2012 Big East Football Preview

Welcome to our Big East football preview for 2012. The Big East conference is widely regarded as the weak link when it comes to the BCS Conferences in college football. And that may never be more true than coming into the 2012 season unfortunately. Essentially, all of the teams that were considered the powers of the conference have left, or are planning to leave in the near future.

The latest departure of West Virginia perhaps hurt the worst. College football fans in general were probably fine with the Big East having an automatic berth into a BCS game for the champion as long as that was West Virginia. The Mountaineers proved that with an absolute destruction of ACC champion Clemson in the Orange Bowl last season. But the Big 12 conference came calling, and the opportunities were simply better for West Virginia than staying in the Big East. So the Mountaineers will compete in the Big 12 in 2012, leaving the Big East without a national power. And with Pittsburgh and Syracuse leaving for the ACC soon, the conference is left scrambling to survive. In comes Temple from the MAC, but more will be needed.

For 2012 though, they still have the automatic tie to a BCS Bowl game for the champion, though you can already bet there will be many complaining about that. Louisville and Cincinnati lead the way as the potential favorites to win the Big East this season.