Saturday Links: Big East

Football

• Pat White will likely be held out of today's game with Syracuse with a head injury. Two-sport stud Jarrett Brown will get the start if White can't go. Brown has been used at times this season on trick plays and in certain situations, but this would be the redshirt junior's second career start. He's done pretty well with his opportunities. On a side note, will this affect White's chances at a pro career? I know he won't make it in the pros as a QB -- at least, that's what Mel Kiper's hair tells me -- but I'm sure he will get looks at wide-out or as a returner. But this is just one of the many injuries he's struggled with over the years (hard to find a site that lists them all, but they're a lot), and his durability will probably be questioned around combine time, if not sooner.
• Syracuse's article is irrelevant because it's all about stopping White, but does this help the Color Orange's chances of an upset? Hell no. But will it make the game more interesting to watch? In a word: meh.
• Lots of stuff from Louisville's 35-28 win over sort-of-rival Memphis: The Cards scored three non-offensive TDs for the first time since 2004, and Johnny Patrick's fumble return in the fourth quarter was the difference. The Tigers outgained the Cardinals on offense (481-299), but Louisville hung on. And to the victor goes nothing. The Cards did what they were supposed to -- barely -- and now Steve Kragthorpe doesn't have to explain another bad loss, writes the Courier-Journal's Rick Bozich. L-Ville now has a barefoot kicker.
• Like I said in my picks yesterday, Cincinnati will have to get a good day from the run game to beat Rutgers.
• The Scarlet Knights might use a hurry-up to combat some of their offensive woes. I know it's not technically a "trick," but good teams don't need these type of "pick-me-ups" to be good -- i.e., Rutgers probably isn't that good. Doubt the game's on in Storrs, so keep track here.