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Baylor vs. SMU -- The Morning After -- Highlights, Links, Notes, Tweets

BUT IS SETH RUSSELL ELITE?

By Mark C. Moore
Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports
1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH F
BAYLOR (1-0, 0-0) 28 0 14 14 56
SMU(0-1, 0-0) 14 7 0 0 21

Box Score | Notes |  Photo Gallery |  USATSI Gallery

Dallas, Texas - Attendance: 32,047

Players of the Game:

QB Seth Russell -- 15/30 for 376 yards and 5 TDs, 6 rushes for 59 yards, 1 TD
RB Shock Linwood -- 8 rushes for 75 yards
RB Devin Chafin -- 12 rushes for 71 yards, 1 TD
WR Corey Coleman -- 5 catches for 178 yards, 1 TD
WR Jay Lee -- 3 catches for 70 yards, 3 TDs

LB Grant Campbell -- 11 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack
DE Jamal Palmer -- 9 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 1 sack

Play of the Game:

The 19-yard Chafin run on third down on Baylor's 97-yard TD drive in the third quarter.  I'm still looking for video/a gif.

5 More Thoughts:

I mentioned last night that between social media and the blog, I don't actually get to pay as much attention as I'd like during games.  That's why I try to re-watch things as quickly as possible.  Here's what I noticed going through it again last night/this morning.

  1. I listed him above as a "Player of the Game" because he had 4 tackles for loss in his return from injury, but a big part of the reason Baylor had so many problems containing Matt Davis was because of Jamal Palmer shooting inside the tackle over and over again. That may have been by design for whatever reason, but it was a real problem.  He improved over the course of the game in his decision-making, but early on, he looked extremely tentative.
  2. All-told, the defense gave up 366 yards on 78 offensive plays, for an average of 4.7 yards per play.  They also had 11 tackles for loss and 3 sacks.  Taken in totality, those numbers really aren't bad, particularly against an offense that nobody had ever seen at this place and with these players.  I honestly believe that the complete lack of film on Chad Morris' SMU played a huge role in some of our defensive struggles (key word: some), and that SMU took full advantage with a lot of fly sweeps, designed QB runs, and very complex screen plays.  I'll be watching how others react to them now that the cat is somewhat out of the bag.
  3. All four of the RBs we saw last night looked really, really good. Shock Linwood had a couple of plays early on where he looked just a shade quicker than I remember him being; Devin Chafin could be the best full package at RB we have, Johnny Jefferson provided a great change of pace and very nearly broke one in the second half, and then Terrence Williams, in his Baylor debut, had 8 rushes for 73 yards. 
  4. Taion Sells is a lunger, and I think he has a problem closing his eyes when he tries to tackle. That said, the interception where he tipped the ball to himself was a fantastic instinctual play.
  5. SMU ran the ball 24 times on first down versus just 9 passes.  Baylor, 14 vs. 19.  I don't know if we were attempting to get Seth comfortable or what, but that's not the ratio I expected.  We heard a lot of talk after the Cotton Bowl about Kendall Briles' tendencies as a play-caller, and I still think two games is far too little to draw definitive conclusions, but that's something to watch.

Bonus Thought: I enjoyed Mack Brown in the booth last night for ESPN.  I wonder if his shtick would work as well in games not involving Texas teams, though.

LINKS, LINKS, LINKS, LINKS, LINKS

No. 4 Football Cruises Past SMU in Second Half, 56-21 - Baylor Official Athletic Site
Seth Russell threw for 376 yards with three of his five touchdowns to Jay Lee, and the new starting quarterback also ran for a score as fourth-ranked Baylor finally got back on the field with 56-21 victory at SMU on Friday night.

Baylor-SMU notebook: Coleman racks up yards; Stidham sees 1st action; Young injured - WacoTrib.com: Baylor Bears Football
DALLAS — It took all of two catches for Corey Coleman to surpass the 100-yard mark in Baylor’s 56-21 win over SMU Friday.

Russell shines in debut with 6 TDs as Bears blow out SMU late, 56-21 - WacoTrib.com: Baylor Bears Football
DALLAS – After two weeks of turmoil and distractions, Seth Russell wasn’t going to let anything stop him from having a splashy debut as Baylor’s No. 1 quarterback once he stepped into SMU’s Gerald J. Ford Stadium.

Baylor pulled away to win, but SMU put up a fight.
Chad Morris' new-look SMU offense put a scare into No. 4 Baylor for a half on Friday, but the Bears' explosive offensive ultimately pulled away for a 56-21 win behind new starting quarterback Seth Russell's five touchdown passes.

SMU-Baylor notebook: Business as usual for Baylor offense; Mustangs QB injured but returns | Dallas Morning News
UNIVERSITY PARK — Baylor has led the nation in total offense and scoring offense in each of the past two seasons and is off to a good head start in keeping that crown.

Baylor Title IX coordinator sees encouraging signs - WacoTrib.com: Baylor Bears Football
When Patty Crawford became Baylor University’s first full-time Title IX coordinator last November, one of her first objectives was to make students and faculty aware of the services her office offers.

Baylor Bears overcome early woes to topple SMU Mustangs - College Football Nation Blog - ESPN
Baylor's high-powered offense gained 1 yard in the second quarter before pulling away from SMU.

Baylor scores 8 TDs to cruise past SMU | Dr. Saturday - Yahoo Sports
From Yahoo Sports: The Mustangs scored more points in the first quarter Friday night than they did in the first 4 games of 2014.

TWEETS TWEETS TWEETS TWEETS TWEETS

I don't have a lot here since I already did a Tweets of the Night post, but there's a couple:

Good to know. Thanks, Jordan!

I'm including this one again just because it's an amazing stat. More than a first down PER PLAY? Unbelievable.

ICYMI: The I-35 bridges through Waco were lit up in #Baylor colors last night to celebrate the victory!

Posted by Baylor University on Saturday, September 5, 2015

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