Baylor Has Something To Prove

DALLAS — Baylor’s Art Briles is as mild mannered as any coach in the Big 12, but he’s still a little snappy about last year and any questions about the Bears still needing to prove themselves.

Before Briles arrived at Baylor eight years ago, the Bears were among the worst FBS programs.

This season, they enter the season a consensus top-10 pick and still a little bitter about being snubbed by the College Football Playoff a season ago.

Even with all that growth, they still have something to prove, especially after being picked second to TCU in the Big 12 preseason predictions.

The Bears, who return 19 starters from an 11-2 team, have won two consecutive conference titles, including a title share in 2014 with the Horned Frogs.

“I guess you have to win it three times in a row to get picked first,” Briles said Tuesday during the last day of Big 12 media days. “We’re never going to lose that (chip on the shoulder). Getting chosen second, I mean, that’s OK. Like I said, it’s better than getting third.”

Baylor’s season ended in January with a frustrating loss to Michigan State in the final minute of the Cotton Bowl. The Bears, ranked fifth in the final CFP poll, surrendered three Michigan State touchdowns in the fourth quarter of a 42-41 loss.

Earning a return trip to the Cotton Bowl — this year as a CFP semifinalist — would be tantamount to “burying a ghost,” said Briles, who was frank about the level of his disappointment in how the season ended a year ago.

“We understand how we’ve been able to get to this point. Even if you do achieve what you’d like to achieve, there’s always going to be doubters, and doubters are motivators.”