To require that all students deny any hand of God in the creation of the universe is to beg the question, if God didn't do it, what alternate theory for God's existence do they support? They are certain God played no role and consider it heresy to think otherwise. Asking them to "explain God" is a rhetorical task and points out the weak arguments they leave as options for those who "cling to God" but accept that God played no role in the creation of the world.
No where am I making the claim that the Earth is 6,000 years old and not billions. Nowhere am I saying that it is not possible for life to evolve.
The only dead certain argument on this thread is that "God didn't play a part".
Nonsense. The only assumption made by science is that that phenomena are not capricious.
Seeings as how most Scientists in the USA are people of faith (such as myself); most of us do think God not only played a part, he produced and wrote the entire play.
That being said, there is no way a Scientist can measure or predict God; and as such God will always be beyond Scientific analysis; as HE said HE would be.
Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.