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sportsBaylor Bears

How Baylor’s newfound success, media spotlight has raised the stakes for showdown vs. Oklahoma

The matchup could have major implications on the Big 12 title game.

Matt Rhule’s one and only experience with ESPN’s College GameDay came back in 2015 when his Temple team hosted Notre Dame.

His take on the media spotlight hasn’t changed much, either. Never mind the distraction factor, the Baylor head coach said about the impending arrival of GameDay in Waco for a showdown with Oklahoma.

“Nah, I think it’s awesome,” Rhule said Monday. “You only get GameDay when you earned it.”

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So far, Rhule has seen his players meet every obstacle on the way a 9-0 start, raising the stakes highest for Saturday’s meeting with Oklahoma (8-1, 5-1 Big 12). The ramifications are significant, ranging from the Big 12 title game to College Football Playoff talk.

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So far, little has distracted Baylor. The Bears have won four Big 12 games by a combined total of 15 points. When cornerstone senior middle linebacker Clay Johnston went down with a season-ending knee injury, sophomore Terrel Bernard has stepped in with consecutive double-figure tackle efforts, including 19 stops against TCU. Senior receiver Denzel Mims was quiet for 60 minutes against TCU then had two acrobatic touchdown catches in overtime.

Now it’s Oklahoma, seeking its fifth straight conference title and trying to jumpstart its CFP hopes after struggles against Kansas State and Iowa State.

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Rhule, who can gush about opposing players, raved about the problems presented by Oklahoma’s Jalen Hurts (“a great leader”) as well as the game-breaking abilities of receiver CeeDee Lamb.

So far, Baylor’s best has been good enough, and Rhule sent a message to his players this week with three regular-season games remaining.

“Can we all just give our best for the next 21 days?” Rhule asked. “We have three chances to play. Maybe we’ll win all three, maybe we won’t. I don’t know that. But we can give each other our best for 21 days.”