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In the wake of Baylor’s 41-12 throttling of Oklahoma to kick off week 11 of the college football season, news emerged their head coach Art Briles signed a contract that will keep him in Waco for the next ten years.
Of course, terms weren’t announced – they never are, not when the school in question is a private institution – but you can bet that it’s not a small offer. It will probably have been the payday to set Briles and his family up for life.
More importantly, it’s job security, which seems to be a less and less common thing in the busy world of college football.
Briles is casting his lot in with Baylor at a perfect time: there’s no doubt the school is on the way up.
After Robert Griffin III’s Heisman year in 2011, we’ve seen a groundswell of support and success coming out of Waco.
Years of being the Big XII punching bag seem to be in the rear-view mirror now that Briles, who had similar success at the University of Houston, has players of the ilk of quarterback Bryce Petty, running back Lache Seastrunk and wide receiver Tevin Reese doing their thing.
Can you, with an honestly-straight face, look at me and tell me that, top-to-bottom, Baylor isn’t the most exciting team to watch at the moment?
Big plays on offense, they’re rolling along nicely on defence – ask Oklahoma about that – and special teams haven’t been too shabby, either.
For the first time in perhaps ever, the Bears are nationally relevant, ranked at fourth after another week featuring a few upsets and off to a 9-0 start for the first time in school history, good for tops in the Big XII conference.
No wonder Briles got paid.
The dilemma, though, concerns what has happened, what is happening and what may possibly happen in the near future down in Austin, home of the University of Texas, whose Longhorns have had an up-and-down season, which many accustomed to runaway success on the gridiron as pinning on, or at least looking to pin on, veteran coach Mack Brown.
It can’t please some UT folk that Baylor and Texas A and M, also-rans for so many years compared to the might of Longhorn football, are now making waves far beyond what UT have done recently.
The Aggies have Johnny Manziel and are taking it to the best in the SEC and Baylor are on target to break a stack of records – they’ve already broken some – thanks to a ridiculously prolific and high-scoring offense.
Briles, of course, is the architect of that offense.
At Houston, he recruited Case Keenum and started that quarterback on his way to holding basically every NCAA quarterback record worth anything, and has found a similar sort of player in Bryce Petty, after Robert Griffin III shined, really spotlighting the rising Baylor program, and Nick Florence had his own share of touchdowns and passing yards last year.
Meanwhile, there’s trouble in Austin. Some there would like to see Mack Brown out the door, and he may well be forced out if Texas don’t somehow manage to get themselves into a good post-season Bowl game.
Their 38-13 loss to Oklahoma State last weekend was the worst home loss for the ‘Horns since Brown took over.
Just after the coach had quieted his detractors with a string of wins, they’re given fresh voice with a bad loss.
Make no mistake: Texas wants Nick Saban. Of course, they’re not alone. Every college program wants someone of Saban’s skill to head their problem.
The difference is, Texas can pay big money to lure the Alabama coach down into Longhorn territory. They have boosters who’ll pay whatever it might take to get a guy like Saban wearing burnt orange.
The popular theory is if Saban doesn’t want to go and coach in Austin, Art Briles might be the guy next on the Longhorn radar.
It would definitely be a good fall-back option for Texas, but the question is, would it be a good move for Art Briles?
I say, no. Stay where you are, Art, and don’t even think about moving!
Why? Simple. The times are changing. Right now, there is movement afoot in Texas football.
It was somewhat evident in the last few years, and really glaringly obvious now: the balance of power is shifting. The Longhorns, on top for so long, are sliding.
Into their place comes A and M, Baylor and even a Texas Tech unit resurgent under Kliff Kingsbury.
No longer is it a certain thing the best prospects from the state head straight down to Austin and enrol to be a Longhorn.
We’ve see homesick right back Lache Seastrunk leave Oregon and head for Baylor.
A few years ago, he would’ve gone to Texas, but the Bears have turned things around and are getting legitimate athletes going there to play football because they want to, not because no one else will take them.
As five-star recruits come in, more will follow. The groundswell is on.
For coaches, Waco is becoming a destination rather than another stop on the road to somewhere bigger and better.
It’s a place to be, and Briles is responsible, having built a solid program that figures to only get stronger from here.
So why leave? Briles has everything he could need at Baylor: a chance for a true rags-to-riches story, a line to some serious talent, and the Bears are next year moving into the state-of-the-art Baylor Stadium, which will be among the best in America upon completion.
Even his defence, a weak link a few years ago, is progressing nicely.
Most importantly, there is a lot more freedom and a lot less pressure on the coach of the Baylor Bears than on the coach of the Texas Longhorns.
School administrators at Texas demand instant success, and there’s a giant weight of expectation coming from a rabid fan-base, too.
Baylor are new to success, so a few speed-bumps along the way aren’t going to provoke so much angst.
I mean, half of Longhorn nation wanted Mack Brown out after two weeks. He might oversee a nine-win season and they’re thinking about showing him the door.
Basically, in Austin, if you’re not winning your conference and challenging for a National Championship every season – okay, maybe they’re allowed a down year every now and again, but not two or three strung together – you’re on the hot seat.
Yes, Texas can throw a heap of money at a coach – but those dollars come with an extraordinary amount of stress, too.
On the other hand, in Waco, there’s bound to be a lot less stress. Every school wants to win, but there isn’t a ‘win now or else’ mentality yet.
Who knows what the future may bring? With the uptick of Baylor football, there’s every chance that Texas won’t be the one big-time program in the state.
It’s tracking the way of there being a few programs being able to attract the top-end talent the Lone Star State is famous for.
Instead of Texas getting all but the occasional player falling though the recruiting cracks, I have a feeling the battle between the Longhorns, Bears, Aggies and Red Raiders is going to heat up.
Briles should know by now he doesn’t need to be in Austin to get the very best talent. He’s proven to himself – and everyone else – he can attract legitimate five-star recruits to Waco.
Why not stay there and continue the work that has already started?
Keep building the program up, and you’ll soon be spoken about in the same breath as the Longhorns, the supposed big brother of Texas football: nationally relevant, and a giant television draw.
It can be done, and if Briles sticks around, his name will forever be legendary around Waco.
Surely, Art, that’s going to be more rewarding than taking over a program built up by someone else?
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