Cincinnati Bearcats News

CINCINNATI-One bad afternoon, one ugly blemish in the Big East.

Oregon has taken the Pac-10 by storm and has supplanted USC as the highest ranked team in the conference. Texas held off Oklahoma State with ease in a battle for the Big 12 lead. In small conference news, Troy defeated Louisiana Monroe for sole lead of the Sun Belt. The top teams shifted a little with USC's loss. Cincinnati jumped into the four team playoff while Oregon took USC's place in the eight team playoff. Virginia Tech fell out of the larger playoffs after its loss to UNC, to be... replaced by Pittsmore>>

"And the 2009 Heisman Trophy goes to the Cincinnati quarterback."? That's right, if the Heisman Trophy was being presented in this, the 10th week of the college football season, the dual entry of Tony Pike and Zach Collaros would claim the prize for the Bearcats.

CINCINNATI-X-rays show Tony Pike's non-passing forearm is healing nicely, so he'll be able to practice with No. 4 Cincinnati this week wearing a new splint instead of his bulky cast.

Each week, Sporting News' Matt Hayes ranks the Division I-A conferences and the teams within each league. Conf. rankings No. 1 SEC No. 2 Pac-10 No. 3 Big Ten No. 4 ACC No. 5 Big 12 No. 6 Big East Nos. 7-11 6. Big East 1. Cincinnati 2. Pitt 3.... South Florida 4. West Virginia 5. Rutgers 6. Connecticut 7. Syracuse 8. Louisville Rising Rutgers: Six wins in seven games is impressive enough. Doing it with a true freshman quarterback (Tom Savage) who has thrown one interception in 168 attempts is remarkable. Falling Connecticut: It gets a lot harder on the field for a program still dealing with tragedy: Games at Cincinnati and Notre Dame could lead to a four-game losing streak. Matt Hayes covers college football for Sporting News. E-mail him at mhayes@sportingnews.com.more>>

Following the season-pausing injury to sixth-year senior quarterback Tony Pike, the undefeated Cincinnati Bearcats have not missed a beat, thanks to sophomore Zach Collaros.

CINCINNATI-Tony Pike will practice with fourth-ranked Cincinnati this week, his status still uncertain because of an injury to his non-passing arm.

The cream has risen to the top of the BCS standings this week as the top seven spots belong to the seven remaining undefeated teams, Jerry Palm says.

Sporting News college football expert Matt Hayes projects the BCS bowl games: BCS national championship game: Florida vs. Texas Rose Bowl: Oregon vs. Iowa Fiesta Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Penn State Sugar Bowl: Alabama vs. TCU Orange Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Georgia Tech Matt Hayes covers college football for Sporting News. E-mail him at mhayes@sportingnews.com.