BSU's Petersen will look to prove he's top Dawg

Boise State fans have to know that no matter how much they love coach Chris Petersen, at some point, he's going to leave Boise State for the chance to coach at one of the nation's premier football universities.

Sure, Petersen says he loves Boise and doesn't have any plans to leave anytime soon, but nonetheless, he, and his agent, gets phone calls at the end of every season from other teams wanting to know if he's interested in leaving the blue turf behind.

One of these days, someone's going to call with an offer he won't be able to refuse and it will be so long, Gem State.

But Petersen loves the Boise area and has a good thing going at Boise State. He's not going to leave it all behind for just any school like his former boss, Dan Hawkins, did when he took over for a struggling Colorado team that is still struggling.

If Petersen leaves Boise State, it won't be to take a rebuilding job. It will be for one reason only: to win a national title. Petersen will look to go to a team that's ready to compete for the national title and win it all now, or in the near future. A team with good facilities and a proven track record that's only a few players and a head coach away from the title.

Expect him to follow in the mold of Urban Meyer, who left the original BCS busting school, Utah, to go to Florida and has since won two national titles and is a strong favorite to add to that collection this season.

Don't be surprised if Petersen someday coaches against Meyer in the Southeastern Conference, where his salary would increase from $850,000 to $2-3 million or more a year.

Earlier this week, Georgia's athletic director, Damon Evans, expressed "concerns" about the direction of the football team.

Those concerns stem from the fact Georgia is a big-time program with a big-time budget that has nothing to show for it. Current coach Mark Richt has made the team a regional power that almost always spends time in the top 10 every season, so the SEC's longest-serving coach will get a little leeway this season if the 3-3 Bulldogs don't turn things around.

But sooner or later, Evans and other school officials will get tired of serving as also runs in the conference that has produced the last three national champions and will look for someone else to lead the Dawgs to the title land.

When that time comes, Evans will want to hire someone who's proven they can win, most likely someone from a small school considered to be the next big name in coaching.

And he will make a call to Petersen's agent.

The call may not happen this season, and it may not happen at all. But just replace "Georgia" with the right big-time program with big-time dreams in need of a coach and Petersen is a Bronco no more.