Get LOST: a WAC guide to TV's best show

Tonight is the two-hour season finale of LOST. Schedule your life accordingly.

We can't wait to see what happens to Jack and the gang, and we hope the finale involves good doses of smoke monster, time travel, Kate, extreme close-ups, and Boone flashbacks. But while we were pining for our LOST fix, we got to thinking: what might things look like if the island was the WAC and the castaways were WAC teams?

Without further ado, here the WAC's version of LOST.

Jack = Boise State

Jack: in control of the island, has desirable leadership qualities, looks good on TV
Boise State: in control of the WAC, has desirable WAC championships, looks good on TV

Locke = Fresno State

Locke: never quite as good as Jack, full of secrets and supernatural hope, crippled for years by a fall from an eight-story window, surly
Fresno State: never quite as good as Boise State, full of hype and false hope, crippled for years by Paul Pinegar, haughty

Sawyer = Hawaii

Sawyer: had a good run there for awhile, scored Kate, pretty popular with the ladies, last seen holding a baby
Hawaii: had a good run there for awhile, scored twice in the Sugar Bowl, pretty popular with the locals, last seen holding Greg McMackin

Kate = LaTech

Kate: can give Jack some trouble, wanted for a crime, can't get over her boy problems, a tease
LaTech: can give Boise State some trouble, wants a consistent offense, can't get over Tim Rattay, a turnover

Sayid = Nevada

Sayid: strong-willed, from a foreign country, could possibly threaten Jack's leadership, knows how to use a gun
Nevada: thick-headed, from Reno, could possibly threaten Boise State's dominance, knows how to use a pistol

Sun = San Jose State

Sun: you sometimes forget she's on the show, lets her husband fight her battles, in utero
San Jose State: you sometimes forget they're in the WAC, lets the offense lose its battles, inconsistent

Hurley = New Mexico State

Hurley: harmless, good for comic relief every now and then, no one takes him seriously, rich in another life
New Mexico State: harmless, good for comic relief every now and then, no one takes them seriously, above .500 in another life

Claire = Utah State

Claire: a girl, gave birth to a possibly demonic boy, dated a rockstar, soon to be dead if not already
Utah State: a cupcake, gave birth to the 56-point loss, had a QB who punted, soon to be 0-1 if not already

Michael= Idaho

Michael: not a very likable person, his neck has a beard, he wanted to leave the island, killed some people
Idaho: not a very likable team, their coach has a mustache, we want them to leave the WAC, killed a rivalry

Let us know how what you think by sending us an email or leaving a comment. Who do you think Desmond should be? What about the Others? Do we place entirely too much value in television?

BONUS analogy: more of Jack as Boise State

Jack's...
...appendix is Jeremy Childs: both have been removed.
...facial hair is Doug Martin: both are tough and grisly.
...bedside manner is freshman linemen: both could use some work.
...medical skills is Coach Pete: both operate with surgical precision.
...alcoholism is the shotgun formation: both will lead to downfall.

QB recruit Southwick commits to Broncos

It appears that Boise State has landed its next big QB recruit.

Joe Southwick from San Ramon Valley HS (California) gave the Broncos a verbal commitment, and he sounds like a keeper. We'll let ESPN.com explain:

This guy has college starter written all over him. He is a guy that mid-majors are going to be all over and BCS programs should take notice. Southwick hasn't even come close to reaching his potential and his upside for development is outstanding. He is underdeveloped physically, but time in the weightroom and natural maturation will take care of that. He has good height and a quick, smooth arm. He is extremely poised and balanced within the pocket and does a great job working through progressions and buying time to find the open man.

This is a guy that plays in a pro style offense on the high school level and he really understands the passing game and he does an excellent job reading defenses especially for a young player. He is a very accurate quarterback that knows how to put his receivers in good position to make plays. He has excellent overall touch to make all the throws and although he does not have a cannon for an arm, he has enough zip on the ball to get it where he needs to. Footwork, drop and set up are quick and confident.

Throws well on the run, can change ball speeds and throws a soft, accurate ball on underneath and intermediate routes. Needs to be on time when throwing the ball deep, but can make vertical throws. His release is very quick and he shows a good clock for timing routes. Overall, Southwick is a late-bloomer with so much to work with and he has solid intangibles and leadership qualities. Excellent sleeper prospect.

Sounds good to us! Welcome to the team, Joe! We're glad to have you.

SRV QB commits to Boise State [East Bay Prep Sports]
ESPN.com scouting profile [ESPN.com]

Thursday: Links with Anger

Story of the day:

SEC talks about early recruiting season [Dave's Blog]

The SEC wants an early signing day, and what the SEC wants, the SEC gets. From ESPN.com:

The coaches voted by a 9-3 count Wednesday at the SEC spring meetings to add an early signing day in late November. This 24-hour period for prospects to sign early would fall on the Monday before the contact period begins, which during a normal year would come during the week of Thanksgiving.

The measure now moves on for approval by the conference's athletic directors and presidents before being sponsored on a national level. Why not fix the BCS while you're at it, SEC?

Other links:

Orlando Scandrick interview [Scout.com]
Fascinating read if you have a scout.com membership. We don't.

Quinton Jones roughriding it in the CFL [Leader-Post]
We hear that is the best place to roughride.

Hawkins' unique approach to recruiting [Daily Camera]
What doesn't Hawk have a unique approach to?

Fresno State wins Commissioner's Cup [Dailey's Bottom Line]
Is that similar to a WAC football championship? It isn't? Oh, that's what we thought.

Washington State releases top QB prospect [ESPN.com]
Steer clear of Moscow, young man!

Re-vote! The fix was in for Marty Tadman

Conspiracy theorists are buzzing...at least those conspiracy theorists who care about Boise State blogs.

Was Marty Tadman's Hall of Fame vote tampered with? Did a rogue Tadman-hater stuff the ballot box? Did we horribly underestimate Vandal alumni?

When we checked the results on Monday, we were surprised to see that Tadman's Fiesta Bowl performance had been denied induction. We figured that our love for Tadman had blinded us to the fact that his Fiesta Bowl was not as awesome as we thought. Apparently, we figured wrong.

Alert reader J Harry notified us of some shady dealings during voting. We'll let J Harry explain:

When I looked at the percentages, his approval for induction was well over 70%. As I was on, frequently refreshing the page, I literally saw his score drop, one percent at a time. I feel strongly that one person was probably voting repeatedly to get the total under 70%... otherwise it would have been well above the cut-off.

Great work, J Harry! You may have just earned yourself a Hall of Fame nomination in a few years. Apparently, someone wanted Tadman out, and they were willing to refresh our homepage often enough to see it done.

We feel that it is only fair to do a re-vote for Tadman. The poll will be back up later today, and we'll hold the voting through Monday morning. To make sure that our readers really do want Tadman in the OBNUG Hall of Fame, we are requiring 80 percent of the vote for his induction.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for voting (once).

Utah State starts at bottom of rankings

One blog's quest to rank every single football team in America begins at an appropriate place: the intersection of Utah State and the bottom.

God Inc is starting its rankings from worst to first, and the Aggies are the first ones up. The website sees Utah State finishing 2-10 (2-6 in WAC play), which we consider to be a roaring success as far as Utah State is concerned. And we already know where one of the wins is coming from:

Game to look for:

Idaho. This seems like it will be the game for last place in the WAC unless something changes fast for either of these programs. Utah State won last year’s meeting 24-19 in Moscow, Idaho.

We imagine that Idaho should be popping up on the site's rankings pretty soon, and we are more than prepared to wait 100 days or so to see Boise State's name.

2008 College Football Countdown [God Inc]

Wednesday: Links with hype

Story of the day

Several non-BCS running backs to watch [Rivals.com]

Rivals came up with a list of the top non-BCS running backs in the country, and if you look purely at the numbers, we think it is obvious which one is best.

The former Fiesta Bowl hero leads all active running backs in career rushing yards (3,418) and tops all active players in rushing touchdowns (45).

Ian Johnson stands out from the rest of the pack on his career totals alone, but the story focused on Southern Miss running back Damion Fletcher, who sounds like he'll be a handful when the Broncos visit Hattiesburg. In all, four of BSU's 2008 opponents made the list, including Deonte Jackson (Idaho), Luke Lippincott (Nevada), and Ryan Matthews (Fresno State).

Let's hope our run defense really has gotten better.

Other links:

Utah State QB heading to BYU [Herald-Journal]
He must have seen the light on his Mormon mission.

Boise State's Fiesta Bowl third in clutchness [Pronounced like...]
But #1 in our hearts.

Non-Saturday games sure are annoying [FOX Sports.com]
Boise State fans hardly even notice any more.

Boise State's odds on winning national title

Cash in your 401K and break out Grandma's birthday check!

Bodog.com lists Boise State's odds of winning the 2009 national championship at 100/1. We'll take those odds any day. Some of the other teams with the same odds at the national title are Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, and BSU's September opponent Oregon. The team with the best odds is USC, in an obvious nod to 2005.

What we love best about the sports book is that Fresno State is not even listed. A group of teams are bundled into "The Field," and Boise State appears to be the only small-conference school to not be included in that group. Compulsive gamblers know what they're talking about!

The University of Idaho also did not receive a specific mention, either because they are to be included in The Field (says The Field: "Thanks for nothing!") or because sports betting agents didn't have their scientific calculators on hand to calculate the exponential figures of Idaho's national championship odds.

Football Futures Betting [bodog.com]