Baylor football scored points for West on record-setting night

Michael Hillman, BBA ’02, MBA ’03, knew he had a good idea for a good cause. But even he couldn’t have predicted just how perfectly it would turn out for the city of West.

The premise was simple: He recruited donors from among his friends and business contacts to donate money to the city of West, Texas, for each point Baylor scored in their October 5 game against West Virginia. And given that Baylor’s offense was averaging 69.7 points per game at that point, he knew he needed to prepare everyone to be ready to give.

“I made sure to warn them how prolific our offense is,” Hillman says. “They were all very excited to be able to get involved and support the City of West.”

Undeterred by Baylor’s ability to put up points, more than 30 people joined Hillman; their joint commitment came out to upwards of $500 for each point Baylor scored. And it turned out that Hillman couldn’t have picked a better night. In front of thousands of community members and supporters of West, Baylor set a modern-era school record for points. The Bears’ 73 points against the Mountaineers represented Baylor’s highest total since 1929.

All told, Hillman and the other donors raised nearly $40,000 for West, which will go to renovate West City Park and build a memorial to the fallen first responders.

Hillman’s efforts added to the tremendous outpouring of support by Baylor Nation and added some excitement to watching Baylor football’s exploits this season.

Sic ’em, Michael and West supporters!

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