Rutgers in what was a close game from start to finish. Bill Stewart, the first-year head coach of the Mountaineers, is 3-2 thus far, and the victory over Rutgers in the Big East opener may have restored any confidence that had been lost. The Mountaineers will clearly be favored in Saturday's clash with Syracuse this weekend.
