State of the Union: Baylor
8 comments so far
February 6, 2007 by
The last in a twelve-part series on the current state of the Big 12.
I was tempted to make this an eleven part series because what's to say about Baylor. Even when things are going well (by their standards), they seem hopeless. What Duke football is to the ACC, Baylor football is to the Big 12. The Bears recruit poorly and haven't outperformed their recruiting on the field. Much of the hope for 2007 ended when the Bears lost a home game to Army (a program that for all intents and purposes is composed entirely of walk-ons).
But there is one reason Baylor is hopeful for the future. They have a four-star junior college quarterback in their current recruiting class named John David Weed. Baylor fans are sure to be high on Weed. (I had to do it). If he can come in and play savior and carry the team a year or two, just maybe they can jump-start their recruiting and just maybe they can be competitive a few years down the road.
Can one kid turn around a program? The same question has been asked about Josh Freeman at Kansas State. Or maybe, Zac Taylor is proof positive that one can. But Baylor appears no threat in the near future. Their biggest concern (as always) will be if/when they should fire a non-performing coach for another coach that won't perform.
» Enjoy this article?
Send it to your friend or get Husker news by email!
Post a comment
Marc Gunnels Feb 06 07
Steve,
Army certainly isn't an Independent "power", but a team composed of entirely "walk-ons"? Come on, you can do better than that. Army recruits players just like any other Division 1 program. Sure, every Army football player is on full scholarship, and most 5 star high school athletes aren't interested in a career of military service following graduation, but recruiting is as big a business at West Point as it is at other programs.
Steve Feb 06 07
Marc,
Be real.
From 2003-2006 (the four classes that would make up the 2006 Army squad since there are no redshirt years at West Point), there were ten players who signed with Army who were offered a scholarship anywhere else (excluding Navy and Air Force, who are of course in the same boat). The schools? Try Furman, Eastern Michigan, William & Mary, Northern Arizona, Jackson St., W. Carolina, Tulsa, New Mexico State, Vanderbilt, Indiana, Boise State, and sadly Baylor (more then ten schools on this list because there were a couple players with more than one offer).
That means 75 of 85 possible scholarships go to players not deemed worthy of a legitimate Div-1 offer or go unfilled. I stand by my statement. Army is not a true Division 1-A caliber team and any attempt to spin it otherwise is intellectually dishonest.
Marc Feb 06 07
Steve,
OK, OK, I'll concede your point on that. It's too bad, though, that they don't use the term "student-athlete" as part of the metric for determining Division 1-A "legitimacy", don't you think? Just a few "legitimate Division 1-A programs might be exposed for what they are and how their recruiting really operates.
Steve Feb 06 07
Marc,
I'm with you there. Since the military academies are more in line with the true spirit of student-athleticism, I'd LOVE to see them drop down to Div I-AA and become big boys again (even if it's in the small pond). I find the idea of West Point kids beating up on Harvard or Yale students extremely appealing.
James Moore Feb 07 07
Yes, the idea of tomorrow's officers beating up Harvard and yale students is quite appealing indeed!!!
Marc Gunnels Feb 08 07
Steve,
Just as an aside, I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for Cornhusker football. At Ft. Riley, my First Sergeant and a couple of my junior officers were former Big Red players. Of course, they loved reminding me of the last time Nebraska played Army in 1972. Johnny Rodgers and Rich Glover subjected us to a 77-7 thrashing that year. Fortunately, the very next week, Army marched down to Kyle Field and handed Texas A&M a 24-14 beating. We almost repeated that feat earlier this year in the Alamo Dome when we ran out of time inside A&M's 4 yd. line. By the way, on their final offensive drive, A&M's 275 lb. "tailback", Jorvorskie Lane, was "planted" in the ground for a 4 yd. loss on 4th an 1 from Army's 30 yd. line. when the Aggies thumbed their nose at Army's "illegitimate" defense!
Steve Feb 08 07
Marc,
I certainly have respect for the Army (how can you not?). My grandfather was a career officer and served in WWII and Korea. My other grandfather was also a WWII vet. My dad served in Vietnam and my sister in Iraq (and she's still got some years to go).
In terms of Army football, I imagine that the PT you get as a soldier also wouldn't count against practice time. That was probably a huge advantage back in the day. But now, the demands of school like West Point and the prospects of service after graduation put the academies at a huge disadvantage. Playing A&M close was surely gratifying to Army, but then the Aggies had a habit of playing up or down to the competition (they had 8 games decided by a TD or less).
Marc Gunnels Feb 08 07
Steve,
Do you know what ever happened to my old Army teammate (Bret Moritz) who transferred to Nebraska and was later drafted by the Tampa Bay Bucs?