That can be either a lazy excuse for poor performance or a legit reason for weak competitiveness, and at this point in the new college athletics landscape I have no idea which it would be. After a handful of years things will most likely settle down and be more or less peaceful, but I'm convinced there will be realigned strata, primarily with the moneyed schools solidifying their positions of recognition in the rankings and the not-so-moneyed sliding into relatively secondary roles. Sort of "the rich get richer" kind of thing. Whatever the result, it should be interesting to watch, but I think there will be fewer upsets, surprises and dark horse candidates.
Oh, and as a side note, I gave BFrog a thumbs-up for intelligent and refreshing alliteration.