Inside the Baylor Locker Room
11/13/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 13, 2000
Editor's Note: Articles such as this one by Jim Montgomery appear in each edition of the Baylor Bear Insider Report, available upon membership in the Baylor Bear Foundation. For information on joining the Bear Foundation, click here.
On the day when Baylor seemed to find a quarterback and locate an offense, its defense went south.
Irony. Defense had been the nearest thing to a strong point through most of a 2-7 BU season that became 2-8 with a 47-22 defeat at the hands of a Missouri team that advanced its own dismal record to 3-7.
"A huge disappointment," head coach Kevin Steele termed the day. "We let a very good opportunity slip away. We, as coaches, have to do a better job of getting these guys prepared and having some answers for some things.
"That starts with me."
Steele will have time to do it. Baylor regents handed him a contract extension one day before the loss to Missouri. He could also find himself with an embarrassment of riches at quarterback next year, when injured Greg Cicero returns to duty and Josh Zachry returns for what will be his sophomore season.
ZACHRY WAS BRILLIANT at times against Missouri, finishing with 15 completions in 27 attempts for 195 yards and two touchdowns. At other times he had problems, losing a fumble to set up an enemy touchdown, mishandling a couple of shotgun snaps and being sacked seven times in the first half alone, when he completed but two of seven throws.
What Steele termed "some adjustments" at halftime helped give Zachry time to find receivers, and the 6-foot-4 freshman transfer made the most of it. Open targets in recent games were seeing passes sail wide or high or bounce 10 feet short. Zachry, given time, hit his men in stride, none more impressively than the 42-yard bomb freshman Robert Quiroga took to the end zone for Baylor's last touchdown.
"Josh has great accuracy," Quiroga said. "He put the ball just where it needed to be."
"Josh is a fighter," concurred Steele. "He's very intelligent and he throws a good ball."
So where has Zachry been during the two months and seven defeats Baylor sustained without Cicero? For that matter, where has he been since quarterbacking Midway High in 1998?
ANSWER: Tyler Junior College and out of football. He damaged a shoulder before ever playing a game at Tyler and gave up the game.
"Around last Christmas I was really missing football," Zachry said. "It was then that I decided to give it another try. I talked to coach Steele and told him I really wanted to play and was wondering if he would give me a chance. He did."
Zachry remained a well-kept secret as Baylor employed Guy Tomcheck, Mike Odum and Kerry Dixon at quarterback. Zachry, for the most part, quarterbacked the scout team, which simulates opponents' plays for the edification of the defense. He made his first appearance in the late stages of the lopsided loss to Oklahoma, completing two of four passes with an interception.
"He wasn't being redshirted," Steele explained. "In effect, he's already had his redshirt season (at Tyler). We could have used him any time." Steele named Zachry to start against Missouri just 72 hours before kickoff.
Doing so was almost a complete surprise.
Zachry went to the wars wearing No. 12 on his jersey, which happens to be the same number worn by starting senior linebacker McKinley Bowie, giving the Bears a No. 12 on both sides of the ball.
Zachry is the son of Pat Zachry, who was Rookie of the Year in 1976 for Cincinnati's Big Red Machine on a 15-7 record that included a World Series victory over the new York Yankees. His uncle, Barton Zachry, was a bruising basketball center for Waco High in the late 1950s.
The adjustments to which Steele referred may have included double-teaming Missouri defensive end Justin Steele in the second half. Steele, the Tigers' all-time sacks leader, had four of his team's 10 sacks, mostly in the first half against one-on-one blocking.
"Don't take away from our linemen," Zachry cautioned regarding the first half difficulties. "They were working hard, doing the best they could. At times, somebody would slip through. That's going to happen."
The second-half rebound began with Baylor driving 68 yards on 12 plays to close a 21-0 halftime gap to 21-7, Darrell Bush accounting for 39 of the yards and Zachry hitting two passes for 25 more. With a chance to climb within a touchdown, Baylor stopped a long Missouri drive but couldn't move and Missouri regained command, 27-7 and then 33-7.
"Defensively, we never got in sync," Steele sighed. Missouri, with the Big 12's 10th-ranked offense, rolled up 472 yards and its second-best point production of the season. Included were long-gainers of 52, 43, 29, 27 and 20 yards.
It was Baylor's 20th consecutive Big 12 defeat. If the Bears were attempting to measure the distance between themselves and the conference's upper echelons, the news wasn't good. However, the 22 points marked their second-best output of the season and their best in a conference game under Steele.
"I know that's a stretch," the coach said, "but it's a positive."
Editor's Note: Articles such as this one by Jim Montgomery appear in each edition of the Baylor Bear Insider Report, available upon membership in the Baylor Bear Foundation. For information on joining the Bear Foundation, click here.
