Between the late 1950s and early 1960s, the early years of country music went through a cycle of ballads. Two of the more notable artists of that era were Marty Robbins and Johnny Horton.
But in August of 1961, Jimmy Dean, yes, he of the famous breakfast sandwiches, had made a name for himself for his walkthrough country music. The late Dean recorded what could be argued one of the best ballads of all time.
“Big Bad John.’’
There was very little music accompaniment because of an idea the great pianist Floyd Cramer had. Cramer ditched the ivories and used a hammer a piece of steel because it would bring more imagery to the story.
The story is of a mystery man John comes into town from New Orleans from allegedly killing a man from a fight over a “Cajun Queen”. He went to work in the mines when an accident occurred. John used his strength (6-6, 245) to save the other miners by lifting a timber. But then it was too late to save him. The mine was closed with an inscription on the sign,
“At the bottom of this mine, lies a big, big man. Big John!’’
Shortly after its release in September, the song soon climbed to No. 1. Strangely, it spent more time at No. 1 on the pop charts (five) than it did on the country charts (two). It also saved Dean’s career.
And for those who may remember, this was the first of a trilogy. The second “Cajun Queen” was recorded in 1962 where the madam saved John from the mine and they went to have a family. The final was “Little Bitty Big John”.
The latter would two would be cashing in on the commercial success. The idea should have been to let the original stand alone. After all, the sequels can never match that of the original.
****
With the NFL draft now history, it’s fair to put a wrap on the kind of success Baylor enjoyed.
This was the third draft under Matt Rhule. He now has two players drafted under his watch in center Kyle Fuller (2017) and wide receiver Jalen Hurd (2019). The irony of these is that neither were his original recruit, although you can definitely make the case that Rhule’s recruitment of Hurd after Hurd left Tennessee was a master stroke of work and luck. Hurd was in Rhule’s program for two years and played for one.
The Hurd result – 3rd round to San Francisco – is about as good as you could have hoped for. Maybe it was a little better. When you are a freak athlete – and Hurd is one of those – you’re going to be one of the few who get the benefit of the doubt from NFL executives and will go higher than you probably should.
From January through the middle of May, most draft hopefuls need to perform well at a postseason college all-star game, the NFL combine (if they’re invited to it), pro day at their school and culminating with their visits with the pro teams that invite them.
Well, consider that Hurd couldn’t do most of that because of the knee injury he suffered in November. The only thing he could do was at Baylor’s pro day and possibly with the organizations he visited.
But remember, he was a 5-star recruit when he came to Tennessee and NFL scouts had likely seen enough of him on tape or in person at Baylor games to get the gist of what they were evaluating. They had 12 games. The only thing they wanted to know about the knee was that it wasn’t going to threaten his career.
It won’t.
The 49ers needed some help on offense at the wide receiver position because they drafted South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel in the second round. When an organization uses consecutive draft picks on the same position, it shows the front office doesn’t like what it has on the roster and needs a new look.
There are three more months between now and when the 49ers open training camp. By then, Hurd should be ready.
The compelling part is that we’re going to see how Matt Rhule NFL trained receivers fare against Art Briles NFL trained receivers.
Kendall Wright gets marks for longevity but only had one 1,000-yard season (2,013). Terrance Williams had his moments (averaged 14.6 ypc). Josh Gordon’s demons robbed him of what could have been something special. Still, it’s been somewhat of a checkered history when Baylor pass catchers go to the highest level.
Corey Coleman is on his fourth organization (NY Giants) in four seasons and third in the last year. He’s been a bust because he hasn’t performed, and he’s been a locker room problem. Tevin Reese was too small to play when he was selected in the 2014.
The knock against Briles receivers is that they were not accomplished rout runners because they played in such a simplistic system. They were athletic but not disciplined.
With Hurd, there’s a little give and take. He changed positions before his senior season so he is shaky at route running. However, I’d argue Hurd has more upside than Wright, Williams and probably Coleman.
Briles was at Baylor longer and had more opportunities to place hopefuls in the league. This is Rhule’s first chance.
Rhule’s era is going to always be compared to Briles’ era. That’s just what happens for the guy that’s following the guy – regardless of how it ended – that put together likely the most successful era of Baylor football.
Hurd vs. Wright, Williams and Coleman will fall right in line. We’re not going to know the end result for quite some time. But every time Hurd does something extraordinary or brutal, the Briles side will have its angle. The Rhule said will have its angle.
Just like the receiver Terrell Owens who made the line “Get your popcorn ready” famous and announced Hurd’s selection this past Friday in Nashville, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get to know Orville Redenbacher this fall.
****
You’re happy for Blake Blackmar, Greg Roberts, Ira Lewis and Derrek Thomas to sign undrafted free agent deals and that Jalan McClendon and Drew Galitz will get tryouts.
This is where you thought they were going to be when it came to their postseason hopes. The odds are stacked against them to make a 53 or a practice squad. They’re well aware of that.
But what they do is what everybody in their position wants – a chance.
You wish them well.
****
The most draft worthy players on Baylor’s 2019 roster look like this as we close out April:
LB Blake Lynch
WR Denzel Mims
OL Jake Fruhmorgen
OL JohnCarlo Valentin
If Lynch is really settled at his position, NFL teams will just look at the athleticism and figure it out. Mims needs to have an alpha season. Fruhmorgen has all the tools, but he can flame out just as easily because of consistency issues. Valentin needs a big season.
The candidate who could declare early is junior DL James Lynch. He’s been Baylor’s been defensive lineman for the previous two years. If he exceeds expectations and delivers more than what it is expected – think of something like first-team All-Big 12 and one of the sack and hurry leaders in the Big 12 – I believe he will have a decision to make.
****
A bit of a recruiting blow for Baylor over the weekend when Terrell’s Jaqwondis Burns announced on Twitter Saturday night he was committing to Ole Miss.
Baylor needs some quality linebackers in this class. The telling part during the week was when I was checking in across my contacts to see if the Baylor staff was visiting or planned to visit. I didn’t get the greatest response from the Terrell side when I inquired.
That said, I told someone on Sunday that I would be surprised if Burns remains committed to the Rebels. That doesn’t mean that Baylor could get back into it. If another big school like Oklahoma, Texas A&M or Texas comes around and offers, it could give him pause.
Not that a program is entitled to the commitment, but there is a bit of a letdown as Baylor was one of the first to offer Burns. Some recruits will commit to a school for that reason. Others don’t hold that factor in the same regard.
If some of you want to go to the edge of the cliff and ask for reasons not to jump, I’ll probably respond with, “Recruiting is weird’’ turn and walk away.
****
Within 90 miles of each other, we could be seeing a changing of the guard of dominant Big 12 baseball programs.
When Baylor swept TCU at Lupton Stadium this weekend…I should say dominated...it must have said something because the Bears have won the last seven in this series. There was the sweep in Waco in 2018 followed by the Bears winning that epic Big 12 championship game in Oklahoma City culminated by the sweep in Fort Worth.
You’ll recall that in the Big 12 title game, the Bears clinched their first ever Big 12 tournament title. TCU didn’t make the NCAA tournament.
Now, the Bears are in the driver’s seat atop the Big 12 standings with series against Kansas State and Oklahoma State remaining. TCU is swimming up stream and must use a hot streak in order to avoid missing the postseason for a second straight season.
I have a lot of respect for TCU baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle. He’s taken TCU to the College World Series five times, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. That’s pretty impressive.
But when your arch rival has a weekend in your ballpark like Steve Rodriguez’s team did, it’s a signal something must be changing. The most incredible part of this is that Baylor is doing this with two bona fide starting pitchers. When you keep trotting out TBD on Sundays, you’re living well.
This team is going to get to the NCAA tournament with or without winning the Big 12 title. The question of its pitching sum better than the parts is going to be tested in the regionals. It will be about attrition.
****
Now, a look at other Baylor sports…
>The No. 1-ranked Baylor acrobatics and tumbling team defended its title Saturday evening, earning its fifth-consecutive National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling National Championship by defeating No. 2 Oregon 278.400 to 271.725.Baylor (12-0) finished the regular season with a program-record 12 wins and ended the 2019 campaign on a 30-meet win streak.The Bears took all six events and 15 of the 20 total heats, but were pushed the entire way by the Ducks (7-3) who gave Baylor all it could handle.The Bears took a very narrow lead after compulsory, 37.675 to 37.600, and edged out the Ducks in acro, moving the total to 66.775 to 66.275 through two events.In pyramid, Baylor squeaked by Oregon by just two-tenths of a point to take a 96.175 to 95.475 lead into halftime. The toss event was even closer, but the Bears were still able to claim the event, this time by just one-tenth of a point, extending their overall meet lead to 125.275 to 124.475.Baylor catered to its strength in the tumbling event, recording a 57.275 event score and increasing its total lead to 182.550 to 179.175 entering the team routine. Kaylee Adams and Briana Harris put together an impressive 9.600-scoring duo pass, as well as the two highest scoring individual passes. Adams threw a 9.900 six-element pass and Harris, who hadn't competed in the open pass during the NCATA tournament, scored a 9.825.In the team event, the Bears performed a 95.850-point routine to clinch the victory.
>Baylor men's golf finished in sixth place with a three-round total of 6-over-par 846 at the 2019 Big 12 Championship. The Bears shot 1-under-par 279 in Sunday's final round on The Old White TPC at The Greenbrier, which was the third-best score of the day.Baylor (+6) was just four strokes back of third place. The Bears finished behind Oklahoma State (-13), TCU (-2), Oklahoma (+2), Texas (+2) and Texas Tech (+4). BU earned head-to-head wins over Kansas State (+7), Iowa State (+16), Kansas (+20) and West Virginia (+24).Senior Garrett May earned All-Tournament honors after finishing in a tie for fifth place individually at 5-under 205, which was two shots back of the lead.
Baylor is expected to earn its 22nd consecutive NCAA Regional invitation and will be sent to one of six regional sites – Austin, Texas, Louisville, Ky., Athens, Ga., Stanford, Calif., Pullman, Wash. or Myrtle Beach, S.C. Regional fields will be announced live on Golf Channel at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday, and the three-day Regionals will run May 13-15.
>Baylor track & field swept the 4x400-meter relays to close the National Relay Championships in style Saturday afternoon at John McDonnell Field."It was an outstanding finish to a very solid weekend," head coach Todd Harbour said. "We wanted to stay healthy, have some fun, come off a big MJ weekend and get some good stuff done to become a better team for conference. I thought we did that today."In the final race of the meet, Aaliyah Miller ran a 53.04 anchor leg to make up a full two-second deficit and bring the Bears past Arkansas to win the women's 4x400-meter relay. Miller, Morgan Stewart, Sydney Washington, and Leticia De Souza clocked a time of 3:35.71 to take home the title.The Baylor men's 4x400-meter relay featured a new face, Chris Platt, along with Wil London, Matthew Moorer, and Howard Fields III. The Bears cruised to victory in a time of 3:07.81 after London coasted past Oklahoma State early in the anchor leg and fended off Arkansas and TCU on the back stretch.
Next up for the Bears is a trip to Norman, Okla., for the Big 12 Outdoor Championships May 10-12.
>Baylor (18-29) got its first win over LSU in 38 years when the Lady Bears topped the Tigers, 5-1, in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. BU led the first game on Saturday through the first five innings before LSU took the lead in the top of the sixth and won, 4-2. LSU won the series by winning the opening game of the series, 2-0.
Baylor hosts UTSA in the final home game of the 2019 season at 6 p.m. Tuesday vs. UTSA.
Let’s make it a great week!
But in August of 1961, Jimmy Dean, yes, he of the famous breakfast sandwiches, had made a name for himself for his walkthrough country music. The late Dean recorded what could be argued one of the best ballads of all time.
“Big Bad John.’’
There was very little music accompaniment because of an idea the great pianist Floyd Cramer had. Cramer ditched the ivories and used a hammer a piece of steel because it would bring more imagery to the story.
The story is of a mystery man John comes into town from New Orleans from allegedly killing a man from a fight over a “Cajun Queen”. He went to work in the mines when an accident occurred. John used his strength (6-6, 245) to save the other miners by lifting a timber. But then it was too late to save him. The mine was closed with an inscription on the sign,
“At the bottom of this mine, lies a big, big man. Big John!’’
Shortly after its release in September, the song soon climbed to No. 1. Strangely, it spent more time at No. 1 on the pop charts (five) than it did on the country charts (two). It also saved Dean’s career.
And for those who may remember, this was the first of a trilogy. The second “Cajun Queen” was recorded in 1962 where the madam saved John from the mine and they went to have a family. The final was “Little Bitty Big John”.
The latter would two would be cashing in on the commercial success. The idea should have been to let the original stand alone. After all, the sequels can never match that of the original.
****
With the NFL draft now history, it’s fair to put a wrap on the kind of success Baylor enjoyed.
This was the third draft under Matt Rhule. He now has two players drafted under his watch in center Kyle Fuller (2017) and wide receiver Jalen Hurd (2019). The irony of these is that neither were his original recruit, although you can definitely make the case that Rhule’s recruitment of Hurd after Hurd left Tennessee was a master stroke of work and luck. Hurd was in Rhule’s program for two years and played for one.
The Hurd result – 3rd round to San Francisco – is about as good as you could have hoped for. Maybe it was a little better. When you are a freak athlete – and Hurd is one of those – you’re going to be one of the few who get the benefit of the doubt from NFL executives and will go higher than you probably should.
From January through the middle of May, most draft hopefuls need to perform well at a postseason college all-star game, the NFL combine (if they’re invited to it), pro day at their school and culminating with their visits with the pro teams that invite them.
Well, consider that Hurd couldn’t do most of that because of the knee injury he suffered in November. The only thing he could do was at Baylor’s pro day and possibly with the organizations he visited.
But remember, he was a 5-star recruit when he came to Tennessee and NFL scouts had likely seen enough of him on tape or in person at Baylor games to get the gist of what they were evaluating. They had 12 games. The only thing they wanted to know about the knee was that it wasn’t going to threaten his career.
It won’t.
The 49ers needed some help on offense at the wide receiver position because they drafted South Carolina’s Deebo Samuel in the second round. When an organization uses consecutive draft picks on the same position, it shows the front office doesn’t like what it has on the roster and needs a new look.
There are three more months between now and when the 49ers open training camp. By then, Hurd should be ready.
The compelling part is that we’re going to see how Matt Rhule NFL trained receivers fare against Art Briles NFL trained receivers.
Kendall Wright gets marks for longevity but only had one 1,000-yard season (2,013). Terrance Williams had his moments (averaged 14.6 ypc). Josh Gordon’s demons robbed him of what could have been something special. Still, it’s been somewhat of a checkered history when Baylor pass catchers go to the highest level.
Corey Coleman is on his fourth organization (NY Giants) in four seasons and third in the last year. He’s been a bust because he hasn’t performed, and he’s been a locker room problem. Tevin Reese was too small to play when he was selected in the 2014.
The knock against Briles receivers is that they were not accomplished rout runners because they played in such a simplistic system. They were athletic but not disciplined.
With Hurd, there’s a little give and take. He changed positions before his senior season so he is shaky at route running. However, I’d argue Hurd has more upside than Wright, Williams and probably Coleman.
Briles was at Baylor longer and had more opportunities to place hopefuls in the league. This is Rhule’s first chance.
Rhule’s era is going to always be compared to Briles’ era. That’s just what happens for the guy that’s following the guy – regardless of how it ended – that put together likely the most successful era of Baylor football.
Hurd vs. Wright, Williams and Coleman will fall right in line. We’re not going to know the end result for quite some time. But every time Hurd does something extraordinary or brutal, the Briles side will have its angle. The Rhule said will have its angle.
Just like the receiver Terrell Owens who made the line “Get your popcorn ready” famous and announced Hurd’s selection this past Friday in Nashville, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get to know Orville Redenbacher this fall.
****
You’re happy for Blake Blackmar, Greg Roberts, Ira Lewis and Derrek Thomas to sign undrafted free agent deals and that Jalan McClendon and Drew Galitz will get tryouts.
This is where you thought they were going to be when it came to their postseason hopes. The odds are stacked against them to make a 53 or a practice squad. They’re well aware of that.
But what they do is what everybody in their position wants – a chance.
You wish them well.
****
The most draft worthy players on Baylor’s 2019 roster look like this as we close out April:
LB Blake Lynch
WR Denzel Mims
OL Jake Fruhmorgen
OL JohnCarlo Valentin
If Lynch is really settled at his position, NFL teams will just look at the athleticism and figure it out. Mims needs to have an alpha season. Fruhmorgen has all the tools, but he can flame out just as easily because of consistency issues. Valentin needs a big season.
The candidate who could declare early is junior DL James Lynch. He’s been Baylor’s been defensive lineman for the previous two years. If he exceeds expectations and delivers more than what it is expected – think of something like first-team All-Big 12 and one of the sack and hurry leaders in the Big 12 – I believe he will have a decision to make.
****
A bit of a recruiting blow for Baylor over the weekend when Terrell’s Jaqwondis Burns announced on Twitter Saturday night he was committing to Ole Miss.
Baylor needs some quality linebackers in this class. The telling part during the week was when I was checking in across my contacts to see if the Baylor staff was visiting or planned to visit. I didn’t get the greatest response from the Terrell side when I inquired.
That said, I told someone on Sunday that I would be surprised if Burns remains committed to the Rebels. That doesn’t mean that Baylor could get back into it. If another big school like Oklahoma, Texas A&M or Texas comes around and offers, it could give him pause.
Not that a program is entitled to the commitment, but there is a bit of a letdown as Baylor was one of the first to offer Burns. Some recruits will commit to a school for that reason. Others don’t hold that factor in the same regard.
If some of you want to go to the edge of the cliff and ask for reasons not to jump, I’ll probably respond with, “Recruiting is weird’’ turn and walk away.
****
Within 90 miles of each other, we could be seeing a changing of the guard of dominant Big 12 baseball programs.
When Baylor swept TCU at Lupton Stadium this weekend…I should say dominated...it must have said something because the Bears have won the last seven in this series. There was the sweep in Waco in 2018 followed by the Bears winning that epic Big 12 championship game in Oklahoma City culminated by the sweep in Fort Worth.
You’ll recall that in the Big 12 title game, the Bears clinched their first ever Big 12 tournament title. TCU didn’t make the NCAA tournament.
Now, the Bears are in the driver’s seat atop the Big 12 standings with series against Kansas State and Oklahoma State remaining. TCU is swimming up stream and must use a hot streak in order to avoid missing the postseason for a second straight season.
I have a lot of respect for TCU baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle. He’s taken TCU to the College World Series five times, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. That’s pretty impressive.
But when your arch rival has a weekend in your ballpark like Steve Rodriguez’s team did, it’s a signal something must be changing. The most incredible part of this is that Baylor is doing this with two bona fide starting pitchers. When you keep trotting out TBD on Sundays, you’re living well.
This team is going to get to the NCAA tournament with or without winning the Big 12 title. The question of its pitching sum better than the parts is going to be tested in the regionals. It will be about attrition.
****
Now, a look at other Baylor sports…
>The No. 1-ranked Baylor acrobatics and tumbling team defended its title Saturday evening, earning its fifth-consecutive National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling National Championship by defeating No. 2 Oregon 278.400 to 271.725.Baylor (12-0) finished the regular season with a program-record 12 wins and ended the 2019 campaign on a 30-meet win streak.The Bears took all six events and 15 of the 20 total heats, but were pushed the entire way by the Ducks (7-3) who gave Baylor all it could handle.The Bears took a very narrow lead after compulsory, 37.675 to 37.600, and edged out the Ducks in acro, moving the total to 66.775 to 66.275 through two events.In pyramid, Baylor squeaked by Oregon by just two-tenths of a point to take a 96.175 to 95.475 lead into halftime. The toss event was even closer, but the Bears were still able to claim the event, this time by just one-tenth of a point, extending their overall meet lead to 125.275 to 124.475.Baylor catered to its strength in the tumbling event, recording a 57.275 event score and increasing its total lead to 182.550 to 179.175 entering the team routine. Kaylee Adams and Briana Harris put together an impressive 9.600-scoring duo pass, as well as the two highest scoring individual passes. Adams threw a 9.900 six-element pass and Harris, who hadn't competed in the open pass during the NCATA tournament, scored a 9.825.In the team event, the Bears performed a 95.850-point routine to clinch the victory.
>Baylor men's golf finished in sixth place with a three-round total of 6-over-par 846 at the 2019 Big 12 Championship. The Bears shot 1-under-par 279 in Sunday's final round on The Old White TPC at The Greenbrier, which was the third-best score of the day.Baylor (+6) was just four strokes back of third place. The Bears finished behind Oklahoma State (-13), TCU (-2), Oklahoma (+2), Texas (+2) and Texas Tech (+4). BU earned head-to-head wins over Kansas State (+7), Iowa State (+16), Kansas (+20) and West Virginia (+24).Senior Garrett May earned All-Tournament honors after finishing in a tie for fifth place individually at 5-under 205, which was two shots back of the lead.
Baylor is expected to earn its 22nd consecutive NCAA Regional invitation and will be sent to one of six regional sites – Austin, Texas, Louisville, Ky., Athens, Ga., Stanford, Calif., Pullman, Wash. or Myrtle Beach, S.C. Regional fields will be announced live on Golf Channel at 8 p.m. CT Wednesday, and the three-day Regionals will run May 13-15.
>Baylor track & field swept the 4x400-meter relays to close the National Relay Championships in style Saturday afternoon at John McDonnell Field."It was an outstanding finish to a very solid weekend," head coach Todd Harbour said. "We wanted to stay healthy, have some fun, come off a big MJ weekend and get some good stuff done to become a better team for conference. I thought we did that today."In the final race of the meet, Aaliyah Miller ran a 53.04 anchor leg to make up a full two-second deficit and bring the Bears past Arkansas to win the women's 4x400-meter relay. Miller, Morgan Stewart, Sydney Washington, and Leticia De Souza clocked a time of 3:35.71 to take home the title.The Baylor men's 4x400-meter relay featured a new face, Chris Platt, along with Wil London, Matthew Moorer, and Howard Fields III. The Bears cruised to victory in a time of 3:07.81 after London coasted past Oklahoma State early in the anchor leg and fended off Arkansas and TCU on the back stretch.
Next up for the Bears is a trip to Norman, Okla., for the Big 12 Outdoor Championships May 10-12.
>Baylor (18-29) got its first win over LSU in 38 years when the Lady Bears topped the Tigers, 5-1, in the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. BU led the first game on Saturday through the first five innings before LSU took the lead in the top of the sixth and won, 4-2. LSU won the series by winning the opening game of the series, 2-0.
Baylor hosts UTSA in the final home game of the 2019 season at 6 p.m. Tuesday vs. UTSA.
Let’s make it a great week!
