Baylor lands the cover of Dave Campbell's Texas Football for first time since 1975 (Photo)
Making the cover of Dave Campbell’s Texas Football magazine, which has been dubbed “The Bible of Texas Football,” is a huge deal in the state of Texas. The cover for the 2014 summer edition was revealed Friday afternoon, and for the first time since 1975, the Baylor Bears were the selected for the cover.
This was 39 years in the making. Baylor on cover of @dctf for first time since 1975. #SicEm pic.twitter.com/RyNmKnv1uR
— Baylor Football (@BUFootball) June 6, 2014
Coming off its first Big 12 title, the visibility of Baylor’s program under Art Briles has been on the rise. Landing on this cover, which features Briles, quarterback Bryce Petty and wide receiver Antwan Goodley standing in front of brand new McLane Stadium, is further proof of that.
Greg Tepper, the managing editor of the magazine, explained what made Baylor the obvious choice for the 55th edition of Texas Football.
“It was a slam-dunk pick for the cover this year,” Tepper said. “The cover of Texas Football always aspires to reflect the biggest story in the state that year, and there’s little doubt that the Bears are the biggest story in Texas. With the meteoric rise of the long-downtrodden program thanks in large part to consummate Texan Art Briles, plus a new stadium, Baylor is – for truly the first time – the football center of the Lone Star State.”
Tepper also revealed on Twitter that the photo shoot for the cover was the first time that Briles, Petty or Goodley had been inside the new $260 million stadium. Additionally, Tepper said that Briles, a lifetime resident of Texas, was "over the moon" about being on the cover.
4) Art Briles was absolutely over the moon about being on the cover. Said he’d rather be on DCTF than Sports Illustrated.
— Greg Tepper (@Tepper) June 6, 2014
5) The photo shoot was the first time Briles, Petty or Goodley had been in the new stadium. Some inside photos capture their reactions.
— Greg Tepper (@Tepper) June 6, 2014
Tepper tweeted that the cover was shot in “early April” and Baylor published an awesome behind-the-scenes look at the photo shoot inside McLane Stadium from May. Briles had told the Dallas Morning News in late May that he had not been inside the stadium yet, but I guess he had to tell a little white lie to protect the secrecy of the cover.
The magazine will hit stores across Texas on June 20.
For more Baylor news, visit SicEmSports.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
