The BCS and Boise

Hey guys. Here is the article that I wrote in cooperation with the Boise State student media. I hope you enjoy.

The BCS. It is three harmless consonants that, when put together, become the most feared acronym in the college football universe. It is a combination of computer code, a calculus exam, and a beauty pageant. Teams are thrown into a mixture of logarithms and equations while having to please voters in multiple polls by 'looking their best' every week. The BCS has her favorites, and they are from the so-called BCS conferences. Still, the BCS likes to flirt with those outside her normal boundaries. It has never been more prevalent than this year with a certain team from Boise, Idaho.

The love affair started back in 2006. Everyone knows the cinderella story of that Fiesta Bowl night. The BCS received a taste of something other than normal dominance from their usual courters. This taste was much more dramatic and provided Fourth of July fireworks. Also, America had Boise's back. America always approves of a good underdog, and Boise State became, in some ways, America's team. Thus, a rocky, tumultuous relationship ensued.

Over the last two years, Boise State has been among the final contestants in the final 'rose ceremony'-literally last year. Feeling betrayed from a 12-0 ninth place BCS ranking going into the bowl season in '08, the Broncos set out to prove to the BCS that they deserved her title. Thirteen wins later, they were in fourth place. They were on the outside, looking in to the national championship again. How could this happen? Many blamed it on the ease of schedule in which they scored at least thirty four points in every game but two. Then again, they had beaten, in the first week and fistfight of the year, #16 Oregon who was heading to the Rose Bowl. That same Oregon team barely beat Purdue and Utah in the following weeks before bursting out of their shell. It seemed for every positive Boise State claimed, there was a negative staring it in the face.

Well Boise, many heard your cry for foul including the BCS. This year is yours for the taking. You are currently number three in the AP Top 25 and number five in the USA Today poll. You return twenty three of twenty four starters, and your schedule is very reasonable. Virginia Tech and Oregon State, discounting the idea of a slip up, are all that stand in the way of you and a perfect season. The teams ranked before you look vulnerable. Alabama, as much as I hate to say it, will probably not go through their year undefeated. Six SEC schools have bye weeks to prepare for Alabama and a new defense, and the strength of schedule is unmatched. Ohio State, for the past couple of years, has choked away at least one win in the Big Ten. Florida and Texas are still breaking in new quarterbacks to complex offenses. So, the opportunity is there. Show the BCS that you want something real, and may you be the one to receive her love come season's end.