2011 Preseason College Football Rankings: More SB Nation Big East Predictions

by CardiacHill on Jul 22, 2025 8:01 AM EDT in Pitt Football

How far will Tino Sunseri lead Pitt in 2011? (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

Yesterday it was selecting the SB Nation All-Big East team. Today it's the Big East team preseason power rankings.

I actually wrote a weekly article over at OnsideKick about this very topic earlier this week giving my rankings. So my vote was actually a repeat of that. And just to make sure there's been sufficient overkill on this topic, I wrote about it a month ago here at Cardiac Hill. Those rankings I wrote about here differed slightly from my ballot submitted this week, though.

So here's my ballot:

1. WVU

2. Pitt

3. Cincinnati (yes, that Cincinnati)

4. South Florida

5. Syracuse

6. Rutgers

7. Louisville

8. UConn

The biggest surprise is probably Cincinnati all the way up at No. 3. Yeah, I realize that's a huge leap and I'm aware of the fact that the Bearcats' defense leaves much to be desired. But the fact is that team should be an offensive juggernaut this year. They have, in my opinion, the best quarterback and wide receiver in the league in Zach Collaros and D.J. Woods. And while I put Ray Graham slightly ahead of Bearcats' running back Isaiah Pead, Pead is the leading returning rusher in the Big East so they could easily have the top three players in the conference at those skill positions.

The defense is miserable, but that team should put up points to be sure.

Don't forget to head over to Big East Coast Bias for the cumulative rankings from all Big East bloggers later today.

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Read More: Zach Collaros (QB - Cincinnati), Isaiah Pead (RB - Cincinnati), Ray Graham (RB - Pittsburgh), Cincinnati Bearcats, Pittsburgh Panthers

Comments

I don't have Cincy that high

I would put:

1) WVU
2) Pitt
3) Louisville
4) USF
5) Syracuse
6) Cincinnati
7) UConn
8) Rutgers

That defense worries me. If they have a good defense, Cincinnati could easily win the league. But as of now, there’s no proof so I can’t rank them that high. I’m also really high on Louisville. I just like the way Charlie Strong coaches and recruits.With another year, the Cardinals could win the Big East, even with TCU joining next year.

Cardiac Hill contributor

by oaklandzoo12 on Jul 22, 2025 10:24 AM EDT reply actions

Yeah, I don’t think most people do - I’m definitely in the minority on this one. To be honest, I’m not a huge fan, either - I attribute it more to a weak conference. UConn is taking a huge step down, Louisville lost key pieces, and I just flat out don’t trust all the hype USF is getting.

by CardiacHill on Jul 22, 2025 11:15 AM EDT up reply actions