For the first time since 2005, Iowa State will get a chance to share the field with the perennial doormats of the Big 12, the Baylor Bears.

The winds are starting to change in Waco though, and under first year head coach Art Briles, Baylor has seen a vast improvement in the quality of their play.

The biggest change Briles has brought to Baylor is his emphasis of the running game. At 218 yards per game on the ground, the Bears rank second in the Big 12 in rushing yards per game.

Baylor only averaged 78 rushing yards per game last season and 40 the year before that.

The leader behind Baylor’s rushing attack is their true freshmen dual-threat quarterback Robert Griffin, who leads the team with 436 yards.

“He’s very fast and if he gets on the perimeter on the edge and if he has a step on you or is even with you, it will be hard to tackle him,” said ISU coach Gene Chizik.

Griffin unseated two experienced quarterbacks to take over the starting position. Baylor’s starting quarterback from last year, Blake Szymanski, will sit on the bench along with Miami, Fla., transfer Kirby Freeman.

Griffin came to Baylor as a one of the nation’s top high school sprinters. He received the 2007 Gatorade Texas Boys Track and Field Athlete of the Year award after setting state records in both the 110 and 300-meter hurdles.

“He has world class speed and it’s going to be a great test for us, and I think everybody is ready to go out there and see how fast he really is,” said defensive end Rashawn Parker.

In his first five collegiate football games, Griffin has also shown that he can throw the ball. He has passed for 831 yards and has seven touchdown passes and zero interceptions.

“Robert Griffin is extremely gifted, he’s extremely blessed. He’s a track guy but he’s also a very good young quarterback now,” Chizik said.

The Cyclones have had mixed results in their attempt to slow down dual-threat quarterbacks this year. They did a great job in holding UNLV’s Omar Clayton and Kansas’ Todd Reesing to under 50 rushing yards, but in their second game of the season, Kent State’s Julian Edelman slipped out of ISU defenders for 77 rushing yards on the day.

“We have some good scout team quarterbacks but I don’t think you can simulate an Olympian or All-American or whatever he is. You just got to hope you can contain him,” outside linebacker Fred Garrin said.

Griffin enrolled a semester early at Baylor so he could compete on the Baylor track team last spring. All he did was win the Big 12 in the 400-meter hurdles with the third-fastest time in school history.

Iowa State will face some fast quarterbacks this year but Griffin will easily be the fastest. If the Cyclones want to pull off their first road win in 13 tries, they will need to come up with a plan to stop Griffin’s running ability.

“[We will] keep four guys around him. We need to build a box around him and just be smart. We know that any time he can just take off and run,” Parker said.

Players to Watch

Joe Pawelek, linebacker, junior

Second-team all Big 12 his sophomore season after 99 tackles and three forced fumbles. Pawelek is one of four Big 12 linebackers who is one the Butkus Award watch list which is given to the country’s best linebacker. Lead’s the team with 61 tackles and two interceptions this year.

Jay Finley, running back, sophomore

Finley has rushed for 365 yards and three touchdowns in his first season as starter. More impressive is the fact that he’s averaging 7.4 yards per carry over the first five games of the season.

Jordan Lake, free safety, junior

Led the Bears with 120 tackles a year ago and is on the watch list for the Jim Thorpe award, which goes out to the country’s best defensive back. Lake has one interception and two pass break-ups this season.