The Big East is 4-0 in bowl game and has locked up the best record of any conference this Bowl Season. There is a perception out there that the Big East is the "Big Least" and it simply is not reality. The Big East have won back-to-back BCS bowl games, where the ACC has won one since the BCS's inception (and that was against the now-ACC team Virginia Tech). And the Big East has made it's mark with inarguably the shallowest talent pool of all the other regional conferences and makes their Bowl Success more impressive.
One of the things I look at when people talk about the Big East, other than their bowl record, that legitimizes them a bit more is a) the attraction to Big East coaches: Petrino, Shiano, Levitt and Rodriguez (Cincinnati's coach was hired away) and b) that the majority of thos coaches decided to stay rather than persue - what the perception was - 'better jobs.' I think that says something about the Big East as a conference and in particular about each school's dedication to continue to make the conference stronger. As far as the talent pool, I think the attraction to the coaches is warranted because of what they have been able to accomplish with players who are not "blue chippers" coming in. WVU's QB was a player everyone else wanted to make a WR. Their RB was a guy whose MD scholarship was taken away - their FB transferred from Wisconsin-River Falls...
As for the bowl victories - Last year's WVU win over UGA began the thought process of not removing them from the BCS, and this year's bowl performance has solidified it. The top 2 ACC teams fell to the top 2 Big East teams. Rutgers got shafted a little in their bowl selection and whipped up on Kansas State, USF beat ECU, and Cincinatti has a good shot against Western Michigan.
I have begun to leave the "Big Least" comments alone, as some people's perception is their reality and will continue to be. But to think that they are not for real would be both short-sighted and naive. People will also like to point at the lack of "tradition" and lack of Championships for the conference. However, like I mentioned - the championships did go to the ACC. And the Big East has to build a new tradition. They can't wave a magic wand and get one - they have to build one game by game, year by year - pointing to those things is a weak argument as the conference, essentially, has had to start over. It would be much like someone saying that a 6 year old is not as successful as a 40 year old.
That said, there is no denying that the Big East does have a solid and successful foundation in which to grow, and over time, the perception will go away - but that probably will not be done because of 2 years, because people still hold onto familiar perceptions long after they cease being reality.
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