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If you were to poll probably 500 random college football fans and ask them who the most successful program in college football over the last 15 years has been, you’re probably going to get a whole helping of Southern California, Alabama, Florida, Ohio State, the usual suspects.
And all of those people would be dead wrong, although from a color scheme perspective, at least Florida is close. Since 1999, that distinction belongs to Boise State, a staggering 165-30 over that time span. To be frank, no one else comes particularly close.
If it feels like we’ve been here before, it’s because we have. Boise State has mostly gone from novelty act to “we just expect that from them” to now we barely pay attention it seems, a far cry from about 2002 through 2011 when the Broncos registered a staggering eight seasons completed with either one or zero losses.
Though certainly they had help in the back-alley fight of mid major respectability during the BCS era from clubs like Utah and Texas Christian, among others, all those programs moved out of the rough neighborhood so to speak, leaving Boise State to bare knuckle brawl on its own once again.
One of the quietly more intriguing stories of 2015 might be one that never gets off the ground by these Broncos, and that’s just how a Gang of 5 (G5) unbeaten would honestly fare in the new playoff system or if it would be more of the same, “we like what you do, but you can’t party with us. You still have too much mud on your shoes to track in on our plush carpet.”
It’s impossible to say at this point because just like coaches, we’re all still evaluating what the heck the playoff system means in the long run. Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops was on radio a few weeks ago discussing, among other things, the evaluation of sorts, not knowing how the playoff committee views certain things yet and still being in that fact-gathering process.
The question was related to a conference championship game, and while the Big 12 still needs more info I guess, the rest of us have made an educated guess that not having one isn’t doing the conference any favors.
We have no idea how they view G5 teams because we have no frame of reference … yet. Eventually, we’ll cross this bridge and find out what’s lurking below it. If Boise State wants to get that process moving quick, fast, and in a hurry, 2015 would be a fine time for a test run.
No, an unbeaten G5 isn’t going to move any needle of change, but there will be serious discord if a playoff has replaced the BCS but still doesn’t give access to an unbeaten like a BSU or I suppose a Cincinnati, who moved from the suburbs into Boise’s mean streets and seems up for a fight if they had to get dragged into it this year.
What we do know about the committee is their disdain for at least not attempting to harbor a competitive out of conference schedule. Ask Baylor. And they like it when you get hot late. Ask Ohio State. And they seem to like the SEC West. Ask pretty much anyone scratching their heads last year every week.
Teams like Boise State need a perfect amalgam of things to happen in order to get a shot. Whereas with the BCS, the climb was steep no matter what and you were at an almost odds-against mercy as to how everyone else performs. At least with the new system, the “help” needed is a little less in theory.
The hardest thing to evaluate with a team like Boise State though, even when unbeaten, is that most of their comparative wins occur early in the season after folks have long forgotten what nice weather looks like, let alone games that occurred when there was actual nice weather to remember.
BSU has mended their program into a legitimate powerhouse, long removed from the funny uniforms, colorful turf, and wide open offense. The Broncos are a team that looks, smells, and feels like the teams they want to crack skulls with over a championship.
They’re deep … very deep … with pass rushers, boast several years of talented secondaries, and have a power running game that gives them more the look at feel of a Big Ten or SEC team when they want to look and feel that way.
Still, the climb is tall and the road arduous for programs like BSU. Early season tangles with Washington of the Pac-12 and Brigham Young will provide an early platform for how good the Broncos are, but how long will the shine last as they navigate the Mountain West while brand name programs pile on prime time wins over fellow ranked conference foes?
It’s hard to tell. We’ve been here before, with people sort of squinting their eyes wondering what a Boise State or Cincinnati can do, but understanding the BCS probably put a glass ceiling on where it could go. Their best shot was in 2011 probably, when they brought a 35-game home winning streak in off of an unbeaten season two years ago and then a one-loss season the previous one.
Unlike 2010, when even an unbeaten year wouldn’t have given them much traction nationally versus also unbeaten Auburn and Oregon, 2011 was a grease fire politically for college football and probably killed the BCS when we look back on it.
But BSU lost an epic game to TCU and since then, nationally at least, the Broncos haven’t been heard of on the same level.
This season, however, is a chance to change that. They return a host of starters, talented skill position players, and key pieces along both lines. Bryan Harsin’s offense seems to be on track, and the only real major position of question is the quarterback one.
For college football to sustain a system long-term, which has never really happened in the history of the game, it will need to give the guise of inclusion if not being totally inclusive. The last frontier of testing that inclusion would revolve around a G5 team having a shot at a playoff if they do what’s required of them to get there.
Boise State has always been, “anytime, anywhere, any night.” That includes in the middle of January, where a story 15 years in the making awaits the opportunity to be told.
