"Boise State is No. 1 because it hammered and nailed until the bridge-to-somewhere was complete. The national christening came with its stunning 2007 Fiesta Bowl victory against Oklahoma."
So says Chris Dufresne at the LA Times. Holy smokes, this is going to be an interesting season. Polls, reviews, opionions ranking BSU anywhere from #5 to, now, #1. There is a lot of pressure to perform, and the first game this Monday will go a long way to confirm or deny the placement.
The school has worked for years to build its football program, now the preseason favorite. The formula includes mixing divergent, undervalued players into a winning team.
From Boise, Idaho
The cool-downs after Boise State practices this summer didn't require an ice tub. Defensive end Ryan Winterswyk and teammates simply ran out of Bronco Stadium and jumped in the Boise River.
This has actually been years the making — born of the brow sweat of thousands who dared to dream. "There are people who came long before I got here to set this up," Winterswyk said.
Reaching the prove-it pinnacle has been a junior college, Division II, I-AA and K2 climb, given that Boise State began in 1892 as an all-girls school (St. Margaret's Hall), was a junior college until 1965 and did not start playing major-division football until 1996.
The conspiracy that is college football would never allow this to happen — or so the politicians have argued.
BOISE -- The Boise State Broncos earned its best preseason ranking Saturday in the Associated Press preseason poll.
The blue and orange ranked third after Alabama and Ohio State, and BSU even received one first-place vote.
The Broncos open up their season on September 6 in Washington D.C. against the Virginia Tech Hokies who ranked 10th in this preseason poll. The Labor Day match-up will be the first huge game of the season.
Here is a look at the other AP preseason rankings:
1. Alabama 2. Ohio State 3. Boise State 4. Florida 5. Texas
Isn't this interesting! Andy Staples explains that the USA Today coaches poll, which usually matches the AP for the #1 pick, has been wrong for the last 5 years. Alabama is slated to win this season, but Boise State fills in the second spot.
Recent history also suggests that we won't have to look far down the list to find the national champs. In the past six years, the lowest the eventual BCS champ has been ranked is No. 8 (Florida, in 2006, by the coaches, with the candlestick, in the study). In fact, 2006 is the only year since 2004 that the eventual BCS champ didn't start in the top five of both polls.
This is why Boise State -- No. 5 in the coaches' poll and probably the same or higher in the AP -- has a real chance to play for the national title if the Broncos go undefeated. Boise State found the loophole in the BCS; as long as you start the season ranked high enough, it doesn't really matter who you play as long as you play one or two decent games and go undefeated. For lovers of underdogs and proponents of playoffs, this is a beautiful thing. Anything that exposes the BCS for the popularity contest it is works for me.
#2 Boise State Broncos
Key returnees: QB Kellen Moore, WR Titus Young, WR Austin Pettis, CB Brandyn Thompson, DE Ryan Winterswyk, S Jeron Johnson
First game: Sept. 6 vs. Virginia Tech (Landover, Md.) Here's a prediction I know will come true: Most of the complaints I'll receive about this poll will point to this particular slot. The power-conference apologists will whine that Boise State would lose three games if it had to slog through a tough conference slate. Maybe, but those people always fail to realize that if Boise State played in the Big 12 or Pac-10, it would have Big 12 or Pac-10 players instead of the collection of two- and three-star recruits that Coach Chris Petersen and his staff have turned into stars. The argument falls flat after that. This isn't an excuse for Boise State -- just an answer to a silly argument. I'm not grading on a curve here. I ranked Boise State No. 2 because I believe that the Broncos -- on a neutral field -- would beat the teams ranked below them and lose to Alabama. Now, if you want us to stop talking about Boise State and stop ranking the Broncos so high, there is an easy solution. When your favorite power-conference program plays the Broncos, it better beat them. Virginia Tech gets the next shot on Labor Day.
USA Today: front page, right in the center of Friday's paper. The polls put the Broncos at #5 starting the season. With Virginia Tech polling at #6, it should be a very interesting season opener! From KTVB:
BOISE -- Front page, center, and above the fold. That is where the Boise State Broncos are featured in Friday's regional issue of USA Today.
While the Broncos were ranked fifth in USA Today's preseason college football coaches' poll Friday, the headline of the paper's top story asks the question, "Is it Boise State's time?"
The fans will surely argue 'yes' while other teams will spend their seasons trying to spoil Boise State's plans for another run at a BCS bowl game or even the national championship.
Last year, the Broncos were ranked 16th in the same preseason poll.
Also of note is the August 16th cover of SI, shown below for your viewing pleasure.
Only a month and a half away now! Pre-season is heating up and KTVB has a couple of articles on the Broncos. First, the polls:
Media Poll (1st place votes)
Coaches Poll (1st place votes)
Boise State (42)
386
Boise State (8)
64
Nevada (1)
333
Nevada (1)
55
Fresno State
300
Fresno State
50
Idaho
207
Utah State
37
Louisiana Tech
200
Hawaii
36
Utah State
196
Idaho
33
Hawaii
166
Louisiana Tech
26
New Mexico State
81
New Mexico State
14
San Jose State
66
San Jose State
9
Second, Kellen Moore is announced as the preseason WAC Offensive Player of the Year:
Salt Lake City, UT -- On Monday the WAC announced the media around the Western Athletic Conference have voted Boise State junior quarterback Kellen Moore as the conferences preseason Offensive Player of the Year for 2010.
Nevada defensive end Dontay Moch was voted the preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
Moore led the Broncos to an incredible 14-0 season in 2009 which included a 17-10 victory over TCU in the Fiesta Bowl.
