ESPN College Football

Coaches we love to hate week is rolling on at ESPN.com, and today, it's familiar territory for the Big 12.

Some coaches are hated because they simply win too much. For the Big 12, it seems like that's the only reason why any coaches earn the hatred from fans.

For the most part, the coaches in the Big 12 are a civil bunch, with hardly a heated rivalry between them that inspires hate from the fans.

Nobody catches more flack for winning than Bob Stoops and Mack Brown. That's what happens when you win and do it for a long, long time.

Stoops has been accused more than once of running up the score in some of those wins, and when you look back on the 2008 season, it's easy to see why some might feel that way. The Sooners memorably scored 60 points in five consecutive games leading up to the national title, and scored at least 52 points in four more games.

The "leaving starters in" debate is a timeless one, and I tend to fall on the side of, "If you don't like it, stop them." Others don't, and Stoops catches the flack for it.

Simply put, Big 12 teams love beating OU and Texas more than any other school, and those winning traditions are the biggest reason why.

Stoops and Brown also have to deal with the incessant chorus from fans who argue that coaching at Oklahoma and Texas is simple: You get the best players, and you get the best record, regardless of your coaching acumen.

That couldn't be further from the truth. Brown and Stoops both inherited losing teams, and turned them into perennial winners who do recruit well and sign the best players in the Big 12 every season. To think that happens automatically is silly. You need good coaches to make it happen, and Brown and Stoops have personified that, even if Brown hasn't won as big as some expect with the type of talent Texas reels in.

In this debate, though, I'd argue Stoops and Brown aren't alone. In recent seasons, they've been joined by none other than Art Briles at Baylor.

The former Texas high school coach is quick with one-liners that earn the media's favor, but he talks about doing big, big things at Baylor. Things like Big 12 titles and telling players they can win Heisman trophies.

To those on the outside, it sounds like crazy talk.

Then, he goes and inches closer to those goals. He achieved the second one last season, and does anyone want to rule out a Big 12 title for the Bears?

The same people who want to do that probably would have done the same for Oklahoma State. Mike Gundy equaled or surpassed his win total in every season at Oklahoma State.

Briles has done the exact same, even while losing Robert Griffin III in a four-win campaign in 2009.

He won seven games the following year, and did the unthinkable by winning 10 games in 2011. Losing RG3 is a big blow, but he's stocked his team with loads of offensive talent, and signed five-star talents like safety Ahmad Dixon and running back Lache Seastrunk.

It's a new day at Baylor, and thanks to Briles, the Bears will soon be playing in a new stadium, too. As much as the rest of the Big 12 wants to pretend BU will go back to the same ol' Baylor without RG3, Briles will soon prove that no such thing's going to happen in Waco.

A word of advice on how to view the trio? Don't hate. Appreciate.

Earlier this week, the Sporting News ranked the Big 12 coaches from top to bottom, but later on, it released its rankings of the nation's coaches from top to bottom.

How'd the Big 12 stack up?

Better than the rest of the competition.

Alabama's Nick Saban topped the list -- argue with that at your own risk and UMass' Charley Molnar brought up the bottom.

Where do the Big 12 boys rank?

• No. 5: Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
• No. 7: Gary Patterson, TCU
• No. 10: Mike Gundy, Oklahoma State
• No. 11: Bill Snyder, Kansas State
• No. 16: Mack Brown, Texas
• No. 40: Charlie Weis, Kansas
• No. 41: Art Briles, Baylor
• No. 44: Dana Holgorsen, West Virginia
• No. 48: Paul Rhoads, Iowa State
• No. 50: Tommy Tuberville, Texas Tech

That's everybody well above the top half of the line.

From the Sporting News:

• The Big 12 coaches have by far the best average ranking: 27.2, which crushes the second-best SEC’s average ranking of 43.3. Next in line: the Pac-12 (43.8), ACC (45.6) and Big Ten (46.8).
• In our top 25 are five coaches apiece from the SEC and Big 12, four apiece from the Big Ten and Pac-12, and two apiece from the ACC and Mountain West.

What do you think?

For me, Stoops is where he needs to be. I might bump Patterson down a few spots, and Snyder up a few, just outside the top five. If someone can explain to me exactly how Weis should be above Briles, I'm all ears.

Briles has built a legitimate program in a place where it looked impossible. Weis' history as a head coach is taking a place where it should be impossible to lose, and eventually declining it until he was fired. Briles should be near the top 25.

I'd definitely move Paul Rhoads up about 10 spots, too. You could probably move Mack Brown down a couple spots, based on the hiccup in Texas' run lately. It's still to early to get a great feel for where Holgorsen should be.

What would you change?

Did you miss me? I know I missed you. We'll get to the Kansas and Kansas State spring games a little later today, as well as some NFL draft thoughts, but here's a little of what you missed since I've been gallivanting around Nashville. The Big 12 Blog offices, a.k.a., my brain, have relocated back to Dallas, though. Let's get back on track:

Todd Monken issues apology for comments

Oklahoma State offensive coordinator Todd Monken had some frank comments on this blog last week about Oklahoma quarterback Landry Jones, but issued an apology on Friday.

"I want to apologize to Landry Jones and to the Oklahoma football program for using them as a specific example to illustrate a point concerning how quickly an injury to a key player can impact how a team plays," Monken said. "While speaking to a visiting member of the media about the importance of a quarterback's confidence and demeanor, and about how quickly things can change in football, I made the mistake of making a specific reference to illustrate my point."

I get where Monken's coming here, but I thought he went above and beyond the call of duty to apologize. His comments were certainly frank, and politically incorrect, but he was right and he wasn't explicitly criticizing. He was pointing out a hard truth that was clear to anybody who watched Oklahoma last season. To me, the degree of uproar was surprising and a little ridiculous.

I read a few folks questioning Monken's understanding of the timing of the BellDozer's institution, but he wasn't saying the Sooners instituted it after Ryan Broyles' injury. He was simply saying it was a second factor in the second half of last season that made people doubt if Landry Jones was truly an elite quarterback. Jones certainly has it in him, but last season made you wonder. Monken's apology was correct, he characterized his comments exactly as he said them: He was illustrating an example. The best example just happened to be his rival. Oklahoma's going to get all bent out of shape about it, but Monken wasn't that far out of line. Above all, he was correct. Monken's a straight talker in a college football world devoid of them these days. Good move to apologize, though I'm not sure Oklahoma will care all that much about it. Bedlam's getting a whole lot more heated these days, and I'll be writing about that soon.

Baylor DE Tevin Elliott charged with sexual assault

Baylor announced Friday that starting defensive end Tevin Elliott had been suspended indefinitely. On Monday, we found out why.

Elliott was arrested and charged with sexual assault stemming from an April 15 incident in Waco. Not good news for the Bears, especially when coach Art Briles felt he had enough information on Friday to suspend one of his most gifted defenders. Briles won't have any further comment on the matter, and it's unlikely I will either until more information on the issue surfaces. For now, details are scarce. We'll see how this plays out.

'Worst trophy in sports' gets a new look

Last year's Cy-Hawk Trophy came and went all too fast. Now, the folks at Iowa Corn have found yet another version. It's pretty good. Or good enough, at least.

The new verson features both teams' mascots supporting a football coming up out of an ear of corn. Here's more on how it will look.

Good move, but Cy-Hawk, you'll always be this atrocity to me.

Another high-profile transfer headed to the Big 12?

The Big 12 welcomes Dayne Crist and Lache Seastrunk to the league this season, and another high-profile player could be coming.

Aaron Green, the nation's No. 11 overall prospect and No. 3 running back in the 2010 class, is leaving Nebraska and wants to be closer to his hometown of San Antonio, Texas.

The scatback never found a role in Nebraska's offense, and his father says Baylor, Houston, TCU, Texas A&M and Texas Tech are among the possible destinations.

TCU ought to make a push for him, if you ask me. Only Georgia's Isaiah Crowell and Texas' Malcolm Brown were more highly recruited out of high school.

Baylor kicked off last season with a memorable Friday night win over TCU. We'll see the Bears play twice outside of Saturday this season.

Baylor moved its season opener against SMU in Waco to Sunday. The game will be televised at 6:30 p.m. ET on Fox Sports Net.

Last season, Texas A&M played its season opener against SMU on Sunday night, too.

Baylor will play on Friday night two weeks later, too. Its road opener against Louisiana-Monroe will be televised on ESPN or ESPN2 on Sept. 21 at 8 p.m. ET.

"We welcome opportunities to play on television and are pleased with the visibility and opportunity for Baylor Nation to watch our games," coach Art Briles said in a release.

It's a good move for the Bears, who'll be entertaining to watch in 2012, but won't have the national draw of an electric player like Robert Griffin III to make everyone stop and watch.

The game against SMU should be particularly interesting. They'll get a big stage to themselves, and former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert may be lining up across from them.

Could we see a big game to kick off the year from new starter Nick Florence? Could be another star in the making.

Don't worry about a short week after the opener. The Bears are off in Week 2 before facing Sam Houston State. They'll have a six-day week to prepare for the road game against Monroe.

The spring is nearing its end with just a little over a week remaining for some.

Oklahoma State and West Virginia will wrap up their spring practices this weekend. Until then, it's time to break down where we stand in the quarterback competitions around the league.

Baylor: Bears coach Art Briles said it was Nick Florence's job to lose entering the spring, and Florence did nothing to let Briles down. Instead, he seized the job ahead of talented backup Bryce Petty, who has a bright future ahead of himself. Florence gave up his redshirt last season by playing the second half against Texas Tech, but he'll try to make his senior season count. For now, this is his team.

Iowa State: Nothing's been settled after Iowa State's spring game last Saturday. Steele Jantz got back into the race when Jared Barnett struggled in the bowl game, and the competition was too close to call at the end of spring. ISU coach Paul Rhoads even said redshirt freshman Sam Richardson isn't out of the race. Former QB Jerome Tiller is, though. He was in the four-man competition last spring, which Jantz eventually won, but missed the season because of academic issues. He's a receiver now, and doing well at the position.

Kansas: Charlie Weis brought in his guy, Dayne Crist, from Notre Dame, and last year's starter, Jordan Webb, transferred. Crist has entrenched himself as the starter midway through spring practice, which ends with the spring game on April 28. BYU transfer Jake Heaps is taking reps with the second team now, but he'll be phased out in the fall while he sits out his NCAA-mandated redshirt season after transferring.

Kansas State: Collin Klein is still developing as a passer, but he is K-State's offense. Moving on ...

Oklahoma: Landry Jones returned for his senior season, but with a healthy set of running backs, the Belldozer, a power formation named after big-bodied backup Blake Bell, may be phased out this season. Bell, though, showcased his arm in the spring game and outperformed the older Drew Allen. The backup QB race should be interesting to watch this fall.

Oklahoma State: Coach Mike Gundy really wanted to name a starter by the end of spring, but it doesn't look likely to happen. No quarterback has established any distance, but they'll have a huge chance in Saturday's spring game. For now, true freshman Wes Lunt is still in the race, though dual-threat man J.W. Walsh may be the favorite ahead of junior Clint Chelf, who has some game experience the past two seasons. This is the league's best race, but also its most difficult to predict. Just about anything could happen.

Texas: Coach Mack Brown isn't making anything official, but sophomore David Ash was getting nearly all the first-team reps in the spring, ahead of Case McCoy. There's no official title yet, but there would be major shock if anyone but Ash starts the season opener. Now, if Ash struggles...

TCU: Casey Pachall had a great first year, and brings back his top three targets in Josh Boyce, Skye Dawson and Brandon Carter. The sky is the limit for Pachall.

Texas Tech: The Red Raiders' staff liked what Seth Doege did as a first-year starter, but the defense and injuries to his offense put too much strain on him in 2011. He'll look a lot better if his receivers and running backs can stay healthy.

West Virginia: Geno Smith may be the league's best quarterback, and coach Dana Holgorsen can't quit calling him "special." That's not to say he should. It could be a special season for him and the Mountaineers as they join the Big 12.

WACO, Texas -- The raw numbers were far from encouraging, so how would Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Bennett assess his first defense?

"We weren’t by any stretch of the imagination a dominant defense," Bennett said.

The Bears gave up more than 37 points; only seven teams in college football gave up more. Bennett's unit gave up just under 490 yards a game; only four teams gave up more.

It wasn't pretty, and everybody knew it.

But even in the gaudy numbers, Bennett saw reasons to believe 2012 could be much better. Baylor's six-game winning streak to close the season was the longest among teams in automatic qualifying leagues. Along the way, the Bears forced 14 more turnovers than they committed.

"We were just so inexperienced, but the thing I will tell you, our turnovers came at the right time," Bennett said. "I thought we became an opportunistic defense."

Most importantly, they made the plays to win those games. Of course, having a Heisman winner in Robert Griffin III on offense helped a little bit, too.

"It’s obvious with Robert gone and what we did offensively, there’s a new challenge for us," Bennett said. "We’ve got to get stops and become so much better in our consistency level."

What could provide that consistency? The experience gained from a team that had almost none in 2011. Only two players -- defensive tackles Nick Jean-Baptiste and Tracy Robertson -- played the same position in 2011 that they had in 2010.

"I thought we lined up well, we played hard, but we weren’t consistent," Bennett said. "We’d do some things really good, but our tackling was atrocious at times. And I think a lot of that is when you’re unsure of yourself, you don’t play with a lot of confidence. We’ve got basically 9-10 guys that played quite a bit who have bright days ahead."

Fixing that "atrocious tackling" was the primary objective for Bennett's defense in the spring.

"If we can be a better tackling team, great things are going to happen. We’re watching the OU game and there’s a third-and-12 and they throw a swing pass," Bennett said. "Hell, they throw a swing pass, you ought to get out of there, right?"

Turning those frustrating missed opportunities into stops is as simple as tackling for a defense that has the athleticism to be better.

"I’m very excited about the direction of our defense, no doubt. Phil’s a tremendous communicator and a tremendous leader, our guys have enormous respect for him and what he brings to the table and what he’s going to bring to the table," coach Art Briles said. "We just had the appetizer, now we’re getting to the full course this year."

WACO, Texas -- Nick Florence didn't have to come to Baylor. He didn't have to stay.

If football has been his only reason for coming to Waco, it'd be easy to see why he might've gone elsewhere.

But Florence did.

He stepped in as a freshman when future Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III tore his ACL, then stepped off the stage for the next two seasons while Griffin wrote his legacy.

Plenty of quarterbacks would have waved goodbye.

Florence didn't.

Here's why.

--

Florence didn't lose a game as a freshman at South Garland (Texas) High School. A year later, he took over the varsity squad in midseason and carried the team to a third-round loss in the state playoffs to Lufkin, led by Dez Bryant, now a receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.

"The QB that started the year as the starter, every opportunity Nick had, he would encourage him," said Mickey Moss, Florence's high school coach who now heads up a program in Rockwall, Texas. Throughout his career, Moss has put about 50 players into Division I programs like Nebraska, Oklahoma and Missouri.

"When Nick took over, he'd lead the senior linemen and just encourage them and give them confidence and praise. I was like, 'I’ve never seen a kid like this who had such confidence and maturity.'"

Florence earned a reputation on and off the field. Before school began, he and teammates would walk through the school's hallways while praying for classmates who would congregate there during the school year, which began in a few weeks. When school began, he'd join his twin brother, Luke, and others to often pray for classmates before class during the week.

"That’s just who he was and he believed in making a difference in the lives of other people," Moss said. "His leadership? He’s just got it."

His youth pastor at Lake Highlands Church in Dallas eventually took a job at Antioch Community Church in Waco, and Florence wanted to join him.

Florence pestered Moss to make a few calls down to Baylor. Moss did so and asked coaches if they'd seen Florence on film.

Minutes later, he got a call back.

Baylor offered Florence his first major scholarship offer, and Florence made it his only one.

"Nick just felt like this was where God wanted him to be, and that’s Nick," Moss said. "He does so much based on faith."

The problem? The coach who called back with that offer was Guy Morriss, who was fired after the 2007 season. Enter Art Briles and a kid from Copperas Cove whom nobody thought could play quarterback.

Briles, then at Houston, brought Cougars commit Robert Griffin III to Baylor with him, the two having faith of their own that they could win in Waco, which hadn't seen a winning football season since 1995.

Briles had his man, but honored Morriss' offer to Florence, whose playing time looked like it would be sparse.

"If God wanted you to be here and that’s what you believe, he doesn’t change his mind," Moss says he remembers telling Florence. "Knowing Robert Griffin was going to be the quarterback didn’t faze him."

Along the way, Florence kept working. He earned the respect of teammates. In the meantime, he got his business degree, worked closely with his church and married his wife, Rachel, last May. The two plan to enter the ministry whenever Florence's football career is over.

"His pastor told me, in all the locker rooms he’s been in, he’s never let his eyes view another naked woman in his life in print on TV or anywhere else until his wedding day. That says a lot about who he is, but also how others respect him," Moss said. "He doesn’t throw his faith in your face. Not at all. He has a genuine care, concern and love for people, and he’s always looking to make a difference. ... He’s going to compete, but the biggest thing I always believed he was going to do was make an impact in the locker room with his character and integrity."

Florence had been on campus a couple of years but RG3 was proving his mettle as the man at Baylor. Briles met with Moss and gushed about his backup.

"That kid is a winner," Moss recalls Briles saying.

He's done it since he was a freshman in high school, and now that the starting job at Baylor is nearly Florence's officially, he doesn't plan on that changing.

"You watch him play and it’s like, what’s special about him?" Moss said. "He wins. He leads. He makes plays. His throwing motion wasn’t the greatest. His speed wasn’t the greatest. His strength wasn’t the greatest. But the kid won, and then he influenced everyone around him."

When Griffin's knee injury meant Florence had to step in as a wide-eyed freshman, it also meant winning wasn't going to happen. It didn't. Baylor fell to 4-8 and won just one conference game, at Missouri when Florence set the school record for passing yards.

"He’s a different guy, just like I am since 2009 and like everybody. As you grow you mature, you learn to get better in everything you see act or do," Briles said. "He’s a guy that was thrown into a fire as a true freshman. Now, he’s had a chance to sit back and learn the system, understand what his strengths are, how to use them and what he needs to do to help this team grow."

Said Florence: "I'm not that 180-pound freshman anymore."

Baylor got a preview of its 205-pound senior in November when a concussion sidelined Griffin at Cowboys Stadium, near Florence's hometown.

Florence hopped off the bench just before halftime and completed 9 of 12 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns to help Baylor keep its winning streak alive with a 66-42 victory over Texas Tech. That streak reached six games by season's end, the longest current string among AQ schools in college football.

Florence logged a memorable moment, but he also logged enough playing time to burn his redshirt and leave him with just one year of eligibility remaining entering 2012.

"He’s a guy who’ll do whatever and whatever happens in life, he’ll deal with it. If that means he has one year left to play, that means that’s what God’s will is. He’s obedient," Moss said. "If the team needed him to come in there and help win that game and burn his redshirt and then not play again the rest of the year, that’s OK with him."

Baylor needed Florence to come in and win that game. He did it. Now it's time to take over the full-time job of being the man who follows the man who did the unthinkable: winning a Heisman Trophy at Baylor.

"We don’t talk in terms of replacing. It’s just, what do we need to do now to do what we need to do at the end of July?" Briles said. "That’s the most important thing. We may not be able to do some of the same things we were able to do prior, so we’ve got to figure out different ways to do things and still have success."

Florence is no hurdler. He can't run 40 yards in 4.4 seconds and doesn't have an arm that will have NFL scouts drooling. For the time being, though, he does have the keys to Baylor's offense.

"It’s a great opportunity not everybody gets. I want to make the most of it and take advantage," Florence said.

That offense is going to look a little different now. Briles says time will show just how different it'll be.

"That’s the exciting part about it," Briles said. "We’ve got to expand and become better in all other areas scheme-wise, coaching-wise, player/individual technique-wise, and so that to me is the very exciting part, because we have to become a better football team."

Florence wants his chance to show he's the man to make Baylor a better team. Florence has proved his intangibles since high school, and as he's gotten older, they've only become more ingrained. Now is his chance to show them off to everyone outside of Baylor's practice field.

"When guys come in the huddle they have great confidence and respect in him. They know who he is. They know there’s not a selfish bone in his body, but at the same time, they know he’s a heck of a competitor," Moss said. "I’ve never been around a kid like Nick Florence, and I imagine I never will again."

WACO, Texas -- One man lays underneath 225 pounds on a bench press, in the midst of proving to NFL scouts he can lift it a whole lot of times.

Around the bench are at least 15 others who won't get a turn, at least not this year. They're there to provide (extremely) vocal moral support.

Maybe their yells of encouragement mean another rep or two from their former teammate. They're going to do everything possible to make sure.

Their presence isn't just for the benefit of the men running 40-yard dashes or bench-pressing 225 pounds as many times as they can -- the results of each task potentially earning them more money on their first NFL contract.

Players with another year or more before they get a chance to show their stuff to NFL scouts at a pro day or the combine can learn a lot from showing up to pro day, whether they offer moral support or not.

"This is a day about dreams becoming touchable," said Baylor coach Art Briles. "They’re not on paper. They’re not in your head. They’re real. You can see them and touch them."

It's not every day NFL head coaches are walking around a college indoor facility, like they were at Baylor and Texas this week, as well as Stanford on Thursday and tens of others through the spring.

Briles knows the element of the intangible becoming tangible makes pro days special, especially for players who didn't get a prized slot at the NFL combine.

"At the combine, they told us millions of kids play high school football, 65,000 play college football, 350 or so of us get invited to the combine and only 256 get drafted," said Texas linebacker Emmanuel Acho. "That’s a harsh reality to come to grips with. If you come to grips with it in college, you’ll work that much harder."

But for all the cloud-floating that can come with a day when dreams are realized, there are plenty of details younger players can pick up on while scouts scrutinize.

"A big main key was, to me, follow directions and listen to what they’re telling you to do. If you can do that, everything else is up to you," Texas running back Fozzy Whittaker said. "You have all control over following directions and just listen to what they’re saying in terms of running a drill or running a route. Staying outside of cones rather than running inside, just the simple things you can control mentally. There’s a lot of things I’ve seen that’ll affect the coaches, because if you have three guys that do the same drill and they all do it right and the fourth guy messes it up, it’s like, what were you doing the whole time the other guys were doing it?"

There's a lot to focus on for everyone involved with pro days, but the undercurrent is the same for everyone -- from first-round picks to probable post-draft free agents.

"All these guys have worked their way into this," Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Bennett said. "It's an earned right to get to do what they’re doing."

They earned the right for NFL coaches to see them, but even underclassmen get that opportunity after pro day is over. Some NFL personnel stick around campus for practice in the afternoon to get a jump on seeing up close the players they'll be seeing at next year's pro day.

"Knowledge is power. If they see you have knowledge of the game, it allows you to play fast. If you have knowledge, you have confidence. That’s what they look for," Bennett said. "Kids call it swagger, or whatever it is, but when you're confident in what you’re doing, you play fast. When pros come in here, that’s what they look for, the guys that know what they’re doing and play like they know what they’re doing."

To prepare for pro day, most prospects leave school for training facilities. Baylor's Robert Griffin III spent the past few months in Arizona. Texas linebacker Keenan Robinson went to California. They're away from teammates for months, and when they return in anticipation of a pro day, it's easy for underclassmen to see what those intense training regimens do. Robinson and Griffin saw it in their own teammates.

"The players hadn’t seen me in a couple months, see the transformation that my body has made, just seeing the work ethic I had to get where I am today, how it really helped improve my stock," Robinson said. "When you go out for training, you can’t just go out there lollygagging and being complacent. You have to go every day with a burden on your back and strive to be the best player, because someone else around the country is doing what you’re doing, and maybe more."

Even with those transformations, training can't begin when the bowl game ends.

"The stuff I was able to do today didn’t come from me training after the season was over," Robinson said. "It came from all the hard work and hard labor I put in from the end of my senior year of high school until now."

Said Acho: "If you wait for the three-month stretch after the bowl game, you won’t perform at a high level. But if you work with that same mentality in every individual period before practice and come out here, it’ll be second nature."

Pro days can be pressure-packed, but ultimately, everyone's faced with the biggest truth of a day that often feels enormous: The biggest work NFL coaches want to see is already done.

"The first thing you can do is play hard, because tape doesn’t lie. One NFL coach was telling me, 'We were watching a play and this kid looked like he turned something down.' I mean, they watch everything," Bennett said. "So, when you’re playing and practicing, you better know, somebody’s watching. And it might not just be your coaches, it might be your future coaches."

WACO, Texas -- Baylor's football team enjoyed its second 10-win season in school history, but it also boasts two basketball teams in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, too, after a pair of wins over the weekend.

Add all that up, and Baylor's got an athletic director in contention for the Sports Business Journal's Athletic Director of the Year, too.

It's a banner year in Waco.

"I don’t know how you say Day of the Bear, what is it, 'Dia De Oso?' But how do you say year? That’s what we need to learn how to say," Briles joked before Monday's practice.

Año de la Oso indeed. This has been the Year of the Bear in college sports. The Bears are in the beginning stages of getting fundraising for a new stadium they hope opens in 2014 and couldn't ask for a better team.

It's not every year you have a reigning Heisman winner roaming campus. Before December, it wasn't any year.

But it's March, and Briles is enjoying the ride the hoops teams are taking the Baylor community on for the last week and beyond.

Coach Kim Mulkey and superstar Brittney Griner has the Lady Bears undefeated and the favorites to win their first national title since 2005.

The men's team advanced to a second consecutive Sweet 16 and played in the Big 12 Championship game last week, boasting a star of their own in Perry Jones III who'll be a likely lottery pick in this summer's NBA Draft.

"It’s amazing. They’re doing an outstanding job. Both teams look focused and energized. It’s terrific," he said. "It’s been a lot of fun, we’ve got to keep it going."

Is Briles watching?

"Shoot, yeah," he said. "We’ve all got the same first name, and that’s Baylor. So, we’re all just happy for what’s going on. It’s great for our university and great for the individual programs that are playing ball."

WACO, Texas -- Lache Seastrunk has changed his address, coming back home to Texas after a season at Oregon.

He's changed his number, electing to wear No. 25 instead of the No. 6 he wore on the sidelines last season and the No. 15 he wore as a Duck.

He sat out the 2011 season when, after transferring, his request to have his NCAA-mandated redshirt year waived was denied. Now, the nation's No. 6 running back in the 2010 recruiting class finally has a chance to compete for a spot on the depth chart and earn his first official carry as a college athlete.

But after essentially two years without playing competitive football, where is his spot on his new team with a new shades of green and gold?

"We’ll find out. That’s what the spring’s for. He had to sit out the fall so he’s out here this spring on the same ground as everybody else with the same chance to prove himself," Baylor coach Art Briles said.

"We’ll see if he can live up to his advertisement. We’re certainly hoping he can."

His "advertisement" is a reputation as a gamebreaking athlete with dangerous speed and shifty moves crafted to embarrass defenders.

Seastrunk signed with Oregon after an All-American high school career in Temple, Texas, about 35 miles south of Waco. After signing, though, he found himself in the middle of a recruiting controversy and an NCAA investigation that alleged Willie Lyles steered him to Oregon in exchange for money from the Ducks, which would be a violation. The NCAA's investigation is still ongoing.

Seastrunk also found himself near the bottom of the depth chart, passed up by the younger De'Anthony Thomas. The skills were there, but the production wasn't. The skills are still there, will the production follow?

"He’s a very explosive runner, he’s really fast and really shifty," said fellow running back Jarred Salubi, one of three backs competing to replace Big 12 rushing champ Terrance Ganaway this spring. "As far as what you’re going to see, it’s up to him to show y’all, but I’m expecting big things from him."

He elected for a change of scenery just before the 2011 season began.

"[We've seen] great comfort in being back home and being at Baylor. Great energy, great want-to, which is a great first step for anybody wanting to do an outstanding job, and just very hungry and very humble," Briles said. "He’s been nothing but an absolute great teammate and hopefully on the path to being a great contributor, because that’s what we brought him here for, to contribute."

To be the top contributor, he'll have to pass more experienced teammates in junior Glasco Martin and Salubi, a senior. But Seastrunk still has plenty of time beyond 2012.

Baylor's just waiting for him to take advantage and earn an opportunity to turn that potential into production. For the Bears, no change in Seastrunk would be more welcomed.

You hear it often when anyone talks about Baylor's Heisman winner, Robert Griffin III.

"It's hard to put into words just what he's meant to the university," they say.

Indeed, it's true.

But you can put it into dollars. Want some scope of what RG3 means to Baylor? Look no further than what Baylor hopes soon becomes "Baylor Stadium" a gorgeous riverside venue that will seat 45,000 and make the Bears' stadium a must-see venue in the Big 12 and really, the college football world.

If you weren't paying attention on Tuesday, here's a refresher:

Baylor has taken the next step in building a new on-campus stadium.

The school received the biggest gift in university history for Baylor's new on-campus football stadium alongside the Brazos River, according to a release on Tuesday.

Elizabeth and Drayton McLane Jr. gave the gift for an amount unspecified by the school, but it's the lead step toward the fundraising necessary for a new stadium that Baylor hopes will open for the 2014 season.

"We believe strongly in the university's distinct and important role as a Christian institution dedicated to academic excellence at the highest level," McLane said in the release.

The school released several additional artist renderings of the stadium along with the announcement.

Sure, RG3 has yet to pledge any dollars to the campaign, though that may change after he starts cashing advertising and NFL checks. Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh donated $2.6 million on his own before even signing his contract. (No pressure though, RG3.)

But make no mistake: Without Griffin, this stadium never comes close to happening.

Excitement around the program is at an all-time high. Coach Art Briles has a lot to do with that, too -- almost as much as Griffin.

But Griffin provided a legitimacy to the program that no coach could. He proved that Baylor could do big, big things, like win a Heisman Trophy.

That, and he proved the program could win 10 games in a top conference like the Big 12, something Baylor had never come close to doing before Griffin arrived.

He proved, more than anything, that Baylor was a program worth alumni money. If they pump it in, results are possible. Griffin proved it.

Future generations will reap the benefits if the new stadium becomes a reality.

So, if this all goes according to plan, and on some hot, sweaty September Saturday in Waco in 2014, you're wearing green and gold and walking along the Brazos River toward Baylor Stadium, be sure to take a moment and say, "Thanks, RG3."

Baylor has taken the next step in building a new on-campus stadium.

The school received the biggest gift in university history for Baylor's new on-campus football stadium alongside the Brazos River, according to a release on Tuesday.

Elizabeth and Drayton McLane Jr. gave the gift for an amount unspecified by the school, but it's the lead step toward the fundraising necessary for a new stadium that Baylor hopes will open for the 2014 season.

"We believe strongly in the university's distinct and important role as a Christian institution dedicated to academic excellence at the highest level," McLane said in the release.

The school released several additional artist renderings of the stadium along with the announcement.

"We recognize that we are living in a remarkable time in the history of Baylor athletics, and we are blessed to have loyal, courageous and generous friends in Elizabeth and Drayton McLane, and their family, who have stepped forward to encourage all of us to take hold of a rare opportunity for our football program," Baylor president Ken Starr said in the release. "Their significant leadership gift will secure Baylor's position among the nation's elite collegiate athletics programs, while providing our alumni, students and student-athletes a game day experience like none other in Baylor history."

For more on this story, go here.

More thoughts from yours truly on Baylor's stadium are on the way on Wednesday, too.

Spring is already underway at three Big 12 schools (Texas, TCU, Texas Tech), but it's March today, and we're headed for full swing this month.

Here's what you can expect when it comes to quarterback competitions this fall. Each spot is ranked from most to least secure entering spring 2012.

FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS

1. Oklahoma State: This should be the best battle by far. Junior Clint Chelf is the elder statesman of the group, but redshirt freshman J.W. Walsh and early enrolling true freshman Wes Lunt were both much more highly recruited. Lunt hails from Illinois and Walsh from Denton, Texas, but Chelf, from nearby Enid, Okla., will try to hold off the younger guys to grab the reins of one of the most powerful passing offenses in the country.

2. Texas: The Longhorns didn't resolve much late in the season, but David Ash had the best finish, helping Texas win the Holiday Bowl. Case McCoy is back, too, though, and the coaches say the competition is still wide open. Early enrolling freshman Connor Brewer would like to crash the party, and he and Ash are more physically gifted passers, but McCoy made plenty of plays during the season. He'll be right there fighting, too.

TIME TO LOCK IT DOWN

3. Iowa State: Jared Barnett looked like the future of the program over the second half of the season, but struggled down the stretch and opened the door for senior Steele Jantz, who helped Iowa State start the season 3-0 before being benched for Barnett. It's probably Barnett's job, but he's got to earn it. If he doesn't improve, Jantz could take advantage.

4. Baylor: Nick Florence started nine games in 2009 with mixed results, but looked good in relief of Heisman winner Robert Griffin III in a win over Texas Tech. Coach Art Briles says it's Florence's job to lose to start the spring, but Bryce Petty will be looming during the spring, too.

5. Kansas: Last year's starter, Jordan Webb, has transferred, and ex-Golden Domer Dayne Crist is on campus and taking part in promotional videos for the program. He looks like the guy, but juco national champion Turner Baty is joining the team, too. Could Michael Cummings be a factor, too? Jake Heaps is waiting his turn until 2013 while he sits out his NCAA-mandated redshirt season after transferring from BYU.

FIX ALL THE LITTLE THINGS

6. Oklahoma: Hush, Sooner fans clamoring for Blake Bell. He's part of the Belldozer gadget formation that produced 13 rushing touchdowns in the final half of 2011. But it's exactly that, a gadget formation. If OU can run the ball between the tackles well next year, we may not even see much of it. He's not touching Landry Jones' spot, though. Jones enters 2011 as a legitimate Heisman contender.

7. Kansas State: Collin Klein is the guy at Kansas State, but he's still got to develop as a passer. We'll see what kind of growth he shows this offseason.

8. Texas Tech: The Red Raiders' coaches were pleased with Seth Doege's performance in all but two games (Iowa State, Oklahoma State), but the defense gave him almost no chance to succeed. He's back this spring. Michael Brewer's development is encouraging, but it's highly unlikely we see any shift in the starter's status.

9. TCU: Casey Pachall threw for 25 touchdowns, seven picks and completed 66.5 percent of his passes. His top three targets return. When it comes to the QB spot, the spring is about preparing for a big year on offense at TCU.

10. West Virginia: Geno Smith makes WVU's offense go, and he'll be back for his senior year with big hopes in Morgantown. Smith threw for 4,385 yards and 31 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. Like Pachall, Smith's spring is about getting ready for a memorable Big 12 debut.

Thanks for all the questions today. It was a fun chat. Here's the full transcript.

And now, time for some highlights:

Chris Fiegler (Latham,NY): Who will be the Best Quarterback in the Big 12 in 2012?

David Ubben: It'll be a two-horse race between Geno Smith and Landry Jones.

Paul (Stillwater): Ubbs - seems like a lot of scounts are hating on weeden and blackmon. they say that blackmon isn't tall enough or fast enough and that weeden's 100 yrs old can't make the tight throws. have these guys not seen the game film and are all these measurables that important?

David Ubben: I'd say you're not listening very closely, Paul. Blackmon's a near lock in the top five, and Weeden's a strong candidate for the No. 3 QB in this draft. He didn't throw well at the combine, but he's got skills. The age thing is more a question about his longevity in the league, not his actual skill.

Bear (Dallas): Do you feel like you should get a Gut Pak now after all the Baylor comments?

David Ubben: It sounded pretty good today. I was sifting through the e-mails today (There were a ton. Thanks, Baylor fans.) and I could about taste it. Look for the full guide on Wednesday.

Mason (Texas): This week we heard Dick Ebersol's name mentioned as a possible candidate for Big 12 Commish. You hearing about or willing to speculate about any other names?

David Ubben: Nope. I've heard a few, but nothing I'd go with yet. Bringing in Jack Swarbrick from ND seems like a terrible idea. The last thing the Big 12 needs is a close personal friend of DeLoss Dodds becoming the commissioner. Britton Banowsky, the commissioner of the C-USA, is one name that keeps popping up, though.

DoTheGundy (Tulsa): Who is your choice for breakout offensive player for next year?

David Ubben: Tough call here. There are lots of candidates. I'll go with Darrin Moore at Texas Tech. Do Terrance Williams or Lache Seastrunk at Baylor count?

W (Anaheim): Since they have no respect for KSU, who's going to replace Mizzou as KU's most hated rival?

David Ubben: No, here's the deal: That's going to change. Losing Mizzou is going to hurt. The immediate result will be KU taking that rivalry with K-State a whole lot more seriously. The Sunflower Showdown is about to get an upgrade.

Donnie (Oklahoma): Jake Trotter's chat on the SoonerNation blog suggested that part of UT's issues the last couple of years is partly due to them signing most of their class before they play their senior years thusly not getting to fully evaluate their talent growth potential (basically). What is your thoughts on this theory?

David Ubben: That's part of it. It's not all of it. When you have guys committing (Not signing. Players all sign at the same time) so early, it increases the variables. Texas has been part of the reason why guys are committing earlier and earlier. That wasn't all the reason, though. I don't think Texas was evaluating players as thoroughly as they had in the past, and development has been an issue, too. Part of that is on the player, but part of it's on the staff, too.

Mark (Texas): What's a realistic first year for TCU in the Big 12 next year?

David Ubben: Best-case scenario: 11-1. My pick: 9-3

Rainy (Oklahoma): Dear Sir, Do you think it will take a National Championship and/or a Heisman caliber season for Landry Jones to vindicate himself of the frustration he's caused alot of Sooner fans? Or do you think it will take less than that?

David Ubben: One or the other would probably help. At Oklahoma, sorry to say for Jones, that's probably what it would take. The bar is so high in Norman. You can't win 11 games and think that'll please people. Jones has already won a BCS bowl and a Big 12 title. Still, it hasn't been enough.

Dave (MD): Is it just me, or does the Big 12 seem to have the best collection of coaches in the country? Mack and Stoops have been doing it for years, Gundy/Briles/Rhodes seem rock solid. Snyder is a magician. Tubbs, once a hot commodity, is probably on the lower tier in the Big 12.

David Ubben: Maybe so. He's got a better resume than a lot of those guys, but we're still waiting for him to do something at Tech. He's recruited well, which is a good step, but Tech's only won 13 games in two years. That's been unheard of in Lubbock lately.

Jamie (Dallas): If you had to pick a 2012 Big 12 rushing champ right this instant, who would you choose and why?

David Ubben: Joseph Randle. He'll have a great O-line, and with a young QB and unproven big-time receivers, OSU will lean on him.

Levi Stevenson (Ames, IA): What sort of improvement do you expect from Jared Barnett in his sophomore season?

David Ubben: He's got to be consistent on the easy throws. That's the first thing for any young QB. Look at how he played in the Pinstripe Bowl: He just has to be better. Slants, eight-yard outs, flats. Those throws have to be on the money 90-95% of the time. He was all over the place in the last couple games.

Mo (Texas): Come on Ubs, 9-3 for TCU? That's a little high. They will have success, but they are REALLY upgrading their schedule. I'm thinking closer to 7.

David Ubben: Upgrading their schedule, yes. But Mo, I think you're underestimating the kind of talent they have returning in 2011. Three 700-yard rushers? A big-time QB? Three great receivers with plenty of potential to go with their production? The Horned Frogs offense will be as good as anyone's.

Tony (Richmond, CA): Ubbs, Kendall Wright ran a 4.6 40 at the combine. I thought he was much faster than that. Is simply a case of jitters, and not rising to the occasion, or I was mistaken about his speed? How much did he damage his stock?

David Ubben: No idea. That was eye popping to me. Maybe he was banged up. Maybe he trained poorly before the draft. I don't know, but he was much faster than that during the season.

Generally, I think the Big 12 coaching fraternity is exactly that: fraternal.

Unlike their hoops brethren, there's not a lot of hate being thrown between the league's coaches. The Big Ten and SEC can't say that. Certainly the Pac-12 (What's your deal?!) can't stake that claim either.

But maybe I'm wrong. Inspired by the Big Ten blog, it's time for a poll.

Have the Big 12 coaches given you a reason to hate them? Which ones do you hate most?

Mack Brown's and Bob Stoops names come up first, but if I'm guessing, I think it's mostly what comes with the territory of coaching the two teams in the Big 12 that win the most often, and winning a whole lot over their decade-plus tenures.

Baylor's exercised a little bit of upward mobility in recent years, and at least one media flap didn't earn Art Briles any friends. Baylor's rise has ruffled a few feathers, so Briles becomes an option on this poll.

Beyond that, though, I think the Big 12's lacking for guys some fans hate these days. Beyond those three, I don't know if anybody fits the bill.

Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy has outrun his rant into a Big 12 title with homegrown players and recruiting classes that were just OK.

Everybody loves Paul Rhoads and Bill Snyder, two guys who hang their hat on maximizing talent more than anyone else in the league. Heck, half the coaches in the Big 12 worked for Snyder at one point.

Tommy Tuberville hasn't quite done enough or won enough in the Big 12 to make very many enemies. Bring up Tuberville's "pine box" and most Big 12 fans wouldn't respond with much more than a "Huh?"

Anybody feeling angry at the new guys? TCU's Gary Patterson or second-year coach/former OSU coordinator Dana Holgorsen? What about Kansas' Charlie Weis? He's disliked nationally for flaming out at Notre Dame, but do Big 12 fans have an emotional response?

So, who do you dislike the most? Vote in our poll and tell us in the comments.

Today's Valentine's Day, but there's plenty of room for less than lovey-dovey stuff. Here's your chance.