Time to take that 83-mile trip down I-35 to visit the Baylor Bears. Along the way, don’t forget to stop in West (known as West Station back in the old days) for some kolaches and myriad other treats. Remember the pimento cheese sandwiches.

Our crew will be making its traditional stop at George’s in Waco for a pregame meal of their famous chicken fried steak. Am I making you hungry?

Speaking of hungry, we have a matchup of two hungry teams with stomachs (and coaching staffs) growling for a win. Baylor (6-1, 3-1) lost its first game of the year at Texas last week and the Frogs (4-4, 2-3) have hit a rough patch with losses in three of their last four. This game will be interesting for a number of reasons. Baylor, amid all the other things going on in Waco, has to bounce back from a loss, something it hasn’t had to do all year. What will the Bears’ response be?

TCU has to bounce back from a heart-twister of its own after last week’s double-overtime loss to Texas Tech. The Frogs still have not put together a complete game, and they have a great opportunity to do so on Saturday in Waco. The defense is playing better, relying on a deeper rotation of players to create pressure. The offense has struggled and needs a jump. The return of KaVontae Turpin will help. Last week, the kicking game, which had been cruising along nicely through the first seven games, threw a rod at a critical time. All three phases of the team need to come together on Saturday.

While a lot has changed in Waco over the last six months, one thing hasn’t. Baylor is loaded with talent, and the Bears are playing good football. The one surprise may be how well quarterback Seth Russell has recovered from his severe neck injury. He’s as good as ever and has run for 440 yards, including a 50-yard scoring jog through Austin last week before suffering a concussion.

Running seems to be a big theme for the Bears under acting head coach Jim Grobe. Baylor is averaging 299 yards-per-game by bear tracks, outrunning the air game by an average of 38 yards each game. Watch out for #32 Shock Linwood, now Baylor’s all-time rushing leader with 4,029 career yards. He’ll be playing in his 45th game as a Bear. Baylor uses a three-back rotation, so look for Terence Williams and JaMycal Hasty as well. Receivers are still the stars at Baylor. K. D. Cannon, #9, is a deep threat who can take over a game; he has six touchdowns on the year. Ishmael Zamora, #8, is a Josh Doctson-like 6-4 and 215 pounds, and he uses his size well, especially on hitch screens, which seem to be Baylor’s favorite play this year.

Defensively, former SMU head coach Phil Bennett still runs the show. His group is No. 1 in the Big 12 in scoring defense (19.7 points-per-game), total defense (353 yards-per-game) and pass defense, surrendering an average of just 179.4 yards. You’ll see mostly a 4-3 defensive look from Baylor, but they’ve been flipping to a 3-4 as well, trying to find the right fit for the personnel. Nose tackle #97 Ira Lewis anchors the defensive line, and #48 Travon Blanchard, who plays the Bears’ hybrid position, is the best player on the field. Linebacker Taylor Young, #1, is an undersized, Mike Singletary-type who never stops, and safety Orion Stewart, #28, is a crafty veteran who will shepherd the secondary in his 44th appearance.

On special teams, kicker Chris Callahan has struggled this year, hitting just eight of his 12 field goal attempts. He’s most famous for the hit he took a couple of years ago when his field goal attempt was blocked in the Cotton Bowl against Michigan State. Google it.

The Frogs are working to get bowl eligible, and the Bears are trying to stay in the race for the Big 12 Championship. The last two games have been wild, with the Frogs losing a 21-point lead in Waco in 2014 and then prevailing in double overtime last year in the cold rain in Fort Worth. This one will be no different — a long, wild battle on the Brazos River. You may need TWO chicken fried steaks.

And Happy Birthday to the late Walter Cronkite.   The iconic broadcaster, who was the narrator of my youth for CBS News, would have been 100 today. He had a great signature sign-off:  “… And that’s the way it is … Friday, November 4th 2016.”

Kick ‘Em High!