Early moves may be uplifting

E. Carolina, Fresno St. stalking BCS position

The call came earlier this week. Just a couple of coaches at opposite ends of the country, catching up with each other, taking note of the early successes of their teams.

"I like what they are doing," said Pat Hill, referring to East Carolina and his conversation with coach Skip Holtz.

What's not to like? Two games against two ranked teams from BCS conferences - Virginia Tech (Atlantic Coast Conference) and West Virginia (Big East) - and two victories, which puts ECU in the top 20 in the polls.

And tomorrow night, there might be even more to like about the team Hill is coaching, Fresno State, as the Bulldogs try to parlay their opening win against Rutgers on Labor Day into something more by pulling off an upset against No. 10 Wisconsin.

The season is only two weeks old, but a trend might be developing and it should make the boosters of the schools from non-BCS conferences smile.

East Carolina's two remaining nonconference games are against North Carolina State and Virginia from the ACC, both beatable. If the Pirates sneak their way through that, they could be on the path to an unbeaten regular season, which would put them in the loop for a BCS bowl berth.

Fresno State's task seems more difficult. Beating Wisconsin - even at Fresno - will be a major chore. After that, UCLA and Toledo remain before the Bulldogs get into the Western Athletic Conference race, where they should be favored every game.

It's not a stretch to project unbeaten seasons for Fresno State and East Carolina, and perhaps even Brigham Young, among non-BCS conference teams.

The BCS rules were tweaked a few years ago to allow a spot for Cinderella in the dance. Two years ago, Boise State wrote the story of the year with its dramatic win over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. Last season, Hawaii had a dream season going before it was blown away by Georgia in the Sugar Bowl.

The BCS has 10 spots in five bowl games. Six are guaranteed to the champions of the ACC, Big East, Big 12, Pac-10, Big Ten, and Southeastern Conference. The rules were changed to guarantee a spot for a team from a non-BCS conference if that team climbs into the top 12 in the final BCS standings or is in the top 16 of the BCS standings and is ranked higher than one of the six league champions with guaranteed BCS slots. Considering the way the ACC and Big East have stumbled out of the gates, either criteria could be met if BYU, Fresno State, or East Carolina finishes unbeaten.

What should be interesting is what would happen if East Carolina and Fresno State are both unbeaten and ranked in the top 12. Whoops. Only one team is guaranteed a slot. The other team will be thrust into the at-large pool, which is very shallow, considering one of the four slots will almost certainly be taken by an SEC team, which brings power and prestige and ratings, and another will be gobbled up by the Rose Bowl, which will take a Big Ten or Pac-10 team if either champion from those conferences winds up in the BCS title game.

The controversy will develop if, say, a 9-4 Virginia Tech team or an 8-4 West Virginia team wins its conference and gets the automatic BCS bid and an unbeaten East Carolina gets shut out, an East Carolina team that would be ranked higher.

East Carolina and Fresno State are making the effort by scheduling and beating BCS teams. "East Carolina went further in two weeks than Hawaii and Boise State did in 10 or 12 weeks," said Hill, who is of the play-them-anywhere-any-time school of coaching.

There are still many games to play, but schools from non-BCS conferences are letting everyone know they are around.

Globe Top 10
1. Oklahoma
2. Southern Cal
3. Florida
4. Georgia
5. Ohio State
6. Missouri
7. Auburn
8. Louisiana State
9. Texas
10. Wisconsin