Washington vs. Baylor: Why Robert Griffin Won't Be Able To Resist a 2012 Return

Robert Griffin is one of the most exciting players in the country and had one of the best seasons any college football has had in recent memory.

The quarterback for Baylor is one of the few players most would pay just to watch play. He never backs down from a challenge, always seems to keep his team in games no matter what, puts up off-the-wall numbers and always tops his last performance with something even more ridiculous.

Robert Griffin won the Heisman Trophy this season and is considered one of the top quarterback prospects in the country. He completed 72 percent of his passes, for nearly 4,000 yards and threw for 36 touchdowns. He also ran for an extra 644 yards and nine touchdowns. He is a complete quarterback.

He should probably enter the draft because his stock is about as high as it's going to get. He'll be guaranteed a first-round pick and with Matt Barkley returning to school, he'll now go even higher than most people projected. And of course there's always risk of an injury next year that can completely destroy your draft stock and have you proving yourself all over again.

But leaving Baylor early to head into the NFL is going to be an extremely difficult decision for Griffin. And not only because it's a tough choice for everybody. It's a big step to put school on hold to become a professional that will be playing grown men. It's because Griffin may still have more work to do at Baylor and had way too much fun this season to leave.

For the first time in my lifetime (and probably yours as well), the Baylor Bears are relevant. Sure, they had a few seasons of where they won eight or seven games, but the majority of their history is filled with losing seasons. This team has struggled to make bowl games and was always at the bottom of the Big 12 and South West Conference.

Griffin has put this team on the map, going 9-3 this season and locking up consecutive bowl games for the first time in Baylor history since 1985-1986. Baylor is no longer just a basketball school, as they now have a Heisman Trophy winner and have shown that they have solid players there as well.

Looking at the Big 12 conference, many players are leaving. Justin Blackmon, Brandon Weeden, Ryan Broyles, possibly Landry Jones and the list goes on and on. You even have Missouri and Texas A&M leaving for the SEC next season.

Who's to say that if Griffin returns for his senior season, the Bears can't improve on this magical season? Possibly a Big 12 title and even a BCS bowl game for the first time in Baylor history. Things this university could have never imagined before he arrived.

He'd also have a great chance to win two Heisman trophies and become only the second player ever to do so. Baylor would continue to get a ton of television time, which will only help recruiting for the next few years as well.  

Robert Griffin may have a bright future at the next level, but he still has work to do at Baylor. He went from improving his draft stock so high this season, that next year could be all about building this team to a respectable program in the Big 12 forever.

Griffin wants to prove what Baylor did this season was no fluke.

Are you really going to bet against the guy who wears Superman socks?

Randy Chambers is a B/R Featured Columnist that covers College Football and the NFL. You can contact him on Twitter @Randy_Chambers or [e-mail]