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Which NCAA football conference is stronger: Mountain West or Big East
Results so far:
| West | 41% | 41 votes | Total: 99 votes | |
| Big East | 59% | 58 votes |
West
by Juan Leer
Created on: September 15, 2009 Last Updated: September 28, 2009
It is a little known secret in college football... even though the Big East is considered a major conference and its winner receives a BCS bid, the Mountain West, a supposed mid-major conference, is better. This has been debatable in recent years, but in 2009 it seems pretty clear that the Mountain West is a stronger football conference.
At the top of the Mountain West is Brigham Young. BYU is now a top 10 team after knocking off national championship contender Oklahoma. They should have a very decent chance to run the table, in which case they would almost certainly receive an at-large BCS berth and possibly have a chance to play for the national championship. Their QB Max Hall is one of the most explosive in all of college football.
Next is Utah, which went undefeated last season and is currently ranked inside the top 20. Year after year they are one of the most consistent programs in the country. After pounding Alabama in a BCS bowl last season, they are a team and program that everyone needs to take notice of, because it does not appear to be going away anytime soon. Then there is TCU, who is also a top 20 program and thinks they have a chance to go to a BCS game. They knocked off ACC opponent Virginia on the road in their first game, and look to have one of the best defenses in the country. They won 11 games last year and have established themselves as a great program.
In the Big East, there are no national championship contenders and there would not even be any BCS contenders most likely if it were not for the automatic bid. Cincinnati looks like the best team in the conference, and is the only one ranked as of this writing. Brian Kelly is one of the best coaches in the business and has an explosive offense with QB Tony Pike and WR Marcus Gilyard. They blew out Rutgers in their first game to establish themselves as contenders to win the Big East again.
Elsewhere, West Virginia is talented but doesn't appear to be as good as they were in the prime with Rich Rodriguez. Pittsburgh is talented but they still haven't won much of note under the coaching of Dave Wanstedt. Louisville has dropped off as a program after the departure of Bobby Petrino. South Florida has had a nice run but they don't appear to be much better than an average team. There is a lot of mediocrity within the conference.
Add it all up, and the Mountain West is the stronger conference, even though most people won't want to admit it. With the vaunted trio of BYU, Utah, and TCU at the top of the conference, we could be hearing from them come January, when it is very possible at least one of those teams with get an at-large berth in a BCS game. If they do, hopefully the opponent will be a little more prepared than Alabama was last season.
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Big East
by John Chen
Created on: October 03, 2010
After 4 weeks into College Football, we can all be very disappointed in what the Mountain West and Big East has accomplished so far. These two conferences both show no strengths or potential towards the BCS championship. However, to this day, I feel that the Mountain West is definitely better.
The Mountain West Conference is full of well developed and mature teams. They have known and strong teams that include TCU, Utah and Air Force all battling it out for a BCS game in January. Unlike the Big East, these teams are all ranked in the Top 25. Yet, the Big East has none of their teams even ranked. The closest team that they have is West Virginia. As we go down the chart, you will not see another Big East team for quite a while. TCU, ranked 5, is always being talked about on ESPN every Saturday. To this week, many people feel that they even have a chance to play in the BCS Bowl. Utah, which went to the Sugar Bowl last year, is also showing to universities around the world that they are also a tough team to beat. From last year, they were known for their 13-0 record. In the Sugar Bowl, they even plowed through the #1 team in America, Alabama, 31 - 17. In just 4 weeks into the 2010 season, these two teams are still undefeated. However, Air Force is also making their way towards fame. This week, they are being placed as number 25 in the AP Poll and are being a monstrous team in the NCAA.
The Big East shows a completely different story. In this conference, their is only 1 team left that can make a difference, the team is West Virginia. West Virginia is ranked 26 after losing to LSU on September 25. However, the Mountaineers is also a team that is struggling in the Big East. Just in the second week, West Virginia almost lost to Marshall, 24-21 in overtime. This clearly shows West Virginia's' lack of consistency. Another team that is wasting the Big East's fame is Pittsburgh. They are not even on the ranking system anymore because of their humiliating loss to Miami 31-3. Also, ESPN even decided to show this to the entire world. The only team that may save the Big East is the Orangemen of Syracuse. They are off to a 3-1 start and may be a sleeper team.
As clearly shows, the Mountain West Conference is definitely the better of the two conferences. However, you never know. The Big East may go on a winning streak later on in the weeks.
Learn more about this author, John Chen.
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