I really should know better and not be surprised by this, but it makes me sick to watch this stuff. The fact that ESPN's YouTube page disables embedment of videos makes me even more upset. What is the point of having it on YouTube if you can not embed videos. Here is the video link to what I am referencing.
College Football LIve had a round table today on if the Mountain West should be a BCS league, and it was a resounding no and the host -- who I really enjoy -- Erik Kasalius seems genuinely surprised by the slap down handed toward the Mountain West. What I fund hilarious is that they compare the Big East to having better overall competition, but to me the Big East is just like the MWC a few good teams at the top and that is it. To compare the overall play to the MWC is a poor example because those conferences are a wash, and while the Big East records may be better they do play five conference games but load up on FCS and Sun Belt teams. Just go take a look at South Florida's schedule from last year and this upcoming season for proof.
They also give up the weak example that the bottom of the league is just oh so terrible, but in the latter part of the segment when they drool over Boise State in compression to the Mountain West are giving credit to Boise if they beat Wyoming. Seems kind of backwards.
Back to the oldest argument in the book that the bottom is dragging the league to the dregs of the likes of Western Kentucky is not far -- nor accurate. I am sure if New Mexico, San Diego State, UNLVand Colorado State wanted to they could schedule like the other leagues and bring in games with local FCS teams, bottom feeders of the WAC, or Sun Belt. Those teams like to actually schedule up and play teams like Oklahoma, Arizona State, Wisconsin, Texas Tech, and other BCS schools. Face it when the Mountain West schools (or non-BCS schools) play FCS teams they get criticized for playing those schools, but get no credit when they travel on the road to a top BCS team even when they win because the other oldest argument in the book of not wanting to be there is suddenly en vogue.
Face it EVERY LEAGUE HAS BOTTOM DWELLERS like Washington State, Indiana, Virginia, Syracuse, Baylor, Colorado, Vanderbilt, and others. While I will recognize that the bottom of the Mountain West is hurting the league toward their quest for a seat at the table and last year New Mexico and Colorado State were really that bad. However they could get to four to five wins if they played those FCS and Sun Belt teams that the SEC and others load up on, and that would put them on par with the schools mentioned above.
Andre Ware frankly upsets me because he went to a non-BCS school in Houston and won the Heisman there, but while I do not expect him to put blinders on and use his pom-poms in regards to the non-BCS (not going to call them non-AQ leagues) it would be reasonable for his opinion to be more slanted in good light to the non-BCS. His statement about how all leagues are BCS leagues but are not automatic qualifiers is a bad lie, and on top of it when Andre agrees with that because all you have to do is be in the top 12. He makes it seem so easy to that, but in reality it is not that easy because each non-BCS school is penalized for the conference schedule since it is considered weak. Just look at Boise the past few years when they were jumped by other teams because of their schedule.
I really do not see how these guys can flat out say the league does not belong when they past two years prove otherwise in BCS teams, bowl wins, and wins over BCS teams. It seems awkward to say that Kurt Herbstreit would be a more reasonable person to talk about the Mountain West credentials toward BCS qualification. Looks like the only few people who give the Mountain West credit at the World Wide Leader are those two old guys -- Beano Cook and Ivan Maisel -- who do a second rate podcast compared to the all mighty Solid Verbal, and then Chris Fowler and Rece Davis who gives credit to the Mountain West as a legit league (even though he may be getting a nudge from upstairs).