It's not going to be pretty, but as quickly and painlessly as you can, put yourself in San Diego State's shoes: You're 0-6 in the Mountain West. You've already lost to a I-AA team. You have no hope of a bowl game, and virtually none of finishing above last place. You've already committed to your beleaguered coach for a fourth excruciating year. Some segment of the university and community wants to drop football altogether.

There is literally nothing whatsoever at stake for you Saturday against undefeated Utah -- except, of course, that half a million dollars that would come SDSU's way if the Utes qualify for a BCS game:

If the Aztecs lose against Utah, as expected, SDSU stands to get a lot more money after the season -- about a half-million dollars -- than it would with a win.
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If the seventh-ranked Utes (10-0) beat SDSU (1-9) and win again next week against No. 16 Brigham Young, they likely will earn a berth in a lucrative Bowl Championship Series game, probably the Fiesta, Sugar or Orange Bowl. That means more than $9 million in additional revenue for the Mountain West Conference, which would share a big portion of that bonanza with all of its members, including SDSU. About $500,000 would go to each of the league's eight other schools, with Utah getting about $4 million.

But if SDSU, a 28-point underdog, somehow pulls off the upset, the conference likely will not earn a BCS berth or the extra money that comes with it.

The question -- perhaps for the first time in the history of San Diego State football -- is academic, because the Utes should grind the Aztecs into dust regardless of any ulterior motives on either side. "Somehow," in this case, is beyond a miracle; whether or not they "try," they're still going to lose. And when it comes, SDSU officials aren't going to secretly gloat about the inevitable humiliation like the evil owner who tried to gut and relocate the Indians in Major League. They're going to feel terrible about it. They really are.