Boise State football team could still end up in the Rose Bowl | Boise State Football | Idaho Statesman
The Rose Bowl could end up choosing between Boise State and Stanford for this season’s game under a little-known provision in its agreement with the Bowl Championship Series.
The next time the Rose loses one of its anchor teams to the BCS National Championship Game — likely Oregon this year — it is obligated to replace that team with an automatic qualifier from a non-BCS conference, if such a team is available.
That could be a battle between TCU, now No. 3, and Boise State, now No. 4. The Rose must take the higher-ranked team.
If TCU qualifies for the National Championship Game, the Rose is off the hook — only one non-BCS team qualifies automatically. However, the Rose could take Boise State as an at-large selection and still fulfill its non-BCS obligation.
To do that, the Rose would have to choose the Broncos over BCS No. 6 Stanford — a decision that would snub the game’s traditional matchup of teams from the Pac-10 and Big Ten.
“We have discussed it because of the situation that we’re in and the current landscape of the season so far,” said Gina Chappin, director of media for the Rose Bowl.
The benefit to the Rose would be two-fold.
First, the selection would complete the Rose’s obligation at the first opportunity.
Second, the Broncos in that scenario would be No. 3 in the country and riding a 26-game winning streak. They’re a TV draw and their fans likely would show up in huge numbers.
If the Rose didn’t act this year, it might get stuck with a lower-ranked, less-recognizable, more-distant team in a future year. Chappin, who worked for the Fiesta Bowl when the Broncos played Oklahoma, said the Rose doesn’t consider the non-BCS requirement a burden.
“We’re not looking negatively at this by any means,” she said. “We’re excited to have a new team come play in the Rose Bowl Game. … We’ve seen the success of Boise State and TCU. We feel very confident in whatever the matchup happens to be.”
The Rose was approached by its BCS partners about including the non-BCS teams in this four-year cycle. The Fiesta (four) and Sugar (two) have taken all of them so far.
The Rose was exempt in the past because it gets the first or second pick when it loses an anchor to the championship game. It’s the only BCS game with two anchor conferences.
If TCU is in the title game, the Rose could take Stanford over Boise State and hope that no Pac-10 or Big Ten teams play for the championship in the next three years, but that’s not the approach its leaders are taking.
“We entered this year with the reality that this was going to happen sooner or later,” Chappin said. “I don’t think any of us expected to get through this four-year cycle and not have this be something that would be a reality.”
Boise State expects to break ground on Dona Larsen Park next year, beginning the process of expanding Bronco Stadium. Boise State on Wednesday announced a $5 million combined pledge from longtime donors Larry and Marianne Williams and Jerry and Muriel Caven.
Combined with other fund-raising, Boise State has collected $6.3 million for stadium expansion since unveiling the master plan in August.
Boise State already had a $2.5 million donation from the David and Debra Larsen Huber Family Foundation for Dona Larsen Park, which will feature a track and high school football stadium. The park on the former East Junior High site will allow Boise State to remove the track from Bronco Stadium.
The Dona Larsen project is expected to cost about $5 million. The rest of the first phase of the stadium expansion — about 5,000 seats and a football complex in the north end zone — is expected to cost about $30 million.
The press release indicated the $5 million donation was earmarked for the football complex, but Boise State considers Dona Larsen Park, the extra seating and the football complex one project.
“The money that we’ve raised right now will help us to do all three of those things,” athletic director Gene Bleymaier said.
Dona Larsen Park should be completed in the next couple of years. Bleymaier still is a long way from developing a timeline for the rest of the project. Boise State must raise the majority of the money.
“We will start getting plans put together to move forward with moving the track,” Bleymaier said. “We will hire an architect and really get down to brass tacks about designing what kind of facility we want.”
Bleymaier isn’t sure yet what the first phase of stadium expansion will look like. The football complex is planned as part of a seating addition in the north end zone.
He hopes the $5 million gift will spur the fund-raising drive. The Williams and Caven families will have some naming-rights opportunities, but not on the stadium itself.
The Hammer will make the trip to Moscow.
“But it’s not going to make it on the logo,” Boise State coach Chris Petersen said.
Two years ago, then-freshman tailback Doug Martin carried the Hammer to midfield and hit the Vandals logo. It will be carried by a freshman again this year — tight end Gabe Linehan, whose uncle, Scott Linehan, is a former Idaho quarterback.
Chadd Cripe is in his ninth season covering Boise State football for the Idaho Statesman. He also is a voter in The Associated Press Top 25. Contact him at ccripe@idahostatesman.com or 377-6398.
Comments
Post a Comment