Boise State

Status quo ruled the top of the Bowl Championship Series standings Sunday, with Florida retaining the No. 1 spot again. The top eight teams all won this weekend, so the top eight teams remained the same in the rankings. Alabama was right behind the Gators, with Texas at No. 3, TCU at No. 4 and Cincinnati at No. 5. All five are 10-0. What is intriguing is what will happen with the at-large selections to the BCS games. TCU needs help to make it to the national championship game.

College basketball Loyola alumnus Wojcik hired to first head coaching job by San Jose State Loyola College graduate Dave Wojcik was named head coach at San Jose State. Wojcik spent the past three seasons as the associate head coach at Boise State, which received an at-large bid to this year's NCAA tournament and recorded the second 20-win season in three years and the fourth-most wins during the regular season in school history. Wojcik, who had the only triple double in Loyola history in 1989, returned to his alma mater in 1993 as an assistant and helped coach the Greyhounds to the team's first NCAA tournament appearance and Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference title in 1994.

Football and fate become fickle and fantastic when you can suggest Boise State needs to offer Oklahoma trick plays this week to help the Sooners defeat Oklahoma State. How about the "Statue of Stillwater," a variation of a play Boise State once used to win a Fiesta Bowl? Maybe Ian Johnson could fly to Norman this week and make another proposal. There has to be something left in Boise's bag of miracles that might help Oklahoma. Sometimes, in college football, your interests change.

New Mexico Bowl David Teel Daily Press Absent a connection to either team or a need for immediate counseling, no pre-Christmas bowl merits your attention. But if desperate to avoid the mall Saturday, settle in for Nevada and Arizona in the New Mexico Bowl - and not solely because of its corporation-free name. The Wildcats and Wolf Pack feature not only top-20 scoring offenses, averaging more than 35 points per game, but also the nation's top two rushers. Arizona's Ka'Deem Carey and Nevada's Stefphon Jefferson average 146.4 and 141.9 yards per game, respectively.

Kellen Moore threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns while also adding a TD reception Tuesday night as No. 2 Boise State trounced visiting Louisiana Tech, 49-20. Doug Martin racked up 148 yards and two scores on 21 carries and Tyler Shoemaker had six receptions for 124 yards and a touchdown for the Broncos (7-0, 3-0 WAC), who ran their win streak to 21. Ross Jenkins finished with 223 yards and a touchdown on 24-for-39 passing for the Bulldogs (3-5, 2-2)

A new restaurant opened in Boise, Idaho, this week: TGIS (Thank God It's Saturday). Last Tuesday's 29-point home victory over Louisiana Tech was lost in the work week and maybe caused the Broncos to fall from third to fourth behind Texas Christian in the BCS standings. Boise State is back to work on a football Saturday with a huge home game against resurgent Hawaii (7-2), unranked but mysteriously sitting at No. 26 in all three major polls. You tell me — a conspiracy to keep Boise from a victory over a ranked opponent?

Those who accused Boise State coach Dan Hawkins of running up the score in his team's 77-14 win last week over San Jose State probably didn't notice which Broncos were on the field for most of the second half. "We had our fourth-team tailback and our fourth-team wide receiver," Hawkins said from Boise, Idaho, earlier this week. "Most of our starters were out of there by early in the third quarter." The same couldn't be said about last night's 50-12 nationally-televised road win over Brigham Young.

Joseph Turner's 17-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter gave No. 11 Texas Christian its first lead of the night, which the Horned Frogs preserved for a 17-16 victory over No. 9 and previously undefeated Boise State in the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego. Boise State (12-1) was trying to finish 13-0 for the second time in three seasons. The Broncos took a 10-0 lead on Ian Johnson's 20-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter, but their high-scoring offense bogged down against TCU's fast, aggressive defense.

When ABC pulled out of contract negotiations last month with representatives from college football's Bowl Championship Series, it was another sign that an already flawed system had even more serious credibility issues. By the time the 2004 regular season plays out Saturday, the BCS will have exposed itself for what its critics have long believed: It's nothing more than a way for the so-called power conferences to get richer. The principal purpose of the BCS - having the No. 1-ranked team play No. 2 for the national championship - might be met with any combination among Southern California, Oklahoma and Auburn in the Orange Bowl next month in Miami.

It always seems to happen this way: What appears to be an unassuming Saturday with a few OK matchups but none that really stands out instead turns out to have a seismic impact on the national-title race. Saturday was that kind of day. Three of the top eight teams in the Bowl Championship Series standings lost; add that to No. 3 Louisville's loss Thursday to Rutgers, and half of the top eight - and three of the top six - fell out of the title picture. Instead of dreaming about a possible trip to Glendale, Ariz.

An LSU-Alabama rematch isn't far-fetched. With losses by Boise State and Stanford, Oklahoma State is the only team standing in the way, and its Dec. 3 matchup against Oklahoma is key to an all-SEC BCS national championship game. Don't count out Oregon, Oklahoma or Arkansas either. The scenarios would require Stephen Hawking to break down, but losses by Oklahoma State, LSU and Alabama would make the BCS very interesting. Georgia could be peaking at the right time.

Despite its longest losing streak in nine years and the prospect of its first losing season in that span, the Navy football team is still an attractive commodity to the Big East. From all indications, it appears the feeling is mutual. Though no formal invitations have been offered, the Big East took a significant step toward expansion when the presidents of the league's remaining seven schools voted Tuesday in Philadelphia to add members. According to the Associated Press, the Big East will invite Houston, Southern Methodist and Central Florida for full membership, as well as Navy, Air Force and Boise State — considered the plum catch in this bid for survival — as football-only members.

1. Alabama (2-0): North Texas is coming to town in case anyone is disinterested. (1) 2. LSU (2-0): Mississippi State says defense isn't ready; come back next Thursday. (2) 3. Boise State (1-0): Know you have made it when you beat SEC one week, go on probation the next. (3) 4. Oklahoma (1-0): Water tower in Norman repainted to read "Welcome to Walnut Creek East. " (4) 5. Florida State (2-0): Bobby Bowden won 377 games, but nothing's better than beating cancer.

TCU can't get to the Big East fast enough. The Horned Frogs leave the Mountain West next season, which is looking good after their 50-48 loss to Baylor on Friday. If they were in the Big East this season, they'd still have a shot at a BCS bowl. The Big East should reconsider Villanova as a potential member. The FCS Wildcats have been mentioned as a possible addition, but after their 42-7 loss to Temple on Thursday, maybe Big East officials should rethink that. Don't mess with success.

Attempts - Darron Thomas, Oregon - 54 Completions - Landry Jones, Oklahoma - 35 Completion Percentage - Kellen Moore, Boise State - .824 Yards - Nick Foles, Arizona - 412 Touchdowns - Chandler Harnish, Northern Illinois - 6 Interceptions - Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State - 3 Rushing - Bryant Moniz, Hawaii - 121

This is it — the final regular-season poll. Half the preseason top 10 survived: Oregon (9), TCU (5), Boise State (1), Ohio State (2) and Virginia Tech (7). Auburn opened the season 18th, Stanford 19th, Wisconsin 13th and Arkansas 17th. Nevada, like a pistol shot, rose all the way from unranked. Alabama (4) disappointed slightly and Texas (8) disappointed greatly, while Florida (6) flopped by its standards. Every team in the poll has a bowl game left to impress a one-man judge and jury.

Good morning --Boise State-- Plenty of NFL teams would love to get their hands on your playbook.

Basketball Bucks: Activated C Scott Williams. Placed G Michael Redd on injured list. College Boise State: Named Dan Hawkins football coach.