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For full coverage of the Michigan State-Ohio State matchup, click here.

Friday

Iona at Loyola (ESPNU, 7 p.m. ET): Loyola coach Jimmy Patsos was peeved that his squad was left out of the TV BracketBusters games. Well, this one is on TV and it’s a shot for the Greyhounds to let the rest of the country know that the more publicized Gaels aren’t the only team in the MAAC. The teams are tied atop the league. This should be the MAAC tournament final, with one of the two earning the bid in Springfield, Mass., next month.

Saturday

Louisville at West Virginia (ESPN, noon ET): The Cardinals are rolling while the Mountaineers haven’t been the same since losing to Syracuse and failing to get that goaltending call on Jan. 28. If West Virginia doesn’t stop Louisville in transition, the Mountaineers are in serious trouble. But you have to expect WVU will get this win at home.

Virginia at North Carolina (ESPN3, 1 p.m. ET): The Cavaliers can disrupt the Tar Heels and control the tempo. The key will be how the Heels respond to their disheartening loss Wednesday to Duke. UNC is the more talented team, but are the Tar Heels mentally tough enough to bounce back and beat a disciplined Cavs squad?

Miami at Florida State (ESPN3, 1 p.m. ET): The Seminoles had to take care of business against the bottom of the ACC. But they didn’t for the second time when they were stunned at Boston College on Wednesday. Miami comes in on a roll after following up its win Sunday over Duke with a victory over Virginia Tech on Thursday. This could be one of the most evenly matched ACC games -- not involving Duke or Carolina -- the rest of the conference season.

Connecticut at Syracuse (1 p.m. ET): The Huskies need to show some pride and play well at Syracuse. Orange coach Jim Boeheim wasn’t at all pleased with his team’s effort Wednesday against Georgetown. UConn, meanwhile, is coming off a brutal performance Monday at Louisville. The Orange have more talent, depth and experience. UConn needs to create havoc on the defensive end to have a shot and Andre Drummond and Alex Oriakhi better play one of their best games to control the post.

Baylor at Missouri (ESPN3, 1:30 p.m. ET): The Bears got worked over by Kansas at home; Missouri is coming off a gritty victory at Oklahoma after beating Kansas in Columbia last Saturday. Separation has occurred in the Big 12, with Missouri and Kansas a game ahead of Baylor. The Bears had better find a way to defend. Missouri already proved it can win against a taller set. If Missouri wins, Baylor would not have beaten Mizzou or Kansas this season.

VCU at Old Dominion (2 p.m. ET): This should come as no surprise: VCU is on a roll and atop the CAA with Drexel and George Mason. ODU is a game behind after losing last week at Mason. If the Monarchs want a shot at the CAA title, they probably have to win this game. ODU gets one more shot at one of the leaders, hosting Drexel to end the season. All four are postseason teams, but only one might be in the NCAAs.

Wyoming at New Mexico (3:30 p.m. ET): The Lobos won where UNLV could not -- at Wyoming. New Mexico has quietly put together a potential MWC title season. UNM is tied with UNLV and a game behind San Diego State. This is another chance to stay in stride with the Rebels and Aztecs.

San Diego State at UNLV (4 p.m. ET): The Aztecs knocked off the Rebels in the final second Jan. 14 at Viejas Arena. Each has suffered a surprising road loss since, at Colorado State and Wyoming, respectively. Thomas & Mack will be rocking. The key will be if the Aztecs can again keep the Rebs off the backboards in key moments.

Wichita State at Creighton (ESPN2, 5 p.m. ET): The Bluejays are reeling, by their Missouri Valley standards, after losing two straight. Wichita State lost at home to Creighton on Dec. 31, and if the Shockers want to win the Valley regular-season title, they need to win this game. Don’t be surprised if this ends up being game two of three between these two Valley favorites. A meeting in St. Louis seems inevitable.

Kentucky at Vanderbilt (ESPN, 9 p.m. ET): The Wildcats have reached the toughest part of their road schedule -- at Vandy, at Mississippi State and at Florida before the end of the regular season. The Commodores certainly have the talent, experience and some beef to deal with Kentucky. But can they finish against UK, or any elite team? Vandy isn’t going to win the SEC. But this is a huge confidence game for the NCAAs.

Xavier at Temple (ESPN2, 9 p.m. ET): The Musketeers have been erratic. Temple hasn’t always been healthy. The Owls appear to be the front-runners in the A-10 -- at least at this point -- but X can upstage Temple with a victory in Philadelphia. This could be a decisive win for the Owls in their quest to win the league outright.

With one month remaining in the regular season, the battle for the Wooden Award appears to be a two-man race between Kentucky’s Anthony Davis and Kansas’ Thomas Robinson. Right now I’m leaning toward Davis, the projected No. 1 pick in this summer’s NBA draft. But you could definitely make an argument for Robinson, too. There are still plenty of opportunities for each to impress -- or regress. Here’s how I’d vote if the season ended today.

1. Anthony Davis, Kentucky - The 6-foot-10 Davis averaged 19 points, 7 rebounds and 6 blocks in the Wildcats’ most recent victories over South Carolina and Florida. He shot a collective 17-of-23 from the field in those two games. Davis’ presence alone affects the game on the defensive end.
2. Thomas Robinson, Kansas - Robinson had 20 points and 17 rebounds in a victory over Oklahoma before erupting for 25 and 13 in Saturday’s 74-71 loss at Missouri. When he’s playing his best, Robinson might be the toughest player in the country to stop in the paint. He’ll be tested Wednesday by Baylor’s Quincy Acy and Perry Jones III.
3. Kevin Jones, West Virginia - The senior forward continues to post gaudy stats - he’s scored 20 or more points in nine consecutive games - but his team is struggling. The Mountaineers have lost three of their past four contests, with the only victory coming in overtime against Big East bottom-feeder Providence. Impossible as it might seem, West Virginia may need Jones to do even more.
4. Jared Sullinger, Ohio State - The versatile Buckeyes forward averaged 21 points and 8 rebounds in victories over Wisconsin and Purdue. College basketball fans - and Wooden Award voters - have grown used to seeing Sullinger post impressive stat lines. It’d be a shame if they started taking him for granted.
5. Doug McDermott, Creighton - The Bluejays sophomore has averaged 21.3 points and 8.3 rebounds in the three games since the last Wooden Award ballot was released. Creighton, though, lost back-to-back contests at Northern Iowa and Evansville during that span. The setbacks certainly aren’t McDermott’s fault — but it’s definitely on him to make sure they don’t become a trend. Saturday’s home game against Wichita State is huge.

On the cusp:

Perry Jones III, Baylor - Jones has scored 15 or more points in each of his past four games, but he’ll need to be more assertive than ever if the Bears have any hope of defeating Kansas in Waco, Texas, on Wednesday.

So much for a slow Saturday. College basketball fans and pundits alike should know better by now, but we always assume the worst on a supposedly “slow” weekend.

Let’s change the rules, based on what we’ve seen today. If you survey the weekend slate and you can’t find any meaningful games and potential upsets that you’re overly interested in, that means it’s time to call Earl and the crew (everybody has a friend named Earl), stock the fridge and get ready for some good basketball. If this was a lukewarm weekend in college basketball, what qualifies as a great one?

Iowa State 72, No. 5 Kansas 64

Many laughed when Fred Hoiberg began his tenure at Iowa State by recruiting from a pool of players known for their checkered pasts. Royce White, who left Minnesota two seasons ago after a tumultuous stay, led the bunch. But Hoiberg looks like a genius right now after the Cyclones handed No. 5 KU its first Big 12 loss of the season. The win snapped both the Jayhawks' 13-game winning streak over Iowa State and their 10-game overall winning streak (they hadn’t lost since Dec. 19).

The postgame court-storming was well-deserved for the 'Clones and their fans. Hoiberg has as much job security as any coach in the country based on his legendary career in Ames, which allowed him to pursue so many transfers without worry. In other words, he’d get a mulligan if things didn’t work out.

Against Kansas, however, Hoiberg proved that he’s more than a risk-taking recruiter. He can coach, too. Iowa State, a squad that suffered an 82-73 loss at Kansas on Jan. 14, led by three points at halftime. But that didn’t last. The Jayhawks scored 11 unanswered points early in the second half. The crowd’s energy dropped after that KU run, but Iowa State kept fighting, something it had failed to do down the stretch in its earlier loss to the Jayhawks.

White led the charge. With his team leading 56-53 and five minutes to play, he scored the Cyclones' next eight points (three straight layups and a pair of free throws). He entered the game as a 51 percent free throw shooter -- ISU was the Big 12’s worst free throw shooting team at 61 percent overall -- but he was 6-for-8 from the charity stripe in the second half. He finished with a team-high 18 points, nine rebounds and five assists, making up for his six turnovers. The team was 25-for-34 from the charity stripe.

So yes, the same Iowa State squad that lost at Drake Nov. 15 looks like an NCAA tournament team right now -- no matter what my colleague Doug Gottlieb might tweet. At 5-3, the Cyclones are off to their best Big 12 start in a dozen years and sure seem like they won't be fading away anytime soon.

No. 4 Syracuse 63, West Virginia 61

It just can’t happen. Not in late January with the stakes so high. Not when it’s so blatant. Officials in this game missed one of the more obvious and critical goaltending calls of the season. In the final seconds, West Virginia's Truck Bryant air-balled a 3-pointer that ended up in Deniz Kilicli’s hands with his team down by a bucket. Kilicli’s layup was swatted away in mid-air by Syracuse's Baye Keita, but replays showed what looked like a clear goaltending violation by Keita. Officials never blew their whistles.

West Virginia got the ball back and Kevin Jones (20 points, eight rebounds) missed a deep 3-pointer to win the game, but the final outcome might have changed had that crew flagged Keita for goaltending. Now granted, WVU had its chances. Brandon Triche (18 points) hit a pair of free throws with a minute and a half to play and the Mountaineers missed four consecutive shots. But the no-call clearly impacted the game.

Syracuse struggled in its third consecutive game without Fab Melo. The Orange just haven’t looked like the same squad without him and his defensive presence. West Virginia secured an astounding plus-21 (41-20) rebounding edge over the Cuse and had nearly as many offensive boards (19) as the Orange had total. How does that happen? It’s not like the Mountaineers are the biggest team in the country. They were just tougher than Syracuse most of the afternoon. And had it not been for that missed goaltending call, West Virginia might have avoided its 13th loss to the Cuse in 14 meetings.

No. 7 Baylor 76, Texas 71

With 4:09 to go, Texas' Myck Kabongo hit a 3-pointer as Pierre Jackson committed a ridiculous foul to put him on the line for a four-point play opportunity. Texas had been down by 12 points early in the second half, but Kabongo’s shot cut Baylor’s advantage to just one. Cameras panned to Baylor coach Scott Drew on the sidelines. He had the “I can’t believe this is happening at home” look on his face.

Perry Jones (22 points, 14 rebounds) was far more aggressive than he’d been in some of his efforts, but Baylor couldn’t keep the pressure on the Longhorns and nearly blew one at home. J’Covan Brown scored 32 points (11-for-22), his third consecutive 30-point effort. But he had way more time to create a better shot than the deep 3-ball he took with 14 seconds on the clock. His team was down by three points in the closing seconds, so I understand why he’d take a deep shot, but he didn’t have to shoot it when he did. He had more time on the clock.

Here’s where you have to have more question marks about Baylor, though. The Bears are at home. Texas shot 36 percent from the field in the first half and was 1-for-12 from beyond the arc before halftime. Seemed like an opportunity for Baylor to flex its muscle. But it turned into another lukewarm finish for the Bears.

No. 13 Florida 69, No. 16 Mississippi State 57

The Bulldogs just couldn’t handle Florida’s inside-outside attack. Patric Young (12 points, six rebounds) was solid for the Gators, especially after halftime. Bradley Beal led the Gators’ talented backcourt with 19 points. The nation’s leaders in 3-point field goals hit 11 of them as they won their fifth straight and 17th in a row at home.

Arnett Moultrie was 4-for-10 and scored 12 points for a Bulldogs team that committed 14 turnovers. It was MSU's third SEC road loss of the season. At 5-3 in league play, they’d better find a way to compete away from home. They’re certainly talented, but the Bulldogs have really struggled on the road. Thought this one would have been a closer game, but give the Gators credit. They can spread teams out with their guard play and minimize their size disadvantages, a tactic they used to perfection against the Bulldogs.

No. 1 Kentucky 74, LSU 50

The Wildcats are in Beast Mode right now. They’re just crushing teams. LSU entered this game following a tight road loss at Mississippi State. But the Wildcats are just a different animal. Terrence Jones led all scorers with a season-high 27 points and the Wildcats held LSU to a 1-for-9 clip from the 3-point line. Just two Tigers reached double figures.

Although LSU is only 2-5 in the SEC, you have to wonder how dangerous the Wildcats can be in March when a guy like Jones can explode despite some inconsistency this season. He entered the game averaging 11.6 ppg and he only scored five points against Georgia on Tuesday. But this game was further proof that Kentucky is a “pick your poison” kind of opponent. How do you defend a team with that number of studs? The Wildcats have so many weapons.

Syracuse is deep. Ohio State has balance. But no team in America looks as potent as Kentucky right now.

Some more observations from the afternoon games ...

• It Happened! It Happened! It Happened! Towson wins! The Tigers had set a record with 41 consecutive Division I losses, but on Saturday, a miracle happened when the Tigers beat UNC Wilmington 66-61 despite a 1-for-8 mark from the 3-point line. Marcus Damas scored 18 points. There were shaky moments late -- the Seahawks hit some late 3s after Towson took a 60-53 lead with 1:25 to play -- but the Tigers held on and a justifiable celebration ensued. For reaction from coach Pat Skerry and the Tigers, read Andy Katz's story in the Nation blog.
• Marquette did its normal slow-start/big-finish thing at Villanova, but Dana O'Neil was at the game, so I'll let her tell you more about it.
• Duke nearly squandered a 22-point second-half lead against a young St. John’s team. The Blue Devils' 83-76 victory over the Red Storm was nothing to hang their hats on. The Devils should be disappointed that they gave up a late run that could have cost them the game.
• Middle Tennessee State and Vanderbilt clashed Saturday in a tight game between the two Tennessee schools. MTSU, 20-2 entering the game, has been one of the bigger surprises on the national scene. The Blue Raiders start four transfers who weren’t with the team last season. But their story hit a roadblock in their 84-77 loss at Vanderbilt. The loss snapped Middle's 12-game winning streak and gave Vandy its fourth win in its past five games.
• Is Pitt about to launch a big comeback this season? I’m not sure. But the Panthers have won two in a row after an impressive 72-60 win over No. 10 Georgetown, their fifth win in their last six meetings with the Hoyas. They lost their first eight Big East games, but Lamar Patterson scored a team-high 18 points and Ashton Gibbs added 13 for the Panthers, who have now won an incredible 12 straight home games against top-10 opponents.
• The Mountain West Conference is legit. Proof? No. 12 San Diego State took a tough 77-60 road loss at Colorado State on Saturday, despite Jamaal Franklin’s 24 points. After a brutal travel week in the Rockies, the loss snapped SDSU’s 11-game overall winning streak and its 58-game win streak against unranked foes, which had been the longest such run in the country. Colorado State’s dwindling at-large hopes certainly got a huge boost with this victory, the school's first over a ranked team since 2004.

For one scary moment, Perry Jones III feared he was done for a long time.

Baylor's big man was writhing on the court in pain and wasn’t sure he could come back into the game, let alone how much of the season might be missed.

Jones had knocked knees with BYU’s Brandon Davies atop the perimeter on a drive with 1:26 left and his seventh-ranked Bears up 84-83. Without its star forward, Baylor looked like it might lose not only the game, but its shot at a glorious season.

“I was scared,’’ Jones told ESPN.com by phone Saturday. “I couldn’t move my leg on my own. I thought I tore something.’’

But Jones quickly made a decision while on the bench.

He wanted back in.

“I didn’t want to let my team down,’’ Jones said. “I just wanted to ignore the pain, get to the weak side and get the rebound. I was there at the right time.’’

Jones’ tip-in follow with 21 seconds left gave Baylor an 86-83 lead.

“That was huge,’’ BU coach Scott Drew said. “What was really special is that normally a player gets injured, limps around and doesn’t make the big play. He got the big play.’’

Brigham Young had one more chance to tie the game when Davies had a 3-pointer at the buzzer. But Pierre Jackson, a 5-foot-10 guard, came from the side and blocked the 6-9 forward’s shot.

“I was closest to him,’’ Jackson said after the Bears' 86-83 victory. “I know I can jump pretty high. I wanted to contest it but I happened to block it. It was a big block, and it saved the game for us.’’

Drew said Jackson is as athletic a player as Baylor has and that he wasn’t surprised Jackson found a way to block Davies’ shot.

Jones, a clear contender for All-America status and Big 12 player of the year, finished with a career-high 28 points and eight rebounds, while Jackson added 13 off the bench. Brady Heslip made six of 10 shots from beyond the arc and finished with 18 for the Bears.

Baylor hadn’t been tested yet this season, blowing out all its competition, even in the one previous road game at Northwestern.

So Drew wasn’t sure how his team would handle going into the Marriott Center, a notorious graveyard for BYU opponents.

“You’re not going to find a tougher atmosphere in college,’’ Drew said. “They were 48-2 in their last 50 games. This definitely gets us ready for Big 12 play and tells us a lot about our team. It showed we know how to execute at the end of games. Toughness is required to win on the road. We weren’t ready early on, and we got dominated on the glass.’’

The Cougars added UCLA transfer Matt Carlino for this game, and he tied Davies for the team lead with 18 points. But Baylor did have length, size and depth advantage in the frontcourt with BYU missing sixth man Stephen Rogers.

However, it was Cal transfer guard Gary Franklin who played a key role Saturday. He made two 3s in 12 minutes, but Drew said Franklin’s defense was just as crucial.

“Normally you like to bring in a player that you add midseason for a home game,’’ Drew said. “But he was tremendous. He guarded very well.’’

It's pretty clear the Bears are more than capable of competing for the Big 12 title and a deep run in March, possibly long enough to get to New Orleans.

But there still are some potholes ahead. Baylor plays Saint Mary’s and West Virginia in Las Vegas next week, and then squares off with Mississippi State on Dec. 28 in Dallas.

The length of Arnett Moultrie and size of Renardo Sidney will certainly test Jones, Quincy Miller and Quincy Acy, while Heslip, Franklin, Jackson and A.J. Walton will have their hands full with Dee Bost and Rodney Hood.

So plenty of tests remain for the unbeaten Bears. But one of the biggest of all was passed in Provo.

“We got through the adversity together,’’ Jones said. “We just have to play smarter and play better together.’’

Baylor coach Scott Drew said he relishes the idea of playing at BYU’s Marriott Center on Saturday for what will easily be the Bears’ toughest game to date. The Cougars have been nearly unbeatable, with one loss in the past 49 games at the Marriott Center. BYU coach Dave Rose said the Cougars will have to pick up the pace to get space on rebounding against the Bears.

BYU likely won’t be able to rebound in the halfcourt against Baylor’s length (see Perry Jones III and Quincy Acy). This game has to be up and down for BYU to have a shot. Meanwhile, the Bears get Cal transfer guard Gary Franklin eligible for this game, deepening an already solid perimeter.

ARLINGTON -- Playing a nonconference game in the middle of the season wasn't an ideal situation for TCU coach Gary Patterson. Now he's past that and ready to jump back into the Mountain West schedule.

The Horned Frogs (6-2) beat BYU 38-28 Friday night and head back into conference at 3-0 with a trip to Wyoming next Saturday.

"We've got to go to Wyoming, always a tough place because of the weather in November," Patterson said. "They're 4-2, they play at San Diego State [on Saturday] and they haven't lost in conference [1-0], so we've got a tough game next week. Every game we've got from now on is that way."

Winning the MWC is a goal for the Frogs in their final year in the league before moving to the Big 12. Should they get past Wyoming, a showdown with No. 5 Boise State awaits on Nov. 12.

"What we said from the beginning is we wanted to be undefeated if possible going into the Boise game and if can win next week we have an opportunity to do that," Patterson said.

ARLINGTON -- Casey Pachall threw for two touchdowns and TCU's defense forced three turnovers as the Horned Frogs survived some anxious moments to outlast BYU 38-28 Friday night at Cowboys Stadium.

TCU (6-2) won its third in a row and reached bowl eligibility for a seventh consecutive season. The Frogs completed their nonconference schedule with a 2-2 record and have beaten the Cougars (6-3) four straight times.

** The Frogs needed only 45 seconds to get their first touchdown and four yards for the second. Pachall hooked up with a wide-open Skye Dawson from 48 yards out on TCU's second play from scrimmage.

The Cougars botched a punt on their first drive, with a low snap setting TCU up inside the 10-yard line. Backup quarterback Matt Brown scored on the first of his two keepers and the Frogs were up 14-0 at the 10:06 mark of the first quarter.

** TCU came into the game mindful of quarterback Riley Nelson's ability to make things happen with his feet. The BYU quarterback proved slippery, especially on designed runs, and a couple of big throws by Nelson helped dig the Cougars out of their early hole.

Nelson's 42-yarder to Ross Apo set up a field goal midway through the first quarter. The Cougars got into the end zone on Michael Alisa's 22-yard reception from Nelson, getting the visitors within 14-10 with two minutes left in the opening period.

** The Horned Frogs were in position to pad their lead at the BYU 47 after safety Jonathon Anderson's spectacular one-handed interception. The Frogs were moving the ball before stalling after a 15-yard penalty for a chop block.

** TCU did get seven on its next possession thanks to another short drive. Greg Burks partially blocked a BYU punt, giving the Frogs the ball on the 37. Running back Ed Wesley's 28-yard sprint to the 2 set up another Brown keeper.

** Another TCU pick -- in the back of the end zone by linebacker Kenny Cain -- thwarted a BYU march in the second quarter. Nelson was under pressure and lofted a prayer, the pass was tipped and Cain tiptoed the back line to come down with it.

** The Frogs went into halftime up 28-10 after Pachall's 33-yard TD pass to Josh Bosh with 36 seconds left in the second period. Pachall had all day to find the sophomore receiver sprinting alone down the right hash.

** Another punting miscue by BYU on its first possession of the third quarter led to another Frogs' touchdown. TCU went 38 yards on four plays, capped by Waymon James' short run.

** The Cougars, trailing 35-13, made things interesting with 67-yard punt return touchdown by JD Falslev with 2:20 left in the third. BYU began the fourth driving in TCU territory, but coughed up the ball on the 29 after fumbling away a lateral pass.

** TCU takes a 6-5 lead in series history with BYU. The Frogs and Cougars have met for seven straight years, the first six in the Mountain West before this nonconference game. There are no plans presently to continue to series.

** The official attendance was 50,094, which was impressive considering the Texas Rangers were in Game 7 of the World Series. Playing at Cowboys Stadium made sense with Amon G. Carter Stadium currently seating about 35,000 due to construction.

It appears as if the Big East is ready to make a move.

ESPN.com's Andy Katz reported late Friday that the league has sent conditional invitations to Houston and SMU in all sports, and Boise State and Air Force in football only. A separate all-sports invitation has been sent to UCF.

According to Katz, if Houston, SMU, Boise State and Air Force all agree to join, then the remaining six football-playing schools will agree to increase the exit fee from $5 million to the $10 million range as a show of commitment to the league. But the remaining football playing schools won't commit to raising the fee unless all four say they will join the Big East.

Houston athletic director Mack Rhoades issued a statement late Friday night saying, "We are aware of the growing speculation regarding conference realignment and do not feel it would be appropriate to comment on the possible intentions of another league. We are flattered to be mentioned as an athletics program of national importance and we are grateful for our strong traditions and the dedication of our fans, alumni, staff and student-athletes.”

Earlier in the day, the Mountain West and Conference USA announced the formation of a football alliance. On a conference call announcing the move, C-USA commissioner Britton Banowsky said he had been informed by UCF of its discussions with the Big East. But he said he was unaware of any discussions between SMU, Houston and the Big East. Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson confirmed Boise State and Air Force were in discussions with the Big East. All four of those schools participated in the vote to form the new MWC/C-USA alliance.

TCU appears on the verge of ending its Big East affiliation before it began and going to the Big 12 instead, and it's safe to say its struggling basketball program wasn't much of a factor in that decision-making process. But while the news has Louisville's Rick Pitino disappointed and Kansas State's Frank Martin loving it, perhaps TCU should be reminded that realignment decisions have real consequences for its basketball players, too.

Consider that it was only April when the school announced the signing of Ryan Rhoomes, a 6-foot-9 forward from Middleton, N.Y., who made his decision to come to TCU in part because the school was joining the Big East.

"Since he is from New York, our move to the Big East Conference really helped to create an attractive opportunity for Ryan," coach Jim Christian said then in a statement.

Said Rhoomes: "I picked TCU because I saw an opportunity to come in, play early and help the program. I also wanted to play in the Big East, and I thought it would be good to play in the Mountain West for one season as a freshman, get with the program and go from there."

Rhoomes is currently dealing with eligibility issues and not listed on the team's roster, but it should be noted that only six months after signing up to play for what he believed to be a future Big East School, TCU might soon be breaking that promise.

Of course, Christian is not the one at fault here. He doesn't control realignment scenarios no more than even a more powerful name like Pitino does. But now Christian will have to explain to recruits a new direction for the school and what it means for them.

If TCU chose to go to the Big 12, it would be a decision made with the best interest of it's Rose Bowl-winning football program in mind. And even though basketball isn't at the forefront of those discussions, administrators should know that a potential change of heart also changes things for recruits and players who might have signed up for something different.

ESPN Dallas' Jeff Caplan catches up with TCU quarterback Casey Pachall to discuss the Horned Frogs' opening loss and look ahead to Air Force.

The USA Today Coaches Poll has just been revealed and to no surprise the Oklahoma Sooners are ranked No. 1.

Alabama, Oregon, LSU and Florida State round out the top five. That's good news for Jerry Jones since Cowboys Stadium will feature the Sept. 3 ABC primetime matchup pitting No. 3 Oregon vs. No. 4 LSU.

Oklahoma State starts the season at No. 8 and Texas A&M certainly has plenty to be excited about at No. 9, its highest preseason ranking since 1999. The Aggies return to Cowboys Stadium once again against No. 14 Arkansas on Oct. 1. A&M opens the season on Sunday, Sept. 4 at home against June Jones' SMU Mustangs, a favorite to win Conference USA.

Perhaps a bit of a surprise is the tumble of TCU to No. 15 -- one spot ahead of Ohio State. The Rose Bowl champion Horned Frogs capped last season's 13-0 record with a win over Wisconsin in Pasadena and finished No. 2 in the nation behind national champion Auburn. But, the graduation of quarterback Andy Dalton and some other key starters on both sides of the ball apparently has coaches across the land a bit skeptical that TCU can quickly reboot in its final season in the non-BCS Mountain West Conference. TCU joins the Big East Conference in 2012.

According to the TCU athletic department, the Frogs' streak of being ranked in 42 consecutive polls is the longest in school history and fourth-longest currently in the nation.

Boise State, TCU's new MWC counterpart, starts the season where it ended last season at No. 7. The Frogs play at Boise on Nov. 12, a game originally scheduled to be played at Fort Worth, but moved by the MWC because of TCU's exit.

Texas, one of two teams to crack the top 25 that finished with a losing record last season (Georgia), opens at No. 24. The Bulldogs are No. 22.

School: Texas Christian
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Enrollment: 9,142
Bowl appearances: 24 (11 in BCS era)
NFL first-round picks: 4
Losing seasons: 39
10-win seasons: 8 (7 in BCS era)

Source: ESPN Stats & Info (Note: Numbers date back to 1936, the first year of the AP poll. NFL numbers date back to 1970.)

The good: TCU's program his risen to new heights under coach Gary Patterson, culminating in a Rose Bowl win over Wisconsin after the 2010 season, and membership in a BCS conference (Big East) beginning in 2012. The Horned Frogs have earned a reputation as one of the top programs in Texas of late, which has allowed them to start recruiting like any good AQ-conference team. Continued winning and more BCS bowl appearances (two in the past two seasons) will allow that to continue. Patterson's hard-nosed defense has allowed TCU to rise from also-ran to BCS participant, winning 25 of 26 games in the past two years, and going 36-3 over the past three seasons.

The bad: As a small school, TCU doesn't have the alumni base of some of the larger schools in the state, like Texas and Texas A&M. The Horned Frogs also began $143 million in upgrades this year on the west stands at Amon Carter Stadium, which was built in 1930 and badly needed renovation. It seated just over 44,000 fans. But even with the recent success, the stadium has been difficult to sell out because the school resides in a city with so many alumni from bigger schools nearby. Metroplex citizens are more apt to head to Austin or College Station or even Norman, Okla., for a game on Saturday, instead of Fort Worth. There's no denying the on-field product Patterson's teams have trotted out of late, though.

The dates of TCU's Mountain West Conference contests for 2011 were released Thursday. The school's nonconference slate was announced last month.

Big East-bound TCU will open its seventh and final year in the MWC with a trip to Air Force on Sept. 10, the Horned Frogs' second game of the season. The next MWC game is on Oct. 8 at San Diego State.

After the first of two open dates on Oct. 15, TCU will host New Mexico on Oct. 22. The Frogs will then have back-to-back road games at Wyoming (Nov. 5) and MWC newcomer Boise State (Nov. 12).

The Horned Frogs close the regular season with home contests against Colorado State (Nov. 19) and UNLV (Dec. 3).

Kickoff times and television plans for TCU's seven MWC games will be announced at a later date.

TCU 2011 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE:
Sept. 3 -- at Baylor
Sept. 10 -- at Air Force
Sept. 17 -- vs. Louisiana-Monroe
Sept. 24 -- vs. Portland State
Oct. 1 -- vs. SMU
Oct. 8 -- at San Diego State
Oct. 22 -- vs. New Mexico
Oct. 28 -- vs. BYU at Cowboys Stadium, 7 p.m. (ESPN2)
Nov. 5 -- at Wyoming
Nov. 12 -- at Boise State
Nov. 19 -- vs. Colorado State
Dec. 3 -- vs. UNLV

With spring practice dates closing in, let’s take a look at three issues facing 10 non-AQ teams.

Boise State

Spring practice starts: March 7.

Spring game: April 16.

What to watch:

The obvious storyline is what happens to the offense with leading receivers Austin Pettis and Titus Young gone. The two combined for 142 receptions, 2,166 yards and 19 touchdowns in 2010. Tyler Shoemaker is the top candidate to step in and fill one of the slots. Also watch for Geraldo Hiwat and Chris Potter, who already has proved to be valuable on special teams.

Bryan Harsin has left as offensive coordinator and Brent Pease is in. Pease was the Broncos’ receivers coach, so he knows well what his players can do. We’ll see whether Boise State can pick right up on offense in 2011 with some of the new faces.

The secondary will be missing three starters -- Winston Venable, Brandyn Thompson and Jeron Johnson. One player to keep an eye on to potentially replace Venable is a junior college player out of Blinn College -- 6-foot, 210-pound safety/linebacker Dextrell Simmons. He is enrolled and will participate in spring practice. Johnson was a four-year starter and led the team in tackles the past three years, and his position is wide open.

BYU

Spring practice starts: March 14

Spring scrimmage: April 9.

What to watch:

Coach Bronco Mendenhall says he will open the competition at quarterback between Jake Heaps and Riley Nelson, who is expected to be healthy following surgery during the season. Heaps should be the front-runner going into the spring, especially after his bowl performance. You can bet BYU will avoid splitting the quarterback duties in 2011.

The coaching staff had a shake-up of sorts in the offseason. New coordinator Brandon Doman takes over and has vowed to return to the days of old -- lots of downfield passing. With that said, highly touted receiver Ross Apo is going to be a definite player to watch this spring as he returns from an injury to his index finger.

On defense, BYU loses its unquestioned leader, safety Andrew Rich. He led the team with 111 tackles and five interceptions last season. Travis Uale and Jray Galea’i could be the front-runners to replace him. Whoever does end up in his role is going to have to step up in a big way in BYU’s first season as an independent.

Hawaii

Spring practice starts: March 9.

Spring game: April 15.

What to watch:

Lots of change coming to the offense. Bryant Moniz is back, but he will be without four starters on the offensive line, his top two receivers in Greg Salas and Kealoha Pilares, and leading rusher Alex Green. At receiver, Royce Pollard returns. The coaching staff also is eager to see junior college transfer Darius Bright, who redshirted this past season.

Corey Paredes returns to anchor the defense, a huge plus for the Warriors. He had a breakout season in 2010 and even bigger things will be expected in 2011. The big hole Hawaii has to fill is at safety, where Mana Silva is gone. Silva ranked third in the nation with eight interceptions this past season.

With so many players gone on offense, how will Moniz respond? Will he make his receivers into different versions of Salas and Pilares because of the offensive system Hawaii runs? Or did those two guys make him look good? He had a horrific performance in the bowl game against Tulsa, throwing four interceptions, and is going to have to work hard to groom the playmakers around him.

Houston

Spring practice starts: March 7.

Spring game: April 9.

What to watch:

Case Keenum isn’t expected to be 100 percent to participate in the spring drills, but his return will be noticeable anyway. Keenum was granted a sixth year of eligibility and most likely will be doing plenty of throwing while Cotton Turner and David Piland share the snaps.

Houston has plenty of depth at running back, and now coach Kevin Sumlin has to sort through it with some spirited competition with Bryce Beall, Michael Hayes and Chris Wilson all returning. Charles Sims is out for spring practice but is expected to be eligible for the fall.

Defensively, Houston is going to have to show more improvement than it did in 2011. Leading tackler Sammy Brown returns along with most of the other starters. But this will be the team’s second season in the 3-4, so the unit has got to step up and help the offense out. For all that was made of the defensive overhaul, Houston once again had one of the worst defenses in the nation.

Middle Tennessee

Spring practice starts: March 16.

Spring game: April 9.

What to watch:

The Blue Raiders had a disappointing season thanks in part to what happened with quarterback Dwight Dasher, who had to miss four games because of an NCAA suspension. At least that means Middle Tennessee has experienced quarterbacks in the fold going into the spring. That competition will center around Logan Kilgore and Jeff Murphy.

Middle Tennessee also will have a new offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator. Willie Simmons will run the offense and Steve Ellis will run the defense. Simmons is going to have to continue to try to maintain an up-tempo style without relying on a running quarterback, the way the Blue Raiders did with Dasher.

Defensively, Middle Tennessee has to replace Jamari Lattimore, who had 11.5 sacks last season and ranked No. 7 in the country. The unit is going to be extremely young going into 2011, so extra coaching on fundamentals may be necessary during the spring. The Blue Raiders cannot afford to be as undisciplined as they were in 2010.

Navy

Spring practice starts: March 28

Spring game: April 22

What to watch:

Ricky Dobbs is gone, along with his leadership and his record-breaking feats. Kriss Proctor is set to step in for the two-year starter, who has been the face of the program for the past several seasons. Proctor has taken limited snaps in games, so getting him up to speed in the spring is going to be incredibly important. Alexander Teich does return, so he should be a big help.

Navy takes a hit defensively, losing Tyler Simmons, Kevin Edwards and Wyatt Middleton. It’s hard to argue that Navy had anybody more experienced than Middleton, who started every game but two in his career with the Midshipmen.

It will be interesting to see how Navy responds to a bit of adversity it experienced in 2010. The Midshipmen lost the Commander-In-Chief Trophy for the first time since 2002, and ended the season with a tough loss to San Diego State in the S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl. This is a team that loses many senior starters going into 2011, so it will be important to develop leaders in the spring.

Nevada

Spring practice starts: March 24

Spring game: April 16

What to watch:

Nevada is without quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who set countless school and NCAA records in his time as a starter. Tyler Lantrip has had time to learn behind Kaepernick, but has nowhere near the same experience as his predecessor does in running the offense.

The Wolf Pack must also replace Vai Taua, who was coming off the best season of his career with 1,610 yards and 19 rushing touchdowns. Mike Ball is the leading candidate to replace him in the starting lineup. Lampford Mark tore his ACL this past season, so his status for the spring and the upcoming season is up in the air. If Lantrip and Ball are the starters, spring would be a great time to work on their chemistry.

Nevada made big strides defensively under first-year coordinator Andy Buh, but the Wolf Pack lose Dontay Moch, who set the WAC and school career records for tackles for loss. Kaelin Burnett has a chance to be used in much the same way Nevada used Moch. In fact, Moch told me in January he had groomed Burnett to be his successor.

Northern Illinois

Spring practice starts: March 22.

Spring game: Saturday, April 23.

What to watch:

With a new coaching staff in place, we will get our first glimpse at Dave Doeren as head coach. How will he lead his new team and what changes will he make? Will this team still be a run-first team playing solid, aggressive defense? How many personnel changes will he make? We will have to stay tuned.

One of the biggest personnel changes he will have to make is at running back, where MAC Offensive Player of the Year Chad Spann is gone. Spann ran for 1,388 yards and 22 touchdowns this past season and will be missed. But the Huskies usually do a good job of plugging in the next guy. In this case, that could be Jasmin Hopkins or Cameron Bell.

Defensively, the Huskies lose two of their best players in Jake Coffman and leading tackler Alex Kube. Coffman returned to the team after initially deciding to retire and had an incredible season, leading the team with 9.5 tackles. The military veteran provided unquestioned leadership and wisdom that is going to be difficult to replace.

TCU

Spring practice starts: March 5.

Spring scrimmage: April 2.

What to watch:

Replacing Andy Dalton is going to be the biggest story going into the spring. Right now it is between two players who have never started a collegiate game -- Casey Pachall and Matt Brown. Pachall served as Dalton’s backup last season, while Brown is a redshirt freshman. The race between them is wide open. Yogi Gallegos, who was third string, has transferred.

The defense loses five starters going into 2011, including team leader Tejay Johnson. There is no clear front-runner to replace him, and coach Gary Patterson may move some players around on defense to get the right guy into his role. Three on the defensive line are also gone, including Wayne Daniels.

How will the team respond without Dalton and Johnson? Both had the intangible leadership that a team needs for chemistry and camaraderie. This may sound hard to believe, but TCU will have a new starting quarterback for the first time since 2006. Back then, the Horned Frogs had never been to a BCS game.

UCF

Spring practice starts: March 18.

Spring game: April 16.

What to watch:

The continued development of Jeff Godfrey is going to be a big part of spring practice. Coach George O’Leary would love to open up more of his playbook to Godfrey now that the quarterback has one year of starting experience under his belt. What Godfrey did as a true freshman was fabulous, but more will be expected.

Somebody needs to emerge at running back. It appears UCF has a logjam at this position, especially with the return of Brynn Harvey, who was tabbed to be the starter in 2010 before a knee injury shelved him for the season. Without him, Latavius Murray and Ronnie Weaver stepped in. Now the trio will be fighting for playing time.

Defensive end Bruce Miller leaves a big void to fill. The two-time Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year holds the school record for sacks and brought incredible leadership to the team. Not only that, UCF will have a new defensive coordinator with Dave Huxtable gone to Wisconsin. Huxtable was a big reason the defense has been so good the past two seasons.

FORT WORTH, Texas -- Jimmer Fredette didn’t gaze into the stands very often during BYU's 79-56 win over TCU. If he did, he would have found plenty to make him smile.

No. 32 jerseys dotted the crowd.

During pregame warm-ups, fans crowded the front row stands to snap photos of the star.

After the game, a few hundred more crowded the same space and took cell phone video and flashed photos while he did a TV interview. Security was needed to help BYU get past a crowd to the team bus.

Grown men with duffel bags of deflated basketballs ask him to sign as many of them as possible. One tells a BYU official shooing them away that they have no plans to sell them, but there’s no promise that the hand reaching for another ball inside the bag didn’t have its fingers crossed.

“Jimmer: Kiss my baby!” read a sign held up by a couple who were, yes, holding a baby behind one of the baskets at TCU’s Daniel-Meyer Coliseum on Saturday.

Fans waved disembodied Jimmer heads.

A couple of Texans -- the nerve! -- even played off one of the state’s slogans, warning TCU: “Don’t mess with Jimmer.”

He sees the signs -- literal and figurative -- signifying his new celebrity, he admits. Rarely does he acknowledge them, instead electing to go about his business on the floor.

Aren’t conference road games supposed to be hostile atmospheres? Most often, it’s not the case for Fredette. BYU, a Mormon institution and one of college athletics’ only truly national universities, has fans everywhere, but they out-numbered and out-cheered TCU’s fans on Saturday as the Cougars improved to a program-best 25-2.

“It’s been like this pretty much everywhere we’ve been going,” Fredette said.

Most often, Fredette is the catalyst.

This is The Jimmer Effect, produced by The Jimmer Show, and it’s in the thick of a winter tour the Cougars hope will crescendo into an April run at the national title.

Seconds into the game -- in TCU’s arena, remember -- a boisterous “B-Y-U” chant dominated the arena noise.

The same occurred in the game’s closing minutes.

“It’s a really great experience for our players,” said BYU coach Dave Rose. “I think it’s a tribute to this team, and the fact that it’s the last time through this league.”

It was the sixth time this season a BYU road game sold out, and even Cougars officials admitted the Jimmer Effect was on high in Saturday’s game.

The TCU student section was full, but the rest of the capacity crowd -- 7,258, the first sellout for the school since Nov. 23, 2004 and the third-biggest crowd in school history -- wasn’t drawn in by TCU’s 10-18 record and one conference win in 13 tries.

“Ya’ll about to get Jimmered,” read another sign in the arena.

TCU got Cougared more than it got Jimmered. Fredette, who averages more than 27 points a game, scored 23 on 6-of-16 shooting. But road games featuring Fredette are unlike almost anything one can experience in sports today.

What The Heatles -- that three-headed monster in Miami -- are to the NBA, four-year senior Fredette is to college hoops.

The biggest cheers of the night came when Fredette was introduced and when he buried one of his trademark 3-pointers. He finished 3-for-9 from beyond the arc on Saturday.

The Horned Frogs supporters in the building were delighted by a second-half Fredette air ball, and serenaded him with reminders each time he touched the ball for the handful of possessions that followed.

With a little more than two minutes left in the game, he left to a standing ovation from most of the BYU fans in the stands.

“Obviously, I look forward to the day that [the fans] are here to see TCU and it’s all purple, but again, this is a special season for Jimmer and for their team,” said TCU coach Jim Christian.

He draws in fans from everywhere. Except when they arrive, they do it ready to cheer, rather than jeer.

Jerry and Bernadette Izu made the 150-mile trip from Fort Hood to Fort Worth and grabbed some seats near the top of the arena.

“We had six kids just so we could spell out 'Jimmer,'" Jerry Izu said. "J-I-M-M-E-R" read their sign, with the assist of their sign-holding six kids.

Anytime the Cougars are in Texas, the Izus are there, too. But the biggest draw this year? Well, he goes by one name.

“Jimmer,” Jerry Izu said.