With Playoff Expansion, Boise State Needs To Decide Best Plan

Boise State is back at the top of the Mountain West conference-- but it wasn't supposed to be that way this year. The season started off rough, and that is putting it kindly. After a terrible showing early on and a loss on the road to UTEP (what is a UTEP?) many thought the Broncos had fallen from glory.

We aren't sure you can say they're King of the Castle right now, but undefeated Mountain West play and major improvements on the offensive side of the ball suggest that their adjustments are working.

For years, Boise State fans have begged the program to leave the Mountain West for a larger conference. The larger conferences, however, haven't quite embraced welcoming Boise State into their world just yet.

All of the talk right now is college football playoff expansion--what does that mean for Boise State? Many are going back in history and listing all of the times that some programs would have made it. Boise State is among those.

As you can see, the Broncos haven't been 12-team playoff eligible since 2014. If Boise State were to move into a larger conference, that might be great for face value of the program, but they'll need to win a lot more impressive games to make a playoff than they would ever need to if they remain in the Mountain West. Local sports writer Jordan Kaye asked folks on Twitter about this:

Extra emphasis on "easier path"... The Big 12 doesn't sound so great anymore, does it Bronco fans?

With a 12-team playoff, Boise State is going to need to play the long game.