Home > The Bear Blog > Archives > 2007 > November > 29 > Entry
Pushing the right buttons
Art Briles might be a good ol’ boy from West Texas, but he’s got the shrewd smarts of the slickest politician.
At his opening press conference at Baylor on Wednesday, Briles wasted little time in recognizing and paying homage to former Baylor coach Grant Teaff, who’s been executive director of the American Football Coaches Association for the last 13 years.
I’m not sure that Guy Morriss, Kevin Steele, Dave Roberts or even Chuck Reedy ever realized how important it is to embrace Teaff and tap into his resources and knowledge. Getting Teaff in your corner at Baylor and in Waco is every bit as important as the way Texas coach Mack Brown gravitated to legendary Longhorn coach Darrell Royal down in Austin.
The timing and situation is even more important for Briles. Teaff was vocal in his support of former Baylor all-American linebacker Mike Singletary, the assistant head coach of the San Francisco 49ers.
“There’s a lot of folks, and I was one of them, that felt very strongly about Mike Singletary,” Teaff said. “And those folks are not going to be happy for a while, and it didn’t matter who got hired, because they’re Singletary folks. But that’s just the way it is. If they’re not (on board), I think they will be won over.”
In his own way, I believe that’s what Briles did on Wednesday. He made every effort to win over Teaff, bringing up Baylor’s football tradition and even specifically mentioning the “Miracle on the Brazos and eating a worm and things like that.”
“That’s special,” Briles said. “It goes back to Walter Abercrombie and Santana Dotson and Mike Singletary.”
There, he said it. He even mentioned the great one’s name. Briles also talked about not worrying about tomorrow and focusing on making yourself better today. But before you move forward at a place like Baylor, you have to learn to appreciate the past.
Comments
By W Kouba
November 29, 2007 5:54 PM | Link to this
With all due respect, bringing in another coach is not going to fix the Baylor Football program. Baylor has done all the things the rest of the Big12 teams have done, improving the facilities, marketing, etc., nothing has improved. The real issue is being a small fish in a very large pond. Since joining the Big12, Baylor’s conference record stands at 10-W and 70-L, while going through at least 3 coaches. Prior to joining the Big12, our conference record stood at 221-W and 262-L. We were already bad, but we have acheived a 30% reduction in our win percentage since joining the Big12. Isn’t it time we moved on to a conference where we could actually compete?
By BaylorBear
November 29, 2007 11:11 PM | Link to this
Kouba, Baylor’s efforts have only now reached the point of reaching Big 12 caliber. Baylor has - since Grant Teaff left the sidelines - never conducted a nationwide search, allowing the AD to do his job. As far as anyone knows, Ian McCaw was allowed to do his job and a sensible hire resulted. Whether he wins at Baylor - only time will tell. But - to use a former Baylor head coach’s saying - we didn’t shoot ourself in the foot before Art’s press conference.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Floyd Casey Stadium. I don’t think there’s really a bad seat in the house. It’s got great sightlines. But - and this is partially due to half of the seating bowl resting below ground level, FCS lacks that ‘wow’ factor that every other Big 12 South school’s stadium has.
Baylor has also failed to market itself outside of Waco…heck, it’s easier to get UT / A&M stuff in Waco than it is Baylor merchandise. Maybe that changes if the football team starts winning, and maybe it’s a function of those schools’ size advantage, but saying that Baylor has marketed herself on par with the other Big 12 schools is erroneous.
Baylor is also just now making the necessary upgrades - when A&M, UT, and Tech were making them 5-10 years ago. Baylor’s current facilities could compete without too much trouble in the old SWC, but she failed to make the investment in football when she moved into the Big 12. Granted, the other sports were in sadder shape - 20 years ago, basketball was still playing in the HOT Coliseum - great for rodeos and concerts, questionable for basketball. At the time Baylor joined the Big 12, our baseball facilities were worse than most high schools’. Baylor has no doubt had to prioritize, but our having to make those investments then has delayed investing in football until now.
I’m optimistic. I didn’t know much about Briles until yesterday but I’m already impressed. If he can assemble a staff, recruit, and coach half as good as he shakes hands and kisses babies, he’ll do fine at Baylor. He’s not likely to run the Big 12 South next year, but, as I said, if he’s as good as I think, he’ll pull off a couple of upsets.
Sic ‘em Bears!
By oakwood831
November 30, 2007 7:29 AM | Link to this
You are going to like Art, he has done nothing but improve Houston over his time here. The thing is the games will all ways be exiting. He know Texas football.
By Rick
November 30, 2007 9:24 AM | Link to this
Teaff isn’t God like every Baylor fans thinks..he was an avearge coach in the SWC and he would have certainly been fired if he coached in the Big 12
By Brazosdog79
November 30, 2007 9:35 AM | Link to this
Hey Rick …. What was Grunt’s record against the mighty whorns???
By Rick
November 30, 2007 10:13 AM | Link to this
brazosdog79..i believe it was below .500..and please forgive me for not mentioning,”the miracle of the brazos” that happened like 50 years ago..every other team would have just called it a good win but it was a “Miracle” for Baylor
By chris
November 30, 2007 10:39 AM | Link to this
Give Morriss the same schedule as Briles had this year,and Baylor would be bowling. I think La Vega could beat Tulane and Rice.
By Kevin
November 30, 2007 10:44 AM | Link to this
Please go look at the UofH schedule this year. They lost to every team that Baylor would have lost to, and beat every team the Baylor would have beat.
By Steve Austin
November 30, 2007 11:16 AM | Link to this
Morriss was good but they didn’t give him a new contract and all his staff left.. he didn’t have a chance…just because Kansas won this year,everyone thinks it can happen to them..it’s going to take more than 5 years to make this a winning program
By Wes
November 30, 2007 11:43 AM | Link to this
I still think that changing coaches is not going to change much. Winning a game once in a while is always possible. However, look at it this way, if you were a top-notch high school recruit and had the chance to play at OU, Texas, A&M, or even Texas Tech, are you going to go play for Baylor? Probably not. So without the top-notch players, how do we expect to compete?
By temple baylor fan
November 30, 2007 2:36 PM | Link to this
i am very thankful to have coach briles on the staff at baylor,and feel we are gonna see great things in the future…i just thought a great slogan ( its probably already been thought of) but here goes….Thou “art”Baylor….sic em bears…..and hope we are gonna have a great basketball season….james rhoads
b
By RockmanT633
November 30, 2007 4:43 PM | Link to this
Wes, you’re in over your head…obviously you are not a football person…Baylor hit the coaching lottery when they got coach Briles. Anyone with any sense at all knows that with coach Briles the recruiting will improve. To be a consistent winner you have to have a good QB and that is one area where coach Briles excells. Hey, no one will force you to attend any games but check back with us after the Bears win the BT South. RockmanT633
By Ben
December 1, 2007 8:22 AM | Link to this
However, look at it this way, if you were a top-notch high school recruit and had the chance to play at OU, Texas, A&M, or even Texas Tech, are you going to go play for Baylor? Probably not. So without the top-notch players, how do we expect to compete?
Wes, ask LaceDarius Dunn, Tweety Carter, Curtis Jerrells, Henry Dugat and Kevin Rogers whether Baylor has appeal for top-notch high school recruits. Let us know what they say.
By 91Bear
December 1, 2007 9:43 AM | Link to this
Ben, Baylor has been able to get top-notch football recruits before. Players want to play for a winner. When we start winning some Big XII games, players will want to come to Baylor and play, rather than sitting on the bench at Texas (GJ Kinne) and A&M. Briles has the passion to get it done.
By Nothing Will Ever Change
December 1, 2007 10:57 AM | Link to this
Prior to joining the Big12, our conference record stood at 221-W and 262-L. We were already bad, but we have acheived a 30% reduction in our win percentage since joining the Big12.
The person who wrote this is a realist. You baylor fans are dreamers. You have a few winning seasons that no one of playing age can even remember.
No coach, no AD, board of regents is going to change the fact, that BU football is going to lose. Period. Print this and read it on Dec. 1 2008. So it shall be written.
See ya at Scruffys!
By You do not have to be football person to know baylor stinks
December 1, 2007 11:02 AM | Link to this
Be deal if he guy is not a football person. My domestic cleaning lady can’t speak english but she knows how that BU Football is a joke and the doormat of the big 12.
By Lori 80
December 1, 2007 6:15 PM | Link to this
Blah, blah, blah. All the rhetoric has put me in a catatonic state…oh wait, that was our football program. Ain’t enough liptstick for this pig (the program, I mean. I’m sure Coach Briles is a very nice person and wants to do all he can to turn the program around.)
Wake me up when we’re in the Big 12 Championship game. LOL!
By None of us will be alive when BU wins the Big 12 South
December 1, 2007 9:50 PM | Link to this
The only person winning is coach Briles, his realtor, banker and stock broker. At 1.8 he can afford to sing the praises of Teaff and the voodo on the brazos.
As for coming back when Baylor wins the big 12 south…. all I can say to that is please stay away from the crack pipe you’ve been hittin’ bro.
None of these bloggers will ever live to see that day. We welcome the new coach and feel the pain he has yet to see.
By bear fan man
December 2, 2007 8:59 AM | Link to this
good job baylor on hiring coach briles. i think he will bring in local and state h.s. recruits. i hope we never get out of the big 12 because it’s nice to know that if you do win your in the national title hunt and not playin to get in the top 10 ( hawaii knows what i’m talkin about ). i know that all we need is a bowl game and this program could really take off. we don’t have to go to the national title game but just get to a bcs game (big money ,big money no wammy )would’nt that be great but in reality let’s get to 6 wins and recruit and see what happens. oh yeah all the negative people go get a hug and a ticket to basketball game and attend bandwagon annonymous classes. sic’em bears