The hype for Boise State is at an all time high and seems to be getting bigger and bigger each week. ESPN’s trademark College Gameday show just made its first visit to Boise last week. Erin Andrews described it as “obviously the best stop this season.” Former Heisman trophy winner and analyst Desmond Howard was “amazed by the turnout,” going on to say that “this is about as good as it gets.”

This is about as good as it gets. Boise State just made their first national cover of Sports Illustrated, with the cover donning the whole team running out of the tunnel prior to the Oregon State game. The cover is a departure from what the magazine usually does and is a symbol of the madness that is the Boise State debate right now.

Never, at any point in the Oregon State game, did losing enter my mind. Not even when the Beavers pulled to within a touchdown in the second half. That’s the mindset now for most people familiar with the Broncos, and that is typically the mindset for fans of national championship teams.

We are ready to make the jump and Bronco Nation knows it. So does the rest of the nation too, and it’s becoming harder to deny each week. The only obstacle we haven’t tackled in our program’s history is a BCS national championship. Everyone knows Ohio State would get spanked in a BCS bowl against Alabama (see: the last 9 bowl games OSU has played against current SEC teams, dating back to 1977).

Why not give us the shot, a team where the game is not a foregone conclusion? It’s about time that Boise State is given that shot to prove all the supporters right and all the doubters wrong. If they’re not given that shot, who knows how long it will be before another team like this comes along. The BCS hierarchy will remain in college football and so will the “what-if” scenarios that can never be played out without a playoff.