3 Reasons Why Boise State Could Hang In The SEC.

I don’t know that I’ve ever heard anyone say that Boise State couldn’t handle the daunting schedule of the Big East or ACC. But, it’s one of the go-to arguments used by fans of the Big 4 – SEC, PAC10, BIG10, BIG12.

We've all heard it: “Anyone can win one game. But if they were in the __(insert “best conference ever to exist in the universe”  here)_ they’d be 6-6 at best.”

So let’s see why saying that makes you sound stupid:

1.    Recruiting 

Since SEC fans seem to be the most boisterous about this topic, we’ll use them as an example. According to the infallible Wikipedia, South Carolina has never so much as won their division and Kentucky has won one SEC title in 1950. Neither is ever really a serious contender in their conference.

So tell me, why do they each already have two 4-Star recruits committed for next year? How did S. Carolina get five 4-star recruits last year? 

The answer: because they play in the SEC.

Now back to Boise State. In the 78-year history of the team, Boise State has had ZERO 5-star recruits and TWO 3-star recruits. 

It seems pretty safe to say that by simply being in the SEC, Boise State would have much better recruiting.

2.    Money 

According to the Department of Education, Mississippi State’s athletic department had the lowest revenue of all SEC Teams (in 2008, the latest report available on ope.ed.gov) with $18.73 million dollars.

Boise State brought in $8.53 million.

Just to be fair, that’s all athletics combined, but we all know that football is the big money maker. What do you think Boise State could do with recruiting, PR, advertising, hiring, and stadium expansions with an extra $10 million a year? 

3.    History

 Pop Quiz. How national championships has Boise State won?

Did somebody say 2? That’s right, Boise State has a history of winning. In 1958, they won the Junior College National Championship. In 1980, they won the I-AA National Championship.

So let’s see, 25 years after joining the National Junior College Athletics Association, they won the national championship. 10 years after moving to Division I-AA, they won a national championship.

Remind me again, when did Boise State move to Division I-A? Oh, yes, 1996. 14 years ago.  

But, since we are talking about Boise State hanging with the SEC, it would make even more sense to look at conference affiliation.   

Since joining Division I in 1970 (29 seasons ago), Boise State has been in 3 different conferences (next year’s move to the Mountain West will be number 4) and has been conference champion 15 times. For those of you who might have gone to the University of Idaho, that’s more than half.

The only two realistic explanations for this would be if 1) Boise State kept moving down to weaker conferences, or 2) if they’re just good at football.

Conclusion

People tend to focus on Boise State’s weak WAC opponents without thinking about all the other problems that come from being in a weak conference. They don’t have the exposure, the money, or ability to land big recruits.

It appears that many recruits care more about conference affiliation than about specific teams. If you don’t believe that’s true, then compare the recruiting of Boise State, Utah, and TCU to Washington State, Iowa State, and Syracuse (or any other crappy team from an AQ conference).

If Boise State had to play SEC teams while remaining a member of the WAC, then I could see how you could make some kind of argument, as weak and baseless as it may be. But you can’t play one conference’s schedule without being a member of that conference.

Give Boise State the same resources and benefits that come from membership in a Big 6 conference, and even Mark May would know which horse to bet on.