Boise State Virginia Tech

Remember when Boise State was everyone’s favorite underdog? The plucky outsiders with that wacky blue turf who ran trick plays to beat the big boys as a BCS-buster? Remember them?

Well, those Broncos disappeared forever right around the time this year’s preseason polls were released. When Boise State popped up at No. 3 in the AP poll and No. 5 in the coaches’, the Smurf Turfers became college football’s newest lightning rod.

That’s because fans of power-conference schools suddenly realized that if the Broncos run the table this regular season -- as they’ve done three of the past four years -- they have a real chance of reaching the BCS championship game. It was all well and good (kind of cute, even) when Boise State won the odd Fiesta Bowl. But if the Broncos actually play for crystal ahead of a one-loss SEC or Big 12 or Big 10 champ, then suddenly they don’t look so cuddly to big-conference fans.

That’s why No. 10 Virginia Tech will pick up support from some unexpected sources when it takes on the Broncos tonight at FedExField in Landover, Md. Considering the Broncos are 31-1 against the weak-sister WAC over the past four seasons, Boise State’s toughest tests figure to be tonight against the Hokies and three weeks hence when it hosts Oregon State. There are plenty of folks from Gainesville to Columbus who want to see the Broncos slapped down, and quick.

That backdrop has given this Labor Day Night game a surprisingly postseason feel. Hope you’ll stick with us to see how it turns out.