College Football Talent Gap Is Closing

The underdog is catching up.

There's never been a better time to root for the little guy, and at the rate things are going, the word underdog may soon become obsolete.

The small school down the road hasn't quite caught up to their BCS counterparts yet, but the talent gap has never been closer.

The recent rash of upsets or near upsets began two years ago when Appalachian State stunned the then No. 4-ranked Michigan Wolverines. It was a game that shocked the nation, but little did we know, that would only be the beginning.

The 2008 East Carolina Pirates opened with a 27-22 victory over Virginia Tech. Then they followed that up with a 24-3 blowout over West Virginia.

That ECU team did the unthinkable, scoring huge upsets over the best teams in the ACC and Big East respectively.

Fast forward to 2009. Things would come full circle for the East Carolina Pirates as their first game of the season would match them up against none other than Appalachian State.

This time East Carolina would be the big favorites, while Appalachian State would go for their second win over a FBS school in three years. They nearly did it, but the Pirates would hold on.

Leading the Mountaineers 27-7 at the half, the Pirates almost blew it, allowing Appalachian State to score 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. ECU squeaked out the 29-24 victory though.

On the opening Saturday of the season, Navy would come to Columbus to face the No. 6-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes while Northern Iowa would face Iowa.

Navy of course is a legitimate mid-major team and perennially has one of the best rushing offenses in the nation. However, no one expected such a close game against the class of the Big Ten. 

The Midshipmen came within a two-point conversion in the fourth quarter of tying the game at 29-29. Fortunately for the Buckeyes, the attempt was intercepted and the Buckeyes would come away with a 31-27 victory.

I'm sure the immediate reaction is that it never should have come down to that for Ohio State, but that wouldn't be respecting Navy. The underdog is catching up to the BCS.

Northern Iowa, like Appalachian State, is a FCS school. For over a decade, Northern Iowa has faced off against their in-state FBS and BCS rivals, Iowa, and for over a decade, Iowa has won every game quite handily.

Not this time. The Panthers would control most of the game, taking a 10-3 lead into halftime, and then holding on until just seconds remained on the clock. 

NIU would get down to the Hawkeyes 25-yard line where they set-up to kick the game winning field goal. It was blocked, but Iowa forgot to fall on the ball. The Panthers recovered and amazingly with one second left on the clock, they would get a second chance to create history.

Inexplicably, Iowa blocked the second attempt and would go on to win the game. However, Northern Iowa's upset bid can't go unnoticed. This wasn't just any near miss.

The Panthers had to march all the way down field from their 11-yard line with just two minutes left in the game to even get in posistion for their field goal tries. That's something only the best teams can do on a regular basis, but here was little NIU pulling it off against a BCS school.

The underdog is catching up.

It was bound to happen. These BCS schools that consistently schedule FCS schools or seemingly inferior opponents from mid-major conferences would eventually pay for it.

There is of course, nothing to be gained for a BCS school blowing out a FCS school, but there is so much to lose. Just ask the 2007 Wolverines.

However despite that crushing defeat, Michigan has scheduled another FCS opponent this year. They will face Delaware State on Oct. 17. Hopefully the Wolverines will be ready this time. The Hornets should be prepared for, the same way a BCS opponent should be.

Michigan should play with the same tenacity as they would against Ohio State, the same sense of urgency.

There will be more upsets before the year is over. Around the nation more so-called underdogs are hovering beneath the radar while their BCS counterparts lick their chops.

One day, a mid-major school will play for the national title. Don't laugh, it will happen. Whether in the current BCS format, or when a playoff system is finally implemented, it will happen. Maybe then, the underdog will be respected.

Until then, the East Carolinas, Navys, Fresno States, and Tulsas of the world will be waiting in the wings for their chance at greatness.

The underdog is catching up.