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Heading into this Saturday it seemed like the Notre Dame Fighting Irish were well on their way to a seventh victory and a berth in either the Gator or Sun Bowl. All they had to do was beat Syracuse, playing for a recently dismissed head coach in Greg Robinson and dead last in the Big East. But while the Orange haven't played particularly well this season, you can't accuse this team of quitting. What ensued was one of the more stunning results of the day, with Syracuse stunning the Irish 24-23 on a late touchdown pass. Where do the Irish go from here?

"Rivalry Week" is here, and there are some very intriguing games outside of the big ones that every outlet seems to be talking about. While not a rivalry game, Cincinnati can essentially put away the Big East with a win over Pittsburgh in the Queen City. With the Bearcats having one conference game after the showdown with the Panthers (hosting Syracuse...slim chance they lose that one), it may present West Virginia fans with a serious dilemma: do you root for bitter rival Pitt in order to keep your conference title hopes alive (WVU lost in overtime to Cincy already)?

Well Billy and I are back with three more big games to preview on "Rivalry Week", and the three games in this piece all have conference title implications. One of those game will have a direct impact on the national title hunt, while another is a rivalry marked by its hatred spiced up by a possible BCS berth on the line. The third game features the nation's largest rivalry trophy that can be carried (the Fremont Cannon between UNLV and Nevada has them beat) along with the stakes of a Rose Bowl berth.

Four games are on the schedule before Saturday, with the big one being an ACC Coastal showdown between #23 Miami (7-3, 4-2) and Georgia Tech (7-3, 4-3). The Hurricanes, currently in the driver's seat in the division, need a win to keep that status since North Carolina lurks just one game behind in the standings. And with the Heels due to take on NC State and Duke to end the season, a loss here could essentially hand the division to a Carolina team that has already defeated Miami and Georgia Tech.

Cheerleader of the Day

Thanks to our friends over at Icon Sports Media, CHN has access to thousands of great college & NBA basketball photos.  Each day, along with our daily Big Picture, we'll be featuring a Cheerleader (or Dancer) of the Day.

Oregon

Before getting into a preview of the games on tap for Tuesday and Wednesday, there may be an important development in the BCS. Not who plays in it but which network televises the games. ESPN, according to may sources, is on the verge of acquiring the rights to the BCS from 2011-2014 with Fox unlikely to match their offer. If you're like me, you scratched your head the past few years and wondered why a network that devotes little time to college football during the regular season gets to show the season's biggest games.

"Revenge Saturday" came and passed without any major surprises, although we were almost treated to one in Baton Rouge. LSU fell behind Troy 31-3 early in the third quarter, but luckily for them and the fans that remained in Tiger Stadium they woke up and pulled out the 40-31 victory. The strange thing about the Tigers' offensive struggles in the first half was that they were a result of poor play period, not the crippling Jarrett Lee interceptions that have killed them in big games.

A light week on the college football slate in regards to big games, but that's rather appropriate for this site since it also coincides with the first weekend of college basketball. So, is there a VMI amongst the schools playing Saturday, maybe a San Diego State or Indiana hoping to shoot down a conference foe's hopes of a conference title? Doubtful, but there are a few games Saturday that you should pay attention to, be it for the actual play or some other issues on or off the field. Here's the schedule for Saturday.

Cheerleader of the Day

Thanks to our friends over at Icon Sports Media, CHN has access to thousands of great college & NBA basketball photos.  Each day, along with our daily Big Picture, we'll be featuring a Cheerleader (or Dancer) of the Day. In September & October, we'll be rolling out some girls of the gridiron.

A rivalry that in recent years switched from the Big East to the ACC takes center stage on Thursday night, as Virginia Tech (6-3, 3-2 ACC Coastal) visits Miami (6-3, 3-2) at 7:30 PM on ESPN. The winner gets a leg up in the unpredictable Coastal Division race, while the loser would be in serious trouble. Although Miami has a 16-9 advantage in the series, the Hokies have the upper hand of late winning nine of the last thirteen meetings. A star was born last Thursday night for Virginia Tech, with redshirt freshman Darren Lewis rushing for 253 yards in their win over Maryland.