this does kind of make some sense
from SI's Mandel
"Mind you, the TCU-Boise conundrum could determine the difference between playing for a national title or playing in ... the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. Seriously. Assuming Oregon and Auburn win out, the highest-ranked non-AQ will by rule go to Pasadena to replace the Ducks. The loser is not assured of anything, however, and there's a very real possibility that Boise in particular will get passed over entirely. The Sugar Bowl, having hosted Hawaii, Utah and Cincinnati the past three seasons, is hungry to land a big-name program. And the Orange Bowl could be hosting ACC champ Virginia Tech -- which Boise already faced. The Fiesta Bowl has last pick and will have the Big East champ forced on it.
That pretty much says it all, doesn't it? Virginia Tech, the same opponent that was supposed to serve as Boise's signature win, could cause the Broncos to miss a BCS bowl just by its mere existence. The non-AQs may be sitting prettier than at any other time in BCS history, but they remain forever vulnerable to being shoved back into the basement."
from SI's Mandel
"Mind you, the TCU-Boise conundrum could determine the difference between playing for a national title or playing in ... the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl. Seriously. Assuming Oregon and Auburn win out, the highest-ranked non-AQ will by rule go to Pasadena to replace the Ducks. The loser is not assured of anything, however, and there's a very real possibility that Boise in particular will get passed over entirely. The Sugar Bowl, having hosted Hawaii, Utah and Cincinnati the past three seasons, is hungry to land a big-name program. And the Orange Bowl could be hosting ACC champ Virginia Tech -- which Boise already faced. The Fiesta Bowl has last pick and will have the Big East champ forced on it.
That pretty much says it all, doesn't it? Virginia Tech, the same opponent that was supposed to serve as Boise's signature win, could cause the Broncos to miss a BCS bowl just by its mere existence. The non-AQs may be sitting prettier than at any other time in BCS history, but they remain forever vulnerable to being shoved back into the basement."