Sunday With Guy No. 11
11/11/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 11, 2007
After dropping a 52-21 decision at No. 4 Oklahoma on Nov. 10, the Baylor football team returns to Floyd Casey Stadium for the regular-season finale on Nov. 17 against Oklahoma State. The Bears (3-8/0-7) and Cowboys (5-5/3-3) will meet for the 26th time Saturday in a nationally televised contest on Fox Sports Net which kicks off at 6 p.m.
Here are highlights of Baylor head coach Guy Morriss' Sunday media teleconference:
Did you feel like this was your best effort of the season in terms of intensity?
Morriss: "Probably so. I would say that is probably true. I'd say we got off to a pretty good start. They were very quiet this weekend, unusually quiet even. I didn't know if that was a good sign. I felt like watching them warm up they were pretty focused. We just gave up too many big plays. Special teams really hurt us last night again. Had we taken advantage of opportunities, we would have had another 17 points on the board."
What was the key to the production in the run game?
Morriss: "We kind of had a read on how they line up in certain formations, and they were pretty much true to form. Our offensive linemen had probably their best game of the year. We protected well. We came off the ball and blocked pretty well, and that was the difference. Brandon Whitaker was all fired up because he was playing in front of his family and friends from back home. He had a big night."
Was the plan to run it more all along?
Morriss: "We knew we were going to try and run the ball a little bit more to try and run time off the clock and shorten the game and keep their offense on the bench. As the game went along, our backs did a good job. Whitaker had the long run and that got everybody fired up."
Were any of the runs because of Blake Szymanki making the calls at the line?
Morriss: "Blake Szymanksi checked us into the first touchdown run. We tell him every week about how they line up and what look he is looking for to take the check, and he did it. Whitaker did the rest."
How big was it for the offensive line to allow no sacks?
Morriss: "It would have to be big. Anytime you have time and you have the confidence that you can stand back there and read what the secondary and what the receivers are doing, it makes it a lot easier for the quarterback. And they did a really good job of protecting him. I think we got pressured only twice. They were ready to play. Their defensive line is no slouch. They lead the conference in sacks."
Do you kick yourself over the missed opportunities?
Morriss: "The thing about Oklahoma is that they really load the box up inside the five and it is really hard to run. As many times as we have thrown the fade, if the ball is where it is supposed to be and you go up and fight for it, then who knows. The ball should have been on the outside shoulder, or if you don't like it then throw it threw the back of the end zone and come back and do something else on second down."
What happened defensively on the long plays?
Morriss: "On one, Kelly just ran by. Josh's technique was not good. He tried to back pedal instead of switching his hips. Kelly has great speed. On the return, we lost contain and actually had our hands on the returner, but we over-pursued."
Baylor Sunday Notes: A year after allowing 36 sacks, the Baylor offensive line has allowed 16 sacks through 11 games in 2007 and is on pace to record its fewest sacks allowed since 1995 (12) ... Junior IR Thomas White has 13 receptions for 293 yards and 4 touchdowns in the last three games ... Senior RB Brandon Whitaker's 149 rushing yards at No. 4 Oklahoma were a career-high and moved him into 27th on Baylor's all-time rushing list with 1,092 yards ... Whitaker is the only player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards and catch at least 100 passes (he has 111 career receptions) ... Sophomore QB Blake Szymanski set school single-game records for touchdown passes (20), pass attempts (421), passing yards (2,618), total offense attempts (473) and total offense yards (2,739) ... He needs seven pass completions to break the Bears' single-season record in that category and one touchdown to tie Don Trull's 1963 mark for TDs responsible for.
