Moving Mountain West into BCS title picture
By Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports
Sep 15, 11:39 pm EDT

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Craig Thompson is enough of a realist to know that if at the end of the year Southern California and Oklahoma, for example, have perfect records, the BCS title game will be set.

Even a one-loss champion of either the Big 12 or the SEC – the two conferences that boast nine of the top 11 teams in this week’s AP poll – would be impossible to argue against.

Brigham Young or Utah or Texas Christian could be undefeated coming out of Thompson’s Mountain West Conference and probably have to settle for a Fiesta or Sugar Bowl. Settle being the key word.

If this year winds up like last year though – chaos in the chase for a spot in the BCS championship game – Thompson, the MWC commissioner, is vowing to make a push into unchartered territory.



Forget an undefeated MWC team trying to crash its way to a BCS game. If any of them survive to reach 12-0, Thompson will lobby hard for the BCS game, the one for the national title in South Florida.

“Absolutely we would campaign for that,” the league commissioner said Monday. “I don’t think it’s inconceivable that a 12-0 Mountain West team could arguably play for the national championship.”

Oh, it’s inconceivable, although not impossible. The BCS’s moneyed interests would sooner cut back on bowl games in lieu of more study time for players than allow an interloper to make a run at the title.

For anyone paying attention, however, it makes perfect sense, no matter the long odds.

The BCS is built on perception being reality, but right now the Mountain West’s reality is not its perception.

Proof unfolded spectacularly Saturday for Thompson as he sat in his Colorado home and watched the three televisions he has set up side-by-side-by-side. In one perfect day the Mountain West went 4-0 against its rival Pac-10, pushing the league’s mark to 5-0 against that conference and 6-2 against all of the “big six” leagues.

News of the dominance may have slipped by you, mostly because outside of UNLV winning at then No. 15 Arizona State, it wasn’t all that shocking.

“We’re at the point now where the BYUs, the Utahs, the TCUs, the Air Forces, they expect to win against BCS automatic qualifiers at home,” Thompson said.

“That’s where those programs are. They don’t expect to win 59-0, but … “

Thompson laughed a little and who can blame him. When BYU humiliated UCLA 59-0 on Saturday, the Cougars’ legitimacy no longer could be discounted.

Neither can the Mountain West’s. The BCS has six automatic qualifying conferences – ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and Pac-10. The Mountain West is stuck with the rest, trying to prove itself worthy each Saturday.

If you consider the strength of a conference by the difficulty of running the table by clearing week-in, week-out hurdles, only the SEC, Big 12 and, to a lesser degree, the Big Ten are more daunting than the MWC this year.


The Mountain West is fourth. The gauntlet for BYU is tougher than what USC has to handle in the Pac-10 (the Trojans’ dominating nonconference performances make them No. 1 with a bullet regardless of where they play).


The Big East and ACC have little argument.

If a team emerges from those six conferences unbeaten, they get pushed right into the title game. Only once has a no-loss team from the big six been left out (Auburn in 2004 due to the presence of two other perfect teams).

So why wouldn’t it happen for an unbeaten champion of not one of the perceived six best leagues, but one of the six actual best leagues?

“Especially if you played the type of nonconference schedule the BYUs, Utahs and TCUs play,” Thompson said. “Utah won at Michigan and (will play) against Oregon State. BYU won at Washington and against UCLA. TCU beat Stanford and still plays at Oklahoma.

“Those are better games than a lot of people are playing.”

Top to bottom Thompson has demanded his schools schedule aggressively. It’s the only way to build a league’s credibility. Here in the Mountain West’s 10th season, it’s paying off.

So Thompson is ready with a new argument for the BCS, a whole new concept in controversy. Why stop at any old BCS game?

We’ve had these strong unbeaten teams emerge – Utah in 2004, Boise State in 2006, Hawaii a year ago. They were rewarded with a chance at a BCS bowl, and that was that.

Since they were individual productions from generally weak conferences, no one could argue they deserved a shot at the title. It would be that way if East Carolina finished 13-0 this year.

Not the Mountain West. Well, perhaps.

The BCS rules aren’t changing anytime, of course. But it certainly would shake things up if the BCS took on the system employed by some European soccer leagues. Perhaps the weakest of the BCS conferences each year could lose its automatic bid, replaced by the strongest without it.

The ACC has enjoyed favored nation status since the BCS’ inception in 1998. In return it has gone 1-9 in BCS bowls (the only victory coming after the 1999 regular season). This year it’s leaking oil all over the place. Even its coaches admit things are down.

This season, the Big East is even worse.

Meanwhile the Mountain West keeps pounding people.

So Thompson scans the chess pieces of the season and is emboldened enough to vow that if a reasonable case can be made for the boldest gate crash in college football history, he’s ready.

“Part of this whole process is two-thirds of the BCS rankings are based on the opinion of 200-plus pollsters,” he said. “We’ll just have to (convince) people.”

One 59-0 victory at a time.

A 12-0 BYU, Utah or TCU deserve a shot at the National Title..... as do many other 12-0 teams. Unfortunately, with the unfair system we play under they most likey won't get a chance. I empathize.

While the MWC has done well this year beating BCS teams. Lets be realistic here. The ONLY win vs a ranked team was UNLV beating ASU this past week.
They have beaten:
Washington 0-3
UCLA 1-1
Stanford 1-2
Arizona 2-1
Arizona State 2-1
and have loses to
Notre Dame 2-0
Colorado 2-0
Texas AM 1-1

So in reality while having a GOOD record vs BCS, South Florida's win over Kansas is a bigger win than any of the MWC wins. As I said only ASU was ranked.
TCU will have its shot at showing wether its good enough to be consider a TOP BCS squad when they play Oklahoma. Win that one and the MWC will gain much more recognition

Agree CB, USF was a good team beating a good team, whereas I'm not too sure just what the quality of either UNLV or ASU is at this point. I do know that ASU is no longer ranked after that game, at least not in the AP. Erickson said it was on him, and it should be, he did not have his team prepared. I still think ASU is a better team than the Rebs, but kudos to them for knocking off the Devils anyway.

I think TCU can take something of a moral victory from OU, even if they lose, if they keep it relatively close that would be something to hang their hat on. OU is absolutely loaded, and a pregame prediction of the OU-Cincy game had the 'Cats hanging w/ them for a half, but then the greater depth would allow OU to pull away in the 3rd, which is what happened. So, hang tough w/ a team that's been rocking opponents, and the Frogs will have done well ... if they can't win it, that is...

Five years ago the MWC was going to take the "new" Big East's BCS bid. Then after the Big East beat the champion of the SEC, ACC and Big 12, it would have been easier to find Bin Laden than Thompson as Craig retreated back into his mountain. Now the Big East shows one sign of weakness and the big mouth, a$$hole is back at it. Does anyone else see this guy as a whiney *****? Craig we get it. Every five years or so you'll come out of your cave somewhere deep in the mountains of flyover country count your sheep and declare your yourself worthy of the Big East's BCS bid. Let's wait until the end of the season and Craig will once again retreat to the safety of his cave not to be heard from again for another 5 years.
CJ

CardinalJim Wrote:Five years ago the MWC was going to take the "new" Big East's BCS bid. Then after the Big East beat the champion of the SEC, ACC and Big 12, it would have been easier to find Bin Laden than Thompson as Craig retreated back into his mountain. Now the Big East shows one sign of weakness and the big mouth, a$$hole is back at it. Does anyone else see this guy as a whiney *****? Craig we get it. Every five years or so you'll come out of your cave somewhere deep in the mountains of flyover country count your sheep and declare your yourself worthy of the Big East's BCS bid. Let's wait until the end of the season and Craig will once again retreat to the safety of his cave not to be heard from again for another 5 years.
CJ

So true, CJ, so true...

Like we claim it is too early in the season to declare the polls accurate, I think it is too early in the season to say what were quality wins or not. Any team that is 3-0 or 2-1 could turn out to be a bust. USF win over Kansas won't look as good if Kansas ends up losing 3 or 4 more games this season. Just like BYUs record won't look as good if their opponents don't go on to have good years. I am not claiming that those teams are any better or more deserving than the BEast, ACC, SEC or any other. But I do believe if they win out they are deserving of a shot like anyone else. They have already shown that they can compete with BCS bowl wins in the past. If USF goes 12-0, I'd be politicing to have them play in the NC game and we'd all be disappointed when they are not given the chance because there is a perception that the BEast is down this year and they only had one potential quality OOC game (like many other teams in the nation by the way). It just boils down to I am not a fan of the BCS system. I think it is unfair.

It's just firmbizzle's way of taking a shot at the Big East. At the end of the day, we're in the BCS so you'll have to learn to accept that. Once every 5 years the MWC has a good year and here comes the firmbizzles and Craig Thompsons, and MWC fans, even some C-USA fans, of the world come out to proclaim the Big East is dead and the MWC is superior. We hear it every year.

I'm no fan of the BCS either. By the same token I am even less a fan of the bitching and complaining that Craig Thompson does every time his conference wins a game and there is a microphone close by. Thompson needs to shut his mouth about the Big East's automatic bid, learn to be a leader and stop the grandstanding.
CJ

CardinalJim Wrote:I'm no fan of the BCS either. By the same token I am even less a fan of the bitching and complaining that Craig Thompson does every time his conference wins a game and there is a microphone close by. Thompson needs to shut his mouth about the Big East's automatic bid, learn to be a leader and stop the grandstanding.
CJ

Funny how the MWC and their supporters were talking crap back in 2003 and you didn't hear them for 5 years. Now, they're having a good year and here they are proclaiming their superiority again. Of course, if Utah and BYU lose then I guess we won't hear them for another 5 years.

I'm not a fan of the BCS either. I also don't like talk of further modifications to a system that clearly doesn't work, is unfair, and deliberately confuses who is the best team.

Screw the BCS, and anyone who considers it a viable forum for the determination of a champion. If everyone would start to say that, the entire nation would be demanding a playoff of a similar fashion to the one currently used by Division 1-AA (FCS, or whatever else you want to call it).

And if those 1-AA schools want to call themselves Division 1, then they should be made a part of it too. Otherwise, they can become Division 2 in football, and shut the hell up. I want no more of the split Division crap.

That is the logical solution. Unfortunately, I've never seen the NCAA use logic...

bitcruncher Wrote:I'm not a fan of the BCS either. I also don't like talk of further modifications to a system that clearly doesn't work, is unfair, and deliberately confuses who is the best team.

Screw the BCS, and anyone who considers it a viable forum for the determination of a champion. If everyone would start to say that, the entire nation would be demanding a playoff of a similar fashion to the one currently used by Division 1-AA (FCS, or whatever else you want to call it).

And if those 1-AA schools want to call themselves Division 1, then they should be made a part of it too. Otherwise, they can become Division 2 in football, and shut the hell up. I want no more of the split Division crap.

That is the logical solution. Unfortunately, I've never seen the NCAA use logic...

I hate the NCAA as much as the next person, but why do people keep blaming them? People talk about suing the NCAA, how the NCAA is screwing up the bowl system, but this is not the NCAA, this is the BCS. The NCAA doesn't even recognize the BCS. In fact, the NCAA allowed "non-BCS" to compete for national titles (like BYU).

Screw the NCAA(which has no dog dog in this fight, anyway)

And screw the MWC, and screw anyone who tries to enable them to take our BCS bid, ok? (why not the ACC's?)

They are not content to just get a bid, they want the BE's. Screw them...

If the NCAA would rule on the BCS, instead of letting the bowls dictate terms, there wouldn't be all this mess. If things go on, some Senator who's a big fan of some school that got left out will make an issue of it, and it will definitely make it further than Georgia's Senator got it pushed. It will go further each time it happens until the BCS is outlawed. They could probably apply monopololistic or anti-trust legislation, if they really looked into it, and you know they will eventually.

CatsClaw Wrote:It's just firmbizzle's way of taking a shot at the Big East. At the end of the day, we're in the BCS so you'll have to learn to accept that. Once every 5 years the MWC has a good year and here comes the firmbizzles and Craig Thompsons, and MWC fans, even some C-USA fans, of the world come out to proclaim the Big East is dead and the MWC is superior. We hear it every year.

About that…

Firmbizzle, I’m not going deny you an opinion on anything. But, I’ll be watching you to see how often you piss our posters off.

Jose_Jalapeno_on_a_Stick Wrote:

CatsClaw Wrote:It's just firmbizzle's way of taking a shot at the Big East. At the end of the day, we're in the BCS so you'll have to learn to accept that. Once every 5 years the MWC has a good year and here comes the firmbizzles and Craig Thompsons, and MWC fans, even some C-USA fans, of the world come out to proclaim the Big East is dead and the MWC is superior. We hear it every year.

About that…

Firmbizzle, I’m not going deny you an opinion on anything. But, I’ll be watching you to see how often you piss our posters off.

Not my opinion dude. Just posted an article by Dan Wetzel..........firmbizz in the hizz!

These MWC teams have beaten a few PAC Ten teams. They haven't beaten any SEC teams. They haven't beaten Big Ten or ACC or not even BIG EAST teams (Rutgers I think lost to one WAC team).

Now, I think there should be a playoff and not voting for the MNC, but this idea that the MWC keeps touting that they are better than the Big East is preposterous. The last several years the big East has proven itself to be in the upper echelon of BCS conferences with three straight BCS wins against the SEC, ACC and Big Twelve champions in sound fashion. Add to this great nonconference records including against other BCS and great all around bowl winning percentage as well. Where was the MWC during all of this? And now they have a couple of good weeks and are deserving of taking the Big East bid again?

I couldn't help but notice this biased articles attack on ECU either--All ECU has done is beaten two highly regarded and highly RANKED teams in VT and top ten WVU-and if they finish their season undefeated will have defeated four straight BCS teams. This is better than the entire MWC record so far, and yet they say that ECU wouldn't be deserving of playing for the MNC, but they somehow would? Talk about being selective.

firmbizzle Wrote:

Jose_Jalapeno_on_a_Stick Wrote:

CatsClaw Wrote:It's just firmbizzle's way of taking a shot at the Big East. At the end of the day, we're in the BCS so you'll have to learn to accept that. Once every 5 years the MWC has a good year and here comes the firmbizzles and Craig Thompsons, and MWC fans, even some C-USA fans, of the world come out to proclaim the Big East is dead and the MWC is superior. We hear it every year.

About that…

Firmbizzle, I’m not going deny you an opinion on anything. But, I’ll be watching you to see how often you piss our posters off.

Not my opinion dude. Just posted an article by Dan Wetzel..........firmbizz in the hizz!

The good thing is Dan Wetzel's opinion carry's about as much weight as yours.

There shouldn't be a BCS to begin with, but MWC deserves to be on the same field with the Big East. They have multiple powerhouse teams like BYU and Utah. I pretty sure BYU averages 65K+ a game.

The C-USA and WAC could split another bid.

KNIGHTTIME Wrote:There shouldn't be a BCS to begin with, but MWC deserves to be on the same field with the Big East. They have multiple powerhouse teams like BYU and Utah. I pretty sure BYU averages 65K+ a game.

The C-USA and WAC could split another bid.

People need to stop putting the MWC and Big East in the same sentence when trying to prove that the MWC deserves a bid. The MWC had their chance to prove their superiority, or to even prove they're the equal to the Big East, and failed. The Big East has separated themselves from them, and we did it at a time where our BCS bid wasn't helping us. Heck, in a down year the MWC is, at best, even with the Big East. Go complain to the ACC, they're the ones sucking wind.