Washington plays its first non-conference opponent

The Seattle Times has the story on the first ever match-up between the University of Washington football team and a non-BCS opponent.

An interesting sub-theme in the article concerns what BCS teams looking for an easy opponent are willing to pay to a team willing to take a pounding in exchange for some cash:

And with BCS teams trying to schedule as advantageously as possible, the ante has risen in attracting opponents. San Jose State, for instance, got $900,000 for a trip to Alabama last year. [UW athletic director] Woodward said "it's just nuts" what some non-BCS FBS schools are seeking in guarantees.

I think there is a paper waiting to be written (or maybe already written ...) looking at the determination of these payouts.