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Games that matter: Boise State's rooting guide for Week Two

Ed's note: I have asked Spay & Neuter to help get us up to speed on the games that affect Boise State each week. Here are those games. Don't forget: If you want to pick winners, there's a Pick 'Em group for that.

Week One started off with a rocky MWC loss (thanks for nothing, TCU) and ended up with a sweet road win (hooray, us). Boise's convincing victory over the SEC Bulldogs is a tremendous start to both the Broncos' season and Kellen's Heisman campaign.

As usual, Boise took care of the things it could control and watched from the sidelines at the things it could not. I'll try to summarize the impact of the Week One games on our Broncos using baseball analogies. For those unfamiliar with baseball, might I suggest A League of Their Own - or even better, Major League. Talk about edutainment!

  • The Vandals went down - and looked bad doing it. (Batting Practice Home Run)
  • Toledo took care of New Hampshire (Single)
  • UNLV got manhandled by Wisconsin (Strike Out)
  • Notre Dame gave away the game to South Florida (RBI Double)

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(Image via 30fps)

  • South Carolina trounced East Carolina (Reached on Error... if Georgia beats South Carolina, make this a triple)
  • Texas A&M beat SMU soundly (Pop Fly Out)
  • The Horny Toads (our 2nd most important game of the season) almost got blown out - then almost had a comeback for the ages - then settled for a regular old 2-point loss. (Double Play Out)
  • Fresno lost to Cal (Strike Out --- by our clean up hitter)
  • Tulsa fell to Oklahoma - hard (groundout to first)
  • Broncos took care of Georgia (Grand Slam)

In Week One, Boise's opponents were 4-4 straight up (two opponents played each other) and 1-3 against the spread (4 teams played FCS opponents, which - of course - don't have lines).

Join me now for Week 2's Rooting Guide...

I've gotta admit, it's hard to start rooting for certain teams just yet. We don't know who's undefeated and needs to be knocked down. There's still LOTS of football to be played. Therefore, I'll focus this week's guide on our opponents (and of course, the Vandals).


One Star Games (mild impact)

Idaho vs North Dakota - Saturday at 3 MT - ESPN3

  • Favorite: Ugh... Not North Dakota (no line)
  • Root for: Not the Vandals
  • Why? Do I have to explain? Wouldn't it be great if the Fightin' Sioux took out the Vandals? Actually, it might make things so bad I'd start to feel sorry for Idaho. OK, Fightin' Sioux - beat 'em, but don't beat 'em too bad OK?

New Mexico at Arkansas - Saturday at 5 MT - ESPNU

  • Favorite: Razorbacks by 36
  • Root for: Los Lobos
  • Why? The Lobos are on our schedule. Yippee! No wonder we made the switch to the MWC! Why isn't this game in the 3-star category? Because if the Lobos pull this off, I've got not one, but two unicorns in my backyard and they have announced (yes, they can talk) they are ready to breed hundreds of "mini-corns". Breeding these wonderful mini-corns will enable me to make millions of dollars. Why am I writing this?

Two Star Games (moderate impact)

Toledo at Ohio State - Saturday at 10 MT - Big Ten Network

  • Favorite: Buckeyes by 19
  • Root for: Rockets
  • Why? We play the Rockets next week. Toledo is supposed to be a fairly good team this year and is projected to contend for its conference title. At a minimum, staying within striking distance of Ohio State would boost Toledo's credibility, something our schedule desperately needs. It would also allow us to prove to The Buckeye faithful that we can beat a school they play in more convincing fashion than they can. Until they have the courage to schedule us and settle it on the field, this is as good as we'll get. A win would be... well, incredible on many levels. Not just because it would help our SoS, but because Gordon Gee deserves to be beaten by a "Little Sister" so badly I'm thinking of hiring a real little sister to give him a bop or two.

Tulsa at Tulane - Saturday at 1:30 MT - Cox Sports

  • Favorite: Golden Hurricane by 12
  • Root for: Golden Hurricane
  • Why? We play the 'Cane in two weeks. Though Tulane ain't that big a deal, a W's a W. Losing to the Green Wave would be... well, bad. We need all five of our non-conference opponents to do well this year. Even Tulsa.

UNLV at Washington State - Saturday at 3 MT - No TV

  • Favorite: Wazzu by 14
  • Root for: Runnin' Rebs
  • Why? UNLV is one of the worst, I mean WORST teams in FBS. And... they're in our conference. Luckily, they're playing one of the worst, I mean WORST teams in the PAC-whatever. Normally I wouldn't give the Rebs a chance, but this is Wazzu we're talking about. Come on, it's entirely possible they forget how to tackle. Of course, that assumes they knew how in the first place. A win over the PAC would give us the ability to lay down some more SMACK.

Three Star Games (major impact)

Nevada at Oregon - Saturday at 1:30 MT - FX

  • Favorite: Ducks by 26
  • Root for: Both to lose? Barring a change in the laws of nature, we should root for the Pack to take down the Ducks.
  • Why? We play the Pack. We don't play the Ducks (I'm pretty sure Chip Kelly's contract says he is not allowed to schedule us.) As unlikely as it may seem, anything's possible. If the Pack were to take down Oregon, our schedule would get a Huge, Huge boost. Go Pack. Now, does someone have some soap for my mouth?

Fresno at Nebraska - Saturday at 5 MT - Big Ten Network

  • Favorite: Huskers by 28
  • Root for: Dem other Dawgs.
  • Why? Fresno's on our schedule, for this year and many years to come (until next week's conference realignment, that is). A win over one of the Evil Empire Conferences' teams would score one for the little guy. Oh, and it would boost our SoS.

San Diego State at Army - Saturday at 10AM MT - CBS Sports

  • Favorite: Aztecs by 9
  • Root for: Aztecs
  • Why? The more wins the MWC has over non-conference opponents, the better its chance for BCS conference inclusion. And more importantly, the better our SoS. Army's no slouch. Root for the Aztecs, unless you have service member loved ones overseas. If so, you're allowed a pass. We love our Broncos, but we love our service members too.

TCU vs Air Force - Saturday 11:30 MT - Versus

  • Favorite: Horned Frogs by 2
  • Root for: Horned Frogs
  • Why? Both are Mountain West rivals who would boost Boise State's SoS with a win. But when it comes to national perception, TCU has the cachet of world beater and Air Force is known for beating Army and Navy usually. If one of these teams could run the table from here on out (until their trip to The Blue, of course), I think BSU fans would choose the Horned Frogs. It's better for national perception, which - unfortunately - matters.

Georgia vs South Carolina - Saturday 2:30 MT - ESPN

  • Favorite: Gamecocks by 3
  • Root for: 'Dem 'Dawgs
  • Why? We want the Bulldogs to win out - or at the very least, win the SEC East. A victory over South Carolina would validate our win in two ways: 1) It's South Carolina - and would put the Dawgs on track to win the SEC East. 2) It's right after we played them. I do not want to hear, "Well, the team you beat was horrible at the start of the year, but now that they've had time to mature, they're great! There's no way you could beat them now."

Georgia's game with South Carolina is the game to watch this week. Bronco hangouts should be prepared for an influx of fans for the Saturday afternoon game. Go Dawgs!

Your turn

What games will you be scoreboard-watching this weekend? Are you on board with rooting for the Bulldogs? Who you got in that TCU - Air Force game? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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