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Utah Utes football: Team now No. 7 on BCS list

HERE IS THE WAY INTO THE BCS FOR THE WAC AND THE MTN WEST

The problem is simple - the WAC and the MOUNTAIN WEST CHAMPS should have a single game playoff with the winner going to a BCS Bowl. If after that game they are ranked in the 1 or 2 spot just like any one else then they can talk Nat Champs. Truth is the two leagues do deserve an auto berth even if they are one loss teams - BUt for now just ONE from both - I don't like it but it does make sense and imagine the power if both leagues went to the BCS together and agreed to a single game playoff with the winner going to the BCS - more power - great appeal and best of all everyone is still in it to the bitter end - oh and imagine the money for the two leagues to be split on such a championship game. Besides remember half of a 100% is better then 100% of nothing...

Your right - I would love a yearly WAC Mountain West PLay off would rock and how could the BCS deny that the winner of that playoff should not be in. Clearly the winner of a playoff between the two would be worthy of the Great and Powerful BCS

Utah has never beaten a team that was ranked in the top 10 at the time they played them or who finished the season in the top 10. At best, they've beaten #10-25 teams at Utah or #20+ teams on the road. Beating BYU doesn't count since they are also MWC and therefore suspect.

Where do you guys get off thinking you are world beaters when you consistently play such weak competition???

BCS is a fraud, no matter how anyone looks at it. Let's have a legitimate playoff system that gives a fair shot to anyone, regardless of conference.

Why isn't anybody talking about Utah in the National Championship? They computers have them ranked #4! The human polls have the Utes at #8... huge difference.

The human polls should have Utah ranked ahead of USC now. Their schedules are comparable, and Utah is undefeated and beat Oregon State who beat USC.

With Oklahoma playing Texas Tech and Alabama playing Florida, two of the teams ahead of Utah are guarenteed to lose.

I'm not saying the Utes deserve to be #1/#2 right now, but they should be in the conversation. Unfortunately the conversation ends at #6 USC and never moves to #7

My Utes are rated too high. They ought to be somewhere near 12 (so should Boise). That's all they need to get to the BCS, and then if they drew Texas or Oklahoma, it wouldn't look so bad if they didn't do so well. A loss hurts momentum (and recruiting)more when it appears that a team should have done much better (look what happened to "No. 8" BYU in the polls).

It's not that I have "no" in my heart, it's just that I really don't think the Utes could beat all but 6 teams in the league if they played this week. Baby steps are appropriate. It stinks that outside forces are giving them more than they asked for.

on the part of Kyle and the team handing out pizzas to students waiting in line overnight for tickets to the BYU/Utah game.

SDSU will be little more than a tuneup for Utah before the showdown next week.

The rise in BCS ranking, though nice, is inconsequential at this point. Utah doesn't stand a chance of getting into one of the top two spots to play for the national championship, and Boise State doesn't stand a chance of passing Utah in the BCS standings as long as Utah wins out.

Utah's best scenario for winning their BCS bowl is facing the winner of the Big East or ACC. They won't stand much of a chance of beating USC, or any of the teams from the Big 12 or SEC.

The BCS needs to be dismantled! Playoff football should determine a Champion. It's time for a change, just as in our government its time to change and the fans should be able to vote either for or against the BCS.

I also like the idea. But we have to remember that there is nothing in it (this plan) for the BCS. We would have to give a portion of the revenue of this playoff to the BCS conferences in order for them to entertain the idea of including this champ in the BCS Bowl Series. The BCS prostitutes itself. That's just who they are. REMEMBER?

The BCS Conference Commissioners could care less about a 'playoff' between two conferences outside it's current structure. They would laugh and laugh. All your idea does is keep a MWC/WAC team from contending for the BCS, as it reduces their overall BCS % and knocks them down the rankings farther. Especially in a year like 2008, where 3 teams have been in or near the top 15. And sharing the BCS money ($17.5 mil this year) with TWO conferences instead of one makes it $0.9 mil per team in each conference instead of $1.9 mil per team. Ultimately, the conferences (WAC, MWC) would never agree to this, as it reduces their already slim chances of getting this money by half. Sorry, but it'll never happen.

TCU gave away the game to the Utes. The MWC would have been best served by TCU representing us. They have the best team in the conference. The Utes are too spotty offensively, and the Y has multiple problems (speed, defense, Bronco's interviews). If the Y wins, Boise State goes in and we get nothing. I also like the WAC/MWC play-in.

Utah finishes the season at #135 (Sagarin ELO-CHESS) SDSU, and vs #27 BYU.

BYU finishes at #34 Air Force and at #4 Utah.

TCU finishes vs #34 Air Force.

Boise State finishes at #136 Idaho, at #68 Nevada, vs #76 Fresno St.

If Utah wins out, they'll stay about the same in the computer rankings, but rise a little in the human polls, to 4th or 5th in the BCS standings.

If BYU wins out, they'll rise considerably in the computer rankings and in the human polls, to 10th or 11th in the BCS standings.

If TCU wins out, they'll rise a little in the computer rankings, a lot in the human polls, to about 11th or 12th in the BCS standings.

If Boise State wins out, they'll drop in the computer rankings, but rise a little in the human polls, to about 7th or 8th in the BCS standings.

Bottom line: Utah needs to win out, or Boise State needs to lose (at Nevada probably) for the MWC to get the automatic BCS bid.

Ball State will lose one of their final two games.

Realistically...the Utes were LUCKY to beat TCU. TCU beat themselves...missed field goals, penalties. They outgained the Utes about 2-1. I'm glad Utah won, but Utah had better keep being lucky, because they don't look that good on offense. Their defense looks solid. Special teams are good. But they only have one real game left...so a BCS berth is within their reach.

What is the next best thing about being 10-0, 11-0 against a pathetic San Diego State team.

Obviously I would prefer an automatic bid to the BCS for the Mountain West, but since that is not likely to happen, at least for several years, I think the one game playoff is a great idea. It seems that the WAC has figured out that the road to a BCS game is as simple as playing a powder-puff schedule, and winning out. Nothing against Boise State, but there are 3 MWC teams that deserve a BCS game more than they do, yet they are the most likely to get one. I would love to see Boise State prove themselves against BYU or Utah this season.

This is an automatic win for us saturday so we'll at least share the title.
Go Utes!

Sounds like a great plan....... if your in the WAC.

It appears that since Utah broke into the BCS, after this year, things will have played out pretty evenly.

Even with a national 8 game playoff somebody would be on the fringe or left out.

If we had 32 teams a playoff would be great, but with 119..........please. Somehow,somebody will always be left out who's fanz think should have got
in.

Look at the Big 12 South. Possibly 4 of the top 10 teams in the country come that one division of a conference.

I think the WAC should find better competition to play, and that would take care of their problem.

Much as I hate to say it, I like the controversy of the current system. If you understand the BCS ranking system it's not that far off reality. Most people have a problem with the computers.

Maybe the WAC can have a playoff with Conference USA..........I hear there is another 10-0 team over there who is looking for credibility.

The discussion really ought to be broader than this.

Big joke suggests that the all high and mighty SEC or other eastern conferences are just brilliant. Please. If you watched the LSU - Alabama game this weekend you saw the number 1 ranked team in the nation barely slip past a number 6 LSU that (granted, Lee is not the first string quarterback) couldn't make a pass to save its life. Yet Bama couldnt' take advantage. Both defenses only appeared strong because of their inept offenses. It was a race to the bottom on both sides.

Now, that might just have been a single game. But anybody watching with a knowlege of football knowns either team would have lost to a Boise State that day (just as an example). And there it all ends... anymore, on any given Saturday, any team in the top 25 might beat any other team.

That's why only a playoff system will work. The eastern conference schedules being so tough - that's just a bygone perception.

Your right, the big east, acc, and pac 10 are far better. When was the last time any of these conf. were any better than utah, byu, tcu, or boise. Mtn west needs to add boise and Fresno and they have a top 3 or 4 conference every year.

Any team that is able to break the mighty BCS mold and get in deserves some credit. I think all of us in the WAC and Mountain West would agree that the system is flawed and needs to be in a constant state of evolution. Picking sides and coming up with exceptions like Big Joke stated doesn't help the case. A united front by both Mountain West and WAC contenders may put more pressure on the have's by us (this year it happens to be Boise State and UTAH) who are the have nots (that includes both BYU and UTAH!)