In his first four seasons at the University of Baylor, head coach Art Briles has don an amazing job of turning this program around. . For the first time since 1980, the Bears finished up with a 10-win season. Baylor capped off a 10-3 record with a 67-56 win over Washington in the Alamo Bowl. It was the second straight season Baylor found themselves playing in a bowl game. Briles has done a great job of bringing in some top level recruits, but now must adjust to life without star quarterback Robert Griffin III.
While the Bears return a solid 14 starters and 54 lettermen, their offense take a hit since they lose five NFL draft choices on that side of the ball alone. Baylor relied on their offense to win games last year, now they may need their defense to shoulder most of the weight in the new season.
Offense
Last year, Baylor featured one of themost explosive offenses in all of college football. . They averaged a whopping 45.3 points and 587 total yards/game. What really made them difficult to defend was a well-balanced offensive attack.. They averaged 351 yards through the air and 236 yards per game on the ground. Matching last year's productivity won't be easy, as the Bears have just six starters returning on the offensive side of the ball.
Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III will be very difficult to replace at quarterback. He was selected as the second overall pick in the draft by the Washington Redskins and his amazing production will be sorely missed.
Senior Nick Florence takes over at quarterback, and even though he is nowhere near as talented as Griffin, at least he has some experience.
Running back Tarrance Ganaway will be missed by the Bears in many different ways as he was an extremely underrated player on the team. He was picked by the New York Jets in the 6th round of the NFL draft. Oregon transfer Lache Seastrunk will likely be the new starter in 2012.
The Bears also have to replace star wide out Kendall Wright, who led the team with 106 catches for 1,663 yards and 14 touchdowns, but they do get back six of their top seven. The top players returning include Terrance Williams, Tevin Reese, Lanear Sampson, and junior TE Jordan Najvar.
The Bears also lose great players on the line in first-team All-Big 12 Philip Blake and second-team All-Big 12 right guard Robert T. Griffin. They do bring back three starters and 77 careers starts up front, but they have lost their two best linemen.
If you are looking for up to date odds and expert advice on the Bears this season, head over to college football free picks.
Defense
Despite a criminally poor defense that yielded 37.2 points and 488 total yards/game, Baylor was still able to win 10 games. Whatever the cause, 2012 should be a much improved season for them on defense with eight starters returning.
The Bears gave up 197 yards per game and 5.2/carry on the ground last season. They lose two solid defensive tackles in Nicolas Jean-Baptiste and Tracy Robertson. Junior DE Terrance Lloyd and senior DE Gary Mason are two returning starters who will anchor the defensive line.
The Bears should still be solid at linebacker despite losing leading tackler Elliot Coffey to graduation. Five of the top six players return from last year, including junior starters Ahmad Dixon and Rodney Chadwick. Sophomore Bryce Hager is expected to replace Chadwick at middle linebacker, while Eddie Lackey takes over for Coffey on the outside.
The secondary may just be the strength of the team as they helped Baylor to force a lot of turnovers. They had a ridiculous 18 takeaways over the final five regular season games and with the entire 2-deep back in the defensive backfield, more of the same can be expected.
Big 12 Prediction - 9th Place
This is a rebuilding year for Baylor since it's virtually impossible to replace the players they lost to the NFL draft. A lot of their talent on the offensive side of the ball is gone and it's very hard to see them post anywhere near the same numbers as last year. While their defense will obviously be improved, their defense last year was so bad that it won't mean much. Baylor has an extremely tough schedule ahead of them and it seems as though this team can win no more than two conference games.
While the Bears return a solid 14 starters and 54 lettermen, their offense take a hit since they lose five NFL draft choices on that side of the ball alone. Baylor relied on their offense to win games last year, now they may need their defense to shoulder most of the weight in the new season.
Offense
Last year, Baylor featured one of themost explosive offenses in all of college football. . They averaged a whopping 45.3 points and 587 total yards/game. What really made them difficult to defend was a well-balanced offensive attack.. They averaged 351 yards through the air and 236 yards per game on the ground. Matching last year's productivity won't be easy, as the Bears have just six starters returning on the offensive side of the ball.
Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III will be very difficult to replace at quarterback. He was selected as the second overall pick in the draft by the Washington Redskins and his amazing production will be sorely missed.
Senior Nick Florence takes over at quarterback, and even though he is nowhere near as talented as Griffin, at least he has some experience.
Running back Tarrance Ganaway will be missed by the Bears in many different ways as he was an extremely underrated player on the team. He was picked by the New York Jets in the 6th round of the NFL draft. Oregon transfer Lache Seastrunk will likely be the new starter in 2012.
The Bears also have to replace star wide out Kendall Wright, who led the team with 106 catches for 1,663 yards and 14 touchdowns, but they do get back six of their top seven. The top players returning include Terrance Williams, Tevin Reese, Lanear Sampson, and junior TE Jordan Najvar.
The Bears also lose great players on the line in first-team All-Big 12 Philip Blake and second-team All-Big 12 right guard Robert T. Griffin. They do bring back three starters and 77 careers starts up front, but they have lost their two best linemen.
If you are looking for up to date odds and expert advice on the Bears this season, head over to college football free picks.
Defense
Despite a criminally poor defense that yielded 37.2 points and 488 total yards/game, Baylor was still able to win 10 games. Whatever the cause, 2012 should be a much improved season for them on defense with eight starters returning.
The Bears gave up 197 yards per game and 5.2/carry on the ground last season. They lose two solid defensive tackles in Nicolas Jean-Baptiste and Tracy Robertson. Junior DE Terrance Lloyd and senior DE Gary Mason are two returning starters who will anchor the defensive line.
The Bears should still be solid at linebacker despite losing leading tackler Elliot Coffey to graduation. Five of the top six players return from last year, including junior starters Ahmad Dixon and Rodney Chadwick. Sophomore Bryce Hager is expected to replace Chadwick at middle linebacker, while Eddie Lackey takes over for Coffey on the outside.
The secondary may just be the strength of the team as they helped Baylor to force a lot of turnovers. They had a ridiculous 18 takeaways over the final five regular season games and with the entire 2-deep back in the defensive backfield, more of the same can be expected.
Big 12 Prediction - 9th Place
This is a rebuilding year for Baylor since it's virtually impossible to replace the players they lost to the NFL draft. A lot of their talent on the offensive side of the ball is gone and it's very hard to see them post anywhere near the same numbers as last year. While their defense will obviously be improved, their defense last year was so bad that it won't mean much. Baylor has an extremely tough schedule ahead of them and it seems as though this team can win no more than two conference games.
About the Author:
Jack Jones knows how to beat the college football odds, and will be posting his college football picks all season long at Betfirms. You can visit the site now and check out a more detailed preview of Baylor's upcoming year in the Big 12.
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