It seems to be the popular thinking in college football that the bowl season is the showcase of what a conference really holds. I'm not really a fan of this, but I don't get to make the decisions. 1.) Since ESPN started giving out the 'ESPN Bowl Challenge Cup' in 2002, no conference has a higher winning percentage than the Mountain West. For the 3rd time in 6 years, the MWC posted the best bowl winning percentage of the 11 FBS conferences just last season. 2.) The BCS bowl games. No conference gets pounded more frequently in the BCS games than the Big East. They did have a few nice showings with DickRod at West Virginia, but he took his act (and his workout records) with him to Michigan. They are a ghost of themselves since. Cincinnati (twice), Pittsburgh (I believe twice), West Virginia (I think twice as well) have been thumped soundly or blasted on the big stage that they are given each year. The Mountain West doesn't get that luxury but when they have they have represented themselves well beating Pitt and Alabama..both convincingly. TCU lost a BCS bowl game last year, to Boise who is joining the conference.. It's not like Boise has been bad in BCS games either. 3. The smell test.. This actually isn't a 'bad' year in the Big East in that they are somewhat deep in competitive teams without having a real good one. Normally, that conference is a one man show streaking to the finish line.. at best, a two horse race. TCU will be favored to win the Big East next year. I'd be shocked if the Vegas money wasn't on them. This is a fairly down year by MWC standards and still down in 4th place you have teams like Air Force who (unlike Notre Dame) managed to beat both Army and Navy this year. Their losses came to Oklahoma by 3 in Norman, SDSU (who is 3rd in the MWC and look good under their new HC) by 3 in San Diego, they were crushed byTCU and they lost to Utah... which of course ND fans will poo poo over but that Utah team did manage to beat Pitt this year... The Big East since the teams left for the ACC has been a shell of itself. I have no idea why people give them any credit at all. Meanwhile, the MWC has done everything under their power to try and become a BCS school and somehow draw the ire and disdain of the college football world. It's a mystery to me. I do know this.. as a Pac10 fan, the MWC has been handing us our ass for a while now way more often than I like to admit. I don't cringe too much to see Big East teams on the schedule... and it seems that when a Big East team is on the rise, the coach splits for a 'real' opportunity.. DickRod to Michigan.. Kelly to ND.. Aside from Myer jumping Utah to Florida.. the MWC conferences are staying put. TCU leaving the MWC will hurt the MWC. It really hurts.. but they are going to play weaker competition in the Big East. Oh I know, next year will be different. It always is..