ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Brian Bennett

• Cincinnati has a senior-laden defense and a favorable home schedule. The Bearcats better take advantage by protecting Nippert Stadium, Bill Koch writes in the Cincinnati Enquirer.
• South Florida's Big East hopes are already on life support, and that haunts the team's veterans, Brett McMurphy writes in the Tampa Tribune.
• "Why can't we win championships?" senior linebacker Tyrone McKenzie said. "It's just mind-boggling. We have just as much or more talent than anyone in the conference. We work hard and these coaches work so hard, why can't it be us? It's mind-boggling."
• The Syracuse offense hasn't been much better with Cam Dantley at quarterback, Donnie Webb says in the Syracuse Post-Standard. Might Andrew Robinson get another chance soon?
• The Pittsburgh-Notre Dame series has featured numerous star performances over the years and could do so again this weekend with LeSean McCoy and Jimmy Clausen, Kevin Gorman writes in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
• West Virginia is dead last among 119 FBS teams in kickoff coverage, and Ellis Lankster has been shaky fielding punts, Dave Hickman notes in the Charleston Gazette.
• UConn can't explain why it's so much better at home than on the road, but the Huskies hope the trend continues this Saturday against West Virginia, Dave Solomon writes in the New Haven Register.
• Scott Long's Louisville teammates plan on wearing his No. 84 in games the rest of the season to show support for the wide receiver, who's out for the season with a knee injury, Rick Bozich writes in The Courier-Journal.