ESPN Big East Blog

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

1. Cincinnati (10-2, 6-1): The league's outright champion is ranked No. 13 and heading to the BCS. Who else could lay claim to this spot?

2. Pittsburgh (8-3, 4-2): The West Virginia win was huge for the Panthers, who could have easily finished 7-5 had they lost. Now Pitt has a chance to go 9-3 if it can get a tough road win at Connecticut this week. This could be a preseason Top 15 team next year.

3. Rutgers (6-5, 4-2): Had the Scarlet Knights managed to find four more points in their game at Cincinnati earlier this season, they'd be playing for the league title this week. As it is, they're playing as well as anyone over the past month.

4. West Virginia (7-4, 4-2): The Mountaineers have lost four games in a season for the first time since 2004. If they lose this week to South Florida, they will equal their loss total for 2005, 2006 and 2007 combined.

5. Connecticut (7-4, 3-3): The Huskies have beaten Pittsburgh three of the past four years and would love to make it four out of five on Senior Day.

6. South Florida (7-4, 2-4): An eight-win regular season would look a lot better on paper and soothe some of the Bulls' disappointment over this year's collapse. They'll have to beat Pat White in his final home game to get there.

7. Louisville (5-6, 1-5): Last year, the Cardinals rallied from 18 down to beat Rutgers and salvage a 6-6 season. They'll look to score a road upset over the same team this year for another 6-6 finish.

8. Syracuse (3-9, 1-6): According to NCAA statistics, Syracuse played the eighth-toughest schedule in the FBS this season. The Orange went out with a whimper last weekend at Cincinnati and now will wait to find out who their next coach will be.