Wednesday, October 21, 2009.

This could be a "whatever happened to" segment. Because numerous mid-major schools have made runs into the Top 25 the past 10 years, but a select few have been able to make it stick. Remember the 2007 Hawaii Warriors? Seems like yesterday. They were on top of the world with Colt Brennan and his dreadlocked receivers. Hawaii was the nation's only undefeated team in the regular season and ended Boise State's five-year lock on the WAC championship, going on to the Sugar Bowl. But coach June Jones left, and the program has not had staying power. The Warriors have gone 9-11 since, and they have plenty of company among non-BCS teams that have made Top 25 cameos.

Sustaining success is a very difficult proposition. Marshall appeared to be a trailblazer as a Division I-A newcomer in the late 1990's but is now an average Conference USA entry. We talked last month about Miami-Ohio's one-year zoom up to No. 10 with Ben Roethlisberger. Bowling Green had a cup of coffee in the Top 25 earlier this decade during and just after Urban Meyer's tenure. Fresno State's only real moment in the sun was in 2001.

The latest precipitous fall belongs to Ball State, undefeated last season and entrenched in the Top 25 until it lost in the MAC championship game. The Cardinals are now 0-7 and are No. 166 in the Sagarin Ratings. Which should make local fans appreciate the fact that the most regular non-BCS entry in the Top 25 in the new century is Boise State, ranked at some point every season since 2002. The next three are TCU, BYU and Utah.

The Boise State offense is progressing just fine this season, but you never know when it might need to be rescued with a desperation drive. If that should happen, Austin Pettis would be the man to pull the Broncos up by their bootstraps. How many "Spiderman" catches has Pettis made to keep drives alive this season? "He has the best hands of any player I've ever been around," said coach Chris Petersen. Pettis has more than filled the void left by the early departure of Jeremy Childs after last season.

In an attack that strives to be balanced, Pettis still has 32 catches and seven touchdowns over the first six games. His career total is now 127 receptions--the 36-year-old school record held by Don Hutt is 189. More striking: his 22 career TD receptions, now fourth all-time at BSU. Pettis is eight touchdowns short of Hutt's record with a season and a half to go. There's another role for the junior from Anaheim that's becoming increasingly more important on a team with only two senior starters. "He has more leadership potential than he even realizes," said Petersen.

We haven't gone here yet this year, but if it's out there, let's put it in. Thayer Evans of the New York Times talks Heisman Trophy under the header, "Heisman Watch: Crowded at the Top." There's Kellen Moore, Boise State quarterback, among the five players mentioned. "Not his fault that the Western Athletic Conference will be a cakewalk," writes Evans. Easy for him to say. ESPN.com has updated its Heisman Watch, voted on by a panel of 15 experts, and Moore is No. 6 on the list, trailing only Mark Ingram of Alabama, Tim Tebow of Florida, Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame, Case Keenum of Houston, and Colt McCoy of Texas. Although Moore's yardage doesn't bowl you over this year, his touchdown-to-interception ratio of 16-to-2 does, and his pass efficiency rating leads the nation.

If you want to get all hot-and-bothered about the Boise State-Idaho game next month, check out Andy Staples' new Power Rankings at SI.com. Staples is a Bronco naysayer, and he has BSU at No. 10 this week, three spots behind TCU. "The Broncos escaped Tulsa with a win last week, but the national perception of Boise State slipped considerably," says Staples. "With this schedule, the Broncos are better off playing in a media vacuum if they can't win every game by 35. Every time they show even the slightest sign of duress against an inferior opponent in a televised game, that perception will slip more." And there at No. 25 is Idaho. "If third-year coach Robb Akey keeps his Vandals winning, I might stop complaining so much about Boise State's weak schedule," writes Staples. Gee, thanks Andy. "This week, Idaho must find a way to make Nevada's Pistol formation misfire."

What in the world is happening with the Idaho offense this year? Well, it's executing, making good decisions, and finishing drives. What do the Vandals have they didn't have last year? DeMaundray Woolridge, the transfer running back from Washington State. Woolridge has one year to play and he's making the most of it. He received a "helmet sticker" from Mark May of the ESPN Gameday crew last Saturday for his four touchdowns against Hawaii. Woolridge is ninth in the WAC in rushing, but he has a sizeable lead in rushing TDs with 12. Now Woolridge faces one of the best defensive lines in the WAC when the Vandals go to Nevada Saturday.

In the Idaho Steelheads' West Coast Hockey League days, the club never pretended to be a launching pad to the NHL, nor did any of its brethren in that circuit. But the Steelheads can take a different tack as they recruit players in these days of a maturing ECHL. Yet another former Steelie is poised to make an NHL debut, as Francis Wathier was called up from Texas yesterday by the Dallas Stars. Wathier was a member of Idaho's first Kelly Cup championship team in 2007. He becomes the eighth Steelheads alum on either an NHL active roster or injured reserve. Meanwhile, Steelheads netminder Rejean Beauchemin has been named ECHL Goaltender of the Week for his two season-opening wins over Stockton last weekend at Qwest Arena. Beauchemin allowed three goals and made 44 saves over the two nights.

The Boise State men's basketball team hopes the media are right and the coaches are not. Actually, the Broncos hope they're both wrong. BSU was picked to finish fifth by the media and seventh by the coaches in the WAC preseason polls released yesterday. The Broncos are obviously not expected to improve on their 19-13 overall record and 9-7 league mark last season. Utah State was tabbed to win the conference and Idaho was predicted to finish fourth in both polls. And Nevada's Luke Babbitt was chosen preseason WAC Player of the Year and Idaho's Mac Hopson was picked to be first-team All-WAC in both.

This Day In Sports...October 21, 2000:

Boise State opens the final season of Big West play with a 59-0 annihilation of North Texas, the Broncos' first shutout in 13 years. BSU outgained the Mean Green 583 yards to 162, with freshman tailback David Mikell rushing for 122 yards and three touchdowns--and freshman quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie throwing the first of his 82 career touchdown passes. The Broncos would go unbeaten in the Big West on their way to a second straight title and Humanitarian Bowl championship.

(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment Sunday nights at 10:30PM on KTVB's Sunday Sports Extra and anchors five sports segments each weekday on 1350 KTIK/The Ticket. He also handles color commentary on KTVB's telecasts of Boise State football.)

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