By Kevin Lonnquist
Publisher
As promised, the RJB keeps your football themes going. We take you back to the early days of ESPN’s presentation of Saturday night College Football when the former voice of UT Ron Franklin – an Ole Miss alum - became the primetime TV voice of the Saturday showcase game.
Saturday night games on TV weren’t a rarity, of course. However, they weren’t a routine thing either. When it became a big deal to play on ESPN on Saturday night, it was pretty cool.
Franklin was teamed with former Pitt and Kansas head coach Mike Gottfried. So the RJB takes you back to that theme that let you know the game was moments away from starting.
This is definitely worth 1:06 to watch. The RJB picked one from days gone by in a Holiday Bowl matchup between Kansas State and Washington. Familiar faces return to the screen.
*****
Quick reminder that I shove off for Tuscaloosa with the Crimson Tide on Wednesday. Things will be a little spotty. That’s 600+ miles. Should be OK for Thursday and Friday. The drive back on Saturday will look a lot like Wednesday. Even she's stunned this is her last year.
Again, I know Baylor has that last camp on Saturday and the commit/valued target get together after the camp. I will get you ready for that day and then have to play catch up either late late Saturday or Sunday.
*****
Of course, an important note that we shared earlier on Sunday that QB commit Austin Novosad said that he will attend Baylor’s commit function Saturday. It would have been a red flag had he not come.
Again, he plans on flying up to South Bend, IN to check out Notre Dame on Tuesday. If he visits Texas A&M, then he visits.
I still believe everything favors Baylor to keep him in the fold. But it’s a day-by-day scenario.
*****
The preseason AP and Coaches polls won’t be released until sometime in August. That’s probably going to be in the middle of the month like they always are.
As we know, Baylor will be in those rankings somewhere. To take advantage of the summer doldrums, football publications produce their Top 25s. You know the ones that people look at and then never pay attention to once the two big ones are released? That’s your friends at Athlons and College Football News.
In the interest of saving you time, your publisher hunted these down and found out where Baylor was ranked.
>College Football News: No. 26
>Phil Steele: No. 14
>ESPN Football Power Index: No. 22
>Athlon: No. 11
>The Sporting News: No. 10
>The Athletic: No. 10
Mix where these publications pick the Big 12 race and either forecast the Bears as the favorite or somewhere in the Top 3.
Indeed, something is different about Baylor football 2022. The expectations have ratcheted up exponentially. Baylor football is no longer thought of the little program that could and maybe pull off the great season here and there.
With the respect to those teams that made the Cotton Bowl in 1974 and 1980 and the seasons that followed and the 2014 team – more on that in a moment – this is arguably the one season in the history of Baylor football to where so much is demanded.
When you come off a historic season like the 2021 team did – school-record 12 wins, Big 12 title, Sugar Bowl title, No. 5 national ranking – you have the attention of the college football world.
For the sake of comparison, I checked in on what was expected prior to the other two teams that won the Big 12, 2013 and 2014. In 2013, the Bears were predicted fifth in the Big 12. Following their Big 12 title that season, they were picked second behind Oklahoma in the poll.
Now, I’ll go back to my comment that this is the season where the expectations are higher than any other.
When that 2014 season began, the Bears were ranked No. 10 in the AP preseason poll. They delivered repeating as Big 12 champions, winning at Oklahoma for the first time in program history but then unbelievably gave away the Cotton Bowl to Michigan State. That team was more about the offense and praying that the defense would be credible. It finished No. 7.
But my argument about this 2022 team facing more scrutiny is simply because of what it accomplished in 2021. It finished after it won the Big 12. It locked down a really good Ole Miss offensive football team in the Sugar Bowl.
It has the makings of one of the best defenses in the country. You know what they say about defenses and championships. When you are predicted to win the conference for the first time in the history that the conference has released these polls, that’s more revealing.
A couple of weeks ago prior to the opening of the Big 12 media days I wrote in this space part of what Dave Aranda and the players would be facing that week is how they deal with this attention.
In reviewing how Dillon Doyle, Bryson Jackson and Ben Sims handled it, they kept to script with humility and confidence. This is the part of the season where the lip service is in high demand and the actions won’t be seen until Sept. 10 when the Bears play at BYU on a Saturday night in Provo (If you think I’m counting Sept. 3 vs. Albany, you’re out of your mind).
Expectations are followed by pressure. It’s a matter of putting everything in its place to not let the expectations become a distraction.
While the talent and execution are paramount to playing at a high level, the key to the offseason is how the tone set in the locker room is established. This is where the leadership for this team needs to evolve.
Doyle, Sims, left tackle Connor Galvin are the first three you think of being leaders. I think safety Christian Morgan and defensive lineman TJ Franklin also need to be in that conversation.
What I do think has to happen is that quarterback Blake Shapen must surge to the front to be the alpha of this team. Leadership and quarterbacks must be a marriage. That’s no different from when I called guard Jared Butler the alpha of the Baylor basketball team that wound up winning the 2021 national title.
If the tone is set to where the guys in the locker room have each other’s back, then wading through some really bad times in a game or bouncing back from a loss is going to let everybody who follows Baylor know exactly how strong this team is.
It’s easy to lead from the back. Backs can get pretty tender with the number of pats on them for telling them how good they are.
Leading when it’s on the line is something completely different. I want to see a team that can match what we saw in 2021 when it took over games in the second half and made opponents struggle and ask why in the fourth quarter.
Not that you want this to happen, but let’s suppose Baylor is trailing in Provo or in Norman by 10 points at the start of the fourth quarter. The comeback is going to come down to mental toughness and execution in all three phases.
A team either is going to accept these circumstances, not point fingers and rely on each other to find a way to win or it’s not. Those are the only two options.
We saw this against Oklahoma State when they were six inches away from losing the Big 12 championship. And because one defensive back didn’t give up on himself, it remained six inches.
However, just because it evolved in 2021 doesn’t automatically mean it will repeat this fall. Every team is different. Circumstances will change, especially since Baylor has a demanding road schedule.
This team has the capability of repeating as Big 12 champions. How it responds to the unknown and uncertainty could determine its fate.
Let’s make it a great week!
Publisher
As promised, the RJB keeps your football themes going. We take you back to the early days of ESPN’s presentation of Saturday night College Football when the former voice of UT Ron Franklin – an Ole Miss alum - became the primetime TV voice of the Saturday showcase game.
Saturday night games on TV weren’t a rarity, of course. However, they weren’t a routine thing either. When it became a big deal to play on ESPN on Saturday night, it was pretty cool.
Franklin was teamed with former Pitt and Kansas head coach Mike Gottfried. So the RJB takes you back to that theme that let you know the game was moments away from starting.
This is definitely worth 1:06 to watch. The RJB picked one from days gone by in a Holiday Bowl matchup between Kansas State and Washington. Familiar faces return to the screen.
*****
Quick reminder that I shove off for Tuscaloosa with the Crimson Tide on Wednesday. Things will be a little spotty. That’s 600+ miles. Should be OK for Thursday and Friday. The drive back on Saturday will look a lot like Wednesday. Even she's stunned this is her last year.
Again, I know Baylor has that last camp on Saturday and the commit/valued target get together after the camp. I will get you ready for that day and then have to play catch up either late late Saturday or Sunday.
*****
Of course, an important note that we shared earlier on Sunday that QB commit Austin Novosad said that he will attend Baylor’s commit function Saturday. It would have been a red flag had he not come.
Again, he plans on flying up to South Bend, IN to check out Notre Dame on Tuesday. If he visits Texas A&M, then he visits.
I still believe everything favors Baylor to keep him in the fold. But it’s a day-by-day scenario.
*****
The preseason AP and Coaches polls won’t be released until sometime in August. That’s probably going to be in the middle of the month like they always are.
As we know, Baylor will be in those rankings somewhere. To take advantage of the summer doldrums, football publications produce their Top 25s. You know the ones that people look at and then never pay attention to once the two big ones are released? That’s your friends at Athlons and College Football News.
In the interest of saving you time, your publisher hunted these down and found out where Baylor was ranked.
>College Football News: No. 26
>Phil Steele: No. 14
>ESPN Football Power Index: No. 22
>Athlon: No. 11
>The Sporting News: No. 10
>The Athletic: No. 10
Mix where these publications pick the Big 12 race and either forecast the Bears as the favorite or somewhere in the Top 3.
Indeed, something is different about Baylor football 2022. The expectations have ratcheted up exponentially. Baylor football is no longer thought of the little program that could and maybe pull off the great season here and there.
With the respect to those teams that made the Cotton Bowl in 1974 and 1980 and the seasons that followed and the 2014 team – more on that in a moment – this is arguably the one season in the history of Baylor football to where so much is demanded.
When you come off a historic season like the 2021 team did – school-record 12 wins, Big 12 title, Sugar Bowl title, No. 5 national ranking – you have the attention of the college football world.
For the sake of comparison, I checked in on what was expected prior to the other two teams that won the Big 12, 2013 and 2014. In 2013, the Bears were predicted fifth in the Big 12. Following their Big 12 title that season, they were picked second behind Oklahoma in the poll.
Now, I’ll go back to my comment that this is the season where the expectations are higher than any other.
When that 2014 season began, the Bears were ranked No. 10 in the AP preseason poll. They delivered repeating as Big 12 champions, winning at Oklahoma for the first time in program history but then unbelievably gave away the Cotton Bowl to Michigan State. That team was more about the offense and praying that the defense would be credible. It finished No. 7.
But my argument about this 2022 team facing more scrutiny is simply because of what it accomplished in 2021. It finished after it won the Big 12. It locked down a really good Ole Miss offensive football team in the Sugar Bowl.
It has the makings of one of the best defenses in the country. You know what they say about defenses and championships. When you are predicted to win the conference for the first time in the history that the conference has released these polls, that’s more revealing.
A couple of weeks ago prior to the opening of the Big 12 media days I wrote in this space part of what Dave Aranda and the players would be facing that week is how they deal with this attention.
In reviewing how Dillon Doyle, Bryson Jackson and Ben Sims handled it, they kept to script with humility and confidence. This is the part of the season where the lip service is in high demand and the actions won’t be seen until Sept. 10 when the Bears play at BYU on a Saturday night in Provo (If you think I’m counting Sept. 3 vs. Albany, you’re out of your mind).
Expectations are followed by pressure. It’s a matter of putting everything in its place to not let the expectations become a distraction.
While the talent and execution are paramount to playing at a high level, the key to the offseason is how the tone set in the locker room is established. This is where the leadership for this team needs to evolve.
Doyle, Sims, left tackle Connor Galvin are the first three you think of being leaders. I think safety Christian Morgan and defensive lineman TJ Franklin also need to be in that conversation.
What I do think has to happen is that quarterback Blake Shapen must surge to the front to be the alpha of this team. Leadership and quarterbacks must be a marriage. That’s no different from when I called guard Jared Butler the alpha of the Baylor basketball team that wound up winning the 2021 national title.
If the tone is set to where the guys in the locker room have each other’s back, then wading through some really bad times in a game or bouncing back from a loss is going to let everybody who follows Baylor know exactly how strong this team is.
It’s easy to lead from the back. Backs can get pretty tender with the number of pats on them for telling them how good they are.
Leading when it’s on the line is something completely different. I want to see a team that can match what we saw in 2021 when it took over games in the second half and made opponents struggle and ask why in the fourth quarter.
Not that you want this to happen, but let’s suppose Baylor is trailing in Provo or in Norman by 10 points at the start of the fourth quarter. The comeback is going to come down to mental toughness and execution in all three phases.
A team either is going to accept these circumstances, not point fingers and rely on each other to find a way to win or it’s not. Those are the only two options.
We saw this against Oklahoma State when they were six inches away from losing the Big 12 championship. And because one defensive back didn’t give up on himself, it remained six inches.
However, just because it evolved in 2021 doesn’t automatically mean it will repeat this fall. Every team is different. Circumstances will change, especially since Baylor has a demanding road schedule.
This team has the capability of repeating as Big 12 champions. How it responds to the unknown and uncertainty could determine its fate.
Let’s make it a great week!
