14-0...and counting

[PSUFAN]

So...can Boise State get a shot at a title this year? If they start the season in the top 5...would they have enough to get to the BCS title game?

[Mace]

So...can Boise State get a shot at a title this year? If they start the season in the top 5...would they have enough to get to the BCS title game?

Have they beefed up their schedule for 2010? I know they have Oregon State next year, but who else for OOC? Their conference schedule will hold them back, imo, as they have no legit conference opponents.

[Terry in Crapchester]

So...can Boise State get a shot at a title this year? If they start the season in the top 5...would they have enough to get to the BCS title game?

Have they beefed up their schedule for 2010? I know they have Oregon State next year, but who else for OOC? Their conference schedule will hold them back, imo, as they have no legit conference opponents.

Damn you for making me look out of curiosity, but . . . http://www.broncosports.com/SportSelect ... PSID=48555

Looks like they have Va Tech, Wyoming, Oregon State and Toledo on the OOC schedule next year. My best guess is that dates and times for the conference schedule haven't yet been finalized.

So to answer the original question posed, I think they can reach the championship game if they're starting out #5 and go undefeated. Much like in auto racing, pole position is important in college football.

That's not necessarily a bad thing, btw. I'm guessing that it'll take something like Boise in the national championship game to motivate the rest of college football into going with a playoff.

[Mace]

Given their schedule, I don't see them making the title game unless there is only one other undefeated team and, even then, they could stay ranked behind a one loss team....depending on who that team might be. Beating TCU in a BCS Bowl game did not earn them enough respect to make any significant changes in how they'll be ranked next season, imo. In reality, they haven't proved a thing, and won't, until they play a legitimate schedule. I think they're extremely well coached but don't have the talent level in comparison to the top BCS teams to be considered an elite team. I know they are trying to beef up the schedule, and that a lot of the top teams don't want to play them, but, until they do, my opinion won't change.

[Terry in Crapchester]

Fwiw, I've heard that Boise has an open invitation to every BCS team in the country that they will play a one-off on the road. It would seem that they would get a better OOC schedule than they get. Maybe some of those teams don't want any part of them.

On the conference side of the equation, I can't for the life of me figure out why Boise hasn't joined the MWC yet. That would seem to be win-win for both sides.

[MuchoBulls]

Fwiw, I've heard that Boise has an open invitation to every BCS team in the country that they will play a one-off on the road. It would seem that they would get a better OOC schedule than they get. Maybe some of those teams don't want any part of them.

A nice publicity stunt.

VT should be able to beat them this season.

[Mace]

Fwiw, I've heard that Boise has an open invitation to every BCS team in the country that they will play a one-off on the road. It would seem that they would get a better OOC schedule than they get. Maybe some of those teams don't want any part of them.

I've heard the same thing, Terry, but I also know it's not that easy to match up open dates, so, Mucho may be correct in saying it was a publicity stunt.

On the conference side of the equation, I can't for the life of me figure out why Boise hasn't joined the MWC yet. That would seem to be win-win for both sides.

That's the obvious move they need to make and, while the MWC isn't strong top to bottom, it would add some legitimacy to the BSU schedule...especially if they would schedule some decent BCS schools for OOC. I also agree with Mucho that VT should have a legit shot at beating BSU next season, as does Oregon State.

[Van]

With all that being said, the fact remains that they're not starting this season ranked in the mid-teens. They're starting at #5, so obviously they could play in the title game. They don't need very much at all to happen. They only need to win their games while three teams ahead of them fall, and this year there aren't two solid locks to get into the title game ahead of them, like there were last year with Texas and the SEC winner. This year only Bama is a solid lock to get in, should they take care of business.

I certainly don't think Boise will deserve to get there, and I don't think they have the top to bottom talent of a lot of other teams, but that doesn't mean they still aren't positioned very well to get in. Clearly, they're about as good of a bet right now to get in as anyone other than Bama.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

I'm rooting for BSU to go undefeated and not get to the MNC game. As a playoff supporter, that's what I want to see happen.

[M Club]

i'm rooting for bsu to go undefeated and get snubbed in favor of a 7-loss michigan team.

[BSmack]

With their schedule, they shouldn't be ranked in the top 20.

You mean the schedule where they log more miles as a team than the entire SEC does as a conference?

[Van]

I'm rooting for BSU to go undefeated and not get to the MNC game. As a playoff supporter, that's what I want to see happen.

Absolutely.

Sam, Bama loses people, but they also retain a lot of big-name people on offense, plus they begin the season ranked #1. They have a very clear path to the title game; the clearest of any team in the nation.

[Mace]

I think we'd more likely see a playoff being seriously discussed if BSU actually went to the title game and got blown out. That would confirm what the naysayers have been saying about BSU and the other non-BCS schools and might convince the powers to be that a playoff system is the only way to get these schools out of the discussion...unless of course they win their way through the playoff and prove that they deserve to be there.
Keeping them out of the title game with our present system will only fuel the controversy when a BSU or TCU goes undefeated, but it will not/has not resulted in a playoff being seriously discussed by those who will make the decision. Personally, I don't think we'll ever see a playoff due to the money generated by the current bowl system. A playoff is not fan friendly when compared to a one time trip to a bowl versus following your team around the country throughout a playoff. It would be cost restrictive for most fans, imo.

[Goober McTuber]

I'm rooting for BSU to go undefeated and not get to the MNC game. As a playoff supporter, that's what I want to see happen.

Absolutely.

Sam, Bama loses people, but they also retain a lot of big-name people on offense, plus they begin the season ranked #1. They have a very clear path to the title game; the clearest of any team in the nation.

You have got to be kidding.

Sincerely,

[Van]

Didn't see that one coming, Goobs. After I saw that you'd quoted my post, I scrolled down while thinking, 'What now? How's someone gonna argue that?'


Then...

[Danimal]

It likely depends on what the BCS-conference teams do. If two run the board they get in. Whether a one-loss team gets in front of Boise remains to be seen, probably depends on the team and who they played. Having such a respectable noncon-sched definitely helps Boise, if they were in the more-respectable MWC I think their sched would be plenty-tough. Coming out of the WAC it will be more difficult, they'll have to hope big-dogs get knocked-off.

[Van]

They only need three teams to fall. Just three. We typically see that many Top Five teams fall during any given Saturday, especially early in the season, nearly every year. As soon as that happens, and Boise moves to #2, good luck pinning a loss on them to knock them out of that spot.

This isn't like any other year, where a 'BCS Buster' had no hope of getting to the title game because they started off the season ranked in the mid-to-low teens. By starting off at #5 this season, they have the easiest road to the title game of any team out there. They know that the other contenders will fall, and all they need is to not have two of the four teams ahead of them run the table.

That's a pretty easy road.

[Mace]

There is no guarantee that Boise will start out at #5 when the first BCS poll is released and there is certainly no justification for ranking them that high in the AP or USA Today polls either....not that justification has much to do with the polls.

It's also just as likely that a team(s) ranked behind Boise in the initial polls will remain undefeated for several weeks and pass them in the polls due to playing a tougher schedule. There are a great many scenarios that could be thrown out, and all of them would be a waste of time to discuss until we see what happens next season.

[Van]

So why ever discuss anything before it happens? Why not just wait until everything occurs, then dissect it afterwards?

This would be one helluva board, were that to be the case. Talk radio, ESPN, conversations in bars, the entire existence of Las Vegas...pppffft.

[Mace]

So why ever discuss anything before it happens? Why not just wait until everything occurs, then dissect it afterwards?

This would be one helluva board, were that to be the case. Talk radio, ESPN, conversations in bars, the entire existence of Las Vegas...pppffft.

Why not assume Boise will be ranked #1 or #2, instead of #5? Did you just pull that number out of your ass and say "yeah, I think the BCS will have Boise ranked #5"? What I'm saying, dumbass, is that you might want to wait and see where they are ranked in the BCS before you start up with all of your bullshit scenarios.

[Van]

No, I saw some sort of preseason ranking which had them at #5, plus there was this...

If they start the season in the top 5...

See, Mace, that's kinda the supposition we're working off here, per Dave: What happens if Boise starts at #5 or higher? Do they have a realistic shot?

First day on a message board for you?

[Mace]

Sorry, I got confused scrolling through all of the bullshit guitar videos.

[Van]

You didn't stop and watch a single one of 'em, so the scrolling shouldn't have taken you more than two seconds.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Tell you what...if Indiana, Vandy, Miss State, Rice, NC State, and Washington State could play the conference schedule BSU has, they'd all be ranked in the top ten at year's end.

This field is a combined 0-3 vs the WAC over the last couple seasons (none against Boise St).

[PSUFAN]

I don't see any Sooners posting in this thread so far. I dunno - I think BSU has made a pretty good case that they are a legitimate team. Yes, their competition is lesser, overall...but they certainly have done well in their BCS games.

[Van]

The argument against Boise always goes that sure, they can get up and play a single game against a more talented team which doesn't even want to play that game. They just don't have enough depth or athletic ability to withstand an entire schedule of games, which is what they'd have to do if they played in anything resembling a real conference.

Along those same lines, they wouldn't land themselves in BCS bowl games if they weren't always running the table, which they wouldn't be if they had to play a real schedule. Every so often they'd lose during conference play, then we'd never have to hear about them.

[Van]

Sam, that argument is pretty much valid where Boise is concerned, but it doesn't hold equally true for everyone who's not in the SEC, Big 10, Pac 10, Big XII and ACC. A team from the Big East or the MWC could conceivably play a tough enough schedule overall that they shouldn't get lumped together with Boise. As was discussed ad nauseum last year, TCU played a tougher schedule than either Texas or Florida, simply because of the way things panned out week-to-week with the Texas and Florida schedules. With the injuries and suspensions that befell OU and Okie St, Texas went 12-0 without playing a single truly tough game. With the SEC being so down last year Florida's only marginally tough game all year was the LSU game. Neither team had to do anything more than win their CCGs to get into the national title game, and even in their CCG Texas only had to beat four-loss Nebraska.

You can't throw 'em all under the same blanket.

Oh, and Boise needs to join the MWC.

Then again, why should they? The way things sit now, they've got a really easy ride into a BCS bowl game. All they have to do is win their OOC games and they're in since they go years between losing a game in-conference. If they join the MWC, they'll actually lose a game every so often, so why make things tougher on themselves?

[M Club]

I've tried and tried to explain this in here, but all I ever hear is 'They beat Oklahoma!'

Christ, didn't anyone see their conference games last year? They gave up shitloads of points and looked like shit against pitiful competition.

Their bowl game and the Sugar Bowl shoulda ended the TCU/Boise/Cincy deserving a shot crap.

the bcs is already a wholly arbitrary exercise. on those grounds, there's absolutely no validity to your reasoning that they play a weak schedule, just speculation.

[TheJON]

If Boise State can beat Virgin Tech and Oregon St and go unbeaten they deserve to play for a title. It's time to give them a shot if this happens again.

I'm not arguing Boise State plays AS TOUGH of a schedule as major college teams, but let's be honest here...........nobody plays a truly tough schedule. Sure, the bottom of the BCS conferences have teams that are better than the bottom of the WAC, but they still suck. How many really good teams does ANYONE face in a given year? Texas played in the championship game this year and who the fuck did they play all year? Nebraska, Okie St, Oklahoma. That's their 3 toughest games. Boise State's best win was better than any of those 3 teams. After that they played Taco Tech and a bunch of really bad football teams. Maybe not WAC bad, but still pretty shitty.

Nobody ever beats more than 2-3 really good teams in a year, even if they go unbeaten. Why? Because everyone's a bunch of big fucking pussies that are scared to actually play anyone OOC. We get all giddy when we see a USC-Ohio State matchup because it's so uncommon anymore for teams that good to play each other outside their conferences.

Again, I'm not defending Boise State's schedule or trying to argue it's as difficult as most BCS programs. But seriously, is there really a big fucking difference between San Jose State and Baylor? Oh sure, Baylor is probably a little better but who gives a shit? Does it really make a difference if one team is less shitty? They both fucking suck. National title contending teams should be able to beat a sucky team no matter how bad they suck.

And if you throw in their BCS win, Boise State's 2 best wins were better than ANY win Tejas had. People just don't want to believe a mid-major can compete with the big boys, but let's give them a real shot to prove themselves. Let's settle this shit instead of these message boards.

[H4ever]

The argument against Boise always goes that sure, they can get up and play a single game against a more talented team ..... They just don't have enough depth or athletic ability to withstand an entire schedule of games, which is what they'd have to do if they played in anything resembling a real conference.

.

^^^ gets it. Would anyone in here dispute that Texas Tech/Okie State/Missouri/or even Iowa freakin State would be perrenial juggernauts in BSU's shit conference?

Any of said middle of the pack Big 12 teams could play shitty OOC games and run the table in the, once again, shit conference and make their case every other year about being in a BCS or title game.

Put BSU in the Big 12/Big 10/SEC or even the ACC and they would be lucky to play a bowl game the end of December.

Like Van said....getting up for one big game to "prove the naysayers wrong" is easy compared to the weekly battles in the toughest conferences.

If Boise had to play Texas Tech and Nebraska in consecutive weeks, they would be lucky to go 1-1.

[SunCoastSooner]

The argument against Boise always goes that sure, they can get up and play a single game against a more talented team ..... They just don't have enough depth or athletic ability to withstand an entire schedule of games, which is what they'd have to do if they played in anything resembling a real conference.

.

^^^ gets it. Would anyone in here dispute that Texas Tech/Okie State/Missouri/or even Iowa freakin State would be perrenial juggernauts in BSU's shit conference?

Any of said middle of the pack Big 12 teams could play shitty OOC games and run the table in the, once again, shit conference and make their case every other year about being in a BCS or title game.

Put BSU in the Big 12/Big 10/SEC or even the ACC and they would be lucky to play a bowl game the end of December.

Like Van said....getting up for one big game to "prove the naysayers wrong" is easy compared to the weekly battles in the toughest conferences.

If Boise had to play Texas Tech and Nebraska in consecutive weeks, they would be lucky to go 1-1.

They'd bitch smack both of 'em... one can't play defense and the other has no offense.

[M Club]

ah, that vexatious "if."

[Van]

Sam, nobody who's a title contender in the SEC plays Bama and Florida, since Bama and Florida can't play themselves. When Mississippi St becomes a title contender, fine, you can rattle off the best teams in the SEC and say, "Look who they had to play!"

In the meantime, Florida only had to play Kentucky, Mississippi St, S. Carolina, Arkansas, Vandy, Charleston Southern, Troy, etc.

[M Club]

Sure...that's fair and right and the American way. Sort like getting a check each month to lay on one's ass or getting paid to not grow crops, I guess.

the american way down south seems to involve a bunch of false parallels.

[TheJON]

So, if (there it is again) a team plays UC-Davis, Louisiana Tech, Idaho, Utah State, and New Mexico State, you're okay with them "qualifying" for a spot in the NC game against a team that has played Michigan State, Iowa, Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin or Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Auburn and Georgia?

Sure...that's fair and right and the American way. Sort like getting a check each month to lay on one's ass or getting paid to not grow crops, I guess.

I see your point.

Boise State goes 10-2 or better against ANY schedule in the country next year.

I'll just take Iowa's schedule since this is the only one I know off the top of my head.

D-1AA school (shit I forget who it is) Win
vs Iowa State Win
at Arizona Win
Vs Ball State? Win
Vs Penn St Win
Vs Wisconsin Toss-up
Vs Ohio State probable loss, but could win at home
At Northwestern Win
Vs Michigan St Win
At Minnesota Win
At Indiana Win
At Michigan Win

11-1 or 10-2 vs a Big-10 schedule. Now, I will say Iowa's got a favorable schedule because the toughest opponents (outside Arizona) are all at home. Not 1 tough road game on the schedule besides Arizona. But still, there's no doubt in my mind they would go between 10-2 and 12-0 (if breaks go their way, of course).

FoxSports is predicting an Iowa vs Alabama national title game. I already said Boise State wins AT LEAST 10 games with that schedule. I bet you Iowa doesn't win more than 10.

[H4ever]

Screw it.....let's just let an undefeated Boise State team that's hid behind a shit schedule all year play a 6-5 Big Ten team in the Holiday bowl and give them the trophy.


It worked for BYU in 1984. As shitty as the BCS is...1984 BYU would not have happened.


SCS.....As shitty as Nebraska's offense was this year, they still beat Oklahoma and had zebra interference in their "win"/loss to Texas. O should be much improved next year with a great D returning. We're happy.

[SunCoastSooner]

SCS.....As shitty as Nebraska's offense was this year, they still beat Oklahoma and had zebra interference in their "win"/loss to Texas. O should be much improved next year with a great D returning. We're happy.

An interception on their 22 beat Oklahoma; Nebraska had less than 200 yards of total offense against a team who played in the Sun Bowl on their own home field...

[M Club]

Even the Big Ten's weak sisters like Indiana and Minnesota and the Big 12's perennial shit team, Iowa State, have kids who were rated better players than the kids at Boise. For the most part.

no they don't. you're just a corporate ad exec's wet dream.

if boise played in a bcs conference they probably would lose a couple games like most BTPCF teams invariably do, just like bama, florida, texas, usc, etc. but that doesn't mean they couldn't go undefeated, nor does it mean they'd be in the bottom half of conference standings like you take for granted.

they're a non-bsc team and are being treated like one, which is why they've had to go 904-3 over the last five years, as well as return nearly everyone from team that just won a bcs game, to be given a preseason ranking better than 20, or whatever it is they get every year. their ooc schedule more than makes up for the rigors of dodging miss state and indiana, so their 19th straight undefeated season should probably merit a shot at the mnc.

[MgoBlue-LightSpecial]

Even the Big Ten's weak sisters like Indiana and Minnesota and the Big 12's perennial shit team, Iowa State, have kids who were rated better players than the kids at Boise. For the most part.

Adam Decker and...?

[Screw_Michigan]

Yeah, right. Who wants to go 14-0 when they can get their shit pushed in going 2-10 in the Big 12 or SEC? Idiot.