There’s a lot at stake for Boise State in matchup with Virginia Tech

Boise State versus Virginia Tech at FedEx Field, in Maryland, on Labor Day night, is more than a game — it’s a game changer.

It’s about coaches, cheerleaders, fans and players, for sure, but it’s also about pigskin politics.

To have a game so meaningful and interesting on opening weekend defines the argument of whether an NFL-style playoff in college football would dilute what many feel is the best regular season in sports.

In essence: Would Monday’s game mean as much if the loser could afford the loss?

This is high-stakes stuff, for both schools, but especially Boise State.

The Broncos have worked more than a decade to get to this position. In a sport with no playoff, where the power is concentrated in the six power conferences, Boise State is the ultimate outsider. The Broncos’ three undefeated regular seasons in the last decade were undermined by the company they kept in a weaker conference, the Western Athletic.

Some would argue an undefeated Boise State still would not warrant a No. 1 or No. 2 in the BCS standings because the Broncos essentially get a freer ride in a second-tier league.

That debate may yet play out, but Boise State, for the first time, is at least in the debate. The Broncos jumped in it by returning more than 20 players from last year’s 14-0 squad. Boise State has opened at No. 5 in the USA Today coaches’ poll, which is part of the BCS formula, and No. 3 in the Associated Press, which is not — but crowns an independent champion.

The matchup against No. 10 Virginia Tech is a must-win for the computer nerds and, equally important, the court of public opinion.

“I think there’s really just a sense of, let’s take this next step,” Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore said this summer. “We have 12 opportunities. Play your best football and see what happens in the end.”

Coaches hate the all-or-nothing aspect of this kind of buildup, because defeat almost renders everything else insignificant.

“You lose a game, so it’s the end of the world?” Boise Coach Chris Petersen asked. “You lose a couple games and it’s not a good season? That’s not true. Expectations get so out of whack.”

Petersen notes that Oregon recovered from a devastating opening-night loss last year to Boise State and ended up winning the Pacific 10.

That’s true, but Oregon plays in a BCS conference.

This is win-or-else for Boise State in terms of its national title hopes. Losing is not an option.

And it might not be an option for Virginia Tech, from the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Hokies are similar to Boise State in that they, too, have spent years trying to put one last trophy in the case.

Frank Beamer’s team has flirted with the ultimate prize, losing the second-ever BCS title game to Florida State after the 1999 season. Virginia Tech has something to prove too. The Hokies are, shockingly, 1-25 against teams ranked in the AP top five. In that sense, they are the underdogs looking up at No. 3 Boise State.

The risk-reward is high.

“You know, when you play a team like that, you’re certainly taking a chance on an early-season loss,” Beamer said of the Boise State matchup. “…This is not a particularly great year to play Boise.”

Victory, though, catapults Virginia Tech into the thorny thick of things.

Watching closely, also, will be No. 6 Texas Christian, ready to become this year’s gate-crasher if Boise State falls.

TCU fired the first salvo Saturday when the Horned Frogs scored an impressive opening victory against Pac-10 contender Oregon State.

This is what makes college football different — if not better — than other sports. The front load on the schedule is just as important as the back load. You don’t rest starters for the postseason — you can’t.

New Year’s Day constitutes the postseason, but, sometimes, so does Labor Day.

chris.dufresne@latimes.com