Boise has had an unprecedented run of success and they can't sell out a 30,000 person stadium, and it's the state's defacto flagship institution.  If you visit UCF, the first thing you notice is the amount of UF, Miami and FSU gear; a similar situation exists in Houston with UT and aTm gear.  The P5 schools rule the roost, and in most states, it's by design.  The PUF in Texas only assists schools in the UT and aTm systems.  As a Virginia resident, I see that the only two universities that matter when it comes to sports are Tech and UVA.  The other schools are just commuter schools. 

The alumni networks and endowments of even second-tier P5 schools typically dwarf most AAC schools.  The biggest AAC schools look like third-tier P5 endowments, but still lack dedicated alumni.  And one or two super donors don't count.  Even crap P5 schools like Vanderbilt have multi-billion-dollar endowments and alumni that typically make a lot more than the average American.  And the alumni networks are just that - legit networks.  Not an office in a commuter school that shares emails.  What that means is that when Vanderbilt has a decent season, they are already in the conversation.  No G5 team has this.  Nor will they without congressional intervention, or a drastic change in how universities run and are financed.

Utah is actually one of the best examples of the gulf between P5 and G5 teams.  Utah had an overrated, average football team this year, and yet they were legitimately in the playoff discussion right up until their meltdown.  UCF had a ten-win season, and 99.9% of college football fans can't name what bowl they went to or who they played.  All it took was one, not even down year, and almost nobody cares.  It's highly unlikely that any G5 team can sustain success long enough to overcome a slightly down season.  And again, it's not like these are really down seasons.  These are 10 win seasons that make teams forgettable.

What do people remember most about UCF?  That they got beat up in a NY6 bowl a couple of years ago, and didn't belong.