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One last time: No. 3 Texas, Baylor clash in Big 12 opener before Longhorns bolt to SEC
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AUSTIN (KXAN) — It's game day Saturday between No. 3 Texas and Baylor at McLane Stadium in Waco to kick off the final Big 12 Conference opener for the Longhorns.
The Longhorns opened as a 14-point favorite in most sportsbooks, and throughout the week moved to 17-point favorites in some of them. Baylor will be without its No. 1 quarterback Blake Shapen who is still recovering from an MCL sprain, so backup Sawyer Robertson will get the start.
Texas freshman running back CJ Baxter will be available, head coach Steve Sarkisian said earlier in the week. He was held out of last week's 31-10 win over Wyoming with a foot injury, but Sarkisian said Baxter "looked great" in practice.
This game is the 113th time the schools will face off dating back to 1901, and as the Longhorns leave for the Southeastern Conference with Oklahoma next season, this is one of the many Lone Star State rivalries that will be paused at the very least if not completely scrapped. Sarkisian said it would be nice if somehow the rivalry games could continue, but it's not his call.
Baylor coach Dave Aranda said in a press conference earlier in the week that many people have told him to "just win one game," and it doesn't take a genius to figure out who Baylor fans want to see go down.
"That has been brought up to me multiple times," Aranda said.
The game kicks at 6:30 p.m. on ABC.
Live updates
5:15 1Q: TOUCHDOWN TEXAS: Jonathon Brooks rumbles 40 yards for the game's first touchdown. PAT good. 2 plays, 55 yards, 0:46. Longhorns 7, Bears 0
6:01 1Q: Baylor punts again and their first two drives have resulted in -5 total yards. Texas takes over on its own 45-yard line after a 30-yard punt by Palmer Williams.
9:14 1Q: Texas moves the ball 16 yards on its first drive and has to punt. It crosses the goal line so Baylor takes over on its own 20-yard line
12:47 1Q: Xavier Worthy calls for a fair catch on the punt and the Longhorns will begin their first drive on their own 42-yard line
13:36 1Q: Texas sacks Robertson on back-to-back plays to force a 4th and about a mile for the Bears. Jett Bush got to Robertson on 2nd down, and then Byron Murphy dropped him on 3rd down
15:00 1Q: The heat index at McLane Stadium is 103. Yikes. Also, Texas wins the coin toss and defers its choice to the second half, so Baylor will get the ball to start the game