sportsjabber.net

There are still several weeks of football to be played, but the Mountain West Champion could be decided tonight in Salt Lake City. The Horned Frogs of Texas Christian will visit the Utes of Utah in a contest that gives the winner a stronghold on the conference and weighs heavily on BCS standings. Utah is currently undefeated and ranked 8th in the BCS standings, while TCU suffered only a loss to No. 6 Oklahoma and rank 12th.

Tonight’s collision will leave just one undefeated Mountain West program by game’s end. And that program, regardless of the winner, may have full control of their BCS destiny. Of the mid-majors vying for a BCS at-large bid, Thursday’s winner may gain a leg up on the WAC’s undefeated Boise State, and remain miles ahead of Ball State. A mid-major program has never received a BCS bid without a zero in the loss column. TCU has an opportunity to be the first, as the loss to Oklahoma hasn’t hurt their rise in ranks, and the lopsided victory over early season favorite BYU added to a strong resume. For the Utes, it’s a little simpler. Survive this game, and the lone barrier becomes the season ending rivalry game against a reeling Brigham Young program.

The rankings give an upset in the making, but TCU, though lower ranked, may clearly be the better team. They feature the nation’s No. 2 defense, and tops against the run. They’ve embarrassed opponents in each victory, and allow just 10 points per game. The Horned Frogs have clearly been the best team in the nation’s best mid-major conference. And as I expect a TCU victory tonight, they may likely position themselves to prove they can play with some of the bigger dogs in a BCS bowl game.