Offensive linemen are the glue that hold any good football team together. Not that too many people actually care about the glue when there is running back glitter and quarterback scratch-and-sniff stickers to look at. Still, without the O-line, Boise State's pinball offenses of years past would have been significantly less effective (see "Fresno State," any year). There have been a ton of good Bronco offensive linemen. Here are the ten best.

10. Rob Vian (2002) - The all-WAC guard was a road paver on the prolific Dinwiddie-Forsey Boise State offenses. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the Detroit Lions.

9. Thomas Byrd (2011) - Byrd started on the O-line as a freshman, with fellow freshman Kellen Moore taking snaps. His reputation as a smart, savvy leader earned him raves throughout his career and a first-team all-WAC selection his junior year. He was in and out of the lineup his senior year when his old man knees stopped cooperating.

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Now that preview magazines and preview Internet websites are coming forth with 2012 season previews of our beloved Boise State Broncos, the not-at-all-unimportant matter of what happens to the 2012 Boise State football team has arrived back in its spotlight. Will this team be as great as past teams? Will it win a conference championship? A respected bowl game? A Vegas bowl game?

What has to happen this year for you to consider the 2012 Boise State football season a success?

Considering that the Broncos pushed the figurative reset button in a lot of ways, the possibilities for Boise State 2012 are vast. You may have high expectations, you may have low expectations; at the very least, you have some sort of expectations. Let's revisit them and see where those expectations lie in late May. You may reserve the right to change them come August (I plan on changing mine when Drew talks me into something more reasonable in a roundtable next month).

The poll is open, and the comments are yours. What constitutes a successful season for this year's Broncos? Share.

From Kellen Moore to Ryan Dinwiddie to Jim McMillan (but definitely not Kirby Moore that one time he tried to throw a pass), the lineage of Bronco throwers runs deep and wide and all over the all-conference teams of Boise State's past. Can one really rank such a lofty list of the all-time best Boise State quarterbacks?

10. Taylor Tharp (2007) - Tharp had the ignominious distinction of serving as stopgap between Fiesta Bowl winner Jared Zabransky and quarterbacking perfection Kellen Moore. Tough cookies. Nevertheless, in his one season under center, Tharp threw for 3,300 yards and 30 touchdowns, both of which still stand as Top Ten marks in Bronco history, and his 69 percent career completion percentage was Boise State's best ever, until that Kellen Moore guy showed up. Tharp was second-team all-WAC (Hawaii's Colt Brennan was first-team), and he helped lead the Broncos to the Hawaii Bowl - a game that never happened, according to Bronco Nation.

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Boise State's class of 2012 - with its Kellen Moores and Doug Martins and Shea McClellins - was the greatest collection of football talent in the history of Boise State University.

Probably.

Maybe.

It's easy to don our Moore-colored glasses and our what-have-you-done-for-me-lately pants and proclaim that the latest Bronco football stars to come out of the Bronco football machine were the best of the best, peerless in their football excellence, and worthy of the man cave (or woman den) shrines we built. But are we right? Weren't there some other pretty good Boise State football players over the years? I want to say ... Doc Foreski?

Short of a time-traveled combine of Boise State greats, I have attempted, via straw poll, to find out who ranks what and where in the pantheon of Boise State's all-time best. Over the next couple weeks, I will be posting the unofficial lists of the greatest Boise State players of all time, chosen by the OBNUG editorial team and the editorial team's super friends. These lists will be definitive ... until someone points out that I forgot Jared Zabransky.

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Big East coaches today looked at east-west, north-south division splits, and "Red" and "Blue" lineups that showcase league's national reach.

— Greg Auman (@gregauman) May 22, 2012

There are many ways to split the Big East into divisions once the new 12-team iteration kicks off in 2013, probably even including "ship half the teams to CUSA and give the other half back to the Mountain West." But of the many options at [insert Big East commissioner here]'s disposal, three were presented to coaches and athletic directors at the spring meetings this week - two geographic, compass-themed varieties and a bag o' fun one.

Details were lacking, so this being a blog, I made the details up.

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No secret is safe at this week's Big East spring meetings, especially not the conference realignment ones that America craves. Speaking of which, Philly.com's Keith Pompey has one for you, USA:

Brigham Young or Air Force is expected to join Navy (in the Big East), according to multiple sources at the spring meetings.

Anonymous multiple sources are the best type of multiple sources, natch. But at least this rumor has a history. The Cougars and the Falcons have each been rumored at one point or another to be in the Big East's plans - plans that actually exist, contrary to popular opinion.

So if the Big East only has room for one, which one would you prefer?

BYU's SB Nation blog Vanquish the Foe asked for the Zoob preference in a poll (a poll that OBNUGers may have hijacked). And I'll see their poll and raise them a poll. Vote below on whether you'd prefer BYU or Air Force as Boise State's future conference foe, and share your reasoning in the comments. Or don't have a reason. That tends to be how conference realignment rolls.

Computers. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em, am I right?

One of my favorite computers, the one owned and operated by SB Nation's Bill Connelly, has been spitting out preseason rankings for every college football team there is, based on factors like returning starters, two-year recruiting rankings, and 2011 performance. Based on those criteria, his computer must hate Boise State, no? No! It kind of likes the Broncos.

Boise State is at No. 39 and is the highest ranked non-AQ team other than the obvious computer error of Houston at No. 29.

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The Broncos are a deep team, says people like me who really wish to believe that. Despite losing as many as 16 starters according to some outlets, Boise State has loads of backups with starting experience and loads of recruits that we long ago penciled onto WAC, er, Mountain West all-conference teams. But then someone turned me onto the idea of false depth, and now up is down and down is up.

False depth is the depth that is broadcast in feel-good football previews and propaganda-laden press releases. It may be technically accurate, but it's practically irrelevant. Real depth is different. I'll let our friends at Barking Carnival explain:

Real depth comes in three varieties: experienced players who aren't quite talented enough, young players who aren't quite experienced enough, and good players who can't beat out great players. We like the latter best.

And all of these quality measures are relative. Is that back-up a 3 out of 10 or a 6 out of 10? And are they backing up another 3 or are they backing up a 9?

With this new depth definition in mind, let's take a spin around the Boise State roster and see just how deep it really is.

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Bill Connelly's Boise State preview hinted that the best case scenario for the Broncos would be double-digit wins - a thought that simultaneously jives with my feelings on the 2012 Broncos and horrifies me because 10-win seasons are as easy as breathing around these parts. Could the Broncos really struggle to crack the double-digit threshold?

Let's examine the schedule:

Certain wins: vs. Miami (OH), @ New Mexico, vs. Fresno State, vs. UNLV, @ Wyoming, vs. Colorado State. While the possibility exists that the Broncos could trip up against any team at any time, let's be real, you guys. The Broncos aren't going to lose to these teams. Pencil in six wins and bowl eligibility with your most permanent of pencils.

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The USA Today flexed its Freedom of Information Act muscle and collected revenue and expense reports for 225 public Division-I schools, including Boise State. If you like math and money, this chart's for you (click to enlarge).

The overall lesson from USA Today's money study was that the University of Texas is stupid with money. Like gold toilets stupid. The takeaway for Bronco fans is that Boise State continues to increase spending and earning to the point that it really won't look all that out of place in the Big East in a couple of years.

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College football relegation - an idea borrowed from European soccer where teams rise and fall from division to division based on win-loss-tie results and not politicking or whimsy - is brilliant . And it is absolutely not going to happen in college football because cash money runs things.

But it never hurts to dream.

Dreaming is exactly what the brain trust at SB Nation's college football headquarters has been doing this week, jiggering relegation divisions and simulating scenarios for every college football team they could think of. Seriously, George Fox is in there somewhere.

What does relegation hold for Boise State? Great things, mostly.

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You have stumbled upon a monthly installment of Boise State football recruiting news. This post will be updated throughout the month with the latest news, rumors, videos, and Twitter stalkings (note to self: look into selling Twitter stockings).

If you have a hot recruiting tip to share, send us an email or leave a note in the comments.

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The fourth and final candidate of the 2012 People's Champion was left up to you, the people, and you people submitted a great idea to nominate the future football stars of Boise State's 2012 NFL Draft class. (For the purposes of this story and to benefit future civilizations whose archaeologists find this website and consider it fact, Kellen Moore will be lumped in with the Boise State draftees because, duh, he should have been drafted.)

This year's class of Boise State pros did something that few people thought BSU players could do: get drafted in bunches. The Broncos had six players selected in the draft, including two who were picked in the first round, which was two more than Miami, Florida, Florida State, Oklahoma, Texas, and Ohio State. Message board haters are going to have to find a new burn for why Boise State is small potatoes.

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When it comes to college football playoff advocacy, most of us voice our opinion at the TV or among a group of friends or in a Buffalo Wild Wings to whoever will listen. Dan Wetzel is different. Dan Wetzel wrote a best-selling book and has stumped relentlessly for playoffs via his Yahoo! Sports column and Twitter feed and any other way he can find to cram your brain with pro-playoff propaganda.

It worked. His Death to the BCS book has killed the BCS or at least maimed it so that it needs plastic surgery and will now look more like Alec Baldwin than Swamp Thing. Congratulations to Wetzel and his merry band of playoff proponents. He has made our lives, nay earth, a better place, and the least we could do is give him our imaginary People's Champion award hardware.

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Though committees and bureaucracy and bulk red tape typically send Bronco fans into pit sweats of BCS bids won and lost, the nomination of the bureaucratic red-tape committee Idaho State Board of Education for Boise State's People's Champion award is one exception I am happy to make. Did you see what they did to the University of Idaho?!

The SBOE, as it's known to its friends, wielded its absolute power earlier this year to remove the designation of "flagship university" from the University of Idaho's mission statement.

This actually happened. You did not dream it. People voted and everything.

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Finding someone who loves and cares and sets up Google Alerts for Boise State as much as you and I do is nigh an impossible task. But where our white-hot affection ends, mutual respect and admiration begins, and that's where we find this year's batch of People's Champion nominees. These people love the Broncos with their metaphorical inside voices, writing pro-BSU stories and making pro-BSU decisions and fighting for pro-BSU causes. The People's Champion is our Bizarro Public Enemy. Let's pick ourselves a good one.

• Yahoo columnist Pat Forde, defending champion and Bronco #bus driver
• Idaho State Board of Education, venerable state institution and Vandal troller
• Dan Wetzel, face of the playoff movement, last name rhymes with "pretzel"
• To be determined, in the comments, by you

Throughout the week, I'll be making the case why each of the above candidates (including TBD) deserve the title of People's Champion. And you decide, by popular reader vote, who takes home the title. Each candidate's story will have a straw poll at the end where you can rate your fondness for the nominee. Fondness points will be tallied, and come Friday we will have our hero.

Take to the comments to tell me who should be added to the nominee list. Good luck and a big hug to all the nominees.

Real football will not return to fill our lives with joy and wonder until August, leaving football-mad you and me to bide our offseason with other sports. Or we could hibernate like bears.

Certainly the sports world does not stop spinning just because the college football news cycle has slowed to a brisk jog. The NHL and NBA playoffs are in full swing. Baseball is 1/16th of the way into its season. And someone, somewhere is probably playing soccer and playing it in front of thousands of rabid fans who are not Americans. All these sporting options bring up an interesting question.

What is your second-favorite sport? When you can't have football to warm your soul, where do you turn?

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Those who love being wrong love making preseason Top 25s, and those with blogs love writing about them. (It is a symbiotic relationship.) The latest post-spring Top 25 belongs to the SB Nation BlogPoll, one of college football's best rankings because it is crowdsourced and not, say, Mark May-sourced. Boise State is at No. 22. It's not a spot Bronco fans are used to, but hey, it could be worse.

In fact, it is almost always worse for teams that lose a four-year starting quarterback, a first-round NFL running back, an entire defensive line, and coaches out the wazoo. Pollsters tend to ding you (or avoid you) for pushing the reset button on your team.

Yet the BlogPoll and other Top 25s throughout preseason pollsville have Boise State ranked. Athlon has the Broncos at No. 24. Andy Staples has them at No. 20. To what does Boise State owe this newfound perennial respect? Are these people even right? Where would you have Boise State?

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Which high school prospects will be tearing up the Blue before we know it, capturing the hearts of Bronco Nation and earning their way onto All-Big East teams, er, All-Mountain West teams, er, stuff?

We already know three future Boise State Broncos. We have some clues and guesses about some others. Scout.com lists a truckload of high schoolers who have received offers from Boise State and for whatever reason (pubescent whimsy, most likely) have yet to commit to the Broncos. Allow me to identify five on Boise State's wish list that I would love to see make the best decision of their life. The best decision being to commit to BSU. Just thought I'd make that clear.

WR Sebastian Larue - 5'11", 185 pounds, Santa Monica High School, California

As the nation's No. 21 receiving prospect and No. 141 overall, Sebastian Larue would be considered a pipe dream for Boise State's small potatoes. But wait. He likes us! Larue called the Broncos recently to shoot the breeze, and he plans to visit campus later this year. Boise State was the first team to offer Larue a scholarship, so I believe dibs are in order.

Here are Larue's junior season highlights. He also has offers from about every Pac-12 school plus places like Michigan and Tennessee.

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Did you guys hear? That Avengers movie made, like, a billion dollars at the box office last weekend. And Batman wasn't even in it! (I'm a little fuzzy on the whole Avengers concept.)

The incredible success of the movie combined with the whimsical editorial freedom of offseason football blogging got me thinking: What Boise State football players would best fit in the roles of the Avengers characters? Sounds like journalism to me. Here's what I came up with. Feel free to disagree in the comments.

Joe Southwick as Iron Man

The Iron Man character is a playboy philanthropist genius by day and a playboy robot person do-gooder by night. Judging by the reaction of Joe Southwick to Joe Southwick throwing a scrimmage-winning touchdown pass in the spring game, I think we might have a personality match. Also, Southwick can seem robotic in the pocket. Someone had to say it.

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Don't know what is going to happen with Boise State's other sports. But for first time thinking going back to MW is at least a possibility.

— Brian Murphy (@murphsturph) May 4, 2012

Strangely non-rhetorical question of the week: Should the Boise State football team leave the Big East Conference - the conference it viewed as salvation just months before - to return to the Mountain West, home of invisible television coverage and WAC refugees?

The re-exodus back to Craig Thompson Country is at least an idea now, thanks to the WAC no longer being able to service Boise State's Olympic sports. To be sure, there are other ideas, like the super obvious one of staying in the Big East. But for the time being, the Boise State brain trust has to entertain any and all options, no matter how humiliating.

Why would the Broncos think seriously about going back to the Mountain West? Not a bad question to ask, considering I thought this was a joke question three days ago.

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With the Boise State football season four months away, no doubt many of you are already sketching out tailgating plans - what to wear, what to serve, how to steal that guy's DirecTV feed from the parking spot beside you. Well here's one thing you may not have to worry about: signage.

The guys at the appropriately named Banners on the Cheap website have a free custom banner that they want you to have. To win the banner, simply leave a comment on this post explaining what designs you have in mind for said banner. I'll choose a winner randomly on Monday morning.

A few notes: The winner must be a resident of the contiguous United States, for shipping cost reasons. You win up to $40 of Cheap Bannering. You have to have an email address (it's the 2000s, after all).

Other than that, the comments are your canvas. Share your banner ideas, and best of luck.

We now know where we can watch the majority of Boise State football games this fall - on our televisions, which is more than we can say for New Mexico fans. The Mountain West TV schedule came out yesterday, and the Broncos scored the most TV appearances out of all the Mountain West schools. Was it a futile attempt by Hair Herr Craig Thompson to woo the Broncos back into the loving clutches of a non-BCS football conference? Or is it just that Wyoming is so bad to watch on TV? Probably the latter.

Highlights of Boise State's television schedule include:

• Three ESPN games, including two that would have previously been on invisible MWC networks had The .Mtn not folded.
• BYU at Boise State has been moved to Thursday night, September 20, and will be featured on ESPN. This leaves the Broncos only five days to prepare following their game against Miami (OH), which could cause problems for -- HAHA, I couldn't get through it with a straight face, you guys.
• Boise State at Nevada, previously scheduled for Thanksgiving weekend, has been moved to December 1. The Broncos now have a bye for Thanksgiving, so Mike Atkinson can eat all he wants I guess.
• Ten of Boise State's 12 games are currently planned for TV.
• The two that are not: Boise State at New Mexico and Boise State at Southern Miss. The MWC is working out a plan for the New Mexico game (Mark Johnson called dibs), and the Southern Miss game is Conference USA's responsibility.
• San Diego State at Boise State kicks off at 8:30 p.m. MT, which is when some of us might like to go to bed. Don't judge. Most of Boise State's other games are early afternoon.

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