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Points of Pride — Athletics

Feb

2013

Lady Bears celebrate third straight Big 12 title by beating No. 2 UConn on the road

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Honors, Videos

Brittney Griner and Rebecca Lobo You know your program has reached a new level when you can win a conference title, then beat the No. 2 team in the country on their own court, and barely bat an eye.

That’s Baylor women’s basketball for you. When Oklahoma and Iowa State each lost on Sunday, the Lady Bears clinched their third straight Big 12 regular season championship (and fourth overall) — with more than two weeks left to go in the season.

The next night, Baylor had to face UConn (ranked No. 2 in one poll and No. 3 in another) on the road in front of 16,000+ Huskies fans. Head coach Kim Mulkey’s squad showed why they are the No. 1 team in the country for the seventh straight week, however, fighting back from an 11-point first-half deficit to win 76-70. [See video highlights from Sic 'Em Sports and ESPN.]

An added bonus from the game: Brittney Griner became just the eighth woman (and 15th person) in NCAA Division I history to score 3,000 career points. At her current pace, Griner (pictured being interviewed postgame by ESPN’s Rebecca Lobo) is on pace to finish her career second all-time in NCAA D-1 career scoring.

If you want to see Griner play in Waco, you’ve only got two more chances guaranteed: this Saturday, when Baylor hosts Texas and will celebrate the 2013 Big 12 title; and March 4, when the Lady Bears host Kansas State in the regular season finale.

Sic ’em, Lady Bears!

Feb

2013

Two former Baylor WR finish among NFL’s top 5 rookie receivers for 2012

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Alumni, Athletics

Kendall Wright, Tennessee Titans NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Robert Griffin III wasn’t the only Baylor Bear in the NFL this season; in fact, he was one of 12 to see NFL action in 2012.

Most notably, of RG3′s former teammates ranked among the NFL’s leading rookie receivers. Former first-round draft pick Kendall Wright (Tennessee Titans, pictured) led all rookies in receptions and finished fifth among first-year players in receiving yards, while Josh Gordon (Cleveland Browns) ranked third and fourth, respectively, among all rookies in receiving yards and receptions.

On the other side of the career timeline, veteran Matt Bryant (Atlanta Falcons) finished his 11th season in the NFL tied for second in the league in made field goals. He hit three game-winning field goals in the final 10 seconds of games, including a 49-yard boot to give the Falcons their first playoff win since 2004.

Injuries limited Danny Watkins (Philadelphia Eagles) to just 11 games (six starts), Phil Taylor (Cleveland Browns) to only eight games (seven starts), and J.D. Walton (Denver Broncos) to a mere four games (all starts). But Jason Smith (New York Jets) finally enjoyed a healthy season, appearing in all 16 games for the first time in his four NFL seasons. Jonathan Weeks (Houston Texans) also appeared in all 16 games as the Texans’ long snapper.

Other Bears who saw action included Justin Snow (eight games with the Washington Redskins), Terrance Ganaway (three games for the St. Louis Rams) and David Gettis (two games with the Carolina Panthers). Philip Blake (Denver Broncos) missed the entire season following a preseason hand injury.

Sic ’em, Bears in the NFL!

Feb

2013

‘The Other Side of Art Briles’ offers a look into the personal side of Baylor’s football coach

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Extraordinary Stories, Videos

Today, Baylor head football coach Art Briles will announce his program’s 2013 signing class, the 20 or so young men who will join the team this fall. The Bears’ group of incoming players is expected to rank among the top 25 in the nation, further evidence of the program’s continuing rise in prominence.

But the person who stands at that podium today isn’t just a football coach; he’s a man, a person, someone who has known both tragedy (the loss of his parents while still in college) and joy (the grandchildren who have a uniquely cute nickname for their grandpa). Waco’s KWTX-TV ran this excellent package over the weekend that gives a good look at the man behind the clipboard.

Sic ’em, Coach Briles!

[Between 20 and 25 young men will commit to Baylor football's future today. Show your commitment to the program's future by putting your support in stone with a Baylor Stadium Brick.]

Feb

2013

RG3 follows up Heisman with NFL Rookie of the Year honors

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Alumni, Athletics, Honors

Robert Griffin III Rookie of the Year

Since the Associated Press began honoring an NFL Rookie of the Year following the 1967 season, only two quarterbacks have won the Heisman one year, then ROY the next: Cam Newton and Robert Griffin III, BA ’10.

The former Baylor All-American was named the 2012 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Saturday night, capping another year of proving the doubters wrong in his first season with the Washington Redskins. Griffin led the Redskins to their first NFC East championship and their first home playoff game since 1999; in the process, he became the first QB ever to win a Heisman one year, then lead an NFL squad to the postseason the next year.

[WATCH: Great RG3 2012 highlight video and week-by-week highlights from NFL.com]

RG3 became the first player ever to lead the NFL in both yards per pass and yards per rush, and he set NFL rookie records for passer rating, interception rate and rushing yards. Griffin also recorded the fewest interceptions of any QB this season with 20+ passing touchdowns, and he joined Randall Cunningham (1990) as the only players in NFL history with 3,000 passing yards and 800 rushing yards in a season.

For his efforts, Griffin beat out perennial favorites such as Drew Brees and Eli Manning in being named to the NFC Pro Bowl team — the second rookie QB ever to be named to a Pro Bowl original roster (joining Dan Marino).

A late-season knee injury was made worse playing on bad field conditions in the playoffs and led to reconstructive surgery on his right ACL, the same knee injury Griffin suffered as a sophomore at Baylor. Over the weekend, Griffin said he had “no doubt” that he’d be ready for the Redskins’ 2013 season opener.

Sic ’em, RG3!

Jan

2013

Griner now the NCAA’s all-time leading shot blocker and Big 12′s all-time leading scorer

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Honors, Videos

It’s been a busy week for Baylor Lady Bear Brittney Griner.

In an 82-65 win over No. 20 Oklahoma on Saturday, she tallied eight blocks in the process of setting the NCAA career record for blocked shots. The 6-foot-8 Griner has now blocked 672 blocks in her career — more than any man or woman, at any level of college basketball, ever.

Then on Wednesday, the Houston native added another record to her name, recording the fourth 40-point game of her career while setting a new Big 12 Conference mark for career scoring. Baylor now holds both the Big 12 men’s and women’s career scoring marks, as LaceDarius Dunn set the men’s record two years ago.

Griner has now scored 2,873 points in 132 games, an average of 21.8 points per game; she ranks 12th in NCAA history in career scoring, with an outside shot at holding that record, too, before all is said and done.

[For more on Griner, check out this feature from the latest Baylor Magazine on how she is changing the face of women's basketball -- and having fun doing it.]

For good measure, Griner also added another dunk to her resume last night — the 12th of her Baylor career (and fifth this season). That, too, is an NCAA women’s record; the next closest competitor is Tennessee’s Candace Parker, with seven career dunks. [See video of Griner's dunk at the 3:10 mark here.]

Griner also holds the NCAA record for single-season blocks and nine other Big 12 marks in addition to her scoring, blocks and dunks numbers. She could have as many as 20 more games to build on her records, but only five of those will be in Waco. If you haven’t yet made it to campus to see her play in person, don’t miss out.

Sic ’em, Brittney!

Jan

2013

Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center provides boost for Baylor tennis

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Photo Galleries, Videos

Jim and Nell Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center

For years, when inclement weather struck during a Baylor tennis match, the teams had to pack up and drive an hour and a half north to use an indoor facility in Ennis, Texas. The lack of nearby indoor courts has also prevented Baylor from hosting NCAA championship final rounds.

Thanks to the generosity of supporters such as Jim (BBA ’58) and Nell Hawkins, those problems are now in the past. Head coach Matt Knoll’s squad held its first match in the new Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center Friday night, drawing 700+ fans for a 7-0 sweep of SMU. [See photos and video from the Hawkins Indoor Tennis Center debut.]

Fans sat and stood two-, sometimes three-deep in the viewing area to take in the first on-campus indoor match in program history. The state-of-the-art facility will allow the Baylor men’s and women’s tennis programs to practice and play year-round, regardless of weather.

That can only help two of Baylor’s premier athletic programs. Since 2000, the men’s and women’s tennis teams have combined to win 31 Big 12 team titles and four NCAA titles. The Lady Bears have reached at least the Sweet 16 each of the last eight years, while the men are aiming for their 12th straight Sweet 16 appearance this spring.

Jim and Nell Hawkins are longtime Baylor supporters, having faithfully supported scholarships for student-athletes and business school students as well as excellence funds across multiple sports and even mission trips by Baylor’s Sports Ministry Teams. Their gifts provided the practice courts for Baylor’s men’s and women’s basketball programs, and their first major gift to Baylor Athletics funded the scoreboard at Floyd Casey Stadium.

Sic ’em, Jim and Nell and Baylor tennis!

Jan

2013

Baylor’s bowl game again among nation’s biggest crowds

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics

Baylor Bears at Holiday Bowl

For the third straight year, Baylor football played in one of the best-attended bowl games in the country.

In 2010, the Bears helped draw 68,211 fans to the Texas Bowl in Houston; that total ranked No. 8 among all bowls played that year. In 2011, the Alamo Bowl attracted 65,256 fans in San Antonio (No. 9 among the year’s bowls). In 2012, the Bears and Bruins drew 55,507 at the Holiday Bowl in San Diego, 11th-best out of 35 bowl games.

Each year, the Bears have outdrawn at least one BCS bowl and ranked among the top third of all postseason games in attendance. Baylor’s combined bowl attendance over the past three years is 188,974; of the 103 schools have appeared in at least one bowl game since 2010, only 11 have attracted bigger total postseason crowds — and all but one of those benefitted from at least one BCS bowl appearance. Not bad for a little private school in Waco, Texas.

Baylor football’s 2012 average home attendance (41,194) ranked behind only the previous year’s numbers (when RG3 won the Heisman) in Floyd Casey Stadium’s 63-year history, and the Bears have never drawn more in a six-home-game season than this past year’s total of 247,165.

Head coach Art Briles’ Bears finished 26th in the final AP poll and 28th in the final coaches poll (one spot behind UCLA, oddly enough), but Baylor is already getting some attention for 2013. The Orlando Sentinel put BU at No. 24 in its early 2013 rankings, and ESPN.com’s Big 12 blogger has the Bears as dark-horse candidates for next year’s BCS title game.

Sic ’em, Baylor football and Baylor Nation!

Jan

2013

Legendary track mentor celebrates 50th year coaching at Baylor

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Alumni, Athletics, Honors

In 1963, a 28-year-old Baylor graduate was named head track and field coach at Baylor. He’s never left.

Clyde Hart, BBA ’56, was honored for entering his 50th year coaching at Baylor on Friday night with a surprise dinner. Over the last half-century, Hart has coached 34 national champions and 537 All-Americans at Baylor, plus nine Olympic athletes who have combined for 16 medals, including a dozen golds.

Hart stepped down as head coach in 2005 after developing Baylor into one of the nation’s elite programs, known worldwide as “Quarter-Miler U” for its success in the 400 meters. But he remains an assistant coach working with the quarter-milers and the 4×400-meter relay, where the Bears continue to have great success.

Sic ’em, Coach Hart!

You might also like:
* Baylor track coach’s pupils have won gold in six straight Olympics (Aug. 2012)
* Pair of Hart pupils named U.S. track and field athletes of the decade (Feb. 2010)
* Hart named World Coach of the Year by IAAF (Jan. 2010)

Dec

2012

Football pounds No.17 UCLA, 49-26, to win 2012 Holiday Bowl

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Honors, Photo Galleries, Videos

Jarred Salubi and Nick Florence with Holiday Bowl trophy

Under Art Briles, the success of RG3 and Nick Florence has helped Baylor football become known for its passing. But Thursday, it was the Bears’ rushing game and defense that stood out most as Baylor dominated Pac-12 runner-up UCLA, 49-26, in the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl.

Sure, Florence passed for almost 200 yards and two touchdowns without a turnover as the Bears won back-to-back bowls for the first time since 1985-86. But it was the rushing attack, led by Lache Seastrunk and Glasco Martin, that carried the offense, putting up 306 yards and five touchdowns on the ground as the Bears coasted past the 17th-ranked Bruins to end the season on a four-game winning streak.

As it did against No. 1 Kansas State earlier this season, Baylor’s defense again stepped up, holding UCLA’s all-time leading rusher to just 34 yards on 14 carries and taking down the Bruins’ quarterback six times after tallying just 13 sacks through the Bears’ first 12 games.

[LINKS: ESPN/AP story || Watch ESPN highlights || Holiday Bowl trophy presentation || Baylor Photography photos || AP photos || Get your Holiday Bowl Champions gear (here, here, here and here)!]

It’s worth remembering that this Baylor team could easily have folded in mid November, when the Bears were just 4-5, had lost four of their last five games, and faced three ranked opponents to finish the year. Instead, Briles’ squad toughened up, won all three games to get bowl-eligible, then blew out UCLA in front of a Bruin-friendly southern-California crowd and a national ESPN audience.

A few notes from the day: Briles joined Grant Teaff (1985-86 and 1979-80) and Frank Bridges (1921-22) as the only coaches ever to have led Baylor to back-to-back seasons of 8+ wins… Florence set a new school record for passing yards in a season, finishing the year with 4,309 yards passing to break RG3′s total from his Heisman campaign… After totaling just 181 yards rushing through the end of October, Seastrunk came on late to finish his sophomore season with 1,030 yards and became the Bears’ third-straight 1,000-yard rusher (just the ninth in BU history).

[PHOTOS & VIDEOS FROM BOWL WEEK: Sunday hospital visit & Navy ship tour || Day One practice and behind-the-scenes video || Monday at San Diego Zoo & Christmas eve service || Day Two behind-the-scenes video || Tuesday at SeaWorld || SeaWorld video || Wednesday press conference || Wednesday pep rally || Thursday balloon parade || Pep rally & parade video || Pre-game tailgating]

What a year… A special thanks to Baylor football’s outgoing seniors for their efforts in making this the most successful three-year period in program history, and for taking us along for the ride. Amazing to think that the next senior class could leave Baylor knowing nothing but bowl games — and that the class after that will get to play in the gorgeous new Baylor Stadium. (Speaking of which, have you ordered your Stadium Brick yet?)

A great big sic ’em to Baylor’s coaching staff, players and support staff, plus all of Baylor Nation that turned out or tuned in for this game — especially the students who bussed 26 hours to get to the game in-person. In short…

Sic ’em, Bears!!

Dec

2012

2012 football accolades well-deserved as Bears prep for Holiday Bowl

Posted by The Baylor Proud Team in Athletics, Honors

Hope everyone had a merry Christmas yesterday! Lest your mind and body are still swimming from too many hours assembling toys and wolfing down too much honeybaked ham, let this be your reminder that Baylor football is only a little more than 24 hours away from its third straight bowl appearance.

Baylor and UCLA will square off Thursday night at 8:45 p.m. CT in the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl, to be televised on ESPN. Since the Bears’ last game nearly a month ago, a host of honors have rolled in for Baylor players; here’s a look at some of the folks you’ll see play tomorrow night — some of them for the last time in a Baylor uniform:

A Biletnikoff Award finalist (Terrance Williams)
A Campbell Trophy finalist (Nick Florence)
A Davey O’Brien Award semifinalist (Florence)
2 AP All-Americans (Cyril Richardson, Williams)
1 unanimous first-team All-American (Williams)
The Big 12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Florence)
The Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year (Lache Seastrunk)
The Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year (Richardson)
2 All-Big 12 first team selections (Richardson, Williams)
13 All-Big 12 second team/honorable mention selections (Troy Baker, Ahmad Dixon, Florence, Bryce Hager, Aaron Jones, Cameron Kaufhold, Eddie Lackey, Terrance Lloyd, Jordan Najvar, Tevin Reese, Lanear Sampson, Seastrunk, Ivory Wade)
An Academic All-American (Florence)
18 Academic All-Big 12 selections (Baker, Alex Bonilla, Rhett Butler, Trevor Clemens-Valdez, Spencer Drango, Florence, Clay Fuller, Jake Jackson, Najvar, Levi Norwood, Kevin Park, Bryce Petty, Matt Ritchey, Marcus Santa-Cruz, Brody Trahan, Michael Valdez, Chris Winkler, Erik Wolfe)
The FootballScoop Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year (Kaz Kazadi)

Whether you’re in San Diego for the bowl, at home watching on TV, or joining your fellow Bears at watch parties across the country, enjoy the game!

Sic ’em, Bears!

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