NOTE: The content on the Baylor Blitz is solely meant for the subscribers of SicEmSports. Let's all please make sure that whatever is written here stays here. We appreciate you all helping us with this. Now, let's all take a look at Baylor recruiting and what else is going on involving the Bears.
Baylor-West Virginia visitors
As we've mentioned, we've had the feeling the list of potential attendees for Baylor-West Virginia was going to be pretty significant. So here are the recruits who SicEmSports has confirmed plan on attending the Bears Big 12 opener on Saturday night at Floyd Casey Stadium.
>KD Cannon, WR, Mount Pleasant (Baylor 2014 Commit)
>Terence Williams, RB, Ennis (Baylor 2014 commit - official visit)
>Davion Hall, Ath, Texarkana Liberty-Eylau (Baylor 2014 commit - official visit)
>Jordan Feuerbacher, TE, Kingwood Park (Baylor 2014 commit - official visit)
>Black Blackmar, OL, Clear Lake (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Josh Malin, DL, Cibolo Steele (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Ira Lewis, DL, Houston Lamar (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Jamie Jacobs, DE/LB, Waco Midway (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Xavier Jones, DL, Magnolia West (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Josh Pelzel, OL, Rockdale (Baylor 2014 commit)
>James David, LB, Rockdale (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Jourdan Blake, Ath, Princeton (Baylor 2014 commit)
>T'Kevian Rockwall, LB, Wylie (Baylor 2014 commit)
>Zaycoven Henderson, DT, Longview (Baylor 2014 offer)
>Jarrett Stidham, QB, Stephenville (Baylor 2015 offer)
>DaMarkus Lodge, WR, Cedar Hill (Baylor 2015 offer)
>JaMycal Hasty, RB, Longview (Baylor 2015 offer)
>Larry Pryor, WR, Sulphur Springs (Baylor 2015 offer)
>Du'Vonte Lampkin, DT, Cy Falls (Baylor 2015 recruit)
>Chad President, QB, Temple (Baylor 2015 commit - if there are no issues with his knee)
>Justin Dunning, DB, Whitehouse (Baylor 2015 offer - if he can secure a ride)
>Chris Warren, RB, Rockwall (Baylor 2015 offer - should be there despite the knee injury)
>Ronnie Major, OL, Huntsville (Baylor 2015 commit)
>Darrell Miller, DB, Cedar Hill (Baylor 2015 recruit)
>Richard Moore, LB, Cedar Hill (Baylor 2015 recruit)
>Justin McMillan, QB, Cedar Hill (Baylor 2015 recruit)
>Devontre Stricklin, WR, Waco Midway (Baylor 2015 offer)
>Jared Mayden, CB, Sachse (Baylor 2016 recruit)
Has Baylor moved away from RC2? - A perspective
This has been an interesting situation over the last several weeks. Baylor only played one game in the last 27 days. Beginning Sept. 1, the NCAA allows coaches to travel and evaluate other players.
Of course, Baylor could have had the chance to go see Las Vegas Bishop Gorman quarterback Randal Cunningham Jr. in person. When I checked in with Cunningham in each of the last two weeks when Baylor was coming up on its bye, I asked him if he had a) spoken with Baylor and b) if Baylor was going to have a coach watch him that upcoming Friday night.
Each time, Cunningham said no.
Given the reported lack of actions coming from Baylor, that has to make you think that either Baylor has decided to move on completely or wait to see how things transpire for the rest of the season.
Given the robust quarterback choices within the 2015 class, it's fair to presume that Baylor may be more apt to focus on the likes of the committed Temple's Chad President, Stephenville's Jarrett Stidham and Troup's Blake Lynch (who calls Baylor one of his top two leaders).
Plus, if you factor in how intriguing redshirt freshman Seth Russell has looked in his mop up duty and the optimism stemming from Christ Johnson, it gives you reason to believe that Baylor wouldn't mind going quarterback free for the 2014 class.
Of course, this kind of thing can change before Feb. 5, 2014. But for now, I think Baylor is willing to let this ride.
-Kevin Lonnquist
Lodge making first Baylor visit
DaMarkus Lodge has heard so much about Baylor, that he knew it was about time that he got down to Waco to put the teeth behind the Bears offer.
A visit with Baylor assistant Jeff Lebby sealed the arrangements for Lodge to make his first visit. Baylor became one of the first to offer the sleek 6-2, 182 wide receiver, who has become the playmaker that everyone thought he would be.
Through Cedar Hill's first four games ? the Longhorns didn't play this week ? Lodge has 24 receptions for 480 yards and seven touchdowns.
"I expect to go down there and see a family environment, a nice facility and a great coaching staff,'' Lodge said. "I really want to see them just get after West Virginia. I think they know I'm a good receiver and how I can develop in their offense.''
Of course, much has been made of Lodge's visits to Texas and Oklahoma. But Lodge maintains he's wide open.
Lodge will have some company with defensive back Darrell Miller who has started to get some attention. But what's refreshing is that he has made academics a priority. Baylor has not offered Miller yet.
"They really mean a lot,'' he said. "I never know how far football is going to take me. I want to stay on top of it. I want to go to college and graduate with a degree with something that will make me successful if it doesn't work out.''
-Kevin Lonnquist
Ketchum and Baylor visit
Baylor has developed a pretty solid pipeline into Fort Bend Marshall. And the Baylor coaching staff continues to evaluate 2015 quarterback prospects.
Already holding an offer from Baylor, signal caller J.W. Ketchum said he spoke with the coaching staff last week and is trying to decide if he will go to Saturday's game against West Virginia.
"But my focus is this game,'' Ketchum said of Marshall's game on Friday night against Fort Bent Ridge Point.
Ketchum has Marshall off to a 3-0 start. The team doesn't rely on his arm as he has thrown for only 233 yards and four touchdowns. But he's been pretty effective on the ground rushing for 359 yards and five touchdowns.
-Kevin Lonnquist
Johnson's stock rising
Hearing that redshirt freshman Chris Johnson from Bryan has made some very good strides with his form and accuracy as he continues to develop in the Baylor's offense.
Johnson arrived on campus this past January. And as Baylor kept his reps at a minimum, the coaching staff was always high on his ability, even though the numbers at Bryan didn't reflect that. In the spring controlled scrimmage, Johnson was limited to just the 7-on-7 segment.
As one source said, "He's going to be really good.''
And there is no need to rush him with Bryce Petty playing for another year and Seth Russell picking up the system.
-Kevin Lonnquist
Big 12 Weekend
A look at Saturday's action. All times are central.
No. 20/22 Texas Tech (4-0, 1-0) at Kansas (2-1)
11:00 a.m., Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, KS (FOX Sports 1)
The Skinny: Walk-on freshman Baker Mayfield gets the start. However, there could be a quick trigger if he struggles. The Red Raiders have been sloppy taking care of the football with 10 turnovers in the last three games. Kansas is just looking for semblance of offense scoring 13 and 14 points in the last two games.
Kansas State (2-2, 0-1) at No. 20/21 Oklahoma State (3-1, 0-1)
2:30 p.m., Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, OK (ABC)
The Skinny: The Cowboys have to find a way to bounce back after a mistake-filled loss at West Virginia. The running game needs to pick it up as it averaged less than three yards per carry. KSU comes off a bye week and is hoping it can get better use out of its two quarterbacks in Jake Waters and Daniel Sams.
TCU (2-2, 0-1) at No. 10/11 Oklahoma (4-0, 1-0)
6:00 p.m., Owen Field, Norman, OK (FOX)
The Skinny: A far better test for the Horned Frogs this week as they must find a way to be aggressive against a rapidly improving Oklahoma linebacker group led by Corey Nelson. The Sooners have been advantageous taking advantage of turnovers at plus 42 in the six take aways they've secured through the first four games.
West Virginia (3-2, 1-1) at No. 16/17 Baylor (3-0)
7:00 p.m., Floyd Casey Stadium, Waco (FOX Sports 1)
The Skinny: The Big 12 opener for the Bears who lead the nation in total offense at 751.3 yards per game. But the Mountaineer defense is experiencing quite the turnaround. They are third in the Big 12 in total defense at 345.5 yards per game. Since 2000, West Virginia has returned 18 interceptions for touchdowns.
Texas 31, Iowa State 30:In Ames, Texas quarterback Case McCoy's sneak for a touchdown with 51 seconds to play enabled to the Longhorns (3-2, 2-0 Big 12) to survive Thursday at Jack Trice Stadium. The Longhorns benefitted from a controversial fumble that was not ruled a fumble on first-and-goal at the 2-yard line by Johnathan Gray. In the closing seconds, Iowa State (1-3, 0-1) drove to midfield before quarterback Sam B. Richardson threw an interception - a ball defensive end Jackson Jeffcoat caught off of a deflection.
-Kevin Lonnquist
Big 12 Power Rankings
Each week, SicEmSports ranks the Big 12 teams based on expectations and performance. Ratings always vary. Agree or disagree, there's nothing like finding out who is ranked where. These rankings are before the Texas-Iowa State game.
1. Baylor - Finally, a routine after one game in 27 days
2. Oklahoma - Big 12 got a reputation boost with the win at Notre Dame last week
3. Oklahoma State - Gut check time for the Cowboys
4. Texas Tech - Kingsbury: "Playing in Dallas was like a home field advantage for us.''
5. Texas - With no David Ash, will the Longhorns take the redshirt off Tyrone Swoopes?
6. West Virginia - We'll see how the improved defense reacts to playing in Waco
7. TCU - QB Trevone Boykin playing with some confidence
8. Kansas State - In the middle of the Big 12 in just about every offensive/defensive category
9. Kansas - Lots of pressure on QB Jake Heaps to perform
10. Iowa State - Prior to Texas, Cyclones were 9th in the Big 12 in total defense (403.0)
-Kevin Lonnquist
Emptying the Notebook
>Since 2011, Baylor is 15-1 at Floyd Casey Stadium 19-3 over the last three years and 25-10 all-time under Art Briles.
>This may not be a surprise but it's worth noting that place-kicker Aaron Jones is already 28-of-28 on extra points this year.
>Longview DT Zaycoven Henderson had considered making this week's trip to Baylor an official visit but decided to make it an unofficial.
>Word seems to be that no matter how hard Baylor has pushed on DeSoto DB Nick Orr, he doesn't seem to be re-thinking his commitment to TCU.
>By the way, if you haven't heard, Art Briles name has been connected to the USC vacancy. That's what happens when you're successful. This is no different than when TCU's Gary Patterson had his name connected to every blue blood job that opened. Just get used to it.
-Kevin Lonnquist
