I couldn't be happier for Boise State after last night's win. It's hard not to like those guys (although, what did Nike do to those uniforms?). They have a great coach, clean program and players that seem to do things the right way. Last night's game will most likely go down as one of the best regular season games this year, and it's only week 1. The crowd and the intensity level on the field were just amazing. My adrenaline was pumping the entire game (just ask my kids, who caught the "adrenaline-afterwrath" [copyright pending] at bed time). And as much as it pains me to admit it, there was a level of speed and explosiveness displayed by both Boise State and Va. Tech that was absent from the BYU/Washington match-up.
I hope everyone in a non-BCS conference is sending up a prayer for Boise State this year. The BCS stinks and Boise State is the only team in the country that has consistently put themselves in a position to do something about it...on the field. They've arrived at this position not after one great season, or in Utah's case, one great season every 4 years but by a consistent 5 year march from obscurity to playing and winning in front of 84,000 fans at FedEx Field in the premier college football game of opening weekend.
While Utah and BYU have sought to find another, shorter route to BCS inclusion, Boise State has simply blossomed where they were planted, in the infertile soil of the Western Athletic Conference. Watching last night's game I realized it doesn't matter to Boise State what conference they are in, they're creating their own destiny, their own image and in some respects they, not BYU, have become the next independent football program in the NCAA....succeeding on their own regardless of their conference affiliation.
So what are Boise State and the other red-headed step-children up against? Well let's just dwell on this one fact and this fact alone: Ohio State or LSU can have one great season and as a result be invited to play in the BCS championship game, regardless of their record the previous season, let alone the past four seasons. But for Boise State it takes 5 years of consistent greatness to finally be in a position to play...scratch that...to finally be in a position to be considered to play for a national title...and who knows if they will even get that invite.
This past season it took Butler 5 games to reach the NCAA Basketball Finals. If Boise State does it this year it will have taken them 55 games. Something's wrong with that picture.
Go get'em Boise State, we're all rooting for you.