You remember that bowl game planned for Yankee Stadium in December? It has a name. Please welcome the New Era Pinstripe Bowl.

The New Era Pinstripe Bowl will be held on Dec. 30, 2010, and televised nationally by ESPN.

A press conference announcing the name will be held at 10 a.m. at Yankee Stadium. The name comes from the game’s four-year title sponsor, headwear and apparel manufacturer New Era Cap Company, Inc.

The bowl will match the third-place Big East team with the sixth-place Big 12 team, after the BCS teams from each conference are excluded from consideration. Both teams will stay in Manhattan, the Big East team at the Grand Hyatt and the Big 12 team at the Sheraton New York.

The bowl’s Web site, newerapinstripebowl.com, will be launched later today.

According to the press release I got sent:

There is a four-year agreement extending through 2013 for the Big East and Big 12 to participate in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium. In future years beyond 2010, games will take place no earlier than Christmas Day and no later than New Year’s Day.

Will it last beyond that? I have no idea. Just as I have no idea if the Big East and Big 12 will be around in 4 years.

I don’t see Pitt’s seed changing unless they win the Big East Tournament.  Based on various projections I’ve seen, here is my half-assed, amalgamated projection of the top four lines.

#1 — Kansas, Kentucky, Syracuse, Duke

#2 — WVU, K-State, Ohio St., New Mexico

#3 — Villanova, Purdue, Pitt, Wisconsin

#4 — Michigan St., Baylor, Tennessee, BYU

Others that could move up the line to #4 or possibly #3 with a big conference tourney: Maryland, Temple, Vandy, Texas A&M and Georgetown.

The top two lines look rather solid in my view. Meanwhile a Hummel-less Purdue and oddly unraveling Nova squad seem more precarious at the #3 seed.

Even if (god forbid) the team goes out in the quarter-finals, Pitt would still be a #3 seed. MSU seems like the most likely to be able to move up a line given the relative openness of the Big 11’s conference tourney as compared to the SEC and Big 12.

I would much prefer to see Pitt keep winning in the BET, but I don’t think Pitt will get much movement from it.