Boise State Hits Glass Ceiling

In 1986, the Wall Street Journal introduced the term "glass ceiling," referring to women and minorities' failure to attain highest-level jobs despite their apparent qualifications. The phrase is a term of of art that describes an invisible barrier that blocks further ascension up the corporate ladder. This year the glass ceiling has arrived in college football courtesy of Boise State. Don't believe me, how else to explain Boise's rise to No. 5 in the nation and subsequent fall in the polls over the past couple of weeks despite teams above them losing?

Put simply, poll voters have decided that a non-major team isn't worthy of prominent placement among the legitimate contenders for the BCS title. Given that two-thirds of BCS standings arrive courtesy of poll voters, that glass ceiling of perception effectively limits the advancement of non-Big Six teams. Just when these teams believe they've finally cracked the code of championship game inclusion and are poised for victory, the powers-that-be pull a Lucy and move the proverbial football.

Boise State debuted at No. 14 in the preseason AP poll and No. 16 in the coaches' poll. At this point, they were the highest rated non-Big Six conference team. On the first Thursday of the season Boise memorably beat No. 16 Oregon 19-8. The following week Boise advanced on the Top 10, to 12th in the AP and 11th in the coaches' poll. From there Boise's ascension was gradual as teams above them lost. In Week 2, the Broncos were 10th in both polls. Week 3, they were eighth in both polls. Week 4, saw Boise rise to fifth in both polls. At that point, Florida, Texas, Alabama, and LSU were the only four teams in the country ranked above them. Knowledgeable writers such as Dan Wetzel at Yahoo pointed out that Boise had finally cracked the BCS code. With four undefeated teams ranked above them, three of whom were from the SEC and would play against one another, Boise stood a very real possibility of advancing up the poll ranks. With each step up the poll rung, Boise would make history, spiting the powers-that-be of the BCS along the way.

And how couldn't they advance? After all, pollsters don't typically allow a team who is winning and undefeated to be passed by a team with more losses than they have.

Only the glass ceiling was upon us.

Boise peaked with 1,203 points in the AP poll and 1144 in the coaches' poll. By Week 5, the drain was upon us, despite winning a game, Virginia Tech, a one-loss team who beat Duke unconvincingly, passed the Broncos in the rankings. Boise fell to sixth in both polls, losing 17 points in the AP and 11 in the coaches' poll. Come Week 6, Boise climbed back to No. 5 in the AP, but fell to sixth in the coaches' poll, passed by another one-loss team, USC.

In the Harris Poll, the one used in the BCS formula alongside the Coaches' Poll, Boise has also been passed by Virginia Tech. Standing at No. 5 in the country, USC is nipping at the Broncos' heels and will pass them with a win over Oregon. The glass ceiling precedent has been set, and if Ohio State keeps winning soon they'll pass the Broncos as well. Meanwhile, the undefeated teams above them, Florida, Alabama, and Texas would all likely pass Boise if they only lost one game. That's a big if. After all, they might not even fall below Boise to begin with.

Why?

Because our collective biases tell us that Boise can't play with the big boys. Even if, oh by the way, Oregon has not lost since the opening game of its season and Boise handled it with ease. My point, if you've ever wondered what a glass ceiling in college football would look like, Boise is your example, the highest ranked non-Big Six school to flirt with title game prominence. And it's the collective "wisdom" of the 173 human voters in those two polls that demonstrates how subjective our own biases can truly be.

The rationale is exactly the same, Boise can't be as good as the big teams because it doesn't look like the big teams. Isn't that the very foundation of an anti-egalitarian, un-American worldview? At least the one espoused in the 21st century.

Not when it comes to the pollsters.

Otherwise how can you justify a one-loss team passing an undefeated team? What's more how can you justify multiple one-loss teams passing Boise as the coaches have done? Close your eyes and recite the arguments against Boise State: they don't belong up here because they haven't been here before, the people around them aren't as good, they aren't as talented as the others are, they only got to where they have because the people they compete against are weaker; aren't those the exact same rationales that excluded women and minorities from climbing all the way to the top? Yep, it's the very definition of the glass ceiling and the poll voters are an exclusionary gatekeeping set, exercising their very own form of hazing, by voting who belongs in the fraternity and who doesn't.



And that's the way we've elected to select a champion.

Tonight, Boise plays at Tulsa. Yep, Wednesday night football! Nothing like it! At least not until Sunday night college football which Boise will play later this year. The Broncos should have the eyes of the nation upon them. More likely, most of us don't even realize when they're playing. Tonight's game is against the Golden Hurricane, but when it comes to Boise State and the polls, the Broncos fall victim to a golden shower of a different sort.

All thanks to college football's own glass ceiling.