College Football: The Rise of the Big East

When Boston College, Virgina Tech, and Miami left the Big East conference for the ACC, most experts believed that the Big East was finished as BCS-worthy conference. Making matters worse, Pittsburgh's loss to Utah in the 2004 Fiesta Bowl seemed to be the nail in the coffin for Big East respect across the country. There was even serious talk of the Mountain West and Big East having to share its BCS bid.

2006 saw those critics seeing red, or should be say Scarlet.

The calendar year started great for the Big East due to West Virgina 's upset win in the Sugar Bowl against Georgia (from the mighty SEC). Still, critics continued to rip the Big East as a two-team conference--Louisville and West Virgina. The team won their annual battle was guaranteed the the BCS bid. November 9th, 2006 changed that mindset. A week after Louisville defeated West Virgina in a nationally televised Thursday night battle, the Big East again hosted a battle of unbeatens.