ESPN.com is counting down the Top 25 most prestigious football programs of all time this week.

Don't waste any time looking for Big East teams in that group.

That's right, none of the eight league teams cracked the Top 25 in our prestige rankings, which are based on a number of categories from the past 72 years including national titles, 10-win seasons, major bowl wins, All-Americans and others.

Here are where the Big East teams stand in these rankings:

• 27. Pittsburgh

• 29. Syracuse

• 34. West Virginia

• 59. Louisville

• 82. Cincinnati

• 87. South Florida

• 90. Connecticut

• 101. Rutgers

Of course, these results shouldn't be too surprising. South Florida and Connecticut just started playing FBS-level football this decade. Rutgers had only been to one bowl game in its history before Greg Schiano came along. Cincinnati and Louisville didn't do much for decades. Syracuse and Pittsburgh have won national titles but also have had some down periods.

Keep in mind too that conference titles and conference win-loss records factored into this formula. The Big East started in 1990 and most teams in the league had no conference affiliation for most of their history. Strip away the conference portions of the formula, and the Big East has three teams in the Top 31:

• 23. Pittsburgh

• 27. Syracuse

• 31. West Virginia.

This is simply not a league with a lot of history, outside of a few programs. Take a more modern approach to these rankings and the Big East looks better. Here are the prestige rankings for the BCS era only:

• 17. West Virginia

• 22. Louisville

• 38. Cincinnati

• 49. Syracuse

• 51. Pittsburgh

• 76. South Florida

• 77. Connecticut

• 85. Rutgers

No one would say the Big East is the most prestigious conference in college football, but fortunes for the league should only improve. West Virginia has established itself as a perennial Top 25 program. South Florida seems to be on the verge of becoming a power. Rutgers continues to build with its talent-rich recruiting base and New York City market. Pittsburgh may have turned the corner under Dave Wannstedt, while Cincinnati and UConn are definitely on an upward climb. The league needs Syracuse to recapture its former glory and for Louisville to get back on track.

Check back in another 72 years.