Stidham Should Stay at Baylor
I’m going to be as objective as I possibly can in this post. I’m a Baylor grad, a big fan of BU football and I’m as devastated as anyone else about the news coming out of Waco in recent months. So obviously I’m biased and I would be very pleased if Jarrett Stidham decided to stay at my school and continue playing football there.
But even if I had no connection to Baylor, I would still recommend to the young quarterback from Stephenville, Texas that he stay right there in Waco and lead the Bears back to prominence. And he is certainly capable of doing it.
Stidham has the undeniable leadership and quarterbacking skills to make a good team great. Thrust into the starting role in 2015 after the neck injury of starting QB Seth Russell, Stidham performed admirably as a true freshman against KSU, OU and OSU before suffering an injury of his own.
Our shot at the college football playoff was doubtful when we turned to our third-string quarterback and then eventually to guys who once played quarterback in high school. But the future of BU football looked very bright nonetheless if that future was to include Stidham.
The sexual abuse scandal and coverup are devastating for Baylor’s reputation going forward. However, the small number of people who were involved in that mess are no longer a part of the school. What this means is that all of the repentance will fall on the 99.99% of Baylor Nation who had nothing to do with committing the sin.
Fully healed from his neck injury and cleared to play football, Seth Russell rallied his team for the struggle ahead like the leader we know he is;
And so did Stidham;
One month after his inspiring post on Instagram, Stidham announced his Baylor departure on Twitter;
Given the scandal and the uncertainty of Baylor’s head coaching position, it’s understandable for Stidham to consider leaving. But the scandal and the coaching are apparently not his reasons. According to interim head coach Jim Grobe, Stidham does not want to spend his sophomore year as a backup to Seth Russell;
Stidham is now enrolled at McLennan Community College in Waco with a plan that secures his three remaining years of football eligibility…presumably for another university. He’s a 19-year old student-athlete. He owes nothing to Baylor and he’s perfectly entitled to go in another direction if that’s what he and his family think is best for him.
I’m going to stay clear and far away from the wretched types who insult athletes on social media when they decommit from their schools. That nonsense is unacceptable and I will openly rebuke any Baylor fan who is doing it. Your football fanaticism doesn’t entitle you to lash out at teenagers online. I mean…I guess you can, but just you know…it’s despicable and cowardly.
What I will put forth, however, are a few sincere reasons why I think it’s in Stidham’s best interest to stay in Waco and play for Baylor. I doubt he will ever read this, but here we go;
IT’S ALREADY YOUR TEAM, JARRETT
2017 and 2018 is the dynamic Baylor / Stidham era that just hasn’t happened yet, but it certainly would if he were to stay. No one’s confused about whose team this is when Seth Russell is done. And even before then, there are plenty of reasons why Stidham may get significant playing time in 2016. Quarterbacks fell like dominos in 2015 due to injuries. If Russell needs to bow out early again for whatever reason, the Stidham era would begin even earlier.
If Stidham gets the starting job for another team, a large part of his first year there will be spent learning a new playbook with new players, new coaches, new schemes, new everything. If he stays at Baylor, he solidifies the learning he’s already done and builds on it.
LEGACY
Art Briles could have surfed on the waves of gratitude that Baylor Nation was heaping upon him. Our next football stadium probably would’ve been called Briles Stadium. The appreciation for all he did was as deep and heartfelt as the sadness we now feel for having lost him. Not only did he make the football program come alive…he took it to heights it had never reached before.
Well, Briles is gone now but there are still just as many Baylorites who are passionate about football. Whoever leads Baylor back to respectability and championships — whether it’s a coach or a quarterback or some other player — will forever be revered and adored by the fanbase. This will especially be true if it’s a player who sticks with us in the midst of this turmoil.
Perhaps Stidham is trying to position his college years for the best possible trajectory into the NFL. That’s certainly what I’d be doing if I were him. And maybe he calculated that being a starting quarterback for three years is better than two in the eyes of NFL scouts. But also keep in mind that…more than ever, NFL teams are looking for character guys who can lead their teams in the midst of setbacks and chaos. Well, there’s no better place than Baylor right now to demonstrate those skills.
Playing for another school will make Stidham the quarterback who decommitted from Texas Tech and transferred from Baylor. If anything goes wrong at his next university and he feels the itch to transfer again, there would be speculation that the problem is not with the place, but rather, with the player. Any school would be glad to have Jarrett Stidham as their quarterback, but I doubt that any would be as appreciative as the one where he’s already established so many important relationships.
THERE IS NO GREENER PASTURE
Ok, I restrained my bias for as long as I could and now it’s time to be blunt; there is no greener pasture than Baylor. The people, the campus, the stadium, the facilities and the academics are top-notch. Aside from all that, it’s worth mentioning that the core of Baylor’s football team and coaching staff is still intact, loaded with talent and hungrier than ever to redeem the Baylor name. Also, Baylor is likely to lure in a premier head coach for the 2017 season…especially if Stidham’s on the roster.
Related: Baylor’s conditional release of Jarrett Stidham restricts him from playing for another Big 12 school.
I’m sure Jarrett Stidham has reasons for leaving Baylor that are not publicly known and are frankly none of our business. He will be successful wherever he goes. Baylor’s going to rebound from this low point and will be great again with players who committed themselves to making it great. I just get the feeling that whenever Jarrett Stidham is finally done scrambling around, he’s going to wish he had simply stayed in the pocket.
In any case, I wish him nothing but the best.
#SicEmBears
Originally posted July 16, 2016 (link)
