Close Menu
The Baylor Lariat
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    Trending
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18
    • Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting
    • How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings
    • Welcome Week leaders now paid in hopes of increasing numbers
    • 5 Baylor sports storylines to look forward to in 2025-26
    • About us
      • Spring 2025 Staff Page
      • Copyright Information
    • Contact
      • Contact Information
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Subscribe to The Morning Buzz
      • Department of Student Media
    • Employment
    • PDF Archives
    • RSS Feeds
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    The Baylor LariatThe Baylor Lariat
    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz
    Saturday, July 5
    • News
      • State and National News
        • State
        • National
      • Politics
        • 2025 Inauguration Page
        • Election Page
      • Homecoming Page
      • Baylor News
      • Waco Updates
      • Campus and Waco Crime
    • Arts & Life
      • Wedding Edition 2025
      • What to Do in Waco
      • Campus Culture
      • Indy and Belle
      • Sing 2025
      • Leisure and Travel
        • Leisure
        • Travel
          • Baylor in Ireland
      • Student Spotlight
      • Local Scene
        • Small Businesses
        • Social Media
      • Arts and Entertainment
        • Art
        • Fashion
        • Food
        • Literature
        • Music
        • Film and Television
    • Opinion
      • Editorials
      • Points of View
      • Lariat Letters
    • Sports
      • March Madness 2025
      • Football
      • Basketball
        • Men’s Basketball
        • Women’s Basketball
      • Soccer
      • Baseball
      • Softball
      • Volleyball
      • Equestrian
      • Cross Country and Track & Field
      • Acrobatics & Tumbling
      • Tennis
      • Golf
      • Pro Sports
      • Sports Takes
      • Club Sports
    • Lariat TV News
    • Multimedia
      • Video Features
      • Podcasts
        • Don’t Feed the Bears
      • Slideshows
    • Advertising
    The Baylor Lariat
    Home»Sports»Football

    Offense cripples defense

    Baylor LariatBy Baylor LariatOctober 24, 2012Updated:December 13, 2012 Football No Comments3 Mins Read
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Daniel Hill
    Sports Writer

    There is no doubt that Baylor’s defense is the Achilles heel of the team. But why is the defense so awful? It sounds strange, but Baylor’s offense might be one reason the Bears have never had a vaunted defense. Is head coach Art Briles’ offensive philosophy hurtful to his defense? Baylor possesses a high-octane prolific scoring offense that any team in college football would be jealous of. But the quick-strike ability of the offense might be crippling the defense.

    For example, the Baylor offense has scored 13 touchdowns in one minute or less and 22 touchdowns in less than two minutes. It sounds insane to say this, but the offense is scoring at such a rapid pace that it is actually hurting the defense. Plus, Baylor lacks quality defensive depth at nearly every position. A heavy burden is being placed on the defensive starters because they have to spend so much time on the field. Last season, the offense was so spectacular with RG3 at the helm that the defense was hardly talked about. Last year the Baylor defense conceded 56 points to Washington in an Alamo Bowl victory. Why hasn’t the Baylor defense made improvements this season? This is year two under new defensive coordinator Phil Bennett, and it’s still the same old story: the Baylor offense has to win in spite of the defense.

    Is Briles so offensively minded that he does not care about defensive statistics? In order to build a winning program and enjoy sustainable success, a college football team must have a defense. That’s the bottom line. In the BCS rankings, 11 of the top 15 teams also possess a top 15 defense. The formula for winning in college football is not a glamorous offense but rather a punishing defense. Let’s be real, most opposing offenses probably lick their chops when they see Baylor on the schedule.

    Ultimately, Briles is responsible for winning football games at Baylor. As it stands, Baylor is 0-3 in the Big 12 Conference and has the worst scoring defense (124th) in all of the Football Bowl Subdivision. Changes must be made with Baylor football. Briles needs to sacrifice the sky-rocketing offensive statistics in order to keep the defense on the sidelines. When Baylor gets the lead in a game, Briles has to milk the clock and slow down the offense to conserve the lead.

    The lack of attention that Briles pays to his failing defense is troublesome. Briles isn’t just some offensive guru; he’s the head football coach. All aspects of the team fall under his jurisdiction and responsibility. The bottom line is Briles needs to deliver a better Baylor defense by any means necessary.

    Art Briles Baylor Football Team defense offense
    Baylor Lariat

    Keep Reading

    Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18

    5 Baylor sports storylines to look forward to in 2025-26

    Castle’s grand slam lifts baseball to 30th win of season 10-7

    Sports take: Trump administration threatens future of funding for brain injury patients, research

    No. 8 seed Baylor softball looks for fresh start in Big 12 championship

    Baylor softball loses finale against Iowa State, preps for Big 12 Championship

    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Recent Posts
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown June 27, 2025
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects June 26, 2025
    About

    The award-winning student newspaper of Baylor University since 1900.

    Articles, photos, and other works by staff of The Baylor Lariat are Copyright © Baylor® University. All rights reserved.

    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz

    Get the latest Lariat News by just Clicking Subscribe!

    Follow the Live Coverage
    Tweets by @bulariat

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    • Featured
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Arts and Life
    © 2025 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.