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The Bearcats crushed the Buckeyes in that all-Ohio contest, 91-0.

"Then I promptly took him out to McDonald's. After that -- 91-0? -- he got McDonald's," Brian, the Cincinnati coach, said on Monday's Big East conference call.

Yes, these are heady times for Kelly and the Bearcats.

Cincinnati (5-0) moved up to a program-best No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll while fellow Big East power South Florida (5-0) entered the poll for the first time this year at No. 23.

After a bye week, the two unbeaten teams will square off at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on Oct. 15 at 7:30 p.m.

"It's a great opportunity," South Florida coach Jim Leavitt said of playing the Bearcats.

"Certainly you've got one of the best teams in the nation and they're also obviously in the Big East. I think it will be a tremendous opportunity for both teams on national TV Thursday night for the Big East Conference and for both programs.

"Certainly for us here in Tampa and at Raymond James Stadium, there will be a lot of excitement."

South Florida won at Syracuse, 34-20, this past weekend, and Cincinnati won at winless Miami (Ohio), 37-13.

Cincinnati wasn't ranked in the top 25 at the start of the year, but now the Bearcats have moved up two spots from No. 10.

"It just means that we're winning and if you do that you have a chance to move up. But other than that, it doesn't do much for us. We've got to continue to win football games and it's where you get ranked later in the season," Kelly said.

Cincinnati leapfrogged No. 9 Ohio State in the process and Kelly had to answer questions about which was the best team in the state.

"Just as Ohio State has settled that on the field, you settle all these questions on the field," Kelly said.

Kelly said the two Ohio programs are slated to meet in three years -- when it will be settled on the field.

"We're back on the schedule and by that time hopefully we've continued to accelerate our program so Ohio State has something to gain by playing us," Kelly said. "In years past, it's been such that Ohio State has everything to lose. They're supposed to beat Cincinnati."

Just don't tell that to Krenzel Kelly.

Dynamic duo leads UConn: A year after losing New Jersey native Donald Brown to the NFL, UConn is second in the Big East in total rushing yards at 191.2 per game.

Brown led the nation in rushing at 2,083 yards and 160.2 per game while scoring 18 touchdowns. He was taken No. 31 in last year's draft by the Indianapolis Colts.

Head coach Randy Edsall praised his dynamic duo of backs -- Andre Dixon and Jordan Todman -- for filling the void left by Brown.

Todman ranks third in the league at 99 yards per game, while Dixon is fourth at 92.

"We didn't replace Donald with one guy; we replaced him with two guys," Edsall said. "Anytime you have a first-round draft pick, you know that guy is pretty darn special.

"We know that Andre has a lot of ability and so does Jordan. We just felt that between the two of them, being the kind of competition that we have to play week in and week out, to utilize both of those young men would be in our best interest ... You have to be able to run the ball to be successful."

He added: "Andre's more of a slasher where Jordan's a little bit shiftier. I think they complement each other. They both can pass protect. They both can catch the ball out of the backfield."

Marrone defends Paulus: Syracuse quarterback Greg Paulus tied a school record by throwing five interceptions in the loss to USF, but Orange head coach Doug Marrone stood by the former Duke point guard.

"A couple of times they forced Greg into an error by the way they pressured us and forced the pocket to break down. But at the end of the day you constantly are teaching, here's what we need to do. And Greg would be the first one to tell you that he's responsible for what he does with that football," Marrone said.

Marrone says Paulus' net impact on the program is positive.

"He's so competitive and he prepares so well and he's brought so much to this football team that will be part of this team even when Greg leaves," Marrone said.