Bears at the Grammys
Baylor grad Forrest Frank (’17) was nominated for his first Grammy for his most recent album, “CHILD OF GOD,” in the Best Contemporary Christian Music Album category. The album, released in July, debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Christian Albums chart, where it stayed for 13 weeks. Football fans may recognize track No. 17, “Never Get Used to This,” from Baylor’s 30-second institutional television commercial spot aired throughout the season.
And if that’s not ringing any bells, you’ve absolutely heard the song “Sunday Best” by Frank and Texas A&M alum Colin Paladecki under the moniker Surfaces. The song currently boasts over 1 billion (ONE BILLION!) streams on Spotify.
The Baylor School of Music is also singing praises – pun intended – this week as now six-time Grammy Award winner Elaine Martone won Producer of the Year, Classical. The Baylor Wind Ensemble’s 2024 album “Divine Mischief” was one of nine albums Martone produced within the Grammy Award consideration period. The album was part of the Grammy ballot in a few different categories:
- Best Classical Instrument Solo: Julian Bliss – John Mackey, “Divine Mischief”
- Best Orchestral Performance: Zhou Tian, “Sinfonia”
- Best Contemporary Classical Composition: John Mackey, “Divine Mischief”
- Producer of the Year, Classical: Elaine Martone
- Best Engineering, Classical: Benjamin Maas
Brace Yourself for Baylor Football
Baylor’s football season schedule dropped this week, including seven home games. Baylor will meet Auburn for the first time since 1976. The Bears also look to defend their 13-game winning streak over SMU in their first matchup since 2016. They’ll take on UCF in the homecoming game set for November 1.
Gone are the days of seeing every Big 12 team every year – the Bears will miss out on games against BYU, Colorado, Iowa State, Texas Tech, and West Virginia. “It’s not going overboard to suggest that they’re missing six of the Big 12’s strongest attacks,” according to College Football News.
Keep an eye out for information about The Baylor Line’s tailgates as the season nears.
Keeping up with Basketball
MEN’S BASKETBALL – In a massive 81-70 comeback win for Baylor last weekend, Kansas blew a late-first half 21-point lead, the biggest lead blown in loss in the program’s history. Robert Wright III took the title of Big 12 Newcomer of the Week following the game, scoring 20 of his 24 points for the bears after the break.
No. 13 Texas Tech defeated the Bears 73-59 on Tuesday. Despite the loss, senior Norchad Omier had his 79th career double-double, defending his post as the NCAA active leader for double-doubles and moved into 10th place on the all-time list. The loss brought the team’s record to 14-8 overall, 6-5 in Big 12 Conference play.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL – The women’s team blew Cincinnati out of the water in its recent match up at home, 98-59. Junior Bella Fontleroy (my personal Kickapoo High School hometown hero) scored a career-high 29 points.
On Wednesday, the Bears crushed Houston, with junior Darianna Littlepage-Buggs scoring her 1,000th career point early in the game. The Bears’ new record stands at 19-5 overall, 9-2 in Big 12 Conference play, with just under a month left in the season.
Foster Pavilion will be a packed house on Saturday as the men’s team takes on UCF at 1 p.m. and the women play BYU at 7 p.m.
Spring Sports are in Full Swing
ACROBATICS AND TUMBLING – The A&T team was named the preseason favorite by the NCATA for the 10th year in a row as it seeks its 10th-consecutive NCATA title. The team will compete in its first match of the season agains UMHB on Saturday.
GOLF – Women’s golf kicked off the spring slate with a sixth-place finish at the Match in the Desert. The team took first in the three-day PDI Intercollegiate this week with a score of 30-under par, ranking the second-best score in program history. Men’s golf will start back up with The Prestige on February 17.
TENNIS – Women’s tennis is off to a strong 4-1 start, with its next matchups scheduled against San Diego State and San Diego on Saturday and Sunday, respectively. Men’s tennis currently holds a 5-3 record overall heading into weekend matches against Nebraska and Ohio State.
EQUESTRIAN – No. 10 Baylor equestrian swept South Dakota State 14-3 in its spring slate home opener. The Bears hit the road this weekend, with hopes of winning its first ranked matchup and Big 12 meet of the spring against Fresno State.
TRACK AND FIELD – The track and field team is off to a strong start of its indoor season, with three meets and more than 10 medals under its belt heading into this weekend at Texas A&M.
On Campus
The University celebrated its 180th birthday on February 1. It also held festivities over the weekend for bear cubs Indy and Belle, who turned two years old on January 24 and 29, respectively.
