By Jackson Posey | Sports Writer
While Baylor’s new bear cubs, Indy and Belle, may have stolen the show last week, they weren’t capable of signing autographs for the Baylor community like the football team was.
Saturday marked Baylor’s annual “Meet the Bears” event, where students, alumni and fans got the opportunity to meet their favorite student-athletes — snagging a few signatures along the way. The event is an exciting benchmark for many, as it signifies the beginning of the fall athletics season.
“It’s great,” Pensacola, Fla., sophomore Ryan Chandler said. “It’s a lot of fun to see all the athletes and the big kind of community Baylor is. So it has me excited for the upcoming sports.”
Chandler isn’t merely another fan in the crowd. He’s earned the moniker “Baylor Suit Guy” for the striking green-and-gold ensemble he dons at Baylor sporting events. Despite the heat, he was fully suited up Saturday at McLane Stadium.
“It was just an idea that I had,” Chandler said. “I haven’t worn it to football games yet, so let’s hope that I don’t melt.”
Chandler said Baylor basketball has gone undefeated when his well-dressed alter ego is in attendance. With football season rapidly approaching, fans hope that same energy transfers to the gridiron.
“[I’m hoping to see] improvement from last year … [and] W’s, especially here at home,” Long Beach, Calif., sophomore Ryan Norried said. “Our offense is better than it was last year, and it should show this year.”
The offensive improvement could put the Bears back in the conference title hunt. Over a year removed from winning the Big 12 Championship, head coach Dave Aranda has restocked the roster with a number of incoming freshmen and transfers. In the University of Oklahoma and University of Texas’ final season before moving to the Southeastern Conference, Baylor has the chance to make a tenacious statement.
“We aspire to be great [and] be one of the best,” Eustace junior Cooper Reeve said. “[I want to see] a lot of points on the scoreboard, especially [in] home games. It’ll be fun to have a good couple [of] home wins.”
