The Kentucky Headhunters are a group that if nothing else grabs your attention because of the name.
They’re a Country Rock, Southern Rock band of the ilk like Lynyrd Skynyrd. But here’s the interesting part. Some version of this group has been around since 1968.
Yes, the RJB found that hard to believe as well. The group has released only eight albums in those 51 years. But the first wasn’t released until 1989, Pickin’ On.
That debut album yielded perhaps the group’s signature commercial song. Dumas Walker was about a restaurant – Actually known as Adolphus Ennis – in Greenville, KY. The group would frequent after shows.
Actually, there was a disagreement between the group and the record label whether to put it on there. The group won and it climbed to No. 15 in 1990.
****
After you start getting into this week’s entry and if you believe in superstitions or karma or anything of that nature, I would recommend you do the following:
>Throw salt over your shoulder.
>Don’t step on the crack if you’re walking on the sidewalk or on your driveway.
>Be careful holding a mirror.
>Don’t walk under a ladder if you’re doing any work around your house.
>Find your nearest piece of wood to knock on it.
In the three years that Matt Rhule has been at Baylor, this 2019 team is the healthiest the Bears have been.
If we want to split hairs, the three players of significance that have been out due to injuries are tight end Tyler Henderson – he’s done for the year with an ACL tear – defensive back Christian Morgan - missed SFA with turf toe but returned for UTSA – and running back Sqwirl Williams – missed the first two games with a knee issue and it’s unclear when he will be available.
Now, if you want to go deeper into the roster on the threes or whoever else and count them as significant injuries, you get the floor. But I think you get the idea.
The 2018 squad had some injuries. But 2017 was the mother of all injury plagued seasons. On Oct. 25 of that year, I did a story on what was going on at the time.
Through a little digging, I pulled it up and found it. If you don’t want to click the link, here’s what I covered.
Baylor had 18 players who had either missed time or were lost for the season with injuries. The actual total of those who missed the season was seven. At the time, were 65 total games lost.
When things became clearer at the end of the season, the total reached about 80. To be frank, I probably was a little more conservative on the time missed.
For this group, you can count Henderson at 12 (at minimum), Morgan is at one. Williams is at two for now. That total is 15. There are going to be more injuries. That’s just going to happen.
Football is a violent game. People get hurt. Why can it be so disastrous one season and so favorable the next? Well, if coaches and athletic trainers knew the answer to this, injuries would never be a factor.
When bodies get crunched, the way a knee or elbow turns could mean the difference from bouncing back to the next play or breaking or tearing something and the season abruptly ended.
Part of why 2017 was what it was could be attributed to just the players adapting to a knew way of doing business from not only the way they practiced to the way they went through the strength and conditioning program was conducted. Bodies were strengthened and matured through different methods than what was done in the previous regime.
That doesn’t make Andrew Althoff and Jeremy Scott’s approach better than what Kaz Kazadi did. It was just a difference in philosophies and what they emphasized to put players in a position to perform at their best.
However, I do think it’s fair to presume that after going two or three years in the program, bodies have adjusted. They can probably withstand the regular aches and pains longer. Injuries that caused them to miss time in 2017 or in 2018 may not have the same impact in 2019. The newbies still have a ways to go.
Now only two games have been played. And the Bears haven’t faced the most physical of teams. And it won’t happen Saturday at Rice either. Once they get into the Big 12, that’s probably going to change some.
What you can say is that this team has put itself in a position to succeed because of its health.
As anyone knows, health is the great equalizer for any team in any sport.
What may have gone unnoticed in the brutal conditions of playing at McLane against UTSA with field temperatures reaching 181 is how well this team dealt with it.
In a game like that you would expect the consequences of dehydration and cramping. But aside from Charlie Brewer getting a case of the hot foot, you didn’t see any of that. The preventative and reactive measures Baylor’s training staff had in place impressively dealt with conditions.
Remember the quote we had from sophomore safety J.T. Woods:
“They’ve definitely been doing a lot of research. I know Althoff has been putting a lot of resources together. We had something called the meat locker, an 18-wheeler with a huge freezer. That was really helpful, especially during the game. I went in there and a lot of people went in there at halftime and it cooled us off. We could put our elbows in a tub. We did that during pregame. It cools your body down. The turf was like 180 degrees or something like that. But it didn’t really feel that hot because they were taking care of us. We stayed really hydrated. We had pavilions over on the bench, which is something we really haven’t had before. They really took care of us on the sidelines. We didn’t even know it was that hot.”
Sports medicine and sports science is ever evolving. Like coaches, everyone is looking for different ways to get better.
And there is something at stake with bowl berths, competing for conference championships and whatever would go beyond that. With the $39 MILLION Baylor received in revenue distribution from the Big 12 television contracts, you can be sure some of that is devoted to giving the athletics performance staff more arrows in the quiver.
****
As I was putting Baylor’s 2019 prediction together, I commented that I thought the Big 12 was in transition because the presumed four bottom teams – West Virginia, Kansas State, Kansas and Texas Tech – were in transition.
I also suggested that the conference was top heavy between Oklahoma, Texas and maybe Iowa State.
And then we started playing the games. And then this past weekend happened.
Indeed, this was an eye-opening but welcomed performance by the conference.
It started when Kansas pulled the shocker of the college football weekend when it went to Chestnut Hill, MA and not only beat but hammered Boston College, 48-24.
Kansas State would have been the easy choice to get picked off on the road at Starkville, MS against Mississippi State. Instead, the Wildcats won, 31-24.
West Virginia probably looked the worst of all of the Big 12 teams through the first two games. Then the Mountaineers blew out North Carolina State, 44-27.
TCU licked it wounds from an uninspiring performance in the opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, went to Purdue and handed it to Jeff Brohm and company, 34-13. The rule on TCU that nobody follows is that when you’re ready to count it out, don’t.
Iowa State lost a tough one to Iowa, 18-17, because of a late turnover. Rivalry games can be difficult to navigate.
The only one that may have been exposed was Texas Tech. The Red Raiders did not look very organized.
What does all this mean for Baylor? Frankly, I don’t know.
The perception is that Oct. 5 in Manhattan, KS doesn’t look like the gimme we thought it could be. Nov. 9 in Fort Worth is going to be difficult (it always is anyway). Halloween against West Virginia at least adds a curiosity factor to it. When you heard about the Jayhawks, Nov. 30 in Lawrence, KS probably made you stop for a second and say, well…
We’re so used to living in the now when it comes to watching football. But coaches want to pace their teams to get better through the course of the season to where they are playing at a higher level in November than where they are in September.
Maybe this conference isn’t in transition after all. Maybe it’s better than advertised. And if it is, and if Baylor can still navigate it through my predicted record of 8-4, then that will make it all the more satisfying.
****
Publisher’s Note: It’s Parent’s Weekend in Tuscaloosa this coming weekend. The Mrs. And I will be there to see the Crimson Tide Friday night through Sunday evening. I’m also checking on Saban to see if he’s spending my money wisely.
Anyway, I’ll still get you set up for Baylor at Rice with the preview and Game Thread. Garrett Ross should be covering the game and have something postgame.
If there’s an opportunity, I’ll try to sneak a couple of peaks since it starts at 6:00 pm and Alabama kicks off at 11:00 am. Obviously, I’ll do as much catching up as I can.
I’ll still have the Golden Bear performances and get next week’s WWHT up as soon as I can.
Just making everyone aware.
****
Now, a look at other Baylor sports…
> No. 5 Baylor volleyball (7-0) closed out the Hampton Inn & Suites Waco North Baylor Invitational with a 3-0 sweep of Tennessee (3-4) behind a record-breaking crowd Saturday afternoon at the Ferrell Center, 25-18, 25-17, 25-16. Baylor struggled but managed to beat Houston in four games on Friday.
BU broke the all-time attendance mark for the third consecutive season on "Pack the House" Night and totaled 3,878 fans for Saturday's match. The total bested last year's record of 3,858 against LSU.
BU will host the Baylor Classic next Friday through Sunday and will face No. 18 Hawai'i and No. 21 Missouri at the Ferrell Center.
BU will face the Tigers at 6 p.m. CT Friday and then close out the tournament against the Rainbow Wahine Sunday at 2 p.m. Both matches will be live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
>Baylor (3-2-2) soccer fell to Arkansas, 2-0, Thursday night at Betty Lou Mays Field. The match, originally scheduled for a 7 p.m. start, was moved back to 9:15 p.m. when Arkansas experienced some travel difficulty. On Sunday, Baylor and Abilene Christian played to a 1-1 draw.
> TJ Sugg finished as the runner-up in the men's 8K, while Lindsay Walton recorded a third-place finish in the women's 5K to lead Baylor Cross Country Friday morning at the Texas A&M Invitational."I'm pretty impressed with the team from top-to-bottom," associate head coach Jon Capron said. "They fought hard. We're still missing a piece or two, but it's nice to see everybody show up that's here and race as hard as they can."Sugg led the pack from the get-go en route to a time of 24:49.3 in the 8,000-meter race, just shy of the personal best he set back in 2017 at the adidas DI Pre-Nationals. Ryan Hodge was next across the finish line for the Bears in seventh place (25:11.6), followed by Connor Laktasic in eighth (personal-best 25:12.0), Matt Henderson in 29th (26:31.8) and Cal Johnston in 32nd (26:42.7). With 67 overall points, Baylor finished in third place behind Texas A&M and West Texas A&M.
Baylor now has a three-week hiatus from competition before returning to action at the Chile Pepper Festival on Oct. 5 in Fayetteville, AR.
>Baylor men's tennis opened up the fall season with three Bears in action at the Audi Napa Valley Tennis Classic at the Meadowood Napa Valley Resort in St. Helena, Calif.
Two upperclassmen in senior Constantin Frantzen and junior Sven Lah opened up their fall seasons while freshman Christopher Frantzen made his collegiate debut in Napa.
Select Bears will head back to the west coast to compete in the Oracle ITA Masters in Malibu, CA., Sept. 26-29. The singles and doubles draws will be released at a later date.
>Head baseball coach Steve Rodriguez announced the addition ofMitch Karrakerto his staff as the volunteer assistant coach on Monday afternoon.
"We are excited to bring Mitch, his wife Kelly and daughter Ella into the Baylor Family. He brings great knowledge and experience of the game as both a player and coach from the University of Oregon and will be an outstanding addition to the staff," said Rodriguez.
Karraker brings a wealth of experience from the University of Oregon, where has been since 2009, both as a player and serving in various roles within the baseball program. He spent the last four seasons coaching catchers as a member of then-head coach George Horton's staff, including spending the 2016 season as the team's pitching coach.
"I am honored to be a part of the Baylor baseball program," Karraker said. "I am grateful that Coach Rodriguez and his staff have allowed me to join this team. Baylor place has a rich history of success on and off the field. I am excited to build on the great history they have created here."
During the 2014 and 2015 seasons, Karraker served as an administrative assistant at Oregon with duties in the baseball office and on the field as well as assisting with Oregon baseball camps. Before moving into that role, he spent one season as an undergraduate assistant coach and one season as a student manager.
Karraker joined head coach George Horton on the U.S. National Team coaching staff in the summer of 2016, serving as the bullpen coach. He was also the bullpen coach for the CNT in the summer of 2012.
Let’s make it a great week!
They’re a Country Rock, Southern Rock band of the ilk like Lynyrd Skynyrd. But here’s the interesting part. Some version of this group has been around since 1968.
Yes, the RJB found that hard to believe as well. The group has released only eight albums in those 51 years. But the first wasn’t released until 1989, Pickin’ On.
That debut album yielded perhaps the group’s signature commercial song. Dumas Walker was about a restaurant – Actually known as Adolphus Ennis – in Greenville, KY. The group would frequent after shows.
Actually, there was a disagreement between the group and the record label whether to put it on there. The group won and it climbed to No. 15 in 1990.
****
After you start getting into this week’s entry and if you believe in superstitions or karma or anything of that nature, I would recommend you do the following:
>Throw salt over your shoulder.
>Don’t step on the crack if you’re walking on the sidewalk or on your driveway.
>Be careful holding a mirror.
>Don’t walk under a ladder if you’re doing any work around your house.
>Find your nearest piece of wood to knock on it.
In the three years that Matt Rhule has been at Baylor, this 2019 team is the healthiest the Bears have been.
If we want to split hairs, the three players of significance that have been out due to injuries are tight end Tyler Henderson – he’s done for the year with an ACL tear – defensive back Christian Morgan - missed SFA with turf toe but returned for UTSA – and running back Sqwirl Williams – missed the first two games with a knee issue and it’s unclear when he will be available.
Now, if you want to go deeper into the roster on the threes or whoever else and count them as significant injuries, you get the floor. But I think you get the idea.
The 2018 squad had some injuries. But 2017 was the mother of all injury plagued seasons. On Oct. 25 of that year, I did a story on what was going on at the time.
Through a little digging, I pulled it up and found it. If you don’t want to click the link, here’s what I covered.
Baylor had 18 players who had either missed time or were lost for the season with injuries. The actual total of those who missed the season was seven. At the time, were 65 total games lost.
When things became clearer at the end of the season, the total reached about 80. To be frank, I probably was a little more conservative on the time missed.
For this group, you can count Henderson at 12 (at minimum), Morgan is at one. Williams is at two for now. That total is 15. There are going to be more injuries. That’s just going to happen.
Football is a violent game. People get hurt. Why can it be so disastrous one season and so favorable the next? Well, if coaches and athletic trainers knew the answer to this, injuries would never be a factor.
When bodies get crunched, the way a knee or elbow turns could mean the difference from bouncing back to the next play or breaking or tearing something and the season abruptly ended.
Part of why 2017 was what it was could be attributed to just the players adapting to a knew way of doing business from not only the way they practiced to the way they went through the strength and conditioning program was conducted. Bodies were strengthened and matured through different methods than what was done in the previous regime.
That doesn’t make Andrew Althoff and Jeremy Scott’s approach better than what Kaz Kazadi did. It was just a difference in philosophies and what they emphasized to put players in a position to perform at their best.
However, I do think it’s fair to presume that after going two or three years in the program, bodies have adjusted. They can probably withstand the regular aches and pains longer. Injuries that caused them to miss time in 2017 or in 2018 may not have the same impact in 2019. The newbies still have a ways to go.
Now only two games have been played. And the Bears haven’t faced the most physical of teams. And it won’t happen Saturday at Rice either. Once they get into the Big 12, that’s probably going to change some.
What you can say is that this team has put itself in a position to succeed because of its health.
As anyone knows, health is the great equalizer for any team in any sport.
What may have gone unnoticed in the brutal conditions of playing at McLane against UTSA with field temperatures reaching 181 is how well this team dealt with it.
In a game like that you would expect the consequences of dehydration and cramping. But aside from Charlie Brewer getting a case of the hot foot, you didn’t see any of that. The preventative and reactive measures Baylor’s training staff had in place impressively dealt with conditions.
Remember the quote we had from sophomore safety J.T. Woods:
“They’ve definitely been doing a lot of research. I know Althoff has been putting a lot of resources together. We had something called the meat locker, an 18-wheeler with a huge freezer. That was really helpful, especially during the game. I went in there and a lot of people went in there at halftime and it cooled us off. We could put our elbows in a tub. We did that during pregame. It cools your body down. The turf was like 180 degrees or something like that. But it didn’t really feel that hot because they were taking care of us. We stayed really hydrated. We had pavilions over on the bench, which is something we really haven’t had before. They really took care of us on the sidelines. We didn’t even know it was that hot.”
Sports medicine and sports science is ever evolving. Like coaches, everyone is looking for different ways to get better.
And there is something at stake with bowl berths, competing for conference championships and whatever would go beyond that. With the $39 MILLION Baylor received in revenue distribution from the Big 12 television contracts, you can be sure some of that is devoted to giving the athletics performance staff more arrows in the quiver.
****
As I was putting Baylor’s 2019 prediction together, I commented that I thought the Big 12 was in transition because the presumed four bottom teams – West Virginia, Kansas State, Kansas and Texas Tech – were in transition.
I also suggested that the conference was top heavy between Oklahoma, Texas and maybe Iowa State.
And then we started playing the games. And then this past weekend happened.
Indeed, this was an eye-opening but welcomed performance by the conference.
It started when Kansas pulled the shocker of the college football weekend when it went to Chestnut Hill, MA and not only beat but hammered Boston College, 48-24.
Kansas State would have been the easy choice to get picked off on the road at Starkville, MS against Mississippi State. Instead, the Wildcats won, 31-24.
West Virginia probably looked the worst of all of the Big 12 teams through the first two games. Then the Mountaineers blew out North Carolina State, 44-27.
TCU licked it wounds from an uninspiring performance in the opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, went to Purdue and handed it to Jeff Brohm and company, 34-13. The rule on TCU that nobody follows is that when you’re ready to count it out, don’t.
Iowa State lost a tough one to Iowa, 18-17, because of a late turnover. Rivalry games can be difficult to navigate.
The only one that may have been exposed was Texas Tech. The Red Raiders did not look very organized.
What does all this mean for Baylor? Frankly, I don’t know.
The perception is that Oct. 5 in Manhattan, KS doesn’t look like the gimme we thought it could be. Nov. 9 in Fort Worth is going to be difficult (it always is anyway). Halloween against West Virginia at least adds a curiosity factor to it. When you heard about the Jayhawks, Nov. 30 in Lawrence, KS probably made you stop for a second and say, well…
We’re so used to living in the now when it comes to watching football. But coaches want to pace their teams to get better through the course of the season to where they are playing at a higher level in November than where they are in September.
Maybe this conference isn’t in transition after all. Maybe it’s better than advertised. And if it is, and if Baylor can still navigate it through my predicted record of 8-4, then that will make it all the more satisfying.
****
Publisher’s Note: It’s Parent’s Weekend in Tuscaloosa this coming weekend. The Mrs. And I will be there to see the Crimson Tide Friday night through Sunday evening. I’m also checking on Saban to see if he’s spending my money wisely.
Anyway, I’ll still get you set up for Baylor at Rice with the preview and Game Thread. Garrett Ross should be covering the game and have something postgame.
If there’s an opportunity, I’ll try to sneak a couple of peaks since it starts at 6:00 pm and Alabama kicks off at 11:00 am. Obviously, I’ll do as much catching up as I can.
I’ll still have the Golden Bear performances and get next week’s WWHT up as soon as I can.
Just making everyone aware.
****
Now, a look at other Baylor sports…
> No. 5 Baylor volleyball (7-0) closed out the Hampton Inn & Suites Waco North Baylor Invitational with a 3-0 sweep of Tennessee (3-4) behind a record-breaking crowd Saturday afternoon at the Ferrell Center, 25-18, 25-17, 25-16. Baylor struggled but managed to beat Houston in four games on Friday.
BU broke the all-time attendance mark for the third consecutive season on "Pack the House" Night and totaled 3,878 fans for Saturday's match. The total bested last year's record of 3,858 against LSU.
BU will host the Baylor Classic next Friday through Sunday and will face No. 18 Hawai'i and No. 21 Missouri at the Ferrell Center.
BU will face the Tigers at 6 p.m. CT Friday and then close out the tournament against the Rainbow Wahine Sunday at 2 p.m. Both matches will be live on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
>Baylor (3-2-2) soccer fell to Arkansas, 2-0, Thursday night at Betty Lou Mays Field. The match, originally scheduled for a 7 p.m. start, was moved back to 9:15 p.m. when Arkansas experienced some travel difficulty. On Sunday, Baylor and Abilene Christian played to a 1-1 draw.
> TJ Sugg finished as the runner-up in the men's 8K, while Lindsay Walton recorded a third-place finish in the women's 5K to lead Baylor Cross Country Friday morning at the Texas A&M Invitational."I'm pretty impressed with the team from top-to-bottom," associate head coach Jon Capron said. "They fought hard. We're still missing a piece or two, but it's nice to see everybody show up that's here and race as hard as they can."Sugg led the pack from the get-go en route to a time of 24:49.3 in the 8,000-meter race, just shy of the personal best he set back in 2017 at the adidas DI Pre-Nationals. Ryan Hodge was next across the finish line for the Bears in seventh place (25:11.6), followed by Connor Laktasic in eighth (personal-best 25:12.0), Matt Henderson in 29th (26:31.8) and Cal Johnston in 32nd (26:42.7). With 67 overall points, Baylor finished in third place behind Texas A&M and West Texas A&M.
Baylor now has a three-week hiatus from competition before returning to action at the Chile Pepper Festival on Oct. 5 in Fayetteville, AR.
>Baylor men's tennis opened up the fall season with three Bears in action at the Audi Napa Valley Tennis Classic at the Meadowood Napa Valley Resort in St. Helena, Calif.
Two upperclassmen in senior Constantin Frantzen and junior Sven Lah opened up their fall seasons while freshman Christopher Frantzen made his collegiate debut in Napa.
Select Bears will head back to the west coast to compete in the Oracle ITA Masters in Malibu, CA., Sept. 26-29. The singles and doubles draws will be released at a later date.
>Head baseball coach Steve Rodriguez announced the addition ofMitch Karrakerto his staff as the volunteer assistant coach on Monday afternoon.
"We are excited to bring Mitch, his wife Kelly and daughter Ella into the Baylor Family. He brings great knowledge and experience of the game as both a player and coach from the University of Oregon and will be an outstanding addition to the staff," said Rodriguez.
Karraker brings a wealth of experience from the University of Oregon, where has been since 2009, both as a player and serving in various roles within the baseball program. He spent the last four seasons coaching catchers as a member of then-head coach George Horton's staff, including spending the 2016 season as the team's pitching coach.
"I am honored to be a part of the Baylor baseball program," Karraker said. "I am grateful that Coach Rodriguez and his staff have allowed me to join this team. Baylor place has a rich history of success on and off the field. I am excited to build on the great history they have created here."
During the 2014 and 2015 seasons, Karraker served as an administrative assistant at Oregon with duties in the baseball office and on the field as well as assisting with Oregon baseball camps. Before moving into that role, he spent one season as an undergraduate assistant coach and one season as a student manager.
Karraker joined head coach George Horton on the U.S. National Team coaching staff in the summer of 2016, serving as the bullpen coach. He was also the bullpen coach for the CNT in the summer of 2012.
Let’s make it a great week!
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