HOUSTON, TX – SEPTEMBER 10: Houston Cougars head coach Tom Herman walks the sidelines as he coaches against the Lamar Cardinals in the second quarter at TDECU Stadium on September 10, 2016 in Houston, Texas. Houston won 42 to 0. (Photo by Thomas B. Shea/Getty Images)

Remember when Baylor was unbeaten and had a chance to win the Big 12? Neither do I.

Needless to say, it’s been a rough season in Waco on and off the field. Jim Grobe has done whatever he can to steady the rapidly sinking ship, but it’s been clear from the word go that he’s not the long term answer. According to 24/7 Sports, Baylor’s potential answers lie in state: Houston’s Tom Herman and SMU’s Chad Morris.

First on Herman, whose stock is sky high again after his Houston team throttled #5 Louisville. Baylor’s new AD Mack Rhoades hired Herman at Houston, so there is an obvious connection, even though Rhoades left quickly after hiring Herman for Missouri. Even with that, Baylor’s chances of landing Herman are still pretty long.

Here’s how Travis Haney on 24/7 puts it:

“Those close to Herman have said for a year that he is most intrigued by the possibility of Texas opening — but he is also said to be carefully monitoring the situations at LSU and Oregon. Baylor, however, is not yet ready to presume he’ll go to one of those top-tier schools, one source indicated Thursday.”

I’d love to go on a date with Bar Refaeli, and I’m not ready to presume yet that she’ll say no despite a host of better pursuers. But can’t a guy dream?

Since Herman is likely not going to jump at the first job offered to him, especially since LSU and Oregon will have vacancies and so might Texas, Baylor needs a plan B. Apparently that plan B is SMU’s Chad Morris, who is showing some progress in his second season with the Mustangs, which included beating Herman’s Houston earlier this season. Morris’ connections in the rich Texas recruiting field would certainly help his case, and there is still good backing for the program financially, but it’s hard to ignore the giant stain on the program that the many horrific off the field issues have caused.

Other names mentioned by 24/7 that are being sounded out included Cal’s Sonny Dykes, Syracuse’s Dino Babers, and Colorado’s Mike MacIntyre.

[24/7 Sports]

About Matt Lichtenstadter

Recent Maryland graduate. I've written for many sites including World Soccer Talk, GianlucaDiMarzio.com, Testudo Times, Yahoo's Puck Daddy Blog and more. Houndstooth is still cool, at least to me. Follow me @MattsMusings1 on Twitter, e-mail me about life and potential jobs at matthewaaron9 at Yahoo dot com.