Bears Senior Says TCU Game a Chance to Show 'What Baylor Football Is All About'
To most people outside of their own locker room, the Baylor Bears have nothing to play for Saturday against the TCU Horned Frogs.
It's Senior Day, sure, but these seniors already cemented their legacy last year with a conference championship, a Sugar Bowl victory and arguably the best Baylor team in program history. Luckily for Bears fans, the players aren't looking at it that way, they see an opportunity to seize when they take the field Saturday.
“Showing everybody what we’re about,” senior linebacker Bryson Jackson said about what the team is playing for. “It’s pretty exciting to be doing it with these guys, and I’m looking forward to Saturday morning.”
Of course, it hasn't been the season the Bears or their fans expected when they were ranked No. 10 in the preseason poll, as they limp into this home finale with a 6-4 record and coming off a humbling 31-3 loss to the Kansas State Wildcats at home.
But maybe taking those lumps could still lead to something special.
“From what we have been through, I feel like it has all built up to this moment,” Jackson said. “What better chance than to face this opponent?”
"This opponent" is TCU, arguably Baylor's most bitter rival and the 10-0 Horned Frogs aren't just thinking about the Big 12 Championship Game, their ticket is secured for that. These Frogs have the College Football Playoff on their minds, just like the Bears did in 2021 when TCU shocked them with a 30-28 upset victory in Fort Worth.
The Baylor Bears aren't outwardly saying they want to spoil the purple playoff party, but it isn't lost on them that this game means a little extra for both programs.
“We’ve had a lot of adversity this year,” Jackson said. “It’s really important that we show up and play to our standard and show them what Baylor football is all about.”
They'll face even more adversity with Frogs quarterback and Heisman hopeful Max Duggan going against him for the third time in his career. Duggan was more of a game manager when TCU won easily in Waco in 2020, as he only threw for 138 yards, but now he is a different player, and everyone can see it.
“He’s a lot more calm than he used to be,” Jackson said as he prepares to face Duggan for the third time in his career. “We’re going to have to be real keen about putting pressure in his face.”
Just as their coaches would love to hear, it sounds like the players are more focused on improvement than the result this weekend.
“The most important things coming from this game is that we go out and bring a performance that is top tier,” Jackson said. “My focus is to bring everything I have throughout the week so that each player can get better.”
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Covering Baylor for Inside The Bears and the Locked on Baylor podcast. You can follow me for more Baylor content at @realcamstuart on Twitter. Originally from Rockland, Massachusetts and a Baylor alum, so I might mix the occasional bias and/or Boston sports tweet in there every once in a while.