Samsung asked us, your erstwhile SBNation college bloggers, to author a post sharing our favorite highlights involving our schools. Considering the year Baylor Athletics has had, I thought I'd share 11 personal favorites from just this year.
Because of the availability of highlights from Youtube, this list is going to lean heavily in the direction of football and basketball, but I assure you that I have done the absolute best I could to share the wealth. In the comments, give me your thoughts on the best highlights from this year and every other in the history of Baylor sports. If you can, link a video from Youtube.
I decided to start with an Honorable Mention that is actually one of my favorite videos of this year but probably doesn't qualify as a true "highlight." Take a look below the jump.
HONORABLE MENTION: Baylor fan reaction video to Robert Griffin III winning the 2011 Heisman Trophy, the first in program history for Baylor Football. I still get chills watching this video.
Now on to the actual top-10 highlights. Again, this is a personal list based on what I could find.
#11: Kendall Wright to RG3 on third down in the TCU game. I actually couldn't find a highlight only of the play I'm talking about, so you get the entire game instead. Just forget about everything between us going up 47-24 and the Wright throwback pass. I think our defense did.
This was a critical play at a critical time in a game we led big and almost lost. For 3 quarters, our offense looked unstoppable against one of the best defenses in the land the year before. Then we took our foot off the gas, turned the ball over, and let TCU storm back into the game. When we needed them most, two of our three best offensive weapons stepped up.
#10: Brittney Griner Dunks vs. Georgia Tech: Just one of two dunks in two days for Griner, but the video for the other, the drop-step jam, isn't very good. This is the better video.
#9: Terrance Ganaway Obliterates Texas Tech: With RG3 out of commission after a cheap shot in the first half, the least-heralded member of Baylor's offensive troika stepped up with a record-breaking 246 rushing yards on 42(!!!) carries.
#8: Brady Heslip Sinks 9 Threes Against Colorado: One of the best individual performances Baylor Basketball has ever seen, and it came in the NCAA Tournament to help Baylor to the Sweet Sixteen. A shooting performance for the ages.
#7: Second Offensive Play vs. Texas, RG3 to Kendall Wright: This play makes the list largely because of the context in which it came. All week leading up to the Texas game, Baylor fans heard about how our explosive offense was going to be bottled up by a Texas defense that hadn't allowed a TD pass of longer than 20 yards in the entire season. Texas players famously said that RG3 wasn't going to win the Heisman against them. As it turns out, Art Briles likes a challenge.
#6: Quincy Acy's Alley-Oop Dunk vs. Xavier: There were several plays on this list that I thought impressive enough to watch over and over again, and this was definitely one. Consider it an homage to Acy's outstanding Baylor career, too.
#5: RG3 to Tevin Reese's Helmet to Kendall Wright: Known to most Baylor fans as "The Helmet Catch," this was probably the least likely play that I think I've ever seen and the first in this game that made me actually jump out of my seat. We didn't think it could get any better than this catch ...
#4: RG3 to Terrance Williams To Beat OU: We've talked a lot about this throw (it probably won Robert the Heisman), but the thing I find funniest about it is the fact that Baylor coach Art Briles was completely willing to kill the ball on the last drive and take the game to overtime. Bob Stoops' timeout after Baylor's abortive first down play apparently convinced Briles to try to end it in regulation, and, as it did so often through the season, his offense answered the call. RG3 scrambled for two first downs and threw to Kendall Wright for another to set the stage for this incredible throw and Baylor's first win over OU ... ever.
#3: Baseball Beats Kansas State In the Big 12 Tournament: Why is this on the list, you ask? Because it was win #124 for Baylor's Big 4 programs (FB, MBB, WBB, and Baseball), breaking the NCAA record for wins in a single year previously held by Texas. It wasn't the end of the Year of the Bear or its biggest moment, but it was the win that finally sealed its place in NCAA history.
#2: The Lady Bears Win #40 Over Notre Dame for the National Championship: Some may quibble with the placement over others below it, but the second national championship in program history for Kim Mulkey's squad is a deserving runner-up on this list. No college basketball team had ever won 40 games in a single season until the 2011-2012 Lady Bears.
#1: Robert Griffin III's Heisman Acceptance Speech: Was there ever any doubt? This was the greatest moment in Baylor Athletics history, in my opinion, and the only real choice I considered for this spot.