There are three months to go before bowl season. Let's see how many wrong bowl projections I can make between now and then, okay?
Armed with the first BCS standings of the season and drunk on the sweet nectar of Florida tourism websites, I put together some bowl possibilities for the Broncos after the jump. Bonus: I also look ahead to the playoff that will never happen. Join me in my rampant speculation.
If the season ended today ...
National championship game
Alabama vs. LSU
Orange Bowl
Clemson vs. Boise State
The Orange Bowl pairing is purely of my own speculation. Clemson would be a for-sure since the ACC champion goes to the Orange automatically. Boise State would be there courtesy of the Orange getting the last pick in BCS dodgeball and the Broncos being the least lucrative of the options available. Blue Elvises aren't made of money, you know.
The rest of the BCS picks might look like this. Conference champions and, therefore, fixed picks are in bold.
- Rose Bowl = Oregon vs.
MichiganWisconsin - Fiesta Bowl = Oklahoma vs. Stanford
- Sugar Bowl = West Virginia vs. Oklahoma State
The pecking / picking order for BCS bowls this season goes Fiesta, Sugar, Orange. So in theory, the Fiesta Bowl would have dibs on making an Oklahoma - Boise State rematch if it wanted. That would be fun for everyone but Bob Stoops.
In another entirely plausible scenario, many people are sweet on the idea of the Broncos playing an SEC team in the Sugar Bowl. Let's unpack that.
Either Alabama or LSU will lose to the other when the two teams play on November 5. The winner will be the leading candidate for the BCS championship game. The loser will be in the Sugar Bowl, most likely. So how do one of these matchups strike you?
Alabama vs. Boise State
LSU vs. Boise State
Of course, some random SEC East team like South Carolina or Georgia could bring chaos to the BCS by winning the SEC championship game over LSU or Alabama. The East's best shot now that Marcus Lattimore is done for the season is the Georgia Bulldogs. If UGA wins the SEC, they'll be in the Sugar Bowl, and the Broncos most definitely won't.
End of days scenario
At six wins, the Broncos are bowl eligible and will land somewhere, sometime during December or January. Let's say for instance that the NCAA declares the entire roster ineligible and only allows player doppelgangers to compete on the field. Helen Gore, Willy Chinn, Rug Harpin, and others lose multiple times in their final six games. Mark Johnson's head explodes, and the Broncos end up ... in ... the ... (dramatic pause) ...
Independence Bowl
Boise State vs. Wake Forest
The No. 3 MWC team plays the No. 7 ACC team in the Independence Bowl, and I think I speak for everyone when I say, "Do not want!"
If Boise State stumbles in one or two of its final six games, chances are that TCU will win the conference and go to the Vegas Bowl. The No. 2 MWC finisher gets the Poinsettia Bowl against the WAC champion, which at this point would be Fresno State.
Let's have a playoff
College football is stupid with quality teams this season (and WAC teams and Sun Belt teams), so the idea of a two-school, one-game championship is absurd. I think you and I and rational people everywhere agree that a playoff is in the best interests of life, liberty, and finding out who the best team in CFB really is. I have taken the current standings and adapted them to my favorite playoff format (16 teams, 11 conference champions, five at-larges, seeds from the AP). Enjoy. And dream.
- No. 1 LSU vs. No. 16 Louisiana-Lafayette
- No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 15 Fresno State
- No. 3 Oklahoma vs. No. 14 Toledo
- No. 4 Wisconsin vs. No. 13 SMU
- No. 5 Boise State vs. No. 12 Kansas State
- No. 6 Oklahoma State vs. No. 11 West Virginia
- No. 7 Stanford vs. No. 10 Arkansas
- No. 8 Clemson vs. No. 9 Oregon
Your turn
Where do you want Boise State to end up? Are you hoping for a Sugar Bowl against an SEC school? Will you be happy with anything other than the Independence Bowl? Share your thoughts in the comments.