No suspense, plenty of crowd
Cougars better beware of Bears: Houston solidified as Baylor's 2nd home withTexas Bowl berth
Baylor's Robert Griffin runs away from foes even quicker than he sprinted awayfrom signing with the University of Houston.
Art Briles is giving the Bears' football program a strong presence in Houston.
It'd be no great stretch to call the Baylor vs. Illinois matchup the best in the Texas Bowl's short history. This is the first time that two Bowl Championship Series conference teams are in the game since the inaugural 2006 affair — a contest that was so lightly thought of that the game went without a sideline TV reporter because ex-NFLer Marshall Faulk simply failed to show up to see Rutgers wallop Kansas State.
But the suspenseless official announcement, which included a party at a Buffalo Wild Wings, isn't about a 7-5 Baylor team from the Big 12 taking on a 6-6 Illinois squad from the Big Ten.
No, this Dec. 29 ESPN game at Reliant Stadium is all about the Bears and their strengthening foothold in Houston. The Bayou City is fast becoming Baylor city when NCAA postseason events roll around. Last March, the Bears basketball program rolled into Reliant Stadium for a regional final and challenged eventual champion Duke as well as any team.
Now, Art Briles — the former University of Houston coach — brings Baylor's football program into Houston for its first bowl game in 16 years. The Bears fanaticism is likely to produce the biggest crowd the Texas Bowl has ever seen (larger than the UH-TCU matchup of 2007). And that should be enough to turn the stomach of current Cougars coach Kevin Sumlin. The Bears are already led by double threat quarterback (Robert Griffin) who once intended to play for Briles at UH.
"This is a reward for the efforts that our football team has put forth and we’re excited about going to Houston to represent Baylor University," Briles said in a statement. "For the University, our players, their families and our fans it’s a great location."
No kidding.
It's not hard to imagine future Houston area high school recruits — players that Sumlin and UH are targeting — being swayed by Baylor's ever-increasing presence in the Bayou City. The Bears are still a Big 12 team, more secure than ever in their BCS perch, while the Cougars continue to watch schools like TCU (and not them) get plucked up by big conferences. Even before he had any significant on-field success in Waco, Briles brought in some of Baylor's best ranked recruiting classes ever.
Texas Bowl officials did the right thing for their game when they chose Baylor with their Big 12 pick.
That doesn't make it hurt UH any less. Baylor is the official "home team" of the Texas Bowl this year.
How long before unofficial home city follows?
