2012 Big East Conference football season

2012 Big East Conference football season
2012 Big East Conference football season
League	NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision)
Sport	football
Duration	September 2012 – January 2013
Number of teams	8
TV partner(s)	ESPN-Big East Network
2013 NFL Draft
Top draft pick	Justin Pugh (Syracuse)
Picked by	New York Giants, 19th overall
Regular season
Champions	Cincinnati, Louisville, Rutgers & Syracuse
Football seasons
	← 2011 2013 (American) →

Last updated July 28, 2024

2012 Big East Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 13 Louisville $+	5	–	2	11	–	2
Cincinnati +	5	–	2	10	–	3
Rutgers +	5	–	2	9	–	4
Syracuse +	5	–	2	8	–	5
Pittsburgh	3	–	4	6	–	7
Connecticut	2	–	5	5	–	7
Temple	2	–	5	4	–	7
South Florida	1	–	6	3	–	9

$ – BCS representative as conference champion + – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2012 Big East football season was the 22nd NCAA Division I FBS football season of the conference that was known as the Big East Conference from its formation in 1979 until July 2013, and ultimately proved to be the last for the conference under the "Big East" name, as well as the last with a full round-robin schedule for conference play. The conference consisted of eight football members: Cincinnati, Connecticut, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse and Temple.^[1] In February 2012, the Big East settled a lawsuit with West Virginia University that allowed them to move to the Big 12 Conference effective July 1, 2012.^[2]

Conference members began regular-season play on August 30 when Temple hosted Villanova; conference play started September 6 when Cincinnati hosted Pittsburgh. The regular season concluded on December 1. Four teams—Louisville, Rutgers, Cincinnati, and Syracuse—claimed shares of the conference championship. Louisville claimed the league's automatic BCS bowl berth via tiebreakers.

On February 28, 2013, ESPN reported that the conference's seven schools that do not play FBS football, which had announced plans to leave the conference as a bloc no later than July 2015, had reached an agreement to leave in July 2013, and would keep the "Big East" name when they formed a new conference at that time. As a result, the schools that retained the original Big East charter would operate under a new name in the 2013 football season.^[3] On April 3, 2013, the remaining schools announced they would operate as the American Athletic Conference (The American).^[4]

Previous season

West Virginia, Cincinnati and Louisville were co-Big East Champions with a conference record of 5–2. West Virginia received the conference's automatic bid into the BCS bid by way of tie-breakers. The Mountaineers went to the Orange Bowl and defeated Clemson 70–33 in the game, West Virginia tied or broke eight separate team and individual bowl game records, while the combined 69 points West Virginia and Clemson scored in the first half set another new record.^[5]

Four other Big East teams went to bowl games in 2011, finishing bowl play with a record of 3–2 as a conference. Louisville (7–6) lost to NC State in the Belk Bowl. Rutgers (9–4) beat Iowa State 27–17 in New Era Pinstripe Bowl. Cincinnati (10–3) defeated Vanderbilt in the Autozone Liberty Bowl, and Pittsburgh lost to SMU 28–6 in the BBVA Compass Bowl. The three teams not to go to a bowl game were Connecticut (5–7), South Florida (5–7), and Syracuse (5–7).

Preseason

Coaching changes

Two teams have new head coaches for the 2012 season. Paul Chryst replaces Todd Graham at Pittsburgh, Kyle Flood replaces Greg Schiano at Rutgers.

Preseason Poll

The 2012 Big East Preseason Poll^[6] was announced at the Big East Media Day in Newport, RI on July 31, 2012

Louisville – 219 (24 first place votes)
South Florida – 176 (4)
Rutgers – 155
Cincinnati – 139
Pittsburgh – 131
Connecticut – 77
Syracuse – 70
Temple – 41

Schedule

Index to colors and formatting
Big East member won
Big East member lost
Big East teams in bold

Week 1

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	7:30 pm	UMass	Connecticut	Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT	SNY	W 37–0	35,270
August 31	7:00 pm	Villanova	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	ESPN3	W 31–10	32,709
September 1	12:00 pm	Northwestern	Syracuse	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	ESPN2	L 42–41	37,830
September 1	6:00 pm	Youngstown State	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN3	L 31–17	40,837
September 1	7:00 pm	Chattanooga	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN3	W 34–13	41,285
September 1	8:00 pm	Rutgers	Tulane	Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA	CBSSN	W 24–12	26,059
September 2	3:30 pm	Kentucky	No. 25 Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY (Governor's Cup)	ESPN	W 32–14	55,386
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Cincinnati

Week 2

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 6	8:00 pm	Pittsburgh	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH (River City Rivalry)	ESPN	CIN 34–10	33,562
September 8	12:00 pm	Maryland	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	ESPNU	L 36–27	23,322
September 8	12:00 pm	NC State	Connecticut	Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT	Big East Network	L 10–7	34,202
September 8	3:30 pm	South Florida	Nevada	Mackay Stadium • Reno, NV	CBSSN	W 32–31	22,804
September 8	3:30 pm	No. 2 USC	Syracuse	MetLife Stadium • East Rutherford, NJ	ABC/ESPN2	L 42–29	39,507
September 8	3:30 pm	Missouri State	No. 23 Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	WHAS	W 35–7	47,553
September 8	3:30 pm	Howard	Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	SNY	W 26–0	50,855
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 3

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 13	7:30 PM	Rutgers	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN	RUT 23–13	44,219
September 15	12:00 PM	No. 13 Virginia Tech	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ESPNU	W 35–17	48,032
September 15	12:30 PM	Connecticut	Maryland	Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium • College Park, MD	ACC Network	W 24–21	35,491
September 15	3:30 PM	North Carolina	No. 20 Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	ABC/ESPN2	W 39–34	53,334
September 15	4:00 PM	Stony Brook	Syracuse	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	TWCS/SNY	W 28–17	34,512
September 15	7:00 PM	Delaware State	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH	ESPN3	W 23–7	27,112
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Temple

Week 4

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 22	7:00 PM	Rutgers	Arkansas	Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, AR	ESPN	W 35–26	72,543
September 22	2:00 PM	Connecticut	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	ESPN3	L 30–24	10,328
September 22	3:30 PM	Temple	Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	ABC/ESPN2	L 24–17	93,680
September 22	3:30 PM	Gardner–Webb	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ESPN3	W 55–10	36,452
September 22	4:30 PM	South Florida	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN3	L 31–27	16,397
September 22	7:00 PM	No. 20 Louisville	FIU	FIU Stadium • Miami, FL	ESPN3	W 28–21	12,318
September 22	8:00 PM	Syracuse	Minnesota	TCF Bank Stadium • Minneapolis, MN	BTN	L 17–10	50,805
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Cincinnati

Week 5

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 29	12:00 PM	Buffalo	Connecticut	Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT	Big East Network	L 24–17	34,666
September 29	3:30 PM	Virginia Tech	Cincinnati	FedExField • Landover, MD	ESPNU	W 27–24	46,026
September 29	6:00 PM	No. 4 Florida State	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN	L 30–17	69,383
September 29	8:00 PM	No. 19 Louisville	Southern Miss	M. M. Roberts Stadium • Hattiesburg, MS	CBSSN	W 24–21	23,492
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Pittsburgh, Temple, Rutgers, Syracuse

Week 6

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 5	7:00 PM	Pittsburgh	Syracuse	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	ESPN	SYR 14–13	40,394
October 6	12:00 PM	Connecticut	No. 22 Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	ESPNU	RU 19–3	50,870
October 6	12:00 PM	South Florida	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	Big East Network	TEMP 37–28	25,796
October 6	7:00 PM	Miami (OH)	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	FS Ohio	W 52–14	35,097
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Louisville

Week 7

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 13	11:00 AM	No. 18 Louisville	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ESPNU	LOU 45–35	42,432
October 13	12:00 PM	Syracuse	No. 20 Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	Big East Network	RUT 23–15	48,011
October 13	1:00 PM	Temple	Connecticut	Rentschler • East Hartford, CT	ESPN3	TEMP 17–14	37,279
October 13	7:00 PM	Fordham	No. 21 Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH	ESPN3	W 49–17	26,317
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: South Florida

Week 8

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 19	8:00 PM	Connecticut	Syracuse	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	ESPN	SYR 40–10	36,715
October 20	12:00 PM	No. 19 Rutgers	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	Big East Network	RUT 35–10	35,145
October 20	3:30 PM	South Florida	No. 17 Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	ABC	LOU 27–25	50,167
October 20	3:30 PM	Pittsburgh	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Amherst, NY	Big East Network/ESPN Plus	W 20–6	17,021
October 20	7:00 PM	No. 21 Cincinnati	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	ESPN3	L 23–29	24,124
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 9

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
October 26	8:00 PM	Cincinnati	Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY (The Keg of Nails)	ESPN	LOU 31–34 ^OT	53,271
October 27	12:00 PM	Temple	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	Big East Network	PITT 47–17	42,425
October 27	3:30 PM	Kent State	Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	Big East Network/ESPN Plus	L 33–25	49,345
October 27	7:00 PM	Syracuse	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN3	SYR 37–36	38,562
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Connecticut

Week 10

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 3	12:00 PM	Syracuse	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH	Big East Network	CIN 35–24	26,180
November 3	12:00 PM	Temple	Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	ABC	LOU 45–17	44,609
November 3	3:30 PM	Pittsburgh	Notre Dame	Notre Dame Stadium • Notre Dame, IN	NBC	L 26–29 ^3OT	80,795
November 3	7:00 PM	Connecticut	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium •	ESPNU	USF 13–6	36,190
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Rutgers

Week 11

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 9	8:00 PM	Pittsburgh	Connecticut	Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT	ESPN2	UCONN 24–17	33,503
November 10	12:00 PM	Cincinnati	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	Big East Network	CIN 34–10	20,192
November 10	12:00 PM	Louisville	Syracuse	Carrier Dome • Syracuse, NY	ABC	SYR 45–26	40,312
November 10	12:00 PM	Army	Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	ESPNU	W 28–7	43,250
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: South Florida

Week 12

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 17	12:00 PM	#22 Rutgers	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH	Big East Network	RUT 10–3	34,526
November 17	12:00 PM	Temple	Army	Michie Stadium • West Point, NY	CBSSN	W 63–32	27,019
November 17	3:00 PM	South Florida	Miami	Sun Life Stadium • Miami Gardens, FL	ACC Network	L 9–40	38,869
November 17	7:00 PM	Syracuse	Missouri	Faurot Field • Columbia, MO	ESPNU	W 31–27	63,045
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Louisville, Pittsburgh

Week 13

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 23	11:00 AM	Syracuse	Temple	Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA	ESPN2	SYR 38–20	22,317
November 23	7:00 PM	South Florida	Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH	ESPN	CIN 27–10	21,171
November 24	12:00 PM	Connecticut	#20 Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY	Big East Network	UCONN 23–20 ^3OT	45,618
November 24	12:00 PM	#18 Rutgers	Pittsburgh	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	TBA	PIT 27–6	38,786
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 14

Going into the final week of the season, Rutgers had clinched at least a share of the Big East title, but it was possible that the season could end with a three-way or a four-way tie for the conference championship. The scenarios were:^[7]

Rutgers would win the title and the Big East BCS berth outright with a win over Louisville on November 29.
If Louisville won, it would create a three-way tie between the two schools and Syracuse. Cincinnati could then join the logjam atop the conference with a win over UConn on December 1.

The conference's BCS berth would then be decided by tiebreakers. Under Big East rules, the first tiebreaker among three or more teams is head-to-head record among the tied teams, followed by the BCS standings.^[7]

A three-way tie would go to the BCS standings, since Louisville, Rutgers, and Syracuse finished 1–1 against one another. In a four-way tie, Cincinnati and Syracuse would be eliminated with 1–2 records against the other three teams, with the BCS berth then going to the higher-ranked team between Louisville and Rutgers. The conference said that Louisville would most likely receive the BCS berth if it defeated Rutgers,^[7] and that proved to be the case, with the Cardinals claiming the league's BCS berth.

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
November 29	7:30 pm	Louisville	Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium • Piscataway, NJ	ESPN	LOU 20–17	52,798
December 1	3:30 PM	Cincinnati	Connecticut	Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT	ABC	CIN 34–17	33,112
December 1	7:00 PM	Pittsburgh	South Florida	Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL	ESPN2	PITT 20–7	35,141
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week off: Temple, Syracuse

Records against other conferences

Big East vs. BCS matchups

Date	Visitor	Home	Winning Team	Opponent Conference
September 1	Northwestern	Syracuse	Northwestern	Big Ten
September 2	Kentucky	#25 Louisville	Louisville	SEC
September 8	Maryland	Temple	Maryland	ACC
September 8	NC State	Connecticut	NC State	ACC
September 8	USC	Syracuse	USC	Pac-12
September 15	Virginia Tech	Pittsburgh	Pittsburgh	ACC
September 15	Connecticut	Maryland	Connecticut	ACC
September 15	North Carolina	Louisville	Louisville	ACC
September 22	Rutgers	Arkansas	Rutgers	SEC
September 22	Temple	Penn State	Penn State	Big Ten
September 22	Syracuse	Minnesota	Minnesota	Big Ten
September 29	Virginia Tech	Cincinnati	Cincinnati	ACC
September 29	Florida State	South Florida	Florida State	ACC
November 3	Pittsburgh	Notre Dame	Notre Dame	Independent
November 17	Syracuse	Missouri	Syracuse	SEC

Bowl Games

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
December 27*	6:30 PM	Cincinnati	Duke	Bank of America Stadium • Charlotte, NC (Belk Bowl)	ESPN	W 48–34	48,128
December 28*	5:30 PM	Rutgers	Virginia Tech	Citrus Bowl • Orlando, FL (Russell Athletic Bowl)	ESPN	L 10–13	48,127
December 29*	3:15 PM	West Virginia	Syracuse	Yankee Stadium • Bronx, NY (Pinstripe Bowl)	ESPN	W 38–14	39,098
January 2*	8:30 PM	No. 21 Louisville	No. 3 Florida	Mercedes-Benz Superdome • New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)	ESPN	W 33–23	54,178
January 5*	1:00 PM	Pittsburgh	Ole Miss	Legion Field • Birmingham, AL (BBVA Compass Bowl)	ESPN	L 17–38	59,135
^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Players of the week

Following each week of games, Big East conference officials select the players of the week from the conference's teams.

Week	Offensive			Defensive			Special teams
Week	Player	Position	Team	Player	Position	Team	Player	Position	Team
9/3/12^[8]	Ryan Nassib	QB	Syracuse	Yawin Smallwood	LB	Connecticut	Brandon McManus	K/P	Temple
9/10/12^[9]	Andre Davis	WR	South Florida	Walter Stewart	DE	Cincinnati	Brandon Jones	CB	Rutgers
9/17/12^[10]	Tino Sunseri	QB	Pittsburgh	Yawin Smallwood	LB	Connecticut	Nick Williams	WR	Connecticut
9/24/12^[11]	Gary Nova	QB	Rutgers	Adrian Bushell	CB	Louisville	Brandon McManus	K/P	Temple
10/1/12^[12]	Munchie Legaux	QB	Cincinnati	Maalik Bomar	LB	Cincinnati	Pat O'Donnell	P	Cincinnati
10/8/12^[13]	Montel Harris	RB	Temple	Brandon Sharpe	DE	Syracuse	Tony Miliano	K	Cincinnati
10/15/12^[14]	Senorise Perry	RB	Louisville	Khaseem Greene	LB	Rutgers	Brandon McManus	K/P	Temple
10/22/12	Gary Nova	QB	Rutgers	Lorenzo Mauldin	DE	Louisville	Ross Krautman	K	Syracuse
10/29/12	Teddy Bridgewater	QB	Louisville	Preston Brown	LB	Louisville	Maikon Bonani	K	South Florida
11/5/12	George Winn	RB	Cincinnati	Keith Brown	LB	Louisville	Matt Brown	RB	Temple
11/11/12^[15]	Alec Lemon	WR	Syracuse	Khaseem Greene	LB	Rutgers	Nick Williams	RB	Connecticut

Rankings

**Legend**
		Increase in ranking
		Decrease in ranking
		Not ranked previous week
RV		Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll

		Pre	Sept. 4	Sept. 9	Sept. 16	Sept. 23	Sept. 30	Oct. 7	Oct. 14	Oct. 21
Cincinnati	AP	RV	RV		RV	RV	RV	21	21	RV
	C	RV	RV	RV	RV	RV	23	20	18	RV
	Harris	Not released						20	18	RV
	BCS	Not released							21
Connecticut	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Louisville	AP	25	23	19	20	19	19	18	16	16
	C	RV	24	20	18	17	16	16	14	14
	Harris	Not released						18	16	14
	BCS	Not released							16	16
Pittsburgh	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Rutgers	AP				RV	23	22	20	19	18
	C	RV	RV	RV	RV	25 т	21	19	17	15
	Harris	Not released						19	17	15
	BCS	Not released							15	15
South Florida	AP	RV	RV	RV
	C	RV	RV	RV
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Syracuse	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released
Temple	AP
	C
	Harris	Not released
	BCS	Not released

Home attendance

Team	Stadium	Capacity	Game 1	Game 2	Game 3	Game 4	Game 5	Game 6	Game 7	Total	Average	% of Capacity
Cincinnati	Nippert Stadium	35,097	33,562	27,112	35,097	26,317	26,180	34,526	21,171	203,965	29,138	83%
Connecticut	Rentschler Field	40,000	35,270	34,202	34,666	37,279	33,503	33,112	—	208,032	34,672	87%
Louisville	Papa John's Cardinal Stadium	55,000	55,386	47,553	53,334	50,167	53,271	44,609	45,618	349,938	49,991	91%
Pittsburgh	Heinz Field	65,050	40,837	48,032	36,452	42,432	42,245	38,786	—	248,964	41,494	64%
Rutgers	High Point Solutions Stadium	52,454	50,855	50,870	48,011	49,345	43,250	52,798	—	295,129	49,188	94%
South Florida	Raymond James Stadium	65,897	41,285	44,219	69,383	38,562	36,190	35,141	—	264,780	44,130	67%
Syracuse	Carrier Dome	49,262	37,830	34,512	40,394	36,715	40,312	—	—	189,763	37,953	77%
Temple	Lincoln Financial Field	68,532	32,709	23,322	25,796	35,145	20,192	22,317	—	159,481	26,580	39%

Neutral Site Games

^[16]

Team	Stadium	Capacity	Game	Average	% of Capacity
Cincinnati	FedExField vs Virginia Tech	91,704	46,026	46,026	50%
Syracuse	MetLife Stadium vs USC	82,566	39,507	39,507	47%

Big East Conference Awards

The following individuals received postseason honors as voted by the Big East Conference football coaches.^[17]

Award	Recipient(s)
2012 Big East Football Individual Awards
Offensive Player of the Year	Teddy Bridgewater , QB, Louisville
Defensive Player of the Year	Khaseem Greene , LB, Rutgers
Special Teams Player of the Year	Matt Brown , RB/KR, Temple
Rookie of the Year	Tyler Matakevich , LB, Temple
Coach of the Year	Kyle Flood , Rutgers Charlie Strong , LOUISVILLE

Offense	Defense	Offense	Defense
2012 All-Big East Conference Football Teams^[17]
First Team		Second Team
WR – Alec Lemon,^† Syracuse WR – DeVante Parker, Louisville OT – Eric Lefeld, Cincinnati OT – Justin Pugh, Syracuse OG – Austen Bujnoch, Cincinnati OG – Antwan Lowery, Rutgers C – Mario Benavides, Louisville TE – Travis Kelce, Cincinnati QB – Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville RB – Ray Graham, Pittsburgh RB – Montel Harris, Temple K – Maikon Bonani, USF RS – Matt Brown, Temple	DL – Dan Giordano, Cincinnati DL – Trevardo Williams,^† Connecticut DL – Aaron Donald, Pittsburgh DL – Scott Vallone, Rutgers LB – Greg Blair, Cincinnati LB – Sio Moore, Connecticut LB – Yawin Smallwood, Connecticut LB – Khaseem Greene,^† Rutgers CB – Adrian Bushell, Louisville CB – Logan Ryan, Rutgers S – Duron Harmon, Rutgers S – Shamarko Thomas, Syracuse P – Brandon McManus, Temple	WR – Mike Shanahan, Pittsburgh WR – Devin Street, Pittsburgh WR – Brandon Coleman, Rutgers OT – Alex Kupper, Louisville OT – Kaleb Johnson, Rutgers OT – Martin Wallace, Temple OG – Adam Masters, Connecticut OG – Mark Popek, USF C – Ryan Turnley, Pittsburgh QB – Ryan Nassib, Syracuse TE – Ryan Griffin, Connecticut RB – George Winn, Cincinnati RB – Jawan Jamison, Rutgers K – Brandon McManus, Temple RS – Nick Williams, Connecticut	DL – Walter Stewart, Cincinnati DL – Cory Grissom, USF DL – Brandon Sharpe, Syracuse DL – John Youboty, Temple LB – Preston Brown, Louisville LB – Sam Barrington, USF LB – Tyler Matakevich, Temple CB – Dwayne Gratz, Connecticut CB – Blidi Wreh-Wilson, Connecticut S – Calvin Pryor, Louisville S – Hakeem Smith, Louisville S – Jason Hendricks, Pittsburgh P – Pat O'Donnell, Cincinnati P – Justin Brockhaus-Kann, USF
^†- denotes unanimous selection Additional players added to the All-Big East teams due to ties in the voting

Related Research Articles

The Big East Conference was a collegiate athletics conference that consisted of as many as 16 universities in the eastern half of the United States from 1979 to 2013. The conference's members participated in 24 NCAA sports. The conference had a history of success at the national level in basketball throughout its history, while its shorter football program, created by inviting one college and four other "associate members" into the conference, resulted in two national championships.

The 2000 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the Oklahoma Sooners beating the defending national champion Florida State Seminoles to claim the Sooners' seventh national championship and their thirty-seventh conference championship, the first of each since the 1988 departure of head coach Barry Switzer.

The 2006 Louisville Cardinals football team represented the University of Louisville in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, led by Bobby Petrino in his fourth year at the school, played their home games in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium. Playing in their second year in the Big East Conference, the team finished the regular season with eleven wins and one loss and were conference champions. They represented the Big East in the 2007 Orange Bowl and with the win ended the season with a 12–1 record. The team ended the season ranked sixth in the nation.

The 2005 West Virginia Mountaineers football team completed the season with an 11–1 record. The Mountaineers won their third consecutive Big East title with a conference record of 7–0. They ended the season with a 38–35 Sugar Bowl win over Georgia.

The Big East Conference gave five football awards at the conclusion of every season. The awards were first given in 1991 following the conference's first football season, and last given in 2012 before the conference was restructured as the American Athletic Conference. The five awards included Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Special Teams Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year. Recipients were selected by the votes of the conference's eight head coaches.

The 2005 NCAA conference realignment was initiated by the movement of three Big East Conference teams to the Atlantic Coast Conference, which set events into motion that created a realignment in college football, as 23 teams changed conferences and Army became an independent.

The 2009 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati in the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team, coached by Brian Kelly, played its home games in Nippert Stadium.

The 2009 Big East football season was an NCAA football season that was played from September 5, 2009, to January 2, 2010. The Big East Conference consists of 8 football members: Cincinnati, Connecticut, Louisville, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Florida, Syracuse, and West Virginia. Cincinnati won the Big East Championship for the second consecutive year and was invited to the Allstate Sugar Bowl where they lost to Florida 51–24. Overall, the Big East went 4–2 in Bowl Games.

The 2010 West Virginia Mountaineer football team represented West Virginia University in the college football season of 2010. The Mountaineers were led by head coach Bill Stewart and played their home games on Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia. They were members of the Big East Conference. They finished the season 9–4, 5–2 in Big East play to share the conference title with Connecticut and Pittsburgh. They were invited to the Champ Sports Bowl where they were defeated by North Carolina State 7–23.

The 2010 Connecticut Huskies football team represented the University of Connecticut in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season as a member of the Big East Conference. The team was coached by Randy Edsall and played its home games at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, Connecticut. The Huskies finished 8–5, 5–2 in Big East play to share the conference title with Pittsburgh and West Virginia. Due to victories over both schools, the Huskies earned the Big East's automatic bid to a BCS game, and were invited to the Fiesta Bowl where they were defeated by Big 12 champion Oklahoma 48–20. It was the first major-bowl appearance in the program's 115-year history.

The 2010 Pittsburgh Panthers football team represented the University of Pittsburgh in the 2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Panthers were members of the Big East Conference. They were led by the sixth-year head coach Dave Wannstedt and played their home games at Heinz Field. 2010 marked the university's 121st season overall. They finished the season 8–5, 5–2 in Big East play to be champions of the Big East with Connecticut and West Virginia. However, due to losses to both schools, Pitt did not earn the conference's bid to a Bowl Championship Series (BCS) game. They were invited to the BBVA Compass Bowl where they defeated Kentucky, 27–10. Wannstedt was forced to resign on December 7, 2010.

The Cincinnati Bearcats football program represents the University of Cincinnati in college football. They compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level as members of the Big 12 Conference. They have played their home games in historic and renovated Nippert Stadium since 1924. The Bearcats have an all-time record of over .500, having reached their 600th program victory in 2017. The program has had a resurgence in recent years. After joining the Big East for the 2005 season, the Bearcats have gone 155–75, along with 14 bowl game appearances, 7 conference titles, 4 BCS/NY6 Bowl berths and 38 NFL Draft selections, as of the 2022 season.

The 2010 Big East football season was the NCAA football season of the Big East Conference. Conference members began regular-season play on September 2, but did not begin conference play until October 8; the regular season continued through December 4. Following the regular season, six conference teams played in bowl games; although the bowl season concluded with the BCS National Championship Game on January 10, 2011, the last date on which a Big East team played was January 8, when Pittsburgh defeated Kentucky in the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Alabama.

The 2011 West Virginia Mountaineers football team represented West Virginia University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season as members of the Big East Conference. The Mountaineers were led by Dana Holgorsen, who was in his first season as head coach. West Virginia played their home games on Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia. They finished the season 10–3, 5–2 in Big East play to earn a share of the Big East Conference championship with Cincinnati and Louisville. The Mountaineers, in their final season in the Big East before moving to the Big 12 the following season, earned the league's automatic berth in the BCS due to being the highest ranked of the Big East champions in the final BCS rankings. They were invited to the Orange Bowl for the first time ever where they defeated Clemson 70–33. This was the third victory for West Virginia in three BCS games played in the BCS era, while the 70 points in the Orange Bowl set a record for most points scored in a bowl game.

The 2012–13 Big East Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2012 and ended with the 2013 Big East men's basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden March 12–16, 2013 in Manhattan, New York. The regular season began in November, with the conference schedule starting on December 31, 2012. 2012-13 marked the 34th year of the Big East, and the 2013 men's basketball Championship marked the 31st anniversary of the Big East at Madison Square Garden, the longest-running conference tournament at one venue in the country. With West Virginia now in the Big 12, the 2012-13 Big East Conference schedule included 4 repeat games.

The 2012 Cincinnati Bearcats football team represented the University of Cincinnati as a member of the Big East Conference during the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Bearcats, led by third-year head coach Butch Jones, played their home games at Nippert Stadium. They finished the season 10–3 overall and 5–2 in Big East play to place in a four-way tie for the conference championship. Along with Rutgers, Louisville, and Syracuse, the Bearcats were the final football champions of the Big East Conference, as the league's original incarnation folded following the loss of the three former programs and others to different conferences. Cincinnati became a charter member of the American Athletic Conference the following season.

The 2012–13 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games. They concluded the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season, and included 35 team-competitive games and four all-star games. The games began on Saturday, December 15, 2012, and, aside from the all-star games, concluded with the 2013 BCS National Championship Game in Miami Gardens, Florida that was played on January 7, 2013.

The 2012 Russell Athletic Bowl was a postseason American college football bowl game held on December 28, 2012, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida in the United States. This was the first under the Russell Athletic moniker after eight game under Champs Sports. The 23rd edition of the Russell Athletic Bowl began at 5:30 p.m. EST and aired on ESPN. It featured the Big East Conference co-champion Rutgers Scarlet Knights against the Virginia Tech Hokies from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), and was the final game of the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season for both teams. The Hokies accepted their invitation after achieving a 6–6 record in the regular season, while the Scarlet Knights accepted theirs after achieving a 9–3 record.

The 2013 American Athletic Conference football season was the 23rd NCAA Division I FBS football season of the American Athletic Conference. The season was the first after the breakup of the former Big East Conference, which lasted in its original form from its creation in 1979 until July 2013. The charter of the former Big East was retained by The American, henceforth the legal status as the 23rd season overall.

The 2014 American Athletic Conference football season was the 24th NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision football season of the American Athletic Conference. The season was the second since the breakup of the former Big East Conference, which lasted in its original form from its creation in 1979 until 2013.

References

↑ "BIG EAST Member Schools". bigeast.org. Archived from the original on October 17, 2011. Retrieved February 7, 2012.
↑ Adelson, Andrea. "WVU settles suit, to join Big 12 in July". ESPN.
↑ McMurphy, Brett; Katz, Andy; O'Neil, Dana (February 28, 2013). "Sources: Xavier, Butler also joining". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
↑ "New Name in College Sports – Current BIG EAST Enters New Era as 'American Athletic Conference'" (Press release). Big East Conference. April 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 7, 2013. Retrieved April 3, 2013.
↑ "West Virginia routs Clemson in record-setting Orange Bowl". ESPN.com. January 4, 2012. Archived from the original on January 5, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
↑ "Louisville Chosen as BIG EAST Football Favorite". XOS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 4, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
1 2 3 "Sunday Football Roundup – Plenty At Stake Heading Into Final Week of Regular Season" (Press release). Big East Conference. November 25, 2012. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
↑ "Nassib, Smallwood and McManus Take Weekly Football Awards". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved September 3, 2012.
↑ "USF's Davis, Cincinnati's Stewart, Rutgers' Jones Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
↑ "Sunseri, Smallwood, Williams Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on November 15, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
↑ "Nova, Bushell, McManus Take Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2012.
↑ "Cincinnati Trio Earns BIG EAST Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved October 1, 2012.
↑ "Harris, Sharpe, Miliano Take Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2012.
↑ "Perry, Greene, McManus Earn Weekly Football Accolades". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
↑ "Lemon, Greene, Williams Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved November 11, 2012.
↑ "NCAA FBS Accumulated Attendance Report" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved October 15, 2012.
1 2 "Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater named Big East Offensive Player of the Year". nj.com. December 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.

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[1] "BIG EAST Member Schools". bigeast.org. Archived from the original on October 17, 2011. Retrieved February 7, 2012.

[2] Adelson, Andrea. "WVU settles suit, to join Big 12 in July". ESPN.

[Catholic_7_keep_Big_East_name-3] McMurphy, Brett; Katz, Andy; O'Neil, Dana (February 28, 2013). "Sources: Xavier, Butler also joining". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 28, 2013.

[AAC-4] "New Name in College Sports – Current BIG EAST Enters New Era as 'American Athletic Conference'" (Press release). Big East Conference. April 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 7, 2013. Retrieved April 3, 2013.

[espn-5] "West Virginia routs Clemson in record-setting Orange Bowl". ESPN.com. January 4, 2012. Archived from the original on January 5, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2012.

[6] "Louisville Chosen as BIG EAST Football Favorite". XOS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 4, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2012.

[Final_week_scenarios-7] 1 2 3 "Sunday Football Roundup – Plenty At Stake Heading Into Final Week of Regular Season" (Press release). Big East Conference. November 25, 2012. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved November 26, 2012.

[8] "Nassib, Smallwood and McManus Take Weekly Football Awards". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on September 5, 2012. Retrieved September 3, 2012.

[9] "USF's Davis, Cincinnati's Stewart, Rutgers' Jones Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2012.

[10] "Sunseri, Smallwood, Williams Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on November 15, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2012.

[11] "Nova, Bushell, McManus Take Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved September 24, 2012.

[12] "Cincinnati Trio Earns BIG EAST Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved October 1, 2012.

[13] "Harris, Sharpe, Miliano Take Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on October 12, 2012. Retrieved October 8, 2012.

[14] "Perry, Greene, McManus Earn Weekly Football Accolades". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on April 14, 2013. Retrieved October 15, 2012.

[15] "Lemon, Greene, Williams Earn Weekly Football Honors". Big East Conference. Archived from the original on November 18, 2012. Retrieved November 11, 2012.

[16] "NCAA FBS Accumulated Attendance Report" (PDF). NCAA. Retrieved October 15, 2012.

[BEAwards-17] 1 2 "Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater named Big East Offensive Player of the Year". nj.com. December 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2012.

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v t e Big East Conference football
Teams (2012)	Cincinnati Bearcats Louisville Cardinals Pittsburgh Panthers Rutgers Scarlet Knights South Florida Bulls Syracuse Orange Temple Owls UConn Huskies
Former teams	Boston College Eagles Miami Hurricanes Virginia Tech Hokies West Virginia Mountaineers
Championships & awards	All-time standings Big East Conference football awards
Seasons	1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Big East Conference (1979–2013) American Athletic Conference (2013–present)

v t e 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season
Conference seasons	ACC Big 12 Big East Big Ten Conference USA Mid-American Mountain West Pac-12 SEC Sun Belt WAC
Inter-conference	Bowl games Rankings
All-Americans	2012 College Football All-America Team