re: Playing a big time OOC game early in the season is dumb

Pretty sure you're an LSU fan unless I'm wrong; if you are,

In 2003 was ahead of USC for the #2 spot by the narrowest margin in the BCS era. Had LSU played a 2-10 Sun Belt team instead of 2-10 Arizona, they would not have been in the Sugar Bowl that year, and there would be no title.

In 2007, had LSU and Virginia Tech played North Texas and Marshall, respectively, instead of each other, Virginia Tech would have been in the BCSCG against Ohio State, and LSU would be in the Sugar Bowl a week earlier, so this example proves that there are two sides to this and that scheduling involves calculated risks.

All in all, it depends on who you are and how tough your conference/division schedule is, as well as the added benefits a program gets from playing a high-profile game (exposure/recruits/etc).

Even your Colorado reference proves that there are two sides to this. Michigan's schedule proved to be so difficult that finishing third in their division hasn't eliminated them from playoff contention. Had they played and beaten Ball State instead of Colorado, their SOS wouldn't be high enough to put them in the top 4.