A new delusion

I have to get a few things off my chest before I begin. Today is a new day. The writer's block that has been an ever excruciating dark cloud over my head is starting to part. No excuses that I know, however. So it ends today. No more hiding my desire, no more wallowing in my own self-pity. This is me. I was laid off in Idaho after working for a newspaper, worked last winter at a snow resort, and now, well, now I am the typical sports blogger who lives with his parents and eats his mom's awesome meat loaf. I don't live in a basement nor do I wear a bathrobe (although I do own one).

So as I begin with rants, raves juxtaposed with the best logic I can come up with, I want all of you (yes even if it is just Hepburn who reads this) to know that pent up creativity pours out like a mudslide.

Before I delve into the bi-polar University of Washington football team, and before I urge Jim Mora, Jr. to burn those horrid, and I mean horrid lime green jerseys, I have to begin with the best college football team in the Northwest, the Boise State Broncos and their delusional fans.

Before I moved to Idaho and before the BSU win in the Fiesta Bowl, I kind of liked the Broncos. That was, however, before the television stations in Southern Idaho spent more time on Bronco practices than actual news-related stories. But that's neither here nor there, I understand the excitement surrounding the Boise and Southern Idaho area. There are no pro teams and BSU is the closest its going to have.

I realize the fandom has been ever-present and the need to stick by your team is greater to understand why your team is even good in the first place. The fan base is like a proud parent who thinks their son or daughter is the greatest athlete in the world, but in reality, they just dominate YMCA basketball.

Can someone from Boise please answer this question with full honesty: Will the Boise State Broncos really fair well against the likes of a bigger conference foe week in and week out?

My answer is no.

Here is my reasoning. When a team's season is ultimately predicated upon one win early in the season, there is no way of telling that their a solid team. Yes, they beat Oregon two years in a row. Yes, they run the table on the undeniably awful WAC. But what else do they have on their resume?

This is my problem with Mid-Majors and in result, the problem with the NCAA system. And let's get one thing clear, there will be no BCS playoff system no matter if President Obama tries to butt in or not. It ain't happening.

But if BSU wants more respect, they need to get into the Mountain West Conference. It's the only way they'll be able to compete in the BCS Championship year in and year out. And also, we as football fans will figure out how good these posers are. Is it a legit football program, or is a program that is built on a few good games and let the cards fall in front of it so the rest of the season will be a cake walk?

I want to believe that BSU is legit. I want to see Kellen Moore get national respect. I want to see Chris Peterson get Coach of the Year honors. Can BSU fans look in the mirror and, with a straight face, consider themselves the 5th best team in the nation? True as it may be it is there by process of elimination. But try telling fans of the SEC how good BSU is.

For nostalgic purposes lets bring the 2007 Fiesta Bowl win in the conversation. It was THE greatest game I've ever seen. But, and here's a big but, if I were a betting man, and the rest of Bronco nation a betting nation, too, would I or BSU fans bet that it would happen again?

I know, I know, I know that people say that that's the way it happened, no need to think about what could have been or what would happen. But let's hypothetically think for a moment. BSU had a very dominant team, arguably better than this year's No. 5 ranking (their highest in school history), and it was a game against a highly overrated Oklahoma Sooner team. Adrian Peterson was THE team. You take him off, what kind of team do you have? Bob Stoops was out-coached by a brilliant Chris Peterson. But when you have to resort to trick plays for a win, it's not a legit win. The stars aligned at the right time, the wind blew just enough, Oklahoma's secondary was fooled just enough and the momentum shifted dramatically.

If we knock teams like Florida, Ohio State, USC, Oklahoma or Texas for playing cup cake teams in their opening weekends, then we MUST knock BSU for their schedule because it's the exact opposite of what happens to those bigger schools. BSU plays one tough team to open the season and the rest of the schedule is a walk on the beach. To the contrary of bigger programs. Playing a cup cake team (equivalent to NFL's preseason) and then playing a schedule full of teams that are chasing conference championships. Please, Boise State, do yourself a favor and get into the Mountain West Conference so it will make a better case to become a BCS conference. That way Boise can compete week in and week out with Utah, BYU and TCU, all of which are top 25 teams.

Case closed.

Now onto (dare I say) a brief state of delusion at the University of Washington? I hate to hate on the Dawgs because I'm a fan. But when we (UW) got a No. 24 ranking, something about me was fooled. It was like watching a street magician do a card trick right before your eyes, you want to believe so you do. And you get tricked. That's what happened to us (UW). That little No. 24 next to Washington was like a mirage. We saw something beautiful again and we forced ourselves to believe no matter how terrifying the truth seemed. We lost every game last season, beat USC, and then all of a sudden ranked with the best. Woah. I wish we never had that ranking. Because as much as all of the players said that it didn't matter, it did. The Husky sub-conscious was ultimately screwed with and even the players believed they were the 24th best team in the nation. And were underdogs the next week. How does that happen?

After watching Washington get manhandled in Stanford, that 24 next to Washington was like when I write something brilliant down on a piece of paper, only to read it to myself and realize that it was garbage. Stanford tore Washington out of the Top 25 notebook and threw them in the trash.

Now, we will see what type of coach Sark will be. Remember, there was a bit of jubilation following Washington's win over Syracuse and Boise State (ahem, another point by the way) to start the 2007 season. Then we all know what happened to the Coach That Shall Not Be Named.

My only hope will be that Sark will use this Toby Gerhart ass-pounding as a motivational tool to get the Huskies' offensive and defensive line awake and ready to pray to Football Jesus in North Bend next weekend, because UW will need all of the power of God to help them win. Let's just hope Charlie Weiss doesn't all of a sudden turn into a "genius" at the right moment.

And finally, the Seahawks and their terrible jerseys. What hell, man? The jerseys are just a metaphorical anger outlet. Because, other than Julius Jones, those were not the Hawks. Those jerseys had terrible clock management, those jerseys fumbled the ball and those jerseys missed field goals. I don't know who those jerseys were, but I'd like my original Hawks back please.

Leaving the game yesterday I thought that the ending to that pathetic game would never have happened under Holmgren. I was on fire over Mora and Greg Knapp's play calling. I couldn't believe how those jerseys were stalling on 4th and 1, throwing a pussy screen pass for a first down. I mean, what the phuq? But then I saw how angry Mora was. And that's the type of fire I like. So, if Jim Mora ever reads this, I apologize for any lack of fire I thought you had. The post-game rant was something I, like the rest of us, needed to hear. Like I said before, those jerseys sucked.

Okay, the Stache is done.