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In reference to the Boise State article and lining up opponents -- the problem is a number of things for which the least of which is not someone won't play them. That happens all the time. Back in the hey day of OU when Bud Wilkinson was coach and they had amassed over 40 straight victories, there was a team at the time that was famous (still is) and was a good team. OU figured if they could play them and beat them, then OU would rise to the top of the college football world for a long time and perhaps "replace" that team as "America's Team". (Jaguar's term), That team was Notre Dame.

The Irish wanted no part of OU fearing to be beaten and perhaps badly. They constantly made excuses for not scheduling OU. And, at that time, teams had 3 non-conference games as well (Big 8 I'm referring to). Notre Dame could pick who they wanted to play each year. Many Sooner fans of that era won't let Notre Dame off the hook, even to this day.

Now, about scheduling. Teams tend to schedule well in advance. As much as five years. Often the attempt is a home and home series, but it became more common to offer the "lesser" teams a game where they travelled to your stadium. OU, like Boise State, had offered all the possibilities to Notre Dame but they wouldn't budge. And due to contractual agreements, the likelyhood of an undefeated OU team playing Notre Dame in a bowl game (would have been the Orange Bowl), was virtually impossible. It's more possible now with the BCS structure and the general open view bowls are getting based on the best money generating matchup.

But what I don't understand about it being Boise State is that even to lose to them isn't like losing to Wyoming or San Diego State. The WAC and Mountain West Conferences and I'll toss in CUSA, aren't total pansy conferences so the strength of schedule analysis isn't going to hurt as much regardless. As we have seen, SOS is only 1/3 of the total. We still have people voting.

And I will toss in the bottom dwellers of conferences. New Mexico is 0-10 and Western Kentucky is 0-9. Washington State is 1-8 Miami of Ohio is 1-9 and Vanderbilt (SEC) is 2-8. Eastern Michigan and Rice are both 0-9. Vandy IMO isn't a total bust, but the rest of these teams are. These are the throw in your third stringers and run up the score games.

As the season goes along, SOS begins to become solid and even predictable to a degree. By the 8th, 9th, and 10th game of a 12 game season the records of your opponnents and their opponents becomes numbers so large that a single team doesn't affect the rating as much. Unfortunately, conferences and the NCAA tend to set up conference games less in the beginning of the season so that is when most out of conference game openings occur. It's as if they want to use a preseason game to warm up to conference play where a true conference champion can be crowned and not one that won a bunch of games before the opponents had developed their cohesiveness.

Of course, that statement is filled with cannon fodder IMO. While a game may have more immediate importance being played later (two undefeated teams meeting in November instead of late September for example), the game has to be played at some time. Conference schedulers tend to arrange the season in a manner that tries to hold the title game near the end, but as we all know upsets occur and not to mention teams that improve so greatly that they become good enough to win the title.

So, to Boise State... hang in there and keep trying. As the conference develops further and even the potential of playing opponents in Bowl games which can lead to playing during the season, there will be opportunities. And one day there will be a playoff system which will include the Boise State's of the world. (I proposed a first round between non-BCS conferences with winners advancing to play BCS teams in a second round, with winners advancing, etc.)