Sep 12, 2015; Waco, TX, USA; Baylor Bears running back Shock Linwood (32) goes around the left side for a touchdown during a game against the Lamar Cardinals at McLane Stadium. Baylor won 66-31. Ray Carlin-USA TODAY Sports
WACO, Tx. — It’s anybody’s guess how Baylor will respond to the beginning of Big 12 play this week.
The Bears have played uneven, inconsistent football at times through three games in September. Baylor was never in serious jeopardy of losing any of its three contests so far, but then again the Bears didn’t play anyone that will likely threaten to make it into the top 25 this season.
The best indicator is that Baylor seemed to be back to its vicious, overwhelming ways in a 70-17 victory over Rice on Saturday.
“The team was where it needed to be,” Baylor coach Art Briles said about the performance against Rice. “It’s the first time I’ve felt it this year. We have to be a devastatingly dominant football team.”
But this week, Baylor faces a Texas Tech team that has shown the ability of late to match the Bears punch for punch on offense. Where Briles attempted to characterize the Rice game as a conference game last week because the Owls are an in-state rival, he changed his tone this week.
“We feel like we did what we should’ve done through our nonconference schedule,” Briles said. “Things are going to get a little more important, a little tougher as we go along.”
As difficult as it is to know where Baylor stands, it’s even more tricky to assess Texas Tech. The Red Raiders won at Arkansas two weeks ago and took No. 3-ranked TCU to the final seconds before the Horned Frogs won by catching a tipped ball for a touchdown in Lubbock.
When Briles was asked how he expects Texas Tech to react to that, he shrugged before going through a list of generic possibilities.
One barometer for the Baylor-Texas Tech game is their last meeting in late November of 2014. A struggling Red Raiders team that finished 4-8 took Baylor to the wire before the Bears stopped a late-fourth quarter two-point conversion attempt and escaped with a 48-46 victory.
Before he went on a series of rants to lobby for Baylor’s place in the College Football Playoff last season, Briles had been content for the Bears prowess to speak for itself on Saturdays. Going into Big 12 play, Briles seems to be back to letting the action speak for itself.
“We’re not running the anchor leg yet,” Briles said. “We’re still just taking the first curve.”
NOTES, QUOTES
PLAYERS TO WATCH
–WR Corey Coleman is a touchdown machine. A week after catching four TD passes against Lamar, he hauled in six balls versus Rice and scored on half of them. Coleman posted TDs of 16, 35 and 32 yards, making distinctly different plays on all three.
–LB Taylor Young returned to action against Rice after missing the Lamar game. He made his presence felt with four total tackles and a sack. Briles credited Young with giving the entire defense a lift versus the Owls.
–RB Shock Linwood has rushed for 363 yards through four games for the Bears. He spearheads the nation’s top rushing team so far this season. However, Linwood hasn’t displayed much breakaway ability as he has only one TD on 47 carries.
SERIES HISTORY: Baylor and Texas Tech are tied, 36-36-1.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “If you play, you’re trying to be the best football player in America and you’re trying to be the best team in America. I do see potentially the opportunity to have a football team that has a chance to three-peat as the Big 12 champion.” — Baylor coach Art Briles on the goal for his team’s performance.
