With a team on the verge of starting in the top 15 in the Associated
Press and USA Today Coaches Polls for the first time in its 14th
season playing at the “major” college level, Boise State already has
achieved an impressive record in finishing in the final top 15 in those two
polls. The
Broncos have placed in the final top 15 in at least one of those polls five
times in the last seven years. Boise State was a top 15 finisher in
2002, 2003, 2004, 2006 and again last year. In other words, the Broncos
finish in the top 15 at a .385 clip (five times in 13 seasons).
But how do the Broncos compare historically with all the
"Automatic Qualifier" Conference teams (so designated by the Bowl
Championship Series system), as well as other noted non-AQ Conference teams,
BYU, Utah, Texas Christian, Fresno State, Marshall, and Southern Mississippi?
For the “major” college division (currently the Football Bowl Subdivision
teams), the polling by the AP service began in 1936, and the coaches started
polling in 1950. Thus, the polls go
back 73 full seasons.
In counting the number of seasons played at the “major
college” level since that 1936 season and tallying the top 15 finishes in
either poll for a season, it is possible to calibrate the Bronco record of
success as a Top 15 team. Boise State ranks
12th among the 120 FBS teams in Top 15 success.
The Rankings:
Team
Top 15
Total Seasons
Percentage
as “major”
1)
Ohio State
48
73
.658
2)
Michigan
46
73
.630
3)
Oklahoma
44
73
.603
3)
Notre Dame
44
73
.603
5)
Alabama
41
73
.562
6)
USC
39
73
.534
7)
Texas
38
73
.521
7)
Nebraska
38
73
.521
9)
Tennessee
37
73
.507
10)
Florida State
25
54
.463
11)
Penn State
30
73
.411
12)
Boise State
This record does not mean that Boise State has bettered the
great traditions of a Louisiana State or Georgia.
Those schools have the multiple major bowl wins, the national titles and
the storied accomplishments that secure their genuine accomplishment built on
decades of excellence at the highest level.
And Boise State hasn’t matched the national championships of TCU and
BYU, and is behind the Utes in
BCS
Bowl hardware.
However, the record of accomplishment in such a short span
of time is to suggest that the Broncos may be following a trajectory enjoyed by
a Miami or Florida State—or it may be that the Broncos are enjoying a golden
age such as Arizona State under Frank Kush or BYU under Lavelle Edwards.