A week ago, in my "50 Reasons To Be Excited About College Football Season," I wrote the following:

"Boise State-Virginia Tech On Labor Day: I haven't been this excited about anything since my first strip club visit back in '04."

Well here we are today, just a  few hours after the completion of the first mega-showdown of the college football season, and I can honestly say that my original hypothesis was a bogus one: Virginia Tech-Boise State blew my first trip to the Gentleman's Club out of the water. It wasn't even close.

Monday night's game had everything: hard-hitting, big plays at key moments and drama that would make an episode of the Real World look like Sesame Street by comparison. It was the perfect ending to an awesome opening weekend of college football. And the best part was, I didn't have to pay a $10 cover charge or order two drinks to enjoy it.

But just as soon as the excitement of the game ended, a new frenzy began: The race to demean Boise's win. Or at the very least, put it into its proper "context."

You all know the arguments, the same ones we've been hearing for years now. Mainly that "Nobody would be making a big deal about this win if it wasn't Boise State" and "Those guys would never go undefeated in the SEC."

(Because of the length, this is just PART of Aaron's recap on the huge Boise State win Monday night. To read the remainder, please click here or visit Aaron at www.aarontorres-sports.com)

So with that, let's try to put everything into its proper perspective. Was this one game a season defining win for Boise? Or just one of the 12 that they need to even be considered in the National Championship discussion? More importantly, what does this particular 60 minutes of Boise State Broncos football mean for the rest of the country?

I'm assuming that most of you reading probably saw the game, but for those who didn't....shame on you! What were you doing? Watching Two and a Half Men re-runs? Here's what you missed:

Even before the start, we all knew this was a big one. For Boise State, it was once again about beating the big name on the bigger stage, this time with the opportunity to put themselves in position for a season-long title run. For Virginia Tech, it was about protecting their home turf, putting their previous early season woes behind them and keeping the little guy in his place. They weren't just playing for themselves, but instead for every big-time program in the country.

And you could feel it in the air. I'd say that this one had the intensity of a BCS National Championship Game before kickoff, but really that'd be an unfair analogy. BCS National Championship games are played on neutral fields, with a relatively even ticket distribution. This one was played in Landover, Md., a little over 200 miles from the Virginia Tech campus, and a little over 2,800 miles from Boise's campus. Really, the vibe was more that of an NFL playoff game, mixed with the noise level of a rock concert and the sense of urgency of a World Series Game 7. That's what Boise State walked into, and truthfully it was hard not to be nervous for them. If only because I personally was nervous sitting on the couch.

From the start, though, you could tell this wasn't Boise's first rodeo. They came out calm and poised, and looked like the veteran team early. The crowd did little to phase them, and if anything, Virginia Tech looked like the team playing in front of 80,000 of someone else's fans. They fumbled the second snap of the game, and spent the rest of the first quarter shooting themselves in the foot with bad penalties and special teams miscues. Tech repeatedly gave Boise good field position, which the Broncos turned into quick points, just like any veteran, championship-level team should do. And before any of us could sneak off for a quick bathroom break, it was already 17-0 Boise.

Like a lot of people who picked Boise to win Monday night, I sat on my couch after the first quarter a little too confident. In retrospect, Boise had 17 points without putting a real drive together, and once Tech got settled in, the Hokies proved to be fine. More than fine really.

Early on in the second quarter, Tech battled back, with Tyrod Taylor establishing himself as the best player on the field. Boise may have been prepared for the power running game, but they had no answer for Taylor. He gashed their defense for long runs. He hit his receivers on perfectly timed patterns. And just when Boise thought they had him figured out, he faked the run, stopped at the line of scrimmage, and hit Ryan Williams with a perfect pass, for Virginia Tech's second touchdown of the quarter. Just like that, it was the Hokies that went into halftime with the momentum, and a very manageable 20-14 deficit.

With the start of the third quarter, little changed. All of a sudden it was Boise State committing dumb penalties. The line, which had been great early, couldn't protect Kellen Moore. It seemed like every possession was 2nd- or 3rd-and-long before the Broncos even knew what hit them. And if it wasn't for a semi-fluky D.J. Harper 71-yard run (where Virginia Tech brought everyone but Bud Foster's grandma on the blitz), Boise would have gone into the final minutes of the game without a single second half point. The Hokies were controlling the game and had the ball with a four-point lead and under six minutes to go. That's where it got interesting.

Like they should have done, Virginia Tech pounded the ball right at Boise. The Hokies were the bigger team along the front line, and they needed to control the trenches. As I said in my Sunday weekend recap, to me, a championship team is one that can run the ball at the end of games when the other defense knows it's coming. Which is exactly what the Hokies did. Williams ran for four yards. Then another five. Then another four for a first down. Taylor hit Jarrett Boykin for another first down. Meanwhile, the clock continued to tick. Virginia Tech was cruising, and before anyone noticed, we were under two minutes to play. Boise had just two timeouts remaining.

Smartly, Virginia Tech stuck with the running game and picked up another four yards on the next play. Timeout Boise. But then, for reasons that I've yet to see explained, the Hokies got goofy, started to out-think themselves and took their foot off the gas.

On second down, Taylor took a snap, and rather than risking a botched handoff, the quarterback, who'd been great all night, ran to the middle of the field and fell right down, like an old dog on a hot summer day. Personally, I had no beef with the play. No need to risk an unnecessary turnover. It also forced Boise to use their last timeout.

But then, on third down, rather than doing the same and running another half minute off the clock, Virginia Tech instead decided to throw the ball.

I mean, I guess even with hindsight on my side, I understand the logic:

Behind Door 1 is this: If you complete the pass and pick up a first down, the game is over. Period. Boise is out of timeouts, they can't stop the clock and you're two knees from getting the W. OK.

Behind Door 2: A much riskier proposition. If you don't complete the pass, you're forced to punt and Boise gets the ball back with reasonable field position. More importantly, all of a sudden they've got an extra 30 seconds in their back pocket....

(To CONTINUE reading Aaron's recap of Boise thrilling come from behind victory, please click here or visit him at www.aarontorres-sports.com.

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