If the Big East conference were a singer, it would be Dolly Parton: top-heavy and overrated.

The better half of the Big East has been great — 6-0 Miami is ranked No. 1 and 7-0 Virginia Tech is No. 3. No other conference boasts two undefeated teams.

Also, Pittsburgh and West Virginia have been Big East surprises, as both are 2-0 in conference and 5-2 overall.

But, when the Big East gets bad, it gets bad.

Every conference has its laughingstocks — Baylor in the Big 12, Vanderbilt in the SEC — but not many have three inept teams, like the Big East. Consider it a minor miracle if Syracuse, Rutgers or Temple wins a game when they don’t play each other.

The most telling statistic when comparing conferences is non-conference records. Midway through the season, the Big East is last among the six Bowl Championship Series conferences with a combined 19-12 record against Division I teams outside the league. The next worst is the ACC at 20-10, and the SEC is tops at 26-9.

Overall, we’ll give the Big East a midterm grade of C. Below are individual team reports.

***

Boston College

After six games, Boston College is trickier to solve than Einstein’s theory of relativity.

The Eagles have won all of their non-conference games — not surprising considering their toughest opponent was 2-4 Stanford. In Big East play, BC is 0-2, but that’s mostly because it played Virginia Tech and Miami.

The Eagles have been sloppiest in two wins, barely beating Connecticut, 24-16, and Stanford, 34-27. But Boston College has also looked sharp, scaring the Hokies in a 28-23 loss.

What does it all mean? Don’t ask Eagles’ coach Tom O’Brien.

‘I don’t know if I can (evaluate our team),’ O’Brien said. ‘I’m not sure where we fit into this conference. It’s going to be important where we go the next six weeks.’

Where the Eagles fly will depend on quarterback Brian St. Pierre’s arm. St. Pierre leads the conference with 243 passing yards a game.

The BC picture will become clearer after Saturday’s game against Pittsburgh.

Grade: Incomplete (B+ with a win over Pitt, C- with a loss)

***

Miami

Before the season, many college football experts refused to pick Miami to repeat as national champions. Prognosticators pointed to an impossibly difficult schedule and the loss of a record five NFL first-round draft picks.

None of that has mattered. Miami has looked like it should be playing in the AFC East instead of the Big East and has held its No. 1 ranking all season.

The Hurricanes’ offense has scored with the ease of a college student on Spring Break. Miami’s 43.7 points-per-game is third in the nation. The unit boasts two Heisman Trophy contenders, quarterback Ken Dorsey and running back Willis McGahee, who has been as explosive as Clinton Portis was a year ago.

The Hurricanes have faltered only once, two Saturdays ago against Florida State. FSU’s Greg Jones ran for 189 yards as the Seminoles came within one point (28-27) of stopping Miami’s winning streak at 27 games. But every great team has to survive one game, and Miami appears to have its out of the way.

If the ‘Canes can get by their Nov. 9 meeting at underachieving Tennessee and their Dec. 7 home game against Virginia Tech unscathed, they will be playing to prove their preseason detractors wrong at the Fiesta Bowl.

Grade: A

***

Pittsburgh

The Panthers are fighting to join the Big East’s elite. If not for two plays, Pittsburgh would be among the nation’s best.

The first play Pitt would like to have back came Sept. 7 against Texas A&M. Early in the fourth quarter, quarterback Rod Rutherford pulled the Panthers within eight with a 1-yard touchdown run.

But kicker J.B. Gibboney missed the extra point, meaning when Pitt scored its next touchdown, it had to attempt a two-point conversion. The try failed, and Pitt lost, 14-12.

The second play came late in the fourth quarter against Notre Dame, when Pitt drove for a possible game-tying touchdown. The march was halted when Preston Jackson picked off an errant Rutherford throw, and Pittsburgh lost to the now-No. 6 Irish, 14-6.

Save the botched PAT and Rutherford’s interception, Pitt has had an unblemished yet widely unrecognized campaign.

‘They’re probably the most underrated football team in the country right now,’ O’Brien said.

Pittsburgh receivers Lamar Slade and Larry Fitzgerald have powered the offense. They are ranked Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, in the Big East in receiving yardage (465 and 457) and receptions (32 and 30).

The Panthers’ smash-mouth defense, led by linebacker Gerald Hayes, has allowed 265 yards a game, good for sixth in the nation.

Grade: A

***

Rutgers

Things you can be sure of: The sun will rise, people will pay taxes and Rutgers will have an awful football team.

Although the Scarlet Knights are still losing this season, they are at least doing it respectably. It’s tough to find a silver lining in a 1-6 season — especially when two of the losses came against Villanova and Buffalo — but RU has shown significant improvement.

Rutgers lost, 35-14, to both No. 16 Tennessee and Virginia Tech. That’s cause for celebration for RU.

‘We’re an improved football team,’ RU coach Greg Schiano said. ‘We’re not good enough to win in the Big East yet. At times, we’ve played well enough to win in this conference but not consistently enough.’

Senior tight end L.J. Smith has backboned Rutgers’ improved play. He’s caught 22 passes for 232 yards and a pair of touchdowns, second among Big East tight ends in each category.

Grade: D+

***

Temple

Would you believe Tanardo Sharps has more rushing yards than Heisman-candidate Willis McGahee?

Sharps, Temple’s senior running back, has 877 yards (125.3 per game) compared to McGahee’s 735 (122.5). He is a big reason why Temple looks ready to shed its label of conference doormat.

The Owls are 3-4 overall and 1-1 in conference play. Temple coach Bobby Wallace pointed to Sharps, the offensive line and better special teams to explain the improvement.

While Temple is enjoying more success than usual, it will still be jettisoned from the Big East after 2004. The Owls’ three wins have come against Connecticut, Syracuse and Richmond, who combine for a 5-15 record.

Grade: C

***

Virginia Tech

Being a big-name college football team means lots of television exposure. But Virginia Tech games sometimes resemble a horror flick.

‘They’re scary to watch play,’ Miami coach Larry Coker said. ‘I don’t even watch them on television.’

The most frightening aspect of facing Tech is trying to stop ‘The Untouchables,” the two-headed monster of running backs Lee Suggs and Kevin Jones, who have made the Hokies’ running attack No. 7 in the nation at 254.6 yards a game.

Because they split carries, neither will be considered for the Heisman. But sharing carries means other teams always have to chase a fresh running back.

The 7-0 Hokies ascended to No. 3 after beginning the year at No. 16. Tech has managed to stay unbeaten despite playing a non-conference schedule that included No. 10 Louisiana State, Marshall and Texas A&M.

The Hokies don’t have a major test until Dec. 7, when they face Miami at the Orange Bowl. That game may be for the Big East title and a shot at the national championship.

Grade: A+

***

West Virginia

After taking over for legendary head coach Don Nehlen last season, Rich Rodriguez was in a tough situation. The Mountaineer faithful questioned Rodriguez’s spread offense, and it didn’t help when he went 3-8 in his first year, even losing to Temple.

Now, with a 5-2 record, West Virginia has bought into Rodriguez’s system.

‘Last year, there were a lot of growing pains,’ Rodriguez said. ‘This year, things are going a lot smoother. There’s better communication between myself and the players. There’s a lot better feeling among each other.’

Senior running back Avon Cobourne has the Mountaineers feeling good as well.

The senior is third in the nation with 143 yards a game and is the main reason why West Virginia is the nation’s second-best rushing team at 297.5 yards per game. The WVU rushing attack set a Big East record with 536 yards in a Sept. 28 game against East Carolina.

Middle linebacker Grant Wiley has solidified the defense and is a major contender for Big East defensive player of the year.

Besides one disappointing loss — a 48-17 defeat at the hands of Maryland — Rodriguez’s second year is going as well as anyone could have expected.

Grade: B+

***

This and that

It seemed no one could justify Miami — having won 27 straight games and ranked No. 1 in both polls all year — not being the country’s best team. That must be why the BCS — the beacon of backward logic that was released Monday evening — placed the Hurricanes second behind Oklahoma. Virginia Tech, No. 3 in both polls, was fourth in the BCS, behind Notre Dame. … Suggs was named Big East offensive player of the week for his 197-yard performance against Rutgers. Temple defensive tackle Dan Klecko and West Virginia defensive back Angel Estrada shared defensive honors. … This Saturday will be the only time all year that all eight Big East teams play conference games on the same day. … Weekly shot at Dorsey: In an online fan poll on the Big East Web site, Dorsey received only 4 percent of the vote for the conference’s offensive player of the year. Avon Cobourne topped the poll with 43 percent of the vote.

Published on October 22, 2002 at 12:00 pm