It is no CBI or CIT title, but Penn State can claim an NIT Championship to top off the Nittany Lions' best season since the Jerry Dunn coached team went to the Sweet 16 in 2001. For the second straight year, the Big Ten can claim their conference won the NIT. Penn State knocked off Baylor, 69-63.
Baylor had lost 24 straight games to Texas. Not since 1998, had the Bears beaten the Longhorns. They picked a heck of a time to do it. Knocking off Texas in the Big 12 Tournament semifinal.
American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) recently recognized 34 Division IA schools for outstanding graduation rates. There were four teams from the Big 12 within that group. The four honorees were Baylor, Nebraska, Texas and Texas Tech. The teams were honored for having a graduation rate of 70% or better for players from the recruiting class from the academic year of 2001-2002."We expect that as more teams are penalized, more pressure will be exerted to weaken the reforms. But these reform measures must be implemented without changes. The NCAA Board of Directors took a courageous step when it created a system that comports with the Knight Commission's 2001 recommendation to penalize teams that do not meet reasonable graduation rate standards. The vast majority of athletes are successful academically, but this program is imperative to ensure that college remains the central part of 'college sports' for all athletes and teams."It's hard to argue with that statement, but which side will fans take when push comes to shove?
After recently extending its television package with ABC/ESPN, it now looks like the Big 12 is becoming even chummier with the network in Bristol. Fox Sports is reportedly close to selling some of its Saturday night Big 12 games to ESPN. This would be an unexpected and unprecedented move involving one network selling its broadcasting rights to one of its rivals. But the move would also mean increased exposure for the Big 12."I worried about the package (of Big 12 games) when most of them were regional games with a small part of the country," [Texas athletic director DeLoss] Dodds said. "I like national television. The Southeastern Conference has that with CBS. Notre Dame has it with NBC. We'd like to get more of it. I would count on it happening."Certainly there is some television package envy motivating this deal, which is fine. The Big 12's coverage has always lagged behind that of the SEC and the Big 10. Striking any type of deal with ESPN will obviously reduce this discrepancy.
You know the push for posh facilities in the Big 12 has reached its zenith when Baylor gets in the mix. On Thursday, the school is set to break ground on a the $34 million Alwin O. and Dorothy Highers Athletics Complex and the Simpson Athletics and Academic Center."The Highers Athletics Complex will feature three football practice fields, two with a natural surface and the other with artificial turf, preparing Baylor football athletes for all competitive environments. The 96,300-square-foot Simpson Athletics and Academic Center will bring to campus functions previously housed at Floyd Casey Stadium, such as the main athletics training room, equipment room, football team locker room and weight room, as well as administrative offices, the football office, meeting rooms and an academic center for all student-athletes."The facility certainly sounds nice enough and should improve Baylor's chances to compete with the major economic forces in the conference. But more importantly the new complex will allow the school to house its football operations on its campus for the first time in the modern era. The Bears will continue to play their games at Floyd Casey Stadium, which is located a few miles away from campus.
After yesterday's report that its deal with TBS had ended, the Big 12 received good news today on the television front, when its agreement with ABC/ESPN was extended. The new contract will begin in 2008 and continue through the 2015-16 academic year. "This agreement greatly enhances guaranteed national exposure for the Conference," Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg said. "We have nearly tripled the number of men's basketball games guaranteed for distribution on ESPN national platforms and the Big 12 will be the only conference with three weekly windows on ESPN or ESPN2 during conference play. The agreement also is good for fans in that it provides a large number of games in distribution by over-the-air television."While many have questioned the relative strength of the Big 12's television package in comparison to other major conferences such as the SEC, maintaining this relationship with ABC was an important step for Big 12 officials.
Kasey Dunn, who was originally hired to coach Baylor's outside receivers has now been given the title of assistant head coach. What makes the promotion all the more impressive is that Dunn has only been in Waco since December. Gaining a new designation in just four months signals the notable impression that Dunn has made on head coach Guy Morriss (pictured at right) "I think he's got enough energy to handle it, he's got the kind of temperament to deal with anyone, and he just has a knack for getting things done," head coach Guy Morriss said.This will be the second time that Dunn has served in this capacity. He previously served as an assistant head coach under Mike Price at Washington from 1998-2002. Dunn's college coaching resume also includes stops at Arizona, TCU, New Mexico, Idaho and San Diego in the past 15 years.
"I'd like to think it will help," Dunn said of his chances at eventually becoming a head coach. "That's definitely something I want to do. And this just puts you a little closer to what's going on. The best thing, though, is just the experience that I get out of it."
After watching his offense sputter in Saturday's spring game, Baylor head coach Guy Morriss realized he better find a punter and kicker ASAP. Walk-on Caleb Allen was listed as the #1 guy at both spots this spring. Unfortunately he missed badly on his only field goal attempt and did not attempt a punt in the spring game. This development left Morriss searching for answers."We've had guys who've wanted these jobs this spring, but we just haven't had a guy with the leg and distance that you need in the Big 12 conference."
Morriss and Baylor fans find themselves lamenting the graduation of Daniel Sepulveda and kicker Ryan Havens. Sepulveda was the first two-time winner of the Ray Guy Award, given yearly to the country's top punter. I was actually surprised to find out that the loss of Sepulveda was due to the completion of his eligibility, rather than from NCAA sanctions for the wanton overuse of his skills.
While Morriss hasn't gone as far as posting the punting job in the local classifieds a la Mike Leach, he recognizes he may have to look elsewhere for help.
"We got two freshmen kickers coming in that hopefully can do the job," he said. "And we're still looking around to see if there's a junior college player who can punt and kick. If we can find the right guy, we'll make room for him so it gives us a little insurance."So Baylor needs punter insurance? Yep, sounds about right.
College football fans often use the promise on display during a spring game to get them the through the dark days of the off-season. If Saturday's performance is any indication, the off-season might actually be the only bright spot for Baylor fans. Case in point, the Green and Gold teams managed to score just 7 points in the finale to Baylor's spring practices, and the lone touchdown came in the game's last five minutes."That's kind of been our M.O.," Morriss said. "It's the (lack of) consistency with some new things that we're doing this spring that's got them thinking a little too much. We really would have liked to see them be a little more crisp and sharp than we were, but we've still got some time to work on all that."While I'm sure Baylor fans have to come to expect this type of deficiency, you'd think the offense could at least muster a little spunk in the spring game. Optimistic fans will point out the strong play of the Baylor defense. The first-team defense of the Green team shut out the Whites, and tallied six sacks. Baylor managed just 11 sacks all of 2007. But despite their performance, Baylor defenders are displaying an incredible level of
"Man, it's an incredible feeling to know that you've got a push like that in the middle," said senior defensive end Geoff Nelson. "When we start doing stunts, it's going to be amazing to watch."Shutting out Baylor just feels right. Even when you play for ... Baylor.
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