Book excerpt: When the Boise State University football team rushed onto the field to take on the University of Oklahoma Sooners in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, the Broncos were in a position to begin a new tradition, or be party to an old one. That day was the culmination of a meteoric rise for a school essentially still making the transition to Division I football. From its humble beginnings as Boise Junior College to its status as a perennial top 25 team, author Tom Barbour follows the Broncos as they ascend to national prominence in his book, Blue Collar Mentality. Through meticulous research and individual interviews, Tom discovers what makes up a football program relying on a Blue Collar Mentality, rather than blue chip players to find itself, year after year, in the hunt for a top 10 ranking and a major bowl berth.