ESPN College Football

Weather could have a major impact on two Big East games this weekend.

Officials from West Virginia and East Carolina are keeping watch on Hanna, which has been downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm but could gain intensity and slam the North Carolina coast as soon as Friday.

East Carolina's Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium is nearly two hours inland but could still feel the effects. The Charleston Daily Mail assessed the possibilities if the game has to be moved:

WVU and ECU don't have mutual open dates through the end of the season and it's unlikely either team would want to play after the planned conclusion of the regular season. Options for alternate sites are thin, too. Wake Forest and N.C. State both play at home, though North Carolina is off and plays the following week at Rutgers.

A game Sunday would be possible if the Pirates don't object to a short week before playing at Tulane the following Saturday. WVU is off the next week before playing at Colorado Sept. 18.

"It's a heck of a burden on your fans," West Virginia AD Ed Pastilong said. "It's one thing to move the game to a different date, but there's also the fans and all their planning and we have to make sure to take that into consideration.

"We also need to take into consideration the competitiveness of the date for both teams if you do move it because of how it affects future games and opponents.

"The most important thing is you don't want anyone put in an unsafe position. But we all know from watching the Weather Channel these storms change suddenly sometimes, so we'll keep an eye on it."

Meanwhile, heavy rain and wind are in the forecast Saturday at Philadelphia, where Connecticut will take on Temple. The storm is not expected to be bad enough to postpone the game, but both teams may have to play under difficult conditions.

"It's nothing I'm really concerned about until we go out there and play," UConn coach Randy Edsall said today. "You can't simulate a wind tunnel or that kind of rain, so we'll just deal with whatever we have Saturday at noontime as best we can."