By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
            More than just firing up the offense and leading his sixth career fourth-quarter, game-winning drive, quarterback Charlie Brewer brought the whole team together with his emotion on the sidelines during Saturday's 32-31 win over Kansas State.
            "I know how much it meant to him," head coach Dave Aranda said. "He said at one of our sideline huddles, 'There is no way we're not going to come away with a win. They're going to have to kill me for us not to win this game.' There was more stuff coming out from Charlie on that sideline than I'd seen in a full year. He had our guys' attention, and they were locked-in."
            Linebacker Abram Smith said the team had been growing closer through the first games, but "after (Brewer) said that, you could just feel the team grow together . . . getting closer and closer to actually being fully complete."
            Brewer completed his last 15 passes and led three fourth-quarter scoring drives, the last one ending in John Mayers' 30-yard, game-winning drive as time expired.
            "Charlie is what defines Baylor football – his hard work, he's tough, he puts his all into the game," running back Trestan Ebner said. "Even in the losses, he's tough, he's diving, he's going out there and giving his all. Every play, I'm thankful for him and just hope he gets the credit he deserves."
            Josh Fleeks, who caught a pass on the final drive, said Brewer "pumps the team up" with even the little things he says.
            "We want to play for him and with him," Fleeks said. "Anything he says or does, we're right behind him."

• Got to flip the switch: Going into near-empty stadiums this season have had more of a scrimmage feel than an actual game. The Bears could play before their largest crowd of the season at 80,000-seat Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, but the previous road games at West Virginia, Texas, Iowa State and Texas Tech were "like you're back at practice and it's not really happening," Smith said. "That's one thing you've got to get rid of real fast when you're out there. It's game time, so you've got to flip that switch and get everybody going."
• You did it once: Aranda's message after Baylor's win over Kansas State was, "When you do it one time, you can do it another time." Like they did on Saturday, the key is to put the game in the players' hands and have faith in them. "There were times when we did that, and there were times when we can be better than that," he said. "Just putting the game in their hands and giving them the best opportunity to be successful and let them rise up and make plays, get them to feel comfortable throughout the week in terms of giving them the best look possible."
• Keep your eyes in gaps: In the three games since returning from his suspension, Oklahoma senior running back Rhamondre Stevenson has rushed for 332 yards and five touchdowns on 50 carries (6.6-yard average). The Sooners run a lot of misdirection and counters, "so I think our ability to be good with our eyes . . . is going to be a critical piece," Aranda said. Baylor struggled with that against K-State, allowing 256 yards on 35 carries and giving up explosive plays of 75 and 38 yards. "I feel like it was more of just eyes in gaps," Smith said. "A lot of that is we beat ourselves in a lot of the runs that they broke out."
• Finding a style that fits: From Baker Mayfield to Kyler Murray to Jalen Hurts to now redshirt freshman Spencer Rattler, Oklahoma's offense "has looked different and it's suited whatever guy that they've had," Aranda said. With Hurts last year, the Sooners used a lot more quarterback run and few drop-back passes. "They've found a niche" this season with more drop-back passes with Rattler, who has thrown for 2,319 yards and 22 touchdowns. "Similar to what we've talked about with Charlie in terms of finding a rhythm and finding a style and preference of play, I think (Rattler) has done the same," Aranda said. "I think he's found where he's comfortable and he's performing at a high level."