By Kevin Lonnquist
Publisher
This Chad likes to hang with Baylor
Baylor will always have its QB recruiting eyes years in advance. And there’s a lot to like about the way it has started with Cibolo Steele 2025 signal caller Chad Warner.
The relationship with Warner and Baylor dates to when he was in 7th grade. Now, it could be heading in a new direction if his performance maintains or exceeds its level. A Baylor offer could be a matter of when.
“I’ve been knowing Shawn Coach Bell for about four years now,’’ Warner said. “He’s watched me grow the past few years at camp. My most recent visit he let me know he’s watched my games this season and loves the way I’ve been throwing the ball. After the game we had a great talk about life and football. He’s a great well-respected Coach and someone I’d love to play for.”
Warner is leading a resurgence for the Knights who are 4-0. It’s not that the state power had dipped dramatically. But this program had not made deep playoff runs recently.
Well, hopes are higher as Warner has experienced growth physically and on the field. Over the summer he jumped from 5-11 to 6-2. He’s also thrown for nearly 900 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“My strengths are my arm strength and pocket mobility. I feel I do a great job escaping pressure and getting the ball in the hands of my guys downfield,’’ Warner said. “I’m only 15 so I still have allot of growth in all parts of my game to get where I aim to be. My main focus right now is to continue getting bigger and stronger.”
Grambling is his only offer. But that should not be for long. Warner attended Baylor’s game against Texas State last week and plans to attend Oct. 1 against Oklahoma and Nov. 12 against TCU.
“As far as Baylor, I’ve had a great view of the program for the last few years,’’ he said. “I’m looking forward to continuing to come out to the games and be around the players, staff and environment. It’s a great place to be.”
East Texas OL dominant
Casey Poe is one of those prospects that the more he plays the more D1 programs will come to him.
The Lindale 2024 offensive guard is surging. And there’s plenty that he has in common with the Bears. His former teammate Jordan Jenkins in on campus. Jenkins has been on campus a few times. Lindale’s offensive scheme looks similar to Baylor’s RVO approach.
Did we mention he has a Baylor offer.
“I’ve gone to a couple of games and got to see [Eric Mateos] coach and be around him,’’ Poe said. “He’s a really good guy, and a very intelligent coach. I like the way he attacks with the run game and trusts his o-linemen when the game is on the line.’’
Besides Baylor, Poe has offers from Oklahoma, Nebraska, Auburn, SMU, TCU and Texas Tech. However, he’s taken the right approach when it comes to the part.
“Really to just keep the main thing the main thing,’’ he said. “I’m still a high school player, and I have a team counting on me now. I can worry about the rest later.’’
There’s a lot to review for someone who is 6-5, 270 and probably can grow a little more. His strength is also an asset. A member of the Lindale power lifting team, Poe’s personal bests are 500 in the squat, 335 in the power clean and 305 in the bench. Mateos has told Poe he likes him a little more at tackle.
He continues to improve on staying square in sets and climbing to the next level on quick linebackers.
Poe is also coming back from an injury he suffered in fall camp. He had a procedure done to clean up the meniscus in the right knee. He missed a few weeks. However, Poe said he is all the way back.
Baylor will continue to make its inroads with Poe. He’s already attended the Texas State game and thinks he will return for others. At this point, it doesn’t sound like he will be able to attend Oct. 1 for Oklahoma State.
Still, it’s not about attending games. If Baylor continues to position itself well him, it will go beyond watching a game on a Saturday at McLane Stadium.
“I just really want to see how I’ll be treated as a player, not just as a recruit,’’ Poe said. “I have already seen a bit of that, and I like it so far. But also life on campus in the day to day and how life as a student athlete will be.’’
A 3-star recruit with a 5.7 rating, Poe is the No. 9 player at his position and the No. 44 recruit in Texas.
Baylor Players talk Iowa State
Linebacker Brooks Miller, making his media debut, and left tackle Connor Galvin spoke with the media earlier this week about facing Iowa State and the momentum they hope to take from the 42-7 victory over Texas State to close out the non-conference portion of their schedule.
Brooks Miller
(What’s this been like, all of a sudden getting playing time) Yeah, I’m just trying to stay into it. Had that hamstring injury pretty early in camp. And it was really hard to keep the mental aspect into it. But just staying in there, grinding with my brothers.
(Pressure on the other linebackers when Dillon was out in the first half) No, I don’t really think it’s pressure, because of how much Tyrone (Brown), me, Josh (White), Jaden (Maronen), all of us. We work really hard, and we go four reps in and out. So, we’re always getting reps and we’re always ready.
(What’s your LB style, seem like a guy who wants to throw his body around) Yeah, I’m trying to actually become that, because in high school I was a safety. And everybody just thinks I’m a coverage linebacker. But, I’m trying to become more than just that.
(Had 7 interceptions as a junior, right) Yessir. I actually never played linebacker until I got to college.
(Just put on weight) Yessir, I was about 195 when I got here, and now I’m 230.
(What does it take to transition from safety to linebacker) It’s just a straight-up mindset. It’s just, ‘Hey, I’m going to fill the A gap today,’ or ‘Hey, I’m scared.’ You’ve got to pick one or the other.
(Playing Iowa State, what’s it like not seeing Brock Purdy or Breece Hall?) They’re still just as physical as always, so we’re going to have to get in there and stick our nose into it.
(On Dekkers, the QB) I think he looks really good. He’s good at getting the ball out. It’s always different seeing a lefty. But, he looks real good, he looks smooth.
(Take from BYU game, going into a similar environment at Iowa State) Yeah, I think this is similar team-wise, too. People always talk about BYU being such a physical team. Well, since I’ve been here, they say the same thing about Iowa State. So, we just have to be more physical than they can.
(Better prepared after the BYU game) Yeah, I think we still have a lot of steps to take, and we’re still early in the season, but I think we’re going to take a huge step this weekend.
(What’s something you learned from the first road game that won’t be as much of a surprise this time) Yeah, it really was. Coach Aranda talks about it a lot, the wide eyes when we got out there. But, I think we know what to expect now, so we’ve just got to get out there and play ball.
(Having discipline like Iowa State and being able to play green this week) Yeah, it starts out with today. If we have the penalties throughout the week, it’s just going to carry over. So, we just have to get better throughout the week and carry it into Saturdays.
(Feelings about the defense through the first three games) I think we’ve done well, especially in the run game. I think we can do a whole lot better when it comes to the pass game, whether that goes for coverage, pressure, anything. I think it’s still so early in the season. We’re good, but we can be so much better.
(What are things that you see that remind you, ‘Oh, we saw this out of the defense last year, and that’s what we can become’) Like I said, it’s just so early. We’re going to become so much better. Like in December, we’re going to look back to now and be like, ‘Wow, how we were running it that way, and now we’re running it like this?’
(What would a huge step look like for the defense) Honestly, right now, it’s the communication aspect. We get out there, and we’re not sure if we’re going to make this call or this call. But, it starts out here, when we start calling it, get it right the first time. Do it again the second time, do it again the third time. Master the craft and just keep doing it.
(What does it do for a defense to have a big guy like Apu plugging the middle) As a linebacker, it helps a lot. It definitely defines your gap, so that helps a lot.
(Have you seen him become more of a leader) Yeah, definitely. I’m seeing leaders come from all throughout – Apu, TJ. You’ve got Dillon, you’ve got Devin in the back end. All three Devin’s actually. We’ve got a lot of Devins.
(Can that give guys confidence that they had to step up when Dillon was out) Yeah, I think the confidence actually goes a long way, because I’ve seen even in Tyrone, the confidence go up leaps and bounds. And the more confident he gets, the better he plays.
(What was the difference in the pass rush in the second half) I think that was a total mindset. I think we went into the first half a little sluggish, and in the second half we talked it out a little bit and say, ‘Hey, do we want to be the team we want to be?’ And we had to go out there and show it.
(How do you keep from starting the game sluggish, because it’s been an issue) Yeah, it has, and it was an issue last year, too. We start slow, and then we work our way back in the second half. But, if we want to be the team that we want to be, it’s got to start from the first quarter and end on the last play of the game.
LT Connor Galvin
(On Iowa State) I’ve played against them a lot. They're a team that plays hard. They don't beat themselves. They're tough. They're physical. It's just gonna be a game of who does simple better. How well we execute our base plays versus how well they defend our base plays, stuff like that and it’s gonna be a fight.
(How did you correct penalties from BYU game?) Yeah. That was for sure not up to our standard at all. We addressed it, we watched them, we learned from it. And just like last week, and including today, we just really put a point of emphasis on being focused, staying focused and focusing throughout the whole day of practice from start to finish. That’s really all it is just focus.
(How do you address that, going back on the road this week to a similar environment facing a similar team?) It's just one of those things where you have to like, really address the issues that happened two weeks ago, learn from it, fix it, and apply it to this week. And know [that] we know it's gonna be loud. We know it's gonna be rowdy, we know it's going to be one of those games where it's gonna be down to the last play. That's just how Iowa State is. [I have] a lot of respect for them. So, it's just how we practice versus how they practice.
(How do you balance cleaning up those penalties? With keeping that as you're taking that next step and bringing the edge of the game?) Just playing green man. Just doing our base fundamentals out of how we play, which is very fast and physical and not doing dumb stuff on the fly. If you do dumb stuff on the fly, that’s when you get the holdings, [illegal] block in the backs, all that stuff. So if you do what we do every day at a high level, it's just not gonna happen.
(What do you like about Richard Reese?) He's fast, he's physical. He really likes to run the ball. He makes our life a little bit easier, breaking some tackles. He's gonna score a lot of touchdowns here, so I have very high hopes for him.
(Aranda mentioned you guys are maybe missing a little bit of that violence that you guys had as an offensive line last year. What do you guys need to do to achieve the same violence?) It's just how we practice. You practice how you play and if you practice violent, you’ll play violent. We haven’t had bad practices, but we haven't had practices up to our standard and we fixed that from week one to week two to week three to now and so we're just starting to stack days. We’re stacking days every day, which turns into weeks which turns into the whole season, so yeah.
(What’s it like trying to block Apu) I don't really have too many experiences, that's more of like a guard or center question, but, from the few experiences I have, he's very strong. He's very quick for his size. Very deceptive, but he's a strong boy. He's very strong and fast, so it's not a lot of fun.
(Particularly for the younger guys that might have had the big eyes in that BYU game, how much did that experience maybe help them going into this?) That stuff you can't prepare for. With away games, going into an environment like that … what was it like 65,000 fans all screaming? As a freshman, it's hard to mock that in practice. And it's just one of those experiences you just have to go through it to learn from it. Those guys addressed their issues, know what the problem was, and we've addressed it, so we just have to perform on Saturday.
(Do you remember what that was like for you as a freshman?) Yeah, I do. You can take as much wisdom as you can, but ultimately you have to go through it to understand how to handle that noise and stuff like that. And so, I have no concerns. Those guys are gonna bounce back. We've helped them, we’ve addressed the issues and I'm very excited.
(What was the message in that locker room at half time against TxState and, who are some of those guys who stepped up and delivered it?)
On the offensive side – because we’re on the opposite side of the locker room – it was just like the whole O-line, we were like, ‘look, we're playing good, but we’re not playing to our level.’ And it was just like a combination of me, [Jacob] Gall and Grant [Miller], and we were just like, ‘Look guys, we have to step it up.’ And we did. The coaches addressed what we had to fix at half and all that stuff but ultimately it was just us addressing the issues.
(Communication from the coaches to the young players, learning curve, do you feel like you guys have made strides in the communication?) Yeah, for sure. At practice we have like our speakers, just blasting music, and that really just helps you understand [and] know what's about to happen on those away games. I think all the receivers and skill guys and even the O-line and tight ends, I feel like we've really handled that well, starting today and yesterday and stuff like that. So, I'm very excited.
SicEmSports Big 12 Power Rankings
Each week, SicEmSports unveils its looks at the league who in its view deserves to be ranked where. Agree or disagree, here’s how they look.
1. Oklahoma – Sooners dominated from start to finish in Lincoln, NE
2. Baylor – Bears are hoping 2nd half vs. Texas State is the real them
3. Oklahoma State – Mike Gundy blasts OU for letting Bedlam rivalry die
4. Texas— Never easy in Lubbock for the Longhorns
5. Iowa State – Confident team; a chance to show something vs. Baylor
6. Kansas – They’re a football school
7. TCU – First test of the season Saturday in Dallas
8. Texas Tech – Are the bad defensive days behind them?
9. West Virginia – Huge road win at Virginia Tech
10. Kansas State – Offense really stuck
Big 12 Weekend
A look at the Big 12 schedule for the upcoming weekend. All games are Saturday unless otherwise listed. Rankings are from the coaches and AP polls. All times are central. TV is listed. Oklahoma State has a bye.
West Virginia 33, West Virginia 10 – In Blacksburg, VA on Thursday, Mountaineer QB JT Daniels’ 24-yard TD pass to Sam Jones in the closing seconds of the first half gave the Mountaineers the lead for good as they ran their record to 2-2. Daniels threw for 203 yards, while running back CJ Donaldson rushed for 106 yards. Jacolby Spells added a Pick6 to finish off the victory.
No. 17 Baylor (2-1) at Iowa State (3-0); 11:00 a.m., Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, IA (ESPN2)
Series: Baylor leads, 11-9
Notable: Iowa State leads the Big 12 in total defense (234). Baylor is third (290).
TCU (2-0) at SMU (2-1); 11:00 a.m., Gerald J. Ford Stadium, University Park ESPNU
Series: TCU leads, 51-42-7
Notable: Former SMU HC Sonny Dykes returns less than 10 months after leaving for TCU. Horned Frogs QB Chandler Morris is still out.
Duke (3-0) at Kansas (3-0); 11:00 a.m., Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS (FS1)
Series: Duke leads, 2-1
Notable: Kansas has its first home sellout since 2019 and is halfway toward bowl eligibility. The Jayhawks lead the Big 12 in scoring at 53 ppg.
No. 22/19 Texas (2-1) at Texas Tech (2-1); 2:30 p.m., AT&T Jones Stadium, Lubbock (ESPN)
Series: Texas leads, 54-17
Notable: Longhorn RB Bijan Robinson leads the Big 12 with 443 all-purpose yards and has six TD scores. Tech is last in the conference in rushing with just 305 total yards, six less than Robinson’s total (311).
Kansas State (2-1) at No. 6/6 Oklahoma (3-0); 7:00 p.m. Memorial Stadium, Norman, OK (FOX)
Series: Oklahoma leads, 77-21-4
Notable: The Sooners and the Wildcats are tied for the best turnover ratio in the Big 12: +5. The Wildcats offense is the worst at converting 3rd down at just 26 percent.
Publisher
This Chad likes to hang with Baylor
Baylor will always have its QB recruiting eyes years in advance. And there’s a lot to like about the way it has started with Cibolo Steele 2025 signal caller Chad Warner.
The relationship with Warner and Baylor dates to when he was in 7th grade. Now, it could be heading in a new direction if his performance maintains or exceeds its level. A Baylor offer could be a matter of when.
“I’ve been knowing Shawn Coach Bell for about four years now,’’ Warner said. “He’s watched me grow the past few years at camp. My most recent visit he let me know he’s watched my games this season and loves the way I’ve been throwing the ball. After the game we had a great talk about life and football. He’s a great well-respected Coach and someone I’d love to play for.”
Warner is leading a resurgence for the Knights who are 4-0. It’s not that the state power had dipped dramatically. But this program had not made deep playoff runs recently.
Well, hopes are higher as Warner has experienced growth physically and on the field. Over the summer he jumped from 5-11 to 6-2. He’s also thrown for nearly 900 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“My strengths are my arm strength and pocket mobility. I feel I do a great job escaping pressure and getting the ball in the hands of my guys downfield,’’ Warner said. “I’m only 15 so I still have allot of growth in all parts of my game to get where I aim to be. My main focus right now is to continue getting bigger and stronger.”
Grambling is his only offer. But that should not be for long. Warner attended Baylor’s game against Texas State last week and plans to attend Oct. 1 against Oklahoma and Nov. 12 against TCU.
“As far as Baylor, I’ve had a great view of the program for the last few years,’’ he said. “I’m looking forward to continuing to come out to the games and be around the players, staff and environment. It’s a great place to be.”
East Texas OL dominant
Casey Poe is one of those prospects that the more he plays the more D1 programs will come to him.
The Lindale 2024 offensive guard is surging. And there’s plenty that he has in common with the Bears. His former teammate Jordan Jenkins in on campus. Jenkins has been on campus a few times. Lindale’s offensive scheme looks similar to Baylor’s RVO approach.
Did we mention he has a Baylor offer.
“I’ve gone to a couple of games and got to see [Eric Mateos] coach and be around him,’’ Poe said. “He’s a really good guy, and a very intelligent coach. I like the way he attacks with the run game and trusts his o-linemen when the game is on the line.’’
Besides Baylor, Poe has offers from Oklahoma, Nebraska, Auburn, SMU, TCU and Texas Tech. However, he’s taken the right approach when it comes to the part.
“Really to just keep the main thing the main thing,’’ he said. “I’m still a high school player, and I have a team counting on me now. I can worry about the rest later.’’
There’s a lot to review for someone who is 6-5, 270 and probably can grow a little more. His strength is also an asset. A member of the Lindale power lifting team, Poe’s personal bests are 500 in the squat, 335 in the power clean and 305 in the bench. Mateos has told Poe he likes him a little more at tackle.
He continues to improve on staying square in sets and climbing to the next level on quick linebackers.
Poe is also coming back from an injury he suffered in fall camp. He had a procedure done to clean up the meniscus in the right knee. He missed a few weeks. However, Poe said he is all the way back.
Baylor will continue to make its inroads with Poe. He’s already attended the Texas State game and thinks he will return for others. At this point, it doesn’t sound like he will be able to attend Oct. 1 for Oklahoma State.
Still, it’s not about attending games. If Baylor continues to position itself well him, it will go beyond watching a game on a Saturday at McLane Stadium.
“I just really want to see how I’ll be treated as a player, not just as a recruit,’’ Poe said. “I have already seen a bit of that, and I like it so far. But also life on campus in the day to day and how life as a student athlete will be.’’
A 3-star recruit with a 5.7 rating, Poe is the No. 9 player at his position and the No. 44 recruit in Texas.
Baylor Players talk Iowa State
Linebacker Brooks Miller, making his media debut, and left tackle Connor Galvin spoke with the media earlier this week about facing Iowa State and the momentum they hope to take from the 42-7 victory over Texas State to close out the non-conference portion of their schedule.
Brooks Miller
(What’s this been like, all of a sudden getting playing time) Yeah, I’m just trying to stay into it. Had that hamstring injury pretty early in camp. And it was really hard to keep the mental aspect into it. But just staying in there, grinding with my brothers.
(Pressure on the other linebackers when Dillon was out in the first half) No, I don’t really think it’s pressure, because of how much Tyrone (Brown), me, Josh (White), Jaden (Maronen), all of us. We work really hard, and we go four reps in and out. So, we’re always getting reps and we’re always ready.
(What’s your LB style, seem like a guy who wants to throw his body around) Yeah, I’m trying to actually become that, because in high school I was a safety. And everybody just thinks I’m a coverage linebacker. But, I’m trying to become more than just that.
(Had 7 interceptions as a junior, right) Yessir. I actually never played linebacker until I got to college.
(Just put on weight) Yessir, I was about 195 when I got here, and now I’m 230.
(What does it take to transition from safety to linebacker) It’s just a straight-up mindset. It’s just, ‘Hey, I’m going to fill the A gap today,’ or ‘Hey, I’m scared.’ You’ve got to pick one or the other.
(Playing Iowa State, what’s it like not seeing Brock Purdy or Breece Hall?) They’re still just as physical as always, so we’re going to have to get in there and stick our nose into it.
(On Dekkers, the QB) I think he looks really good. He’s good at getting the ball out. It’s always different seeing a lefty. But, he looks real good, he looks smooth.
(Take from BYU game, going into a similar environment at Iowa State) Yeah, I think this is similar team-wise, too. People always talk about BYU being such a physical team. Well, since I’ve been here, they say the same thing about Iowa State. So, we just have to be more physical than they can.
(Better prepared after the BYU game) Yeah, I think we still have a lot of steps to take, and we’re still early in the season, but I think we’re going to take a huge step this weekend.
(What’s something you learned from the first road game that won’t be as much of a surprise this time) Yeah, it really was. Coach Aranda talks about it a lot, the wide eyes when we got out there. But, I think we know what to expect now, so we’ve just got to get out there and play ball.
(Having discipline like Iowa State and being able to play green this week) Yeah, it starts out with today. If we have the penalties throughout the week, it’s just going to carry over. So, we just have to get better throughout the week and carry it into Saturdays.
(Feelings about the defense through the first three games) I think we’ve done well, especially in the run game. I think we can do a whole lot better when it comes to the pass game, whether that goes for coverage, pressure, anything. I think it’s still so early in the season. We’re good, but we can be so much better.
(What are things that you see that remind you, ‘Oh, we saw this out of the defense last year, and that’s what we can become’) Like I said, it’s just so early. We’re going to become so much better. Like in December, we’re going to look back to now and be like, ‘Wow, how we were running it that way, and now we’re running it like this?’
(What would a huge step look like for the defense) Honestly, right now, it’s the communication aspect. We get out there, and we’re not sure if we’re going to make this call or this call. But, it starts out here, when we start calling it, get it right the first time. Do it again the second time, do it again the third time. Master the craft and just keep doing it.
(What does it do for a defense to have a big guy like Apu plugging the middle) As a linebacker, it helps a lot. It definitely defines your gap, so that helps a lot.
(Have you seen him become more of a leader) Yeah, definitely. I’m seeing leaders come from all throughout – Apu, TJ. You’ve got Dillon, you’ve got Devin in the back end. All three Devin’s actually. We’ve got a lot of Devins.
(Can that give guys confidence that they had to step up when Dillon was out) Yeah, I think the confidence actually goes a long way, because I’ve seen even in Tyrone, the confidence go up leaps and bounds. And the more confident he gets, the better he plays.
(What was the difference in the pass rush in the second half) I think that was a total mindset. I think we went into the first half a little sluggish, and in the second half we talked it out a little bit and say, ‘Hey, do we want to be the team we want to be?’ And we had to go out there and show it.
(How do you keep from starting the game sluggish, because it’s been an issue) Yeah, it has, and it was an issue last year, too. We start slow, and then we work our way back in the second half. But, if we want to be the team that we want to be, it’s got to start from the first quarter and end on the last play of the game.
LT Connor Galvin
(On Iowa State) I’ve played against them a lot. They're a team that plays hard. They don't beat themselves. They're tough. They're physical. It's just gonna be a game of who does simple better. How well we execute our base plays versus how well they defend our base plays, stuff like that and it’s gonna be a fight.
(How did you correct penalties from BYU game?) Yeah. That was for sure not up to our standard at all. We addressed it, we watched them, we learned from it. And just like last week, and including today, we just really put a point of emphasis on being focused, staying focused and focusing throughout the whole day of practice from start to finish. That’s really all it is just focus.
(How do you address that, going back on the road this week to a similar environment facing a similar team?) It's just one of those things where you have to like, really address the issues that happened two weeks ago, learn from it, fix it, and apply it to this week. And know [that] we know it's gonna be loud. We know it's gonna be rowdy, we know it's going to be one of those games where it's gonna be down to the last play. That's just how Iowa State is. [I have] a lot of respect for them. So, it's just how we practice versus how they practice.
(How do you balance cleaning up those penalties? With keeping that as you're taking that next step and bringing the edge of the game?) Just playing green man. Just doing our base fundamentals out of how we play, which is very fast and physical and not doing dumb stuff on the fly. If you do dumb stuff on the fly, that’s when you get the holdings, [illegal] block in the backs, all that stuff. So if you do what we do every day at a high level, it's just not gonna happen.
(What do you like about Richard Reese?) He's fast, he's physical. He really likes to run the ball. He makes our life a little bit easier, breaking some tackles. He's gonna score a lot of touchdowns here, so I have very high hopes for him.
(Aranda mentioned you guys are maybe missing a little bit of that violence that you guys had as an offensive line last year. What do you guys need to do to achieve the same violence?) It's just how we practice. You practice how you play and if you practice violent, you’ll play violent. We haven’t had bad practices, but we haven't had practices up to our standard and we fixed that from week one to week two to week three to now and so we're just starting to stack days. We’re stacking days every day, which turns into weeks which turns into the whole season, so yeah.
(What’s it like trying to block Apu) I don't really have too many experiences, that's more of like a guard or center question, but, from the few experiences I have, he's very strong. He's very quick for his size. Very deceptive, but he's a strong boy. He's very strong and fast, so it's not a lot of fun.
(Particularly for the younger guys that might have had the big eyes in that BYU game, how much did that experience maybe help them going into this?) That stuff you can't prepare for. With away games, going into an environment like that … what was it like 65,000 fans all screaming? As a freshman, it's hard to mock that in practice. And it's just one of those experiences you just have to go through it to learn from it. Those guys addressed their issues, know what the problem was, and we've addressed it, so we just have to perform on Saturday.
(Do you remember what that was like for you as a freshman?) Yeah, I do. You can take as much wisdom as you can, but ultimately you have to go through it to understand how to handle that noise and stuff like that. And so, I have no concerns. Those guys are gonna bounce back. We've helped them, we’ve addressed the issues and I'm very excited.
(What was the message in that locker room at half time against TxState and, who are some of those guys who stepped up and delivered it?)
On the offensive side – because we’re on the opposite side of the locker room – it was just like the whole O-line, we were like, ‘look, we're playing good, but we’re not playing to our level.’ And it was just like a combination of me, [Jacob] Gall and Grant [Miller], and we were just like, ‘Look guys, we have to step it up.’ And we did. The coaches addressed what we had to fix at half and all that stuff but ultimately it was just us addressing the issues.
(Communication from the coaches to the young players, learning curve, do you feel like you guys have made strides in the communication?) Yeah, for sure. At practice we have like our speakers, just blasting music, and that really just helps you understand [and] know what's about to happen on those away games. I think all the receivers and skill guys and even the O-line and tight ends, I feel like we've really handled that well, starting today and yesterday and stuff like that. So, I'm very excited.
SicEmSports Big 12 Power Rankings
Each week, SicEmSports unveils its looks at the league who in its view deserves to be ranked where. Agree or disagree, here’s how they look.
1. Oklahoma – Sooners dominated from start to finish in Lincoln, NE
2. Baylor – Bears are hoping 2nd half vs. Texas State is the real them
3. Oklahoma State – Mike Gundy blasts OU for letting Bedlam rivalry die
4. Texas— Never easy in Lubbock for the Longhorns
5. Iowa State – Confident team; a chance to show something vs. Baylor
6. Kansas – They’re a football school
7. TCU – First test of the season Saturday in Dallas
8. Texas Tech – Are the bad defensive days behind them?
9. West Virginia – Huge road win at Virginia Tech
10. Kansas State – Offense really stuck
Big 12 Weekend
A look at the Big 12 schedule for the upcoming weekend. All games are Saturday unless otherwise listed. Rankings are from the coaches and AP polls. All times are central. TV is listed. Oklahoma State has a bye.
West Virginia 33, West Virginia 10 – In Blacksburg, VA on Thursday, Mountaineer QB JT Daniels’ 24-yard TD pass to Sam Jones in the closing seconds of the first half gave the Mountaineers the lead for good as they ran their record to 2-2. Daniels threw for 203 yards, while running back CJ Donaldson rushed for 106 yards. Jacolby Spells added a Pick6 to finish off the victory.
No. 17 Baylor (2-1) at Iowa State (3-0); 11:00 a.m., Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, IA (ESPN2)
Series: Baylor leads, 11-9
Notable: Iowa State leads the Big 12 in total defense (234). Baylor is third (290).
TCU (2-0) at SMU (2-1); 11:00 a.m., Gerald J. Ford Stadium, University Park ESPNU
Series: TCU leads, 51-42-7
Notable: Former SMU HC Sonny Dykes returns less than 10 months after leaving for TCU. Horned Frogs QB Chandler Morris is still out.
Duke (3-0) at Kansas (3-0); 11:00 a.m., Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS (FS1)
Series: Duke leads, 2-1
Notable: Kansas has its first home sellout since 2019 and is halfway toward bowl eligibility. The Jayhawks lead the Big 12 in scoring at 53 ppg.
No. 22/19 Texas (2-1) at Texas Tech (2-1); 2:30 p.m., AT&T Jones Stadium, Lubbock (ESPN)
Series: Texas leads, 54-17
Notable: Longhorn RB Bijan Robinson leads the Big 12 with 443 all-purpose yards and has six TD scores. Tech is last in the conference in rushing with just 305 total yards, six less than Robinson’s total (311).
Kansas State (2-1) at No. 6/6 Oklahoma (3-0); 7:00 p.m. Memorial Stadium, Norman, OK (FOX)
Series: Oklahoma leads, 77-21-4
Notable: The Sooners and the Wildcats are tied for the best turnover ratio in the Big 12: +5. The Wildcats offense is the worst at converting 3rd down at just 26 percent.
