Baylor Avoids Upset Against Sam Houston
by Cheval John
It was a tail of two halves for the Sam Houston State Bearkat football team.
The Bearkats were in control in the first half when they held the Bears to only a field goal in their first three possessions.
On the other hand, the Bearkats scored 6 points on a pair of field goals by Miguel Antonio in their first three possessions to lead 6-3.
The Bears scored their first touchdown when quarterback Nick Florence connected with wide receiver Terrance Williams for 18 yards to lead it 10-3.
The Bearkats finally scored their first touchdown on a 1 yard run by quarterback Brian Bell to lead it 10-6.
The touchdown run capped off a 7 play, 75 yard drive by the Bearkats that had a pass interference penalty on the Bears.
They scored in their next possession when Brian Bell connected with running back Tim Flanders for a 26 yard touchdown that extended the lead to 20-10.
It seemed as if they were going to pull off a major upset at Floyd Casey Stadium in Waco, Texas.
But the Bears came out in the second half and outscored the Bearkats 38-3, behind a gutsy second half performance by Florence to win 48-23 and improve to 2-0.
Though Florence went 24 of 41 for 312 yards, 3 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, he made plays when it was needed.
With the Bears (2-0) leading 31-23, Florence ran for 60 yards all the way to the 3 yard line that set up the score to extend the lead to 38-23 and eventually put the game out of reach.
The Bears finished with 544 yards of total offense while the Bearkats (1-1) produce 411 yards, with Bell passing for 285 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions.
Flanders finished with 84 yards on 16 carries.
Preview of Bearkats-Bears Football Game
by Cheval John
The day is almost here when Sam Houston State Bearkats plays against the Baylor Bears tomorrow night at 6 p.m on Fox College Sports.
The Bears have an all-time record of 3-0 against the Bearkats.
The last time they met was two years ago when Willie Fritz began his tenure as head football coach for the Bearkats.
They lost to the Bears 34-3 with Robert Griffith III (RG3) at the helm.
The game also featured an unknown running back at the time in Tim Flanders.
Flanders made a 31 yard run on his first carry in the final minutes of the game and eventually went on to great heights at SHSU. (More on him later.)
The Bears are looking to get back in the Associated Press national polls this season while the Bearkats are aiming for their second consecutive win against an Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) team.
They defeated New Mexico 48-45 in overtime.
Here is a scouting report on both teams.
Baylor:
They are entering the game with a 1-0 record after demolishing Southern Methodist University (SMU) 59-24 at Floyd Casey Stadium.
In that game, they accumulated 613 yards in total offense in 20 minutes of possession.
The team is led by senior quarterback Nick Florence.
Though he is no RG3, he a very efficient quarterback that have plenty of experience in the collegiate game.
He completed 21 of 30 passes for 341 yards, 4 touchdowns and 0 interceptions.
He has improved from his freshman year, when he started seven games for an injured Griffith III and second stringer Blake Szymanski and thrown for 1,786 yards, with six touchdowns and nine interceptions.
One of his favorite targets is senior wide receiver Terrance Williams.
Williams had 7 receptions for 138 yards in the game.
This offense is highly explosive and will need to produce as many points as possible if they are going to beat SHSU because the defense gave up a total of 507 yards against SMU’s offense.
Sam Houston State:
The Bearkats are coming off a 54-7 win over future Southland Conference member, Incarnate Word.
Junior running back Tim Flanders rushed for 117 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries.
He became the all-time leading rusher in SHSU history with 2,709 yards.
The engine for this offense is quarterback Brian Bell
The junior from China Springs went 12 of 19 for 157 yards and two touchdowns.
He is not as flashy as other quarterbacks with the big stats, but his biggest strength is managing the game.
On the other side of the ball, the Bearkat defense is a force to be reckon with.
They held the Cardinals to 88 total yards and are ranked No. 2 in the country.
Senior linebacker Darius Taylor led the defense with 9 total tackles in the massacre.
Look for them to rush the pass at every given opportunity.
The Prediction?
Normally, you would see a prediction after the breakdown of each team.
I am not going to do that.
Instead, I am going to pose this question.
What if SHSU beat Baylor on Saturday, would they get credit for the win or will the focus be on what Baylor did wrong and how could they have lost to an Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) school?
I’ve seen the majority of people in the media picking Baylor because they are a well-known university and they play football in the FBS while SHSU plays in the FCS.
All I can say is that it will be an exciting game and will go down to the wire.
Five Bearkats Named To Pre-Season All-America Squad
by Cheval John
With the 2012 football season less than two months away, the SHSU Bearkats are more focused than ever.
Along the way, they are receiving attention locally and nationally after a remarkable run at the national championship.
For example, five members of the team were named to the pre-season All-America squad by the Sports Network.
Here are the profiles of the five players named to the All-America squad:
In 2011, the junior running back set a single season Southland Conference record in rushing yards (1,644), touchdowns (24) and points scored (144) and was ranked nationally in scoring (No.4), rushing yards (No. 16) and all-purpose yards (No.24).
He was named to five All-America squads including the America Football Coaches Association and the Associated Press and finished 7th for the Walter Payton Award.
Though Sincere was a wide receiver, he was more of a utility player at best.
He was ranked third in the Southland Conference in rushing yards (979) and seventh in total points scored (78).
His best performance came in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs as he torched Montana State for 160 yards on 11 carries that propelled the Bearkats to a 49-21 beatdown over the Bobcats.
He received the nod for “Offensive Player of the Year” by the Southland Conference and was named to the first-team All-America squad by College Sporting News.
The Bearkat defense showed that defense do win championships and Darnell Taylor was one of the reasons why the defense deserved a share of the spotlight during the historic run.
Taylor led the team with 128 total tackles, the highest in one season since 1988.
He was named “Defensive Player of the Year” by the Southland Conference and made five All-America squads.
Cleveland is looking for a repeat performance from last year’s run.
The three-year letterman posted 46 tackles including nine that went for losses.
He was named to the All-America squad by Phil Steele Magazine in 2011 for his efforts.
Swanson had a career-high eight interceptions, the most in school history.
His interceptions was also the most in the Southland Conference and ranked him third in the nation.
He was named second team in the All-Southland Conference and third team in the Associated Press and College Sports.com All-America squad.
The first game to the 2012 season will begin on September 8 as the Bearkats host the University of the Incarnate Word at Elliot T. Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas.