WACO – Baylor left tackle Jason Smith figures you're not supposed to change who you are for anybody – not even mighty No. 1 Oklahoma.

"You don't change the shirt you wear for a different kind of girl," said Smith, a W.T. White graduate. "You wear what you wear and be you. We trained for this moment. ... We have our goals – and they're [the Sooners] in the way."

Ahem. The confidence under first-year coach Art Briles, backed-up by the considerable talents of freshman quarterback Robert Griffin, are all good signs in Waco.

Smith stopped short of guaranteeing an upset, but said: "This win we're going to get over OU would put us on the right track." But, there are some things that Smith and Baylor can't change.

Let's see, Baylor is 0-17 against the Sooners, the only Big 12 team the Bears haven't defeated. Baylor is 0-10-1 all-time against No. 1 teams with the tie coming against Texas back in 1941.

Baylor last lost to a No. 1 team, 41-3, at Oklahoma in 2003. Its last loss to a No. 1 team in Waco was also against OU, 56-7, in 2000.

Baylor has also lost 13 straight against ranked opponents and 12 straight against Big 12 opponents. It is almost a four-touchdown underdog today.

"You always want to do something you've never done before," defensive tackle Vincent Rhodes said. . "Oregon State did it to USC. Why can't Baylor do it to Oklahoma?"

And Rhodes pointed out: "When you get the ball in Robert's hands, anything can happen. And so far, everything has happened."

No doubt Briles enjoys hearing his players talk this way. One of his biggest missions at Baylor is to change the culture and mind-set of his players.

He said this week he embraces the challenge of playing the best, and the rest of the best, which continues to lie ahead in the Big 12 South.

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Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin rushes past Washington State defenders.

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Baylor had a bye last week but created buzz, by its standards at least, by playing well at Connecticut, now ranked No. 24 nationally, on Sept. 19 before falling, 31-28.

But this is the Sooners. This is quarterback Sam Bradford, running back DeMarco Murray and a punishing defense.

While Baylor has almost matched last season's rushing totals, OU allows just 73 rushing yards per game. It averages 49.8 points a game.

Briles likes what he sees in his offensive and defensive lines, but this will be their biggest challenge yet.

"Their rankings and all of that is going to be hyped up without us getting involved," Briles said. "What we are going to try to do is be a better football team than we were against Connecticut. We are going to get on our home turf and represent Baylor University. We've got our guys, our people, our university, so that is the way we are approaching the football game."

But isn't it a little early to be making history?

"On paper, we're at the bottom, and they're at the top," Smith said. "So, hey, where's the pressure? Opportunity is out there on the field."