A couple of scheduling notes - if both are true, I consider one good and one bad.

The first is confirmed - Pitt's game against Florida International on October 2nd will take place either at 3:30 p.m. or at 8:00 p.m. That's light years better than having a noon or 1:00 p.m. kickoff, which is what I was anticipating.

The game will be somewhere on ESPN, though it's unlikely (at least to me) that it'd be on ESPN or even ESPN2. I think we'll see this on GamePlan or the dreaded ESPN3.

The second, which is unconfirmed, is not so good. Ray Fittipaldo of the PG (Plus section...you have a few free page views before they ask you to subscribe) says the Pitt/UCONN basketball game could be scheduled for December 27th, while calling it 'not a bad stocking stuffer.'

Um, sure, it might not be so bad if you live in Pittsburgh and are staying home for the holidays. But if you're like me and you'll be out of town, this is terrible news. Plus, students will be on break, so what kind of atmosphere will you even have? Fans and most importantly, Pitt, would be much better served if the game were against a lesser opponent. Pitt won't have the same home court advantage it normally has and could make the game a little tougher.

Let the debate about coming home early from visiting relatives begin.