Baylor and Kansas, two of the hottest teams in the nation, will square off with plenty still on the line Saturday afternoon in their Big 12 Conference clash in Waco, Texas.
The Bears (7-4, 5-3 Big 12) mathematically are alive for a chance to play in the Big 12 championship game but would need to beat Kansas and hope for a scenario in which eight teams tie for first in the league standings.
The Jayhawks (5-6, 4-4) have won three straight games — all against ranked opponents — and four of their past five after a tumultuous start to the season. Kansas will be bowl eligible if it beats the Bears, pretty amazing if you consider it began the season with a 1-5 record.
Baylor heads home after a 20-10 road win over anemic Houston last Saturday. Sawyer Robertson threw for 204 yards and two touchdown passes, Bryson Washington rushed 28 times for 113 yards and the Bears’ defense allowed just 239 total yards in the victory.
The Bears were 2-4 and winless in three Big 12 games after losing at Iowa State on Oct. 5. Since then, they’ve produced five straight victories — three of them on the road.
“I never lost faith in the team,” ‘Baylor defensive tackle Elinus Noel III said. “I think people started to see a replay of last year (3-9), maybe. But within the facility, we knew what it was. There were a couple things that we had to fine-tune.
“We’ve gotten better at cleaning that up, and it’s starting to show. We’ve still got a lot further to go.”
The Jayhawks beat conference-leading Colorado 37-21 in Kansas City last Saturday to help create a mishmash of the Big 12 standings. With the win over the then-No. 16 Buffaloes, Kansas became the first team in college football history with a losing record to win three straight games over ranked opponents.
“I’m so proud of this group and our coaching staff because so many people had written this team off,” Kansas coach Lance Leipold said. “Everyone was frustrated, pointing to things that should’ve been changed or done differently. But this group stuck together, stayed committed to the process and has everything we asked of them.”
Devin Neal led the way in the win with 207 rushing yards and three touchdowns and another 80 yards receiving and a score in the win over Colorado. He was named Big 12 offensive player of the week for his efforts.
