Game 8: Baylor 41, Oklahoma 12

Before the game. Glen is confident OU is #1.

Wow!  In my 30-something years of going to Baylor football games, I don't think I've ever seen a game as highly anticipated, a crowd as hyped, and a win as important as Baylor's 41-12 win over Oklahoma last night!  The blackout was as black as could be, and the Sooner fans in attendance went home shocked, disappointed, and perhaps a little more respectful of the emergent Baylor Bears.

We weren't able to leave Fort Worth until after school, so we didn't get there in time for much pregame activity.  But when we did arrive at our seats, I notice that more than half an hour before kickoff the student section was packed!  The tarpless endzone was filling up fast, and the atmosphere was electric!

Singing That Good Ol' Baylor Line. 

Rarely, if ever, have I seen the east stands this full.  The black looked pretty cool.  Notice the yellow Baylor line.  After Baylor's first TD, they took off their yellow jerseys, waved them like a rally towel, and stayed black the rest of the night.  Nice touch.

Is my nephew really old enough to have a girlfriend?  'Fraid so.

Just a random play, watching Bell try to find a man open, which he didn't very often.  He was 15/35 with 2 interceptions.  Lots of pressure all night.

Nobody open.  Tries to run. Doesn't get far. The story of Bell's night.

The tarpless south end zone!  Full of people in black shirts!  Stunning!

Not many people left early from this one!

It's a beautiful thing.  Another win.  A school-record win streak.  The first time ever to 8-0.
Pinch me, I must be dreaming!

Still friends after the game.  And Glen still thinks OU is number one.

Game 7: Baylor 59, Kansas 14

Back to Kansas, for the second time in three weeks!  Last time Baylor played in Lawrence, RG3 had to lead the Bears in an OT win after being down by 21 in the fourth quarter.  For this game, I was hoping it would be a high-scoring romp for Baylor, against a Kansas team that hasn't won a Big 12 game in years.

Zippy didn't want to go back to Kansas this time, and I had 4 tickets, so my dad and my nephew Drew came along.  We left Saturday morning for the now-familiar drive to Kansas.

We got to Lawrence in time to attend the Baylor "tailgate" party.  Not really at a tailgate, but rather a catered affair on the roof of a hotel a couple blocks from the stadium.  Here's the view:

It's always fun to run into Baylor friends at these events.  Here's Dale Connally, one of my favorite Baylor professors.  He was director of Baylor Camp when I was there as a camper and a counselor, but he still seems to like me.  I know, I can't believe it either. 

It's always fun to see the game day traditions of the other schools.  The band marched through KU's version of Touchdown Alley, then sang under the stands, I guess their school song.  (By the way, it's "The University of Kansas,"but it's KU.  Why?)  Like K-State, the KU stadium is right on campus.  Even though the new Baylor stadium is across the river, rather than in the heart of campus, it will be nice being walking distance from campus.

We had really good seats for the game.  I waited too late to order tickets through Baylor, so I got on Stubhub and found some on row 12 around midfield.  We enjoyed a great view.  Of course, there were lots of empty seats.  Once Baylor got up 28-0 early in the second quarter, people starting leaving.  After halftime, it started to seem like Baylor fans were in the majority.  Baylor fans know how it feels.  We've been on the losing end of these games plenty of times.

The first kickoff.

Great view of the action.  It was fun, too, watching the Baylor players having fun on the sidelines.

Drew and Elliot wanted to get even closer, moving down to the second row.

A modestly respectable crowd early in the game.

Plenty of empty seats in the third quarter.

Well, they kept us under 70.  My prediction was 63-17.  I almost got the spread right!  I never get tired of seeing the scoreboard with Baylor on top.  We're 7-0; here's hoping for 6 more wins!  Baylor had an unusually slow start tonight, but got rolling after a couple of series.  KU ran the ball a lot.  I suspect future opponents will use that strategy as well.  Our powerful offense can't score if they're not on the field.

It's been fun to be on top.  Now we're ranked 5 in the AP and coaches poll and 6 in the BCS rankings.  We will need to win convincingly in the next 5 games.  We have already beaten 6, 8, 9, and 10 in the current Big 12 standings.  Obviously, these last 5 conference games promise to be tougher than the first 4.  If we can take care of business in the Big 12, and get some help with upsets above us in the national rankings, who knows where Baylor will end up.  Dare we dream of moving up a couple of spots?  Ending the season in the top 2?

No matter where we end up, it's been a fun ride so far.  Elliot and could not have chosen a better season to go to Every Baylor Game!!

Sic 'em!

Game 6: Baylor 71, Iowa State 7

Another game at Floyd Casey Stadium, another record-setting blowout!  Baylor fans, we are getting spoiled--and loving it!  Sure, the pollsters put us at 5 or 6, and the computers don't love us, putting us at 8 in the first BCS rankings, but Baylor fans know this is a championship quality team.  There is no team in the country that Baylor couldn't beat.  Every week, more people are coming to realize that.

This was a great night for Baylor football!  The crowd was reported to be the largest ever at which the opponent was not Texas, Texas A&M, or Arkansas.  Given the tiny group of ISU fans present, that tells me this was the largest attendance of Baylor fans ever!  Pretty cool.  It was also reported that students were turned away at the gate--no more student tickets!  Way to go Baylor students!  Love the school spirit!

I loved the recognitions tonight, too.  The 1963 football team was recognized.  They were one of the best ever, finishing at 8-3, and beating LSU in the Bluebonnet Bowl.  Here is a picture of some Baylor greats together.  Legendary Baylor coach Grant Teaff; Don Trull, QB of that 1963 team; and Ian McCaw, Baylor's AD who took over a struggling athletic department in 2003 and under whose leadership Baylor has enjoyed unprecedented success.  Trull is being recognized here for his recent induction to the College Football Hall of Fame.

It was Homecoming, which, of course, accounts for the crowd.  For Homecoming and as a part of the last season at Floyd Casey, there was a card section!  My first year in Chamber was, as I recall, the last year of the card section in the student seating area.  Baylor students from that era will remember looking through the hole reading "This is Bear Country"on the press box across the field.

Here the fans in the south end zone are reading the same, only on the north end zone tarp.  From this perspective it's not too easy to read, but I think these say "Homecoming 2013"and "The Case 1950-2013."  I remember what a logistical challenge it was to get the card out and to get all the fans to cooperate and make this happen.  Kudos to whoever put this together, and the fans who made it work!

So I guess I'm not up on my pop culture.  My sister-in-law was shocked that I didn't know who this singer was.  I was supposed to have been thrilled to hear a live performance from the one, the only, Lorena's own Holly Tucker!!!  Apparently she had a successful run on one of those TV singing competitions.  I would say I can't stand those shows, but to say that I would have to have actually watched on.  So I'll just say I can't stand the promo spots for those shows and leave it at that.  In any case, congratulations Holly, good luck in your music career, and thanks for coming out to support the Bears!

Oh, but what about the game?  Ah, the game.  What a game it was!  Baylor punted on their first drive; that was discouraging.  But then they dominated from start to finish.  This was the best defensive performance Baylor has had all year.  No defensive scores, but 2 interceptions, 5 sacks, a forced fumble, and 174 (!!!) total yards allowed kept this game all in the hands of Baylor.  The offense had plenty of ammo, racking up over 700 yards.  It was a shut out until ISU scored a TD with under a minute left in the game.  But the game didn't end on a down note; Corey Coleman returned the ensuing kickoff 97 yards for a touchdown!

This was total dominance by Baylor over a team that lost to Texas Tech by 7 last week, and to Texas by 1 the week before (and if you saw that game, you know ISU really won . . . .).  In fact, although ISU had 4 losses coming in, the largest margin had been by 8.  This 64 point margin was the largest margin of victory ever for Baylor against a conference foe, SWC or Big 12.

This team just keeps on getting better.  I know, like many Baylor fans, I'm feeling greedy, but I would love to see the Bears score 70 on the road next week in Kansas!  And here is the all important scoreboard:

Sic 'em!

Game 2: Baylor 70, Buffalo 13

Another Baylor game, and another week of broken records!  It was a hot one in Waco, although not as hot as I anticipated, but the action on the field was really hot!  Baylor broke the record set last week for the most points scored at Floyd Casey Stadium (and in what Baylor calls the "modern era"), and broke the school record for offense, 781 yards (!!!).  Bryce Hager's fumble return for a TD was the second longest in school history.  And Lache Seastrunk ran for over a hundred yards for the 6th game in a row, the longest streak in the nation right now.

The Baylor Line was a little smaller this week.
Even college freshmen might stay home on a hot game day.

 The first team offense lit up the scoreboard, scoring 28 points in each of the first 2 quarters.  I had predicted a score of 49-13, and when Baylor scored so quickly, I realized I aimed too low.  At one point the score was 42-13, and Buffalo looked like it was about to score, tainting my prediction.  But then the tough Baylor defense forced a fumble, which Hager grabbed and took 91 yards down the filed for a TD.  So my prediction was met--with 5 minutes left in the first half!  After halftime, it took about 60 seconds for Baylor to score another TD.  The first team offense came out, and, like last week, a bunch of down-the-roster players got game time.  I love the depth of this team!

There weren't many Buffalo fans to begin with.  But they didn't last long.
I think this was toward the end of the 3rd quarter.

 The Mastin clan was not quite as well represented this week.  Zippy elected to stay home this week, not wanting to sit in the heat.  From Mark's family, only Mark and Drew came.  And of course, Mom and Dad were there.  Elliot and I rode to the game with Mom and Dad, and with several minutes left in the game, Mom asked if my desire to go to every Baylor game meant staying for every minute.  She sweetly stuck around so we could see the very end. . . . I figure if you're coming to a game, you might as well stay for the whole thing!

Any time Baylor's on the winning side of this scoreboard is a good day!

The game was not as well-attended as last week's, which was to be expected for a day game with temperatures just under 100 degrees at kickoff.  But it was still a decent crowd, announced at 39,126.  I have a feeling with the Bears winning, the crowds will only get bigger.  Good luck getting a ticket to the Oklahoma and Texas games, if you haven't already!  Now two more weeks until the next blowout.  Sic 'em!

I love this mosaic in the Floyd Casey Stadium lobby.

The west side of the stadium, with Teaff, Singletary, Briles and Griffin, Baylor greats all.

Game 1: Baylor 69, Wofford 3

At long last, college football season has begun!  And for Baylor fans, it began in record-breaking fashion.  I don't know if this was the hottest start to a Baylor game ever, but the heat was a factor for sure, with triple digits at game time.  The heat didn't keep many away though.  The crowd of 44,989 was the second largest home opener ever at Floyd Casey Stadium, behind only a meeting with Oklahoma in 1973.

Other records broken: Heisman trophy candidate Lache Seastrunk ran for 111 yards on only 11 carries, his Baylor-record-breaking 5th consecutive 100 yard game.  Aaron Jones, who already holds the Baylor career scoring record, kicked his 46th career field goal, another Baylor record.  The Bears just kept on scoring: Baylor's 69 points is the 4th highest score in Baylor history, the highest ever at FCS.

Our day began at home, watching "RGIII: The Will to Win," which follows the Baylor legend from injury through recovery.  Best wishes to the Baylor legend as the NFL season begins!  Then Elliot, Zippy, a couple of their buddies and I hit the road for Waco.  We stopped by campus to allow the Baylor Bookstore to part us with some money.  The bookstore was quite crowded, a good sign that the game would be well-attended.

Drew, Evan, Elliot, David, Zippy, and Jordan, working up a sweat by sitting in the shade.

In spite of our longer-than expected stop on campus, we got to Touchdown Alley in time to enjoy a Fuddrucker's burger, courtesy of the Baylor Alumni Network.  Bellies full, we headed to our seats.  All of Mark's family, including his mother-in-law came out for this one, so we filled the 8 Mastin seats, plus the row behind us (knowing the Meyers weren't coming).  Thankfully the seats were already in the shade, making us thankful once again that our tickets aren't on the east side of the stadium.

Ken Starr, loving college life!

The stadium was filling up, the band played the fight song and spelled out BAYLOR as they always do, then it was time for the Baylor Line to run the field.  I don't know if Baylor is the only school where students run the field to form a path by which the players enter, but I haven't seen it elsewhere.  Surely we're the only one at which the university president runs out with the freshmen, leading the charge!  I have been very impressed with the enthusiasm Ken Starr shows for students and life at Baylor.

The Baylor Line seemed larger than ever, as the field filled with their gold jerseys.  Soon the team came running through the tunnel in their new green uniforms (I guess metallic gold helmets are in reserve for a future game).  The prayer by Nick Florence, the coin toss, and the 2013 Baylor football season began!

Baylor got the ball first, and wasted no time setting the tone for the day.  Within a matter of moments, Baylor was on the board with a 7-0 lead.  By the time the first quarter ended, Baylor was up 28-0, including 2 rushing TDs, a passing TD and a blocked Wofford pass that Chris McAllister ran 25 yards for a touchdown.  About that time Wofford was probably wishing for a lightning storm to end the game early.

Baylor continued to dominate the whole night, never allowed a TD, and only had to punt once.  The competition is only going to get tougher, but there is plenty of reason for Baylor fans to be encouraged by the Bears' performance.  Baylor's win was not unexpected, but the final score of 69-3 was quite a bit more lopsided than I would have predicted.  All in all, it was just about a perfect night: watching a Baylor win with my boys, my parents, and my brother and his family at Floyd Casey.  Next week: Buffalo!  See you there!

Baylor's first play of 2013: the predictable, reliable bubble screen.

Baylor's first points of 2013: Glasco Martin rushing TD.

The 2013 NIT champions, with their Maui Invitational surf board.

My favorite people with whom to watch a Baylor game!

All smiles after Baylor's first win of 2013.

I love the fact that the field became a free-for-all playground after the game!
And I love the fact that the scoreboard shows Baylor on top.  More to come!

Tickets!!

The 2013 Baylor football season kicks off two weeks from Saturday, and today it feels even closer.  Why?  Season tickets came in the mail!  This is going to be a great final season at Floyd Casey Stadium--I can feel it!

I love this cover, with Lache Seastrunk busting out with the metallic gold helmet.  I can't wait to see him busting out for some big yards!  Heisman!

Here are the Baylor season tickets, along with Kansas and Kansas State tickets.  OSU, Texas Tech, and TCU to come.  I don't mind that SMU backed out of the game in Dallas--seven games at Floyd Casey this year is OK by me!

See you at the Case!

The Baylor Line, 1987

One of the great Baylor game day traditions is the Baylor Line, Baylor's freshman spirit group, formed in 1970.  Before each game, they gather outside the south end zone, run onto the field in their matching yellow jerseys, and create a human tunnel for the football team to run through.  Although it has looked a little different through the years, this was one tradition in which I always looked forward to participating.

My freshman year, 1987, I drank it in!  I was there every game, back when we had the card section, and when the Line was all men.  If we had a date to the game, they would have to wait in the seats until we completed our manly duty to run like a fool across the football field.  Women were admitted to the Line in 1993, shortly after I graduated.  From my perspective on the alumni side of Floyd Casey Stadium, it appears that they have honorably upheld and continued this great Baylor tradition.

Here am I with some of the gang from Penland at our first game as Baylor Line members.  Baylor started this season 5-1, but hit a rough spot in the last five games, going 1-4.  Still, it was a winning season.  I wish I could remember everyone's names.  That's Glen Greiner on the bottom left, Allison next to me, Phil at the top . . . beyond that, I'm drawing a blank. Sorry.

(By the way, remember Flash?  In the age of Instragram and camera phones, Flash is somewhat obsolete.  The Flash photographer came to all the events, snapping shots like this, then we would make a pilgrimage to he Flash store to browse through hundreds of pictures looking for familiar faces.  Quite a difference from today.)

The Baylor -Texas Rivalry

Ask Baylor fans who Baylor's biggest rivals are, and you'll get several answers.  Some will say the "Battle of the Brazos" with Texas A&M, which is legitimate for many historical reasons.  But for fans born after the middle of the 20th century, this doesn't seem like much of a rivalry; since 1986, Baylor has 2 wins and 1 tie, opposed to A&M's 23 wins.  Ouch.  Plus, now that A&M's in the SEC, they won't be playing on a regular basis, if at all.

The TCU rivalry may be the best case for a real rivalry, as the all time record has TCU edging Baylor 51-50-7.  In the last days of the Southwest Conference, Baylor dominated this rivalry, but since they started playing again after a 10 year lapse, TCU has dominated, 4-1.  Before the SWC broke up, this was among the top five most played match ups in college football.  I'm happy that we are in the same conference again, especially since I live in Fort Worth.

Baylor v TCU, 1935. From the Texas Collection.

TCU and A&M notwithstanding, in my family growing up, the rivalry that mattered was the annual meeting of Texas and Baylor.  My parents, both Baylor grads, indoctrinated us in a deep love for all things Baylor (well, there was my brief, regrettable foray into Aggie-hood).  But Uncle David, Mom's brother, was a proud UT grad and football season ticket holder.  So each year, our families would get together for the game.

Yeah, I know, Texas owns this series, too.  All time record: 73-24-5.  But Baylor fans remember that in 1974, after not having beaten the Longhorns since 1956, Baylor won in the "Miracle on the Brazos" and claimed their first conference title in 50 years.  There was some parity then for a few years, followed by 12 consecutive Baylor losses until RG3 led the Bears to win twice in a row.  Even during these times of UT dominance, we still had fun with my always gracious Uncle David and his family.

Baylor fans never thought they'd see this--the Miracle on the Brazos!

Oh, by the way, Uncle David's son Bruce, after finishing his undergrad at UT, came to Baylor for his MBA.  His sister Joyce skipped UT altogether and graduated from Baylor.  And at some point, Uncle David became a Baylor season ticket holder.  So there is hope, even for a die-hard UT family!

An on the field moment: Parents Weekend 1989

I never have doubted that I have the greatest parents in the world.  I believed it growing up, and still do today.  It was nice when, in the fall of my junior year at Baylor, that feeling was affirmed by the Baylor Parents' League.  Mom and Dad were announced as Parents of the Year at After Dark on Friday night, then recognized on field at the Baylor/Tech game on Saturday.  (By the way, Baylor won 21-15.)

My oldest sister Laura, a 1985 graduate, and my brother Mark, who was in high school at the time, but who would graduate in 1994 from Baylor were there.  By coincidence, I was the only current Baylor student in the family at the time Mom and Dad were honored.  I can assure you that when they were evaluating potential honorees, I didn't come into consideration!  They must not have realized that we were related until after the decision was made and it was too late. . . .

I was proud of them, and was pleased that they were recognized for all they do to support and promote Baylor.

Thanks to Mrs. Moore for putting together this cool framed memento.
Mom and Dad still have it displayed at home.

Camping at Fort Fisher

Wow, it's been 2 months since I have posted here, and now there are less than 6 weeks until kickoff of the 2013 season!  As game day approaches, I'll continue with some reminiscing about Baylor games over the last 4 decades.

When I was growing up, part of the fun of going to a Baylor game was camping at Fort Fisher.  Today, the space behind the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame has a building and a park area, then gives way to the law school.  But in the 1970s and 1980s, the RV park filled up with Baylor fans on game weekends.  We alway camped next to the Moores, usually backing up to the big central lawn where many a football game was played.

The huge trees and large grassy areas made for great camping and playing.
You can see the cemetery in the background.

Other families usually joined us for the pre- or post-game meal, and we could walk to campus for Pigskin Review, the Homecoming parade, a visit to Judge Baylor's statue, or to shop at the Baylor Bookstore (remember when it was in the SUB?).  At night we would scare each other in the adjacent cemetery, and we could sit by the river on the simple concrete piers.

View of the new stadium from a Fort Fisher pier.

The construction of the law school and other projects closed down the RV park.  If not, that would be a prime camping spot for game days next year!  How things have changed in the world of Baylor football.  Anybody else have memories of camping at Fort Fisher?

You can still see the RV parking spots and the piers along the river.
Texas Ranger Hall of Fame top left; law school parking lot bottom right; cemetery bottom left. 

(Photographs courtesy of TXSVT2012's photostream on Flickr. Used without permission with hopes that he won't mind. Aeriel photo from Google maps.)