Sam Houston State @ Baylor preview
Floyd Casey Stadium
The Lone Star state will be a familiar venue for Baylor, which will play the first six games of the season in Texas.
The Bears kick off the season Saturday night by hosting Sam Houston State, a Football Championship Subdivision program.
Baylor is looking to bounce back from a 4-8 record in 2009 in a season that was marred by the loss of talented quarterback prospect Robert Griffin III (RG3 to the Baylor home fans).
Griffin played like a man possessed as a freshman in 2008, posting 2,091 yards passing with 15 touchdowns and three interceptions. He also amassed 843 yards on 173 carries and 13 rushing touchdowns.
Last season, Griffin tore his knee in the third game and was sidelined for the rest of the year. Now that he’s healthy, Baylor coach Art Briles is looking for Griffin to bounce back with big numbers this season. Sophomore quarterback Nick Florence, who threw for 1,786 years and six touchdowns during Griffin's absence, remains an available option from the bench.
Among his weapons, Griffin will look to third-year starting receiver Kendall Wright (740 yards, 11.2 yards per carry in ’09) in the slot. Running back Jay Finley, who rushed for 370 yards last season while battling ankle injuries, will also be a handoff and check-down option.
Briles holds an 8-16 record heading into his third season with the Bears. Fans looking for signs of life can take heart that the program's 2010 recruiting class earned their best ranking (39th) from Rivals.com.
Sam Houston State is led by first-year coach Willie Fritz, who prior to a move to the Bearkats put up a 97-47 record at the University of Central Missouri. History will not be on Sam Houston’s side against Baylor, which has a 23-2 record against FCS opponents.
The Bearkats will start senior Bryan Randolph at quarterback. Randolph served as a backup in his previous two seasons following his transfer from Moorpark College in California, where he threw for 1,733 yards.
Sam Houston expects to be strong on special teams. Placekicker Miguel Antonio led the team in scoring with 73 points last season, including 37 of 38 point-after attempts. The Bearkats are hoping that punter Matt Foster, a native of Australia and a former Purdue walk-on, will lean on his Aussie Rules skills and 6-foot-6 size to become a formidable weapon.