MWC squads pursue TCU with Boise State on the horizon

DENVER — TCU's Gary Patterson plopped into his seat at Mountain West Conference media day and professed how good it felt to still have a job in an age where football coaches sweat over security as much as they do the scoreboard.

As if he has anything to worry about.

The Horned Frogs are a bona fide power, finishing sixth in The Associated Press poll last season after a 12-1 season that was marred only by a loss to Boise State, a soon-to-be conference foe, in the Fiesta Bowl.

Returning another stacked team led by senior quarterback Andy Dalton, TCU will again have its sights set on not just the MWC crown but a national title.

First, though, the Frogs have to navigate a nonconference schedule that includes Oregon State in the opener and a conference docket that isn't exactly a cakewalk, especially with a visit to Utah on Nov. 6.

But they're clearly the favorite to win a second straight MWC crown.

After this season, TCU will be joined by its BCS busting brethren Boise State in the Mountain West. The Broncos are bolting from the Western Athletic Conference.

They'll essentially take the place of Utah as the Utes split for the conference that will be called the Pac-12.

"I'm sad to see Utah leave. We've had great games. It's been a great rivalry," Patterson said. "I think they brought a lot to the conference."

So, too, have the Broncos, a 26-1 squad over the last two seasons. They only elevate the profile of the conference, something that commissioner Craig Thompson is trying to do as the MWC laboriously lobbies for an automatic bid to the BCS.

The league is definitely making a compelling case, joining the Big Ten and SEC last season as the only conferences to have two teams in the top 12 in the final polls.

Even more, the conference has a 9-3 bowl mark against automatic-qualifying BCS teams since 2004.

These are all stats that Thompson likes to drop when promoting the league.

"We have no issue with the bowl system per se," Thompson said. "Our issue is we think we're performing and playing at a level that is equal to and deserves a spot in one of the BCS bowls, along with the current six automatic qualifiers."