The conference is having further issues this week off the field (TCU left for the Big XII before they even got to the Big East, Louisville is a target for the Big XII as well). On the field, the conference didn't do so hot in Week Five either. The Positive Impact Factor (what's this?) is back to update the quarterback play and the defenses' performance against the opposing quarterbacks.
| Rank | Quarterback | Team | Touches | Total TD | Neg Play | XNeg Play | XPos Play | PIF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | B.J. Daniels | South Florida | 213 | 11 | 32.9 | 3.3 | 5.2 | 69 |
| 2. | Zach Collaros | Cincinnati | 171 | 13 | 33.3 | 17.5 | 7.6 | 56.8 |
| 3. | Will Stein | Louisville | 102 | 5 | 38.2 | 15.8 | 4.9 | 50.9 |
| 4. | Chas Dodd | Rutgers | 137 | 6 | 46 | 10.3 | 4.4 | 48 |
| 5. | Ryan Nassib | Syracuse | 177 | 9 | 36.2 | 25.6 | 5.1 | 43.3 |
| 6. | Tino Sunseri | Pittsburgh | 211 | 6 | 37.4 | 22.2 | 2.8 | 43.2 |
| 7. | Geno Smith | West Virginia | 226 | 12 | 36.7 | 38.8 | 5.3 | 29.8 |
| 8. | Johnny McEntee | Connecticut | 144 | 6 | 51.4 | 26.8 | 4.2 | 26 |
Not all of the names currently on the chart here will necessarily stay there. Will Stein will be bumped off by Teddy Bridgewater soon if Stein can't return to the field as a starter. The same goes for Chas Dodd, who might have lost his job to Gary Nova. B.J. Daniels got to first place this week despite a big loss to Pitt because of a poor outing from Zach Collaros against Miami (Ohio). Ryan Nassib got bitten by the turnover bug, but as you'll see below, that's happened to quarterbacks who've played Rutgers this season. Tino Sunseri got a big boost from his game against South Florida even though he stayed in sixth place. Geno Smith and Johnny McEntee can relate to Sunseri as they also saw their rating go up while their position in the standings remained unchanged.
Now for the defenses:
| Rank | Team | Touches | Total TD | Neg Play | XNeg Play | XPos Play | PIF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Rutgers | 153 | 4 | 46.4 | 44.6 | 2.6 | 11.6 |
| 2. | Cincinnati | 199 | 9 | 38.7 | 52.5 | 4.5 | 13.4 |
| 3. | Connecticut | 210 | 7 | 43.3 | 29.4 | 3.3 | 30.6 |
| 4. | South Florida | 222 | 8 | 40.5 | 31.3 | 3.6 | 31.8 |
| 5. | West Virginia | 176 | 5 | 38.6 | 30 | 2.8 | 34.2 |
| 6. | Syracuse | 256 | 11 | 39.5 | 15.6 | 4.3 | 49.3 |
| 7. | Pittsburgh | 265 | 7 | 37.7 | 11.3 | 2.6 | 53.6 |
| 8. | Louisville | 163 | 6 | 38 | 12 | 3.7 | 53.6 |
After their overtime win against Syracuse, Rutgers moved up to the #1 defense spot this week. Now that Pitt's Tino Sunseri is improving he will have to play the Scarlet Knights this weekend. Like Rutgers, it will be interesting to see if Cincinnati can keep up their play against opposing quarterbacks. The Bearcats have fallen to second in defensive PIF after a large lead on the league because of some inconsistent play. Connecticut got lit up by Western Michigan's Alex Carder but moved up because South Florida's rating fell further in a loss to Pittsburgh. West Virginia is moving up the list rapidly which is not good news for teams trying to challenge the Mountaineers for the league title. Syracuse climbed out of the cellar even though they didn't beat Rutgers while the Cards dropped to last after a loss to Marshall. Pittsburgh has been one of the best teams at stopping quarterbacks from producing touchdowns but they need to cause more turnovers to get their rating higher.
Check out previous weeks of the Big East Positive Impact Factor: