With OU on Horizon, Baylor Bears Slated to Begin Brutal Big 12 Schedule

Conference play begins this weekend for many teams around the nation, including both the Baylor Bears (3-1) and the Oklahoma Sooners (2-2).

On Saturday, Oct. 10, the Bears kickoff Big 12 action by heading north to Norman, Okla. to face the Sooners in a game slated to be televised locally on ABC.

“The good thing is that a lot of our guys and coaches have been there [to Norman],” Baylor Head Coach Art Briles said. “On our coaching staff, everyone has been in there at least one time with the exception of one or two guys and the same goes for our team. The thing about taking a team in there is if you’re prepared mentally and if your focus is right and your vision is correct, it doesn’t matter what’s going on outside, as long as we can focus on what’s going on inside. Our job is to go win for 100 yards for 60 minutes regardless of what’s happening all around us. So if we’re focusing on what we’re doing, it shouldn’t be a factor.”

In addition to beginning Big 12 play on the road, the Bears also face a question mark in terms of their starting quarterback — with senior Blake Szymanski still listed as probable and freshman Nick Florence waiting in the wings as Baylor’s new second-string QB.

“I think I will know more [about Szymanski] at 7 p.m. tonight than I know right now,” Briles said on Tuesday. “We’ll see if he’s able to throw and go through practice today. He did not throw Sunday and I think he threw a little bit yesterday on his own with the trainers, but we’ll have to see how it goes today.”

And Coach Briles’ overall impression of Florence’s performance on Saturday against Kent State at Floyd Casey Stadium?

“I was impressed with his composure and intelligence,” Briles said. “He really stayed within himself and didn’t try to do too much. He protected the football and gave our team an opportunity to win which is what you should do at every position, but it glares a little more at that position. When you’re prepared, you have the opportunity to have success and he prepared very well.”

Regardless of who takes the snaps to start the game (questionable for both the Bears and the Sooners), Baylor aims to come out ready to fight when they face Oklahoma on Saturday.

“We’re going to have to play well regardless of who the quarterback is,” Briles said. “Of course, Sam Bradford is a Heisman Trophy winner, so his resume is pretty full. Landry Jones has done a really good job since he’s been in there. Both guys are good football players and are surrounded by good people so whoever is on the field, we’ve got to play up and make plays so it really doesn’t change our preparation.”

For Baylor, the road ahead appears brutal — the Bears currently have the ninth toughest schedule in the nation — beginning with a televised showdown this Saturday against the Sooners.

“Every week we have to step it up,” Florence said. “We can’t be like we were last week. We have to get better every week no matter who the opponent is. So that is the mentality; we are going to step it up each week no matter who the opponent is.”

And with a more experienced team heading north than the one from two years ago, Szymanski and company are looking for a chance to shine in the spotlight.

“The depth at the receiver is night-and-day compared to what I had two years ago,” Szymanski said. “The talent level is better. That goes all the way across the board to the offensive line that is doing a much better job. Then obviously the offensive line is going to help us a lot. If we can run the football, it is going to make us that much better.”

Defense will also be a key to the game, and Baylor senior defensive lineman Jason Lamb believes the Bears secondary is ready to excel.

“We have to step up and have every player on the field do their assignment and not try to make the big play, but just try to do what you are supposed to do,” Lamb said. “If everybody does their job, I think our defense will be pretty solid.”

Who knows? Maybe these Bears can make a real statement on Saturday in Norman. One way or the other, it’s time for conference play to kickoff.

“It will be a lot different,” Florence said of the possibility of starting this weekend. “It will be fun. It will be a great atmosphere — a Saturday afternoon Big 12 football game. It will be a blast to be on TV. It is just another opponent and that is the way we are going to approach it.”


Denton Ramsey may be reached via email at [e-mail]

[PHOTO CREDIT: David Fuller/LSCSN.com]