Will Chris Petersen Ever Leave Boise State?

[SuperDuck]

With the bigger conferences getting ready to put the hammer down on revenue sharing with smaller conferences in 2014, plus the addition of a 4-team playoff system that will be selected by a committee, how much longer will Chris Petersen be happy remaining at Boise State?

As a competitor, I'd have to think he'd want a legitimate shot at "all the marbles" at some point in his career. Unfortunately, there's almost zero chance that he'll ever get it if he stays at Boise State. His teams could go unbeaten, they could win by large margins, they could have players that are obvious stars, but the odds of an unbeaten BSU ever be selected above a one loss team from the SEC, Pac-12, Big-12, etc are almost zero because of their overall body of work.

I can understand that he's probably apprehensive about leaving after seeing what's become of former Boise State coaches Houston Nutt, Dirk Koetter and Dan Hawkins. Still, Nutt and Koetter had some success at Mississippi and Arizona State, and Koetter has been a very successful offensive coordinator in the NFL for several years now. Koetter has turned down other college head coaching jobs as well.

I can also understand that his family is happy in Boise. Still, there comes a point where it kind of feels like he'd be hiding there. One of the most successful college coaches over the past several years continuing to decline opportunities to move up just doesn't make sense after awhile.

There are several excellent coaches in some of the bigger conferences. Going unbeaten is rare when you go up against that kind of competition on a weekly basis. Still, you don't see those coaches go running to a smaller conference to avoid losing games. They want a shot at "the big one".

I've had a lot of respect for his accomplishments over the years. His record at BSU vs quality opponents in non-conference and Bowl games has been outstanding. Still, you have to wonder how many other quality coaches could have accomplished what he's done at Boise State as well. Put Nick Saban, Mark Richt, Steve Spurrier, Chip Kelly, Bob Stoops, etc, etc, etc in there. Do you think maybe they could win a few games too? Yep.

Ultimately, it's up to him what he decides to do (of course). My personal opinion is that it's time for him to move out of his comfort zone and start playing with the big boys week in and week out. Only then can his greatness truly be measured.

Just sharing my thoughts.

[SuperDuck]

Here's another thought about three possible destinations that he might consider that could be open next season. In no particular order:

#1. Stanford - David Shaw appears to be very happy there and recently signed a contract extension. Still, Shaw has solid NFL experience and you can bet that he'll be high on several teams' lists at the end of the season.

#2. USC - If Kiffin doesn't have a good season I can see that era coming to an end. With their probation ending, and a lot of existing talent on the roster already, Petersen could step in and be successful in a short time frame.

#3. Washington - This should be a tie at #2. UW has a lot of young talent and is in the recruiting grounds that Petersen is already familiar with. He'd still be close to his wife's family in Oregon as well. I'd almost guarantee that the administration at UDumb would roll out the red carpet for him and give him just about whatever he asked for to help him succeed. He might even get to reunite with Josh Wilcox, if Wilcox chose to stay there. Of course, I'd expect him to keep Tosh as well.

Thoughts?

[UofDuck]

If, or when they bump it to an 8 team playoff, BSU would have a shot to get in on a perfect year. Until then, I think they are left out.