Here is the difference in playing in conf like the SEC vs a conf like TCU plays in. Every single week your playing a team that is good enough to beat you if you dont show up with your A game. Ask Alabama who just beat MSU an 11-1 team 49-7. You have no off weeks. You can not take a week off. And your players do not get a week off. One bad game, one game of not showing up with your best effort and you CAN lose. And then take into account the attrition that the season takes on you. Pounding it out week in and week out. Look at the games Auburn could have lost. How many wars did they have? Almost every week in the SEC it was a war. How many wars did TCU have to fight this year? How many games did they have where less than their A game was still enough to get a win?
TCU is a heck of a team. But if they played in the SEC would they be capable of sustaining the effort week in and week out that it took for them to beat Wisconsin? Would they be able to do that week in and week out without slipping up once or twice along the way? Injuries if they had to play four qtr wars? Dinged up players?
Its not a question of wether or not a team like TCU can beat anyone on any given day? Of course they can. The question is could they go through and entire season of playing multiple games where they will have to bring it every single week to survive and then still beat the caliber of opponent they beat in a bowl game at the end of the year?
Could TCU play USC then Stanford then OSU and then go on the road and beat Arizona? Really? Four weeks in a row playing teams that they would have to bring their A game in order to survive? What we are talking about here is not a fair comparison. Play Ga, LSU, Florida and then go on the road and play Miss State. Contrast that to what Boise and TCU have to do week end and week out. Again I think both of these programs are awesome and I love TCU's program. But its not the same.
One game? No doubt they can play with anyone anyday anytime. For an entire season? No way. Attrition and lack of top tier depth would beat them down.